Chapter 93

Chapter 93: That Kid

The aura of literary fortune condensed and dispersed within the courtyard.

An ink fragrance wafted out from the Xu Mansion, permeating a ten-mile radius around the residences of the Xu and Qin families. Everyone in this area caught a whiff of an intense, rich ink scent.

Wei glanced at that particular study.

He didn’t know what kind of memorial Xu Ming had written, but Wei was extremely certain that a remarkable article had just been born.

Inside the study, Xu Ming set down his brush, having completely filled the entire memorial with words.

Xu Shuiya and the other three looked at the flowing script on the memorial and were all momentarily stunned—

“Your humble servant Ming humbly states, bowing to receive Your Majesty’s decree, I am honored beyond measure by the grace of being betrothed to Princess Zhao Wen. Such an honor surpasses my wildest expectations. During the reign of Your Saintly Dynasty, I have been blessed by your clear teachings. By the order of Minister Xiao of the Secretariat, I participated in a banquet and composed a poem, earning me some renown which reached Your Majesty’s ears. From the Floating Tower to serving under Your Majesty, such an extraordinary honor is far beyond what I could repay even if I were to lose my life.

The beauty of the princess is renowned far and wide; her virtue rivals that of Empress Ke.”

This large section primarily introduced some of his past experiences, thanking His Majesty for valuing him, and praising Her Highness Princess Zhao Wen for her beauty and elegance.

Anyway, he praised her as much as possible, elevating her while indicating “I’m not looking down on Princess Zhao Wen; she is truly excellent—it’s just due to my personal reasons.”

Then, Xu Ming began explaining his own reasons.

Finally, Xu Ming further elaborated on his rationale—

Your Majesty must seriously consider this.

If it were the Xu Ming still on Blue Ocean Star, he absolutely wouldn’t be able to write something like this.

Although your servant has no other talents, I wish to feast on the flesh of barbarians when hungry and drink the blood of ten thousand demons when thirsty, expanding our territory so that the Wu Kingdom stands atop the world.

“However, outside the Wu Kingdom lies the chaotic Northern Wilderness. Standing on Snow Peak gazing southward, there are thousands of demon kingdoms plotting to look northward. The human literary circle unanimously leads the way, but the Wu Kingdom regards the Northern Wilderness as uncivilized. What should we do? Although I am unworthy, Your Majesty hasn’t abandoned me, allowing me to serve you closely. I wish to contribute to the state and repay Your Majesty’s favor.

The whole memorial was filled with dense writing, deliberately reducing the font size to approximately four thousand words.

I hope Your Majesty will show mercy to my foolish sincerity, listen to my humble wishes, and allow me to dedicate my life to the service of the nation, whether alive or dead. With utmost fear and respect, I respectfully present this memorandum.”

But the “talent” attribute Xu Ming had gained over the years allowed him to write this smoothly, the article emotionally sincere, logically clear, and this “Refusal to Marry Memorandum” was also intended to guide his superior.

Since I was young, weak in martial arts, I haven’t pitied myself, but I still yearn to guard the frontier for the country. Listening to the wind and rain at night, I dream of iron horses and icy rivers.

Xu Ming explained his reasons for not marrying.

On the battlefield, life and death are unpredictable. If anything happens to me, how dare I leave the princess alone in the world because of my selfish desires?

The battlefield is a place where anyone can die. I don’t even know when I might die in battle.

My decision not to marry the princess is, to a great extent, genuinely for the princess’s sake.

I deeply understand that romantic feelings are normal human emotions, but during times of national crisis, how can I prioritize private feelings over national concerns?”

It’s not that I don’t want to marry Her Highness the Princess; it’s that I want to serve the country, having higher and more ambitious ideals and goals!

Before achieving my ideals and goals, I simply can’t focus on marriage.

“I entered school at six years old, learned about border affairs at eight, admiring the legacy of my ancestors. Night after night, I dream of nothing but drinking wine and examining my sword, feeling the cold wind blowing through the encampment. I long to share roasted meat with eight hundred soldiers, hear fifty strings play music from beyond the frontier, and inspect troops on the autumn battlefield. Watching swift horses gallop and hearing bows sound like thunderstruck strings. I believe, Your Majesty being wise, will surely understand my heartfelt intentions. I am willing to dedicate my life to the nation and cannot speak of private matters, thus I earnestly request Your Majesty to reconsider the marriage decree.”

