Chapter 78: Marriage Crisis
Translator: chuchutrain Editor: celllll
Having no other alternative, Chu Ting’er began to plot in secret. The moment the Emperor gave the celebratory decree, she cajoled him to send out another decree! When the time comes, she would bring her son to have a look, and whomever took his fancy, she would request from the Emperor to bestow upon them a marriage. Riding on the influence that Ling Xiao had continuously accumulated merits for the country, she would definitely make her son bring home a daughter-in-law for her that day!
To not have anyone coming up to propose marriage was no big deal, but to even be rejected even after knocking on their doors repeatedly was too offensive! What kind of nonsense was this? The Ling Family could be considered an outstanding family clan, why would marrying their daughters into the family be anything shameful? Chu Ting’er was utterly infuriated! Thus she hatched this ghastly plan, thinking, "The whole lot of you don’t agree, right? Good, then I’ll get the Emperor himself to send out a decree! Let’s see who still can make any noise by then!"
Ling Chen who was standing at the side spontaneously burst into peals of laughter, trembling like a blossom in the wind. Seeing the depressed look on Ling Tian’s face, she found it harder and harder to stop.
Ling Tian could not be any more depressed, to think that his own mother had turned into a stumbling block in his current path to stay single! It was actually to the point that she plotted about going to the Emperor and asking for a bestowing of marriage! Thinking up to this point, Ling Tian felt like smashing his head on a block of beancurd to kill himself! [1]
Little did he imagine that Chu Ting’er was actually just as depressed as he was! That her own son actually became a silkpants? Chu Ting’er really wanted to go out to the public and yell out that her son actually did not force himself on any village girls, and neither did he do any atrocities, so how was he a silkpants? Even the servant girl that stuck beside him like a shadow for the past ten years in his room was still a virgin, so where did the word silkpants originate from?!
Was it because he always got into fights? But whose family’s children did not get into quarrels and fights in the capital? This showed how lively and normal my son actually was! Beating up the prince, as well as the official’s son? This showed the talent my son possessed! It showed that the other children did not have the ability to fight with Ling Tian! If they have the ability, they are welcome to beat my son up! What useless chaps, defaming by son by saying that he is a silkpants after being defeated, pui!
Chu Ting’er could not help but feel indignant from deep within her heart!
The way she looked at Ling Tian also grew more and more dull. Being tagged with the name of a silkpants, just by going out to fight, what can you expect to achieve? Can fighting bring you back a wife? It's also fine if you want to kidnap a lady back. So long as you manage to cook the raw rice, you would only endure a beating! However, where can the girl run too? What has been done cannot be undone, the family of that girl could only recognize this relationship! A beating in exchange for a wife, are you at an disadvantage? You look like a gentleman, but your flirting cannot even compare with your uncouth father!
Sometimes, Chu Ting’er could not help but panic, and itched to remind her son again and again to find a suitable girl and aggressively push himself onto her! If not for the fact that she could not bring herself to do that, she would have long ago chased Ling Tian out with a stick to find a girl to flirt with!
What a shameful matter! He was still the only direct descendant of the Duke Ling! The only son of the great General Ling! To think that he could not even find a prospective partner! And no one wanted to even bring up the topic of marriage with him! This, this was an epic comical scene, a situation which surpassed even the most absurdness of situations!
Seeing how Ling Tian was staring blankly into space, Chu Ting’er fumed for a moment, and viciously aimed a kick at him, "Go and get ready, ask Mister Qin to teach you how to recite several poems! Remember, don’t reveal your hooligan nature once you step out of the house! If things still doesn’t work out this time, then your mother will break your legs!"
Chu Ting’er felt helpless. This kid looked like some tender strawberry on the outside, but was actually extremely tenacious! After being repeatedly beaten for half an hour, crying for his mom and dad, he only took a nap before lively jumping about as though there was nothing wrong! No one knew how his muscles were made, unbelievably tough!
Seeing how his mother came in full of smiles, but left full of anger, Ling Chen by the side had long ago collapsed due to stomach pain from laughing! Holding her little stomach, she continuously groaned as she tried to stifle her laughter. Seeing her half dead look, Ling Tian could only grind his teeth. He could not help but grab her and flip her over, placing her on his knees and give her buxom yet perky buttocks two sound smacks. The sharp and clear smacks sounded like melodious music to his ears, and boy, was that feeling good!
Ling Chen screamed shrilly, jumping up immediately as she held on to her buttocks, her little face flushed red like blood. The rims of her eyes reddened immediately.
Seeing how Ling Chen looked like a pear blossom in the rain [2], Ling Tian got a rude shock. Thinking quickly, he said, "Chen’er, what to do, your young noble now do not know how to cope with this, quickly help me think of an idea!"
Ling Chen was rudely interrupted by him, and while musing, the tears that were about to spill was withdrawn as a result. Thinking about the matter before, she could not help but start to smile once again, "Hmm, you can do whatever you want, I just don’t believe that there’s a question which my young noble cannot solve!"
Ling Tian gave a long sigh, appearing mournful, "The way things are now, I can only throw caution to the wind!"
"Gegege…" Ling Chen naturally understood what Ling Tian meant by ‘throwing caution to the wind’, and the laughter bubbling within her could not be inhibited, once again rushing out. The sounds of laughter akin to wind chimes ringing reverberated in the little courtyard, one could tell how happy the owner of the laughter was just from it.
Ling Tian’s face darkened, looking as though a snowstorm was incoming as he said, "Go and ask Ling Jian, how much of Ling Kong has he checked up on? A bunch of pig brains, it’s been ten years and yet there’s no progress in it! Tell him that if he can’t complete this in another 2 months, when he gets back, I’ll personally give him the stick! Unable to vent his anger and frustrations, Ling Jian naturally became his punching bag.
Actually the matter could not be blamed on Ling Jian. The main part was that Ling Tian did not even place the Ling Kong father and son pair in his eyes any longer. The moment Ling Tian started to grow older, both father and son became playthings for Ling Tian to go back to once in awhile. Recently, he had even sent the pair back to the northwest once again! Now that Ling Tian was only missing the name list of those in cahoots with the duo, he did not want to alarm them prematurely. This was also partly in fear that his grandfather was already getting on in his years and might not be able to take that mental blow. Thus he began to drag the matter out. By doing so, the victims were actually the father and son duo, since they were played till they felt as good as dead!
Ling Chen withdrew her lovable body as she thought, "Poor Ling Jian, you just became a punching bag for your young noble once again, all the best!" At the same time, a messenger falcon flew out from the little courtyard, turned half round before disappearing like a bolt of black lightning, disappearing in the horizons.
Countless thousand miles away, Ling Jian, who was lying down beaten black and blue, suddenly shivered uncontrollably!
Together with Ling Tian's helplessness, with Ling Chen's laughter, with the expectations of the silkpants in the capital, with the fear of those families with daughters, General Ling's troops had finally entered the capital with victory.
The country was in jubilation, the officials all coming out to express their congratulations. The members of all the various associations of the princess, including those of the poetry, calligraphy and arts sections were also called to convene together!
[1] - What the author here is trying to convey is sort of a joke, because beancurd or tofu is soft and thus you cannot kill yourself with it. It is a way of expressing stupidity or powerlessness at the scenario.
[2] - This is used to describe the beauty of a lady.