After the army left for the expedition, the capital returned to tranquility again, the years were idle, and there was nothing to do. Cheng Shaoshang tried on various wedding dresses or jewelry every day. Xiao Yuanyi and Mrs. Cheng had a disagreement about this. One required exquisiteness and elegance, while the other cared about wealth. In the end, Cheng Shaoshang revealed that the queen had prepared a dowry, including the boudoir. They are all set in Changqiu Palace.
Although Xiao Yuanyi didn’t feel good in her heart, she had no choice but to accept the reality. After all, marrying from the palace was the emperor’s high regard for Cheng’s family, and it was also her love for Cheng Shaoshang. It is only a pity that Xiao Yuanyi, as a mother, has no way to personally manage her daughter’s marriage. It is her regret that she thinks so.
For the next few days, Cheng Shaoshang passed the time in Changqiu Palace as usual, and occasionally stayed in the city tower in the direction of Shouchun, looking forward to Ling Budo’s return as soon as possible. Yuan Shen couldn’t help ridiculing that Cheng Shaoshang was about to become a Wangfushi, but Cheng Shaoshang didn’t care, and even satirized Yuan Shen as a lonely man, it must be difficult to understand his feelings with Ling Budo.
Yuan Shen was greatly stimulated by this, saying that he would get married before Cheng Shaoshang. When he went back, he asked the housekeeper to arrange a marriage for him. In the end, Yuan Shen chose the daughter of the Cai family, and arranged the wedding date on the same day that Cheng Shaoshang got married. Cheng Shaoshang retorted, believing that he would not be able to collect the bride price, but he could ask Ling Budo to borrow some money.
Lao Banhou led the government troops to expedition to Shouchun, because he was really worried that Xiaohou could not get off work, so he let him walk around with the Cheng family a lot. Anyone with a discerning eye can see that Ban Xiaohou likes Cheng Hao, but Ban Xiaohou is too shy to say it, and Cheng Hao has no idea of marrying, but decides to stay at home to take care of Cheng Shi and Xiao Yuanyi. Just when Cheng Shao Gong was about to get up, how could he know that the tortoise shell fell to the ground, which was a big omen.
Sure enough, the hexagram was soon fulfilled, and the report from the front began to collude with Yan Zhong, the magistrate of Tongniu County. Emperor Wen was furious for this, and he was scolded for several hours in the main hall, and then he did not enter the tea and rice. Empress Xuan didn’t know how to comfort her, so she waited outside the door for a long time until Concubine Yue came over and entered the study with cakes.
In fact, Concubine Yue understood that Emperor Wen was not angry about losing 2,000 fine copper, but that Cheng Shi and Yan Zhong were both from poor families. It was not easy to promote them back then, but now that such a thing has happened, it is very likely that Cheng Shaoshang and Ling will be implicated. No doubt. What’s more, when something went wrong, Concubine Yue believed in the character of Cheng Shi and Yan Zhong, and simply suggested that Emperor Wen deal with the Cheng family in accordance with the law, first to convince the world, and then to investigate the truth carefully.
Cheng Shaoshang heard the news of her father’s accident and insisted on going home regardless of obstacles. Yuan Shen specially prepared a carriage for her, and went to face the saint alone to plead with the Cheng family. At this time, General Censor Tai Wang came to Cheng’s house to announce the decree. In fact, it was for the public and private, and he wanted to hold injustice for Lord Zuo. Xiao Yuanyi was very angry. Just when she and General Wang were at a standoff, Cheng Shaoshang suddenly appeared, followed by Yuan Shen with an order, saying that the case had been transferred to the Tingwei Mansion for review.
In order to prevent Cheng Shaoshang from being implicated, Xiao Yuanyi slapped her on the spot, saying that the Cheng family had ended up in this land, and if she really died in a wrongful way, she would be the continuation of the bloodline and the only one who could prove her innocence. Cheng Shaoshang understood what his mother meant, so he could only stare blankly at their backs.
It rained heavily that day, Cheng Shaoshang knelt outside the hall to plead with Emperor Wen, but Emperor Wen did not see him behind closed doors. The prince heard the news and came to kneel together, and Empress Xuan also appeared. Concubine Yue took Empress Xuan’s weakness into consideration and forcibly dragged Emperor Wen out. Sure enough, at Empress Xuan’s request, Emperor Wen agreed to let Cheng Shaoshang enter the palace, and ordered ginger soup to be prepared.
Seeing Cheng Shaoshang drinking soup under a quilt, Emperor Wen couldn’t help scolding her for having no conscience, and she could be calm in such a situation. Cheng Shaoshang said that the Cheng family was in the capital, and they had no worries about food and clothing. It was puzzling why his father suddenly defected. Obviously, there was a secret inside. Emperor Wen also believed that Cheng Shi had no reason, but now there is no news of Cheng Shi, and no strong evidence could be found in a short time. Cheng Shaoshang decided to go to Tongniu County, but Emperor Wen did not agree.
Yuan Shen took the food to visit Cheng’s family in prison, and told the truth about the situation of Cheng Zhi and his wife. When Mrs. Cheng heard that Cheng Zhi had also become a prisoner, she couldn’t help panicking, and bluntly said that she wanted money to atone for her sins. Xiao Yuanyi thought that the case had not yet been concluded, how could he plead guilty first, and immediately responded. Mrs. Cheng was angry and refused to eat. Xiao Yuanyi took the lead to take the food to ensure that her body was safe. When the injustice snowed, Cheng Cha and her brothers followed suit.