Chapter 14: The son-in-law brings his youth with him in this life, only seeking a graceful person to comfort the younger generation.

When Song Xieqing brought Zhu Hao home, he had already informed her that he would come to propose marriage in the next few days. However, Zhu Hao did not expect that the "next day" he mentioned would be the next morning. She thought that she would have to wait until the trial was over at least. However, because of his sudden proposal today, Zhu Hao had hope of breaking the current predicament.

Zhu Hao stepped over the threshold and headed towards the outer courtyard, but someone suddenly grabbed her wrist and she could not move any further. This affected her injured part, and she frowned and gritted her teeth to endure the pain. When the pain subsided a little, she turned around and saw that the person was Zhu Qi. She was about to make a sarcastic remark, but she caught a glimpse of a green robe passing by the corridor.

"This... Young Master Song! You are not allowed to enter the inner house without Madam's permission!"

"Mr. Song, this trip is against the rules! I hope you will wait at the gate!"

"This courtyard is the young lady's boudoir! How can you allow outsiders to enter so freely? Why does Mr. Song have to suffer as a lowly slave like us?"

Servants circled around him, but the man, still on his feet, hurried straight towards where Zhu Hao was standing. "A stranger?" He sneered, "Your young lady and I are already engaged, so how can I be a stranger? But your Zhu Dalang, although he and Pian Pian are cousins, has a wife in his inner chambers, and Pian Pian is already of marriageable age. So he's not a stranger? So early in the morning, knocking on Pian Pian's boudoir privately is in line with what you call 'rules'?"

These words were heard by everyone. Zhu Lanxiang and the other two had different expressions. Zhu Hao was particularly weird. She subconsciously pondered the word "pianpian" said by the person in her mind, and felt uneasy.

Before Zhu Hao could think about it, the man was already standing in front of her.

Song Xieqing was tall. He stood in front of Zhu Hao, blocking out all the sunlight. Zhu Hao could only see him.

He took Zhu Hao's other hand, trying to pull her away from Zhu Qi, but Zhu Qi never let go.

Seeing this, Song Xieqing couldn't help but wonder, "Cousin, you really have the audacity to steal someone's love?" He finished, ignoring what others were thinking as he pried open Zhu Qi's fingers that were tightly gripping Zhu Hao's wrist. "Men and women shouldn't touch each other, and cousins ​​should also follow etiquette and avoid gossip. Cousin Zhu Qi, do you understand this?"

Zhu Qi's anger surged. He clenched his fists and demanded, "Mr. Song? I don't even know which wealthy family in Huaicheng has this surname! Besides, I'm Pianpian's cousin, but when did I become your cousin? Stop asking for trouble!"

Song Xieqing sighed inwardly. He was exhausted physically and mentally, and he was too lazy to argue with such a person. However, he had to put on this drama to marry Zhu Hao. "When I marry Pian Pian, won't you become my cousin? Since I will have to change my mind sooner or later, I might as well take this opportunity to call you first to show my gratitude for your care for Pian Pian over the years."

After he finished speaking, he took Zhu Hao into his arms and intertwined his hands with hers. Song Xieqing's tone was rare and gentle: "Pianpian."

I wish you good luck and follow the good, "Song... Song Lang."

Song Xieqing's hand, entwined with hers, burned her palm like a hot potato. Zhu Hao's palms were sweating, but his grip remained firm. Zhu Hao's forehead was wet. She had never seen Song Xieqing like this before, and he even called her by her nickname. Her heart was beating like a drum. Zhu Hao just hoped this farce would end soon.

"Unmarried man and unmarried woman! How shameful!!" Zhu Lanxiang had been watching them flirt with each other in broad daylight, and now she could no longer tolerate it. "Where does Young Master Song live? How many people are there in his family? Is he the eldest son? How much are the land deeds? How does he make a living? Can he have wives and concubines? Since he's been so vocal about wanting to marry Pian Pian, what's the proposal? My sister has entrusted Pian Pian to me, and as her aunt, I absolutely cannot let her down. The husband you choose must be of the highest quality, not just good looks. If he's not as good as my Qi'er, then there's no point in even discussing marriage."

"Oh? You didn't accept being wronged when you promised Pian Pian to You Lang as a concubine? And now you want to marry Pian Pian to your ugly eldest son?"

