Chapter Sixteen: Then marry me first

  In the backyard, Song Kai heard Nie Zhong say this and was stunned for a moment, "Why is it so urgent all of a sudden?"

  "I don't know either, I have no idea what Yang Huaiyan said to my father. Anyway, it seems that my father has made up his mind this time. He even knelt down in front of me last night...I...as a daughter, I don't know what to do now." Liu Yuyan's pretty face turned pale, her beautiful eyes filled with pain.

  The two people fell silent at the same time for a while.

  Liu Yuyuan sat down on a tree trunk in the backyard, sighed softly and said: "Perhaps I thought too much, women are destined to be like this, how many women can freely choose their husbands? Moreover, five years ago was just a fleeting glance, perhaps that person is already dead now, or perhaps he has someone he loves, with all his heart and soul...I must have been foolish."

  Song Kai sat down beside Liu Yuvan.

  Liu Yuxuan was talking about her own affairs, she always regarded Song Kai as the best listener, perhaps because of Song Kai's dull personality, or perhaps because Song Kai was willing to truly understand her, these embarrassing words, Liu Yuxuan was very willing to say to Song Kai.

  Although Song Kai seems a bit different now, in Liu Yuxuan's eyes, he is still his childhood playmate and good friend, nothing more, just that.

  Later, Liu Yuyan let out a long sigh and turned to look at Song Kai with a wry smile. "Thanks, Song Kai. If it weren't for you, I might have been married off by now."

  Song Kai foolishly stared at the woman in front of him, as lovely as a flower. The women of the Tang Dynasty were often charming and they were lucky, at least luckier than the feudal women after the Song Dynasty, because they could show their faces, wear barbarian clothes and shoot arrows on horseback. However, they were still unlucky, obeying the orders of their parents and the words of matchmakers.

  "Don't be sad for me," Liu Yuyan reached out and gently patted Song Kai's cheek, "Marrying Yang Huaiyan might not be a bad thing after all. His family is quite wealthy, his father is an official in the imperial court, and it's said that he'll be promoted next year. Moreover, Yang Huaiyan has a reputation for being talented and handsome, perhaps... perhaps he could be a perfect husband."

  Liu Yuyan seems to be comforting Song Kai, and also seems to be persuading herself.

  Song Kai suddenly stood up and said, "Yu Xian."

  "Ah?" Liu Yuxuan looked at Song Kai.

  "Marry me," Song Kai said seriously.

  Liu Yuyan burst out laughing, "Marrying you is naturally good, but how would my father agree to it."

  Song Kai also burst out laughing, "So you're saying, you've agreed to marry me."

  Liu Yuyuan stretched out one finger and pressed it against her chin, "That's natural, marrying you, at least I will be very free, someone to talk to me, if we meet that person again in the future, you will also support me, let me be with him, right?"

  "Huh?" Song Kai was stunned for a moment, and he secretly sighed. Wouldn't that be like putting a green hat on himself? However, he would rather she marry him, and even if it meant wearing a green hat for her sake in the future, than have her marry that bastard Yang Huaiyan.

  Nodding his head, Song Kai said: "Right! Since you've agreed, I'll go find someone to be the matchmaker."

  "Can you do it?" Liu Yuvan saw that Song Kai was not joking, so she also stood up. She felt that Song Kai seemed to be really different from before. The previous Song Kai was too weak, weak to the point where Liu Yuvan always treated him like a younger sister. But today, he seemed to be different indeed.

  Song Kai smiled and said, "You just promised, don't worry, I will definitely persuade your father."

  Liu Yuyuan nodded heavily, "Although I don't quite believe it, but I'm willing to believe."

  Song Kai stretched out his hand and gently pinched Liu Yuxuan's nose. "Then go home and wait for good news."

  Liu Yuyan smiled, "Alright, consider it the final struggle."

  Liu Yuyan quietly left with her veil on again.

  Song Kai paced back and forth in the courtyard, thinking about how to persuade Liu Jiqian. The bet they had made last time could now be used, but he was afraid that Liu would go back on his word.

  "Father Fu, Father Fu!" Song Kai thought for a while and couldn't come up with any ideas. He certainly couldn't just carry things to his mother-in-law's house like it was the 21st century.

  Fu Bo hurried over with a bent waist, "Dalan, what's wrong?"

  "Fu Bo, I have a task for you. Go to Liu Ji's place and propose a marriage on behalf of Liu Zhanggui," Song Kai instructed.

  "Ah?" Ah Fu jumped in fright, "Dalan, you're not...you're not confused again, are you?"

  "What's wrong with me?" Song Kai glared at Ah Fu, "Now that our inn is open, we'll definitely make a fortune in the future. As a scholar, I may not have any status, but my identity isn't inferior to those merchant families either. Hurry up and hurry up, door to door, what's wrong with you?"

  A Fu cried and looked sad, thought for a moment, and said: "Okay, Dalang, I'll go find West Street Jiang matchmaker to discuss and see what she thinks."

  "It's settled! Prepare more betrothal gifts. Later, when we marry off Liu's daughter, those gifts will all be ours. Liu the shopkeeper only has this one daughter, don't you think our family business will come to us?" Song Kai patted Ah Fu on the shoulder.

  A Fu thought for a moment, and with this idea in mind, he went to find a matchmaker with an easy heart.

  In the front hall, people eating are crowded and noisy.

