Chapter 66 - 66 Agree
66 Agree
Yuan Zhe was the first to move.
This time, he picked up the flagon and refilled Chu You and his wine glass.
Then, he put down the white porcelain wine pot, held the cup respectfully with both hands to Chu You, and downed the wine in one gulp.
He toasted Chu You with this glass of wine.
Yuan Zhe did not need to say anything else for Chu You to immediately understand his meaning.
Chu You finally heaved a sigh of relief. He held the cup in one hand and toasted Yuan Zhe before drinking the wine in one gulp, his every move bold and unrestrained.
Yuan Zhe filled their glasses again before saying, “Your Highness, leave this matter to me.”
He was not only talking about convincing the aristocratic families in the imperial court, but also convincing Empress Dowager Yuan.
“Then I’ll entrust this matter to you.” Chu You’s eyes were instantly filled with joy. He was no longer as violent and gloomy as before and looked energetic.
Meeting Chu You’s burning and bright eyes, Yuan Zhe felt a little complicated. A strange glint flashed across his eyes.
After thinking for a moment, Yuan Zhe still chose his words carefully to remind him. “Your Highness, you have to think carefully. The Third Lady of the Gu family can’t help you with anything, so…”
He paused for a moment and fixed his firm gaze on Chu You’s face, then continued clearly. “If Your Highness doesn’t want to marry her as your main consort, you have to marry a daughter from an aristocratic family as your secondary consort.”
Chu You was speechless.
His expression instantly changed and tensed up.
Yuan Zhe continued saying, “Your Highness, this is my condition.”
Yuan Zhe rarely told Chu You what condition he had, which clearly showed his businesslike attitude.
Chu You did not say a word. His thin lips pursed into a straight line, and his hands on his knees clenched tightly, trying to suppress the dissatisfaction churning in his heart.
There was dead silence in the booth and the atmosphere was stiff as the silence spread. The air gradually froze, as if a storm was brewing.
Yuan Zhe met Chu You’s cold and hard gaze without avoiding it. His face still maintained his persistence as he advised kindly, “Your Highness, you need an aristocratic family.”
He was not exaggerating, nor was he threatening Kang Wang. The truth was that Kang Wang indeed needed an aristocratic family to back him up.
Chu You drank silently, his body still like a taut bowstring.
Yuan Zhe observed the change in Chu You’s expression and continued logically, “Your Highness, although my Yuan family currently has some influence on the other aristocratic families, the reason why aristocratic families are aristocratic families is because they are noble and unyielding. If you want the aristocratic families to be willing to sacrifice their lives for you, Your Highness, you can’t treat them as servants.”
“The daughter of an aristocratic family from a noble background will surely feel aggrieved to be a concubine. Your Highness, you have to let the aristocratic family see your sincerity.”
Yuan Zhe spoke in one breath. In the end, he added earnestly, “Your Highness, the Emperor never rules the world alone.”
His unfinished words were that the world had always been governed by the Emperor and his subjects.
If Kang Wang wanted to rule the world, he had to rely on these aristocratic families. In the future, if he wanted to rule the world, he also had to rely on these aristocratic families. The Emperor and the aristocratic families relied on each other.
After that, Yuan Zhe stopped talking and just looked at Chu You steadily.
Chu You also did not speak for a long time and the surroundings were silent.
After an unknown period of time, Chu You finally nodded with difficulty.
Yuan Zhe was relieved. He had been afraid that Kang Wang would be stubborn and love the beauties more than the country. As long as Kang Wang had the big picture in his heart, he could rest assured and have enough confidence to persuade the Empress Dowager.
Chu You bowed to Yuan Zhe. “I’ll have to trouble you, my cousin.”
“Not at all!” Yuan Zhe stood up and bowed solemnly to Chu You.
Chu You stood up and stroked his sleeve. “Cousin, I still have something on, so I’ll leave first.”
“Take care, Your Highness.” Yuan Zhe bowed and sent Chu You off. He could roughly guess where Chu You was going, but he did not say anything.
