Chapter 114 Happy

Madam Zhou had one daughter and two sons. Her eldest daughter was dignified and well-mannered, and her eldest son was also upright from a young age. As for her youngest son, Madam Zhou only disciplined his behavior, while she doted on the others.

Madam Zhou didn't have the same high expectations for her younger daughter-in-law as she did for her older daughter-in-law; she could be more lenient about things like family background.

The eldest daughter is a reliable person, so anyone who can be promoted by the eldest daughter must be quite good.

Looking at the pretty young girl in front of her, Madam Zhou was very happy and asked her many questions.

Touching the thin calluses on Qiao Mianmian's palm, Madam Zhou rubbed her fingertips together and asked, "Don't you think these calluses look bad?"

"At first, I thought it would be best if the calluses didn't grow, otherwise they would look so nice with their thin, white skin. But as I did more work, calluses inevitably started to grow. To be honest, I was upset about it for a couple of days at first, but then I stopped caring about it."

Qiao Mianmian said truthfully, "These calluses are from supporting my family. I should be happy about it, because it means my family business is doing well. Looking good is important, but the premise is that you can earn money to support your family."

Hearing such a detailed reply, Madam Zhou understood. "Good, good, she's a practical and good girl. Jing Shu, where's your brother?"

Jing Shu was Zhou's given name, and only at home would people call her that. Madam Zhou felt a sense of warmth, "I've already sent someone to call him. What book did that boy go out to buy so early in the morning? He's a real bookworm."

"Why are you going out on a day like this?" Madam Zhou sighed, then looked at Madam Lin. "I'm sorry to have made you all laugh. Jing Shu, why don't you take Madam Qiao and the others to have some tea first? There's still a long day ahead." There's no need to rush to meet.

Mrs. Zhou said that her other two sisters-in-law had also come. "My fourth sister-in-law is quite far along in her pregnancy, and my mother-in-law is at home with her. Otherwise, it would be fun for her to come. I'll take you to meet my other sisters-in-law."

She intended for Qiao Mianmian to be her sister-in-law, so she was even more polite this time, leading her to the courtyard and having tea and snacks served.

The Zhou family mansion has a small garden where the forsythia on the artificial hill is in full bloom. Qiao Mianmian can reach out and touch it after sitting down.

Zhou said that if they liked it, they could pick it. "Today, Sister Qiao Wu is dressed in a fresh and elegant style, and with the forsythia, she looks even more delicate."

Qiao Mianmian shook her head. "It's good that it's still growing on the branch. If I pick it now, it might fall off again sometime later. Sister-in-law Wang, your tea smells so good. I only took one sip, but the fragrance of the tea lingers on my lips and teeth."

Mrs. Zhou replied with a smile, and the two of them chatted back and forth, with others occasionally chiming in, and time passed quickly.

As they chatted, it got close to lunchtime, but Zhou Jing'an still hadn't returned.

Zhou sent people to inquire several times, but there was still no news.

Qiao Mianmian didn't see what Zhou Jingan looked like until after lunch, so she had a good idea of ​​what he looked like.

When she returned home, Lin's face was dark. After entering the house, she clenched her fists and met Qiao Mancang's eyes. She said fiercely, "Come in with me!"

The others all looked at Qiao Mianmian. The family's food stall had closed for a day in preparation for the banquet, which showed how much the Qiao family valued it.

Lin's face was now as black as iron, and they all wanted to know why from Qiao Mianmian.

Qiao Mianmian wasn't that angry, but she felt something was off. Before her family members could speak, she said, "Mother is unhappy because we didn't see Young Master Zhou today."

"How could you not have seen him?" Zhang frowned in confusion. "The Zhou family called you over precisely to let you see him. What exactly happened?"

“Grandmother, I don’t know what happened either. When we arrived at the Zhou family, we first met Madam Zhou, and then Sister-in-law Wang led my mother and me to sit down. We chatted quite well, but we didn’t see Young Master Zhou come over to greet us. Perhaps the Zhou family was not satisfied and felt there was no need to meet him?” Qiao Mianmian shrugged and added jokingly, “I said we could just walk over. Mother was probably worried about the cost of renting the carriage.”

Seeing Qiao Mianmian like this, everyone else felt very uncomfortable. Their own daughter had dressed up carefully to go out, but they didn't even get to see anyone. It was the Zhou family who took the initiative to invite her. How could they feel comfortable with this?

