I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 16 Getting what you want

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Seeing that Zhao Ya was keeping his word and really wanted to marry them as princesses and not lie to them, Zheng Xiansu and Wang Yisu were overjoyed!

For a woman from a poor family, marrying a prince and becoming his princess is like reaching heaven in one step.

This means that they will enjoy wealth and glory for the rest of their lives, and their family will be able to break free from the shackles of poverty and hold their heads high.

It also means that they will completely break away from the fate of serving others and become noble beings who are in charge of the household affairs of the palace and serve as mothers of the family.

In short, as long as they agree to the Queen Mother's marriage, they will truly become phoenixes.

Wang Yisu secretly glanced at Empress Dowager Xiang, while Zheng Xiansu was still pretending to be calm.

Ma Xiaojiao and Yuan Qingcheng were indifferent to this matter. They were not Zhang Chun, and had no idea how much impact today's incident had on them.

Empress Dowager Xiang never expected that Zhao Ya came to see her this time not to discuss how to deal with Liu Qingjing, or how to respond to the revenge that Liu Qingjing and the New Party might be brewing, but to... marry a wife?!

To be honest, Empress Dowager Xiang was very disappointed!

Empress Dowager Xiang was confident that after this incident, Zhao Ya would change his previous attitude of turning a deaf ear to the world outside and only caring about his own happy life, and instead start to devote himself to the Zhao Song Dynasty and to her, his biological mother.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Ya was focused on love affairs.

"After all, it's of no use!"

However, Empress Dowager Xiang changed her mind and realized that under the royal family management system of the Zhao Song Dynasty, there was indeed very little that an idle prince could do. They were not even as powerful as the women in the harem. After all, the women in the harem could participate in the politics of the Zhao Song Dynasty by influencing the emperor.

Moreover, Zhao Ya is already sixteen years old and has fully developed. It is time for him to get married and continue the Zhao family line.

Then she thought of Zhao Ya who saved her.

Empress Dowager Xiang put away her disappointment and said, "It's good to get married. That way you can have someone to help you manage the palace and you won't have to worry about anything."

Then he took the initiative to speak to the Queen Mother, "Ever since Prince Shen and Prince Duan got married, I have been looking for a good match for you. Guo Ting, the only daughter of Guo Cheng, the Minister of Envoys, the Defense Commissioner of Xiongzhou, the Military Commander of Jingyuan Road, and the Eleventh General, has a noble ancestry, is virtuous, and has a dignified appearance. I am considering betrothing her to you. What do you think?"

Zheng Xiansu clutched the corner of her clothes tightly, trying to maintain her outward calm, but her slightly trembling fingertips still revealed her inner nervousness and anxiety at the moment.

Wang Yisu also looked at Zhao Ya with a worried look on his face, fearing that Zhao Ya would suddenly change his mind and marry Guo Ting instead.

Zhao Ya did not let Zheng Xiansu and Wang Yisu's worries come true. He refused directly, saying, "Your Majesty, you have taken the trouble to choose a husband for me. I am very grateful. However, I already have someone I like. I hope Your Majesty will grant me the marriage."

Hearing Zhao Ya say what they wanted to hear, Zheng Xiansu raised his head slightly, his eyes full of gratitude and affection for Zhao Ya; Wang Yisu also breathed a sigh of relief, with a hint of joy and expectation on his face!

Empress Dowager Xiang frowned!

Marriage in this era is based on the parents' orders.

Royal marriages took the principle of "parents' orders" to the extreme and incorporated many political considerations.

It can be said that one of the responsibilities of being a member of the royal family is to use one's marriage to help the royal family consolidate imperial power, balance forces and form alliances.

When it comes to the marriage of a prince, the princess is often chosen based on factors such as the family power of the ministers in the court and the stability of the border.

For example, Empress Dowager Xiang wanted Zhao Ya to marry Guo Ting.

She was born into the Guo family military group of the Northwest Deshun Army and is a descendant of Guo Ziyi, a famous general of the Tang Dynasty.

At the beginning, when the Zhao Song Dynasty was first established, Zhao Kuangyin specifically sought out descendants of Guo Ziyi to serve in the government.

His family did not disappoint Zhao Kuangyin's appreciation. Several generations of his family served as generals, were loyal to the emperor and patriotic, and made great contributions in foreign wars.

Like Guo Ting's father Guo Cheng, not long ago, he led his troops to defend Pingxia City and defeated the Xia army, making his name famous in the western border.

If Zhao Ya married Guo Ting, the Guo military group would be further tied to the Zhao family.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Ya didn't want to marry Guo Ting, but wanted to marry someone else. If Zhao Ya hadn't just saved the Queen Mother Xiang, which made the Queen Mother Xiang have a great change in her attitude towards Zhao Ya and tolerate him, the Queen Mother Xiang would definitely say: "Nonsense! Marriage is such an important matter, how can you be allowed to decide it privately?"

