Chapter 40
"Yes." Teng Zi Jing replied respectfully. He did not want to end up like the poor Second Housekeeper a few years back, which was why he was especially polite to the half-master opposite him.
Fan Xian wrinkled his eyebrows, a calm uncharacteristic of his age appeared on his face. With an expression that is completely different from how an average teenager would have when told they are going to marry, he questioned softly, "I am curious about who the other party is."
He was already sixteen; he long knew that, in such a hierarchical society where status is important, marriage will definitely be high on the agenda of things. Moreover, his father did not forget to take care of his illegitimate son for all these years, which meant that such a situation was inevitable. The only issue was that it was rather rushed, which made him curious about why the wedding had to be so hurried.
"About that…… I am not clear as well, I have only heard that the Lady of that house was virtuous and demure and had a good reputation in the Capital," Teng Zi Jing replied.
His cautious explanation further raised Fan Xian’s suspicions. Because he was a statusless baseborn child, no matter how famous or influential his parents were, there would still hardly be any officials who would be willing to let their daughter marry someone like him.
Seeing his expression, Teng Zi Jing finally revealed it, "The only problem is that…… this lady does not seem to be in the best of health. Recently, she has fallen ill, which was why this matter is rather urgent……"
Fan Xian was struck by an epiphany. He finally understood that he was merely a gift for the other party; he could not help but shook his head and smile bitterly.
Teng Zi Jing carefully looked at his expression and realized that the Young Master was neither furious nor depressed and was actually a little calmer. Being forced to marry a dying person at such a young age, was he really not upset at all?
There was nothing for Fan Xian to be upset about; he has already seen so many dramas with the same plot in his previous life. Besides, getting angry will not solve anything. In fact, he was actually rather sympathetic towards the girl who was bedridden in the Capital, who was forced to marry an unknown man just because she was frail.
What about himself? Fan Xian did not have the flaw of being easily depressed that was often seen in weak-willed people. He was actually rather chauvinistic and believed that, between a man and woman, it is often the case where the woman was taken advantage of by the man. Since he would definitely have to marry in this world someday, if he could get a decent lady, wouldn’t it be a success for him? Besides, he has yet to arrive in the Capital. Running away from the marriage is still a viable option and he could afford to wait and see.
He could still afford to wait and evaluate before he does anything.
For example, he should probably evaluate if the girl is pretty, cute or is sufficiently loli. (Seriously, this is what the author used ~MCM)
"Young Master, why…….", Teng Zi Jing asked carefully.
"Why am I not angry?" Fan Xian smiled at him and said softly, "Firstly, my agreement to go to the Capital
Teng Zi Jing was stunned; these four reasons messed him up and confused him, especially the last part that the Young Master was actually medically trained. However, he was not convinced that the Young Master’s wedding would have such a miraculous transition from a tragedy into a happy ending; the young lady’s family was not simple and even the best medical treatment could not cure her condition. How was the Young Master supposed to cure her then?
Before the convoy came to a halt, Teng Zi Jing already left for the first carriage. Fan Xian was left alone in the carriage once more. The journey was destined to be lonely. Opening the curtains of the carriage, he permitted the breeze to caress his face and he narrowed his eyes a little to look at the surrounding green mountains and the stone pavement along the road. It was like countless pages of a book being flipped over. (Sorry about this part, it’s quite difficult to translate. I’ll look into it again sometime. Probably ~MCM)
It resembled what he saw when he first arrived sixteen years ago on a book when he was in a carriage.
It was a late April morning; the gra.s.s surrounding the Capital had long been trimmed and the orioles were already frightened away by the people who were moving in and out. The only movement belonged to the graceful swaying of the willow along the two sides of the river, who were watching over the people in the city who came from the four corners of the world.
A convoy of three carriages lined in a row came from afar and queued up at the gate to await entering.
The curtain was drawn up to reveal a bright smile upon a beautiful face. That person was gawking at the Capital walls and looking at the crowd around him. He breathed in deeply, "So this is what the Capital smells like."
This person was obviously Fan Xian. After a grueling ten day journey, the group finally arrived at the Capital. For the entire journey, he was curiously observing the peculiarly strange Qin Nation. He finally managed to satisfy his wanderl.u.s.t and, after interacting with Teng Zi Jing and his escorts, have finally become more open to conversation.
Fan Xian was a loveable teenager who always has a smile on his face. Such a person would easily exude an aura of likeability.
Teng Zi Jing stretched out his arm to help him exit the carriage.
When both his legs reached the road, Fan Xian gently rotated his ankles and purposely allowed the sole of his cloth shoe to come into contact with the dirt on the floor. It was almost as if he was trying to see if the dirt in the Capital felt any different from that of other places.
With so many people entering the Capital, the security was very tight, which is why the queues were very long. Fan Xian was getting really bored of waiting. He pointed at the city wall and chatted with Teng Zi Jing. He had already guessed that the Count probably did not send a team to escort him in since his status was not that great.
While they were chatting, there was a sudden furor in the crowds behind, and the people naturally moved aside to create a rather wide road. A team of riders sullenly rode ahead at high speeds without stopping before entering the city gate.
The leading horse was rode by a lady in a light colored jacket and skirt. She even wore a saucy hat made of white deer’s skin in the middle of a Spring day.
This lady’s eyebrows were indigo like the mountains and her eyes were clear and bright; she was very pretty. However, she was rather worried as she rode into the Capital. From the way she was hurrying into the Capital, something must have happened.
Fan Xian, who was standing along the roadside, was smiling gently at the riders who were rus.h.i.+ng past them. "The Capital sure is filled with beautiful women", he praised. He inadvertently wondered how his potential "wife" might look like.
Teng Zi Jing coughed softly on the side.
Fan Xian was perplexed; he only praised them a little and did not gaffe at her, what is there to be so nervous about? He smiled and asked, "Looks like the Capital is not as puritanical as I thought it would be. The lady was wearing a skirt and riding a horse but no one is talking about it."
Teng Zi Jing smiled hesitantly and explained, "The one who just pa.s.sed is the only daughter of the one in charge of the garrison guard in the city. Who would dare to say anything about her?"
Fan Xian gave a customary "oh" and went up the carriage to look into the Capital. Indeed, when the group of riders reached the city gate, they did not need to queue and entered the city immediately after showing their identification token.
When it came to Fan Xian’s turn, he deliberately checked the border guard’s expression and discovered that the latter was just doing his job without any change in expression. After turning back to look at his carriage, he finally understood why.
The three carriages did not have any insignia representing the House of Fan. Looks like he will not be having a big welcome when he enter the Capital.