Even if they weren't entirely satisfied, they should at least let them know. Besides, in their eyes, Qiao Mianmian was perfect in every way; what was there to complain about?

Zhang sat there sighing, not knowing what to say.

Qiao Youfu said with a stern face, "They say the Zhou family is polite and follows the rules. I think that's utter nonsense!"

Qiao Jiaxing was somewhat puzzled. "Logically speaking, this shouldn't be the case. The eldest sister-in-law of the Wang family invited Mother and Fifth Sister. Shouldn't they meet them? Is there some misunderstanding?"

Qiao Mianmian shook her head, "I don't know. Oh, don't all look so serious. It's nothing. At least the Zhou family's tea and snacks were good. I'm quite full."

She smiled at her family and said, "Marriage is something that both parties have to be compatible. I'm really not sad. It's Zhou San's loss that he didn't like me. But Mother might be angry for a while."

Inside the house, Lin had already cried once, but she didn't dare to cry out loud, afraid that the other people in the family would hear.

Qiao Mancang was also angry, "How could you not have seen it? When you left in the end, the Zhou family didn't even offer an explanation?"

"How could I possibly stay any longer? I was holding my breath during dinner and rushed back afterward." Lin felt wronged for her daughter and blamed herself. "Do you think Mianmian might have been implicated because of me?"

"No, the Zhou family definitely knows our situation. They even ate at our restaurant before, so don't overthink it." Qiao Mancang was also puzzled. "Don't be angry. I think there must be a reason why the Zhou family is acting this way. Look at Zhou Shi, such a reasonable person, she wouldn't do something like this. Let's wait and see, the Zhou family will have to give an explanation."

At this moment, Zhou Shi looked at her younger brother, who was drunk and unconscious, and was both angry and annoyed.

Madam Zhou looked troubled. "Jing Shu, your brother shouldn't be such an unreliable person, he..."

"Mother, please don't try to explain for him." Zhou Shi rarely showed any respect. "We specially called him here, but my third brother ran out early this morning and came back drunk like this. Tell me, how am I supposed to face the Qiao family in the future?"

She couldn't understand, "If he didn't agree, he could have just said so. Instead, we called people over, and he ran away. What kind of nonsense is this?"

Just thinking about it made Zhou wish she could disappear into a crack in the ground.

Knowing she was in the wrong, Madam Zhou said, "Tomorrow I'll go with you to the Qiao family, and we'll apologize in person."

"That's all we can do." Zhou looked at her younger brother, who was fast asleep on the bed, and felt a surge of anger.

After she returned to her husband's family home, she hesitated for a long time but still did not go to see her fourth brother's wife. Instead, she asked her eldest son to tell him that she had returned.

Lin Xiahe hoped for news, so she stopped Wang Heze to ask, but couldn't get any answers.

Madam Wang was clever and immediately sensed something was wrong. "You should rest first. Your sister-in-law must be tired. She'll definitely come looking for you later."

"Mmm." Despite her curiosity, Lin Xiahe could only remain silent for now.

On the other side, Lu Zhao was also very drunk, and Qingjiu carried him back.

I ran into Qiao Jiaxing as soon as I arrived at my doorstep.

Qiao Jiaxing casually asked, "Has Lord Lu taken a liking to drinking lately?"

"No, my family members rarely drink." Qingjiu carried the person into the courtyard. "Today, we met a handsome scholar at the bookstore entrance. The two hit it off immediately and that's why we drank together."

"I see." Qiao Jiaxing glanced at Lu Zhao and his servant, then went home.

Seeing that her master was drunk, Cuizhi hurriedly went to cook a hangover soup. After it was cooked, she served it to Qingjiu and frowned, saying, "Why didn't you keep an eye on your master? Getting drunk is bad for his health. How can he drink like this?"

Qingjiu said aggrievedly, "I tried to stop them, but they just kept drinking, and the adults told me not to say anything. It should be fine, right? It's just an occasional drink."

Cuizhi glanced at Qingjiu, then stopped talking. She carefully tucked the blanket around her mistress, thinking that the old lady was right; Qingjiu really didn't know how to take care of people.

Lu Zhao got so drunk that he slept until the next day.

He woke up the next day with a splitting headache, rubbing his head and unable to get out of bed for a long time. It was Cuizhi who brought him some hot soup, and he felt a little better after drinking it. "What time is it?"

