Becoming a literary master starting from the story of Minglan

Chapter 272 The Draft Delay
In fact, the main reason why Sheng Changquan was able to see Minglan in Youyang this time was due to the order issued from the palace.

Three years ago, the emperor in the palace suddenly issued an order, instructing the palace officials to begin selecting young women to enrich the harem.

However, the Emperor wasn't doing this for himself; after all, he's getting old and is more focused on health and wellness!
For the sake of his own life, how could the emperor possibly choose to suppress the crabapple blossom with a pear blossom and ruin his long-cherished path of celibacy and abstinence?
Moreover, even if the emperor had the will, he lacked the power to do so.

After all, Consort Rong was already a bit too much for him, let alone adding other women.

Just kidding! Just kidding!
In fact, this selection of concubines was actually because the emperor pitied the elderly in the palace and wanted to release a group of palace maids and female officials who were already quite old so that they could reunite with their families.

Of course, the quota for leaving the palace was not mandatory; rather, it was left to the older palace maids and female officials who wished to leave the palace to apply for it themselves.

After all, some of these palace maids and female officials have long lost contact with their families. If they are forced to leave the palace, how will they survive in the future?

The emperor, out of compassion for his servants, would not do such a heartless thing. Therefore, most of those released were palace maids and female officials who had a future.

It was precisely because the palace was short-handed that the emperor issued an edict to select some women for the palace.

Of course, there was a deeper purpose behind this: the emperor also wanted to find some outstanding girls among these candidates and marry them off to princes and members of the imperial family.

For example, the fourth prince, Prince Chu, who has already come of age, and many other eligible members of the imperial clan.

"Brother, be quiet!"

"This is something we shouldn't be discussing!"

Because this matter involved the palace, Minglan was also somewhat nervous.

After all, Sheng Changquan was destined to become an official in the imperial court, so Minglan was very careful in this regard, fearing that her younger brother would be caught in a compromising situation.

"It's alright, sister!"

Sheng Changquan smiled and comforted Minglan, then said softly, "There are no outsiders in the house now, so it's fine for us siblings to talk."

Although Xiao Tao and Dan Ju were still in the room, Sheng Changquan clearly did not regard them as outsiders. Therefore, upon hearing this, Xiao Tao and Dan Ju naturally showed a strange expression on their faces.

Clearly, they were shaken by the trust that Minglan and her brother had placed in them!
However, Xiao Tao and the others were unaware that Sheng Changquan's words were merely a gesture to win them over!
In fact, there was only one real reason why Sheng Changquan spoke so calmly: he was confident that no one was eavesdropping around him, and as for Xiao Tao and Dan Ju, they were indeed trustworthy.

After all, as Minglan's maids, the two of them shared the same fate as Minglan and her brother, rising and falling together.

Now, as these six years have passed, Sheng Changquan's martial arts skills have naturally improved considerably. Leaving aside how powerful they are, his innate ability alone is enough to sense the situation around him.

However, Xiao Tao and the others had no idea about Sheng Changquan's considerations!

Therefore, the two of them became even more loyal to Minglan and her brother.

Although they appreciated Minglan and her brother's trust, Xiaotao and Danju knew their place. Seeing that Minglan and her brother seemed to have something to say, they naturally didn't want to disturb them. So, after exchanging glances, they both tactfully withdrew.

Sheng Changquan only glanced at them briefly and did not stop them, after all, it was their own choice.

"Squeak!"

After Xiaotao and Danju left, Minglan looked at her younger brother, who had grown up, and asked a question with pursed lips.

"Brother, let's not talk about this now!"

"How have you been all these years?"

Although she had already met Sheng Changquan, Minglan still needed to hear her younger brother confirm it in person before she could feel at ease.

"Hmm? How can we not talk about this?"

Sheng Changquan did not ask Minglan to change the subject, but continued to ask, "Sister!"

"Tell me the truth, why was it only you who went back to your ancestral home in Youyang with your grandmother? What about your fourth and fifth sisters?"

Aren't they afraid of the talent show?

Seeing the different treatment of the three daughters of the Sheng family, Sheng Changquan frowned, as if he had thought of something unpleasant.

