After hearing this, the lady ordered Yuban to rearrange the bowls and chopsticks and serve the side dishes.

Only then did the Third Lady realize that the Lady Dowager and Eleventh Lady had already had breakfast.

She felt slightly uncomfortable.

In the past few years in Shanyang, she was in charge of all matters at home. Even when she was a guest at other people's houses, they respected her as the county magistrate's wife and acted according to her wishes. Now that she is back home, she has to give in to others and suddenly she is a little uncomfortable. This has also strengthened her determination to live independently. But she has already said that she wants to eat for free, and it is too late to change it. She had no choice but to pick up the bowl and said, "I am late!"

The old lady always thought that the third daughter-in-law was out of tune, and that arguing with her was asking for trouble. In the eyes of others, the third lady was particularly lenient to him.

"It's not that you're late, it's that we ate early!" The lady said with a smile, "Take your time to eat, there's no need to rush, it's still early."

The Third Lady didn't dare to eat slowly, and didn't care whether she could be full. She asked the maid to serve her half a bowl of porridge and ate it hurriedly.

Xu Sizhun came over to greet his grandmother. He was a little surprised to see his mother and third aunt. After paying his respects, he leaned over to Shiyi Niang: "Mother, the master will be back soon. My fifth brother and I haven't practiced the flute well yet..." He looked at Shiyi Niang with a slightly coquettish smile.

For fear of disturbing Jing'er, Xu Sijie would run to Zhen'er when he wanted to practice the flute. Xu Sizhun said this because he actually wanted to go to Zhen'er's place to play with Xu Sijie.

The lady laughed and said, "I'll let you off for now. When the master comes back, don't just think about playing the flute and forget your lessons."

Xu Sizhun said hurriedly: "No, no. I have already done the homework assigned by the teacher."

The lady nodded slightly, her eyes showing satisfaction, and then looked towards Eleventh Lady.

Eleventh Lady agreed with Xu Lingyi's opinion that Xu Sizun could not always act like an immature person like he does now, but nothing can be achieved overnight.

"Remember to come back for lunch at noon!" she reminded Xu Sizhun with a smile.

When Xu Sizhun saw that his request was granted, his face lit up and he nodded repeatedly. Then, accompanied by his maid, he went to find Xu Sijie.

The third lady looked at him and turned her eyes slightly. She smiled and said, "Our Zhun'er is changing every day. It seems that it is better for him to go to school!"

Talking about Xu Sizhun, the grandson who grew up in her house and became more and more obedient and sensible day by day, the lady's face was full of smiles: "People learn to be obedient from books!"

"That's right." The Third Lady followed the words of the Grand Lady and said, "I didn't feel it at home before. Everyone was the same anyway. But since I came to Shanyang, I realized that being educated and not educated are two different things. No wonder my father has always been obsessed with being nominated as a Jinshi in the imperial examination." As she spoke, she turned the topic to Xu Siqin's marriage, "...Yesterday, I didn't tell you in detail because the children were there. I came here early today just to tell you about this."

The lady had also been wondering about this marriage - the news came suddenly and the marriage was arranged in a hurry.

The old man leaned forward and asked with concern: "What's going on? Can you tell me?"

The Third Lady naturally would not say anything like she did with the Third Master. She only talked about how dignified Fang County Magistrate was and how much the Third Master admired him. Mrs. Fang was worried about her husband, so she brought her children to take care of Fang County Magistrate's daily life a year ago. She also told him how she occasionally saw the eldest daughter of the Fang family, and how her appearance and knowledge were outstanding. The County Magistrate loved her like a treasure, but ended up delaying his daughter's marriage. Mrs. Fang told the Dowager how anxious she was, how she asked for marriage, and how the two families finally agreed on the marriage.

The lady listened and twisted the agarwood Buddhist beads in her hand.

"Is County Magistrate Fang's parents still alive?"

This is a very meaningful question.

In general official families, when the husband works outside as an official, he usually brings a concubine to take care of his daily life, while the mistress stays at home to serve her parents-in-law and raise the children.

Mrs. Fang was worried about her husband going to work. If you think about it superficially, she could be said to be jealous, and if you think about it more deeply, she could be said to be unfilial.

The third lady was startled when she heard this.

She didn't want the eldest daughter-in-law to be embarrassed in front of the dowager and aunt in the future. She hurriedly said, "Mr. Fang's parents are still alive, and the family affairs are managed by Mr. Fang's elder brother who resigned from his official position. When Mr. Fang took office, he also brought a concubine to serve him. Last spring, Mr. Fang caught a cold and was not well taken care of. He was bedridden for several months. Mrs. Fang brought her children from afar to see Mr. Fang. If Mrs. Fang hadn't brought medicinal herbs from Jiangnan to take care of him, Mr. Fang would have almost resigned and returned home!"

The lady's face brightened up when she heard this, and she said with a smile, "It seems that Madam Fang is a person who has her own opinions when encountering things."

"That's right!" The Third Lady breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile, "Otherwise, this marriage wouldn't have been arranged so hastily - Madam Fang said that Lord Fang is now well. She can also return to Huzhou with peace of mind and serve her parents-in-law wholeheartedly. After the eldest daughter is married, she will return to Huzhou to take care of the second daughter's affairs."

"Is he the eldest son of the prefect of Chengdu?" the lady said with a smile.

"Yes!" The third lady nodded with a smile, "The second daughter of the Fang family is betrothed to the eldest son of the prefect of Chengdu." She felt that the Fang family's relatives were all Jinshi and officials, which was very prestigious, and her face was flushed, "The prefect of Chengdu is not only in the same class as County Magistrate Fang, but also from the same hometown. The engagement was made four years ago. If Madam Fang hadn't wanted to marry the eldest daughter first, the second daughter of the Fang family would have been married long ago."

