“Grandma Tian told me that you agreed to let me bring my family’s ancestral tablets here for annual worship. That was my condition for agreeing to marry into your family. As for everything else, I leave it entirely to your discretion—I’m fine with whatever you decide.”
“‘Fine with whatever’ doesn’t mean ‘willing to accept anything,’ but rather that you’re willing to make do whether the arrangement is good or not.
Take my family, for example. No matter what excuses the clan used to deceive me before, as long as they didn’t seize my family’s property deeds, I could only say ‘I’m fine with it,’ right?”
There’s a world of difference between what one can accept and what one is truly willing to accept.
It was clear that by taking in a son-in-law, she intended to use this husband to shut the Xie family’s mouths. But in this world, one can’t expect to use others without being used in return.
Rather than secretly scheming against each other after marriage, it was better to lay all cards on the table and speak plainly from the start.
As long as he didn’t overstep, this man was so handsome that living with him would be a delight—a true feast for the eyes. Surely that was better than being stuck with some unsightly fellow.
If they agreed on terms now but he later hid ulterior motives after marriage, she’d have grounds to confront him. Even if it came to an amicable divorce, she’d have the moral high ground and could argue with greater conviction.
“You decide how we should discuss this between us. You start, and I’ll listen.”
Since Xie Jiujiu entered the room, she had been smiling warmly. Her almond-shaped eyes were large and round, with slightly upturned outer corners that curved charmingly when she smiled, radiating liveliness and spirit.
At seventeen, her figure had fully developed, though her face still retained some youthful roundness—fair and rosy like freshly steamed glutinous rice cake. When she smiled, two shallow dimples appeared on her cheeks, making her look utterly sweet.
But Pei Yuan saw clearly that beneath this sweet girl’s appearance lay an exceptionally shrewd mind.
Having grown up accompanying her father at Yun Ke Lai, she had encountered countless people coming and going, long honing her ability to read others and play the fool while outsmarting them.
She appeared to smile at everyone she spoke with, her voice soft and even somewhat sweet, yet with every word she effortlessly pierced through Pei Yuan’s vague sense of drifting along with the current.
She seemed born with a talent for seeing into people’s hearts, understanding when to play dumb and when to stand firm without yielding an inch. Xie Jiujiu lived with clear-eyed awareness and refused to let Pei Yuan muddle through their arrangement with her. Thus, some things had to be stated plainly.
“Mr. Pei, I’m determined to take in a son-in-law. My family will cover the betrothal gifts and wedding expenses, and we’ll handle all the wedding preparations.
After we marry, you’ll come live in my home. I’ve heard your family still has some servants. Whether they stay behind to look after your house or move here with you—both are acceptable.”
If she weren’t taking in a son-in-law but marrying out instead, she’d certainly bring her maidservants along. Now that Pei Yuan was marrying into the Xie family, it was only reasonable for his family’s servants to come live with the Xies.
“To be honest with you, our house is large but poorly maintained. It leaks in spring and lets in drafts in winter. These past few years, the cost of repairs alone has given me headaches.”
“The house is ancestral property left by my grandfather. Old Gao and Aunt Shui will stay behind to look after it—a house needs people living in it to avoid falling into ruin. If I move here, I’ll only bring two people with me.”
Cao Yong had been Pei Yuan’s study attendant since childhood, always agreeing with whatever Pei Yuan said. This time, when Pei Yuan proposed marrying into the wife’s family, Old Gao and Mama Shui were both unhappy about it, but Cao Yong alone nodded in approval.
Before leaving home today, this usually quiet man who preferred actions over words took the initiative to stop Pei Yuan and said earnestly, “Young master, as long as you can live well, it doesn’t matter who moves into whose home. What’s important is that you live comfortably and contentedly.”
Gao Yi would also come along. For one, he was still young and would need to wait a couple more years before venturing out to make a living on his own. For another, as a local who had grown up navigating the streets, and with Pei Yubo not being a harsh person, Gao Yi would be handy and convenient to handle many matters.
“My younger brother will later shed the merchant household registration to take the examinations. The family’s farmland will go to him, while Yun Ke Lai will belong to me. Running a restaurant isn’t easy, and my relatives might cause trouble in the future. When that happens, can you stand up for me?”
“Yes,” Pei Yuan nodded. When a family brought in a son-in-law, it was to uphold the household. If he couldn’t even protect Yun Ke Lai, what use would he be?
“However, even though I’m marrying into your family, my household registration cannot change. Next February, I also intend to take the examination.”
Pei Yuan did not hide his financial difficulties. “Agreeing to marry into your family is partly because of this. While observing mourning, I dare not make major moves. The small earnings I make come and go quickly—they don’t stay for long before being spent.”
Studying was an expensive endeavor. Bimo Zhiyan were all costly, and no matter how frugal one was, a certain amount had to be spent each month.
For common books, staying up late to copy an extra copy could save some money, but many books were expensive and rarely sold. Bookshops didn’t need people to copy those, yet scholars had no choice but to read and buy them.
