Chapter 134

It was only at this moment that Yue Lingshan realized how much her meal was actually worth, and she was completely stunned.

Xue Bing, being a true heiress and beauty, was quite knowledgeable. She looked surprised and said, “I thought you knew. Your Huashan Sword Sect can’t really be that poor, can it? Weren’t you one of the eight major sects before? It can’t be that bad.”

“I’m so poor. If my dad knew I ate more than ten taels of gold in one meal, he would definitely scold me to death.”

“It’s not that bad. Aren’t you about to become Zhang Lingyu’s concubine? With him as your sugar daddy, you’ll have a long-term meal ticket. Don’t worry. If you’re having a banquet, remember to let me know. I’ll definitely come and see you get married in style and glory, Shan’er.” Xue Bing said, a hint of envy in her voice. She also gave Lu Xiaofeng a rather resentful look, which made Lu Xiaofeng immediately slip away without saying a word, grabbing the gift Zhang Weihai had given him and running off.

Xue Bing didn’t chase after them this time. She had important things to do and planned to go to her older sister to tell her about Jin Jiuling and find out the traitor in the red shoes who was connected to Jin Jiuling.

The once bustling Tianrenju suddenly became deserted, and even Li Xunhuan quickly came to say goodbye. Mainly because someone from the Li family came to invite him to stay there.

When Li Xunhuan arrived in the capital, he didn’t stay at the Li residence. Even a fool could see that there was something going on between Li Xunhuan and Li Manqing. The Li family was no small, insignificant household; they had many collateral branches, and Li Xunhuan was the true head of the main line.

Even though Li Manqing’s clan has become a major clan, the influence is still there. At the same time, Li Manqing himself felt guilty, which is why he asked the steward to make sure that his cousin Li Xunhuan would come to live in the mansion. How could he pass by his home three times without going in?

Shangguan Haitang naturally took her leave immediately and returned to the Dragon Guard Manor to report back.

These are turbulent times. Although Jin Jiuling, the master thief, has been caught and the gold has been found, the real trouble is just beginning, and things will get busy from here on out.

With these people gone, Ning Zhong felt much more relaxed and planned to have a good talk with Zhang Lingyu about his daughter’s marriage. Even if it was a concubine, there was a difference between one with a title and one without. The most important thing was to hold a banquet and formally formalize the marriage.

Of course, what’s truly important is the trouble that the Huashan Sword Sect is about to face.

The three documents are: the letter of betrothal, the letter of gift, and the letter of welcome. The six betrothal items are: a measuring cup, a ruler, a steelyard, a pair of scissors, a mirror, and an abacus, placed on the altar.

There are also the “Three Matchmakers and Six Rites”. The “Three Matchmakers” refer to the matchmaker from the groom’s side, the matchmaker from the bride’s side, and the matchmaker who acts as a go-between. The “Six Rites” refer to the six rites, namely, betrothal, asking the name, accepting auspicious gifts, presenting betrothal gifts, setting the wedding date, and the wedding ceremony.

The most important of these is the three documents, also known as the official title or status. These are legally binding and protected. Those without official title or status mostly lack the three documents or have not completed the procedures, and therefore do not have strict legal effect.

Therefore, in ancient times, some maids and concubines without official status could be kicked out of the house when they grew old and lost their beauty. If they encountered a ruthless one, they might not even be allowed to take their belongings with them, leaving them truly penniless.

Forget about officials protecting each other; even if you encountered a just and upright official willing to stand up for the people, he still wouldn’t bother with such a mess.

According to the Ming Dynasty Code, and other laws before and after it, this was not illegal; it was outside the legal enforcement standards and could only be considered a moral issue.

However, precisely because concubines without official status had no position and faced great risks, the main consideration in taking a concubine was the bride price. Generally, no dowry or trousseau was given, making it similar to selling a daughter—a one-time transaction.

If you’re happy, you can hold a wedding banquet; if you’re not, you don’t have to.

The advice given by Yue Buqun, his biological father, was that he could forgo the formal title, the banquet, and the betrothal gifts, but he had to find a way to solve the problem of the Yihua Palace for his father-in-law.

This was what angered and displeased Ning Zhongze the most; it was practically selling her daughter.

Zhang Weihao certainly wouldn’t personally handle the matter of taking a concubine. After talking with his birth mother, it was naturally Zhang’s mother who spoke with Ning Zhongze. Meanwhile, Yue Lingshan was placed in another courtyard. The two couldn’t meet until the procedures were completed, as this wasn’t an unplanned marriage.

However, Ning Zhongze still intended to have a good talk with Zhang Weihao, so she repeated Yue Buqun’s original words, even though it was embarrassing, because she couldn’t think of any other way.

Ning Zhongze was unaware that Xue Qianxun had secretly brought Yue Lingshan in, and then overheard everything. She noticed that Yue Lingshan’s face had visibly turned pale.

“What do you mean by this, Master’s wife? Do you want me to go to the front lines with the Zhang family and die?” Zhang Weihao was clearly unhappy. It was one thing to be unafraid, but he couldn’t be tricked or forced to his death.

I was right about Yue Buqun; once he dropped his pretense, he really had no bottom line.

“That’s not what your master meant, he just…”

“What is he? Master? To put it nicely, he’s a master; to put it bluntly, he’s barely even a teacher. I spent money and gave him gifts, but I didn’t learn from him. To put it bluntly, he himself can’t even master the Zixia Divine Skill. He has no spiritual root, he doesn’t know how to refine essence into qi, and he lost his virginity very early. His internal strength foundation seems good, but he’ll never truly master the Zixia Divine Skill in his lifetime.”

“Lingyu, what do you mean by that?”

“The true method of practicing the Purple Cloud Divine Skill requires a cultivator with spiritual roots to practice it. This is one of the best foundation-building techniques for cultivating immortality, but he clearly does not have them.”

If one cultivates using internal energy, then one must refine essence into qi and cultivate directly from childhood, rather than first cultivating Huashan internal energy and then switching to Zixia Divine Skill. That would be a pure waste of time and would make it very difficult to truly master.

Most importantly, to achieve mastery of the technique and enter the Innate Realm, one must not lose one’s virginity beforehand; one must lock in one’s essence. Once one loses one’s virginity and depletes one’s essence, it becomes very difficult to truly master the technique. If I’m not mistaken, Master rarely shares a bed with his wife, because every time he depletes his essence, his power is severely depleted.

Ning Zhongze truly hadn’t expected her son-in-law and disciple, Zhang Weihao, to suddenly bring up this topic. However, as the sect leader’s wife and the only daughter of the previous sect leader, Ning Zhongze was also very curious about the true secret of the Zixia Divine Skill, and she blushed as she nodded in acknowledgment.