"Little brother~"

No one knows a brother better than his sister. As soon as Minglan saw Sheng Changquan's expression, she knew what he was thinking.

"Brother, it's not what you think!"

Minglan sighed softly and explained, "Actually, this was my own choice!"

The main reason Minglan went to hide in her hometown of Youyang was to avoid the imperial concubine selection order.

Because the emperor was also thinking about choosing wives for his sons and grandsons, the imperial edict for selecting young women was not limited to girls from ordinary families.

Incidentally, to prevent imbalances in the harem and thus instability in the empire, emperors throughout history mostly selected candidates from the homes of ordinary people during the imperial selection process.

It's not that officials and noble families didn't select candidates, but rather that very few women were chosen from among them.

This was especially true when selecting concubines for the emperor. For example, the most favored concubine, Consort Rong, was chosen in this way.

In fact, among the empresses of this dynasty, with very few exceptions, the vast majority of the nation's mothers came from ordinary families.

The advantage of this is that there is no need to worry about the power of maternal relatives in the court becoming too great, thus affecting the stability of the country.

After all, the empress's maternal family was of low social standing, so the chances of her maternal relatives gaining power would be extremely small, and they would not be able to influence the overall situation.

Getting back to the main point, since this selection was for princes and members of the imperial family, these people didn't need to worry too much about the background of the candidates.

Just like the fourth prince, the Prince of Chu, although he has come of age, his power is negligible compared to his two elder brothers, the Prince of Yong and the Prince of Yan. Therefore, in a sense, the Prince of Chu has already lost the possibility of inheriting the throne.

Therefore, his wife did not need to consider whether she came from a commoner background. In fact, because of the official's sense of guilt, he was able to find a noblewoman from a distinguished family to marry.

Only in this way could the King of Chu rely on the powerful Yue family to protect himself in the future.

Three years ago, during the imperial concubine selection, the emperor personally instructed that eligible women from the families of officials in the capital should register, and then palace officials would conduct a preliminary selection. Those who were suitable would be sent directly to the palace, where the empress, empress dowager, and others would make their choices.

However, if she were to be favored by someone, she could marry directly into the royal family. She might even become the Princess of Chu, enjoying a lifetime of wealth and luxury.

Of course, the chances of this happening are slim, after all, there is only one Queen Consort of Chu.

Most likely, they will become a minor female official in the palace.

No matter what, these are all daughters of officials in the court. Unless they offended someone, they would never have become the lowest-ranking palace maids.

However, when faced with such a selection process, officials who doted on their own daughters would often resort to "official means," bribing the eunuchs in charge of selecting women with various sums of money to eliminate their daughters in the first round, so that they would not end up as palace maids.

Speaking of which, I have to give a shout-out to Sheng Hong.

Although Sheng Hong was somewhat confused about matters in his own backyard, he still demonstrated great fatherly responsibility in this matter.

On the day the imperial decree for the selection of concubines was issued, his first priority was to visit the old lady at Shou'an Hall.

Of course, his visit to Old Madam Sheng was a pretense; his real purpose was to discuss the imperial concubine selection and to have his mother take his three daughters back to their hometown of Youyang, so as to escape the vortex in the capital.

Although the Sheng family was able to bribe officials to prevent their daughter from being selected, a closer examination would still imply some degree of deceiving the emperor. If someone were to specifically report them, a scandal would be inevitable.

Therefore, being able to leave the capital directly would be the best thing to do. After all, if the person is not around, how can the other party report them?

In fact, Old Madam Sheng was very pleased with Sheng Hong's choice.

The old lady believed that although Sheng Hong was somewhat biased towards his concubines and neglected his wife, he was still capable of taking responsibility for his children and fulfilling his duties as a father. Therefore, after considering it for a while, the old lady agreed to Sheng Hong's request and was willing to take Mo Lan, Ru Lan, and Ming Lan back to Youyang and return after the storm had passed.

However, Sheng Hong and his mother never expected that, apart from Minglan, Molan and Rulan were both unwilling to return to Youyang.

The former refused because she disliked that Youyang was a rural place with nothing to praise.

