Anjing glanced at Qiao Zhiqin and softly comforted her.
"Maybe something else got in the way. After all, they're busy in the military camp and have a lot to do. How can they afford to spend all their time on personal matters?"
Maybe I'll write back to my cousin Zhiyi when I'm less busy.
A glint of light appeared in Qiao Zhiyi's eyes. "Yes, I don't think he will abandon me. When we were together, Brother Duan Qi treated me very well. Brother Duan Qi is not the kind of heartless person."
Anle neither comforted Qiao Zhiyi nor made any hurtful remarks.
She didn't want to offer this hopeless comfort; no one could say for sure what really happened.
If she really intends to abandon her as her understanding cousin, then her words of comfort will no longer be a gentle, warm hope for her, but rather a source of despair and destruction.
Giving someone hope, and then disappointing them, is actually quite painful.
Holding Qiao Zhiyi's garnet bracelet, An Le examined it closely and smiled knowingly. It really was a garnet.
The condition looks alright.
This thing is worth fifty taels of silver?
In this world, jade is truly precious, rare, and valuable. Why not set up a jewelry store in Jincheng to attract people? That would be a major highlight.
Anle's eyes paused slightly when she saw the stack of letters at the bottom of the jewelry box. She lingered for two seconds before smilingly looking away.
It seems that this guy surnamed Duan doesn't seem like the type to just go through the motions.
Otherwise, you could just send a small gift; why bother with all the trouble of writing letters back and forth?
The next day, Anle got up late as usual, lazily crawled out of bed, and went to the kitchen to find something to eat.
In the kitchen, Anjing was quietly preparing lunch with Qiao's three daughters-in-law, aunt, and Qiao Qiuniang. Qiao Zhiyi was also there, but the atmosphere was a little different, not as lively as usual.
As soon as Anle entered the kitchen, she sensed something was wrong; it felt strange and a bit deserted.
"Hey, what delicious food is this? Oh, Mom, it's cold lotus root salad." Anle grinned and reached out to grab a slice from the plate.
Qiao Qiuniang slapped her hand away, saying, "Have you washed your hands before you eat? Go, go wash your hands."
Anle awkwardly touched her nose and withdrew her hand. "I'll go wash it now."
Anle found a wooden basin, scooped up a ladle of water, and slowly squatted down to wash her hands. Her gaze couldn't help but wander over everyone, and she noticed that everyone's eyes seemed to be intentionally or unintentionally falling on Qiao Zhiyi.
Qiao Zhiyi's face was also pale and unsightly. The rosy color on her face had faded, leaving only a cold white. She pressed her lips tightly together and silently busied herself with picking vegetables.
The fresh, tender green vegetable leaves were picked and tossed into the winnowing basket, seemingly unnoticed.
"Ahem... Cousin Zhiyi, you've picked all the leaves off these vegetables..." Only the stalks are left.
Qiao Qiuniang took out the still-warm steamed buns from the pot, handed them to Anle, and then shooed everyone out.
"You talk too much, get out of here."
Anle scratched his head, looking completely bewildered, and carried a plate of steamed buns outside, turning his head back and craning his neck to look towards the kitchen.
Did she say something she shouldn't have?
It seems something extraordinary has happened.
He picked up a small steamed bun from the plate, stuffed it into his mouth, and muttered to himself.
If anything happens, you can't go wrong by asking her third brother or fourth sister; they'll definitely know something.
Thinking this, Anle ate the steamed buns in her hand as she walked towards the small pavilion in the courtyard.
It's hot now, so people usually go to the little pavilion covered by ivy to cool off. My family members also tend to go there whenever they have free time.
It's cool and comfortable there.
You'll always see small groups of people gathering in the past.
really--
As Anle entered the pavilion with the steamed buns, she saw Qiao Zhiqin and Anning in the small pavilion. Not only were the two of them there, but even her two cousins were there.
"Hey, what are you all doing? What are you chatting about?" Anle waved his hand leisurely, greeting the four people sitting around the stone table in the pavilion.
He smiled and came over with the steamed buns, leaned against the unused bench by the railing, propped himself up on his short legs, and stuffed the half-eaten steamed bun into his mouth in two bites.
An Ning glanced resentfully at the bench by the railing, and sighed.
"Little sister, I think Cousin Zhiqin has a jinxed mouth."
Qiao Zhiqin bristled, pointed at her own nose, and let out a long sigh.
"Huh?! Blame me? I was just saying what I thought, speaking based on my intuition. Did I say anything wrong?"
Who knew that what I said yesterday would come true today? How can you blame me for this? It's clearly the Duan family's fault!
Was it that family that acted inhumanely? They crossed the river and then burned the bridge, looking down on people like dogs.
Anle paused in her action of grabbing the xiaolongbao from the plate. Huh?
The Duan family?
What I said yesterday?
Anle paused for a moment, savoring the meaning of the words, and from those two sentences, she roughly understood the gist of it!
Well, I really did get dumped.
She knew her cousin had met a jerk!
"Um, did Zhiyi's sweetheart write a letter?" Anle opened her mouth and asked, then continued to grab the steamed buns and stuff them into her mouth.
Qiao Zhiqin bit her lip, her eyes filled with resentment and unwillingness.
"Yes, a letter arrived. It was delivered to our door early this morning. The Duan family wrote to say that they have found a suitable daughter-in-law and plan to marry her into the family next spring."
If Sister Zhiyi wants to get married, she can only become a concubine next year.
Why is it that the Duan family gets to decide everything?
This was arranged long ago. How could they say she'd be a concubine? What's wrong with my sister Zhiyi except for her humble background?
Someone as wonderful as my sister Zhiyi is a good match for the Duan family.
Qiao Zhili remained calm, looking completely at ease, as if he had already anticipated the outcome of this matter.
"The Duan family's current status is beyond the reach of a humble family like our Qiao family."
The marriage arrangement with the Qiao family will probably be dropped by my grandfather.
Grandfather would never allow his younger sister to marry into the family and become a lowly concubine.
Qiao Zhishu shook his head. "Given Mother's temperament, I'm afraid it will be difficult. This matter probably won't be resolved so easily."
Mother is very satisfied with the Duan family; how could she possibly give up such an opportunity to marry into a prestigious family?
Anle couldn't offer any advice on this matter.
After all, marriage is a major life event that requires mutual consent, and my cousin Zhiyi really likes that guy surnamed Duan.
Even in her previous life, there were plenty of women who became mistresses, and many who were willing to be kept as mistresses.
In ancient times, this was hardly a rare occurrence.
This is a world where it's considered natural and universally accepted that one can have multiple wives and concubines, so there's even less to say.
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