On the long official road, Zhou Da and several fellow villagers followed behind the soldiers, with someone whipping them from time to time, kicking up clouds of dust.
The Fengtai Palace, which Emperor He Xin was building, was about two days' journey from Shitou Village. Zhou Da was in good health and didn't feel tired at all.
The main force stopped to rest in the suburbs at night. He leaned against a tree, missing his newlywed wife.
I wonder how Yun Qing is doing, and if she misses him.
Little did they know, in the Yun family of Shitou Village, Yun's father had already written the letter and paid someone to deliver it directly to Fengtai.
After writing the letter, the Yun family seemed to have resolved a major issue and returned to their usual lively atmosphere. Yun Qing also settled down at home with peace of mind.
However, Yun's father sighed at home every few days: "If I had known, I wouldn't have married my daughter to him. The fortune teller in town said he would have a bright future, and I believed him. I never thought he would be so unlucky."
Zhou Da was not a native of Shitou Village. Three years ago, he suddenly came to Shitou Village with a token and went to the village schoolteacher, saying that his family had suffered a disaster and he had settled here alone.
The Yun family is a well-known wealthy family in the village, and they own a sizable breeding farm.
As an outsider, Zhou Da had no land inherited from his ancestors, only his physical strength. In order to support himself, he worked as a laborer at the farm.
He was tall and handsome, and worked quickly, making him a popular choice among unmarried women in the village. However, many hesitated because they didn't have family support.
Yun's parents naturally noticed him as well. They saw that he was well-mannered and had excellent manners, and that he was a perfect son-in-law who had fallen from the sky. Although he did not have a family fortune, the Yun family was not short of money. However, after careful consideration, they decided to give up on the idea for the time being.
There's no other reason than that Yun Qing is extremely picky. Because she has the appearance of a fairy, the young men in the village have been swaying around her since she was a child, and naturally, she has become spoiled.
Yun Qing was already of marriageable age, but she looked down on all the families she had been asked to marry, either because they were ugly or because they were stingy and incompetent.
Therefore, even though matchmakers had worn down her doorstep, not a single one of them met her standards, leaving the Yun family anxious and helpless.
From the Yun family's perspective, it's understandable that she wants to find a husband who is perfect in every way, but in this poor and remote area, it's extremely difficult.
Zhou worked at the breeding farm during the day and went to the mountain to dig up some medicinal herbs before dawn. In his spare time, he would go to the town to sell them. In just over two years, he saved up a lot of money and bought a piece of land on the east side of the village and built two houses.
As a result, the village's young girls and widows turned their attention to Zhou Da. Although he had no family fortune, he was good at making money, which was better than many other people.
When Zhou Da returned from town that day, he saw a lot of people standing in front of his house from afar. He thought his house had been robbed, so he rushed over in a hurry.
Pushing through the crowd, I saw two matchmakers standing there.
When the villagers saw him arrive, they didn't disperse. Instead, they sat in twos and threes on the nearby stones and started eating sunflower seeds.
Despite the stares of so many people, Zhou Da's expression remained unchanged. He asked with a stern face, "What brings you two to my house today?"
Matchmaker Zhang spoke first: "I've come to your door today because I have some great news to tell you. What do you think of the second daughter of the Wang family? She's eighteen this year and is incredibly beautiful. Her parents only have two daughters and are looking for a husband for her. If you're willing, wouldn't you get two parents for free? This is a really good thing!"
Seeing that she was talking so enthusiastically, the matchmaker Wang hurriedly chimed in, "What I want to tell you is also a great thing. Madam Chen in the next alley is a recent widow with no children. She's also quite wealthy. If you're willing, as long as you help her take care of the elderly people she left behind, you'll get a share of the houses and land."
Zhou Da thought it was someone else. He knew these two people. When he drove his oxcart to town to sell medicinal herbs, they were often the ones who would hitch a ride with him. They would always stare at his face for a long time.
However, he hasn't thought about marriage yet, and he hasn't made a name for himself, so why should he drag someone down with him?
Zhou Dali promptly declined, saying, "Thank you both for your kindness, but I'm not planning to get married yet, so I'm troubling you to make this trip."
Upon hearing the rejection, Zhang, the matchmaker, who had been smiling, immediately turned serious: "Young man, listen to me, you can't be too picky. Look at the girl from the Yun family in the west of the village, she's as beautiful as an angel and her family is well-off, but because she's so picky, she's still not married."
Zhou Da didn't pay attention to the meaning behind those words; he only heard the phrase "the Yun family's daughter" and "unmarried."
Several images flashed through my mind in an instant:
Two months ago, he was resting by the river in the farm when he saw a girl sitting on a rock on the other side of the river.
He thought, this must be the daughter of the Yun family owner that they often talked about, her name is Yun Qing.
The girl was truly beautiful, with rosy cheeks and a light green dress, sitting there with a delicate and youthful appearance.
None of the beauties he had seen in the capital could compare to her.
Zhou held his breath, afraid of being discovered by her. But after a while, Yun Qing took off her shoes and socks and put her feet in the river to play in the water.
Those jade-like feet were small and lovely, with fair and rounded toes like pearls. Water flowed over them, and they shimmered in the sunlight.
As Zhou Da watched, a surge of anger welled up inside him, and his mouth inexplicably went dry. Recalling that he had just washed his face with river water, his face flushed red instantly.
Although he was a notorious playboy in the capital, this was the first time he had ever seen a woman's feet.
Zhou Da had once heard that if an unmarried woman's feet were seen by someone, she would have to marry that person.
Although it was an accident and Yun Qing was unaware of it, he felt that as a man, he had a responsibility to take charge.
The next morning, Zhou Da, sporting panda eyes, took out several silver notes and some jewelry from the bottom cabinet and went to the Yun family with high expectations.
To everyone's surprise, a crowd had gathered at the Yun family's door, with several elderly women discussing things like "matchmaking" and "arranging a marriage"...
Zhou Da felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over his head, and his fiery heart instantly turned cold.
He gave a bitter laugh and turned to walk back. It was wishful thinking on his part; with Yun Qing's beauty, how could a lonely man like him possibly have a chance?
Zhou Da walked quickly and naturally didn't hear the old women say again, "With such high standards, she'll never get married."
...
Lately, Yunqing has been hearing a lot of people from the neighborhood talking about someone, describing him as something extraordinary, which has aroused her curiosity.
At the dinner table, he asked, "Dad, Mom, who is this Zhou Da that Xiao Cui and the others next door are talking about? I've never heard of him before."
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