Chapter 87 Striking Fast, Accurately, and Ruthlessly

Chapter 87: Quick, Accurate, and Ruthless

"You truly are blessed, Madam, and you strike fast and accurately. The eldest Miss [Miss Xi] must be kicking herself now."

Lü Zhi flattered her, also counting herself lucky, knowing that her status would change from now on—even in the marriage market, she could marry well.

Yang Xingxian had earned the title of Jieyuan (top scholar), which caught everyone off guard. Who would have thought that such an unknown figure would become a dark horse?

As the Yang household expected, not long after, the imperial decree arrived, and Yang Xingxian was invested as Hereditary Prince.

The Emperor specifically praised the Marquis of Changping for his excellent upbringing of his son and awarded a hundred taels of silver.

Though it was only a hundred taels, it showed where the Emperor stood.

The tide turned in the capital, and the long-ignored Marquis of Changping residence began to receive a stream of visitors.

An Yi knelt before Qi Chengyun, reporting on the recent activities of Xi Qianyue.

"Has she been in low spirits?"

"No. Although her maidservants have grumbled, the eldest Miss Xi has been her usual composed self, paying little attention to the goings-on of the Yang household."

Qi Chengyun was a bit relieved: "That's good."

"Earlier, when you ran into the Third Prince at the shop, the eldest Miss Xi seemed to have guessed that you're someone important. She discussed it with her maidservants and seemed a bit worried."

Qi Chengyun said darkly: "Worried about what?"

An Yi chose his words carefully: "It seems she's concerned that your status is too high to run the shop together as equals. The maidservants worry that the eldest Miss might be brought into the household as a concubine... And the eldest Miss Xi said she wouldn't want to be a concubine, let alone a secondary consort or principal consort."

"Oh? Not even the principal consort?"

An Yi sensed the coldness emanating from his master and said reluctantly: "The eldest Miss Xi said she has no interest in marriage, only in making money and living her own quiet life."

Qi Chengyun waved him off: "Protect her well along with An Er."

Qi Chengyun sat still in his study. Xi Qianyue, you wouldn't even want to be a principal consort? It was already difficult enough to win her hand, and now she had no interest at all.

Did he want to marry her? He found himself wondering.

In truth, he felt that seeing her, hearing about her, and being with her brought him comfort. When he didn't see her, he missed her deeply.

He even wanted to share good food and pretty views with her.

Marriage seemed like a distant prospect.

But he was certain he wanted to see her and be with her.

"An San, go invite the eldest Miss Xi. I'll wait for her at her restaurant."

An San was startled. As a shadow guard, his master rarely had them show themselves in public.

After thinking it over, he found a plain maid in the residence to deliver the message, while he remained hidden in the shadows.

Xi Qianyue was a bit confused. Why would Sixth Young Master Qi want to meet her at her Yipin Taoke restaurant instead of his Guangju Tower?

She didn't overthink it, changed into street clothes, washed her face, and left.

She assumed Sixth Young Master Qi had something important to discuss, but he just smiled and said: "Eldest Miss Xi, the Yang household has been quite pleased with themselves lately, which gets on my nerves. My shadow guards have found out that Bai Zhining is in the Yang residence. Do you think I should turn them in?"

Xi Qianyue smiled: "Yang Xingxian winning the Jieyuan title gets on my nerves too. Why don't you give me Bai Zhining's deed, and I'll turn them in?"

"That won't work."

Seeing Xi Qianyue startled, he smiled again: "Even if you win the case, people would only think you're picking a fight out of spite."

Xi Qianyue caught on. Though others' opinions weren't that important, if people thought she was still deeply in love with Yang Xingxian and couldn't stand his current success with a beautiful concubine by his side, what would that do to her pride?

"I didn't think it through. You're helping me get back at them—how can I thank you?"

"Ha, we'll talk about that later."

Qi Chengyun suddenly couldn't help probing: "Eldest Miss Xi, what do you think of being the head of a great household?"

"Way too exhausting! I have no grand ambitions. Aside from wanting to make some money and live a relaxed life, I have no other thoughts. Families with too many rules sound exhausting just to think about."

"Pardon my bluntness, but all noble families have many rules..."

"I'm a divorced woman who came back home. Aren't you speaking to the wrong person?" Xi Qianyue said casually. "Perhaps Sixth Young Master Qi comes from a distinguished family and would naturally pair up with a woman of noble birth. Don't worry—noble ladies are fully capable of running a household."

Xi Qianyue became even more certain that Sixth Young Master Qi was from the imperial family.

"In fact, the eldest Miss Xi also has what it takes to be a matriarch..." Qi Chengyun said dryly.

"I don't know if I have what it takes, but I'm certain I have no interest in it."

She had flat-out turned him down!

Qi Chengyun smiled and changed the subject, moving on to other topics.

Though his heart was somewhat bitter, Qi Chengyun had to admit that the moment he saw the radiant and charming Xi Qianyue, the hollow feeling in his chest seemed to fill up.

This had never happened in all his years.

He had seen many noble ladies, and later, while roaming the country, he had encountered all kinds of women.

But this had never happened before.

Even his fifth brother was about to marry, and his turn would come soon. If the Emperor issued a marriage decree, he would be unable to refuse.

"But you'll have to get married eventually..."

Xi Qianyue smiled: "It depends on fate. I'm still young. I won't give up on the idea of marriage just because of one bad marriage. But I'm not set on getting married either. If I meet someone who's right for me, perhaps I'll marry then."

Recalling something, she added: "You might not believe this, but in my marriage, it must be just the two of us, no one else. Meaning, there can be no third party—no concubines or the like, none of that."

"But... it's normal for men to have several wives and concubines. Even among those respectable families, there's a rule that a man may take a concubine if he has no son by thirty. But in the end, they can still take concubines." Qi Chengyun said weakly.

Xi Qianyue shook her head: "That's why I said it depends on fate. In my view, if there's one person I've given my heart to, and we've committed to each other, we'll grow old together. Others are free to have multiple wives and concubines, but that's not something I'll allow.

Of course, this is very difficult. First, I'm a divorced woman who came back home. In the eyes of the world, remarrying makes me look lesser. Second, even if someone accepts my status and is willing not to take concubines, what if he's not the one for me?

All in all, the odds are very slim. So naturally, I don't think about it much—I'll let fate decide."

Xi Qianyue looked at Qi Chengyun and laughed: "Oh, why are we talking about all this? My restaurant has new dishes—I'll treat you."