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T/N: Thank you patrons for sponsoring this chapter.
Title: The Dreamer in the Spring Boudoir
Chapter 332 - What do you think of my daughter? (1)
Although this person was wearing official attire, he still looked quite chubby. It was a level that most people couldn't reach. Seeing how respectful he was behaving towards Ning Yuxuan and how he had even deferentially referred to himself in third person, Ji Man guessed that he was probably the assistant minister of revenue.
Ji Man exited from the carriage before Ning Yuxuan and saluted the assistant minister first, then she pulled back the carriage's curtain for Ning Yuxuan to come out too.
Marquis Moyu glanced at her. She certainly did a good job with learning how to mimic a servant's servile demeanor. Standing at the entrance, he nodded at Zhu Shuyou. "Sir Zhu."
Assistant Minister Zhu smiled and said, "Since there were so many people at the front entrance, Shuyou decided to wait here to welcome you. Shuyou hopes that the marquis and this noble sir won't take offense."
Ji Man smiled and placed her hand over her fist to salute. "This one is just a teacher in the marquis's estate. Sir Zhu, you can just call me Ji Man."
Zhu Shuyou loudly laughed for a bit. After carefully looking over Ji Man, he looked at Ning Yuxuan and said, "Marquis, please follow me inside."
Zhu Residence could be considered a dazzling sight. As Ji Man walked through the estate, she sighed. This era really was a rotten society with corrupt officials. The higher ranked the official was, the more corrupt he was. This fourth ranked official's estate had pavilions and terraces that almost caught up to the marquis's estate in opulence.
As they walked, Ning Yuxuan and Assistant Minister Zhu exchanged perfunctory words, so Ji Man just quietly followed them. From time to time, she would hear the words "my daughter" and what not. She couldn't resist silently grumbling. These people must have too much free time to spare. They were always thinking about stuffing another woman into Ning Yuxuan's harem. Unfortunately for them, Marquis Moyu was still in his three-year mourning period and couldn't welcome any new woman into his household. No matter how much these people wanted to shove another woman at him, their efforts would ultimately be futile.
When they were passing by a courtyard, a young woman suddenly rushed out. She was charging around and actually crashed into Ning Yuxuan's arms and fell down.
Assistant Minister Zhu's expression changed. He angrily shouted, "Yu-er!"
Ji Man stayed at the back of the group to watch this entertaining play of accidental encounter unfold. Unfortunately, she couldn't see how this daughter from Zhu family looked from her current spot.
Ning Yuxuan, this stallion that would never refuse a woman's charms, stretched his hand out and helped the young woman up. After getting a clear look of the young woman's face, he smiled and said, "Miss, be more careful next time."
Ji Man shuffled over. As she soon as poked her head out from behind Ning Yuxuan, she saw the young lady's august countenance.
Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Assistant Minister Zhu said, "This is my daughter, Yurun. Marquis, please excuse her behavior."
Zhu Yurun also had a name that matched her appearance. Her face was round, and her figure was also somewhat roundish. Although she didn't have an ugly face, her rather chubby figure obviously didn't match Ning Yuxuan's esthetics.
(T/N: Yurun mean sleek, smooth jade.)
Seeing the look in her father's gaze, Zhu Yurun finally returned to her senses. Letting go of her grip on Ning Yuxuan's clothes, she embarrassedly scurried over to stand behind her father. "Yurun greets the marquis."
Ning Yuxuan nodded and continued his conversation with Assistant Minister Zhu. "About that matter of constructing a road to Zhangjun..."
Miss Zhu, who had previously imagined that there would be romantic scene, ended up being completely ignored. She pouted and unhappily followed after them.
Ji Man looked at her and felt somewhat sympathetic towards her. Whether or not there would be love at first sight really depended on a person's face. If your face wasn't good enough, then you needed to have a good figure. Miss Zhu didn't have either of these things, but there was still one aspect about her that deserved praise. She had a brave heart.
It was fine that Zhu Yurun was following them to the banquet hall. But, when they were almost there, she suddenly pulled Ji Man to the side.
Ji Man wasn't mistaken. A young noble lady had really pulled a male stranger to the side.
Fluttering her eyes, Zhu Yurun asked Ji Man, "Are you the marquis's relative?"
Ji Man considered her question. Did she count as a relative? Her son called Ning Yuxuan dad, so she probably counted as relative, right? Satisfied with that logic, she nodded.
Twisting her handkerchief, Zhu Yurun asked, "Then... what kind of woman does the marquis like?"
Ji Man lowered her head to examine this young lady. She looked as if she was at an age where she should have already gotten married.
"He likes women that are slender, graceful, and gentle." Ji Man's answer didn't give Miss Zhu any space for delusional fantasies. "Moreover, he still has one year left of filial mourning."
Zhu Yurun's face crumpled, and even her eyebrows dropped. In a rather dejected tone, she mumbled, "I finally met someone that was more attractive than him..."
After speaking to that point, Miss Zhu paused and raised her head to look at Ji Man. "What do you do?"
Ji Man had turned her head to look at where the banquet was being held. She should be following Ning Yuxuan over there and tried to quickly settle the matter over here. "I teach the marquis's son."
"A teacher?" Zhu Yurun's eyes brightened. Grabbing Ji Man's hand, she asked, "Do you have a wife?"
Ji Man's eyebrows jumped up in shock. She awkwardly laughed and tried to pushed Zhu Yurun's hand away. "I don't, but I'm not planning on getting married anytime soon."
It wasn't good to be seen as husband material by a woman. Ji Man didn't care about the facts of the matter. She hastily struggled free from Zhu Yurun and fled towards Ning Yuxuan's side. "Excuse my rudeness."
Zhu Yurun continued to stand in a corner and mumbled to herself. "I have to get married soon. Otherwise, it'll be too late." Then, she turned around and ran towards the courtyard.
Ji Man reached Ning Yuxuan's side in a panicked state. He kind-heartedly handed her a cup of water and said, "Don't stray too far from me."
"Understood." Ji Man stuck to his side like a surveyor's trusty pole. As she followed him, she met a lot of high-ranking officials and other important people. They all praised her as an erudite scholar. She clearly hadn't even said a few words. How exactly were they seeing that she possessed profound wisdom?
Halfway through the birthday banquet, a servant girl ran over to Assistant Minister Zhu's side and whispered something into his ear. His expression immediately changed, and he waved his hand to signal for her to withdraw.