County Magistrate Yang, the most updated news is that many wealthy families and even officials in town want to marry their young daughters to him as his wife. Many bosses also want to give their daughters to him as concubines. The matchmakers have been so busy that they almost wore out the doorstep of Wanjiefang. Some people even went to Yang's father and stepmother with their proposals, but were all rejected by him. But now, it is heard that he wants to marry a divorced woman who has returned home!
Whose wife is so charming?
For a time, both the Ye and Zheng families became the focus of everyone's attention.
The second house of the Ye family and the Zheng family, who were in the spotlight, were stunned by this news.
The old lady at the corner gate, Ye Yuzhang smashed his favorite purple clay teapot to pieces at home. For someone as meticulous as Ye Yuzhang, this was simply a reckless act. It can be seen how terrible his mood was at that time, to the point of losing his rationality.
It's no wonder that Ye Yuzhang had his heart set on marrying off Ye Lin to Yang Jianxiu, trying to curry favor with the county magistrate, but didn't expect Yang Jianxiu to ignore him completely, making a big fuss for nothing. He also knew that Ye Zhuo had a bad impression of them and was unwilling to help the second house, so he set his heart on bringing Zheng Shi back, wanting to tie Ye Zhuo tightly to the chariot of the second house, but ended up being repeatedly rejected by Zheng Shi. Now, Yang Jianxiu and Zheng Shi are together. Especially since Yang Jianxiu didn't take the 28-year-old Ye Lin as a concubine, but was willing to remarry the divorced and middle-aged Zheng Shi as his wife, this is simply a slap in the face for the second house, making all of Ye Yuzhang's plans fall through.
However, after half a day, he perked up again. Although Yang Jianxiu and Ye Zhuo did not become one family, Yang Jianxiu also became Ye Zhuo's stepfather. He asked him to get back the money that Gong Shi had stolen. He shouldn't refuse, should he?
Ye Jiaming, however, became even more brutal in his drinking, getting drunk every day at home and refusing to leave the house. He didn't have deep feelings for Zheng Shi either. It was actually Ye Yuzhang's idea to bring Zheng Shi back several times. But this time, Zheng Shi's high-profile remarriage brought up again the rumors that he had divorced his previous wife and married a woman who was pregnant with another man's child and had emptied his family's wealth, and in the end, he had been cuckolded. Now, in the eyes of the whole town, he has become a laughing stock - divorcing a good woman liked by even the county magistrate to marry a woman who was pregnant with another man's child and had taken all his family's money, a complete fool.
When Liu heard the news, she was shocked and didn't dare to believe her ears. After inquiring about Yang Jianxiu's situation, she remembered Ye Zhuo's words and couldn't wait for Zheng Pengju to return. She bit her lip and got into a carriage alone. However, she didn't go to Qingyun Alley, where the Zheng family lived, but instead headed straight to Ziyu Alley, the Ye family's main residence. After confirming the news from Guan Shi, she sat there in a daze, not speaking for a long time, filled with regret. If only the Zheng family hadn't moved out of their old house... The glory would have belonged to the Zheng family, and Yang Xianzhang's in-laws would have been the Zheng family. The children of the Zheng family would have increased in value, and on the marriage front, they would have risen several ranks; Zheng Fangjing and his brothers wouldn't be able to open their own workshop, but they would become sought-after candidates for every major workshop; and if Zheng Pengju wanted to find a job in the government, it shouldn't be a problem.
Now, with Zheng's temper, she refused to return to the Zheng family for Chinese New Year this time. It seems that in the future, she will also get married from Qingyun Alley. Her estrangement from her brother and sister-in-law is known to everyone in town. Can the Zheng family still rely on Yang Jianxiu's power to rise to prominence? Moreover, Yang Jianxiu has been an official for many years, so the betrothal gift money should be very generous, right? If Zheng gets married from Qingyun Alley, it would be inappropriate for her to ask for this betrothal gift money again.
"Although Mr. Yang wants to become one of us, we still have to keep our place. Who in this county doesn't know that we, the Mans, have been lucky enough to marry into the County Magistrate's family? This is a bit of an unequal match, and if we can't even give her face or support, but instead drag her down and cause trouble for Mr. Yang... If it affects their relationship, it won't be worth it. Don't get angry, I'll say this again when the master of the house returns."
Liu smiled awkwardly and said repeatedly: "Don't worry, don't worry, you can rest assured."
Guan's wife stopped her, but was still worried and said: "Wait until your uncle comes back, you call him to come to me this time."
