Li Qingcha nodded imperceptibly.
The Seventh Prince can’t do it anymore.
The emperor asked, "What do you think about this?"
How else can you see...
Li Qingcha, Lin Sicong and Jie Chengxuan suddenly seemed to have Alzheimer's disease. Their eyes were full of confusion as they stared at the patterns on the ground, studying them.
Emperor: ￣□￣｜｜
He looked at the Seventh Prince.
Unexpectedly, the Seventh Prince went even further and started playing with his fingernails, picking out dirt from between his nails.
The emperor couldn't stand it anymore.
"What? What do you mean? Three selection officers and one party involved didn't say anything?"
The voice just fell,
Plop——×4
All four of them knelt.
"Your Majesty, please make a wise decision."
The emperor was stunned.
"Okay, why are you asking me?"
Xie Chengxuan raised his head slightly.
"Your Majesty, in the folk, people believe in 'parents' orders and matchmaker's words'. The palace also has similar rules. For example, when choosing a prince's consort, there is a saying of 'selecting three'. The emperor, the empress, the prince's biological mother, and the queen dowager must jointly study and decide, and choose the right candidate from the final three candidates."
"Ah...this..."
"Your Majesty, please make a wise decision!"
The emperor was speechless.
I didn't expect that the incident would happen to me.
Fortunately, the eunuch's voice came from outside: "Chu Zhongtian, the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Pavilion, requests to see you."
The emperor was relieved, heaved a sigh of relief, and said, "Go in."
The door was pushed open.
Chu Zhongtian walked in and saw four people kneeling on the ground in the hall. Without saying a word, he immediately knelt down and shouted, "Your Highness!"
The emperor waved his hand casually.
"Come on, come on, all of you get up."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Five people got up from the ground.
The emperor stared at Chu Zhongtian for a while.
"Grand Scholar Chu, I heard that your daughter participated in the selection of the Seventh Prince's wife. Is this true?"
Chu Zhongtian nodded.
"some."
"Did you mean that?"
A gleam flashed in the emperor's eyes.
Chu Zhongtian knew that his current statement was very important, and even related to the dispute over the country's foundation.
The combination of the daughter of a Grand Secretary and the most popular Seventh Prince, how could it not arouse people's imagination?
If this happens, some people may not even be able to sleep.
He groaned and said, "Your Majesty, I am not aware of this matter."
The emperor raised his eyebrows.
"Oh? You didn't know?"
"Yes. An Jun went to participate in the selection, and I didn't know about it."
"..."
The emperor didn't respond.
Of course, he noticed that Chu Zhongtian was suspected of playing word games, but there was no need to ask.
Chu Zhongtian's conservative attitude is the most important.
Conservative means still leaning towards the prince.
The emperor pondered.
"There are three more rounds to come, so follow the rules."
He deliberately emphasized the word "rules", obviously letting Chu Zhongtian decide for himself whether to kick Chu Anyun out.
If he is not kicked out, how can he appease the prince?
There are so many things going on here.
Moreover, as Xie Chengxuan said, there is still "choose three" later, and the emperor himself can control the risk.
He will make his choice.
Moreover, if the emperor himself eliminated Chu Anyun, it would have a more obvious effect of reassuring the prince, which would be a good strategy.
The emperor waved his hand.
"Thank you for your trouble. Now, go down."
"Yes."
The five people left the Qianqing Palace.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he left the house, the Seventh Prince said to Chu Zhongtian: "Mr. Chu, no matter how outstanding your daughter is, I'm afraid..."
Li Qingcha quickly cleared his throat.
"Cough...cough..."
The Seventh Prince looked at her curiously.
"What's wrong with you?"
"Seventh Prince, do you still remember the woman you wanted to ask about that day?"
"!!!"
The Seventh Prince was so frightened that his mouth opened wide, as if ten gags could be stuffed in.
On that day, he asked Li Qingcha about the identity of the woman, but Li Qingcha evaded the question by saying that "the prince is not allowed to have any private contact with the candidate women."
did not expect……
He looked at Li Qingcha, then at Chu Zhongtian.
"You... you..."
Chu Zhongtian shook his head.
"I will take my leave first."
After saying that, he left.
Watching his back, the Seventh Prince couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.
Fortunately, Li Qingcha did not tell me about Chu Anyun's identity in advance, otherwise, I would have behaved too aggressively in front of my father. If it aroused suspicion of collusion with foreign officials, the consequences would be disastrous.
He nodded to Li Qingcha.
Brothers!
Chapter 402: Breaking Free from the Shackles of Identity
After the preliminary election, the Ministry of Rites and the various royal palaces slowed down their actions.
After three consecutive days of rest, by the end of July, the weather had gradually turned cooler, and the second round of selecting concubines had not yet begun.
Seeing that the autumn hunt was approaching, Li Qingcha, as the head of the reception department, would definitely be transferred away. A group of aristocratic families in the capital area who passed the preliminary examination began to gather in front of the kings' halls, demanding to continue.
Some even wrote letters to the emperor, accusing the three selection officials of being idle in their positions.
In fact, Li Qingcha and the others had a simple idea, which was to delay the matter for a while and let the public opinion about Chu Anyun dry up.
And just like that, the second round finally began.
Nearly three hundred beauties gathered in front of the palace, looking excited.
“It would be nice if I could meet him in person.”
"Want to see the Seventh Prince?"
"You do not want?"
"I would rather see His Majesty."
……
Chu Anyun: ￣□￣｜｜
The seventh prince is choosing a concubine, but these people are thinking about becoming the seventh prince's mother. It's outrageous.
At this time, a eunuch came out.
"After entering the palace, we will take you to the West Palace Internal Affairs Department for inspection. Remember, don't say what you shouldn't say, don't look at what you shouldn't look at, or you'll lose your head!"
This threat is direct.
The women lowered their heads and dared not whisper anymore.
The eunuch nodded with satisfaction and looked at Lin Sicong.
"Uncle, look..."
Lin Sicong nodded lightly and asked the eunuch to bring the women into the palace through the side door.
The girls lined up and followed the eunuchs closely.
The whole process was like a silent march.
They arrived at the West Palace and ran into Sirou, who was dressed in gorgeous clothes.
The princess was a lady of high rank, and her dress was also a phoenix coronet and a bridal robe, not much different from that of the empress, except that the phoenix coronet did not live up to its name, as it only had floral decorations but no dragons or phoenixes.
“These are the candidates?” she asked.
The eunuch nodded.
"Yes."
"Well……"
Sirou looked at him with a sharp gaze and even a slightly challenging expression.
But Sirou was extremely beautiful, especially when she was dressed up, with her hair in bloom, her face in bloom, and her golden hairpins. The tassels on her phoenix crown swayed slightly, revealing her peerless beauty underneath, which made the other female candidates present feel a little unhappy.
In an instant, they had the same idea:
The princess is just trying to show her power.
They were quite disdainful in their hearts.
Concubine Lin hasn't even shown up, so why are you, a sister-in-law, acting so high and mighty here?
It seems that Princess Sirou is really not favored in the palace. I am afraid that her mentality has long been problematic. She is trying to find a balance here~
Sirou glanced over, her lips curled up.
"You guys go ahead."
The eunuch saluted and then walked forward with the group of women.
