Chapter 876: The Prince of the Duke's Mansion vs. the Black Lotus Daughter 18
On April 18th, the sky is clear and the apricot blossoms are fragrant.
Zhao Wenyuan finally got Xu's approval and took people to the Ji family to propose marriage.
There were eight loads of betrothal gifts placed at the door. The mahogany boxes were of different sizes and very old. The red flowers wrapped on them were crudely made, crooked and out of shape.
He didn't have extra money to hire a matchmaker, so he asked an uncle from his clan to come, and together with a few young men from the same clan, they brought the betrothal gifts, and there was no fanfare or anything, so they just stood at the door of the Ji family's house.
The servant at the door had already gone to report. Zhao Dashan was getting impatient and kept complaining.
"You emptied your family to come and propose marriage, what's their attitude? We will be in-laws from now on, there's nothing to announce, they should have opened the door and welcomed us in long ago."
The betrothal gifts were placed on the ground. The young man who was carrying the betrothal gifts rubbed his hands and muttered, "What kind of expensive wife needs eight betrothal gifts to marry? I am so good at it. I got Cui'er pregnant in one go and she voluntarily followed me. I didn't ask for a single penny of betrothal gifts. It saves me money and worry!"
"My cousin, you've become stupid from studying so much that you can't even handle a woman. Thank you for sending so many good things to me!"
It’s not that Zhao Wenyuan had never thought about getting married with a baby, but he had only seen Ji Shiting very rarely these days, and there were maids and nannies around her, so he had no chance to make a move.
Besides, Ji Shiting was willful and capricious, and he was afraid that if he failed, he would make Ji Shiting angry, and then the marriage would be even more impossible.
So he was forced to agree to a bunch of Xu's requests, endure humiliation, and emptied his family's savings to buy the betrothal gifts. Anyway, Ji Shiting would definitely have a lot of dowry, and after enduring this period, he would not have to worry about having no money to spend in the future.
"Shut up! You can't say such nonsense anymore. The Ji family is a family of scholars. They are different from those village girls. They are very particular about etiquette. Just wait until you marry her into the family."
"Stop looking around, quickly lift up the betrothal gifts and stand still, someone is coming!"
After hearing the report from the doorman, Xu was very dissatisfied. She had already told Zhao Wenyuan that the betrothal gift had to be at least ten loads. This was the result of her repeated concessions, but in the end there were only eight loads.
She knew that Zhao Wenyuan was poor and didn't ask for much, but Zhao Wenyuan couldn't even meet this request. Now he was just being perfunctory. How could he be nice to Shi Ting in the future?
Zhao Wenyuan immediately went up to her, smiled honestly, and bowed to Xu.
"Mother-in-law, please accept my greetings. I have brought my elders to propose marriage. My mother is suddenly seriously ill and needs money to seek medical treatment, so the betrothal gifts are a little less, but my love for Miss Ji has not diminished at all. As long as I can marry Miss Ji, I am willing to empty my family property to win her smile."
After hearing this, Xu's expression looked a little better. Even if her mother-in-law was seriously ill and might pass away at any time, life would be like a god without the pressure of her mother-in-law.
The person proposing marriage stood at the door for a long time, and the neighbors all came out to watch the fun. Naturally, some people talked about the small betrothal gift and expressed disdain.
At this moment, Xu naturally wanted to protect Zhao Wenyuan's face, so she said loudly: "Mr. Zhao is infatuated with my daughter, which is the most rare thing. The Ji family is not the kind of family that despises the poor and loves the rich. When marrying off a daughter, the most important thing is to choose a son-in-law with good character, appearance, knowledge and talent."
"Mr. Zhao is a newly-appointed Jinshi, so he will have a bright future. And he is so sincere in his request for marriage, so this is truly a good match!"
Suddenly, the sound of music was heard from West Street, which sounded festive. Children rushed over to watch the fun and received red envelopes worth a few copper coins. They then shouted loudly that someone had come to propose marriage!
