Shi Niang woke up in the middle of the night, and there was only a silver bottle guarding her.

Seeing that she woke up, Yinping was extremely surprised. She asked the maid to report to Shiyi Niang, and went to report to the eldest lady in person.

The eldest wife had already gone to bed at that time. She said "I know" through the curtain, and that was all.

Eleventh Lady also went to bed. When she heard that Tenth Lady had woken up, she asked Bin Ju to tell the little maid, "Drink more mung bean water to detoxify."

After hearing this, Shi Niang said nothing. She let Yin Ping change her clothes and then fell into a deep sleep.

Eleventh Lady, however, could not sleep most of the night.

She originally thought that the bracelet that Shi Niang carried with her was related to the lost property in her hometown of Yuhang. As a result, although Shi Niang's bracelet was hollow, it was filled with arsenic. I don't know if the arsenic has been stored for a long time or the quality was not good when it was bought. Shi Niang hurriedly poured half of it into the tea and spilled half on the ground... Not long after drinking it, she began to tremble and her lips turned dark purple. Mother Xu, who had been paying attention to her, immediately noticed something was wrong, but was afraid that it would be embarrassing to the main courtyard and lose the face of the Luo family. Thinking that Shi Niang could not hide the movement on her side, she simply called her to help... She tossed around for a while, and unexpectedly saved Shi Niang.

Although I have good intentions, what will be waiting for Shi Niang?

No one can tell...

* * * * * *

Early the next morning, Mr. Wang, the matchmaker of the Wang family, arrived.

He first scolded Wang Lang harshly, then gave three thousand taels of silver to the eldest master, saying that it was compensation from the Maoguo Mansion to the Luo family for their losses.

The eldest master refused and told her about Shi Niang's suicide, insisting on breaking off the engagement: "...it's really not our destiny!"

Wang Lang did go too far.

Lord Wang was very embarrassed. He said a few polite words and then stood up to leave.

"Are you calling off the engagement just like that?" The eldest wife couldn't help but nag, "Who will come to propose marriage in the future?"

The eldest master really wanted to cancel this marriage: "Wang Lang is not a good husband. Besides, Shi Niang would rather die than marry him. I think we should just forget it!"

The eldest wife couldn't help but sneer: "That's good. From now on, if parents do something that doesn't meet their children's expectations, they should learn to be desperate!"

The master was a little annoyed when he heard this: "Then what do you say we should do?"

"Of course we have to ask the Wang family to come and apologize in a big way!" The eldest wife said confidently, "Don't forget that our family still has the marriages of the Fourth Master, the Eleventh Lady, and the Twelfth Lady to be arranged. We can't delay those two because of the Tenth Lady! Especially the Eleventh Lady, the Xu family is coming to propose marriage. The lady of the house means to set a date when the Marquis comes back, but look at this matter... How can we set a date with the Xu family?"

The eldest wife's words were all reasonable, so the eldest master remained silent.

The eldest wife suggested: "Young Master Wang is getting married, and her elder sister must be in Yanjing. I think she has to be involved in this matter! Why don't we write her a letter to retreat and say that our Shi Niang is not worthy of Young Master Wang and has failed her kindness, and then say that the Luo family will lose face and the only way out is to cancel the engagement... With her cleverness, she will definitely see what we mean!"

The master nodded in agreement.

The first wife wrote a letter to Mrs. Jiang herself.

But before the letter was finished, Lord Huang, Marquis of Yongchang, arrived.

The couple was stunned.

The eldest wife complained, "Master, let me tell you! This matter will affect Eleventh Lady. Look, the Xu family sent someone here so quickly."

The master went to the hall half-believing and half-doubting.

Who knew that Lord Huang was actually here to give a list of gifts: "This is the Xu family's betrothal gifts and betrothal money, please take a look."

The master was slightly stunned.

He didn't expect that the Xu family was not affected by this incident at all!

