Chapter 279: Chapter 279

The Eldest Young Master Chai couldn’t help but twitch the corners of his mouth. He stood up and said to the two Chai Family Elders, "Uncles, if you’re feeling dizzy, it would be best to go inside and rest."

Saying that, he pushed and pulled them back in.

This infuriated the two old men.

But since the County Magistrate’s son had spoken, they couldn’t express their anger, so they exchanged glances in frustration and sat sullenly in a side room.

They lost such a great opportunity to associate with the county magistrate’s family, truly annoying!

Chai Eying’s eldest sister-in-law settled the banquet and happily walked into Chai Eying’s bedroom.

She glanced towards Miss Chai’s place, then smiled and said to Chai Eying, "E Ying, to think that the Li Family is actually related to the county magistrate."

Chai Eying lifted a corner of her veil, her eyes widening as she looked at her eldest sister-in-law, "The Li Family is related to the county magistrate? How come I’ve never heard of this?"

Nanny Jiang was also surprised and asked, "I’ve been staying at the Li Family with the young lady for so many days and have never heard of this."

Chai Eying’s eldest sister-in-law smiled and replied, "That’s what makes the Li Family admirable. They don’t flaunt their connections and live low-key lives, unlike some families who, with a bit of wealth and status, boast everywhere, as if afraid no one would know."

"It’s just a family with a distant relative working as a servant in the Capital, yet those who don’t know might think they’re officials there. Look at the Li Family, genuine relatives of the county magistrate, and yet they keep it so discreet."

She said this while casting a cold smile towards Miss Chai’s place.

The family that Chai Eying’s eldest sister-in-law referred to was the Luo Family, which had withdrawn from an engagement with Miss Chai, and is now Miss Chai’s in-laws.

The Luo Family has a clan member working as a steward in a fourth-rank official’s family in the Capital.

Through that distant relative, they made some money and became one of the prominent families in the village.

Miss Chai was so shocked by what Chai Eying’s eldest sister-in-law said that she stopped breathing.

The family the Li Family married into is actually related to the county magistrate?

Yes, the county magistrate is also surnamed Li, and the Li Family is as well; and the Li Family’s accent is different from the villagers’.

Why hadn’t she thought of this?

Miss Chai’s maid was similarly stunned, but she couldn’t speak and could only lightly kick Miss Chai, signaling the conversation between Chai Eying and her sister-in-law.

Miss Chai glared angrily at her maid.

Did she need reminders? She’s not deaf!

The relatives of the Luo Family were only servants of officials in the Capital, whereas the Li Family were directly relatives of the county magistrate. An official from the Capital is not as prestigious as a local county magistrate, everyone knows this.

Moreover, one was a relative of a servant, and the other was a relative of a magistrate.

A servant can be expelled by the master at any time, but relatives, even if estranged, are connected and remain family forever.

In comparison, the Li Family surpasses the Luo Family by far.

Miss Chai ground her teeth in jealousy.

Chai Eying’s eldest sister-in-law and Chai Eying talked for a while when there was a knock on the door. The Eldest Young Master Chai called from outside, "Yunniang, it’s time for the third sister to bid farewell to the ancestors."

"Coming," responded Chai Eying’s eldest sister-in-law with a smile.

She and Nanny Jiang helped Chai Eying up and walked out of the bedroom door.

The maid, Chuntao, glanced at Miss Chai and her maid, curled her lips, and hummed softly, then locked the door.

Miss Chai angrily kicked the leg of the chair in front.

Unexpectedly, she kicked too hard, and her toe hurt so much it brought tears to her eyes.

Her maid saw it and thought she was crying out of fear.

Her maid shook her head, sighed, and thought if she’s crying now, won’t she be crying every day from now on?

This person, one shouldn’t make enemies lightly, because one never knows when they might rise up.

Chai Eying was helped out of the bedroom door. The Eldest Young Master Chai looked at her, feeling a mix of emotions, and he gently took her hand and said softly, "Sister, let’s go pay respects to our parents."

Hearing her brother’s words and voice, Chai Eying’s tears fell immediately.

Though her face was covered, the Eldest Young Master Chai heard her taking a breath and turned to glance at her. He squeezed her hand tightly, "Sister, father and mother would love to see you happy, otherwise, they wouldn’t have the heart to see you leave."

Chai Eying’s eldest sister-in-law also said, "Indeed, you should be happy."

Chai Eying took a deep breath, made an effort to smile, and said, "Okay."

They entered a secluded room in the corner of the residence.

Inside, there were memorial tablets for Chai Eying’s parents, grandfather, and maternal grandparents.

Chai Eying lifted her veil halfway and, with the Eldest Young Master Chai’s guidance, bowed and offered incense.

Outside, after the Li Family finished their celebratory drinks, they played festive music again.

Everyone heard the village chief’s voice loudly announce from outside the door, "The auspicious time has come!"

