A Soldier's Way
At this point, the steward glanced at Fu Yunkai's face, seeing that he was tightly pursing his lips and remaining silent, and mustered his courage to continue, "Once you get married, you'll have to go to the border, leaving the young master's wife at home to spend time with her day and night. But you haven't even proposed marriage yet, and you've already offended her mother-in-law on her behalf. After the young master's wife enters the family, she will definitely resent you for this."
"Furthermore, marriage is 'arranged by parents and matchmakers,' and your marriage cannot be avoided by your wife. She will only find out when the betrothal ceremony is held, and given her temperament, she will certainly make a scene. This could affect your marriage. Earl of Suiping loves his daughter, he will not easily give in."
Fu Yunkai has a military style, and he is known for his speed, accuracy, and ruthlessness. He is resolute and once he sets his mind on a goal, he will never give up.
Because his mother lacked knowledge and liked to argue unreasonably, even if she objected, she couldn't change his decision, which is why he didn't want to tell his mother about it beforehand.
He figured he could just inform his mother after he had finalized the marriage. Whether his mother was happy or not was irrelevant, as it wouldn't affect his decision.
Therefore, he didn't take the first part of the steward's words seriously. Once he got married, he would hand over the management of the Marquis of Pingnan's Residence's mansion to his wife, and his mother could simply enjoy her old age in the back hall. With his support for his wife, he didn't believe his mother could cause any trouble.
However, the butler's second half of his words successfully dissuaded him.
Because he valued Zhao Ruxi so much, he was determined to secure this marriage. He wouldn't allow any factor to influence it.
He nodded. "You're right. I'll go tell my mother."
As he spoke, he stood up, told a servant to go ahead and inform his mother, and then went into the main hall of the inner courtyard.
"What did you say? You're leaving all the noble ladies in the capital to marry a girl from a lower-ranking earl's family? And one who grew up in the countryside? I don't agree!" Wife of the Marquis of Pingnan shouted at her son upon hearing this.
Lady He, the Wife of the Marquis of Pingnan, was originally a girl from an ordinary peasant family on the frontier. She married a soldier simply because he brought home a monthly salary. Unexpectedly, she rose to become the wife of the Marquis. Ladies who were willing to associate with her family flattered her. She also knew that her husband was highly regarded by the Emperor, and in recent years she had become somewhat arrogant and lost her sense of direction.
She dared not think about her second son Fu Yunlang, but in Lady He's mind, her eldest son Fu Yunkai, was someone even a princess could marry.
When she arranged Fu Yunkai's engagement, she wasn't yet the Lady of the Marquis, so she was dissatisfied with her original daughter-in-law's background. Just then, her original daughter-in-law passed away, and she was enthusiastically planning to find a daughter-in-law of noble birth and gentle nature for her eldest son. However, her son informed her directly that he had already chosen someone, and even that person's rank was lower than hers.
How can this be allowed?
"Mother, I'm just informing you; I don't need your consent. If you don't agree, I can move out after we're married and leave this mansion to you and Yunlang," Fu Yunkai said coldly.
He and his father earned their military merits by risking their lives. This title is only for one generation. If he cannot earn military merits on the frontier, he will lose the title of Marquis of Pingnan after his father's death, and the mansion bestowed by the emperor may even be taken back.
Therefore, Fu Yunkai had no attachment to the house whatsoever. He believed that as long as he was brave and skilled in battle and made great contributions, he could become a Duke. He would not be controlled by his mother for the sake of a house.
Lady He. He was speechless.
Her eldest son had been raised and trained by her husband since he was five years old, and they weren't close at all. Lady He. He was somewhat afraid of her eldest son. Moreover, Lady He. He knew that no matter how much she loved her younger son, her life's honor and disgrace, apart from her husband, depended on her eldest son.
"But... but your brother also has his eye on the girl from the Earl of Suiping's Residence. You can't possibly marry a sister from the same family as him, can you? Wouldn't that make you a laughingstock?" she said weakly.
Fu Yunkai looked at his mother coldly. "Are you saying that because of Yunlang, I can't marry the girl I want to marry? I have to make way for him?"
"No, no, no, that's not what I meant," Lady He quickly waved her hand.
"That's good." Fu Yunkai stood up. "Then it's settled." With that, he strode out.
But he hadn't walked far when he heard his younger brother's wailing coming from the main courtyard. "Mother, I want to marry the daughter of the Earl of Suiping's Residence too! If my brother can marry her, why can't I...?"
Fu Yunkai rubbed his temples wearily and strode away from the backyard.
Back in the front yard, just as he was about to instruct the steward to invite the matchmaker, he heard Xiao Lingpu's summons, asking him to go to the Cloud-Gazing Pavilion.
"Let's put this aside for now and talk about it when I get back," Fu Yunkai said, standing up as instructed the steward.
After thinking for a moment, he added, "Keep an eye on the movements in the backyard. Report to me when I return if anything happens to Madam and the Second Young Master."
"Yes."
When Fu Yunkai arrived at the Cloud-Gazing Pavilion, Xiao Lingyan had already left.
He was actually just unhappy that Fu Yunkai had inappropriate thoughts about Zhao Ruxi; he wasn't worried that Zhao Ruxi would actually marry Fu Yunkai.
It's important to know that Fu Yunkai's lifespan was even shorter than that of the original owner of this body. Among this group of cannon fodder, Fu Yunkai was the first to die.
Xu Xi wouldn't be so foolish as to marry him and live a life of widowhood. Even if Fu Yunkai obtained an imperial decree from the emperor to grant them marriage, Xu Xi could still have Kang Shilin ruin it.
So he went to Xiao Lingpu, dug a pit for Fu Yunkai, and then left.
He has more important things to do.
He returned to the palace and sent Xiao Liuzi to inquire whether Xiao Ge was available. Xiao Ge went to the front hall just as he finished his work.
"Father, I'm sixteen years old now, and I want to work in the government office like my brothers," he said bluntly as soon as he entered the hall.
Because of his favoritism towards Consort Jin, Xiao Ge paid more attention to the Third Prince born to Consort Jin, and he also couldn't ignore the crown prince who was the heir apparent. However, he treated the other princes in a very indifferent way.
He hadn't seen Xiao Lingyan for quite some time. If it weren't for his son's own initiative to go to Jiangnan on official business, and the fact that he did a good job and was highly praised by the veteran officials, he wouldn't have thought much about his son.
Xiao Ge gazed at his son, who had matured considerably since his trip to Jiangnan, and asked, "Which government office do you want to go to?"
Since the time of Empress Shengyao, a rule has been established that princes could start learning to perform duties in government offices from the age of sixteen. They were to start Subordinate Eighth Rank or Ninth Rank officials, just like newly promoted scholars, and climb the ranks step by step.
Empress Shengyao opposed suppressing the other princes after establishing a crown prince, and advocated cultivating only the crown prince.
She believed that doing so was irresponsible to both the crown prince and the country as a whole: a crown prince raised in this way would be arrogant and lack ambition; and if the crown prince died young or was incompetent and immoral, the royal family would have no successor.