Ask the mountains and rivers

Chapter 184 Arranged Marriage (Part Two)

Pei Qinghe brought two thousand shi of grain as betrothal gifts, a truly generous gesture. This also shows how much the Pei family valued this marriage.

General Yang was overjoyed, and Yang Huai felt as sweet as if he had drunk honey, all the pent-up anger he had been holding in for more than half a month vanished. He first glanced proudly at his cousin who had been speaking so harshly, and then he saw his cousin Yang Hu sneakily glancing at the pretty girl behind Pei Yan.

Yang Huai immediately warned in a low voice: "Don't look around and embarrass yourself. If you anger the Sixth Miss, your uncle will not forgive you."

Yang Hu then looked away.

General Yang welcomed Pei Qinghe and his party into the Guangning Army camp.

Of the four hundred elite soldiers accompanying us today, half are women. The male soldiers are all pretty much the same, but the female soldiers are unique to the Pei family army. Each one of them stands tall and proud, their eyes shining brightly, radiating brilliance.

The soldiers of the Guangning Army looked on with great envy at the soldiers of the Pei Family Army from afar.

General Yang invited Pei Qinghe into the central command tent. Naturally, not many people were qualified to enter the tent. On Pei's side were Pei Yan, Mao Hongling, and Shi Yan. On Yang's side were Yang Huai and Yang Hu, along with several other military officers from the Guangning army.

General Yang first introduced a group of his trusted confidants.

Pei Qinghe also introduced General Yang to the key figures in the Pei family army.

Standing before him was Pei Yan, a tall and robust man as black as a tower, and General Yang looked at him with admiration, praising her endlessly. It was clear that he was truly satisfied with this marriage.

Pei Yan, with a thick skin, showed no embarrassment whatsoever, and smugly raised an eyebrow and smiled at Yang Huai.

Yang Huai thought to himself, "If I had two thousand bushels of grain, even if I looked like Zhong Kui, my uncle would still lie and praise me as a stunning beauty."

When it was Shi Yan's turn, General Yang was even more warm and polite: "The Shi family is the number one grain merchant in Youzhou. Chief Steward Shi has control over the trade routes and is good at dealing with merchants from all walks of life. With Chief Steward Shi, the Pei family army is like a tiger with wings, which is enviable."

Shi Yan smiled and said, "General Yang's praise is truly flattering and undeserved. In times of turmoil, even the best trade routes are difficult to sustain. It is thanks to Miss Pei Liu that Yan County is safe and sound, and all merchants can continue to do business peacefully."

While robbing wealthy individuals may bring temporary pleasure, it can lead to numerous long-term consequences.

Take the Guangning Army for example. Although they were much less ruthless than the Liaoxi and Fanyang armies, they still wiped out many wealthy households. The money and grain they plundered could last for a while, but in the long run, it would cause headaches. To have a stable source of food, they needed grain merchants. Were they supposed to have the soldiers go door-to-door buying grain from the people?
Once the generals and soldiers are released, they become bandits who burn, kill, and plunder, and there's no way to bring them back.

General Yang's smile faded, and he sighed, "I was too naive and did something short-sighted, killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. Now I'm reaping the consequences. To be honest, Miss Liu, the Guangning army is short of food, and I often worry about it."

Pei Qinghe sighed as well: "In these times, there is chaos and war everywhere. The greatest wish of the people is to be able to farm in peace. We protect the people in this area so that they can farm in peace. When the people have grain, grain merchants can buy grain, and then we can buy grain from the grain merchants. This is the way to establish ourselves in the long run."

General Yang agreed wholeheartedly: "Sixth Miss is right, I have learned a lot."

Pei Qinghe only talked about the reasons and didn't mention anything else, so General Yang had to temporarily abandon the idea of ​​buying military rations from Yan County.

After exchanging pleasantries, Pei Qinghe formally proposed marriage.

General Yang laughed and said, "Yang Huai joined the army at the age of twelve and has been in the army for ten years. He can be considered a fierce general. I am grateful that Miss Pei Yan is willing to take him as her son-in-law. As his uncle, I am naturally willing."

