Chapter 377: Chapter 375: The Huo Family Wants to Produce Another Empress
Huo Yuling stood tall at eight feet, his demeanor imposing.
When he came to meet Lu Ying, a boy and a girl accompanied him.
"Cousin!"
"Cousin!"
The two cousins had met Lu Ying during his travels to the border in the past. At the time, they were all children in their mischievous years, spending their days outside the border catching birds and stealing sheep. Seeing their childhood playmate again now, though their faces and expressions had grown steadier, their hearts were brimming with uncontrollable excitement.
Lu Ying nodded slightly at the two, considering that as a greeting.
He said to Huo Yuling, "This time, I must thank Uncle for traveling a thousand miles to the Capital to assist the king."
Huo Yuling glanced in the direction of Qixiang Palace, his eyes red, his voice heavy, "Your Highness knows well why I came. My sister died unjustly in the deep palace, and not a day has passed in these years where I could sleep peacefully. Every time I close my eyes, I always see her dying woefully alone in the palace, vomiting blood. Each time I wake in the dead of night, I am filled with fury that I cannot take up a blade and kill that useless emperor instantly!"
Lu Ying said, "He will no longer have a chance to leave Qixiang Palace."
Huo Yuling nodded slightly, raised a hand to wipe away the dampness in his eyes, and then turned to smile, "This is your younger cousin and younger cousin sister. I hadn’t intended to bring these two into the Capital, but they insisted on coming to help you, and I couldn’t stop them. Unlike your composed maturity, your younger cousin is like a mischievous monkey—already old enough to marry yet still irrepressibly unruly."
"Father!" Huo Mingxu grumbled, his sixteen- or seventeen-year-old face flushed with embarrassment. "What kind of father are you, exposing your son’s faults as soon as we meet someone?"
Huo Mingyan chuckled from the side.
Huo Mingxu shot her a glance, snorted lightly, and teased, "Sis, don’t laugh at me. Why don’t you look at yourself in the mirror and see how red your face is in front of Cousin! Cousin, you wouldn’t believe it—ever since that summer you returned to the Capital from outside the border, my sis talks about you a few times every year—"
"Huo Mingxu, you’re asking for trouble!"
Huo Mingyan’s cheeks were flushed red; she dared not look at Lu Ying and immediately raised her long spear, thrusting it toward Huo Mingxu.
Huo Mingxu made faces as he countered with his Bright Silver Spear, sparring playfully with her.
The siblings were both highly skilled in Kung Fu. Now locked in combat, their movements were graceful and agile, drawing admiring gazes from nearby Imperial Guards passing by.
Huo Yuling watched his pair of children with his hands behind his back and lowered his voice, "Your Highness, what do you think of Yan’er?"
Lu Ying remained expressionless, "What does Uncle mean?"
"It’s not my idea but your maternal grandfather and grandmother’s." Huo Yuling’s eyes grew profound, "You are about to ascend the throne as the new emperor, yet the position of Empress remains vacant. Surely, Shen Yunxi—the laughingstock—isn’t fit to claim the title of Queen of Great Zhou? Your grandmother believes that, of all the noble daughters in the Capital’s distinguished families, none are as trustworthy and familiar as our own. Yan’er, raised by your grandmother’s side and known for her virtuous reputation outside the border, would make a perfect Empress. With her in the role, you can be assured, the Huo family can be assured, and the realm can be assured."
"Grandmother’s idea?" Lu Ying’s tone was devoid of emotion. "Back then, Mother entered the palace also at Grandmother’s behest. Is Grandmother not worried that Yan’er would become the next Empress Huo?"
Equally unloved. Equally lonely in death.
Huo Yuling spoke meaningfully, "Given that you won’t become the next Lu Yu, how could Yan’er be the next Empress Huo? Jingwei, your uncle has faith in you."
The Huo family desired another Empress.
Lu Ying understood Huo Yuling’s intentions.
His gaze returned to Huo Mingyan.
The young woman looked valiant and spirited, her brows and eyes bearing some resemblance to his mother. Both excelled in wielding the halberd.
By tradition, he indeed had to select a woman to be Empress.
Shen Yinning was clearly the first to be excluded.
If she couldn’t be his Empress, then who held the title made little difference.
He acquiesced to Huo Yuling’s request.
After Lu Ying left, Huo Mingyan returned to Huo Yuling’s side with cheeks flushed, her bright black eyes betraying anticipation, "Father?"
Huo Yuling smiled and patted her head affectionately, "He agreed."
Huo Mingyan’s pupils sparkled instantly, joy swelling from her chest, enveloping her whole being like spring sunshine. In a mere moment, she felt lighter and more carefree than ever before—as if she were a butterfly ready to ride the wind and soar.
"Sis, don’t get too carried away just yet." Huo Mingxu leaned against his Bright Silver Spear beside her. "I heard there’s some unclear entanglement between Cousin and a woman named Shen Yinning. His demotion even had something to do with her. While Cousin promised to marry you, if he doesn’t truly care for you and still has lingering thoughts about that woman, what will you do? Honestly, you’d be better off staying far away from his feelings for her and just returning to outside the border and marrying some strong man instead!"
"What nonsense are you spouting?" Huo Yuling reprimanded softly, "Your sister’s marriage to your cousin is a union between the border and the Imperial Family—to produce heirs for the throne. It is not common couple’s sentimental romance!"
The noble families of the Capital lived lavishly, basking in opulence and prosperity.
But for families stationed outside the border, not only did they endure the harsh climate, they also had to guard against the northern Wei Kingdom. If war broke out, at best, their young men were injured or killed; at worst, the entire family could be massacred by enemy troops.
It wasn’t an exaggeration to say they lived by licking blood off the blade of a knife.
His proposal for marriage wasn’t out of entitlement stemming from the Huo family’s ties to Lu Ying’s maternal lineage, but a rational bid for resources between the border families and the Imperial Family—a matter of practical sense.
After Huo Yuling left, Huo Mingxu curiously asked, "Sis, I’ve heard that Shen Yinning is a bewitching beauty who could rival a fairy. I really wonder what she looks like. Do you think she could possibly be more beautiful than our border’s most renowned beauty, Hu Lingji?"
The harsh climate outside the border made it difficult to nurture women of exceptional beauty compared to the temperate Central Plains and Jiangnan.
The dancing master Hu Lingji from the Red Sleeves Pavilion was already the most beautiful woman Huo Mingxu had ever laid eyes upon.
"Probably not," Huo Mingyan said dismissively, raising her eyebrows. "Hu Lingji is already stunning; how could there exist someone more beautiful than her? Besides, Grandmother often says that we, daughters from prominent families, are born to be primary wives. For a primary wife, appearance doesn’t matter; it’s character and ability that are most essential. That girl Shen... "
She paused briefly, disdain flickering in her dark eyes.
Then, she sneered and curled her lips contemptuously, "Although I can admire a beauty, she is the daughter of a criminal. I’ve heard she was married and then divorced—that alone shows her lack of steadfast virtue. Using Grandmother’s words, she’s utterly frivolous and immoral. Women like her—even if they possess unrivaled beauty—they earn no respect from me. I daresay no decent man would consider her worthy."