As a young marshal, it's reasonable for me to have 300,000 private troops, right?

The main road in Fengtian was bustling with traffic. Qi Fan sat in his newly bought car, tapping his fingertips on the window sill, his eyes scanning the crowds passing by on the street.

Today is a very auspicious day. His eldest sister is getting engaged to the Bao family today, and he is urging the driver to hurry to the Marshal's Mansion.

As soon as we arrived at the entrance of the Marshal's Mansion, a festive atmosphere greeted us.

The vermilion gate was adorned with a gilded "囍" character, and the courtyard walls were wrapped with red silk and colorful curtains. Maids and servants carried plates and gift boxes, hurrying back and forth, and the whole mansion was filled with a lively and bustling atmosphere.

Qi Fan walked straight in, ignoring the servants who greeted him along the way, and headed straight for his eldest sister Zhang Shoufang's courtyard.

As soon as the door was opened, Zhang Shoufang was sitting upright in front of the dressing table, carefully drawing her eyebrows in front of the bronze mirror. The makeup box in front of her was full of rouge and powder, and several personal maids were serving her.

"Big sister!"

Qi Fan walked to the dressing mirror, looked at Zhang Shoufang who was dressing herself in front of the mirror, and joked with her.

"How does it feel to be engaged? Are you both nervous and excited?"

Zhang Shoufang paused, her hand holding the eyebrow pencil pausing, her gaze sweeping over her reflection in the mirror.

"What else can I do? It's just an arranged marriage. In this family, do I have the right to refuse to marry?"

Qi Fan sighed inwardly; what he said was indeed true.

These days, parents decide everything about their children's marriages; they have no say in it.

Just like the marriage between Zhang Xueliang and Yu Fengzhi in his previous life, it was also arranged by his father. Zhang Xueliang almost fled to the United States because of this.

He couldn't refute it, so he could only offer words of comfort.

"Alright, sister, your future father-in-law is a prominent figure in Northeast China. I've met your husband; he's honest and reliable. Once you marry him, won't he have to do whatever you say?"

Zhang Shoufang picked up the eyebrow pencil again and gently outlined the shape of her eyebrows, a shrewd smile playing on her lips.

"I'm fine with marrying him, but my father has to pay for my dowry. Otherwise, I'm not getting married so easily!"

Upon hearing the words "dowry" and "money," Qi Fan instantly perked up.

Over the years, the savings his mother left him had been almost entirely spent on the expenses of the cavalry company and the No. 7 intelligence agency. He was worried about not having any income, and now this was a "good opportunity".

He leaned forward and asked in a low voice, "How much dowry did you ask for?"

"Five hundred thousand silver dollars." Zhang Shoufang said calmly, as if he were talking about something perfectly ordinary.

"Not a single penny less, and this lady will never agree to marry him."

"Five or five hundred thousand?" Qi Fan's eyes widened, and he almost jumped up.

"Big sister, are you sure Dad, that tightwad, can come up with that much money? He's always so stingy with the budget he approves for me!"

Zhang Shoufang glanced at him, a meaningful smile playing on her lips.

"You don't understand, do you? Our father has just become the military governor of Fengtian, and he needs the support of various forces right now. My future father-in-law has a lot of resources at his disposal, and he's a key figure our father is trying to win over. Don't even mention 500,000; even if I asked for a million, our father would have to obediently hand over the money!"

"Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!" Qi Fan gave a thumbs up, praising sincerely.

"You have to admit my older sister is smart. She should take advantage of this opportunity to squeeze some money out of Dad, otherwise, she might miss this chance!"

"That's right." Zhang Shoufang put down her eyebrow pencil, had her maid hand her a handkerchief to wipe her hands, and then changed the subject, looking at Qi Fan with a half-smile.

"By the way, have you been up to anything lately? I've heard that many wealthy young ladies in Fengtian City are eyeing you, the young master of the Marshal's Mansion."

