The Da Ying Lane where the Shi family lives, although not a gathering place for wealthy families, is far from the hustle and bustle of the city, and is relatively quiet, making it suitable for retirement and leisure. It is said that this place is quite mysterious, and officials who went to the prefectures and counties to serve as officials liked to buy houses here when they retired and returned to their hometowns.
The buildings here have white walls and black tiles, and the courtyards are filled with bamboo. From a distance, the bamboo grows straight and lush, which complements the upturned eaves and corners, creating a charming scene.
Qiao Lian'er carried a basket on her back and went to the east end of the alley, where she found the Shi family.
The door to the Shi family's house was ajar, and it was very quiet inside, without any noise.
Qiao Lian'er picked up the brass ring on the door and knocked on it.
"Who is it?" an old voice came from inside. Footsteps could be heard approaching the door, but the door was not opened.
“Miss ordered some things from me, and I’m bringing them over specially,” Qiao Lian’er said.
The door finally opened, and an old man with silver hair and beard appeared before them.
He saw a little girl dressed in coarse cotton clothes, standing there with a small basket on her back.
"Miss, you didn't mention ordering anything. Did you come to the wrong place?"
Qiao Lian'er put down the basket, picked up the jar inside, opened it, and a tempting aroma wafted out.
"Old man, look, this wasn't ordered by your young lady."
She brought the jar closer to the old man.
The old man was slightly dazed by the fragrance.
The young lady loves to eat, and she has a habit of having delicious food delivered to her home whenever she sees it for sale. Perhaps this time she was careless and didn't tell him.
This stuff smells delicious; it's definitely the kind of thing my young lady would order.
“This—” The old butler hesitated, wondering what if it wasn’t true.
Qiao Lian'er: "Old man, why don't you let your young lady come out and take a look? Then you'll know."
The old butler shook his head: "My young lady went out early this morning." He added, "However, she won't be gone for long. She'll be back soon. Why don't you wait a bit, young lady?"
"Okay." Qiao Lian'er nodded.
The old housekeeper invited her to the front yard and had a stool placed there.
"Young lady, please sit down first. I'll go and take care of something for a while."
Qiao Lian'er glanced quickly inside through the hanging flower gate.
Compared to the opulent splendor of the Han family's residence, the interior was much more understated, yet it exuded a sense of nobility—a refined air cultivated by Master Shi over many years of official service.
She sat down on the stool, wondering to herself, "Could this Shi Murou be in the courtyard that Shen Liang rented?"
But blocking people is definitely not a good idea.
Soon, a commotion came from outside, and a voice said, "Miss, you should be careful. The old master has not agreed to your marriage and has told you to have less contact. If the old master finds out that you run over there every morning, he might be angry and punish you."
“Why are you so worried? Grandpa and Father didn’t say they disagreed. They’ve met Shen Liang and know he’s handsome, hardworking, and ambitious. His future is sure to be bright. Besides, no one in the family is an official right now. It’s unrealistic to think they can marry me off to an official. Shen Liang’s family runs a business in town, and it’s doing better and better. Who knows, he might become a wealthy merchant in the future. I don’t think his family background is much worse than mine.”
Qiao Lian'er deduced from the conversation that the Shi family had neither explicitly agreed to nor opposed the two people, and it was estimated that Shen Liang was still in the observation period.
That's why the Shen family is dragging their feet and refusing to give the Qiao family an answer.
The Shi family shared the same idea as the Shen family: to look for a better option while still having options.
If they find someone better, they would never consider someone like Shen Liang who has no background.
Qiao Lian'er laughed. This is really interesting.
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