Chapter 1448
The River God's Bestowal of Marriage
Chapter 1448 The River God's Bestowal of Marriage
As soon as Lin Hao arrived at the palace gate, Su Shen came to greet him.
"Young Master, did the court session go smoothly today?"
"Not bad!" Lin Hao nodded with a smile.
As for those trivial matters in the imperial court, Lin Hao didn't even consider them setbacks, and there was no need to tell Su Shen about them.
As the two were chatting, the little eunuch ran up to Lin Hao and said, "Sixth Young Master, the Master invites you!"
Lin Hao nodded and followed. If nothing unexpected happened, his good news was just around the corner.
Before long, Lin Hao was led by the little eunuch into a side hall.
Upon entering, Lin Hao discovered that there were only three people in the house: Chuan Zhu, Chuan Furen, and the birth mother of the body Lin Hao was currently in.
There was no one serving them around, yet Lin Hao walked unhurriedly to the group and bowed, saying:
"Greetings, Your Majesty, Lady Chuan, and Mother!"
Nodding, the new governor said, "It's your first day in court. Your eldest brother was afraid you'd be nervous and say too much, so he protected you and didn't let you say too much. You'll need more practice in the future!"
Good grief, he's still protecting me, his heart is so biased, how can he say something like that?
However, Lin Hao didn't care, so he knew the principle of speaking human language to human beings and ghost language to ghosts.
Lin Hao then put on a smile and said, "Your subject will remember this well. I will always keep your kindness in mind."
"Ok!"
The new Chuanzhu nodded in satisfaction, probably genuinely believing that Lin Hao had taken his words to heart.
He then added, "There's one more thing, isn't there a proper wife in your household yet?"
"Yes!" Lin Hao bowed and replied.
The new Chuanzhu stroked his beard, smiled broadly, and shook his head as he said:
"You mentioned before that establishing a residence requires a mistress, and I have already chosen an excellent candidate for you: the eldest daughter of the Jin Chuan Lord, Princess Yuan Ying!"
Lin Hao was overjoyed; his wife was finally about to appear. However, he didn't show it on his face; instead, he looked worried.
Seeing that Lin Hao didn't speak, the new Chuanzhu assumed that Lin Hao was too happy, so he said with a smile, "What's wrong, so happy that you can't speak!"
Although there were only four of them here, they still had to show the proper attitude. Otherwise, if they happily accepted it, things would be hard to say what would happen in the future, especially if they couldn't explain it to Li Wei.
So Lin Hao said with a troubled expression:
"But I only wish to make Lady Li of Jichuan my wife. I do not want any new mistress. I beg my father to grant my request!"
Upon hearing this, the new Chuanzhu glared at Lin Hao with displeasure, while the Chuanzhu's wife also said:
“The Li family of Jichuan came from humble beginnings. You were wronged to marry her back then, so your father promised to help you find a better wife. He is keeping his promise!”
At this moment, the new Chuanzhu suppressed his dissatisfaction and patiently said:
"Moreover, this marriage was initiated by the King of Jinchuan, and it involves the debt issues between the two provinces. How can it be treated lightly!"
"This is a matter of national importance. How can we let personal feelings interfere with the affairs of the country and the people?"
"You did an excellent job negotiating the debt in Jinchuan, and you have won the appreciation of the Jinchuan ruler!"
Princess Yuan Ying has been renowned for her talent since childhood, so marrying her wouldn't be a bad deal for you!
The new Chuanzhu directly pressured Lin Hao with matters of national importance, asking Lin Hao to understand his difficulties, while also praising him for what he had done before.
"But I refuse!" Lin Hao said, straightening his neck.
The new Sichuan governor impatiently scolded, "Sixth brother, think carefully before you speak. This concerns matters between the two Sichuan regions, and you cannot refuse!"
"Father promised to make Lady Li of Jichuan his wife. Please keep your promise!" Lin Hao continued.
"When did I ever make a definite promise to you!" The new Chuanzhu stood up, a trace of guilt flashing in his eyes, but only a trace, and only for a moment.
Although he hadn't said it directly before, when Lin Hao proposed making Li Wei his official wife, he didn't explicitly object, considering that the sixth son was not valued and there were past cases, which could be considered as tacit agreement.
Thinking of this, the new Chuanzhu sighed softly before comforting her, "Besides, don't you understand the benefits of marrying a princess?"
"Benefits?" Before the new Sichuan chief could finish explaining the benefits, Lin Hao interrupted:
"I can't even find someone who treats me sincerely, so what benefits are there to talk about? If we're really talking about benefits, when have they ever come my way?"
Enraged by Lin Hao's words, the new Chuanzhu slammed his fist on the table and roared, "You—!"
"Yin Zheng~!" At this moment, the original owner's mother and wife saw that the conversation between the group was becoming increasingly anxious, and the new Chuanzhu was already showing signs of anger.
