Top Scholar

Chapter 291 Matchmaking
In Luzhou, in the pavilion behind the military administration office.

Huang Bingxian was off duty today. Wearing a fine linen Taoist robe, he sat on a bamboo chair, staring blankly at a stack of manuscript papers in his hand.

A familiar sound of footsteps rang out, and Huang Ke knew without turning around that it was Huang Feng.

Sure enough, a buzzing voice was heard: "Dad, my cousin is here."

"Let him in," Huang Ke replied, then glanced at the article on the manuscript paper and sighed deeply. He put down the paper, leaned on the table to stand up, and saw a man in his thirties follow Huang Feng in.

"Mingyuan, why are you being so polite?" Huang Ke said with a smile, "Why don't you just come in?"

"Good morning, Uncle." The man was Han Si, the younger brother of Han En, the commander of Luzhou Garrison. He smiled and bowed, saying, "I've come too early. I was afraid Uncle hadn't gotten up yet."

"Haha, nonsense." Huang Ke pointed to the bamboo chair next to him, inviting him to sit down, and personally poured him tea, saying, "Why did you come so early? Is there something you need?"

"Yes, deliver the invitations for my mother. The first one will definitely be for my uncle." Han Si took out a blue satin invitation from his sleeve and presented it with both hands, saying, "My mother's birthday is the day after tomorrow, but she said it's not a big birthday celebration, so she won't make a big fuss. She just wants the family to have a little fun."

"Well, whatever makes her happy." Huang Ke took the invitation and unfolded it to look at it.

Then Han Si said softly, "Oh right, my cousin Yongxiu is also coming from Chengdu. He should arrive tomorrow."

"..." Huang Feng breathed a long sigh of relief upon hearing this. "Finally here."

"Nephew Yang is truly composed," Huang Ke chuckled, clearly somewhat displeased.

"We are a little late, but there's nothing we can do about it." Han Si hurriedly explained for Yang Shen, "Last year was during the national mourning period, and this year we had a series of imperial examinations at the beginning of the year. We just finished the exams last month, so we rushed here!"

"Doesn't he know he's been late for months?" Huang Ke said in a muffled voice. "Shouldn't he have come as soon as the exam was over? If it weren't for the sake of our parents, I would never see him again!"

"Yes, yes," Han Si was annoyed. "I didn't arrange the marriage, and I'm not going to be your son-in-law, so why are you getting angry with me?" But he could only continue to explain for Yang Shen: "My cousin Yongxiu has become the first person in Sichuan to win the 'Little Three Scholars' title. The whole of Chengdu Prefecture is in an uproar. There must be some unavoidable social engagements. Please be understanding, Uncle."

He chuckled and said, "As the saying goes, good food is worth waiting for. It's worth the wait to find a son-in-law who is a scholar who has achieved the highest rank."

Just then, a gust of wind blew through the pavilion, knocking the manuscript papers on the table to the ground. Han Si quickly helped Huang Ke pick them up and tidy them up, then took the opportunity to change the subject, asking, "Uncle, whose article are you reading?"

"Another one of the top three," Huang Ke said casually, her tone even carrying a hint of pride... I don't know what she was so proud of.

"Oh, Su Hongzhi," Han Si said with a smile. "That name has become quite famous lately, but he's still a bit less impressive than my cousin."

Huang Ke smiled and said softly, "In literature, there is no first place; in martial arts, there is no second."

"We can still tell them apart. They should all take the provincial examination next year and compete against each other. Let's see who the top scholar is then," Han Si said confidently.

"..." Huang Ke did not speak again.

~~
After seeing Han Si off, Huang Feng excitedly rubbed his hands together and said, "Great! I've been waiting for him for ages!"

Huang Ke didn't even look at him, staring blankly at the lotus flowers blooming in the pond.

"Dad, what's wrong with you? You're angry when Yang Yongxiu doesn't come, and you're still unhappy when he does," Huang Feng asked.

"What's there to be happy about?" Huang Ke leaned back in her recliner, rubbing her temples. "The trouble has only just begun..."

"Dad, are you worried that my sister won't cooperate?" Huang Feng whispered, "Why don't we give her a heads-up and let her know that she's going to see Yang Shen? That'll make sure she's fine!"

"It would be great if you two switched places," Huang Ke sighed. "If you married Yang Yongxiu, your sister could go find whomever she wants..."

"Dad, what are you saying? Can I take her place?" Huang Feng said speechlessly, thinking to himself, I really want to get married, but I'm a boy.

"Besides, Father, don't always think that Yang Yongxiu is neglecting his sister. That Su fellow is the same! If he really cared deeply for his sister, it's already June, and I haven't seen him ask anyone to act as matchmaker!"

"Sigh..." Huang Ke sighed dejectedly.

“Master,” the steward said as he entered, holding five visiting cards, “Mr. Gangshan and the heads of the Wang, Bai, Zhu, Lei, and Deng families have come to visit us together.”

"Oh?" Huang Ke asked in surprise, "Where are they?"

"They've already had tea in the flower hall," the butler said.

"Why didn't you make an appointment beforehand?" Huang Feng frowned.

"With Gangshan here, is an appointment still necessary?" Huang Ke said in a deep voice, "Change clothes and receive the guest."

~~
In the flower hall.

The brothers Zhu Jie and Zhu Zhang, along with the heads of the four families, were gathered together, speaking in hushed tones.

"Hahaha, what wind blew all of you brothers here?" Huang Ke, dressed in a straight robe and wearing a net on his head, emerged from behind the screen, laughing loudly.