"Mrs. Fang, why are you so anxious?" The lady laughed, "The second daughter of the Fang family is two years younger than the eldest daughter, so she is only fourteen this year and has not yet reached the age of marriage!" Then she said, "Oh," I wonder how old is the eldest son of the Chengdu prefect?"

"Sixteen this year!" The third wife laughed, "In fact, the age difference is not that big. It's just that the wife of the prefect wants to marry a daughter-in-law, so that her son can have someone who understands her feelings. The matchmaker has been talking about it every few days, and the eldest daughter's marriage has been decided. Madam Fang can't stand it anymore, so she had to agree. However, Madam Fang also said that she would arrange the second daughter's marriage when she returned. It will take three or two years to complete this back and forth!"

"They have strict rules in Jiangnan!" said the lady, looking at Eleventh Lady with a smile, "There is the tradition of ten miles of red makeup. Each family has a bigger ceremony than the other. Marrying off a daughter can make the family poor." The topic turned to the wedding ceremony of each family.

Eleventh Lady was thinking about Jing'er and wanted to find a chance to say goodbye, but the Lady Dowager was in a talkative mood and kept chatting with her, so she had to stay with her.

During the conversation, the Third Madam mentioned who to ask to be the matchmaker, and the Grand Madam recommended Third Madam Huang before she could finish her words. The Third Madam thought about it and decided that Third Madam Huang was the wife of the eldest son of the Marquis of Yongchang, and it would not be considered an insult to her son if she went to propose marriage. Moreover, Third Madam Huang was famous for her fierce temper, and her personality was more to her liking than that of the Eleventh Lady. When the Grand Madam mentioned that Xu Lingyi should be asked to be the matchmaker, the Third Madam had already figured it out. She agreed with a smile, and bowed to the Grand Madam with many thanks, which pleased her, and then stood up: "...Since Third Madam Huang has been asked to be the matchmaker, the matchmaker gift cannot be missing. I'll prepare it now. I'll go to the Marquis of Yongchang's mansion in the afternoon."

The lady smiled and nodded. After the third lady left, she asked Madam Du to go to the Yongchang Marquis's Mansion to bring the letter. She left Eleventh Lady to talk.

"I think there is something fishy about this matter." The lady sent the servant away and whispered, "Think about it, the prefect of Chengdu and County Magistrate Fang are from the same family and hometown, and their eldest son and daughter are of the same age, why did the prefect of Chengdu ask to marry the second daughter instead of the eldest daughter? And Madam Fang, when County Magistrate Fang was ill last spring, she took her children to take office. The eldest daughter has been raised in her hometown, and the third daughter-in-law is just a spectator. What's going on..." As she spoke, her brows knitted, "Qin'er is the eldest grandson after all. If he makes a mistake here, Zhun'er's daughter-in-law will be in trouble when she gets married."

These are all speculations.

They haven't even seen the person yet, so it's too early to talk about this now.

Besides, the marriage has already been decided. Is it impossible to cancel it?

How much harm would that do to girls?

"A thousand miles of marriage is made by a thread." Eleventh Lady smiled, "Whether this marriage will be successful or not depends on whether the horoscopes are compatible. Maybe the horoscopes of the eldest daughter of the Fang family and the eldest son of the Chengdu prefect are not compatible? Otherwise, one is worried about getting married, and the other is worried about getting married, and they just happened to meet each other at the right time. Maybe this is the fate of the eldest daughter of the Fang family and our Qin brother!"

The lady did not say anything for a long while, but just sighed softly.

Eleventh Lady had no choice but to persuade the Lady Dowager: "After marrying into our family, she is a member of our family. You are well-informed and knowledgeable. If she does anything wrong, you should remind her from time to time. If you hadn't pointed it out to me, I wouldn't be where I am today!"

These words made the lady laugh.

"Flattery never gets worn out, no matter how many holes there are."

Eleventh Lady pursed her lips and smiled.

* * * * * *

At noon, Grandma Huang San arrived.

She first went to pay her respects to the lady-in-waiting, gladly accepted the matchmaking, then bypassed the Third Lady and went directly to Eleventh Lady's room.

Jing'er was sleeping soundly in his silk quilt after having eaten and drunk his fill. Eleventh Lady and Gu Mama were sitting on the kang, one sitting on the kang, the other on a brocade stool beside the kang, doing needlework for him.

"I thought you would come tomorrow!" Eleventh Lady smiled and invited Third Lady Huang to sit on the big kang by the window in the west room, and teased, "Everyone says to invite a matchmaker, but Sister, you came uninvited. We made the right choice to invite Third Sister-in-law as the matchmaker. But Sister, don't even refuse the matchmaker's gift when the time comes!"

Grandma Huang San is a straightforward person and likes to make such jokes. She thinks this is the way to be close to others.

Eleventh Lady thought that she would say something sarcastic to her, but unexpectedly, she just smiled awkwardly and asked about Jing'er: "...Falling asleep? Or did the wet nurse take him out to play?" Her tone was still a little absent-minded.

"Falling asleep!" Eleventh Lady smiled and brought the tea served by the maid to Grandma Huang San. Grandma Huang San took the teacup and took a sip. She did not ask to see Jing'er, which was very different from her usual cleverness.

Eleventh Lady was secretly amazed.

Then she saw Huang San's grandmother take a deep breath and said in a deep voice, "Is the Marquis at home?"

※

Today I was promoted to aunt.

O(∩_∩)O~

My little niece has a bad temper. She cried for half an hour after she was born...