The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 322 Betrothal
Luoyang, inside Zhaoyang Palace.

Empress Dowager Guo sat expressionlessly on the throne. It was still early, the time when the empress dowager was at her happiest.

Zheng Xiaotong sat aside respectfully, and there was a woman sitting opposite him.

Zheng Xiaotong's clan was extremely weak, and his family members all lived with him in Luoyang.

The Queen Mother didn't even spare a glance at her granddaughter.

Zheng Xiaotong's granddaughter didn't look very old, probably only a few years older than Cao Mao.

She inherited Zheng Xiaotong's figure, and was not as petite as Empress Dowager Guo. She was tall and big, a head taller than Empress Dowager Guo.

Her face was very pretty and she looked very clean. Facing the empress dowager, she did not seem to be restrained at all. Her eyes were bright and she looked around the furnishings in the hall freely, lively and bold.

This is a typical beauty of the Wei and Jin Dynasties.

Queen Mother Guo looked at Zheng Xiaotong and asked unhappily, "How come I didn't know about the betrothal?"

Zheng Xiaotong smiled bitterly, "I only found out about this yesterday."

"It was Minister Zhong Jun, Imperial Clan Minister Cao Yu, General Xiahou Xian, and others who came forward, and I have just come to pay my respects to the Queen Mother."

He was explaining to the Queen Mother that he didn't want to establish a relationship with the Queen Mother, but that it was those people in the temple who told him to do so, and he had no way to refuse.

When Empress Dowager Guo heard their names, her expression calmed down a little.

"Your Majesty's marriage is not something to be taken lightly. Is this your granddaughter?"

Empress Dowager Guo looked at the woman beside her with scrutiny in her eyes.

Zheng Xian met the empress dowager's gaze and showed no intention of retreating. Instead, she smiled.

"Queen Mother, that's right."

Empress Dowager Guo was immediately displeased. She did not like to share her power with others. This was different from Sima Yi. Since she was what all the ministers wanted, she must be the real queen.

She didn't want a strong queen to appear in the palace.

Whether from her appearance, temperament, or tone, this woman is definitely not a quiet and steady person.

Empress Dowager Guo just glanced at her and then looked at Zheng Xiaotong beside her.

"It seems that Duke Zheng is too busy with state affairs to pay much attention to family matters."

This is almost an insult to Zheng Xiaotong for having bad upbringing.

Zheng Xiaotong frowned slightly. He didn't like arguing, but he wasn't someone who would be easily bullied.

"Your Majesty, my granddaughter loves to read. She completed the Classic of Filial Piety when she was young. She is extremely filial to everyone in the family and has never been disrespectful."

Empress Dowager Guo saw that Zheng Xiaotong was a little angry, and quickly said, "I didn't mean to say anything bad about her."

Empress Dowager Guo was such a person, bullying the weak and fearing the strong.

Zheng Xiaotong said seriously: "This matter still needs your decision."

"Since I have already met you, I will take my leave!"

Zheng Xiaotong stood up, called his granddaughter and left. Empress Dowager Guo seemed to be hesitant to speak.

Only after Zheng Xiaotong left did she angrily curse, "You are also a master of the classics, how dare you be so rude?"

Mr. Guo was standing not far away. When he heard the Queen Mother's complaints, he couldn't help but complain.

You all know that it’s everyone, so why are you still talking about tutoring?
You can say that he has no talent, that he has no morals, or even that he is ugly, but you cannot criticize his family style and education. His grandfather is Zheng Xuan, and that is what he cares about most.

Empress Dowager Guo looked a little conflicted and said to Mr. Guo beside her, "Go and call His Majesty over."

Mr. Guo nodded and left in a hurry.

Zheng Xiaotong walked out of Zhaoyang Palace with his granddaughter. Zheng Xian secretly glanced at Zheng Xiaotong and asked, "Grandfather, am I in trouble?"

"No, once there's a conflict of interest, no matter how well you do, she won't be happy with you."

Zheng Xian finally spoke up, "Father, I don't really want to be the queen either."

"This seems like a good thing, but once things reach an extreme, new changes will occur. Who knows if this will bring huge trouble to my family?"

"Besides, I've never liked being controlled since I was a child. I don't like being in this palace and not being allowed to go out all day."

"Besides, I heard that the emperor is two years younger than me. I don't want to marry a child."

Just as Zheng Xian was expressing her thoughts, she suddenly encountered a group of people in the distance, marching towards Zhaoyang Palace in a mighty manner.

Zheng Xiaotong was shocked and quickly stopped and stood aside. Zheng Xian also followed his example and stood behind him.

"Duke Zheng."

A man walked out from the eunuchs and met Zheng Xiaotong with a smile.

Zheng Xiaotong hurriedly saluted, "Your Majesty!"

Zheng Xian was a little surprised and secretly looked up. This is the kid, huh?

I saw a handsome young man standing in front of my grandfather. He was very tall, almost as tall as my great-grandfather. His skin was very white and tender, like jade, with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, and he looked very heroic.

