flstandardbreds Chapter 165 The Meticulous Sun Luban
Chapter 165 The Meticulous Sun Luban
After three years in the army, even an old sow can rival Diao Chan (a legendary beauty).
Zhou Xun was in the prime of his life, full of energy and passion. After being away from home for half a year, he returned to find his beautiful wife. It would be a miracle if he could resist.
Sun Luban was also overwhelmed with longing, but knew that the woodshed was not the place to express it. He grabbed Zhou Xun's wandering hand and said, against his true feelings, "Go back to the main hall. Don't keep Guan Xing and Zhang Cheng waiting too long. Go back and have a good talk with Guan Xing. Invite him to our house for dinner tomorrow or the day after."
Zhou Xun's father was an early shareholder of Eastern Wu, so he naturally had a mansion in Jianye.
Although Xiao Qiao has now married Guan Yu, her two adult sons have not come with her, but are still living in the Zhou residence.
Sun Luban's so-called invitation to Guan Xing to come home for dinner naturally meant inviting him to the Zhou residence, not the Guan residence where they lived.
Zhou Xun said with dissatisfaction, "Why would I invite him? Do I have to go out of my way to curry favor with him?"
Sun Luban explained, "It's like this: some time ago, my mother accepted General Guan's marriage proposal and betrothed Xiao Hu to Guan Xing. Guan Xing doesn't know about it yet."
"I asked General Guan to keep this a secret. I was going to speak to Guan Xing myself. Tomorrow, you can invite Guan Xing over, and I'll bring Xiao Hu along so they can meet at our house. Then I'll act as a go-between and finalize the deal."
Sun Luban acted as a matchmaker for Guan Yu and his son, earning Guan Yu a great deal of favor. As a result, she gained Guan Yu's great trust, who allowed her to move freely inside and outside the city. Moreover, Guan Yu would readily agree to some trivial requests, such as the matter between Guan Xing and Sun Luyu.
Zhou Xun was stunned for a moment, and after processing the news of Guan Xingsun and Lu Yu's engagement, he asked in astonishment, "Aren't their marriages already arranged? Why are you doing this unnecessary thing?"
Marriage is a major life event, decided by parents and arranged by matchmakers, and there is no need to seek the consent of the parties involved. Therefore, in Zhou Xun's view, Sun Luban's approach was indeed somewhat unnecessary.
Sun Luban retorted irritably, "How can we make Guan Xing owe our family a favor if we don't do this?"
"Although Uncle Guan is in a high position and has great power, he is old after all. How many more years can he live? Once he leaves, Jiangdong will belong to Guan Xing. Only by maintaining a good relationship with Guan Xing can our Zhou family prosper for a long time."
"Think about it again. Now the area south of the Yangtze River is divided into three. My father is sandwiched in the middle and seems to be in danger, but he has the powerful support of Cao Wei. Cao Wei cannot watch the King of Hanzhong and Uncle Guan destroy my father and unify the south of the Yangtze River. So the current situation should last for a long time. Once Uncle Guan is gone, won't Guan Xing become the new ruler of Jiangdong?"
"Even if we take a step back, if the King of Hanzhong and Uncle Guan successfully recover Jingzhou, unify Jiangnan, or even succeed in the Northern Expedition, based on Guan Xing's status and military achievements, as long as he doesn't court death, he will surely become one of the Three Dukes in the future, and may even be qualified to become the Grand General, second only to the Emperor. In your opinion, it would be unnecessary for the future Grand General to owe you a favor?"
Zhou Xun's eyes lit up. The Guan family's status in Shu Han was too extraordinary. They were not members of the imperial family but were more like them. Guan Xing had also offered a plan to raid Jianye in a desperate situation, turning the tide. This achievement was enough to make him live and die with the country.
With both his prestigious status and military achievements, Guan Xing's future in the Shu Han Kingdom is virtually limitless. By joining Guan Xing's cause, it would be difficult for the Zhou family not to achieve great success.
Zhou Xun stroked her cheek from behind and smiled, "Madam is so thoughtful. Your wisdom is comparable to that of Zhuge Liang."
Sun Luban said arrogantly, "So we have to get involved in Guan Xing and Xiao Hu's matter. I have no objection to the matchmaker being thrown over the wall after the newlyweds enter the room, but I will never agree to the newlyweds throwing me, their matchmaker, away before they even enter the house. Their marriage will not be able to bypass me."
Sun Luban is now the middleman, and he has to make a profit from the price difference.
Seeing Zhou Xun's hands starting to wander aimlessly again, she slapped them away and said, "Go to the hall quickly. Go home early tonight. Once Guan Xing and Xiao Hu's matter is resolved, I'll ask my mother to talk to Uncle Guan and find you a job with Guan Xing. Then we can start over."
