"Why did you run away from the wedding?"
Fang Yuan didn't understand.
"For one thing, your mother and I both didn't want to be bound by our families."
Fang Zhongwu spoke slowly. "Of course, the main reason was that after we married, I would have had to change my surname."
"Change your surname?" Fang Yuan furrowed his brow.
Fang Zhongwu nodded. "In ancient Aristocratic Clans like your mother's, to preserve the purity of their bloodline, it's rare for their disciples to marry into other families, whether as brides or grooms. And given your mother's status, changing my surname after the marriage was the bare minimum."
"So I'd have been a live-in son-in-law?"
This world had many customs and rules, the very foundation upon which great families passed down their legacies—not to mention ancient Aristocratic Clans whose lineages had endured for countless years.
As the saying went, without rules, nothing could be made orderly.
Strength could indeed break the rules, but only if you were strong enough to bear the consequences.
Otherwise, you had to abide by them.
Murong Jing, for instance, didn't want to be bound by an arranged marriage, but her will alone couldn't change things.
Only after she became a disciple of an Azure Cloud Sect elder and her status rose did she have the standing to speak to her family as an equal—and eventually change the rules.
Rules bound some people, but they also protected others.
"For an ordinary person, the chance to enter an ancient Aristocratic Clan and cultivate would be more than enough. I doubt they'd worry over such a small matter."
Fang Zhongwu gave a bitter smile. A complicated expression crossed his face, and his gaze grew distant.
The ancient Aristocratic Clan had already shown great generosity by overlooking Fang Zhongwu's origins and agreeing