Chapter 142
When Mr. Lu first appeared in Xiaxi Village, he did not attract much attention from the villagers. It was not until craftsmen came to measure and clean up in front of the Gu family's house and learned that a new household had settled in the village that it caused discussion.
But not many, because by this time, the villagers of Xiaxi, whether old locals or new immigrants, had become accustomed to it.
As the ferry crossing at Dayu Lin Road becomes more and more prosperous, more and more new households from all over the area have voluntarily requested to move to Xiaxi Village. Now, seeing the craftsmen and their assistants coming to clean up the wasteland, it is estimated that new households have settled in the village.
Besides, it was July, the time for harvest preparations. There was a lot of work to do, and everyone was busy in the fields. No one had the energy to come and take a look or gossip. Only occasionally, during the slack season, would they ask, "Hey, who are those people who dared to build a house in front of the Gu family?"
Nowadays, people in the village are less and less afraid of the miasma. The new houses built by people coming to Xiaxi Village are getting closer and closer to the miasma forest, but few of them are close to the Gu family's on the edge.
In the end, the psychological shadow caused by hundreds of years of harm to people cannot be completely eliminated unless the miasma and black fog in the island forest no longer emerge. Before that, those who do not have the ability like the Gu family and the Li family and consider their own personal safety first should live a safe life.
Therefore, when new residents choose their homestead, they usually use the Gu family’s small house as the boundary and move it further back.
Anyway, it’s not far from Dayu Forest Road, so I’m willing to walk a few more steps.
So Lu Yilin settled in Xiaxi Village. What surprised everyone first was that he chose a piece of wasteland so close to the Gu family's cottage, even closer to Dayu Forest than the Gu family's cottage.
"I heard it was a young man named Lu."
"It's Mr. Lu, I've seen him before. He's very tall and looks like a foreigner, a bit like a southern barbarian."
"I heard from Village Chief Wu that this is a family from our Great Sheng Nation that fled to Southeast Asia. Now there is only one child left in the family, and his parents asked him to come back and settle down."
"Then there's no need to choose the place in front of Mr. Gu's house. Didn't anyone tell him about the miasma?"
"Exactly. You came back here just to live a peaceful life, right? Living there is the highest risk. What's the point?"
"Hehe, I heard that it was that Mr. Lu who came to our village and saw our Mr. Gu and fell in love with him at first sight."
"He's got his eye on Mr. Gu?"
"ah!"
"Why choose Master Gu when there are so many other people to choose from? Who is Master Gu? Lady Fu has almost suggested several marriages for Master Gu, right? She didn't like any of them. How can this young man Lu think he can succeed?"
"I think Mr. Lu is quite handsome, even though he's dark-skinned. Who knows, maybe it will work out!"
"That's right. His house is built near the Gu family's. It's close to the water and the building is convenient. Maybe if we meet more often, it will work out."
Lu Yilin, who was close to the water, was sitting under the osmanthus tree outside the door of the Gu family's small house. She smelled the osmanthus fragrance coming from the tree, held a small flower in her arms, slowly sipped the autumn tea, and from time to time looked at the craftsmen busy at work on the homestead in front.
At the beginning of the year, when he followed the Shen family's merchant ship to Southeast Asia, he asked Gu Ran for a sum of money, followed the Shen family's merchant team to several foreign countries, compared the goods of several countries, and on the return journey, after falling into the sea and escaping, he regained his male body, traveled from one foreign country to another, bought the goods he found with silver, and sneaked into the merchant ship coming to the Dasheng Dynasty before arriving at Quangang.
It was with the large sum of money he earned from buying the imported goods that he changed his identity in Yongchang County and used the name Lu Yilin again. After returning to Xiaxi Village, he dealt with the village chief Wu and bought the wasteland half an acre away from the front of the Gu family's cottage as a homestead for building his own house.
Since he is Mr. Lu, he cannot just live in the small house shamelessly. He must have his own house.
The house is not big, just the same size as the small house. Even the layout drawn for the craftsmen is exactly the same as the Gu family's small house.
So it was estimated that it would be completed in one or two months, and during this time, he rented a house from the Li family.
The Li family lives close to the Gu family, and the big house of Li Ji's family is usually sparsely populated with many empty rooms. When they heard that the villagers were new settlers in the village, they were also willing to help.
So Lu Yilin found a place to stay temporarily. After living there for a month or two, she could move into her new house. By that time, her skin, which had been dried out by the hot weather in Southeast Asia, would have been well-maintained, and she would be able to find a lucky woman to come and propose marriage to her.
