Cheng Bei Zheng felt he truly understood the meaning of being falsely accused.
Not only did Situ Yan push him away and claim he had saved his life, but he also had the audacity to be so aggressive without even a prior warning. Cheng Bei Zheng rolled up his sleeves, determined to have a thorough discussion with him today, no matter what.
Just then, Mo Sang spoke up, "Situ Yan, how can you blame my husband for this? I used Wan Wan to scare him; how could he dare refuse to let me in?"
Lu Nian Fu was very pleased. This young woman, whatever else, was brave and responsible. She didn't just hide behind her man; her protectiveness clearly showed her deep affection for Third Young Master.
Situ Yan was speechless. "Don't talk nonsense. Da Yin is different from your Western Frontier; a woman's reputation is very important."
Mo Sang was indifferent. "What's there to fear? If anyone dares to gossip to my face, at worst, I'll reward them with a Gu worm."
There's nothing that one Gu worm can't solve. If not, then a few more.
Cheng Bei Zheng: ...
"Are you trying to go to prison by saying this in front of the Minister of Dali Temple?" He suddenly grabbed Mo Sang's hand. "The Prince himself acted as our matchmaker. Now that the Prince has returned to the capital, the formal betrothal gifts and ceremonies can begin. If we hurry, the wedding should be done by the end of the year."
Although he was very displeased with Situ Yan selling him out to repay a debt, now that the person was brought home, he had to marry her, right?
Moreover, looking at Mo Sang's beautiful profile, he was momentarily dazed.
Marrying her seemed like a good deal.
It wasn't the first time Mo Sang had held his hand. They had been together for a while, and their hands touched naturally quite often. But at this moment, she felt the warmth from his palm burning, and her heartbeat quickened.
Lu Nian Fu, who had been observing the whole scene, was a bit taken aback when she heard about the marriage. She had thought Third Young Master would at least trouble his husband first, as who would willingly have their marriage arranged so easily.
Let alone her, even Situ Yan himself hadn't expected Cheng Bei Zheng to be so accepting.
Mo Sang, however, was not entirely on board. "The betrothal gifts and ceremonies are too troublesome. And embroidering a wedding dress and such. But I only know how to prick acupuncture points with a needle."
"Don't worry, you don't have to bother with these things. I will arrange everything. You just wait to be the bride."
"Can I still open my medical clinic after getting married? I've heard that women in Da Yin have to stay home and raise children after marriage, and it's not appropriate for them to be out and about." This was precisely why women in Da Yin lived such stifled lives, not being allowed to do this or that. It was better not to get married at all.
She felt that maintaining the current situation was quite good.
Alas, Da Yin had too many rules.
"You've been calling me husband for almost two months now, and you're only worrying about this now?"
Mo Sang said, "If calling someone husband gets me pocket money and allows me to earn money, I'd be foolish not to call him that."
Cheng Bei Zheng's eyes widened, and he finally asked the question that had been lingering in his heart for a long time: "So, are you interested in me as a person, or my money?"
Lu Nian Fu: ...
Situ Yan chuckled ungratefully. "When I mentioned you to Mo Sang back then, I said you were the richest man in Yangzhou."
Tsk, honestly, after living for so many years, how could he not know this? Back then, Mo Sang had agreed to this marriage without even knowing what he looked like. Could she possibly be interested in him as a person?
Mo Sang glared at Situ Yan ominously. "Do you not want your tongue anymore?"
Situ Yan quickly changed the subject. "Well, guests are here. I'll go to the kitchen and tell them to add a few more dishes. You two chat first."
Without waiting for their reaction, he grabbed Lu Nian Fu and ran off.
Only Mo Sang and a sullen, grumpy Cheng Bei Zheng were left in the small reception hall.
The atmosphere became extremely awkward. Mo Sang hooked her finger around Cheng Bei Zheng's. "Actually, you're not bad either. If you allow me to practice medicine continuously, I can consider marrying you."
Cheng Bei Zheng's face was stern. "Then what if I run out of money one day?"
"Then I'll practice medicine and support you. Tsk, if I had known money in the capital was this easy to earn, I would never have listened to my mother-in-law and stayed at the bottom of the valley for so long. You have no idea how poor life was in the valley." She shook Cheng Bei Zheng's arm, her face full of a past she couldn't bear to recall.
It was as if she had suffered greatly back then.
Cheng Bei Zheng immediately softened. "Don't worry, I'll never let you live a hard life again."
Sister A'shu was right. No one could resist her when she acted spoiled. She said, "It wasn't that hard, really. I just couldn't eat meat often."
Raising Gu worms was an expensive endeavor, yet her mother-in-law insisted that Gu worms were the root of the Western Frontier people and that they had to be raised.
Those precious little things were such big eaters.
What people generally imagined about raising Gu was putting various snakes, insects, rats, and ants into a jar and letting them kill each other. The one that survived was the Gu.
If it were that easy, Gu worms would have become a plague long ago.