So, before Shinchuan could finish speaking, he immediately reprimanded Lin Hao:
"You are the sixth young master of Xinchuan Palace, and your marriage is naturally not up to you. This marriage is both a favor and your responsibility!"
While scolding him, Madam He walked over to Lin Hao and whispered:
"You just received an imperial decree to attend court, which can be revoked at any time. You should know that a young master who attends court and is then expelled is a useless person!"
At this moment, Lady Chuanzhu also subtly threatened, "Yin Zheng, if you insist on doing this, you are ignoring the Lord Chuanzhu's favor!"
At this moment, the new Chuanzhu waved his hand and said, "Alright, there's no need to discuss this anymore. It's settled then. You may leave!"
"Yes!" Lin Hao left the palace with a reluctant attitude.
Having achieved his goal, Lin Hao stopped arguing with them and obediently agreed.
"Young Master, what business does Lord Chuan have with you?" Su Shen asked, leaning closer.
"Bestowed marriage upon Princess Yuanying!" Lin Hao didn't waste any words and directly recounted his meeting with the new Chuanzhu.
"What? You even had a huge argument with the Lord of Chuan for the sake of your concubine?!" Su Shen covered his mouth in shock.
"Keep your voice down, and don't talk nonsense when you get back!" Lin Hao said calmly, his face expressionless.
"I'll tell her this myself; I reckon she'll be heartbroken this time!"
"Oh dear, this is really putting the young master in a difficult position!" Su Shen sighed, thinking of Lin Hao's predicament.
As expected of the Fifth Young Master's confidante, she was wholeheartedly thinking of him. At the same time, Su Shen was also thinking that he had to find a way to persuade Li Wei.
Thinking of Li Wei, Su Shen shook his head and said with a wry smile:
"When the concubine heard that you were attending court, she paced back and forth happily, saying she would prepare a delicious meal today. If she knew the news, she would be heartbroken!"
"Alright, I know. I'll tell the concubine. Just don't give yourself away, and don't tell her about your conflict with the Chief!"
"She must be very happy today, and I don't want to tell her this bad news when she's at her happiest!"
"Yes, this old servant understands!"
"Husband~, my husband is back! The preparations for establishing the manor are almost complete. The house repairs will be finished in two days. I've also prepared the guest list and menu for the opening banquet!"
"You must have had a hard first day at court. I've had the kitchen prepare a delicious meal. Let's have dinner together!"
When Li Wei saw Lin Hao return, she immediately started chattering about how concerned she was for him.
Lin Hao looked at Li Wei with a big smile and said, "My Weiwei, you've worked so hard. Come on, sit down and eat with me!"
Lin Hao pressed Li Wei into a chair, then personally served her rice. After the two happily finished their meal, Lin Hao played with her for a while.
When the clouds cleared and the rain stopped that evening, Lin Hao, seeing that the time was right, looked at Li Wei seriously and said:
"Weiwei, I have something important to tell you!" "What is it?" Li Wei didn't pay much attention to Lin Hao's serious expression and just said lazily.
"The River God has granted us a marriage!" Lin Hao said in a heavy voice.
"A marriage decree? What kind of marriage decree?" Upon hearing this, Li Wei sat up in shock, looking at Lin Hao in disbelief.
"Bestow a marriage upon me with Princess Yuan Ying of Jinchuan!"
"What?! How could it be you?!" Li Wei's eyes reddened as she spoke, tears welling up in her eyes before finally falling to the ground.
Although Li Wei had cried before, Lin Hao had never seen her so heartbroken.
"It seems she really has fallen in love with me!" Lin Hao thought to himself.
At that moment, Lin Hao knew that Li Wei needed comfort the most, so he held her tightly in his arms.
However, Li Wei turned away in resistance, and for the next few days, she ignored Lin Hao, feeling very depressed.
However, Li Wei still secretly sent Yu Zhan to inquire about Lin Hao's arranged marriage.
When Yuzhan told her the news she had found out, Li Wei realized that Lin Hao had argued with the Chuanzhu for her sake and had almost been expelled from the court.
Although she was still disappointed, she understood that Lin Hao had already given it his all, and if she continued to insist, Lin Hao would inevitably lose everything.
Although she was no longer angry with Lin Hao, she still felt very uncomfortable, so she decided to punish Lin Hao by not letting him into her bed.
······
A few days later, Lin Hao put on his groom's attire and married Yuan Ying, who was dressed in a phoenix coronet and embroidered robe.
"Young Master, please bring your wife to pay respects to Heaven and Earth!"
"Bow, bow again!"
"Please pay respects to the Lord and Lady Chuan, young master and lady."
"Bow, bow again!"
"Young Master and Madam, please bow to each other, support one another, and live hand in hand through life!"
While Lin Hao and Yuan Ying were getting married, Song Wu was causing quite a stir.
