One was Qian Yulan, the wife of the grain shop owner, and the other was Liu Yunwan, the elder sister of landlord Liu. She divorced her ex-husband five years ago and returned to her parents' home. She has not remarried since.
"Sister Yan, we're sorry to have kept you waiting. We're a little late."
"Yes, we were delayed on the way, I'm so sorry." The two of them, their faces slightly sweaty and panting, sat down and said to Yan Xia.
"Oh dear, why are you being so formal? I just arrived too. Look how out of breath you are, you must be exhausted. Come on, have some water to soothe your throats." The pastries and drinks hadn't been served yet; there was only a pot of tea on the table.
Yan Xia poured a glass for each of them.
The tea was served warm. It had been steeped in boiling water for 15 minutes early in the morning, then the tea leaves were filtered and poured into a teapot, which was placed on each table in the private rooms on the second floor.
This kind of tea isn't worth much; it's just for the taste.
"Gulp gurgle—"
The two women were indeed very thirsty. They did not take a carriage, as they both lived in the city and their families lived close by. After receiving the letter yesterday, they came together at the appointed time this morning. They walked from the middle of the city to the top of the city wall, and were constantly exposed to the sun. Even though the temperature was not too high in the morning, they still sweated profusely.
After they finished drinking water and caught their breath, Yan Xia spoke again.
"I'm sure you two sisters have seen what I wrote in yesterday's letter. My youngest daughter-in-law's older brother, the one who delivers goods to my shop, Yuanshan, you've met him twice. He's getting on in years, and his family is very anxious about it. I heard you two sisters mention that your family has a niece who is ready to be married, so I wanted to ask you in person if you could help them get together and have them meet."
"Don't worry, if Yuanshan gets married, I'll make him the manager of my shop, in charge of transportation. I'll make sure your niece doesn't suffer. After all, delivering goods keeps her so busy she's practically invisible, and I can't bear to see her like that. You know how much I love my two daughters-in-law. Yuanshan is, after all, my younger daughter-in-law's brother. If he gets married, we'll be family, and our relationship will be even stronger. Isn't that wonderful?"
After Yan Xia finished speaking, she carefully observed the expressions of the two people.
The two ladies in front of her were both of impeccable character and personality; otherwise, she wouldn't have become friends with them.
In particular, the fact that both of them were literate proves that their families were not the kind that favored sons over daughters. Girls raised in such families with excellent family traditions are bound to be outstanding.
When it comes to marriage, it's not just about the girl herself, but also about her family.
Just like Shi Xiaohe's family, it cast a huge shadow over Yan Xia.
This is why Yan Xia didn't go to a matchmaker.
Ancient matchmakers were so unreliable; they would make introductions without any understanding of the situation.
If even the matchmakers in the village who are familiar with each other are like this, what about the matchmakers who are strangers in the town?
“I think this is a good idea. My two nieces are both of marriageable age, one is fifteen and the other is sixteen. My family is from a neighboring county. If we want to arrange a marriage, I have to go there in person,” Qian Yulan said first.
“I live at my parents’ house. As you know, I’m divorced a long time ago. My parents only have one niece of marriageable age. She’s seventeen this year. My eldest brother dotes on her. He had three sons before finally getting this precious daughter. He can’t bear to let her get married, so he’s kept her until now. If she doesn’t get married next year, she’ll be an old maid. But, Sister Yan, how old is that Yuanshan you mentioned?” Liu Yunwan asked.
“Yuanshan is sixteen this year. Since your two older sisters agree, let’s set a time for the two families to meet and get to know each other. How about we do it at my house?” Yan Xia replied with a smile.
She was well aware of the situation of both families, and that she was more than a match for Yuanshan.
Despite one family owning a grain shop and the other being a landlord, their lives were comparable to a comfortable middle-class life in modern times. The two of them didn't come to her shop very often, only twice a month, spending only one or two taels of silver each time.
They can't be considered rich.
If Yuanshan becomes the transport manager, she will pay him at least three taels of silver a month. When he gets married, she will give him a gift. She has bought up an entire alley at the end of the city. She will choose one of the houses from the alley and give it to Yuanshan to live in.
Then we can bring my mother-in-law to town, so Jing Shui can visit her from time to time.
But she didn't say it aloud.
She was preparing a surprise for her daughter-in-law.
“That sounds good. Let’s do it the day after tomorrow. I’ll go back to my parents’ home tomorrow and bring my two nieces over.” Qian Yulan’s family is from a village in a neighboring county. Her father, Qian Chengfeng, was an old scholar who had never achieved official rank. He was only forty years old when he got married.
Qian Yulan's mother's family was even poorer. She married her father at the age of fifteen, and the two were twenty-five years apart in age.
The year after their marriage, she gave birth to Qian Yulan, and three years later, she gave birth to Qian Yulan's younger brother, Qian Yuzhu.
Qian Chengfeng makes a living by writing letters and copying books for others. Due to his age, he is in poor health and lacks energy, so he cannot do farm work or teach.
Qian Yulan's mother was the main breadwinner in the family, and due to years of hard work, she passed away at the age of thirty.
Qian Yulan's younger brother was only eleven years old at the time. After her mother passed away, she married at the age of fourteen to support her brother and her frail father. Fortunately, she was quite beautiful when she was young, and since her father was a student of the imperial examination and she was literate, she was a golden opportunity for the merchants.
When they met, the grain shop owner took a liking to her at first sight and married her.
Although Qian Yulan's life is much more affluent than before, the shop's business is getting worse and worse.
Several grain shops opened one after another in the town.
Her family's grain shop revenue plummeted.
Her monthly allowance of six taels of silver was reduced to three taels, one of which she used to buy pastries, since her children all loved the pastries from Yanxia's shop.
Qian Yulan was also a loving mother.
“My two nieces on my mother’s side also know some characters. My father passed away a few years ago, otherwise they could know even more. As you know, my father was an old scholar. Let me be frank with you, Sister Yan. Since my father passed away, my family’s shop business has been bad and we can’t help my family anymore. Actually, I’m very anxious. If I could marry you, Sister Yan, I would be so happy. It’s better to marry someone from the mountains than someone from the same village.”
Thinking of her family's situation, Qian Yulan spoke up again.
Her brother has five children.
The three sons are already married, the two daughters are still unmarried, and there are two grandsons and one granddaughter.
With three daughters-in-law, the family has more than ten people. Even with four strong laborers, they can't save much money at the end of the year.
The bride price nearly emptied my brother's pockets, and if anyone got sick, they couldn't save a single penny.
The grain they grow is barely enough to make ends meet.
With her help, life was a little better, but only to the point where they could eat their fill. She was married and couldn't always send money to support her family. When she went back, she would just buy some meat and vegetables, and bring some clothes and pastries.
Occasionally, on major holidays, he would take out three or four taels from his secret stash of money.
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