Chapter 92 The Qi-Liang Border (Part 4) The Qi Family Proposes Marriage.
Upon hearing this news, Yu Qi lowered his hand from his forehead onto the table and sat up straighter. "Why didn't the old lady discuss this with me?"
Perhaps the old lady was getting a little anxious. Jiu Li slowly took two steps forward. "I don't know. Besides, what do I have to discuss with you? Wasn't it you who agreed to the marriage proposal with the Wei family in the first place?" She smiled tentatively at him. "What, are you regretting it now?"
Seeing her laugh so irritatingly, Yu Qi pulled her forcefully into his arms, saying, "You're still laughing."
Jiuli looked up, still grinning, "Why can't I laugh? My marriage isn't my decision. It wasn't my idea in the first place; you were the one arranging my marriage. First the Qi family, then the Wei family. Let's see how you handle this."
Yu Qi felt that her laughter was indifferent and even gloating, so he couldn't help but cover her mouth with his own. "Talking back to me? You really deserve a good lesson."
Jiuli leaned back slightly, glaring at him defiantly, her lips slightly pouting. She didn't know why she was going against him, but suddenly she didn't want to do what he wanted.
He pressed his hand down her waist, pulling her closer to him and giving her no chance to escape. He knew that this idea of "punishment" was just a pretext; in reality, he was thinking about her all the time.
He closed his eyes and bit her lips harder and harder, deeper and deeper.
As the sun set behind the western mountains, the room was filled with golden dust, and footsteps could be heard moving back and forth in the corridor, making it seem as if someone might knock on the door at any moment. The more anxious he became, the more thrilling it was; Jiu Li felt that his breathing seemed to become heavier and deeper, and his heartbeat became more rapid.
She herself was in the same state, feeling dizzy and disoriented as her feet swayed. When she opened her eyes, she found herself led to the bedside. Although they both knew this was wrong, they had unknowingly wandered into this dangerous place.
She was wearing a light blue short-sleeved shirt tucked into a dark purple skirt. Yu Qi pulled out a piece of the shirt and reached his hand inside, unable to stop. He could only hope she would tell him to stop. "Aren't you afraid?"
What are you afraid of? Are you afraid of the pain, or are you afraid of what Mrs. Feng said, that men are all prone to starting relationships and then abandoning them?
No, she didn't feel that he had taken advantage of her for nothing. He had raised her for more than ten years for no reason, spending too much of his effort. He must have been more afraid of her getting hurt than she was of herself.
She couldn't help but feel fortunate. If love were a business, he had already invested too much capital before they fell in love, and he would definitely be reluctant to let go. This turned out to be an advantage of their relationship.
She let out a soft chuckle from between their lips.
Yu Qi laid her down on the bed, propped himself up slightly to look at her. Though her eyes held shyness, they didn't look away, as if she had been prepared for this moment. Just how long had she liked him? He couldn't help but feel a surge of smug satisfaction.
At this point, the man is no longer human; he has lost his rationality and is driven entirely by animal instinct. He thinks he is nothing more than a wild beast, and feeling ashamed, he becomes even more violent.
Jiuli trembled slightly, filled with a subtle joy and anticipation. She looked at his face; because they were so close, his features appeared somewhat disheveled, but she could still easily catch his restless, eager gaze. She had never seen him look like that before. The bed frame swayed slightly, and she felt as if she had met him in the midst of chaos, as if it were destiny, so she clung tightly to him.
The shop was probably closed and boarded up. I heard Fengqiao speaking from under the eaves: "Where is the master?"
Both of them tensed up. Luckily, Yuqing pulled Fengqiao towards the back kitchen. "Master is asking Yu'er what happened. Yu'er must have gotten into some trouble. I can see that Master's face is not good. He's angry. Don't get involved. Help me cook."
They walked past the window, the sunlight flickering in and out. Yu Qi suddenly saw the face on the pillow, a dreamy smile overlapping with a tender little face. In a daze, he recalled what she looked like when she was two or three, five or six, and seven or eight—he thought of the saying "the kindness of raising children is greater than heaven," and a chill ran through him.
He hurriedly scrambled off her and sat on the edge of the bed. Then Jiuli's smile froze, and she sat up too, looking at him from the side.
Unable to avoid her disappointed gaze, he could only turn his head and smile, "That's not good."
What exactly is wrong? Is it that they shouldn't have done this before they had a formal status, or that they shouldn't have done it at all? Jiu Li's eyes suddenly changed from disappointment to resentment.
Yu Qi straightened her disheveled clothes, lingered on her face, and gently kissed her. "There's a long road ahead, no need to rush."
She knew, of course, that they had a long life ahead of them, an inextricable bond that made them inseparable, yet also an obstacle. Her nose stung with tears, and she felt that saying anything more to him now would be meaningless; she had already said enough.
After a while, she heard the old lady's voice, and Jiuli quickly straightened her clothes, opened the door, and went out.
The old lady was walking down the corridor when she saw that Jiuli had come out of Yu Qi's room. She couldn't help but peek inside, and thankfully saw Yu Qi sitting on a chair in the outer room drinking tea. However, she couldn't help but be a little suspicious. She pulled Jiuli into the main room and deliberately asked with a smile, "What are you talking about with the door closed? Did he scold you again?"
Jiuli was flustered and had no choice but to throw out Du Zhong, "No, Uncle is asking me where Du Zhong went today."
"Zhong'er went out?" The old lady sat down on the couch, raising her eyebrows. "Didn't he say he wasn't feeling well and refused to come to the Wei family with me? Why did he run off on his own? Where did he go?"
Jiuli could only shake her head with a smile, "I don't know, I didn't even see him go out, and I just told my uncle about it but he didn't believe me!"
The old lady was puzzled. It was not strange that Du Zhong went out, so why did she suddenly want to know where he was going? Could it be that Yu Qi had run into him at some important place outside?
Her eyes darted around, and she pulled Jiu Li's hand, asking in a low voice, "Did your uncle see that boy Zhong'er at some improper place?"
"What indecent place?"
"Tsk! You said you've learned a lot from working with the people in the government office, and you still ask this!"
Jiuli realized that it was referring to those brothels. She could only shake her head blankly, "I don't know, my uncle didn't tell me anything."
The old lady thought it was probably true, but it wasn't a big deal. In any wealthy family, which man wasn't like that? Du Zhong was, after all, not young anymore.
She patted Jiuli's hand, "Once your affairs are settled, we should also find a good marriage for Zhong'er." As she spoke, she looked at her with an ambiguous smile, "Old Madam Wei is very happy!"
Jiuli just smiled shyly, without answering her. In her heart, she was thinking that it was not her place to answer, but Yu Qi's place. He could not dodge the question.
However, the old lady hesitated, unsure how to bring it up with Yu Qi, fearing that Yu Qi would blame her for acting on her own initiative. She just wanted to postpone it, since it was already agreed with the Wei family that they would send someone to propose marriage in October, and he would naturally find out then.
Yu Qi noticed that the old lady hadn't said anything since returning from the Wei family, so he assumed that things hadn't been settled with them yet. Therefore, he didn't ask any questions, and everyone pretended to be deaf and dumb. No one wanted to face this dilemma unless it was absolutely necessary.
Somehow, Xu Bai overheard the letter first and secretly decided not to let the Wei family get there first. Coincidentally, at this time, Prince Zhao, Zhou Yu, and a Qin official from the Ministry of Justice in the capital had arrived in Nanjing. In any case, Yan Shu would accompany them to review the Qinglian Temple case, so Xu Bai specially asked him for leave so that he could take the time to discuss with his family the matter of proposing marriage to the Yu family.
Yan Shu naturally had nothing to say. He went to the guesthouse to talk to Zhou Yu. Zhou Yu leaned back in his chair, smiled and nodded, "The evidence in the Qinglian Temple case is sufficient. The Emperor sent me and Lord Qin to review it, just to show fairness. Although Lord Qin is a member of the Chen faction, the evidence is conclusive, and he can't find any tricks to use. Very well, after you are engaged, you can come to the capital with me. When I came here, the Emperor asked me to summon you to the capital so that you could personally report on this case."
Xu Bai was slightly surprised, "Summon me to the capital?"
Zhou Yu smiled, "Perhaps the Emperor no longer holds your grandfather's past actions against him."
However, based on Xu Bai's years of cold observation, the current emperor does not show his emotions or express his likes and dislikes. It is really hard to say what the emperor's intention is. If he is to promote him, he really does not believe it. The Qi family has been waiting since his father, and they have long been disheartened.
However, he still knelt down and said, "Thank you for your great kindness, Your Majesty!" After a while, he stood up and said in a low voice, "Lu Shao will arrive in Nanjing in a few days. He will go to Liyuan to wait for the Prince."
