Chapter 330: Betrothed to the Crown Prince

Helian Chen failed to become Dean Chen’s disciple as he had hoped, but he wasn’t about to give up. ’If you want someone to take you as a disciple, you have to show them what you’re capable of.’

Once he was at Lou Mountain Academy, he was confident he could persuade Dean Chen.

The Beili Emperor stroked his beard, looking quite proud. Dean Chen was renowned across the four nations. In his youth, he had dominated the four-nation academic exchange, and to this day, the other three nations dared not challenge Beili in matters of scholarship.

Thus, Lou Mountain Academy in Beili became the most coveted institution for nobles from all four nations. However, because the academy was located in the Capital City, it had to refuse many of the formal requests for admission sent from the other three nations.

"Your Majesty." Seizing the opportunity, Prime Minister Gao rose and bowed.

"Prime Minister Gao, is there something you wish to say?"

"Your Majesty’s birthday banquet is a most auspicious occasion. I wish to borrow some of this good fortune for my son."

"My dear Prime Minister, please speak your mind."

"I beseech Your Majesty to bestow a marriage upon my son."

The moment Prime Minister Gao spoke, he drew gazes from several different groups.

Ye Qianning’s eyes narrowed. Her small hand twitched inside her sleeve. ’Prime Minister Gao... He actually dares.’

"The Prime Minister’s son is still quite young. Isn’t it a bit early to arrange a marriage?"

"Not at all. Once the engagement is set, a few years will pass in the blink of an eye." Prime Minister Gao was looking forward to seeing Xiang Minghou’s fury. ’Since he provoked my residence, I’ll start with his precious girl.’

’Once that girl marries into my family, I’ll make sure she lives a life of unending misery.’

"In that case, We shall have to see which family’s young lady is a suitable match." The Beili Emperor’s gaze swept over the ministers’ families seated below.

There were quite a few eight- and nine-year-old girls at the banquet. Some families, hoping to form an alliance with Prime Minister Gao, subtly nudged their daughters forward. Others, wanting nothing to do with the Gao family, remained perfectly still.

Old Master Gu was terribly nervous, silently praying it wouldn’t be his great-granddaughter.

’Otherwise, he would fight the Gao family to the death—’

Qian Fanji’s expression remained placid, but his fingers tightened within his sleeve.

Xiang Minghou showed little expression. He simply thought that any girl who married into the Gao family must have had ancestors who’d accumulated eight lifetimes of bad luck.

Dean Chen quietly took Ye Qianning’s small hand in his. ’If this marriage is decreed, my little disciple’s life will be ruined.’

’If only I could delay this for a day and officially place her under the Gu family’s name, she could avoid this fate.’

Ye Qianning, however, was prepared. ’If the marriage is decreed, I swear that within a year, Prime Minister Gao’s residence will no longer exist in the Capital City!’

The Beili Emperor’s gaze swept across the crowd below, passing over several princesses before finally landing on Ye Qianning.

"Your Majesty."

A Hidden Guard suddenly appeared.

The Beili Emperor paid him no mind, declaring with delight, "We find Ye Qianning of General Xiang’s household to be a fine match for Prime Minister Gao’s son. Therefore, We bestow Ye Qianning’s hand in marriage to—the Crown Prince."

The sudden twist in his words left everyone utterly stunned.

...

Prime Minister Gao, who had just been shooting a provocative glare at Xiang Minghou, was now completely dumbfounded.

Gao Qi had been feeling a little excited, but his heart turned to ice when he heard the announcement. ’It was bad enough that the Crown Prince stole my pastries, but now he’s stealing my future wife too! This is just bullying!’

The court officials were also left completely flabbergasted by this turn of events.

’Prime Minister Gao’s son and the young lady of the Xiang family are a good match, so... she’s betrothed to the Crown Prince???’

’Isn’t this a blatant slap in the face?’

The Empress and the host of imperial concubines were stunned. Sang Qi’s mother, in particular, was astonished, completely unable to understand why the Emperor would betroth a country girl to the Crown Prince.

But the most bewildered of all was Sang Qi himself. When he heard he was being betrothed to that "fatty," his head started buzzing. He whipped his head around to glare furiously at her.

Ye Qianning’s hearing was sharp, but even she couldn’t catch what the Hidden Guard had whispered to the Beili Emperor to make him change his mind.

’Dealing with Prime Minister Gao would have been simple enough, but a royal marriage is far more troublesome. What went wrong?’