"You've gone too far! I'm not dead yet! It's not your place to call the shots! You want to be the mistress of the house so badly? Hurry up and have Zhitang tell me about dividing the family property! Then you can live however you want!" Old Mrs. Jiang, who also had a fiery temper, stood up and was ready to argue with her eldest daughter-in-law.
Seeing this, Jiang Ling, who had been silent all along, didn't say anything. She just stood up and prepared to leave. She had come today specifically for Jiang Zhishan's matter, and she had no interest in watching shrewish women argue.
Seeing Jiang Ling's frosty face, Grandma Jiang quickly ran up to her and said ingratiatingly, "Oh, don't go, don't go, my precious daughter, I'm sorry you had to laugh at me just now!"
Hearing the words "my precious daughter," Jiang Ling felt as if her heart was bleeding. She still remembered how Grandma Jiang treated her when she first transmigrated.
"I came to talk to you about Jiang Zhishan's marriage. If you two want to argue, then finish arguing first before I come over!"
"Don't go! Don't go!" Old Mrs. Jiang blocked Jiang Ling's way and glared at Jiang Zhitang, yelling, "Why aren't you taking your wife inside right now? What are you doing here, making a fool of yourself!"
Jiang Zhitang's wife was no pushover either. When she heard Old Madam Jiang scolding her like that, she immediately frowned and prepared to fight back. Seeing this, Jiang Zhitang covered his wife's mouth and dragged her into the house!
"Oh, don't be angry! Come, come, sit down!" Grandma Jiang continued to be attentive to Jiang Ling.
Ignoring Old Madam Jiang's eagerness, Jiang Ling continued with a stern face, "Jiang Zhishan is, after all, your son and my brother. I couldn't possibly not come to tell you about such a big event as his marriage. The woman that Prefect Chen has chosen may not necessarily be the second or third-rank official you imagine. I hope you understand what I mean!"
Grandma Jiang was still somewhat clear-headed. She knew her son well, and it was already quite an achievement that he could go to Shengjing to participate in the palace examination. She nodded and said, "No problem, no problem. You have always had the best relationship with your brother, so I will definitely introduce him to a good family's daughter!"
Seeing that she had achieved her goal, Jiang Ling said nothing more and turned to leave the Jiang family.
Half a month passed in the blink of an eye. News came from Chen Qiyu's side that Jiang Ling had rushed to Qingzhou. This was Jiang Ling's first visit to the Chen residence. Chen Qiyu's wife, Madam Chen, took an instant liking to Jiang Ling.
"Oh my, this must be Jiang Ling! I've heard my Qi Yu mention you so many times! You have no idea how famous you are in Shengjing!" Madam Chen was very cheerful and warmly took Jiang Ling's hand and led her to her garden.
"Madam Chen..." Jiang Ling bowed slightly.
"Young lady, you're being too polite! Don't call me Madam Chen or Madam Chen. My family name is Yan, so just call me Sister Yan!" Madam Chen said with a smile to Jiang Ling.
"Sister Yan!" Jiang Ling called out tactfully.
Madam Chen's eyes nearly disappeared with satisfaction as she smiled. "My son Qiyu told me about your brother's situation, and I immediately wrote a letter to my family, arranging four marriages for Zhishan!"
At this point, Madam Chen paused deliberately, unaware that although Jiang Ling appeared calm, her inner gossip had reached its peak.
Fortunately, Madam Chen didn't keep them in suspense and continued, "The first family is Li Wanrou, the second illegitimate daughter of Li Tang, a third-rank official in the Court of Judicial Review. She's seventeen years old and proficient in all the arts, including music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. She's also very cautious. The second family is Sun Qianqian, the legitimate daughter of Sun Changwei, a fourth-rank official in the Imperial Guard. Also seventeen years old, like her father, she's been practicing martial arts since childhood and is known for her boldness and heroism. She manages her household exceptionally well, and her father's concubines all seem to be afraid of her!"
