Chapter Thirty: The Engagement

Yes, Xue Fanzhi truly was engaged!

The Qin family—her fiancé’s family.

But due to certain circumstances, the engagement was annulled.

The Qin family was the maternal family of the old lady of Xue Family’s third branch, and had long been close friends with the Xue family. However, in terms of development, the Xue family at least had Xue Qiu, whereas the men of the Qin family neither studied nor practiced martial arts. The family head had raised them to be wastrels, adept at squandering wealth but incapable of generating it, and each generation was worse than the last.

Fearing they would fall behind the Xue family, the Qin family had always hoped to form a marital alliance with the eldest branch of the Xue family. Yet, as their fortunes declined, not only the eldest branch but even the third, fourth, and fifth branches lost interest. Still, the Xue family’s patriarch had once owed the Qin family a life debt, and so, when the Qin family proposed marriage, the Xue family could not refuse.

There were three daughters in the Xue family’s eldest branch. The eldest, Xue Mengying, was born to Xue Yang and his first wife, Madam He. She was nineteen this year, married two years ago to Wang Jingzhi, the only son of a collateral branch of the Wang family of Langya.

That left only Xue Jiaoyue and Xue Fanzhi. Xue Yang treasured Jiaoyue like the apple of his eye, hoping she might rise above her station—even if she did not become empress, her husband’s family should at least surpass Mengying’s. How could he easily arrange her betrothal?

Thus, the engagement fell to Xue Fanzhi.

Fortunately, though the Qin family was in decline, the household of Qin Jianyu, her fiancé, still possessed considerable wealth, and his mother was shrewd and resourceful, having secured for his father a seventh-rank military office in the court.

Qin Jianyu himself, though not noble like the imperial princes, was handsome and personable, and Xue Fanzhi found the match satisfactory enough.

In her previous life, because she was injured and unable to bear children, she herself broke off the engagement. Qin Jianyu had secretly told her he did not mind, nor did he wish to be accused of ingratitude, and hoped to honor their betrothal. But Xue Fanzhi gave up, and in the end, married Xiao Yi.

As for Qin Jianyu, after their engagement was broken, he married the illegitimate daughter of a lesser gentry family. Her father’s connections did nothing for his career, and he eventually sought refuge in the Prince of Jin’s household, where Xue Jiaoyue presided as mistress. The outcome was predictable—he was killed by Xiao Yi.

This time, she would protect herself and avoid injury, so the marriage with the Qin family could still be considered.

The old lady of the Xue family curled her lip and sneered, “The Qin family? Do you know where they are now?”

Xue Fanzhi shook her head.

Indeed, the Qin family should have come to Wuyi Lane to join the Xue family—why had they not arrived in this life?

She had sent Honglian to inquire. Honglian, being a servant born in the household, had some connections. She reported that the Qin family had gone to Jiankang on their own, and moreover, had encountered a benefactor and were living in a grand mansion!

What kind of benefactor was this?

Did Grandmother know?

The old lady did not explain, merely said, “I want you to go precisely because the engagement is recent. You haven’t married yet, have you? Everyone has more choices. You can consider carefully.”

What did she mean?

Was Grandmother truly encouraging her to disregard the engagement—to break it?

It seemed Grandmother did not like the Qin family.