Chapter 781 When Will the Marriage Be Granted?

Chapter 781: When Will the Wedding Be Arranged?

Ying Tianze thought County Magistrate Qiu was going to help him up, so he naturally reached out his hand.

But to his utter shock, County Magistrate Qiu strode up to him, put all his strength into it, and landed a stinging slap across his face!

The force of the slap sent Ying Tianze’s head snapping to the side, his ears ringing, his mind reeling!

Ying Yuqiong was also stunned by the slap!

In fact, not just the Ying siblings—even the constables County Magistrate Qiu had brought along were dumbfounded!

They had assumed County Magistrate Qiu had brought them to back up the Ying siblings—after all, in the past few days, the Ying siblings had been living like royalty in Mapo County. County Magistrate Qiu had indulged their every demand. There were even rumors among the constables that Ying Tianze had taken a liking to one of County Magistrate Qiu’s recently taken concubines, and without hesitation, the magistrate had handed her over!

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say County Magistrate Qiu treated the Ying siblings like priceless jewels!

So why had he suddenly struck this precious priceless jewel with such a brutal slap?!

And it was clear he hadn’t held back—the slap was full-force!

“Are you out of your mind?!” Ying Tianze roared, his face twisted with fury, his eyes brimming with venom.

County Magistrate Qiu wore an expression of grave disappointment. “Tianze! You must be drunk! You’ve always been such an honorable and kind young man—how could you stoop to this?!”

Ying Tianze was so baffled by these words that his rage momentarily faltered.

Honorable and kind?!

Who?!

Him?!

Ying Yuqiong was just as stunned.

Wait, honorable and kind? Since when had her brother ever been associated with those words?!

Before the siblings could process this, they watched as County Magistrate Qiu—who had always treated them with fatherly concern—let out a heavy, anguished sigh, then turned and bowed deeply toward Xingxing. “Your humble servant, Qiu Shanyin, pays respects to the Duchess.”

The moment the words “Duchess” were spoken, everyone present—except Qiu Shanyin, Xingxing, and Wei Shiyan—froze in shock. The entire scene fell into utter silence.

Ying Tianze’s expression contorted in disbelief.

He knew Qiu Shanyin wouldn’t dare lie about something like this.

So…

His neck creaked stiffly as he turned his head to look at Xingxing.

“You… Duchess… you…” He couldn’t even form a coherent sentence.

Xingxing ignored him, her gaze fixed on Qiu Shanyin.

The girl wore a wry, mocking smile. “County Magistrate Qiu, these two seem very dear to you?”

A cold sweat drenched Qiu Shanyin’s back.

He knew he couldn’t simply deflect all responsibility.

County Magistrate Qiu looked deeply pained: "Yes, Your Highness, these two are the children of my mentor. They came to Mapo County to visit but never imagined they would offend Your Highness... Thankfully, Your Highness is unharmed, or this humble official could never atone."

Xingxing let out a drawn-out "Oh."

"Unharmed? How does Magistrate Qiu know I am unharmed?" Xingxing said. "That insolent man uttered outrageous words to me, causing me quite a scare."

At these words, County Magistrate Qiu felt his sweat poured even more.

The implication was clear—she did not intend to let this go lightly.

Sweating profusely, County Magistrate Qiu glanced at Ying Tianze and Ying Yuqiong.

His earlier slap had been a first strike, hoping that seeing him already punish them might soften the princess's stance.

"Your Highness..." County Magistrate Qiu's expression darkened before he gritted his teeth. "How does Your Highness wish to punish them?"

Xingxing smiled faintly. "Magistrate, you exaggerate. My friend has already taken care of their verbal offense against me. However, since these two are the children of your mentor, their behavior makes one wonder about the upbringing in your mentor's household—and by extension, your mentor's character. That is rather unfortunate, don't you agree, Magistrate Qiu?"

Her tone was light, but County Magistrate Qiu paled at her words.

His mentor had been the chief examiner during his provincial exams. With his mentor about to get promoted soon, if such an evaluation from Princess Fusui reached the emperor's ears—ruining his mentor's chances...

His mentor would likely have his head!

Seeing the magistrate's expression, Xingxing abruptly chuckled.

She had deliberately tested him with those words.

"By the way," she changed the subject with a smile, "my friend's husband somehow offended Miss Ying yesterday and was imprisoned by Young Master Ying. I'd like to ask—how exactly did Tian Dalei, my friend's husband, offend Miss Ying?"

