Allure of a Country Maiden
Chapter 681 - 679

Chapter 681: Chapter 679

"But Mrs. Liu indeed came this morning to propose a marriage between you and the eldest son of Marquis Shengping." What does this mean? This shows that her daughter must be the best of the best, and the eldest son of Marquis Shengping was smitten after just one meeting! Mrs. Zhu felt a bit smug at this thought.

Zhu Yan: "..." This was also something she couldn’t understand.

"Could it be a mistake?" Zhu Yan speculated uncertainly.

"How could such a thing be mistaken! Wait! Does this mean that the Marquis Shengping really fancies you and wants his eldest son to marry you?!" Upon realizing this, Mrs. Zhu exclaimed with a hint of joy.

Then she thought of what she had just told Mrs. Tan, she couldn’t help but shout: "Oh no! I had just said that I can’t agree to this marriage proposal! What should we do? Where in the whole state can we find such a good match!"

Recalling her firm refusal earlier, Mrs. Zhu felt quite regretful. If only she had procrastinated a bit, how could she have been so foolish then?

"Yan’er, what should we do? In a moment of carelessness, I rejected such a great marriage proposal." Just like what her daughter had said, the eldest son of Marquis Shengping was handsome and promising. He will certainly be proclaimed as the crown prince in the future, and has already become a scholar at such a young age. If he becomes an official this year, his future really would be bright!

But she had nudged such a good son-in-law away!

Mrs. Zhu felt like she should immediately go to Liu Mansion and tell Mrs. Tan several times that she is willing!

Zhu Yan hadn’t yet recovered from the shock of the Marquis Shengping’s marriage proposal. Hearing her mother’s words, she comforted: "This just means that it’s not meant to be with Marquis Shengping. Mother, you don’t have to worry. I don’t want to get married yet. I must wait until my older brother gets married before I can."

With the current chaos at home, she doesn’t feel comfortable getting married at this time.

But Mrs. Zhu was not happy with this: "That won’t work! With your father in such a state, if something unexpected happens, you would have to be in mourning for three years. By that time, you’ll be an old miss, where would we find a good match then? I just wasn’t thinking straight this morning, I was in a hurry to find you a good match. How could I have been so foolish when Mrs. Liu came over this morning! It’d have been great if I’d agreed then!"

Mrs. Zhu regretted more and more.

"If I can’t find a good match, then I won’t get married! Isn’t it good to stay by my mother’s side for the rest of my life?" Zhu Yan said nonchalantly.

"What nonsense are you talking about! How can a lady not get married? Tomorrow morning, I’ll go to Liu Mansion to say that I was mistaken. We can’t let you miss such a great opportunity!" Mrs. Zhu resolved decisively.

Zhu Yan was startled at the thought: "Mother, you absolutely cannot do this. Where in the world does the woman’s family push for the marriage? If Marquis Shengping is really interested, they will surely send someone again."

While Zhu Yan comforted Mrs. Zhu, she felt it unlikely. Thinking of Jingrui, the handsome and outstanding man, she felt a subtle sense of regret.

"Let’s keep my second uncle’s arrest a secret from father for now." To distract Mrs. Zhu from mentioning going to Liu Mansion again, Zhu Yan changed the subject.

Hearing this, Mrs. Zhu sighed softly, nodding her head.

Her husband was especially fond of his younger brother, but the affection was not mutual!

He always tried to squeeze out the Zhu family.

Zhu Yan even suspected that her father’s illness was caused by her second uncle, but she had no evidence.

However, he has now brought it upon himself!

Zhu Yan’s second uncle was arrested because he colluded with the local magistrate, Mr. Gao, and secretly sent food and medicine to Li Jun. Feng Yang already had people check and verify this information.

Zhu Yan’s second uncle had been arrested. The official in Shengping County who was working for General Li was Mr. Gao, and Mr. Gao’s wife was Madam Li’s niece.

Feng Yang acted quickly, and in the midst of the New Year, Mr. Gao’s family was already being escorted on their way to the Imperial Capital.

The people of the main family in the old house were also taken away by Feng Yang’s people for reform through labor.

Feng Yang initially wanted to execute them all, to rid them once and for all.

However, Xiao’er shook her head. After all, they were Shen Chengyao’s flesh and blood. For a person, even if his parents committed a grave mistake, he wouldn’t wish for their death.

Shen Chengyao had already pleaded for the people of the old house in front of Xiao’er.

Xiao’er didn’t want Shen Chengyao to harbor any resentment for the rest of his life, so she agreed without hesitation.

Death is easy, living a hard life is actually harder!

Xiao’er arranged for the main family to be sent to a coal mine for reform through labor. Since they always thought of reaping without sowing and were ruthless, let them reform themselves for the rest of their lives amidst the ceaseless hard work! For them, doing such dirty, tiring work and living such a hard, exhausting life would definitely be harder than death!

As for Master Shen and Mrs. Shen, Xiao’er didn’t have any affection for them since she wasn’t the original owner, she just found them annoying. But it was different for Shen Chengyao. Those were his parents, so he wished to be lenient towards them.

Two people past their prime, how long would they live? Xiao’er had no objections to this.

So, although Master Shen and Mrs. Shen also had to work, the labor arranged for them was naturally a bit lighter.

They were still his parents, Shen Chengyao was hoping that they would repent in a year or two, and at that time, he could rescue them and provide for their old age.

Shen Chengyao expressed his thoughts.

Mrs. Liu said to discuss this matter later when they truly showed remorse. But even if they did, things that happened in the past can’t be ignored. They definitely cannot live together in the Imperial Capital! She couldn’t be that magnanimous! Shen Chengyao could give them some silver for their old age, she had no objection to that, but it could only be the amount stated in the splitting up of the family assets document. Not a single coin more! Otherwise, it would only inflate someone’s ego.

Those were Shen Chengyao’s parents, he must have affections for them since childhood, his feelings towards Master Shen and Mrs. Shen were naturally different from theirs. This can be understood.

Even if the parents were unfair, there should still be warm memories given by them when Shen Chengyao was little, Xiao’er and Mrs. Liu both understood this.

And that’s what Shen Chengyao himself wants to do for his parents. He didn’t ask them to do anything. They certainly couldn’t stop him.

However, it’s hard to change one’s nature. Xiao’er and Mrs. Liu didn’t believe they would change.

But they can’t create any kind of trouble anymore! Consider it as doing a good deed, thought Mrs. Liu.

When Xiao’er and her family came back this time, they didn’t see anyone from the second branch. In fact, the people from the second branch had already run to Mrs. Li’s family. Mrs. Shen was too much for them to handle and had scared Mrs. Li away.

However, life wasn’t easy for the people from the second branch at Mrs. Li’s family either. Her sister-in-law was not easy to deal with.

However, the people from the second branch had thick skins. Their ability to sponge off others for food and drinks was top-notch. Thus, life was very chaotic!

As for Shen Yuzhu, she had planned to elope with her husband’s family to her mother’s house. However, Shen Yuzhu had never suffered in her life and couldn’t stand the tormented days. She committed suicide en route.

Xiao’er felt that for Shen Yuzhu, this may have been a form of release.