He stood before his grandfather, smiling, but he gave off a strong sense of oppression, a feeling of aloofness and arrogance. Zheng Xian was stunned.

Cao Mao helped Zheng Xiaotong up and said, "I already know about Zhong Shiji's affairs. He was very rude to you. Please rest assured that I will speak to him in a good way."

"Your Majesty, Mr. Zhong has no selfish motives, so there is no need to do this."

"No, how can I let him bully my important officials?"

Cao Mao's voice was a little low and magnetic. He talked with Zheng Xiaotong for a few more words, then said goodbye to him with a smile.

"Great Father, is this the Son of Heaven?"

Zheng Xian asked in astonishment.

Zheng Xiaotong nodded, "Yes, he is as capable in military affairs as Taizu, and as virtuous as Chen Si. It is truly a blessing for the people of Wei to have such an emperor."

Zheng Xian's beautiful eyebrows suddenly twisted together, "Grandfather, am I wearing the wrong clothes today?"

"Ok?"

"Your Majesty, why didn't you even look at me? Am I really that ugly?"

"I'm not optimistic. Didn't you just say that? Who knows if a good thing will turn into a bad thing?"

Zheng Xian looked in the direction where the young man left with some reluctance, and then followed her grandfather away.

Men in the Wei and Jin dynasties ignored etiquette, and so did women. After the power of etiquette was weakened, women in the Wei and Jin dynasties began to become particularly bold, lively, and confident.

Wang Rong's wife liked to address him as "Qing", which was originally the way men addressed their wives.

Wang Rong said to his wife: Don’t call me like that anymore, I should call you like that!

His wife said: I love you so much that I love you dearly. If I don’t love you dearly, who will?
Wang Rong was speechless.

There was also Wang Hun, who was sitting with his wife, Mrs. Zhong, when they saw their son Wang Wuzi passing by the courtyard.

Wang Hun said to his wife happily, "Having such a son is enough to satisfy me."

Mrs. Zhong smiled and said, "If I could marry your brother, I'd definitely have more sons than you have now!"

In an era of strict etiquette and laws, this sentence alone was enough to kill people.

When Cao Mao arrived in front of Zhaoyang Palace, Mr. Guo hurried out. He was about to look for Cao Mao, but unexpectedly, the other party arrived early.

When Cao Mao walked into Zhaoyang Palace, Empress Dowager Guo hurriedly stood up to greet him.

"My son is here!"

Cao Mao paid his respects to the Queen Mother and then sat down beside her.

"My son, I've seen that the daughter of the Zheng family is definitely not a good match for you. I think we should give this matter more consideration!"

Cao Mao was a little hesitant at first, but after hearing what Queen Mother Guo said, he had an idea in his mind. Since the Queen Mother said that she was not a good match, then this woman might really be a good one.

He trusted the Queen Mother's judgment too much. Just look at the people the Queen Mother trusted and thought were very good.

If the Queen Mother said that this girl was very good, Cao Mao would be hesitant to make a decision.

Cao Mao didn't care much about these things. His great-grandfather had personally demonstrated the consequences of caring too much about women, and so had Emperor Ming.

If your great-grandfather died young, you could attribute it to poor health, but what about the people of your father’s generation?
Why do they die young? Is it also because of poor health?

No, mostly due to indulgence.

Cao Mao now has too many things to deal with, and the workload has reached an astonishing level. The workload Cao Mao has done in recent days alone can tire out three generals.

Cao Mao is racing against time. Given the current situation, the longer it drags on, the stronger the aristocratic families will become.

They have accumulated for countless years, and now it is time for them to explode. It may take a long time from childhood to youth, but it is different from youth to middle age. Perhaps just one setback or one victory can make young people reach their peak. After all, they already have the necessary strength, and what they lack is only experience.

If we don't take advantage of this opportunity to suppress the aristocratic families and force them to send away another emperor, the problem will be unsolvable and the era of aristocratic families will eventually come.

The choice of the queen is equally important. Cao Mao does not want to do something like ordering the queen to be executed.

He also didn't want to create an enemy for himself, so he needed a helper who could slightly suppress the harem so that he could focus on the outside world without having to rush around with internal and external affairs all day.

Zheng Xiaotong is indeed a good person. He has a great reputation and although he is not very powerful, he does not have to worry about the influence of his foreign relatives.

Pei Xiu was right. We cannot always wait until the ministers start to make trouble before trying to quell the situation. We must shut them up in advance.

Cao Mao immediately looked at the Queen Mother and said, "Mother, this is what the ministers think. I can't say much. Why don't you let her enter the harem first and see what kind of person she is. There's no need to rush to get the position of Queen."

"Now that I have taken charge of the government, but have no empress, this will be a huge hidden danger. What do you think?"

Although Cao Mao still spoke in a negotiating tone, his aura was extremely strong.

Empress Dowager Guo was stunned for a moment, and could only say helplessly: "This is also possible."

Cao Mao nodded and said, "Okay, then let's handle this matter together with the succession issue. There's no need to rush. Let's set it for the day after tomorrow!"

"Oh, okay. I'll do as you say."

(End of this chapter)