Chapter 470: This Is the Way to Go About it
Translator: Novel Saga Editor: Novel Saga
"However, she did both these things on her own initiative. And, the consequences it led to were irreparable and grave. What had happened that day was very unlucky for me, but it didn't harm me much. But, Guan Qing Han was nearly forced to commit suicide by those rotten scholars' accusations. What would happen to the relationship between our two families if that issue was brought to the table of discussions? There wouldn't be any margin for leeway in that case!
"I'll be faced with an existential question if I accept this wedding. But, the two families will fall out if I don't accept this marriage. It's fortunate that I've always had a favorable opinion of this little girl. So, accepting this marriage wouldn't be too difficult. But, what if I hadn't liked her in the first place? It could be assumed that our families would've become mortal enemies, and would've skirmished for years without an end! And, that wouldn't have led to the Jun Family's end. However, it would've marked the end of the Dugu Family! And, these consequences are something which neither of us could bear!
"Moreover, this is something that can be avoided! And, I must say this even though Xiao Yi is here right now… She's willful! She acts rashly without caring about the consequences. So, how can I ever be relieved while leaving the first wife's position in her hands?"
Jun Mo Xie had spoken these serious words in a very gentle yet solemn manner.
Dugu Xiao Yi had lowered her head in shame. In fact, her small head was nearly buried in her chest right now. After all, she was a very smart girl. And, she had long ago realized that her rash actions had brought-about very vile consequences. Therefore, she didn't have much to say in her defense…
Old Lady Dugu opened her mouth with the desire to speak something; she wanted to give an explanation for her granddaughter. But, she couldn't say a single word, and only sighed in the end. Dugu Zong Heng and Dugu Wu Di also looked at each other. They tried to put themselves in others' shoes, and realized that even they wouldn't want such a bold wife.
"But, Xiao Yi is still young…" It was the lady at the Old Lady's side… the same one who had been staring at Jun Mo Xie the most intently since the start. She was Dugu Xiao Yi's mother. So, she had hastily butted-in to give an explanation for her daughter's actions.
"Yes, this girl is very young. But, that isn't a reasonable excuse for what she has done! She's the youngest child of the Dugu Family. The Dugu Family has spoilt her, and that has led to such terrible and lamentable consequences. This little girl's behavior represents the very upbringing of the Dugu Family! Kindly pay attention to what I'll say now…"
Jun Mo Xie sternly continued, "Let's suppose that your seven grandsons create a huge disaster and land themselves in a lot of trouble because of it. The older generation of your family wouldn't get involved in that mess. They would let these youngsters handle things on their own unless the matter if extremely serious. Now, let's suppose that something bad happens to Xiao Yi instead… The Dugu Family wouldn't even care about right or wrong in that case. In fact, the young and old would rush into battle alike. Moreover, it wouldn't even matter if it's right or wrong. It would be justifiable to get involved as long as it concerned this little girl. However, it's fortunate that this girl is good-natured. Otherwise, she would've giving rise many irreparable consequences by now!
"Furthermore, Dugu Xiao Yi's present behavior stems from the fact that the Dugu Family's power is supporting her at the back. But, imagine what will happen if she marries into my Jun Family, and gets our power in her support her as well? Her support will have increased by many folds! I reckon that a few noble Xuan Families might be able to resist. But, most noble families would be pushed to destruction because of her rashness in case she foolishly did something against them!
"Perhaps she has the potential to be a first wife in the future. But, I can't agree right now. In fact, I can't dare to agree!"
Jun Mo Xie spoke upright and unafraid, "Let's exchange our positions. Would you ever agree to it if you were faced with something like this? So, why should I be forced into doing so?"
"I won't take another wife for now. And, I already have Guan Qing Han! Guan Qing Han was forced to pay the ultimate price to save my life because of Xiao Yi's mistake. And, that has resulted in such a tangled situation! It won't sound pleasant... But, I would've died if it weren't for her. And, how would you have faced the Jun Family if something like that had happened to me? Moreover, how unfair would it be to Qing Han if I decided to take Xiao Yi as the first wife? Qing Han ended-up at the receiving end of those rotten scholars' accusations because she covered for Xiao Yi's mistake. In fact, she could've been consigned to eternal damnation! Would she be able to withstand if we still propped this little girl above her…?!"
"But, Guan Qing Han has always been known as your elder sister-in-law. So, how can she be your first wife?" Old Lady Dugu pondered on Jun Mo Xie's words at first. Then, she asked him that question.
"The Old Lady speaks of what was before. But, that is a matter of the past now! Guan Qing Han is now my third uncle's adopted daughter. And, I'm sure that this isn't a secret anymore. So, why can't I marry her now? Moreover, I don't wish to divide their standings. The aspect of elder and smaller are akin to fighting for a position… However, you'll be considered an elder sister as long as everyone accepts you. And, this stands true even if you're the youngest!"
Jun Mo Xie smiled faintly, "I've always had a passive position on this matter when we come back to main issue… And, I don't wish to be this passive. But, the talks for this marriage are happening too hastily right now."
"So, what you mean to say is that… you won't make Xiao Yi your first wife?" Dugu Zong Heng looked very fiercely at Jun Mo Xie. His body slight stooped forward, and he emanated huge pressure as he spoke-up in a dangerous tone.
"Hehe… I've tried to give a reasonable analysis. I'm a man who handles things with principle. I don't like being threatened no matter what… Nor do I care where the threats come from!" Jun Mo Xie replied in a subdued voice, "I'll lose interest if people start giving me threats in matters that are so important as far as my life is concerned. So, I might as well break the marriage instead..."
