As soon as this was said, discussions erupted around the table.

The other generals under Feng Shuo whispered among themselves, but Chu Changping remained silent, his already stern features appearing even colder at this moment.

If Feng Shuo agreed to the Marquis of Xing’an’s request, he would have no grounds to criticize.

The Chu family had escaped from the capital thanks to Feng Shuo’s help, and his only son had also been saved from the clutches of the court through Feng Shuo’s efforts.

However, the thought of having to trade his niece’s lifelong happiness for all this left Chu Changping feeling quite uncomfortable.

Chi Qing glanced at Feng Shuo, only to see him put down the wine cup.

Sitting at the high seat, he carried the dignity of someone born into a royal family, yet there was also a hint of inherent aloofness. “Without a great enterprise, how can one have a family? I understand the marquis’s concern for his beloved daughter,” he said.

Upon hearing the first half of the sentence, the Marquis of Xing’an felt a jolt in his heart, but the second half eased his mind for a moment.

He replied, “Then, Your Highness…”

Feng Shuo took over the conversation: “I am willing to recognize the county lord as my sworn sister. In the future, if anyone dares to bully her, I will be the first to not spare them. The marquis can rest assured, right?”

Chi Qing hadn’t expected Feng Shuo to come up with such a clever tactic, and she struggled to suppress her laughter while focusing on her food.

The Marquis of Xing’an’s expression stiffened slightly.

Feng Shuo recognizing his daughter as a sworn sister effectively shut down any prospects of marriage.

Since he had decided to oppose him, there was no turning back.

The military strength of Fan Wei in the south and the Prince of Xinyang was not as formidable as that of the King of Liaonan.

If he turned to ally with Fan Wei and the Prince of Xinyang now, he would face an uncertain and messy situation.

Although the marriage was off, he could only pinch his nose and accept the current circumstances in Xizhou.

After all, he was an old fox who had weathered several dynasties; he didn’t show any anger on his face as he clasped his hands and said, “Thank you, Your Highness, for your kindness.”

Feng Shuo didn’t care whether the Marquis of Xing’an was genuinely forming an alliance or merely biding time; they were currently in the same boat.

The Marquis was a clever man, and their shared interests meant they wouldn’t let a failed marriage cause them to be angry and embarrassed.

The reason the Marquis of Xing’an was tempted by Lu Linyuan was largely due to the knowledge that Feng Shuo would go to great lengths to seize Yuzhou to secure the grain route.

He had defected, and allying with Feng Shuo would allow him to maintain his military strength.

If he were foolishly loyal to the court, a significant portion of the military power was in the hands of the Gao family, who were the empress dowager’s relatives.

For years, the emperor had elevated the Fan family to balance the Gao family, and there was already a rift between the emperor and the Gao family.

If war broke out in Yuzhou, as long as the 50,000 troops he commanded were still intact, the Gao family wouldn’t act lightly.

The emperor’s army had to be reserved to prevent the Gao family from seizing power and wouldn’t dare to support Yuzhou.

Therefore, his only outcome would likely be to scatter the troops he commanded completely.

For the Marquis of Xing’an and his entourage, this meal wasn’t very enjoyable.

After the meal, Feng Shuo sent a large amount of gold, silver, and jewelry to the inn where the Marquis of Xing’an was staying.

He first slapped and then offered a sweet date; the person involved might be unhappy, but if the sweet date wasn’t given, the person would only become more angry.

---

Chu Changping returned to the Chu family with a complicated mood.

He first went to see Old Madam Chu.

“You’ve been away for nearly a month and didn’t send a single letter home…” Old Madam Chu’s words were filled with complaints, but she looked at Chu Changping with deep concern: “You must take care of yourself while you’re out there. Wan Niang has been gone for over ten years; I know you are a person of deep feelings, but Mao Ge’er has grown up, and you still have no one to care for you. If Mao Ge’er gets married in the future, there’s only a father and no mother in the family, which isn’t right. You should marry a wife sooner or later…”

Chu Changping was preoccupied with the thought of the King of Liaonan having taken a liking to his niece, and he could only evade Old Madam Chu’s words: “Mother, what you said is not necessary for me to consider. We are in a time of turmoil; this is not the moment to think about these matters. As long as you and Father are healthy and live long, I will be content.”

