Becoming the Protagonist's Short-Lived Fiancé (GL) - Chapter 5

Time passed unknowingly, and by the time Wen Fei came to her senses, the water in the tub was already cold.

Wen Fei shivered and quickly washed herself. She got dressed and put things in order. Seeing that it was still early, she decided to head straight to the neighboring Grand Commandant’s Manor. The pre-arranged dinner was not the main point; after receiving the imperial marriage edict so suddenly today, the uncle and niece definitely needed to discuss it. Despite maintaining a calm facade earlier, Wen Fei was anxious inside and didn’t want to wait long.

Returning to the Grand Commandant’s Manor was almost like going home for the young general. The guards at the gate let her in without needing to announce her presence. She hadn’t walked far inside before she ran into her cousin, the young Master Qi. The boy’s eyes lit up when he saw her, and he quickly ran over and hugged Wen Fei’s leg.

“Cousin, Father said you went to fight a war. Did you win and come back?” The little boy, who wasn’t even as tall as Wen Fei’s thigh, looked up at her, his big, bright eyes, distinctly black and white, showing the unique cuteness of a young child.

Wen Fei wasn’t very familiar with him, and suddenly having someone hug her leg didn’t feel great, but she couldn’t help but reach out and gently rub his head.

The child’s hair was tied up in two small buns, looking like ox horns, a style called Zongjiao (the traditional hairstyle for children). He quickly let go of her leg, covering the two small buns on his head with both hands, whining and complaining: “Cousin, don’t rub my head. My hair will get messed up.”

Wen Fei couldn’t help but laugh at his reaction: “Why are you like a little girl, so concerned about your appearance?”

The child immediately looked displeased, pouting and arguing: “No, I am not concerned about my appearance. If my hair gets messed up, I have to comb it again, which is so troublesome.” After refuting her, he asked again: “Cousin, did you win the battle coming back?”

Hearing his persistent question, Wen Fei squatted down to look at him eye-to-eye: “Yes, of course, we won the battle, or else how could I have the face to come back?”

Wen Fei said this as a matter of course, her brows revealing sharpness, and her words full of arrogance. After speaking, she herself was momentarily stunned, belatedly realizing that this was the young general’s pride. She had transmigrated, gained memories that weren’t her own, and was deeply influenced by that person. But the strange thing was that she didn’t dislike this influence; it felt natural for her to say those words.

A flicker of strangeness crossed Wen Fei’s mind, but before she could delve deeper, she heard the Grand Commandant Qi’s voice from behind them: “Overly rigid is easily broken. Victory and defeat are common occurrences in war, Ah Fei. You should temper this nature of yours.”

The young general had heard these words more than once, and they revealed the biggest difference in character between the uncle and niece. The young general was high-spirited and youthful, while the Grand Commandant Qi was mature and steady. No matter how much the latter taught her to be cautious and reserved, the young general was unable to do so. Especially since her life had been so smooth—raised in wealth and splendor, never tasting defeat on the battlefield—the word humility seemed inherently unsuitable for her.

“Uncle,” Wen Fei turned and greeted him, not responding to the Grand Commandant Qi’s previous reminder.

The young boy was more solemn than Wen Fei. The same person who dared to rush over and hug Wen Fei’s leg earlier now properly bowed to the Grand Commandant Qi, addressing him as “Father,” acting like a little old man.

Seeing this, Wen Fei couldn’t help but let the corners of her lips curve into a smile.

The Grand Commandant Qi was used to it. After a slight nod, he asked: “Have you finished all your assignments today? Have you practiced riding and archery for two hours? I will check in a couple of days to see what progress you’ve made.”

There was probably no child in the world who wasn’t afraid of their parents checking their schoolwork. Wen Fei saw her young cousin’s shoulders visibly shrink. He then found an excuse and quickly slipped away, like a mouse seeing a cat.

When the child was gone, Wen Fei finally couldn’t hold back her laugh: “Uncle, Ah Jun is truly afraid of you.”

