Lin Wu got off the bus with eyes that had cried into walnuts, Zhou's eyebrows furrowed deeply. Lin Qi ran up to pull Lin Wu and asked with a smile: "Hey, what's wrong with Fifth Sister? What's so sad? There's such a strong smell of wine, you didn't get drunk, did you?"

  Zhou's face turned red with anger, Lin Wu's emotions were at an all-time low and fragile, she couldn't help but cry again. Just in time, Lin Jianyin smiled and said: "Wu Mei's eyes are uncomfortable, let's take her back to see the elder aunt."

  Zhou also took advantage of the situation and pulled Lin Wu, first going inside.

  Lin Qi and Lin Liu exchanged a glance, their faces full of joy and satisfaction.

  At night, after Tao Shi finished washing and was combing her hair in front of the mirror, Gong Mama said softly: "Madam, today I heard Old Madam mention our Fourth Miss's marriage, and I have an idea. Would you be willing to listen?"

  Tao swept a glance at Mrs. Gong and said lightly, "I know what you're thinking, but I don't think it's very likely."

  "Impossible? With Auntie's connections there, the two families are of equal social standing and have been acquainted for generations. Our Fourth Miss is talented, beautiful, intelligent, and capable. Among the girls of her age in Pingzhou, I wouldn't dare say she's the first, but she won't be lower than the top three either. This old slave thinks that Mistress probably has some ideas in mind, if you don't make a move early, you might regret it later."

  "You think I haven't thought of that?" Mrs. Tao sighed: "The doorsteps of the Lin and Wu families are matched, but Wu Xiang is different. He's not young, and his family has never mentioned his marriage, nor has Auntie said anything about it. It's likely that he has high aspirations and wants to wait until after he passes the imperial examination in the capital before making a high-profile match." Unless the Wu family brings it up themselves, we shouldn't take the initiative to humiliate ourselves.

  "What a pity." Mrs. Gong said with some regret. Nowadays, marriage values wealth and choosing a son-in-law is like selecting a high-ranking official. As the saying goes, "Ten years of hard work go unnoticed, but once you become famous, the whole world knows." Many wealthy and noble people take pride in their daughters marrying officials, and they spare no effort to entice and coerce them into doing so. With Wu Xiang's talent, looks, and age, it's natural that he wouldn't have trouble finding a good match when he tops the imperial examination. From then on, his career would soar. In comparison, the declining Lin family is not a good choice."

  Mrs. Tao lay down on the bed: "There are many good families, that day Ah Yin told me, Nang Nang is too opinionated, we must find a tolerant family to accommodate her. Shen Zhi is still young, no hurry, let's visit slowly."

  "It is indeed." Gong Mama smiled: "This person values self-awareness, but the lady doesn't know, thinking herself to be inferior, I'll wait and see her get a nose full of dust."

  "Taoshi also laughed with schadenfreude: 'I'm waiting to see.' Look at her crazy appearance, with an air of being the number one in the world, it's really unbearable."

  Lin Jinyong was unaware of this conversation. She calmly analyzed the development of the situation. Since Lin Yuzhen and Luo had already formed a tacit understanding, as long as there were no unexpected events, she would be safe with such momentum. Although temporarily safe, she couldn't slack off and still needed to make plans for what should be planned.

  Wu Xiang had not been engaged to anyone in her previous life, at least not before she died. Not even after passing the imperial examination did she have any marriage arrangements. She didn't know the specific reason for this, but in her impression, Wu Xiang was quite good and treated her well, and Yang Shi was also a kind person. Most importantly, the Wu family's attitude towards making money through private business was similar to that of the Tao family, and they had done a lot of business in the privately-run market in Qingzhou every year, which gave them significantly more financial resources than the Lin family. If she could enter the Wu family, she would have an easier life.

  Compared to a marriage where one doesn't even know who the other person is, what their family background or character is like, this match with the Wu family is still worth striving for. Even if in the end she and Wu Xiang can't be together like they were in their past life, she should at least give it a try. If it doesn't work out after trying, then there's nothing that can be done; but not trying would lead to regret.

  Lin Jinyong gazed at the soft moonlight outside the window, her mood unusually calm. She knew what she wanted and what she should strive for. The two words "love" were too illusory, not everyone had that good fortune, so it was better to firmly grasp what could be grasped and be kinder to herself.

  It's more practical to live well.

  To the west of Pingzhou City, there is a secluded alley with two rows of one-zhang-high green brick walls on both sides. The wall tops are covered with lush greenery, and walking along the alley to its end leads to the Wu family's large gate. Normally, this alley is quiet, with only the Wu family's servants and children coming and going, but today it was unusually lively, with a constant stream of people coming and going. It was said that the champion scholar from Taoming Prefecture had emerged in Pingzhou, which made all the scholars in Pingzhou feel honored. All those who had connections with the Wu family, whether close or distant, came to offer congratulations.

  Compared to Lin Yuzhen's frantic state yesterday, Yang's attitude seems very calm, happy but not overjoyed, humble but not excessive. Tao was very pleased with Yang's attitude and whispered to Lin Jiren: "Look, this is the true elegance that a scholarly family should have. Look at your aunt's frantic appearance, it's really disgusting."