Zhou Xun turned around and went to Sun Luban. He cupped Sun Luban's pretty face in his hands and kissed her wildly, leaving her face covered in saliva before reluctantly leaving.
Sun Luban got up, straightened his clothes, went out to the well to wash his face, and then returned to the kitchen to cook for Xiao Qiao.
Front yard hall.
Guan Xing, Zhang Cheng, and the others had already taken their seats in the hall, but the food and drinks had not yet been served, so the group sat there somewhat awkwardly.
After all, they were enemies before, but after going home, they became family. The change of allegiance was too fast, and none of them could quite process it.
Fortunately, although Guan Xing had some complaints about suddenly having an extra stepmother, he also understood the benefits of Guan Yu marrying Xiao Qiao, and knew that he, as the host, should break the current awkwardness. So he couldn't help but chuckle and say, "How about we play some mahjong first?"
He was afraid of being bored on the road, so he brought back the mahjong set that Zhou Xun and Zhang Cheng played with, which came in handy now.
The people sitting in the hall were all shrewd, especially Chunyu Shi. Prefect Chunyu knew that he was the newest and least experienced member of the group, and had no kinship with the Guan family, so he promptly chimed in, "What is mahjong?"
Zhang Cheng explained, "Mahjong is..."
Zhuge Ke got up and left immediately. Before Zhang Cheng could finish his introduction, he returned with the mahjong set and asked, "There's no table, where are we going to play?"
Guan Xing said, "Just put it on the ground, come on!"
The stall was quickly set up, and Guan Xing, Zhang Cheng, Quan Cong, and Zhuge Ke sat cross-legged on the ground and began to play, while Chunyu Shi sat behind Zhang Cheng and studied hard.
Playing mahjong is a social activity. After a few rounds, the relationship didn't improve much, but the atmosphere eased up considerably.
When Zhou Xun came in, he found the group having a great time, so he quietly sat down between Guan Xing and Zhuge Ke without saying a word.
After playing for less than an hour, Guan Yu brought Wang Fu in. Seeing the mess on the ground, he asked in surprise, "What are you doing?"
The group quickly stood up and bowed. Guan Xing explained, "It's nothing, just a little game. Dad, are you done with your work?"
While speaking, he gestured to Zhuge Ke to put away the mahjong tiles, otherwise Lao Guan would confiscate them and they would have nothing to play with.
Guan Yu ignored their little antics, walked to the head seat, sat down, and said with a smile, "I'm sorry to have kept you all waiting. Please sit down and have some food served."
Soon the dishes were served in a continuous stream. Guan Yu clinked glasses and chatted awkwardly for a long time. When he ran out of things to say to these younger men, he got straight to the point and said, "Zhongsi, now that the Marquis of Wu has retreated to Jingzhou, there are vacancies in the official positions in Jiangdong. We are in dire need of people. I wonder if my nephew would be willing to serve the King of Hanzhong?"
They've finally come to persuade us to surrender.
Zhang Cheng rose from his seat, bowed deeply, and said, "I am willing to obey Your Majesty's orders."
Guan Yu stroked his beard and smiled, "Since that's the case, I will appoint you as General of Valiant Might on behalf of the King, and you will fight against the Wei army with me. Are you willing?"
What do you mean? They're even planning to let him lead the troops, they trust him so much.
Zhang Cheng bowed and said, "I am willing to obey the general's orders, but..."
Fighting the Wei army is no problem, but what about the Wu army? After all, he was once a subject of Sun Quan, and his father is still in Jiangling. How embarrassing would it be to face his own father on the battlefield in the future?
Guan Yu knew what he was worried about and laughed, "Don't worry, it's just against the Wei army. If there is a conflict with the Wu army in the future, I will definitely not send you to the front line."
When fighting against Wu Jun, no one would send you, Zhang Cheng. What if you defect at the last minute?
Upon hearing this, Zhang Cheng breathed a sigh of relief, bowed again, and returned to his seat.
Guan Yu then looked at Chunyu Shi, who immediately stood up and bowed, saying, "I am willing to serve the King of Hanzhong."
Guan Yu laughed and said, "Then how about I appoint you as the Prefect of Wu Commandery and send you to Wu County to assist Prefect Deng Zhi?"
Chunyu Shi was overjoyed and said, "Here you go..."
He was the governor of Kuaiji, and his current transfer to the position of assistant governor of Wu Commandery seems like a demotion, but it is not. Wu Commandery is the largest commandery in Jiangdong.
Moreover, he had just surrendered, and Guan Yu would not allow him to serve as a prefect and take charge of things on his own. Chunyu Shi was aware of this.
Guan Yu nodded and asked him to sit down. Then he looked at Zhou Xun, Quan Cong, and Zhuge Ke and said with a smile, "My three nephews are about the same age as Anguo. You young people are more outgoing, so why don't you stay by Anguo's side?"
The three of them rose at the same time and bowed, saying, "Yes..."