The most foolish in the world

Chapter 54

"Then why don't you just not defend yourself? Otherwise, what kind of self-inflicted wound is that!"

"No, no, I was only acting in self-defense."

...

While the two were engaged in a lively back-and-forth battle, Fan Qingbo tidied up the new bed, tucked away the peanuts, nuts, and other junk that had gotten stuck under the sheets, and then snuggled into bed to catch up on some sleep.

When she woke up, it was past noon. She had woken up from hunger, and the two men were still fighting. However, the situation had changed; the scholar was now drinking tea and imparting his knowledge, while Fan Bing had already collapsed, clutching his head.

Seeing that she was conscious, Fan Bing rushed over as if he had been saved, his face contorted with grief, half pleading and half threatening, "Master, I can't live like this anymore, please divorce this man surnamed Shu! In this house, it's either him or me, it's either him or him!"

The scholar shifted his position and decisively stepped between the two, saying sternly, "Marriage is not something to be taken lightly! Brother Fan, ruining someone's marriage is very immoral. Please have some self-respect."

Fan Qingbo glanced at the two people who were sticking to their own stories, rolled his eyes, and said casually, "As the saying goes, even a day as husband and wife is worth a hundred days of kindness. You two have already gone through the wedding ceremony. What could be so important that you can't sit down and talk it out instead of resorting to violence?"

Upon hearing this, both the scholar and Fan Bing turned pale, and in rare unison, exclaimed, "Wife! (Master!)"

This is undoubtedly an indelible stain on the lives of these two people.

"Alright, alright, stop fooling around. I'm hungry. Be good, go cook." Fan Qingbo stopped her at the right time.

Fan Bingqiang resisted the urge to obediently run out to cook, and said with a stiff upper lip, "Master, I won't do it unless you agree to divorce him!"

Fan Qingbo narrowed her eyes dangerously, when the scholar beside her hurriedly interjected, "Then, my lady, let's go eat outside!"

"Hey! You surnamed Shu! What do you mean?!" Fan Bing exploded again.

"Brother Fan, you can come too," the scholar invited with a warm smile, completely unaware of what he was angry about.

Seeing that another fight was about to break out, Fan Qingbo's eyelids twitched, and he muttered, "I really can't live like this anymore."

Fan Bing's eyes lit up, but then he heard her continue, "Take your time fighting. Kill whichever one of them you want, it's on me. Don't come looking for me if you don't kill them."

A note from the author: I have various exams next week, and I will start focusing on studying from today, so updates will be slower. I hope you can understand.

37 scholars were completely defeated by Xiao Fanbing

On her very first day of marriage, Fan Qingbo was probably the only woman in Beijing to wander the streets like that. She felt incredibly annoyed by the curious stares of passersby. Her two male companions at home were constantly arguing, and then they'd try to get her to judge their arguments, only to have their voices drown out hers as soon as she opened her mouth. Feeling like a superfluous third wheel, she decided to go out and find some food.

"Sister Fan, it's been a long time since you've come. What would you like to eat?"

"Soup dumplings, fish soup."

The waiter was greeting her enthusiastically, which only deepened Fan Qingbo's frustration. Outside, everyone called her Manager Fan, but back at Qingmo Workshop, people were noticeably more formal. Close neighbors called her Little Fan, while the rest of the less familiar ones addressed her respectfully as "Big Sister." This was ancient times, after all; in your early twenties, calling someone "Miss" was out of the question, everyone called her "Big Sister," and in another two or three years, she'd probably be promoted to "Auntie."

That being said, now that she's married, shouldn't these people call her Madam Shu or Sister-in-law Shu?

—Scholar, your presence is too insignificant.

July's heat was intense, the season was perfect. In her past life, Fan Qingbo loved summer the most because she could dress up as she pleased; however, now she preferred autumn. Winter and spring in the capital were unbearably cold, and the temperatures of summer and autumn were actually about the same for her cold constitution. However, autumn made it easier for her to cover herself up without attracting attention. In summer, if she dressed even slightly more modestly, she would have to disguise herself more carefully what was exposed—it was troublesome.

Come to think of it, the scholar was probably the only one who didn't find anything strange about it at all. So meeting the scholar should be her luck, considering even she herself couldn't stand it. Previously, she thought he had never held a woman before, and had read some strange books that led to a flawed understanding, assuming all women were like that. But now it turns out he is experienced; so where did his strange assumption come from?

A burst of joyful music approached from afar, interrupting Fan Qingbo's thoughts.

She called out to the waiter who was about to leave after serving the dishes, "Hey, Xiao Zheng, whose family is celebrating a happy occasion?"

"Oh, it's the Qiu family's daughter. She's said to be marrying into Jincheng, which isn't too far, but it's still a two or three-hour journey. Look, the groom's family came to fetch her just after noon. Sigh, how could she marry so suddenly? My brother is going to be heartbroken for a while."

