Chapter 237: Strangely Heroic Woman
Translator: Novel Saga Editor:
Fatty was still a bit suspicious as this well-built rose and strolled towards them. Though this person wasn’t very tall, but anyone could tell that their figure was exceptionally sturdy. The person smiled widely as he cupped his fists calmly, and candidly spoke, “You must be Jun Family’s Third Young Master? And the person with you is my future husband, Tang Yuan? This young woman is Sun Xiao Mei.”
Tang Yuan was briefly dumbfounded. His eyes nearly popped out from their sockets, while his jaw almost dropped to the ground. This ‘man’ was actually a ‘woman’! Her thick eyebrows atop big eyes wouldn’t exactly look ugly from normal standards — if they hadn’t been placed on that big forehead of hers.
Surprisingly, this woman had even tied her hair in a manly topknot [1]. She hadn’t applied a whiff of cosmetic products, and was less of any jewelry. She stood cupping her hands in a posture that seemed as steady as stagnant water. Even her voice was ear-splitting, and resounding; like that of a powerful expert!
“Her ass really isn’t small; she is exactly fatty’s type. Your grandfather had spoken the truth. The two of you really do make a perfect match… a natural pair.” Young Master Jun didn’t know what to say. Therefore, left with no other option, he just prevented himself from laughing out loud, and awkwardly cupped his hands. He then congratulated Fatty in a low voice.
“Oh hey… ” Tang Yuan looked like he had been struck by lightning. His small eyes were now as big as a buffalo’s. His big mouth was stretched to the root of his ears, while saliva of despair had already started to drip from it. Suddenly a sound started emanating from his throat, “Kha, kha, kha… ,” like someone was chocking a chicken. Then, his eyes rolled upwards as if he had hanged himself from a jade pillar. But his expression soon changed to that of dizziness. It almost seemed as if that jade pillar had refused to bear his weight... and he had ended up hitting his head against the ground with a ‘bang’.
Tang Yuan had fantasized a lot about his fiancée — Sun Xiao Mei — the Sun family’s granddaughter. He had always thought that she would be would be the best candidate for his fiancée’s role. However, the difference between the fantasies of his dream lover and the reality… was far more that the pitiful Tang Yuan could bear. This shock was like a cruel blow which would leave one to vomit, lose consciousness, and then eventually fall to the ground.
“Apparently, this young woman has given quite a scare to my honored fiancée.” The Sun Family’s granddaughter mocked herself. Though there was a hint of sorrow in her eyes, she managed to conceal quickly. Then, she said in a straightforward manner after sizing up Tang Yuan, “My future husband is quite fat. He needs to lose weight.”
Cupping her fist in her hands, she made a gesture by extending them forward as she continued, “Third Young Master Jun, kindly take a seat.”
Young Master Jun had figured out the truth much before Fatty Tang. However, his first impression of Sun Xiao Mei wasn’t really good. It was important to note that Fatty, though intolerable, was still the heir to an important Family of the city. Thus, his wife’s morality and conduct shouldn’t be anything like Sun Xiao Mei’s. It wasn’t to look down upon the notion of women — but women were considered to be a man’s vassals in this era’s setting. Most men would find her unsightly appearance to be a defect. However, her each and every shortcoming would fall short in front of her amazingly bold attitude.
Jun Mo Xie had started to form a favorable opinion of the Sun Xiao Mei even though he had just met her; a fact, which was evident from the sincere shade of admiration in his eyes. For him, there was nothing to fuss-over about this woman — apart from her height and build.
In short, she could be described as, “A woman, who was a match for men.”
By just a word or two, one could sense that her temperament and efficiency in dealing with things surpassed that of the majority of men! She would surely have been a man with a ‘Heroic Personality’ if she hadn’t been born as a woman!
If Fatty were to break his engagement simply because of her appearance… it would be tantamount to missing out on an opportunity!
However, that flaw in her physical appearance had foreordained her life to that of tragedy.
After all, majority of men judged women by their appearance alone!
A woman’s inner-grace alone wouldn’t hold much importance for a vast majority of men!
Though it wouldn’t be pleasant to hear, but the fact was — Jun Mo Xie only admired her because he was unrelated to this whole matter.
If Minister Sun were to say to him… I’ll give my daughter’s hand to you if you really think so highly of her! Will you take good care of her?
The Young Master Jun would’ve immediately disappeared... he would’ve escaped the city for a lifetime; never-ever looking back at the Sun Family’s granddaughter again — let alone recognize this “gem of a person”.
“Elder Brother Mo Xie, Sister Sun’s appearance doesn’t stand out… but she is good-natured, kindhearted and very intelligent. I have been a close friend of hers, and she is a very remarkable person. She is straightforward and does not take trivial matters to heart; I am very fond of her!” Dugu Xiao Yi said in a musical voice as she petted and stroked Little White.
“You’re absolutely right!” Jun Mo Xie exclaimed in heartfelt admiration.
Jun Mo Xie could sense that this girl knew how to discern nonsensical falsehoods even though she conducted herself in a naïve and pure manner. So much so, that she could be deemed quite objective even though she came across as immature.
Very few women were capable of deferring from the conventions by so straightforward in this era’s background. Therefore, although Sun Xiao Mei was born with some physical flaws… her personality was nevertheless quite commendable.
