New and dark light years

Chapter 376 Are you sure you won't give them face?

Li Lin did not know the bride's name, only her family name, so he could only refer to her as Ms. He.

Su Bei looked at the bride on the ground, his eyes filled with humiliation and pain.

Before they decided to get married, their parents had arranged for them to meet privately, and they even met secretly a few times and developed a strong liking for each other.

I never expected this to happen.

By this time, the surrounding area was already crowded with onlookers. On his wedding day, a mere captain was being abducted – how novel!

Li Lin brushed aside the soldiers' hands gripping their scabbards, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said, "Fellow neighbors, friends and relatives, the banquet in the kitchen is ready, and the strong liquor is just the right temperature. Please make yourselves at home outside." His gaze swept across the crowd, his usually smiling eyes now seeming veiled in a thin layer of ice. "As for the remaining personal matters, please allow us a moment to attend to them. We apologize for any rudeness."

Then Li Lin said to the others, "Who is in charge of the banquet? Let's start the banquet, so as not to keep our fellow villagers waiting."

After those two sentences were spoken, even those who wanted to watch the spectacle had to leave, though they all looked quite disappointed.

Li Lin was a county magistrate and a garrison commander; once he spoke, no one would give him face.

At this moment, the spirited young swordsman panicked and shouted, "Fellow villagers, don't go... They want to lock me up here alone and kill me!"

But nobody paid him any attention.

Soon, the gate was closed, leaving only the three parties involved, Li Lin, and a few servants in the front yard.

Seeing this, the young swordsman gritted his teeth and turned to look at Su Bei: "Do you really have to rely on power to ruin other people's marriages?"

Su Bei angrily retorted, "I didn't! I had no idea you two had already made a private engagement!"

"Don't pretend you don't know. If you investigate, how could you not know that Ah Li and I grew up together!" The young hero said angrily.

"Stop arguing," Li Lin said.

Su Bei naturally listened to Li Lin and immediately swallowed back the words of abuse that were about to come out.

The young hero looked at Li Lin with a hint of apprehension in his eyes.

Li Lin was not only famous in Jin County, but also had a great reputation in the martial arts world.

So when the young hero saw that Li Lin was so handsome that he was not an ordinary person, he knew that this was the legendary Yulin County Magistrate, the Paper Prince Li Lin.

“Young Master Paper, this matter has nothing to do with you.” The young hero cupped his hands and said respectfully, “I am a disciple of the Diancang Sect, named Lü Pingchun. I hope you can give our Diancang Sect some face.”

Li Lin chuckled and said, "The Diancang Sect? What kind of small sect is this? I've never even heard of it. Why should I give you face, or give face to the Diancang Sect? When you came to cause trouble, did you ever think that I was the one presiding over this wedding? Did you give me any face?"

Lu Pingchun's face immediately stiffened.

At this moment, Huang Qing, supporting Su Shi, also came over from the backyard.

Su wanted to speak, but Huang Qing stopped her, saying, "Let the official handle it."

Su then fell silent.

On the other side, Lü Pingchun's face stiffened for a moment before he said, "Your Excellency, I was impolite and am willing to accept punishment. But Yujuan and I are already engaged. It is only natural that a woman should not serve two husbands. As the ruler of this region, Your Excellency should uphold this public order and good customs, shouldn't you?"

That's absolutely true.

Li Lin sighed inwardly, then said seriously, "But not everyone has arrived yet. Someone, go and invite Mr. and Mrs. He over."

A servant responded and left, his footsteps fading into the rain. Silence returned to the courtyard, broken only by Madam He's barely suppressed, soft sobs.

Li Lin glanced at Madam He, who was slumped on the ground sobbing, but ignored her. Instead, he said to the servant beside him, "Go and prepare a few chairs and put them here."

Several maids immediately ran off, and soon a chair was brought over.

Li Lin sat in the most central seat, then beckoned to Huang Qing and Madam Su, inviting them to sit beside him.

Two women came over and sat down.