  Nie Ling's face was stuck with a dog skin plaster, standing behind the counter looking at the account book.

  "Boss Nuo, got a promotion and became the boss?" Sun Ximei came down with a group of people to pay the bill. She had known Nie Lingdang for a long time, and she also knew that Nie Hong was actually Lingdang's name.

  Ling Tong raised his head and said, "Ah, yes, you also know that Song Kai is too lazy and just wants to be a figurehead boss."

  "Hehe," Sun Ximei smiled, but her smile didn't look very good. She lowered her head and glanced at Nie Lingdang, who was drawing strange symbols on the account book.

  "What are these?" Sun Ximei asked.

  "It's a number, Song Kai taught me, it's called... what was it... Ohala numbers or something, makes accounting more convenient," Nie Lingdang replied offhand, "don't need to use an abacus."

  "Is it? Is it really that amazing?" Behind her, Li Menghan squeezed over, her round little face exceptionally cute, her big eyes blinking at the numbers on the account book, then pouting, "I don't believe it."

  Nie Ling Tong didn't bother to distinguish, saying: "In total it's 930 coins, because you are our store's supreme members, for every 100 coins, there is a discount of 15 coins, in total...discount...discount..."

  Nie Ling Tong scratched his ears and rubbed his cheeks.

  Sun Ximei smiled and said, "Lingdang little sister, you're really not qualified to be the boss. Let me help you calculate."

  As she spoke, Sun Ximei picked up the abacus beside her hand.

  "It's a total of 140 wen cheaper, you need to pay 790 wen," Song Kai said as he walked over from the back corridor.

  A moment of silence.

  Nie Lingdang couldn't calculate it, while Sun Ximei was quickly calculating with her abacus. A minute later, she raised her head in surprise and stared at Song Kai, "You've already calculated it out early on, haven't you?"

  Song Kai rolled his eyes and said, "Alright, hurry up and pay the bill. Whose account is it this time?"

  Everyone looked at each other.

  Sun Ximei was about to speak, when Li Menghan leaned in and said: "On my account, tomorrow I'm also going to upgrade my account... hmm, is that the right word? Upgrade it to a Supreme Card, hehe, what a bargain!"

  Song Kai opened his account book, found Li Menghuan's name, and wrote down the words "seven hundred and ninety coins".

  Sun Ximei still looked dull, her abacus clicking back and forth in her hands, wondering how Song Kai could calculate so quickly.

  "Has Liu's wife left?" Nie Ling asked in a low voice.

  "Hmm," Song Kai muttered somewhat irritably, "You say coming to propose is difficult or not?"

  "How would I know?!" Nie Lingdang replied impatiently.

  Li Menghan listened strangely to the conversation between the two people.

  Sun Ximei pulled Li Menghan away from Hongchen Inn.

  He also brought two strings of copper coins and bought some cloth, gifts and other things, and arrived at the home of Matchmaker Jiang on West Street.

  Old Ginger saw it was Ah Fu and didn't have a good expression. "Hey, isn't this Uncle Fu? How come you're visiting my home?"

  A Fu put the things on Jiang's matchmaker's small table, piling up a smiling face and said: "Isn't this knowing that you are old and powerful, coming to ask you to speak for my husband about marriage?"

  The old woman glanced at Ah Fu with a slanted eye, then looked at the gift box on the table, and didn't show any expression. She just coldly smiled and said: "Ah Fu, you really are muddled. Your family's eldest son is a scholar and a talented person, why do you still want me..."

  A Fu understood what Jiang Po meant. He spread out his hands and put a string of copper coins on the table, then pushed the gift towards Jiang Po, which was very valuable.

  Old Lady Jiang was slightly surprised, she didn't know much about the Red Dust Inn, and thought Song Kai was still the poor, hungry, and tattered fool he used to be. Seeing this thank-you gift, she hesitated for a moment.

  A Fu Hei smiled and said, "Old Lady Jiang, you don't know this, but recently, the Red Dust Inn has reopened. Just look, yesterday alone, we made a clean profit of ten taels of gold. Ah, I'm thinking..."

  "Ten taels of gold?" Old Mrs. Jiang was startled, looking at Ah Fu with raised eyebrows and smiling: "Ah Fu, you're not here to flirt with an old lady, are you?"

  "How could that be?" Ah Fu waved his hand, "I'm also a sensible person. If it weren't for our family's sudden change in fortune, I wouldn't have dared to propose this marriage to the young master either! Old Mother Jiang, to be honest with you, our young master said that as long as you can successfully arrange this marriage, he'll give you ten taels of gold as a token of appreciation afterwards."

  Old Mrs. Jiang's hand suddenly shook, her arm stretched out, and she scooped up the copper coins on the table to her chest. "Fubo, you're really good at joking! Alright, which family's daughter does Songlang like? My old lady will come forward and definitely help the young master succeed in this marriage."

  "Isn't she still a daughter of the Liu family? You also know, Aunt Jiang, that young people are in love and have a deep affection for each other. In the past, when the Song family was declining, it didn't matter, but now that our family's fortunes are rising again, it's time to bring them together," Ah Fu said with a smile.

  The old woman hesitated for a moment, but thinking of the ten taels of gold, she cracked open her old mouth and smiled, saying: "Leave it to me, I'll take care of it tonight, I'll go see Liu Zhuangzhu!"