Nanze County, the backyard of the Qian family.
"Miss, Madam has invited the wife of Registrar Chen to tea tomorrow and would like you to join her."
"Mother is so annoying! Does that good-for-nothing Chen from the Chen family even deserve me?"
The maid beside her looked anxious. "My lady, you can't say that."
Qian Shanshan was furious and couldn't listen to anything else.
"Okay, okay, I know!"
"Hmph, that Madam Chen is a two-faced shrew. She clearly looks down on my family. She always has a crooked look on her face when she sees me. Does she think everyone doesn't know she looks down on me? But my mother insists on clinging to her! I told them long ago that I like Xu Yan!"
"Shh, shh, shh, Miss, please stop talking!" The little maid, Green Willow, stamped her feet anxiously, wishing she could cover Qian Shanshan's mouth.
"Don't worry, Green Willow, it's just the two of us here. If I don't say anything and you don't say anything, who will know?"
Qian Shanshan was not afraid; Green Willow was the most loyal.
"That damned Li Qingruo, she stole Xu Yan. My parents are really not bright-minded, they had to stick to the Chen clerk's family without thinking. If I had married Xu Yan, wouldn't I have been a scholar's wife? Once Xu Yan became a successful candidate in the imperial examinations, I could have been an official's wife, which would have been much better than marrying a good-for-nothing clerk."
Qian Shanshan was furious, completely unable to understand her parents' thought process.
“Miss, but Young Master Xu is already engaged to the Li family, so Master and Madam have no choice.”
Green Willow secretly thought that what the young lady said made a lot of sense, and she almost nodded in agreement. She quickly shook her head and shook off the thought in her mind.
"That's because my parents are useless. I told them I liked Xu Yan, but they insisted that the Xu family was poor. What does the Xu family's poverty have to do with Xu Yan? When we get married, they can just give me a house so I can live alone with Xu Yan. If you're slow on one step, you'll be slow on the next, and the Li family will snatch him away. Li Qingruo is really shameless, even stealing other people's husbands."
Green Willow was speechless, too late to even sigh. If the master and mistress heard you talking like that, Miss, you'd be finished! Besides, the Li family and Young Master Xu were just having a normal marriage proposal. Miss Li didn't even know you liked him. Miss Li is an innocent victim. Ever since the Li and Xu families got engaged, she's been cursing you behind your back eight hundred times.
"Miss, let's choose what to wear tomorrow. Do you prefer the moon-white one or the rouge one? Would you like to wear a gold hairpin or a flower?"
Qian Shanshan was ultimately manipulated by Lv Liu and her attention was diverted.
"Let's stick with the rouge-colored one then..."
The Xu family.
"Mother, have you prepared everything I asked you to?"
Xu Yan came out of his room, where he had just finished reviewing his lessons.
Since he passed the imperial examination and became a Xiucai (a scholar who passed the lowest level of the imperial examinations), he was able to attend classes at the county school, but he was not a Linsheng (a student who received government stipends) and could not attend school for free.
The county school tuition was expensive, and the Xu family had long since run out of money. Otherwise, he wouldn't have gone to such lengths to show his face in front of the wealthy and powerful families in Nanze County and had gone to such great lengths to get close to the Li family.
Now, he can be considered the future son-in-law of the Li family, and his future is promising.
The Xu family lived in Niujia Village, which was very close to the county seat. There were only a few families with the surname Xu in the village. In this era where clans were the most important, the Xu family did not have an easy life. It was common for villagers to bully you because you had few clan members. The Xu family had also suffered losses in the village a few times, but that was normal because their clan was small.
The Xu family ancestors were all farmers. When Xu Yan's parents were young, they saved some money and supported Xu Yan to study for two years after he grew up, originally so that he could learn to read and write and find a job.
Unexpectedly, Xu Yan was indeed quite talented. Since entering school, he had been highly regarded by the teacher, who repeatedly urged the Xu family to let Xu Yan take the imperial examination.
When Xu Yan was ten years old, he took the imperial examination, which was also an opportunity given to him by the Xu family. Unexpectedly, he actually brought back a student who passed the preliminary examination for the Xu family.
Seeing that Xu Yanzhen was quite capable, Hexia Village gave the Xu family more respect. The Xu clan finally stood tall in the village, and Xu Yanzhen's success opened a window for the Xu family to rise above others.
Xu Yan's grandfather, parents, uncles, and other relatives began to support his education with all their might. Later, Xu Yan's brothers and sisters also began to earn money to pay for his education.
Fortunately, he passed the imperial examination and became a scholar, and now he has the powerful Li family as his in-law.
Xu Yan was wearing a light blue school uniform, and his clean-cut face seemed completely out of place in this dilapidated courtyard.
When Xu's mother, who was working in the yard, saw him come out, she hurriedly stood up, wiped her rough hands on her clothes, and smiled ingratiatingly at Xu Yan.
"Did I disturb your studies? There are eggs warming in the kitchen, shall I bring them to you? Your grandfather has already prepared everything for you from the Li family."
Xu Yan nodded slightly, and Madam Xu hurried to the kitchen to get the eggs.
Xu Yan entered the main room and sat down at the dining table. Madam Xu then brought in eggs, which were already peeled.
She placed the bowl of eggs in front of Xu Yan, and then directed her niece from the third branch of the family, "Huahua, go and get your brother a bowl of water."
Six-year-old Huahua quickly ran to pour water.
"Brother, have some water."
Xu Yan looked at Hua Hua's somewhat dark hands, a hint of disgust flashing in his eyes, but his face remained gentle and warm.
"You've worked hard, little sister. Go have some fun now."
Hua Hua squatted back in front of the threshold, counting ants as she played, her eyes occasionally glancing at the bowl of eggs on the dining table in the main room, secretly swallowing her saliva.
"My son, you work so hard every day. Eat quickly, I'll go get the food."
“Mother, I only read books and do my homework every day. How can I compare to the hardships that you, my parents, endure for me every day?”
Mrs. Xu was just habitually feeling sorry for her son, but when she heard her son acknowledge their efforts, her face immediately lit up with a smile. "As long as you're doing well, your parents won't feel bitter, silly child."
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