Chapter 34: Even Getting Married Can't Be Peaceful

The rooster crowed for the fourth time before dawn.

Chen Cong was still locked in a fierce drinking battle with the god of sleep, only half-conscious as he was roused from bed by a crowd of maids and servants. Still lingering in the haze of yesterday’s indulgence, he found himself surrounded by a flock of beauties attending to his washing and dressing. For a moment, Chen Cong thought he’d been transported back to the Flower Pavilion in a dream—until his eyes landed on a familiar figure.

He reached out and pulled the lovely girl into his arms, teasing, “Well, this is a rare sight, Zhi Hua. Here to warm my bed today?”

Zhi Hua did not shy away as she usually did. Instead, she circled his waist and tied his sash for him.

“Master, do you know what day it is today?”

Chen Cong blinked in confusion. “Isn’t it the day I return to Qiao County to enjoy my fortune? Oh right, my father-in-law promised me twenty beautiful maidens. That’s the main event—can’t forget that!”

Zhi Hua smiled softly, and, for the first time, gently rested her head against Chen Cong’s chest.

She murmured, “I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed, Master. Madam has made it clear that matters of the inner chambers are not for you to worry about. She decides everything.”

Since when did his mother-in-law meddle in the affairs of the Chen household?

Wait.

A cough escaped him.

Suddenly, Chen Cong realized that the “madam” Zhi Hua referred to was not Lady Ding, but... Cao Rong?!

He glanced down at the bright red robe he wore.

So today was his wedding day?

“So sudden?”

Zhi Hua carefully straightened Chen Cong’s collar. “I know you’ve long awaited this day, Master.”

Chen Cong wanted to tell her she’d got the wrong person. The one longing for this day was Cao Rong. He himself would have preferred a few more years of freedom.

When Cao Rong hadn’t yet entered the household, he’d been blacklisted from the Emerald and Crimson Pavilion. Now, with the marriage, would there be any peace?

What’s more, Cao Rong had appropriated his twenty beautiful maidens—those were the cherished courtesans once belonging to the distinguished Elder Cao!

Now, he couldn’t even criticize feudal traditions.

“Aren’t you happy, Master?” Zhi Hua tilted her head, sensing his lack of enthusiasm.

“Happy... I suppose.”

A chairman’s only daughter. An exquisite beauty. A woman who loved him wholeheartedly. Bride price and dowry all from her own family, and their children would bear his surname.

The buffs were almost maxed out; to claim he wasn’t delighted would be nonsense.

Yet beneath the joy was a deep, sorrowful lament at stepping into the tomb of love.

This was Cao Rong, after all.

All the wonderful marriage buffs would turn into bullets aimed straight at Chen Cong.

Having the moral low ground meant a doomed position in the household.

Still dreaming of those twenty maidens? Still thinking of visiting the pleasure quarters and listening to music? Still hoping to rail against feudal corruption?

Dream on.

She didn’t care for his wealth or property, married him at the peak of her youth—how could he, in good conscience, complain? Could he claim to be a decent man?

Chen Cong dared not think further; his scalp tingled.

...

Once the maids had finished tending to him and he stepped out of his bedroom, Chen Cong shamefully found himself lost—in his own mansion.

The Chen estate was divided into east and west wings.

The eastern wing was the main house, once the property of Wei Yin, the Chancellor of Pei. After Wei Yin’s death, it was privately gifted to Elder Cao by the new Chancellor Wang Ji.

The western wing was the secondary residence, originally belonging to the wealthy landowner Cao Hong of Qiao County, who presented it as a wedding gift when his cousin married.

The two estates stood side by side, and connecting the central wall created the present Chen estate.

The new mansion covered over a hundred acres.

Gray tiles and red walls divided the vast grounds into dozens of courtyards.

There were sixteen private courtyards alone in the rear chambers.

Being inside was no different from wandering a labyrinth.

If not for Zhi Hua guiding him, pointing out shortcuts, even if he wandered until daylight, he might never find his way out.

Today, the estate was adorned with red banners and festive decorations.

As they walked, servants and maids greeted him respectfully as ‘Master’.

Chen Cong roughly calculated that he’d seen no fewer than a hundred staff members.

