Baozhu knelt down upon hearing this and said, "Madam, I am fourteen years old and have never considered marriage. I am willing to serve you for the rest of my life."
Although this was a sincere statement, Chi Xingyue couldn't let her be an old maid for the rest of her life.
He smiled, helped the man up, and said bluntly, "Just now, Song Lizheng came over and said that his youngest son is interested in you. What do you think of him?"
Actually, two…”
Before Chi Xingyue could finish his words, Erzhu rushed in.
He knelt on the ground and kowtowed: "Madam, I like Baozhu, please make the decision for me!"
Chi Xingyue glanced at Ling Jiheng, and seeing that he didn't say anything, she smiled helplessly: "I can't make the decision on this. Baozhu has the final say on who she likes."
After saying that, he looked at Baozhu and said, "Song Yuangen and Erzhu, one is the youngest son of the village head, and the other is my husband's capable subordinate. No matter who you choose, my husband and I will prepare a generous dowry for you.
If you don't like them both, you don't have to choose them.
If you have a crush on someone in the future, tell me. I'll make the decision for you!"
Baozhu felt unprecedented respect, she knelt down straight and kowtowed three times to Chi Xingyue.
It was so fast that she couldn't stop it. By the time she realized what was happening, her forehead was red.
He quickly pulled the man up and scolded him, "Why do you kneel down all the time? We don't have such a rule in our family.
If you haven't made up your mind, go back and think about it. No matter what you choose, the second wife will always be your support!"
Baozhu said with tears in her eyes, "Second Young Master Madam, I want to serve you for the rest of my life."
Chi Xingyue shook her head, thinking that even in later generations, not getting married and not having children would be criticized, let alone in ancient times when the rules were strict and the status of women was low.
Of course, Baozhu can also be a servant for life.
But Chi Xingyue couldn't bear it.
So he said to her, "Song Lizheng's family tradition is good, and Yuan Gen is smart, so he is a good choice.
Erzhu is both honest and capable. On the surface, he serves as Ji Heng's servant, but in reality, he has no contract to serve him.
Baozhu looked at Erzhu in surprise. She didn't expect that he served tea and water all day long, but was registered as a good person.
"Although our family is better off than the Song family, if you marry into the family, you won't have to wait on others. Your status will be much better."
Chi Xingyue wanted to say something good about Erzhu, but identity was still very important in the eyes of many people.
After marrying into the Song family and being freed from status as a citizen, Baozhu's descendants will also be able to take the imperial examinations.
Unexpectedly, the little girl was quite insightful and said with a pout, "If I get married, I will just lose the status of a servant. In fact, I won't be able to save on anything, from washing clothes, cooking to working in the fields.
Doing the same, or even more, work, earning no money, not necessarily having enough to eat, and being looked down upon."
Her mother was like this. After marrying her father, she never had a good day and was even despised for eating free meals.
Baozhu felt that life in the Ling family was pretty good. Although she sold her body, no one blamed her.
The housework is not very heavy, and Erzhu often helps her, which makes her very happy.
Chi Xingyue nodded, understanding Baozhu's meaning, and asked Ling Jiheng to take time to return to Song Lizheng.
As for whether she and Erzhu could succeed, Chi Xingyue didn't care and let them solve it themselves.
The two left the west room and chased each other in the yard. Erzhu blocked Baozhu at the door of the east wing, apparently confessing his love.
Chi Xingyue ignored him and happily played chess and drank tea with Ling Jiheng.
Three days passed in a flash, and Song Yuangen came over in a daze, wanting to know why Baozhu looked down on him.
Baozhu did not hide anything and said that she had good food and accommodation in the Ling family and did not want to go to someone else's house to be a daughter-in-law and serve others.
This sentence hit Song Yuangen so hard that he was unable to recover and was sick at home for several days.
Thanks to Doctor Cheng's excellent medical skills, the young man was not burned to death.
When Chi Xingyue found out, he sighed for a long time and asked someone to send him some pork meatballs as a token of his gratitude.
Baozhu's affairs could not be concealed in the end, and her family members gradually got a glimpse of the truth from Song Yuangen's behavior.
The little girl was so embarrassed that she didn't dare go out for several days.
Geng Suhua and Liang Zhijun both felt that Baozhu was unlucky for giving up such a good marriage.
Shu Muyun, on the other hand, fully supported her choice because he was confident in the abilities of his son and daughter-in-law.
In her words, "Erzhu has such an outstanding master, how can his future be bad? In the future, he will be a well-off family with a house and land."
Of course, Baozhu has not accepted Erzhu yet, she just knows his feelings.
In the blink of an eye, another half month passed. The sky didn't snow anymore, but it was still gray and the temperature was as cold as usual.
After a period of busy work, the horse-faced skirts of the Bai and Liu families were all ready.
The apricot top paired with a skirt of a different color has a very classical beauty.
In addition, both of these families provided good materials, and the Ling family sewed a batch of jade buttons with the best color and water content onto the cuffs, making them look exquisite and luxurious.
I originally wanted to embroider some gold and silver threads on the clothes, but I was afraid that people would criticize me for being too gaudy, so I didn’t dare.
Shu Muyun fumigated the clothes with incense, folded them and placed them in an exquisite wooden box, preparing to deliver them to the two families in two days.
There is also the one-size-fits-all horse-faced skirt made from the satin bought by Chi Xingyue, which I need to find an opportunity to sell.
During this period, Qingshan Village appeared quiet on the surface, but was actually bustling and noisy. The Ling family was afraid that the eunuch who had gone to the capital to announce the imperial edict had not left, so they did not dare to go to the county.
They were right to be cautious. The people who came to the capital had indeed been staying in the county government office, accepting the hospitality of County Magistrate Huang.
Still finding fault everywhere.
If he hadn't received the secret letter from the Third Prince, he probably wouldn't have been willing to leave at all.
"Master Huang, please arrange for the carriages and horses. I will go to the Zhou army and read out the new emperor's decree!"
County Magistrate Huang looked at them suspiciously several times, thinking that you clearly haven't even left the house, so where did the new imperial edict come from?
But his words were insignificant and he dared not question them. Furthermore, no one dared to falsely convey the imperial decree, so...
Go and prepare the carriage!
After sending the people away, I wiped the cold sweat from my forehead and reviewed the experiences of the past few days. Then I suddenly realized that it was the falcon that brought the news.
Returning to the back hall, he whispered to his wife, "I'm afraid this day is going to change!"
The Ling family waited until the second day of the second lunar month before driving the ox cart to the county.
All along the way, I was wondering what the county would be like. Would it be deserted or bustling with people?
The answer is the former. Even after half a month, everyone is still living in the afterglow of the imperial edict.
In order to avoid trouble, many shops have closed their doors to customers.
Those wealthy families would not receive any visitors unless they were familiar ones.
Seeing this situation, Chi Xingyue gave up the idea of hawking on the street and went straight to Bai and Liu's mansions.
After knocking on the heavy wooden door for a long time, a servant came to ask.
Seeing that it was the Ling family coming to deliver clothes, he hurried to ask the housekeeper for instructions.
Chi Xingyue waited for a full quarter of an hour before being invited in.
Xiaohe and Baozhu followed her, while Jinbao, Yinbao, and Ling Jiheng were stopped outside the yard.
The backyard of the Bai Mansion was quite far away. Chi Xingyue walked for about 10 to 20 minutes before he saw a few girls with sad faces.
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