The Charm of a Powerful Woman Spreads Across the World - Chapter 182
Inside the luxurious private room, the three remained silent, each lost in their own thoughts.
Chapter 142 Calm
Several days passed quickly. Ru Feng and Mu Wenchen only met in the evenings, because they had been discovered that night, so they didn't go to the night market again, afraid of running into them again. Ru Feng didn't ask Mu Wenchen what he had done that night.
Sometimes, Ru Feng thought being an ostrich wasn't so bad. She wouldn't ask him things he shouldn't know.
Now, Ru Feng has many troubles and his life is unusually rich, with the conflicts mainly concentrated on a few people.
For example:
"Ru Feng, come here and look at these portraits that Grandpa has picked out for you. They are all portraits of well-bred ladies, dignified and virtuous. Grandpa has heard of them or seen them before. They are all granddaughters or daughters of Grandpa's friends. Come and take a look. If you find one that suits you, then we can make a deal. That way, we can become even closer relatives." Yu Chi Huaiyang rarely spoke to Ru Feng with a smile. He was holding a large pile of portraits in his hands, and he was practically offering Ru Feng a piece of candy to tempt her.
Ru Feng swung his sword even faster. If he could use his lightness skill, he would have already leaped over the wall. It was best to get away quickly in a situation like this.
"Ru Feng! Stop right there!" Seeing that Ru Feng was ignoring him, Yu Chi Huaiyang shouted and winked at Zhong Ying beside him.
Zhong Ying nodded, drew the sword from his waist, and leaped into the training ground. After several rounds, Ru Feng, lacking internal energy, quickly became breathless.
"You're bullying me!" Ru Feng stopped and looked at Zhong Ying. If he hadn't been an acquaintance and hadn't saved her life on the battlefield, she really would have wanted to use her trump card. Don't think that you can't kill someone just because you don't have internal energy.
However… Ru Feng shrugged, realizing that subduing the enemy right now would be quite difficult, unless he could use drugs.
Zhong Ying simply smiled and said, "Young Master, please forgive me." Then he stood behind Yuchi Huaiyang.
Ru Feng glared at him again. Always following behind his grandfather, he was almost expressionless, with a stern face all day long. His grandfather had really ruined a promising young man.
"Grandpa, I don't want to get married!" Ru Feng muttered, looking at the wooden sword in his hand.
“I don’t care. You’ll get married sooner or later anyway. It’s better to get married sooner rather than later. It’s good to settle down first. Besides, you’re almost twenty years old. You’re not young anymore.” Yu Chi Huaiyang said earnestly, trying his best to be kind, although his face twitched a little.
Although flattered, Ru Feng insisted, "I don't want to now. I'm still young, I'm only twenty in a year." Ru Feng glanced at him quickly, and finally hardened her heart, saying, "Alright, Grandpa, as long as Father and Mother agree to my marriage, I will definitely marry. Take these portraits to them, I trust their judgment." Father and Mother, I'm so sorry, I'm just so annoyed. Grandpa doesn't have to go to court now, and there's no war, so he's very free. But while he's free, I'm not. Although being the Vice Minister of War is very leisurely, I still have to go to work occasionally, so I can only push Grandpa onto you.
Upon hearing this, Yuchi Huaiyang looked at Rufeng suspiciously and asked, "Is this really true?"
Ru Feng firmly patted his chest: "A man's word is his bond!"
"Very good!" Seeing that his efforts to entangle Ru Feng for several days had not yielded any results, Yu Chi Huaiyang decided to change tactics and try a different approach.
Ru Feng breathed a sigh of relief. Although it was a bit unfair, his parents were also involved. If they hadn't kept it a secret all these years, he might have been exposed long ago. So helping them one more time wouldn't hurt.
However, she probably won't be able to hide her true gender for long.
Both Ru Feng and Mu Wenchen were aware of this and were mentally prepared.
What Ru Feng wants most right now is to persuade his parents to tell his grandfather the truth so that they can make preparations as soon as possible to avoid further shock to his grandfather. Unfortunately, they refuse to do so, and in addition, Yu Chi Huaiyang is currently in poor health, so the situation is at a stalemate.
The second troublesome matter was the matchmaker issue. Ru Feng sighed that this era was not as feudal and hierarchical as he had imagined. Here, men could go to women's homes to propose marriage, and women could go to men's homes to propose marriage. However, men usually preferred to be present in person when proposing marriage, but women usually did not attend in person and would only send a matchmaker.
The current assessment of Ru Feng in the capital is that he is both scholarly and martial, polite and courteous in his dealings with others, and respectful to women. He is a gentleman, and his handsome appearance and good family background make him even more sought after.
That's why Ru Feng is so busy and troublesome now.
Although Matchmaker Song was intimidated by Ru Feng's "beauty" and decided against doing business with her that day, the other matchmakers wouldn't stand for it. Even if it wasn't Matchmaker Song, there was Matchmaker Zhang, Matchmaker Huang...
The matchmakers described the women in glowing terms, as if they were all fairies descended from heaven. They also took advantage of the situation to do business with Ru Xue. As a result, within a few days, the side gate of the General's Mansion was bustling with visitors, much to the annoyance of the steward and exhausting the parents.
Since my parents are already struggling to cope, it's time for me to step in.
One noon, as if they had all agreed beforehand, all the matchmakers gathered in the main hall of the general's mansion.
Ru Feng waved her straw fan, looking at everyone with a cheerful smile.
