Chapter 249: Is Xiao Fu Bao Disliked? The Whole City Loves Me With Their Lives
Chapter 249: Son’s Marriage
The spring rain fell continuously, drizzling for six or seven days, sometimes stopping and then starting again. The ground remained damp and muddy.
Prince Qi found the roads too wet to travel, so he decided to stay at the manor, spending time with Suisui instead.
“Done with the bamboo leaf dragonflies?”
“Let’s play Five Elements then.”
“Not interested in that either?”
“Let’s play chess.”
“Not into chess? Then how about making a kite?”
Each day brought a new way to pass the time.
As for studying?
Qi Wangfei had urged him a couple of times, but Prince Qi wasn’t interested and insisted on personally teaching Suisui.
Qi Wangfei was a little concerned.
After all, she knew very well the extent of her husband’s education. But she figured it was just early education, so it should be fine.
However, as they started, they ended up playing instead.
Qi Wangfei: *Not surprised at all.*
When it was time for bed, Qi Wangfei couldn’t help but voice her concerns: "Suisui is already five years old. If we don't start her education soon, it will be too late. Next month is Brother Chen's birthday. We'll definitely take the children with us, and if Suisui can’t even recognize a character, people will quietly mock her. Some children are too young to understand, but their words can hurt the most. If Suisui hears them, it’ll be uncomfortable for her."
For older children, it’s fine. They are taught by their parents not to offend the royal family, so they dare not speak openly. But younger children, who forget things easily, tend to blurt out whatever they see. Suisui would definitely feel bad hearing it.
Qi Wangfei was worried about the child.
Prince Qi was also concerned, but he just couldn’t bring himself to force Suisui to endure the hardships of studying.
Speaking of his own struggles with education, Prince Qi had a lot to say: "When I was younger, I had to wake up at the third watch of the night to study. I had no free time all day. It was exhausting, and in the end, I was still just mediocre. I don’t think this kind of hardship is necessary."
At the end, he sighed deeply. "Sigh… No matter what, we still have to endure some hardship to learn. Alright, tomorrow, I’ll definitely send Suisui to school."
The rain continued, and neither Shen Huatang nor Liu Hemeng had come to the manor recently.
On a daily basis, Prince Qi spent his time playing with Suisui.
Father and daughter had already developed a deep bond, and Prince Qi became more fond of his little daughter each day.
Especially after taking the medicinal meals, his health had improved significantly.
Prince Qi thought to himself...
He might still live another thirty or fifty years, becoming an old demon.
He had to live on!
If he didn’t, Suisui would have to rely on her brothers in the future.
If the brothers were still unmarried, that would be fine, but once they married, they would have their own families to take care of. They wouldn’t be as considerate of their little sister as they had been when they were single.
So, it was still up to him, this old father, to worry.
During a late-night conversation, after discussing Suisui, the topic shifted to the young masters of the house.
As they talked, Prince Qi suddenly thought of something and sighed: “In a few years, Ze’er will have his coming-of-age ceremony.”
Once he underwent the ceremony, he would be eligible for the title of heir.
Feng Xuanze’s position as heir was a certainty. Unless something unexpected happened, no one could take it away from him.
He was both the eldest and the legitimate son—who else could they appoint as heir? And among all the children in the household, he was the top scholar. How could they not promote him?
Would they appoint one of those useless, lazy scholars instead?
If that happened, the Prince Qi Manor would be ruined.
Talking about Feng Xuanze, Prince Qi thought of his marriage: "It’s about time we start looking for a suitable match for Ze’er. Do you have any families in mind? I can discuss it with the Emperor or the Empress later."
Feng Xuanze’s marriage was, of course, a priority for the Prince Qi Manor.
Qi Wangfei had started paying attention to potential candidates for a couple of years now. However, the relationships in the capital were quite complex, and many things changed as time passed.
Just because she liked a particular family now didn’t mean it would still be suitable in the future.
So, she had to constantly adjust her ideas based on the changes.
When Prince Qi asked, Qi Wangfei softly replied, "I was initially very fond of Master Shen's eldest granddaughter. She’s just reached the age of marriage, only a year younger than Ze’er. They are of similar age, and she’s quiet, elegant, and studies well. She would be a good match for Ze’er. However..."
At this point, Qi Wangfei sighed lightly. "As the saying goes, ‘A family with a daughter is sought after by all.’ I heard that Auntie is also fond of Miss Shen and has already spoken to the Shen family about it. I’d rather not bring it up again."
Prince Qi frowned slightly and questioned in confusion, "…That’s strange. Junzhi is only 12 this year, and Auntie is already in a rush?"
Qi Wangfei chuckled at his tone and quickly clarified, "It’s not like that. I heard it’s for Chen Ge’er. He’s already gone through his coming-of-age ceremony, but hasn’t yet settled on a fiancée. He needs it more than Ze’er does."
However, good girls were always in high demand.
When Qi Wangfei brought it up, Prince Qi’s thoughts were indeed stirred.
Especially since he had previously interacted with Shen Huatang, the young girl was quiet and refined, and her older sister would likely be even more gentle and graceful.
Prince Qi felt a tug in his heart but didn’t feel right about competing with his aunt for someone.
In the end, he sighed deeply. "Ah, it’s our Ze’er’s fault. He’s too young to compete."
If they were both of age, Prince Qi thought, he wouldn’t hesitate to take advantage of his aunt’s authority.
After all, what’s the worst that could happen? He could always get a beating, like in the past. He wasn’t afraid of pain.
But, it was probably better to let it go.
Fighting over such things would harm the family’s harmony and bring unnecessary gossip to the Shen family, which would be unfair to their daughter.
Soon, Prince Qi let go of that thought and asked, "What about other families? Do you have someone else in mind? We need to act first this time!"
Qi Wangfei was amused by his persistence. "Actually, there is one—Miss He, the eldest daughter of the He family. Although she rarely goes out, I’ve seen her twice at banquets. The only problem is that she’s five years younger than Ze’er. By the time she reaches marriageable age, Ze’er will already be quite old."
The He family?
Prince Qi thought for a while before recalling which He family she meant and asked in surprise, "Isn’t it said that her health isn’t good?"
Qi Wangfei paused, and after a while, she responded with a strange tone, "...That’s the second daughter. She’s actually close to Suisui. Don’t talk like that, Suisui might not like to hear it."
Realizing he had confused the two, Prince Qi smiled awkwardly. "If she’s a good match, then we can wait. When Ze’er returns, we’ll ask him if he’s willing. If he’s not, we can look for someone else. If we don’t find anyone suitable in the capital, we can look in the provinces."
Qi Wangfei thought along the same lines. She had someone else in mind, but the other person was the younger sister of the Crown Princess. The political situation in the court was uncertain, and Qi Wangfei was worried that choosing someone from the Lin family might cause problems with the Emperor or the Crown Prince. That would not be worth it.
After thinking it over, Qi Wangfei decided not to mention it again and shifted the conversation back to Suisui.
The couple’s nightly discussions about Suisui seemed endless, and Prince Qi happily made plans for tomorrow’s trip to the palace to express their gratitude.
The weather had cleared up today. Previously, either Suisui had been unwell or the weather had been bad, making it difficult to go to the palace. Now that the weather had cleared, it was finally time to visit the palace.
At this moment, Suisui was listening intently to a story.
It was rare for her to get up at night to listen to a story. Her big eyes sparkled in the darkness, almost glowing with excitement!
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