In ancient times, the powerful and wealthy seized power step by step.

On the day of Lidong (the beginning of winter), a sudden heavy snowfall hit the capital city.

After Zhu Qingyu finished seeing the old lady Gu from the Duke of Dingguo's mansion, she was blocked at the door by the heavy snow.

While Zhu Qingyu was standing under the eaves waiting for the nanny to fetch an umbrella, a tall, handsome man with short hair and wearing a black fox fur cloak walked into the courtyard, immediately catching her eye.

This is the third year that Zhu Qingyu has worn ancient clothing, and it is also the first time in these three years that she has seen a short-haired man in ancient times.

Normally, Zhu Qingyu would avoid such a young master from a prestigious family like the plague, but his hair, which was so out of place with his surroundings, unexpectedly gave Zhu Qingyu a strange feeling.

Is it possible that he is of the same kind as me, and also a transmigrator?

Should we use some kind of code to confirm?

Or was the ancient life of the past three years just a dream?

Did I accidentally wander onto a film set?

Zhu Qingyu was so shocked that her mind was in turmoil that she stared at Gu Zhao from the moment he entered the courtyard until he walked through the snow and came close to her without ever looking away.

At this moment, an old woman lifted the curtain and came out to greet them, smiling:

"Young Master."

The address of "Young Master" jolted Zhu Qingyu awake, causing her to quickly avert her gaze and bow in greeting.

As the heir of the Duke's mansion, her thoughts were naturally just wishful thinking.

When Zhu Qingyu was looking at Gu Zhao, Gu Zhao was also looking at her.

Unlike Zhu Qingyu, who openly watched out of shock, Gu Zhao remained calm and composed.

Since the new emperor ascended the throne a few months ago, and Gu Zhao was ordered to return to secular life and enter the court, in order to cut off Gu Zhao's possible thought of returning to the monastery, the grandmother has been arranging for a suitable maid for Gu Zhao.

With the new emperor's ascension to the throne, there were many complicated matters to attend to. As the emperor's cousin, the newly appointed Vice Minister of Revenue, and the youngest Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, Gu Zhao spent almost every day in the palace on duty. He could only return to the Duke's mansion once every ten days or half a month on his days off, and each time he came and went in a hurry.

Grandma Gu knew he was busy, so she simply arranged for him to wait under the eaves each time, hoping that the young master would catch a glimpse of her when he came to pay his respects amidst his busy schedule. It would be even better if he could catch a glimpse of her.

Repeated battles and repeated defeats, repeated defeats and repeated battles.

So this wasn't the first time Gu Zhao had seen a young and beautiful girl waiting under the eaves at his grandmother's house.

But I've never seen a girl as bold as the one I saw today.

Gu Zhao closed the umbrella, looked away, and asked Granny Li:

"I've come to pay my respects to Grandmother. Has Grandmother risen yet?"

Granny Li smiled and said:

"I got up early this morning. The old lady talks about the young master every day, and she's just waiting for him to come back."

Sure enough, after Gu Zhao entered the house, after only a few words, Old Madam Gu changed the subject to the people inside, saying:

"I didn't expect you to come back so early today. I have something to discuss with you. You work so hard every day, and there's no one at home to care for you. I'm really worried about you."

Having been rejected too many times, this time Old Mrs. Gu learned from her experience and took the initiative, not giving Gu Zhao a chance to refuse, and said:

"Don't rush to refuse. It was Grandmother's fault for not arranging things properly before, but this time it's different. She's not a maid; she's a well-educated girl from a scholarly family. Her family suffered a misfortune, and if we hadn't redeemed her, she would have ended up in that filthy place. We're doing a good deed, aren't we? This girl is exceptionally beautiful and has a great figure..."

When Grandma Gu mentioned her outstanding appearance and figure, Gu Zhao recalled the fleeting glimpse she had just caught under the eaves.

The girl was dressed simply, without any jewelry, not even pierced ears, and her hair was only held in place by a plain wooden hairpin. There was no trace of makeup on her face, but her natural, unadorned face alone made one think of the words "peerless beauty," and she truly deserved the old lady's praise.

Gu Zhao had made it very clear to his elders in the family that he did not intend to abide by any Buddhist rules and regulations, nor did he have any intention of entering the monastic community again.

After all, he became a monk three years ago by order of the late emperor, originally to help the current emperor solve his problems, and he considered it just a form of spiritual practice.

Right now, he's too busy with court affairs to deal with matters of the heart, and he doesn't have the time or energy to start getting to know a stranger from scratch. He's thinking of waiting until he has more free time.

However, the elders in the family clearly did not believe in this, and wished they could use worldly high-ranking positions, fine clothes and delicacies, and beautiful wives and concubines to firmly bind the pure and abstinent prince.

During the hundred days of national mourning, banquets and entertainment are prohibited. Noble families are forbidden from marrying for a year. If a beautiful wife is not available, a concubine can always be arranged.

Even the Empress Dowager summoned him yesterday, wanting to assign him two people from the palace.

Today, my father, the Duke of Dingguo, also personally gave me some advice:

"It's just a small matter, why are you making yourself suffer like this? What are you trying to do? Why did you have to escalate it to the point that the Empress Dowager herself had to intervene? You need to understand, the Empress Dowager is your aunt, and more importantly, she is the Empress Dowager! Or do you want the royal family to think that you're trying to blackmail the Emperor into owing you a favor, turning this good thing into a bad one? Zhao'er, is this how you conduct yourself as an official?"

Gu Zhao reflected on himself and realized that his father's advice was very correct. In terms of the way of being an official, he was indeed not as insightful as his father.

The point is not whether he was torturing himself, but whether the emperor felt he was torturing himself. And suffering and resentment, resentment and hatred are always inseparable.

It was indeed a small matter; I had misunderstood it.

Therefore, when her grandmother brought up the matter of arranging concubines again this time, Gu Zhao did not refuse as she had the previous times, but instead asked:

"Since she's from a scholarly family, and not a legal wife, would she be willing?"

Hearing this, it seemed there was some easing of restrictions. Grandma Gu was overjoyed and quickly said:

"Of course I'm willing, why wouldn't I? I'll bring the person in, you can take a look first, is that alright? Even if this one isn't good, Grandmother will find you another one, I'll definitely find you someone you like."

Recalling the girl's bold and expectant gaze, Gu Zhao felt that she was indeed willing. It was a small matter, and it was best to settle it as soon as possible, so he said:

"No need to search anymore, let's just go with her. I have some things to attend to back at the palace, so I won't disturb Grandmother's rest any longer."

Having finally gotten her grandson to relent, Grandma Gu pressed her advantage and quickly asked:

"Then when you return on your next day off, on the tenth day of the tenth lunar month, arrange for her to serve you tea, and make things official?"

Gu Zhao nodded, bowed and took his leave. Once outside, the girl who had been under the eaves was nowhere to be seen.

In the snow, a trail of footprints meandered out from under the eaves, then meandered away again at the courtyard gate.

The snow was falling heavily and continuously; judging from these footprints, they must have just left.

In this freezing snow, now that things are settled and things are settled, she doesn't have to continue to suffer from the wind and cold under the eaves. Isn't that a good thing for her?

Gu Zhao took the umbrella and followed the winding footprints, coming from the wind and snow and returning to the wind and snow.

As Gu Zhao left the old lady's Fu'an Hall, amidst the crunching sound of the snow, she suddenly realized that she had left in such a hurry that she had forgotten to even ask for her name.

I wanted to go back and ask again, so I took two steps back and then stopped.

Never mind, we'll see each other in a few days. Asking again next time won't change anything.