When she thought of this, Lu Yilin couldn't help but curl up the corners of her mouth and smiled.
It’s great, I’m going to have a wife soon.
Lu Yilin, who had returned from the South Seas after weathering the storm, had regained the stable life on land in the past few days and missed it terribly.
Just as she was about to savor the autumn breeze and golden osmanthus, she saw Gu Ran wearing a tight-fitting dress, carrying a bamboo basket, as if he was going into the mountains. She immediately put down the small flower, stood up, and smiled, "Second Mother!"
Gu Ran glanced at him and took the little flower from his hand, "Little Flower, be good. Grandma is going out hunting to find delicious food for you. You and your mother stay home and guard the house!"
After seeing Xiaohua slip in, he closed the door and locked it.
"Going into the mountains?" Lu Yilin asked.
Gu Ran nodded at him, pretending not to be familiar with him, and strode towards Dayu Lin with his head held high.
Lu Yilin smiled, took two quick steps, and quickly caught up with her: "Second Mother, can I help you carry the bamboo basket?"
"Need not."
"So, what do you want to hunt when you go into Dayu Forest? I'll help you?"
"Need not."
"I'm quite skilled in martial arts and have even fought pirates on ships. If you have a big beast that Second Lady likes, just let me know."
"Need not."
…
Seeing Mr. Lu happily following Mr. Gu into the Dayu Forest, the construction workers and other villagers shook their heads and said, "Look at Mr. Lu, he's just trying to please a cold stove!"
"Who said he and Mr. Gu can succeed?"
"I'm telling you, if you put too much effort into it, the cold stove might become a hot one!"
"I just want to see how long Mr. Lu can be so attentive!"
In the Dayu forest, they walked into the shallow forest area and then into the bamboo forest. Lu Langjun, who had been walking behind Gu Dongjia, looked around and saw that there was no one around. He took a few quick steps and held Gu Dongjia's hand firmly.
Gu Ran, who was originally walking forward, was pulled back two steps: "Lu Yilin!"
"There's no one left in this forest."
Lu Yilin quickly explained, walked forward, steadied Gu Ran's body, and smiled happily: "Look for yourself, is there no one here?"
Gu Ran looked around carefully and breathed a sigh of relief.
Lu Yilin had just arrived in Xiaxi Village. She was not familiar with him, but she had to pretend to get to know him slowly in front of everyone. Only when she finally proposed, got engaged, and held a wedding banquet would everything be considered a natural progression.
Otherwise, why would Mr. Gu, who is always picky, fall in love with Mr. Lu who just returned from Southeast Asia?
"Ran Ran came into the woods at this time, hoping to find red mushrooms?"
Gu Ran nodded, "We also need to catch some bamboo rats, pheasants, rabbits, etc., and you can help me send them to the Lin family, Li family, Shen family, Lu family, etc., so that they can be familiar with each other."
He was already familiar with these families. If he was not careful when interacting with them, he might make some mistakes. It would be better to show up by helping her deliver the holiday gifts. In the future, when talking about this family, he would just say a few more words, and he would not be suspicious just because the newcomers said inappropriate words.
"Okay." Lu Yilin agreed immediately, took the initiative and took Gu Ran's hand and slowly searched in the Dayu forest.
It was a hot July day, and the bright sunlight filtered through the gaps between the branches and sprinkled on the two of them.
Gu Ran looked at his hands tightly clasped with Lu Yilin's, narrowed his eyes slightly, and couldn't help but curl up the corners of his mouth.
Mr. Lu is still the best.
She has been in Dasheng Dynasty for so many years, but this is the first time she holds hands with someone!
Mr. Lu, who was leading the way, was also very excited.
Mr. Lu is still the best.
Otherwise, how could he not be able to hold Ranran's little hand like he is now, as long as no one sees!
So this time after entering the mountains, they hunted two wild animals for each family and brought them back. Then Gu Ran took Lu Langjun, who helped carry the animals, and went to each family to identify the people.
Within three days, several families familiar with Gu Ran knew that this newcomer to the village, Mr. Lu, had good cooking skills and had helped Gu Er Niang a lot.
The sharp-eyed Second Sister-in-law Lin came to visit the next day and deliberately asked, "Second Mother, you are very familiar with that Mr. Lu!"
"It's okay. After all, I was the first person he met when he came to Xiaxi Village on his first day!" Gu Ran smiled.
"Wow, that's rare!"
"Why is it so rare?"
"No matter if they are from our village or hunters from outside the village, even those from the Li and Liang families, I have never seen you bring them into Dayu Forest. But today, you are actually going into the forest with Mr. Lu to look for wild animals. Isn't that common?" Mrs. Lin asked.
