Bai Ying seized the opportunity to say, "That's right, Miss. I don't want to be like my sisters at home, marrying someone and then having to serve their whole family. I have the same idea as Bai Guo."
Xu Zhi shook her head and said, "Sisters, in this life, there are some things you have to experience. Otherwise, how can life be considered complete?"
Bai Shu carried in a medicine box and said with a smile, "Miss, Bai Wei and I have already discussed it. We will follow our madam to become doctors in the future. Madam said that we are not skilled enough yet. I feel that we don't even have enough time to study. How can we have time to find husbands and get married?"
Seeing that none of her older sisters intended to get married, Xu Zhi didn't press the issue further. She said, "Sisters, there's no rush. Let's take our time and find someone suitable to marry."
Zheng Boyuan's health was improving, and with the weather getting warmer, Xu Zhi discussed the departure date with him.
As soon as Zheng Boyuan's transfer order came down, Xu Yao came with her chubby daughter in her arms.
Jue'er inherited the good looks of both Xu Yao and Lin Zhining. She was a fair-skinned porcelain doll, and at nine months old, she was at the perfect age to play. Since arriving at the Zheng residence, her favorite person was Zheng Boyuan. Whenever Zheng Boyuan was around, her eyes would be fixed on him. Later, as she grew a little older and started to want people around, she loved to stretch out her arms and ask Zheng Boyuan to hold her. This made Lin Zhining quite jealous. She was clearly the daughter she had raised with all her heart and soul, yet all she wanted was to be held by her ninth aunt's husband.
Miaozhou doesn't seem to be too far from Gaoqing. Xu Yao sat on the kang (a heated brick bed), looking at the geography book on the kang table, and said with great interest, "I've heard that Miaozhou's hairy crabs are very famous. When autumn comes, our Jue'er will be able to walk by herself. How about I take her to find you guys to eat hairy crabs?"
Xu Zhi said happily, "That's certainly good, but the journey is long and Jue'er is still young. Is it alright to keep taking her around like this?"
Xu Yao laughed and said, "It's fine or not, we've been sitting in the carriage the whole way. She's been eating, sleeping, and playing. Isn't that how it is wherever we go? I have my wet nurse with me, how could we not get to Miaozhou?"
The two sisters chatted and laughed for a while, and then Xu Yao brought up her brother's marriage.
Xu Hua had not yet been engaged, and Ning was holding back this time so that Xu Hua could gain more leverage in the imperial examinations for her marriage. Although it is said that men should marry below their station and women should marry above their station, marriage is often the most reliable alliance, and many people use marriage to increase their own benefits.
Thinking of the complaints Ning had made to her after the exam results came out, Xu Yao smiled and whispered to Xu Zhi, "Our second master has worked so hard for so long, but he still didn't pass the exam. He even cried in secret. He thought no one else knew, but I already knew."
Xu Hua is a kind-hearted person with a gentle personality, which is probably inherited from the Crown Prince, making him somewhat indifferent to worldly affairs.
Ning always said that she must find Xu Hua a wife with a fiery temper, otherwise, with his gentle nature, wouldn't he be bullied?
Xu Zhi didn't say anything, she just covered her mouth and laughed along with Xu Yao.
Xu Yao continued, "My mother originally had her eye on a young lady from a prestigious family, but unfortunately, the girl was a bit too soft-hearted. My mother pondered for a long time but couldn't make a decision. Ninth Sister, where in the capital can you find someone like our cousin-in-law?"
Zhao Sixing barely made it onto the list of successful candidates in the imperial examinations. When his aunt Xu Shao returned to report the good news to Wu Shi, she said that her daughter-in-law was a lucky wife. After she married into the family, not only did they soon have a son, but they also had a successful candidate in the imperial examinations.
It was no easy feat for Zhao Sixing to pass the imperial examination. He was physically weak and had to stay in the examination hall for nine consecutive days, which most people couldn't endure. To help Zhao Sixing persevere, Zhou Junhong started having him practice horse stance every morning very early on. Over the past six months, Zhao Sixing's body has become much stronger. After leaving the examination hall, he could even get into the carriage by himself. After returning home, he paid his respects to his elders before going back to his own courtyard to wash up and rest.
Xu Zhi hadn't heard anything about Xu Shao's family for quite some time, so she asked Xu Yao, "Fourth sister, have you seen Auntie recently?"
Xu Yao said, "Yes, last time I went back, my aunt was there to deliver a 100-day gift. She looked much better than before. I even told my mother that my aunt seemed different every time I saw her these past few days."
Xu Zhi thought of how her aunt was becoming more and more proud in her husband's family because of her daughter-in-law, Zhou Junhong, and said with a smile, "We really have to thank Grandfather and Uncle for helping to find such a capable wife for Cousin Xing."
“I’ve been in Gaoqing for the past two years, so I don’t know much about my family. Tell me quickly, how did our cousin-in-law, the daughter of a military family, manage to do such a good job?”
Xu Zhi laughed and said, "Oh dear, I don't talk about people behind their backs. I'm not talking to you."
Xu Yao poked Xu Zhi's cheek with her hand and said, "You, you've already said so much to me, and now you're not going to say anything more. Aren't you just keeping me hanging? Even if you don't say it, I know that I can't stand up to my cousin-in-law's way of doing things, so I'll just confront her head-on."
It was rare for Xu Zhi to joke around with her sisters like this, so she laughed and said, "You already know all this, and you still made me tell you."
The two were arguing when Bai Ying came in and said, "Miss, our Fifth Aunt is here. She just entered through the second gate."
Xu Tong has been out of confinement for more than two months. As soon as she finished confinement, she started coming to Xu Zhi's place, visiting every three to five days, even more frequently than Xu Zhi herself went back to her parents' home.
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