Now, Empress Dowager Xiang hesitated for a moment, but still patiently asked, "Which girl do you like?"

Zheng Xiansu and Wang Yisu's hearts instantly rose to their throats, fearing that they would fail at the last moment!
Perhaps sensing the nervousness of Zheng Xiansu and Wang Yisu, Zhao Ya didn't waste any words but bowed directly and said, "Your son wishes to marry Zheng Yaban and Wang Yaban as princesses. I hope the Queen Mother will grant your blessing."

"Yaban Zheng? Yaban Wang?"

Empress Dowager Xiang was a little confused for a moment. Who did Zhao Ya want to marry?

It was not until the corner of her eye caught sight of Zheng Xiansu, who was standing beside her with a shy look on his face, almost burying his face in his chest, that Empress Dowager Xiang suddenly realized what was going on.

"Prince Shen has good taste. This girl is born with a smart face, and her eyes and eyebrows reveal a sense of intelligence. She has served me for a long time and is very thorough. She is smart and considerate of the overall situation. She is quite outstanding among all the maids. However, she comes from a humble family and does not meet the requirements of marriage."

Empress Dowager Xiang then looked at Wang Yisu, who was also feeling embarrassed. "This girl is good too, like a lotus flower emerging from the water, well-behaved and sensible, not jealous or demanding. However, she also comes from a poor family, so she doesn't fit the marriage..."

Thinking of this, Empress Dowager Xiang suddenly realized: "Oh! Prince Shen is not ignorant of the art of marriage. He clearly doesn't want to marry into the Guo family, but wants to marry into me!"

Before, in order to demonstrate her selflessness, whether Zhao Xu took a concubine or Zhao Qi and Zhao Ji took wives, Empress Dowager Xiang ordered her natal family, the Xiang clan, not to allow their daughters to participate in the selection.

The words have already been spoken to the Empress Dowager, how can they be taken back?

In this way, it would be almost impossible for Zhao Ya to marry Xiang's daughter and be deeply bound to Empress Dowager Xiang.

Moreover, to avoid criticism, when her clan members wanted to use this precedent to exchange favors for positions, or to seek imperial appointments for their chosen ones, Empress Dowager Xiang not only refused to help but also intervened, stating publicly: "My clan has never used this precedent. Why should we use personal feelings to interfere with public law?"

This led to the fact that the relationship between Empress Dowager Xiang and the Xiang family was actually not good.

Therefore, even if Zhao Ya married a daughter of the Xiang family, he would not be able to be deeply bound to Empress Dowager Xiang.

But if Zhao Ya married Zheng Xiansu and Wang Yisu, who were almost equivalent to Empress Dowager Xiang's adopted daughters, he could perfectly avoid the rules set by Empress Dowager Xiang and be deeply bound to her.

It was not until then that Empress Dowager Xiang realized that Zhao Ya was not a brainless man at all, but a political master, or at least he had a master behind him.

Empress Dowager Xiang's disappointment in Zhao Ya was instantly swept away!!!

At this time of needing people, Empress Dowager Xiang was not afraid that Zhao Ya, who wanted to be tied to her, was powerful, but she was afraid that Zhao Ya was a bad teammate who not only could not help her but also would implicate her.

As for her own image? Putting aside the fact that Zhao Ya only wanted to marry her maid, not her clansman, it wouldn't affect her image at all. Just to put it another way, now that she was about to come face to face with Liu Qingjing, how could she care about these things?
Also, Empress Dowager Xiang really wants to prove to the world that she is not a lonely and helpless old lady. She has a filial son. Anyone who wants to bully her should think twice.

It can be said that Zhao Ya found the right time and his excuse was impeccable!

At this moment, Empress Dowager Xiang liked Zhao Ya more and more.

After a long while, Empress Dowager Xiang confirmed with Zhao Ya with a smile on her face: "Are you really going to marry these two girls of mine?"

Zhao Ya said firmly: "I will marry no one but these two."

He laughed heartily at the Queen Mother.

Seeing Zhao Ya's determination, Zheng Xiansu, who finally got what he wanted, was moved and sweet. The shyness on his face became even more intense, and the blush was as gorgeous as the clouds in the sky.

Wang Yisu is no different.

Seeing Zheng Xiansu and Wang Yisu's shy expressions, the Queen Mother smiled and asked them, "You two have heard that Prince Shen wants to marry you as his princesses. What do you think?"

Zheng Xiansu said shyly, "I will obey the Queen Mother's orders."

Wang Yisu said in a tone even more shy than Zheng Xiansu: "I will obey the Queen Mother and my sister."

Ma Xiaojiao and Yuan Qingcheng, who were standing behind Empress Dowager Xiang, were stunned and puzzled: "Weren't they supposed to marry Zhao Ji? Why did they end up marrying Zhao Ya?"

……

(End of this chapter)