"Liu Liu, do you know Sister Yun'er?" Shen Yun'er asked curiously, suppressing her grief.
She had never met this younger cousin before.
When Liu Liu was born and celebrated her third-day birthday, and again during the two Lunar New Years that followed, I suffered miscarriages and couldn't go out at all.
That's why my little cousin is already over three years old, and I've never even met her.
"I'm so beautiful, so my older sister must be really, really beautiful too. That's why I knew you must be my older sister."
"Oh my, what a sweet talker she is, she doesn't take after my uncle and aunt at all."
Shen Yun'er teased with a smile.
She wanted to hold the child, but unfortunately, she didn't have the strength.
"Our in-laws are here! Come on upstairs, it's on the second floor. Yun'er specially reserved a private room for you. Normally, this private room would cost an extra two taels of silver!"
A middle-aged woman dressed in a very glamorous manner swayed her hips and rolled her eyes as she walked over.
Her eyes were long and narrow, and her eyebrows were so light they were almost invisible, but thankfully her skin was fair.
The saying goes that fair skin can cover up a hundred flaws, so her appearance is considered acceptable.
However, the moment she opened her mouth, her sharp and sarcastic voice immediately diminished most of the feeling.
Shen Yun'er's face immediately turned red. She looked at her mother-in-law pleadingly and whispered, "Mother, I will make up for the money later."
"Your money? Where did you get the money? If your family is poor, so be it, don't pretend to be something you're not."
Unexpectedly, her mother-in-law didn't give her any face at all, and instead started shouting loudly, making Shen Yun'er very embarrassed.
What angered Shen Yun'er even more was that today was meant to be a matchmaker for her cousin, and with her mother-in-law making such a scene, what would the other family think?
"Mother, I'm..."
"Don't worry, we will make sure to pay you every penny before we leave."
Shen Wanli said with a dark face.
He never intended to take advantage of her, so as not to embarrass his niece.
But isn't this old woman being far too impatient and excessive?
Zhou's mother, who was also Shen Yun'er's mother-in-law, glanced at Shen Wanli from head to toe.
Well, they're not dressed in rags.
but……
"Can you afford it?"
His tone was very disdainful.
Enraged, Chen Wanli pulled out his money pouch and slammed it on the counter, demanding furiously, "Whether you can afford it or not, you see for yourself! I've learned something new; we haven't even eaten yet, and we have to pay first! Your restaurant is certainly quite unique!"
Wherever you eat, you pay after you eat.
Unexpectedly, when I arrived at my relative's house, I was asked to pay first!
There were a few guests scattered around in the lobby, and after hearing the whole story, they couldn't help but start discussing it.
"This proprietress is getting stingier and stingier."
"Exactly, where do you find people asking for money before they've even eaten?"
"That's so insulting, no wonder business is so bad."
Hearing the guests' chatter, Zhou's mother's face flushed red with anger, but at least she didn't say anything more.
Shen Liuliu strongly suspected that she stopped because she didn't want to offend the customers.
Tian Guifen tugged at Shen Wanli, whose face was dark, and said in a low voice, "Alright, you are still Yun'er's mother-in-law, and you're here to find a match for your son..."
We can stand up for ourselves and let the Zhou family know that the Shen family is not so easy to bully.
However, we can't go too far, lest my niece have a hard time in the future.
Fortunately, Shen Wanli still had the sense to keep his distance. He nodded stiffly and they went upstairs together.
Shen Yun'er blushed, feeling extremely embarrassed.
Mrs. Zhou was heartbroken and kept asking in a low voice, "Is your mother-in-law usually like this? What is your son-in-law's reaction?"
"He is a very good person. In the past, when he was around, he would always speak up for me."
When her husband was mentioned, Shen Yun'er's eyes lit up.
This shows the deep affection between the couple.
Upon hearing this, Madam Zhou finally breathed a sigh of relief.
The family of three had already arrived at the private room.
The other party was dressed very appropriately. The girl was plump and chubby, seventeen years old this year. Her round apple face was very endearing, and she was very warm and welcoming.
The woman's parents were even more enthusiastic, showing great care and concern for Shen Wanli and his wife.
After exchanging pleasantries, he directly stated his position.
"...We only have one daughter. We hope that after she gets married, her husband can live in the city and help us manage the pawnshop. Of course, the shop and courtyard will belong to our daughter and husband in the future."
"It's not about marrying into the family, and the child will still take your surname. It's just that, if possible, if they have many children in the future, could they choose one to take our surname?"
"...We don't care about the betrothal gifts, as long as the son-in-law is a good person."
Shen Liuliu exclaimed, "Wow!"
What was supposed to be just a casual meeting almost turned into an engagement ceremony.
The Shen Wanli couple were beaming with joy.
The girl with the apple-shaped face stood up and apologized with tea instead of wine: "...I was impolite before, but thinking about it later, the people in the village are even more simple and kind. It was my fault..."
The girl's frank admission of her mistake greatly increased Tian Guifen's goodwill towards her.
She had only held a slight grudge about what had happened before, but now that she saw how nice the other person was, her affection for them grew even stronger.
"...How about we just settle the marriage between the two children right now?"
Finally, the woman's father asked a somewhat anxious question.
"Huh, huh?"
Shen Wanli was quite taken aback.
He does like this family quite a bit, but is it happening this fast?
Why does he think this is so unreliable?
"Brother, to tell you the truth, my daughter is not young anymore, and my elderly mother is seriously ill... I'm just worried... wouldn't that delay things?"
We must take good care of this old man, but we can't let it interfere with the child's marriage, can we?
“Yes, yes, I understand how you feel, but Sanlin’s grandparents are still alive. I need to talk to them about this marriage before we finalize it.”
Shen Wanli was also a clever and eloquent person.
He didn't explicitly say that making a decision like this was too hasty, and instead pushed the matter onto Old Master Shen.
It's not unreasonable for a grandson to ask his grandfather for permission to marry.
The woman didn't know what to say.
After a few more words, everyone dispersed after lunch.
When it came time to pay, Sun's father insisted on paying, but Shen Wanli said, "Where is it customary for the woman to pay?" So he paid.
This made Zhou's mother extremely happy; she had thought she was going to have to pay compensation.
Mr. Sun was also very happy, believing that although the Shen family were from the countryside, they were not greedy for small gains or fond of taking advantage of others.
Once home, he happily made the decision, saying, "Mingyue, let's go with this family. I think they are honest and kind, but also quite clever. They should be doing well and won't be a burden to you in the future."
Sun Mingyue's round face showed some reluctance.
Seeing this, Sun's mother pushed her and said unhappily, "What are you still hesitating about?"
"That Shen Sanlin... he's like a block of wood, I don't like him."
"Oh my god, do you even have a choice? If you keep dragging this out..."
Sun's mother's gaze fell on her daughter's belly, and she sighed helplessly.
After a long while, Sun Mingyue reluctantly nodded: "...Okay, I agree."
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