Ying Yuqiong, now too scared to cross the princess, stammered, face white, no longer her usual arrogant self: "...He... he bumped into my maid..."

Yamei'er, still shocked from Xingxing being a princess, burst out: "Bumped into her?... Just for that, you threw him in jail?!"

Ying Yuqiong acted wronged. "That oaf collided with my maid, and when I demanded he kneel and apologize, he argued with me!... Was I wrong to teach him a lesson?"

Yamei'er shook with rage, her eyes reddening, unable to speak.

County Magistrate Qiu immediately roared, "Utterly absurd!"

He turned to the constables. "I was occupied with official duties yesterday and unaware of this outrage!... Go at once and release that wrongfully imprisoned Tian—uh, Tian... the good man Tian!"

He stumbled over the name, resorting to "good man Tian" in his uncertainty.

Ying Yuqiong's face flushed then paled, but she dared not utter another word.

Tian Dalei was soon released.

He came out confused, straw still clinging to his hair.

Though he seemed otherwise unharmed, his limping gait showed he'd been beaten.

Yamei'er rushed to him, eyes wet. "Dalei!"

Tian Dalei stared wide-eyed. "Yamei'er? Why are you here?... Did they arrest you too?"

Yamei'er half-laughed, half-sobbed. "No, it was... Xingxing who saved you..."

As the reunited pair hugged, County Magistrate Qiu put on a fawning smile. "Your Highness, the man has been released. Regarding this matter..."

Xingxing took a few steps forward.

Ying Tianze and Ying Yuqiong flinched back visibly.

County Magistrate Qiu forced a smile, nervous as hell, scared shitless of what Xingxing might do.

Xingxing said, "When you bullied others with your power, did it ever cross your minds that there might come a day when you couldn’t bully them anymore?"

She straightened up and spoke coolly, "I will write to your father and ask him exactly how he has been raising his kids."

At these words, County Magistrate Qiu couldn’t help but hiss through his teeth, while Ying Tianze and Ying Yuqiong’s faces turned pale.

The siblings knew all too well that, given their father’s temperament, this letter would likely leave him in a state of constant dread. The obvious solution would be to "discipline" his troublesome children thoroughly to appease this damn princess.

In other words, when they returned home, kneeling in the family shrine would be the least of their worries—they'd catch a hell of a beating, at the very least.

Or possibly several.

Ying Tianze and Ying Yuqiong both looked ashen.

County Magistrate Qiu mopped his brow and pasted on another smile. "Your Highness is absolutely right, absolutely right… How about this? I’ll arrange a banquet at the finest restaurant in our county to apologize to Your Highness and your friends. Would Your Highness do us the honor?"

Xingxing shot back, "No need. We’re going back to rest. Besides, I have other matters to attend to today."

Naturally, County Magistrate Qiu didn’t dare insist. He bowed repeatedly. "Of course, of course! I’ll get a carriage ready immediately to escort Your Highness back."

Xingxing scowled harder. "That won’t be necessary either. We have our own carriage. Since you've got time to spare, County Magistrate, perhaps you could write to your mentor and advise him on the upbringing of his children."

Her words were cutting, and County Magistrate Qiu’s face went through five shades of red.

Xingxing turned to Yamei'er, who was supporting Tian Dalei. "...How is your husband?"

Tian Dalei had braced himself for suffering, never expecting that his wife’s old friend would return as a princess and rescue him.

Still out of it, Tian Dalei quickly answered when he heard Xingxing’s question. "I—I’m fine. Just a few bumps and scratches. Nothing serious."

Before Xingxing could respond, County Magistrate Qiu jumped in quick, "This gentleman’s imprisonment was entirely due to my mentor’s children acting like damn fools! Allow me to cover all his medical expenses—yes, I’ll take care of it!"

He was all but beating his chest in emphasis.

Yamei'er shrank back, too scared to say boo.

After all, County Magistrate Qiu was a high-ranking official!

Tian Dalei hesitated, unsure.

Xingxing called it for them, nodding. "Very well. Real decent of you, County Magistrate."

County Magistrate Qiu was overjoyed—finally, a chance to make amends.

He groveled, "It’s only right, only right! Especially since this gentleman… suffered unjust imprisonment due to my oversight. Compensation is the least I can do."

Xingxing didn't bite.

Yamei'er, however, remained uneasy.

County Magistrate Qiu was known for his greed—was this "compensation" even on the level?

Yamei'er glanced nervously at Xingxing, and Xingxing seemed to understand her thoughts, giving her a slight nod—you’ve earned this.