Zhou Yu remained silent for a moment. In any case, it was better to be prepared. Besides, Lu Shao not only had many years of mining experience, but also had a lot of connections in Sichuan. Moreover, his biological father had many former subordinates stationed in Guizhou. With the military strength in Guizhou and the iron mines in Sichuan, wouldn't that be a perfect combination of geographical advantage and popular support?
After a brief moment of deep thought, he nodded and then smiled, asking, "Has Yu Qi agreed to your marriage with the Yu family?"
Xu Bai walked back to his seat and sat down. "Although he didn't agree in person, he was in a dilemma at the moment."
"A dilemma? What does that mean?"
Xu Bai just smiled. Zhou Yu thought he meant that Yu Jiuli had fallen in love with him, so he smiled too, "This is really your good fortune. Do you know whose daughter Yu Jiuli is?"
"Didn't we already know she was Aunt Quan's illegitimate daughter?"
Zhou Yu nodded and said, "Then do you know where I got that portrait of Aunt Quan that I gave you last time?"
Xu Bai had never paid attention to this question. "It was probably painted by a painter commissioned by the late emperor when Aunt Quan was a lady-in-waiting in the palace?"
He smiled mysteriously, “I saw that painting in my father’s palace two years ago. It was originally kept on a high shelf, but coincidentally, the scroll got a little damp that day. My father entrusted a painter to remount it. I had some doubts, so I secretly asked the painter to make a copy for me.”
Xu Bai pondered for a moment, his brow furrowing slightly. "There's a portrait of Aunt Quan hidden in the Emperor's bedchamber? You believe that when the Emperor was still the Crown Prince, he also had relations with Aunt Quan—"
Such a beautiful and talented young lady, who served in the late emperor's study and was accustomed to interacting with the young princes and officials, was bound to be involved in some romantic scandals. It's possible that Jiu Li's biological father was anyone, among the civil and military officials, Prince Feng was the most suspicious, but perhaps even the current emperor couldn't escape involvement?
Even if he didn't, some people would still be willing to think that way.
Zhou Yu looked at him with a smile, "You still have that painting?"
"I've kept it safe at home."
"Alright, before we escort Chen Jia back to the capital, find a pretext to go to the residence another day and try to let Chen Jia see this painting."
Xu Bai didn't understand for a moment, "What does Your Highness mean?"
“Chen Jia has met Yu Jiuli. As soon as he sees that painting, he will become suspicious. When he returns to the capital, he will tell his father and Consort Chen about his suspicions.”
"Even if Consort Chen suspects that Yu'er is the daughter of Aunt Quan and the Emperor, so what? Does she dare to be jealous of those old grudges?"
Zhou Yu slowly stepped down from the couch, tying one hand behind her back. "Jealousy is a breach of womanly virtue, and besides, even if it were true, it would have happened many years ago. What I mean is, as long as the Chen family becomes suspicious, they will ask questions in detail, and then they will find out that the Yu family also has Du Zhong."
As Xu Bai continued to think, perhaps the Chen family would also suspect, just as they had before, that Du Zhong and Jiu Li were twins. They would naturally know that he and Prince Zhao were also secretly investigating the background of Jiu Li and Du Zhong, which would make it even more logical for them to believe that Jiu Li and Du Zhong were very important figures.
But Jiu Li is just a woman. Even if she is the emperor's illegitimate daughter, she can't threaten the Chen family. But what if the emperor has a "biological son"? This person is a much greater threat to the Chen family than Zhou Yu.
However, at this very moment, this "prince" is still living among the common people. The Chen family is probably planning to eliminate him discreetly before he can be recognized as a member of the imperial family, thus preventing any future trouble. In this way, if the matter comes to light in the future, the emperor will find it difficult to forgive the Chen family and Consort Chen for their covetousness of the throne.
“I know that my father despises those who covet the throne. The ‘Huangliang Incident’ left a cold thorn in his heart.”
After thinking it over, Xu Bai walked behind him and said, "But Du Zhong and Jiu Li are not—"
Before he could finish speaking, Zhou Yu raised his hand and interrupted with a smile, "Hey, what's the big deal? As long as they have suspicions, they'll adopt the attitude of 'better to kill a thousand innocent people than let one guilty person go free.' Even if they kill the wrong person, it's nothing. It's just an ordinary civilian who died. They won't care."
Xu Bai suddenly understood and smiled, "Your Highness is truly farsighted."
