Chapter 54 Chapter 54 Shen Xuan: "..." He is particularly...
Shen Xuan: “…”
He specifically glanced at Zi Yuan beside him, and heard her say, "If Chen Ge'er wants to go, he can go. The imperial concubines in the capital usually go out for an outing, and many ladies and gentlemen have already gone."
"I just came back from playing ball and I'm still a little tired. I don't want to go over there." Shen Xuan said and sat down.
After all, his current public identity is Xue Fenglin's fiancé. It wouldn't be a good idea for him to leave with a strange man in public, right?
However, Shen Xuan did not leave, and Captain Pei did not leave either. Instead, he blatantly sat down next to Shen Xuan, picked up the teapot on the table and poured him a cup of tea, saying, "Since Brother Shen doesn't want to go, then I won't go either. I'll just stay here and talk to you."
Shen Xuan: “…”
Although Pei Xia's appearance could not compare to Xue Fenglin's stunning beauty, he could still be considered dashing and charming.
Just now, he was playing basketball on par with Ye Chen on the court, and I think his martial arts skills are also very high, which has attracted some attention. Now that she was sitting next to Shen Xuan, many young ladies and young men looked over at her quietly.
Although Captain Pei's family background was not prominent, he had already achieved the sixth-rank official rank at a young age. Even as a military officer, he was better than most men of the same age in the capital.
Such a good man naturally caught the eyes of some people at the table.
After all, not everyone wants to marry their children off to a wealthy family. On the contrary, some noble families would deliberately look for talented men from a lower social class, just hoping that their children will not be bullied after marrying into the family and will have someone to rely on throughout their lives.
Shen Xuan was drinking tea here, and Captain Pei was watching him drink.
Chen Xuan felt creepy when he was stared at by him. To ease the embarrassment, he grabbed an orange to eat, but Captain Pei took it away.
He peeled the tangerine in a few seconds, then brought it to Shen Xuan and said, "Brother Shen, please."
Shen Xuan: “…”
He frowned and said, "I don't want to eat now."
Unexpectedly, Captain Pei said, "What would you like to eat, Brother Shen? Why don't you tell me, and I will bring it to you."
Captain Pei's words were so presumptuous that they attracted the attention of those around him who heard them.
Shen Xuan couldn't stand it anymore, so he got up and left, heading towards the mountains.
Captain Pei seemed not to understand his expression and followed him in.
Shen Xuan walked very fast along the way, and Jin Gui and Su Yue had a hard time following him.
After a while, seeing that the two of them were exhausted and out of breath, Shen Xuan stopped. When he turned around, he saw Captain Pei standing three feet behind him, looking at him and smiling.
"Jin Gui, Su Yue, please move away." Shen Xuan said to them with a gloomy face.
Seeing this, Jin Gui and Su Yue looked at each other and retreated behind a bush about ten feet away.
At this time, Chen Xuan said to Captain Pei, "Captain Pei, there is no one else here, so you don't have to act like this. I don't know what the Ye family promised you. You have a bright future, so you can marry a lady from an aristocratic family regardless of family background and live in harmony with her. Why waste it on a guy like me who is already engaged?"
Captain Pei curled his lips when he heard this and said, "Brother Chen is indeed smart. I like smart people. He is worthy of being someone I value."
"But even though Lord Ye is my superior, he can't force me to like someone. The Ye family just proposed a win-win solution, and let Pei consider it himself."
"It's just that I checked Brother Shen's family background first, and I know that Brother Shen has opened a shop in Beijing, which is really smart. I also saw Brother Shen playing polo, so I thought this deal was a good one."
I heard that Pei Xia had investigated me and even knew everything about his shop. Shen Xuan's expression changed, and then he said, "Captain Pei has a lot of plans in his mind. Since you are so smart and ambitious, why don't you just find a girl or a boy from an aristocratic family to marry? I believe that with Captain Pei's looks, it is not difficult to find one."
Pei Xia's expression changed when he heard this. He suddenly took a step forward and leaned close to Shen Xuan's ear and said, "Since Brother Shen praised my beauty, I think I am not unattractive to Brother Shen."
