Chapter 83 Proposal
When Yu Wanyin looked over, Rong Si smiled and took a deep breath.
Yu Wanyin's attire here is different from that in the Central Plains.
Her long hair was no longer neatly tied up, but braided and fell to her sides, adorned with colorful ropes and lilies of the valley.
The clothing also featured many novel and unique patterns, with colorful embroidery in full bloom.
Rong Si walked towards her and stopped in front of her. "You finally see me."
Yu Wanyin was quite surprised, "When did you get back?"
Rong Si spurred his horse closer to her, stopping only when his leg touched hers. "Just now."
He must have been traveling for a long time, as he was covered in dust.
His breath was also surging wildly after a long journey. He came on strong and grabbed Yu Wanyin's waist.
Without even exchanging pleasantries after so long, he lifted the person up with force and placed him directly on his horse's back!
Although Yu Wanyin had seen him use such brute force quite often.
But she was still a little startled by the sudden force, and a familiar feeling of power exploded in her waist.
She had just come to her senses when a rough, large hand grabbed her chin and lifted her up.
The burning heat from my palms spread down my jawline.
However, Rong Si's hurried breath had not yet touched Yu Wanyin.
Suddenly, the sounds of soldiers and horses came from all directions!
The first soldier arrived, shouting, "How dare you be rude!"
"You audacious scoundrel! Put the princess down at once!"
Yu Wanyin was slightly startled and patted him, thinking that he would temporarily let go and explain things to the guards.
Unexpectedly, Rong Si glanced at them and, right in front of them, amidst their desperate warnings and shouts, bent down and kissed Yu Wanyin's lips, which he had pried open.
After his thin lips brushed against her lip line, he boldly and daringly invaded her lips.
The calloused fingers pressing against Yu Wanyin's chin slowly caressed the delicate skin on her neck.
As he demands more, he applies force little by little.
The fair and smooth areas were made to appear incredibly bright red.
The guards watched helplessly as their beautiful, delicate princess was snatched onto a horse and abused by a man nine feet tall.
Enraged, they all drew their long swords.
Yu Wanyin heard the growing number of guards surrounding her, and even heard the sound of swords and spears. She quickly pushed Rong Si away.
The more she pushed him, the tighter he held her, and the deeper his kiss became.
The rudeness was like a tiger chewing flowers.
It was as if it wanted to strip her of all her breath, not allowing her to have any distracting reaction.
A tingling, aching sensation spread between the lips and teeth from the grinding.
His chest and abdomen were forcefully filled with the aura of a man.
Not far away, Shan Chenjun was drawn back to his senses by several shouts from the guards. He turned his head and saw that the fastest soldier had blocked Rong Si's horse.
Several people around him began to draw their swords.
Shan Chenjun didn't have time to react to when Rong Si returned; he hurriedly stepped forward to stop the soldiers, shouting, "Hey! Stop!"
The soldiers thought Shan Chenjun was referring to the Rongsi, and stepped forward one after another!
A man approached Rong Si's horse, grabbed Rong Si, and tried to pull him off the horse.
But Rong Si's body twitched, forcing him to separate from Yu Wanyin.
His eyes showed only frustration at being interrupted, but he didn't retaliate.
Yu Wanyin hurriedly tried to stop them, "Wait, put down your weapons!"
Shan Chenjun also rushed back.
After a period of chaos.
On a high seat in the main hall of the royal palace, Gu Hong and Shan Yun sat side by side.
Below, Yu Wanyin and Shan Chenjun sat on either side.
Rong Si stood in the center of the main hall.
Yu Wanyin wrapped the handkerchief in her hand, waiting for the strange silence to pass.
When the two elders met outsiders, they lost their usual peace and kindness, and instead became more stern and solemn.
Gu Hong was, after all, a veteran who had fought on the battlefield since childhood and had been stationed in Shanshan for ten years.
Even when he puts on a stern face, he still exudes a certain authority.
The two men in high positions sized up Rong Si for a long time.
Gu Hongxian eased the atmosphere, "I know you. Among the troops that helped me break through the encirclement in Shanshan, there were your soldiers."
"You've trained the soldiers very well. What did your family do before?"
"Governing the city with troops."
Upon hearing this, Gu Hong asked a few more questions, "Which city?"
"Gaikawa."
"Yuanchuan." Gu Hong remembered him. "What is your relationship with Rong Zhi?"
"My father."
Gu Hong suddenly understood and nodded.
Gu Hong didn't actually have much contact with Rong Zhi. It was just that many years ago, when he was traveling from the Central Plains to Shanshan, he passed through Yuanchuan.