"Alright." Gu's words, Liu didn't dare not to listen. Although she was Zheng Manwen's sister-in-law, Gu had nothing to do with Zheng Manwen. But in front of Zheng Manwen, Gu's words were more effective than hers. Thinking about it here, her intestines were already regretful, shouldn't have messed things up with her cousin like this.
Liu was afraid that Guan would take advantage of her age and come up with some kind of lesson, so she quickly said: "Auntie, please just agree to this. If Manwen were to get married in Qingyun Alley, people would laugh at her. She's not without a family, naturally she'll go back to the Zhengs' to get married. I'll make sure everything is taken care of, including repainting the house, and it will all be done properly, so she won't lose face or have to worry about anything."
Guan didn't know what she was thinking? He said lightly: "I'll talk to Manwen about what you said. As for what she wants to do, it's not something I can advise her on." You also know that kid is stubborn.
Liu smiled and said, "She still listens to your words, after all you are Zhu'er's grandmother, she has to give you some face." She didn't want to stay long, stood up and said, "Aunt Ye, since Manwen is getting married, there must be a lot of things to do. I won't stay long, over there she needs something, what should be added, it's better to prepare early."
This shows that she is Zheng's sister-in-law, and the Ye family's eldest branch is an outsider, this distinction between intimacy and distance? Guan felt this point, and was somewhat unhappy in her heart, coldly responding with a single word: "Good."
Liu didn't mind and left in a hurry.
She stayed in Qingyun Alley all the time and didn't leave until Zheng Pengju was brought back by Zheng Fangjing from the countryside, and they went to Qingyun Alley together. The family stayed there for a long time before she followed her husband and son back home. As soon as she entered the house, she frowned at Zheng Pengju: "Since you can't be persuaded no matter how much advice is given, and you must get married in Qingyun Alley, then let's move here! Anyway, she got married, and that mansion was empty, so we could live there. It's just right. Living well with her mother's family, isn't it also a good face for her? The Zheng family lives in such a broken place, and her own brother is still a street vendor, but she doesn't care about being looked down upon by the Yang family. Suffering in vain!
"Stop it, will you? You've finally managed to get a smile out of our sister, and now you're thinking of scheming against her again! Let me tell you something. This time, just forget about everything and live your life quietly. Don't think about moving in with them, don't think about getting any dowry money from Yang's family, and don't even think about asking Yang to find a job for me. Once married, one follows the husband, twice married, one follows oneself. Our sister is lucky enough to have married into Yang's family, that's all there is to it. As her siblings, we're already ashamed of not being able to provide for her properly. And yet you still want to get something from her? Aren't you ashamed? Her happiness is more important than anything else. Besides, didn't our sister suffer enough already? That house was bought by the Ye family's main branch because they felt embarrassed about her living in the Ye household after her divorce. They spent money on it for her sake. When she left her ex-husband, she didn't have any private savings. The little bit of jewelry and silver she brought with her were all given to you and Fangzi. If not for the Ye family's main branch taking her in, she would've thrown herself into the river long ago. Thinking about this makes me feel ashamed, how do you still have the face to scheme against that house and the dowry money?"
Liu's mouth twitched, her face full of disdain: "You believe that? You're not the one who lives in the big house of the Ye family yourself, and even our place is not as good as theirs. How could they possibly spend a lot of money to buy a mansion for Manwen? Are you kidding me?! Your sister is like this because she has money on her body, but when Fang Jing had an accident, she didn't lift a finger. Now that she's bought such a nice house, it's just to save face, right? If she didn't have money and wasn't so bold, how could she dare leave our family like that? With her temper, would she go to the Ye family's big house to freeload?"
"Again, what's the point of calculating or not calculating? You're not capable of making money anyway. If I didn't scramble around to make ends meet, where would Fang Jing, Fang Shi, and Fang Hui get their dowry and betrothal gifts when they get married? Don't forget, you still owe 150 taels of silver in debt! This amount of money may not be a big deal for your sister and brother-in-law or Zhuo Er, but it's suffocating us. By the time we pay off the debt, people of Fang Jing's age will already have children who can help with household chores. As a father, don't you feel ashamed? Talking about integrity and dignity won't fill our bellies!"
Zheng Pengju was left speechless by her, and after a long while, he let out a sigh and said: "No matter what, it's already not easy for Manwen to marry Yang Daren this time. You're not allowed to mention the house and dowry again, nor are you allowed to ruin this marriage."
