Once I enter the pass, great Confucian scholars will surely debate the classics for me.

Zhou Qingfeng and the First Lady sat around the lotus platform, selecting potential concubines. The First Lady was very traditional, but also open-minded. Given that the families were of equal social standing, she allowed Zhou Qingfeng to make limited choices and respected his decisions.

Zhou Qingfeng didn't care at all. Marrying anyone was the same to him. He could just treat her like a pretty vase to keep at home for his own enjoyment. At most, he could have a few children to show the world that he and the First Family shared the same fate and were of the same blood.

The most important thing is that the person is pleasing to the eye and has a good personality.

Zhou Qingfeng didn't have the time or energy for romance, and he disdained such fancy things. If someone couldn't provide extra help to his career, then at least they should not cause trouble and should stay at home to be a good wife and mother. Otherwise, Zhou Qingfeng wouldn't indulge them.

To put it bluntly, Zhou Qingfeng is a power monster who is single-mindedly pursuing power and strength. His life is full of excitement, with one major event after another waiting for him to do and one goal after another waiting for him to achieve. Romance is really insignificant and not worth mentioning.

Moreover, Zhou Qingfeng views marriage as a strategic partnership for deep collaboration, rather than a search for a sexual or romantic partner.

Therefore, he hopes for a strong alliance, mutual respect, mutual support, and common progress.

Zhou Qingfeng took out a painting of a woman in pink: "What about her?"

First Lady: "She's three hundred years older than you, which is good. She's older than you and knows how to take care of people."

Zhou Qingfeng then took out a painting of a woman in blue: "Mother, this one looks quite nice too."

First Lady: "Hmm... she's really good. She just turned 18. You'll have to take good care of her after you marry her, as young girls are prone to emotional outbursts."

Zhou Qingfeng was overwhelmed by the choices. There were thirty-six women, each one charming and unique. He didn't know them all, nor did he understand them. He could only look at their portraits to see who he liked best, and then ask his mother. His mother's replies were always "not bad" or "good."

It's not that he lacks his own opinions, it's just that he really can't choose.

Forget it, this is a major life event, let's just use divination sticks.

Silently recite: Draw lots.

[Chinese-Korean divination, first red, auspicious]

[Chinese Fortune Telling, First Dream Song, Auspicious]

[Chinese Fortune Telling - First Thought: Gentleness, Auspicious]

[Auspicious divination slip, the best possible, very lucky]

[Chinese auspicious divination, First Dust Dance, Auspicious]

[Auspicious Fortune Telling - First Drunken Beauty, Good Fortune]

[China-Kyrgyzstan visa application...]

Of the thirty-six divination slips, thirty-five were moderately auspicious, with none being particularly inauspicious. The only extremely auspicious slip belonged to a woman named Di Yi Zhen Zhen.

Following the principle of choosing the auspicious option if available, and choosing neutral if not, Zhou Qingfeng decisively said, "Mother, I want to marry the number one Zhenzhen!"

The First Lady smiled and said, "As you wish, I will arrange for you to marry Zhenzhen as my concubine, and we will choose a day to go to the capital together to get married."

The position of concubine was thus decided. Even though Zhou Qingfeng and the First Lady had never met, that didn't matter. What mattered was the arrangement of their parents and the matchmaker. The First Lady's words were law, and since she had spoken, the First Lady had no choice but to marry him, whether she wanted to or not.

Freedom of marriage is never something that two people can decide on their own.

Zhou Qingfeng is alright; at least he managed to gain some right to choose a spouse by leveraging his own resources.

However, the first Zhenzhen has absolutely no choice.

This is the destined fate of the children of wealthy and noble families.

It may seem incredibly expensive and unattainable, but in reality, it's displayed on the counter like a rare luxury item, available for anyone, regardless of gender, to choose from.

"Your son thanks Mother for bestowing this marriage upon you." Zhou Qingfeng knelt on the cushion and kowtowed to express his gratitude.

The First Lady smiled faintly, stood up, and gently patted Zhou Qingfeng's shoulder as she passed by: "Eat your lychees before you go."

Zhou Qingfeng knelt on the spot, turned his head to watch the First Lady's departing figure, and a look of joy appeared on his face. The greatest gain from this trip was not the rewards that were mentioned, but the things that were not said. When listening to people, one should not only listen to what they said, but also what they didn't say.

What wasn't mentioned was military power!

The fact that military power was not taken back meant that her mother tacitly allowed her to continue controlling the resistance force.

As long as he has military power, Zhou Qingfeng stands tall and speaks with confidence.

Regardless of whether it was a ragtag army or a puppet army, it was still a well-organized border army.

And it doesn't spend a single penny; all of the annual military expenditures go through the Sword Tower's public accounts.

No reward is more substantial or powerful than military power.

From this day forward, Zhou Qingfeng has become a true powerful figure. However, this also means that Zhou Qingfeng must act more cautiously, because he knows that his position is not secure and any mistake could lead to the loss of everything.

The First Lady neither explicitly granted nor revoked military power, but tacitly allowed Zhou Qingfeng to continue to control the resistance army.

This approach demonstrates the First Lady's exceptional wisdom. If Zhou Qingfeng performs in accordance with her expectations, he can retain his military power; otherwise, she can find an opportunity to reclaim it at any time without incurring any formal responsibility.

Maintaining ambiguity in decision-making allows you to leave yourself room for maneuver while also putting pressure on and constraining others.

With Zhou Qingfeng's current abilities, he can't beat me.

If someone tries to outsmart me, they'll probably end up being manipulated.

In short, with the First Lady's talent, as long as she lives, the Tower of Swords will always be the Tower of Swords, and no one can overturn it.

Of course, Zhou Qingfeng didn't intend to cause any upheaval. After all, as a member of the Sword Tower, his success depended on the Sword Tower's success, and his failure would also bring him misfortune. Zhou Qingfeng was now deeply bound to the First Family, an inseparable bond that had made them a community of shared destiny, where rise and fall were intertwined.

Zhou Qingfeng simply wanted to gain more and greater power. When the First Family could no longer satisfy his desire for power or provide him with more assistance, he would not betray them, because as long as the First Lady lived, he would always be her fourth son.

When that day comes, he will lead the Sword Tower to fight outwards, conquer the world, and usher in a glorious era of hegemony!

In the game of power, once it begins, it's either conquer power or be destroyed by it.

Zhou Qingfeng silently ate the lychees, as if he were savoring his decades of life, a mix of joys and sorrows welling up in his heart.

How far and how long will it take to walk the precarious path to power?

He didn't know whether it would be one hundred years, five hundred years, or one thousand years.

He could only keep walking, keep walking, keep walking.

After finishing the lychees, Zhou Qingfeng got up and left, walking down the mountain path. When he reached the wall at the entrance of the inner courtyard, he turned around and entered a quiet and unique courtyard. His master was already sitting under the shade of a tree in the courtyard, playing a tune on the erhu, looking as if he were living a life of leisure.

Seeing this, Zhou Qingfeng did not disturb him, but stood quietly to the side, waiting for his master to finish playing the tune.

Then he clasped his hands in a fist and bowed respectfully, saying, "Disciple greets Master."

Qiu Chengde looked at his apprentice's visit, seemingly expecting it and not surprised. He smiled and beckoned, "Come here and see what this is."

Zhou Qingfeng took a few steps forward and then noticed a long wooden box on the stone table. He looked at his master with a puzzled expression, but his master smiled and gestured for Zhou Qingfeng to open the box. Zhou Qingfeng reached out and slowly pulled open the lid of the long wooden box.

"Master, is this a walking stick?"