Huang Qing's expression was calm, while Madam He looked aggrieved and somewhat angry.

Su Bei was initially filled with grief and indignation, but after seeing Li Lin, his mood gradually calmed down.

He walked over and stood next to Li Lin.

At this moment, Lü Pingchun went over and helped He Shi, who had fallen to the ground, up.

He said softly, "Don't worry, I will take you away safely and won't let you suffer here."

He didn't dare look at him, but turned her face away and continued to sob.

Upon hearing this, both Su Bei and Su Niangzi looked rather unpleasant.

Huang Qing chuckled and said, "Su Bei is my master's adopted son. He holds the rank of Colonel and is a ninth-rank official registered in the imperial court. While he may not be extremely wealthy, his family is at least well-off. If He Shi marries into the Su family, she can at least become an official's wife. What will she become if she follows you... a wanderer?"

Lu Pingchun's face was very ugly. He retorted, "The affection between men and women is not about wealth, status, or position. Madam, you married Li the County Magistrate because of his status, didn't you?"

Hearing this, Li Lin smiled slightly.

Huang Qing covered her mouth with a handkerchief and chuckled: "When I took a liking to my husband, he was just a Spirit Hunter. It's ridiculous that you talked about love between a man and a woman and that wealth and honor are not important in front of us."

Lu Pingchun was quite embarrassed, as he was unaware of this matter... but he then said, "Then Madam should understand even more that matters of mutual consent should not be mixed with power and money."

Huang Qing said, "When a woman marries, it's simply to marry a man she loves... If you really have a man she loves, why didn't you show up two or three months ago, instead of only now coming out to cause trouble?"

"I was practicing martial arts at Diancang Mountain at that time."

“Yes… Madam He is already seventeen years old. She has waited for you for three years. If she hadn’t been getting married, you wouldn’t have appeared. How long do you expect her to wait? Another three years?” Huang Qing said with great dissatisfaction, “A woman’s youth lasts only three or four years. If you miss it and are unwilling to marry her, don’t blame others for taking it away.”

Lü Pingchun... was speechless for a moment.

Huang Qing's words hit the nail on the head.

He really wasn't planning to get married anytime soon... after all, his second senior sister was waiting for him on Diancang Mountain.

He rushed back to snatch the bride after hearing that He was getting married.

Seeing Lü Pingchun's expression, Huang Qing continued, "To put it bluntly, you're just unwilling for He Shi to marry someone else; you feel that she can only be yours."

Lu Pingchun's face darkened: "I didn't think that way..."

Huang Qing didn't look at him again, but turned his head and asked, "Sir, this man looks like a dissolute. Why not send him away? It's not good for him to stay here."

Li Lin shook his head and said, "We still have to wait for the He family to come... No matter what, they have to give the Su family an explanation."

Now he understands that Lü Pingchun did indeed have an affair with Madam He. Madam He didn't say anything about it, nor did the He family. He doesn't believe the He family is unaware of the affair between the two.

Knowing full well that they still chose to conceal it showed a lack of respect for Su Bei and Li Lin. Silence fell once more.

No one spoke.

Lu Pingchun was filled with regret. He had thought that He Yujuan was only going to marry a local military officer, which was why he dared to come and snatch her away.

But unexpectedly, the Paper Prince was actually here.

He desperately wanted to escape, but he didn't dare... because his intuition told him that if he dared to run, the consequences would be dire.

The Paper Prince gave him a very scary feeling. Looking into the other's eyes, he felt as if a big gun was pointed at his head from afar.

Anyone who dares to act recklessly will have their brain explode.

Not long after, the door opened and a middle-aged couple jogged in.

When they came in and saw their daughter covered in mud and dust, and then looked at Lü Pingchun beside her, the middle-aged man immediately flew into a rage.

"Lu Pingchun, you brat, how dare you show your face in front of me..."

The middle-aged man was He Yongmin, the head of the He family. He was chasing after Lü Pingchun, but he couldn't catch up with him no matter what he did.

