The Kingdom That Never Sleeps CH 091 I Don't Want To Get Married
Tang Shen did not have much interaction with Zhao Qiong, but he knew Zhao Qiong was not one to wear his emotions on his sleeve. Tang Shen had opened Xixia Tower and Baibao Pavilion in Shengjing, yet he left the soap and essential oil businesses to others. His business partner was none other than Zhao Qiong, the Heir Apparent of Prince Jing.
Tang Shen still remembered their first meeting at the Prince Jing Manor. Zhao Qiong had hosted a banquet for the top imperial exam candidates, managing every detail with precision. But now, seeing Zhao Qiong so dejected was a stark contrast.
Clearly, Zhao Qiong truly cared for his younger sister.
Tang Shen asked, "Heir, is there really no way to resolve this?"
Zhao Qiong sighed, "We, the imperial clan, may have noble titles and resounding names, but in the Song Dynasty, unlike previous dynasties, we are forbidden from interfering in politics. We are nothing more than figureheads. You know this, Jing Ze. The Liao Emperor's proposal to marry a Song princess is straightforward, not troublesome at all. His Majesty has already agreed, and there's no going back now. What can we do?"
Tang Shen considered and said, "Heir, you must have heard that daughters of noble families often feign illness to avoid being selected for the imperial harem."
Zhao Qiong replied, "That is one way, but it is a last resort. Actually, we’ve also thought about quickly arranging a marriage for my sister."
Tang Shen's heart sank as a foreboding feeling crept in. He asked, "Heir means…?"
Zhao Qiong smiled bitterly, "My sister has loved reading since she was a child. She excels in poetry, painting, music, and embroidery. She is gentle, graceful, and modest. We had planned to find her a suitable match next year and wouldn’t settle for anyone less than ideal. But now, with this situation…" He paused, clasping his hands together. "Tang daren, I’ve heard you are not yet betrothed."
Tang Shen's eyelid twitched, and his head began to ache.
"If you are willing, I can act as a matchmaker and arrange for this marriage."
Tang Shen was dumbfounded, speechless. Seeing Zhao Qiong’s hopeful gaze, his mind went blank. Amid his confusion, the first person he thought of was Wang Zhen. He almost blurted out, I need to ask my senior brother first.
Thankfully, he held his tongue.
Tang Shen replied, "Heir, I have no plans to marry yet."
Zhao Qiong pressed on, "Are you worried my sister isn’t beautiful enough?"
Tang Shen couldn’t help but laugh. "Of course not. Heir, I genuinely have no intention of getting married yet!"
Despite several more attempts, Tang Shen continuously declined. Zhao Qiong sighed deeply, looking even more troubled. "To be honest, hastily arranging a marriage for my sister isn’t a great idea either. While it could save her from marrying into Liao, it would inevitably attract His Majesty's attention and leave him with a poor impression of our Prince Jing family. But we have no other options."
Tang Shen poured Zhao Qiong a cup of tea.
Zhao Qiong continued, "Jing Ze, you’re not our only choice, but you are the best choice. We’ve known each other for three years. If we claim you and my sister have long been interested in each other but haven’t formalized the engagement, it might avoid His Majesty's wrath. Besides, I trust your character, talents, and appearance. You are a perfect match. Marrying my sister to you would put my mind at ease."
Tang Shen smiled wryly, "Heir flatters me. I am unworthy of such praise."
Seeing that Tang Shen was unlikely to become his brother-in-law, Zhao Qiong took the matter lightly, joking, "Jing Ze, don’t be so modest. You’re quite the eligible bachelor in Shengjing! Haven’t you noticed? Over the years, many noble families and officials have had their eyes on you, hoping to match their daughters with you."
"Ah?"
"Hahaha! Just wait. I might be the first, but there will be others lining up to visit you, the famous Tang tanhua!"
Sure enough, that same afternoon, when Tang Shen returned home, a servant was waiting outside his residence.
The servant quickly ran over, delivering an invitation. "Is it Tang Shen, Tang daren? My master invites you to his residence for a discussion."
Tang Shen opened the invitation and froze.
It was personally written by Yuan Mu, the Minister of Works!
Not every family with a marriageable daughter was desperate to secure a match, but there were so many families with daughters of age. Unbeknownst to Tang Shen, he had long been regarded as the most desirable groom in Shengjing. Though he came from humble beginnings, he had risen to a fourth-ranked official position at a young age, was favored by the emperor, and possessed handsome features. Marrying him meant no suffering from in-laws and securing an ideal husband—a perfect outcome for any family.
With the Song-Liao peace marriage as a catalyst, families that had been hesitant now scrambled to act.
Overwhelmed, Tang Shen packed his belongings the next day and moved to the Minister Residence.
Wang Zhen asked, "Why has little Junior Brother come?" He glanced at the bags and laughed, "Are all these gifts for me?"
Tang Shen replied, "Ahem, these are my belongings. Senior Brother, I plan to stay here for a few days and might trouble you."
"Why so suddenly?"
"Senior Brother, I missed you," Tang Shen said earnestly.
Wang Zhen chuckled, "How many invitations have you received?"
Tang Shen’s eyes widened. "You knew?"
Wang Zhen said, "Yuan Mu and I are merely colleagues, but I’ve heard he dotes on his granddaughter, who is of marriageable age. Our relationship cannot be called close and after the Youzhou incident, Yuan Mu rarely contacted me privately, but he sought me out yesterday to act as a matchmaker for you and his granddaughter."
