The hall that had been full to the point of bursting emptied out in an instant.
Miss Su stood on the right side of the hall with her mother and aunts. She had her head and eyes lowered, the very picture of a virtuous and humble woman.
Old Duchess Ying cast a measuring gaze over her before she was satisfied. She beckoned to Miss Su, “Miss Su, come over to Grandmother.”
Miss Su shot a quick glance at her mother before hurrying over to the old duchess.
The old duchess patted her head with affection, “Our Miss Su has already grown into a young lady in the blink of an eye. Look at how lovely these cheeks are. Grandmother still remembers when you were just a tiny little infant in your mother’s arms!”
These ‘caring’ words were very generic and had been used hundreds of times over. Back when it had been time for Second Miss to be betrothed, the old duchess had said the exact same words. The same had gone for Fourth Miss. Now that she was saying them to Fifth Miss Su, everyone pricked up their ears.
As much as Miss Su didn’t like this grandmother of hers, she still showed her respect. “Granddaughter thanks Grandmother for her concern.”
“Ay, my good granddaughter.” Old Duchess Ying spoke with so much feeling that it almost seemed like her eyes were about to tear up.
If not for the unspoken understanding in the family that the matriarch didn’t like girls, they might even have been moved by this show of grandmotherly love.
One of the maidservants handed the old duchess a handkerchief just in time and the old duchess dabbed at the corners of her eyes.
“Since you’re already a grown lady, Grandmother can’t keep you any longer. I’ve been in discussion with your grandfather these few days and we’ve chosen a good husband for you. You and your mother should be familiar with the man in question- he’s our estate’s top scholar!”
When Miss Su heard this, her body trembled in shock. She lost control of her emotions and was about to reject it on the spot. However, before she could say anything, her mother tugged at her.
The madam of the main branch chuckled and said, “That really is a good marriage partner for our Miss Su. You’ve worked hard, Mother.”
There were all sorts of expressions on display in the hall right now, making for a marvellous show!
Miss Yuan was standing next to her own mother. When she heard the news, her eyes immediately widened and she looked as if she was in disbelief.
Mister Xiao had such extraordinary looks and he was the top scholar to boot! How could he possibly marry Miss Su?!
After the imperial examinations, Xiao Bojian had visited the Ying Estate often. Due to his newly earned status, he came and went from the estate freely. House Ying was falling over themselves and trying their best to treat him as one of their own, as if that would somehow make him one of their descendants.
He had already created a reputation for himself in the imperial college even before he had attended the imperial examinations. Later on, when he had become the top scholar, he had become even more popular as a target of admiration for most of the men and women in the capital.
Miss Yuan hadn’t seen him much previously. Now that Xiao Bojian was regularly coming and going from the Ying Estate, Miss Yuan had found a chance to sneak a peek at him. From just that one peek, her heart had fallen for him.
She wasn’t a young child any longer. She would turn fifteen and become of marriageable age in the new year.
Xiao Bojian had a bright future ahead of him. How could she do nothing upon hearing that Grandmother wanted to betroth Miss Su to him?
The moment she got back to the second branch, Miss Yuan hugged her mother’s leg and started complaining.
Second Madam only had this one precious daughter, so she naturally thought of Miss Yuan first in all things. She had a pretty good impression of Xiao Bojian as well, so her heart softened when her daughter pleaded with her.
When Miss Yuan saw that she had a chance, she continued hugging her mother and playing up to her, asking her mother to persuade Grandmother to let her marry Xiao Bojian instead.
Things weren’t set yet and only their family knew about it so far.
Hadn’t Chu Lian been sent to House Jing’an because Miss Su had fallen sick that time? If Grandmother couldn’t be convinced, then couldn’t she just have Miss Su fall sick again?
Back in Liangzhou and Su City, worries over the war had dampened the festive spirits of the residents.
He Changdi stood before his tent and looked up at the grey sky. It was already dusk. Night would be falling soon.
Time was trickling slowly, second by second, towards Xiao Bojian’s deadline.
He turned to the direction of the commander’s tent, only to see Xiao Bojian slowly walking towards him with that same guard next to him.
Suddenly, He Sanlang’s slightly slanted eyes narrowed as his frozen features broke out into a faint smile.
Xiao Bojian hadn’t even taken more than two steps when a soldier came running from behind and requested his presence.
His leisurely and relaxed expression flipped into a gloomy one and he seemed to have turned into a monster who seemed ready to swallow humans alive. “What did you say?! The Min Family army is here?!”
The soldier shrunk into himself and nodded, not daring to say anything at all.
Xiao Bojian ground his teeth hard. He shot a cold glare towards He Changdi’s tent and just so happened to catch the sight of He Changdi standing in front of his tent with his back straight and hands behind his back. Although there was still a distance between them, their gazes seemed to clash in midair with imaginary sparks.
It was as if a thunderclap had split the cloudy skies.
The Min army guarded the border running along the Min River and there were thirty thousand soldiers serving in it. The commander of the Min army was an old comrade of Count Jing’an. At the same time, he was also a subordinate of Prince Jin.
Zhang Mai and Xiao Hongyu had gotten the news as well. They rushed out from the tent and bumped fists with He Changdi. Zhang Mai lamented, “Zixiang, if you hadn’t taken precautions and sent Leader Mo’s group away when we entered the city, the Min army wouldn’t have been able to rush here in time.”
In his previous life, He Changdi had experienced the fickle nature of humans, as well betrayal from those he once trusted. How could he remain the same naive fool as before? Of course he had kept a contingency plan when it came to something as important as the lives of his comrades.
Within an hour, He Changdi and his party had been invited to the commander’s tent.
