NOVPUBXi Zhicai offered a cupped fist and a smile to Li Youu, and Li Youu didn’t take much notice of such matters. As long as they were on Mount Tai, Xuu Chu wouldn’t come to any harm. By then, there would surely be a crowd of onlookers. Even if you were Dian Wei, let alone Lyu Bu, you couldn’t withstand such a throng. If you dared to make a killing move, Dian Wei would definitely not be able to return.
After sending Xi Zhicai off, Li Youu turned his gaze to Xuu Chu, "Can you beat him? According to the reports from Yanzhou, that guy’s close combat skills are so good that not even Lyu Bu gained an advantage over him."
"Minister, rest assured, the other party is also a man of great strength, but I, Xuu Zhongkang, fear no one when it comes to a show of strength," said Xuu Chu, swinging his fist as he spoke, "By then I must make him swell up all over."
"Oh, then it’s up to you. Just don’t kill him. Beating him half to death is fine, since you’ll recover quickly anyway. Do you need me to send General Zhang and General Hua to back you up by then?" Li Youu thought about how Zhang Fei had described Xuu Chu’s strength and how Lyu Bu had described Zhang Fei’s strength and felt that Xuu Chu was quite reliable.
"No need, no need. Let General Zhang protect the Lord then," Xuu Chu laughed heartily, "I will definitely show him what true strength is."
Meanwhile, Xi Zhicai was asking Dian Wei a similar question, and he arrived at the same conclusion. Dian Wei assured that he could definitely treat the other as a punching bag.
"Even if that fatso has a load of strength, it’s certainly not enough for me," Dian Wei said with confidence, having absolute confidence in his own strength!
"Oh, just don’t beat him to death," Xi Zhicai said with indifference. He had already understood the level of the opponent’s Inner Qi Manifestation. For a person at that level, external injuries were not a big deal as long as they still breathed and could eat well.
Naturally, upon returning to the post station, Xi Zhicai helped Dian Wei write a challenge letter, using ancient seal script for the most part, which Xi Zhicai himself needed to look up to be able to write. After finishing, he had Dian Wei have someone deliver it.
Xuu Chu received the challenge letter, but looking at the text he didn’t recognize a single word. For Xuu Chu, this was outright mockery of his low intelligence, his lack of education, his inability to recognize the characters!
"Minister Li, could you help me figure out what this challenge letter is about?" Xuu Chu asked, scratching the back of his head with a somewhat embarrassed flush on his face.
"Sure." Li Youu, who was preparing to go home, was stopped by Xuu Chu and was a bit puzzled, but then he understood what was going on after hearing Xuu Chu’s words, "You don’t recognize it? I remember you have a private school at home, right? Why didn’t you study well when you were young?"
After saying this, Li Youu opened the challenge letter and almost spat out a mouthful of blood. This was showing off, wasn’t it? Boasting about being well-read in addition to having martial prowess!
"Tomorrow morning at the eastern city gate, five miles outside for a duel. You can bring your friends if you’re afraid of losing, Dian Wei bids you. I know you can’t understand what I’ve written. Sigh, just looking at your physique, I can tell your brain is empty, so I won’t hit you where it hurts," Li Youu managed to translate through a mix of guessing and deducing, though his interpretation left no major issues.
Xuu Chu’s face turned as black as the bottom of a pot, and he crumpled the bamboo slip into powder, "Tomorrow, I must beat him to the point where he can’t take care of himself!"
"Oh, Zhongkang, do your best. Consider it a break and a chance to relax," Li Youu sighed and patted Xuu Chu on the back.
After Chen Xi, accompanied by Zhuge Liang, had visited all the civil and military officials of Mount Tai, the sky had already darkened.
"I’ve seen the master," Butler Chen said as he opened the door and saw Chen Xi, bowing in salute.
"No one has come yet, from now on, this person will live with us, hmm, just treat him like a visiting young master." Chen Xi didn’t want to take advantage of Zhuge Liang, considering there was no real difference for someone like him without a son or heir—a young master in name was all the same.
"The head of the Yingchuan Chen Family, Chen Changwen, is here to visit." The moment Butler Chen said this, he was obviously excited.
"Oh, just give me the visiting card; that will be fine. When the guests arrive, just welcome them. I have some matters to inquire about with him as well," Chen Xi nodded and said. If Chen Qun didn’t come, it would be a clear sign of putting the conflict between the two most outstanding individuals of the Chen Family on the table. In substance, though, the two didn’t have much conflict, just a divergence of interests; Chen Xi sought freedom, while Chen Qun craved power and influence. That was all.
However, if Chen Changwen, who had just showcased his capabilities, failed to show up at the wedding, it would be quite amusing.
"Will you live in the outer courtyard or the inner courtyard?" Chen Xi turned and asked Zhuge Liang.
"What’s the difference?" Zhuge Liang asked, puzzled.
"The outer courtyard, aside from Old Butler Chen’s wife, has no women; the inner courtyard, except for me, has no men," Chen Xi gave an answer that left Zhuge Liang speechless.
"Whatever," Zhuge Liang replied, his cheeks flashing a tinge of red.
"Oh, then stay in the inner courtyard. I’ll give you an independent courtyard." Chen Xi said casually, then turned to Butler Chen and instructed, "Assign ten maids to Kongming, with all necessities for eating, dressing, living, and any books he may need, which can be borrowed from Cai Zhaoji if necessary."
Chen Xi then whispered to Zhuge Liang, "Look but don’t taste, at least for these two years you absolutely must not allow it."
The normally indifferent Zhuge Liang became embarrassed, "Hahaha, just a joke. My family has an abundance of maids; people keep sending them over from time to time, now there’s almost enough to form a squad," said Chen Xi with some helplessness.
Every time the Outer General returned victorious, he would bring Chen Xi a few maids, and, together with those bestowed by Liu Bei, Chen Xi finally understood why in ancient times, an official’s household frequently had dozens of concubines. If the trend continued, he wouldn’t be surprised to have more than a hundred next year. As for treating these maids as playthings, Chen Xi couldn’t bring himself to do it; his sense of morals and values, forged over decades, hadn’t been destroyed.
For this reason, Chen Xi had told the maids in his house early on that, aside from those that caught his eye, any of them who found someone they liked and wished to marry could do so, and he would provide a dowry.
However, so far it seemed nobody wished to marry out. Could it be said that there wasn’t much to do in Chen Xi’s house? The maids had plenty of leisure time, as Chen Lan and Fan Jian did not trouble them, and there was plenty of rest time daily. Chen Xi felt uncomfortable giving all these women away, so he kept them at home and occasionally had Chen Lan or Fan Jian teach them when they had time.
"Hmm, almost all of them can read. If you need, you can have them transcribe or write something. Apart from the books at Cai Zhaoji’s, you’re free to borrow from me as well. I’ve also collected and organized some rather messy books that you might want to take a look at," Chen Xi said with a smile.
Zhuge Liang had no idea what kind of messy books Chen Xi was talking about, but when he got them in the evening, he was almost scared by the content—the style of writing, the verbose ramblings, and the wildly imaginative ideas. Were these books written by Chen Xi?
For the first time, Zhuge Liang felt that a person’s wisdom could be so extraordinary. One book had preached the virtue of diligence compensating for dullness, while the next claimed that innate talent could crush ninety-nine times the effort. One book could extol the virtues of unity, and another would advocate the benefits of letting a hundred flowers bloom. All in all, after reading a few books, Zhuge Liang felt he couldn’t carry on; any more might lead him astray under Chen Xi’s influence. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it on Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.qidian.com to read.)