Tang Shen was horrified. "Senior Brother, you wouldn’t actually matchmake for me, would you? Am I escaping one trap only to fall into another?"
Wang Zhen smiled. "Yuan Mu’s granddaughter is a renowned talent, even more outstanding than the young lady from Prince Jing’s household."
Tang Shen gulped.
"The youngest daughter of the Right Vice Minister of Rites also pales in comparison to Yuan Mu’s granddaughter."
Tang Shen’s fingers trembled.
"Even the Duke of Dingguo’s daughter, while beautiful, cannot match Yuan Mu’s beloved granddaughter in both appearance and talent."
Tang Shen exclaimed, "Senior Brother, you know everything!"
Wang Zhen smiled brightly, feigning indifference. "If you must choose, Yuan Mu’s granddaughter is an excellent match. What do you think, little Junior Brother?"
Tang Shen sighed. "I don’t want to marry."
"En?"
"Senior Brother, please don’t tease me. I’m only nineteen. Isn’t this too young for marriage? While many marry at my age, I’ve yet to establish my career. How can I indulge in matters of the heart? Besides, you aren’t married yet. Surely you understand me?"
After a moment, Tang Shen still didn’t receive a response from Wang Zhen. He looked at him curiously, only to see him lowering his clear eyes, gazing at him serenely. He softly said, “How do you expect me to understand you?”
Tang Shen felt a lump in his throat.
With a sigh, Wang Zhen set aside the brush he had been using for painting and asked Tang Shen, “Why don’t you want to get married?”
Tang Shen answered earnestly, “I’m still too young.”
Wang Zhen raised an eyebrow. “The real reason.”
Tang Shen thought to himself, that is the real reason, but you just won’t believe me! Wang Zifeng, even you can get it wrong sometimes.
As someone from the modern era, and a lifelong bachelor at that—single for over twenty years as a doctoral student—Tang Shen truly didn’t want to get married at nineteen. To him, nineteen was barely the beginning of university, still a kid’s age, nowhere near the right time for marriage! He planned to be like Wang Zhen, or at least Su Wenyun, and wait until at least twenty-five before even considering marriage.
Although this was his inner truth, Tang Shen felt he needed to fabricate another excuse for Wang Zhen. But after racking his brain, he couldn’t come up with anything plausible. Suddenly, an idea struck him, and he asked in return, “Then why hasn’t Senior Brother married yet?”
“When did I ever say I wasn’t married?”
Tang Shen was stunned. “What?”
What the heck? Wang Zifeng is married?
Seeing Tang Shen’s wide-eyed shock, Wang Zhen smiled faintly. “Of course, I never said I was married, either.”
Tang Shen: “...”
If you weren’t Wang Zifeng, someone would’ve beaten you to death by now.
Wang Zhen said calmly, “I just haven’t met the right person yet.”
At first, it seemed like a casual response. But after some thought, Tang Shen realized Wang Zhen might actually be telling the truth.
In the Song Dynasty, filial piety was paramount, and the greatest unfilial act was to leave no descendants. Yet someone like Wang Zhen, who had achieved such high rank, could only be pressured by his family or the emperor about marriage.
If Emperor Zhao Fu didn’t care about Wang Zhen’s marital status, then clearly, with his influence within the Langya Wang clan, his family wouldn’t meddle either. So perhaps it was possible that Wang Zhen truly hadn’t met the person who could capture his heart, which was why he remained unmarried.
Wang Zifeng hadn’t settled down because he couldn’t find someone he wanted to hold hands with for life.
Tang Shen thought: But in this world, who could possibly be worthy of growing old with Wang Zifeng?
For a moment, he couldn’t imagine what kind of extraordinary woman could qualify for Wang Zhen’s favor.
Tang Shen spoke from the heart: “I understand now.” He believed he had discovered why Wang Zhen was still single.
Wang Zhen said, “You don’t understand.”
Tang Shen shook his head. “No, Senior Brother, I do.” You’re not married because no one is worthy of you.
Wang Zhen stared at Tang Shen for a long moment before smiling without rebuttal.
The topic was dropped.
Wang Zhen asked, “How do you plan to deal with those people?”
Tang Shen sighed. “I really don’t know. Senior Brother, you must understand—those who send invitations or visit me in person are either royalty or high-ranking officials above me. I can’t afford to offend any of them. That’s why I’ve resorted to hiding here.”
“You don’t want to entertain them further?”
Tang Shen answered firmly, “Not at all.”
With a snap, Wang Zhen unfolded his white fan and said, “Then let’s leave it at that.”
The next day, to Tang Shen’s surprise, no one came to propose a marriage alliance with him.
Hiding at the Minister Residence seemed effective, as no matchmakers dared visit him there. Even at Qinzheng Hall, where he worked, the officials who had previously tried to persuade him disappeared without a word. No one tried to persuade him any longer.
Astonished, Tang Shen observed the situation carefully and arrived at a conclusion—
“My senior brother truly hides his strength well!”
Wang Zifeng was even more formidable than he had imagined.
Tang Shen didn’t concern himself with most other matchmaking attempts. However, he shared a good relationship with Zhao Qiong, Heir of Prince Jing, and they had cooperated successfully on the soap business. After returning to the Minister Residence one evening, Tang Shen carefully considered the matter and devised a solution with Wang Zhen. That same night, he wrote a letter and discreetly sent it to Prince Jing’s residence.