"We apologize for our unauthorized visit, Your Excellency." The six men quickly rose and bowed. "Not at all, we're all old acquaintances, no need for formalities." Huang Ke smiled and invited everyone to sit down, then took his seat in the main seat and said, "It is my honor that the six of you could come together to visit."

Zhu Zhang laughed and said, "Brother Jueshan, this is no one else's fault. I took it upon myself to bring them here."

"Oh? That's really strange." Huang Ke smiled and pointed to his close friend. "Didn't you say that the official atmosphere here makes people uncomfortable, so you don't like to come here unless necessary?"

"Isn't there something I need to do?" Zhu Zhang said with a smile.

"What is it that is so important that it would require the six of you to make such a fuss?" Huang Ke asked seriously.

The six men looked at each other, and then Master Wang spoke up: "May I ask, Your Excellency, is your daughter betrothed?"

"..." Huang Ke's pupils shrank upon hearing this, while Huang Feng, standing beside him, had his eyes wide open.

"What's going on? Is it inconvenient to tell me?" Zhu Zhang asked.

“Of course it’s convenient,” Huang Ke said with a smile. “My daughter is still unmarried…”

Huang Feng hesitated for a moment, not daring to interrupt.

"That's wonderful!" Master Deng said happily. "How about the six of us work together today to find a marriage for your daughter?"

"..." Huang Ke asked calmly, "Which family's young master is it that has troubled six distinguished guests?"

"It is none other than Su Lu Su Hongzhi, the first person in Luzhou's history to achieve the title of Junior Triple Scholar!" Master Bai announced loudly.

“This child is about the same age as your daughter, and they are of similar appearance and character. Although his family background is slightly inferior, with his talent that is unparalleled in Luzhou, it will be easy for him to pass the imperial examination.” Master Lei also chimed in with a smile, “Such a son-in-law is hard to find even with a lantern. Your Excellency, you must not miss out.”

“Yes, Brother Jueshan, to be honest, we all had the idea of ​​taking him as our son-in-law.” Zhu Jie then spoke up, “Unfortunately, when matchmakers came to our door, the boy rejected them all. When asked why, he said that he fell in love with your daughter at first sight during the Lantern Festival last year, and there was no room for anyone else in his heart.”

“My disciple is a simple and honest person,” Zhu Zhang continued. “In order to catch Brother Jueshan’s eye, he began to study diligently from that day on and has finally made some progress. Only then did he muster up the courage to ask us to act as matchmakers and beg Brother Jueshan to spare him his affections out of consideration for his sincerity.”

After everyone had finished speaking, Huang Ke said with a half-smile, "I understand what you all mean. I just don't know what that kid is up to. Isn't hiring one matchmaker enough? Why does he need all six of you to come together?"

"Isn't this to show respect and to demonstrate his deep reverence for you?" Zhu Zhang laughed. "He was afraid that if we came alone, you would kick us out, so he invited several matchmakers. He thought that more people meant more power."

"Brother Jueshan, you wouldn't kick us all out, would you?" Master Bai said with a smile.

"Brother, you flatter me. You think too highly of your foolish brother!" Huang Ke forced a smile and accepted their words.

There's a saying that goes, "three matchmakers and six betrothal gifts." In those days, it was indeed possible to hire several matchmakers to arrange the marriage, either to show the importance attached to the wedding or to handle complex communication needs, rather than being limited to just one.

Especially when one party's family background or social status is lower than the other party's, and it is too difficult for a single matchmaker to arrange the marriage, multiple respected individuals are often invited to jointly act as matchmakers. By having multiple people endorse the match, the level of trust is increased, and the success rate of the matchmaking is improved.

Therefore, Su Lu's invitation to the matchmaker group was, in theory, a sign of humility and absolute respect for the Huang family.

However, too much of a good thing can be bad; six major matchmakers were simply too many, making Huang Bingxian uncomfortable.

But he can't get angry just because the other party is too respectful, can he?

Moreover, the six media outlets have their own close friends, as well as five heads of the seven major families in Luzhou, so he can't afford to give them the slightest bit of attitude.

'Just consider that kid as being too reckless...' Huang Bingxian comforted himself inwardly before smiling at the six matchmakers and saying, 'Thank you all for your concern for my daughter. You are all too kind to your foolish brother.'

"Not at all," the matchmakers laughed. "The main reason is that we genuinely want to bring your daughter and Xiao Sanyuan together. They are a match made in heaven, a perfect couple!"

"Okay, okay." Huang Ke nodded repeatedly.

"Brother Jueshan, what do you think?" Zhu Zhang asked.

The other five people also looked at him.

"Well..." Huang Ke could neither nod nor shake his head, so he resorted to stalling tactics and said, "Marriage is a major event, let me think it over and also ask my daughter's opinion."

"Of course." The six nodded and said, "Then we'll come back in a few days to hear more."

"Very well." Huang Ke said as if he had been granted a pardon, "Thank you all for your trouble."

~~
After seeing off the six matchmakers, Huang Ke shook his head and smiled bitterly.

"That kid has quite a lot of influence; he actually managed to get these big shots from Luzhou City to act as matchmakers for him."

"What face does he have? It must have been Uncle Zhu who arranged it for him." Huang Feng retorted, "If he's so capable, why doesn't he ask the prefect to act as matchmaker for him?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than the steward came in to report: "Master, Prefect Jia has come to say goodbye, and the newly appointed Prefect Lu has also come with him."

(End of this chapter)