The Grand Commandant Qi glanced at Wen Fei when he heard this. Unfortunately, Wen Fei was not afraid of him at all. The two of them standing together seemed more harmonious than the father and son pair before. The Grand Commandant Qi had no mind for small talk right now, waving a hand: “Let’s go, let’s talk in the study.”

Wen Fei restrained her smile upon hearing this and obediently followed him to the study.

The Emperor, who owned all the land within the four seas and was the ruler of the world, was probably the most willful person under heaven…

As soon as the Grand Commandant Qi stepped into the study and Wen Fei closed the door behind them, she couldn’t help but ask: “Uncle, why did His Majesty suddenly grant me this marriage? You know my identity. Why didn’t you try to dissuade him?”

However, when the Emperor decides to do something, who can dissuade him?

The Grand Commandant Qi looked utterly exasperated: “I didn’t know about this until today.”

Wen Fei fell silent at this answer, but thinking of His Majesty’s temperament, she didn’t find it surprising either—the young general was spirited and proud, but the Emperor, who was a dozen years older than her, also seemed to retain a youthful impulsiveness. He was ambitious, competitive, and driven by intense desires (loving the living and hating the dead). He frequently made decisions on a whim.

From a certain perspective, the current Emperor shared some traits with incompetent rulers. Fortunately, he himself possessed great talent and vision and knew the priorities, which prevented any truly irreparable situations.

Of course, the person now facing an irreparable situation was Wen Fei, and the sudden, inexplicable imperial marriage gave her a headache. After pondering all options and finding no solution to break the deadlock, she could only ask dryly: “Is there any room for change in this matter? Or can Aunt mediate for us?”

The Grand Commandant Qi felt even more helpless, letting out a sigh: “Ah Fei, have you forgotten? Her Majesty the Empress doesn’t know your true identity. You have passed the age of Ruoguan and have been appointed Marquis and General. There are many people who care about your marriage. Forget His Majesty, even the Empress had brought up your marriage before you returned to the capital, but I glossed over it.”

In other words, her Empress Aunt was also waiting to urge her into marriage; the Emperor just beat her to it.

Wen Fei covered her forehead, losing her usual high spirits: “Uncle, do you mean this matter is irreversible?”

The Grand Commandant Qi looked at her with even more complex eyes. He then delivered news that was not necessarily good: “Before you arrived, I asked your aunt and learned some information about Miss Chu. It is said that the Chu family has been predominantly male for generations, and they only have one daughter in three generations. She is pampered and spoiled, and that’s an understatement. Regardless of the Emperor, if you annul the marriage and damage Miss Chu’s reputation, the Chu family will not let you off the hook.”

Annulment was out of the question. With the conversation reaching this point, Wen Fei recalled that during the celebration banquet, more than one gaze had fallen upon her, and Chu Ang was not the only one who had bumped into her after the banquet…

A bad premonition suddenly arose in Wen Fei’s mind, and she hastily asked: “How many people are in the Chu family?”

The Grand Commandant Qi made a gesture with his hand, and Wen Fei’s vision instantly went dark—she knew that there was an ancient custom of having many children bringing good fortune, and aristocratic families certainly wouldn’t lack the money to raise children, but giving birth to over twenty was truly excessive. Even if the number twenty-something included cousins, it was a large family the likes of which Wen Fei had never seen before.

At this moment, Wen Fei started considering whether she should run away.

Perhaps her thoughts were too obvious in her expression, for the Grand Commandant Qi saw right through her intentions, amused and helpless: “Do you know where all those gentlemen of the Chu family are stationed? If you run away, don’t you worry about being caught and dragged back with a broken leg?”

Wen Fei wasn’t afraid of a broken leg, but she pulled a long face upon hearing this: “But if I don’t run, what should I do? Am I really supposed to marry a wife?”

The Grand Commandant Qi gently tapped his fingers on the writing desk beside him. He lowered his eyes, pondered for a moment, and then said: “Perhaps you should meet that Miss Chu first…”

Wen Fei knew that the Grand Commandant Qi was not a person who spoke without purpose. Her eyes brightened as she looked at him, waiting for his great idea.

The Grand Commandant Qi slowly followed up with the sentence: “Maybe the young lady won’t even take a fancy to you.”