If her niece could marry Yuanshan, that would be a great stroke of luck, Qian Yulan thought. Yan Xia is so rich, even if she only gave a little bit of her money to that Yuanshan guy, the young couple would still live a good life.
Qian Yulan was naturally very happy to have the opportunity to help her family.
Who wouldn't want their niece to marry well?
“The day after tomorrow is fine too. My home is nearby, and I live at my parents' house, so it can be anytime. Sister Yan, let’s set it for the day after tomorrow. I’ll go home tonight and talk to my older brother. He’ll definitely agree. Everyone in town knows you, Manager Yan, haha. Although my family has a hundred or so acres of land, we’re just getting by. The money I spend is all from my dowry that my deceased parents gave me years ago. This money will run out sooner or later. I feel bad about always living at my parents’ house. If my niece can marry Yuanshan, then our family will be able to climb up to your level.”
Liu Yunwan chimed in, laughing heartily.
Both of them have a generous and straightforward personality.
Everyone wants to climb the social ladder; it's human nature, but not everyone can say it so openly.
Yan Xia really liked their personalities.
"Alright, it's settled then. The day after tomorrow morning, bring your niece to my residence. I'll have Yuanshan and his mother wait for you. If it works out, all will be well. If not, we can have some pastries, stroll around, and chat in the courtyard as a small get-together." As soon as Yan Xia finished speaking, Xiao Ji brought up pastries and drinks.
After agreeing on a time, the three of them ate pastries, drank beverages, and chatted for a while.
The two stood up, ready to say goodbye, but Yan Xia pulled them to a restaurant for lunch before they went home separately.
"Huh? Where's my dad?" After returning home, Yan Xia went to the first courtyard to check on Yan Hecheng.
They came up empty-handed.
There was no one in the main room, the bedroom, or the courtyard.
She casually grabbed one of the servants and asked.
"Master, the old master went out after lunch. The fish in the tank died. He said he would buy a few more and asked me not to tell you. He said if you ask, just say he went for a walk," the servant answered honestly.
Yan Xia's face darkened.
No matter how big the tank is, it's only about half a person's width. How could the fish not die?
Unlike modern fish tanks, it doesn't have equipment for year-round oxygenation and constant temperature.
So it turns out her cheapskate father was pulling the strings here.
She said that the fish looked different every time she looked at them, sometimes getting bigger and sometimes getting smaller.
More than one group of relationships have ended.
What a ruthless killer of grass carp!
Yan Xia secretly complained.
Oh well, this is all my dad's hobbies, so let him be. Town is boring enough as it is, and if we don't let him fish, what if he gets depressed?
Yan Xia shrugged and strode away.
She went back to her daughter-in-law's three-courtyard house to coax her granddaughter.
At this moment, Yan Hecheng was carrying a basin of grass carp he had just bought on his way home.
"Ouch--"
As he turned the corner of the alley, he bumped straight into a woman. Because Yan Hecheng was carrying a basin, the fish and water in the basin were thrown into the air upon impact, and then fell like raindrops.
It hit the woman who had fallen to the ground.
The woman cried out in agony.
Startled, Yan Hecheng, who was holding an empty basin, froze on the spot.
I don't know what to do.
"Yes, I'm so sorry, madam. I wasn't paying attention. I'm really sorry. Are you hurt?" After a long while, Yan Hecheng finally reacted. He put down the basin and helped the woman up.
He then apologized to the woman, who was soaking wet, with a sense of guilt.
"You old hag, uh, I, I'm fine, my clothes are just soaked, and my face still hurts a bit, ouch—" After the woman got up, she wanted to give Yan Hecheng a good scolding, but before she could say the word "death," she swallowed her words back.
Because she recognized Yan Hecheng.
Everyone in town knew about Yan's Pastry Shop, where the pastries were extremely expensive. A bag of peach shortbread cost half a tael of silver, which she couldn't bear to buy. If it weren't for the free tasting event, she wouldn't have dared to step inside.
With just one bite, she fell in love with the taste of the peach shortbread.
The fact that she wanted to eat but couldn't afford it made her extremely upset.
The woman's name was Sun Xiangxiang, and she was forty years old.
She became a widow at a very young age.
They lived in the town center, in a house with only three rooms, housing a family of seven.
Sun Xiangxiang has two sons, both of whom are married and have had a child, both boys.
The two grandsons still live in the same room as their parents.
At night, it's inconvenient for couples to have sex.
Because the house only had three rooms, the outhouse and kitchen could only be built with wooden planks in a yard that was only wide enough for two people. In winter, the toilet was drafty and made it cold to use.
Yan Hecheng often went to the shop to help out. When Sun Xiangxiang passed by, she would always pay attention to whether the shop had any free tasting activities. Naturally, she remembered Yan Hecheng and knew that he was the biological father of the owner of Yan's Pastry Shop.
Yan Hecheng was already over fifty years old and originally looked very old, but money always makes people healthy. He was wearing brocade clothes and jade pendants, and his hair was tied up high. Due to months of nourishment, his hair had become much blacker. Not only that, but Yan Xia forced him to brush his teeth and apply face cream.
Yan Hecheng's skin has improved a lot; the cracks are gone, and he looks like a wealthy old man.
For a widow
She's absolutely captivating.
The news of Yan Hecheng's divorce had already spread far and wide.
Sun Xiangxiang naturally knew this as well.
She saw how much Yan Hecheng cared about her.
His face flushed red.
Then, using her index and middle fingers together, she brushed the stray hairs from her temples behind her ears.
"Your face is a little red, cough cough—I guess you were slapped by the fish tail. Let me take you to the clinic. I'm so sorry for what happened today. I wasn't paying attention when I turned the corner and bumped into you. I'm really sorry, cough cough."
When Yan Hecheng saw Sun Xiangxiang's cheeks turn red, he assumed she had been slapped in the face by a falling fish.
He coughed nervously.
"It does hurt a bit. Oh, my clothes are ruined. What a pity. I've only worn them twice. This was a birthday gift from my husband who died many years ago. Sigh..."
Sun Xiangxiang's skirt was torn by pebbles after she fell to the ground.
She knelt down with a pained expression, stroking the hem of her skirt, looking pitiful.
Sun Xiangxiang isn't ugly, but she has a mature, middle-aged look.
Her jet-black hair was simply tied up with a silver hairpin, but because of the fall, the hairpin fell out of her hair. Without support, her hair fell to her waist, covering the flaws in her face. In addition, she was wearing a plain dress, and her cheeks were slightly flushed.
He doesn't look forty.
She looks more like someone around thirty-five.
Sun Xiangxiang deliberately said that she was a widow. Her clothes were obviously faded and had been worn for many years. But Sun Xiangxiang's words made her seem like a precious gift.
This made Yan Hecheng feel even more guilty and ashamed.
As a straight man from ancient times, how could he possibly tell how long a woman's clothes had been worn?
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