There were no bustling shops or lively markets there, and more importantly, there were no wealthy families or noble scions.

In Mo Lan's heart, returning to Youyang would only delay her search for a suitable husband and hinder her progress!
Rulan's reason for refusing was even simpler.

One reason was that she was influenced by Madam Wang and didn't want to see her relatives from her hometown, while the other reason was that she had a better principle.

That means she could choose to return to Dingshan, where her maternal grandfather's family, the Wang family, lived.

Dingshan, where the Wang family lived, was not comparable to Youyang; it was a large city.

Dingshan far surpasses Youyang in terms of prosperity in terms of food, clothing, housing, and transportation, as well as the wealthy and powerful families who have lived there for generations.

Therefore, Rulan, who is naturally playful, would prefer to go to a more prosperous place.

Needless to say, Rulan was also quite afraid of Old Madam Sheng, always feeling that the old lady was even stricter than Granny Kong!

If Rulan were to live with the old lady, wouldn't that be like making her a prisoner living in darkness?

Therefore, after Rulan ran to Weirui Pavilion and pitifully begged her mother for a while, she got what she wanted and didn't have to go back to Youyang, but went directly to Dingshan.

There was actually another little episode in this story. When Mo Lan saw that Ru Lan was able to go to Ding Shan, she also had the idea of ​​going to Ding Shan with her to escape the troubles in the capital.

To be honest, Mo Lan really knows how to come up with a whole set of excuses to achieve her goals.

She claimed that the sisters were one, and the main reason she went to Dingshan was to take care of her younger sister. As for her other younger sister, Minglan, Molan said that there was still the old lady there, so there was no need for her!

However, it will be extremely difficult for Mo Lan to go to Ding Shan!

If Mo Lan wants to get her wish, she must get Madam Wang's consent. Otherwise, it would be extremely difficult for Mo Lan to go to Dingshan, where the Wang family lives!
However, although this matter is difficult, it is not a challenge for Master Sheng.

Anyway, no one knows how Sheng Hong did it, but in the end, Mo Lan's matter actually came to fruition.

What's most admirable is Mo Lan's mental fortitude. It's a mystery how she managed to do it, but in the end, she actually managed to shamelessly go to Dingshan with Ru Lan.

Minglan was not clear about the details, but she knew one thing: from the day Molan left, Lin Qinshuang was as if she had been sealed, staying in Linxi Pavilion all day long and not going out at all.

Not only that, even her confidante Zhou Xueniang was the same; she simply moved into Linxi Pavilion and couldn't leave.

She can't even go back to her own home!

Minglan guessed that this was probably the condition that Madam Wang had agreed to for Molan to go to Dingshan, and that she wanted to confine Lin Qinshuang and her maid to Linxi Pavilion so that they could no longer go out and cause trouble.

However, Minglan also felt that this situation would not last long. After all, Madam Wang was no match for Lin Qinshuang, and in the end, Madam Wang would definitely suffer the loss.

So, Mo Lan and Ru Lan went to Ding Shan, while the old lady and Ming Lan returned to You Yang.

"So, for the past three years, has Grandma been staying with you in Youyang?"

After listening to Minglan's story, Sheng Changquan asked with a serious expression, "Sister, when are you going back to the capital?"

"We can't just stay in our hometown forever, can we?"

Sheng Changquan was concerned about his sister's marriage, feeling that Minglan was already quite old and it was probably not good to delay any longer.

In fact, not only Minglan, but Molan and Rulan were even more anxious!
Minglan is only seventeen years old, while the other two are already nineteen, truly a step away from turning twenty.

It is said that after the founding of this dynasty, the founding emperor stipulated that, in order to strengthen the foundation of the country, any couple who did not get intimate after the age of 10 without a valid reason would have to pay a heavy fine!

This is also the first criminal law that every citizen of this dynasty keeps in mind.

Of course, the amount of money involved here is definitely substantial!

This fine is not fixed; it depends on the family's assets. If the man is unmarried, he must pay half of his assets, while if the woman, he must pay one-tenth.

Therefore, the wealthier a family is, the more afraid they are of this fine.

Even the Sheng family is not immune to this custom.

(End of this chapter)