Misty Rain of the Old Times

The King of Jiang is marrying his second daughter, Princess, to General Jiang Li. The wedding will be held on the 25th of the twelfth lunar month. Chen Xuan is cordially invited to attend the wedding banquet.

The invitation was stamped with the official seal of the Jiang Prince's residence, and it appeared to be handwritten by the Jiang Prince himself, showing how much importance the other party attached to inviting Chen Xuan.

Their marriage alliance completely binds them together, a true powerhouse partnership.

Young General Jiang Li is truly a dragon among men. He reached the Innate Realm at the age of eighteen, made outstanding military achievements, and was granted the title of Marquis of Zhenyuan. His father is even more remarkable. He is General Jiang Yuan of the Wei Kingdom, the youngest Grandmaster in the Jing Kingdom. He commands a large army and is stationed in the north of the Jing Kingdom. He is a pillar of the country and has a great influence in the court, which is no less than that of the aristocratic families. However, his rise to power was too fast and his foundation was slightly insufficient.

Jiang Wang has been staying in the capital for many years, and his intentions are obvious. The Jiang family holds a large army. Who would believe that these two powerful families, who would say they don't have ambitions to seize the throne?
King Jiang needs the Jiang family's power to help him seize the throne, while the Jiang family needs to use King Jiang to advance further in the court; each gets what they want.

The timing of their wedding was quite sensitive, falling on the 25th of the twelfth lunar month, while the 26th was the day of the national grand assembly.

Just a few days ago, I heard Xiao Gao say that Jiang Li hadn't given up on the little princess, so why did he suddenly change his mind and marry the Jiang King's daughter? And he's already sent out invitations everywhere.

Could it be that they received some information and thus quickly made a decision to settle for second best?

Chen Xuan guessed that King Jiang and the Jiang family must have received definite news, which is why they decisively abandoned the original plan and opted for a marriage alliance.

Given the influence of King Jiang and the Jiang family, how could they not know that the old emperor had already begun arranging the marriage between Chen Xuan and the little princess? If it were before, Jiang Li might have had some thoughts about the little princess, but now that things have been settled, coveting the little princess would be tantamount to offending Chen Xuan to the death. At this crucial time, there is absolutely no need to create such a formidable enemy.

The Jiang family isn't stupid. They can tell the difference between the benefits of marrying the little princess and creating a formidable enemy like Chen Xuan. Besides, the little princess isn't someone they absolutely have to marry. It would be better to fully support King Jiang in gaining merit for supporting the new emperor.

I must say, that was quite decisive.

While the old emperor was still alive, marrying the little princess would definitely be more beneficial for the Jiang family than siding with Prince Jiang or a certain prince. Because with this relationship, there was a very high probability that they would become important ministers who would assist the next emperor. At that time, they would hold great power, and even the new emperor would have to be mindful of the Jiang family's feelings, given their considerable size and influence.

But now that they have confirmed that the little princess will marry Chen Xuan, this path is no longer viable. The old emperor is still alive, would the Jiang family dare to turn against him? Besides, Chen Xuan himself is not someone to be trifled with.

So, as a second-best option, they decided to assist King Jiang in ascending the throne, and that's how the cooperative relationship began.

The power of assisting the emperor meant that all the civil and military officials had to defer to the Jiang family. No matter who came to power, they all had to rely on the Jiang family. In contrast, the merit of following the emperor was based on cooperation, mainly on those who provided financial assistance. The difference between the two was far greater.

But what can the Jiang family do now that things have come to this? Are they really going to risk a life-or-death struggle with Chen Xuan to win over the little princess? Besides, the old emperor isn't dead yet; the risk is too great.

In this case, Jiang Wang is undoubtedly the best choice, after all, they have a good foundation for cooperation.

In the transition between the old and the new, positioning is crucial. One must avoid trying to please everyone, or there will be no good outcome. Positioning is a gamble; if you choose the right side, the benefits are unimaginable, but if you choose the wrong side, you will lose everything. The power struggles in the court are indeed this cruel.

Even a grandmaster, though powerful, is not free to act if caught in the vortex of the imperial court. Although the emperor must treat a grandmaster with respect, when things get serious, what will you do when an imperial edict is issued?
Not everyone is like Chen Xuan, who is all alone and barefoot, unafraid of those wearing shoes.

Wuxiang Temple and Taixuan Sect both have Grandmasters, which is quite powerful, right? Yet they remain obedient under the imperial authority. Even the Wu family can come up with methods comparable to Grandmasters. How could the imperial family not have a way to deal with them?

In short, when it comes down to it, a Grandmaster does not have the right to be above the imperial power. Even Chen Xuan, a Grandmaster, would not necessarily break ties with the power of a country to the death. It's not a matter of fear, but rather that it's unnecessary. Doing so would definitely result in a lose-lose situation, with neither side benefiting.

Then Chen Xuan pondered whether Jiang Wang's invitation was simply a invitation to his wedding, or a signal to test his attitude.

A multitude of thoughts flashed through Chen Xuan's mind. He couldn't help but tug at his hair, feeling like he needed to grow a brain. He wasn't exactly a person who was good at using his brain.

Seeing Chen Xuan deep in thought after receiving the visiting card, the young maidservant didn't dare to look at its contents. After a moment, she hesitated and asked, "Master, who sent this visiting card? The gold inlay on it probably weighs five taels. It looks like a very important person."

Not wanting to think about it too much, and knowing that matters of the court were none of his concern, Chen Xuan laughed and said, "It's from the Jiang Prince's residence; they're marrying off their daughter and inviting me to their wedding banquet."