After turning the corner and arriving at the alley in front of Ji’s house, I saw a large expanse of red floating towards me from afar.
The leader was wearing a moon-white robe with a piece of mutton-fat jade hanging from his waist. The color was clear and transparent. He wore a jade crown on his head. He was handsome, elegant, and had unparalleled demeanor!
Shen Shen got off the horse. Behind him were several carriages decorated with red silk and filled with betrothal gifts. They were all brand new mahogany boxes, and there were a total of twenty-eight of them!
The servants carried the betrothal gifts and stood from the gate of Ji's house to the entrance of the alley. People on the entire street were alarmed.
Shen Shen thought Zhao Wenyuan was going to propose to Ji Yunhuan, so he immediately stepped forward and said, "Madam Ji, I am the only son of the third branch of the Shen family. My father is a doctor of the Imperial Censorate. I came here today to ask for the hand of your eldest daughter. I know that you like Mr. Zhao as your son-in-law. I am a step late, but please give me a chance, Madam Ji."
"Many years ago, my father returned to his hometown to worship his ancestors and brought your eldest daughter to the capital. Ten years have passed in the blink of an eye. I admire the eldest daughter of the Ji family and sincerely ask to marry her. I hope Madam will agree to this."
Zhao Wenyuan felt that Shen Shen might be a fool.
The Shen family is also a first-rate family, and many of them are serving as officials in the court. Censor Shen's official position is not high in the Shen family, but his son is promising. He won the third place in the imperial examination at a young age, and he could even marry a princess. But now he wants to marry the illegitimate daughter of a minor official. I'm afraid he's crazy!
Xu's face looked very ugly.
She had thought that after she was done with this busy period, she would pick an inconspicuous man for Ji Yunhuan to marry. Anyway, she couldn't marry better than Shi Ting. Ji Yunhuan was really a restless person. She was so quiet that she actually tricked Shen Shen into proposing marriage!
Ji Yunhuan is so bold that she secretly had sex with other men without telling her stepmother. What a vixen!
Xu forced a smile, "This happened suddenly, and I dare not make a decision on my own. Mr. Shen, please go back for now. We still need to consider this matter carefully."
Shen Shen was anxious, "How can we make long-term plans? Young Master Zhao has come to propose marriage, I can't wait any longer! If Madam has any other requirements, I can satisfy them. The Shen family will definitely satisfy the Ji family!"
The people watching the fun shouted: "Mr. Zhao is going to marry the daughter of the Ji family, and Mr. Shen is going to marry the daughter of a concubine. Isn't this just perfect!"
"That's right, the two sisters are engaged at the same time, and both are newly-appointed Jinshi this year. The Ji family really has good taste, and each of their sons-in-law is better than the other!"
"It's really strange. I've only heard that the second daughter of the Ji family is an outstanding pianist, but I've never heard anything good about the eldest daughter. I didn't expect that the Shen family would come to propose marriage with such fanfare. It shows that she is beautiful and intelligent, but she is usually humble and low-key, and gives in to her younger sister."
"The Shen family is a big family. Whether they are sent out or serve as officials in the capital, they have people to help them. Mr. Shen is a third place winner in the imperial examination. He must have a bright future. I have never heard of the Zhao family. The betrothal gift is small. It seems that his family is not high."
"Seriously speaking, the legitimate daughter didn't marry as well as the illegitimate daughter. It's all fate. The eldest daughter of the Ji family is just lucky. The betrothal gift is so grand. The betrothal gifts fill the entire street. It shows how much the Shen family values her."
Shen Shen bowed to the people around him with a smile on his face.
"So I misunderstood. Since Mr. Zhao and I are not seeking to marry the same person, and the eldest daughter of the Ji family is not married, then if I sincerely want to marry her, I should meet with Lord Ji and discuss it."
"Mr. Zhao, please go first. We will be brothers-in-law in the future. If you don't mind, I will host you some other day and invite three or five good friends to have a gathering."
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