Chapter 1731 – Yang Si’s Heartache
Yang Tao wasn’t a simple man either; he couldn’t help but express his feelings, “I’ve heard that the esteemed daughter of the Feng family is the only legitimate lady of her generation, truly a precious gem. If this were fifteen or twenty years ago, her background would be enough to dignify the entire family. I really can’t understand how Feng Langzi managed to hit the jackpot and catch the Feng family’s eye. I’ve heard that Feng Jin’s character is utterly upright; how could she possibly tolerate Feng Zhen?”
With only one precious son, Yang Tao naturally hoped to give him the best. The thought of his child growing up to marry and have children made his eyes redden, as he wondered which girl from someone else’s family would become his son’s wife in the future.
Just the thought of his son marrying made the word “bride price” bounce around his head.
Marrying a daughter-in-law could be costly, needing not only power and influence but also wealth. As the father, he had to secure enough for his son.
“Motherly virtue reigning supreme?” Yan Lin couldn’t help but snicker. “How could the Feng family be interested in such a so-called inferior position?”
After all, the Dongqing Emperor once exchanged a position of Zhaoyi for a mere concubine from the Feng family’s side branch.
Changsheng was a legitimate daughter, the esteemed eldest girl; what kind of status could the commoner households of Dongqing even hope to aspire to?
It was clear that Feng Zhen had really hit the jackpot.
Neither Yang Tao nor Yan Lin understood how Feng Zhen and Feng Jin ended up as in-laws. Apart from their brains, these two were nearly mismatched in character and background. Feng Jin came from a prestigious household; how could she be willing to marry her beloved daughter into a family like Feng Zhen’s?
Was she kicked in the head by a donkey?
Or could it be that Jiang Pengji had a hand in matchmaking?
Yang Tao couldn’t hide his envy.
“Sigh… Feng Langzi will be a grandfather in five or six years, and here I am, still wondering where my future daughter-in-law is.”
It was said that Feng Zhen’s Feng Yi and Changsheng were the quintessential childhood sweethearts, having grown up together with a magnificent bond, typical of a nurturing relationship.
Childhood sweethearts, with pure and innocent affections.
How splendid it sounded, transitioning from youthful passions to lifelong companionship—experiencing that once would not be in vain for a lifetime.
Yan Lin couldn’t resist rolling his eyes at his buddy and said, “Did you not arrange for your nephew to marry Yang Si’s daughter?”
Yang Tao was stunned, reflecting, “Yang Si’s daughter? When did that happen?”
He had no recollection!
Yan Lin sighed, reminding Yang Tao while feeling a bit sorry for his own nephew.
With such forgetfulness, a lovely match almost slipped away.
Previously, when Yang Si acted as an envoy discussing allegiance matters with Yang Tao and others, they had bantered about future marriages between their families.
Of course, Yang Si was unwilling, and Yang Tao hadn’t taken it seriously. It was all thanks to Yan Lin’s jokes that Yang Si was cornered, half-heartedly agreeing to this somewhat playful engagement. Yang Si thought it was just a jest, and as time passed, he forgot about it.
However, Yan Lin had a sharp memory, and with his reminder, Yang Tao recalled indeed that such a thing had transpired.
“Wasn’t that just a joke?”
Yang Tao scratched his head, not having taken the child engagement seriously.
Yan Lin replied, “But weren’t you just fretting over your nephew’s marriage? The offspring of the Liu family holds great power, and the balance of girls and boys is skewed; finding someone of equal standing for your nephew isn’t easy. Or do you think Zheng Ze despises Yang Si’s lowly background, believing it unworthy?”
Marriage was not just about two kids; it involved two families.
If Yang Tao held such prejudices against Yang Si, then Yan Lin would feel no need to keep an eye on Yang Si’s offspring; a single misstep could lead to enmity.
It was rather strange; in the past years, Jiang Pengji’s team had more daughters, while second or third pregnancies mostly yielded sons.
This resulted in the peer group of Yang Tao’s son comprising more boys than girls.
If Yang Tao wanted to find a match from amongst them, the sooner the better; otherwise, he’d be left picking at the leftovers.
“How could that be? They’re just children; if we rashly set up their lifelong marriage, would they blame me when they grow up?”
Yan Lin: “…”
It was Yang Tao who initially proposed the child engagement, and now he was saying it wasn’t good to arrange marriages; he was becoming increasingly hard to please.
Yang Tao noticed the disdain in his companion’s face and chuckled awkwardly, trying to brush it off.
Though that’s how he said it, Yang Tao still earnestly considered Yang Si’s daughter, thinking back and forth, the more he thought, the more excited he became.
Yang Tao was a practical man; he genuinely found Yang Si’s daughter quite satisfactory and was already looking to “subtly broach” the question.
He believed his inquiries were subtle, but in front of Yang Si, they were glaringly obvious.
Yang Si had been avoiding Yang Tao for several days; when he couldn’t evade any longer, he pretended to be deaf and mute, acting as if he hadn’t heard anything.
If Jiang Nongqin found out he carelessly promised his daughter’s hand, wouldn’t she hammer him to bits?
Their antics caught the attention of Jiang Pengji, who casually inquired.
As a civil minister, Yang Si had a delicate status, while Yang Tao was a military general; any minor turbulence couldn’t be treated as ordinary business.
If the two were to have a fallout, it would create a real mess.
Summoned in front of Jiang Pengji, Yang Si could only smile bitterly, recounting the background to the whole incident.
Jiang Pengji chuckled, “Are you saying you arranged your daughter’s marriage without Nongqin’s approval, just because a surge of blood filled your head?”
Yang Si defended himself, “Wasn’t that a joke? Who would have known Yang Zhengze actually took it seriously…”
Jiang Pengji said, “Marriages should consider the children’s wishes. You two rough men fretting over it won’t help.”
Yang Si replied, “I think the same, but… but the child… the child is still so young! I really don’t know what Yang Zhengze is so eager about!”
Jiang Pengji recalled Feng Zhen who had been strutting around lately, unable to suppress a laugh.
“Perhaps he’s inspired by the children he’s got.”
In terms of age, Feng Zhen wasn’t the oldest among them, but given his early marriage and early children, he naturally got a head start.
Feng Yi was sensible and bright; the match made was nothing short of excellent, securing the finest lady from the Feng family.
No wonder Feng Zhen was so smug, causing several families with sons to feel anxious.
“But speaking of it, from appearances alone, Yang Tao seems an excellent candidate for family ties.”
Yang Si said, “That’s true, but we certainly need to inform Nongqin first.”
After all, the daughter belongs to her mother; in the physiological sense, Yang Si truly had no right to monopolize his daughter’s marriage decisions.
Mentioning this, he felt quite sorrowful.
Fu Wang could still whine and coax Hui Jun into compliance, but if it weren’t for Yang Si and Feng Zhen’s charm putting Fu Wang in a commanding position, he might have long since married a beautiful lady. Yang Si’s predicament was even worse; Jiang Nongqin was hard to please, and so far had no intentions of giving Yang Si formal recognition. Yang Si often felt as if he were merely an outsider to Jiang Nongqin, coming to sleep together only when she had needs, then completely forgetting about him once he pulled up his pants…
Reflecting on this, Yang Si cast a deeply resentful glance towards his lord.
“When does the lord plan to have a Young Master?”
Next year would be a year of recuperation, just timely enough for a child, not delaying the conquest of Zhong Zhao.
