Chapter 358 The Engagement is Cancelled

Cheng Zhao was dressed in a deep blue outfit. His features were clear and handsome, and his temperament was gentle and refined. No one could feel any aversion to him.

Madam Leng stared at him for a while, then breathed a sigh of relief and gently touched her daughter.

Miss Leng tugged at the corner of her lips, turned her head away, and a stubborn look appeared in her eyes.

“Ahem, young master, madam, please have a seat.” Master Leng spoke first. “Someone, bring tea for you both.”

This tea is top-quality Maojian; one sip and the aftertaste is endless.

Cheng Wanwan said with a smile, "My nephew and I came to Huzhou on business and unexpectedly stumbled upon such a great opportunity. My husband's family name is Zhao, and my nephew's name is Cheng Zhao. He is nineteen years old this year, unmarried, and has no bad habits or vices."

Madam Leng and Master Leng exchanged a glance, their eyes both revealing joy.

Seeing so many beggars downstairs, the two of them were almost in despair, fearing that their future son-in-law would be a beggar.

Fortunately, a handsome young man with a fair complexion caught the embroidered ball. This young man had a very good temperament and was barely a match for their daughter.

"Excuse me for asking," Cheng Wanwan said, "how could a family of Leng's stature choose a son-in-law by throwing a silk ball?"

"It's a sad story," Madam Leng sighed. "My daughter was born sickly, and no medicine seemed to help. We consulted a fortune teller, who said that my daughter shouldn't have belonged to the Leng family; she was reborn as the eldest daughter of the Leng family by accident. Because she's not a member of the Leng family, her marriage can't follow the usual path; it's up to fate. If she chooses her destined partner, her health will gradually improve; if she chooses the wrong person, her health will deteriorate day by day..."

Cheng Wanwan understood. Parents suffer the most, and for their daughter's health, they had no choice but to resort to this desperate measure.

However, even though he recovered physically, his marriage was a mess, so wouldn't the rest of his life be miserable?

She took a sip of tea and smiled, "It seems that my nephew is Miss Leng's destined one. We are from Chengjia Village in Ping'an County. Our ancestors have been farmers for eighteen generations. Over the years, we have more than thirty acres of land. Miss Leng will marry into the family and work in the fields every day. After a few years of this kind of training, her health should gradually improve."

Madam Leng's expression froze: "Farming...farming?"

Master Leng's eyes widened: "My daughter is delicate and frail, she can't lift a finger, she's always taken care of in her daily life, how can she do hard labor in the fields!"

“If Miss Leng really marries my nephew, she’ll definitely have to farm.” Cheng Wanwan said innocently. “That’s how it is in our village. A woman follows her husband wherever he goes. You can’t treat your wife like a princess, can you? It’s better not to marry her at all.”

Madam Leng's thoughts quickly shifted: "Our Leng family will pay for a house for the young couple in Huzhou, and we'll also find a good job for your nephew..."

“No, that won’t do.” Cheng Wanwan waved her hand. “My nephew is the eldest son in the family, and he has the responsibility of carrying on the family line. He also has to stay in the village to take care of the elderly and the young. Miss Leng will be the eldest sister-in-law of the Cheng family in the future. As the eldest sister-in-law, she is like a mother. She also needs to take care of her dozen or so younger brothers and sisters. Actually, Miss Leng is just too comfortable being waited on every day, which is why she has so many illnesses…”

Madam Leng and Master Leng both turned pale.

The boy who caught the embroidered ball looks quite pleasing to the eye, so how come his family background is so poor? How could they bear to marry their precious daughter to a poor, remote place to farm?

If it were actually snatched by a beggar, that would be fine, at least the beggar would be at the behest of the beggar.

"Cough cough cough!"

Miss Leng suddenly covered her lips and coughed violently.

The maid beside her turned pale with fright: "Something terrible has happened! The young lady is coughing up blood!"

