Chapter 483 Lu Family Stands

Chapter 483 Lu Family Stands

Chapter 483 Lu Family Stands
Xiao Xia invited Lu Xieting to sit down, and the two sat opposite each other. Xiaowanzi served them tea.

Xiao Xia pushed a piece of plain paper to her and said with a smile, "Take a look!"

Seeing that the ink was not yet dry, Lu Xieting smiled and asked, "Just written?"

Xiao Xia nodded, and Lu Xieting took the paper and read it carefully.

Plum Blossom Appreciation

Zhongfang shakes down Du Fuyan, and takes all the style to Xiaoyuan.

Shuying horizontally and shallow water, subtle fragrance floating moon dusk.

Frostbirds want to steal their eyes first, and the white butterflies are like knowing and breaking their souls.

Fortunately, there is a micro-yin that can be linked together, and there is no need for sandalwood to share the golden statue.

Lu Xieting's beautiful eyes lit up, and she praised repeatedly: "What a great line, 'Sparse shadows slant across the shallow water, and subtle fragrance floats in the moonlight at dusk', which fully describes the soul of plum blossoms."

Xiao Xia smiled slightly and said, "I'm not writing about plum blossoms, I'm writing about people."

Lu Xieting's pretty face blushed again, feeling shy and grateful at the same time. Prince Jin compared her to a plum blossom, which blooms alone and is beautiful. Everyone despises her, but he is the only one who sees her beauty.

Thinking of the hardships and various ridicules and humiliations he had suffered in the past few years, Lu Xieting's nose was slightly sour, and he whispered: "Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness!"

Xiao Xia smiled and asked, "How is your poem compared to this morning?"

Lu Xieting was embarrassed and rolled his eyes at him. "It's much better than that messy and incomprehensible poem this morning."

At this time, several maids came in with food boxes and served them wine and food.

Lu Shenyan walked quickly to the front yard and was stunned by the scene in front of him. More than a dozen soldiers were carrying various gift boxes. The leading captain Zhang Qing was holding a plate with a goose wrapped in cloth on it.

Zhang Qing bowed slightly and said, "I am here to deliver the betrothal gifts to the master of the family on the order of His Highness!"

Lu Shenyan took a while to react, and hurriedly said to the housekeeper: "Quick! Carry the things in!"

Lu Shenyan took the goose personally. Among the betrothal gifts of the aristocratic family, no other gifts were important, but the goose was the most important. If a live goose could not be found, a carved wooden goose would do. Since ancient times, there has been a saying that betrothal cannot be completed without a goose.

The soldiers filed in, put the gifts in the living room, and then said goodbye and left.

Lu Shenyan stood in front of the goose and sighed. He had been worried for a whole night, and finally the goose gave him peace of mind. It was not going to be a teacher, but a concubine.

Lu Shenyan knew Xiao Xia's family very well. He had only one wife and one concubine. The concubine was born a maid and of course could not be compared with the legitimate daughter of the Lu family. The daughter of the Lu family must be a concubine.

"Father, what's going on?"

Lu Shenyan turned around and saw his eldest son Lu Heming standing behind him with a look of surprise on his face.

Lu Shenyan snorted disdainfully, "Look at your expression, didn't you expect this? This is your eldest daughter's betrothal gift!"

"Ah! Your Highness, are you sure you want to marry Xie Ting?"

Lu Shenyan nodded, "I guess the trip to Yetang made him understand something and he is no longer vague."

"But. But the situation is not good now. Wouldn't it be irrational for us to take sides so quickly?"

His father was eager to form an alliance with the Prince of Jin, but Lu Heming was not very supportive. He was worried that once the rebels gained power, the Lu family would be purged and retaliated against.

Lu Shenyan said calmly: "Wealth and honor are sought in danger. If we don't marry now and wait until the King of Jin quells the rebellion before marrying, it will be a completely different matter."

"But father also knows that this time is different from the past. This time, the Sui Dynasty is in turmoil. Father, you should be more cautious!"

His son's reminder made Lu Shenyan silent for a moment. After a while, he said, "Before Your Highness leaves, I will talk to him again."

Lu Heming suggested again: "Father, put away the betrothal gifts first. Let's stick to what we said before. Xie Ting is going to teach the princess to play the piano!"

Lu Shenyan nodded slowly, agreeing with his son's caution.

"Why don't men take Wu Gou and take over the fifty states of Guanshan? How did Your Highness come up with such a heroic poem?" In front of the small table, Lu Xieting asked with a smile, holding her cheek.

Xiao Xia smiled and said, "Two years ago, I led 20,000 troops to pursue the remnants of Tuyuhun, and penetrated 3,000 miles into the barren land. In the distance were snow-capped mountains stretching for thousands of miles, and around were endless Gobi deserts and sometimes alpine meadows. The air was thin and breathing was difficult. It took two months to finally wipe out the Tuyuhun royal court. At that moment, my heart was filled with lofty ambitions, and these two lines of poetry naturally jumped out of my mind." Lu Xieting was fascinated by what she heard. After a while, she sighed softly and said, "Your Highness, please say a few more lines. I like poems like this very much!"

