Fa Zheng was quite puzzled when Lu Xun brought Wang Yi to him, but given his trust in Lu Xun, he didn't ask too many questions.
With Wang Yi and Lu Xun present, Fa Zheng and Zhao Yun did not delve deeply into their conversation. Zhao Yun had already discussed the situation in Xuzhou, and Fa Zheng had made his estimates. After exchanging a few more words, Fa Zheng took Lu Xun and Wang Yi with him as they left the camp.
"Miss, may I ask what brings you to me?" Fa Zheng formally greeted Wang Yi outside the camp, bowing slightly.
"Fufeng's Wang Yi greets the Prime Minister," Wang Yi responded with a bow of her own.
"Oh, so we're fellow townsfolk," Fa Zheng said with a smile, a flicker of recognition in his eyes as he began to sense that Jiang Ying was involved.
"The Prime Minister's rise to prominence must mean he doesn't remember our past meeting," Wang Yi subtly guided the conversation in the direction she wanted.
"Let Jiang Ying come forward. No matter what you say, it won't be effective. Some things need to be said by her personally," Fa Zheng's eyes were calm, which sent a chill down Wang Yi's spine.
"Are you so certain, Prime Minister?" Wang Yi tried to keep her composure. This was not the right time for Jiang Ying and Fa Zheng to meet.
"I don't blame her. Even if she couldn't come, I would have gone to fetch her myself. It's enough that she's here. The Jiang family may try to stop her, but they can't stop me. You must have had a hand in helping her leave Liangzhou, correct?" Fa Zheng said calmly as he bowed deeply to Wang Yi. "Thank you."
"You truly don't blame her?" Wang Yi asked in surprise.
"I only blame myself for not being strong enough. If she had sent me a single letter, I could have made the Jiang family live in fear day and night. I haven't taken any action because I didn't know what she wanted," Fa Zheng said calmly. "The position of my main wife remains vacant, waiting for her answer."
"You're not worried that we're here to seek a powerful connection?" Wang Yi asked, amazed by the now-calm Fa Zheng, who exuded an air of maturity. She had absolute confidence in her own intelligence but had never expected someone to understand the situation without asking any questions.
"I'm not worried, nor do I mind. My wife is entitled to share in my status and glory. Besides, the marriage contract is still valid. No matter the reason, she is my wife. It's that simple," Fa Zheng said with a carefree smile. Whether this was a matter of seeking power or a pure childhood bond, having her share in his status and glory was enough. It was better than standing alone, waiting.
Wang Yi was momentarily stunned. She had prepared herself for Fa Zheng to reject the marriage, given his current success. Jiang Ying was not an extraordinary beauty, and the Jiang family could no longer be considered a significant ally. This marriage could even be seen as them climbing the social ladder. Furthermore, the Jiang family had embarrassed Fa Zheng in the past.
"Go and bring her here. The Jiang family's short-sightedness is their problem. I know the customs and traditions of Fufeng well. Let her come; my father is here," Fa Zheng said, unwilling to waste more words on the matter. He was confident in his knowledge of Fufeng's situation.
"I'll go get Sister Jiang," Wang Yi said, giving Fa Zheng a long look. She hadn't expected him to see things so clearly. If she remembered correctly, Fa Zheng had been quite petty in the past. Why was he so magnanimous now?
"Your fiancée has arrived," Lu Xun remarked, looking at Fa Zheng.
"A long-standing wish has been fulfilled, so I'm in a good mood," Fa Zheng replied with a smile. "When we return to Mount Tai, I'll announce the marriage and make preparations for the wedding."
"Congratulations!" Lu Xun quickly offered his congratulations. "But aren't you supposed to wait three months? If I remember correctly, at your rank, a wedding requires a three-month waiting period. Won't you wait?"
"I won't wait. The six months required for a noble's wedding have already passed. We'll marry as soon as we return," Fa Zheng said with a cold smile. "I won't even send the Jiang family a wedding invitation."
"A noble's ceremony?" Lu Xun asked, confused. "Are you a marquis?"
"Of course. You didn't know?" Fa Zheng rolled his eyes.
"Then why did you say you'd be a marquis by age twenty-three? You already hold the title of marquis, and you achieved it before turning twenty. Why did you make such a fuss about it?" Lu Xun asked, bewildered.
"Without land, what's the point of a marquis title? When I said I'd be a marquis by twenty-three, I meant a township or county marquis. This marquis without land is just a joke," Fa Zheng said disdainfully, completely looking down on his current title.
