"I was really drunk, that's why I lost my composure, sigh... I'll go apologize to him!" Li Fan forced himself to sit up.
Shen Lixue raised an eyebrow. Li Fan had always been a womanizer, and it didn't matter to him whether he had one more woman or one less. His persistence today must be due to his father's orders or something similar. He was determined to win Chu Youran's favor and arrange a marriage between the two families.
“Young Master Li, my younger sister is stubborn. If she’s angry with you, she’ll keep avoiding you. Even if you go to my house, you might not be able to see her!”
"I am rather dull-witted, please enlighten me, elder brother!" Before anything was even settled, Li Fan changed his form of address and tried to get closer to Shen Lixue.
Shen Lixue opened her folding fan with a swish, shook it gently a few times, and said inscrutably, "This matter is quite simple. My little sister listens to my father the most. As long as you appease my father, I guarantee that my little sister will obediently marry you!"
Li Fan's eyes lit up. Yes, marriage is always arranged by parents. As long as Governor Chu agrees, he's not afraid Chu Youran won't comply: "Brother, I will never forget your guidance..."
Shen Lixue sighed and said casually, "We'll be family soon, why be so polite? Men, when they're drunk, they're not thinking clearly and are bound to make mistakes. I think highly of Young Master Li, but my little sister is too stubborn..."
"Brother, what are your father-in-law's preferences?" Shen Lixue's questions were all directed at Li Fan, and Li Fan relaxed as well. He inquired about Governor Chu's hobbies. When he went to visit, he naturally had to bring a gift, and the gift had to be something that suited his tastes to achieve the best effect.
“My father likes to eat very sour plums, and he also likes poetry and calligraphy. He appreciates talented people the most. Why don’t you, Mr. Li, compile your best poems into a book, frame it carefully, and show it to him? When he sees your superb talent, he will surely be very satisfied with you as his son-in-law.”
As she spoke, Shen Lixue's eyes deepened, and she emphasized, "He likes beautifully bound albums, so you mustn't make them look shabby, or it will backfire..."
"Of course!" As the eldest grandson of the Prime Minister's family, how could he possibly present a shabby booklet? Even if the man surnamed Chu didn't say anything, he would still prepare the most magnificent booklet for Governor Chu to see.
However, it seems he has never written any poetry!
No problem, just find a few talented but impoverished writers, buy their poems, compile them into a book, and claim them as your own.
Shen Lixue looked up at the sun in the sky and said leisurely, "Young Master Li, we eat dinner together in our family. You'd better see my father before dinner, otherwise, given my little sister's temper, she might complain about you during dinner, and then you'll have no hope!"
"Thank you for the reminder, brother. I'll go prepare right away!" Li Fan clasped his hands in gratitude and led his servants quickly onto the carriage to return to the city.
The carriage cast a long shadow in the sunlight. Shen Lixue smiled. The Chu and Li families had already decided on a marriage alliance, and the Prime Minister's Mansion had protected Li Fan so well that very few people knew about the despicable things he had done. Governor Chu, who came from out of town, knew even less about it.
If it was just a drunken tantrum, it wouldn't shake their decision to marry. She had to add fuel to the fire, expose Li Fan's true colors, and make Governor Chu give up on the marriage.
"You ruined Li Fan and Chu Youran's marriage. Aren't you afraid that Prime Minister Li will cause you trouble?" Nangong Xiao emerged from the shadows, slowly fanning himself with a folding fan.
Shen Lixue curled her lips into a cold smile: "If he causes me trouble, it just proves that he's forming cliques on his own..."
Looking at the water, Nangong Xiao said calmly, "It's not necessarily Prime Minister Li who's been trying to win over officials on his own. The marriage between Chu Youran and Li Fan might just be a coincidence."
"You know Li Fan's character. If Chu Youran marries him, her life will be ruined!" Whether it's a coincidence or not, Shen Lixue will not let Chu Youran marry Li Fan.
"So what are you planning to do?" Shen Lixue asked Li Fan to prepare poems, purely to curry favor with Governor Chu. How could she get Governor Chu to cancel the marriage?
"Heavenly secrets cannot be revealed!" Shen Lixue smiled mysteriously, her cold eyes flashing with light: "You'll find out when the time comes!"
As the sun set, wisps of smoke rose from the chimneys of every house. Shen Lixue, dressed in men's white robes and sporting a black beard, sat leisurely by the artificial hill, sipping her tea. Amidst the rising steam, Li Fan's hurried face came into view: "Big Brother!"
