At this, Robert Hill and John Carter also laughed, but when the words "propose marriage" were mentioned, John Carter suddenly remembered something: "By the way, a few days ago, the Prince of Wuwei's residence sent out invitations widely, inviting the sons and daughters of various noble families to a banquet to admire the flowers. Did you receive one?"

　　"Yes, my family received one too."

　　Robert Hill looked puzzled. "I wonder what the Prince of Wuwei's intentions are? I suppose it's to arrange matches for his children. But why invite people like us as well?"

　　As far as he knew, apart from Miss Ye the Fourth, who was definitely destined to marry into the royal family, the Prince of Wuwei's residence still had several children nearing adulthood who remained unmarried.

　　But the four of them had always had notorious reputations and bleak prospects. Among the thirty-six noble families, the Ye clan ranked twenty-second, a mid-tier position, already far above second-tier families like the Ying, Zhou, and Xue.

　　No matter how you looked at it, the four of them were not worthy of marrying into the Ye family. He truly couldn't fathom what the Prince of Wuwei was thinking.

　　"A flower-viewing banquet? Whatever, it doesn't hurt to go and have a look."

　　Charles Foster had also received the invitation from the Prince of Wuwei's residence, but he was completely unconcerned. "This kind of thing, none of us can refuse. It's just a matter of showing up, making a fool of ourselves, and being laughed at for a bit."

　　His future wife was destined to be a woman from a noble family. This was not only due to the importance of family status, but also for the sake of family reputation.

　　In the current era, all the states selected officials through the nine-rank system, with noble and royal families ruling the world together. Public opinion in the villages and the power to judge character and status were all controlled by the great clans.

　　As the saying went, "No poor families among the upper ranks, no noble families among the lower ranks." The noble families all intermarried, using these ties to weave a complex web of power.

　　If he, Charles Foster, were to marry a woman of common birth, it would undoubtedly bring shame to the Ying clan and make them the laughingstock of other families. Now, when the Ying clan was desperately trying to squeeze into the ranks of the top noble families of the seven kingdoms, doing such a thing would be utterly rebellious.

　　Lord Anxi, Richard Foster, felt guilty towards him and usually indulged him in everything, but when it came to marriage, he had no say.

　　On such occasions, he would inevitably be forced to attend.

　　However, with backgrounds like theirs, it was unlikely they would find good wives; they would only become targets of scorn and ridicule among the noble ladies.

　　John Carter's situation was a bit better, but only just. Only those truly promising candidates, after picking over the best, might leave something for them.

　　Upon hearing this, Robert Hill gave a cold snort, his face looking rather unpleasant. He hated such occasions the most, feeling like livestock being selected and judged, and he himself was the scrawniest and ugliest of the lot.

　　He was used to being high and mighty outside, so how could he stand such humiliation? Yet he had no choice but to endure it.

　　Thinking of this, Robert Hill immediately lost all interest, and even the two courtesans sitting beside him could no longer arouse the slightest bit of excitement in him. He no longer had the mood to even glance at the Shixiu Palace.

　　The four of them then began to chat about recent gossip and anecdotes in the capital, about how the King of Wu in the south, Fuchai, had once again defeated Chu, about the Mohist leader traveling west, and about the abbot of Baiyun Temple outside the city passing away in meditation.

　　None of this concerned Charles Foster, so he barely paid attention—until he heard that the abbot had passed away on the same day he himself had been knocked out by a meteorite from the sky, which piqued his interest a little.

　　At this moment, John Carter suddenly remembered something else: "By the way, Charles Foster, I heard recently that the heir of Marquis Linhuai has been saying that when you come out this time, he's definitely going to break your legs. You'd better be careful these days and bring more guards—"

　　"Let him!"

　　Charles Foster sneered, completely unconcerned. The Marquis Linhuai's family was the Empress Dowager's maternal clan. That day, the one who had competed with him for favor, Lord Lin Steven Harper, was the Empress Dowager's second brother, but because he was so useless, it was actually the Empress Dowager's third brother, Philip Harper, who was granted the title of Marquis Linhuai. His son, Daniel Harper, was born late in Philip Harper's life, so the Lin family cherished him greatly.

　　However, throughout the court and the country, there were hardly any who truly took the Empress Dowager's family seriously.

　　To prevent the rise of powerful in-laws, the dynasty had always married women from low-ranking families. Before the Empress Dowager entered the palace, the Lin family was just a minor fourth-tier noble house. Although several members of the Lin clan held important positions, and Philip Harper was granted the title of Marquis Linhuai, the marquisate still didn't possess a single decent divine-grade mech, lacking the foundation for hereditary succession. The title's continuation depended entirely on the emperor's whim.

　　But just as Charles Foster finished speaking, a thunderous crash came from below, with wood splinters flying everywhere. A furious roar rang out at the same time: "Charles Foster, you bastard, you finally dared to show yourself today? If you dare provoke our Lin family, I'll cripple you myself!"

　　Charles Foster raised his eyebrows at the sound and glanced downstairs, only to see a gigantic black humanoid shadow, nearly twenty feet tall, suddenly punch the second floor of the "Qingyun Tower." The immense force instantly shattered several pillars and beams, causing the building to shake violently and sending the guests inside screaming and fleeing in terror.

　　It was a Seven-Star Mech!

　　Charles Foster was a bit dumbfounded. That bastard Daniel Harper actually dared to use a forbidden weapon like a mech less than ten miles from the imperial palace! Even if his aunt was the current Empress Dowager, this was far too bold.

　　"This bastard!"