Jiaojiao is getting married, and the male leads fall for her and fight over her.

Chapter 144 You and Cousin Shen are presumed to be related!
Shen Shuyi felt that Pei Xuexuan's words made a lot of sense.

Although she is a time-traveling woman, she still has to adapt to local customs.

Even in modern times, you have to meet both sets of parents before you get married, right?

She was an orphan with only the old lady as her family, but Prince Pei's parents were still alive and well, and even the Marquis of Pingyang didn't know about his engagement. Who would believe such a thing if it were told?

Li Yi had finished reading the gift list and the abbot of Dajue Temple's annotations after they had matched the birth dates of Prince Pei and Cousin Shen. It did indeed say "a match made in heaven," but he still found it hard to believe that Prince Pei would be so crazy.

He couldn't believe that Prince Pei could decide his own marriage!
“Dongzhou, there’s a limit to jokes. You are the heir to the Pingyang Marquis’s mansion. How could you possibly marry Cousin Shen? No matter how good Cousin Shen is, she is still an orphan. In terms of social standing, Cousin Shen is not a suitable match for you.”

Even a spoiled brat like him knows this is impossible; there's no reason why Prince Pei wouldn't know.

Shen Shuyi stood silently beside Pei Dongzhou, thinking that Li Yi's words made a lot of sense.

It wasn't just in ancient times that the importance of marrying someone of equal social standing was placed on this principle; even in modern times, the same applies.

A talented young man like Prince Pei is not someone she could easily take advantage of, especially since this is a book and the female lead is watching right there.

“My cousin Shen grew up in the Marquis’s mansion and we’ve been childhood sweethearts. How can we not be a good match? Besides, my cousin Shen was raised by my grandmother, so she knows me inside and out. My cousin and I are a perfect match. Today is my engagement banquet with my cousin, and I’ve invited Your Highness and everyone here to be our witnesses.” Pei Dongzhou said, looking at Shen Shuyi. “It is my blessing to be engaged to my cousin.”

Li Yi thought this was outrageous, and he still found it hard to accept.

How could it be that Prince Pei and Cousin Shen are engaged?

Suddenly, a thought struck him: "I know! You and Cousin Shen are pretending to be related because I want Cousin Shen, right?!"

Prince Pei must have preemptively arranged the marriage with Cousin Shen to prevent him from requesting permission from the Emperor, thus forcing him to back down. That must be it. He couldn't think of a better explanation.

Shen Shuyi's eyes flickered slightly, thinking to herself that Li Yi had indeed guessed correctly.

Having come this far, they have no choice but to insist that they do not acknowledge the presumptive kinship.

“I would never joke about my life’s most important event like this. This isn’t a presumptive marriage. All of you here are witnesses, including Your Highness,” Pei Dongzhou replied calmly. “I invited everyone here today to witness my happy occasion with my cousin. Cousin, don’t you agree?”

When Shen Shuyi saw that Prince Pei had called his name, he quickly replied, "Yes, yes, although today's engagement was a bit sudden, people shouldn't stick to the old ways; there should always be some innovation. My cousin Prince and I have set this precedent, so in the future, everyone can hold an engagement banquet like this, so that everyone can share in the joy!"

Never mind, let's lie to Li Yi first and then worry about the rest.

As for what will happen next, we'll see; she can't worry about that now.

Xia Nianchu subconsciously looked at Pei Xuexuan, hoping that Pei Xuexuan would stop this farce.

Pei Xuexuan wanted to stop it.

How could her outstanding elder brother be ruined by a woman like Cousin Shen?

But in this situation, what's the point of her stopping it?
She wanted to persuade him further: "Brother, this is no child's play..."

“Today is the auspicious day of my engagement with my cousin Shen. If you, my second sister, wish to share in the joy, I welcome it. However, if you, my second sister, are to displease me on such a celebratory day, I will have no choice but to ask you to leave.” Pei Dongzhou interrupted Pei Xuexuan before she could finish speaking. Pei Xuexuan was undecided for a moment.

Even if we go back to the Marquis's residence now to ask our mother to come, it's too late. Everyone already knows that my brother is getting engaged to Cousin Shen. If our mother comes to make a scene again, it will only make the Pingyang Marquis's residence a laughing stock.

Many people have been watching the commotion at the Marquis of Pingyang's residence, and even the Emperor himself is paying attention to it. If this matter is not handled properly, it could affect the entire residence.

There's no reason why my brother wouldn't know this, yet he still went his own way. It must be that Cousin Shen seduced him, making him so irrational.

Li Yi remained firm in his opinion, believing that this was a presumption of kinship.

He couldn't believe that someone like Prince Pei would marry his cousin Shen.

Even if they pretend to be related now, Prince Pei will still get married one day. At that time, Cousin Shen's reputation will be ruined, and it will only take him a word to get her.

Thinking of this, he smiled and said, "In that case, I will also sit here and have a drink of your wedding wine, to share in your joy."

Xia Nianchu's heart sank when she saw this.

If the prince says so, does that mean that the young master and his cousin Shen are really engaged?
But is it really that frivolous?
She looked at Pei Xuexuan, whose expression was not good, and then turned and left Taifeng Restaurant.

Xia Nianchu quickly followed, saying, "Are you just going to let Cousin Prince make such a big fuss? Shouldn't we ask Madam to come and handle this?"

“If this matter escalates, it will damage the reputation of the Marquis’s mansion. Since things have come to this, we can only return to the mansion first. I need to remind my mother so that she can be mentally prepared.” Pei Xuexuan’s expression was very serious.

This matter will likely cause a bloodbath in the Marquis's mansion.

My mother has never liked Cousin Shen, but my brother insisted on marrying her and announced the engagement in this way. I believe this matter will soon spread throughout the capital, and may even reach the palace.

The more she thought about it, the more she felt that the matter was more serious than she had imagined.

Xia Nianchu was still rambling on and on. She was getting very annoyed and said impatiently, "Cousin, can you shut up and let me have some peace and quiet?!"

Xia Nianchu was unhappy, but she didn't say anything more.

In her opinion, Pei Xuexuan was also useless. She could have made a scene to stop it, but because of her cousin's tyrannical power, she didn't dare to do anything and just slunk away.

So, does this mean the marriage between the Crown Prince and Cousin Shen is truly settled? After all, there were so many witnesses at the time, this matter is bound to spread.

Pei Xuexuan clearly shared the same thought as Xia Nianchu; the more she thought about it, the more alarmed she became.

It should be noted that a large number of people will be attending the wedding banquet, and they are all friends of my brother. In other words, the entire circle of powerful and influential people in the capital are here today. This matter will soon become the talk of the town in the capital.

If she had known about this earlier, it would have been better, as she would have had a chance to stop her brother from doing something wrong. But she found out too late; there were so many people present, and she couldn't afford to make a scene.

Even if she returned to the Marquis's mansion to find her mother now, under these circumstances, her mother probably wouldn't have a chance to turn things around. No wonder people say Cousin Shen is so cunning; she actually managed to trick her brother into holding an engagement banquet for her at Taifeng Restaurant. Just thinking about it makes her furious.

(End of this chapter)