The Imperial Capital, General Zhenwu's Mansion.
Nowadays, Zhong Bai has already established a firm foothold in the court, and being able to open a general mansion in the imperial capital is a testament to his status.
At the moment, he is receiving guests in his mansion, and the guest is Lu Bolin, the Taiwei of the dynasty.
Zhong Bai did not agree with Lu Bolin on his political views, but he could only treat him politely when he visited.
The two of them sat opposite each other, with a table and desk in front of each other. After the tea was served, Lu Bolin picked up the tea cup and took a sip. He said with a smile: "I'm taking the liberty of visiting today. Please don't take offense to General Zhong."
"Wherever, Lord Taiwei can come to this humble abode, it will make the whole family shine." Zhong Bai would naturally say it after polite greetings.
After the situation was explained, Lu Bolin paused again, and then decided to get straight to the point.
"Actually, I came here today because I have an important matter that I want to discuss with General Zhong."
"Oh? Lieutenant, please speak. I am all ears."
"Well..." Lu Bolin pondered for a moment and said: "My three sons have not yet married. Not only are they young, but they are also very talented. And I heard that General Zhong has a little sister who is twenty-eight years old. If the Lu family and the Zhong family , it’s a beautiful thing to have such a good relationship.”
It turned out that this was the case. When Zhong Bai heard this, he took a sip from the tea cup, but did not answer immediately.
His younger sister, named Zhong Duoduo, although she has a beautiful face and is good at playing music, chess, calligraphy and painting, she is extremely naughty. What she likes to do most is to disguise herself as a man, sneak out of the house and cause trouble for Zhong Bai everywhere.
But Zhong Bai was such a sister, and he loved her even more.
Zhong's father has been bedridden all year round. In fact, Zhong Bai is the head of the family, and there are high-ranking officials all over the imperial capital. With the power of the Zhong family, there are countless high-ranking officials and nobles who have come to propose marriage before, and Lu Bolin is not the first one. It's a pity. Everything was disturbed by Zhong Duoduo.
After a pause, Zhong Bai put down his tea cup and put on a smile on his face. He said with a smile: "Thanks for the compliment from Mr. Taiwei. It's just that my little sister is naughty by nature. I'm afraid Mr. Lu may not look down on her."
"Hey? General, what are you talking about?" Lu Bolin waved his hand: "My son Lu Qi, and the general's sister, can be said to be a talented man, a beautiful woman, and they are well matched. Why do you say this?"
"This..." Zhong Bai didn't know how to answer. In fact, in his heart, he was somewhat unwilling for Zhong Duoduo to marry the Lu family.
But Lu Bolin had all the power in the government and the public, and it was hard for him to refuse in person if he spoke so bluntly.
In Lu Bolin's eyes, Zhong Duoduo was not important. What was important was to be the in-laws with the Zhong family. What he valued was Zhong Bai's status and the Yangzhou army in his hands.
Seeing Zhong Bai's hesitation, he said again: "General, in my opinion, the Lu family and the Zhong family are powerful alliances. If a marriage can be achieved, it will be beneficial to both families. I don't think there is anything wrong with this matter." It’s easy to think about, so it’s settled, right?”
"But this..." Zhong Bai said, "I have to ask my little sister."
Hearing this, Lu Bolin was unhappy: "The general's words are more like prevaricating me. As long as you nod, can your little sister disagree?"
"No, no, no, the lieutenant has misunderstood." Zhong Bai explained: "My little sister is different from others. If I don't ask her opinion, I'm afraid there will be an uproar."
"This." Lu Bolin didn't know what to say.
Zhong Bai hurriedly said: "I think I'd better ask my little sister for her opinion. I'll wait for two days and then give the Taiwei a reply. What do you think?"
He said so and did not refuse directly. Lu Bolin had no choice but to say: "Okay, I will wait for the general's good news."
As he spoke, he stood up and prepared to leave.
"I'll see you off, Mr. Taiwei." Seeing this, Zhong Bai also stood up quickly.
A courtyard somewhere in the Zhong Mansion.
Zhong Duoduo is wearing a light pink dress, with a pink ribbon around her waist, classic hair accessories, and a stunning face, so beautiful that she looks like she stepped out of a painting.
Her nose is very cute, her red lips are thin, and her skin reflects the morning glow without makeup. Especially her eyes, which are smart and beautiful, with long and thick eyelashes.
At this time, she was anxiously waiting for news.
Not long after, a maid hurried over. Seeing the maid, Zhong Duoduo immediately stepped forward and asked, "Have you heard everything?"
"Yes, yes, I have found out everything." The maid hurriedly returned: "The guest is Mr. Lu Bolin, the current imperial commander. I heard that he is here to propose marriage to the young lady."
"It's a marriage proposal again!" Upon hearing this, Zhong Duoduo became very angry: "My brother is afraid that I won't be able to get married, right?"
"Oh, miss, this is for your own good, sir. It's time for you to get married," the maid said.
"Humph! I won't marry!" Zhong Duoduo said angrily, and then said: "I'll go find my brother right now!"
She was looking for Zhong Bai, and Zhong Bai was also preparing to look for her.
"Brother!" The brother and sister soon met, and from a distance, Zhong Duoduo shouted dissatisfied.
Seeing her dressed as a woman today, Zhong Bai couldn't help but smile and said, "Hey, why are you so obedient today and didn't sneak out?"
"I want you to take care of me." Zhong Duoduo snorted.
"I'm your brother!" Zhong Bai pretended to be angry.
"Brother!" Zhong Duoduo called out again and said, "That's how you are. Who is here today? Do you have to marry me off?"
"It's time for male students to get married, and it's time for female students to get married. You are not young anymore. It's time to get married. Even if I don't want to worry about it, it won't work." Zhong Bai said helplessly.
"These words again, these words again, my ears are getting calluses." Zhong Duoduo covered her ears and shook her little head repeatedly.
Seeing his younger sister's young appearance, Zhong Bai sighed secretly and said seriously: "Duo'er, an elder brother is like a father. As a brother, you have to take care of important matters such as marriage and the lives of your parents."
"You're here again!" Zhong Duoduo was extremely anxious: "I'm not going to marry you anyway. If you want to marry me, you can do it yourself!"
"You!" Zhong Bai was angry for a moment, and then said: "The Lu family is extremely powerful. It's a good thing for you to marry her. Why not?"
"Anyway, I just won't marry!" Zhong Duoduo said, "I don't know what Mr. Lu is. He relies on his power to often rob civilian girls. Brother, you want me to marry such a person?"
"Then what do you want?" Zhong Bai asked, but in fact, he was unwilling in his heart.
"Why don't you just reject him directly?" Zhong Duoduo said.
Seeing Zhong Bai's brows furrowed, she immediately changed her attitude. She no longer contradicted Zhong Bai. Instead, she held his arm, shook him and said, "Brother, you love me the most. You will never force me to do anything wrong." wrong……"
"Brother..." she shouted again, her beautiful eyes full of grievance.
There was nothing Zhong Bai could do about his biological sister. He sighed helplessly, and then comforted her: "Okay, okay, we won't get married, we won't get married."
"Brother, I knew you loved me the most..." Zhong Duoduo was immediately overjoyed.
Zhong Bai loves his sister, but this incident is undoubtedly equivalent to directly offending Lu Bolin.
