Chapter 1616: Chapter 1623: Duke Li Guo Mansion’s Plan (3)
Juhua was frozen, staring at him blankly, clueless, while he turned around and slowly left.
"What was that? Ridiculous! Do I look like the kind of person who engages in petty theft? Tsk!"
Juhua mumbled, irate, as she headed to Mother’s courtyard to finish her meal!
It was already evening, and Mother, Lady Cui, was sitting on the kang, talking to a plump middle-aged woman dressed in a silk beizi.
The woman had a face full of rouge, and a large face so pale it seemed to have fallen into a flour vat. Her hair was styled into a glossy bun, greased with who knows how much hair oil, adorned with two gold-plated hairpins, and a glaring bright red velvet flower. Her semi-old silk clothes were pink, matching her large pale face, which looked quite amusing.
Juhua glanced at the woman, finding her very unfamiliar. From her attire, she didn’t seem like a lady from the upper echelons of Qing County. How did Mother come to know someone like her?
Still puzzled, the woman spotted Juhua, and immediately beamed, saying, "Oh, this must be the young Miss. Truly, she was born with a lovely complexion. If it weren’t for Madam’s inclination to take a son-in-law, sending the young Miss to the palace to become a lady would be more than fitting!"
Upon hearing this, Juhua felt quite uncomfortable, especially when the fat woman looked at her, those slyly darting eyes seemed to pierce through her clothing, making her hair stand on end.
"You’re too polite. My daughter, besides not being beautiful enough, she is good in everything else!" Madame Cui looked at her daughter with loving eyes, exchanging pleasantries with the woman.
"Mother, who is this..." Juhua pulled her mother’s hand, sitting by her side on the edge of the kang.
Madam Cui gently patted her daughter and said, "This is the famous Matchmaker Zhang from our county, known as Ninth Lady Zhang. Many prominent families in the county have had their marital affairs arranged by her!"
Matchmaker!
Juhua became wary, her round eyes staring as she asked, "What is she here for?"
Madam Cui laughed and said, "Naturally, she’s here to talk about marriage. As a man grows, he should wed; as a woman grows, she should marry. Now you’re not young anymore, and your father and I pondered about finding you a match, which is why we invited Ninth Lady Zhang to discuss these matters."
Upon hearing this, Juhua nearly jumped up, shaking her mother’s hand, saying, "Why did you decide on such a major thing without consulting me? When did I ever say I wanted to get married? Are you and Father fed up with me, wanting to send me away?"
Ninth Lady Zhang, upon hearing this, covered her mouth with a handkerchief and laughed, saying, "Miss, you are truly misunderstanding the Old Master and Madam. They are not fed up with you, wanting to send you off. They are planning to take an in-home son-in-law so you can stay at home for life!"
"I don’t want that either!"
Juhua stood up, huffing at Mother, "Anyway, I just don’t want it, whether it’s getting married or taking a son-in-law, I don’t want any of it..."
After speaking, she stomped her foot and ran out.
"Hey... Juhua... Quick, you all hurry after Miss, don’t let her fall..."
Madam Cui watched her daughter’s figure and hurriedly ordered someone to follow, unable to help complaining, "This child, already this grown, still doesn’t want to get married, getting more and more capricious!"
Ninth Lady Zhang chuckled and said, "Madam, don’t be anxious. It’s not necessarily true that Miss truly doesn’t want a husband. Old Body has been a matchmaker for many years, and I understand these girls’ heart the best. Never heed their ’I won’t marry’ words; deep down, they are very fond indeed. Have you seen a girl not cry dramatically when getting married, putting on airs as if unwilling, but then, once married, who doesn’t live lovingly with her husband, like mixing honey into oil? So, you just go ahead and choose your son-in-law, and don’t heed Miss’s insincere words..."