The Heavens: From Knowing Whether You Rule the World

Chapter 73: What kind of friends does this second brother have?
Fan Lou
The restaurant was bustling with people of all kinds. Literati sat at a table, drinking and chatting, reciting poems and composing couplets; businessmen negotiated business, waiters shuttled between them; singing girls and dancers performed, and acrobats performed.

"Oh? Young Master?"

When Chu Hong arrived late, Qi Heng and Gu Tingye had already ordered the food and wine. Since Chu Hong had not arrived, the two of them did not start eating.

Qi Heng's face looked quite ugly. He seemed to want to say something but stopped himself.

"What's going on here?"

As soon as Chu Hong saw Qi Heng's expression, he roughly guessed what had happened, which was nothing more than Gu Tingye's marriage.

Gu Tingye picked up the dish and took a bite with a smile, "Yuan Ruo asked me to invite you over for a drink."

"Second Uncle, you knew that I had always been thinking about Minglan, but why did you marry her? What was your intention? Elder Chu, why did you go to persuade Old Madam Sheng?"

Qi Heng looked at the two of them questioningly.

Chu Hong raised his eyebrows, picked up the dish and took a bite, "The Sheng family is the Sheng family, and the Chu family is the Chu family. I never interfere with Minglan's marriage. A few days ago, my father-in-law held a family dinner, and Mrs. Sheng asked about Tingye's character, and I answered truthfully."

Chu Hong shook his head slightly. Qi Heng's temperament had been taught to be too docile by his mother, which meant that there would be no future between him and Sheng Minglan.

At least, Sheng Minglan, who has come out of the love-brain state, will not choose Qi Heng again.

"Young Master, are you still thinking about Minglan? I don't know about this. I only know that after your wife's death, you stayed at home studying hard and ignored what was happening outside. I thought you had let it go!"

Gu Tingye put down his wine glass, looking a little surprised.

"Do you think I'm so easy to bully? You don't love Minglan at all, why do you have to force yourself to establish a relationship for power?"

Qi Heng scolded solemnly, then looked at Chu Hong and then at Gu Tingye.

Qi Heng's meaning was very clear. The mainstream today is undoubtedly dominated by literati. If Gu Tingye marries Chu Hong, a relative of a top literati, it will be much easier for him to lead troops and hold power in the future.

Not to mention anything else, there will be no deductions in military rations and money, and if a big mistake is made, there will be scholars to refute it. The scholars will no longer target Gu Tingye as they do other military generals. Instead, they will regard Gu Tingye as "one of their own" and a "scholar-general."

Although he only married Sheng Minglan, there are many advantages to marrying her, especially the long-term benefits. The targeting of literati is almost the most annoying thing for military generals, no doubt about it.

Gu Tingye was startled, then burst into laughter: "Young Master, how do you know that I don't love her? Why do you dare to conclude that I am forcing a relationship for Zifeng's power?"

"Prince Yong kidnapped Duke Qi in order to marry off his daughter. I told you at the time that we should work together to get him back. You should ask your mother, Princess Pingning, to bow her head and beg Zifeng for mercy.

Zifeng immediately impeached Prince Yong and his family. At that time, Prince Yan would surely seize the opportunity to refute and suppress Prince Yong, and the matter would be temporarily settled.

This way, your relationship with Minglan will come to fruition, but you didn't agree! You were the one who gave up on her first, so why are you blaming me now?"

Gu Tingye seized the opportunity to appeal to reason and emotion.

This is also the reason why he took the initiative to bring up the marriage in front of Qi Heng. He had to find an opportunity to dispel Qi Heng's inappropriate thoughts.

"I didn't give up on her. Her eldest brother-in-law was a third-rank official at the time. The Chu family had high-ranking officials, great scholars, and land. It was a prominent family that emerged in Jiangnan.

Her second brother is a Jinshi who entered the Hanlin Academy, and the Sheng family has become a well-known and upright family in Bianjing. I can only propose marriage if I pass the Jinshi exam!"

Qi Heng felt that what he did was not wrong and it was also appropriate.

“But what if I don’t win next year?”

"what?"

Qi Heng was a little confused.

"If Your Majesty had not ascended the throne, there would not be an imperial examination this year. Are you so sure that you can pass it next year? If you fail next year, it will take another three years.

Minglan is fifteen this year, sixteen next year, and nineteen in three years. If you haven't won yet... Haha!"

