Chapter 9

Chapter 9

He Yuan found the situation amusing. Perched atop the boundary wall, he tossed a pear down toward Liu Chengshan.

With a wet thud, the pear hit the ground and split open, spraying juice everywhere.

“Who’s there!”

“Oh my, I didn’t expect my first meeting with my father-in-law to be so undignified. My apologies, my apologies!”

Liu Chengshan stammered out his name: “He Yuan?”

“Yes, indeed. Your son-in-law at your service.”

The He Family hadn’t always been wealthy. It was only when their ancestors followed Taizu to conquer the world that they became generals. After the founding of the dynasty, they were granted the title of Marquis of Dingguo, a hereditary peerage.

They say wealth rarely lasts three generations, yet the descendants of the He Family were no slackers; every generation produced military talent.

However, their success was also their downfall. By the time the title passed to He Yuan, perhaps due to too much bloodshed in the family’s past, his marriage prospects were incredibly cursed.

His former fiancées had died of sudden illnesses, fatal falls, or choking on food… one had even gone to sleep and never woken up.

It was preposterous!

Even the Emperor didn’t dare interfere anymore. Every time he bestowed a marriage, the bride died. He was an Emperor, not the King of Hell.

And so, He Yuan’s marriage prospects had been shelved.

Now, a woman had finally appeared who was still alive and kicking after the marriage negotiations. If she were drowned in a pond now, He Yuan might truly have to marry a tree.

His mother had consulted a master who claimed he was cursed with a Peach Blossom Calamity. If all else failed, the master suggested he hold a wedding ceremony with a peach tree to see if it might break the hex.

At the thought of this, He Yuan’s brow twitched.

Was this a good match or not? Liu Chengshan couldn’t decide in the moment. He had gathered the elders of the Liu Clan in the courtyard, ready to call for blood, but the sudden shift from a funeral atmosphere to a wedding celebration made them look like a flock of aggressive, stunned geese.

Both stupid and malicious.

For a moment, no one spoke. Dozens of people held their breath, leaving only the sound of the autumn wind sweeping through fallen leaves.

He Yuan raised his hand. The deputy general waiting beneath the wall understood the signal and shouted, “Brothers, let’s liven things up!”

First came the piercing blare of a suona, followed by the boom of drums and the crash of cymbals. Amidst the chaotic clatter, Liu Tai covered her ears and looked up at He Yuan.

He was wearing purple clothes today, sitting atop the wall with a look of smug triumph. Liu Tai thought he looked exactly like an eggplant.

Rumors began to swirl through the capital again, claiming that the Liu Clan’s concubine-born daughter was incredibly calculating-that she had discarded both her shame and her life just to marry into a high-ranking family.

When Old Madam He heard this, she was so incensed that she added another carriage full of betrothal gifts to the marriage portion.