Throughout the entire “Refusal to Marry Memorandum,” Xu Ming adapted Li Mi’s “Chen Qing Biao” and Jiang Zeng’s “Ci Hun Biao,” incorporating several poems.

If I marry the princess, I definitely won’t stay quietly as an official in the imperial court. If I go off to war and perish, wouldn’t the princess end up a widow?

Based on the reward from Xu Ming’s consecutive top scholar achievement—”collaboration,”—his success rate in persuading leaders could increase by thirty percent.

Xu Ming took a deep breath, feeling that this “Refusal to Marry Memorandum” should sufficiently give the royal family face and an exit strategy. Refusing the marriage proposal shouldn’t be too problematic.

A gentle breeze flipped through the pages, swirling above the words of the memorial.

Zhao Wenshan and Xu Pengda felt deeply moved.

That spontaneous poem in the “Refusal to Marry Memorandum”—”Since I was young, weak in martial arts, I haven’t pitied myself, but I still yearn to guard the frontier for the country. Listening to the wind and rain at night, I dream of iron horses and icy rivers.”—would surely be recorded in poetry collections.

The lines “Feasting on the flesh of barbarians when hungry, drinking the blood of ten thousand demons when thirsty” made Zhao Wenshan feel quite exhilarated.

Those verses “Drinking wine and examining my sword, feeling the cold wind blowing through the encampment. Sharing roasted meat with eight hundred soldiers, hearing fifty strings play music from beyond the frontier, inspecting troops on the autumn battlefield. Swift horses galloping, bows sounding like thunderstruck strings.” clearly formed a complete poem, though incomplete, left Zhao Wenshan itching to finish it.

Once the ink dried on the memorial, Xu Ming carefully packed it away and stepped out of the study.

“Apologies for keeping the eunuch waiting.”

Xu Ming arrived in the courtyard, handing the memorial wrapped in literary fortune to Wei.

Wei glanced at the memorial, respectfully receiving it with both hands: “Then I shall return and report.”

“Thank you for your efforts, Eunuch.” Xu Ming smiled.

Wei looked at Xu Ming with a complex expression before leaving with the palace maid and eunuchs. Xu Shuiya quickly realized and personally went to see them off.

“Your Majesty.”

In the Imperial Study, Wei paid homage to the Emperor of Wu.

“How did it go? Did that kid Xu Ming grin uncontrollably upon learning about the arranged marriage?” The Wu Emperor chuckled, his gaze continuously reviewing documents on the desk.

“Reporting to Your Majesty, Zhuangyuan Lang… he declined the marriage.” Wei whispered.

“What?” The Wu Emperor looked up, ink spilling onto the memorial, staining it with a few black spots.

The Wu Emperor noticed that Wei indeed held a decree in his hands.

Furrowing his brows, the Wu Emperor asked, “Did that kid provide any reason?”

“Your Majesty, this is the memorial written by Zhuangyuan Lang.” Wei presented the memorial Xu Ming had written.

“Bring it here.” The Wu Emperor nodded.

“Yes.” Wei approached and handed over the memorial.

The Wu Emperor opened the memorial, wanting to see what this kid had to say.

Wei nervously waited nearby, expecting the emperor to flare up in anger, but instead, he noticed a slight upward curve at the corner of the emperor’s lips.

“What’s going on?” Wei wondered silently, pondering what was written in the memorial.

“Wei.” The Wu Emperor put down the memorial and looked up.

“Your humble servant is here.” Wei immediately bowed his head.

“Tomorrow morning during the assembly, let all the officials take a look at this memorial.” The Wu Emperor chuckled, “That kid… really leaves me at a loss.”

[Sorry sorry, came back late, got home at 11 PM, wrote one chapter first, then taking a shower and continuing to write.

It’s already Thursday today.

This chapter doesn’t count, today’s update is ten thousand words.]