Song Xieqing's sarcasm was evident, but he answered in order, "My surname is Song Xieqing, and my given name is Song. I'm from Huaicheng. I moved to Beijing with my parents early in life, so it's no surprise that you haven't heard of my surname. There are four people in my family, and I'm the eldest. I have a younger brother, and the land and property deeds... I haven't counted them in detail, but Songheju in Nanxiang is solely owned by my own wealth, so I don't need to say more. If I marry Pianpian, the property deeds and wealth will be handed over to my wife, and I will definitely not touch them. I don't make a living, and I rely on the protection of my family for generations. Even so, the wealth and power in my pocket is more than enough to support Pianpian."

"I have never taken concubines in my inner chambers, and I haven't done so yet. I won't put Pian Pian in such a dilemma in the future. I've carried Qing with me throughout my life, hoping that Pian Pian will be my only comfort for the rest of my life. I know that Pian Pian still has wealth inherited from her parents, so I'm willing to marry into the Zhu family. The Dacheng marriage law is inherently unfair to women, so if I marry into the family, the remaining wealth in Pian Pian's name won't have to be shared with me, and the betrothal gifts Song brought today will still belong to the Zhu family."

Zhu Hao secretly marveled at Song Xieqing's impeccable acting skills. She seemed to see a glimmer of love in his eyes. "As for the betrothal gifts, they have already been presented to the Zhu residence. Although I haven't counted them, it's no less than a thousand gold."

Most of what Song Xieqing said was fabricated. Gods cannot deceive the world. However, this only happens when the gods promise to fulfill the prayers of mortals. Zhu Hao accidentally threw the hydrangea into the arms of his jade statue, which was in disguise what he promised. Although Song Xieqing is now telling lies, he has not promised anything, so it will not trigger the gods' prayers.

If I have to say... what he promised was nothing more than to take Zhu Hao as his wife and hand over the financial power and property deeds to her. In addition, he would not take concubines in this life and marry into the Zhu family. These trivial matters were very easy for him to accomplish. Song Xieqing had no interest in marriage, so what was wrong with agreeing to everything?

Everyone was stunned when they heard this. As they exchanged words, Zhu Lanxiang tried her best to appear calm and asked, "You? Marrying into my family? Marrying a large sum of money to welcome me? Are you serious?"

Song Xieqing pointed outwards, "Whether what I said is true or not, you can tell by walking over to the gate and taking a look."

Zhu Lanxiang was skeptical and traveled to the remote place with her family servants.

Zhu Hao breathed a sigh of relief. Song Xieqing's hand, which was entangled with hers, finally loosened. Her palms were sweating profusely. Zhu Hao wiped the sweat on her coat. She saw Song Xieqing had walked a few feet away. From Zhu Hao's perspective, she could see Song Xieqing frowning and using magic to eliminate the sweat on his palms. She had been prone to sweating since she was a child, and she couldn't help but feel scared when she saw this.

She thought the farce had finally come to an end, but unexpectedly the man turned around and went back.

Song Xie Qingtou looked back at her stature, bowed his head and asked her: "Since it is to welcome Pianpian's betrothal gifts and betrothal money, how can it be that the hostess is not present in person?"

Zhu Qi on the side shouted, "Cousin! You must not be fooled by his one-sided words!"

Zhu Hao remained silent. She was wondering why Song Xieqing was still singing so hard. It turned out that Zhu Qi was still alive.

Song Xieqing took her hand again and pulled Zhu Hao forward, "Let's go, Pianpian."

Zhu Qi: "Cousin Pianpian! Do you really want to travel with this pretty boy of unknown origin?"

Song Xieqing: "Could it be possible that I would travel with a scoundrel like you who has accomplished nothing?"

Best wishes: ...

Zhu Qi: ...

Although he is a bit more corrupt than others because he is a frequent merchant at the harbor, inspecting and collecting goods, he is not as bad as the pretty boy who calls him a bad guy, right?

Song Xieqing went to pinch Zhu Hao's Hegu point. Zhu Hao took a deep breath and said hurriedly after understanding, "Cousin, I have fallen in love with Song Lang. I hope you can understand my feelings."

After he finished his words of blessing, he looked up and vaguely caught a glimpse of a playful smile on Song Xieqing's lips.

