Chapter Eleven: Tangled Relationships

"Young master, don't be angry. At worst, you can work hard, become the top scholar in the imperial exam, and then go to the Xu household to propose marriage. If you marry the third Miss Xu, perhaps it will turn into a celebrated story," Liu Yuan said from the side.

"Marry? A celebrated story?" Zhu Yang shot Liu Yuan a sideways glance. "Keep dreaming. Xu Miaojin is the third daughter of the Prince of Zhongshan. Even the Marquis of Wei might not have the authority to decide her marriage!"

After Zhu Yuanzhang ascended the throne, he consistently implemented a policy of "combining inner and outer court interests"—in other words, marrying members of the imperial clan to the families of meritorious officials, weaving blood ties and alliances to safeguard the imperial family’s rule.

Although Zhu Yang did not know why Xu Miaojin, in the Hongwu era, did not marry a prince of the Zhu family, he knew that Xu Da’s eldest, second, and fourth daughters were married to Prince Yan Zhu Di, Prince Dai Zhu Gui, and Prince An Zhu Ying respectively.

Yet Xu Miaojin wasn’t exactly the one who slipped through the net. After Zhu Di took the throne, his empress Xu Miaoyun passed away, and Zhu Di once sought to marry Xu Miaojin, promising that if she agreed, she would become the new empress.

Xu Miaojin gently declined, but ultimately ended up dedicating herself to a life of solitude, never marrying, surrounded by incense and scriptures.

Zhu Yang had originally wanted to stir things up during the Jingnan Rebellion, but if he were to marry the woman coveted by the Yongle Emperor, then once Zhu Di ascended the throne, Zheng He’s voyages would not only be about projecting imperial power and searching for Zhu Yunwen—they’d likely include a search for Zhu Yang as well.

Given Zhu Di’s character, once Zhu Yang was found, he would surely lead the army himself to hunt him down.

Though Zhu Yang was a transmigrator and found the idea of cuckolding an emperor exhilarating, if that emperor was Zhu Yunwen, he wouldn’t mind trying. But facing a fierce man like Zhu Di, Zhu Yang reconsidered—best to keep a low profile. No woman was worth incurring Zhu Di’s wrath.

"Enough, let’s drop this matter. If any of you go out and spread rumors again, I’ll cut out your tongues!" Zhu Yang decided to stay put in this small courtyard until the palace examination, not stepping outside for anything.

"I just hope those idle onlookers find something else to occupy themselves with and forget this matter soon," Zhu Yang prayed silently.

...

At the Marquis of Wei’s residence, Xu Miaojin lounged by the window, watching the forsythia bloom, stretching in boredom.

"Miss, let’s go out! There must be many scholars boating on Xuanwu Lake right now. Let’s join the fun?" Xiaochan suggested excitedly, gazing at the scenery outside.

"No," Xu Miaojin replied, glancing at Xiaochan. "I have no desire to be gawked at like a monkey."

"Tch, as if you’re not used to being watched! Who are you? The third Miss of the Marquis of Wei, famous for your talent in the capital. You have the pedigree, you have the reputation..." Xiaochan teased, nibbling on pastries. "Every time we go out, we’re surrounded. Aren’t you used to it by now?"

"But this time is different!" Xu Miaojin said, a trace of annoyance in her voice.

Although these rumors hadn’t damaged her reputation, neither had they freed her from the whirlpool of gossip. Instead, she had once again become the center of the city’s attention.

To make matters worse, a group calling itself "Protect Xu Miaojin" had sprung up, loitering in front of her residence, a constant source of irritation.

"It’s all that wretched scoundrel’s fault!" Xu Miaojin muttered under her breath.

"Miss, you’re still cursing Zhu Yang? You’ve cursed him a thousand times in the past few days. Didn’t you promise to be a lady?" Xiaochan said, helping herself to more pastries. "Miss, if Zhu Yang really comes to propose, will you marry him or not?"

"Absolutely not! I’d rather die than marry him!" Xu Miaojin spat, but her fair cheeks seemed to flush even redder.

"Really?" Xiaochan eyed her mistress suspiciously. "Miss, aren’t you the one who admires stories of scholar-beauty romances the most? When you read 'The Romance of the Western Chamber,' didn’t you dream aloud of marrying a scholar like Zhang Sheng? Zhu Yang’s learning isn’t inferior to Zhang Sheng’s—‘If only life were as it was at first sight’—how beautiful! And those three questions he posed, though odd, stumped all the provincial champions!"

"And I heard," Xiaochan continued, "that the odds in the gambling houses on Zhu Yang winning the top spot are even money!"

"Still, I won’t marry him!" Xu Miaojin, embarrassed and annoyed, sprang to her feet, baring her teeth and smiling sweetly at Xiaochan. "Lately, I’ve found you’re getting far too glib. Maybe I should sew your mouth shut with a needle so you don’t annoy people with your cleverness!"

"Ah..." Xiaochan quickly covered her mouth, pleading, "Miss, I was wrong! I won’t speak, I promise!"

"Hmph! Go fetch my books from the study—I want to read for a while," Xu Miaojin ordered with a snort.

"A scholar and a beauty, is it?" Xu Miaojin mused, resuming her seat by the window and gazing at the blue sky. "Pfft, I’d marry anyone but him!"

...

While Xu Miaojin was still torn over whether or not to marry Zhu Yang, Zhu Biao suddenly discovered something rather amusing.

"Jiang Qing, if I recall, Xu Miaojin’s eldest sister married my fourth brother and became Princess Yan, right?" Zhu Biao asked.

"Yes, Your Highness. And at the start of this year, His Majesty already decided to betroth Xu Miaojin’s second sister, Xu Miaoqing, to the thirteenth prince, making her Princess Dai," Jiang Huan replied.

"Heh... So if Zhu Yang marries Xu Miaojin, that would make Xu Miaojin my daughter-in-law, while her sisters are my brothers’ wives. So tell me, Jiang Qing, what should my brothers call me, and what should Zhu Yang, as my son, call Prince Yan and Prince Dai?" Zhu Biao laughed behind his hand.

"Um..." Jiang Huan pondered for a long while, only to find the relationships hopelessly tangled.

"Haha, you don’t know either?" Zhu Biao laughed heartily.

"I am dull-witted, Your Highness," Jiang Huan replied, though he inwardly muttered: It’s not that I’m slow, it’s that your imperial clan’s affairs are a complete mess!

"Never mind, let Prince Yan and Prince Dai puzzle over it themselves!" Zhu Biao waved his hand. "Send a few more men to protect my son. At least until the palace examination, nothing must happen to him. As for after the exam—well, his fate will be his own."

Zhu Biao gazed deeply at Zhu Yang in the courtyard. Since his father had decided to send Zhu Yang into the bureaucracy for training, life would likely become much harder for him.

"Strange, why am I actually a little excited?" Zhu Biao felt a strange rush of emotion.

"Your Highness, it’s time we left," Jiang Huan said, eyeing Zhu Biao’s increasingly excited expression with some confusion.

"Very well," Zhu Biao nodded.

Just as Zhu Biao was turning to leave, a monk approached Zhu Yang’s small courtyard and knocked on the door.

"Hmm?" Jiang Huan placed his hand on his sword hilt, pulling Zhu Biao into a more concealed shadow.

"Jiang Qing, who is that?" Zhu Biao asked softly.

"The White Lotus Sect," Jiang Huan replied gravely.