Chapter 274: Chapter 217: Yan Zhen Must Be Assigned a Marriage

Yan Zhen was extremely anxious and hurriedly said, “I have already discussed it with my family, the whole of Dayi owes the Shen Family a son. My parents said, this is a matter of honor. Besides, I have three brothers at home, what’s wrong with marrying into the Shen Family?”

Jun Moling just looked at him quietly for a moment before saying in a low voice, “General Yan, even if your parents and family members are willing, go back and think it over carefully; is this decision truly appropriate? I will take my leave first.”

After speaking, he pressed Yan Zhen’s shoulder, then turned and left, his upright figure gradually moving away.

Yan Zhen stood frozen in place, wanting to stop him, but opened his mouth without making a sound.

Watching Jun Moling’s departing direction, he frowned deeply and began to ponder carefully over Jun Moling’s words.

As he thought, his eyes gradually grew serious, as if he finally understood Jun Moling’s words.

After a long time, he sighed softly before getting onto his carriage.

At this moment, the Emperor was in the Imperial Study Room, engrossed in reviewing memorials. A Hidden Guard quietly entered, knelt down and bowed, then whispered, “Your Majesty, General Yan just went to see Prince Zhan.”

Upon hearing this, the Emperor’s eyes sharpened, and he sternly asked, “What did you say?”

“I saw with my own eyes that General Yan sought out Prince Zhan, and they traveled and conversed along the way. However, given Prince Zhan’s high martial arts skills, I dared not get too close, so I am unaware of the specific content of their conversation,” the Hidden Guard cautiously replied.

The Emperor fell into deep thought and after a moment said, “I understand, you may withdraw!”

The Hidden Guard disappeared without a trace. The Emperor turned to Qi Lin and asked, “Qi Lin, why do you think Yan Zhen went to find Jun Moling?”

Qi Lin lowered his voice and cautiously replied, “Your Majesty, from this servant’s humble opinion, it likely is not a matter of great importance.

If they truly had secrets they did not wish to be revealed, they would not meet publicly, so it should be a trivial matter.”

The Emperor nodded slightly, but his expression remained grave.

Currently, he intended to promote Yan Zhen, but if Yan Zhen and Jun Moling were united, standing in the same faction, then the matter would become extremely troublesome.

Suddenly, Qi Lin seemed to think of something and quickly said, “Your Majesty, this servant wonders if General Yan sought out Prince Zhan because of the Yang Family?

The Yan Family and the Yang Family have long-standing relations; Mrs. Yan and Mrs. Yang are close friends.

I remember back then, Yan Zhen had a marriage engagement with the Yang Family.

This time, with the Yang Family looking for a husband for the Shen Family, perhaps he intends to marry into the Shen Family.”

Upon hearing this, the Emperor’s eyes grew even deeper as he slowly said, “It should indeed be regarding this matter. Yan Zhen is thirty-three and still unmarried, presumably he still has feelings for the Yang Family.

This time, with the Yang Family accepting a husband, he may indeed have intentions of marrying into the Shen Family.”

“Your Majesty is wise.” Qi Lin quickly echoed.

The Emperor’s face grew darker. Yan Zhen was his currently intended trusted subject to cultivate and draw in; he must not become entangled with the Shen Family.

If Yan Zhen married into the Shen Family, he would face only two paths: either to abandon Yan Zhen or to let Jun Moling strengthen further.

Therefore, he must find a way to stop it.

“General Yan is already thirty-three this year, indeed at an age to marry,” the Emperor murmured thoughtfully.

Qi Lin quickly assumed a flattering posture, “Your Majesty, do you have a suitable candidate in mind?”

After pondering for a while, the Emperor said, “I think Prince Ren’s Princess Yueying is quite suitable.”

Upon hearing this, Qi Lin’s face instantly covered with an ingratiating smile, “Your Majesty is truly wise and discerning.”

Princess Yueying’s father, Prince Ren, is also the Emperor’s uncle, and naturally also Jun Moling’s uncle.

Prince Ren dotes on Princess Yueying, his only beloved daughter, and has always been a Vassal King in the East Continent.