Xiao Xia picked up her pen and wrote: "On the eighth day of the ninth month of next year, my flower will bloom and all other flowers will die. The fragrance will fill Chang'an and the ground will be covered with golden armor."

Lu Xieting smiled and said, "This poem is too brutal. It feels like it was written by a rebel leader. It gives me chills. I still like your first one, 'When the great roc rises with the wind, it soars up to ninety thousand miles!' This is more powerful."

Xiao Xia blinked and smiled slyly: "If you are willing to go to Jiangdu with me, I promise to write more and better poems for you, every day!"

Lu Xieting's pretty face flushed, and she lowered her head and whispered, "Didn't we agree to be the princess's tutor? I promised Your Highness!"

An embroiderer was sitting at the door, drawing their portraits on paper with a pen. She would look up from time to time to capture their expressions accurately.

The embroiderer's name was Fan Qiniang. She was a very famous embroiderer in Wu County and was famous for her portrait embroidery. She would first paint and then embroider.

She put down her pen and said to Maruko, "That's enough!"

Xiao Wanzi hurriedly stepped forward and said to Xiao Xia: "Sir, the embroiderer said it's OK!"

Xiao Xia smiled and stretched out her hand to Lu Xieting, saying, "Let's embroider another picture of us standing together. Come with me!"

Xiao Xia was so powerful that she would not allow Lu Xieting to refuse. She just stood up, slowly walked to Xiao Xia's side, and asked in a low voice: "How do you want me to stand, Your Highness?"

"Just stand in front of me, let's be natural."

Lu Xieting stood leisurely in front of Xiao Xia, holding a round fan in her hand. Xiao Xia stood sideways behind her, and the two of them leaned slightly against each other.

The embroiderer quickly drew a picture of the two of them. She put down the pen and smiled, "That's it!"

Lu Xieting quickly moved away with a red face. She had never been so close to a man before. At that moment, she felt that she was leaning in the arms of His Royal Highness Prince Jin, which really made her embarrassed, but it was just embarrassment, and she did not resist in her heart.

"Your Highness, I'm going back first!"

"We'll leave tomorrow morning, so pack up."

Lu Xieting knelt down and saluted, then turned around and hurried away with his head down. Xiao Xia winked at Xiaowanzi, who understood and quickly followed.

Xiao Xia watched Lu Xieting's tall figure disappear before she withdrew her gaze and asked the embroiderer, "When will the two pieces of embroidery be finished?"

"About a month!"

Xiao Xia turned around and said to his personal guard: "Reward her with fifty taels of silver!"

The embroiderer thanked him again and again and left.

At night, Lu Shenyan came to visit Xiao Xia. Xiao Xia would return to Jiangdu early tomorrow morning, so Lu Shenyan needed to finalize the details of the marriage tonight.

"Your Highness is lucky to have chosen Xie Ting. It is also her destiny. Your Highness sent the betrothal gifts today, which shows your sincerity. We are very happy to marry your Highness. We just hope that the details can be improved a little bit."

"Master, please speak!"

Lu Shenyan pondered for a moment and said, "Tomorrow, Xie Ting can follow His Highness to Jiangdu in the north. Let Xie Ting and the princess get along for a few months, and then Xie Ting will return to Wujun. Our Lu family will send Xie Ting to Jiangdu in a grand manner. This child has been wronged in the past two years. We want to compensate her and let her marry in a grand manner. Does His Highness agree with this arrangement?"

Xiao Xia certainly understood Lu Shenyan's concerns. He wanted to delay for a few months to avoid the risk of rebellion by powerful people. This was the same as the Cui family's engagement first and then marriage. Of course, every family seeks profit and avoids harm, so there is nothing wrong with the Lu family doing this.

Xiao Xia nodded and smiled, "I will send Xie Ting back in a few months, and then I will send a ship to marry her, so that Xie Ting can have a grand wedding!"

Lu Shenyan was overjoyed. It would be even better if the King of Jin was willing to send someone to marry her. He quickly bowed and said, "Thank you for your understanding, Your Highness!
Xiao Xia smiled happily and said, "It's decided then. Tomorrow morning, Xie Ting will go to Jiangdu with me. We will keep in touch. If the head of the family has anything to say, he can send me a pigeon letter through Governor Xiao at any time."

Lu Shenyan hesitated for a moment and said, "There are two more secrets that I need to tell Your Highness."

"Master, please speak!"

Lu Shenyan said slowly: "The Yue forces that rebelled against the court are not Han Chinese families, but Shanyue tribe tyrants. They are tough and good at fighting. Your Highness must not underestimate the enemy."

Xiao Xia already knew that the rebel force was the Shanyue tyrants. He nodded and said, "I've remembered that. Please continue, Patriarch!"

Lu Shenyan paused for a moment and continued, "Your Highness may not know that Yuan Wenzhen has been staying in Kuaiji County since November last year."

(End of this chapter)