Chapter 18: Meeting Madam Cai Again

  Liu Xuan finally understood Liu Zhen's intention, he wanted his own Xuanyin Sword, so he set up a sword-testing circle and used the courtesy of mutual exchange to trade for the sword in his hand.

  No wonder he changed his attitude towards himself and became more enthusiastic.

  Liu Jue didn't really care about this sword, he would rather have Liu Bei give him a good knife. If the sword wasn't given by Liu Bei, giving it to Liu Zong wouldn't be a big deal either.

  The key is that this sword was given to him by Liu Biao, it's Liu Biao's personal sword, why didn't he give it to his own son but gave it to Liu Xun instead? There must be a reason for this, before figuring out the truth, he dare not rashly exchange the sword for a knife.

  On the other hand, Liu Zhuang's plan to ask him for his sword also made Liu Xuan feel uncomfortable in his heart, and he had a feeling of being fooled.

  Although Liu Xuan had a strong desire for this sword, he would never use his principles as an exchange. He put down the sword and smiled faintly: "If Brother Zhuang likes this sword, it's fine to give it to you, but this is a sword given by my uncle, let me ask my uncle first, then I'll present the sword to Brother Zhuang, okay?"

  Liu Cong how dare let father know, originally he just wanted to secretly exchange swords, hiding from his father, if Liu Xuan wants to tell his father, what's the point of this sword exchange?

  He was furious in his heart, but he dryly laughed twice and said: "I was just joking with you, I didn't mean to take your sword, Brother Jing is overthinking, haha!"

  He didn't mention the matter of sending knives again, and directly picked up three knives from the table and put them back in the chest. He glanced at the sword on the table with the corner of his eye, turned his eyes around, and smiled: "Right, I still have a good thing to tell you."

  "What's the matter, Brother Cong? Please speak!"

  At this time, Liu Jue was filled with disgust towards this Liu Zhuang. The Romance of the Three Kingdoms says that Liu Zhuang is weak and incompetent, but the one in front of him is arrogant and hypocritical, and narrow-minded. He had just said he would give the knife to himself, but then took it back. What's wrong with giving a knife to oneself? Can't he think of a way to give this sword to him?

  Does he think that by taking his knife, he will let him suffer in vain? He doesn't even understand this much human sentiment.

  Liu Jue felt that Liu Zong was not like the son of a feudal lord, but rather like the son of a vegetable vendor, being very calculating and afraid of losing out in any way. No wonder Cao Cao said that the sons of Liu Biao were like pigs and dogs!

  Liu Zhuang closed the trunk and locked it, then came back with a smile: "Didn't you say last time that you wanted to learn swordsmanship? I've been paying attention for you, and coincidentally, the number one sword school in Xiangyang is recruiting students. Although their requirements are quite high, with your identity, there shouldn't be any problem. Do you want to give it a try?"

  Liu Xuan didn't know what rules the Sword Pavilion had, but he already knew what kind of person Liu Zhuang was, carefully plotting to take his sword. It's likely that this so-called number one sword pavilion in Xiangyang is hiding some tricks.

  Liu Xuan had lost all interest in learning from the Sword Pavilion since he learned Zhao Yun's secret martial arts, and more importantly, he didn't like Liu Zong and didn't want to have much contact with him.

  He stood up and bowed with a smile: "My martial arts skills are mediocre, I don't have the qualifications to enter the Sword Pavilion to learn martial arts, thank you Brother Cong for your kind intentions, farewell."

  After finishing speaking, he turned around and left Liu Zhuang's study, returning to his own courtyard. Liu Zhuang did not expect that Liu Xuan would bluntly refuse him, and was stunned for a moment. Liu Xuan actually didn't give himself any face.

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  The next morning, a knock on the door woke Liu Xuan from his sleep. A sliver of light came through the gap in the window covered with oil paper, and it turned out that day had already broken.

  He felt a wave of disappointment in his heart, last night he was thinking of getting up before dawn to practice martial arts, didn't expect that as soon as he lay down it would be daylight, but the darkness and quietness made him sleep exceptionally sweetly.

  At this time, the door opened and Mong Shu's figure appeared at the door. He pointed outside the door, "Young master, madam asks you to go over there for a moment."

  "I'm going right now!"

  Liu Jiong sprang up from the bed, his spirit unusually full, and Meng Shu couldn't help but smile, saying that Master had never been so spirited before.

  "Master, go wash up first! I've boiled some hot water."

  "Thank you, Uncle Meng. From now on, I'll use well water, I'm not used to using hot water."

  Liu Jiong stretched his waist, straightened his body, and the smile on his face became brighter. Although Mrs. Cai had been cold to him last time, he didn't want to hold it against her. After all, Mrs. Cai had just miscarried not long ago, and he could understand her pain of losing a child.

  Moreover, Mrs. Cai is the mistress of the Liu household, so it's only proper that he should go pay his respects to her.

