Glory

Before Lu Guanyi could speak, he hurriedly continued, "In terms of intelligence, skill, and courage, who could surpass her? You investigated Meng Chengwei—he truly is a formidable figure, yet he ended up defeated by Miss Ye."

"It's just that," he sighed, "Miss Ye's background is somewhat too humble. Her family status offers you no advantage whatsoever and would only hold you back."

If not for this latter reason, he would have long ago tried to arrange this match. After all, he genuinely admired Ye Yaming, just as he admired Lu Guanyi.

Whether in intelligence, capability, or appearance, the two were a perfect match.

Lu Guanyi remained silent.

Seeing that he didn’t immediately refute him, Qi Ji was startled. "You’re not actually developing feelings for Miss Ye, are you?"

Lu Guanyi glanced at him and suddenly looked curious. "Someone as exceptionally talented and brilliant as her—haven’t you ever been tempted?"

"Me?" Qi Ji pointed at himself and immediately waved his hands like a fan. "I wouldn’t dare marry such a formidable wife. If I ever did anything shady behind her back, my neck would feel icy cold, and I wouldn’t even dare go home at night."

Lu Guanyi was speechless. "What a spineless attitude!"

Qi Ji leaned in, his eyes wide. "Are you really going to marry Miss Ye?"

Although he was the one who brought it up, the fact that Lu Guanyi didn’t deny it immediately made Qi Ji panic.

He said, "You really shouldn’t. If those people in the capital find out you’re marrying a merchant’s daughter, they’ll surely mock you. And your stepmother would have even fewer reservations about targeting you."

"I’m not afraid of mockery. Over the years, haven’t there been plenty of people in the capital laughing at me? I just feel that marrying her would harm her," Lu Guanyi shook his head. "Let’s not mention this again."

Qi Ji stared at him intently before slowly leaning back.

Now that he knew his friend was serious, he began earnestly considering the pros and cons of this marriage.

Putting everything else aside, Qi Ji knew how high Lu Guanyi’s standards were. For Ye Yaming to earn Lu Guanyi’s affection was rare, so he naturally wanted to help his good friend succeed in this matter.

Lu Guanyi had a father in name only, while his stepmother and her children treated him as an enemy. His maternal relatives had vanished after his uncle died in battle. After his grandparents passed away, Lu Guanyi was essentially alone in the world.

If he were to marry a wife for whom he felt no affection, what meaning would there be in such a life? When he once saw Lu Guanyi discussing Buddhist teachings with Master Zhineng at Chongshan Temple, he had been deeply worried that Lu Guanyi might choose to become a monk.

Now, seeing that Lu Guanyi had developed feelings for Ye Yaming and was considering her well-being was something Qi Ji greatly welcomed.

"Miss Ye is formidable—she’s the most remarkable young lady I’ve ever met," he said. "Your stepmother, in terms of intellect and tactics, is no match for Miss Ye. If she enters the Lu family, who should fear whom remains to be seen. Your claim that marrying her would harm her is incorrect."

Lu Guanyi waved his hand. "Let’s truly not discuss this anymore. Didn’t you hear the Ye family say that Miss Ye is to have a matrilocal marriage?"

At this, he smiled bitterly. "I’d be willing to be the groom who lives with the bride's family, but aside from Shi Shi and her children, no one would allow it. As for Miss Ye and me, don’t bring it up again."

Qi Ji was astonished. "You’d be willing to be Miss Ye’s groom who lives with the bride's family?"

His voice was so loud it carried into the courtyard, where Ye Hongrong happened to be passing by to inquire about Lu Yan’s situation.

Ye Hongrong immediately cupped his ear in disbelief.What's going on? Did he hear that correctly? Who would be willing to become a groom who lives with his niece's family?

The page standing under the corridor glanced at Ye Hongrong, utterly dumbfounded.

Qi Gongzi (their own young master) had spoken so loudly—unless Fourth Master Ye was deaf, he must have heard it, right?

So, should they still inform the two young masters that Fourth Master Ye had arrived?

Yi Zhi, Qi Ji’s page, was the sharpest and knew it was best not to let Ye Hongrong enter at this moment.

In matters of marriage, private discussions sometimes didn’t count—only when a matchmaker formally proposed could it be considered settled. If Ye Hongrong went in and broke the unspoken understanding, would the marriage proceed or not? Would the other party refuse or not? So, he quickly stepped forward to stop Ye Hongrong and whispered to him, "The two young masters are occupied today, Fourth Master Ye. Perhaps you should come back later. We can discuss any matters this evening."

"Alright, alright, alright," Ye Hongrong replied in a hushed tone, then added, "Don’t tell them I was here."

"Don’t worry," Yi Zhi nodded.

Ye Hongrong scurried away in a flash.

Inside the room, Lu Guanyi said helplessly, "Is that the point? The point is not to bring this up again, isn’t it?"

"No, no, no," Qi Ji said with a serious expression, staring at Lu Guanyi. "You’re even willing to become a groom who lives with her family—that shows how deeply you care for her. Since that’s the case, why not give it a try? If you don’t try, how will you know if she’s willing or not?"

Seeing that Lu Guanyi remained silent, he rolled up his sleeves and said, "Come on, let me analyze this for you carefully."

"Why did the Ye family betroth Miss Ye to that fellow Song in the first place? It’s simply because he’s studious and could earn an official rank in the future. This shows that the Ye family is willing to strengthen their influence through marriage alliances. You’re far superior to that Song. Never mind whether you’ll inherit a noble title or not—just the fact that you have the Crown Prince’s ear means your influence is ten times greater than that of any newly appointed presented scholar. From this perspective, marrying Miss Ye would be beneficial to the Ye family."

"As for Miss Ye herself, her decision to seek a matrilocal marriage is probably out of necessity, right? In this world, those willing to become grooms who live with the bride’s family are either those who can’t support themselves and can’t marry otherwise, or those who seek a life of luxury without putting in any effort. How could such people be worthy of Miss Ye?"

"Anyway, I think you should ask Miss Ye directly. You can explain your situation and your family’s circumstances to her. If she’s willing, it’s a happy outcome for everyone; if she’s not, we can just pretend this was never mentioned."

"That would be so awkward," Lu Guanyi finally spoke. "If she’s unwilling, can our collaboration with the Ye family continue? Even if it does, how could I interact with her comfortably after that?"

"I think Miss Ye is broad-minded and generous. Your worries are quite unnecessary," Qi Ji said.

His high opinion of Ye Yaming stemmed not only from her expertise in tea processing, brewing, and designing tea sets, or her swift and decisive handling of people like Meng Chengwei, but also because, whether during their first meeting or their daily interactions since, Ye Yaming had never displayed any shyness or coyness typical of young women.

She had always been poised and composed, speaking to him and Lu Guanyi with a direct and unwavering gaze, treating them no differently from how she treated Ye Chongming or Ye Jiaxing.Because of his good looks, Qi Ji had been harassed by infatuated girls since childhood. Those girls had nothing but romantic affairs in their minds, leaving no room for anything else.

That was why Qi Ji found Ye Yaming so remarkable. After all, many well-bred daughters from prominent families would still act coy upon meeting a handsome young man. Considering Ye Yaming's family background and age, it was truly rare for her to behave this way.

Only someone with a clear mind and pure thoughts could carry herself with such grace and composure.

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