Chapter 17: Old Scores
Few in the world had seen Princess Yongjia, but based solely on the attention from the Palace and Prince Duan’s Mansion bestowed upon her, one could conclude that she was truly the favored daughter of heaven.
In fact, from childhood to adulthood, Yue Tang had indeed received endless love from her uncle, aunt, and father and brother.
Even if there were occasional estrangements, Yue Tang could understand. After all, both the palm and the back of the hand are flesh; she had survived, but her second brother had not even had the chance to see this world before he left.
Before the age of six, bearing the fate of the heaven-destined calamity maiden, she always had to think more than her peers.
After six, she began living in Bie Ye. Admittedly, she was surrounded by loyal and reliable people, with all affairs handled without issue; she only needed to study on schedule, practice arts, and in her free time, go out to observe the people’s conditions using the commoner identity that Prince Duan had given her. It seemed leisurely and stable, but in the end, she had to stand on her own and learn to grow up by herself.
The teacher sent from the Palace to teach her reading said that, born as imperial clan children, they had an inescapable duty to family and country.
Marry a son-in-law, and thereafter her children could enter the imperial clan registry. The Palace waters run deep; no one could guarantee the imperial favor would last forever. She had to take advantage of the brotherly bond between the Emperor and Prince Duan still being strong, first give birth to a child and secure the nobility title.
Prince Duan was silent for a long time, finally muttering a few times “silly girl” before leaving.
Three months later, Prince Duan came to her Bie Ye again. He said the Imperial Uncle had indeed agreed to her marrying a son-in-law, and also agreed to eventually establish her eldest son as Prince Duan’s Heir.
But Prince Duan then hesitated and asked, asking which family’s son she wanted to find?
Since the age of six, Yue Tang had been far from officials and nobles; she had heard much of their names, rumors, and anecdotes, but had never seen any of them in person, with no way to choose.
Even if she had interest, would the sons from those great aristocratic families be willing to be her skirt minister?
Looking further down would be strata that neither Yue Tang nor Prince Duan were familiar with.
Sons grown up from ordinary family backgrounds, suddenly entering a wealthy royal court—not lacking those who could withstand the temptations of interest, those with hearts unmoved by favor or disgrace—but Yue Tang could not afford to gamble.
She also could not possibly gamble.
The Former Emperor’s many favors toward Prince Duan’s Mansion were the mansion’s fortune, but also easily became misfortune.
In the past many years, too many people had attempted to flaunt outside using the mansion’s name; and this time it concerned her husband, who was the mansion’s second master. One misstep, and the future troubles would be enormous.
She had long since thought it through: “Go to the common folk to find an outstanding scholar; I will marry him as a commoner, wait for the child to be born, then promise him fame and fortune, and go with father stays child leaves.”
As long as the problem could be solved, what means were used fundamentally did not matter.
Moreover, on the Imperial Court, the various aristocratic families were secretly vying; marrying a common man and then doing husband leaves child stays was the cleanest approach.
Prince Duan was shocked and retreated once again.
Yue Tang was not anxious. At this point, she knew Father King and Imperial Uncle would both agree.
At another routine father-daughter meeting, Prince Duan indeed brought the Emperor’s personal letter.
The Emperor let her use the fake household registration that Prince Duan had previously arranged for her to marry.
For a Princess of the current dynasty to actually find a common man to marry and give birth to a child—he as uncle absolutely could not afford to lose that face.
Yue Tang smiled.
Later she sent Wei Zhang everywhere to scout candidates.
She was one year short of turning sixteen.
Both her older brothers had died, and she herself still bore a calamity.
Though she had always been fearless, daring to venture alone into the dense forest with a quiver during autumn hunts, she too feared that the old monk’s curse on her would truly succeed, and she would not live to sixteen.
At that time the Spring Examination had just passed; the guild hall was gathered with many failed scholars, many from poor families who had pooled their entire family’s strength for the travel expenses to rush to the Capital City for the exam. With the imperial examination failed, they did not know what to do about the return expenses.
Thus many would post hiring notices outside the guild hall.
Wei Zhang squatted guard outside the guild hall for half a month, and when he discovered A Qi, he was hugging his arms, competing with a group of weak scholars for a clerk position.
He was very tall, his whole body muscled clearly that of a martial practitioner. But his speech and demeanor could make one believe he truly was a scholar.
Someone disliked him gaining favor, came over to make trouble for him; Wei Zhang mixed in the crowd, looking him up and down thoroughly while he was bare-chested, then brought him out.
In the village house, Yue Tang pretending to be a fallen miss also looked him up and down thoroughly, then questioned his background.
He said he came from the Northern Lands, his grandfather had also been an official, but after retiring to care for the aged, the whole family had settled down in the north.
Ultimately unwilling to abandon his books, so he still had the family children study for the imperial examinations.
He showed Yue Tang his travel permit.
The travel permit was real, but his background still needed verification.
Yue Tang first kept him under the name of sponsorship.
Then Wei Zhang brought a few guards to A Qi’s hometown; the inquired situation matched exactly what he had said, the travel permit was also genuine with government records, even their family ancestral grave was found.
This was very good.
The farther from the Capital City the better.
Yue Tang had always been a decisive person.
She asked, A Qi, do you have a betrothed?
He said no.
So Yue Tang said again: You are handsome and talented; I fancy you. Why not stay and be my son-in-law? I have three hundred mu of land; you come be the landlord, I will listen to everything you say.
He surprisingly refused.
Refused desperately.
Yue Tang thought it over and still felt that whether in physique, appearance, habits, or character, he was extremely suitable to be the father of her son.
So she persuaded him once more.
This time she directly persuaded him to run away.
Yue Tang gave up, turned to find others.
At this time he came back again.
Hugging his two ape-like arms, he paced back and forth in front of her seven or eight times, finally clenching his teeth and saying: Marriage is fine, but we don’t know each other; I need to stay and spend more time with you before saying.
If it weren’t for the pawn shop in town being exactly Yue Tang’s retainer, Yue Tang would have believed it.
The pawn shop said he had pawned even his long-life lock.
So where was it a change of heart? Clearly scheming for a place to stay.
Him having designs, for Yue Tang, instead meant even less burden.
Thus she found the nearest auspicious day, single-handedly arranged the wedding hall. Besides drinking a cup of wine before entering the wedding hall, he did not worry about the rest.
Between the pillow and mat, she bit his ear and said, don’t be afraid, wait until I give birth to a healthy and handsome son like you, then I will let you go.
That night, Yue Tang believed she was acting according to the diagrams, extremely gentle.
But the next day at noon, he woke from drunkenness and still fled through the broken window.
The next month, Yue Tang discovered she was pregnant.
Eight months later, just as Yue Tang was lying in Bie Ye strolling to nurture the fetus, Wei Zhang suddenly reported that the son-in-law had returned again…
Yue Tang changed clothes and makeup to return to the village house.
Fortunately, the original village house they lived in was a place the shadow guards usually stayed, used to cover for her; living traces were all ready-made, without flaws.
He brought a pile of fox pelts, mink pelts, gold, silver, jewelry, and bird’s nest and fish fins, staring at her big belly in a daze for a long time.
Yue Tang rubbed her belly and called “husband,” before he found his breath and woke up.
Yue Tang asked him why he had come back again?
He hemmed and hawed without speaking, finally saying with a gloomy face that there was an urgent matter, but since she was about to give birth, he would wait until after she gave birth to say.