Xiao Zheng spoke of his concern for his elder brother, but his expression was somewhat dismissive, clearly indicating that he was still naive and had only a superficial understanding of matters between men and women.

The music grew closer, and a procession emerged from the alleyway. The one leading the procession, draped in a red embroidered ball and riding a tall horse, must be the groom, right? Remembering that Qiu Yi had once been fond of a scholar, Fan Qingbo couldn't help but glance at him a few more times. He was tall and handsome, with a few expressions on his face, exuding an air of authority. He seemed quite good-looking, but rather far removed from Qiu Yi's preferred gentle and refined type; however, he certainly fit her aesthetic.

As she was admiring the view, she suddenly noticed a strange gaze on her side. Turning around, she saw Xiao Zheng looking at her with a complicated expression.

Damn it, she just glanced at him a few times, it's not like she was going to assault a man in the street, what's with that expression on his face? Hey, don't think she won't hear him say "poor scholar" just because he's keeping his words to himself! Does her face say "cheating" or something?!

"Stop your wild imagination!" Fan Qingbo slapped the table. "Little Zheng, you're just a kid, don't think too much about things. I'm just curious about who this person is that makes our neighborhood beauty so eager to get married."

Xiao Zheng paused for a moment, then shook his head and said, "The one who's going to fetch the bride isn't the Qiu family's son-in-law, it's his younger brother."

Seeing the surprise on Fan Qingbo's face, Xiao Zheng felt a little smug. He cleared his throat and continued mysteriously, "I heard that the eldest young master of the Jin family had a verbal engagement with Miss Qiuyi since they were young. However, he fell seriously ill when he was ten years old, and has been bedridden ever since. The marriage between the two families was delayed. In the blink of an eye, the man is twenty-four and the woman is eighteen. In this year, the Jin family has proposed the marriage to the Qiu family many times. The Qiu couple did not want their daughter to marry a sickly man, but they were also afraid that people would say they broke the engagement. They were undecided, but a few days ago, Miss Qiuyi agreed without hesitation. The Jin family was naturally overjoyed. Fearing any changes, they sent people to fetch the bride early. The eldest young master of the Jin family is weak and not fit for the long journey, so he sent his younger brother to fetch the bride in his place."

After hearing the explanation, Fan Qingbo was speechless for a long time, and could only sigh dryly in the end.

She instinctively felt that Qiu Yi's sudden agreement to the marriage was probably related to her marriage to the scholar. She remembered that when the scholar first came, she had warned her not to seduce him. At this moment, it would be too hypocritical to say she felt guilty, and too pretentious to say she wished him well. Besides sighing, she didn't know what else she could do.

Life is often beyond our control; all we can do is stay true to our decisions. To regret, blame others, and wallow in self-pity afterward is undoubtedly the most foolish thing to do, only pushing oneself into a tragic situation. Who says that getting what you don't want necessarily means tragedy? Even with the worst hand, she believed that with skillful management, there was still a chance to win. Moreover, while her current hand wasn't what she expected, it was far from being terrible.

Even though the card that just came in seems to be rejected by the cards already in my hand...

Fan Qingbo quickly put Qiu Yi's marriage out of his mind and began to think about solutions to the problems that were brewing in his own backyard.

Running away wasn't the solution. She quickly finished a basket of steamed buns with the fish soup, tossed down a string of copper coins, and strode out of the small restaurant. She was going to establish family rules and set her authority! She refused to believe that she couldn't handle a husband who obeyed her every word and a younger brother who was submissive to her.

Fan Qingbo didn't go straight back to the Shu family's house, but instead went to the Fan family's house first. She had already planned that after getting married, she would naturally move in with the scholar, leaving the Fan family's house to Fan Bing, where meals would still be provided daily, and she could eat at the Fan family's house and stay at the Shu family's house. She took a box of eyebrow pencils from the study before heading to the opposite door. Her books and manuscripts were all packed in boxes and sent to the opposite door as part of her dowry, but she had forgotten to pack the eyebrow pencils.

She had prepared a long and arduous battle, but as she approached the gate, she heard the sound of reading aloud.

"At birth, people are inherently good; their natures are similar, but their habits differ..."

Wait, isn't the scholar supposed to be on a wedding leave and not holding classes today?

Fan Qingbo pushed open the door suspiciously and went in, then saw a hallucination. It must be a hallucination! She blinked hard. How could it be? How could she see the scholar and Fan Bing sitting harmoniously and amicably under a tree, teaching each other to recite the Three Character Classic? It must be, it must be that the way she opened the door was wrong!

She mumbled incoherently as she retraced her steps back outside, then reverently pushed the door open again and went back in—