First marriage proposal
On the third day of the Lunar New Year, Li Yi paid a visit to offer New Year's greetings.
He wore a brand-new indigo silk robe over a black fox fur cloak, his figure upright, his face more refined and composed than last year. Behind him followed two servants, carrying generous New Year's gifts, all carefully selected tonics and fine stationery items, impeccably arranged and impeccable.
He first bowed deeply to Wen Tingyun and his wife, who were seated at the head of the table. His words were respectful, expressing gratitude for their past teachings and inquiring about the wife's health. His demeanor and speech already displayed the air of a newly risen court noble.
Wen Tingyun listened calmly, occasionally nodding. Madam Wen responded with a smile and instructed someone to serve tea.
After exchanging pleasantries, there was a brief moment of silence in the hall.
Li Yi sat upright, his fingertips gently tracing the warm teacup, as if he were considering his options. He finally looked up, his voice lower and more serious than before:
“Master, Mistress,” he paused, as if making a decision, “I have come here today not only to offer my New Year’s greetings, but also to ask for your permission to grant my request. After much thought, I have decided to ask you two elders to grant my request.”
Wen Tingyun put down his teacup, his gaze unchanged: "Speak freely."
Li Yi took a slight breath: "It's about Junior Sister Xuanji." When he mentioned this name, his speech seemed to slow down almost imperceptibly. "Junior Sister Xuanji's talent, character, and appearance are rare in this world. This junior... has admired her for a long time."
He paused briefly, then said, “I know that it is truly unfair for Junior Sister Xuanji to be subordinate to someone of her talent. However… the two elders are also aware of the situation at home. The distinctions of social status and clan rules are difficult to overcome. The position of the principal wife is not something I can decide on my own.”
His words had made his meaning crystal clear. The air in the hall seemed to freeze, and even the maids serving tea subconsciously slowed their footsteps.
Li Yi lowered his eyes, avoiding Wen Tingyun's suddenly sharp gaze, his voice carrying an almost earnest tone: "However, this disciple can swear here that if I can have Junior Sister Xuanji as my concubine, I will treat her with all my heart and never let her suffer the slightest grievance. All the necessities of the household will be the same as those for the principal wife, without any shortage. In the future... if she has any children, I will also cultivate them carefully and never treat them poorly because they are born out of wedlock."
He finally laid bare his intention to "take her as a concubine," adopting a rather humble posture, even with a hint of desperate pleading, yet deep in his words lay a resolute determination to succeed.
The color drained slightly from Madam Wen's face, and her fingers tightened slightly around the hand warmer. She instinctively looked at her husband beside her.
Wen Tingyun's face was ashen. After a long while, he slowly spoke, his voice not loud, but carrying a chilling weight:
"Zi'an, do you know what Xuanji's status is in my Wen family?"
Li Yi met his gaze and said frankly, "This disciple knows. Master and Mistress treat Junior Sister Xuanji like their own daughter."
"Since you know her like a daughter," Wen Tingyun's voice suddenly rose an octave, filled with unmistakable anger, "you come to my husband and me today and ask to take her as a concubine!"
"Please calm down, sir!" Li Yi immediately cupped his hands, his posture still respectful, but his tone remained firm. "I know this request is presumptuous. However, I am overcome with affection and cannot control myself. Moreover... this may be the best solution for the moment. I will certainly..."
"Both sides?" Wen Tingyun interrupted him, sneered, and suddenly stood up. "What do you mean by 'both sides'? Is it to satisfy your admiration, Scholar Li, or to uphold the prestige and rules of the Li family of Hedong? You actually think that my disciple, Wen Feiqing's disciple, can become someone's concubine!"
His voice echoed in the hall, carrying a furious rage born of humiliation. Madam Wen gently tugged at his sleeve.
Li Yi stood frozen in place, seemingly not expecting Wen Tingyun's reaction to be so intense. He pursed his lips, remained silent for a moment, and then said in a low voice, "It was this disciple... who was not thorough in his consideration." Even so, a trace of resentment and gloom flashed in his eyes.
