The battle in Pingyang County had just ended, and the streets were covered in white, filled with memorial banners. With Qingming Festival approaching, no one held weddings at this time; everyone had to wait until the victims had finished their mourning period.
Inside the brothel, Cen Ang pulled Zhang Mama aside and asked...
"Old Zhang, what kind of betrothal gifts did your brother give when he got married?"
The women at Fengyue Tower had mostly recovered in the past few days, so the ladies no longer needed to come and take care of them. Zhang Mama, basking in the sunlight, was picking vegetables at the doorway when she casually replied...
“My brother and sister-in-law were betrothed when they were young. People in the martial arts world care a lot about face. The key is who you invite and who comes to the wedding. Then there are the weapons. The more famous the better. For us martial arts sects, the most prestigious thing is the weapon that so-and-so used.”
"Oh, I see..."
She had money, but she truly lacked weapons. Besides, she didn't know any martial arts practitioners outside of the Zhang family. What to do? Manto still wanted her, as the mother, to negotiate the betrothal gifts with the Mo family.
Although the girl had only been there a short time, once she called out "Mom," she had to take on that responsibility.
"Well, we don't have any weapons. Can you give me money instead?"
The woman picking vegetables stopped what she was doing, and after thinking for a moment, replied...
"The Mohists?"
"Um!"
"Alright, it seems the Mo family is short of money right now. It would be best to prepare two blueprints, the kind with intricate mechanisms, so that we can show them to our guests and make them look presentable."
"drawing……"
"Just let our Long'er draw a few pictures, that's a piece of cake!"
Too.
Huo Xiaolong, whom the two women were talking about, was sitting on the wall watching the group of burly men carrying iron hammers, among whom were several women. They looked to be about the same size as the women of the border town, and in particular, each of them had biceps on their arms, which made the little dumpling laugh silly.
"What are you grinning about again, Long'er?" Mantuo quietly came up behind her, hugged her, and asked.
"Hehehe! Sister Mando!"
"I'm here, what's wrong?"
"You're so kind! You're so amazing!"
Mando was a little confused by these words and didn't understand what Huo Xiaolong meant. She pinched the little dumpling's cheek and asked...
"What's so amazing about your sister? Tell me more about it?"
"I feel like my war machine! And everything I want to fight! are all in place!"
The little dumpling pointed at the Mo family members who were busily packing their luggage and continued...
"If it weren't for Sister Mantuo, where would so many members of the Mo family come from!"
“You!” Mando tapped the little girl’s head.
Huo Xiaolong's chariots were riddled with holes during the city defense a few days ago and needed to be repaired; some were even unusable. Now, things are much better; the little dumpling feels a renewed sense of security.
This time, we're going to get a hundred! A hundred!
Lu Wangji strode to the Mo family's residence, took his mother to discuss the marriage, and glanced at Huo Xiaolong on the wall, making a gun gesture at her.
The little girl's eyes widened; she clearly remembered that the blueprints had all been burned!
The man had just gone to the iron furnace room this morning. He knew that Huo Xiaolong had come here that day, and his master had been nagging him for a long time about how she had broken the room window. So Lu Wangji went to check on the inside and see if there were any safety hazards.
Beside the firewood, there was only a small piece of blueprint that hadn't been burned to ashes. It happened to be the part of the gun mechanism. Lu Wangji picked it up and looked at it for a while.
Oh.
The Mohists have always said he was a genius since he was a child.
If he's a genius, then what is Huo Xiaolong? A monster?
If it were in the past, the genius would definitely be somewhat unconvinced, after all, mechanical skills are what men are most good at, and he would want to compete and see who is better.
It didn't matter anymore. Lu Wangji relit the fire and stuffed the blueprints inside.
It's better this thing never came into the world; the Xiongnu were lucky to be alive. If those two little maids hadn't woken up, they would have truly learned what bloodshed meant.
"Mother, I'm not going back to the Mo family."
"Huh?" Madam Lu didn't even react.
"Don't you have to go back home to hold a wedding banquet when you get married?"
"Do it here."
Lu Wangji is also a man of few words, but he talks more now than before.
“Yes, let’s hold one here, and then take your wife back to hold another one. After that, you two can live a good life in the Mo family and go out to play whenever you want.”
"I won't live my life in the Mohist school, I'll live it here!"
"...?"
"You want to marry into the family?" Old Man Lu finally understood. His son didn't want to go home and just wanted to stay here.
"If not going home is considered marrying into the family, then let's do it."
"..."
"Wangji, your mother only gave birth to you. Our Lu family needs an heir, doesn't it?"
Madam Lu always felt guilty towards her son, so she always spoke to him gently and coaxingly.
"Mother, the only condition Mantuo has for marrying me is that she not leave the brothel. You'll see in a few days. That's good, don't worry."
Madam Lu glanced at her husband, gesturing for him to say a few words of advice. Father Lu had no idea how to begin; from childhood, his wife would always give him the cold shoulder if he spoke even slightly harshly.
Besides, Lu Wangji is a man of his mind; it's clear he's made up his mind. What's the use of persuading him? You can't change his mind.
Watching her son turn and leave, Madam Lu, still angry, slapped the man again.
"I told you to try and persuade him! Why didn't you try? Your son! He's the heir of the Lu family!"
"The women of the Mo family all have quite a strong grip," said Grandpa Lu, clutching his arm with a pitiful expression.
"I can't persuade him either. He's made his decisions since he was a child, and no one can change them now. My wife, how about we just leave it at that..."
"..."
"I don't care anymore! Do whatever you want!"
"That's how it should be..." Old Man Lu muttered softly.
"Have you finished talking to your mother?" Lu Wangji lifted Mantuo and Huo Xiaolong down from the wall, one in each arm, and the woman asked in his arms.
"That's all."
Mando was a little nervous, afraid that Madam Lu would lose her temper with her beloved.
"Did your aunt agree?"
"Agreed."
He had no choice but to agree. Lu Wangji discovered that ever since he promised Mantuo not to leave the brothel, the courtesan had become much nicer to him.
Although it felt a little strange, like he was her wife, showering her with care and concern every day, Lu Wangji accepted it all, his heart brimming with joy.
Manto had already planned it all out. If Madam Lu disagreed, she would shamelessly come to visit every day, and if that didn't work, she would kneel outside to show the Mo family her sincerity.
Marrying someone's only son requires showing respect and dignity to the bride's family, right?
"Brother Wangji, are you going to marry into my family?" Huo Xiaolong asked.
"Um."
"Then can you let your fellow disciples stay and serve as my war chariots?"
Lu Wangji put Huo Xiaolong on the ground and mechanically patted her head, saying...
“Go and persuade my senior uncle to do this. If he speaks up, most people will stay.”
"Hehe~" The little dumpling laughed with a sly look on its face.
“You should teach Long’er a bit better!” Mando said from the side.
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