Even though her master was about to marry a princess and could still joke and play with the emperor, the little girl was still quite surprised to hear that Prince Jiang had taken the initiative to send an invitation. She asked cautiously, "Then should we prepare a generous gift?"

Chen Xuan casually tossed the invitation aside, reclined in a rocking chair, and waved his hand, saying, "No need, I'm not familiar with Prince Jiang, I won't go."

He really didn't plan to go. How many times had they met? Their relationship wasn't that close, and they'd even had a bit of a falling out before. It was already a polite thing of him not to cause trouble for the other party.

After a moment of hesitation, the little girl pondered, "But Master, aren't you going to marry the Princess? In that case, Prince Jiang will be like your brother-in-law. The invitation has already been sent; it wouldn't be right not to go, would it?" He understood that she was genuinely thinking of him. She was a country girl, and even though she had fallen out with her relatives, she knew the importance of social etiquette.

But she had oversimplified things. Besides, he planned to groom her into a right-hand woman in the future. Chen Xuan patiently explained, "Even if we weren't married yet, so what? Don't I have plenty of brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law? Would I be too busy attending every happy occasion? Besides, if I went to congratulate Prince Jiang, what would the Gao family think? Although I treat Prince Jiang and Prince Qing equally, I still have to consider the Gao family's feelings."

The little girl nodded as if she understood, feeling that she shouldn't be thinking about such a question.

In short, Chen Xuan simply put the matter aside and didn't even bother to reply to the letter from Prince Jiang. This already represented his attitude. Prince Jiang issued the invitation in the name of the Prince Jiang's Mansion, so as long as Prince Jiang wasn't stupid, he would understand that Chen Xuan didn't want to get involved in their petty affairs.

A master is born with the freedom to be free, yet they can disregard even the most powerful and noble figures.

Chen Xuan continued his life as usual, spending his days strolling around the capital with Mr. Yushan and the others, and taking time to refine array flags to prepare betrothal gifts. The days passed by like this.

Mr. Yushan and his group rarely come to the capital, and this may very well be their only trip in their lives. But no matter how wonderful the capital is, or how much they linger there, it is not their home. Moreover, it is already the end of the year, and they will eventually have to go home for the New Year.

So, about ten days after arriving in the capital, on the fifteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, they formally resigned and headed south to return to their hometown. There were still half a month until the New Year, so they had plenty of time to return at their leisure.

This trip south wasn't just about Mr. Yushan and Deng Lingfeng; it also included Gao's relatives, and even Madam Gao and Mr. and Mrs. Gao were going back with them.

The wedding had ended several days ago, and the Gao family's roots were ultimately in Yang County; they couldn't stay in the capital forever.

Lord Gao is now the Prefect of a prefecture, but not the chief official of the prefecture. Therefore, he does not need to stay in the capital to attend the grand court assembly to report on his duties. His son is getting married and his holiday is over. He will have to go back to take charge of government affairs. So, we decided to travel together and then part ways on the way.

With a large number of people and a large team, safety is also guaranteed.

Moreover, Gao Jingyu, the future Queen of Qing, was also traveling south with them. With her innate cultivation, along with a master of innate cultivation from the royal palace and a group of guards, she would drop off Madam Gao and the others along the way before taking a slight detour to Qing Wang's place.

Therefore, Chen Xuan didn't need to worry about their safety on their return journey. No matter how vicious a person was, they wouldn't be so foolish as to cause trouble for them unless they were tired of living. Even the five major sects would have to give way to them.

On the day of their parting, Chen Xuan and Gao Jingming and his wife accompanied Madam Gao and Mr. Yushan to fifty miles outside the south gate of the capital before reluctantly bidding them farewell. Even after their figures completely disappeared at the end of the road, Gao Jingming and his wife remained kneeling and refused to rise.

Gao Jingming has grown up, started a family and established a career. He will soon take office to govern a region. After leaving his parents, he doesn't know when he will be able to reunite with his family.

"Young Master, let's go back," Chen Xuan said with a sigh as he helped him up. This day was bound to come sooner or later. Growing up meant he could no longer live under his parents' wings like he did when he was a child.

With reddened eyes, Gao Jingming stood up and choked out, "Ah Xuan, if I could, I really wouldn't want to grow up. I know it's wrong, but my heart just feels so heavy."

"I understand. Come on, let's go for a drink. If we get drunk, our troubles will disappear."

"Yes, let's drink until we're completely drunk..."

Getting thoroughly drunk really does make you forget your troubles.

However, for Chen Xuan, it felt like just yesterday that he and Gao Jingming were drinking and laughing together, but in the blink of an eye, it was time for him to part ways with Gao.

Xiao Gao is no longer a compiler in the Hanlin Academy. He is going to take up his post in Zhoushan County. He cannot disobey the emperor's orders and has no choice but to set off. His wife will go with him and they hope to give birth to a big, healthy baby boy next year.

In the same spot, just a few days ago he bid farewell to Madam Gao and Mr. Yushan, but today Chen Xuan was parting ways with Gao Jingming.

No matter how good the relationship was in childhood, people will eventually go their separate ways and embark on their own life journeys as they grow up.

We offer each other a cup of wine, wish each other well, and promise to meet again someday, climb the tower, drink wine, sing songs, and reminisce about the past.

Watching Gao Jingming and his wife disappear from sight, Chen Xuan said with mixed feelings, "The hustle and bustle of the past is still vivid in my mind, as if it were just yesterday. In the blink of an eye, it's all over. I sigh every year and look forward to the next. How many times in a person's life will they have to say goodbye to old friends and welcome new ones?"

Knowing that Chen Xuan was upset, the little princess who had accompanied him took his hand and said, "Brother Xuan, you still have me. I will always be with you..." (End of this chapter)