"Although the Xue family's heir has a high family background, he is surrounded by dangers and dangers. His own family affairs alone are already in a state of chaos."
"What's more, there are still many people under the command of the Jinning County Lord today, and you, Brother Chen, need to deal with them personally. Are you really willing to do that?"
Seeing that Shen Xuan didn't say anything, Pei Xia continued, "Brother Shen, you might as well consider Pei. My parents died early, and I joined the army when I was a teenager and fought my way up to the rank of sixth-rank lieutenant. Although I don't have a family to support me, I rely on myself for everything, and I am confident that I can make further progress in my career in the future."
"I know you are like me, without parents or brothers. It is not easy for a boy to establish a family and a shop on his own."
"Aren't we the same kind, a match made in heaven? You and I can do whatever we want when we are together. Why do we need to consider so many social conventions? With our intelligence, we will be able to build a family business sooner or later. Isn't it much better than you working in the Marquis' Mansion and having to deal with the faces of both the Xue and Ye families?"
I have to say that Pei Xia is really eloquent, and his words just hit the nail on the head for Shen Xuan.
Although Shen Xuan had never thought about getting married, if he really had to get married, after careful consideration, Pei Xia would be an excellent candidate.
However, how can human hearts and emotions be calculated?
If Chen Xuan was like Pei Xia, who only had calculations in his mind, he could just leave after leaving the Xue Mansion. Why would he stay in the capital to attend the banquet and perform monkey shows with these children from aristocratic families?
Shen Xuan's heart sank as he realized that he still couldn't let go of Xue Fenglin.
I don’t know where the word “love” comes from. Although he was unwilling to admit it, he did have feelings for Xue Fenglin. It was only after Pei Xia's words enlightened me that I finally figured it out.
Thinking of this, Shen Xuan felt relieved...
The look in his eyes became more determined, he looked up at Pei Xia and said, "Everything else can be calculated, but this matter of feelings cannot be calculated."
"Captain Pei, you keep saying you want to marry me, but there's not a single bit of love in your heart. We've only known each other for less than an hour, how much do you know about me?"
"You want to marry me today because my conditions are suitable, and I believe that the Ye family has also promised you a career. What will you choose if someone more suitable than me and a more advantageous backer than the Ye family appears in the future?"
At this point, Shen Xuan paused and said, "Besides, as a brother, I am confident that I can make a living on my own. Captain Pei said that he relied on himself to work hard until now, so why do you want to take a shortcut by relying on a marriage?"
Pei Xia was stunned, and looked insulted when he heard the word "shortcut".
Some said angrily: "If I marry you, it's just a match made in heaven, how can there be any shortcuts?"
"Even a noble family like the Ye family wanted to help Xue Fenglin choose a wife with a strong family background, so they found me to seduce you."
"You said I have no love for you, but does that mean the Xue family's son has love for you? Why did you insist on hanging yourself on a tree with him? Or are you really like the Ye family said, unable to let go of the splendor and wealth of the Marquis' Mansion?"
"Because I like him." Shen Xuan looked at Pei Xia and said calmly.
Seeing Pei Xia's puzzled expression, Shen Xuan sighed and said, "You don't love anyone but yourself. You won't understand even if I tell you."
"Jin Gui, Su Yue. Let's go." Chen Xuan called back the two attendants. He had said everything he needed to say and didn't want to get entangled with Captain Pei any longer.
This time, Pei Xia watched Shen Xuan leave from a distance, but did not follow him.
When Shen Xuan's figure disappeared, he drew the sword at his waist in annoyance and chopped off a small tree next to him with one sword.
I thought that Brother Chen was a smart man like me, but I didn't expect that he was just like those young ladies and boys in the boudoir. Talking to him about the vague things like love and affection was really annoying.
Then Chen Xuan took Jin Gui Su Yue all the way to the woods. Both of them kept their mouths shut and followed him closely, not daring to speak.
Although they had hidden far away just now, they had heard a little bit of the conversation between Shen Xuan and Captain Pei.