Gu Ran was stunned by the question for a moment, paused, and continued to laugh: "Yes, if you hadn't told me, I wouldn't have noticed it."
"So? Are you, right about her?" Mrs. Lin bumped into Gu Ran's shoulder, sounding meaningful.
Gu Ran touched his chin and reflected, "Maybe, yes?"
"If that's true, that's great." Second Sister Lin quickly patted her shoulder. "It's rare for our Second Mother to find someone she likes. You're not young anymore. If so, let's get the wedding done quickly."
"It's too early. He doesn't even have a house yet. Even if he does, we have to wait until his house is completed."
"Too."
So from that day on, Lin Ersao began to look forward to Lu Langjun's house being completed as soon as possible.
But Mr. Lu is not in a hurry.
There was no rush, and before the house was completed, he had to get acquainted not only with the people in the village, but also with the guys on the other side of the orange grove, and even with the He family in the county town, the Yang family in the provincial capital, and even the Mai family.
Because what they announced to the public was that after going into the woods with Gu Dongjia, Gu Dongjia discovered that Lu Langjun was a martial arts expert, so he hired him as a close bodyguard.
The reason for this decision is, first, that such a relationship will make it convenient for the two to live together after they get married; second, it will also be convenient for Gu Ran to have someone to protect him when he goes out; third, the orange grove is now operating well and can make a living independently without Gu Ran, and there is no need for Lu Langjun to intervene in anything, and it will also prevent those sensitive Li guards in the orange grove from smelling something wrong.
So before Lu Langjun's house was built, he followed Gu Erniang to Dunzi Island, the county town, and the provincial capital, appearing particularly attentive. In the eyes of others, it was natural that Lu Langjun, the new arrival in Xiaxi Village, pleased the Gu Dongjia in their village very much.
Of course, they were not wrong in their guess. Mr. Lu was indeed very happy and Mr. Gu was extremely happy.
As soon as the Lu family's house was completed, after inviting several familiar families to a house-warming banquet, Mr. Lu went to find Fu Po to propose marriage.
When she heard that they were looking for Mr. Gu to propose marriage, Mrs. Fu was a little reluctant at first. However, she heard that the new Mr. Gu from Xiaxi Village was being attentive to Mr. Gu in public and in private, and she hadn't heard any complaints from Mr. Gu. So, considering Mr. Lu's two taels of silver as a running fee and Mr. Lu's handsome appearance...
Mrs. Fu glanced at Mr. Lu for a few times and found that this man who came back from Nanyang looked somewhat familiar. Who did he look like?
But Mrs. Fu didn't remember it for a moment.
"Lu Lang, where were your family originally from? Do you have any distant relatives?"
"Why does Po Fu ask this?"
"I think you look like a man I've met before. I'm afraid he's been introduced to someone through a matchmaker. I can't remember which family it was, but he might be a distant relative of your Lu family."
Because she had been covering up for almost two months, her originally wheat-colored skin gradually turned white. Lu Yilin now looked different from those young men who went to Southeast Asia, and she gradually regained her delicate and good looks.
Hearing what Grandma Fu said, Lu Yilin's expression changed slightly, but she quickly regained her composure: "People are similar. Grandma Fu, you must have seen a man who looks a bit like me. It's not surprising."
"But someone as handsome as you, Fu Po has been a matchmaker for more than ten years, she will definitely not forget you, how come she can't remember you?" Fu Po was surprised.
"Well, you can take your time to think about it. Right now, the important thing is to help me go to the Gu family in advance." Lu Yilin added another one or two taels of silver.
Mrs. Fu sighed and pretended to be reluctant to accept the silver: "Okay, since you are so sincere, I will run this trip for you."
Mrs. Fu thought it would fail again, but when she was drinking tea under the osmanthus tree and trying to find out what Mrs. Gu was thinking, Mrs. Gu glanced shyly at the house in front of her and then asked, "Did Mr. Lu really ask Mrs. Fu to come and propose marriage?"
"How could this be false?" Grandma Fu was secretly surprised. Could this marriage be successful?
"Second Mother, you've seen Mr. Lu's appearance yourself. As for his character and personality, you live in the same village as him and you know him better than I do. He's a good man. What do you think of this marriage?"
"good."
Mrs. Fu opened her mouth slightly in shock. This marriage actually happened.
After a moment of daze, Grandma Fu was overjoyed. "Oh, it's really good that you agreed. Mr. Lu will definitely be very happy!"