"This is outrageous!" Song Wu, drunk and shouting on the bed while hugging Baifu, the pet dog raised by Lin Hao and Li Wei, cried out.
"One Li Wei is bad enough, but now they want to force my brother to marry another woman. Are they even human?!"
"Miss Song, could we please keep our voices down?" Song Wu's maids, Jin Ping and Jin Zhan, quickly advised.
"Miss, keep your voice down. It won't be good for our young master if outsiders hear!"
What could the older brother possibly say?
"Since the Lord of Chuan personally bestowed this marriage upon us, we had no choice but to accept it, otherwise we would be expelled from the court. The wedding ceremony has already been completed!"
"I'm blown up!" Song Wu cried out, wiping away barely visible tears as she hugged Baifu.
"Baifu, they're bullying us too much! One after another they keep coming. How many more are they going to come? When will this end?"
"Girl, use this to wipe!"
"This is outrageous!"
A young girl who was not yet an adult deliberately shouted loudly in the room while Lin Hao and Yuan Ying were getting married.
Although she was powerless to stop Lin Hao from marrying his new wife, that didn't stop her from deliberately making things difficult for him.
Song Wu's crying, however, made Li Wei, who was already troubled, cry as well.
Recalling everything that had happened with Lin Hao, Li Wei ate dried bayberries while crying, and in the end, she cried more and more sadly.
"Madam, please try to think more positively!" Yu Ping Yu Zhan comforted her, "You know that the young master was forced into this situation. You should try to understand him!"
After crying for a while, Yu Ping and Yu Zhan came over to comfort her, but the two maids there couldn't possibly comfort Li Wei.
Although Li Wei knew that Lin Hao had no choice, the more she thought about him marrying the King of Jinchuan, the more heartbroken she became.
"We women of Jichuan, no matter how humble, will never share our lovers with others!"
"Now that he has a wife, I'm going home, back to my Jichuan, and I'm never coming back, sob sob sob~!"
Just as Li Wei was crying her heart out, a familiar voice came from inside.
"Oh? Is that so? I won't allow you to leave!" Lin Hao walked over with a smile.
After escorting Yuan Ying to the bridal chamber, Lin Hao knew that Li Wei was feeling unwell, so he took the opportunity of going out to toast the guests to quickly come over and comfort Li Wei.
Lin Hao didn't care about Song Wu's little tricks at all; the most important thing was to appease Li Wei.
"Young Master!" Yu Ping and Yu Zhan hurriedly bowed.
Lin Hao glanced at the two of them and ordered, "You two go to the kitchen and bring back some good food for the concubine!"
"Yes!" the two replied in unison, showing their quick wit.
After turning around and leaving, he went to the kitchen to get some food, but didn't come back directly, leaving the two of them alone.
After the two maids left, Lin Hao held Li Wei in his arms and gently kissed away the tears from the corners of her eyes.
Then, looking at Li Wei, he said in a serious tone, "I just heard that someone is going home and never coming back, is that right?"
"Waaah~, you chose Yuan Ying, so you don't want me anymore!" Li Wei cried, patting Lin Hao's chest.
"If you don't want me, then I... I don't like you anymore either!"
"I want to go home, boohoo!"
"Who said you don't want me anymore?" Lin Hao hugged Li Wei tightly, cupping her small face in his hands as he spoke earnestly:
"Let me tell you, Li Wei, you can only love me for the rest of your life. You will belong to me alone for all eternity. You are not allowed to dislike me, understand?"
Then Lin Hao hugged Li Wei tightly and said apologetically, "We've been together for so long, you know me!"
"Marrying Princess Jinchuan was not my original intention. In fact, it was an order from the Chuan Lord. Although I argued with reason, I could not refute the Chuan Lord's decree!"
"But he can control my body, but he can't control my love for you. In my heart, you are more important than the newlywed wife. You will always be the most important person, and no one can replace you!"
"Look, I came to see you right after I finished my wedding ceremony. Isn't that very sincere?" Lin Hao said, standing up and shaking his sleeves.
"Hmph, I don't believe it. You have no sincerity at all. You should refuse." Li Wei looked at Lin Hao in his red dress and wiped away her tears.
"How can that be considered sincerity? How about I consummate our marriage with you tonight? That would be showing my sincerity, wouldn't it?"
"No, no, that would embarrass Princess Jinchuan!"
Li Wei had already found out the whole story and knew the conditions under which Yuan Ying married into the family, especially since it involved matters of national importance, which Lin Hao could not possibly change.
If Lin Hao not only didn't consummate his marriage with Yuan Ying in the bridal chamber, but instead came to sleep with her, his concubine, who knows what kind of trouble it would cause.
The price they would have to pay then would be something neither of them could bear, not to mention that Princess Jinchuan was completely innocent, just like when she came to Xinchuan for a political marriage.