"Yang Huai, come here."

Yang Huai stepped forward in response, and following General Yang's instructions, clasped his hands in a salute to Pei Qinghe and Pei Yan.

Pei Qinghe gave Pei Yan a wink, and Pei Yan immediately stepped forward, helped Yang Huai up, and took out the prepared engagement gifts.

A pair of lustrous white jade pendants, one for each person. This signifies that the engagement has been formally arranged.

Pei Yan changed her address, calling General Yang her uncle. General Yang happily accepted, giving Pei Yan a precious sword as a gift. Pei Yan gladly accepted it.

"Today is the auspicious day of Pei Yan and Yang Huai's engagement, let's all have a meal of meat."

At General Yang's command, the kitchen staff busied themselves slaughtering pigs and sheep. That evening, the soldiers were indeed able to eat meat.

A small banquet was set up in the military tent, with not only meat and vegetables but also fine wine.

Pei Qinghe had a low alcohol tolerance and put down after three cups. Shi Yan, on the other hand, was a heavy drinker, skilled at both drinking and flattery. General Yang, unaware of his surroundings, was persuaded to drink too much. The drunken General Yang grabbed Shi Yan's hand and called him "brother."

Yang Huai's lips twitched. He was Pei Yan's fiancé, and Shi Yan was his future brother-in-law. His own uncle was calling Shi Yan "brother"—what kind of seniority was that?

Turning around, I saw Pei Yan eating heartily, enjoying her meal immensely.

Yang Huai said in a low voice, "Eat slowly, don't choke." He handed her a handkerchief. Pei Yan wiped her mouth with the handkerchief and casually stuffed it back into Yang Huai's hand.

After returning to his military tent, Yang Huai secretly fetched a basin of water and washed the handkerchief.

Yang Hu suddenly slipped in.

Yang Huai, who valued his reputation above all else, immediately stuffed the damp handkerchief under his pillow.

Normally, Yang Hu would have already burst out laughing. But today, he pretended not to see it, rubbing his hands together and grinning, "Since the Pei family has come to propose marriage, they'll have to stay at the Guangning military camp for a few days. Tomorrow, my cousin will definitely take his fiancée around, and the rest of the Pei family will need someone to take care of them. How about I accompany my cousin to greet our distinguished guests tomorrow?"

Yang Huai sneered: "From now on, I'll be a son-in-law who grovels at a woman's feet and begs for mercy. You are the upright and honorable Fifth Young Master Yang, how could I be worthy to call you brother?"

Yang Hu smiled ingratiatingly, "Cousin, don't be angry. I was out of my mind before because I was eating lard, and I was talking nonsense. Please don't take it to heart."

He then praised Pei Yan for her exceptional bravery and Yang Huai for his unparalleled handsomeness, saying that the two were a match made in heaven.

Yang Huai's expression softened slightly as he glanced over and said, "You can come with me tomorrow if you want. However, I must remind you of a few things first. Women have a very high status in the Pei family army. Most of those who came with Miss Pei the Sixth are direct descendants of the Pei family, and they are all skilled killers."

"Don't think that you can get a wife by being attentive. Even if you want to be a live-in son-in-law, you have to be chosen by the woman first."

Yang Hu was overjoyed and full of confidence: "Just you wait and see tomorrow!"

Yang Huai snorted, annoyed by his noise, and chased him out.

Pei Qinghe and his party settled down in the Guangning military camp. The next day, Pei Qinghe got up at dawn, ate breakfast, and went to watch the Guangning army drill.

The layman looks at the excitement and the insider looks at the doorway.

After observing for half a day, Pei Qinghe had a clear understanding of the situation.

The Guangning army was indeed stronger than the Fanyang army. However, the overall quality of the soldiers was not high; many could not understand military orders and could not keep up with training.

General Yang said with a smile, "Sixth Miss is known as a divine archer, rumored to be able to hit the bullseye every time. I wonder if we can witness it with our own eyes today."

(End of this chapter)