Water Ink Panel: Starting with Bow Technique to Hunt the Sun and Patrol the Skies

Chapter 111: Chapter 35 Matchmaking

A gentle breeze drifted by.

In the backyard, the bamboo leaves swayed softly, rustling in the wind.

At that moment, Ouyang Tiezhu stepped through the courtyard door and, seeing Shen Qing, his face brightened with excitement as he hurried over and said, "Junior brother, you're just in time. I've found out about a few more girls; do you want to take a look?"

Shen Qing sighed helplessly.

He didn't know why Ouyang Tiezhu had suddenly taken such an interest in his personal affairs, coming up every so often with a selection of girls for him to consider.

He had no idea where he got all this information from.

Shen Qing was not opposed to marriage.

Men should marry when they come of age, and so should women—it has been an unobjectionable tradition since ancient times.

However, marriage should not be entered into lightly; one must find someone truly agreeable.

Otherwise, marrying an unworthy wife could lead to endless troubles later, rather than remaining single.

Ouyang Tiezhu sat down beside Shen Qing, deftly pulling out a stack of women's portraits as he said, "Come on, come take a look at these."

"This is a concubine-born daughter of a side branch of the Wang Family. Although her status is somewhat lower, she has ties to the Wang Family, so she's from a reputable household. If you marry her, you'll definitely struggle less for many years."

Ouyang Tiezhu earnestly praised, pointing to a slightly plump girl.

Shen Qing frowned; this girl really wasn't to his taste.

Seeing that Shen Qing seemed to care quite a bit about the appearance of the girls, Ouyang Tiezhu spread out all the portraits before Shen Qing and said, "Take a look. If you see one you like, I'll go ask about her for you."

Shen Qing, feeling helpless, carefully examined the portraits before him and finally pointed at random to a rather handsome-looking girl: "Her then."

Ouyang Tiezhu took a look and joyfully said, "Junior brother, you really have a good eye. This girl is the daughter of the leader of the Taiping Escort Agency. She's capable and clever, and she's also attractive. I'll go inquire about her for you right away."

Shen Qing said indifferently, "Thank you, senior brother."

The Taiping Escort Agency had been operating in the county for many years and had gradually built up a good reputation, no longer just one of those minor households.

The leader of the escort agency was named Tang You, a forthright man who often came in contact with various martial arts halls while escorting valuables.

Sometimes when the martial masters at the halls were short on money, they would go to him to earn a living.

Because of this, Ouyang Tiezhu had also had contact with the Taiping Escort Agency and knew that there was a young lady there waiting to be married off, which presented a good opportunity to introduce her to Shen Qing.

The lady he introduced was named Tang Wanrou.

At the age of thirteen, she had followed Tang You on escort missions, braving all sorts of dangers along the way.

Although her name suggested delicacy, she actually had a very spirited personality.

The Taiping Escort Agency's entrance was located relatively close to the center of the market, an area that was quite bustling.

When Tang Wanrou received the message, she was practicing her martial arts in the courtyard of her home.

"Miss, Young Master Ouyang from Linfeng Hall has sent word through a messenger, looking to propose a marriage for you,"

the maid came rushing over, exclaiming with excitement.

Next to her, Tang Wanrou punched a wooden post, resulting in a muffled, hollow sound.

She withdrew her fist to reveal a punched-in imprint on the wooden post.

Stopping her practice, Tang Wanrou turned her head in confusion and asked, "Ouyang from Linfeng Hall? Li Linfeng's direct disciple?"

The maid nodded vigorously: "Yes."

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Tang Wanrou frowned in recollection, seemingly recalling some memory.

She took out the towel that had already been prepared beside her, scrubbed it in a basin, and wrung it dry, saying, "Tell me, what kind of person did you introduce to me?"

"He introduced his junior apprentice, a direct disciple secretly taken by Li Linfeng. It is said that he is well-favored, a rare and handsome young man."

"A handsome young man?" Tang Wanrou asked curiously, "How handsome?"

"Young Master Ouyang even sent a portrait, Miss can take a look."

The maidservant promptly unfurled a scroll.

Tang Wanrou's eyes brightened, "He really is quite good-looking."

She stepped forward for a closer look, her phoenix eyes showing a hint of satisfaction as her hair, reaching her waist, seemed to flutter in excitement.

"Since he is a direct disciple of Master Li, his Sight must be remarkable. Do you know what his cultivation realm is now?"

Tang Wanrou herself was a martial artist, and with her family in the escort agency business, she was very concerned about Martial Arts.

Looks were important, of course, but in these times and given the situation in the city, Martial Arts cultivation was a fundamental means to establish oneself, something that could not be taken lightly.

"The messenger also inquired clearly for us. At fifteen, he is already in the Bone Refining Realm."

"He's slightly below me but still acceptable. At this age, he can still climb higher, and he's enough for our escort agency." Tang Wanrou nodded and then asked, "What about his family background and temperament?"

"The person introduced by Young Master Ouyang is named Shen Qing, the nephew of Linfeng Hall Master's Seventh Aunt, and has a rather mild temperament, currently of peasant status. Besides practicing Martial Arts in the Martial Arts Hall, he seems to be leading a gang in the Outer City."

Hearing this, Tang Wanrou's brows furrowed slightly.

"I remember Linfeng Hall Master's Seventh Aunt was originally a concubine, later given away, wasn't she?"

"There was such an incident."

"It seems he is of lowly birth. Mixing with gangs in the Outer City is nothing impressive, just trivial skirmishes, nothing prestigious. Now with Linfeng Hall in shaky circumstances, it might be difficult for him to obtain a place in the martial arts register with his background."

"So Miss, shall we decline?"

Tang Wanrou glanced at the scroll in her hand, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Ask if he is willing to marry into our family? If he is willing, I can take him as a husband. As for marrying out... I haven't fallen so low as to marry just anyone. Even if his status is slightly lower, his cultivation must at least be stronger than mine."

Recently, with the unstable situation, the business at the escort agency had declined drastically.

Still, even a camel that has starved is bigger than a horse.

Although this Shen Qing had some talent and his cultivation was not bad, he was still mismatched in terms of family background, which made it somewhat unsuitable.

The maidservant nodded, "All right, Miss, I'll tell Young Master Ouyang immediately."

"Mm."

After the maidservant left, the back courtyard once again filled with the sounds of whistling from practicing punches.

The next day.

When Ouyang Tiezhu informed Shen Qing of the marriage proposal, Shen Qing refused without hesitation.

In Great Zhou, the status of a man who married into his wife's family was only slightly better than that of a slave.

Many kinds of forced labor were first assigned to such men.

Having come this far on his own, he was not in a rush to degrade himself by marrying a woman for mere consolation at this point.

Ouyang Tiezhu thought the matter was indeed somewhat improper and did not persuade further, simply carrying the message back.

On the other hand, Tang Wanrou, upon hearing the news of the rejection, did not take it to heart.

To her, three-legged toads may be hard to find, but three-legged men were all too common; she did not lack for the likes of Shen Qing.

With that, the matter was settled, and neither side mentioned it again, letting it rest.