Tiger Owl

Chapter 138 Father and Daughter Talk
On December 20th, Xu Wei's large passenger ship slowly arrived at Dantu County. The five warships escorting the passenger ship were not allowed to enter the Jiangnan River, so they turned back to Yuzhang County at Jingkou.

When Xu Wei saw the ship dock at the Dantu County wharf, he immediately found his elder brother Xu Peng and questioned him: "What did you promise General Gan that you would send me to Kuaiji County to see Father? What's going on now? You have clearly deceived him and I!"

Xu Peng quickly explained, "I'm not taking you back to the Xu family. My father is currently in Dantu County. You'll be staying at my house for now, not going to the Xu family."

"Isn't Father in Kuaiji Commandery? Why is he in Dantu?"

"My father came back to report on his duties."

Xu Wei sneered, "You set off from Jiangdong and have been back in Jiangdong for nearly ten days, and you've been in Nanchang County for at least a month. How long does Father need to report on his duties? Do you think I'm a three-year-old child, so easy to fool?"

Xu Peng sighed helplessly and said, "Alright! Father is no longer the governor of Kuaiji County. He will be going to the imperial court to take up his post in the spring. Before he leaves, he wants to resolve your problem. He has talked with the Xu family twice, but the two sides have not reached an agreement. The most crucial thing is your attitude. The three of us, father and son, know that we cannot make decisions for you. You must come back and express your opinion before we can finally reach an agreement with the Xu family. Yunqing, Father wants to salvage your reputation. You must understand Father's good intentions."

The anger of being deceived in Xu Wei's eyes subsided slightly. After thinking for a moment, he said, "I will absolutely not go to the Xu family, nor will I go to your house. I will find a temporary house outside. Then you must write a letter to General Gan to explain clearly. Otherwise, if the housekeeper tells General Gan and he finds out that he has been deceived, the Xu family will not be able to bear the consequences."

Xu Peng nodded. "I will write to General Gan immediately to explain, but you should stay at my house. It's not convenient for you to stay outside."

Xu Wei shook his head. “I have more than a dozen servants to accompany me. There is a liaison office of Yuzhang Prefecture in Dantu County. They will find me a house. This is a matter of principle. Please understand, brother.”

Seeing his sister's resolute attitude, Xu Peng had no choice but to agree.

The ship docked, and the group disembarked. Xu Wei went directly to the liaison office of Yuzhang County in Dantu County. The officials dared not neglect him and immediately arranged for Xu Wei to stay in a newly purchased house covering three acres.

After seeing that his younger sister had settled down, Xu Peng went to see his father. Xu Qiu was currently living in a small house diagonally opposite the Xu family mansion, which was also one of the branch residences of the Xu family.

When Xu Qiu heard that his daughter had found a place to live on her own, he frowned and asked, "What does she mean by this?"

Xu Peng said helplessly, "Yun Qing means that she is now Gan Ning's person, and she wants to protect Gan Ning's dignity. She will not enter the Xu family when she comes to Dantu County."

"I don't understand what you're saying. What do you mean she's Gan Ning's woman? Does that mean she's already sharing a room with Gan Ning?"

"There was no sharing a room, but Father, think about it. From the moment she moved into the Gan Ning Mansion, whether or not she shared a room became meaningless. Didn't you see that, Father? Her move into the Yu Zhang County official residence was a statement that she would never compromise with the Xu family!"

Xu Qiu nodded. He finally understood his son's last words: his daughter finding her own place to live was a clear statement that she would never compromise with the Xu family.

This is a bit difficult. The Xu family is also very firm in their stance, insisting that their daughter apologize and admit her mistake before they will restore her clan status. What's worse, Old Madam Xu wants Xu Wei to marry Sun Kuang. She can't even take the first step now, let alone marry into the Sun family later.

"Tell me the details of your journey to Yuzhang County, especially what Gan Ning said, don't leave out a single word."

Xu Peng then told her father the details. Xu Qiu was in a bind. After all that, it turned out that his daughter could only be a secondary wife. He really couldn't accept it.

Xu Qiu thought about it and decided that he still had to talk to his daughter in person.

"Where does your sister live? Take me to see her." Xu Wei was deeply moved that her father had come so quickly and personally to see her. The father and daughter embraced and wept bitterly. Only then did Xu Wei invite her father to sit down in the guest room.

Xu Qiu looked around the house and said, "This is a new house, isn't it? It doesn't feel like anyone has lived here before."

Xu Wei nodded and smiled, "It's a new house. The liaison office just bought it. It's a house specifically for high-ranking officials from Yuzhang County to stay in when they come to Jiangdong. I'm the first one to move in."

"No wonder! This house is nice and exquisite. I feel at ease knowing you're staying here."

At this moment, a maid came in and served tea. Xu Wei then asked with a smile, "I heard from my brother that Father is going to take up a post in the imperial court?"

Xu Qiu smiled and said, "Originally, I was supposed to go to the court in the second year of Jian'an, but I was intercepted by Yuan Shu. This time, the court summoned me to serve as the Imperial Censor. There was no objection in Jiangdong. Wu Hou naturally dismissed me from my position as the Prefect of Yuzhang Commandery. I had no choice but to go to the court to take up my post."

"The imperial court wouldn't summon my father to take up a post without a reason, would it? Is this a tactic by Marquis Wu to remove my father from his post as prefect?" Xu Wei pointed out incisively.

Xu Qiu nodded silently. How could he not know? This was exactly the same as demoting Taishi Ci, except that Taishi Ci was demoted downwards, while he was demoted upwards. Wu Hou's soft knife cutting flesh was much more powerful than Sun Ce's hard spear.

When will Father leave?

"Let's wait until next spring! Right now, the north is covered in ice and snow, and the rivers are frozen, so we can't travel by boat. We can only wait for the ice and snow to melt in the spring."

Xu Wei fell silent. How could General Gan propose to her under such circumstances? Did he have to go all the way to Xuchang to propose? He needed to quickly write a letter by pigeon to General Gan.

Xu Qiu was silent for a moment, then said, "Wei'er, the main reason you came back this time is to help you sort out your relationships with the Xu family. I know you hate the Xu family, but this is your own fate, and I can't make decisions for you. You've already run away twice, and I can't let you run away a third time."

Xu Wei was moved by her father's open-mindedness, "Thank you, Dad, for giving me the opportunity to take control of my own destiny!"

Xu Qiu smiled and said, "You've been different from others since you were little. Although you're young, you're more sensible than girls your age. Your father is always on the move as an official and doesn't have time to take care of you. But I still want to advise you—no, I want to remind you—that Gan Ning may not be able to give you the status of a principal wife. Do you understand? Of course, a mother's status rises with her son. Once you have a son, it doesn't matter whether you have a principal wife or a secondary wife. I just want you to think it through. This concerns your future, and I hope you will make a careful decision."

"Thank you for reminding me, Father. I understand perfectly well. You also said that I have been different from others since I was a child. Other women are fighting for status, reputation, and the so-called rightful wife. I am not like that. I only want to marry a man I love. Even if he cannot give me the status of the rightful wife, I am willing to accept it. I may have many hardships in the future, but this is my choice. No matter how fate arranges things, at least it is my own choice, and I will not regret it."

Xu Qiu sighed deeply, "You are indeed much more mature and sensible than most girls your age. Your father respects your choice."

Xu Wei said with tears in her eyes, "Thank you, Father!"

"But you must promise your father that you will talk to the Xu family, talk to them calmly and rationally, and listen to their demands, okay?"

Xu Wei nodded silently.

(End of this chapter)