.

  Yu Er Nai Nai saw off her aunt and mentioned Wu Shan and Dou Zhao's marriage: "...... How do you think I should tell the old lady?"

  This marriage was initiated by Mrs. Wu, and now the Duan family has agreed. By right, Mrs. Wu should have settled this matter before leaving Zhending. Even if they didn't exchange engagement letters, at least there should be a definite promise.

  Mrs. Wu said lightly: "At that time, it was just a question, and this matter still needs to be agreed by our master."

  Yu Er Nai Nai was shocked.

  Mrs. Wu lowered her eyelids and bowed her head to take a sip of tea.

  The second grandma suddenly got angry and her face turned purple.

  Although she is the daughter of the Wu family, she is also the daughter-in-law of the Dou family.

  It was her aunt's sincerity that made her go to the second lady's front and get this good, but her aunt suddenly changed her mind, how could she stand in the Duan family in the future?

  "Aunt, we're not outsiders," Second Madam finally suppressed the anger in her heart and said in a low voice, "If you have anything to say, just tell me directly. I need to give an account to Madame and my mother-in-law after all. You probably don't know yet? Shougu has half of the Xi family's property as dowry, who knows how many families are eyeing it?! If it weren't for the fact that the Wu and Xi families are relatives by marriage, if Uncle and Fifth Uncle weren't close friends, the Xi family might not have agreed to this marriage..."

  Mrs. Wu was taken aback.

  Does Dou Shaoming have half of Xi Dou's property as dowry?

  No wonder he was so arrogant and dared to beat Pang Kunbai half to death.

  Such a woman. Then she can't be allowed in the door!

  Otherwise, who can control it later?

  Perhaps they will also be saddled with the reputation of being a greedy wife who brought a dowry.

  She suddenly became angry and said discontentedly: "What kind of person is your uncle and I? Don't you know? Du Si Miss has so many dowries, why didn't you tell me? Are you afraid that I will be greedy for her dowry? Fortunately, you mentioned this today. If we wait until the two families exchange gifts, can our Wu family afford the betrothal gift? What are you doing as a matchmaker? You're humiliating your mother's family! Let me tell you the truth, your family's Fourth Miss is just a bully who beats people to death, and she's still a relative. My son can't stand such a person! I'm afraid that one day I'll offend her, and she won't even spare me as her mother-in-law!"

  The second grandma didn't know the details, and was extremely surprised when she heard this. However, she still argued strongly: "Auntie, how can you talk like that? Fourth sister and Twelfth Uncle were robbed by someone, they didn't resist, are you saying they should have stuck their heads out to be chopped off?"

  Mrs. Wu only spoke for the sake of her husband's family, coldly saying: "I didn't say she couldn't resist. But there must be a bottom line? She's a woman, obviously already at an advantage, and still doesn't give in to reason..." Just as she was speaking, the bamboo curtain "clanged" open, and Wu Shan rushed in with a face like gold paper.

  "Mother, Fourth Sister is not that kind of person!" However, after just a few days, his eyes were sunken, and he looked like withered grass, without the slightest hint of his former spirit. "Beating Pang Kun Bai was our idea. He's too despicable, if we don't teach him a lesson, we really can't bear it..."

  "Aren't you supposed to be reading in the study? What are you doing running out here?" Mrs. Wu glared at her son, her eyes more severe than ever before. "I was talking to your cousin, what business do you have interrupting us? Who taught you, don't you know any manners?! Go back to your room at once!" She shouted loudly for Bi Auntie, "How are you serving the young master? How could you let him run around everywhere..."

  Aunt is clearly referring to one thing but actually means another.

  The second grandma's face changed greatly.

  Wu Shan couldn't help but shout "Mother" in a loud voice, saying: "You don't have to blame Bi Auntie, it's all my fault. I'll go back to my room and read books now." He said this, but didn't immediately return to his room. Instead, he hesitated for a moment, then suddenly knelt down in front of his mother with a "thud". "Mother," he said, his eyes and eyebrows filled with determination, pitifully begging Wu TaiTai: "You... you just agree to my marriage with Fourth Sister, okay? I'm begging you..." As he spoke, he started knocking his head against the ground with a series of "thuds".

  Mrs. Wu and Second Lady both changed color. Mrs. Wu shouted loudly: "Wu Shan, what are you going to do?"

  What does he want to do?

  He just wouldn't give up!

  Fourth sister, isn't it a matter of parental orders and matchmaker's words?

  If Duanjia agreed to their marriage proposal, even if that family came to propose, he could still fight for it.

  Wu Shan's eyes were blurry with tears, and he kept knocking his head, as if only in this way would the pain in his heart be alleviated a little.

  The second grandma sighed softly and went forward to hold Wu Shan: "Get up quickly!"

  Wu Shan grasped Second Madam's sleeve as if grabbing a lifesaving straw: "Elder sister, please help me..."

  His words had barely fallen when "slap" sounded, and his face was slapped by his mother: "A man, a big husband, kneeling to heaven, earth, monarch, teacher, you actually knelt down for a woman to your mother and cousin, are you still a man? Get up!" As she spoke, she pulled Wu Shan up roughly.

  Wu Shan didn't make a sound, staring intently at Er Nainai without blinking.

  The second grandma couldn't bear to look at his eyes, turned her face away and said in a low voice: "Things have come to this point, even if the fourth sister marries over, do you think it's suitable?"

  Wu Shan's eyes dimmed instantly, and his whole body seemed to have lost all its strength, being pulled up by his mother in a daze.

  The second grandma didn't want to get involved in this muddy water anymore, so she stood up and bid farewell.

  In less than half an hour, what happened in the western wing had reached Madam Ji's ears.

  She flew into a rage and said, "What does the Wu family want to do? Does he think that our Duan family is a dish of vegetables for the Wu family to eat? Whatever they want to do! I will go to the old lady's place to ask clearly about this matter."

  The second mistress was also very angry, lying on the kang with her eyes closed, being massaged by Liu Mama.

  "A forced marriage is not sweet, and it's better if it doesn't work out." She advised Ji Shi with a cold glint in her eyes, "Just now she scolded Zi Jun's wife harshly. But what's the use? Since Mrs. Wu looks down on Shou Gu, even if Shou Gu marries into their family, she won't get any good treatment. If you have a kind heart, help her pay attention to finding a better match than the Wu family in the future."

  Ji Shi looked at the cold glint in Er Tai Fu Ren's eyes and knew that she had taken a dislike to Wu Tai Tai. She thought that after this, Er Tai Fu Ren would cause trouble for Wu Tai Tai, so she didn't say anything else and stood up to leave. As she walked away, she remembered that two days ago, Cui Yi Niang had sent someone to ask if she could help find two embroiderers from Jiangnan to make a wedding dress for Du Zhao. Her heart felt a pang of sadness. She instructed Cai Shu: "Prepare the carriage, I'm going to West Mansion."

  Dong Zhaoye had already received the news, thinking that Wu Shan must have said something in front of Mrs. Wu, and she let out a sigh of relief while her heart flashed with a faint sense of melancholy. But she quickly threw off this feeling of melancholy. She told Chen Quanshui about the news she had just received: "...has Second Madam already determined that Du An was instructed by Wang Yingshu?"

  "Indeed!" Chen Quanshui laughed, "Third Master not only wrote a letter to Fifth Master, but also wrote one to your respected father, and just sent someone to rush it to the capital by fast horse."