"Reporting to Your Excellency, it's just past Chen Shi (7-9 AM)," Cui Zhi said. "Qing Jiu has already gone to the City God's Office to ask for leave on your behalf. What happened to you yesterday? Why did you drink so much?"

Thinking about what happened yesterday, Lu Zhao felt his breath gradually catch in his throat.

He heard yesterday that the Zhou family was quite well-off, and suddenly felt uneasy. He bumped into Zhou Jing'an at the entrance of the bookstore, and then, as if possessed, took him to a restaurant.

He usually gets drunk after drinking twice the amount, but he drank three times the amount and forced himself to stay drunk until he saw Zhou Jing'an collapse before he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Thinking about it now, Lu Zhao surprisingly felt no moral guilt; on the contrary, he was in a good mood.

That Zhou Jing'an is even fairer than the girls, and he said that many girls have liked him since he was a child.

This pretty boy can even recite some pedantic poetry; if he were to actually meet Miss Qiao Wu…

Lu Zhao thought of Miss Qiao's outfit yesterday, and his cheeks involuntarily flushed.

"grown ups?"

"Um?"

"Why are you stunned?" Cuizhi asked.

"Oh, it's nothing." Lu Zhao looked up at Cui Zhi, stood up and said, "I'm fine, you can go do your thing."

Cuizhi said, "Sure, just call me if you need anything. Oh, by the way, the Qiao family sent some hot and sour soup this morning, saying it helped them sober up after drinking. Would you like some?"

"eat!"

Lu Zhao answered very quickly.

The hot and sour soup had tofu foam added, which was also Lu Zhao's favorite. He wasn't good at eating spicy food, but he finished the whole bowl, and his forehead was covered in beads of sweat.

After eating and drinking to their hearts' content, Lu Zhao asked Qingjiu how long she had been gone.

"It's been more than an hour, we should be back soon," Cuizhi said.

Lu Zhao thought for a moment, opened his mouth as if to ask Cuizhi a question, but then swallowed it back.

He felt that he had taken a liking to Miss Qiao Wu, and he couldn't ask Cuizhi about it, otherwise his grandmother would find out.

Lu Zhao couldn't understand what had happened before, but he knew why he was flustered and happy about this incident.

Despite doing something that went against his upbringing, he did not regret it.

Lu Zhao changed into casual clothes. He was full of energy and was practicing his swordplay in the courtyard while waiting for Qingjiu to return.

At this moment, Qingjiu encountered Zheng Sanhua on the road and was dragged into Zheng Sanhua's shop.

"Why have you been avoiding me these past few days?" Zheng Sanhua pressed.

"Ah, did I?" Qingjiu retreated to the corner of the wall, and finally had nowhere to retreat, so he had to be honest. "You can't get any closer to Miss Sanhua. Let me tell you, you are a good girl, hardworking and capable, and you are also very dashing, but I will definitely not get married before my master gets married!"

"So, Lord Lu is a lifelong bachelor, and you're going to stay a bachelor too?" Zheng Sanhua's eyes widened.

Qingjiu nodded. "Of course. I grew up with him since I was little, and he's the most important person to me. How could I let him watch me live a happy life while leaving him all alone?"

“That’s true. Then let me ask you, does Lord Lu have someone he likes?” Zheng Sanhua looked up at Qingjiu, not giving Qingjiu any chance to escape. “If he gets married, will you like me?”

"I..." Qingjiu had never been so close to a girl before, and no girl had ever been so frank with him about her feelings. He was speechless for a moment. "I...I don't know."

He had no idea what would happen next. He just felt that Zheng Sanhua was very close to him, and he could smell the scent of soap on her clothes. He had no choice but to stand on tiptoe and hold his breath.

After a while, he was so angry that his face and neck turned red.

Zheng Sanhua laughed out loud. "Look at you. I'm not a female bandit. If you don't like it, do you think I can force you?"

Qingjiu: ...Then how does he know if she will?

"Alright, I won't force you to give me an answer now. But you don't dislike me, do you?" Seeing Qingjiu shake her head, Zheng Sanhua happily pouted, "Since you say that Lord Lu should get married first, then let's see who Lord Lu is interested in."

If she can help make it happen, she will do her best to help, since it concerns her own marriage.