Chapter Ten: Turmoil

  "En, that's good, first get married and then start a career. Once you've become a family man, you'll have more to carry on your shoulders and more responsibilities, which will make you feel more at ease and down-to-earth."

  Liu's words made Han Feng, who had somewhat relaxed his mind, feel that it was still better to discuss marriage first, and he thoughtfully echoed in agreement.

  "What mother said is right, for ordinary people, it's indeed easier to settle down and be more practical if they get married before starting their career, but..."

  Han Jiang shook his head and smiled helplessly: "But big brother is not an ordinary person, how could he not intervene in such a major matter as discussing marriage? Unless he personally examines and understands the details and is satisfied, how can it be easily settled? With this kind of fuss, will he still have the heart to study? I'm afraid he'll only become more and more unmanageable."

  "Exactly! Jing Er's temperament would definitely be like that! Or, let's just put this matter aside for now, after all, Jing Er is not too old yet!" Han Feng heard this and suddenly became worried again. As the saying goes, "no one knows a son better than his father", if that child doesn't agree, how can this marriage possibly work out?

  Liu was still unhappy for the first time about her husband's weakness, but her expression didn't change, she opened her mouth and wanted to persuade him again.

  "Father is absolutely right!" Han Jiangxue saw the situation and directly changed the subject, no longer giving Liu a chance to stir up trouble. "Mother should pay more attention to our younger sister when she has time, instead of just worrying about us siblings and neglecting her. She should also consider finding a suitable match for her."

  "Jing'er is still young, let's talk about it after she comes of age. Marriage naturally should be prioritized for you two siblings first, and it's only right to put in more effort." Liu's expression was a faint smile, with an extremely happy and satisfied look at Han Jiangxue's concern for her sister.

  When Liu said this, it actually reminded Han Feng of Han Jiangxue's marriage, and for a while, he became worried again.

  Han Jiangxue was already 15 years old, and according to reason, the Zhang family should have made some moves to propose a marriage. The engagement between Han and Zhang's children had been arranged by their parents, so there wouldn't be any changes in this matter. However, since the daughter's reputation outside wasn't very good, the Zhang family didn't take the initiative to bring up the marriage, and the Han family also didn't dare to rush them.

  Nowadays, the daughter is getting more and more sensible, which makes Han Feng feel very comforted. However, the bad reputation that has been circulating outside cannot be changed overnight. It seems that this family's children's marriages will have to wait for a while longer.

  Han Feng was just starting to shift his concerns to the eldest daughter, but Han Jiang Xue took over Liu's words and spoke again: "It's precisely because she's still young that I'm worried! Next year is the year of the big election, and unmarried girls under 16 who are of marriageable age will all be selected for the palace selection. If my sister hasn't found a suitable family by then, she'll naturally have to participate too. Although the palace is good, it's too complicated, and as her older sister, I still hope in my heart that she can marry a man of her choice and live a stable and happy life."

  One sentence made Liu and Han Feng stunned at the same time, but with different expressions.

  Han Feng was on the verge of forgetting such a big thing, while Liu's family, no matter how well they concealed it, couldn't help but flash a few unexpected colors when Han Jiang Xue actually thought of such things.

  "Yes, how could I almost forget this matter? The emperor has cancelled the selection of imperial consorts for two consecutive years. If Xue Er hadn't reminded me, I would have almost forgotten that next year is indeed the year of the new grand election."

  Han Feng truly loves the child from the bottom of his heart, although the Emperor is wise and powerful, he is still old after all, moreover with so many beauties around, as a father, he naturally doesn't want his little daughter's life to be buried in such a place like the imperial palace.

  "It's precisely because the cancellation of two sessions has been going on, so it's highly likely that next year's draft will happen." Han Jiangxue added another sentence, saying that if Liu still had any objections at this point, it would be an abnormal reaction for a good mother.

  So Han Jiangxue believed that Liu would not say anything more, but instead would be extremely grateful. And she also knew that Liu would not give up on the plan to marry Han Yajing into the Zhang family, which was why she wanted to deliberately bring it up first and disrupt Liu's plans.

