The low-key prince summons trainees from the Imperial Household Department at the start of the game.

The news of the Taibao Mansion's marriage proposal had only been out for a few days when it caused a stir among the aristocratic families in the capital.

Even if the Fifth Prince Zhou Gui has no presence, he is still a prince.

Grand Protector Yuwen Lie has never formed factions or taken sides in the court, yet he arranged a marriage for the Fifth Prince at the very moment when the Fourth Prince lost power. Everyone can guess the deeper meaning behind this.

For a time, every prominent family in the capital with a daughter of marriageable age began to openly and secretly inquire about the Taibao Mansion's intentions.

Everyone knows what it means to climb up to the Taibao Mansion.

It's not just about marrying a prince; it's about forming an alliance with the Yuwen family, a top-tier clan with a history spanning three hundred years.

However, just as all parties were gearing up for action, the second piece of news released by the Taibao Mansion stunned everyone.

Yuwen Lie sent his old steward to the Pei residence to deliver an invitation, asking Pei to come over for a meeting to discuss the selection of the Fifth Prince's principal wife.

When the letter arrived at the Pei residence, Pei Du was in his study reviewing impeachment memorials.

He took the post, glanced at it, then placed it on the table and remained silent for a long while.

The old butler asked him how he would respond. Pei Du leaned back in his chair, slowly tapping the armrest with his fingers, and suddenly asked a seemingly unrelated question: "How old is Youqing this year?"

The old butler paused for a moment and said, "Miss is seventeen this year."

Pei Du then asked, "What do you think of Wang Jingli?"

The old steward carefully chose his words, saying that Wang Jingli was an honest man who had audited the accounts at the Censorate for several months without making a single mistake. He was also respectful to the master and always behaved properly whenever he came to the mansion.

Pei Du didn't say anything more, but simply picked up his pen and wrote a few lines on the back of the post, then had the old steward deliver it to the Grand Tutor's residence in reply.

After the old steward left, Pei Du sat alone in his study, his fingers still slowly tapping on the armrest.

Of course he knew what Yuwen Lie wanted.

The Grand Tutor's household wanted to choose a principal wife for his Fifth Prince who could make a name for himself among the upright civil officials.

Looking across the entire capital city, there is only one person who best fits this criterion.

His only daughter Pei Youqing.

The eldest daughter of the Left Censor-in-Chief, the apple of the eye of the second most important civil official in the Qingliu faction, she is well-educated, reasonable, and has a very high standard of vision. More importantly, she has the entire Censorate standing behind her.

By choosing her, Yuwen Lie could both extend goodwill to the upright civil officials and avoid offending either the First Prince or the Second Prince.

Because Pei Du never belonged to any faction; he was the embodiment of purity.

Yuwen Lie made a brilliant move, the brilliance of which was that it prevented Pei Du from directly refusing.

Pei Du was the Left Censor-in-Chief, the head of the censors. If he openly refused the marriage proposal from the Grand Tutor's office, it would be tantamount to telling everyone.

He didn't think highly of the Fifth Prince.

This would not only offend the Taibao Mansion, but also put the upright censors who were attached to him in a passive position.

But if you agree.

Pei Du was truly reluctant to part with him.

It wasn't that they were reluctant to let their daughter marry into the royal family, but rather that they were reluctant to let her become a second Consort Huang.

He was the Left Censor-in-Chief, and he knew the intricacies of palace politics better than anyone else.

He knew his daughter best. She lost her mother at a young age and was raised by him as half a son. She studied classics and historical texts, discussed the gains and losses of the court, and was as stubborn as he was.

If a woman like this marries into a prince's household, it's fine if her husband treats her well, but if he doesn't, she will never back down because of her personality, and she will be the one who suffers in the end.

Therefore, he had to do one thing before the Grand Tutor's office officially spoke.

Arrange the marriage between Pei Youqing and Wang Anshi.

Meanwhile, in the office of the Censorate's Records Department, Wang Anshi was bent over his desk proofreading a new batch of impeachment cases.

Although several months have passed since the joint trial by the three judicial departments.

However, the aftermath of the embezzlement case at the Jiangning Textile Bureau had not yet subsided, and the Ministry of Revenue had unearthed several old cases, keeping the Censorate extremely busy.

He was annotating a case file with a vermilion pen when the door to the duty room was suddenly pushed open from the outside.

Su Shi strode in, his folding fan swirling in his hand. He sat down opposite him, a look on his face that said, "I've got some big news to share."

"Jiefu, have you heard? The Grand Protector's Mansion is choosing a principal wife for the Fifth Prince, and Grand Protector Yuwen has sent his steward to the Pei residence to deliver the invitation."

Su Shi's voice wasn't loud, but the gloating in his tone was impossible to hide.

Wang Anshi paused slightly with his vermilion pen, looked up at him, but did not reply.

He simply placed the vermilion brush on the brush holder, leaned back in his chair, and waited for him to continue.

