Bai Suzhen, I really need to punish you properly.

The next day, early in the morning.

Wang Xuan accompanied Prefect Guo Ping to the Fan residence to visit Fan Chongwen.

In the study, the three sat and discussed philosophy.

Fan Chongwen served as a libationer and was a man of great learning.

However, after a long conversation, Wang Xuan remained composed and answered questions fluently, proving himself to be on par with the other.

He looked at Wang Xuan with the appreciative gaze of a father-in-law looking at his son-in-law.

He thought that with such looks and talent, his daughter would surely be interested.

He has always doted on his youngest daughter, and has even declared long ago that she can choose who she marries in the future.

But this pampering caused problems.

Without exception, all the suitors who came to propose marriage were rejected by the daughter.

What troubled and worried him even more was that his daughter's heart seemed to be tied to another woman!

Last year on the Ghost Festival (July 15th), my daughter met a beautiful young woman. The two hit it off immediately, developed feelings for each other, and exchanged hairpins.

Since that day, her daughter has been listless and ill. She stopped eating, stopped writing poetry, and stopped talking. She spends all day staring blankly at a hairpin.

Even after calling a doctor, they couldn't find anything wrong.

This made Fan Chongwen and his wife extremely anxious.

Only after asking the maid did they learn that it was because she had seen a girl named Feng San Niang.

Fan Chongwen sent people to inquire everywhere, but they couldn't find any girl with the surname Feng.

Time passed, and her daughter grew thinner and thinner, her complexion deteriorating day by day.

One day, Feng San Niang secretly came to the Fan residence, and her daughter's strange illness improved overnight.

From then on, the two women were inseparable, sharing the same bed and often changing clothes.

Although Feng San Niang never left the house, the fact that there was an extra woman in the family was something that he, as the head of the Fan family, could not hide from her.

But thinking that her daughter would lose her appetite and become thin once separated from her, she could only pretend not to know.

But this couldn't go on forever, so she thought of finding an excellent man so that her daughter could get married smoothly.

He told Guo Ping about his troubles, and Guo Ping immediately vowed to find him a good husband.

Seeing Wang Xuan now, she naturally regarded him as her future son-in-law.

"Huaiyu, go out for a walk first. Your Uncle Fan and I have something important to discuss."

When Guo Ping saw Fan Chongwen's eager expression, he quickly told him the truth, already prepared to be scolded by his old friend.

Wang Xuan understood the reason behind it, bowed to the two elders, and then walked out of the study alone.

Leaving the study, he simply strolled around the Fan residence, enjoying the beautiful scenery.

A pretty figure came running hurriedly, and as she rounded the corner, she bumped into Wang Xuan's arms.

"Ouch~"

The person who came was none other than Fan Shiyi Niang.

She heard from the maids in the manor that the prefect had brought a young gentleman into her father's study, possibly to propose marriage to her. That's why she hurriedly prepared to come and find out.

Wang Xuan had no intention of provoking a woman who was unmarried and not listed in the "Hundred Beauties Record," so he simply reached out and supported her forearm to steady her.

"Young lady, are you alright?"

The young woman rubbed her temple, a pained expression on her face. She looked up; according to the rules of the manor, she should immediately give way upon encountering a man from outside the household. However, looking at the handsome man with striking features, she involuntarily stopped in her tracks. Her clear voice rang out as she asked, "Who are you?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than a series of chaotic footsteps came from outside the corridor.

Fan Shiyi Niang's expression changed slightly. If her servants or elders caught her alone with a strange man, she would surely be punished.

Without thinking twice, she quickly reached out and pulled Wang Xuan aside, then slipped into a secluded corner of the corridor hidden by flowers and trees.

The two were very close, and the faint fragrance of the girl's perfume lingered in their nostrils.

Wang Xuan carefully examined the girl; she was indeed exceptionally beautiful, with exquisite features.

Perhaps this is the young lady from the Fan family whom I was originally going to introduce to her.

Fan Shiyi Niang's heart pounded like a drum. She secretly regretted being bewitched. If she were discovered here, the consequences would probably be even more serious.

Fortunately, the footsteps approached from afar and then gradually faded away, and the surroundings returned to silence.

Fan Shiyi Niang breathed a sigh of relief, her ear tips flushed slightly, and took a small step back.

Wang Xuan took in the girl's expression and chuckled to himself before saying, "I've come to visit the head of the Fan family."

Fan Shiyi Niang looked up at her, her face certain: "You've come to propose marriage, haven't you?"

Wang Xuan stood with his hands behind his back, asking curiously, "Why do you say that?"

"My father has long since retired from officialdom. He has been in Hangzhou for so long that anyone who wanted to visit him has already done so. Moreover, I heard from my servants that the Prefect intends to arrange a marriage for me. I suppose that's you."

"So you are the young lady of the Fan family. My apologies for not recognizing you sooner."

Seeing her proud expression aroused his desire to tease her.

Wang Xuan feigned frivolity and laughed, "I am Wang Xuan. Having no hope of passing the imperial examinations, I naturally have to resort to crooked means. You are truly intelligent, young lady, and you saw through my thoughts at a glance."

"What kind of crooked and unorthodox methods?"

Wang Xuan explained, "Naturally, I want to marry a woman from a wealthy family so that I can rely on her family's influence and live a life free from financial worries."

Fan Shiyi Niang was taken aback by his blunt words and hesitantly asked, "Then why are you telling me this?"

"Everyone has their own way of making a living. I speak my mind frankly; is there any need for me to hide it?"

"A real man should be striving for fame and serving his country, how can he do this?"

Fan Shiyi Niang was very dissatisfied with Wang Xuan's mentality beneath his handsome appearance.

"I can pretend to work hard."

"Pretending...to work hard?"

"I could easily open the window to read every day before dawn, lay out my writing brushes, ink, and books, and adopt the posture of someone who studies diligently, even to the point of hanging their head from a beam or pricking their thigh with an awl. If passersby saw me studying hard day and night, they would praise me for being diligent and ambitious, with a promising future. When the results of the imperial examination came out and I didn't pass, no one could criticize me, since there were only so many places available each year."

Fan Shiyi Niang had always assumed that a man who buried himself in his studies was a true scholar and of good character. After hearing these words, she couldn't help but feel disappointed and confused. She didn't understand why Wang Xuan was so frank and straightforward.

Looking at the girl's innocent face, Wang Xuan's playful expression vanished, replaced by a frank gaze: "All that glitters is not gold. In the future, when choosing someone, you must keep your eyes open and not easily trust others."

On the other hand, if he hadn't activated the [Hundred Beauties Record], perhaps this young girl really would have become his wife.

Fan Shiyi Niang retorted, "You're not that much older than me, why do you act like you've seen it all?"

"Age isn't the key; the depth of one's knowledge and experience is what matters." Wang Xuan glanced at the pond and weeping willows in the courtyard, then changed the subject, "I've heard you're quite the literary talent, young lady. I have a couplet: 'Smoke locks the pond and willows,' can you answer that?"

"Smoke shrouds the willows by the pond?"

Fan Shiyi Niang muttered to herself, her brows furrowed in deep thought.

"Huaiyu! Huaiyu!"

Guo Ping's shouts could be faintly heard in the distance.

"Miss, I shall take my leave."

Wang Xuan left quickly.

Seeing him approach, Guo Ping asked, "Where have you been?"

Wang Xuan casually explained, "I was admiring the flowers over there just now, so engrossed that I spontaneously composed a poem."

"Oh? What masterpiece is it?"