From time to time, he also had to attend poetry and literary gatherings organized by scholars in the county. Not being a prodigy, he knew that shutting himself away to study wasn’t enough. He needed to regularly read others’ essays and learn their approaches to interpreting and solving problems to keep improving.
Every single one of these matters required money. Moreover, if he wanted to take the examination next year, after passing the county-level examination in February, he would need to prepare for the prefectural-level examination in Fu City. If he could pass the prefectural-level examination in April, he would have to rush to the provincial capital to prepare for the Prefectural Examination.
The round trips alone would incur significant travel expenses. This was why some scholars relied on their entire village to fund a single examination journey. Unless one came from a wealthy merchant family or a scholarly lineage, nurturing a scholar was never easy.
“You still plan to take the examinations?” Xie Jiujiu’s eyes gleamed upon hearing Pei Yuan’s words. “I thought that by choosing to marry into my family, you had no intention of pursuing the Keju path further.”
“Yun Ke Lai is excellent, and the former manager was also a good person. I believe that with you as the owner, it will only get better.”
Pei Yuan shook his head honestly. “But no matter how good it is, we cannot rely entirely on Yun Ke Lai for our livelihood and security in the latter half of our lives. I must earn a scholarly honor to truly protect this family business. Otherwise, relying on you to act tough, or me joining you in doing so, will only work a few times before people stop fearing us.”
The soft fear the tough, the tough fear the ruthless, and the ruthless fear those who don’t value their lives. Currently, the Xie clan is wary of Xie Jiujiu, this reckless young woman. Those clan elders have lived most of their lives—they want to take advantage of the Xie family, but they also want to protect their own reputations.
No matter how ruthless Jiujiu is, she can’t actually kill a couple of the old ones to establish her authority. If Yun Ke Lai continues to just plod along without much growth, it might be fine, but if the business prospers and flourishes, just watch—they’ll find ways to cause trouble again.
There are only two ways to deal with such people: either wipe them out in one go, or stand high enough and possess enough power to deter them. Otherwise, no matter how wealthy the family becomes, in their eyes, it’s just a bigger piece of fat to feast on.
“As long as you’re willing to take the exams, you don’t need to worry about money. For every day you study, the family will cover the expenses. There’s no reason you can’t afford it.”
Xie Wenji studies diligently, but whether he can pass the exams is uncertain. If the family can produce another person with scholarly honor, it would bring countless benefits and no harm.
“However, you must think this through clearly. Regardless of whether you achieve scholarly honor in the future, any children you and I have will bear the surname Xie.
You understand how power can oppress people, but those with great power also care deeply about their reputations. Before we marry, we must clearly establish a marriage contract. If you regret it later, we can have an amicable divorce, but the children will stay with me.”
“And one more thing…” Xie Jiujiu felt these words were a bit harsh, but no matter how difficult they were to say, after hesitating for a moment, she decided to speak up.
“You were adopted into the Pei family, so it’s only right that you honor your ancestors accordingly. However, if we have children in the future, they cannot be adopted out. Can you promise me that?”
Last time, she was only thinking about how Pei Yuan wouldn’t bully the dead, but upon further reflection, she worried that this man might be stubbornly traditional—thinking that since he was marrying into her family, he should compensate by giving a child to Pei Yubo as an heir. That absolutely could not happen.
“You can rest assured, Miss.” Pei Yuan hadn’t expected Xie Jiujiu to frown and put on a stern face, standing her ground just to say this. “I have no habit of giving away my children. If you and I have children in the future, they will all bear the surname Xie.”
“As for the Pei family…” Pei Yubo’s Zongqi military position was taken back by the Pei family in Fu City, but for many impoverished branches of the family, the three-courtyard house he currently lives in is enough for many to willingly give up a son for adoption.
“As long as I am alive, I will naturally take care of the offerings to the Pei family. If one day I am no longer here, with that house in the family, we can select a righteous child from the Pei family’s branches to carry on. That would be my way of fulfilling my duty.”
Pei Yuan considered himself not a particularly noble or principled person. Pei Yubo valued the continuation of the family line, so he would manage these matters for the next few decades, repaying the kindness of being given a clean and respectable identity. Beyond that, he couldn’t give more—he had to strive for his own future.
Xie Jiujiu wanted to say more but felt there was nothing left to add.
They say that if you lay out the unpleasant truths upfront, things will go more smoothly later. But in life, how can everything be clarified in advance? Even the tongue and teeth sometimes clash, let alone two living people.
“Then I have nothing more to say. What about you, Mr. Pei? Today, I have held nothing back in front of you. If you have any demands, you can also be honest with me. Even if our marriage doesn’t work out, I can lend you the money you need for next year’s exams at an annual interest rate of two percent.”
Nowadays, in private lending, charging less than three percent monthly interest is considered decent. Xie Jiujiu offered Pei Yuan an annual rate of two percent, essentially telling him that even if the deal fell through, there was no need for pretense between them—their goodwill remained.
“I have no further requests. It is just that I still have two months left before I Remove Mourning Clothes. If the young lady can wait, I have no objection to this marriage.”
“Good, then it’s settled. Once you emerge from filial mourning, I will send a matchmaker to propose.”