At that time, Kakikawa was still doing well.
It was Rong Zhi who received them for a temporary rest before leaving the pass.
Later, Gu Hong, who was stationed on the border of Shanshan, had several exchanges with Rong Zhi, who was also stationed on the border of the Central Plains.
His father was a very honest man.
I never imagined that something like that would happen in Kakikawa years later.
After figuring out Rong Si's background, Gu Hong asked a few more questions, "So, where did you live and what did you do after that?"
Yu Wanyin held her breath, afraid that he would mention something about bandits or the arms trade.
Rong Si mumbled for a moment, then said, "I do some business dealings with the people of Jiangling."
"What makes you want to lead an army into battle?"
"Yaoyao told me to lead the troops into battle."
Yu Wanyin continued, "It's me."
Gu Hong and Shan Yun looked at Yu Wanyin, their expressions immediately softening.
They probably didn't hear Yu Wanyin explain anything, but they knew that since Yao Yao was the one who helped, there was no problem with the matter.
Gu Hong was just afraid that this man was a greedy man, a man who wanted both power and beauty.
Men understand men best.
Greedy people are not sincere.
Once you have one, you want two.
Having two, one desires three palaces and six courtyards.
Gu Hong looked at Rong Si, questioned him about his background and origins, and then, adopting a more authoritative demeanor, got down to business, "Yaoyao has only just returned home."
“We cherish Yao Yao as a treasure. Now that she is the Princess of Xigan, she cannot tolerate harsh words or being wronged.”
"No matter what your previous marriage was like, it doesn't count since it wasn't arranged by your elders. Let's talk about it again."
Rong Si responded, "I respectfully await Your Majesty's instruction."
"If she is bullied, I cannot accept that my slap will not reach your face for a day."
"Therefore, Princess Xigan did not marry far away or participate in political marriages."
Rong Si said bluntly, "It's alright, I can marry into the family."
Upon hearing this, the hall fell silent for a moment.
Yu Wanyin glanced at Rong Si a few more times, and through Rong Si, she saw Shan Chenjun across from her looking at her with great interest.
Shan Chenjun leaned against the side, sizing up the two of them.
Gu Hong was caught off guard.
The rule against marriage alliances or distant marriages was established because of the women from Shanshan who were sent there for marriage alliances.
Most of them died young in foreign lands.
He was a pawn in life, ostracized by the Han Dynasty, and even in death he was not treated with dignity.
Also, because all I wanted was to bring Yao Yao home.
It took more than ten years of effort.
However, even so, it was still unexpected to hear Rong Si say that.
Gu Hong asked incredulously, "You now hold half of the Han dynasty in your hands, are you willing to marry into the Han family?"
Rong Si pondered for a moment, "If I were to marry into the family, it wouldn't be appropriate to just eat and take for free."
"Your Majesty, could you consider my achievements and grant me an official position, whether it be for guarding the city or training soldiers?"
Gu Hong realized he was serious and turned to look at Shan Yun.
Shan Yun was quite satisfied at this point, and said to Gu Hong in a low voice, "He's good-looking too."
Gu Hong lowered his voice, "Can judging someone by their looks last?"
"Do you think he might be bluffing me and Yao Yao?"
Shan Yun ignored him and said loudly, "Fine, we have to let Yao Yao make the decision no matter what."
“You can discuss this privately.”
Gu Hong was still not entirely at ease.
Yu Wanyin stood up. "He was reckless today and his return suddenly disturbed the gathering. I hope Aunt and Uncle won't blame him."
"I'll go back and give him a proper talk about manners."
Shan Yun disagreed, saying, "He's very polite, and he speaks in a proper manner."
"He looks like a good kid."
Yu Wanyin knew perfectly well what was going on, but it just looked like that at the moment.
Seeing that the two elders didn't say anything else, she quickly took Rong Si away.
Gu Hong waited until Yu Wanyin left before speaking, "I'm afraid Yaoyao will be deceived by those people outside."
"These days, I've seen quite a few people asking me about Yao Yao's marriage plans with ulterior motives."
"Don't worry, Father." Shan Chenjun watched Yu Wanyin's departing figure. "Yaoyao knows what she's doing."
A private guest room was arranged for Rong Si in the royal palace.
Yu Wanyin ordered someone to bring in the ointment.
She looked at the bruises on Rong Si's face that had been accidentally touched when the guards arrested him, and asked, "Why didn't you stop them from arresting you today?"
"Chu Yu said he's from your family, so you can't lay a hand on him."
