Painting Doctor Jinhua

Chapter 134: The Imperial Decree of Marriage and the Beginning of the Ceremony

Xiao Xian's coming-of-age ceremony was held in a manor behind Wuyi Lane, near the south bank of the Qinhuai River. This was also a piece of land bestowed upon Xiao Xian by Emperor Chen Xu. Now Xiao Jinyu and Xiao Xian have ordered people to build a mansion here, namely the Xiao Mansion, which is adjacent to the mansion of the Xie family of Chen County.

Xiao Xian noticed that every time Xiao Jinyu came to the gate of Xie's mansion in Wuyi Lane, she would stop for a long time, as if she was worried about something, but he never asked, for fear of disrupting the existing tranquility and good times.

Since the girl returned to Jiankang, almost everything she did was beyond his expectations and shocked him.

She is indeed different from other noble girls in Jiankang. She is fearless and unafraid. She can confront Princess Yunyin head-on, plot to kill King Shixing, and even look the emperor in the face and speak out her advice!

So proud, arrogant, insolent and even frivolous!

But when she calms down, she becomes extremely lonely, quiet and gentle.

When facing him, she was always gentle and calm, never showing weakness.

"Ayu!"

Seeing her standing in the yard early in the morning, Xiao Xian couldn't help feeling pity for her and walked to her side.

Xiao Jinyu's meditation was broken and she turned around to meet Xiao Xian's gaze.

"Uncle Xian!"

"Are you thinking about your mother?" Xiao Xian asked.

Xiao Jinyu nodded and smiled.

"Yes, I also thought of many people and many things. I suddenly felt that it is good to be alive. I have a home to return to, relatives to miss, and friends to meet. Life is precious to be happy. Why would I want to be an official thousands of miles away for fame and honor?"

As she spoke, she looked at Xiao Xian, "Uncle Xian, no matter what happens in the future, Ayu hopes that you can put the family first, your own safety first, and live well. Everything else is secondary!"

"Of course!" Xiao Xian replied, and added, "You too!"

At this point, Xiao Xian's voice choked up a little, and he suddenly asked, "Ayu, have you decided to leave Nan Chen?"

She said that she would not leave until he officially became the head of the Xiao family.

But this time, during the coming-of-age ceremony, she wanted to clear the name of this direct descendant of the Xiao family. What happens after the name is cleared?

Xiao Jinyu was silent for a moment, then looked up at Xiao Xian again.

"Yes!" She answered decisively, "I want to make you, Uncle Xian, the legitimate head of the Lanling Xiao family during this coming-of-age ceremony..." As she spoke, she looked at Xiao Xian and smiled, "There is one more thing I need to discuss with Uncle Xian..."

……

Before the ceremony, Xiao Jinyu came to the room where Princess Yunyin was imprisoned. Seeing that the woman who had been crazy and out of control for five days had finally calmed down, Xiao Jinyu called out, "Chen Jianchen, after five days of confinement, have you finally calmed down? Now that you have calmed down, let's have a good talk!"

"Xiao, Jin, Yu!"

Princess Yunyin suddenly looked up and saw the girl walking in in the sunlight. She was looking down at her like a god, making her look even smaller, humble and ridiculous.

"No, what did you call me?"

"Princess Yuhua, Chen Jianchen, this is your real name, right?"

Princess Yunyin's eyes suddenly showed fear.

"How do you know? No, how do you know who you are?"

"It doesn't matter who I am, Chen Jianchen. You were engaged to the son of the Wang family, but you fell in love with Han Zigao and insisted on marrying him. Why did you later plot against my mother and Han Zigao?"

When this matter was mentioned, Princess Yunyin couldn't help but sneer.

"Why? Am I not helping them? Since they love each other, isn't it good for me to help them?"

A cold remark came out, and his eyes were filled with regret and fear.

"No, what does it have to do with me? What does it have to do with me?"

"Are you trying to trick me? Are you trying to trick me?"

"Xiao Jinyu, what on earth do you want to do? You have locked me up for five days. What on earth do you want to do? Aren't you afraid that people will criticize you for being unfilial and unfraternal? Aren't you afraid that my brother will sentence you to death?"

Xiao Jinyu smiled disdainfully.

"Chen Jianchen, I told you before that you are still not good enough to wield a knife to cut. You never consider how capable you are, but always want to use the sharpest knife. Now that you have cut your hand, you are still so stubborn."

"Do you think your brother will disregard the royal family's dignity for you?"

"If you hadn't done anything that would damage the royal family's reputation, why would you change your appearance and identity to marry into the Xiao family? Do you really think that you occupy an extremely important position in the hearts of your two royal brothers, or that you have immeasurable value?"

"Then you might as well think about it again now. How much value do you still have?"

How much am I worth?

Princess Yunyin lowered her head. Now the private soldiers she controlled had fled, and the evidence of her collusion with King Shixing was still in the hands of this lowly maid...

"Think about it carefully. If you can atone for the mistakes you made, you may be able to do good deeds for your son and let him have a good end. Otherwise, the end of King Shixing will be..."

Before Xiao Jinyu could finish her words, she called two soldiers to take her out.

She didn't know where Xiao Jinyu would take her, but along the way, those words kept echoing in her mind:

The end of King Siheung...and her son...

This slave girl... is threatening her!

……

The coming-of-age ceremony was scheduled for early noon. Before it officially began, Xiao Yuanshi suddenly remembered something, called Xiao Jinyu to her room, took out something wrapped in silk cloth and placed it in front of Xiao Jinyu.

