CHAPTER 1335: CHAPTER 1313: THE SECOND REASON FOR REFUSING MARRIAGE

Bai Shan stopped Bai Erlang, who still wanted to provoke Bai Dalang, and said to Bai Dalang, "Cousin, is this really your reason for rejecting marriage?"

Bai Dalang: "...Do you think my mother would believe it?"

Not just Bai Shan and Bai Erlang, even Manbao shook her head, "She definitely won’t."

She said, "I talked to my dad and the others about it. My mom and my sister-in-law believed me, but my dad and my brothers didn’t believe it at all. Especially my dad—he even secretly asked me whether my second aunt’s family offended me somehow."

Bai Dalang said, "If I dare use such an excuse, my mom would think the same thing."

Manbao sighed, "See? Being smart isn’t always easy."

Bai Shan chuckled for a while, then said to Bai Dalang, "This is simple. Just tell Uncle that you want to marry a young lady from an official family. It would help your career in politics in the future. You don’t even need to say it yourself—Uncle will definitely convince Aunt on his own."

Bai Dalang: "...What kind of ridiculous idea is that? Where am I supposed to find a young lady from an official family to marry?"

If there really wasn’t a young lady from an official family, then what—does he just remain single forever?

Bai Shan peeled the crust off his roasted bun bit by bit as he ate, smiling slyly, "That’s not a problem. Let Uncle spread the word—soon enough, refined young women will come seeking you out."

Bai Dalang looked utterly unconvinced.

Bai Shan said, "Don’t underestimate yourself. Right now, you’re studying at the Four Gates Academy, your brother is studying at the Highest Institute, and your younger cousin is studying at the Imperial Academy. Do you know what that means?"

Bai Dalang froze for a moment.

After finishing his bun, Bai Shan clapped his hands and said, "It means that the three of us, as long as we don’t meet untimely deaths or commit major offenses at the Imperial Academy that get us expelled, will eventually serve as officials in the court."

Bai Dalang fell into deep thought.

Bai Erlang glanced at Bai Shan and then at his older brother.

Manbao also finished eating her bun and said, "Your Bai Family is listed in the Clan Record too. Although your branch has broken off, you could still match with the daughters of smaller aristocratic families, right? And if not aristocratic families, then a young lady from an official family would be even easier."

Because, in the eyes of society, an aristocratic family was considered far more prestigious than mere official ranks.

White Erlang, who had always felt disconnected from his roots in Longzhou, suddenly froze in shock before belatedly realizing, "Wait, am I also from an aristocratic family?"

Bai Dalang was just as stunned. Like his younger brother, he had always felt that he was just the son of wealthy landowners. Only now did it dawn on him that their branch indeed originated from the Bai Clan of Longzhou, which was indeed inscribed in the Clan Record—even if it was tucked away in a very obscure section, ranked near the bottom, and only mentioned in two brief sentences, it still counted as the same lineage.

Bai Dalang’s eyes darted around in thought as he seemingly opened the door to a new world.

Manbao glanced at the time, rubbed the needle inserted in Bai Dalang’s body a bit, then removed it. After checking his pulse and waiting for roughly fifteen minutes, she applied a different set of needles onto him.

Bai Dalang was still lost in thought, so Bai Shan turned to ask Manbao, "Will you apply the same acupuncture treatment tomorrow?"

Manbao shook her head and replied, "It depends on his condition. If the issue has stabilized, then he can just take medicine—twice-daily acupuncture should suffice. I’ll dig around to see if I can find some Azhu, then I’ll perform moxibustion on him. In four or five days, he should be fine."

When Manbao said this, she raised her head and looked at Bai Dalang with sympathy. Bai Dalang sensed something was amiss and instantly straightened his back. "What now?"

Manbao said, "For the next ten days, you’ll need to watch your diet carefully. Even if your external symptoms improve, the internal illness won’t heal as quickly. You’ve been passing blood—it shows that your intestines have suffered suppuration and bleeding. Recovery takes time."

Bai Dalang didn’t immediately grasp her underlying implication and nodded, "Alright, I’ll watch my diet."

Manbao said, "There are only seven days left until New Year."

Bai Shan and Bai Erlang also gave Bai Dalang a sympathetic look.

Bai Dalang: ...

He gritted his teeth, "I’m no longer a child. I won’t give in to gluttony."

The three: As if!

If you were alone, it’d be easy enough to abstain—but with an entire household, and even the whole village, feasting on delicious food; when even the air is drenched in the aroma of the festivities, and you can only smell it but not eat—it’s a pain that’s hard to describe.

As soon as New Year’s was mentioned, the three couldn’t stop talking. Bai Shan said, "Last time you gave me that book, I saw a recipe in it for caramelized sugar. I passed it on to Aunt Rong to see if she could replicate it, but unfortunately, she couldn’t. Do you want to let your sister-in-law give it a try? From the description in the book, it sounds absolutely delicious."

Bai Erlang was also tempted, "I saw it too; how about I let my family’s cook try it as well?"

When it came to food, more was always better.

Seeing Bai Dalang staring at them, Manbao said, "You’re not allowed to eat sugar. Oh, and you can’t eat tofu either, nor can you eat oily stuff. So no meat for you, either..."

Only then did Bai Dalang realize how serious it was, "Then what can I eat?"

"You can have plain congee and steamed buns. Actually, plain steamed buns are quite tasty—they get sweeter if you chew them for longer. White rice is sweet too."

Bai Shan and Bai Erlang nodded in agreement, looking at Bai Dalang with an even deeper sympathy.

Bai Dalang found their expressions incredibly annoying, so he turned his head away and ignored the three.

Since they’d already slept for two hours earlier, the four of them still felt quite energetic and not at all sleepy.

Manbao kept talking while casually keeping an eye on the time, occasionally adjusting Bai Dalang’s needles. By now, as the needles remained untouched, the room was filled with the smell of medicine, and the pot on the stove softly bubbled away.

Bai Shan estimated that the medicine was ready, yawned, poured it out to cool, and set it aside for Bai Dalang to drink.

After drinking the cooled medicine and having his needles removed, Bai Dalang felt his previously growling stomach suddenly quiet down. He yawned and felt ready for sleep.

The other three didn’t disturb him. They moved the brazier farther from the bed and got up. Manbao returned to her own room to sleep, while Bai Shan and Bai Erlang continued resting on the wooden couch.

He asked, "Will she perform more acupuncture later?"

Manbao looked at the time and said, "It’s already the next day. I checked his pulse—it seems alright; perhaps acupuncture might not be needed. But you should still keep an eye on him. If he’s in pain or gets up, call me immediately."

Bai Shan and Bai Erlang agreed.

Manbao then yawned and returned to the next room, diving into her blankets. The bedding was already cold; it took her quite a while to fall asleep.

Bai Dalang’s condition was evidently more urgent and severe than Manbao had anticipated. By dawn, he had gotten up once again to use the toilet. Manbao, half-asleep, checked his pulse again, repeated the acupuncture treatment, reboiled the dregs from the first batch of medicine, and had him drink it. Then she performed the second set of acupuncture. Turning to look outside, she realized the day had already grown bright.

She couldn’t resist letting out a huge yawn. The half-asleep Bai Shan and Bai Erlang, seeing her yawn, also followed suit. Ironically, it was Bai Dalang lying on the bed who seemed the most energetic, his eyes sparkling as he stared up at the mosquito net above him.