Wanjin Lady

Chapter 300 Comfort
"What's the point of saying all this nonsense? Since your family sells alcohol and you're late, shouldn't you drink three cups as a punishment?"

Good, good, very good.

These young ladies have obviously been suppressed at home for too long. Today's banquet is attended by all the young ladies they know in Bozhou City, so they have no worries at all. Before the host Wen Wan arrives, the young ladies in the waterside pavilion are already having fun.

None of the cold or hot dishes were served, but two jars of wine had already been opened.

The place we booked today is great, with mountains behind and lake in front. With mountains and water, the waterside pavilion stands above the lake, which is both elegant and private.

"Don't blame us, Miss Wen, you're so late. We've been waiting so long, so we had to ask the shopkeeper to open some drinks first! You should try some of our local Bozhou wine!"

Wen Wan smiled as she took the wine glass that was forced upon her. She tilted her head back and drank it all. Then she smiled again and said, "Don't get drunk now! I brought some sweet fruit juice today. We can eat and drink it later!"

The young lady of the Zhao family smiled and clapped her hands, "Miss Wen, stop talking about other things and drink these three glasses of late wine first!"

Wen Wan smiled and said, "I will never refuse!"

The young ladies laughed and cheered, "Shopkeeper Wen is so generous!"

After three glasses of wine, the girls allowed Wen Wan to sit down. Then, Sun Lanzhi smiled helplessly and said, "Sister Wen, they're just teasing you! They said they were bored at home, so they left early. You blame them for coming early, how dare they persuade you to drink?"

A few young ladies chuckled, but Wen Wan didn't mind. "I'm happy. I've been in Bozhou for a long time, and it's a blessing to have met you all by chance. I've been asking you all to get together for a while, and today I've finally made my wish come true. I've reserved the Lanyue Pavilion for today. It's an elegant and secluded place, so no one will come to disturb us. It's a rare opportunity for you and me to get together, so we must come with joy and leave with a splendid experience!"

"Don't worry, Miss Wen, we...will not be polite!"

"I heard that Mr. Wen will be acquitted soon. Miss Wen should be returning to Ping County, right? Once Miss Wen leaves, our Bozhou will lose a lot of excitement!"

The speaker was Miss Wu, whose father was a prosecutor in charge of judicial affairs and hearing cases. When Wen Wan heard her say this, she knew that her stepfather's lawsuit would be completely settled soon.

However, Wen Wan answered modestly, "In that case, I would also like to thank Lord Yan and Lord Xiong. Without them, my father's case would not have gone so smoothly."

"Your family has truly suffered an unprovoked disaster. Just because of a prescription, you've attracted the attention of these ill-intentioned people, leading to all this trouble! Fortunately, good times are over, and Miss Wen will be reunited with her father soon."

"That widow Wang is truly despicable! She's a secret prostitute, contracted a serious disease and won't live long, yet she still tries to frame others!"

Others shook their heads and sighed, clearly feeling sympathy for Widow Wang and the others. "Alas, it's hard for her to be such a loving mother. If it weren't for her three sons... why would she have to live in prostitution? You're young and don't know the hardships women face, especially widows whose husbands have died... raising children alone... I wonder how much suffering they must have endured! We're all miserable... The dead are the greatest... So stop judging right and wrong."

Someone was careful and couldn't help but make associations after hearing this, so he looked at Wen Wan.

Speaking of which... Miss Wen's experience is exactly the same as that of Widow Wang. Both are widows who lost their husbands and have children...

However, seeing Manager Wen's radiant face, she was worlds apart from the widowed Wang who had fallen into prostitution. Immediately, the shrewd young woman subtly changed the subject, "A commoner is innocent, but possessing a treasure is a crime! Speaking of which, after the lantern festival… everyone in town was talking about the shadow puppet show 'The Tale of Jiao Jiao.' I suffered from heatstroke those few days and didn't dare go out. My maid came back and told me about it so much I couldn't wait, and she even mentioned some auspicious fruit syrup… So, having received an invitation from Miss Wen, I went out early this morning!"

Wen Wan then said, "My lady, don't worry. The "Legend of Jiao Jiao" will be available in teahouses these days. If you like it, you can go to the teahouse to watch it."

"Seriously? Then I have to make up for it!"

As soon as the story of "The Story of Jiaojiao" at the Lantern Festival was mentioned, the girls immediately opened up. Some said that they had ordered wine to give their green tea cousin a point of disgust, some were crazy about the domineering boss Chen Agui, and some cursed the parents-in-law. Before the dishes were even served, the girls were already chattering, making the place extremely lively.

Many people urged Wen Wan, "Miss Wen just said that she brought some auspicious fruit juice today, but she wants us to try it?"

Wen Wan smiled and said, "Of course! Today is a wine tasting party, and I happen to have one last jar of Ruiguo syrup at home, so I brought it over for you ladies to taste. You ladies have seen so many good things, and I can't drink my wine for nothing. You must give me some feedback."

"What's wine without food? Let's do what the men do and have some drinking games... like flying flowers. It's more fun to drink and have fun at the same time!"

Without waiting for Wen Wan to take the lead, the playful young ladies started organizing activities. Wen Wan asked the shopkeeper of Lanyue Pavilion to serve the dishes one after another. When she came back, she saw that the young ladies had already started playing on their own, while Sun Lanzhi was hiding in the corner, looking even more silent than usual.

Wen Wan walked over, and the two of them sat side by side on the railing of the pavilion, watching the young ladies playing pot-tossing or admiring the flowers. Wen Wan saw that she was unhappy, so she asked her, "Miss Sun, why are you so worried?"

Sun Lanzhi smiled faintly, but there was a hint of bitterness in her smile. "To be honest, Sister Wen, Mother told me yesterday... Cheng Yunzhang will be leaving for Kyoto to study soon, saying that his studies are more important... Implicitly, she's not agreeing to this marriage."

Wen Wan was stunned. Because she had to deal with Yuan Qi, Wen Wan deliberately distanced herself from Cheng Yunzhang, especially when it came to marriage with a man outside her family, so Wen Wan didn't ask any more questions.

But secretly, he thought that before Cheng Yunzhang left Bozhou, he would definitely make his marriage with Sun Lanzhi a finality.

Cheng Yunzhang and Sun Lanzhi are a perfect match, both talented and beautiful, and both are of marriageable age. Wen Wan really can't think of any reason why the Cheng family would refuse the marriage.

As for going to Beijing to take the imperial examination, the two families can get engaged first and then get married.

The Cheng family directly rejected the marriage proposal, obviously because they had other considerations.

But none of this had anything to do with her. She simply liked Sun Lanzhi and couldn't bear to see her gloomy face because of marriage. "Discussing a marriage is like buying something. Hmm... let's say you only have five taels of silver and you go shopping for clothes. Don't you have to be very picky? You have to pick something that suits you... and that you can afford?"

Sun Lanzhi didn't understand, but nodded anyway.

"Isn't this marriage proposal the same? If this one doesn't work out, there's always another one. You can always pick out the dress that satisfies your heart."

A smile gradually spread across Sun Lanzhi's face. "Sister Wen...are you trying to say...that men are like clothes?"

Wen Wan coughed softly, "Although my words were crude, this is what I meant."