  "With my fifth uncle's temperament, he will definitely seize this opportunity to make things difficult for Wang Xingyi. Although Wang Xingyi has had great military achievements in recent years, as a general on the outside, there are some imperial orders that cannot be disobeyed. However, when it comes to military rations and supplies, as well as rewards and punishments, the officials of the six ministries will inevitably have to lend a hand. My fifth uncle has been operating in the capital for many years, with deep roots, so at this time, Wang Xingyi would not dare to turn against him. If I were him, I would definitely lower my head and admit my mistakes, promising my fifth uncle something... She said with a smile, "I'm worried that good things can't be had by just one person, right? We probably won't get to eat the meat, but we might still have some soup to drink. Why not let the Pang family compensate us with 10,000 taels of silver? No, make it 20,000 taels! For Pang Kunbai, I put out a reward of 10,000 taels of silver! Anyway, the people from the Pang family walk around with their heads held high, as if they have 'I have money' written on their foreheads. Let's take advantage of this and swindle them!"

  Chen Qu Shui hehe smiled.

  Dong Zhaohui told Su Xin: "Help me grind the ink, I want to write a letter to my father. It's best for him to talk to Fifth Uncle about this kind of thing."

  Su Xin smiled and helped Du Zhao prepare his writing materials.

  Dòu Zhāo wrote a letter to his father. Then he mentioned the matter of Duàn Gōng Yì: "I've already told Third Uncle, from now on if Old Lady Duàn needs any medicinal herbs, just let the maidservant serving her go to the Dòu family's herbal medicine shop to pick them up and put it on my account."

  Yesterday, Duan Gongyi officially became a guardian of the Duan family.

  Chen Qu Shui smiled and nodded: "This is great!"

  Dong Zhao asked about the business of the pen and ink shop again before returning to the inner courtyard.

  Grandma's eyes were red, as if she had cried. Her gaze also flashed with a hint of pity from time to time.

  Dong Xuan's expression was strange and gloomy as she walked out of the East Wing. She asked Gan Lu: "What exactly is going on?"

  Ganlu hung her head and muttered: "It was Sixth Madam who came over, saying that the Wu family will set off for Kyoto tomorrow..."

  So it seems that her grandmother was heartbroken because of her failed marriage.

  Dòu Zhāo pō wèi wú nài de xū le kǒu qì.

  Translation: Dou Zhao let out a helpless sigh.

  ※※※※※

  The day Wu Shan walked away, it rained a little.

  The rain is dripping wet, washing the leaves an exceptionally bright green.

  Dong Zhao spent the whole day in the flower house trimming branches and leaves of the Wintergreen tree until dusk when Dong Dechang came to visit her: "Wu Si said that you had asked him to paint a fan, and I helped him deliver it."

  She washed her hands and let Su Xin put the fan into the trunk.

  Dong Dechang said in a daze: "Don't you see what the painting is?"

  "What's the point of what's being painted?" Du Zhao wiped his hands carefully with a handkerchief and said lightly, "It's better to put it away."

  Dòu Déchāng was silent.

  In just a few days, Ji Yong returned from Mount Tai and heard that Wu Shan had left. He shook his fan and laughed twice, instructing his followers to prepare the carriage, as he wanted to go to the Western Mansion.

  "Ji's family anxiously blocked him: 'Where are you going?'"

  Ji Yong opened his eyes wide: "I brought a formed He Shou Wu for Fourth Sister, is this also not working?"

  Ji's face turned red with embarrassment as he forced a smile.

  Ji Yang's voice echoed far and wide as he departed.

  I saw Dòu Zhāo and asked her: "I heard that your marriage with Wū Shàn has been called off? Don't be sad, this kind of person is soft and mushy, really not interesting at all. You will definitely meet someone better in the future! I just happened to have a branch of He Shou Wu to give you, take it to nourish your hair."

  Is he comforting himself or hitting himself?

  Dong Zhao's face turned red with rage, his temples throbbing. He gritted his teeth and said: "Did Brother Ji mishear? How could I not know that I was engaged to Wu Si-ge?"

  Ji Yong's mouth was agape for half a day before he finally closed it.

  Dong Zhao felt much better in his heart.

  ※

  Sisters and brothers, asking for pink tickets...~~~~~

  ※