Qi Lin understood that keeping Princess Yueying in the Capital City would undoubtedly restrain Prince Ren.

In this way, not only could Yan Zhen successfully be drawn into the Emperor’s service, but Prince Ren’s lifeline could also be controlled; the Emperor’s plan was indeed killing two birds with one stone.

The Emperor focused and said, “Qi Lin, quickly draft an imperial decree. The Empress Dowager’s birthday is approaching, say that she misses Princess Yueying dearly and command Prince Ren to bring her to the Capital City as soon as possible.”

“The servant obeys the decree,” Qi Lin respectfully responded.

The Emperor’s eyes flickered with uncertainty, thinking to himself that he must promptly arrange a marriage for Yan Zhen to avoid long nights bringing more dreams.

On the other side, due to Shen Ruoxi’s pregnancy, Jun Moling didn’t want her to worry about the husband-selection event for the Yang Family.

In fact, it was quite simple to carry out: just report the names of applicants, keep those who meet the requirements, and eliminate those who don’t.

Then find a suitable occasion for them to meet with the Yang Family and choose someone pleasing to the eye.

Jun Moling entrusted this matter to the steward. By the end of the day, there were many applicants, but only a few met the criteria.

Some were too young, while others of the right age had too low a status or unsatisfactory appearances.

So, in the end, only two or three remained.

When the steward handed the name list to Shen Ruoxi, she couldn’t help but furrow her brows slightly.

These three people: one was thirty-four, another thirty-five, and one was forty-two.

The main reason was that her elder sister-in-law Yang had stipulated not to find anyone under thirty, so only these three people met the age requirement.

Among them, one served as the Minister of the Ministry of Justice with a Sixth Rank; another worked as an editor at the Hanlin Academy with a seventh-rank; the last one served in the Inner Cabinet as a seventh-rank.

However, she was not familiar with any of these three as she had spent little time in the Capital City.

Looking at the word “widower” on the list, she inexplicably felt that they were not at all suitable for her sister-in-law Yang and found their low rank to be particularly troubling.

“Just these three people?” Shen Ruoxi couldn’t help but blurt out, her eyebrows slightly knit, her face full of confusion and discontent.

The steward promptly replied, “Mainly the younger ones under thirty were excluded, at your previous request.

There were those older with higher ranks, but you also instructed not to exceed forty years, so this forty-two-year-old Lord Qi of the Inner Cabinet was only included because of his excellent reputation.”

Casually tossing the registry towards Jun Moling’s lap, Shen Ruoxi complained, “Husband, their ranks are too low.”

She fretted inwardly, for the only three people filtered out seemed so unappealing, hardly acceptable.

“Darling, this is only the first day, there are many more applicants yet to be processed, so there’s no rush; we’ll find the right one eventually,” Jun Moling reassured her warmly, wearing a doting smile.

After pondering for a moment, Shen Ruoxi said, “Steward, first bring me their portraits, and yes, include a detailed record of their character and family situation, properly sorted before presenting it to me.”

The steward complied and withdrew, while Shen Ruoxi felt a headache coming on.

Jun Moling couldn’t help but chuckle at her expression, “Darling, this cannot be rushed and must be approached step by step. These three candidates are actually selected fairly well by the steward. I actually think Minister Xiao of the Ministry of Justice is quite good.”

Hearing the surname Xiao, Shen Ruoxi felt inexplicably repulsed, not just because it was different from Xiao Chengyi’s surname, but she inherently distrusted those surnamed Xiao, rejecting them from the core.

Patiently, Jun Moling explained, “Xiao Yudong, was the second-place scholar of the fifth year of Shunhe, originally from Qing County, renowned as a prodigy back then. Over the years, he has handled numerous cases and is known for his integrity, with a good reputation in the community.”

Upon hearing about his integrity, Shen Ruoxi couldn’t resist asking further, “Then how did his wife pass away?”

Jun Moling slowly explained, “Eight years ago, there was a rather sensational case, where he personally apprehended the culprit on the day of execution.

Yet, his wife was stabbed to death on East Main Street.

He solved countless cases, but the case of his wife remained unsolved, a headless case.”

Hearing this, Shen Ruoxi frowned even tighter.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep