Mythic version of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 7117 Marriage
If Liu Bei went there and they still didn't risk their lives, then they must have been completely corrupt. Scholars die for their principles, and warriors die in battle; this has always been the case. So this trip by Liu Bei was the last chance for them to act with dignity. If they still play the game of "I'll make a decision on the spot when our allies are in trouble," then they should be purged.

This is also why Chen Xi tried to persuade Liu Bei, but ultimately failed and didn't say anything more.

Chen Xi's good temper has its limits, and by now it's almost worn down, and he doesn't care whether it's a test or not.

Of course, the most important thing is still that sentence: if you die for your country on the battlefield and fight to the last moment, then all your previous problems can be said to be problems of ability or methodology, rather than problems of values, and you can still enjoy posthumous fame.

After all, compared to the issue of ability, the issue of the path is really insignificant. Besides, the person is already dead, so he can be given some dignity.

“But in that case, Master Li…” Fa Zheng said with some concern. Although Li You had a lot of anger, Fa Zheng still acknowledged Li You’s teachings from back then.

“I used to think Wenru’s path was too extreme, but now I think there are some things that really need to be done, just in moderation. So even if Wenru handles it, I will still affix my seal.” Chen Xi said with a hint of complexity. “In short, after this, everything will have a result. Also, Xiaozhi, remember this: the collective is not the sum of its parts, but greater than the sum of its parts.”

Fa Zheng was taken aback, then seemed to be deep in thought.

"Actually, I feel like there are some things you wanted to tell me, but you changed your mind at the last minute," Fa Zheng finally couldn't help but ask after the call ended.

"You are indeed perceptive," Chen Xi said after a moment's thought.

“Let me give you an example. I don’t care how you interpret it. Cao Sikong’s crimes, given his level, are not necessarily punishable by death, or at least shouldn’t have been committed this way, right?” Chen Xi said calmly. “Of course, this is not a discussion based on my morality, but rather on the broader context of this era and society. It shouldn’t be like this.”

"Yes." Fa Zheng answered almost without hesitation.

“However, the reality is that Cao Sikong has to die. To put it bluntly, the despair of the people of Xuzhou is not a matter of having a clear person in charge. If the despair has a clear cause and a specific object to bear it, then the emotions and the energy accumulated because of this despair will have an outlet.” Chen Xi said with a hint of silence.

Fa Zheng understood a great deal in an instant.

“Originally, the despair of the people of Xuzhou was scattered and could be attributed to many people and many things, which resulted in everyone being responsible, which meant that no one was responsible,” Chen Xi said with a hint of reminiscence. “But from the very first day this happened, I pointed the gun at Cao Mengde, and everything was attributed to someone.”

Fa Zheng shuddered upon hearing this. He finally understood why things had turned out this way. Cao Cao's massacre of Xuzhou was indeed a serious crime, but it was nothing special. With the responsibility being dispersed, even if someone could attribute it to Cao Cao, it wouldn't be as direct as it is now, pointing the finger directly at him.

“So Wenru will be fine. He has responsibility, but in the end, the entire organization will bear the blame, so it’s equivalent to him having no responsibility at all.” Chen Xi said calmly. He originally didn’t want to use this method, but the Lu Su incident made Chen Xi lean towards the reformists.

"Alright, if you still have any hesitation, talk to Lord Xuande about it. I don't think Lord Xuande's choice is wrong; he has done everything he could." Chen Xi gave a final word of advice. "After all, if we continue to exhaust those people's goodwill, I'm worried something bad might happen."

Upon hearing this, Fa Zheng sighed softly. Zhao Yun could stop him the first time, but he definitely couldn't stop him the second time.

"And Xiaozhi, there are some things you can't do." Chen Xi warned Fazheng very seriously, "The Yuanfeng Dynasty will come to an end, and you won't even have reached the peak of a politician's career by then. Do you understand what that means?"

Fa Zheng remained silent for a while after hearing this. Although they were all elders, most of them retired after the Yuanfeng Dynasty due to age or condition. This was partly to prepare for the retirement of the subsequent bureaucratic system, and partly to reduce the influence of elders on the country.

However, Fa Zheng would definitely not be among these people. Fa Zheng was the regent minister that Liu Bei left to his son. He had the seniority and ability to the fullest. More importantly, if Fa Zheng were to let loose, his aggressiveness would probably be among the top in the veteran faction.

Therefore, during the Yuanfeng reign, Fazheng was forbidden from touching certain things.

"Okay," Fa Zheng replied simply, and then ended the letter.

Chen Xi shook his head slightly and didn't say anything more. He knew that Fa Zheng had already listened.

Kou Feng's wedding was a grand affair, but from Chen Xi's perspective, it seemed that in the end, all they did was bow and kowtow to them, recite the lyrics, and then Huangfu Liangmiao was sent back to the bridal chamber. After Kou Feng drank a few sips of wine and was carried back, the place turned back into a place for a bunch of old men to brag and chat.

After Kou Feng left, Huangfu Song, acting as a part-host, told everyone to eat and drink well, and to remember to ask if there was anything lacking in hospitality, and to also ask if there was anything they wanted to eat, assuring them that the food and drinks would be provided to everyone.

These words passed amidst the shouts of a group of old men, and then Huangfu Song began the second wave of toasts, clearly in a very good mood today.

"Everyone, enjoy your meal and drinks. Today, besides being my granddaughter's wedding banquet, I, Huangfu Song, also have an important announcement to make," Huangfu Song said, raising his wine glass with a radiant smile.

"Good, General, tell me, what's the big news!" Liu Bei was the first to cheer and began to applaud.

"You tell the story!" Huangfu Song said to Ruan Gong, who was drinking beside him.

At this point, Ruan Gong already knew very well that his daughter had awakened her spiritual talent, but as he said before, the Huangfu family was the most suitable family for Ruan Huihui. Besides, they were already at this level, and they were already engaged. Could they possibly break off the engagement?
"Yes, on this auspicious day, I'd like to announce that my daughter, Ruan Huihui, will be marrying into the Huangfu family next May. Everyone, please remember to attend if you have time." Ruan Gong wasn't one for idle chatter; he revealed the answer right away, and then a group of people started shouting, saying they wanted to see the future bride and groom.

After shouting a couple of times, some sensible people nearby started telling the other party that Nguyen Cong's daughter was very ugly, and that she was the kind of ugly who was very famous in the area.

Huangfu Song didn't say anything, but waved to his grand-nephew Huangfu Shuhou. Huangfu Shuhou, who had already been dressed up and had recently been specially trained by Huangfu Song, had gained some youthful vigor and stepped forward.

The others looked at Huangfu Shuhou and nodded. Although he didn't have any particular talent, he was Huangfu Song's grand-nephew after all, and he was tall and handsome with a bit of the brave and martial spirit of the people from Guanzhong. He seemed quite good.

Well, that's just how it seems. In reality, he's not very capable. He's not even as good as the two brothers, Huangfu Jianshou and Huangfu Li, whom Huangfu Song considers useless. In Huangfu Song's opinion, given Huangfu Shuhou's situation, he was only born into the Huangfu family and had Huangfu Song as his pillar of support. He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth and grew up with a silver spoon in his mouth. If he were from an ordinary family, his best chance in this life would be to become a county lieutenant with a salary of four or five hundred shi.

Well, Huangfu Song's vision was indeed a bit too high. Of course, the main reason was that Huangfu Song's own abilities were indeed sufficient to support his official position and title. So he was speechless when he saw useless people like Huangfu Jianshou and Huangfu Li, who could only ever reach the rank of a thousand-stone official through their own abilities.

So much so that Huangfu Song would occasionally complain, "Like father, like son, it's really speechless."

In reality, if you think about it carefully, people like Huangfu Jianshou and Huangfu Li, who could become officials with a salary of a thousand shi without relying on their fathers or grandfathers, would definitely be considered outstanding individuals in normal times. Even Huangfu Shuhou, whom Huangfu Song considered a complete waste, could become a county magistrate in a small or medium-sized county by relying solely on his own efforts and abilities without relying on his family. In any case, he could not be considered a waste.

The problem is that Huangfu Song has seen far too many outstanding individuals. In his view, even if they are not monsters like Chen Xi or Zhuge Liang, they should at least be pillars of the nation with spiritual or military talents, or at the very least, they should have talents like Yang Dao.

But if you think about it carefully, Yang Dao, who Huangfu Song considers an ordinary guy, is actually a tough guy who, despite the early deaths of his father and grandfather and the fact that he was raised by his mother, managed to secure a position of two thousand shi (a unit of grain) through his own abilities.

All I can say is that being born into the Huangfu family was incredibly stressful.

Oh, by the way, Huangfu Shuhou has the ability to command troops. He is not even twenty years old yet and can command one or two thousand people, which is actually quite good. But in Huangfu Song's eyes, he is just a stray dog ​​on the roadside. It can only be said that Huangfu Song does have a bit of the characteristics of a feudal patriarch.

"Congratulations, this grand-nephew is indeed a man of exceptional talent." Liu Bei looked at Huangfu Shuhou and could clearly sense the marks of refinement on the man. As a young man who was not yet twenty years old, in the current environment, to have achieved even one level of refinement was, in Liu Bei's eyes, already an elite.

They are truly elites who could rise to prominence even from ordinary families.

"No praise, no praise at all." Huangfu Song stroked his beard and said with a smile, "This brat has been running wild in the Caspian Sea for a few years without his father's knowledge, following the son of the Imperial Clan Minister and the little devil from the Gongsun family. He only recently came back, and I only just found out about it myself. Not bad, he's certainly sturdy!"

"What kind of talent is being forged? It looks a bit like muscle defense? Or a body of steel?" Although Liu Bei's own forging was average, he had seen too many legendary veterans, so he only needed a quick glance to determine that Huangfu Shuhou's forging was either a body of steel or muscle defense.

"A body of steel," Huangfu Shuhou said with a somewhat simple and honest smile.

"It's good. You've suffered a lot, haven't you?" Liu Bei said to Huangfu Shuhou. The path of smelting is not easy, especially now, as it truly requires being on the front lines.

"It's alright." Huangfu Shuhou's mind was filled with images of himself hacking and slashing at Parthian bandits, but in the end, he could only utter these three words.

Upon hearing this, Huangfu Song patted him on the shoulder. Although he thought the kid was just a nobody, he still had to praise him at this moment. After all, he could suppress his feelings in front of others, but he still had to acknowledge what deserved recognition.

At the same time, Ruan Huihui walked up wearing a plain blue dress without any embroidery. As mentioned before, with Ruan Huihui's appearance, changing into a beautiful dress would not only fail to enhance her beauty but would also make people feel disgusted. Therefore, Ruan Huihui's clothes are generally very simple and clean, without any embroidery or patterns. Of course, being plain does not mean that the material is bad or the price is not expensive.

This blue robe was meant to be worn at the engagement banquet, so Ruan Gong naturally commissioned a professional to make it. The fabric was also woven by a tribute-level weaver. To be honest, colorful clothes are easy for these professionals to handle, but this kind of plain and simple style is really difficult to pull off.

However, there are only a few such opportunities in a lifetime, and since he only has one daughter, Ruan Gong naturally sought out the most professional to get his daughter a full set of clothes.

Even so, Ruan Huihui's face still greatly ruined the beauty of the outfit. At most, it blended into the clothes and looked more harmonious and less glaring, but for the people present who were used to seeing beautiful women, Ruan Huihui was really too ugly.

