Xu Mingrui nodded and tears welled up in her eyes again.
Mingyu looked at the situation and understood something in her mind. She was just afraid that this arranged marriage would not suit Xu Mingrui's wishes.
"My grandmother found someone for me. He's a scholar from the capital. He failed the imperial examination last year. He's 22 years old now." Xu Mingrui said.
Mingyu nodded. In fact, the other party's conditions were not bad. If he was a scholar, he could get government subsidies and basically would not have to worry about food and clothing. Xu Mingrui would not have a hard life if she married him, and maybe she would even have a chance to become an official's wife.
But Xu Mingrui was unwilling. She was very sad. Ever since Xu Mingye passed the imperial examination and she had seen a superior person like Lu Hao, her vision had been raised. How could she have any regard for that failed candidate
"To be honest, this is all your fault!" Xu Mingrui couldn't stop her tears from falling.
Mingyu was both angry and amused. "What does it have to do with us? The marriage was arranged by the old lady, not recommended by us."
Xu Mingrui cried so sadly. She and Lord Lu would never be together. She couldn't even become a concubine. The gap between a second-rank official and a failed candidate was too big. It was like falling from heaven to earth. But she couldn't tell Mingyu about this. Wouldn't it make her look down on her
"If my eldest cousin had been engaged to Miss Fu earlier, I wouldn't have to suffer so much..." Xu Mingrui said. At that time, the old lady arranged the marriage in a hurry, fearing that the other party would regret it. She didn't even dare to ask for more betrothal gifts, thinking that she had got a bargain. Now, Mrs. Hu regretted it so much that her intestines turned green when she talked about it. If the Xu family had been engaged to the Fu family earlier, Xu Mingrui would have had Fu Lemei as her cousin's sister-in-law. Would she still worry about not being able to find a better in-law family
The engagement has been decided and the betrothal gifts have been accepted, so there is no reason to cancel the engagement. At this point, no matter how much regret the people from the second house feel, they can only swallow their anger and not mention the matter of canceling the engagement to the people from the first house. Xu Changgong knows his eldest brother too well. Such an upright man, if he mentions the matter of canceling the engagement, he will probably be kicked out of the house.
The two had no way to blame Xu Changqian, they could only blame Old Madam Xu. They secretly hated Old Madam Xu to bits. When she saw that Mingyu was not engaged to Lord Lu, she immediately promised Mingrui out without even saying to wait. She kept saying what a good marriage it was and that if she was willing to wait for two more days, she would definitely be able to marry into a better family. How could it come to this!
Mingyu really wanted to knock open this girl's head to see what was going on inside. First, she wanted to rely on her to become Lu Hao's aunt, and then she wanted to rely on Xu Mingye's in-laws to get a good relationship with her. When she failed to rely on her, she became resentful. It was simply unreasonable.
Mingyu was both angry and amused, so she didn't bother to talk to her anymore. She saw the maids from Yang's mansion outside the corridor starting to carry dishes into the flower hall. The birthday banquet was about to begin. Mingyu said to Xu Mingrui, "It's about to start. Let's go in."
After walking only two steps, Mingyu suddenly stopped, turned around to look at Xu Mingrui, squinted her eyes and asked, "When you pointed at my nose and scolded me before, you were quite fierce and arrogant, why are you not fierce and arrogant now?"
Xu Mingrui pouted, lowered her head and wrung her hands, muttering, "You can't do anything to me!"
Mingyu curled her lips and said nothing, continuing to walk forward. This girl is not only stupid, but also a bully who only bullies the weak and fears the strong.
At the banquet, seeing Mingyu coming back, Fu Lemei kept staring at her, her eyes wandering back and forth on her bright red lips, which made Mingyu's face burn with anger, and she said with a guilty conscience: "Sister-in-law, eat the food quickly!"
After returning from Yang's house, Mingyu told Madam Xu about Xu Mingrui's engagement. Madam Xu frowned and shook her head, saying, "Look at your second uncle's family. They always only think about how to get some benefits from others. They really... taught the children bad things!"
The next morning, Mingyu got up and prepared to go to her parents' room. When she pushed the door open, she saw Xu Changqian sitting with his arms around Madam Xu, comforting her softly. Seeing his daughter coming in, Xu Changqian sat up awkwardly and said to Mingyu, "Your mother is unhappy. Talk to her."
Madam Xu sat on the couch with red eyes and tears in her eyes. Her face was pale. Mingyu's heart ached when she saw her mother like this. She didn't bother to laugh at her father's conservatism. She quickly walked over and squatted in front of Madam Xu, holding her mother's hand and said, "Mom, what's wrong with you? You were fine last night!"
At this time, Xu Mingye and Fu Lemei also stood up. Seeing Mrs. Xu's appearance, they were also shocked and rushed over to comfort her. Fu Lemei was a little uneasy and asked hesitantly, "Mom, am I not sensible and have made you unhappy in some way?"
Mrs. Xu shook her head and said, "Silly child, you are doing very well, how could I be angry with you? I dreamed of your grandparents last night. I haven't been back to visit your grandparents' graves and burn incense for several years. Now Mingye has married, and your grandparents don't even know... Alas, I am their only daughter. After they die, there is no place to offer incense..." Mrs. Xu started to cry as she spoke.
