Chapter 57: An Imperial Edict for Marriage to the Prince of Changgan

Chapter 57: An Imperial Edict for Marriage to the Prince of Changgan

After exchanging a few words, the First Prince's gaze fell upon Zheng Jinyu.

"This must be the child from the Zheng family who was raised in the countryside, right?"

Zheng Jinyu smiled and nodded. "Your Highness, due to some special circumstances, this commoner did indeed grow up in the countryside."

"Oh, then you certainly don't look like a country bumpkin."

Zheng Jinyu: "..." Has her persona as a country bumpkin already permeated the imperial palace?

"Yesterday, my elder aunt paid a visit to the palace and requested an imperial edict from Father Emperor for a royal marriage."

Zheng Jinyu's expression froze.

The First Prince looked at her, a profound smile playing on his lips. "It's sealed, the contents are written, but the name of the one bestowing the marriage is still blank."

Ah?

"Can an imperial edict without a name be given to just anyone?"

"Certainly. The 'person' you mentioned is the Eldest Imperial Princess. Father Emperor has always doted on her. He'd even give her a blank imperial edict with his seal on it."

Is that true?

The original novel was a story of family strife where the emperor and his family were detached figures with limited roles. She hadn't realized that the emperor had such trust in the Eldest Imperial Princess, to the point of giving her a sealed blank edict.

Zheng Jinyu remained silent. These people were outliers in the storyline for her, making her feel insecure.

Moreover, her intuition was sharp. She felt that they were deliberately saying certain things for her benefit.

Not far away, Zheng Jinxiu was seething with envy. Wang Fuzhen was also fueling the fire with her sarcastic remarks.

"You really have a talented bumpkin at home. She's won your parents' favor right off the bat and even moved in high society circles. On what grounds? How does she, a country bumpkin, have the right to joke and laugh with a princess, the crown prince, and Prince Chen?"

Zheng Jinxiu bit her lip and lifted her dress as she stepped forward.

Wang Fuzhen hurriedly said, "Wait for me. I'll go too."

Zheng Jinxiu forcefully inserted herself into the circle, using the pretense of conversing with Zheng Jinyu. First, she brought Wang Fuzhen along to pay their respects and greet everyone. Then, turning to Zheng Jinyu with a smile, she said, "Sister, in the next round, Second Brother and Third Brother will be performing. Let's cheer them on together."

Zheng Jinyu sneered, showing no intention of giving her any respect. "There's no need, really. Second Brother and Third Brother originally didn't want me here, but I insisted on coming. I'm actually worried they'll blame me."

Zheng Jinxiu's expression froze.

Princess Gao Mingxu, curious, asked, "Why is that?"

Just as Zheng Jinyu was about to explain, Zheng Jinxiu quickly interjected. "They were worried that Sister might not understand and would find it dull."

Wang Fuzhen had already heard this explanation from Zheng Jinxiu, who had told her that Zheng Hongxu disliked Zheng Jinyu because she had taken over his courtyard. Thus, he didn't want to bring her along. Now, fearing that Zheng Jinyu would reveal the true reason, she chimed in to support Zheng Jinxiu's version.

"Indeed, this younger sister was raised in the countryside where they don't rear horses. They only have cows and donkeys, so no one plays polo there. They were worried she wouldn't understand and get bored, hence they didn't bring her along. Yet, the princess invited her here to keep her company."

Wang Fuzhen believed herself to be clever, but Zheng Jinyu refused to let her have her way, directly exposing her lie.

"Second Brother and Third Brother said they could only take care of Sister Jinxiu, and with me, they'd be overwhelmed. That's why they didn't allow me to come along."

Upon hearing this, Zheng Jinyu and Wang Fuzhen's expressions turned grim.

The First Prince burst into laughter. "Oh dear, your excuse was exposed right on the spot. How embarrassing!"

"W-You..." Wang Fuzhen's eyes reddened with anger. Blushing with humiliation, she stomped away.

