allonlinenovel Chapter 458 Conferring the Title of County Princess and the Wedding
Chapter 458 Conferring the Title of County Princess and the Wedding
Although she and Gu Minghuai did not grow up together, they were acquaintances in their youth.
He was able to gain experience in the military camp, and in less than three years he became a deputy general, which can be considered as young and promising.
Despite the harsh conditions in the military camp, he never mentioned it in his letters. He appeared carefree on the surface, but in reality, he was down-to-earth and hardworking.
"Father, if we really have to get engaged, then let's choose Gu Minghuai."
Knowing his daughter's feelings, Lin Qingchuan was no longer in a hurry to arrange a marriage for her. He patted his daughter on the shoulder, gave her a reassuring look, and then went to chat with the matchmaker. After the young man left, the couple repeatedly apologized to the matchmaker.
Seeing the matchmaker's unpleasant expression, Gu Minghuai had a sudden inspiration and immediately hired her to continue arranging a marriage between him and Xiaotang. The matchmaker's mood changed incredibly quickly.
She immediately smiled and showered Gu Minghuai with compliments.
Lin Xiaotang and Gu Minghuai were speechless with astonishment.
The next day, the matchmaker and Gu Minghuai, along with a group of people, brought hundreds of boxes of betrothal gifts to formally propose marriage. Even Gu Minghuai's parents came.
The Gu family's betrothal gifts were very generous, carried by 280 loads, each chest overflowing with valuable items: a chest of land deeds, shop deeds, and account books; several chests of gold and silver; several chests of jewelry; and several chests of precious fabrics...
After exchanging betrothal gifts, the two sides also had an engagement banquet at Mingcui Tower.
The wedding date is set for a year from now.
The Gu family couple were very satisfied with Lin Xiaotang. They did not neglect her because she was not from a prestigious family. On the contrary, they were worried because Xiaotang had a talent for business and was able to earn a lot of money at a young age. They were afraid that their son would be disliked by his future daughter-in-law.
After returning home, he gave his son a long lecture.
……
Gu Minghuai stayed in the capital for only half a month before returning to the military camp with Qin Feng.
After a brief reunion, their identities and relationship changed, and they began to correspond frequently.
Gu Minghuai tirelessly wrote about his military life in the letters, fearing that Xiaotang would only reply to one letter every three or five times as before. Each time, he would ask Xiaotang about the things she had mentioned in the previous letters in the last sentence.
During this time, Huo Qi and his fourth uncle's wives both became pregnant. Fearing that their wives would be left unattended in their Beijing residence while they were busy in the fields, the two agreed to bring them to live on the estate.
Firstly, the two pregnant women could share their experiences by living together; secondly, they would have each other's company; and thirdly, Xiaotang could chat with them, making it lively and less lonely.
They asked Xiaotang to help them buy some fabric and needles at the market to make clothes for their unborn child.
Lin Xiaotang was worried that they would get tired, so she offered to buy them ready-made clothes, but they refused.
They said they wanted to make it for their children themselves, partly to pass the time and partly as a way to show their love and care for them.
Since both aunts said so, she naturally bought it for them. The fabric and needlework were of the highest quality, and when the two aunts offered her money, she resolutely refused.
Later, one of her aunts embroidered a purse, a handkerchief, and a belt for her, and also made her a new pair of shoes. The other aunt gave her a pomegranate-shaped silver hairpin inlaid with pearls as a return gift.
……
Every now and then, Lin Xiaotang and Huo Qi would go to the market to buy some easy-to-store pastries and snacks, and then order some food from her father's restaurant, and take them to visit the brothers on the mountain in prison.
The brothers were extremely grateful to the two men, and each of them vowed to turn over a new leaf after their release from prison, follow the two men to get rich and repay them.
Some of those with minor offenses began to be released from prison one after another and sincerely joined the team that cultivated medicinal herbs.
Their medicinal herb fields are getting bigger and bigger!
Since the medicinal herb fields were located outside the capital, news of their cultivation of medicinal herbs quickly reached the Emperor's ears. After the Emperor sent people to investigate, he became very curious about Lin Xiaotang and summoned her to the palace to share her cultivation experience.
