I injected all of my venom into its body, then threw the still-living prey to that weird tree.”The monstrous tree hadn't let up on the red-horned lizard, its roots coiling and sucking it dry. Then, it...Wen Zhaoming's eyebrows also furrowed. It wasn't that he didn't want to send his sister to school; it was a matter of money, and also the issue of the academy.

Because Wengjia Village doesn't have a school, the nearest one is in Wangzhuang Village. Everyone in that village is either surnamed Wang or Zhuang. They only hired a scholar to teach the children of their own village; he's from outside the village, and they might not even accept him.

Even if that scholar agreed, the tuition and the distance would be problems. The village where Wen lives is too far from Wangzhuang Village; the journey back and forth would be twenty miles. It would be unthinkable to let a seven-year-old child travel alone to school every day.

The ripples only spoke now:

"So I want you to consider my proposal. If we were betrothed, then Zhao Yue could officially accept my teachings. After all, I'm just a young man; teaching Zhao Yue would be more than enough for me."

Wen Zhaoming suddenly felt that he had relaxed too early. The topic circled back to him, and his face flushed again uncontrollably.

Miss Su, if my brother were to be engaged to you, would you also be able to bring him over

"Sure, only because we are both observing filial piety. We have to wait three years after this period before getting married."

Ripple gave a serious answer.

"Well, wouldn't that be bad for your brother's reputation"

Yue Yue continued to ask.

Children are very perceptive. I guess they must have heard people talking about marriage, so that's why they asked.

After thinking for a moment, Lian Ri said:

"There are some effects, I want to see if I can minimize them."

Miss Su, don't take children's words to heart, they don't understand anything.

Wen Zhaoming immediately said.

"Brother, I'm not a child anymore. I understand. Your cousin told me that your aunt wants to arrange a marriage for you and get you married off. If you get married and leave the house, I'll be all alone."

Wen Zhao Yue's face was very serious, it seemed like this was a very important matter to her.

Wen Zhaoming awkwardly smiled after hearing that, then sighed afterwards.

Ripples, having heard this, took the opportunity to suggest:

"My dear, how about we get engaged first Think of it as you helping me. If after the filial piety period, you have other people you like, you can come to me and break off the engagement."

After we get engaged, I can officially take care of you and stop your relatives from trying to marry you off. And on my side, it'll save me a lot of trouble.

By then, Yueyue can come to my place for lessons. I'll have a carriage pick her up and drop her off every day. You won't be alone either. What do you think

This time Wen Zhaoming didn't refuse outright, because in his view it was more like a transaction, beneficial to both parties. It's just that if they broke the engagement, his reputation would likely suffer even more. Who would be willing to marry him then

Wen Zhaoming smiled wryly, then lowered his eyes and said:

"Miss Su, please allow me some time to consider."

"Okay, no rush. You can get back to me whenever you're ready."

Ripple knew she had made herself clear. To say more would feel like pressuring the other person.

Then, the only sound was the clatter of horses' hooves. Lian Yi fed cakes to Wen Zhao Yue, thinking that this little girl was still quite reliable.

Wen Zhaoming had been considering Lian Yi's words and hadn't paid much attention to his younger sister who had already eaten a small dish of pastries. When the carriage stopped at their doorstep, he finally came to his senses. At this time, his little sister already had a small bag on her back, and was politely bidding farewell to Lian Yi.

Wen Zhao Ming supported his forehead, but he also knew that now was not the time to refuse or pull away. After all, neighbors had already peered out and were looking this way. A carriage was rarely seen in Wenjia Village after all.

I'm not going down anymore, you guys go back yourselves!

Ripple smiled and said.

"Today, thank you, Ms. Su. I will seriously consider your proposal."

Wen Zhaoming finished speaking, and then took the lead in getting out of the carriage. Then he picked up his younger sister and thanked Mr. Su who was driving the carriage before entering their own courtyard.

Su Lao's carriage turned around and returned after seeing the two enter.

After riding back in the carriage, Lian Ri continued to enjoy the snow and wine. Fueled by alcohol, she even danced with her sword, which made An He twitch at the corners of his eyes. It was clear that their young mistress was simply letting loose with her drunken antics.

But Lotus and Cuihua didn't think so. After all, outsiders look at the excitement, while insiders see the details. They felt that Miss's sword not only looked good, but was also very offensive. If it were used in a real battle, its lethality would definitely be great.

So the two of them watched and mimicked, learning half of it. The remaining half they waited for their mistress to wake up before humbly asking for further instruction, and only then did they learn the complete set of swordsmanship.

"I'm letting you two off easy. This is from a martial arts manual I learned."

Liàn yī smiled and said, "

"Miss, what sword technique is this"

"The Art of the Serpent Sword."

Ripples casually gave itself a pretentious name.

"The Dragon-Soaring Sword Technique, no wonder it's so domineering!"

Cuiflower said very flatteringly.

Lotus was still a little puzzled, but she didn't ask any more questions. Since the mistress and master had left, Miss had become much more down-to-earth. She probably learned this herself when reading miscellaneous notes.

After the second snowfall, when the ground had been completely frozen solid, Wen Zhaoming brought Yueyue to visit Lianyi again.

It wasn't surprising that ripples caused the warmth of home to invite their siblings in, and order some tea and refreshments. Only then did they open their mouths to speak:

"It's so cold out today, how did you bring your sister with you"

"I don't feel comfortable leaving my little sister home alone, so I brought her with me. With the Lunar New Year coming up soon, I prepared some gifts as an early greeting to Ms. Su."

Wen Zhao-ming spoke calmly and confidently.

Then he pushed a small bamboo basket towards the ripples. If you ignored his rather pale complexion, it would have been more convincing.

"Wen Xiaogé, what kind of trouble have you gotten yourself into"

Ripple frowned and asked.

After taking a deep breath, Wen Zhaoming said:

Miss Su, after I went back and thought carefully about what you said last time, I am willing to agree to a betrothal with you first. Before the year ends, you can send a matchmaker to my family to formally propose.

Ripple thought there was still time to grind, but unexpectedly the other party responded so quickly.

"Getting engaged is a serious matter, have you really thought it through"

The ripples asked again, she didn't have the habit of forcing people.

Wen Zhaoming nodded, looking straight into Lianyi's eyes and saying:

I believe Miss Su is a person of integrity and would not deliberately scheme against me, a peasant. Besides, I have nothing worth scheming for. On the contrary, after my betrothal to Miss Su, I will be under her protection.

"Since you've already made up your mind, I'll have someone take care of it right away. Go change into a pair of cotton slippers first so you don't catch a cold."

Seeing that the other party's decision was not forced, Liàn Yī felt relieved. Then she noticed that the other party's black cotton shoes were already wet. Wēn Zhāoyuè, because she had been carried on their back, her cotton shoes were dry instead.

Yueyue also discovered it at this time and immediately said:

"Brother, you go change your shoes first. I'll stay here and talk to Miss Su."

Wen Zhaoming's feet were indeed uncomfortable. They had been frozen and numb. He nodded, then was taken down to change his shoes.

"Then Lián Yī said to Wén Zhāoyuè,"

"Yue Yue, what happened at your house"ive the Empress! A thousand years, ten thousand years, a million years!""Hmph! You all chant slogans so well, yet you're all just waiting for me to abdicate."Ripples moved at an unhurried pace, leavi...