Song Xieqing took her hand and walked outside. Zhu Hao could not walk too fast because of the whip wounds on her body. She was wearing thin clothes and her inner clothes were easily visible. She started coughing vigorously when the morning breeze blew against her face.

Zhu Hao's hair was disheveled, and it was obvious that she had just woken up and had not had time to dress up. Two people followed Zhu Qi and stared at him. There were even three or two servants watching the show. Song Xieqing found it difficult to urge Zhu Hao, so he had no choice but to take off his coat and put it on Zhu Hao's shoulders.

Zhu Hao was suddenly surrounded by a cold scent of spikenard. The two looked at each other, and Zhu Hao saw a hint of impatience in his eyes.

She was about to speak when she suddenly felt her feet lighten. It turned out to be Song Xieqing who was holding her sideways.

Zhu Hao subconsciously held his shoulders.

Outsiders who saw this could only sigh at their deep love, but Zhu Hao knew very well that Song Xieqing simply disliked her for walking too slowly, holding him back and wasting his time.

Yesterday, when Zhu Hao asked Song to take Qing home with her, he would rather use magic to temporarily relieve her pain and not even bother to help her walk on her own. But today, he went to such lengths just to put on a show...

Zhu Hao leaned in Song Xieqing's arms, feeling her five senses in a mess. Perhaps it was because she had never been hugged by her lover like this before. Zhu Hao couldn't explain her mood at the moment. She seemed to be frightened by his sudden change, and seemed to be wrapped up in other difficult-to-understand thoughts.

She quietly opened half of her eye in her arms, and all she could see was Song Xieqing's tense jaw and a red mole on his Adam's apple.

Although March was not hot, Song Xieqing's neck was covered with sweat. As he walked, a drop of sweat slid from his Adam's apple into his collar.

In a trance, Zhu Hao seemed to hear her heart beating rapidly. She couldn't adapt to it, so she leaned over to Song Xie's chest and whispered, "How about, Immortal Lord, just let me go?"

Not only was she mentally disturbed, but Song Xieqing also felt pain in the injured area when she accidentally touched Zhu Hao's back while walking.

The man didn't open his lips, but a clear voice inexplicably echoed in her mind: "You must perform well in the play. I'm sure Madam Zhu also understands this principle."

When the sound faded away, Zhu Hao still felt a strange sensation in his heart, but the pain in his back was gone.

Although Song Xieqing can use magic to change everyone's memories without having to do everything personally, if this method is easy to use, the heavenly punishment that Shen Qi suffered should have been lifted when he and Zhu Hao signed the marriage contract. Therefore, no matter how much they dislike each other, he has to take Zhu Hao with him to do every step of this journey personally.

When the two of them walked outside the house, they saw the Zhu family's crowd of onlookers in the street. Everyone had lived in Huaicheng for a long time, and this was the first time they had seen such an extravagant and lavish proposal of marriage.

Zhu Lanxiang's eyes gleamed with gold, her mouth wide open enough to fit a whole duck egg. On the left, she saw a row of mahogany boxes, each guarded by a strong man. She peered, unable to tell the end from the beginning. At the front of the row stood a matchmaker, over fifty years old. To her left stood three attractive young women, each of them graceful and charming, though their attire suggested they were maids. A woman next to them held a black lacquer tray with carved gold patterns. On the tray was a pair of vibrant snow geese.

The matchmaker's name was Xiangqin. She ordered the maid holding the tray to step forward. Xiangqin said with a smile, "Madam Zhu, these snow geese are the ones Young Master Song hunted early in the morning outside the city. Not only are they real geese, but they're also of a rare quality! Even their feathers are completely free of blood." She teased the goose on the tray, and it fluttered its wings. However, its talons were bound with red ropes, making it unable to escape. "Look! It's alive and well. Holding the geese as a gift symbolizes unwavering love! It shows how deeply our young master loves Madam Zhu."

Wild geese have always been difficult to catch, and most families use chickens, ducks, and geese as substitutes. This Mr. Song not only used real geese as gifts, but also brought countless amounts of betrothal gifts. People talked about this and that, and no one could tell what kind of magic potion the wife of the Zhu family had given to this young man from a wealthy family.

The author has something to say:

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Xiao Song is actually not aloof, but rather dark and sultry underneath ()

It was so hard to stay tense when writing this chapter (holding my forehead and smiling bitterly)