  Liu Xuan was originally a very open and generous person in his past life, after crossing over one thousand eight hundred years, his personality remained consistent.

  His smile made Meng Shu's nose a bit sour, and he hurriedly walked out of the house, "Young master, let's hurry up, don't keep madam waiting."

  Liu Xuan quickly finished washing up, simply tied her hair back, and appeared at the door in front of the maid with a refreshed spirit.

  "I've kept you waiting, Young Master." The maid in light green cheongsam dress took a glance at the vigorous and lively Young Master Jing, and couldn't help but secretly sigh. She said softly, "Young Master Jing, please follow me!"

  Liu Xuan followed the maid to the inner house, looking around curiously along the way, and was amazed by the pavilions and buildings in the backyard of the wealthy family's residence.

  The maid who led Liu Xiang was a bit worried, 'This young man, ah! What a pity...'

  Walking across the small bridge, he entered a delicate small courtyard. A two-story red building appeared before Liu Xiu's eyes. This was Cai Fu Ren's bedroom. Generally, no outside men were allowed to enter. Liu Xiu was Liu Biao's nephew and his age on the household register had not yet reached sixteen, so he could enter.

  "When meeting the lady, one must know etiquette!"

  The maid repeatedly urged him, then took him to the front of the building. The small parlor for receiving friends and guests was on the west side of the first floor. The maid walked to the door of the parlor and bowed, "Madam, he has arrived."

  "Come in!" The voice in the room was extremely cold, with a hint of hatred in its tone. Liu Xuan's smile disappeared from his face as he recalled his first meeting with Mrs. Cai, who seemed to still harbor resentment towards him.

  There is no love without reason and no hatred without cause. He wanted to figure out where he had offended Mrs. Cai.

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  In the room, Mrs. Cai changed into a white embroidered deep robe with a cold gaze. She didn't tell her husband about the witch's affair, knowing that he had always disliked witchcraft and would only bring his dissatisfaction upon herself if she mentioned it.

  She would never mention it again, but Liu Xuan had left an indelible mark on her heart, like a poisonous thorn piercing the most painful part of her soul.

  Today, Liu Jing was called over, only because she, as a senior and the mistress of the family, had an obligation to do so. Her husband specifically instructed her last night to treat his nephew well.

  A dark figure appeared at the door, and Liu Xiang, who was tall and sturdy, walked in. This was their second meeting, although it had been a month since they first met, but she couldn't help feeling a little restrained from her hatred towards Liu Xiang when she thought of her deceased child, whom she believed Liu Xiang had killed.

  Liu Jiong had just started to pay his respects when Mrs. Cai stopped him with a wave of her hand, saying coldly: "From now on, you don't have to make such grand gestures towards me. Not every junior's grand courtesy can be accepted by me."

  Liu Xuan was deeply annoyed by Cai's wife's disgust towards him, which made the tolerance in his heart disappear, and he also became extremely disgusted with Cai's wife. Since he didn't need to bow down, it was for the best.

  "Aunt, what can I do for you?"

  "And... don't call me 'aunt', like everyone else in the manor, call me 'madam'."

  Mrs. Cai turned her head towards the roof, and in her icy tone, there was a barely concealed disdain and hostility. Liu Xuan also fell silent, and the atmosphere in the room suddenly became tense.

  "What do you want to say to me?" Madam Cai glanced at Liu Xuan.

  Liu Jiong suppressed the urge to turn around and walk away, he now clearly felt Mrs. Cai's hostility towards him, this hostility was not due to her emotional downturn from the miscarriage, but specifically targeted at Liu Jiong himself.

  Perhaps it was because he threatened her interests, it should be like this, he and Mrs. Cai had no grudges or grievances, they were not related in any way, so the hostility would not arise without reason, only when the interests are threatened, the hostility will appear, it should be that something happened behind the scenes that he didn't know about.

  Thinking of this, Liu Xuan's tone also turned cold, "What can I do for you, madam?"

  Mrs. Cai looked at him with some curiosity, she also felt the respect in Liu Xuan's tone disappear, just like a passerby, but she didn't mind.

  "Your uncle told me last night that you've been living in the mansion for a month now, and asked me to show some concern for your well-being. So I'm asking you today, is there anything you need?"

  Liu Xuan slightly bowed and said: "I've troubled you, madam. I'm living quite well now and don't need anything."

  Mrs. Cai sneered inwardly, still quite stubborn. She again thought of the task her husband had entrusted to her, hoping that the Cai family would betroth Shaoyue to him. Her heart grew even more hateful towards Liu Xuan, a man who had killed his own child, and yet wanted to marry her niece?

  She took out Liu Xuan's Yu Jian and asked coldly: "Do you know why I want to ask you about Yu Jian?"

  Liu Xuan's heart skipped a beat, why did Mrs. Cai ask this, could it be that she had doubts about her own identity?