  Lin Jinrong did not entirely agree: "Aunt's extreme joy is because she had high hopes earlier and also wanted to tell others that Second Brother's success was inseparable from her hard work in raising him, so she should be even happier than Mrs. Lu; but it's different for Old Lady Wu, since young Master Wu has been famous for his talent, being the top of the first grade in Pingzhou is nothing special, not passing the exam would be unusual, so she can't be too happy."

  Taoshi looked at Lin Jinyong with a strange expression, thought for a moment, and indeed it was the case. He excitedly patted her hand and said in a low voice: "This little girl has really grown up, she can actually think of these things."

  Lin Jinyong said this without realizing anything was different, but upon careful consideration, he found that he had also unknowingly become more profound and transparent. He couldn't help but chuckle to himself, and with a cheerful expression, he picked up the wine jug and poured a cup of lychee wine for himself and Tao Shi: "It's a pity that Third Sister couldn't join us on this outing today, she loves this wine the most." Just like last year, she wasn't able to come either.

  Lychee wine is expensive, and the Lin family can't often get to drink it. When Mrs. Tao heard her daughter say this, she felt a little ashamed and heartbroken. After thinking for a moment, she comforted herself by saying: "Don't worry, when your sister gets married in Qingzhou, you'll have as much as you want."

  Lin Jian couldn't help but laugh: "Yes."

  Taoshi's eyes swept over and saw not far away, Lu Yun's hand tightly held by Lin Yuzhen, who was chatting with Yangshi, her eyebrows flying high. So she threw the lychee wine behind her head, made a face at Gong Mama, and whispered: "Do you think she'll open up today?" Gong Mama shook her head: "No way. After all, she's the daughter of a scholarly family and an official's wife, she's seen the world, how could she be so rash? The mistress won't get to watch the play today."

  Tao smiled: "Sooner or later, I'm waiting." On the other side, Lu Yun discovered Tao and others, so he let go of Lin Yuzhen's hand, walked over with a smile, greeted everyone, sat down next to Lin Jianrong, and whispered: "Fourth sister, have you seen Wu Ergou?"

  Lin Jiran was taken aback for a moment, then shook his head: "No. I got off the car at the second gate and went straight into the inner courtyard, how could I have seen him?"

  Lu Yun said, "What a pity. Before my brother went to the Tai Ming Fu, he came to my house and asked you if you wanted to have a flute-blowing contest with him. I thought that today when he saw you, he would definitely challenge you to a contest. Now it seems that I don't have the good fortune."

  Earlier, I met Lu Yun several times and never heard her mention this matter. Today, she suddenly remembered it. Lin Jian smiled calmly and said, "It's rare for Cloud Sister to be so foolish at times. Wu Erge is busy greeting guests and exchanging pleasantries in the front, how would he have the leisure time to come and compete with me in blowing the sheng?"

  "Hmm..." Lu Yun smiled awkwardly, remained silent for a moment, then raised an eyebrow at Lin Jingrong and said: "I've also learned to play the sheng, but I'm not skilled yet. Another day, please instruct me, Fourth Sister."

  "It's easy for you to say." Lin Jianrong responded with this sentence and ignored her, burying his head again to pour himself another cup of lychee wine.

  On the other side, Lin Yuzhen finally finished talking to Yang and was pulled away by a group of women to congratulate her. Tao took advantage of the empty space to go forward and toast Yang, after congratulating him, he mentioned that he wanted to go to Qingzhou, and tactfully asked about Wu's family arrangements, if they had anything or anyone to send over, she could help them take it over.

  Yang was overjoyed: "That's great! Just right, thank you for taking care of Wu Xiang for me, I was worried about him." Originally, the Wu family had sent their eldest son to celebrate Wu Shi's birthday, but Wu Xiang said he had just taken a big exam and was too tired, so it would be better to let him take care of it. He could use the opportunity to relax and broaden his horizons. As he had always been favored, this request was not excessive, and his older brother wouldn't argue with him. However, Qingzhou was different from Pingzhou, being close to Da Rong, with a fierce folk culture and complex social composition. Wu Xiang was a person who appeared calm and gentle on the surface but was actually unconventional and unrestrained. Yang had been worried that the old steward accompanying them couldn't control Wu Xiang's temperament, so now that Tao was willing to help take him there, it was perfect.

  Tao had such an opportunity to repay kindness, and he attached great importance to it, promising that he would definitely take good care of Wu Xiang for Yang's sake, without letting him lose a single hair.

  Yang couldn't help but enthusiastically drag her along, asking about Lin Jianyin's situation and praising Lin Jianrong again. After agreeing on the departure date, they parted ways.

  During this time, Lin Yuzhen frequently turned her head to look back. Tao was a careless person by nature and thought she had seen through Lin's thoughts, so she couldn't help but intentionally show off in front of her, greeting her with a smug face before returning to her seat and saying to Lin Jianrong: "Pack up your things when we get back, we're leaving the day after tomorrow."

  Lin Jinrong saw her and Yang talking and laughing together, so he knew that someone from the Wu family must have gone. He casually asked: "Who went?"

  Tao looked at Lu Yun and said: "You go, Wu Erge. Your Wu family's eldest aunt just asked me to take good care of him and not let him run around everywhere."

  Lu Yun quickly raised his head and looked at Tao Shi: "Third Aunt, where are you going?"

  Taoshi smiled with ill intentions: "We're going to Qingzhou, to celebrate the birthday of your fourth sister's aunt, who is also Wu Ergou's aunt."

  Lu Yun silently looked at Lin Jianrong for a moment, then quickly lowered his eyes.

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