"Grandma thought about it and decided to give it to you. You can decide how to deal with it."

When Xiao Jinyu opened it, she saw that it was a bright yellow imperial edict with a gold-plated scroll, and it was stamped with the seal of Emperor Wen Chen Qian.

"Three colors are shining, and great joy is gathering. General Han Zigao of the Right Guard is known for his integrity and honesty, and is loyal and honest. Xiao Aluan is a descendant of a famous family, well-versed in etiquette and morality, and has elegant manners... I now decree to grant you a marriage, and promote Xiao Aluan to the position of Minister of the Interior. I hope that you two will be of one mind and one heart, serve the country with all your heart, and do not disappoint me!"

This is an imperial decree granting marriage! This turned out to be the imperial decree that Han Zigao had asked for!

Unexpectedly, Emperor Wen also promoted Xiao Luan to be the Shizhong in this imperial edict. Did he want her to serve as an official in the Chen Dynasty?

There were women serving as officials in the Northern Dynasties, but never in the Southern Dynasties.

Xiao Jinyu thought about this and asked again: "Grandmother...he gave you this imperial edict? Then why did you..."

"I used to hate him. I always felt that he was the one who caused my A-Luan to be like this. I thought he was not worthy of my A-Luan, but now... it doesn't matter anymore. Child, no matter who he is or what he is like, he is your father. This is a fact that cannot be changed. I can't let your identity be criticized forever!"

After Xiao Yuan finished speaking, she hugged her and sobbed.

"Thank you grandma."

Xiao Jinyu whispered, and calmed Xiao Yuanshi's emotions, then took the imperial edict and had someone take Princess Yunyin to a manor behind Wuyi Lane, which was also where the ceremony of coming of age would be held.

At that time, many people had gathered in the garden with green bamboos and towering ancient trees. There were both elegantly dressed nobles and many poor scholars who came to watch the ceremony! This was a bit beyond her expectations!

Looking around, those young masters of the Zhu family, the Kong family, and Lu Sheng, who had once mocked Xiao Xian, had also come here.

Seeing her gaze, Lu Sheng bowed from a distance. Zhu and Kong also bowed, but they felt very embarrassed.

At this time, someone called out from behind her: "Miss Xiao, long time no see, I hope you are well!"

Xiao Jinyu looked in the direction of the voice and saw it was Xu Ling. When Xu Ling met her gaze, he was in a trance for a moment.

"It's really strange. Xu always feels that the young lady is very similar to another person. Although they look different, their spirits are similar..."

The person who flashed through Xu Ling's mind was Xie Zhen, who had the courage to give the emperor advice directly. He regretted that he had never met him, and he didn't even know where he was. He couldn't help but sigh.

Xiao Jinyu smiled and raised her hand in salute.

"Thank you very much, Minister Xu, for coming to watch the ceremony. This is an honor for our Xiao family!"

"My dear lady, you are too polite. To be honest, when the Lanling Xiao Clan was at its peak, all the nobles in Jiankang had acquaintances with it. I once served as an official in the Southern Liang Dynasty and had great respect for the then Crown Prince Zhaoming. Xiao Clan's Xianlang is also a man of great talent and outstanding talents. It is my honor to be invited to crown him as a teacher!"

Hearing the word "crowned", Xiao Jinyu raised her eyes in surprise.

Xu Ling smiled and said, "It seems that the young lady doesn't know yet that your uncle has invited Xu to crown her for this ceremony!"

The ceremony of crowning a man should usually be performed by the clan elders, but Xiao Xian's biological father had passed away, so the nominal father...

Master Xiao Jin did not have time to think about it, so he bowed and said, "Thank you very much, Minister Xu! Minister Xu invites you!"

Xu Ling nodded and laughed, then walked towards the temple in the garden.

As Xu Ling left, Li Mi's loud laughter was heard behind him.

"The young lady is here to welcome the guests in person!"

Seeing that the people coming were Li Mi and Cui Heng, Xiao Jinyu couldn't help but smile with relief.

"I just happened to arrive, so I can't say I'm welcoming you personally. However, since you're the ones, it's worth welcoming you personally!"

Li Mi laughed out loud again and exchanged a few words with Cui Heng. The two of them then headed towards the Xiao family temple where the ceremony of coming of age was being held.

Xiao Jinyu was just about to walk into the garden when Prince Lanling came over with Lu Yu.

The two looked at each other from a distance and smiled.

When he came to the front, Lanling Wang didn't know what to say for a moment, so Lu Yu spoke for him: "The young lady is very beautiful today, do you have anything to say to my prince?"

"Yes, but not now."

"Oh." Lu Yu couldn't help but be curious, "Is there anything you can't finish saying now?"

Gao Changgong glared at him coldly and told him not to ask any more questions.

At this time, the Zhou envoys Yuwen Hui, Yuwen Zhi, Dugu Shan and Yuwen Xun also walked over here.

"How could you not invite us to Jiankang Xiaolang's coming-of-age ceremony? I hope the young lady won't blame us for coming uninvited!"

Xiao Jinyu naturally wouldn't say anything. As long as someone came, they were guests. She smiled and asked Envoy Zhou to go in and take a seat, while she continued to wait at the door.

"Young lady, who are you waiting for?" Lu Yu asked curiously.

Xiao Jinyu nodded, and at this moment, she finally saw Xiao Jian coming!