Old Madam Chu sighed: “Mao Ge’er is only a few years younger than Bo Ge’er, and Bo Ge’er already has children. Mao Ge’er’s marriage hasn’t even been arranged yet. You two, father and son, are causing me endless worry. Once Mao Ge’er gets married, I’ll look for a good match for Shubao. That girl is so loud and unruly; she needs to be matched with someone gentle and kind so that life can be harmonious in the future.”

“Yiyi is talented in both character and appearance, and she has her own opinions; if you ask me, she is the most outstanding among the girls. Now that she has changed her status, she must keep the past hidden more carefully. You should pay attention to find her a good family. Jiabao is sensitive but has a good nature; I hope to find her a kind and caring husband. Huibao is still young; I want to keep her by my side for a few more years, so I’m not worried about her marriage right now.”

Hearing his mother mention the marriages of the children, Chu Changping couldn’t help but feel a bit heavy-hearted as he recalled the attitude of the Prince of Liaonan at the banquet today.

He quickly wrapped up the conversation, and seeing that her son was still dressed in his armor, Old Madam Chu felt heartbroken and let him leave.

After leaving Old Madam Chu’s courtyard, Chu Changping went straight to see Jiang Yanyi and her brother.

Jiang Yanguo had been carrying a book with him everywhere.

Duke Chen appeared to be amiable and easy to talk to, but he was actually much stricter than Chi Qing, citing classics when scolding others without a single curse word.

It was only after receiving lessons from Duke Chen that Jiang Yanguo realized how good his senior brother had been to him in the past.

Jiang Yanyi and the three Chu sisters were in the outer room, gathered around a rattan table, chattering about the design of the teahouse.

Jiang Yanyi proposed that not only should there be a prominent display cabinet at the entrance, but there should also be a dedicated room upstairs for Chu Shubao to teach female customers how to apply makeup, as well as to store cosmetics that couldn’t fit in the display cabinet downstairs.

Chu Jiabao was skilled in embroidery, and Jiang Yanyi wanted her to use silk to stitch some bags for packaging the cosmetic boxes.

With a template, they could take it to the embroidery shop to have the embroiderers follow the design, which would greatly improve efficiency.

Cosmetics were considered a semi-luxury product, and putting a little more effort into packaging than other shops would mean they could sell them at a higher price, and people would still buy them.

After all, wealthy women cared about the surprises that cosmetics could bring them; otherwise, they could find the same items elsewhere.

A young servant came in holding a bag of pastries and said, “These are the pastries bought by the Second Young Master. I heard the young ladies are here, so he specifically sent me to deliver them.”

Chu Shubao was in high spirits, not even lifting her head as she told the young servant to set them down.

Chu Jiabao was discussing the embroidery pattern they were going to put on the packaging bag with Jiang Yanyi and didn’t have time to pay attention to the servant.

Only Chu Huibao sat on the embroidery stool, her chubby little hands picking up a pastry and munching on it with a look of satisfaction.

The young servant turned back to inform Chu Chengmao, who was feeling increasingly depressed.

Outside the Chu family’s corridor, there was a pond that had frozen over with thin ice as winter set in.

He sat on the railing of the corridor, throwing small stones to break the thin ice on the pond’s surface, appearing somewhat indifferent.

When Chu Changping walked past the corridor, he happened to see him.

This was the closest spot to Chu Yangu’s courtyard, and Chu Changping said, “If you want to see Yangu, why aren’t you going in?”

After throwing the last stone in his hand, Chu Chengmao jumped down from the railing, contradicting himself, “I’m not familiar with the residence yet; I’m just wandering around. I’ve never liked those two siblings; why would I go see them?”

Chu Changping raised his hand and tapped Chu Chengmao’s forehead. “Now they are your biological sister and brother. If you dare to treat them coldly, I’ll kick you out of the house first.”

