Chapter 1 Marrying My Cousin
In the midsummer of Guangling City, the night sky is as silky as silk and the crescent moon is like a hook.
Under the west wing window, Chen Tang sat alone with her chin in her hand. Tomorrow was her wedding day, and she had no desire to sleep at all. She kept fiddling with the black and white chess pieces on the chessboard.
The little maid Huaping rubbed her sleepy eyes, stretched and yawned.
"Miss, why aren't you asleep yet? You have to get dressed up early tomorrow morning. Our family and the Qi family are getting even closer, so we have to have a great time!"
Chen Tang was distracted for a moment, then came back from his preoccupation, looked back and smiled.
"Okay, I'll go to bed now."
The wedding date had arrived, but Chen Tang still found it a little... unbelievable.
I never expected that I would marry my third cousin Qi Huaijing!
Although he is called her cousin, he is actually her stepmother Qi’s nephew, and is only related to her by blood.
The father of the Shen family was a man of talent at a young age. He passed the imperial examination before he was 20 years old, married and had a daughter. Because his first wife died early, he married the daughter of the merchant Qi family as his second wife, and successively gave birth to a son, Shen Di, and a daughter, Shen Li.
Seeing this family getting along so well, Chen Tang, the eldest daughter left behind by the original wife, became a bit redundant.
Fortunately, Mrs. Qi, the stepmother, was not too bad, and Chen Tang was always gentle and kind, and got along well with his stepmother and his younger siblings.
However, although Mr. Shen studied hard, his career as an official was not good. When he was over 40, he became an eighth-rank official in the Academy of Education in Guangling City, where he wrote books and taught people.
Elegant and poor.
Perhaps because his career was too unlucky, he was determined to choose a promising scholar for his daughter. Perhaps he was so overwhelmed by the choices that Chen Tang was still unmarried when she was seventeen years old.
Until Qi Huaijing came to propose marriage and asked to marry Chen Tang.
Everyone was shocked.
Since ancient times, it has been common for cousins to marry each other. Mrs. Qi has also thought about marrying her daughters back to her increasingly wealthy family, but her own daughter Chen Li is too young, and the third son of the Qi family...
I have heard for a long time that he is going to get engaged to his younger cousin from Zu Yue's family in the capital.
However, the fortune teller in the capital said that he was not destined to get married early, which is why he has been delaying it.
This year, Qi Huaijing is nineteen years old.
His mother, Madam Yue, was eagerly waiting for him to marry Miss Yue, but unexpectedly, he turned around and came to the Shen family to propose marriage.
Everyone was puzzled, and Chen Tang himself was a little surprised.
This third cousin is not a stranger.
Qi Huaijing grew up in the Yue family in the capital. After returning to Guangling City, he studied with the father of the Shen family for a few years. Later, he often visited the Shen family. Chen Tang and him... could barely be considered childhood sweethearts.
But he never showed any intention of marrying me.
Even a few days before he came to propose marriage, he was still in the living room of the Shen family, playing chess with his little cousin Shen Li.
Chen Li was only nine years old and had just learned how to play chess, so she was no match for him. Seeing that she was being defeated by her cousin, she simply started to cheat and stretched out her little hands to mess up the chessboard.
Qi Huaijing was not angry and just laughed it off.
Chen Tang was just watching the battle, but after her younger sister was defeated in succession, she urged her elder sister to avenge her.
Qi Huaijing then looked up at her and smiled slightly.
"Sister Tang, do you dare?"
Chen Tang smiled secretly. This cousin clearly knew that she had been proficient in chess since she was young, so why would he not dare?
In order to avenge her sister, she rolled up her sleeves, deployed her troops, captured cities and territories, and defeated the man until he surrendered.
The outcome was decided, Qi Huaijing admitted defeat with a smile, and let his little cousin stick the freshly picked spring flowers in his hair, sticking several branches in all directions.
He has a graceful figure, outstanding eyebrows and eyes, and three or five flowers inserted in his black hair. He does not look gaudy, but instead makes him look even more handsome.
As he laughed, a lock of hair from his forehead fell down and just fell beside his smiling eyebrows. Shen Tang was distracted and wanted to touch his hair.
But she didn't.
She just smiled faintly and watched the cousins play.
He is not his biological cousin, there is a blood relationship between them.
What's more, she is already so old, and she will only come out to see this cousin whom she has known since childhood when her biological father and stepmother are present. How can she be so frivolous?
Perhaps because of this distraction, when Mrs. Qi told her a few days later that Qi Huaijing came to propose marriage, she nodded.
After tonight, his hair...will fall beside her pillow every night.
Thinking of this, Chen Tang's heart was moved. He stroked the chess piece that had long been warmed by his touch, and his heart was pounding.
The next day, just after daybreak, the sound of firecrackers rang out in the Shen family's yard. The family was busy with red decorations and happy occasions, and the atmosphere was lively and lively.
Because Chen Tang's mother died young, her aunt, Madam Song, was afraid that Madam Qi would mistreat her niece, so she came to help early in the morning.
"Tang'er, the Qi family is a big family with many people and many things to do. You have always been low-key and cautious. You need to be more diligent and kind to others in the future..."
Although Madam Qi was Shen Tang's stepmother, she was usually nice to her. Seeing that she was going to marry back to her parents' home, she perked up and gave her some advice.
"Huai Jing has been spoiled since he was young. He is like a devil at home and no one dares to provoke him. In the future, if you have a dispute, you should at least give in to him..."
Chen Tang sat in the middle, listening to the two elders talking to each other, nodding obediently.
While talking, Mrs. Qi looked at her carefully.
Chen Tang has always been low-key and elegant, until today when she was dressed up, revealing skin whiter than snow, black hair like clouds, eyebrows like dark mountains, eyes like autumn water, very bright and attractive.
Madam Qi sighed secretly in her heart, what a pity.
Such a dignified young lady from an official family, who is gentle but not aggressive enough, will marry into the Qi family... perhaps she will have more wealth, but I'm afraid she will have less happiness.
When Madam Qi married Mr. Shen, the Qi family was just a wealthy merchant family.
But since receiving the strong support from the Yue family in the capital, the Qi family has become increasingly wealthy and is now considered a well-known wealthy family in Guangling City.
Madam Qi thought to herself that her nephew, who had been spoiled since childhood, was going to marry Chen Tang. He probably fell in love with her gentleness and kindness. She was afraid that in the future...
It's hard to grasp him.
What's more, the Qi family's father died early, the mother was willful, the eldest brother died young, the second brother who was born out of wedlock controlled most of the family business, and the second sister-in-law was a very shrewd housekeeper and second wife...
It's not easy to be the third grandmother of the Qi family!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