His sudden mention of Chu Yu's name caused Yu Wanyin's heart to flutter. She lowered her eyes, opened the medicine bottle in her hand, and muttered softly, "Then why were you so unrestrained on the grassland today?"
As expected, Rong Si lost his previous proper demeanor and said matter-of-factly, "I couldn't help it."
Yu Wanyin applied some ointment and asked him, "What about Chu Yu?"
Rong Si brushed it off, saying, "He's busy."
Rong Si knew from the beginning why Chu Yu was preventing him and Yu Wanyin from returning.
Chu Yu was simply afraid that if all the matters were handed over to him, it would take at least a year and a half for him to finish dealing with the affairs of the Central Plains.
Then he won't get anything.
The two of them handled the situation much faster this time.
We had originally planned to come to Saigan together in early September.
In reality, he tricked Chu Yu into returning first.
They said they were inspecting the northern territories, and they came to Xigan along the way.
Chu Yu is probably still inspecting the southern territories.
As Yu Wanyin pondered, she felt increasingly uneasy. "Then why were you so polite in front of the palace today...?"
Rong Si was reluctant to admit it, but since Yu Wanyin had noticed, he had no choice but to admit it: "Chu Yu is good at speaking; he taught him."
Yu Wanyin was slightly taken aback. "He taught you how to propose marriage?"
Immediately afterwards, a strange feeling welled up inside me.
For some reason, Yu Wanyin thought of that time when Rong Si said that Chu Yu was planning to share a wife.
She was a little scared, "There is no custom of communal wives in the Shigans."
"I know." Rong Si looked at her and smiled, "That's why I came first."
Yu Wanyin applied the cool ointment to his cheek. "Now that you're here, how should you govern your territory?"
Rong Si said slowly, "I don't have any territory."
Yu Wanyin casually replied, "Yingzhou in the southwest."
Rong Si looked at her, "Yours."
Yu Wan paused slightly, meeting Rong Si's deep gaze.
"The Thirteen Counties of Kunlun".
"your."
"Youdu in Jizhou..."
"your."
Yu Wanyin then inquired about Rong Si's existing territories.
The well-arranged room echoed with Rong Si's answer to her, the answer that Chu Yu and he had discussed.
Their answers were all the same: whoever proposed first had to give her everything.
It's likely that both of them had ulterior motives.
Including the military.
He was also afraid that he would arrive too late and be beaten to it by Chu Yu.
If he is included in the dowry for a marriage proposal, does that mean he is also proposing marriage?
As long as he has a part in it, who can say what will happen in the future?
Fortunately, he arrived early, which gave him a slight advantage.
Rong Si handed her a scroll.
“Indeed, if I only carry the identity of the bandit king, it would be an insult to Yao Yao.”
"If someone is more capable than me or has more than me in the future, wouldn't they want to take you away from me?"
"So Yaoyao, I'm here to go through the proper wedding ceremony with you, and we'll get married properly."
"I won't take you away; this time, you're the one who's willing to marry me."
Yu Wanyin took it and unfolded it.
Rong Si gave her a map, along with a gift list.
Yu Wanyin was slightly stunned, looking at the heart of the Nine Provinces marked in vermilion on the map as the betrothal gift, "You've given it all to me, so what about you?"
"Yu Wanyin, I am yours too."
The room fell silent for a moment.
Yu Wanyin met his burning gaze and suddenly didn't know what to say.
She hesitated for a moment, then asked abruptly, "Does taking your territory mean I have to take your people too?"
Rong Si laughed and gave her a direct answer that left no room for refusal: "If you want my territory, you must have my people."
Yu Wanyin hesitated for a long time before writing her reply, "Alright then."
In the end, she didn't lose out.
"Seeing how sincere you are, I will reluctantly accept the territory and the people."
The thin, resilient brushstrokes penetrate the red paper with powerful strokes.
News of Princess Xigan's impending marriage spread throughout the country.
The news reached the ears of the man who was inspecting Jiangnan.
Chu Yu, instead of being anxious, laughed.
This is how Rong Si, carrying his betrothal gifts, successfully proposed to marry their wife.
Rong Si got married, which means he also got married.
"Let's go, let's set off back to Xigan."
The procession leisurely traveled across the north and south of the country.
In the height of autumn harvest, golden and red maple leaves stretch to the horizon, and the vast land enjoys peace and tranquility.
According to folklore, the goddess Xigan emerged amidst chaos, drawing upon the spirits of the heavens and earth, and the mountain god Yunze, to protect all living beings.
—End of text—
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