The Eldest Daughter of a Rural Family
Chapter 304: Paving the Way for the Eldest Grandson’s Exam (5)_1

Chapter 304: Chapter 304: Paving the Way for the Eldest Grandson’s Exam (5)_1

Lady Chen’s face grew even uglier as she stared at Pei Qin’s abdomen. Wearing a heavy cotton-padded jacket, it was impossible to tell whether her belly was pointed or round. Craving spicy food every few days, if it turned out to be a girl...

Lady Kong knew she harbored resentment because Pei Wenlee’s marriage arrangement had fallen through while the suitor’s family had taken a liking to Pei Qin instead. Although she also wished for Pei Wenli to travel a smoother, swifter path to success by passing the examinations quickly and gaining prominence, Lady Zhu had called her back twice to discuss privately arranging Pei Qin’s marriage. If she disagreed and kicked up a fuss, with the Wang and Landlord Chang’s families as well as the Fang family coming to support, Lady Zhu might very well overplay her hand and, as a consequence, possibly ruin Pei Wenli’s prospects in the examinations.

She had come to console Lady Chen and to urge her to join in stopping the match. It was better to bribe the Clerk with some silver to clear the way than to take such a risk!

Lady Chen’s heart was filled with seething hatred, and she wished she could literally devour Pei Qin’s flesh and blood. Hearing what Lady Kong said, she too feared that Lady Zhu’s mishandling could spell disaster for her eldest son’s examination.

Lady Zhu, however, was unwilling to heed any advice and insisted on Pei Qin’s absolute obedience to facilitate the eldest grandson’s examination preparations. Besides, the second son was already an accomplished scholar; with just one word from above, his status could be restored, much easier than the struggles of examinations! These two issues had become a constant worry for her.

"You are that wretched girl’s biological father, and they are still descendants of Old Pei’s House—are you not the one to decide whom she marries? Even if she’s rebellious, she would never dare to defy you and be unfilial!" Lady Zhu resolved to proceed with this plan. She’d first finalize the marriage with Zhao Junchao’s family, accept the betrothal gifts, and once the twenty-seven-month mourning period had passed and mourning clothes were cast aside, Pei Qin would have to obediently marry into their household!

Pei Zongli returned to the county town to discuss with Qian Wanxiu, "If this matter stirs up trouble, it could well backfire."

Qian Wanxiu’s eyes twinkled, "But if this is mother’s will, it would not be good for you to disobey her."

Seeing her support too, Pei Zongli found himself in a quandary. His heart faltered a bit from the kick Pei Qin had given him.

Qian Wanxiu continued to persuade him to make amends with Pei Qin, his eldest daughter, "After all, she is your flesh and blood; the bond between father and daughter cannot be severed!" As for the marriage arrangement, once they wrote the marriage contract and sent the betrothal gifts to the old house, it would be done. At that time, they wouldn’t say it was Pei Qin’s marriage being arranged; people would assume it was Pei Wenlee’s. They’d inform Zhao’s family, and if they were competent, they’d naturally be able to marry Pei Qin with the marriage contract in hand. Otherwise, they could look to the high branch Pei Qin had reached for and have them pay a sum of silver as compensation—either way, they wouldn’t lose out on this deal! That ’wretched girl’ had reached for more than one high branch, after all!

Pei Zongli was persuaded by her words, and with Lady Zhu pressuring him, he nodded in agreement.

Suddenly, without Pei Qin’s knowledge, her marriage was arranged.

The whole Back Mountain Village was saying that Pei Wenlee had found a good family to marry into, with tens of acres of land, and Zhao Junchao was handsome. With a junior uncle working in the Government Office and Zhao being a literate man, Pei Wenlee would surely become Madam Official in the future.

While it was explained that Pei Qin was paving the way for the family and she would have better prospects in the future, the fact that Zhao Junchao had shown favor to her but had not replied, only to turn around and arrange a marriage with Pei Qin instead, left Pei Wenlee seething with hatred. Staring at the substantial betrothal gifts, she cursed Pei Qin countless times in her heart.

Lady Chen, still concerned about what Lady Kong had mentioned, specifically warned Pei Wenlee not to reveal a single word. She was told to wait until Pei Wenli achieved high honors, and then she would find her an even better match.

Pei Qin sneezed repeatedly over the next few days.

A common cold was a minor ailment but could be life-threatening! Pei Yuan worried she had caught a chill. There hadn’t been any snow yet that year and the weather was dry and cold. The wheat in the fields was withering, and such conditions only increased the incidence of catching colds. She insisted on dragging Pei Qin to see a doctor and get medicine.

"Don’t put a hex on me! Just brew some ginger and spring onion water for me to drink; two bowls will do," Pei Qin couldn’t stand the taste of traditional Chinese medicine.