On the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, Sun Xunqiao got married. Qin Xiaozhou was invited to attend. The groom was a scholar who had passed the imperial examination. His family was of modest means and lived in the south of the county town. They only had a small courtyard, but they were highly respected and had influence with the county magistrate. Sun Xunqiao was very satisfied with this. "This marriage was arranged by my uncle. He said that scholars are good, and they might be able to get an official position in the future. Then I would be a proper official's wife. Cousin, has your marriage been arranged?"
Sun Yuanyuan is half a month older than Sun Xunqiao and is also worried about her marriage. "It will probably be decided during the New Year. Everything will be decided by my grandmother and father."
Unfortunately, her grandmother disapproved of her father and was not interested in her marriage.
Sun Xunqiao said innocently, "My cousin's marriage must be a thousand times better than mine. If it can be arranged by Old Madam Sun, it should be a young master from a noble family in Wanzhou. Cousin, I have never met a young master from a noble family. Are they all very handsome?"
“You,” Sun Yuanyuan poked her forehead helplessly, “You’re already wearing your wedding dress, and the groom is on his way here, yet you’re still daydreaming. Everyone has their own destiny. Once you’re married, just focus on being a good wife to your husband, urging him to study hard and pass the imperial examinations so he can become an official’s wife in the future.”
Noise and firecrackers came from outside. Sun Xunqiao's mother came in beaming. "Daughter, hurry up and put on your veil. Your son-in-law is here."
The matchmaker escorted the bride to the front hall to bid farewell to her father and brothers, and then she was taken away by the groom. The Sun family went from joy to liveliness, and now only the Sun parents are left with lonely faces.
The Sun family wedding was a lively affair. After finishing the banquet, Qin Xiaozhou returned home, feeling inevitably sad. It seemed that after Lu Yu's marriage, Zhao Fang would have to stay in Wangjia Village to accompany Wang Lan. Otherwise, the sudden emptiness would inevitably make the old woman sad and upset.
The land deed from the northwest was delivered quickly, and Qin Xiaozhou invited a construction worker to explain the desired layout. Taking advantage of the lull after the autumn harvest, the textile factory soon began construction.
In mid-September, Lu Yunfeng received a letter from Lu Yunxing. He picked it up from the dock, squeezed the thick envelope, and couldn't help but laugh. "I used to think that Eryun was a man of few words, but I didn't expect that after going out for a while, he would open up and start talking."
After saying that, they opened the letter, which contained five sheets of paper. The couple huddled together and read it carefully. The letter said that they had traveled by boat for three days to reach Wanzhou, and then traveled north for fourteen days to finally reach the capital. The capital was bustling with shops and houses, and it was impossible to tell which way was north or south.
Qin Xiaozhou couldn't help but ask, "What's the capital like? Let's go and see it together next autumn."
Although she had seen the skyscrapers of modern society, she also wanted to see the ancient city of Shengjing.
Lu Yan rushed in with delight, "Big brother and sister-in-law, I heard that second brother wrote a letter."
Lu Yan now knows quite a few characters. Lu Yunfeng handed her the letter, and Lu Yan read it aloud word by word, haltingly: "The Grand Canal is as wide as four or five canals east of the county town... The gates of the capital are more than twice as tall as the embroidered tower... The grand building is as large as half a county town, gathering food, songs, dances, and acrobatics from all over the world..."
"Wow!" Lu Yan exclaimed excitedly. "Big brother, sister-in-law, there are rivers that are so wide in the world? The East River in the county town is the biggest river I've ever seen, and there's such a tall city gate. How tall must it be? I used to think that our Xiulou was already the best place, but there's also Fanlou, which has singing, dancing and acrobatics... Sister-in-law, I really want to go and see it."
Qin Xiaozhou nodded, "Okay, let's all go see. Now let's quickly settle the accounts. In a few days, we'll go home and wait for Doctor Li to invite the matchmaker to our house to propose marriage."
Lu Yan ran off happily, while Qin Xiaozhou nestled in Lu Yunfeng's arms, saying, "I've become Qin the Skinflint who only talks the talk."
I used to draw pictures of cakes for the Lu family, and for the county magistrate; now I'm drawing them for Lu Yan, and in a few days I'll be going to the embroidery shop to draw pictures for the seamstress...
Lu Yunfeng rubbed her head and said, "The promises you made before, our family has already made a living from them."
Alright! After hearing this, Qin Xiaozhou was able to make promises without changing his expression, but he still needed to let people have them gradually so as not to break his promise. So today, Qin Xiaozhou had the female physician examine the bodies of all the embroiderers in the embroidery building.
It's a physical examination.
Li Zhen was puzzled as to why she needed to have her health checked just to come to work. Qin Xiaozhou waved his hand and said, "You are all my employees, and I care about your health. Go downstairs to the courtyard and line up to have the doctor take your pulse. Good health is a good thing, and if there are any deficiencies, it will be good to take medicine in time to remedy them."
There were more than seventy embroiderers and weavers. Women have always been reluctant to seek medical treatment, so everyone looked at each other and dared not let anyone take their pulse. It was fine if they had given birth, but if they were not yet married, if others found out that they had gone to see a doctor, they would be suspected of having a hidden illness, which would be extremely detrimental to their marriage prospects.
Granny Qian explained the situation to Qin Xiaozhou, "Manager, I know you mean well, but life is tough for women in this world. Marriage is a big deal. If you make a mistake and are criticized by others, it will affect your marriage. That would be a lifelong regret."
Qin Xiaozhou sighed. She was terrified by Guo Que's death during childbirth, but some things cannot be changed overnight. "Then please have the female physician live in the backyard. In the future, anyone who feels unwell can go to the female physician for a pulse diagnosis and medicine. The medical expenses will be cheaper than outside."
And this is great news! Everyone gets sick sometimes, so if you have a fever or cough, you can see a doctor and take some medicine without being criticized. Now everyone can rest assured.
Qin Xiaozhou returned home dejectedly and threw herself into Lu Yunfeng's arms, saying, "I have a long way to go."
The Lu family in Wangjia Village was bustling with activity today. Doctor Li, along with the matchmaker and his apprentice, came to present betrothal gifts, igniting the gossip frenzy among the villagers.
"Sigh, the Lu family changes sons-in-law as easily as they change clothes."
"I heard that this time it's Dr. Li's apprentice. I saw that young man a few days ago at the west end of the village. He kept walking and I thought he was coming to the village to treat patients. Now that I think about it, he came to the Lu family to see his future mother-in-law and wife."
"That kid is really lucky. He was adopted by Doctor Li at a young age when his parents were unknown. He's only seventeen and he's already married into the Lu family. He'll never have to worry about food or clothing in his life. How can he be so lucky?"
"What you're saying is ridiculous. Lu Yu is lucky. When Aunt Wang gave birth to her, the Lu family was already doing well. They went through a tough two years, but she still stayed indoors all day, never getting any sun or wind. Did any of you ever see her lift a hoe to plant rice or harvest wheat? The tough times didn't last two years. Then Dayun got married, and now she's a rich young lady."
Many women in the village envied and were jealous of Lu Yu. Lu Yu had never worked in the fields since she was a child. She used to have meat to eat and clothes made of fox fur. Now her family had become so rich that they were almost the richest family in the entire county.
What kind of fate is this?!
Lu Yu herself was unaware of how enviable her seemingly effortless life was. At this moment, she was hiding in the house in the backyard, listening intently to the conversation in the front hall.
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