Firefly Journey

Xu family.

Xu Dagong stood in front of that expensive desk, casually flipping through an ancient book, his attention entirely focused on the father and son of the second branch of the family.

"Second brother, Long'er has always been a very thoughtful child and doesn't want to live like a puppet. Do you think I've been pushing her too far?"

Xu Keyi, the second son of the Xu family, bowed slightly, his face revealing neither joy nor sorrow: "Father, you can't say that. Long'er is the eldest grandson of the Xu family. He has been pampered since childhood, so it's normal for him to have developed a fearless personality."

But she's not unreasonable; from the family's perspective, this is her inevitable fate. I believe she will understand our good intentions.

Xu Hanshan shook his head.

He knew his granddaughter's personality all too well; compromise was absolutely out of the question!

She went from being unwilling to agreeing to agreeing calmly, as if she didn't take it to heart. There must be something strange about it. Asking her directly is definitely not the way to go. Who would tell you everything on their mind about something like this?

Xu Hanshan became even more curious. Since Fengling was unwilling to marry him, how would things end if she agreed? If things got too out of hand, the Xu family's reputation would be ruined.

Not only the Xu family, but also the Dimos family, who are related by marriage, might become a laughing stock. At that point, even if the two families have been related by marriage for generations, some rifts will likely develop as a result.

In fact, Xu Hanshan had considered marrying someone else, or finding a woman from the Dimos family to marry into the family.

But this is not something that can be changed.

Firstly, Morgan and Xu Penglong were betrothed since childhood, a relationship that has lasted for more than ten years; how could it be changed so easily?

Secondly, that kid from the Demos family has already made it clear that he's determined to have his granddaughter. How could he possibly like someone else?

Marrying a woman from the Demos family would be easy, but the problem is, among the younger generation of the Demos family, who has a status like Morgan's?

Is marrying a member of a collateral branch of the family the same as marrying a future grand duke?

They are obviously different.

Xu Hanshan was puzzled. When they were young, the younger generation of the seven dukes had a good relationship, and Long'er didn't dislike Morgan. So why did she hate him so much when they grew up?

They even reached the point of being irreconcilable enemies.

What happened in between?

According to Morgan, he doesn't know why, but looking back, he hasn't done anything to wrong her.

So the problem lies with Xu Penglong.

Asking will naturally not yield any answers.

The only thing to do is try to learn from others, such as Xu Zhengming. Although Xu Penglong was not very willing to talk to this cousin, they were in the same school after all, and their ages were only a few months apart, so maybe he knew something.

"Xiaoming, does your older sister have anyone she's close to at the academy?" Xu Hanshan asked.

The only people I'm close to? They're the students from Class 29.

Based on what he had seen and heard, Xu Zhengming replied, "Yes, Sabrina from the Broan family."

Sabrina? Xu Hanshan knew this person. She was the eldest grandson of the Broan family. She was shrewd and adept at social maneuvering. Under the guise of being a student, she had cultivated a considerable social circle among the nobles of Yicheng.

He often lamented how wonderful it would be if Long'er were as quick-witted as her.

But that was clearly not the answer he wanted, so he asked more directly: "I mean, male classmates."

Even if Xu Zhengming was stupid, he should have realized what his grandfather was going to ask, and besides, he wasn't stupid.

After a moment of contemplation, Xu Zhengming said, "No, she was close to the Crown Prince of Chu and his ilk, but it's clear that she never crossed any boundaries beyond friendship."

Not only that, when Fengling was happy, she treated her cousin the same way, making jokes and showing concern for him. It's just that Xu Zhengming was unwilling to accept it because of his pitiful jealousy.

"But a few months ago, after she went to the Rhine Province with Mr. Cassius, she became quite close to a boy."

Xu Hanshan and Xu Keyi exchanged a glance, feeling as if they had found the root of the problem.

Xu Hanshan asked, "Are they very close?"

Xu Zhengming said, "Not really. My older sister treats him very well, and I always feel that she treats him differently from others. That man is named Ario Morris, and he is now also Mr. Cassius's student."

Those who are Cassius Bello's students are not to be trifled with.

Xu Hanshan had heard of the name Ario since Xu Penglong returned from the Rhine, but he hadn't paid much attention to it at the time. Now, however, it was causing some trouble.

After listening to Xu Zhengming's words, Xu Hanshan had already thought of a thousand ways to deal with Ario, but the last sentence brought up the Great Teacher of Wisdom, which completely changed the nature of the situation.

Cassius is known for his fierce protectiveness of his own. Although the Xu family is not afraid of a mere student instructor like him, his reputation makes him someone they can't easily offend.

Moreover, Xu Penglong was also his student, so with that relationship, it was even less likely that they would turn against each other.

"You go and rest first."

"Okay." Xu Zhengming respectfully took his leave.

"What do you think?" Xu Hanshan asked.

Xu Keyi thought for a moment and said, "I'll say it again. You and I both know Long'er's personality. If she liked that boy, she wouldn't be so restrained, nor would she act like she doesn't care."

I think that's not the reason she didn't want a marriage alliance.

Xu Hanshan's expression softened. Xu Keyi was right; he had been overthinking things. But he couldn't understand what his granddaughter was trying to do, and he was helpless to do anything about it.

I can only remain worried.

He had a vague feeling that after the academy competition, the engagement banquet with the Demos family might encounter some complications.

……

……

"Cheese! It's me, Maureen!"

The skinny young man tried to appeal to the animal's emotions, but it was clearly useless. The three-eyed lynx seemed not to hear him and continued to gnaw on the charred rat.

"What do we do now?" he asked Lin Yuanran.

"How would I know?" Lin Yuanran shrugged. "It doesn't recognize you and has mutated, which is obviously related to this sewer. When it went missing, it was probably lured away."

Morin's eyes dimmed: "No matter what, I must bring it back! My cultivation level is very low, I'm only a first-tier summoner, so my summoned creatures aren't very strong either. Do you... have the confidence to catch it?"

Lin Yuanran looked troubled. If it were just a simple fight, he was capable of fighting a relatively weak magical beast. But with the mission upgraded to capture, things were getting a bit difficult.

Maureen was the employer; he had no right to refuse.

"Let me try."

Before coming down, nobody knew about this incident, and no one brought any tools.

Lin Yuanran had a solution. If there were no ropes or cages, he would knock it unconscious and take it back. There's always a way to overcome difficulties.

The charred rat had been mostly eaten, and Lin Yuanran stood with his hands behind his back, flames slowly building up.

Lin Yuanran took a few steps toward the cheese.

The mutated civet was very alert, stopped eating, and looked fierce.

call!

Lin Yuanran let go, and the dirty water in the ditch next to them suddenly bubbled. Mo Lin felt his body getting hot.

The civet cried out wildly, also agitated by the rising temperature.

The practitioner, Lin Yuanran, was unaffected and continued to accelerate the boiling furnace.