The next day, Ren Tianye woke up early in the morning.
He set up a sign at the city gate to recruit soldiers and horses.
At the same time, he ordered his guerrilla generals to distribute the equipment obtained from the imperial guards and begin training. Everything was developing in a tense yet orderly manner.
The strength of Yunji City was unknowingly growing more and more powerful.
Ren Tianye was busy until the evening before returning to the General's Manor. However, he only hastily took a few bites of food before diving back into his paperwork.
His deputy general, Wang Ming, stood guard outside the door to ensure his safety.
Suddenly, the sound of a carriage and horses could be heard.
Stepping out of the General's Manor to take a look, he saw a carriage slowly approaching. The carriage was luxurious, made entirely of solid wood and carved with intricate patterns, which not only showed its elegance but also gave a sense of extraordinary nobility.
Wang Ming recognized it; this was the Su family's carriage.
Moreover, it was the carriage of the Second Miss, Su Xiu.
He could not help but frown slightly.
The Great General's wedding with Su Xiu was approaching, so why did the Second Miss Su Xiu come over in person?
Wasn't this Second Miss always dissatisfied with the Great General? If it weren't for Su Jin and his second uncle persuading and even threatening her, this marriage would inevitably have ended up as a forced arrangement.
So why was Second Miss Su Xiu here now?
However, no matter what, she would become the Great General's woman in the future. Wang Ming did not dare to be arrogant, and immediately walked quickly forward to stand respectfully to the side.
The carriage stopped, the curtain was lifted, and a woman stepped out.
She was somewhat pretty and her clothes could be considered luxurious.
But compared to the everyday clothes of the Su family members, they were still far inferior.
Wang Ming then saw clearly that the person who came was not Second Miss Su Xiu at all, but rather her personal maid.
He had been busy with the Great General's wedding alongside Su Jin these days, so he recognized her and remembered that her name seemed to be Xiaotao.
Frowning, he asked, What are you doing here?
How dare a mere maid like you ride in your master's carriage?
Usually, Xiaotao was quiet, obedient, and hardworking in front of Su Xiu, but away from Su Xiu, she showed a completely different face.
Cold, arrogant, and aloof, she somewhat resembled Second Miss Su Xiu.
Hmph!
I came on my young lady's orders, why can't I ride in my young lady's carriage?
For a mere deputy general, you certainly stick your nose where it doesn't belong.
Deputy General Wang Ming's expression instantly turned somewhat ugly.
Ever since the Great General took command of the region and became the lord of Yunji City, even brothers with much higher military ranks than him treated him politely and did not dare to slight him in the least.
It had been a long time since he had received such a reprimand.
However, he was kind-hearted after all and did not want to argue with a young woman, so he suppressed his anger and said, What exactly did you come here for?
Call your Great General out. I need to say a few words to him on behalf of our young lady.
Call the Great General out to speak for your young lady?
Deputy General Wang Ming was stunned for a moment.
He thought to himself that even if your young lady came, she would have to wait obediently outside until the Great General was free to see her. What kind of a thing are you?
He shouted coldly, Nonsense!
The Great General is busy with military affairs. How could he see you just because you want him to?
If you have something to say, say it quickly.
If not, hurry up and go back.
Xiaotao's pretty face was instantly filled with anger. What arrogance! I represent my young lady. Your Great General truly does not know what is good for him.
And he dares to make me wait?
These words were spoken quite loudly, already alarming a few of the personal guards at the gate of the General's Manor, which made Deputy General Wang Ming feel a bit anxious.
If the Great General heard these words, this Xiaotao's head would probably fall to the ground immediately.
He hurriedly said, Quiet!
Do not shout.
If you alarm the Great General, it won't end well for you.
Pausing, he said impatiently, What exactly is the matter with you? If there is nothing, hurry back and don't disturb the Great General from handling official business.
This cold eviction order made Xiaotao so angry that her chest heaved. Her pretty face was covered in frost, and her fingers cracked as she clenched her fists.
Good, very good. Since your Great General dares to treat me like this, when I go back, I will definitely report everything to my young lady in full detail.
You can tell your general to look out for himself.
Don't regret it!
After speaking, Xiaotao still did not dare to fail to complete the task entrusted to her by Second Miss Su Xiu.
After jumping off the carriage, she waved her hand and called the two servants she had brought with her to take out several chests of things from the carriage.
They placed them one by one at the entrance of the General's Manor.