Wen Tingyun turned away with a flick of his sleeve, no longer looking at him, leaving only a cold sentence: "Never mention this matter again!"
Madam Wen watched her husband's departing figure, her eyes filled with worry.
Li Yi stood there, his handsome face as if covered with frost. Finally, he bowed deeply to Madam Wen, said nothing, and strode away.
He felt a tightness in his chest, mixed with the embarrassment of being so decisively rejected. His steps were quick and heavy, as if he were rushing through the corridor.
Just around the corner of the corridor, a familiar figure in plain clothes suddenly came into view.
Xuanji was carrying a bowl of freshly stewed rock sugar pears, intending to deliver it to Madam Wen's room, when she unexpectedly bumped into Li Yi who was coming from the opposite direction. She clearly did not expect to meet him at this moment. She paused, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes, but then regained her composure, politely stepping aside to let him pass, lowering her eyes and curtsying: "Young Master Li."
Li Yi suddenly stopped in his tracks.
All the emotions he had suppressed in the hall seemed to burst forth the moment he saw her. Looking at her aloof and polite demeanor, and recalling Wen Tingyun's cold words, "Don't mention it again," an unprecedented impulse suddenly seized him.
Instead of leaving politely, he took a step forward, closing the distance between them. The corridor was already cramped, and his step instantly brought them closer.
“Youwei…” he began, his voice low and strained due to the surge of emotions.
Startled by his sudden approach and intimate address, Xuanji took a half-step back, her back lightly resting against the cool pillar. She looked up at him, her brows slightly furrowed: "Young Master Li, please have some self-respect."
The distant address of "Young Master Li" ignited a dark fire in his eyes. He stared at her, almost gritting his teeth, his voice low and desperate: "Do you know what I just asked my master and mistress for?"
Xuanji's heart sank, and she looked at him warily.
“I beg them,” Li Yi’s gaze was fixed on her, not allowing her to look away, “to allow me to take you as my concubine!”
Xuanji's pupils contracted sharply, and all color drained from her face. Before she could react, Li Yi's words fell like a torrential rain, carrying a chaotic yet fervent emotion: "I know, my concubine, I have wronged you! But I... I have always had you in my heart! From the day we first met under the tree in the manor, I have never forgotten you. Later, we studied literature and calligraphy together, and your poetic talent captivated me even more. And then there was the knee pads you gave me, which I treasured, believing that your heartfelt sentiments were reserved solely for me. Later, I learned that my fellow disciples all had them, and that's why I was momentarily blinded and deliberately neglected you. But it is precisely because of this that I understand even more clearly—I cannot let you go. However, if it weren't for the obstacles from my family and the constraints of social status, wouldn't I have longed to formally marry you as my principal wife through the proper rites and formalities!"
His voice was filled with pain and resentment, as well as an almost obsessive possessiveness: "Marry me, even as a concubine, I, Li Yi, swear to heaven that I will never betray you in this life! No one in the manor will dare to treat you with the slightest disrespect! It's better than you being left in the Wen manor like this... like this, without any explanation!"
The last sentence was almost blurted out, carrying a hint of thoughtlessness born of unfulfilled desire that even he himself was unaware of.
Xuanji's face, which had been pale with shock and humiliation, flushed red when she heard the last sentence. She straightened her back and her gaze sharpened. "Young Master Li," her voice was not loud, but it was unusually clear and cold, "please be careful with your words. The Wen family is a place of great gratitude to me, not a place of 'unclear and ambiguous' matters."
She took a deep breath and spoke each word with unwavering resolve: "Your 'favor' is unbearable for Xuanji. To be a concubine is absolutely not my wish. This matter need not be mentioned again, and I ask that you...forget about it immediately!"
Having said that, she stopped looking at his momentarily stunned and embarrassed expression, picked up the still-warm pear, and resolutely walked past him.
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