18 Peace
I can't marry him.
When she first arrived in Liangjing, Liu Yuer went to Yuqiong Temple and lit a perpetual lamp for her deceased parents and brother.
According to the saying passed down by the older generation, the eternal lamp can guide the dead souls and illuminate the road to the underworld to prevent the dead souls from getting lost along the way.
When she came here again today, Liu Yuer not only added more ghee, but also bought a new lamp and lit it next to her brother.
The wooden box in her hand contained things belonging to an old friend. Liu Yuer placed them in a worship offering and silently recited something in her heart.
Because her aunt muttered a lot of unhappy words before leaving, Liu Yu'er did not dare to stay for long. She knelt on the mat with her hands folded for a while, then slowly stood up and left.
After leaving the Taoist temple, we got on a carriage and headed back.
"Although the Wang family's youngest son is a bit short, he's decent-looking and strong. If you marry him, he won't make you do rough work or suffer."
"A lean camel is bigger than a horse. Although the Wang family is now in decline, they still have some wealth. They have land and houses, and maids and servants to serve them. You will be the wife if you go there."
"You are alone now, without any money, so marrying into a family like this is a great blessing. Are you relying on your beauty to become a concubine for those noble men in the capital?"
"Let me be frank. Although our Liu family isn't wealthy, your uncle and cousin are also doing business abroad. We can't bring ourselves to gossip about them behind our backs..."
Liu Yu'er sat in the swaying carriage, her aunt's nonsense echoing in her ears from time to time.
After a while, he raised half of his mouth and sneered lightly, then closed his eyes and stopped thinking about it.
Two sticks of incense later, the carriage stopped at the gate of the Liu residence. Liu Yuer stood up, lifted the curtain, and got out of the carriage. Just as she was about to turn around and go in, she was stopped by a clear male voice.
"Miss Liu."
Liu Yu'er turned around and saw a young man she didn't know walking towards her. He wore a jade crown on his head and a silky purple brocade robe. He had an upright figure and a face with thick eyebrows and big eyes that was heroic and resolute.
"My name is Wu Guanyi. I met him that day in Chunzhi Yunuan."
Liu Yuer looked confused, she had no impression.
That day she was so focused on scolding Yan Qizhen that she didn't pay attention to the other people present.
"You stormed in angrily and told me not to interrupt," Wu Guanyi tried to jog her memory. "I remember everything you said about the heartless man. Do you want me to repeat it to you?"
"No need." Liu Yu'er now believed that he was there and also remembered some impressions of him.
"What brings you here, sir?"
"That day was actually a misunderstanding." Wu Guanyi explained the whole story. "I found Miss Liu and wanted to ask her for a favor and persuade Miss Wei."
Liu Yu'er looked at him doubtfully, "If it's really a misunderstanding, Master Yan can just explain it to Zi Yan himself. Why would he need someone else to do it for him?"
"Miss Liu, you're being too formal." Wu Guanyi couldn't help but chuckle. "Yu Wen and I are good brothers, and you and Miss Wei are sisters. How can you be considered outsiders?"
The frivolous tone in these words made Liu Yuer frown.
"How can I believe what you say? I don't even know you." After saying that, he turned around and raised his foot to go through the door.
"Miss Liu——"
Wu Guanyi strode forward and blocked her way with his arms outstretched. Just as he was about to explain again, a shout came from behind him.
"How can you be so disrespectful as to be pulling and tugging in broad daylight?"
Wu Guanyi's heart trembled. Seeing Liu Yu'er's expression change, he quickly withdrew his hand and dodged to the side. He saw an old woman standing in the doorway with a stern look on her face.
Wu Guanyi didn't know who she was, so he didn't dare to say anything. Then he heard Liu Yu'er call her "Aunt Zong".
This person was none other than Meng, the mother of the Liu family, Liu Fangwu's wife. She had heard the maid inside the house say that her cousin was talking to a man outside, so she came out curiously to take a look.
Just by looking at the clothes, you can tell that he comes from a wealthy family.
When Liu Yu'er was leaving the house, Meng reminded her not to try to marry into a wealthy family. But when she came back in, she blatantly flirted with the young man right in front of her. Wasn't she trying to slap her in the face?
Mrs. Meng didn't know the man's identity and didn't dare to offend him. She could only glare at Liu Yu'er and said, "You're home now, why don't you come in quickly?"
