jdhmnovel Chapter 489: Pushing the Li Clan to Balance the Court
Chapter 489: Pushing the Li Clan to Balance the Court
Chapter 489: Pushing the Li Clan to Balance the Court
I still remember the day of the full moon banquet. Just as everyone was immersed in the festive atmosphere, a sudden imperial decree, like a thunderclap, shattered the tranquility. It turned out that the emperor, overjoyed, had decreed the canonization of Prince Guangping as a prince! The news shook the entire capital.
Three days later, the designated personnel arrived to replace the Guangping Prince's Mansion's plaque. Workers carefully removed the old plaque and replaced it with a new, exquisitely carved one. Emblazoned on the plaque were three gleaming golden characters: "Prince of Chu's Mansion." They shimmered in the sunlight, heralding a new era of splendor for the mansion.
The common people were talking about it for a while, saying that the twin boy and girl were really auspicious, and the story even became more exaggerated as it was spread.
Some people even said that when the twins were born, they saw a dragon flying in the sky to Prince Guangping's Palace. This might be the birth of a true dragon emperor!
At the same time, a major event took place in Chang'an City: the wedding of Li Xi and Gu Shiyi. As time passed, Gu Shiyi's belly gradually bulged. If the wedding was not held soon, the secret would be revealed.
So, in order to complete the wedding before Gu Shiyi gave birth, the Ministry of Rites was extremely busy. They prepared all the necessary supplies and ceremonial arrangements at an astonishing speed.
Finally, after hectic preparations, just four days after the full moon banquet, Li Xi and Gu Shiyi's wedding day arrived. That morning, before dawn, the entire Nanyang County Prince's Mansion was already ablaze with lights and bustling with activity. Servants bustled through the courtyards, busy decorating the hall and arranging flowers. From the kitchens, enticing aromas wafted, as a variety of delicious dishes were meticulously prepared.
The only difference is that in the past two years, both Li Chu and Dugu Moyan married their beloved wives, so they couldn't hide the joy on their faces on the wedding day.
Li Xi was different. He didn't really want to marry Gu Shiyi. So even though he seemed to be smiling, it didn't reach his eyes. He was just trying to cope with the situation.
Fortunately, everything went on as usual. After the ceremony, Gu Shiyi was sent to the bridal chamber and the wedding banquet outside began.
As Guo Ziyi's family and Li Guangbi's family could have become one family, they naturally came to the Prince of Nanyang's Mansion to offer their congratulations.
Everyone else was fine, but Li Xi and Guo Fengmin hadn't seen each other for ages, and seeing each other again felt like a lifetime ago. It was just that neither of them had grown up the same youthful look they once had.
Li Xi had hoped to talk with Guo Fengmin again, even just to have a drink, but Mrs. Guo and Guo Fengmin left early, citing family matters. Li Xi had no choice but to give up, but perhaps because he was feeling melancholy, he desperately tried to get drunk to forget about Guo Fengmin.
In the end, Li Xi was indeed successfully drunk thanks to the combined efforts of many parties. After being sent to the bridal chamber, Gu Shiyi felt a surge of anger at the sight of Li Xi's drunken state, but what could she do? This man had given her the status she had always dreamed of, so even if she didn't love him, what difference did it make?
Because the servants around Li Xi and Gu Shiyi's maids knew that she was pregnant, they helped Li Xi take the round fan from Gu Shiyi's hand, helped Li Xi drink the wedding wine, and finally took off Li Xi's clothes and helped her to the bed.
Gu Shiyi also removed her makeup with the help of her maid, undressed, and then went to bed to rest. Gu Shiyi looked at the drunken Li Xi beside her and couldn't help but smile bitterly. But it was useless to think about it, so she had to make the best of it.
She was just about to go to bed when Li Xi suddenly became restless. He touched Gu Shiyi, but Gu Shiyi was more than four months pregnant, so it was reasonable for them to have sex. But to be on the safe side, and since Li Xi was drunk, Gu Shiyi had to get up quickly and call her maid Xiaoyan in.
Seeing Li Xi in this state, Xiaoyan couldn't help but wonder why Gu Shiyi had asked her to come in. However, because her indenture was in Gu Shiyi's hands, and she was the only one who knew what had happened between Li Xi and Gu Shiyi that day, she had no choice but to obey Gu Shiyi to save her life. She had promised Gu Shiyi before she married into the Nanyang County Prince's Mansion that if Li Xi wanted to find someone to sleep with him and Gu Shiyi was not available, it would be better to let other women take advantage of him and let someone close to him be more reliable.
After Xiaoyan entered the room, and after Gu Shiyi struggled to break free from Li Xi, Xiaoyan gritted her teeth and went to Li Xi's side to sleep with him instead. Gu Shiyi didn't want to see another woman sleeping with her man, so she found a piece of clothing to put on and went to the side hall when no one was around.
Tired after a long day, Gu Shiyi couldn't help but fall asleep on the couch in the side hall. Xiaoyan on the other side wasn't much better. After all, Li Xi was also young and full of vigor, so after several attempts, she finally fell asleep after finally releasing herself.