Lu Pingchun is a martial arts practitioner, not someone an ordinary person can deal with.

The middle-aged woman ran up to the bride, Ms. He, and kept asking what had happened.

Li Lin coughed lightly and said, "Stop fooling around."

Upon hearing this sound, both of the people opposite stopped.

Li Lin asked, "Master He, this should have been a joyous occasion, but now it's turned into this mess. Aren't you going to give me an explanation?"

He Yongmin's face turned ashen. He said, "My daughter is innocent and has no connection with him. I hope Lord Li will investigate thoroughly."

"I don't think so."

He Yongmin grew anxious and said to his wife, "Daughter, tell Lord Li that it is this Lü Pingchun who has been harassing you. Hurry up."

But Madam He did not speak; she continued to weep with her head down.

Her attitude says it all.

Seeing this, Lü Pingchun breathed a sigh of relief.

Li Lin sneered, "It seems there really is a secret affair, Master He. You two are quite interesting."

Lady Su closed her eyes, her face looking extremely pale.

She never imagined that the daughter-in-law she had finally chosen would turn out to be such a... scoundrel.

Huang Qing also felt ashamed, after all, she was also partly responsible for the selection of the He family.

He Yongmin knelt down in front of Li Lin and said, "Sir, this matter is wrong of our He family. Please tell us what you need, and we will do our best to meet it."

Li Lin looked at Su Bei: "What do you think?"

“I’ll listen to my godfather,” Su Bei said.

Li Lin thought for a moment and said, "Since the wedding has already been held, let's continue."

Many people looked at him in surprise when he said this.

Especially Lü Pingchun, who hurriedly said, "My lord, Yu Juan and I are deeply in love..."

Li Lin reached out to interrupt him and continued, "But the bride has to be changed. I remember the He family has another young lady, also a legitimate daughter, who has been of marriageable age for more than half a year. Change her into a wedding dress and send her over."

“This…” Master He seemed hesitant.

Li Lin continued, "And the dowry must be doubled; this is what you're giving back to Su Bei."

Mrs. He said softly, "Isn't that too much?"

Li Lin laughed and said, "If you think that's too much, then I'll go and check out your family's business."

Master He immediately said, "No, no, I'll give it to you. Wife, quickly go back and have someone bring Xiao Han over."

Lu Pingchun frowned... He was very unhappy.

Because he also quite liked the younger sister, after all, the younger sister was prettier than the older sister.

He just doesn't dare to speak now.

At this moment, Li Lin looked at Lü Pingchun and said, "Since you two are in love, I am willing to help you make your relationship work out."

Lu Pingchun's face lit up with joy. He thought that Li Lin valued him and wanted to recruit him as a confidant.

In traditional Chinese novels, there are often stories like this: martial arts practitioners and high-ranking officials become friends after a fight, and eventually work together to advance in the officialdom.

Li Lin continued, "But Lü Pingchun, you forcibly entered the wedding venue, disrupted public order, and had a terrible impact... If you are not punished, everyone will follow suit, and how can Yulin County and the world be governed?"

Li Lin's judgment was not arbitrary. In Daqi, there was also opposition to excessive wedding pranks.

He has even adjudicated many wedding prank incidents with particularly egregious consequences.

The joy on Lü Pingchun's face instantly froze.

"Therefore, I sentence you to six months in prison. Do you accept this?" Li Lin asked with a smile.

Lü Pingchun was stunned: "This doesn't make sense!"

Then he exclaimed, "No, I can't go to jail! Can't I just stop trying to steal the bride?"

He, who had been sobbing, suddenly looked at him, her eyes filled with disbelief.

Li Lin sighed and said, "If you do something wrong, you have to admit it. How can you just go back on your word?"

Lu Pingchun was so anxious that he was covered in sweat.

At that moment, a man in black floated down from outside the wall and entered.

"Sir, are you sure you won't give the Diancang Sect any face?"

(End of this chapter)