Among the matchmakers, some looked at Ru Feng with smiles, some were uneasy, and some were overjoyed.
When Ru Feng saw that the Qi people had arrived, she said, "Good afternoon, ladies." Ru Feng stood up and cupped her hands in greeting.
The women quickly stood up to return the greeting, looking at Ru Feng with a sense of flattery and surprise. These past few days, General Yuchi hadn't been able to see them, and young master Ru Feng and his parents had avoided them whenever possible, or at other times they'd just sit there shaking their heads, looking dazed, as if they hadn't woken up properly. They'd make an excuse to leave after a while, and young master Ru Feng was even rarer to see. They never expected him to gather everyone today and personally greet them. They were truly flattered and surprised; the world had changed so quickly.
Ru Feng smiled slightly, gesturing for everyone to sit down before speaking, "I believe everyone is curious about why I asked you to come. I'm quite straightforward and don't like beating around the bush, so I'll just say it directly. Please forgive me if I offend anyone." After speaking, Ru Feng smiled and looked at everyone one by one.
Those matchmakers were all elderly women who worked for the government and were quite shrewd and knowledgeable. However, when Ru Feng looked at them like that, they all blushed and their hearts raced. They all expressed that they were not angry and were willing to hear the details.
Seeing this, Ru Feng chuckled to herself, coughed lightly, and the butler standing behind her immediately handed her a notebook.
After opening the document, Ru Feng looked at the crowd and said, "I, Yu Chi Ru Feng, am deeply grateful for everyone's kindness. These past few days, several people have come to propose marriage. Thank you all. Now, let me first give a self-evaluation." Ru Feng cleared his throat and, seeing the bewildered crowd, continued, "I, Yu Chi Ru Feng, am the only male grandson of the Yu Chi family. It is said that I am learned and talented, especially in poetry. I only admit that I have a good memory and have read a few books. As for being able to compose poetry, that's just because I occasionally get lucky; it's nothing special."
Just then, someone interrupted, "No, Young Master Rufeng, we believe you are definitely a great talent. This is not something that can be achieved just by being lucky."
The others echoed their sentiments, their expressions filled with admiration and excitement.
Ru Feng's lips twitched slightly before he continued, "Alright, even if I'm literate, I'm currently afflicted with a strange poison, and I might not be able to regain my martial arts skills even after I recover. So, in short, I'm just a weak scholar, and I'm afraid I won't be able to protect my wife and children in the future." He coughed a few times as he spoke, and Zhou Qian behind him quickly brought him a cup of water, which Ru Feng took and pretended to drink.
“No, no, Young Master Rufeng, I don’t think you are. Who in the capital doesn’t know your reputation? You were able to replace General Yuchi as marshal and defeat the Spring Vine Kingdom, then get them to sign a peace treaty with us. How could you be anything less than that? So you are definitely not a weak scholar. Even if your martial arts skills cannot be restored in the future, you will still be a man of iron will in our hearts!” A matchmaker stood up and said passionately, winning the agreement of the others.
Ru Feng's lips twitched again. Ugh, even wanting to be humble for once wasn't an option. Next time Yu Xuan mocked her arrogance, she'd beat him up. Sigh, it seems the masses have discerning eyes, Ru Feng thought to herself with secret delight.
Ru Feng coughed lightly again and continued with a smile, "Alright, let's not talk about that anymore. Let's get back to the main topic. To be honest, although I am very happy to receive your kindness, I am truly unworthy of it. I, Yu Chi Ru Feng, have watched my parents love each other since I was a child, and I vowed then that when I grew up, I would only marry one person, and that person would definitely be someone I love. Therefore, I am not fortunate enough to receive your kindness."
"Young Master Rufeng, you're not talking about Miss Zuiyue, are you? In my opinion, Miss Zuiyue is good, but as a principal wife, she's a bit... uh..." someone said suspiciously, not finishing the last sentence, but everyone knew what it meant, and their faces showed agreement.
Ru Feng nearly vomited blood. She hadn't expected them to know even this; the power of paparazzi was truly astounding. She had just been thinking of using Zui Yue as an excuse, and Han Shan had finally agreed. It seemed that trick wouldn't work now.
Ru Feng waved his fan to relieve his frustration, then opened the notebook in his hand and said, "Alright, then I'll be frank. I hope you won't take offense!" Ru Feng snorted inwardly. The time to unleash his power had come. Since being polite wouldn't work, he would resort to savagery.
"In the past five days, the General's Mansion has received a total of 156 matchmakers, with each matchmaker visiting an average of ten times. Therefore, our steward has spent five hours a day receiving you. In these five days, the General's Mansion has consumed 20 catties of tea, 10 taels of silver worth of pastries, worn out a threshold, and broken a fine pear wood stool. The servant who announced the arrival of guests even developed a sore throat and is currently resting. I won't complain about the water and food. However, because of your arrival, my father and mother have been sleep-deprived and are currently taking medicine. Furthermore, the steward hasn't kept accounts these past few days, hasn't arranged for grocery shopping, and some other servants haven't completed their tasks on time, which has significantly lowered our family's quality of life."
As Ru Feng finished speaking, he glanced at the dumbfounded middle-aged women and continued, "So we've decided that we won't be receiving any more ladies from now on. And let me add, there's no need to arrange any more marriages for my sisters; they're not ready yet. If needed, we'll invite you over. Alright, that's all I have to say. Butler, do you have anything to add?"