Upon hearing this, Xu Di glanced at Xu Gui's serious expression and said with a smile, "Alright, just wait patiently for a moment. I'll go to Hexi tomorrow and inquire about Lu Mingzhang for you."
Xu Di naturally knew Lu Mingzhang. When he was twelve or thirteen years old, he ran away from the capital to Yanmen Pass with a servant boy, determined to join the army. Because he was the son of the Duke of Ningguo, and the Wei family had some private relations with the Duke of Ningguo, they kept him there and sent a message to the capital. Later, they heard that Lu Mingzhang had decided to join the army because his stepmother suppressed him and prevented him from participating in the imperial examinations.
In wealthy and powerful families, there are always all sorts of sordid affairs. It is not uncommon for a stepmother to suppress a talented illegitimate son. However, there are few like Lu Mingzhang who, in a fit of anger, went to the border alone and insisted on joining the army.
The Ningguo Duke's family also rose to prominence in the military in its early years. After the establishment of the Great Liang Dynasty, some people could not bear to see their descendants suffer the hardships of war again, while others were afraid that their achievements would overshadow the emperor, so they made their children abandon military affairs and pursue literature. The Ningguo Duke's family was among them.
The children of the Ningguo Duke's family were promising; some passed the imperial examinations and became officials. In Lu Mingzhang's generation, Lu Mingzhang was the best student. Unfortunately, his older brother, who was a year older than him, was the legitimate son. Moreover, because Lu Mingzhang's studies were better than his legitimate brother's, he had already passed the preliminary examination at a young age. As a result, his stepmother made things difficult for Lu Mingzhang's aunt in every way.
Lu Mingzhang's aunt was originally a maid who served Lu Mingzhang's father. She was old and faded and was no longer favored. She relied on her son Lu Mingzhang, but because Lu Mingzhang was too outstanding, he was made difficult by his wife in every way.
Xu Di had learned all of this by asking around. He was very interested in why a son of a duke's family would join the army at Yanmen Pass. He inquired not only in the army at Yanmen Pass but also in the capital, and finally found out about Lu Mingzhang's situation.
At a young age, Lu Mingzhang rose from a common soldier to a captain through sheer grit and determination.
Several years ago, Lu Mingzhang also made great contributions in the defense of Hexi. With these achievements, he is now a deputy general at Yanmen Pass. At the age of twenty-something, it is not easy to have achieved this.
Xu Di felt that now that he knew Lu Mingzhang's background, he should go and talk to Lu Mingzhang in person to find out his opinion. If Lu Mingzhang sincerely wanted to marry Xu Gui and Xu Gui was willing to marry him, then the marriage would naturally be fine. However, if Lu Mingzhang just wanted to play around, Xu Di would not allow it. Xu Di felt that as the eldest brother in the family, he had a responsibility to his younger brothers and sisters.
Xu Di thought about it all night. The next day was the day Xu Quan and Xu Qu were to return to the capital with the children. Xu Di called Xu Gui aside and carefully instructed her, "You go back first. I will go to Yanmen Pass to find Lu Mingzhang and find out his intentions. If he really wants to marry, then let him send a matchmaker to our home to propose. If he is not sincere, I will write you a letter explaining the situation."
Xu Gui nodded and said, "I'll leave everything to you, elder brother."
Xu Di nodded and said, "Sixth Sister, don't worry too much about anything. Whether it succeeds or not, don't worry too much about it."
Xu Gui smiled and said, "Big brother, I understand. Don't worry."
After seeing off Xu Quan, Xu Qu, and their younger siblings, Xu Di said goodbye to Xu Rao and Zhang Zhaoci, then mounted his horse and headed towards Yanmen Pass.
Since returning, Xu Di has visited Yanmen Pass several times. After all, his brothers who were once inseparable are still here, and Xu Di has come all this way to visit them.
Wei Lang happened to be there, so Xu Di went directly to Wei Lang's camp after arriving.
When Wei Lang saw Xu Di coming, he was very happy and said, "I was thinking of going to Ganzhou to have a good talk with you before you left."
Xu Di said, "I'll be leaving in a few days. After all, I have to take the imperial examination next year, and time is quite tight."
Wei Lang laughed and said, "You're the same. If you just stay here and behave yourself, you'll eventually become a great general."
Xu Di smiled and waved his hand, saying, "I'm not the kind of person who can endure the hardships here."
Wei Lang laughed and said, "Keep pretending."
After exchanging a few jokes, Xu Di said, "Brother Wei, I came here this time to find someone."
Wei Lang asked him, "Who are you looking for?"
Xu Di said, "Lu Mingzhang."
Wei Lang said, "You're looking for Mingzhang? Luckily you came today. If you had come tomorrow, he would have been patrolling the border. What's wrong? Is there something important you need to see him about?"
Xu Di smiled and said, "It's a private matter, a private matter."
Upon hearing this, Wei Lang said, "I'm going to inspect the area soon. I'll have someone call him over. You can talk to him here."
Xu Di quickly thanked Wei Lang, which showed that Wei Lang truly trusted Xu Di; otherwise, would he have kept Xu Di in his camp?
Lu Mingzhang arrived quickly and bowed to Xu Di. Xu Di returned the bow and said, "General Lu, please sit down."
Lu Mingzhang sat down quite calmly. Xu Di sat opposite him, carefully observing him, and found that Lu Mingzhang was quite handsome.
Although the wind and sand at this pass made people look much older, Lu Mingzhang's skin was slightly rough, but upon closer inspection it was still fair. However, his hands, which were placed on his knees while sitting upright, looked quite rough.
Lu Mingzhang sat there, letting Xu Di look him over without asking why he had been called over. Only when Xu Di spoke first did he finally breathe a slight sigh of relief.
Xu Di said, "Let's not beat around the bush. I'm sure General Lu knows very well why I'm here."
Lu Mingzhang cupped his hands in greeting to Xu Di and said, "Young Master Xu, this humble general is naturally aware of the situation."
Seeing Lu Mingzhang's attitude, Xu Di found it quite interesting and asked, "General Lu, you haven't seen my sixth sister for many years. Why do you want to ask for her hand in marriage as soon as you meet her?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
