His father was just a county clerk, and only a county clerk at that, with no hope of promotion in recent years.
Although he had studied for several years, his grades were not good, and he had virtually no hope of passing the imperial examinations on his own.
Therefore, he always wanted to marry a woman from a good family. Since his own father was of little help to him in his career, he could only set his sights on his father-in-law.
Therefore, over the years, he has always paid attention to managing his image so that noble ladies would be attracted to him, which also saves him a lot of trouble.
Even attracting Liu Yuexiang's attention was intentional on his part. After all, Liu Yuexiang was the only daughter of the magistrate of the neighboring county, and becoming the magistrate's son-in-law would be a good choice for him.
But now that he has Lianhua, she is even more beautiful than those women. Although she is only the niece of the second branch of the Lu family, she receives the treatment that only a legitimate daughter would receive. Especially what Jia Rui just said, it completely refreshed his understanding of the Lu family.
If a second wife's niece can be raised like this, then if he becomes the son-in-law of the Lu family, wouldn't he be able to get all those resources?
Not to mention that Lianhua is so beautiful and has such a family background, even if Lianhua were an ugly monster, he would still be extremely attracted to her.
"Young Master Li, are you even listening to me?"
After Jia Rui finished speaking, she noticed that Li Rong seemed to be in a daze. She called him several times but he didn't respond. Her anger flared up again instantly.
It's one thing for those people inside to laugh at her, but who would have thought that she couldn't even find a sense of honor with Li Rong? No matter how much she said, no one listened.
"some."
Li Rong realized what was happening, and responded with a smile, displaying a gentle and refined demeanor.
"Miss Jia, don't be sad. Perhaps Miss Lianhua really meant well, but just didn't express it well."
He wanted to curry favor with Lianhua, so naturally he had to speak up for her. However, he also didn't want to offend Jia Rui, since she was the daughter of the county magistrate and had some status.
Hearing him comfort her, Jia Rui's expression did improve considerably, but when she heard him say that Lianhua probably didn't do it on purpose, she felt angry again.
Looking at Li Rong's sincere expression, it seemed as if he really didn't think Lianhua had done anything wrong.
Jia Rui felt a little tired. Why couldn't these men see through such obvious targeting?
"Could it be that Young Master Li also wants to curry favor with the Lu family, which is why he's protecting that lotus flower so much?"
She was angry, so she spoke without restraint, her tone was very sarcastic, and the contempt at the corners of her mouth was impossible to hide.
Li Rong suddenly understood her smile, and the gentle smile on his face instantly became difficult to maintain.
She was mocking him and belittling his family background.
"Miss Jia, you flatter me. A beautiful and virtuous lady is sought after by gentlemen. What's wrong with me admiring Miss Lotus's talent?"
When Li Rong said this, his face was serious, and he was quite embarrassed and angry after his inner filth was exposed.
But he also admitted his feelings for Lianhua, which made Jia Rui grit her teeth in anger. Indeed, all crows are black.
If even someone as self-righteous as Li Rong is like this, then one can only imagine what the others are like. It's easy to imagine what's going on with the male customer right now; he's definitely putting a lot of effort into getting close to that bitch.
The Lu family went to great lengths to cultivate a cousin, surely hoping to use her to curry favor with the higher-ranking officials in the capital. How could they allow the son of a low-ranking official like Li Rong to succeed?
She thought these people were just daydreaming, but looking at Li Rong across from her, she couldn't help but say, "Young Master Li, don't forget that Lianhua's surname is Qin, not Lu. Don't let your schemes end in disappointment."
After saying that, he turned and left, ignoring Li Rong's unpleasant expression.
After venting her frustrations on Li Rong, she felt much better now.
After a short while, she understood. No matter how outstanding Lianhua was, she was still just a pawn for the Lu family to curry favor with the powerful.
Li Rong stood there for a long time, Jia Rui's words echoing in his mind: Lianhua's surname is Qin, not Lu, so she is always just an appendage. If the Lu family gets into trouble one day, they might push out a woman like Lianhua, who is not of the same surname, to take the fall. Wouldn't he also be implicated?
He sought out Lotus to use her influence to advance his career and live a life of privilege, but he could only share the good times, not the bad.
So, he really started to hesitate.
The Lu family, with its rapid rise to prominence, has undoubtedly attracted the attention of many powerful forces. Once targeted, they will fall faster than anyone else.
The Lu family may not be the most suitable choice.
After figuring it out, he went inside feeling much lighter. He had originally come out to find an opportunity to inquire about Lotus and then try to get closer to her, but now that he knew, he no longer had that idea.
The lotus was beautiful and it touched his heart, but he didn't want to get involved.
It seems that Liu Yuexiang is more suitable for her; she can go and meet her later.
When he returned to the male guests' reception room, everyone was discussing playing pitch-pot, a game that scholars liked to play. Since the Lu family's children were all studying, they naturally assumed that the Lu family would have such a game, but when they asked, they were told that they didn't.
The Lu family members looked troubled. They really hadn't expected this and hadn't prepared it in advance. They had been careless.
"It's alright, those things are mostly the same. Just have someone prepare them, I'll take care of it!"
Lu Xiaoyang found these scholars' constant use of classical Chinese phrases incredibly boring and wanted to take the initiative to do something.
Old Man Lu waved his hand to let him go. Lu Baichuan and the others didn't say anything, which meant they agreed. Everyone could see that Lu Xiaoyang was uncomfortable, so it was fine to let him go.
As for the others, they felt that the Lu family's grandeur was only superficial, and that they didn't even have such elegant items. Li Rong was also glad that he had just come to his senses. If they didn't even have such elegant things, then the family probably wouldn't prosper for long. Letting go sooner was the right choice.
Observing the changes in these people, the Lu family remained calm, drinking when it was time to drink and laughing when it was time to laugh.
Lu Xiaoyang returned shortly afterward, carrying a vase and a few arrows—simple equipment.
The expressions on everyone's faces were quite interesting, but they also wanted to curry favor with the Lu family, so they all wore forced smiles.
Lu Xiaoyang placed the equipment in the center of the hall and said to the young master who had first mentioned playing pitch-pot, "Young Master Qin, please."
All eyes were on Qin Shouzhong, who did not refuse and said with a smile, "Then I shall respectfully accept your offer."
Lu Xiaoyang prepared ten arrows, and each person threw ten in a row to see how many would go in.
Five is the dividing line. If you hit five or more, you win. If you hit less than five, you have to drink as a penalty. If you can't drink, you have to perform a talent, such as composing a poem or writing an article. Of course, if you're not good at writing, you can show off other talents. It's just for fun.
Qin Shouzhong was able to suggest this game because he was somewhat confident in his abilities. He found a spot, took out an arrow, and aimed it, only to realize that something was wrong.
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