"Marquess, with that said, I actually do have an idea!"
"Have you taken a fancy to someone?" Marquess Zhuangyong asked in confusion.
"Marquess, don’t ask who it is yet, I have a poem here. Would you please listen and give me your opinion?" the Marchioness said teasingly.
The couple had always been deeply in love.
Moreover, with the great grandmother falling ill, the Marchioness personally took charge of everything. She felt not just affection for her elderly wife but also deep respect.
"Buds are wrapped in fresh snow, a solitary beauty that’s hard to paint. There’s a unique fragrance amidst the aroma, so pure and unaffected by the bitter cold. The horizontal flute accompanies sorrows, while the slanted branches lean close for the sick to behold. The north wind seems to understand, kindly refraining from any harm!" After the Marchioness finished reading, she looked towards Marquess Zhuangyong, "Marquess, what do you think?"
"This is a poem about the plum blossoms!"
The Marchioness’s smile brimmed with joy.
It was rare to see the great mother improving in health, and now even the youngest son’s marriage prospects were becoming clear.
"Not lacking in literary talent, who wrote this poem?" Marquess Zhuangyong asked.
"Why doesn’t the Marquess take a guess?"
Marquess Zhuangyong thought for a moment, "Could it be one of the young ladies we saw yesterday?"
"Yes!" the Marchioness nodded.
Marquess Zhuangyong laughed, "Then Bobo must have agreed!"
It’s often said the Emperor loves his eldest son while the commoners cherish the youngest; for Marquess Zhuangyong, his affection for his youngest son Dai Hanbo was no less than that.
"He agreed, wholeheartedly agreed. Now Marquess, guess which family’s daughter it is? Think carefully, and you’re sure to get it right!"
Marquess Zhuangyong furrowed his brows, pondering for a moment, then thought of his daughter’s visitor that day, "Could it be... the one who treated mother’s illness?!"
"Exactly her! This morning, Bobo braved the cold for an entire morning in the garden, just to see her and exchange a few words. That child is really infatuated; won over by two poems, he consented. Once he saw how beautiful the girl was today, and found out in the afternoon that she also treated his mother’s illness, he immediately said that he would leave everything up to me. Ha, you should have seen him, his ears were completely red!" the Marchioness said, unable to contain her laughter.
"Since Bobo has given his consent, you should move quickly. Age doesn’t matter; we must secure the engagement first. Don’t let someone else snatch her away!"
"Marquess is right. I’ve already sent someone to find out who is on good terms with Mrs. Yun Jinnian and can put in a good word for us. Still, I plan to visit her first to gauge her opinion. Since we are requesting to marry their daughter, our sincerity must be absolutely clear!"
"Indeed, that’s necessary. You may take whatever valuables you need from the treasury, and if that’s not enough, go to the palace and ask the Empress for a few items. Ah, my poor sister..." Marquess Zhuangyong said, pausing momentarily.
The Marchioness could no longer smile.
Without children of her own and lacking affection towards the Emperor, the Empress could only choose one of the princes to raise by her side if things continued as they were.
But the Empress was known for her stubbornness...
"Marquess, don’t rush. The Empress is still young. We couldn’t get the Divine Doctor before, but now that we have one, she should be able to prescribe something for the Empress as well, right?"
"She also prescribed a remedy for the young wife?" Marquess Zhuangyong was increasingly astonished.
"Yes, Mrs. Qu had seen the Imperial Physician before, who said the prescription was excellent. Who knows, maybe we will have good news before next year!"
Mrs. Qu once had a miscarriage that damaged her health, resulting in continuous and relentless lochia no medicine could cure.
"You must also take care of the young wife. She miscarried because of mother, making her a heroine of our family!"
"It’s all in my heart!"
The couple chatted sporadically as they kept vigil by the great grandmother’s side.
Dai Hanmi was filled with joy today. After bathing, she lay in bed unable to sleep, her thoughts lingering on Yun Jinnian’s devoted and fickle words.
Yun Jinnian had said at the time, "Wholeheartedness, fickleness. The first is good, the second is not. I’m just afraid someone might cling to the second!"