I became the God Brother of the Regent King after Transmigration!-Chapter 205 - 139: Imperial Marriage Bestowal

The next day, Lu Bingxin hurriedly went to Yongshou Palace to meet the Empress Dowager, seeking the imperial decree for marriage.

He feared any delay might lead to unexpected troubles.

Recalling the shamelessly protective nature of Gu Chengzhao... Lu Bingxin didn’t dare to imagine further.

Who knows when the news of the Dingyuan Marquis’s victory would reach the Capital City. If the triumphant Marquis Gu used his supreme military achievements to have Young Master Gu marry the Princess, it was not impossible.

After all, when Gu Chengzhao was wreaking havoc in the Capital City in his younger days, there was a saying in Capital City: never underestimate the shamelessness of Gu Chengzhao.

"The Emperor wants me to bestow marriage on your daughter?"

In Yongshou Palace, Empress Dowager Su looked at Lu Bingxin, who was kneeling on the ground, and furrowed her brows tightly.

Lu Bingxin respectfully replied, "Indeed, my daughter and Gu Lan are deeply in love, a perfect match of talents and beauty. I hope the Empress Dowager can fulfill this wish."

Beside Empress Dowager Su stood a young, tall, and extremely handsome little eunuch, whom Lu Bingxin couldn’t help but glance at several times.

The little eunuch took the teapot from the palace maid and refilled the Empress Dowager’s cup. The palace maid called him "Eunuch Xu."

Lu Bingxin had long heard that as the Empress Dowager aged, her memory wasn’t as sharp, so the eunuch beside her, the most trusted one, was called Little Xu. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

If one Little Xu died or fell out of favor, a new Little Xu would replace him. Whoever had this name was the one most trusted by the Empress Dowager at the moment.

On the other side of the Empress Dowager was a woman in a plain palace dress, her hair slightly silvered.

Although this woman sat properly on the seat, she was very respectful to the Empress Dowager.

The woman spoke, "A while ago, it was well-known across Capital City that Lord Lu was rejected by the Gu Family. It seems Young Master Gu has no interest in Lord Lu’s daughter."

Lu Bingxin bowed slightly and said:

"Consort, you may not know, but half a month ago was half a month ago. Who’s to say they can’t suddenly fall in love now? The Emperor has already agreed to this matter, only lacking an imperial decree from the Empress Dowager."

His gaze swept over the woman in the palace dress, with a hint of disdain in his eyes.

This woman was the mother of Prince Rui, Consort Jia, Rong Shuo’s mother.

Consort Jia was originally a beautiful palace maid by the Empress Dowager’s side, of low birth. Her looks were somewhat similar to the favored Princess Consort Xiao.

The Empress Dowager had not been favored by the former Emperor, so to secure her position, she sent her maid to the former Emperor’s bed. Unexpectedly, the maid became pregnant with the imperial offspring and gave birth to the Eldest Prince Rong Shuo, so the former Emperor had to grant her a concubine title.

But even after becoming a concubine, Consort Jia remained timid and subservient to her former mistress, the Empress Dowager, serving her diligently for years. Even though her son had been granted the title of Prince, she was unwilling and did not dare to move out of the palace into the Prince Mansion.

Such a pitiful woman, Lu Bingxin paid her no mind.

The Empress Dowager snorted coldly, "The Emperor thinks if the Dingyuan Marquis is dissatisfied with this marriage in the future, he can blame it on me. Heh, my lovely son is really washing his hands clean and letting me be the villain."

Lu Bingxin lowered his head and said nothing.

The Empress Dowager looked at him and slowly said, "Minister Lu, you and I both know very well what the Emperor supports you for."

Lu Bingxin shivered all over and knelt even lower.

Of course, he knew.

The Emperor supported him and wanted his daughter to marry the Young Master of the Dingyuan Marquis Mansion to have the Lu Family compete with the Su Family as soon as possible.

He suddenly realized, in this case, how could Empress Dowager Su willingly grant a marriage between Feifei and Gu Lan?

At this moment, Consort Jia suddenly spoke softly, "I heard Lord Lu has a son who is exceptionally talented, skilled in both civil and military affairs, and is currently studying at the Imperial Family school. How old is he now?"

Lu Bingxin nodded and said, "My son Ruifeng just turned eighteen this year."

Consort Jia cautiously said, "Prince Rui’s young daughter Baoyi has just come of age and is not yet married—"

Lu Bingxin was stirred inwardly.

His original intention was to have Lu Rufeng be with Princess Ning’an, but it was said that the Princess was arrogant and unruly, not fond of Rufeng. Moreover, since the Princess was from the Su family, if the Emperor thought he was fickle, it wouldn’t be suitable either.

Thinking this way, County Princess Changle seemed like a good choice. He had seen her at the last Mid-Autumn Festival banquet; she was a rare beauty, well-matched with his son.

But with the Empress Dowager present, was Consort Jia bringing this up a bit too hastily? They could discuss it privately.

"Crack—!"

The Empress Dowager threw the teacup in her hand onto the table, causing tea to splash everywhere. Her already harsh face appeared even colder and more ruthless.

Consort Jia reacted immediately, hurriedly kneeling to the ground:

"I was wrong, I was wrong! Baoyi joined the army, and loves swordplay and martial arts. She is by no means a good match for Young Master Lu."