"You're something else," Lu Xun replied, giving Fa Zheng a thumbs-up.
Meanwhile, Jiang Ying felt her anxiety subside after Wang Yi left. She had mentally prepared herself for Fa Zheng to reject the engagement. When she left the Jiang family, she wasn't entirely sure what her intentions were, but now her heart had settled. Whether they succeeded or not no longer mattered.
Jiang Ying sighed deeply, fully calming her inner turmoil.
"Sister," Wang Yi's voice called out as she returned to Jiang Ying.
"You're back," Jiang Ying said calmly.
"Congratulations. Fa Xiaozhi—oh, I mean brother-in-law—is waiting for you," Wang Yi said, keeping her words brief but conveying everything Jiang Ying needed to know. "He's asking for you."
Jiang Ying was at a loss, looking at Wang Yi with confusion, unsure of what to do.
"Get up, Sister. It's time to see brother-in-law. He said he's willing to share his status and glory with you," Wang Yi smiled, pulling Jiang Ying to her feet. It seemed that when you took action, the results could be surprising.
When Jiang Ying appeared before Fa Zheng, he didn't know what to say. She wasn't particularly beautiful—she couldn't compare to someone like Cai Yan, nor was she as attractive as some of Fa Zheng's concubines. But for some reason, seeing Jiang Ying again put Fa Zheng at ease.
Neither spoke for a long time until Fa Zheng finally reached out and took Jiang Ying's hand. "Come, let's go see Father."
Jiang Ying blushed but didn't resist, obediently following Fa Zheng to see Fa Yan. Just as Fa Zheng had expected, Fa Yan was surprised to see Jiang Ying. His face lit up with joy. After all, she was the daughter-in-law he had chosen for his son. Despite the ups and downs, she had finally appeared before him. The guilt he had felt toward Fa Zheng gradually dissipated.
"Good, good, good!" Fa Yan said, stroking his beard as he listened to Jiang Ying recount how she had arrived. He couldn't help but sigh in admiration. Then, seeing how much more mature his son had become, Fa Yan urged him, "Treat Jiang Ying well. Don't let her down."
"I understand, Father. You should rest now. I have some things to discuss with Jiang Ying," Fa Zheng nodded, tightening his grip on Jiang Ying's hand.
"Yes, it's been a long time since you two have seen each other. I won't disturb you," Fa Yan said, reassured by his son's clear affection for Jiang Ying.
Fa Zheng and Jiang Ying moved to another carriage, where they shared their stories of the time they had spent apart. Compared to Jiang Ying's tales from Liangzhou, Fa Zheng's stories were much more eventful. This allowed them to rekindle their old familiarity, and the distance between them vanished.
As Fa Zheng looked at the young woman in his arms, a cold smile appeared on his face.
Fa Zheng wasn't indifferent to what had happened. He just didn't want to take out his anger on his future wife, and after all, the Jiang family was still her family. As for the Ma family of Fufeng, they would have to bear the brunt of his wrath.
The next day, Fa Zheng brought Jiang Ying to meet Zhang Shiping. At first glance, Zhang Shiping thought Fa Zheng had attracted the attention of a woman from the Jiang family of Fufeng and was about to make a joke. However, Fa Zheng's words quickly extinguished that thought.
"Thank you, Brother Zhang. This is my wife," Fa Zheng said, bowing slightly to Zhang Shiping, who immediately gave up on any teasing.
"Hahaha..." Zhang Shiping forced a laugh, swallowing the joke he had planned to make. Fa Zheng's words made it clear that the woman beside him was his wife. Teasing about a concubine was one thing, but teasing about someone's wife? That was asking for trouble.
"I am Jiang of the Fa family. I apologize for any deception during our journey," Jiang Ying said, bowing slightly.
"No need for such formalities, Madam," Zhang Shiping replied, laughing nervously. Had he known she was Fa Zheng's wife, he would have been more respectful. But now, he was simply relieved that he hadn't made any mistakes.
"Please accept this, Brother Zhang," Fa Zheng said, handing Zhang Shiping an invitation. The card announced Fa Zheng and Jiang Ying's wedding on the second day of the second month of the following year. "This is the first wedding invitation I'm sending out. If not for your help, our wedding wouldn't be possible."
Zhang Shiping was momentarily stunned, then quickly understood. Fa Zheng was positioning him as a matchmaker, a far more honored role than Zhang Shiping would have expected.
