Starting with choosing a wife, creating the most powerful Xia

Seeing that Chu Xuan was so fearless, the clan elders had no choice but to let him be.

"Barbarian Woman and Chen Xuening, you have failed the selection three times. Furthermore, because you are both guilty of serious crimes, you cannot take your own lives. You will be beheaded on a later date!"

"Considering that you two each have your own abilities, I will give you the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. If you can persuade the collateral relatives present to take you as concubines and serve the Chu family, you may be able to save your lives."

As soon as he finished speaking, all the collateral relatives took a step back in unison.

There was nothing they could do; the fines imposed on these two women were simply too heavy, and no one could afford to pay them for them.

Thirty-one thousand taels of silver—many people couldn't save that much money in their entire lives.

If you bought them from human traffickers, that money could buy tens of thousands of women.

Even if it were just to redeem the courtesan, it would be enough to redeem her at least seventeen or eighteen times. Why waste your life on these two women?

"Heir of the Wilderness, fearless of the shackles of life and death!" The barbarian woman stood proudly, her back as strong as iron, never once considering yielding.

Chen Xuening remained silent like a ghost, not uttering a single word throughout, as if she had truly become mute.

Time flies, and the incense stick is about to burn out.

Seeing this, the clan elder had no choice but to wave his hand helplessly: "Take the two of them away."

"Wait a minute!"

At this moment, Chu Xuan's voice broke the silence.

"Elder, I am willing to take these two young ladies as my concubines."

These words caused an uproar and sparked much discussion.

The elder frowned and earnestly advised, "Chu Xuan, you should think twice before you act."

"If you really intend to marry all three of these girls and take them into your household, then the fine you'll be facing will amount to a whopping 35,000 taels!"

"If your debt is only four thousand taels, then as long as you are determined and dedicate yourself to the family, there is still a possibility of a phoenix rising from the ashes in this life."

"However, once you take on that mountain-like debt of 35,000 taels, your life will be as if locked in an inescapable dark abyss, and a life of wealth and comfort will probably only be a distant dream for you."

Chu Xuan said slowly and deliberately, "I have thought it through and am willing to marry them as concubines."

Both Chen Xuening and that wild woman were outstanding talents, but this era simply couldn't accommodate them.

If they can be brought under my command and carefully nurtured, they will surely become my capable assistants, as loyal and reliable as my trusted advisors.

For Chu Xuan, money was nothing but fleeting smoke, and repaying it was as easy as taking something out of a bag.

"Madam, what do you think?"

Seeing Chu Xuan looking at her, Chu Ling'er was dumbfounded.

She never expected that Chu Xuan would not only treat her as his wife, but also consult with her on matters.

"It's all up to you, my lord. If these two sisters come into the family, I will definitely take good care of them."

Chu Xuan smiled slightly: "Thank you for your understanding, Madam."

However, the clan elder couldn't help but pour cold water on Chu Xuan's enthusiasm, saying, "Chu Xuan, although taking a wife and concubine is a matter of mutual consent, you should also consider how to repay the money you owe the Chu family."

"Elder, please don't worry. I have already thought of a way to make money. Please give me three years. By then, I will definitely pay off the fine with interest."

Chu Xuan stated bluntly, "If we are unable to repay this debt by then, then these three ladies and I will go to the Yellow Springs together to apologize to the Chu family!"

Upon hearing this, everyone felt that Chu Xuan was digging his own grave.

"Heh, did you hear that? This guy never wanted to live anyway!"

"I think so too. He wants to marry three wives, enjoy himself for three years, and then die."

Good advice is hard to persuade a damned ghost. The clan elders had given Chu Xuan several chances, but Chu Xuan refused to change his mind.

Seeing that the matter was already settled, he couldn't be bothered to care anymore. With a wave of his hand, he gave all three women to Chu Xuan.

"Then let's make a three-year agreement. If the fine isn't paid, all four of you will lose your heads!"

With the departure of the clan elders, the selection of a wife came to an end.

The eldest son, accompanied by his wife, met both sets of parents, beaming with joy.

The sons from collateral branches could only hurry with their wives to their fiefdoms to take up their posts.

The driver assigned to Chu Xuan's carriage widened his eyes upon seeing three women in the carriage and couldn't help but joke, "Young Master Chu Xuan, you've got three women in one go, you're really something."

As the old saying goes, "Three cobblers with their wits combined are better than one Zhuge Liang!"