Upon hearing this, Qi Fan simply lay down on the daybed next to him, crossed his legs, and adopted a nonchalant attitude.

"Don't worry, sister. Who do you think I am? I'm the kind of person who can walk through a sea of ​​flowers without getting a single petal on me! Those vulgar beauties are no match for me. I know exactly what I'm doing."

Zhang Shoufang was amused by his cheeky appearance and picked up a powder puff from the table, throwing it at him.

"You're such a chatterbox! You're never serious!"

Qi Fan caught the powder puff and stood up with a smile.

"I'm not going to argue with you anymore. I'm going to check on how the wedding dress that Fifth Aunt is preparing for you is going. I hope nothing goes wrong."

"Okay! Go and keep an eye on things for me!" Zhang Shoufang nodded, her tone full of trust.

"I don't trust the judgment of anyone else in the manor, but your judgment is definitely more reliable!"

Qi Fan responded, turned and left Zhang Shoufang's room, heading straight for the small side room where the fifth concubine was preparing her dowry.

As soon as I opened the door, I saw all kinds of fabrics hanging on the wooden shelves and ropes against the wall, so colorful and dazzling that it was hard to look away.

Fifth Concubine was squatting in front of a pile of fabrics, carefully stroking a piece of sky-blue brocade. To Qi Fan's slight surprise, his cousin-in-law was also standing beside her, helping to organize the fabrics.

"Is Xiao Liu here?"

Fifth Concubine looked at Qi Fan and waved to him.

"Come over here and help me decide. I've been looking at the fabric for your eldest sister's wedding dress for ages and I still can't make up my mind. I can't just make a decision on my own."

Qi Fan had just walked in when his eyes met those of his cousin's wife.

The two exchanged a glance, each reading a tacit understanding in the other's eyes. Then, they both smiled slightly, saying nothing, yet conveying a thousand words.

"My eldest sister specifically asked me to come and keep an eye on things, saying that she doesn't trust the opinions of anyone else in the household."

Qi Fan walked over to the fifth concubine, casually responding, his gaze sweeping over the pile of fabrics on the table.

Just from the conversation between the Fifth Concubine and him, it is clear how special Zhang Shoufang's position in the Marshal's Mansion was. It would not be an exaggeration to say that she was the person in the mansion who could not be offended.

He casually flipped through the fabrics that the fifth concubine had picked out, and finally his fingertips landed on a piece of bright red brocade.

The cloth is brightly colored and embroidered with a lotus scroll pattern in gold thread. The stitches are fine and the embroidery is exquisite, making it look very valuable.

"Let's choose this one."

Qi Fan pointed to the red cloth, speaking casually.

"I don't know much about these things, but this fabric looks high-end and must be expensive. My older sister likes this kind of fabric."

Seeing that Qi Fan had made his decision, Fifth Concubine immediately breathed a sigh of relief and smiled as she put the red cloth aside.

"Okay! I'll do as you say! Your sister won't complain about the fabric you picked."

She stood up and patted her skirt. "It's good that the fabric has been decided. I need to hurry to the front yard to check how the banquet is being arranged, so that nothing goes wrong."

After saying that, he hurriedly left the house.

The door creaked shut, leaving only Qi Fan and his cousin-in-law in the room, and the air seemed to become more ambiguous.

The cousin's wife turned around, her previous dignified and helpful demeanor instantly vanishing, replaced by a charming smile in her eyes. She took small, quick steps to Qi Fan's side, her fingertips lightly tracing his chest.

"Are you coming again tonight?"

Qi Fan raised an eyebrow, a hint of amusement in his eyes, and gently grasped her wrist.

"Go! We have to go!"

Qi Fan didn't stand on ceremony. You have to understand that he's not a child anymore; yes, he's grown up.

His cousin's wife, her cheeks slightly flushed, was held by his wrist as she leaned close to his ear, her warm breath brushing against his earlobe.

"Well... I'll leave the door open for you tonight."