As Yuan Zhe had expected, after Chu You left the restaurant, he rode straight to the Dingyuan Marquis Household. His handsome face was anxious, expectant, happy, and a little uneasy.
He spurred his horse and galloped all the way through a few bustling streets. In less than ten minutes, he arrived at the Dingyuan Marquis Household.
The eunuch knocked on the corner door of the Marquis Mansion. Without waiting for the doorkeeper to report his arrival, Chu You rudely pushed open the door and barged in aggressively.
Chu You had been to the Marquis Mansion before, so the gatekeeper naturally recognized the dignified Kang Wang. He did not dare to stop him forcefully and only chased after Chu You from behind. “Your Highness Kang Wang!”
Chu You pretended not to hear him and strode forward. His figure was as straight as a sword, and he had an unstoppable aura.
Along the way, some servants of the Marquis Mansion came over, but these servants also did not dare to stop the dignified Kang Wang.
Chu You arrived at the main hall without any obstruction.
He immediately saw Gu Yunrong in red. Her face was lowered and she stood with her knees bent. Her porcelain skin had lost its usual vigor, and her eyes were filled with suppressed grievance and unwillingness.
Beside Gu Yunrong was the British Duchess, Madam Yu. At this moment, Madam Yu was picking up a hairpin from the tray held by a maidservant and slowly inserting it into Gu Yunrong’s bun…
Chu You looked as if he had been slapped. His face instantly turned ashen, and he released a sinister pressure.
He rushed into the hall like a gust of wind. The low cries of maidservants and old women rose and fell around him, but Chu You did not care. He rushed to Gu Yunrong’s side with a clear goal.
“Slam!”
Chu You raised his arm and slapped down, knocking over the red-painted wooden tray in the maidservant’s hand.
The corner of the tray struck the back of the British Duchess’ hand as the hairpin and the tray both fell to the ground with a clang.
The pearls on the hairpin scattered, and pearls the size of rice grains rolled to the ground.
“Rong’er!” Chu You reached out his other hand at lightning speed. His thick palm grabbed Gu Yunrong’s wrist and he pulled her to his side.
The moment Gu Yunrong saw Chu You, her originally dim eyes bloomed with a dazzling light like a morning star. Her cherry lips moved slightly and she called out, “Your Highness.”
Her voice was husky and restrained, but her slightly moist pupils seemed to contain a thousand words.
It was as if an invisible knife had stabbed deeply into Chu You’s heart and was being pulled out again.
He could not believe that if he had come any later, Gu Yunrong and Fang Mingfeng’s marriage might have been decided… He could have lost her!
Just thinking about this possibility made Chu You want to die.
Fortunately, he arrived in time! Fortunately, he did not lose Rong’er!
In the hall, Madam Gu, the British Duchess, and the matchmaker watched this scene with different expressions. The atmosphere was awkward and stiff. Kang Wang’s actions were tantamount to slapping the British Monarchy’s face in public.
Outside the hall, pairs of curious eyes watched the commotion inside. One of the eyes belonged to Juan Bi.
If Juan Bi knew, it meant that Gu Yanfei also knew.
“My Lady, it’s a pity that you didn’t see it with your own eyes. At that time, Kang Wang rushed in like a crazy bull and damaged that good hairpin. That’s a hairpin from Jinyu!”
“Kang Wang held the Third Lady’s hand and swore to Madam Gu that if she would give him three more days, he would definitely come back to propose marriage in style.”
“The Third Lady was so touched that her eyes turned red.”
Juan Bi talked nonstop and gestured with her hands and feet as she spoke. When she reached the point of interest, she clapped happily.
Gu Yanfei sat leisurely by the window with her back against the back of the chair. She listened absent-mindedly, playing with the phoenix-patterned jade pendant in her hand.
The jade pendant was smooth and cold to the touch.
Gu Yanfei gently rubbed the jade pendant with the finger of her right thumb. She focused on mobilizing the spiritual energy in her body and slowly guided the spiritual energy in the jade pendant into her body through the pores on her finger.
Warm spiritual energy slowly flowed through the veins of her body…