Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 214 Case Closure and Marriage

"I, Yan Donglou, am back!"

Inside the Imperial College dormitory, Haiyue was packing her luggage, preparing to officially graduate and move out of the dormitory, when she heard a loud voice coming from behind her.

The three turned around and were pleasantly surprised to find Yan Shifan standing at the door with a bright smile. They immediately went to greet him.

"Hahaha!"

Yan Shifan grinned and patted the shoulders of the three Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) despite his status as a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial imperial examinations), not thinking it was a big deal.

My father was a high-ranking official!

Of course, the important person was not Lin Daqin, who was about to go directly to the Hanlin Academy as a sixth-rank compiler, nor Hai Rui, who was preparing to participate in the selection of probationary officials. Yan Shifan quickly approached Hai Yue and gave her a wink.

Haiyue led him outside and whispered, "The Empress Dowager has pardoned Xia's crimes..."

Yan Shifan was quite surprised: "The Empress Dowager is so kind, she can even forgive such a wicked woman!"

Since she didn't like him, she was a complete thief. I never thought she would actually survive.
Haiyue said, "According to the style of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, if they capture someone from the Liyuan Society, they will definitely torture them severely to extract valuable information before executing them. When they first captured Captain Lu Yuan, Wen Fu only promised not to use the death penalty."

"The Empress Dowager adopted a policy of appeasement, leaving the rebels a way out. Even if Li Yuanshe were to continue to bewitch people, his followers' determination to resist the court would not last long. If they wavered even slightly, the people's hearts would surely scatter!"

Yan Shifan's expression changed slightly upon hearing this: "They wouldn't actually surrender, would they?"

If they really surrender, how can I capture the thief and earn merit?

"There will always be those who resist..."

Haiyue didn't say much, but instead asked, "Has Uncle Yan calmed down?"

"What do you mean 'getting over'! My dad... he wasn't angry at all! Hey!"

Yan Shifan's laughter was tinged with a barely perceptible tremor: "Father is enlightened by nature, and he is most concerned about finding out who the thieves of the Liyuan Society are. He only reprimanded me for not informing him beforehand and punished me by confining me for a few days!"

Anyway, Yan Song acted with restraint, didn't slap him in the face, and let him act as he pleased.

Haiyue already knew what was going on, and smiled and nodded: "That's good!"

"This matter has finally come to an end. The Li Yuan Society tried to use me as a breakthrough, but they lost both their wife and their army. They won't be able to cause trouble for long!"

Thinking back to the kidnapping during the provincial examination, the failure in the metropolitan examination, the troubles with his fiancée, and now that the palace examination has all been settled, Yan Shifan was quite emotional. Remembering his father's teachings, he quickly got to the point: "Mingwei should also marry his sister-in-law as soon as possible!"

"what?"

Haiyue was stunned, then laughed and cried at the same time: "Isn't this a bit too early? We haven't even finished the first of the six rites yet!"

"Not too early, not too early!"

Yan Shifan spoke with great sincerity: "Since Mingwei came to the capital, although he and his sister-in-law are separated by a great city, they have kept in touch through letters, always keeping in touch and sharing their feelings. They have weathered storms together. I truly admire their love and dedication! My marriage has been thwarted this time, and my love life has been full of hardships. I should take this as a lesson. Now that I have found a good match, how could I dare to waste this precious time?"

'If you used that eloquence on finding a wife, you would have found a good one long ago…'

Haiyue chuckled. In fact, his letters to Li Yuying were all about court affairs, and there were never any sentimental or mushy words. But what Yan Shifan said did make sense.

In ancient times, it was better to meet a woman who suited one's heart than to not even see her before marriage and rely entirely on descriptions from others, only to open the "blind box" on the wedding night. Now, with the approval of both families, it is truly a match made in heaven.

Now that this person has come up to her again, Haiyue also said, "The six rites are complicated. Can Donglou help me out?"

"Okay!"

Yan Shifan was overjoyed and patted his chest: "I know these well! Practice makes perfect!"

There's nothing to be proud of about that...

After they finished speaking, the two returned to their dormitory and carried out their luggage, which mainly consisted of books. As they exited the Imperial College, the strong and muscular men from the Yinglue Society were already waiting for them.

Before settling down, Haiyue invited Hai Rui and Lin Daqin to stay at Yinglue Society for the time being. After settling in, they would visit their parents together.

Upon seeing Hai Hao and Zhu Lin, Yan Shifan was quite surprised. The two women had truly outstanding bearing, and he secretly sighed that it was no wonder they could have such a son. He quickly stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Uncle Hai! Aunt Hai!"

Haihao knew nothing of this man's character, only that he was his son's best friend and had worked tirelessly for the company's establishment. He patted the man's shoulder and said warmly, "Nephew, please don't stand on ceremony. My son, Thirteen, has been well taken care of by you since he came to the capital!"

"Not at all!" These words made Yan Shifan's face turn slightly red. He quickly said, "Mingwei has always taken care of me. Now that he is having such an important event in his life, I would like to ask for your help. I hope you will agree, Uncle and Aunt!"

Haihao laughed and said, "It's rare to find such brotherly loyalty. Of course, it's great! Thank you for your help!"

"No trouble, no trouble!"

Yan Shifan said solemnly, "I can't be of much help in other areas, but choosing a suitable matchmaker can still be of some use!"

The betrothal ceremony is the first step of the six rites, a process in which the man's family sends a matchmaker with gifts to the woman's home to discuss the initial arrangements.

The most crucial step here is not how many gifts to give, but choosing a suitable matchmaker.