"Yes." Liu Yu'er responded, walked past Wu Guanyi with her head lowered, and stepped into the house.
In the evening, Liu Fangwu and his son came back, and Meng mentioned today's events together with the Wang family's marriage.
"If we don't marry off your niece and marry into a wealthy family as a concubine, what will our neighbors think of us? Those who don't know will think you're greedy for wealth and fame and sold your niece. How will you and your son run your business in the future?"
Liu Fangwu is a relative of Liu Yuer's father. He received financial support from Liu Yuer in his business back then, so Liu Yuer sought him out for refuge. On the one hand, Liu Fangwu felt sorry for her because she had no relatives, and on the other hand, he wanted to repay her for the favor.
Of course, Liu Yu'er didn't live and eat for free, and handed over all her wealth to him. These banknotes could not support her for a lifetime, but at least they would support her for ten or eight years.
Liu Fangwu ran a small business, so the Meng family's willingness to accept an outsider was a prudent calculation. They wanted to marry her off as soon as possible, pay her a small dowry, and then the remaining money would belong to their son.
Liu Fangwu naturally didn't want his niece to become someone's concubine. If other relatives heard about it, they would probably poke him in the back and call him ungrateful.
So, Liu Fangwu asked the maid to call his cousin downstairs so that he could have a good talk with her.
"Aunt Zong misunderstood." Liu Yu'er was well prepared and defended herself. "I only met that young master once. We happened to meet at the door and exchanged a few words."
"I will always remember your teachings, Uncle Zong. Don't worry, I will never be a concubine in my lifetime."
"If Aunt Zong is worried, Yu'er can swear to heaven that if I break this promise, heaven will strike me with five thunderbolts."
Upon hearing this, Liu Fangwu quickly spoke up: "There's no need to be like this. Uncle Zong believes in you."
I'm relieved about this matter, but there is one more thing.
"What about the Wang family's marriage?"
Liu Yuer's face was solemn.
"Brother treated Yu'er like his parents when he was alive. Now that they are about to pass away, Yu'er should observe three years of mourning no matter what."
This... is of course human nature, and Liu Fangwu had nothing to refute.
"Okay," he decided, "let's wait three years for your marriage."
Liu Yu'er breathed a sigh of relief after Liu Fangwu passed the test. She didn't expect the Liu residence to accommodate her for three years, nor did she need that long.
She couldn't wait three years.
At night, Liu Yu'er wrapped herself in a quilt and pondered deeply. Then she fell into a deep sleep for half the night and stayed awake until dawn.
In the morning, I went to pay my respects to my aunt. Her face had brightened somewhat, and she only said lightly, "A woman's beauty is like a spring flower, which fades easily. How can it bloom for three years?"
Liu Yuer smiled and went back to her attic without saying anything.
There were several pots of flowers that Wei Ziyan gave her on the windowsill. Liu Yu'er looked at them and thought of Wu Guanyi's words yesterday.
From the note that inexplicably appeared in the teahouse to Wei Ziyan's change in attitude towards Yan Qizheng, she believed Wu Guanyi's explanation of the "test".
Yan Qizhen had let Zi Yan down in the past, but if he had come to his senses now and was willing to sincerely respond to her deep affection, Liu Yuer would of course be happy to see them achieve a happy ending.
For her, this is also the most advantageous situation.
After sitting and looking at the flowers for a while, Liu Yuer turned to the desk, wrote a short letter, and asked the servant to send it to Wei Mansion.
After practicing calligraphy and reading for a while, she waited for the maid to bring up a letter. She thought it was Zi Yan's reply so quickly, but when she opened it, she found it was from Wu Guanyi.
The letter apologized for his rudeness yesterday and said that if he was scolded or punished because of him, he would be to blame. Finally, he hoped to make amends and if he was needed, he would be available to him.
But he didn't mention asking her for help.
Another two sticks of incense passed before the maid brought up another letter. This time, there were two. One was Wei Ziyan's reply, confirming her appointment at the teahouse the next day.
The other letter was also from Wu Guanyi, saying that he forgot to leave his address.
"Mr. Wu is not in a position to bother you. If Miss Liu needs any errands, please send someone here to deliver a message."