Xiaoyan, who was standing by, was a virgin, so how could she have experienced this? She was sore all over after being tortured by Li Xi, but she was only serving Gu Shiyi in bed, so no matter how tired she was, she had to get up and replace Gu Shiyi.
Just like that, she dragged her tired body, put on her clothes roughly, and left the bridal chamber, going to the side hall to change Gu Shiyi back.
The next morning, Li Xi woke up at around 5 a.m. Although Gu Shiyi was prone to drowsiness during pregnancy, she had to pay her respects to the palace on her first day after getting married, so she didn't dare get up too late.
Li Xi woke up with a headache and pressed his temples before sitting up. Gu Shiyi heard the movement on the couch and immediately put on a slightly smiling face. She stood up from the dressing table and walked over to the couch.
She asked, "Is Your Highness awake?"
Li Xi nodded slightly and said, "Well, what time is it?"
Gu Shiyi said, "It's almost the morning hour."
Li Xi immediately came to his senses upon hearing this, and said angrily, "Why is it already this late? Why didn't you call me? What will I do if I'm late paying my respects to my father and mother?"
Gu Shiyi watched her busying around and couldn't help but chuckle inwardly: "Oh, if you had known this would happen, wouldn't you have drunk less last night?"
However, she maintained a calm demeanor and said, "Don't worry, Your Highness. I have already sent someone to the palace to apologize to my father and mother. I told them I might be late."
Hearing this, Li Xi slowed down his movements, looked up at Gu Shiyi who was standing beside him with a smile on her face, and thought: It seems that this woman is still a bit cunning.
After they had packed up and had their meal, they rode into the palace.
The two went to Lingxiao Palace to pay their respects to the Emperor and Concubine Xiao. The Emperor had an indifferent expression, but considering that one was his own son and the other was pregnant with his grandson, he thought it was understandable.
However, compared to his treatment of Dugu Jingyao, he was still much more indifferent. After all, his son had always been an obedient person in the past. Moreover, he remembered that his son clearly liked Guo Ziyi's daughter. How could he suddenly fall in love with Gu Shiyi? He firmly believed that Gu Shiyi must have used some tricks.
However, in this way, Suzong had the opportunity to take this opportunity to allow the Li family to enter the court to balance the situation in the court.
But Concubine Xiao was different. How could she not know about her own son? It must be that Gu Shiyi had plotted against her own son. However, now that she was pregnant, if it was a boy, it would be a favor to them, so her face became a little gentler.
Suzong called out: "Okay, Shiyi is still pregnant, you guys should get up quickly."
In order to convince Suzong that their relationship was still good, after the two thanked him, Li Xi even helped Gu Shiyi up, which even Gu Shiyi thought of. Of course, since Li Xi was willing to do face, she also appreciated it. She took the opportunity to put her hand on Li Xi's hand, and with the other hand on her stomach, she stood up. After Gu Shiyi sat down steadily, Li Xi sat back in his seat.
Then, Emperor Suzong and Concubine Xiao gave a brief lecture. Then, Emperor Suzong subtly issued an edict: "By the way, Xi'er! You're married now, not a child anymore. There's a saying that goes, 'Establish a family and establish a career.' Since you've already established a family, it's natural to establish a career. So, when Shiyi returns home, I'll assign you a position, and you'll join me in attending court!"
Li Xi's mouth curled up slightly when he heard this, but he did not show any excitement. Instead, he saluted politely and said, "Thank you, father, for giving your son a chance." Li Xi saluted, and Gu Shiyi naturally followed suit.
However, Suzong thought of her pregnancy. When Dugu Jingyao was pregnant before, he often asked her to waive the formalities. If he didn't do that to Gu Shiyi, wouldn't it seem like favoritism? So Suzong said, "Alright, alright, we're a family, so don't be so strict about this. Get up quickly."
Li Xi and Gu Shiyi thanked Emperor Suzong and returned to their original seats.
In fact, Li Xi was still a little shocked that Suzong suddenly said that he wanted him to take charge of government affairs. He didn't expect it to happen so soon. He thought that even if there were rumors in the streets, he would still wait a little longer.
As for why Suzong suddenly decided to let Li Xi take charge of government affairs so early, it was indeed because of rumors among the people. He had just ascended the throne not long ago, and his political achievements were mediocre. If Li Chu was not only capable but also had a son who was a true dragon emperor, people would probably say that he was not an able emperor and asked him to abdicate quickly. That's why he was anxious to push his other son to the throne to balance the court.
Of course, since this rumor had reached the emperor's ears, how could everyone in the Chu Palace not know about it? However, after some analysis by Li Chu and Dugu Jingyao, they felt that the rumor was probably created by the Li family mother and son.
Their analysis was indeed correct. The Li family and their son did intend to spread rumors to instill a sense of crisis in the emperor. Among the current princes, only the Li family was close in age to Li Chu and had a moderate relationship with him, making them the most suitable candidate to counter Li Chu. This was how they gained such an advantage.
But this is just the beginning. What Li Xi wants is to be conferred the title of prince, crown prince, and then ascend to that position!