Chapter 27: The Beauty

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“Already spoken for?”

Amid the flickering candlelight, Su Yao once again accepted the wine cup filled by the girl and drained it in one gulp, completely oblivious to the increasingly ugly expression on the old village chief’s face.

At that moment, several exquisite character models flashed through his mind.

When it came to the beauties of this era, Su Yao knew them quite well. The foremost was undoubtedly the one in a league of her own, Diao Chan, whose beauty could eclipse the moon.

After her came such beauties as the great and talented Cai Wenji, the Goddess of Luo River, Zhen Ji, as well as Xiangxiang and the two Qiaos, all sitting in a neat row.

So how could he possibly accept an ordinary-looking woman—especially one who was expected to occupy the position of his principal wife?

Hmm… He had better think of a more tactful reason to decline.

Another cup of rough wine slid down his throat. Amid the warm fragrances and soft jade-like bodies, Su Yao gradually slumped forward and fell into a dazed sleep upon the table. By then, the old village chief’s face had turned utterly livid.

“…”

Su Yao failed to notice, but Hong’er saw it all clearly. She stopped her dance, hurried over in three quick strides, and bowed as she urged him,

“Benefactor has merely had too much to drink; he did not mean it. Master, please do not be angry…”

The old village chief flung back his long sleeve and turned away.

“Of course I know he’s drunk! He even said right in front of me that he would find a good reason to tactfully reject us!”

As it turned out, Su Yao’s supposedly private thoughts had been poured out under the influence of alcohol, like beans spilling from a split pod.

No wonder the old village chief was so furious.

Still, he was an old fox who had seen the ways of the world. He quickly composed himself, then turned to the women of the Wang clan and asked,

“Well, then—which of you wishes to take him as her husband?”

Su Yao’s premonition had naturally been correct, but he clearly had no idea how determined the old head of the Wang family was.

After witnessing Su Yao’s astonishing performance today, single-handedly turning the tide against a thousand enemies, the old village chief had decisively made up his mind to raise the stakes. He would strengthen the bond between both sides by marrying off a daughter of the clan to him—even if it meant forcibly arranging the match.

Yes, he had already settled on the matter. If the boy already had a wife, then so be it. But if he did not…

If Su Yao agreed, that would naturally be excellent. But even if he refused, the Wang family would use force if necessary to seize this outstanding son-in-law.

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They would strip the man and woman naked, put them in the same bed, and make sure the deed was done. If the boy dared to pull up his trousers and deny responsibility the next day, the old village chief would stake his reputation—whether by appealing to the army or taking the matter all the way to the emperor. There was no way he would allow himself to lose.

Yet unlike the old village chief, who was certain of victory, the girls merely exchanged bewildered looks when faced with his question. Not one of them spoke, and for a moment everyone was frozen in place.

“What? You all came here, only to lose your nerve now?”

The old village chief’s expression darkened.

“You little girls had better understand this clearly. Being able to find a husband like him is an enormous blessing. If my granddaughter were not still too young, how would any of you have the chance to choose this hero?”

The girls remained silent, looking at one another with hesitation written plainly across their faces.

One could hardly blame them. Su Yao’s reputation within the Wang family over the past two days had been every bit as astonishing as his outstanding performance on the battlefield.

Had he personally chosen one of them, they might have accepted their fate. But after his drunken ramblings just now, they had learned that there was already a whole crowd of women he was devoted to—and he had even compared them to ordinary-looking women merely filling a position.

Though they did not quite understand this strange expression, it certainly sounded as though it contained neither affection nor respect.

“Since Benefactor does not care for me, I had better not make a fool of myself…” said a girl in red with a bow.

“Nonsense! What does liking or disliking have to do with it? How were you girls raised by your parents?

“Marriage has always been decided by one’s parents and arranged by a matchmaker. How many women in this world do not see their husbands’ faces until the night of the wedding? Even if the man is a poor scholar or an ugly brute, there is still no backing out.”

The old village chief flicked his sleeve.

“You truly do not know how blessed you are. Look at this boy’s features and physique—what part of him is not first-rate? And on top of that, he possesses unmatched abilities. It will not be long before he enters the imperial court and takes his place among the ministers and generals.

“If you cannot seize him now, you will have no chance of marrying above your station in the future!”

Perhaps they had finally understood the situation, or perhaps they were intimidated by the authority of the family elder. After receiving such a stern lecture, one girl finally stepped forward, seemingly ready to volunteer herself…

“Master!”

“Hong’er?”

The old village chief stared in surprise at the servant girl who had suddenly interrupted them, then began examining her from head to toe.

Perhaps she had also dressed carefully for this victory banquet. As the lead dancer among the singers and musicians, Hong’er had clearly taken great pains with her appearance.

Until now, the old village chief’s attention had been fixed entirely on Su Yao, and he had not noticed her. But after taking a closer look, he could not help seeing her in a new light. Compared with before, the girl had grown even more beautiful. Her features had gradually matured, her youthful awkwardness slowly fading away. She was adorable, yet carried a hint of allure; pure, yet all the more tempting for it.

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The moment she stood among the other girls, she instantly outshone the daughters of those prominent families, all of whom had dressed in their finest clothes.

What a captivating little beauty. Perhaps because they saw each other every day, he had never noticed it before. He had not expected that, once properly made up, she could even stir in his aged bones a faint sensation of an old tree blooming anew beneath the warmth of spring.

His voice softened by several degrees.

“What is it?”

“Hong’er begs you to think this through carefully.” Her face flushed crimson. She twisted her hands together and looked directly at the old man with bright, resolute eyes.

“Think it through? What do you mean?”

Displeasure showed on the old village chief’s face. He was a shrewd old man who had traveled farther roads than this girl had eaten grains of salt. How could he fail to notice the thoughts of a young maiden?

But this concerned the future development of the entire family. He could not alter his plans for the sake of a servant girl.

Hong’er knew that perfectly well. She was only a maid; there was a strict distinction between master and servant, and no amount of kindness from the household could justify her overstepping her place.

Even so, she stepped forward, because matters should not proceed this way.

“Although Benefactor appears carefree, unconstrained by trivialities, and utterly free-spirited, his true nature is fierce and unforgiving. He cannot tolerate suffering even the slightest loss.

“When those northern barbarians merely injured one of his subordinates, he dared to raid their main camp alone. If he learns that Master plotted against him and forced him into submission, then given his temperament, I fear he will not only refuse to befriend the Wang family over this matter—he may instead form a grudge against us and regard us as enemies.”

“?!”

The old village chief was startled. Only then did he realize that he had been considering everything from the standpoint of the family’s interests while overlooking the crucial point: what the boy himself thought.

It was true that this strange young man might lack a powerful family background or influential support, but he was certainly not one of those ordinary commoners who meekly accepted whatever fate handed them and never dared to resist.

The old village chief cast a sidelong glance at Su Yao, who was snoring away atop the table, and sighed inwardly.

Come to think of it, the boy himself was probably the strongest backing imaginable. The power he had displayed was practically beyond reason. If such strength were used for righteous purposes, that would be one thing. But if it were turned toward other ends…

The old village chief did not even dare continue the thought.

Though Su Yao constantly claimed to obey the law and had indeed shown himself quite willing to help others, if they truly provoked him, who could guarantee that he would not suddenly unleash the fury of an ordinary man driven past his limits?

At that thought, the old village chief tugged his beard until it stood perfectly straight.

“Was I being shortsighted to think I could bind him with rules?”