Mingyu took out a handkerchief to wipe Madam Xu's tears and said softly, "Mom, let's go back to Lu'an to visit our grandparents' graves and burn incense while the weather is still warm." She was the only daughter of her father in her previous life. When she thought that her biological father might be like Madam Xu's parents, with a lonely grave without even anyone to burn paper, she felt as if a knife was cutting her heart.
"I'll go too, I'll go too!" Fu Lemei said quickly.
After discussing for a while, Xu Mingye went to the Fu family first. The emperor was now determined to thoroughly investigate the Jiangsu and Zhejiang salt tax case twelve years ago. Many people in the officialdom were involved. Some of them jointly wrote letters to the emperor, and some took the opportunity to eliminate dissidents. The Fu family also intended to let their son-in-law avoid this storm and come back when the situation calmed down.
Fu Guang glared at Xu Mingye on the surface, but in his heart he loved this handsome and talented son-in-law very much. He put on airs and asked Xu Mingye to play a few games of chess with him before he spoke. After Fu Guang's advice, Xu Mingye went to the government office to ask for leave. The family originally planned to go back by carriage, but Mrs. Xu thought the carriage was bumpy along the way. It was rainy in autumn and the road was not easy to walk on, so she decided to take the water route to Jiangnan while there was still enough water in the river.
The canal in the capital city is connected to Yangzhou in the south of the Yangtze River. After passing Yangzhou, you can reach Lu'an by taking a short waterway. Xu Mingye found a boat at the dock of the canal in the suburbs of Beijing and booked three rooms on the cabin. This kind of boat is a large ship with three floors. The bottom floor is used for cargo and sailors, and the middle and upper floors are used for passengers traveling by water and cargo owners.
This was the first time that Fu Lemei had left the capital since she was a child. After getting on the boat and looking at the distant riverbank, she couldn't hide her excitement and kept talking to Mingyu. Mingyu couldn't help but sweat on her forehead. There were too many rules for a boudoir girl. On weekdays, she had to stay at home unless she was attending a banquet or a guest. Even Fu Lemei, who was pampered by her family, rarely had the opportunity to travel far.
Mrs. Xu leaned on the side of the boat and watched the two for a while, then went back to her room with a smile to rest. She grew up in the Jiangnan water town, where there were boats everywhere. She had seen so many of them that it was natural that nothing was as strange as Fu Lemei. In her opinion, Mingyu was quiet and Fu Lemei was lively. The two of them were together, one active and the other quiet, which complemented each other perfectly. She thought of it as having an extra lively daughter by her side.
Xu Mingye went to the ship owner and asked him in detail about the schedule along the way before leaving. Seeing his wife and sister being as affectionate as one person, he shook his head and sighed, unable to help feeling jealous. He now seriously suspected that Fu Lemei actually fell in love with Mingyu, not him!
When passing by the railing of the third-floor deck, Xu Mingye saw from afar a burly man weakly lying on the railing and vomiting violently. Next to him was a young man with his back to him, patting the man's back to help him breathe.
Seeing such a big man lying there exhausted and powerless, Xu Mingye put his hands behind his back and shook his head. Hey, my dear, if you are seasick, don't try to get on the boat! You can also walk by land! After walking a few steps, Xu Mingye's right eye jumped. Thinking back to the back of the man lying on the railing, he felt that he looked a little familiar. When he turned his head to look again, he found that he had already walked to the door of the room. He was too lazy to go back to see the man, thinking that he thought too much.
In the evening, the waiter on the boat served some food to the Xu family. After dinner, Fu Lemei wanted to go to the deck to enjoy the night breeze and see the night view on the river. Mingyu glanced at Xu Mingye. Xu Kongque seemed very dissatisfied with Fu Lemei who had been clinging to her all day long. She decided not to be a light bulb and said, "I'm not feeling well," and went back to her room to rest.
Before Mingyu could sit in the room for a while, she heard someone knocking on the door. She was the only one in the room at the moment. Madam Xu and the others were downstairs. Mingyu immediately became nervous. She looked at the door and saw that it was bolted. She was relieved. Her family was downstairs. If anything happened, she could call and they would come up immediately. Mingyu quietly walked to the door, holding a small broom to sweep the bed in her hand, and asked vigilantly: "Who?!"
Bai Hao's crying voice came from outside the door, "Second Madam, please go and see the Marquis! He... he is dying!"
After a while, Mingyu came back to his senses and asked hesitantly, "Are you Baihao? Why are you here?"
Bai Hao was so anxious that he knocked on the door twice again. "Second Madam, the Marquis has been vomiting since he got on the boat. He hasn't had a drop of water all day. Please be kind and go see him!"
In a hurry, Mingyu didn't bother to ask Sima Hong how and why he got on the boat. When she opened the door, she saw Baihao standing there, with a pitiful look of wanting to cry but unable to. When he saw Mingyu, he was like seeing a bodhisattva, and hurriedly led Mingyu to the next room.
Sima Hong's room was two rooms away from Mingyu's. Sima Hong was lying on the bed, his originally strong and sturdy body curled up into a ball, his face was pale and his expression was in great pain. He heard a noise at the door and saw the person he had been thinking about day and night walking towards him in the night. His lifeless eyes instantly lit up.
"Mingyu, you... you're here?" Sima Hong said, moving his dry, peeling lips. (To be continued.