Chapter 179: A Plan in Mind

Li was delighted. If she hadn't remembered her mother's instructions, she would have been too proud of herself. She kept telling herself in her heart, "I can hold on, I can hold on, Auntie."

Zhao acted as the eldest sister-in-law and hurriedly called out, "Auntie."

Lin glanced at Zhao a few more times. According to his experience, the more low-key and less visible a person is, the more thoughtful he is. He glanced at Yang and realized that he really couldn't believe the news he had heard. He heard that Li was stupid and Zhao was timid and weak. Only after seeing it with his own eyes did he realize how ridiculous the news he had heard was!

Zhulan had been keeping an eye on Lin, and from Lin's reaction she knew that Lin thought the information she had heard was wrong.

Zhulan knew clearly in her heart that even though Li and Zhao had changed a lot in a year, the better their lives were, the more jealous the young wives in the village became. In addition, Zhulan became the wife of a scholar, and the mother-in-law and the daughter-in-law had attracted enough hatred from the women in the village. When someone inquired about the situation, they would naturally say the worst. It was not Lin's fault that the information was wrong. Lin just misjudged the dark side of human nature.

Then the Lin family gave away gifts. Xue Han received a silver bracelet, Yu Shuang and her granddaughters received silver locks, and the grandsons received pens and ink. There were also unopened gifts that the county magistrate had prepared for Zhu Lan's sons.

Zhulan also prepared a meeting gift for Chuchu, a pair of hollow silver bracelets with emeralds inlaid in them as the highlight, which was Dong Chuchu's favorite color. Although it was not particularly expensive, it was full of thoughtfulness.

Lin was very satisfied and Dong Chuchu liked it too.

Because Lin was a female relative, the eldest and second Zhou brothers left after meeting her.

As for Zhou Shuren, he went to the county early in the morning. These days, the county magistrate had been teaching Zhou Shuren a lot in literature, and he went to the county almost every day. After all, it was the female relatives visiting, so it would not be appropriate for Zhou Shuren to stay.

There was a carriage parked at the door of the Zhou family's house, and a lot of gifts were moved in. There were people hanging around the door all morning. If they hadn't found out that it was the wife of the county master, someone would have come in long ago.

People were afraid of officials, especially in ancient times, and even the most curious people did not dare to visit them.

Zhulan was chatting with Lin, while Xuehan took Chuchu back to the house. Even though it was the second time they met, they didn't seem to be strangers at all.

After the children had all left, Lin smiled and asked, "I heard that your sister-in-law is learning to paint?"

Zhu Lan was silent. This news could only be leaked by Zhou Shuren. She smiled and said, "I've been exploring on my own. I can't say I've learned much, but I just think it's good to learn more."

Lin smiled and asked, "Can you show it to my sister-in-law?"

Zhulan was happy, she just needed someone to give her some advice, "Okay."

As she spoke, Zhulan took out her paintings. She discovered that she did have a talent for painting and had developed a new skill. Zhulan continued painting for several days, but stopped when she got busy at home.

Zhulan took out a painting of a fish and said with some embarrassment, "It's not a good painting."

Lin took it and looked through it. Although she was a beginner who was just learning by herself and her painting was not very vivid, the fish was quite lifelike. "It's already very good. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't believe that your sister-in-law was a beginner."

Zhulan felt guilty. As a beginner, she had seen her grandfather paint many times. Even if she hadn't learned it, she remembered some of the techniques. "I can catch my sister-in-law's eye. It seems I have some talent."

Lin smiled and nodded, "He is indeed gifted."

This is good. The more talented Yang is, the less embarrassed she will be when she goes out in the future. If the two families really become one, she won't be afraid of being implicated and embarrassed.

She knew too well how much officials' wives loved to compare, especially those who were born into wealthy families. They loved to host tea parties and painting appreciation parties, and were particularly willing to invite ladies from peasant families to highlight their own talents and elegance. She had suffered many losses before she made up her mind to learn.

Lin thought that the old man did not dare to estimate whether Zhou Shuren could pass the imperial examination, but in the next provincial examination, as long as Zhou Shuren had good luck, he would have no problem marrying people. Thinking of this, the smile on her face became more genuine. It would not be a hardship for the daughter to marry into such a family. Even if she could not pass the imperial examination, the old man would help her to get an official position in the future. The Zhou family could rely more on the old man, and the daughter's life would be happier.

Lin became more friendly and gave Zhulan more careful guidance, which benefited Zhulan a lot.

At noon, the meal was ready and the boys who had gone to school came back to eat. Lin also met the boys. Chang Lian was fifteen years old and had grown taller. According to modern calculations, he was about 1.7 meters tall, almost as tall as Zhou Shuren. His facial features had grown, and he looked good. He was dressed neatly, and he was really the type that girls liked.

Changzhi has grown a bit taller at the age of twelve, but because his facial features have not fully developed and he has some baby fat, he looks younger.

Rongchuan became fairer, but still thin, because of severe deficiency. All the nutritional supplements he got in half a year were wasted. He didn't grow much. He was obviously eleven years old, but he looked like eight or nine years old.

After comparing the three guys, Chang Lian stands out the most.

After Lin asked several questions to them, Zhulan let the three boys go out for dinner.

Lunch was served at two tables. Zhulan originally wanted to eat separately, but Lin was thinking of showing it to her daughter-in-law, so she stopped Zhulan and put the food together in the main hall.

Ever since Chuchu asked her about her two brothers, Xue Han knew the purpose of the Dong family's sudden visit. She was surprised and curious at the same time. Of the two brothers, she preferred the youngest brother. She felt that the third brother was not suitable for Chuchu. Chuchu was straightforward, and Chang Lian was too cunning.

Zhulan looked at Dong Chuchu with the rest of her eyes. The girl was very sensible. She looked at her for a few seconds and then started eating. She didn't show it on her face. She didn't notice anything. This girl was straightforward but very calculating. She was very satisfied with Dong Chuchu. According to her standards for finding a daughter-in-law, she indeed liked Dong Chuchu more.

Chang Lian and Chang Zhi were even more unaware and had no idea why Mrs. Dong came. They just thought that their father was really awesome and that their family had a really good relationship with the county magistrate's family!

The main reason is that the gap is too big, and even the smart people in Chang Lian dare not think too much about it.

This is also the reason why Lin dared to bring her daughter here. The Zhou family didn't dare to say anything. Outsiders could see the big difference, and they never made it clear, so who knew what they were here for?

In the afternoon, Zhulan saw Lin and Chuchu off, thinking that she would know if there would be any follow-up after Zhou Shuren came back in the evening.