"If the Prince of Yan had not rebelled, you would have been a married man. Your plan could be considered as having second thoughts about the wedding date. Are you doing this to the Princess of Jiacheng who passed away not long ago?"

Chu Hong shook his head slightly. This was where Qi Heng was naive. No one was absolutely sure about anything they did. How could they put something that they should have into the future and hope that their future self would be able to get it?

What's more, he was planning to remarry after losing his wife.
"You want to save face, but the girl doesn't? At that time, the story between you and Minglan was widely spread in Bianjing. You could turn around and marry a county lady, but what about the girl?"

"You have to know that even with a brother-in-law like Zifeng, people still fawned over Rulan. Minglan even went to look for a husband outside Bianjing. How exaggerated is that?"

"If you really wanted to marry Minglan, you could have gone to the Sheng family to propose marriage after your wife died! But you didn't go. You insisted that you would only go after you passed the imperial examination. That's already two chances, right?"

Gu Tingye added at the right time and spoke his true feelings.

Qi Heng's face turned pale, and he defended himself: "I failed her last time because I was not well prepared, so I must be sure of success this time."

"I'm not blaming you. What I mean is that since you didn't marry Minglan, don't blame me for coming later and getting ahead!"

Gu Tingye saw that Qi Heng looked unhappy, and immediately comforted and explained.

"So you've already had your eyes on her?!"

Qi Heng suddenly realized something and looked at Gu Tingye with complicated eyes.

"Now that we've come to this, I'll tell you the truth. At first, I really wanted to help you and Minglan, but later you couldn't handle it. At that time, I made up my mind to marry Minglan."

"How do you know she will marry you?"

"If you don't agree, you can ask her, or you can ask Old Madam Sheng!"

Gu Tingye shook his head, looking casual.

"it is good!"

Qi Heng was unwilling to believe it and walked away.

Chu Hong shook his head slightly and said nothing.

Everything will eventually disappear.
Gu family
The contemporary Ningyuan Marquis Gu Tingyu, Madam Xiao Qin, and Gu Tingye sat down in their respective seats, while Gu Tingyu's wife stood behind him and listened.

"Second brother is going to get married?"

Xiao Qin looked at Gu Tingye tentatively. She had heard some gossip a long time ago when she was communicating with some noble ladies in Bian Jing.

It was not until tonight, when Gu Tingye actually went to meet Lord Chu, that she was convinced that the gossip was true.

Well. Only a silly kid like Qi Heng is still kept in the dark.

Gu Tingye said, "The girl from the Sheng family has been chosen. The emperor also knows about this. Although it cannot be considered as a marriage granted by His Majesty, the Empress also bestowed a phoenix hairpin, which is no different from a marriage granted by His Majesty.

Madam, please do not discuss this matter secretly with other families. This matter has been finalized. Elder Chu and Grand Chancellor Han are also in favor of it, and no one can break it up."

Gu Tingye knew that his wife, Xiao Qin, was not a good person, and was afraid that she would disrupt the marriage in vain, so he warned her immediately.

"How could that be? It's so grand, such a great honor, I can't wait to be happy! When are you going to do it? I can also make arrangements in advance."

Xiao Qin's smile was still gentle and soft, and she looked like a truly loving mother. "We have a small family, so we have to hire some helpers to run errands."

"Don't bother me, Madam. My wedding will be arranged by the palace people. Prince Huan and I are good friends, so he will send people to help. Elder Chu is my good friend, so he will naturally send people as well. There will be no shortage of manpower. When the time comes, Madam and my elder brother can just enjoy the wine and receive the gifts."

Gu Tingye said this with a smile, and there was a hint of pride in his tone.

Needless to say, who is King Huan? He is the future crown prince and even emperor. Lord Chu is also a prominent figure. At the age of 28, he is extremely powerful and is ranked as the Grand Secretary of Wenyuan Pavilion.

Considering Lord Chu’s age, if he does not experience any major ups and downs, he will probably be able to stay in the position of Lord for another thirty or forty years in the future, and there is no doubt that he will rule the world.

Thirty or forty years, what does this mean?
If he can really achieve this, then he is not exaggerating when he says he is the pillar of the sky. Once he becomes the regent, he will dare to beat even the emperor.

With these two people supporting him, as long as he can get through this dispute between the Queen Mother and the new Emperor, Gu Tingye can sit on the Diaoyutai and live a glorious and smooth life regardless of the wind and waves.

