My family has been wielding knives for generations, but now it's my turn to wield a pen!

Upon hearing Jiang Xiaobai's words, Li Zhiwei's face, hidden beneath her veil, immediately flushed red again.

Especially in front of so many people, being asked such a serious question by Jiang Xiaobai, even though she was usually calm, she was somewhat overwhelmed at this moment.

For a moment, those clear eyes flickered slightly.

In the end, Li Zhiwei gently bit her red lips and softly replied, "Y-yes...that's fine."

As soon as those two words were uttered, the atmosphere in the lobby suddenly became subtle.

Shen Yun could barely contain her smile.

Jiang Jingcheng sat at the head of the table. Although he had a stern face, the corners of his mouth still twitched almost imperceptibly.

If that's the case, then that would be a good thing!

As for Li Bingzhang, he remained silent for a moment, but ultimately said nothing.

"Then it's settled!"

Jiang Xiaobai smiled and spoke, then, as if suddenly remembering something, turned his gaze to Li Bingzhang and said, "By the way, there's no need to give a separate letter of appointment."

"After all, I already agreed to it on the day of the poetry gathering."

"what?"

Upon hearing this, Li Bingzhang was taken aback, a look of obvious doubt appearing on his face: "Is that so?"

As soon as Li Bingzhang uttered those words, everyone's gaze involuntarily turned towards Li Zhiwei.

Li Zhiwei's expression visibly stiffened, and her already somewhat unnatural eyes suddenly became even more embarrassed and annoyed.

After a moment, she nodded slightly.

Yes...yes, that's true.

Yes, that so-called "letter of engagement" was actually a trick Jiang Xiaobai used to lure her in that day, half-deceiving and half-coaxing her with calligraphy and paintings and acrostic poems.

If placed earlier, it would naturally not count.

But now that we've already come this far, that calligraphy and painting can actually be considered somewhat reasonable.

Jiang Xiaobai's smile became even more natural, then his gaze fell on Lin Fengshuo, and he cupped his hands and said, "Teacher, then you will take on the role of matchmaker!"

"Haha, no problem!"

Lin Fengshuo nodded with a smile.

He was actually quite happy to be the matchmaker.

Putting everything else aside, just based on Jiang Xiaobai's essay "On Teachers," he was willing to give face to this marriage proposal.

With Lin Fengshuo nodding, the marriage was officially settled.

In the time that followed, everyone discussed specific matters.

For example, when to send the betrothal gifts and when to formally get married.

These things came one after another, seemingly trivial yet important.

Jiang Xiaobai sat there, listening attentively.

Occasionally, if something seemed amiss, he would chime in with a smile, prompting Li Zhiwei to glare at him.

Time passed little by little.

By the time these matters were mostly settled, a full hour had passed.

At this time, Jiang Jingcheng also specially ordered a banquet to be set up in the Marquis's residence.

The group moved over and ate and chatted.

The tension in the lobby had eased considerably, and the atmosphere was noticeably more relaxed.

of course.

The so-called harmony is only relative.

During the meal, Jiang Jingcheng and Li Bingzhang would occasionally exchange glances and then each let out a cold snort.

Despite their complaints, they were eventually engaged.

Especially after Jiang Xiaobai's repeated encouragement, these two people, who usually keep a sharp tongue at each other when they meet, eventually raised their glasses and clinked them together.

However, their expressions were somewhat unnatural when they clinked glasses.

But in the end, I still drank that glass of wine.

Seeing this, Shen Yun's smile never faded.

Li Zhiwei sat there, occasionally listening to Jiang Xiaobai speak, and occasionally glancing at her father and Jiang Jingcheng's awkward yet forced sitting at the same table, a faint smile appearing in her eyes.

After the meal.

Lin Fengshuo immediately turned his gaze to Jiang Xiaobai.

"You brat, you've had your drinks and the engagement is done, shouldn't you bring out the second half of 'On Teachers'?"

As soon as Lin Fengshuo finished speaking, Jiang Xiaobai smiled and said, "Teacher, don't be impatient. Since I promised you, I will not go back on my word."

After saying that, Jiang Xiaobai turned around and instructed a servant, "Go to my study and fetch the article from the desk."

After finishing the first part of "On Teachers" last night, Jiang Xiaobai had already finished writing the second part as well.

Now, all we need to do is go and get it.

"yes!"

The servant responded respectfully and then quickly withdrew.

In the short time that the servant left, Lin Fengshuo was clearly getting restless.

He picked up the teacup in his hand and put it down again, glancing outside every now and then.

His demeanor was completely devoid of the composure he usually possessed as a learned scholar and master.

Jiang Xiaobai couldn't help but chuckle at the sight.

As for Li Bingzhang and Li Zhiwei, they were clearly also curious at this moment.

Especially Li Bingzhang.

I was already blown away by the first half of the article after only reading it.

Now, he naturally wanted to know whether this second half could maintain the momentum of the first half, or even reach new heights.

Not long after, the servant quickly returned, holding the rolled-up document in his hand.

Before the servant could even get close, Lin Fengshuo had already stood up and walked over impatiently, snatching the second part of "On Teachers" from the servant's hand.

"Quickly, let this old man take a look!"

After saying that, Lin Fengshuo didn't even bother to go back to his seat. He just stood there, unfolded the Xuan paper, and started reading.

Li Bingzhang and Li Zhiwei also got up almost simultaneously and quickly went over.

Jiang Jingcheng sat to the side, watching the three of them huddle together, looking somewhat embarrassed.

Yes.

The poems were alright; I could understand a little bit of them.

But he's really not good at writing.

So he could only pick up his teacup and sit there calmly, but his gaze couldn't help but drift over there from time to time.

A moment later, praises rang out again.

"wonderful!"

Lin Fengshuo suddenly looked up, his eyes gleaming: "Brilliant!"

"This transition, this seamless connection, perfectly establishes the meaning of the previous chapter!"

"really!"

Li Bingzhang couldn't help but praise, "Truly excellent! First, it establishes the way of the teacher; second, it refutes popular trends—truly satisfying!"

"Especially this part..."

At this point, Li Bingzhang's voice trembled slightly: "The tradition of teachers has been lost for a long time! It's difficult to expect people to be free from confusion! These few lines perfectly capture the state of the world!"

Li Zhiwei stood to the side, her eyes also trembling slightly.

The first part amazed her.

This second part made her truly realize that this article was likely to be circulated, discussed, and praised!

It might even make countless scholars remember a name because of it.

Thinking of this, Li Zhiwei couldn't help but look towards Jiang Xiaobai again.

At this moment, the gleam in her eyes was noticeably brighter than before.

After a long while.

When the three of them finally finished reading the second part of "On Teachers," the admiration on their faces had not yet faded.

Lin Fengshuo held the article tightly, reluctant to put it down for a long time.

Finally, Lin Fengshuo took a deep breath and slowly began to speak: "This article..."

"I will definitely push it to the Imperial Academy!"

Upon hearing this, neither Li Bingzhang nor Li Zhiwei were surprised, but Jiang Jingcheng was taken aback.

Even though he didn't understand literature, he still knew what the Imperial Academy was.

That place was considered a noble and prestigious place by scholars all over the world!

If this article is actually sent to the Imperial Academy, then this matter will no longer be a trivial matter.

Is this article really that good?

Just as I was thinking this, Jiang Xiaobai's voice came from the side: "Teacher, you can push."

"But let's not leave your names for now..."