Mrs. Fu stood up happily and was about to tell the good news to Mr. Lu in front, but she happened to see Lu Yilin coming out from the back door of the house, looking towards them and nodding slightly.
When Mrs. Fu saw Mr. Lu from afar, she paused and was shocked again. She looked at Lu Yilin and then at Gu Ran, and she remembered why Mr. Lu looked familiar.
This eyebrow, this figure, "Um, Mr. Gu, do you think that Mr. Lu..."
"I feel that." Gu Ran's eyelids jumped. From Fu Po's surprise and suspicion, he guessed what she was going to say. He interrupted her and sighed softly, "I just feel that Mr. Lu is a bit like Liu Niang at times, so..."
Mrs. Fu was speechless. That's right, she just thought of this young man Lu, and he looked a little like Liu Niang.
"Liu Niang can't come back, but he looks a bit like her, and he just happened to come back from Nanyang. If I marry him, wouldn't it be like I can keep Liu Niang?" Gu Ran said with pretended sadness.
It turned out that Mr. Gu agreed to this marriage for this reason.
"However, I think this is not very fair to Mr. Lu. Mrs. Fu, just know it well, but don't tell anyone else." Gu Ran said, handing over five taels of silver. "I will have to trouble you again in the future!"
"Oh, no problem, no problem." Mrs. Fu took the silver and nodded vigorously. "As matchmakers, we are of course willing to make a marriage happen and not ruin someone's marriage!"
When she put the silver in her pocket and walked to the front house to tell Mr. Lu the good news, Mrs. Fu put the question of whether it looked like the real thing out of her mind.
Soon, everyone in the village knew that their boss Gu was engaged to the new man from the Lu family. They talked about it a lot. Some were surprised, some were happy, and some were confused.
Even Shen Er, who was on leave from the academy during the farming season, came to take care of this trivial matter.
Shen Er passed the imperial examination and became a scholar in March this year.
At that time, he was shocked to learn that Pei Liuniang had been sailing with his family's merchant ship for more than two months. Although he was uneasy about his beloved drifting in the Southeast Asia, he also gained more courage because of this.
His Shen family is just an ordinary caravan, but if he can pass the exam and become an official, he can provide support for the Shen family's livelihood.
The Great Sheng Dynasty did not ban business, nor did it look down on the status of merchants.
This is because when the Great Sheng Dynasty was first established, it relied on merchants from all over the country to transport supplies and food from all corners of the world to the capital of the Great Sheng Dynasty. The first empress of the Great Sheng Dynasty also saw the importance of trade. From that time on, she did not excessively suppress or restrict merchants, which led to the later convenient maritime shipping and the sons of merchants being able to go to school and take exams.
However, customary traditions are also an important aspect that merchants attach great importance to.
If there is an official in the family who is a businessman, no matter how high or low the official is, it will bring some convenience to the business.
That’s why the young men in Xu Sanlang’s family all want to marry women from official families, and that’s why Shen Er wants to take the civil service exam.
But at this time, Examiner Shen Er had another motive: if he were an official, he might be able to attract Pei Liuniang's attention, and maybe his marriage to her would be successful.
Besides, I heard from my father that she went to sea this time with the intention of doing business. Wouldn't it be better for him to become an official and help Liu Niang?
So Shen Er suppressed his sadness and went to take the college entrance examination with great enthusiasm. He passed it in one go and is now a scholar, which is unique in Xiaxi Village. Although Lin San was admitted to Shenglin Academy and became a disciple of the emperor, if he wanted to achieve fame, he had to go to the capital to be appointed as an official after completing his studies.
But Shen Er was already a scholar, his status and position were recognized by the government, and the benefits he brought were visible to the naked eye. Everyone in Xiaxi Village admired him very much.
Mr. Shen even set up a buffet for three days and three nights, happily waiting for his son to come back and become a juren.
Chen Er was happily preparing for next year's provincial examination, but he didn't expect that his caravan returned safely, but Pei Liuniang was missing!
He was sad and depressed, but in the end he had to struggle out of despair and cheer up.
Since then, Shen Er did not become distant from Gu Erniang, but became closer to her.
Gu Er Niang and Liu Niang were both single ladies who had always depended on each other. Now that Liu Niang was gone, Gu Er Niang must be feeling bad, and she also lost someone to support each other. So Chen Er felt a sense of duty and felt that he had to take care of her more. Once, when he was drunk, he even thought that since Liu Niang was gone, it would be better to find Er Niang who was familiar with Liu Niang.
