Chapter 1202: The Twisted Faces of the Ma Family

As Ma Chao had mentioned earlier, the Cao family had also been seeking Ma Yunlu's hand in marriage. Ever since Ma Chao successfully claimed the position of Qiang King, the Ma family had risen from being an average force to one that could influence major events. This made Cao Cao even more eager to form an alliance with Ma Teng.

Given the situation, since forcefully annexing Ma Teng was no longer feasible, other methods had to be considered—using soft approaches when hard ones failed, and vice versa. This had been the way of the world since ancient times.

Coincidentally, Cao Cao had a suitable son, Cao Ang, who was of marriageable age and did not yet have a wife. Ma Teng also had a daughter, Ma Yunlu, who was of a similar age and still unmarried. Thus, Cao Cao quickly decided that Cao Ang should marry Ma Yunlu.

Cao Cao's plan wasn't without merit. After all, marrying Ma Yunlu into the Cao family as the primary wife would give the Ma family significant honor. However, whether the Ma family would accept or not was another matter.

For this reason, Cao Cao hadn’t directly discussed the matter with Ma Teng. Instead, Cao Ang, being someone adept at leveraging opportunities, knew how to enhance his own standing. An alliance through marriage between the Cao and Ma families would greatly benefit Cao Cao, so Cao Ang decided to approach Ma Yunlu himself.

This was one of Cao Ang's strengths. Although he sought to capitalize on opportunities, he refrained from using crude methods. After all, this was likely a woman he would spend his life with. Since political marriages didn’t allow for the choice of a partner, why not make the best of it? Rather than endure a lifetime of bitterness, it was better to accept the situation and make the most of it.

Cao Ang went even further—he prepared in advance by trying to establish a connection with Ma Yunlu, fostering shared interests and topics in hopes of building mutual affection and becoming friends. Yes, just friends; there was no need to push for anything more. Once they were friends, marriage would naturally follow.

With a foundation of friendship, the political nature of the marriage would be less noticeable, and things would proceed more smoothly. The relationship between the two families would also become more stable. As for love, there were two possibilities: either it would develop after marriage, or it would never develop at all.

Regardless of the outcome, this approach was far better than a forced marriage. With at least some relationship in place, both parties would find it easier to accept the union. After all, friends are still better than strangers, and there was no choice left anyway.

Cao Ang's approach was undoubtedly correct, and as expected, he soon became acquainted with Ma Yunlu. They even found shared interests in military strategy and tactics, which allowed them to engage in meaningful conversations.

It could be said that if Ma Yunlu hadn’t met Zhao Yun first, Cao Ang’s method of catering to her interests and his gentle acceptance of her involvement in military discussions would have likely won her over in no time.

However, there are no "ifs" in life. Ma Yunlu met Zhao Yun first, and then Cao Ang later. Thus, Cao Ang's efforts could only stop at a level of mild affection, with no possibility of progressing further.

What was more crucial was that Ma Chao, as the elder brother, didn't like the idea of a weak brother-in-law. He didn’t expect anyone to be as strong as him, but at least his brother-in-law should be able to defeat his sister, right? Yet, Cao Ang couldn’t even best Ma Yunlu...

Ma Chao hadn’t really considered how strong Ma Yunlu was. At the peak of Qi Refining to Gang (Lianqi Chenggang), she was likely the strongest woman of her generation. In the Central Plains, only those at the level of Internal Qi Manifestation could beat her with certainty.

This was something Ma Chao had never given much thought to. For him, the minimum standard for a brother-in-law was that he could beat his sister. The next challenge was beating him, and the highest level would be someone who could defeat the entire Ma family on their own.

As for looks, Ma Chao thought about it and decided not to ask for someone better looking than him. But at the very least, the person couldn’t look terrible. Based on this standard, 99% of the men in the world had no chance.

Then one day, Ma Chao encountered Lü Bu—a middle-aged, ridiculously handsome man who was also insanely strong. Even if the entire Ma family fought together, they wouldn’t stand a chance. Unfortunately, Lü Bu was their enemy and already married.

Later, Ma Chao met Zhao Yun. He was just as handsome as Ma Chao, could fight as well as Lü Bu, and Ma Chao suspected that even if the whole Ma family fought together, they still wouldn’t be able to beat him. Most importantly, Zhao Yun was a single nobleman who lived a clean and virtuous life.

As someone who held the rank of a martial general, worried about military leadership, carried out the duties of a civil officer, and acted as a loyal advisor—on top of being extremely handsome and of impeccable character—Zhao Yun was nearly perfect. Ma Chao thought Zhao Yun was an ideal candidate to be his brother-in-law!

So when Pang De told Ma Chao that Ma Yunlu seemed to have feelings for Zhao Yun, and he noticed that after Ma Yunlu returned home, she often seemed lost in thought, sometimes even displaying a delicate, feminine demeanor, Ma Chao could hardly contain his approval.

This was an opportunity that would never come again! Ma Chao wasn’t overly obsessed with his sister, though he was fond of her. He wanted her to find a good match, and upon noticing that Cao Ang had some interest, Ma Chao’s intelligence kicked into high gear.

However, Ma Chao was also worried. What if everything was just a fantasy his sister had conjured up? He had met Zhao Yun and knew that Zhao Yun treated everyone with kindness. What if Ma Yunlu mistook Zhao Yun’s warmth for something special, only to be heartbroken later?

In short, Ma Chao was afraid of a scenario where his sister had feelings, but Zhao Yun didn’t, leading to a tragedy. That’s why, when Cao Ang seemed to be showing interest, Ma Chao didn’t act.

But then, today, Guanyu came to propose Zhao Yun’s marriage. It was perfect—both the man and the woman had feelings for each other, and everything was resolved! What was this nonsense about their father possibly opposing the marriage? How could he? Hadn’t their father already said he wouldn’t interfere in her marriage? How could he suddenly obstruct it?

There’s an old saying: “You can destroy ten temples, but you shouldn’t break up a single marriage.” Ma Chao immediately decided to send his sister away. If his father wanted to punish him later, so be it—he could always leave. At worst, he could go back to the Qiang and reign as king there again. What was there to fear?

So Ma Chao decisively sent his sister away. After all, Zhao Yun liked his sister, and she liked him. What could be better? Sending her off to him meant no worries at all. And with Guanyu overseeing the matter, there was nothing to fear.

Ma Yunlu rode Li Feisha and flew out of the Ma family estate. After leaving Chang’an, she changed clothes and quietly entered the post station. Fortunately, Guanyu had once visited the Ma family with his personal guards, so they recognized Ma Yunlu, preventing any misunderstandings.

"It's bad, it's bad! Father, sister ran away!" Ma Chao shouted in a panic as he rushed through the walls of the main hall, smashing through several of them in his haste, leaving human-shaped holes in each. His panic was evident.

At that moment, Ma Teng felt utterly embarrassed. Whether it was his eldest son’s bizarre behavior or his daughter running away from home, he didn’t know where to hide his shame. How had the Ma family suddenly come to this? Ma Teng felt deeply disappointed in his own parenting.

"Send people to search for her!" Ma Teng took a deep breath, his face twisted as he turned to Ma Chao. Then, trying to calm down, he forced a strained smile. "Please excuse us, General Guan."

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