Chu Xuan skillfully eased the awkward situation, then opened the box that the Chu family had given as a wedding gift to their son from a collateral branch.

Among them were the lord's token and the deed to the lord's mansion, as well as some loose silver, about eighty-eight taels.

Chu Xuan rolled his eyes as he looked at the box of loose silver.

"I've married three wives, shouldn't I receive three sets of betrothal gifts?"

"So, the four of us are only worth twenty-two taels each? That's incredibly stingy!"

Hearing Chu Xuan's complaint, Chu Ling'er lowered her head and pursed her lips, saying, "I'm sorry, husband, it's all my fault. I'm just unlucky and brought bad luck to you."

"Whether or not we can pay off our debts in three years, I will serve you wholeheartedly during this time!"

Chu Ling'er seemed convinced that they would all die together three years later, and tears kept welling up in her eyes.

Seeing this, Chu Xuan quickly comforted her, "Madam, don't cry. We can definitely pay back the money. We still want to grow old together. I just thought they were stingy, that's all."

"Waaah, my husband, you're so good to me."

Chu Ling'er threw herself into Chu Xuan's arms, deeply moved.

She had never been so cared for and cherished before. With such a husband, she would have no regrets even if she were to die right now.

"How are you going to pay me back? Stop bragging!"

Just as Chu Xuan and Chu Ling'er were deeply in love, Chen Xuening retorted without holding back.

"You don't even trust your own husband, do you?" Chu Xuan raised an eyebrow and looked at Chen Xuening.

"Heh, besides this stupid woman, who would believe you?"

Chen Xuening said in a deep voice, "Your rotten fiefdom not only has extremely poor tax revenue, but most of the villagers are old, weak, sick, or disabled, and there are also many bandit dens around it, so you get robbed every now and then."

"I really don't understand. You were the first one to choose a fiefdom, so how could you choose such a terrible place?"

"You don't actually think you can earn 35,000 taels by selling fish, do you?"

After hearing Chen Xuening's sarcasm, Chu Xuan was not angry at all; instead, he put on a very pleasantly surprised expression.

"You are indeed exceptionally astute, knowing so much about Wuming Mountain. Not bad at all!"

Chen Xuening punched cotton, caught off guard, and her cheeks instantly flushed with embarrassment.

Seeing this, Chu Xuan roughly understood what kind of person Chen Xuening was, and then turned to look at the barbaric woman.

"This lady..."

"Don't you dare call me 'Madam' here in that disgusting way. You'd better get as far away from me as possible. If you dare touch me, believe me, I'll break your hand!"

The fierce and menacing appearance of the barbaric woman made Chu Xuan feel quite aggrieved.

"You're being completely unreasonable."

"I owe you a huge debt, and instead of thanking me, you're being so rude?"

The barbaric woman scoffed, "Rather than marrying a good-for-nothing like you, you might as well just kill me. I'll be a hero again in eighteen years!"

"Oh dear, you're a young lady, why do you always talk about life and death? That's not good."

Chu Xuan knew this wild woman had a fiery temper, but the more like a woman was, the more she admired strength.

As long as you can demonstrate enough ability to convince her, winning her over won't be difficult.

"I do what I want! What's it to you?" The barbaric woman exuded an air of arrogance.

"I know you fight on the battlefield with unparalleled bravery, so the kind of domineering and powerful man you admire must also be the kind of man you admire."

Chu Xuan laughed instead of getting angry: "You think that your husband is too thin and frail to be good enough for you, right?"

Upon hearing this, the barbarian woman snorted coldly and glanced at Chu Xuan sideways, saying, "At least you know your place."

"And what would you say if I were stronger than you?"

"You're stronger than me? Impossible!"

The barbaric woman sneered, her tone full of disdain.

Not to mention the barbaric woman, even Chen Xuening and Chu Ling'er didn't believe it.

You should know that when choosing a wife there before, everyone else only had one shackle, but the barbarian woman was shackled from head to toe with five shackles.

This shows just how formidable this woman is!

In comparison, Chu Xuan's waist was much thinner than this woman's, making it hard to imagine that he was stronger than her.

"Hehe, how about we arm wrestle and see who's stronger?"

Chu Xuan coughed and chuckled: "If I am stronger than you, then you should follow me closely from now on, protect me, and obey my commands."

“If I’m not as strong as you, I’ll let you out of the car right away. You can go wherever you want, and I’ll still pay your fine so you can have no worries.”