As a result, after this intention was exposed, Gu Ran grabbed a broom and kicked him out of the house. After he sobered up, he dared not mention it again.
Now he heard that Gu Er Niang, who had failed in many marriages, had finally settled on a marriage so quickly, he was surprised. After all, she was a sister that Liu Niang was familiar with, and he would feel uneasy if he didn't ask her.
So I thought I'd come over and take a look.
Then he saw Mr. Lu playing with the cat in the Gu family's cottage.
He had already heard of the name of Mr. Lu.
The people in the village had already spread the word that this man had returned from Nanyang. Because Xiaxi Village was famous, he settled in their village. As soon as he arrived, he took a fancy to Gu Er Niang. He had been following Gu Er Niang around for so many days, so everyone had long understood Mr. Lu's feelings for Gu Er Niang. However, they did not expect that this time, he asked Mrs. Fu to propose marriage, and it was successful at the first suggestion.
Is this him, the man who is going to marry Liu Niang's good sister Er Niang?
Lu Langjun stood up holding Xiaohua and looked up. Shen Er's eyes flashed, as if he saw another person, and he blurted out: "Sixth Mother?"
Lu Yilin recognized Shen Er, but he had not seen him when Gu Ran took him to visit the Shen family - Shen Er often stayed in the county town because of his studies, and he would be upset when he returned to Xiaxi Village - after all, it was the village where Liu Niang lived, so he rarely returned to Xiaxi Village.
"Sixth Mother? Aren't you looking for Second Mother?" Lu Yilin looked at Chen Er indifferently, pretending not to know him, and asked.
“You…” Shen Er was surprised.
"Hey, Chen Er is here." Gu Ranyi walked out of the main hall. Seeing Chen Er's shocked expression, he introduced them to the two with a smile: "Lu Lang, this is Er Langjun from the Shen family. Chen Er, this is Lu Langjun from the Lu family."
Not Liu Niang? But he clearly...
"It turns out to be Chen Erlang. I heard Er Niang mention him. Nice to meet you." Lu Yilin put down the small flower and saluted Chen Er with a smile.
Lu Yilin smiled, and when she spoke again, Shen Er's look of surprise and doubt gradually faded.
Not Liu Niang.
When has Liu Niang ever smiled at him?
Besides, Liu Niang would not speak to him as kindly as he did.
Liu Niang has never even looked at me straight in the eye, so how could she be respectful to me?
This is a real man.
Shen Er couldn't help but feel disappointed. After a few pleasantries, when Gu Ran was leaving, he walked him to the door. Shen Er couldn't help but ask, "Don't you think he looks like..."
"I know, he looks like Liu Niang." Gu Ran also interrupted Shen Er and said, "But, it is because he looks a little like Liu Niang that I like him."
Shen Er looked at Gu Ran for a long time, and Gu Ran also looked at him calmly for a long time. Finally, Shen Er sighed and said, "Okay, as long as you are happy."
After Shen Er left, Gu Ran closed the door of the house, and a pair of hands came around from behind.
"He's gone?"
"Leave."
"Are you suspicious?"
"I guess, there is, and then there is gone!"
So Lu Yilin smiled, gently rested her chin on Gu Ran's shoulder, and lightly touched Gu Ran's earlobe with the tip of her nose.
Gu Ran trembled and blushed instantly.
Since the two of them settled down in a relationship, they could hold hands and chat and laugh openly in public, and they were not afraid of gossip from others when they returned home. Later, they began to do more subtle little things when they were together.
The breath was pervasive, and I didn't know when it had spread from the neck to the front.
Gu Ran thought that Mr. Lu was a gentleman, and perhaps she would have to teach this Mr. Lin a lesson, but she didn't expect that he knew everything.
"When did you learn this?"
After his panting subsided, Gu Ran grabbed his mischievous hand and questioned him.
“I learned it when I was a kid!”
"When I was little?"
"Yeah, when I was studying at the Den of Thieves."
When going out on a mission, there are beauty traps and beauty traps. Such gentle tricks are natural for Mr. Lu, who is smarter and learns faster than ordinary people.
Gu Ran was speechless for a moment.
Mr. Lu withdrew the hand that was stroking her cheek, gently scratched her delicate nose with his index finger, and smiled as he leaned close to her ear: "I know a lot more. After we get married, I'll let you slowly learn from me."
Gu Ran looked at that face that smiled elegantly, and his heart sank. He nodded reservedly, "Then you have to do better."
"Okay, Ranran."
In November, when the oranges are red, the young man from the Lu family in Xiaxi Village and the young woman from the Gu family get married, and the whole village celebrates.
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