Here to Propose Marriage?

Zhao Ruxi waved her hand. "I understand what Eighth Miss Mu means. We've been classmates for several months, and I know her personality."

Mu Qinglian was taken aback, then couldn't help but laugh.

Mu Qingqiang blinked, looking at Zhao Ruxi and then at Mu Qinglian, her eyes filled with confusion and her face full of innocence, probably not understanding what was so funny.

Unable to understand, she ignored it and asked Zhao Ruxi, "I told you to come visit me, why didn't you go?"

If someone overthinks this, they'll definitely be Gao Xing.

Zhao Ruxi, however, understood Mu Qingqiang's personality very well. She actually enjoyed associating with this kind of person; they were straightforward, honest, and simple-minded. Mu Qinglian, on the other hand, seemed considerate and gentle, but she was not without her own schemes. Compared to Mu Qingqiang preferred to be friends with her.

She was straightforward, spreading her hands in a helpless expression. "Do you think I have time to play?"

She counted on her fingers for Mu Qingqiang: painting, calligraphy, imperial examinations, managing the estate, and painting training classes that took up her entire days, even on her days off.

As she spoke, Mu Qingqiang's face showed an expression of envy.

She sighed and said wistfully, "I wish I could be like you."

Zhao Ruxi gave her a sympathetic look.

She and Mu Qingqiang were classmates in the North Academy of the Beining Women's Academy for a period of time, and she knew that Mu Qingqiang was a person who loved reading and had good grades. It's just a pity that the Mu Family raised their daughter only for marriage alliances. When they were discussing marriage, they took her back, and she never returned to the academy to study.

"It doesn't matter where you are if you want to study. No matter where you are or what you study, as long as you can learn, it's a good thing. Look at Madam Cui and Master Xiao. They were able to forge their own paths even with unhappy marriages because of their talents, instead of staying in the inner quarters and having to live at the mercy of others." Zhao Ruxi gave her a bowl of hearty chicken soup.

Mu Qingqiang was taken aback, looked up at Zhao Ruxi, and then her eyes slowly brightened.

"You're right." She gave Zhao Ruxi a bright smile. "No matter what you learn, as long as you can learn it and learn it well, that's a good thing. I'll remember what you said."

Zhao Ruxi stared blankly at Mu Qingqiang's smile.

Mu Qingqiang is pretty, but only above average in looks; she's not the kind of beauty that makes you unable to look away. Her usual demeanor is also aloof, giving off a sense of haughty detachment. She rarely smiles.

But her smile just now was like a rose suddenly blooming in the snow, dazzling and beautiful, making it impossible to look away.

No wonder King You of Zhou played the feudal lords with beacon fires—it was all to win a smile from his beloved concubine. A beautiful woman's smile is indeed breathtaking and captivating.

"You should smile more. Your smile is so beautiful," Zhao Ruxi said regretfully when she saw Mu Qingqiang quickly put away her smile.

Mu Qingqiang glared at her but ignored her.

"Didn't you say you were going home to discuss marriage? Has your marriage been settled yet?" Zhao Ruxi asked.

Mu Qingqiang shook her head. "It's not decided yet. I can't make these decisions myself anyway, so I simply ignored it and let the elders discuss it."

Zhao Ruxi asked in surprise, "What if I picked one for you that you wouldn't like?"

"If I don't like him, I'll just stay away. I'll live my own life. As long as he doesn't bother me, he can take concubines if he wants, and do whatever he wants. As long as I don't care, I won't be unhappy," Mu Qingqiang said indifferently.

Zhao Ruxi looked at Mu Qingqiang, opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she said nothing and sighed softly.

Mu Qingqiang's personality, seemingly cold and ruthless, is actually incredibly insightful. Her aloofness is probably a form of self-protection.

In families like theirs, marriage is not a matter of personal choice. So, whether one likes someone or not is irrelevant.

Therefore, one can only hold fast to one's own heart. If one doesn't have high expectations for marriage and doesn't care too much, perhaps one won't suffer so much. If that person is even slightly better than one expects, it might be a pleasant surprise, and life will become a little easier.

"Have you read the newspaper that Teacher Cui and her colleagues run? You can write articles and submit them to the newspaper when you have free time. You can even join in and do some work for the newspaper," Zhao Ruxi said to Mu Qingqiang.

"I read it, I read every issue." A hint of embarrassment appeared on Mu Qingqiang's face as she said this. "I even submitted an article to the newspaper. It wasn't accepted the first time, but it was accepted the second time."

"Oh, really? Which one?" Zhao Ruxi asked.

Mu Qingqiang then mentioned the newspaper issue that published her article and her pen name.

For each issue of the newspaper, Madam Cui would specially send someone to deliver it to Zhao Ruxi, Zhao Ruxi would directly ask Qingfeng to find that issue of the newspaper.

Mu Qingqiang felt embarrassed and quickly waved her hand, saying, "No need, you can look at it later."

Zhao Ruxi didn't force her.

She turned to look at Mu Qinglian: "Miss Seventh Mu, how are you? Are you engaged?"

Compared to Mu Qingqiang, she didn't like Mu Qinglian very much, but since they were both visiting her home, she couldn't be too cold to Mu Qinglian.

A blush crept across Mu Qinglian's face. "We're engaged. We'll be getting married before the new year."

Congratulations!

Mu Qinglian asked her with a smile, "How is Miss Zhao? Is she engaged yet?"

Zhao Ruxi shook her head. "No."

The three chatted for a while. Because Mu Qingqiang was straightforward and had no guile, Zhao Ruxi quickly figured out why they had come to visit at this time.

The Mu Family's daughters are not allowed to go out freely. After Mu Qingqiang returned home, she tried to visit Zhao Ruxi several times, but was stopped by her elders.

Now that Zhao Ruxi is showing promise, the Mu Family has suddenly relented and allowed the Mu Qingqiang sisters to visit and get to know each other. They want to arrange a marriage between them and Zhao Ruxi, with the marriage prospective spouse being Mu Qingqiang's cousin, a scholar who passed the imperial examination.

The Mu Family's actions were out of necessity, as Lady Zhu had turned away all the families who came to propose marriage.

Lady Zhu told the matchmaker that she would not discuss marriage until Zhao Ruxi had finished the imperial examinations.

Knowing that Seventh Mu and Eighth Mu were classmates with Zhao Ruxi, the Mu Family decided to attack from within, hoping to win Zhao Ruxi over through Seventh Mu and Eighth Mu.

Mu Qinglian sighed and rubbed her forehead after hearing her cousin recount almost the entire story.

But she couldn't fail to complete the task.

"Miss Zhao, now that you've finished the provincial examination, you must be able to relax for a while, right? Would you like to ride a horse? Our Mu Family has a horse farm in Beining, where we raise many horses and even have horse races. If Miss Zhao is interested, why don't we go for a ride together?" Mu Qinglian extended an invitation to Zhao Ruxi.

If Mu Qingqiang hadn't mentioned her cousin, Zhao Ruxi might have agreed. She's actually quite playful and enjoys horseback riding.

But with this marriage proposal, if she agreed, it would mean agreeing to be introduced to the young master of the Mu Family. Naturally, she couldn't agree to that.

Not to mention that she disliked the entire Mu Family's family traditions, even if Mu Qingqiang intentionally brought up the matter, she knew that this marriage was inappropriate.

She could tell that Mu Qingqiang's mention of marriage wasn't out of naivety or ignorance, but rather a deliberate act. She was subtly reminding Zhao Ruxi of the Mu Family's intentions.