Huang Laohou discussed with the eldest master: "What the Madam meant is that since Miss Ten's marriage cannot be decided for the time being, it is better to arrange Miss Eleven's marriage first. It is also possible to harvest wheat first and then barley!"

Compared with the Wang family, the Xu family was very considerate to the Luo family. The eldest master naturally agreed and set the date for the 26th.

When I got back and told the first wife about it, she was also quite surprised.

The eldest master couldn't help but sigh: "The Xu family is still reasonable."

The first wife temporarily put aside the matter of Tenth Niang and focused on preparing for Eleventh Niang's decision.

Who would have thought that the next day Mrs. Jiang would bring her brother Wang Lang to personally apologize.

The eldest master was so angry that he kept shouting "I don't want you anymore". The eldest wife couldn't help but persuade him, "It's better to resolve a feud than to create one. Wang Lang is a young man, and young people all have temper. If he really doesn't agree, what will Shi Niang do in the future?" After talking for a long time, the eldest master's face brightened up.

The eldest wife went to see Madam Jiang and Wang Lang.

Mrs. Jiang spoke in a humble tone, and all she said were words of apology: "...This matter is all our fault. We will take out three thousand taels of silver to compensate for your family's expenses that day. My brother knows he was wrong, and he has come here specially to apologize to you." As she spoke, she winked at Wang Lang.

Wang Lang sat there drinking tea, pretending not to see anything.

Mrs. Jiang had no choice but to keep speaking well of her brother: "No matter how wrong he is, he is still your son-in-law. As the saying goes, a son-in-law is half a son. You should also give him some face so that he can hold his head up in front of his uncle and brother-in-law in the future."

I see!

The eldest wife couldn't help but sneer in her heart when she heard this.

You are afraid of not being able to hold your head up in front of your uncle, but is it true that you want to become a brother-in-law with the Marquis of Yongping?

However, if it was her own child, she would have to take advantage of this opportunity and cancel the marriage no matter what. But it wasn't her own child... Thinking of how Shi Niang didn't say a word but just ate and drank heartily after saving herself, she felt vaguely uneasy, as if something else would happen.

It’s better to get married early, so that people won’t get angry just by looking at her!

The eldest wife's face brightened slightly.

Madam Jiang was very good at observing people's expressions and immediately took out a red lacquered and gold-painted box and said, "Here are five thousand taels of silver notes in total. The other two thousand taels of silver are for your wedding to Miss Ten, and they will all be covered by our Wang family."

The eldest wife couldn't help but smile: "Mrs. Jiang said that I can't afford the money..."

Mrs. Jiang hurriedly said, "That's not what I meant. That's not what I meant. We just wanted to express our apology..." After much persuasion, the eldest wife finally let Madam Xu take the box. Mrs. Jiang took the opportunity to propose to marry Shi Niang on May 24th.

The first wife hesitated and said, "The Xu family will come to propose marriage on the 26th. This has been agreed upon long ago. I am just afraid that it will be too rude to Master Wang."

If you get married on the 24th, the 26th is the day to return to your parents' home for three days.

Unexpectedly, Mrs. Jiang immediately said, "The 24th is the 24th. It's all our fault that we missed the auspicious day." Then she glanced at her brother and said, "We are also old friends of the Xu family, so it's a good opportunity for us to come and see the fun."

The eldest wife couldn't help but look at Wang Lang - he hadn't said a word since he came in.

When Wang Lang saw the eldest wife looking at her, she glanced at her sideways, very arrogantly.

The first wife was not happy. She thought of Qian Ming...

No wonder she walked away in anger on the wedding day! However, she did not agree to this marriage just to find a good son-in-law. Thinking of this, the eldest wife smiled slightly and immediately agreed to Madam Jiang's request.

Mrs. Jiang thanked him again and again, and after a brief greeting, she took Wang Lang and left.