With Xingxing's reassurance, Yamei'er finally dared to accept the compensation sent by County Magistrate Qiu—a tray covered with a red cloth.

Steeling herself, Yamei'er stepped forward and lifted the red cloth, her hands shook.

On the tray lay ten silver ingots!

Each ingot had to be at least ten taels. That meant—a hundred taels in total!

Yamei’er recoiled, waving her hands in protest, flustered. "N-no, this won’t do! This is way too much! Even if we went to the best doctor and bought the finest medicine, we wouldn’t need this much silver!"

Magistrate Qiu gave a kindly smile. "It’s only fair. There should be some extra compensation. We can’t have your husband jailed for no reason."

Yamei'er and her husband, Tian Dalei, were humble farmers, and they both felt the silver was too much to accept.

Yamei'er turned to Xingxing hesitantly, whispering. "...Xingxing, could you tell County Magistrate Qiu for us? We really can’t take this much. What would folks say?"

Xingxing didn’t lower her voice. "It’s fine. Take what you’re comfortable with. This is County Magistrate Qiu’s way of showing sincerity in apologizing for the Ying siblings."

She glanced at County Magistrate Qiu. "Isn’t that right, County Magistrate Qiu?"

County Magistrate Qiu nodded like a bobblehead. "Yes, yes, yes..."

Yamei'er hesitated for a long time.

Truthfully, she thought even one ingot was too much.

After whispering a few words to Tian Dalei, the young couple finally chose just one.

"One ingot is enough," Yamei'er said.

County Magistrate Qiu praised, "Such virtue! Such honor!"

Ying Tianze sneered.

Classic country bumpkins—too cowardly to take free silver when it’s handed to them!

Yamei'er and Tian Dalei didn’t care what Ying Tianze thought. They just wanted to sleep at night.

Once the compensation matter was settled, Xingxing ignored County Magistrate Qiu’s desperate pleas for her to stay and took Yamei'er and Tian Dalei back to Nantuo Village.

On the way back, Yamei'er was on edge around Xingxing.

In Yamei'er’s mind, a county princess was practically royalty!

As for Tian Dalei, he was still shell-shocked.

Xingxing could only sigh and smile.

She had expected this—which was why she had kept her identity hidden.

Fortunately, by the time they neared Nantuo Village, Yamei'er had warmed up to her again. She took Xingxing’s hand and gushed her thanks. "Xingxing, thank you."

Xingxing beamed as she looked at Yamei'er’s hand holding hers.

Once she’d walked Yamei’er and Tian Dalei home, Xingxing and Wei Shiyan headed straight back to the Yu family estate.

Yu Yonggui took Qing Shuang to play by the stream and left a message, saying that once Xingxing and the others returned, someone should come find them by the stream, and they’d all head over together to the Yu family ancestral hall.

Today was the big day.

Xingxing and Yu Yonggui had returned to their hometown to attend the ancestral rites, and a three-day banquet was being prepared at the Yu family ancestral hall.

As the younger generation, they didn’t need to arrive too early.

After all, the funds had already been allocated, and their clansmen would handle all the arrangements for them.

...

Inside the palace.

Ever since Empress Nie learned from the Crown Prince that Xingxing and Wei Shiyan had started their return journey, she had been tracking their progress on the map, calculating where they might be.

Xingxing was very considerate—she made sure Wei Shiyan sent letters home from nearly every post station to report their safety, so during this time, letters from Wei Shiyan arrived one after another.

Wei Shiqing, who had been receiving these letters one after another, was in such high spirits that the Eastern Palace officials felt their Crown Prince’s temper had become as gentle as the Maitreya Buddha himself.

Empress Nie was just as delighted.

Though most of the letters contained only a few lines, Empress Nie, thinking of soon reuniting with her second son—whom she hadn’t seen in over a decade and owed so much—read those sparse words over and over, she could recite them by heart.

"A-Yan wrote in his letter that he and Xingxing have returned to their hometown to attend the ancestral rites," Empress Nie said, her face bright with joy as she turned to urge Emperor Jiazheng. "They’ve already held the ancestral rites—when will you issue the decree for their marriage?"

Emperor Jiazheng sighed helplessly. "At the very least... we should wait until both children return to the capital and ask for their opinions first, shouldn’t we?"

"A-Yan will definitely agree," Empress Nie insisted. "I’m his mother—how could I not know what’s in his heart? ... Besides, Xingxing was willing to risk her life for A-Yan. How could such devotion go unanswered?"