Having lived an extra life, and having led her family in business for many years, including going up mountains, entering bandit dens, and even leading bandits to cultivate medicinal herbs, she was very bold and showed no fear when facing the emperor.
When the Emperor saw the young girl in the main hall who was neither flustered nor arrogant, a rare look of surprise flashed across his face, and a hint of admiration appeared in his eyes.
After Xiaotang knelt and bowed, the Emperor asked her about the methods of cultivating medicinal herbs, which she answered one by one. Then the Emperor asked her if there were better ways to cultivate other crops.
After careful recollection, she told the emperor several common methods for increasing the yield of crops in this world.
The emperor ordered her to compile a book upon her return and promised her that if the harvest improved after trying her method, he would reward her handsomely.
Lin Xiaotang remained calm in the face of both honor and disgrace; she only hoped not to make any mistakes.
She can earn money and silver, and she doesn't care about those empty reputations. She only hopes that the results won't be bad in the future. She can't bear the emperor's wrath, nor does she want to.
Of course, it would be even better if her methods could benefit the people and the country!
……
Several months later, the trial crop yielded a good harvest. With favorable weather, the harvest was 20% higher than before. The emperor was overjoyed and directly bestowed upon Xiao Tang the title of county princess, along with some gold, silver, and silk.
She was just a young girl who did business and farming, yet she gained the emperor's favor and was granted the title of county princess, a feat that made countless noble ladies green with envy.
Lin Xiaotang took the initiative to confess to the Emperor that she had been kidnapped by bandits and taken to the mountain. She persuaded the bandits to plant medicinal herbs, making them understand that they could become rich by their own hard work, and also persuaded the bandits to come down the mountain and surrender themselves to the authorities.
After his initial shock, the emperor suddenly realized why so many bandits had surrendered themselves to the authorities.
At first, he thought it was all thanks to Lord Zhao, and even promoted Lord Zhao's official rank by two levels. He never expected it to be this inconspicuous little girl.
They don't show off at all, yet they've accomplished so many great things!
Luckily, Lin Xiaotang is a woman; if she were a man, he wouldn't be able to sleep!
The Emperor was overjoyed. He not only did not blame her for colluding with bandits, but also praised Lin Xiaotang for doing many things that benefited the country and its people despite her quiet and unassuming nature.
Since she had already been granted the title of county princess and received some rewards, this time she was given a house in the capital and some land.
At least it's under our watchful eyes.
After thanking the emperor for the reward, Lin Xiaotang left the palace with mixed feelings of joy and sorrow.
Six months later, Gu Minghuai returned to the capital with the general to report on his duties, which conveniently put their wedding date on the agenda.
At this time, the Lin family had already bought a large mansion in the capital. Lin Xiaotang usually lived in the mansion bestowed by the emperor, and when she got married, she went from the Lin family to the Gu family.
The wedding was grand, with a ten-mile-long procession of red bridal procession, second only to that of a princess.
When the Gu family held their wedding, guests arrived in an endless stream, with the banquet alone numbering over a hundred tables.
The Lin family was equally impressive. The bandits who followed Lin Xiaotang to cultivate medicinal herbs and do business, Fourth Uncle and his wife, Huo Qi and his wife, Manager Su's family, Aunt and Uncle's family, Mr. Xue... even Lu An (Xiao Jiu) and Xue Hanxing came.
The day of returning to one's parents' home.
Lu An and Xue Hanxing stayed at the Lin family's house as guests, but they were both resentful.
They had originally planned to propose to Xiao Tang after ranking among the top three in the imperial examinations, but Gu Minghuai beat them to it, so they could only desperately drink more alcohol.
Having spent three years in the military, Gu Minghuai had naturally developed a high alcohol tolerance. Not only did he not get drunk, but he also managed to get two men who were eyeing his new wife drunk.
He clapped his hands, smugly ordering his servants to take the two drunkards to their guest rooms, then took his young wife's hand and headed to the estate outside the city to see the peach blossoms...