Sun Xiao Mei smiled as she sat down. She lifted the teapot to pour Jun Mo Xie a cup as she raised her eyebrows and addressed him, “Young Master Jun, although we have met for the first time… I find that the rumors about you are not in agreement with reality.”
“Yes?” Jun Mo Xie asked with a mischievous smile as he raised the tea cup, “What do you find to be in disagreement?”
Sun Xiao Mei didn’t reply immediately, but instead smiled in a carefree manner. Her masculine smile somehow fit well with her rough face.
“To tell you the truth — this young woman is not here to meet Tang Yuan.” Sun Xiao Mei smiled. “The marriage between Tang Yuan and this young woman had been arranged by our respective parents. I have already accepted my misfortunes as a decree of fate since I’m an ugly woman. And I bear no intention to rebel. However, I have a record of all matters concerning Tang Yuan over these past five years… what he did, what he said, where he went, everything under the sky… I know it like the back of my hand!”
The Young Master Jun suddenly started feeling cold!
Jun Mo Xie observed a moment of silence for Fatty Tang; the Hitman could already foresee a very tragic life for that fatty.
“Not only is Tang Yuan not a good person; he is not even a proper gentleman!” Sun Xiao Mei smiled as she looked at the “fallen” Tang Yuan. “To put it bluntly — he is a proper scoundrel from head to tail; a really, really, vile character!”
“Well said!” Jun Mo Xie laughed heartily as he clapped his hands, “I’d say you’ve hit the bull’s eye!”
“However, this nasty guy is still very genuine by nature!” Sun Xiao Mei smiled glibly, “He never conceals his likes and dislikes. Plus, he’s is openly vocal and upfront about the things he hates; I like such genuine people! He has a bad reputation and is considered to be unworthy by everyone since he has a very bad record for the son of a nobleman… he is as fat as a pig, and as dumb as a donkey… you as his close friend must be familiar with all of this… so I needn’t comment on all this. I would just like to stress on one point. I have observed his intrinsic traits, and I believe that Tang Yuan is a man still; not a mere farm animal.
“Therefore, I don’t have anything to be dissatisfied about. Moreover, my own situation isn’t so great either. Keeping that in mind, being able to find such a life-companion is more than I could’ve asked for.” Sun Xiao Mei smiled lightly, “…it’s apparent that we are a match made in heaven.”
“Ke ke ke… ” Jun Mo Xie coughed several times since he was unable to think of a fitting response. He hadn’t met such a woman since he had arrived in this world. She was very open about her appearance, and also about her marriage; in fact, she made no attempts to avoid either of the topics. Any other woman in her place would’ve been too shy, and would’ve stopped talking a while back. Sun Xiao Mei, however, had actually gone on an incessant harangue. This in-itself was enough to describe her as a “Heroic Woman”!
“Third Young Master Jun; you needn’t cough. You understand worldly matters… so consider this — besides me, who in this world can tolerate Tang Yuan?” Sun Xiao Mei smiled, “He is so heavy!”
This time, Jun Mo Xie was completely shocked! His eyes opened as-wide-as his mouth as he speechlessly stared at her. [This young woman is truly a tigress… who else would dare to speak like this? ]
Dugu Xiao Yi muffled her laughter with her hand, but her delicate shoulders still jittered incessantly. She was aware of her close friend’s temperament. Therefore, she could naturally understand that her companion was being coy.
“I’ve been aware of Third Young Master’s reputation for a long time. I had guessed that you would aid Tang Yuan by preventing any humiliating circumstances from arising; especially the ones that may involve the Tang and Sun Family’s name. And for that, this young woman would like to thank you! …Sun Xiao Mei is blessed to meet you in person today!” Sun Xiao Mei lowered her head as she poured more tea. She then continued in an unhurried manner, “You are wise and far sighted. Therefore, you may already know that this young woman is here for two reasons; first — I had to see for myself just how fat my fiancée is… and the second — which was my priority — to see if the rumors about your distinguished self were really true. Assuming I had understood Fatty Tang correctly… I had guessed that he would pull you along! And he did just that.”
“Why did you wish to see me?” Jun Mo Xie asked in a bewildered tone. [What are you up to, ah. You arranged ‘your’ blind date with ‘Fatty’… just to see ‘me’?! This is really strange… but I doubt that she’d try to kill me over that “Wife Gambling” incident…]
“Apart from thanking you, I had to see something for myself. I have two close friends, and they are so close to me that they are like my younger sisters;” Sun Xiao Mei gave a meaningful look to Dugu Xiao Yi as she continued, “One of them deplores you. Her hatred for you is so high that it cannot be topped. While the other one has strong feelings for you, and roots for you passionately. When she speaks of you, it feels like her life would become unworthy of living without your existence. I came here out of curiosity… I wanted to see what kind of charm the ‘number one’ debauchee of this city exudes. For you evoke such strong, yet opposite reactions from my two sisters… ”
Dugu Xiao Yi twisted her waist and leaned to one side as she heard this. Her face on the other hand, turned red as she protested, “Sister Xiao Mei!”
TL’s note:
[1]Manly Topknot, also known as the “Old Hero Top Knot”, is a hair style.