On this day, Cao Xi and Xia Houxuan were on vacation. They remembered that they had not visited the Empress Dowager in the palace for several days, so they made an appointment to go to Yongshou Palace together today. "I would like to extend my regards to the Empress Dowager." After Xia Houxuan and Cao Xi entered the palace, they knelt down and saluted Empress Dowager Bian.
"Two children, please get up quickly and come to grandma, hahaha..." The old man grabbed their hands and said with a smile: "Grandma heard that you two rejected His Majesty's marriage proposal the day before yesterday, right? ah……"
The two of them did not reply, but lowered their heads in unison.
"Xi'er, I remember that when you were young, you always liked to play with Xuan'er's sister and Hui'er, right?"
Queen Mother Bian stroked Cao Xi's hair and asked in a kind tone. Cao Xi seemed a little shy and lowered his head. The old man continued to smile and said:
"Xi'er, there are some things that are not up to you, cough cough cough... Since you have no fate with the person you used to care about, it would be better to forget and let go of that person completely. People always have to look forward. You must learn to cherish the people in front of you..."
"Well..." Cao Xi couldn't help but feel in a trance after listening to the old man's earnest instructions. He nodded with tears and said: "My grandson understands..."
"And you, Xuan'er..." The old man held Xia Houxuan's hand tightly and said with a smile: "You and Xi'er have always had different temperaments. Xi'er is a child who is easily emotional, but you are different. , I always seem to have these other things in my heart, and I never care much about my children. However, these days, when grandma sees you, she always feels that you are different, and there are more smiles on your face than before. "
Xia Houxuan's face heated up slightly when he heard this, but he did not answer. Queen Mother Bian seemed to have recalled something, and looked a little lonely. She continued:
"Xuan'er, grandma failed to understand Lin'er's mother's thoughts, and in a moment of confusion, ordered the death of your father's concubine Bihan, which caused your father to die in depression... Will you still be resentful? And me……"
Hearing this, Xia Houxuan could no longer hold back his tears. He choked and replied:
"Xuan'er understands that grandma has always been kind and generous. This matter is a villain's conspiracy and did not come from grandma's true intentions. Therefore, Xuan'er will never resent grandma..."
"Emperor Wu and I ignored your father's wishes and forcibly betrothed our adopted daughter, your mother, to him. It was wrong..."
Queen Mother Bian closed her eyes, shook her head, and sighed:
"Today, Your Majesty wants to betroth Ling'er to you. Grandma also knows that this is forcing you to do something difficult. Grandma is about to leave. Before she dies, she must make up for the mistakes she made back then..."
Queen Mother Bian looked at Li Huigu who was standing beside her, and happily grabbed her hand.
"Huigu, the Ai family can see over the past few days that every time you see Xuan'er, something is not right... you like him, right?"
Faced with such a direct question from the Empress Dowager, Li Huigu's cheeks turned crimson. She lowered her head and did not deny it. When Xia Houxuan saw such a scene, his heart was filled with emotions. He looked at Li Huigu. Their eyes met inadvertently, but they both immediately turned their heads shyly.
"Xuan'er... Grandma has met countless people in her life. I can see that you also like Huigu, right?"
Queen Mother Bian's kind and kind smile is like a warm spring breeze or a warm sunshine, making people feel warm just looking at it. She grabbed the hands of Xia Houxuan and Li Huigu with both hands and put them together:
"Huigu is a person worth cherishing..."
Xia Houxuan raised his head and looked at Li Huigu, whose cheeks were blushing due to shyness. He, who had always been aloof and cold, couldn't help but smile in his eyes at this moment.
Recalling everything he had with Huigu during this period, he and she first met in Langya, Qingzhou. Although they had only known each other for a few months, they had experienced hardships together and had their own lives hanging by a thread. When they entered the pit and were dependent on her for life and death, and when she planned to return without success, it was Huigu who put aside the grudges of her ancestors and chose to follow her thousands of miles away.
This originally hazy friendship has actually become extremely deep and intense due to their various experiences.
However, Li Huigu was shy by nature, and Xia Houxuan himself had not thought about his marriage carefully. Therefore, it was not until today, after being matched by Queen Mother Bian, that the two of them clearly realized that they had been in love with each other for a long time.
Xia Houxuan smiled at Li Huigu, and promised word by word in front of his grandmother, Queen Mother Bian, and his cousin Cao Xi:
"Xuan'er is sure. Don't forget your grandmother's instructions and live up to Miss Li's love!"
Li Huigu couldn't help but tremble after hearing Xia Houxuan's words. She was so emotional that she could no longer control her tears, and two lines of clear tears burst out of her eyes in an instant.
She had actually been longing for this moment for a long time, but how could she dare to think too much in the past? She was just a woman collecting herbs in the mountains, and where was Xia Houxuan?
