Refuse to trample on the pride of heaven

Chapter 406 Rejection of Marriage

The emperor's lazy voice came from behind the screen, with a hint of casualness.

Lu Wensheng thanked him and stood up, looking forward. He saw a figure moving behind the screen, as if waving his hand, and the eunuchs who were watching in the study quietly retreated.

He originally thought that the emperor must have important matters to discuss, but he never expected that the other party did not mention the affairs of state at all. Instead, he asked whether his work in the Hanlin Academy was going smoothly, which colleagues he interacted with on a daily basis, whether his parents were healthy, and even asked about his age and whether he was engaged.

Lu Wensheng was slightly startled, and couldn't help feeling a little dazed while answering - this didn't sound like a conversation between a monarch and his subjects, but rather like an elder looking at a younger person, intending to propose marriage.

Wait, no way? Are you really going to arrange a blind date for him? Lu Wensheng felt like there was a huge "danger" hanging over his head.

"I don't want any prince consort..." The voice behind the screen sounded as clear and mellow as the sound of jade knocking on jade, but it lacked the tenderness and gracefulness of a girl. The ending tone was as sharp as chopping bamboo, and it seemed like... The noble young men with tied hair and studying in TV dramas flashed through his mind, and his throat couldn't help but roll slightly.

Shit, could it be Liu Jiqian? But thinking of Liu Jiqian's clingy attitude before entering the formation, Lu Wensheng felt that if it was Liu Jiqian, it would be impossible for him not to recognize him - not sure, let's try again...

The incense from the gilded animal-head incense burner suddenly became stronger, and Lu Wensheng's keen sense of smell caught a hint of cedar mixed with the ambergris.

The hall was so quiet that one could hear the ticking of the clepsydra. When Lu Wensheng counted to the third note, there was a sudden rustling sound of clothing rubbing against each other behind the screen, as if someone was walking around the screen, and the corner of their clothing brushed past his boots, bringing up a very light breeze.

He lowered his eyes and stared at his shadow cast on the blue bricks, only to see that the shadow was covered by a slender figure, which swayed in the candlelight and actually circled around him half a circle.

The other party seemed to have returned to the back of the screen. His tone suddenly changed and he changed his words decisively, with a bit of abrupt obedience and deliberate softness: "However, marriage is an important matter. It is the parents' order and the matchmaker's words. I, your son, will listen to my father."

The tone changed so quickly that it reminded me of the female roles played by the opera troupe in Liyuan, who were playing with guns and sticks one moment and could be holding a handkerchief and smiling the next.

For example, if you are rescued and the other person is not your ideal type, you would say, "I can never repay you for saving my life, I will work like a slave in my next life." If the other person is your ideal type, you would say, "I should repay you for saving my life with my life."

Lu Wensheng was startled and felt that it was definitely not Liu Jiqian.

"I remember that you are not engaged?" The emperor's voice came from behind the screen, with a seemingly casual concern, but it made Lu Wensheng's heart alarm bells ring.

"???"

Shouldn't he marry a beautiful, rich woman only after getting a promotion and a raise? Lu Wensheng was a little confused.

How did the topic suddenly turn to marriage? He was a newly crowned top scholar, so shouldn't we be talking about statecraft and the pros and cons of the new policy? What did you like about him? Wasn't it okay for him to change?

Lu Wensheng racked his brains but still had no idea why the emperor chose him: Could it be that His Majesty thought he looked kind and wanted to recruit him as a consort? But he hadn't even seen what the princess looked like, so could it be that in this day and age, the selection of a consort still depended on blind marriages?

After thinking it over, Lu Wensheng lifted up the corner of his robe, knelt on the ground, and made an apologetic gesture.

"Your Majesty, although I have not yet been engaged, my heart belongs to someone else. I dare not deceive you."

The hall suddenly became so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.

"Click——"

The crisp shattering sound was like an icicle falling to the ground, startling Lu Wensheng so much that his shoulders trembled suddenly.