Liu Yuer smiled gently, picked up the pen and wrote a line of words, put it in an envelope, and asked someone to deliver it to the house number he gave.
The next afternoon, Liu Yuer arrived at the teahouse where she was going to listen to the opera half an hour earlier than the agreed time.
As soon as she entered the room, Xu Ji, who was waiting there, immediately came forward to greet her and invited her upstairs: "Master Yan and Master Wu have already booked a private room."
Liu Yu'er was not surprised at all. She followed him up to the second floor and saw the two young men in one of the private rooms.
"Thank you Miss Liu for the arrangement." Wu Guanyi smiled and walked forward to thank her with a fist salute.
"No need, I originally made an appointment with Zi Yan to go to the opera today."
Liu Yu'er's eyes drifted to the expressionless Yan Qizheng beside her, and she bowed slightly: "Yu'er was reckless that day and wrongly accused Master Yan. Please forgive me."
Yan Qizhen nodded, his face still calm.
"It's just a misunderstanding, not worth mentioning."
Shouzhong had tried so hard to persuade him the day before yesterday, but he still had no place to vent his anger. He had been extremely depressed for the past two days, and yet that woman, full of lies, was in the mood to come to the teahouse to listen to opera?
He came today not expecting to hear any unspeakable secrets, but just wanted to expose her true face in person.
Anyway, he has made up his mind to cancel this engagement!
Knowing that he was in a bad mood, Wu Guanyi quickly changed the subject and led Liu Yuer to another private room across the wall. He also called the waiter and ordered some fine tea and snacks.
Soon, Xu Ji came running up and said that Miss Wei had arrived. Wu Guanyi hurried back to the next room and half-closed the door.
Ever since they rejected Yan Qizheng on the grounds of "incompatibility", Master Wei and his wife have been worried about this impossible marriage. Wei Ziyan had to comfort them while also showing her sadness at not getting what she wanted.
Not only did I not feel the joy of finally understanding something that had been bothering me, but I also ended up feeling physically and mentally exhausted.
Therefore, when Wei Ziyan received the invitation from her good sister, she accepted it without hesitation and went out to relax.
It was the same teahouse where she had attended the opera last time. Wei Ziyan was led by the waiter to a private room on the second floor. Seeing Liu Yuer waiting inside, Wei Ziyan happily called out, "Sister Liu."
"Zi Yan, you're here." Liu Yu'er also seemed happy. She pulled her to sit down and pointed downwards: "It's time to start."
Downstairs, the play "A Lifetime of Mistakes" was about to begin, featuring the scene where the male lead and the female lead first met during the Lantern Festival. Wei Ziyan loved the play so much that she didn't bother to exchange pleasantries with Liu Yu'er, instead humming along.
Seeing her so engrossed, Liu Yuer also watched the show quietly for a while. Taking advantage of the break when the scene was changing downstairs, she quietly mentioned that a man named Wu came to see her yesterday.
"He said he was a friend of Master Yan."
"Oh, that's the second son of the Minister of Justice. He's close to Yan Qizhen." Wei Ziyan responded casually, her eyes still fixed on the stage.
"The second son of the Minister of Justice?" Liu Yu'er was slightly stunned.
"Yeah, what does he want you for?"
"He..." Liu Yu'er came back to her senses, "He said that he went to drink with Master Yan just to put on a show for you. I hope you don't misunderstand."
Wei Ziyan then turned around and was a little surprised that Wu Guanyi asked Liu Yuer to be his lobbyist.
It seems that he doesn't know about the signature yet, and Liu Yu'er is completely in the dark.
Like her parents and everyone else, they all thought that she was deeply in love with Yan Qizhen.
"Do you believe in Young Master Yan?" Liu Yu'er looked at her.
Wei Ziyan nodded gently: "He has already explained it to me."
"That's good!" Liu Yu'er looked relieved. "I was rash and scolded him. If this causes a rift between you two and ruins your marriage, I, as your elder sister, will be blamed for whatever I do."
Wei Ziyan hurriedly said, "Sister Liu, you're too serious. It's impossible for him and I to get married."
Upon hearing this, Liu Yu'er and the pair of ears next to her were both shocked!
"What do you mean, sister?"
"I..." Wei Ziyan bit her lip, "I can't marry him."
【Author’s words】
Coming, coming
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