"The third family is Qin Lingrui, the eldest daughter of Qin Taihe, a fourth-rank scholar in the Imperial Academy. She is fifteen years old, lively and cheerful, without any scheming, kind-hearted and helpful. The last family is Cao Xinyue, the daughter of Cao Kuan, a fifth-rank deputy commander. She is fifteen years old, trained in the military camp since childhood, and has a resilient and calm personality."
After saying this, Madam Chen looked at Jiang Ling with a mysterious smile. "Which of these four families do you think is more suitable?"
After thinking for a moment, Jiang Ling looked at Madam Chen and said, "I think the eldest daughter of the third Grand Secretary would be more suitable, wouldn't you say?"
Madam Chen laughed again, patted Jiang Ling's shoulder and said, "Sister, you really have a keen eye. It's quite a coincidence that Qin Lingrui came to Qingzhou for sightseeing a few days ago and happened to run into Jiang Zhishan. The two of them have fallen in love!"
Hearing this, Jiang Ling breathed a sigh of relief. Although a fourth-rank official position was not low, it was still a relatively ordinary status in Shengjing. However, the other party was the legitimate daughter of the emperor and held a civil service position, which would probably be of some help to Jiang Zhishan in the future.
Thinking of this, Jiang Ling repeatedly said to Madam Chen, "Sister Yan, thank you so much! We owe Zhishan so much to you!"
Madam Chen smiled faintly and said nothing. Jiang Ling and Madam Chen chatted happily, and only after leaving the Chen residence did they realize that the sun had already set.
Jiang Ling urged Jiang Shan to ride at full speed towards Jiangjia Village.
Grandma Jiang remained attentive to Jiang Ling, which naturally drew the dissatisfaction of her eldest daughter-in-law once again. However, Jiang Ling did not take it to heart and simply told Grandma Jiang some things about Qin Lingrui.
The eldest daughter-in-law, who was leaning against the door cracking melon seeds, couldn't help but curl her lips and say sarcastically to Jiang Ling after hearing about Qin Lingrui's family background: "Hey, sister-in-law, I'm not trying to be mean, but your younger brother is about to take the imperial examination. He might even become the top scholar. Are you going to arrange a marriage for him with a fourth-rank official?"
"I've heard storytellers say that those top scholars might all become imperial consorts!" She turned to Old Madam Jiang and continued sarcastically, "Mother, do you know what an imperial consort is? It's the husband of a princess! That's royalty!"
"If our Zhishan becomes the emperor's son-in-law, Mother, you will be able to enter the palace and meet the emperor!"
Jiang Ling kept a straight face and didn't say anything. She wanted to see what kind of trouble this notorious shrewish sister-in-law in the surrounding villages could cause.
"Pah! Can't you shut your mouth even if you eat? What's so good about that prince consort! I, this old woman, am not senile when it comes to the background of our Zhishan! If you can say what you want, then say it; if you can't, then shut your mouth! Who gave you the right to be so picky here! Speaking of which, I suddenly remembered that you've been married into the family for a while now, but why isn't there any sign of pregnancy?"
Grandma Jiang's words made her daughter-in-law's face turn pale and then red. A few minutes later, she threw down the sunflower seed shells, snorted heavily, and slammed her bedroom door shut.
Grandma Jiang ignored her and turned to Jiang Ling, asking, "So, what day is it set? When are we going to Shengjing?"
Jiang Ling shook her head and said, "We'll have to wait for Zhi Shan's news. I don't know anything else!"
Before Old Mrs. Jiang could say anything more, he turned and walked outside.
Five days from now, everything will be auspicious.
Jiang Ling received a letter from Jiang Zhishan. Jiang Zhishan had written two copies of the letter: one for Jiang Ling and one for Old Lady Jiang of Jiangjia Village. The letter mainly stated that he had arrived in Shengjing and was preparing for the final imperial examination. He also informed Jiang Ling that he had met Qin Lingrui's parents and had a very good impression of her. The wedding date was set for the eighth day of the tenth month, after the imperial examination.
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