Shuse Jinjia

Huo Ling stared wide-eyed as she saw Zhu Feng's mother grabbing Zhu Feng's clothes and crying.

"Feng'er, your eldest and second brothers are incompetent, and the family is counting on you! If you marry the fourth daughter, her aunt and younger sister will become a burden to you. Can you bear to abandon your sister and take care of outsiders?"

Sister-in-law Zhu, wiping away tears, said, "Third brother, your three nephews are of school age. We were too poor to send them to school before. Can you bear to let them toil in the fields for a living in the future?"

The eldest brother, honest and simple, also pleaded, "Third brother, we've scrimped and saved to support you. Now that you're an official, it's time for you to do your part for the family. Just listen to your mother and go and meet Miss Liu!"

Zhu Erge was more shrewd. After listening to his mother and wife, he also felt that marrying Xie Zhaotang would be a burden to the Zhu family.

He chimed in, "Yes, Third Brother, it doesn't matter which woman you marry, so why marry someone who's a burden instead of someone who's beneficial to you?"

Zhu Feng grew anxious: "Second Brother, Fourth Miss is different from other women! She's intelligent, kind, and filial..."

Zhu Fengniang interrupted him angrily: "Feng'er, tell me, are you determined to marry her?"

Zhu Feng patiently said, "Mother, I will overcome all the difficulties you mentioned. If Fourth Miss marries into the family, she will also take care of you with me. Please agree to this marriage!"

Zhu Feng's mother screamed hysterically, "I don't agree! If you want to marry her, then go and marry her over my dead body..."

"I'll make way for her right away..."

After Zhu Fengniang finished yelling, she ran outside.

"Mother, what are you doing? Don't try to kill yourself!"

Upon seeing this, Sister-in-law Zhu panicked and chased after them.

Zhu Feng's two younger sisters also chased after him, crying.

The second brother stamped his foot and roared, "Third brother, are you really going to force Mother to her death for a woman and become an unfilial son?"

Zhu Feng closed his eyes in pain, clenched his fist, and then let it fall limply.

Here we go again. This was the same tactic they used to take money from him to build a house before, and it was the same tactic they used years ago to prevent him from marrying his childhood sweetheart...

Time and again, whenever she didn't do what her mother asked, she would threaten to kill herself.

When will this end?!

Zhu Feng saw Xie Zhaotang's bright face. She was already suffering enough as a concubine's daughter. Did he really want to drag her into this quagmire?

"Mother, please come back. I'll listen to you, I'll go and find someone to marry..."

Seeing that the noise from his house had attracted the neighbors from next door, Zhu Feng, not wanting to lose face any longer, gritted his teeth and squeezed out these words.

Huo Ling, watching from the tree, had mixed feelings. She had originally planned to help her brother steal Zhu Feng's love when he went to meet her.

Zhu Feng was forced to go on the blind date under these circumstances, and she didn't know what to do!

Poor Brother Zhu...

……

Xie Zhaotang knew nothing about what had happened to the Zhu family. She got up very early the next day, while everyone else was still asleep. She dressed and quietly carried a bucket to fetch water to wash up.

As soon as the door opened, Zhu Feng was seen standing in the grove of trees, looking somewhat haggard.

"Brother Zhu, what happened?"

Xie Zhaotang walked towards him in confusion. Shouldn't Zhu Feng be heading into the city to take up his post at this hour?

"Fourth Miss, come here and talk to me."

Zhu Feng turned and walked towards the grove.

Xie Zhaotang put down the wooden bucket and followed.

"Fourth Miss, I'm sorry... I... can't marry you!"

Zhu Feng didn't sleep all night, thinking a lot, and finally decided that he couldn't marry Xie Zhaotang so as not to drag her down. He came here to wait for her before dawn.

He needs to explain things clearly to Xie Zhaotang before he can go and meet her.

"What happened?"

Xie Zhaotang felt a little empty upon hearing this. Although she hadn't fallen in love with Zhu Feng, she had spent more time with him these past few days and felt that it wasn't impossible for Zhu Feng to marry into the Zhu family without love.