He is a royal prince-in-law with the title of Marquis of the countryside, the eldest son of a famous general in the Wei Dynasty, and a young talent who became famous at a young age and from a famous family. Even if he has some affection for her, how can he marry her in such a glorious way? First wife?
To this day, at this very moment, how could she not be excited about how pitiful God made her dream come true?
"Hahaha..., Xuan'er." Queen Mother Bian seemed to have never smiled so happily. She giggled: "It's already this time, and you still call her Miss Li. It seems so cute..."
Xia Houxuan, who had always been generous and generous, seemed a little shy at the moment. But he was not timid, he still held Li Huigu's hand tightly, looked at her and said softly:
"Huigu, when I go back today, I will ask my mother to allow you to marry into my Xiahou Mansion. Tomorrow I will go to His Majesty to ask for a marriage, so that you can marry me in a glorious way. By then, you will be my Xiahou Xuan's Wife."
"Well..." Li Huigu nodded heavily. Although there were still tears on her face at this moment, her heart was filled with incomparable happiness and joy.
The sun shines into the Yongshou Palace, reflecting a warm and brilliant golden color.
——————
Changlinghou Mansion.
In the huge courtyard, there is still the water-like silence and tranquility. It's just that it's different from the bustle and joy of more than ten years ago. Since the death of the previous head of the family, Xia Houshang, and his wife Bihan, the Xianghou Mansion now seems a bit lonely.
Xia Houxuan was holding a wooden grate to help his mother Cao Jue comb her long, gray hair.
He hadn't combed his mother's hair for a long time, and he didn't know when her mother started adding so much silver strands to her hair. As the adopted daughter of Emperor Wu and Empress Dowager Bian, the sister of Cao Zhen, the then general of the Shaoling dynasty, and the wife of Xia Houshang, the general of the Conquest of the South and the mourning lord of Changling, my mother had never had any worries for many years.
But since the death of my father, my mother has started to age at an alarming rate. Thinking of this, Xia Houxuan suddenly felt extremely sad.
"Mother, why do you have gray hair? Let the child pluck it out for you."
"No need, Xuan'er..." Cao Jue looked at the tall and handsome child in the mirror and smiled happily: "In a blink of an eye, you have grown into an adult. How can your mother not grow old? By the way, Xuan'er, listen. Recently, you rejected the marriage arranged by His Majesty for you in the palace. After all these years, do you really not have a girl you like?"
"Mother, the reason why my child rejected your majesty's marriage proposal is actually... because... he already has a sweetheart." Xia Houxuan had rarely said anything emotional to his mother since he was a child, so he felt a little embarrassed at this moment.
"Oh?" Cao Jue couldn't hide his surprise and joy when he heard this. His daughter and Bihan's daughter had long been betrothed to Sima Shi and He Kui respectively, but his son, the elder brother, had never been willing to do so. Over the years, watching her nephew Cao Shuang and the eldest sons of various families getting married, Cao Jue became a little anxious. Now that her son finally has his sweetheart, how can she not be happy as a mother? She looked back at her son and asked with a smile:
"Did Xuan'er fall in love with a daughter from a certain family or a princess in the palace? As long as she is a good girl who suits your liking, I will definitely help you find a matchmaker in person."
"Mother, the child's favorite person is the female doctor who serves the Queen Mother, Li Huigu, Miss Li."
"Li Huigu..." After hearing the name, Cao Jue didn't react for a while. She squinted her eyes and thought for a while, then she remembered: "I remembered, it's the one from Qingzhou. When my mother went to Yongshou Palace, I met Li Huigu a few times, the medical woman who treated her mother's serious illness, and I had a good impression of her."
When Xia Houxuan heard this, he felt relieved.
Cao Jue continued:
"It's just... Xuan'er, our Xiahou family has been marrying Princess Cao for generations since the founding of the country. Over the years, it has been a custom... I wonder if Your Majesty will agree to this marriage? "
"Mother, there is no need to worry about this matter. The Queen Mother has promised that she will make the decision for the child."
While Xia Houxuan was beating Cao Jue's shoulders, he thought to himself:
I have grown up in a famous northern city since I was a child, and I am used to seeing marriages between aristocratic families. Most of them try their best to marry into famous families in order to maintain their family status, but among them, the real How many couples have found people who love each other and are truly happy? What about a poor family, what about a noble family? In his opinion, these are all just shackles that imprison people. In his eyes, Brother Lu Zhi and Yan Zi from the small village in Chenliu County, as well as the innocent young beggar Su Mu from Lihu County, are no worse than any of his friends in the capital. Everyone in the world is the same. With dignity and emotion, there are so many distinctions between superiority and inferiority.
In life, if you can't stay with the person you want to be with for the rest of your life, even if you continue to live, what happiness is there?
Xia Houxuan's eyes were full of determination at this moment.