Captain Pei was considered a talented person in the army. After listening to his analysis, even Jin Gui and Su Yue felt that he was right.
But later they vaguely heard Shen Xuan seem to say that he liked the prince and directly rejected Captain Pei.
Jin Gui was somewhat excited after hearing the gossip, but Su Yue was thinking in her heart: This Chen Ge'er looks like a smart man, but I didn't expect him to be a fool at the critical moment.
The thing that this famous family fears most is the word "love". The deeper your love, the deeper the hurt will be in the future.
Besides, what is the identity of the prince? It is still unknown whether I will marry this Brother Chen in the future?
If he breaks off the engagement and marries someone else in the future, I don’t know how sad Chen Ge’er will be.
Shen Xuan walked for a while and finally arrived at the legendary lake.
This lake is a barrier lake, the water is crystal clear and blue in color. A clear spring flows down from the mountain stream, and the red leaves around are reflected in the water, what a beautiful and tranquil scene.
However, this beautiful scenery could not withstand the noise of some of the children from the noble families nearby.
Shen Xuan hid in the woods and took a closer look. It turned out that the Jinning County Lady had just lost the polo game and ran straight into the mountains alone.
But when he arrived at the lake, he met his old enemy, Jin Ruofang, the talented daughter of the Minister of Revenue, Lord Qian, with whom he had a bad relationship.
Qian Ruofang was a famous talented woman in Beijing, proficient in music, chess, calligraphy and painting. Lord Qian holds an important position and has many people around him who curry favor with him.
Qian Ruofang is naturally very popular and is one of the best candidates for marriage among disciples of aristocratic families.
Therefore, although her status was not as high as that of Jinning County Lady Jin Shiyue, she was extremely popular at banquets and often outshined Jin Shiyue in every aspect.
However, Jin Shiyue's dislike for Qian Ruofang was not just due to jealousy, but also because Qian Ruofang was just like her father, Lord Qian, who was used to being two-faced.
In front of those young masters from aristocratic families, Qian Ruofang behaved gently and considerately as always, even speaking in a soft voice. But when she was interacting with other brothers and sisters in private, she couldn't hide her arrogance, and even her own half sisters and half brothers had to look at her face.
Qian Ruofang always felt that Jin Shiyue was of low talent and little knowledge, and was also a boy. Although she was the county lord, she showed contempt for him.
Jin Shiyue, on the other hand, had a bad temper, so how could she tolerate Qian Ruofang looking down on her? So she started finding fault with her whenever she saw her.
However, every time Jin Shiyue clashed with Qian Ruofang, she always ended up in trouble.
He was notoriously bad-tempered, and no matter what the reason for the argument with Qian Ruofang, in the end Qian Ruofang would end up looking like the victim, while he would be labeled a hot-tempered person.
For example, this time when Jin Shiyue just arrived at the lake, she saw Qian Ruofang walking out from the maple forest.
As soon as she saw him, she said with disdain, "The Princess of Jinning County has lost a lot of face today. A princess of Jinning County actually lost to a country boy in front of everyone."
Jin Shiyue was already angry, and naturally she was dissatisfied after hearing Qian Ruofang's sarcasm. He immediately stepped forward and said, "You can't even ride a horse steadily, how dare you criticize me? If it were you, you wouldn't even be qualified to compete with that Brother Chen."
Qian Ruofang laughed when she heard this and said, "I'm a woman and I don't have to fight in the army, so it's normal that I can't ride a horse well. If it's a competition of music, chess, calligraphy and painting, I can't lose to a country boy. But you're a county lady, you can't even write well, what can you show? You can't just compete in polo, it's really pathetic and ridiculous."
Jin Shiyue was touched in a sore spot by Qian Ruofang, and she immediately flew into a rage. She didn't care about her identity and image, and was about to pounce on Qian Ruofang and tear her mouth.
However, he was alone, while Qian Ruofang was accompanied by two maids and a old woman.
The old woman was strong and sturdy, and she and her maid stopped Jin Shiyue. The two sides wrestled fiercely, and Jin Shiyue slipped and fell into the lake.
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