Zhou Yu waved his hand, turned around and walked back to the couch. He called in a servant and ordered him to bring a cloud-patterned jade pendant that he often wore as a reward to Xu Bai. "When you go to propose marriage, I don't have anything good to give you, so I'll just give you this jade pendant as a blessing. I wish you a perfect match."
Xu Bai accepted the jade pendant, thanked them, and returned home. He showed the pendant to his two wives and his elder brother, Xu Yun. The others readily agreed, but Mrs. Qi, Si Rou, was still hesitant. She had already been neglected by the Yu family once, and now she was going to formally propose marriage. She was afraid that it would be a one-sided effort, and the other party might not be interested. If she was rejected, wouldn't she be embarrassed?
However, upon seeing the jade pendant, and considering that even the Prince approved of the marriage, she naturally felt it would be even more difficult to object. So, she reluctantly said, "In that case, I will have someone find a matchmaker who is eloquent and persuasive. Second Aunt, you should prepare the gifts in advance, but they shouldn't be too extravagant. This is just a gift for visiting to discuss the marriage, not an engagement gift. If the gifts are too generous, it will make us seem too hasty and would be beneath the dignity of our scholarly family."
The second concubine's original surname was Huang, and her given name was Enoki. She had gentle and kind eyes, with a long, thin line at the corner of her eye that seemed to indicate a hint of bitterness. Even when she smiled, she seemed to feel endless melancholy. She smiled and glanced at Xu Bai, feeling relieved for him. Finally, her son was about to get married.
As Si Rou spoke, she leaned from the right side of the couch to the left side of the kang table, twirling the bodhi beads in her hand with a lazy posture. She glanced at Xu Bai, then lowered her eyes, picked up her teacup, and gently blew on it. Suddenly, she shook her head with a bitter smile, "If Master were still alive, I don't know how much he would blame me. A perfectly respectable family of scholars and officials, yet I had to marry a daughter who sells medicine. Even if she's not a biological daughter of the Yu family, she's still an illegitimate child, and we don't even know who her biological father is. Tsk tsk—"
This means that having such a daughter-in-law is a disgrace to the Qi family. She wants to control her but can't. Firstly, Xu Bai likes her, and secondly, Xu Bai isn't her biological daughter, so she's afraid that saying too much will annoy people.
Xu Bai and Enoki both looked a little embarrassed. Xu Yun saw this and smiled to smooth things over, "Although the Yu family is of slightly lower social standing, they are still honest and upright businessmen. Moreover, Mr. Yu is a famous doctor and now also serves as Lord Yan's advisor, so he can be considered half a person in the officialdom. That Miss Yu is even better. She is lively and cheerful, and extremely intelligent. Especially her appearance, I'm afraid even if you compare her to the daughters of officials today, they still can't compare to her."
Xu Yun was, after all, Si Rou's own son, and usually the most mature and prudent. After listening to his advice, Si Rou couldn't help but laugh and say, "You are now the pillar of the family. If you agree, what else can I say? But I also think that it's not appropriate to ask a matchmaker. Think about it, the Yu family is always hesitant about this matter, which is always unpleasant. What if we ask a matchmaker and they refuse? How can the matchmaker keep quiet? If they go around saying it, where will our Qi family's face be? It's better if my second aunt and I go ourselves. Even if they refuse us, we'll still have to accept it."
Enoki was naturally delighted; the two ladies of the Qi family coming in person showed even greater sincerity. She turned her head and nodded, "Then I'll prepare the gifts right away?"
So Enoki, accompanied by a maid, spent two days rummaging through the storeroom. Following Sirou's advice, the gifts should not be too lavish. Therefore, after much searching, she only selected a few bolts of fine silk and ordered the purchasing servant to order eighteen boxes of exquisite pastries from Huixizhai.
She really liked Jiuli and wanted to win her over. When she got back, she picked and chose in her dressing case, preparing to secretly give her a delicate piece of jewelry. It was evening when a maid came into the bedroom to report, "Chen Zifang has come in. She has bought all the pastries according to your order. Please take a look, Madam."
Enoki closed her dressing case and walked into the opposite inner room. She saw that the table was full of exquisite pastry boxes and said to the maid with a smile, "Everyone says that Huixizhai's pastries are the best in Nanjing, but I don't think they are particularly good. It's just that their pastry boxes are well made and look nice as gifts."
The girl laughed and replied, "When it comes to cooking, your skills are still the best. Your dishes are perfect in color, aroma, and taste, and they are also unique. I'm amazed you can come up with such ideas."