Liu gave him a white eye: "I'm stupid, I burn incense and pray to the heavens to bless them with harmony and beauty, how can I possibly go and destroy it? What's in it for me? As for the house and dowry money, let's not mention it. But Manwen is getting married, there are so many things to take care of, if we don't help her, she'll be gone when she gets married, isn't that giving people a chance to mock us? From tomorrow on, you shouldn't go do business either, pack up your things, let's move over there and live for a while, and help Manwen prepare her dowry. And this New Year's, letting her spend it alone, that's not right. Since she can't come here, we'll go to her instead. Her new house, can't be cold and empty on New Year's, that's unlucky. We'll go over there and warm up the house for her. Alright, I won't talk to you anymore, I'm going to Fangzi's place to see what they're eating tonight." She got up and was about to leave.
Although Zheng Pengju knew his wife's thoughts, her words also made sense. In the customs of Nanshan Town, when a new house celebrates the New Year, there must be someone present, and it should be lively and bustling, which is auspicious for the prosperity of the family and good fortune. Therefore, this year, they really should go to Qingyun Alley to celebrate.
However, he was still worried and shouted at his wife's back: "Go discuss with Manwen first, if she agrees, just pack a few clothes and toiletries in a bundle and we'll be off. We won't take anything else. We'll come back on the second day of the New Year."
Liu was silent for a moment before reluctantly saying, "Okay." She agreed not because she was worried about her husband's unhappiness, but because she feared Zheng's temper. If Zheng really didn't agree to let them go home for the New Year, then no matter what, Liu wouldn't be able to enter the house, and would also offend Zheng in the process.
In the past, due to her strong personality, Zheng Manwen had not suffered less at the hands of Wang Yiniang; but now that she was truly independent and no longer needed to rely on men to make a living, this strong personality was like a hard wall that blocked all calculations outside. The next day, after Liu Shi conveyed his intentions to Zheng Manwen, she calmly said: "No need, I've been self-sufficient since I moved out. It's also true that we're two families, who has the custom of not staying in their own home during the New Year and running to someone else's? Moreover, I'm used to being quiet now and don't like crowds. With Uncle Zhao and Auntie Zhao accompanying me for the New Year, you should still celebrate at your own home."
Zheng Pengju's face showed a hint of shame, while Liu was so angry at this blunt and unreserved rejection that she was gasping for breath. But now it's too late to try to curry favor with this lady, how can they force her? Warm words of consolation were spoken, but Zheng Manwen had no room for negotiation and directly refused.
Liu followed Zheng Pengju out the door, his face so gloomy it seemed to drip with water. He turned back to gaze at the Zheng's residence, bathed in the winter sunlight, standing there motionless for a long time.
It is the husband who knows his wife best, and Zheng Pengju knew exactly how to advise his wife. He whispered behind her back: "I'm warning you, don't have any evil thoughts about this house and that little money. As long as we get along well with my sister, she's not a stingy person who doesn't care about family relationships. In the future, there will be countless benefits for us, and where we should take care of each other, we certainly will. But if you quarrel with my sister again because of this little benefit, this relationship will really break off and can never be restored."
Liu was taken aback, after a long while, biting her lip and turning around to walk away with large strides.
No matter how surprising Yang Jianxiu and Zheng's marriage was, there were only three or four days left before the New Year, and the people in the town quickly threw away this matter that had nothing to do with themselves and started bustling around happily for the New Year. Ye Yuzhang and Liu also stopped their abacus, waiting for a new plan after the New Year.
Although Zheng was invited by Shi and persuaded by Ye, she still stubbornly stayed in her new home with Zhao Shu and Zhao Shu's wife to celebrate the New Year. Only on the first day of the Lunar New Year did she go to the Zheng family to pay her respects, and then went to sit for a while at the main house. Coincidentally, Yang Jianxiu brought Yang Zhihui to pay their respects as well, so she also stayed behind and together they made dumplings in a lively atmosphere.
"Zhuo'er, how are the three agate stones coming along?" Yang Jianxiu asked with concern. He was about to become Ye Zhuo's stepfather and no longer addressed her as Miss Ye.
This chapter is 4,000 words long. There won't be any updates today. Starting from tomorrow, I'll be attending the starting point writer salon in Hangzhou, so there won't be any updates for the rest of this week either. Thank you to Chansui, Hu Li's Claw, and Qing Qing He Bian Cao q for your pink tickets!
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