After hearing what the eldest wife said, the eldest master couldn't help but sigh: "That's good, I'll have a peaceful life after I get married."

On the 24th, the Luo family only invited the second and third families to a simple meal. People from the Wang family came to pick up the bride. The Luo family set off two strings of firecrackers at the door and then released the sedan chair.

Looking at the sedan chair going away, Sixth Aunt couldn't help but sigh: "When the master married me, he even made the sedan chair go around two streets."

This means that the ceremony of Shi Niang's marriage is not as grand as the ceremony of taking a concubine.

Si Niang and Wu Niang did not answer, but their eyes dimmed.

* * * * * *

May 26th is not only the day when Shi Niang returns to her parents' home after three days, but also the day when the Xu family proposes marriage.

The Luo family still invited Mr. Jin from the Hanlin Academy to be Eleventh Lady's guardian.

At dawn, the Luo family's door was wide open and the house was decorated with lights and colorful decorations.

Wang Lang and the Xu family’s people arrived one after another.

The eldest wife settled Wang Lang and his wife in Luo Zhenxing's residence, and Luo Zhenxing and his wife stayed with them, while everyone else went to welcome the Xu family's procession.

The Xu family's betrothal gifts came in thirty-six loads, which seemed a bit shabby compared to their status, but the first one was a pair of jade ruyi given by the Empress Dowager, and the second one was a three-star ruyi given by the Empress Dowager... just these two items were incomparable to other families.

The eldest wife was very happy: "Back then, the procession to welcome Yuanniang was carried by sixty-four sedan chairs..."

Mother Xu nodded repeatedly after hearing this: "The Marquis still respects the eldest aunt as his legitimate wife."

The one who came to send the marriage proposal was Xu Lingning, the third master of the Xu family. He was a cautious person and very polite to others. Lord Jin and Lord Huang knew each other. Yu Yiqing had a kind personality and Qian Ming was willing to make friends. After a few words, the atmosphere became very harmonious.

The master looked very happy.

During the meal, Luo Zhenxing came with Wang Lang.

Xu Lingning was not surprised to see Wang Lang and greeted him with a smile.

Wang Lang was startled when he saw Xu Lingning and asked, "Why didn't Fifth Master come?"

Xu Lingning smiled and said, "This is the second half of the month - my fifth brother went to visit Marquis Dingnan's wife's family."

Luo Zhenxing hurriedly asked everyone to take a seat.

Xu Lingning was humble and asked everyone to take their seats first. However, Wang Lang was not polite and sat at the first seat without hesitation.

Luo Zhenxing whispered to Lord Jin, Lord Huang, and Xu Lingning, "...Today is the day when my tenth brother-in-law and my tenth sister return home."

Instead, Xu Lingning comforted Luo Zhenxing and said with a smile, "The Wang family has dealings with our family as well. Young Master Wang has this kind of temper. You don't have to worry about it." As he said that, he respectfully asked Lord Jin and Lord Huang to sit down first.

Huang Laohou probably knew Wang Lang's temper, so he said nothing and sat down below Master Wang. Lord Jin would not say anything either.

Luo Zhenxing couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Yu Yiqing disliked her brother-in-law even more.

Qian Ming secretly praised Xu Lingning for his magnanimity.

In the backyard, the grandmother set up a banquet to entertain Shi Niang.

Shi Niang was wearing a bright red jacket with a golden grass pattern all over it, and her face did not show the joy of a newlywed. She ate a bowl of rice by herself, then said "I'm full", threw the bowl away, asked Yin Ping to bring her book, and sat on the big kang by the window to read.

The four women, five women and the eldest grandmother who were sitting with them looked at each other in bewilderment. They could only ask Yin Ping in private: "Miss Shi, are you okay?"

Yin Ping smiled and said, "The Duke and his wife like Miss Ten very much."

If you can win the favor of your parents-in-law, your life will be half as good.

Everyone was relieved at this moment.

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