Chu Zhixia had arrived long ago.
It's just that she rarely attends such banquets, and few people recognize her.
She stood there and heard someone talking about her and Lu Hao. Her expectant face slowly turned calm.
"Sister." Chu Rui felt unhappy, "Brother Lu is not that kind of person."
Empress Dowager Feng said calmly: "Don't worry, this marriage can't go away."
The Lu family is getting stronger and stronger. No matter what, she must seize the Lu family as an in-law and pave the way for Rui'er.
Chu Zhixia lowered her head and followed the Queen Mother to sit down.
One of them is the prince and the other is the princess, and their seats are relatively close to the front.
As soon as the two appeared, they aroused many people's comments.
"Is that Prince Zhuang? He is too thin and his face is so pale. It turns out he is really sick."
"The person next to him should be Princess Fukang. She looks really slim. How old are you this year?"
"I'm twenty-one. Isn't it too late to bring her out? I'm getting older, so I'm sure to get married."
"The Queen Mother must have fallen in love with the eldest young master of the Lu family..."
"The two of them had a marriage contract..."
Not long after the palace banquet started, Empress Dowager Feng turned the topic to marriage and said with a smile: "The Ai family still remembers that when Hao'er was just a little old and came to the palace, she particularly liked the younger sister Fukang. Madam and the Ai family had arranged a baby marriage for the two children..."
Before the Queen Mother finished speaking, Mrs. Lu stood up quickly, sweating profusely and said: "Back then...it was all a joke..."
"Joking?" Queen Mother Feng's face turned cold, "Why, are the Lu family going to break their promises?"
"Queen Mother, please calm down." The emperor said softly, "The marriage is formalized only after exchanging Geng Tie. How can a verbal word count?"
Empress Dowager Feng raised her head and stared at the emperor: "So the marriage is over?"
"It's not that I'm stopping it, but that the Lu family has decided on a marriage for Lu Hao and handed over the Geng Tie." The emperor continued, "There are thousands of good men in the capital, and the Queen Mother can choose a husband for Fukang at will, as long as both parties nod. , I will grant you marriage immediately."
The Queen Mother tightly squeezed the veil in her hand.
When her son was still a prince, Fukang was born with a golden key in his mouth. He was the jewel of the East Palace. When he was only one year old, many people wanted to marry him.
She made thousands of choices and chose the Lu family at that time. At that time, the Lu family was only in the third rank. She was studying in the Lu family, a scholarly family with a good family tradition. Fukang would not suffer if she married into it, so she decided to marry her two children.
Who would have thought that twenty years later, the Lu family would look like this.
The emperor naturally did not want Fukang to marry into the Lu family, fearing that the Lu family would become Rui'er's influence...
As for any big and respectable family in the capital, they would probably not want to have anything to do with the children of the former prince.
Fukang's marriage is not that easy.
Countless thoughts flashed through the Queen Mother's mind...
At this moment, Chu Zhixia felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar, and his hands could not stop shaking.
Sitting here, she can clearly see Lu Hao sitting next to Mr. Lu...
When she and Lu Hao got engaged, she was still young and didn't remember anything, but the Queen Mother often called Mrs. Lu to take Lu Hao into the palace to pay her respects, and she got to know Lu Hao.
But the good times didn't last long. After her father passed away, she moved out of the East Palace and never saw Lu Hao again.
The first time the Queen Mother came out of the palace to worship Buddha, she met Lu Hao in the temple.
At that time, he was about fifteen years old and very tall. She saw him at a glance. After knowing his identity, she was filled with joy.
He went to greet the Queen Mother, and the Queen Mother asked him to take her to enjoy the flowers. He also took her to fly a kite. It was her first time flying a kite. The wind was strong and she was very happy.
In the days that followed, Lu Hao often followed Mrs. Lu to the palace to pay her respects, and the Queen Mother would keep them in the palace to have meals.
She knew that Lu Hao also liked her.
Otherwise, he would never come to Kangning Palace often.
She also knew that the Lu family was willing to accept her.
Otherwise, Mrs. Lu would never enter the palace again and again to pay her respects to the Queen Mother.
But the good times didn't last long. The Lu family was transferred to Jiangnan. After that, she and Lu Hao hadn't seen each other for several years.
She is twenty-one years old.
Lu Hao is twenty-two years old.
Men and women of this age should be getting married, but he is not married yet.
She first thought that he was waiting to return to Beijing to marry her.
However, the way Lu Hao looked at her was as if a thunderbolt struck her head.
She knew that everything she had hoped for was gone.
"Sister."
Chu Rui's voice was a little hoarse.
He didn't know what to do, so he could only hold Chu Zhixia's hand.
"Sister, you're so cold, let's go back."
He felt distressed.
I feel sorry for the eldest sister waiting, but there is nothing I can do.
"Go, let's go."
Chu Zhixia stood up and followed Chu Rui outside the hall.
But she did not go back, but stood stubbornly on a path outside the palace, standing so quietly, Chu Rui sighed.
He knew that the eldest sister wanted an answer.
With heavy steps, he walked into the hall again, walked to Lu Hao, and brought Lu Hao out.
"Brother Lu." Chu Rui said softly, "There are some things that should be made clear."
After he finished speaking, he turned around and left, leaving space for the two of them.
"Zhi Xia..." Lu Hao's voice was harsh, "It's not that I'm heartless. For the sake of the Lu family, I have no choice."
"No wonder you haven't corresponded with me in the past two years. I just thought you were busy with government affairs. I thought that when you finish your work and return to the capital, everything will be fine." Chu Zhixia shed two lines of tears, "I just want to Let me ask you, you really did sincerely want to marry me, right?"
Lu Hao pursed his lips: "There is no point in saying this anymore."
He paused and continued, "Zhi Xia, the emperor has chosen a marriage for me. I am the eldest daughter of an important minister in the court. I will be married soon. You... don't have to wait for me anymore."
He looked at the more and more tears on her face and wanted to wipe them away for her.
But he knew that he had lost his qualifications.
In the past, the Lu family was only a third-rank official, so his marriage didn't matter.
but now--
The Lu family held great power, and the emperor would never let the Lu family have any entanglement with the former prince.
If he dares to insist on marrying Zhixia, then the entire Lu family will be jealous of the emperor. He will become a sinner of the family, and everyone will betray their relatives. The Lu family will also fall from the clouds into hell because of his love for children...
"Zhixia, I'm sorry."
Lu Hao turned around and left step by step.
Chu Zhixia couldn't stop her tears at all. She covered her lips and sobbed. The more she cried, the more she couldn't stop crying. All the grievances in her heart were contained in her cries.
At this time, a girl's voice sounded behind her: "What's wrong with you?"
When she heard the outsider's voice, she quickly wiped her tears, turned around, and was stunned for a moment: "Miss Yun?"
She remembered the beautiful girl in front of her after seeing her only once. She was the most beautiful woman in the capital and the eldest daughter of the Yun family. She seemed to be only ten years old.
"It's snowing again." Yun Chu stepped forward, "It's so cold here. I'll take the princess back."