The "matchmaker" is extremely crucial in the so-called formal marriage. Not only is the matchmaker involved in the entire process from the proposal to the wedding, including the three letters and six rites, but the key is that before the marriage, the matchmaker needs to verify the family background and financial status of both parties and guarantee the authenticity of the information. After the marriage, any disputes between the couple are still mediated by the original matchmaker. If the dispute escalates to the point of going to court, the matchmaker must also appear in court when the matter is brought to the local government.

Matchmakers were divided into official matchmakers and private matchmakers. The former served officials and gentry and enjoyed certain political privileges, while the latter were active among the people. Due to the uneven quality of matchmakers, they took advantage of the information asymmetry between the two parties to make a fortune. They even matched some men and women with defects with normal people. Their image was gradually vilified. In operas, they were often portrayed as having moles on the corners of their mouths and being eloquent.

To put it bluntly, it's a stereotype formed from doing too many immoral things.

It is no exaggeration to say that in ancient times, the family circumstances of both the man and woman determined the upper limit of their marriage prospects, while the choice of matchmaker determined the lower limit.

"After all, the status of a sister-in-law is not that of a woman from an ordinary family. I'm afraid an ordinary matchmaker from an official family would be unable to handle the job!"

Yan Shifan didn't think any matchmaker in a daze would dare to sabotage the marriage between the second-place scholar of this year's imperial examination and the Empress Dowager's adopted daughter. However, precisely because both parties were of such high status, the etiquette issues involved would be difficult for ordinary official matchmakers to handle, and they would have to be extra careful.

"It's so..."

Hai Hao had never expected there to be so many intricacies involved. After listening, he felt he had gained a lot of knowledge and patiently asked, "Nephew, do you have anyone you can recommend?"

Yan Shifan had done his homework before coming: "I have indeed found out about someone who once studied marriage ceremonies in the Ministry of Rites and was in charge of matchmaking for high-ranking families in the capital. She is known as the 'Lady of the Silk-Pulling Ritual,' and is capable of handling important tasks. Even if someone tries to make things difficult for your sister-in-law because she was originally a princess of a foreign vassal state, she can deal with it calmly..."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Lin's eyes showed a slightly complicated expression, but it vanished in an instant. With a gentle smile, she nodded and said, "Thank you for your trouble, my dear nephew!"

"Haha! Of course! Of course!"

While the two elders and the excited Yan Shifan were explaining the details of the wedding based on their own experience, Haiyue found Old Mo and mentioned something that had been arranged before.

Now that they have achieved success and fame, it's time for them to bring their families over to enjoy the good life.

At this point, the advantage of the parents' elusive nature became apparent. Haihao and Zhulin came to the capital on their own, without needing to be picked up from their hometown. However, Hairui and Lin Daqin were both from single-parent families, and their mothers needed to be monitored for their health.

Historically, Lin Daqin died young, largely because after becoming the top scholar in the imperial examination, he excitedly brought his mother to the capital to enjoy a life of luxury. However, his mother, accustomed to the southern climate, could not withstand the harsh cold of the north and soon fell ill. Lin Daqin hurriedly sent his mother back to Guangdong, but this back-and-forth journey severely weakened her, and she passed away not long after.

Lin Daqin was utterly despondent and vomited blood repeatedly. He resigned from his official post and returned to his hometown, where he lectured in Chaozhou. He died of illness in his thirties.

Of course, there were other reasons during this period, but this matter was the main one. Haiyue naturally had to be on guard and had mentioned this matter to him early on.

Lin Daqin himself had experienced what it meant to be unaccustomed to a new environment. After arriving in the capital, he didn't suffer much. The living conditions in the Imperial Academy's dormitories, while not the best, were much better than those of ordinary people. Even so, he still fell seriously ill several times in the past year or so, especially during the provincial examination, which directly affected his performance. Otherwise, he would have had a good chance of winning the top three prizes.

Given his young age and the fact that he had ended up in such a state, Lin Daqin, reminded by Haiyue, began to take the situation very seriously.

The same principle applies to Hai Rui's case.

His mother, Xie, was in good health and lived to be 82 years old. She was still very healthy at the age of 70. Hai Rui only bought two catties of meat to celebrate her birthday. Later, Hu Zongxian used this as a topic of conversation, whether to express his admiration for her poverty or to mock her pedantry.

However, Hai Rui was a late bloomer in history. He passed the provincial examination at nearly forty years old, but gave up after going to the capital once. He then began to serve as an official in Fujian, and traveled to various parts of the south with his elderly mother, wife and daughter.

Sending Hai Mu directly to Beijing now doesn't guarantee she'll adapt to the northern weather, so we'll have to take care of her during the journey.

Haiyue didn't just make a suggestion; he directly instructed the Yinglue Society to arrange for people to escort the relatives of both families to Beijing.

At this moment, Old Master Mo said, "Young Master, rest assured, the team to pick them up in Guangdong has already set off, and even the doctors are ready to ensure that the two old ladies have a smooth journey north."

Haiyue didn't trust ordinary doctors, unless they were renowned physicians like Li Shizhen, so she still advised, "If Aunt Ba and Aunt Lin suffer from acclimatization issues on the way, they should stop and rest locally. Don't rush on your journey and worsen their condition..."

Old Mo nodded repeatedly: "Understood! Understood!"

After both sides finished discussing the matter, Yan Shifan volunteered to take Haihao to invite the Lady of the Silk-Pulling Clan. Just then, a letter arrived from the palace, which only mentioned one thing.

By imperial decree of the Empress Dowager, Princess Li Yuying of Phuong Lien, Annam, was officially renamed...

Zhu Yuying!
(End of this chapter)