He subconsciously raised his eyes, but could only catch a glimpse of a hand passing by in the corner that was not covered by the screen.

The mutton-fat jade teacup on the desk had been cracked into two halves, and the amber tea soup was flowing along the edge of the table like a river, leaving dark stains on the bright yellow table curtain.

"Emperor, Emperor?"

"No problem..."

A shallow voice came from behind the screen, like a stream after the snow melted in spring. It sounded calm but concealed an almost inaudible vibrato. Lu Wensheng felt that it was becoming more and more familiar - could it really be Liu Jiqian?

His Majesty sighed heavily and said, "Please leave now."

When Lu Wensheng bowed and stood up, he heard the sound of footsteps coming from behind the screen, as if someone was leaving on broken porcelain pieces, and each step was so light as if afraid of waking something.

When I left the imperial study, dusk had already spread over the palace walls.

Lu Wensheng rubbed his brows, feeling that today's audience was like a big drama, with a heart full of doubts and fatigue. He never expected that as soon as he walked out of the palace gate, he saw Chen Bangyan and Xie Qingwu waiting there.

"Brother Yangming is the most knowledgeable person, and I have written an excellent article. Why don't you come to my house and have a long chat?" Chen Bangyan looked so enthusiastic that "good brothers just need to share a quilt."

"Can you give me a ride?" Xie Qingwu also came over, there seemed to be tiny lights flowing in his light brown eyes, and he seemed to be a little more eager.

Lu Wensheng looked at the two people, one was passionate and the other was full of inexplicable expectations, and couldn't help but feel a little confused - why were these two people waiting for him here before getting off work?

Thinking of the strange things in the imperial study, he couldn't help but ask Chen Bangyan: "Is the emperor's surname Liu?"

"No, it's Wei. Brother Yangming, are you dreaming?" Chen Bangyan laughed. "Could it be that the emperor summoned you today and you were so excited that you even forgot the emperor's surname?"

Lu Wensheng was stunned when he heard this. He felt relieved but also inexplicably lost. The subtle expectation was shattered in an instant - it turned out that it was not Liu Jiqian.

It’s hard to describe the feeling, they are so similar, aren’t they?

He looked at the last ray of setting sun in the sky, and suddenly felt that everyone he met that day was like flowers in the fog. The evil aura on Zhengxiu, Xie Qingwu's strange reaction, the strange marriage in the imperial study... Each and every one of them seemed inconsistent, and the clues were like a kite with a loose string, making it impossible for him to grasp the beginning or the end.

He shook his head, threw these thoughts out of his mind, and forced a smile at the two people in front of him: "In this case, I will go to Brother Chen's house to bother you." After that, he left with the two people, but his steps seemed to be a little heavier.

Xie Qingwu walked silently beside Lu Wensheng, and suddenly turned his head, his eyes swept across the gilded tiles on the distant palace wall, and fell on Lu Wensheng's slightly frowned brows.

The fingertips in his sleeves curled up lightly, and a dark light flashed in his eyes, but when Lu Wensheng turned his head, it quickly turned into a faint smile.

----

Chen Mansion at night...

Lu Wensheng didn't expect that the result of their long conversation would be to sleep with their feet touching.

Xie Qingwu looked indifferent, but he didn't expect that they would have to squeeze on the same couch even with a stern face.

Chen Bangyan slept in an unruly posture, with his back to him and his back hunched, forcing him to the edge of the couch.

The worst thing was that Xie Qingwu slept obediently on the outermost side. Lu Wensheng was afraid that he would accidentally push him off the bed, so he could only hold on to his body, like a sandwich in the middle.

[Congratulations to the host for achieving the "Both Left and Right Are Men" achievement.] The system pretended to be serious.

Lu Wensheng said with a wooden face: "Shut up."

Outside the window, moonlight shone through the window lattice onto the couch, illuminating the three people's different sleeping postures. Lu Wensheng looked at the ceiling of the tent, feeling exhausted.

Lu Wensheng: Next time I come to Chen Bangyan’s house, he will be a dog.