Mrs. Wang was so angry that she pinched Wang Sanni a few more times and cursed, "Useless girl, you can't help me at all on a normal day, and you even speak for that bitch. If she could just win a man's heart and let my eldest son take her away, then this old thing wouldn't have those shameless ideas every day..."
Wang Sanni was pinched to tears, but dared not say anything more. With so much trouble at home, she longed to get married soon. But she despised the peasants in the village and was drawn to the handsome and talented Gu Juren. She figured her parents would soon propose marriage, and since she was fairer and more gentle than Xu Lanyin, and had a decent dowry, Gu Juren would probably agree...
The next day, the rain finally stopped, and a shocking piece of news spread throughout Xiaozao Village. The scholar's fiancée had broken off the engagement due to a hidden illness that prevented her from having children.
Gu Wangchen was a prominent figure in this area, and the news spread farther and farther, reaching a radius of a hundred miles, and people talked about it endlessly.
The Xu family repeatedly explained that the disease had nothing to do with fertility, but others simply didn't believe it.
Most people said that the young lady of the Xu family was virtuous and a heroine, and that she was willing to break off the engagement in order not to affect the offspring of the scholar-official. The scholar-official was also kind and returned the money that the Xu family had previously used to support his studies.
There were also a few smart people who said that no matter what hidden illness the young lady from the Xu family had, after all, they had been engaged for eight years, and her education was supported by her family. The master should not agree to cancel the engagement. He could just marry the young lady from the Xu family home as the first wife, and then take in a concubine to have children.
There are also a very small number of smarter people who think that this may be because the scholar wanted to climb up the social ladder and forced his ex-fiancée to break off the engagement...
Public opinion in Xiaozao Village had also shifted. Those who had previously disliked Xu Lanyin's squandering of her family's wealth thought she was still thinking about her parents' family after she broke off the engagement and demanded so much money back. Recalling the Xu family's previous claims that the Gu family had long intended to break off the engagement, as well as Gu Po's behavior, they all understood: the Gu family had truly been ruthless and unkind. However, they didn't want to offend Gu Juren, so they wouldn't publicly criticize him. Instead, they looked at the Xu family with more sympathy and compassion, and were willing to speak to Xu Lanyin.
After the news spread, many families who thought they were worthy of Gu Wangchen asked people to come to his house to mediate, including Xu Lizheng's family and Wang Sanni's family.
Gu Wangchen refused all of them on the grounds that he had to concentrate on preparing for the Spring Examination.
There was actually a family that went to the Xu family to propose marriage to Xu Lanyin. The family member was from Yahe Village, a widower, 32 years old, with three sons. His wife died when she gave birth to the fourth son.
Now in everyone's eyes, Xu Lanyin is a poor person, and only widowers, disabled men, and men who are too poor to afford food are willing to marry her.
Of course the Xu family did not agree.
Qin and Xu Lanzhou were furious. This was clearly a plan to have Xu Lanyin raise his son. Xu Lanyin didn't care. If there wasn't a suitable man, she wouldn't marry. When Qin was gone, she could just set up a female household and hire two servants. Life would still be good.
Everyone knew that the second branch of the Xu family had seventy taels of cash. They were worried that the orphans and widows were not safe, so they told others that the money was kept in the first branch of the Xu family. Xu Dashi asked around to see if anyone was selling land.
A few days later, the door of the Xu family's courtyard rang again. It turned out to be Min Nan's maid Hong Luo and a maid, with a carriage parked behind them. Xu Lanyin knew this maid. She was the housekeeper of the Min family. She had met her at the noodles before. Her surname was Deng.
The two of them smiled at Xu Lanyin so much that their eyes curved. Nanny Deng said, "Miss Xu, our mistress has something to ask me."
Xu Lanyin quickly opened the door wide and said with a smile, "Dear guest, please come in." He thought to himself that the Yu Ru Regenerating Skin Cream must have eliminated Min Nan's scar, and the Min family came to see if he still had it, or to ask where he got it.
The driver pulled the carriage in, and Madam Deng and Hong Luo took two rolls of silk and several packets of candy from the carriage. They entered the house, and Xu Lanyin treated them to fried peanuts and homemade golden pastries.
Even though these people were servants, they were still distinguished guests of this family, and the Qin family welcomed them with smiles.
After they sat down, Madam Deng produced another five taels of silver and said with a smile, "This silver and these things are a gift from my mistress. She asked me to ask if Miss Xu still has that balm." She covered her mouth with her handkerchief and laughed again, "In just a few days, the little scar on my little girl's chin is gone. Not only is my mistress happy, but even the master is delighted."
Xu Lanyin felt that if they used it sparingly, the ointment must not have been completely used up. They must have liked it and wanted more, or even all of it.
She stood up with a pained look on her face and went into the bedroom to take out a small wooden box. She said with embarrassment, "This is all I have left."
There's only enough in the box for a fingernail.
Aunt Deng was obviously disappointed and asked, "Only this little?"
Xu Lan was puzzled. "Grandpa Zhang only gave me this much," she pointed with her thumb. "I used some more and gave some to Miss Min."
Aunt Deng was a little disappointed and asked, "How did Miss Xu get it?"
Xu Lanyin said, "This spring I went to Yefengling to collect herbs and accidentally picked up a strange grass. When I was looking at it, an old man who was also collecting herbs came over and snatched it away. He said it was a good medicine. He didn't have any extra money, so he only gave me a silver coin and this little balsam. He also said that this balsam can whiten and remove scars, and told me to use it sparingly, it can last for twenty years..." He frowned and said, "I didn't listen to them at the time, and I used some on my face. Later I found that it really can remove scars, so I didn't want to use it anymore."
Whether these words were true or false, Madam Min and the county magistrate would have believed them. Since Su Qing knew that the old doctor would go there at that time, and the dandy boy later went to find the old doctor, the news that the old doctor went there to collect herbs must have spread, and the county magistrate, as the parent official, would definitely have heard about it.
Aunt Deng asked again, "What does the grass you picked look like?"
Xu Lan said, "The leaves look a bit like jasmine and shepherd's purse, but the roots are much fatter. Oh, it's been a long time, I can't remember clearly."
After finding out all this, Nanny Deng took a sip of tea and continued, "Recently, there's been rumors that Juren Gu and his fiancée broke off their engagement..."
It seems that the Min family also knows that Gu Wangchen’s fiancée is herself.
Xu Lanyin's face turned sad, and she lowered her head and twisted her handkerchief.
Qin sighed and said, "To be honest with you, Aunt Deng, my Yin'er is Mr. Gu's ex-fiancée. They were engaged for eight years, and my family provided for him throughout that time. We never expected him to achieve such a feat, to actually pass the imperial examination. But my Yin'er is unlucky. A while ago, he suddenly had a headache and went to the clinic for a checkup. The doctor said it was an incurable disease... Well, we thought about it for a long time. My family is a small farming family, and Yin'er has this disease. We didn't want to hinder Mr. Gu's bright future, so we took the initiative to cancel the engagement."
This was the excuse Xu Lanyin had agreed upon with her family, and she would say it no matter who asked.
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