And yet,

He couldn’t fathom how his father-in-law could so boldly declare him ‘low-born’.

Once outside the estate, the wedding procession was assembled.

Huang Zhong, Shi A, and Mi Heng had waited for some time. Even Hua Tuo, usually slovenly, was dressed in brocade robes, swelling the ranks for the occasion.

A servant led over a tall, imposing black horse, its neck draped in red silk.

The horse stood nearly ten feet tall, its glossy coat shimmering like satin, mane smooth as silk, body powerful, legs long and well-defined. Its nostrils flared with steady, strong breath, and its eyes shone with a captivating brilliance.

It was clearly a beast, yet Chen Cong sensed an air of disdain from its gaze.

“Son-in-law, this horse is named Shadowless, a wedding gift from the master.”

Chen Cong could only marvel.

Such a legendary steed had followed Cao Cao, only to be wasted and perish in Wan City, its fame never reaching that of Red Hare.

But in this life, he’d met a wise master!

“Very well, thank my father-in-law for me. I’ll bow to him later.”

...

The Cao family of Qiao County were true magnates.

The wedding procession began with music, and two young attendants at the front carried sacks, scattering money along the route.

With gold paving the way, the streets soon bustled with excitement.

“Brother, there’s something you should know.”

Shi A was dressed all in white today, with a red sash tied around his waist, looking delicate and refined.

“Let’s hear it.”

Shi A waved away Mi Heng, who tried to eavesdrop, and glanced about furtively.

He whispered, “Yuan Zhong has secretly gathered armed men, intending to assassinate Wang Ji during the master’s wedding.”

Chen Cong blinked his large, confused eyes.

“So... who is Yuan Zhong, and who is Wang Ji?”

“Wang Ji is the adopted son of Wang Fu, the Chief Eunuch, currently Chancellor of Pei. Yuan Zhong hails from the Yuan clan of Runan, second son of Yuan He.”

Chen Cong was speechless.

It seemed Shi A had said everything, yet nothing at all.

“I’m asking about their relationship. Why does Yuan Zhong want to assassinate Wang Ji?”

Uh...

Shi A scratched his nose in embarrassment and explained, “Wang Ji is from the eunuch faction, appointed Chancellor of Pei by the late emperor. Yuan Zhong was made Chancellor of Pei by Dong Zhuo. Wang Ji, relying on his close ties with Elder Cao, has repeatedly refused to hand over the seal. Normally, it wouldn’t be an issue, but now the Yuan and Dong families are at odds. If policy changes, Yuan Zhong may never gain power in Pei.”

“This Yuan Zhong must be mad. He’s fighting for Pei, so why come to Qiao County?”

Shi A gazed skyward, at a loss for words.

“Brother, Qiao County is part of Pei!”

Chen Cong was stunned. “Then what about Qiao Commandery?”

“It’s a term for the people living near Qiao County, often referring to Pei or Pei Commandery.”

“And Xiao Pei?”

“... Xiao Pei is located in Xuzhou.”

“Haha, so that’s how it is.” Chen Cong gave a dry laugh, then retorted, “If you’d told me earlier, I’d have understood!”

Shi A’s forehead was full of question marks—did this really need to be spelled out?

Chen Cong quickly changed the subject, “Have you asked my father-in-law?”

“I wanted to, but the master is too busy with family affairs to see me.”

Chen Cong immediately felt overwhelmed.

Logically, Yuan Zhong wanting to kill Wang Ji had little to do with him.

Besides,

One was Elder Cao’s confidant, the other was his father-in-law’s old friend Yuan Shao’s kinsman. If he intervened, he might end up pleasing neither side.

Yet Chen Cong couldn’t help but connect this to another matter.

Historically, when Cao Cao raised troops to support Yuan Shao, why did he choose Chenliu instead of Qiao County?

In an age that valued local ties, this made little sense.

Never mind that the Chenliu governor Zhang Miao was Cao Cao’s childhood friend.

The Cao family were local magnates; why abandon home ground to serve elsewhere?

In other words, it was likely that the Chancellor of Pei at the time did not support Cao Cao’s cause.

Now, Chen Cong’s only uncertainty was whether the chancellor then was Wang Ji or Yuan Zhong.