The Empress Dowager snorted coldly, "It’s good that you know. Matters between the Emperor and me, and you still wish to seek benefits for Prince Rui’s Mansion? Such wishful thinking."

Consort Jia immediately kowtowed, her hair, half silver and half black, looking particularly pitiful and forlorn: "I really had no such intention, it’s all due to my poor consideration. I beg the Empress Dowager for forgiveness."

Lu Bingxin silently watched these two women, thinking to himself, Consort Jia is so weak and foolish, and Prince Rui values filial piety highly. As long as Consort Jia is held tightly in the Empress Dowager’s hands, he will be deeply loyal.

The Empress Dowager waved her hand: "Get up. To those unaware, they would think that I am bullying you. You are now a Consort, why do you still refer to yourself as a servant so readily?"

"I, I... thank you for your grace, Empress Dowager, it’s just that I am used to calling myself that, and I wish to always serve the Empress Dowager," Consort Jia said respectfully.

Although the Empress Dowager told Consort Jia to stop calling herself a servant, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of satisfaction when she heard her say it.

Because of Consort Jia’s words, the Empress Dowager recalled the existence of Lu Rufeng, and similarly, she also thought of those days when she sent Rong Miaoyan to kill Noble Qian, but did not expect Ning An to be so useless, resulting in the loss of the previous Little Xu.

"Since it is the Emperor’s will, I will grant marriage for your younger daughter and Gu Lan, while also marrying off Princess Ning’an... to allow your legitimate son Lu Rufeng to become Prince Consort of Dayan, how about that?" The Empress Dowager said slowly and methodically.

Lu Bingxin looked up in surprise, stunned.

Little Xu immediately said, "Lord Lu, why not quickly express your gratitude!"

"Yes, yes—" Happiness arrived too suddenly, and Lu Bingxin finally reacted, kowtowing in gratitude, "This humble minister thanks the Empress Dowager!"

He was not a fool and soon understood the Empress Dowager’s reasoning for doing so.

The Emperor wanted him to counterbalance Prime Minister Su, but the Empress Dowager used Princess Ning’an to win him over. Henceforth, all matters in the court would become family affairs, naturally followed by mutual prosperity and mutual loss. Even if he obeyed the Emperor and confronted Prime Minister Su, it wouldn’t lead to a fight to the death, as there would be a consideration of preserving relationships between parties.

This was a triple win, except it didn’t account for whether Young Master Gu and Princess Ning’an would agree or disagree.

What would it matter if they agree or disagree? Could the Dingyuan Marquis Mansion rebel? Or would Princess Ning’an refuse to marry to the death?

The Empress Dowager quickly wrote the imperial edict, stamped it with the Empress Dowager’s jade seal, and handed it to Little Xu, then said with a hint of significance, "This child Ning’an is the heart of the Empress, you must ensure that Lu Rufeng treats her well."

"This humble minister understands." Lu Bingxin replied.

"I am tired, Little Xu, help me back to the palace."

"Yes." Little Xu responded, supporting the Empress Dowager. As they passed by the kneeling Consort Jia, he cast a glance, "The Empress Dowager has ordered you to rise, and yet you are still kneeling here for others to see, would you like people to say that the Empress Dowager is bullying you?"

"Eunuch Xu is right." Consort Jia hurriedly and fearfully stood up, leaving Yongshou Palace with the help of palace maids.

She was slightly older than the Empress Dowager, now her steps were already faltering.

On the road, her personal maid saw the bruises on Consort Jia’s forehead from kowtowing, almost crying out, couldn’t help but say:

"If you really wish to marry County Princess Changle to the Lu family’s son, you should speak to Lord Lu in private. Discussing such matters publicly only gives the Empress Dowager an opportunity to humiliate you. Your health is already not good, and with this kneeling..."

Consort Jia patted the maid’s hand, gently comforting her: "It was intentional."

"Intentional?"

Consort Jia turned her head, gazing at the ornate and majestic Yongshou Palace, her eyes dim and silent, glistening with tears.

"The more foolish I appear in front of the Empress Dowager, the safer my son will be, leading the troops outside."

Of course, she knew that the Empress Dowager would never let Baoyi marry Lu Rufeng and would scold her for not knowing her place, but she just wanted to mention this issue to make the Empress Dowager think she was foolish and easy to control.

Having once been a palace maid by the Empress Dowager’s side, Consort Jia understood that woman and her son very well. Their suspicious nature would rather err on the side of needless harm than risk letting any transgression slip. Now with Rong Shuo as Prince Rui leading armies, he was most afraid of imperial suspicion.

For the sake of Rong Shuo, she could only remain trapped within this deep palace forever. Only with her presence could the Emperor and the Empress Dowager be assured of Rong Shuo...

Lu Bingxin obtained the Empress Dowager’s edict and left the palace in splendid fashion. In less than half a day, the news of the Empress Dowager granting marriage between Young Master Gu and Lu Feifei, and Princess Ning’an with Lu Rufeng had spread throughout the Capital City.

Little Xu arrived at the Dingyuan Marquis Mansion in the afternoon of the same day with the edict to deliver the decree.