Seeing his reaction, Su Shi became even more interested. He closed his folding fan and tapped it lightly on the corner of the man's desk: "The invitation from the Grand Tutor's office has been delivered to the Pei residence. You know what that means, don't you?"

"The Grand Tutor's Mansion wants Miss Pei to be the Fifth Prince's principal wife, but who in our Censorate doesn't know who Miss Pei favors?"

He deliberately dragged out the words, "When Miss Pei went to the plum blossom appreciation banquet, she ignored all the poems by the young masters from prominent families, but instead spent a long time annotating your case file."

"Later, he even personally brought a food box to the Censorate to deliver soup to you. I saw with my own eyes that you drank every last drop of that lotus seed and white fungus soup."

"Jiefu, tell me honestly, do you have feelings for Miss Pei?"

Wang Anshi tapped his fingers lightly twice on the armrest of the chair, without giving a direct answer.

It's just that Miss Pei's special regard for him may not necessarily be romantic love; perhaps she simply admires his serious approach to solving cases.

Su Shi quickly unfolded his folding fan, waved it twice, and used the fan to cover half his face, revealing only a pair of eyes that were squinting with laughter: "I admire your diligence in handling cases?"

"Jiefu, I've seen you so serious about solving cases before. Your brows are furrowed, you're muttering to yourself, and you're poking around in the case file with your fingers. You can't even hear the people next to you talking to you."

"Which girl would appreciate your serious demeanor while solving a case? Unless she's already interested in you and finds your earnestness endearing."

Wang Anshi frowned, even more so than when he was looking at the case files.

Seeing this, Su Shi became even more delighted and then said, "The Grand Tutor's Mansion wants to marry Miss Pei, but Vice Minister Pei wants you to marry Miss Pei."

"It'll get interesting when these two sides start competing."

"Who is Pei Zhongcheng? He's an iron-faced Yama, who doesn't take sides and doesn't listen to anyone."

"Yuwen Taibao wanted to leverage the Pei family's influence, but Pei Zhongcheng refused to let him."

"But Vice Minister Pei cannot directly refuse the Grand Tutor's office; that would be a slap in the face to the Grand Tutor and also to the Fifth Prince."

"Therefore, Vice Minister Pei wants to betroth Miss Pei to you before the Grand Tutor's Mansion can officially make its offer."

"This way, the dignity of the Grand Tutor's family was preserved, and his daughter was married to the man he had chosen."

"This is the most dignified refusal, and also the most dignified act of giving, and the key lies with you."

"Whether Pei Zhongcheng can succeed in this move depends on whether you are capable. If you are, he will win; if you are not, he will have to find another way."

Wang Anshi remained silent for a long time.

As the sun sets outside the window, it bathes the bookshelves in the duty room in a dark gold hue.

He suddenly remembered what Pei Youqing had said to him when he brought him soup that day: "You're an imperial censor, isn't that what makes you a target of hatred?"

"But your annotations don't just contain impeachment, they also contain suggestions. You're not engaging in partisan infighting; you're doing real work."

He felt then that this woman was different from others, and now he realizes that she understood him better than anyone else from that time on.

He looked up at Su Shi and said a sentence, not loud, but clear and distinct: "Zizhan, I, Wang Anshi, have only ever done practical things in my life."

"It's the same with marriage. If I marry Miss Pei, it will be because I truly love her, not because Minister Pei wants me to marry her, and certainly not because the Taibao Mansion wants to take her away."

Su Shi put away his folding fan, his smile faded, and his gaze towards Wang Anshi held a new layer of earnest appreciation.

He's known Wang Anshi for so long, he knows the man all too well.

He's not good at sweet talk or making girls happy, but once he sets his mind on something, he'll dedicate his life to doing it well.

The same principle applies to reforms and marriage.

He was about to say something serious when he suddenly remembered something and glanced towards the door.

Lowering his voice and leaning closer to Wang Anshi, he said, "I heard that things aren't going well at the Marquis of Anxi's residence either. Miss Cao heard about the marriage proposal from the Grand Tutor's family and is so anxious that she's been sending her maids around to find out when you're off duty at the Censorate, saying she wants to invite you to her residence to admire the flowers."

Wang Anshi was taken aback for a moment upon hearing this, then shook his head, a helpless smile appearing on his lips.

"Zizhan, you are the true son-in-law of the Marquis of Anxi. Miss Cao's invitation to me has ulterior motives."

"Miss Cao still fondly remembers the poem 'Begonia' that you wrote at the plum blossom viewing banquet last time. I heard that you even framed the calligraphy of the line 'I fear the flowers will fall asleep as night deepens' and hung it in your boudoir."

Su Shi, unusually, did not respond, but instead picked up his teacup and gulped down two mouthfuls of cold tea.

After finishing the tea, he put down the teacup and gave a rare, somewhat embarrassed smile.

The two exchanged a few more words in the duty room, and then Wang Anshi got up to pack up the case files and prepare to leave.