“Master Leng, it seems I am not Miss Leng’s destined one.” Cheng Zhao stepped forward with his hands clasped. “It was only because of a misunderstanding that the embroidered ball ended up in my hands. I believe that Master Leng should throw it again to choose the destined one.”

"I won't throw it anymore, I'll never throw the embroidered ball again." Although Miss Leng was weak, her voice was firm. "Father, Mother, you can marry me if you want, I never want to get married again in my life."

She turned and ran, and the maids quickly followed.

Madam Leng sighed and shook her head: "This whole mess is just... sigh..."

"Otherwise, let's just scrap it." Master Leng was also troubled. "Madam Zhao, if Young Master Cheng has nothing else to do, why don't you stay for a simple meal?"

Cheng Zhao quickly said, "I have important matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave now."

After saying that, he quickly left.

Cheng Wanwan curtsied to Master Leng and then left.

As soon as the two left, Master Leng belatedly realized that something was amiss. If the young man was really a farmer, why did he speak in such a sour tone, like a scholar?

Furthermore, the woman clearly seemed very eager to get married, but after the Leng family backed out, she didn't pester them and left immediately.

It seems like he's disgusted with his daughter and is deliberately using this as a pretext to reject the marriage proposal.

"Smack!"

Master Leng slammed his hand on the table.

He said, "You guys, follow them and find out the identities of that aunt and niece."

"Yes, sir."

The two servants immediately went downstairs and followed Cheng Wanwan and her group.

As soon as Cheng Wanwan and Cheng Zhao went down, they were surrounded by Shen Zheng, Lu Yingxue and others, who bombarded them with questions.

"Brother Cheng, are you really going to become the Leng family's son-in-law?"

"Sister Wanwan, has the wedding date been set? Can we have our wedding banquet in Huzhou?"

"Brother Cheng, you're really being unfair. The position of Leng family's son-in-law is clearly mine."

Cheng Zhao slightly lifted his eyelids and said calmly, "If nothing unexpected happens, the Leng family will hold a second ball-throwing ceremony, so you will have a second chance."

Shen Zheng was taken aback: "So, the Leng family didn't take a liking to Brother Cheng?"

"In short, the wedding is canceled." Cheng Wanwan smiled. "Let's not mention this again. Let's go back to the inn. You guys should study hard at the inn and try to pass the exam."

With exams approaching, it's best to keep the children indoors for the next few days. If something like this happens again, she doesn't know how to handle it.

Fortunately, the two wealthy men, Master Leng and Madam Leng, were relatively easy to fool, and Miss Leng was also unwilling to get married, otherwise this matter would not have been so easy to get out of.

Cheng Wanwan glanced back and saw that there were still many people below the embroidered tower who were not yet finished and had not left. She wondered when the Leng family would start throwing the embroidered ball a second time, but this matter had nothing to do with them.

Back at the inn, the children went to their rooms to study, while Cheng Wanwan planned to go to the market again, mainly to explore the skincare product market.

Lu Yingxue was from Huzhou and volunteered to lead the way.

Finally, we stopped in front of a quaint and exquisite shop with a sign that read "Beauty Shop," clearly a place that sells rouge and face powder.

However, this shop mainly sells cosmetics. Ancient cosmetics were nothing more than rouge, eyebrow ink, lip rouge, face powder, etc. These were for beautifying one's appearance, not for moisturizing or caring for the skin.

"Sister Wanwan, this should be what you're looking for."

Lu Yingxue picked up a small porcelain-white bottle and handed it to her.

The porcelain bottle had three words written on it: Snow Skin Cream.

The shopkeeper immediately came over to introduce the product: "Madam has excellent taste. This Snow Skin Cream is made by grinding pearls from the East China Sea into powder and mixing them with milk. When applied to the skin, it will make the skin as delicate and radiant as snow. This is the last bottle in the shop, so Madam should not miss this opportunity."

Pearls and milk were considered top-quality items in ancient times.

Cheng Wanwan couldn't help but ask, "How much does this bottle cost?"