"I'm just bored and have nothing to do. If I don't study needlework and food, what else should I study?"
As the two chatted and laughed, the purchasing servant Chen Zifang opened the box of pastries. Inside were only five or six pastries, each with a different shape and color, so cute that one almost couldn't bear to eat them. Chen Zifang chuckled and said, "These were all made by the kitchen of Huixizhai under my personal supervision. They're very fresh."
Seeing that he was covered in sweat, Enoki specially instructed the maid, "He's working so hard. It's so hot, and he's still in the kitchen watching over the steamed and fried pastries. Go and make him a good bowl of tea."
It was just for the sake of looking good and having good luck. Enoki only looked at the pattern and told them to pack it up properly so they could take it to the Yu family tomorrow.
She was still heading towards the other bedroom to choose jewelry when, just as she turned around, Chen Zifang suddenly bowed to her from behind, "Congratulations, Auntie, on getting such a beautiful and clever daughter-in-law! Congratulations to our Second Master on this perfect match; he will surely rise to great heights in the future!"
These two solemn congratulatory remarks surprised Enoki. The matter hadn't even been settled yet, and he was already offering his congratulations? She lowered the curtain and turned to look at him. She saw that the smile under his mustache seemed to have another meaning. The setting sun flashed on his eyelids, and even his eyes seemed to have a hint of malice.
He simply smiled and said, "Last time I performed a ritual at Baiyun Temple—"
With a loud crash, Enoki felt as if the seemingly peaceful sky had suddenly collapsed.
However, that was just her imagination; the sky was still clear and crisp, though the wind was a bit chilly. The next day, she and Sirou hitched up a carriage and headed to the Yu family's residence. On the way, Sirou kept thinking about how to start the conversation at the Yu family's house without losing face. She asked Enxi three times, but Enxi didn't respond. Sirou glanced at her and saw that she was lost in thought!
Si Rou was furious and snorted coldly, "People say you should mind your own business if it doesn't concern you, but you're not doing your job. Your own son is long dead, and if you don't think things through, do you expect him to come back to life and plan everything for you?"
Enoki snapped out of her daze, quickly lowered her eyes and nodded, smiling, "I went to bed a little late last night, so I was a bit listless when I woke up, it's not that I didn't care."
“Even if it’s my responsibility to worry, you, as her mother, can’t just stand by and do nothing.” Si Rou sighed in exasperation at her lack of ambition. She thought back to when her husband was still alive, she was quite capable, with a whole host of seductive tricks. But since her husband died, when it was time for a woman to support the family, she couldn’t help at all, only managing to do some housework.
Si Rou was so engrossed in her thoughts that she couldn't say anything too harshly to her, lest people say she was petty and couldn't even treat her husband's concubine well after his death, which was not the character of a lady from a respectable family.
She could only secretly plan to send the old woman who had come with the carriage in to announce her arrival as soon as she reached the Yu family's shop.
Upon hearing this in the shop, Fengqiao hurriedly sent Axiang inside to speak, while he went out to greet them on the street. To his astonishment, the two ladies had brought seven or eight servants with them. No wonder the old lady had said that the Qi family was good in every way, except that one lady loved to put on airs!
As the driver placed a small stool in front of the carriage, the two ladies stepped off, one with dignified bearing and the other with gentle manners; both spoke amiably. Fengqiao hurriedly led them inside, where Yuqing and Xiuzhi had already come out to greet them.
As soon as the two guests slipped into the courtyard through the back door, Yuqing grabbed Fengqiao's ear and shoved him into the main hall. "Look at you! You don't like young girls, you only like widows, don't you? You have such a picky taste! Why aren't you here running around doing business?!"
As she spoke, she shoved him inside. Tea, fruit, and snacks had already been prepared in the main room. No one in the Yu family expected the two ladies to visit so suddenly. The old lady hurriedly changed her clothes, but her hair was a little messy. When Si Rou saw this, she frowned slightly.
Yu Qi remained the same, bowing and scraping politely, but not particularly warm.
He seemed to understand their purpose, and his smile carried a hint of distance. Si Rou was uneasy, but since she was already there, she might as well talk about it. So she took out the jade pendant that King Zhao had given her. The Qi family's influence wasn't enough, but King Zhao's influence was certainly greater.
“This is a letter from the Prince to us two days ago. The Prince said he would be very happy to see our two families become related by marriage. Since even the Prince said so, how could we dare to be disrespectful? So we didn’t ask a matchmaker and my second aunt and I came in person. We are sorry for our abrupt arrival. Old Madam and Mr. Yu don’t need to bother.”