Zheng Jinxiu also felt deeply embarrassed. She looked at Zheng Jinyu with resentment and said, "Sister, you and Third Brother do have some misunderstandings, but they're our family matters. In front of outsiders, you should at least give him some face. If you behave like this, he'll never like you even more."

After saying that, she sighed in disappointment and chased after Wang Fuzhen.

Zheng Jinyu scoffed. I owe you nothing. If you all don't give me face, why should I give it to you?

Xie Peiyu's expression fluctuated unpredictably.

The princess sipped her tea with a smile, seemingly enjoying the spectacle.

Only the First Prince, still a young lad, laughed heartily without a care.

"Hey, aren't you on bad terms with your elder siblings? Do they gang up on you?" Zheng Jinyu thought to herself that the First Prince wasn't much better.

Didn't he see it clearly? Yet, he still had to ask and throw embarrassment at her.

"I suppose so," she replied coolly.

The First Prince laughed again. "You don't seem like the type who'd let others bully you easily."

"That's not certain. There are many of them."

"It's not about numbers. Take, for instance, those favored concubines in the palace, they often have to face... "

"Cough, cough." The princess's light coughs interrupted the crown prince's words.

Realizing he had spoken out of turn, he covered his mouth and found an excuse to leave.

The princess reassured, "Don't mind the crown prince; he's just a child and doesn't know better."

Jinyu smiled. "It's alright, I'm only a year older than him."

The next match began, and this time, Xie Peiyu was not participating. He sat in the stands as an observer.

Feeling awkward, Jinyu watched the field silently. She had some basic knowledge about polo but wasn't an expert. Thus, she simply enjoyed the spectacle.

Occasionally, she overheard conversations between Xie Peiyu and the princess, but didn't join in.

When the game ended, she noticed Zheng Hongxu and Zheng Hongqi approach Zheng Jinxiu for water and to wipe their sweat. Wang Fuzhen seemed to have said something to them, causing the two to glance angrily in Jinyu's direction.

Xie Peiyu's gaze shifted to meet theirs. They quickly averted their eyes and started whispering comforting words to Zheng Jinxiu.

Zheng Jinxiu even took out a handkerchief to wipe her tears.

Xie Peiyu whispered, "Looking at this, you'll be bullied again when you return."

How could Zheng Jinyu detect a hint of schadenfreude in his tone?

Beside them, the concerned princess asked, "Second Miss, are they really ostracizing you?"

After all, it was a matter concerning the Zheng family, so Zheng Jinyu didn't speak too harshly.

He simply replied, "It's nothing. Second Brother and Third Brother can't accept the sudden addition of me in the family. They're worried that my presence might affect how Father and Mother treat Zheng Jinxiu, so they pay her more attention."

The princess sighed and said, "You can't blame yourself for this. How could it be your fault? They really shouldn't behave like that."

Zheng Jinyu remained silent.

Xie Peiyu, standing nearby, spoke up, "Anyway, you won't be living with the Zhengs for long, and your future doesn't depend on them. If they don't like you as a sister, then you just won't associate with them in the future."

Zheng Jinyu: "..." Is it appropriate for an outsider like you to say that? You truly don't see yourself as one.

After several polo matches today, Xie Peiyu emerged victorious in all except for the one against the Crown Prince.

Amidst a pile of spoils, he bestowed them all upon the maid of the princess. The maid's grin stretched wide, provoking envy from the entire audience.

Everyone assumed that he had intended the prizes for the maid, but to their surprise, the next day, those items found their way onto Zheng Jinyu's desk.

Staring at the abundance of trophies cluttering her table, Zheng Jinyu was at a loss for words.

"Jinyu, dear... Could it be that there's been a mix-up? These were perhaps meant for your elder sister, right?"

Silently, Zheng Jinyu nudged the gift registry towards her mother, Lady Zheng.