Deputy General Wang Ming looked on with a bewildered expression because he recognized these chests. He had personally delivered them to the Su Manor; they were precisely the betrothal gifts for Second Miss Su Xiu.
What was this?
Was this marriage going to be unilaterally canceled?
That couldn't be!
This was settled only after Su Jin begged him not to tell the Great General, making several private trips behind the Great General's back, and then Su Jin's second uncle took charge and applied forceful pressure.
Although Su Jin's second uncle was not yet the true head of the Su family right now, after Su Jin's father passed away, the grandmother had taken overall control of the Su Manor's power, in reality, he was the one handling all matters, big and small, on his own.
He had obtained the approval of the Su Manor's grandmother, issued the order, settled the marriage, and even informed the relatives and friends of the Su Manor.
And they still dared to break off the engagement?
They must be crazy!
However, Deputy General Wang Ming was clearly mistaken.
He only heard Xiaotao say, My young lady said that these pieces of junk are not worthy of entering the Su Manor, and she doesn't care for them.
If the Great General wants to marry her, he must do so according to her rules.
Deputy General Wang Ming's heart, which had just settled down, hung in suspense again.
Rules?
What rules?
Could it be that Second Miss Su Xiu wanted a top-grade betrothal gift?
Wang Ming had been following Su Jin these days, constantly busy with the Great General's marriage, and was already clear about the ins and outs of it.
Marriage emphasized social equality. As a Great General, Ren Tianye marrying a merchant's daughter and giving a low-grade betrothal gift could already be considered a blessing.
Now they were given a mid-grade one, but she still wanted a top-grade one?
One must know that to receive a top-grade betrothal gift, the woman's family background had to be a royal princess, a duke's daughter, or a prime minister's daughter.
How could Su Xiu, a merchant's daughter, have such audacity?
Listen clearly to my young lady's rules, and explain them clearly to your unruly Great General later. Don't remember them wrong.
Xiaotao still looked furious and said coldly, To marry my young lady, all six traditional rituals must be fully prepared: proposing, asking for the name, matching horoscopes, presenting betrothal gifts, setting the wedding date, and the groom personally escorting the bride. Not a single one can be missing.
As for the gifts, there must be a pair of Hetian jade discs, eight pairs of pure gold eight-treasure pearl hairpins, ten strings of Eastern pearl bracelets, two coral trees...
Listening to Xiaotao read out a string of items on the list, Wang Ming's suspended heart finally died.
She really was demanding a top-grade betrothal gift!
How dared a mere merchant's daughter do this?!
At this moment, Xiaotao changed the subject and said, Of course, these are not the most important things.
The most important thing is that your Great General must write a letter of guarantee. After marrying my Second Miss, he must obey my young lady's orders in everything.
He is not allowed to make her unhappy.
If my young lady is unhappy more than three times, she can divorce your Great General.
And at the time of the divorce, your Great General's family wealth, including but not limited to the soldiers and horses under his command, must be divided in half with my young lady!
Did you hear me clearly?
If you heard me clearly, then have your Great General write the letter of guarantee so I can take it back to my young lady.
...
lity and could only live as an ordinary mortal. He only wished to live a peaceful life. Yet he didn't know— The dog he adopted, because it ate his food, became a legendary demon king. The kitchen knife he casually forged became a peerless divine weapon, causing numerous experts to fight desperately for it. The young disciple he took in became an immortal lord that led an era, due to cultivating the techniques Ye Feng taught him. Even the skeletons he looked down on the most were ominous demon kings that suppressed countless worlds. Many years later, looking at the void shattered with a punch, Ye Feng murmured to himself: It turns out the peerless kings were myself all along...
u Chenyuan transmigrated into a female-oriented novel about a real and fake heiress, becoming the CEO elder brother of both. Unfortunately, the entire Lu family—including himself, the CEO—were mere cannon fodder in the story. Determined to save himself, Lu Chenyuan took action. The spoiled, attention-seeking fake heiress? Thrown into the harsh realities of the working class to learn humility. The love-struck real heiress? Pushed toward academic excellence, so lofty goals would blind her to trivial romances. As for the betrayed, vengeful arranged marriage wife… the plot hadn’t even begun yet. There was still time—if he couldn’t handle her, he could at least avoid her. "CEO Lu, are you avoiding me?" Mo Qingli fixed her gaze on Lu Chenyuan. For the first time, the shrewd and calculating Lu Chenyuan felt a flicker of unease.
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
