Glory

"Wasn't I just warning you? If you dare entertain thoughts of taking a concubine, then we mother and children will stay in Lin'an forever. You can live in the capital with your concubine and never show your face before us again. I was afraid you might forget, so I'm reminding you."

"Having you in this lifetime is enough for me. No other woman could ever catch my eye. Rest assured."

"Hmph, sweet talk." Ye Yaming shot him a coquettish glance, her eyes sparkling with charm and allure.

Lu Guanyi's gaze instantly became glued to her, unable to look away.

"But considering your good behavior, we've decided to go to the capital with you. It would be too pitiful leaving you all alone in that big mansion during the New Year."

"Really?" Lu Guanyi was overjoyed, then hesitated, "But the journey would be hard, and the weather is getting cold..."

"It's fine. The weather hasn't turned too cold yet. We'll just dress the little ones warmly and travel slowly." Ye Yaming said.

Marriage requires cultivation and effort from both parties. Long-term separation is detrimental to the relationship. Since Lu Guanyi had feelings for her and treated the children well, she naturally had to strive to maintain it.

Lu Guanyi was extremely pleased: "Then let's bring Zhang Ning along."

Putting down his son, he said: "I'll go tell him first, and have the servants start packing. If you're coming, we'll need to set off tomorrow or the day after."

He had originally planned to ride fast to the capital on the day before his official duties resumed, to spend one more day with his wife and children. But now that Ye Yaming was bringing the children to the capital, there were many more preparations needed, and the journey would be slower, so they had to depart early.

"Alright, go ahead." Seeing her son pout and about to cry, Ye Yaming called out for the wet nurse to come in and feed him.

When Ye Chongming, Old Mrs. Ye and others learned that Ye Yaming would accompany Lu Guanyi to the capital, they were fully supportive.

Although Lu Guanyi treated Ye Yaming extremely well, that was because they had an emotional foundation before marriage, had not been married long, and were still in the honeymoon phase. Previously when Lu Guanyi was stationed at the border, there were no women around to tempt him.

If Ye Yaming stayed in Lin'an while Lu Guanyi was alone in the capital - a young man already holding a third-rank position with a father commanding military power - noble families would be only too happy to offer their daughters as concubines. And would someone who has tasted meat be willing to go back to vegetables? The outcome was predictable.

The only difference would be whether he took a concubine quickly, or waited half a year or even a year before doing so.

So even if Ye Yaming hadn't brought up going to the capital, Ye Chongming, Old Mrs. Ye, Yin Shi and others would have urged her to follow Lu Guanyi to the capital.

Old Mrs. Ye and Yin Shi had even advised her privately: "Now that those tea-making masters have learned your skills, you can completely entrust tea production to them. You should peacefully be the heir's wife in the capital and don't always need to come back."

Ye Yaming quite agreed with this sentiment.

As the leader of a large enterprise, if one handles everything personally, not only would it exhaust oneself to death, but the enterprise's foundation would also become unstable.

After all, a person's energy is limited. Some matters would inevitably be neglected and cause problems; if health fails, the enterprise would collapse.

She could let go of Dragon Well, Dark Tea, and Tieguanyin. Enterprise affairs could be handled by Ye Hongrong, Ye Jiaxing, Xu Zan, Bai Xin, and various Housekeepers in different regions. She only needed to focus on new teas and decision-making.

She could even just stay in Lin'an for half a year or only during the spring season, and spend the rest of the time in the capital.She wanted both marriage and career, and Ye Yaming didn't consider herself greedy. In her previous life, there were people in her circle who had both happy marriages and successful careers. In this life, with Lu Guanyi and their two children, she also wanted to become one of those fortunate individuals.

Two days later, she took the children and went to the capital with Lu Guanyi.

Looking at the Xuanwu Marquis Household, which appeared no different from when she had left, Ye Yaming asked Lu Guanyi, "What do we need to arrange for Princess Yu'an's wedding? After she and your father marry, will they live in the princess's residence or the Xuanwu Marquis Household?"

At this question, Lu Guanyi frowned. "I came directly to Lin'an from the border, so I'm not clear about matters in the capital."

After a moment's thought, he added, "Normally, when a princess marries, she lives in the princess's residence and does not move into her husband's family home. But my father and Princess Yu'an's situation is hard to say."

The so-called Imperial consort, when marrying a princess, is essentially marrying into the royal family. However, Yu'an was a widow remarrying, and Lu Zhongyong was a first-rank general with military authority and the Marquis of Xuanwu. Treating him as an ordinary Imperial consort, making him live in the princess's residence and subordinate to Princess Yu'an, would carry a sense of disrespect and insult.

Since this was an imperial marriage decree, Lu Zhongyong could not defy the emperor's order, but he could handle the marriage coldly—staying at the border and not returning to the capital, or even if he did return, residing only in the Xuanwu Marquis Household.

Fearing the military power he held, the emperor could do nothing about it, and in the end, it would be the royal family that lost face.

"I'll go to the Ministry of Rites to inquire," he said.

...

The Ministry of Rites was actually quite troubled.

The wedding date was set for March of the following year, and since Princess Yu'an was remarrying, there was no need to rebuild the princess's residence. However, as it was a grand princess's wedding, the ceremony could not be too simple, and preparations had to begin now.

But where would the grand princess live afterward? Should the royal family provide additional dowry? How should the wedding be arranged? These questions were giving everyone headaches.

Upon hearing that Lu Guanyi and Ye Yaming had returned to the capital, before Lu Guanyi could set out, the Ministry of Rites sent an official in charge of the matter to discuss it with them.

This official from the Ministry of Rites, surnamed Zhong, was a middle-aged man in his forties, holding the fifth rank.

"We've asked the grand princess, and she said everything is to be arranged by the emperor. As for the marquis, it's not appropriate for us to ask him directly. We must trouble you, the heir, to write to him and find out what his thoughts are."

If the Ministry of Rites were to ask Lu Zhongyong directly, it would essentially mean accepting whatever he said, as contradicting him would cause offense and make everyone unhappy.

"Alright, I'll write to ask," Lu Guanyi agreed readily.

Where Lu Zhongyong and Princess Yu'an lived would also affect him and his wife, and he didn't want the emperor, the Ministry of Rites, or Princess Yu'an to decide unilaterally. It was best for everyone to consider the matter comprehensively before making a decision.

After seeing Minister Zhong off, he returned home and asked Ye Yaming, "We should have a plan ourselves first, so I can write to my father. What are your thoughts?"

Ye Yaming said, "Let's analyze it from our perspective first: If they live in the marquis's household, I'll have a mother-in-law above me. Although Princess Yu'an isn't difficult to get along with, that was when we didn't live together. Once we live under the same roof, disagreements might arise."Putting everything else aside, just the daily morning visits to pay respects were already quite a hassle. It would have been manageable before when she could wake up early herself. But now with two little ones, the thought of them having to crawl out of bed before dawn every day to make these visits made her unhappy.

How could it be right for children under one year old to live like corporate slaves, never even getting to wake up naturally? It'll stunt their growth.