As Su Shi leaned back in his chair and watched Yuwen Lie pack his things, he suddenly realized that the game between Pei Du and Yuwen Lie was ultimately not about who had more power or who understood people's hearts better.

Pei Du understood that what he was giving Wang Anshi was not pressure, but a choice.

He believed that Jie Fu would make the right choice, and he also believed that Miss Pei would make the right choice.

Perhaps it won't be long before the Censorate is able to hold a wedding banquet.

Meanwhile, in the back garden of the Marquis of Anxi's residence.

Cao Wanning was sitting by the carved window of the waterside pavilion, holding the reply letter that her maid had handed back from the Censorate in her hand, turning it over and over again.

The reply contained only a few words, written in Wang Anshi's own handwriting.

"I am honored by your kind invitation, Miss, but I have been very busy with official duties lately and I am afraid I will not be able to keep your appointment."

"Once the remaining cases are concluded through the joint trial by the three judicial authorities, I will definitely visit you to apologize."

Cao Wanning gently placed the reply on her lap, gazed at the withered lotus leaves in the pond outside the window, remained silent for a while, and then suddenly asked the maid if he didn't want to come.

The maid quickly comforted her, saying that Wang Jingli was a well-known workaholic in the Censorate.

He was buried in case files all day long, and even his meals were just a quick bite. It wasn't that he didn't want to keep the appointment; he was just really busy, and his heart was sincere.

Cao Wanning lowered her eyes, her fingers gently tracing the reply, and said she wanted to ask Wang Jingli for a favor.

She heard from her father that Wang Jingli was recently investigating a batch of cases involving losses in the grain transport, which happened to be related to the Marquis's military grain transport route.

She had several well-organized records of military food transportation that she wanted to personally hand over to Wang Jingli.

After speaking, he looked up at the maid and asked if the afternoon of the day after tomorrow would be alright.

The maid was stunned for a moment, then covered her mouth and laughed.

Miss, this isn't about asking someone for help; it's clearly a roundabout way of arranging a meeting with Wang Jingli.

She nodded repeatedly in agreement and turned to run towards the Censorate.

That evening, Su Shi returned to his residence after finishing his duties at the Hanlin Academy. As he entered the gate, the gatekeeper handed him an invitation from the Cao family.

After he opened and examined the contents, he leaned against the door frame at the main entrance, tilted his head back, and took a swig of the osmanthus wine from the gourd.

Wan'er wanted to ask Jie Fu to deliver the military grain transport records to the Marquis's residence. This was not delivering records at all; it was clearly setting up a bridge.

She had arranged to meet Jie Fu, and she was waiting for him.

This girl is far more perceptive than her father.

On the surface, he discussed practical matters with Jie Fu, but after finishing his business, he would come out of the Censorate and happen to "bump into" him at the entrance of the Marquis's residence.

He folded the invitation and stuffed it into his pocket, shook his head with a smile, and without delay, turned and walked towards the Anxi Marquis's residence.

All of this was observed by Yao Guangxiao, who was in the duty room of the Ministry of Rites' Guest House. He was holding a cup of cool tea, with a list of eligible daughters of prominent families in the capital spread out in front of him.

As soon as the news of the Taibao Mansion's marriage proposal spread, he had all the family backgrounds of eligible daughters compiled into a book, and he circled Pei Youqing and Cao Wanning's names repeatedly with a vermilion pen.

Pei Du wanted Pei Youqing to marry Wang Anshi, while the Marquis of Anxi wanted Cao Wanning to marry Su Shi.

If these two marriages were to go through, Wang Anshi would gain access to Pei Du's connections within the literati, and Su Shi would gain Cao Jun's military support.

After so many years of vying between the eldest and second princes, the most solid alliance between the civil and military officials has finally emerged.

Instead, it was these two scholars from humble backgrounds who were granted the imperial examinations.

He gently set down his teacup, closed the register, and a faint smile appeared on his lips.

The Grand Tutor's Mansion wanted to select a consort for the Fifth Prince, but after much deliberation, they discovered that the two best women in the court were already taken.

He spread out a new sheet of Xuan paper, picked up his brush, and wrote a few words on it.

"The marriage alliance between Pei and Wang, and between Cao and Su, is an inevitable trend that cannot be stopped."

He put down his pen, folded the paper, and had it sent to the palace.

In the side hall, Zhou Xing was practicing calligraphy at his desk.

When he received Yao Guangxiao's secret letter, he had just finished tracing a copy of the Analects.

After reading the letter, he burned the paper over the candle flame, picked up his pen again, and wrote three names on a new page.

Wang Anshi, Pei Youqing, Su Shi, and Cao Wanning.

He then drew two small circles next to it, and wrote a character in each circle: 势 (shì).

I put down my pen and gazed out the window at the old locust tree swaying gently in the autumn wind. Its shadows danced like a game of chess slowly coming to an end.

Let the Taibao family handle Fifth Brother's marriage arrangements.

As for the marriages of those around him, those that are meant to be will be.