Reborn as the Blissful Wife in the countryside-Chapter 1027: Old Affairs

Ms. Lu stepped forward, took her daughter’s hand, led her into the house, and let her sit down. She asked her again the question from before: "Linglong, do you truly wish to marry Gu Dexing? His family’s situation is not as good as the Gu Jin’an’s, and he isn’t as promising as Gu Jin’an. Even if he becomes a Scholar, whether he can become a scholar in the future is still uncertain."

She also carefully talked about the situation of Gu Dexing’s family and Mrs. Chen.

"You saw what kind of person that Aunt Gu is. She might not be very bad, but she’s too shrewd. If you marry there, you’ll have to deal with her for decades, and she’s an elder. If she bullies you, you’ll have to endure it."

In Great Chu, there is no shortage of nieces-in-law being mistreated by cruel aunts for a lifetime, living bitterly.

Xu Zhong listened, laughed softly, and nodded, replying to Ms. Lu’s previous question: "Mother, I really am willing to marry Gu Dexing; he is a good choice."

Her face reddened for a moment, and once the heat subsided, she continued: "I know mother’s concerns, but I never thought of becoming an official’s wife. If he can become an official, then he should. If not, having a Scholar’s title, he can still live a decent life in the county. Moreover, I’ve heard the Gu, Qin, and Luo families in Luotian are strict in family education; the young men from these families don’t frequent brothels, nor do they have the bad habit of visiting gambling houses. As long as these faults are absent, marrying into the family won’t make me suffer."

Many young men from wealthy families in the county have been to brothels and gambling houses, and some have even gambled away their ancestral homes.

Speaking of Mrs. Chen: "Although Aunt Gu appears fierce and aggressive, she is protective. Today, when she scolded Sister Ling, her words mostly defended Gu Dexing. An aunt who can protect her nephew in such a way likely isn’t an Evil Man. I believe Aunt Gu won’t bully me based on her seniority."

"Furthermore, I am not made of clay; if she truly bullies me, I won’t allow it and will surely find a way to deal with her. Mother needn’t worry."

Despite Xu Zhong’s young age, she is very sensible, knows how to follow Elder Xu’s lead, and is adept at handling situations, never stirring conflict. However, she isn’t a pushover; she thinks things through. If she truly can’t endure it, she would find a way to rescue herself.

Ms. Lu listened, scrutinizing her daughter’s expression, and only felt relieved upon seeing she wasn’t unwilling. Still, she asked: "Is your reluctance to be an official’s wife related to the Tong Family’s matter?"

The Tong Family is Southern people; twenty years ago, Elder Xu took the Xu Family’s eldest to Jiangnan to open a shop and befriended Elder Tong. Seeing Elder Tong’s talent, with the thought that supporting one more person opens one more avenue, Elder Xu helped Elder Tong, allowing him to continue studying until he became a scholar and an official.

The Tong Family was grateful and promised that their son would marry Elder Xu’s granddaughter as the official wife. At that time, Xu Ling was not yet born, so Elder Xu, fearing the Tong Family might renege, spoke of Xu Zhong instead, even exchanged tokens of engagement.

However, the Tong Family’s son married an official’s daughter; three years ago, they married, and now their son can already walk.

Fortunately, the engagement between the two families was only verbally agreed upon and not registered at the government office with an engagement letter, otherwise her daughter would have been branded as having had her engagement broken.

Ms. Lu cried countless times over this matter, always feeling her daughter had suffered greatly.

Elder Xu was also very angry, but the Tong Family was already officials, albeit minor ones, but the Xu Family dared not confront the official, having to swallow their anger and not dare to trouble the Tong Family.

Ms. Lu feared that Xu Zhong’s reluctance to be an official’s wife arose from this incident.

Xu Zhong was stunned, then laughed: "Mother, if you hadn’t mentioned the Tong Family, I would have nearly forgotten about them."

Almost forgot about this old matter.

She continued: "The Tong Family’s issue was only verbal; it wasn’t truly binding. Besides, I’ve never met the Tong Family’s son...actually, from their refusal to let him visit us, it’s clear they never intended to fulfill this marriage promise. Years of cold-shouldering us were meant to wake grandfather up so he would exchange back the token."

In the end, grandfather also realized, took the initiative to exchange back the token, preventing the two families from tearing their relationship apart. And feeling indebted, the Tong Family often took good care of the Xu Family’s business in Jiangnan.

Xu Zhong said: "Mother, although I am not clever, I understand that one shouldn’t grieve for someone they’ve never met. I’ve never been saddened by the Tong Family’s issue."

She never believed she could marry into the Tong Family, never viewed them as her future in-laws, so why would she be saddened? Instead, she felt lucky, fortunate to see the Tong Family’s true face before marrying in. Otherwise, marrying in would have surely led to a miserable end.

She knew it’s not uncommon for official families to torment wives from poor families to death.

Ms. Lu, upon hearing this, shed tears: "Linglong, my dear child, you’ve suffered."

Xu Zhong took out a handkerchief to wipe Ms. Lu’s tears, smiled: "Mother, don’t cry. Gu Dexing’s family is quite good, let’s go with him. Please believe in me, I’ll live a good life."

She laughed again: "Maybe Gu Dexing will be promising, and in the future, I’ll become an official’s wife and bring you honor."

Ms. Lu cried even more, sometimes wishing Linglong was more like Girl Ling, a bit more spoiled, not so understanding, so that she wouldn’t always feel wronged.

After crying for a moment, Ms. Lu wiped her tears, saying: "Linglong, don’t worry. Mother will ensure everything is handled properly, making sure Gu Dexing’s family comes to propose."

Even though they first chose Gu Dexing, Ms. Lu didn’t plan to bring up the marriage first. Having managed household affairs for years, she knew how to maneuver, using a trick or two to make sure Gu Dexing’s family comes.

Overall, they couldn’t lose dignity and make Linglong looked down upon by Gu Dexing’s family.

Determined, Ms. Lu began preparations to offer a thick gift for tomorrow’s apology to the Gu Family, preparing two gifts: one for the Gu Jin’an’s house and one for Mrs. Chen’s house, with excuses ready. The one for Mrs. Chen was meant as an apology on behalf of Girl Ling.

...

Mrs. Chen was unaware that because of her antics today, she inadvertently stirred things up to land Gu Dexing a bride.

Having finished her meal at the Luo Family Escort Agency, she was currently scolding Xu Ling: "I’ve never seen such an unruly girl, arguing with me in front of a roomful of elders! Who does she think she is? If she scolds me, can I stay silent? I scolded her right into fainting!"

She proudly said: "Seeing her faint, I can’t express how satisfied I was; it was beyond comforting!"

After scolding Xu Ling, she began worrying about Gu Dexing’s marriage: "He’s already twenty-two; if we don’t hurry and discuss marriage, gossip from the shrews will spread across ten miles and eight villages."

Ms. Chu said: "Why are you so anxious? Brother Xing is now a student; I bet when he returns to the village, girls from the ten miles and eight villages will surely come; are you still worried he can’t find a bride?"