Shen Lixue put down her teacup and glanced to the side. Li Fan strode over, tall and handsome, followed by three guards. One carried a beautifully bound booklet, another a basket of pickled plums, and the third many other gifts: "Young Master Li is very thoughtful!"
"The fault was mine, and I should admit it!" Li Fan smiled slightly, full of pride.
Shen Lixue's cool gaze swept over the three guards indifferently: "My father doesn't like noise. Leave the gifts here for now. Young Master Li, please take the booklet and the pickled plums and go in to see him by yourself!"
"Alright!" Governor Chu's residence was not a den of dragons or tigers, so Li Fan had nothing to fear. He immediately took the fruit basket from the guards. When he took the booklet, his hand suddenly went numb, and the booklet fell straight to the ground.
"Careful!" Shen Lixue stretched out her slender hand, her wide white sleeve sweeping over the booklet and stuffing it inside. Another booklet appeared in her hand in a substitution. Everything happened too fast, in the blink of an eye. Li Fan and the guards did not notice anything amiss: "Young Master Li, be careful!"
"Thank you, brother!" Li Fan took the booklet without even looking at it, and walked briskly towards the living room with a big smile.
Watching Li Fan's figure disappear behind the second gate, Shen Lixue smiled meaningfully.
In the living room, Chu Youran recounted what had happened on the pleasure boat, and sighed, "Father, how can you marry someone like that, whose character is so bad?"
Governor Chu frowned. His good friend had clearly said that Li Fan was of good character when he introduced him, so how could this be?
"Master, Young Master Li Fan is outside requesting an audience," a servant announced from outside the door.
Chu Youran's gaze sharpened. He had arrived so quickly. Remembering what Shen Lixue had told her, she frowned and said in a coquettish tone, "Father!"
"You go hide behind the screen first, and I'll see Li Fan's character for myself!" Governor Chu was a rational man. His good friend said Li Fan was a good person, while his daughter said he was a bad one. He didn't know who to believe and wanted to meet Li Fan in person.
"Alright!" Chu Youran, her face composed, quickly walked behind the screen, where Governor Chu invited Li Fan in.
"Junior Li Fan greets Uncle Chu!" Upon entering, Li Fan greeted Uncle Chu politely, displaying an elegant demeanor without being servile or arrogant.
Governor Chu nodded kindly. "Not bad, very polite." "Sit down!"
"Thank you, Uncle!" Li Fan smiled politely, sat down opposite Governor Chu, placed the fruit basket containing sour plums on the table, and pushed it toward Governor Chu.
"These are fresh plums picked from the garden. They taste quite good. Uncle, please try them!" He had brought the plums specifically to curry favor with Governor Chu, but he couldn't say it out loud. He had to act naturally in order to leave a better impression on Governor Chu.
"Good!" Governor Chu's impression of Li Fan improved even more. Bringing a gift when visiting an elder shows good manners. The value of the gift is not important; what matters is the sentiment and the courtesy.
He picked up the sour plum, took a small bite, and the strong sour taste instantly filled his mouth. His teeth almost crumbled from the sourness. Governor Chu's expression changed instantly. The old man had bad teeth and couldn't eat sour food. He had actually brought such a sour plum. He was polite, but he had no good intentions.
My good impression of Li Fan instantly turned into a neutral one.
"Uncle Chu, I am not very talented, but I have done some small works in my spare time. Please give me some pointers!" Li Fan said modestly, handing over the exquisite booklet.
Governor Chu's teeth ached from the sourness, and he was displeased, but Li Fan was humble and eager to learn, so he couldn't refuse. He took the booklet, opened it, and his pupils suddenly contracted.
The beautifully framed album contained not poems or calligraphy, but pictures of naked men and women embracing each other and engaging in the most primal acts. Each picture featured a different position, truly comparable to a forbidden live sex show.
"Did Young Master Li make all of these himself?" Governor Chu suppressed his anger and looked at Li Fan calmly.
"A rough draft from my spare time!" Li Fan continued modestly. The poems in the booklet were all bought from impoverished scholars. He had glanced at a few and found the artistic conception quite good. Governor Chu was probably testing him.
"The painting is so lifelike and expressive, yet it's called a rough work!" Governor Chu's anger intensified: "The mounting is very ornate; Young Master Li has clearly put a lot of effort into it!"