The so-called Little Qinshi or Big Brother are not people of the same level anymore. They are just floating in the waves and appear vaguely for a moment.

"Alright, alright. Your Majesty's grace!"

Xiao Qin forced a smile, feeling a little jealous and worried.

Since Gu Tingye is so favored, it might be difficult for her son to inherit the position of Marquis Ningyuan.

Unwilling!
"Since the eldest lady has no objection, my brother and sister-in-law should have no problem either, right?"

Gu Tingye looked at his elder brother Gu Tingyu and his elder sister-in-law and asked casually, obviously not taking their opinions seriously.

"You keep talking about the Grand Master and the Grand Chancellor. I'm afraid you already have an idea in mind. Why do you need to ask us?"

Gu Tingyu coughed. How could he not see his brother's attitude?
"Hey, I still have to do this for the sake of face. Otherwise, it would be a pity if our Gu family's unique skill is lost in my hands."

Gu Tingye simply didn't hide it and spoke directly, making Xiao Qinshi and Gu Tingyu a little embarrassed.

"After a while, I'll go around the garden and look for any repairs that need to be made, and they'll make a note of it."

"Do you still need to repair the garden?"

Xiao Qin was shocked. It would cost a lot of money to build a garden.

"Don't worry, the palace will send someone to repair it, and it won't cost the palace a penny."

Gu Tingye saw Xiao Qin's worry and chuckled.

"I think this is a bit too grand. Even your father didn't use such a large number of troops for his wedding. I'm afraid it will be considered as overstepping the boundaries."

Xiao Qin felt much more at ease and even talked about the issue of exceeding the rules. She really felt that such a grand ceremony was too much.

With such a grand ceremony, everything was handled by the imperial palace, and top literati were present at the banquet. Only a family like the Duke of England could enjoy such treatment. This shows how favored this little guy is.

A little jealous, a little worried!
"Ah, this grand ceremony is the government's idea. He thinks I deserve a reward for my merits. Unfortunately, I am a military commander and cannot be promoted to a high position. Naturally, the money and the ceremony are a bit grand."

Gu Tingye looked at the strange expressions of his stepmother and elder brother with a smile on his face, and his heart became happier and happier. Isn't it just to make those who can't stand seeing him doing well feel bad?

Gu Tingye continued, "When my wedding comes, Prince Huan will definitely come, and Lord Chu will definitely not be absent.

With the relationship with Lord Chu, Han Da Xianggong, the head of all officials, would definitely send a gift and have a drink. Han Da Xianggong is here, and I don’t know whether other top civil servants will come, but gifts will definitely be sent.”

The more Gu Tingye spoke, the uglier Gu Tingyu and Xiao Qinshi's expressions became.

In this world dominated by civil officials, which military general could get to know the elder and even become his good friend?

Even the Duke of Yingguo, who is the chief military commander, doesn't have any particularly powerful literary friends, right?
After this kid's experience, I'm sure he will be treated uniquely among military generals in the future. At least the literati will not impeach him.

The Empress Dowager and the new Emperor were in conflict. Although some censors impeached Gu Tingye, there were also censors who defended him.

The censor in charge of impeachment defended a notorious person who lived in Qinlou and Chuguan. Who would believe him if he said it was not for the face of Lord Chu?

"Haha! I'm tired, let's go!"

Gu Tingye became more and more proud as he spoke. He really didn't have many friends, only three.

Prince Huan Zhao Ceying, cabinet minister Chu Zifeng, and the clean-minded civil servant Sheng Changbai.

But these three people are enough to destabilize the court, and their quality is ridiculously high!
Especially Lord Chu, who is involved in a series of affairs that basically involve most of the civil service groups. He is also a permanent candidate for the prime minister in the future. He is simply invincible.

Xiao Qinshi looked at Gu Tingye's graceful back as he left, her face becoming increasingly green. The gathering of top civil and military officials, this was a scene that even the Duke of England in his day might not have been able to match, right?

What kind of friends has the second brother made in these years?
Isn't it said that Lord Chu is a man of integrity? How come he is also a good friend of a playboy like the Second Brother?
Difficult!

Today is a full 1, I don't know why I can update so much. There won't be too many daily words. These days I'm writing the middle gate sniper copy, and it's a headache to write. There may be less in the next two or three days!
Don't worry, I'll be back home on the 8th and write all day. The amount will definitely be at least k!
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(End of this chapter)