Poet Immortal, Poet Sage, Duke of the State!

As the Emperor of Da Ning finished speaking, a brief silence fell over the Imperial Study.

Upon hearing that her father intended to bestow a marriage upon her, Princess Zhaoyue blushed even more deeply. However, after pondering for a long time, she still shook her head and said, "I beg Father to rescind his decree."

The Emperor of Da Ning looked surprised and asked, "What's wrong? Don't you like him?"

Princess Zhaoyue did not answer.

He was handsome and talented. He saved the court from danger and also brought her out of the fire. How could she not like him?

Because she loves him, she is unwilling to force him to do things he doesn't like.

Princess Zhaoyue shook her head slightly and said, "Qingshuang subtly asked him about it just now, and he said he didn't want to be an official or a prince consort. He said being a prince consort has no dignity, and a real man should rely on himself..."

Upon hearing this, the Emperor of Da Ning was not angry at all. Instead, he showed an expression of appreciation and nodded, saying, "That does sound like something he would say. A person without backbone could not write poetry like his. Talented people usually have pride..."

He then changed the subject, saying, "However, he and you were already engaged. It was only right and proper for me to issue an imperial decree to grant you this marriage. Would he dare to disobey such an imperial decree?"

Princess Zhaoyue shook her head decisively and said, "Your subject hopes that he marries you because he loves you, not because of a marriage contract or an imperial decree. If you force him to become your consort, he will not be happy, and neither will I. I beg Your Majesty to grant my request..."

After saying that, she let out a long sigh of relief.

She hoped that he would like Gong Yue, rather than being forced to become the consort of Princess Zhaoyue of Daning.

The Emperor of Da Ning stared intently at her. He knew Zhao Yue's personality, so he hadn't told him Chen Chang'an's identity at first.

Her choice at this moment was exactly what he expected.

After a long pause, he nodded and said, "It's your decision..."

……

Beijing.

South Street.

The Qing Shuang Lu (a type of liquor) became incredibly popular, and Chen Chang'an accumulated a considerable fortune. Although he was still some distance from buying the mansion of his dreams, he no longer had to live in a cramped courtyard.

He spent a day exploring the area around South Street and rented a new house.

According to the Naya people, this house used to belong to a high-ranking official from the capital.

Last month, this official was transferred to another place with his family, leaving the house vacant. The monthly rent is twenty taels.

The new house is only a five-minute walk from Qingshuangfang. It is not very large, with two courtyards and two exits, which is more than enough to accommodate Chen Chang'an and a few maids.

Today, Chen Chang'an is moving to a new residence, and Miss Qing Shuang and Princess Zhao Yue arrived early.

Princess Zhaoyue handed a stack of silver notes to Chen Chang'an and said, "I eat and live at home and don't have any other expenses, so there's no use for these silver notes. You keep them and invest them in the workshop first..."

Knowing that Miss Gong Yue was a woman of her word, Chen Chang'an didn't argue with her. He accepted the silver note, intending to include it in the profit sharing later.

Qing Shuang also took out a stack of silver notes from her bosom and stuffed them into Chen Chang'an's hand, saying, "Then you can keep these silver notes. Anyway, I won't spend that much. Use them all on our fragrant dew..."

Chen Chang'an also accepted Qing Shuang's silver notes. He had only met two such business partners in his two lifetimes.

To celebrate moving to his new home and the success of Qing Shuang Lu, Chen Chang'an prepared a lot of ingredients and planned to cook for himself.

Qing Shuang was already his personal kitchen maid, and today Miss Gong Yue also wore an apron to help Chen Chang'an prepare and serve dishes. The three of them worked in the kitchen for most of the hour, and a full table of delicious dishes was laid out on the table.

Chen Chang'an thoroughly enjoyed this belated victory celebration.

The success of Qing Shuanglu was his first step in this world, bringing him one step closer to his dream of having beautiful wives, concubines, and a grand mansion...

Qing Shuang ate a few pieces of pork ribs and drank a large bowl of soup. Turning to Chen Chang'an, she suddenly asked, "Chen Chang'an, you don't even want to marry a princess, so what kind of girl do you like?"

Chen Chang'an glanced at her and asked, "Why are you asking this?"

"Just curious..."

Qing Shuang rolled her eyes at him and said, "There are no outsiders here, unless... you don't consider us friends."

Chen Chang'an smiled and said, "Let me think... I like someone who is well-educated, gentle, and has a curvaceous figure..."

Qing Shuang subconsciously glanced at Princess Zhao Yue beside her...

Well-educated, gentle, and with a curvaceous figure... isn't this the princess?

Princess Zhaoyue lowered her head and picked up a piece of food with her chopsticks, her expression unchanged, but the corners of her mouth involuntarily curled up slightly.

As Qing Shuang was pondering this, she suddenly realized something.

She is well-educated, gentle, and charming, with a curvaceous figure...

The princess meets every single one of these criteria, but each one contradicts her own personality...

She put her hands on her hips, glared at Chen Chang'an, and said with displeasure, "What do you mean? Are you targeting me?"

Chen Chang'an had just taken a sip of soup and almost spat it out.

He swore that he truly had no intention of targeting Qing Shuang; it was just a coincidence that he accidentally injured her…

He put down his chopsticks and explained with a smile, "I was just talking about the girl I like, not that you're bad. Although you're not well-mannered, gentle, or curvy, you're loyal. Having a friend like you is a blessing for me, Chen Chang'an..."

Although there was something strange about what he said, Qing Shuang's lips still curled up slightly when she heard Chen Chang'an say that she was loyal.

For sons of military families, loyalty is the most important thing!

She gave a light snort and said, "It's alright, you're quite loyal. That time Chen Wenjing gave me trouble, you even disguised yourself as a maid to help me... um..."

Before she could finish speaking, Chen Chang'an stuffed a chicken leg into her mouth.

That's Chen Chang'an's dark history. Gong Yue is still here; Chen Chang'an still wants to save face for her...

To be honest, Gongyue was exactly his ideal type.

She is well-educated, gentle, and charming, with a curvaceous figure... She meets all these criteria and is the type of mature woman that Chen Chang'an likes.

Qing Shuang is loyal and a good fighter. Being around her makes you feel very safe, and she's a great friend. But Chen Chang'an can't bring himself to have any other feelings for her.

Miss Gongyue is different; she always speaks softly and gently, and is kind and sensible, easily arousing a man's protective instincts...

Chen Chang'an subconsciously looked at Gong Yue and found that she was also looking at him.

The two looked at each other, and Princess Zhaoyue blushed slightly before lowering her head and eating her meal in small bites.

Chen Chang'an looked at Qing Shuang again, who rolled her eyes at him and said irritably while eating, "Why are you looking at me? Is there something on my face?"