Chapter 51: A Remarkable Man, Ren Yi

All the guests had departed, none daring to stay a moment longer.

Wan Chongshan had stepped outside the estate to see them off.

Back in the main hall, servants were clearing away the remnants of the dispersed banquet. Dowager Shen was sipping tea, calming her breath. Only after all the servants had withdrawn did she speak: "With your martial arts and your audacity, you ought to make a formidable mark in this pugilistic world."

Ren Yi took a sip of wine and replied indifferently, "Does the esteemed Dowager not think that what Ren has done is far more brilliant and sensational than any grand deed accomplished by anyone else under heaven?"

Dowager Shen said coldly, "Your conduct... how does it differ from that of a common bandit or a flower-stealing scoundrel?"

Ren Yi defended himself: "I accept the label of bandit, but where does the title of flower-stealing scoundrel come in? To be frank with you, senior, Hengzhi has reached his twentieth year, yet he has never even approached a woman. A man of such purity and wonder is hard to find anywhere under heaven."

Dowager Shen was stunned into silence. How could she have imagined that the arrogant, ruthless, and tyrannical fiend she had just faced would utter such shameless words?

The old lady was furious, but having lived to her advanced age, she possessed immense self-restraint.

"You are truly set on marrying Bijun."

"Naturally!"

Dowager Shen let out a long sigh; she truly had no way of dealing with this man. She had considered breaking the agreement, but given his previous actions, who knew what earth-shattering calamity the Shen family might face if she did!

Suddenly, a cry pierced the air: "Ah! You... you... you vile villain, you're still here!" The voice was crisp, melodious, delicate, and tender.

A face of peerless, matchless beauty registered utter shock. A pair of limpid, dust-free, watery eyes stared with sheer disbelief. Shen Bijun looked on in horror as the great villain sat conversing with her grandmother.

Seeing her granddaughter, Dowager Shen struggled to recall her usual smile. "Child, why have you come out?"

With a pale face, Shen Bijun pointed a slender finger at him and said, "Grandmother, he... he is a great villain."

Dowager Shen sighed deeply. "I know. Child, do you know him?"

Shen Bijun lowered her head and stammered, "He... he was just now, just now in the back courtyard..."

The Dowager slammed her hand onto the table and shouted, "What did he do to you?"

Ren Yi rolled his eyes and said calmly, "We merely spoke, nothing more. By stammering so, the old lady might think Ren actually did something to you."

The Dowager asked anxiously, "Child, is that truly the case?"

Shen Bijun nodded, yet still stammered, "Grandmother, you don't know, this villain said... he said he wanted to... to..."

Ren Yi lazily took over the conversation: "I said I wanted to propose marriage, and the esteemed Dowager has already agreed."

Shen Bijun’s delicate body instantly trembled, her pretty face turning a shade paler as she cried out, "You lie! Grandmother would never agree to you."

Ren Yi smiled. "Yet the Dowager has already consented to this match. You need only ask her."

Dowager Shen was momentarily speechless, not knowing how to begin. Seeing her grandmother’s conflicted and distressed expression, Shen Bijun turned deathly pale and trembled: "Is... is that true?!"

Ren Yi chimed in again: "It is true!"

Catching sight of him, Shen Bijun gritted her teeth, wishing she could hurl every venomous insult known to this world at him. Yet, aside from "great villain," not a single word came to her lips; she simply had no idea how to curse someone.

"Grandmother, am I... am I truly to marry him?"

"Jun'er, you have been wronged."

Suddenly, the old woman and the young maiden embraced, weeping together.

Instantly, Ren Yi’s expression soured—not merely soured, but turned hideously ugly.

"Is my Shen family truly such a grievance to you?"

With tears sparkling in her eyes, Shen Bijun choked out, "You villain!"

Noticing Ren Yi’s darkening expression, Dowager Shen’s heart sank. She quickly intervened, "If you were a revered and humble gentleman, a righteous hero of the martial world, how could my Jun'er feel wronged?"

Ren Yi nodded, looking thoroughly solemn. "Ah, so she is merely vain and covetous of fame!"

When had Shen Bijun ever been subjected to such harsh words? Griased and angered, she shouted, "You lie! You are clearly a villain, yet you accuse me of being such a woman..."

Ren Yi said, "For a husband, his duty is to his wife; thereafter comes the duty to his children; to care for wife and family—this is a true husband! Is this not correct?"

Shen Bijun was taken aback, nodding blankly.

Ren Yi continued, "That being so, as long as I treat you well, what need is there for me to be some revered, humble gentleman or a legendary hero? And you say you are not vain!"

Shen Bijun was struck dumb once more. She felt intensely aggrieved, profoundly wronged, yet she had no idea how to refute him. Biting her lip, she found herself struck speechless.

Dowager Shen asked, "Will you truly treat my Jun'er well?"

Ren Yi smiled. "Naturally. But she must learn how to conduct herself as a wife."

"Grandmother..."

Dowager Shen merely patted her hand gently and continued, "If you truly fancied my Bijun, there was no need to resort to such despicable methods."

Ren Yi chuckled. "The Dowager's words are quite amusing. Bijun was already about to be betrothed to Lian Chengbi; if I had not made my move then... were the two of us to wait until they were wed before I snatched her away?"

Hearing him use such an intimate term, Shen Bijun blushed down to the roots of her ears. Whether out of anger or shame, she felt she would rather simply drop dead.

With a dark expression, Dowager Shen said, "You could easily have come to our door to discuss this properly with an old woman. Why must you—"

Before she could finish, Ren Yi interrupted, "At first, I did come to discuss it properly with the esteemed Dowager. How did the Dowager respond?"

Dowager Shen replied, "I knew nothing of your background or origins, so naturally I could not readily agree."

Ren Yi said, "The problem is, I am a man of no origin to begin with."

Shen Bijun suddenly chimed in, "Grandmother, don't listen to his lies! He is the supreme chieftain of the Thirteen Bandits."

Seeing the maiden who had stopped weeping now actively opposing him, Ren Yi smiled wryly, "Are you asking for a beating?"

Startled, Shen Bijun instinctively hid behind the Dowager.

Frowning, Dowager Shen asked, "You are the supreme chieftain of the Thirteen Bandits of Guanzhong?"

Ren Yi nodded. "A few days ago, passing by Craggy Mountain, I happened to be short a few servants, so I simply became the master of the place."

The old lady let out a helpless sigh. Others cherished their martial reputation, placing righteousness above all else and holding the wicked path in shame. Yet this man cared nothing for such prestige; whatever he spoke of sounded so ordinary, so utterly trivial!

"Do you still refuse to state your origins?"

Ren Yi said indifferently, "It is not that I refuse, but even if I told you, the esteemed Dowager would not believe me. Why waste breath on redundant words? Nor need the Dowager fret that Ren harbors malicious intentions. With Hengzhi's martial prowess, there is simply no need for such superfluous scheming, is there?!"

Dowager Shen glanced at him, then turned her gaze away. "Jun'er, come with me." With a subtle look, she signaled Ren Yi not to follow, then took her granddaughter's hand and walked into the inner quarters.

Since grandmother and granddaughter had matters to discuss, Ren Yi naturally did not follow. Stretching lazily, he picked up a chair and strode out toward the hall.