  As soon as he entered the door, he found that Mrs. Cai was a very astute woman, plus the sensitivity unique to women, and must not let her see any flaws.

  Liu Xuan felt uneasy in his heart and shook his head, "I don't know."

  Liu Jiong had no idea that he was involved in the marriage between the Liu and Cai families, nor did he think that Mrs. Cai was not suspicious of his true identity, but rather wanted to find a way to stop him from marrying the daughter of the Cai family.

  Mrs. Cai waved her hand with the yuanjian and asked again: "About this yuanjian, didn't your uncle say anything to you?"

  Liu Jing shook his head, "Uncle didn't say anything to me."

  "Really not?"

  Mrs. Cai's sharp eyes stared at him, "For example, things like engagement."

  "There really isn't, nor has there ever been any mention of an engagement."

  Madam Cai's heart is at ease, if it were so, she could manipulate this matter.

  In the Han Dynasty, men and women got married through matchmaking. First, they would discuss marriage, also known as proposing. Both men and women could take the initiative, for example, Emperor Wu of Han's sister, Princess Pingyang, had a crush on General Wei Qing, so she first proposed her idea to Empress Chen, who then told Emperor Wu, and Emperor Wu ordered Wei Qing to marry her.

  In the pre-Qin period, children also chose their own spouses, but they had to obtain parental consent. For example, Zhuo Wenjun and Sima Xiangru were deeply in love, but Wenjun's father did not approve, which led to the elopement of Wenjun at night.

  After the successful engagement, the geomancer will write a geng tie based on the yuan jian and send it to the other party to check the eight characters of both men and women. This is called asking for name divination. Generally speaking, geomancers who receive money from people will not ruin good things.

  So in a marriage, matchmaking is the most critical part. Generally, once the matchmaking is successful, this marriage can be considered as basically settled.

  Liu Biao, as the lord of Jingzhou, proposed an alliance with the Cai family through marriage, intending for his nephew Liu Xun to marry Cai Shao's daughter Cai Yan. The Cai family did not dare refuse but also did not agree, and this matter was delayed.

  Mrs. Cai was not only Liu Biao's wife but also the elder of Liu Jue and a daughter of the Cai family, so she played a crucial role in this marriage. Although she did not want to facilitate this marriage, some superficial things had to be done, after all, she had to give her husband an account.

  She had to confirm whether Liu Xuan knew about this marriage first, but couldn't ask directly, so she used Yuan Jian to probe indirectly.

  Now that she knows Liu Xuan is unaware of the marriage, the next step is to find a way to intercept this marriage at the engagement stage and make it fail, absolutely cannot reach the stage of asking for names and divination.

  "Go back first! I'll have the steward send some household items over later. Also, your monthly allowance is three hundred coins, the same as Xiu Er's. This is the rule of the manor, I hope you understand."

  Liu Xuan stood up and bowed, "Nephew is taking his leave."

  He walked out of Mrs. Cai's courtyard, slightly relieved, and extremely disgusted with Mrs. Cai in his heart, hoping not to see her again in the future.

  In the room, Mrs. Cai looked at Liu Xuan's birth eight characters again, bowed her head and thought for a while, then turned back to the maid and said: "Let the second young master come see me."

  The maid went out at the sound, and soon a hurried running sound came, rushed into the yard, suddenly stopped, and walked carefully to the door. A very respectful voice sounded at the door, "Mother, I'm here."

  "Come on in!"

  Liu Cong quickly walked into the room, knelt down on both knees and knocked his head three times on the ground. "Your son Liu Cong pays respects to Mother."

  His voice is very pleasant to hear, and it's easy to make people feel close. Among the three sons of the Liu family, Mrs. Cai likes Liu Zhuang the most. Not only does he listen respectfully, but also has a lot of thoughts and knows how to please himself.

  Last year, she casually mentioned that she wanted to eat lychees. Liu Zhuang immediately ordered someone to rush to Bashu to purchase 100 kilograms of lychees and have them delivered quickly. When the lychees arrived, the branches were still fresh. It was as if he was more considerate than her husband, what kind of son wouldn't be liked?

  Mrs. Cai smiled slightly, "Have you seen your younger cousin Liu Xuan?"

  Liu Cong did not dare to stand up and knelt down to answer: "Your child has seen you."

  Liu Cong didn't know why his mother mentioned Liu Xuan, but he was extremely clever and immediately thought of the marriage alliance.

  Could it be that Mother also wants to betroth Shao Yu to Liu Xuan? No way! Mother had clearly promised herself, to betroth Shao Yu to her own son, how could she go back on her word? Liu Zhuo's heart was filled with anxiety.

  Mrs. Cai glanced at him, as if seeing through his thoughts, and secretly felt pleased in her heart. With a rival on the scene, she didn't need to take action herself. She spoke slowly: "Your father's intention is for Jing'er to marry Shaoyu. What do you think I should do about this?"

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