Chu Chengmao rubbed his forehead where Chu Changping had hit him. “If they were well-behaved and didn’t cause trouble, I wouldn’t treat them coldly. But if they’re foolish and unaware, causing a mess, I don’t have your kindness, Father, to indulge them without discerning right from wrong.”

Chu Changping pretended to be about to hit his son again but ultimately didn’t.

He just patted his shoulder. “Having experienced these changes, those two kids deserve some sympathy. When you were in your teens, weren’t you just as foolish?

Now that you’re a family, don’t act like outsiders. If they do something wrong, as their older brother, you should discipline them, but don’t put on a face like you’re treating them as strangers. Which family has children who are obedient from birth? They are all raised that way.”

Chu Chengmao was just talking back; after all, he had been following Chu Changping around for years and had little opportunity to see Jiang Yanyi and her brother.

Right now, his impression of them was still of the spoiled and arrogant kids from years ago.

Upon returning home, he found that everyone in the family had changed their attitude toward Jiang Yanyi and her brother, who seemed much less annoying than before.

Yet, his stereotypical impression hadn’t changed, making him feel somewhat out of place.

He heard that the two dishes served at lunch were made by Jiang Yanyi, so he deliberately sent someone to inquire and learned that Jiang Yanyi had moved out with Chu Yangu early in the morning, relying on her own skills to open the antique soup shop, and now she had also opened a noodle shop and rented a teahouse.

She had become a well-known female proprietor in the city of Xizhou. His mood was somewhat complicated.

Jiang Yanyi and her brother seemed to have noticed his aloofness, so they also tried not to come too close to him.

He sent pastries over as an attempt to reach out to his younger siblings as a brother.

However! He was completely ignored!

Chu Chengmao felt somewhat annoyed.

Hearing Chu Changping’s words now, he softened his tone. “Father is right.”

Chu Changping said, “I was just about to go see Yangu; you should come with me.”

Following Chu Changping over there was a good excuse, and after hesitating for a moment, Chu Chengmao lifted his foot to follow.

Jiang Yanyi wasn’t surprised by the sudden visit from the father and son.

Seeing them discussing the budget for the teahouse’s decorations, Chu Changping, as an elder, didn’t know how to interrupt the conversation among the young girls, so he could only say boldly, “If you need money, come to me.”

Of course, Jiang Yanyi wouldn’t ask for his money. “The current budget is still sufficient.”

Chu Shubao deliberately said, “Oh, Third Uncle, my cosmetics shop is short on funds; could you lend me some?”

Chu Chengmao responded on behalf of his father, “You might as well forget it. In business, you shouldn’t put all your money into it.”

Chu Shubao huffed, “I’m making money! Second Brother, your mouth is so nasty that you still haven’t managed to bring a sister-in-law home for me. There’s surely a reason for that!”

Chu Chengmao rolled his eyes at her. “You don’t need to worry; no decent young man would dare to marry someone with your temper.”

It was rare for Chu Shubao to be unable to win an argument.

She turned to seek help from Chu Changping. “Third Uncle, look at him!”

Chu Changping immediately scolded, “Chengmao, how can you talk to your sister like that?”

Chu Shubao straightened her back proudly.

Chu Chengmao looked disgusted and didn’t bother to pay attention to her anymore, heading inside to see Chu Yangu.

Jiang Yanyi watched the brother and sister banter and couldn’t help but smile.

Chu Shubao’s personality was truly unlike that of the eldest branch; staying with Chu Changping and Chu Chengmao made her feel more like family.

Chu Shubao didn’t think it was shameful at all to complain about Chu Chengmao to Chu Changping.

Instead, she said to Jiang Yanyi, “Second Brother just has a bad mouth. It doesn’t matter if I can’t win against him; I’ll just tell Third Uncle. He’ll beat him up.”

Jiang Yanyi, along with Chu Jiabao and Chu Huibao, laughed.

From inside, Chu Chengmao’s voice came out. “I heard that!”

Chu Shubao made a face towards the inner room.