So much so that when Ruan Huihui came out, apart from Huangfusong still introducing her to others, the noise in the room gradually subsided.

Fortunately, Ruan Huihui was already used to this situation, and at her level, she wouldn't take these things too seriously. Besides, if she really wanted to be beautiful, the medical academy had introduced her to a three-piece set of cosmetic surgery and makeup.

The Han Dynasty did not actually have a cosmetic surgery industry before, but because of battlefield injuries, some people had scars directly on their faces. For some people, these injuries were badges of honor, but for others, they were a source of annoyance regarding their appearance. So, later, when there were surplus resources, the Academy of Medical Sciences also carried out cosmetic surgery-related technology development.

It's not too difficult, relatively speaking. It's not very difficult to remove some scars.

Incidentally, the one who did this best was actually Ji Xiang. It was Ji Xiang who helped Guo Zhao remove all those scars one by one back then.

However, compared to the height required for female soldiers, ordinary soldiers only need to roughly cover up their scars, which is obviously much simpler to do.

Based on this technology, so-called cosmetic surgery was developed. However, these days people believe that one's body and hair are gifts from one's parents, so generally not many people are willing to have surgery on themselves. But not being willing doesn't mean that no one is willing at all.

Given Ruan Huihui's situation, it wouldn't be a problem for her to go to the medical academy for plastic surgery. However, Ruan Huihui refused because she felt it was unnecessary. She relied on her brains, not her looks. If a man could do it, so could she. Why bother?

So when Ruan Huihui came forward, she still had that same ugly face. Although Huangfu Shuhou had accepted reality, his eyes still flickered involuntarily when he saw Ruan Huihui coming forward, but he was much better than the others who saw Ruan Huihui.

【Ah, Uncle Huangfu, remember, you are not here to marry a wife, but to carry on the family legacy. Your great-uncle has done his best, but neither your father, nor your uncle, nor even you yourself are worthy of the Huangfu family's legacy. Therefore, we must place our hopes on the next generation. So, Ruan Huihui is the most suitable candidate. Uncle Huangfu, this is your mission!】 Uncle Huangfu frantically hypnotized himself, and then, as Ruan Huihui approached, he greeted her as naturally as possible.

Often, if you treat something as a task or a job, you'll actually have less trouble. After all, work and tasks are inherently unpleasant, so it's understandable if they cause you a lot of discomfort.

Huangfu Shuhou held this belief: what marriage, what wife? No, I am carrying the great mission of ensuring the continuation of the Huangfu family. So, no matter how ugly Ruan Huihui is, he is prepared to sacrifice his life.

Ruan Huihui looked at Huangfu Shuhou with some strangeness. She was actually very sensitive to gazes. She had sensed the other party's evasive gaze before, but she did not expect that when she walked over, the other party would actually come forward to greet her. Moreover, when she looked again, the other party's gaze had become clear, and even had a bit of a burning look. What was going on?

Well, even with Ruan Huihui's intelligence, it's hard to imagine that Huangfu Shuhou completed the baptism of martyrdom at such a short distance. What love, what wife? No, this is a sacrifice for the Huangfu family, a martyr's supreme belief.

"That's rare indeed, she's even a spiritual talent." Xun You said with a hint of admiration, "There are plenty of beautiful appearances, but interesting souls and extraordinary wisdom are rare. It's truly a perfect match, the man has good looks and the woman has talent."

Xun You was the most qualified to say this, because the Xun family had found him a beautiful and dignified young wife from a prominent family, but Xun You insisted on finding her a concubine from a humble background. Why? It was all for that interesting soul.

Upon hearing Xun You's words, the eyes of the heads of the aristocratic families present suddenly lit up, and even a hint of jealousy, regretting that they had not noticed, appeared.

As the saying goes, beauty aside for now, for major families, the continuation of the family line is far more important than so-called beautiful women. After all, there are plenty of beautiful women in this world, and as long as the family exists, there will be a continuous stream of beautiful women.

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