Jun Mo Xie's tough and unyielding reply upset Dugu Zong Heng. So, he glared back wide-eyed with his ox-like eyes. In fact, it seemed as if his beard would burst into flames.
"Good. That's very good! Let's not entangle ourselves in this issue any further!" The Old Lady suddenly broke into a smile. She then continued while beaming, "Xiao Yi's position hasn't been determined yet. But, I'm sure that Mo Xie won't think about this matter any time soon. So, this matter is like getting engaged for now. And, I'm certain that the young ones will do fine on their own when it comes to matters of the future. So, why should we worry so much? Everything will be fine as long as Mo Xie is good to Xiao Yi. It'll be fine as long as he loves Xiao Yi.
"Moreover, Mo Xie hasn't yielded despite facing the pressure from the entire Dugu Family at once. His words were certainly unpleasant to hear. But, it has to be said that we can't deny any of them. Everything he said was true. And, everyone has heard them very clearly. However, this leaves me to see him as a praiseworthy man! He's mighty and unyielding; he's a real man! I would've considered Mo Xie to be a spineless man if he had gotten swayed by our roars and had agreed to anything we would've said… In fact, I would've had doubts about going ahead with this marriage in that case. This boy Mo Xie looks good to me. He looks very good to me. My old self can't help but admire him…"
Dugu Zong Heng and Dugu Wu Di were left baffled by this. [Make up your mind. It was you who had said that he isn't good. But, what can we father-and-son do in any case? It was your idea to test him here. Now, you're only telling us to not test him. But, who'll dare to say anything even if they have something to say since you've passed this notion…?
"You two men will make an appointment with Jun Zhan Tian in a few days. And, you will settle this matter quickly. The first or whatever else can be left for later. But, we must quickly seal this engagement first."
The Old Lady made slight gestures towards the two men while she made her plans. But, she didn't even look at them, "Ah, you will personally go in order to show good faith. Then, you'll send a wedding planner after you've made a proper agreement. You'll then exchange the relevant documents, and set an auspicious date. You must see what time is most suitable. But, we must quickly arrange an engagement ceremony."
She pondered for a while. Then, she again spoke-up, "This ceremony will mean a great bustle since the Imperial Family, the nobles, and officials will arrive for it. Moreover, we'll be recovering the money we'll have gifted them for a few years. However, I'll record the names of everyone whom we will have gifted something. And then, you two will go and recover the money we've spent on these gifts over time. It'll be a very thick and detailed record. You'll memorize the names of everyone we'll gift something on Xiao Yi's wedding. And, I'll write each one of their names down. We won't let even one of them off! We must at least recover the money we'll have spent on the celebrations…
"We'll also make a list of people whom we don't consider important. After all, we'll have to give them some face. Therefore, the way to deal with this matter is this — we'll wait for these two to get married. Then, we'll send out the invitations to those not-so-important people. But, we don't need to make it extravagant for the wedding. We'll only invite a few hundred people to the marriage. But, we can expand the scale if the Jun Family also pays for the marriage. After all, this is also related to the Jun Family's honor…
"The number we invite must be clear. Let's say that we could've given four hundred gifts. But, we'll only make do with giving out four hundred gifts by that analogy. And, there's no need to call people who won't be able to return the gifts. Moreover, we'll invite everyone who has birthdays or namedays in the coming weeks. We'll go and say, 'Hey, isn't it your birthday as well? Great, we'll just be exchanging gifts in that case. After all, the dates are very close'!"
Even Jun Mo Xie's head got drenched in cold sweat this time around.
[This Old Lady thinks things over to the greatest extreme!]
[This isn't a family… this isn't a normal family by any means. They're insane!]
Dugu Wu Di's big mouth curled into a smile. He continued to nod with the expression of a miser, "Correct, that's absolutely correct! Mother is brilliant!" [We can quickly repay the debt we owe to the Jun Family once we've collected some money in this manner…]
"Inform the astrologers to select a propitious date! And, you must tell him to stagger that date with the time of birthdays! Then, inform Kong Ling Yang to come and preside over the wedding…"
Dugu Wu Di interrupted her the moment she said that, "Mother, Kong Ling Yang is dead," he glanced at Jun Mo Xie as he said this. [Kong Ling Yang's murder was either this kid's doing… or it must've been a ghost's!]
"He's dead? That's such a pity. He was a talented person!" However, the Old Lady's expression didn't even change when she sighed. It seemed as if she didn't pity that a great talent had been lost. In fact, she was more mournful on the passing of the best wedding overseer instead of the death of an excellent scholar, "Go and find someone from the greatest institutes of learning in that case. And, be courteous to them…"
Dugu Zong Heng nodded and replied, "This is easy. We don't get along with those chaps. But, it doesn't matter in this case. We'll tie them up with a rope and bring them here if they don't agree willfully. And, I'd like to see if they have the guts to not show us respect once we bring them here in ropes!"
"That's good." Old Lady Dugu nodded in a relieved manner. "You men must sort out the other matters on your own. After all, mixing women with those issues isn't a good thing."
Jun Mo Xie violently rolled his eyes. [What's all this?! And, you still call it 'not mixing in matters'?! You're basically running the show here… Moreover, that Dugu Zong Heng ordered to bring those people by binding them with rope! And, this old woman has commented "that's good," to such an outrageous thing…]
Jun Mo Xie collapsed…