"You two are a perfect match. Even without my help, this union would have happened eventually. I merely played a small part. I'll be sure to attend the wedding," Zhang Shiping said, overjoyed.
As Fa Zheng and Jiang Ying left, Jiang Ying couldn't understand why Zhang Shiping seemed so happy. She also didn't understand why Fa Zheng hadn't shown more gratitude. After all, without Zhang Shiping, she wouldn't have made it here.
"You'll understand when we reach Mount Tai. That invitation I gave him is the biggest thanks I could offer. Any more would be too much for him to accept," Fa Zheng explained. "From now on, the Fa family is yours to manage. I'll handle matters outside, but the Fa family itself will be in your hands."
"Alright, I'll do my best," Jiang Ying replied, though she wasn't very confident.
"Feel free to do as you like. The Fa family is quite wealthy, so you can experiment as you see fit," Fa Zheng said with a laugh. "But what's more important is that you get started on the ceremonial garments. We don't have much time."
"I'm confident in that," Jiang Ying replied with assurance. Compared to the needlework of women like Fan Jian, Jiang Ying's skills were far superior.
"Good luck. I'll see if I can participate in a battle soon and maybe earn the title of a landed marquis," Fa Zheng said, lost in daydreams.
While Fa Zheng was daydreaming, Chen Xi and Liu Bei had already received word that Zhao Yun and Fa Zheng were about to return to Mount Tai.
"Let's go. Fa Xiaozhi and Zhao Zilong are coming back. Let's go welcome them. Who's coming with me?" Chen Xi called out from the administrative office.
Chen Xi had long wanted to leave. Sun Qian had already gone to Yanzhou, but Chen Xi had to wait for Zhao Yun, which meant he had to stay in Mount Tai. By now, he was getting impatient. At least when he was out on official business, he didn't have to deal with administrative work. He much preferred construction projects.
"I'll go with you," Jia Xu quickly agreed. He had also grown tired of the paperwork. Although his primary role was intelligence, Lu Su had roped him into handling government affairs, which Jia Xu found tiresome.
"I'll join you too," Li You said, having just finished his own tasks. After handing them over to Lu Su, he decided to get some fresh air and chose to accompany Chen Xi and Jia Xu.
"Let's go. After all, they're both high-ranking commanders. We should all go together. I'm sure Lord Xuande will come too," Chen Xi said, leading Jia Xu and Li You out of the city to meet the arriving troops. After all, external troops were not allowed inside the city and could only wait in the outskirts.
As they made their way through the inner city, Chen Xi, Jia Xu, and Li You watched the bustling crowds and the occasional presence of city management teams, all with smiles on their faces.
"Looks like Fenggao needs to be expanded again. In just one year, it's already reached full capacity. We'll need to build another outer wall," Li You remarked as he surveyed the surroundings. "I must say, Chen Xi's decision was indeed the right one. Without that particular law, Fenggao wouldn't be as prosperous as it is now."
"It's expected. In matters of military strategy, I may not be able to match you two, but when it comes to development and construction, I'm confident I'm second to none. At most, my plans need others to fine-tune," Chen Xi said proudly. He knew he couldn't compete with them in strategy, but he had absolute confidence in his development and construction skills.
"You're just too lazy to do it," Jia Xu sighed, shaking his head. "It's not that you can't do it, but rather that you see it as a waste of time. You'd rather give a general outline and let others execute it. As long as they stay within your framework, the overall strategy remains intact. Even if the details aren't perfect, you're confident that you can still outmaneuver your opponents."
"I don't know how to do it, not that I don't want to," Chen Xi protested.
"Who knows?" Jia Xu and Li You both shook their heads. They didn't believe Chen Xi for a second. If he could devise grand strategies, how could he be incapable of handling the details?
"I think we should go ahead with the expansion. Fa Xiaozhi is back, and he has experience with building Linzi. Let's have him handle Fenggao's expansion. Then we'll have more land to sell," Chen Xi suggested. Seeing that the two didn't believe him, he could only shrug. Honestly, he could handle some of the details, but he knew he was far less skilled than Lu Su or Zhuge Liang.
"We don't need to do that just yet. The treasury is full, so let's wait and see," Li You replied, shaking his head.
The three exited through the city's north gate, where Liu Bei was already waiting. After greeting him, they stood beside him to await the arrival of the army.
"They've finally arrived. It seems the White Horse Volunteers have been well-trained," Chen Xi remarked as he spotted the flags rising on the horizon. Soon, a large formation of cavalry appeared in view—Zhao Yun's army had returned to Fenggao.