She had thought about it last night. Even if Zhu Feng's mother was materialistic, she didn't rely on Zhu Feng to support her. Giving Zhu Feng's mother some money after she entered the family would be better than being manipulated by the Xie family.

She was thinking that once she met Zhu Feng, she would ask him to ask Old Madam Huo to arrange the marriage.

But to her surprise, Zhu Feng said he couldn't marry her.

"Fourth Miss, you are wonderful, and I am unworthy of you! So, please pretend I never said those things before... I'm sorry, I went back on my word, I apologize to you..."

Zhu Feng bowed deeply to Xie Zhaotang, not daring to look at her expression, and then turned and strode away.

"Brother Zhu..."

Xie Zhaotang opened her mouth, but ultimately didn't call out to him.

When men and women break up, it's usually due to factors like unequal social status or someone falling in love with someone else. Considering the snobbishness of Zhu Feng's mother and sister-in-law, Zhu Feng might have been influenced by them.

In this situation, what else could you say when you called Zhu Feng over?

Should she beg him to marry her? Xie Zhaotang refused to be so humble!

She calculated the time; there was still more than a month until she reached the age of marriage!

The Xie family is currently only focused on successfully marrying Xie Linzhu to Xu Muyuan, and they won't give her away for the time being, so she still has time to find another way to make a living.

If there's really no way out, then fake your death to escape. Using the favor of saving Duan Chengyu, it won't be difficult for him to help you get a household registration.

Then secretly find an opportunity to take Xie Tiantian and Aunt Shen out of the Xie family.

She needs to pave all the avenues for wealth as soon as possible, so that if she fakes her death, she won't lack money and can live anywhere.

Xie Zhaotang is no longer the person she was when she first transmigrated. She already knows a lot about the Great Zhou Dynasty, and with her abilities, she can live a good life anywhere else.

After thinking it over, she went back, picked up a wooden bucket, and went to the well to fetch water.

After Xie Zhaotang waited for Aunt Xia to get up and made breakfast with her, he said he had to go back to the city.

Aunt Shen had several types of silk threads for Xie Jianghuai's birthday embroidery that were almost out of stock, so she asked Xie Zhaotang to buy them for her.

Xie Zhaotang asked Aunt Xia to look after Xie Tiantian and the others, and then took the money to the village entrance to take an oxcart into the city.

While waiting for the oxcart at the village entrance, Xue Jintong's uncle and the driver drove by in a horse-drawn carriage.

Upon seeing Xie Zhaotang, Zhou Sui told the driver to stop and asked, "Where is Fourth Miss going?"

Xie Zhaotang bowed and said with a smile, "Uncle Zhou, I want to go into the city."

Zhou Sui then said, "I also need to go into the city. Let's get in the carriage. The horse-drawn carriage is faster than the oxcart. The oxcart will only leave after everyone is on board."

Xie Zhaotang went to the city to find ways to make money. He had previously considered cooperating with Zhou Sui, so he did not refuse when he heard the offer and got into the carriage.

The carriage was half full of goods. Xie Zhaotang saw many bottles and jars and asked curiously.

"Uncle Zhou, what are all these things? Are you selling them?"

Zhou Sui nodded: "This is all soybean paste. I've been traveling around the capital lately and found that none of the soybean paste sold here is as good as what my family makes, so I had some delivered over, hoping to see if I can expand my business to the capital!"

"Fourth Miss, you don't know, there are many people in Xuzhou who grow beans and produce bean products. Business is getting harder and harder, so we can only look for other ways."

Xie Zhaotang was intrigued upon hearing this. Ever since she learned that the Zhou family made bean products, she had been paying attention to the bean product market in the Great Zhou Dynasty and found that the processing of beans was not very diverse, with only tofu, fermented black beans, and bean curd sheets available.

Dried bean curd sticks, fermented bean curd, and broad bean paste have not yet appeared.

Xie Zhaotang felt this was a huge business opportunity. If he could cooperate with Zhou Sui to promote these products, it would be a way to make money.

"Uncle Zhou, I also know a bit about food. Could you open a jar of soybean paste and let me try it? Maybe I can give you some suggestions for improvement!"