As they spoke, the four of them sat down. The old lady and Si Rou sat at the head of the table, while Yu Qi and Enoki sat opposite each other at the lower end. When the old lady saw the jade pendant placed on the table, she didn't know whether to accept it or not, and could only look at Yu Qi awkwardly.
Unexpectedly, Yu Qi remained neither humble nor arrogant, and said with a smile, "We appreciate Your Highness's kindness, and we are also honored that the two ladies have condescended to come to our humble home. However, marriage between men and women is not based on family background, but on fate. I think Yu'er and your son do not seem to have this fate. Otherwise, we would have met today after returning from your residence last time, and it would not have been delayed until now."
Si Rou never expected to be attacked like this before she even got comfortable sitting down. Her expression changed, and after glancing at Yu Qi for a moment, she forced a smile again. "Mr. Yu, you are mistaken. The marriage of children depends on the fate between them. How can we decide? I think we should invite the young lady out and ask her opinion first. What do you say, Madam?"
The old lady was somewhat intimidated by the sculpted smile on her lips. How dare she speak? She could only smile awkwardly and glance sideways at Yu Qi.
Yu Qi took a sip of tea and smiled apologetically, "It's really unfortunate. I heard that Old Madam Wei wasn't feeling well, so my mother sent her early this morning with some medicine to visit her."
The old lady nodded hurriedly to Sirou, "Yes, what a coincidence."
When Si Rou saw the old lady's attitude, it was clear that Yu Qi was making all the decisions. She had never seen a mother so subservient to her son! And what did it mean to bring up the Wei family at this time? Did they think their Qi family was inferior to a mere broker?
Si Rou felt she had suffered some great humiliation and had expected this outcome, so she didn't bother to say anything more. She stood up with a smile and said, "We really came at an inopportune time. In that case, we'll take our leave now. Please come and visit us often, Grandma."
The old lady got up to see them off, but when she glanced at the pile of gifts on the table, she hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to keep them or not. While she was still hesitating, the two ladies had already turned and left. She didn't care about these unimportant things and hurriedly followed them out.
When she returned, she saw Yu Qi still casually sipping tea in his chair. She couldn't help but sigh, "If you're going to refuse, you should refuse more gently. Why bring up the Wei family? It just makes people lose face."
Little did she know what Yu Qi was thinking. He was simply thinking that there had to be a reason for refusing someone, and he didn't want to go to the trouble of maintaining someone else's dignity. So he decided to let the two families hate each other, since they had made the wrong decision.
He clearly forgot that he was the one who started both of these ideas.
The Qi family members came and went without Jiu Li's knowledge; she was still dreaming in bed. When she woke up and heard Xiu Zhi tell her about it, she quickly threw her towel back into the basin, her eyes wide. "When did this happen? How come I didn't hear anything?!"
Xiuzhi was folding the quilt by the bed, twisting her neck and laughing, "I don't know what you two siblings talked about behind closed doors last night. You talked for most of the night, and Du Zhong is asleep now. What could you hear?"
Naturally, it was about the “severe interrogation” of Du Zhong and her, but Du Zhong repeatedly begged that she must not know, lest she be too embarrassed, and said that he would carefully plan how to persuade Yu Qi.
Even Jiu Li couldn't bear to tell him that Yu Qi already knew and was very angry!
Xiuzhi added, "They just left, and both ladies looked quite upset. There's no way to back down now. Lord Qi will be heartbroken."
Jiuli hurriedly walked to the dressing table and sat down. "How did Uncle refuse?"
“Master said that you and Lord Qi are not destined to marry, and that you are currently a guest at the Wei family’s house. Look at what he’s saying. People who refuse marriage either say they are too young and want to stay a couple more years, or that their horoscopes don’t match and they are afraid of clashing with each other. Master is really—” Xiuzhi shook her head and laughed, “Why be so hurtful?”
Jiuli knew that Yu Qi had said this on purpose to embarrass the two ladies of the Qi family, so that no matter how much Xu Bai pleaded in the future, they would not agree to the marriage. This was a classic case of undermining their chances; after all, Yu Qi was never afraid of offending people.
But why bring up the Wei family? Do you think they'd agree to this?
She sat on the stool hesitantly, afraid that she might not even concentrate on combing her hair.
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Author's note: Thank you for reading. I simply don't have enough time to write 8000 words. I'll make up for it tomorrow.
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