  In this way, Han Feng naturally felt more reasonable and completely dispelled the idea of discussing marriage for his son, instead reminding Liu Shi to pay attention to the matter of their second daughter first.

  Liu nodded in agreement, and praised Han Jiang Xue's thoughtful and caring heart towards her sister. At a glance, this family was indeed harmonious and loving.

  The next morning, Han Yajing dressed up brightly and ran to Han Jiangxue's side.

  The little girl was deeply moved, thanking her for what happened yesterday. She said that her sister was really good to her, and it seemed like she was being completely sincere. Her big eyes were so clean that you couldn't find any fault in them.

  "I'm your sister, caring about you is what I should do, no need to keep thanking me. It's getting late too, if you don't enter the palace soon, you'll be late." Han Jiangxue didn't intend to say more to this "good sister", and was reminding Han Yajing to enter the palace early to attend to her reading duties.

  "Sister is confused, today is a rest day, Seventh Princess has no classes and I don't need to attend the reading. " Han Yajing smiled and said to Han Jiangxue: "Sister, don't stay at home reading books today. Yesterday, I met Wenyu sister in the palace, she said that the peonies in the mansion are now blooming extremely well, and invited me to go see the flowers today. Sister can also come together to take a look, after a few days, once they wither, even if you want to, there will be none to see."

  The Wenru sister in Han Yajing's mouth is none other than Zhang Wenyu, the younger sister of Zhang Haicheng, the eldest son of the Zhang family. She and Han Yajing are both palace attendants and have always had a very good relationship.

  The peonies of the Zhang family are indeed unparalleled, and it's hard to find a place in the entire capital that can surpass them. Not only are there many varieties, but all kinds of precious and rare treasures are also complete, and even the nobles from the palace have gone to the Zhang family to admire the peonies before.

  "Isn't it only April? How can the blooming period be so early this year?" Han Jiangxue remembered that in her previous life, she had accompanied Han Yajing to Zhang's house to admire the peonies, but she hadn't expected that this time they would bloom more than a month earlier.

  "It's true, and it's only Sister Yu's family that is, so it makes people look forward to it even more!" Han Yajing said excitedly: "Sister, let's go together, Father said yesterday that we should all go together, and also said that you can't stay at home every day now."

  Han Jiang Xue understood why her father was actively arranging for her sister to call her to go out and play together this time. The marriage arrangement between the Zhang and Han families had been there, but there had been no movement from the Zhang family. It seemed that her father was also getting anxious. Although she didn't have any romantic thoughts about Zhang Hao Cheng, it seemed like she really had to go on this trip.

  So Han Jiangxue agreed and didn't deliberately tidy up, and took Zi Yue out together. This time it wasn't just her, so she didn't ride a horse alone, but sat in the same carriage as Han Yajing.

  When they arrived at the Zhang's, Han Jiangxue found that apart from them, Zhang Wanru had also invited other noble ladies. The backyard of the Zhang's was already bustling with excitement, and under the host's invitation, everyone was walking around, looking and chatting enthusiastically.

  When Zhang Wanru saw Han Yajing coming, she was delighted to welcome her. However, when she saw Han Jiangxue following behind, her attitude became much colder. It wasn't just Zhang Wanru; the reactions of the other noble ladies were basically the same. Everyone enthusiastically greeted and chatted with Han Yajing, but they seemed to be completely ignoring Han Jiangxue.

  Whenever the noble ladies gather, Han Jiangxue is used to being ignored and doesn't mind. In her previous life, she often played with her brother and mixed with a group of men, so naturally she wasn't liked by these self-proclaimed dignified and proper noble ladies.

  Taking advantage of Han Yajing being held back by Zhang Wanru and others, Han Jiangxue slowly walked towards the ordinary peony varieties with fewer people, whispering a few words to Ziyue who was following behind her.

  Zi Yue quickly nodded in understanding, but just then, she heard someone nearby call out the name "Han Jiang Xue".