The Eldest Young Master Chai smiled and said, "Sister, the auspicious time has come; it’s time to go to your new home."

The eldest sister-in-law of Chai Eying placed the bridal veil over her head with a smile, "Let’s go, let’s open the door."

The Eldest Young Master Chai opened the door, and Nanny Jiang, who was waiting outside, smiled and said, "Li Family’s young gentleman has been waiting for quite some time."

The village chief smiled and said, "The auspicious time has come, please let the newlyweds get on the sedan chair."

The Princely Heir, after saluting the Eldest Young Master Chai and his wife, walked towards Chai Eying and gently said, "E Ying, I’ve come to pick you up."

Through the gap beneath the bridal veil, seeing this man’s feet, Chai Eying’s face turned red again.

She responded softly, "Hmm." But her voice was as light as a mosquito’s buzz.

The Princely Heir still heard it and smiled gently.

He turned around and carried Chai Eying on his back.

Amidst the jeers of the village onlookers, the Princely Heir carried Chai Eying to the sedan chair outside the house.

The sedan chairs in the farmhouses are all rented; only wealthy families like the Luo Family use their own sedan chairs.

Someone in the village specializes in renting out bridal sedan chairs, four hundred wens a day.

The small sedan chair carried by two people was adorned with brand new red silk cloth, looking quite festive. The sedan chair bearers were also sent by the rental shop.

The professional sedan chair bearers were fast and steady.

The village chief took the Princely Heir to rent the sedan chair.

The shopkeeper of the sedan chair rental said, renting the chair alone costs two hundred wens a day, and sending bearers costs an additional two hundred wens.

The village chief wanted to save some money for the Princely Heir and suggested hiring two villagers to carry the chair, which would only cost a meal without spending a lot of money.

But the Princely Heir disagreed and still hired the bearers.

Having ridden in sedan chairs regularly in the Capital, he deeply understood that carrying a sedan chair is not a simple task.

People not accustomed to the work can’t control the strength well, which would make the sedan chair unstable and scare the bride.

He explained his concerns to the village chief, who laughed heartily, "I never thought you’re such a meticulous person, caring so much for the bride, you’re right, you’re right, we should hire professionals."

This praise made the Princely Heir feel a bit embarrassed, "Isn’t this the right thing to do?"

When the Princely Heir carried Chai Eying away, the village chief talked to the Eldest Young Master Chai about the Princely Heir renting the sedan chair and hiring bearers.

He said with a smile, "I said I would have my two lads carry the sedan chair, but Li Dalang disagreed, thinking my boys couldn’t do it well. He said carrying a sedan chair is a skilled job that requires professionals for peace of mind. He’s worried inexperienced people can’t make it steady and would scare the bride. Look, the bride hasn’t even entered his house yet, and he’s already caring for her."

The Li Family’s eldest son was so attentive, which made the Eldest Young Master Chai feel gratified.

The newlyweds got on the bridal sedan chair, and both the Li Family and the Chai Family began setting off festive firecrackers.

The village chief, acting as the matchmaker, chatted with others while grabbing candies from his bag to distribute.

This drew a bunch of kids to surround him entirely. Thɪs chapter is updated by novelꜰire.net

The sedan chair in the front had already been lifted away, while the village chief was still entangled with the kids at the Chai Family house.

He was so anxious that he was covered in sweat.

But as a matchmaker, a role often teased, the more hurried he became, the less anyone paid him attention, and the more everyone found it amusing.

Li Lixing walked over, shouting, "Stop grabbing, come with me to the Li Family, there’s more candy there."

He and Pei Shenyan helped free the village chief from the kids’ grasp.

The village chief breathed a sigh of relief, offering numerous thanks, "Finally, saviors have arrived."

Li Lixing thought delivering candy was fun, so he took the bag from the village chief and scattered it towards the kids, "Come on, follow me to grab candy."

The village chief felt even more at ease.

He smacked his forehead, "Oh dear, I should have let someone else do this task earlier. Why sweat it out?"

He happily walked out of the crowd to catch up with the bridal sedan chair.

Li Lixing, being the county magistrate’s son, though the kids wanted his candy, the adults wouldn’t let them grab too much, fearing they’d bump into Li Lixing.

This made the candy-grabbing action much more civilized.

Li Lixing ran towards the Li Family, with a group of kids chasing and following behind him, and many villagers also followed them to the Li Family.

From the Chai Family’s old house at the west end of the village to the Li Family’s bamboo house at the east, people with smiling faces could be seen along the way.

Taohua River Village was livelier than ever before.

At the Chai Family’s old house, as the villagers gradually left, it became quiet again.

The Eldest Young Master Chai, looking at the courtyard full of firecracker debris, sighed slightly, lowered his head, and turned to walk indoors.

The eldest sister-in-law of Chai Eying consoled him, "Sister will come back the day after tomorrow, why sigh? She’s not married far away. If you miss her, we can bring her back anytime, can’t we? Besides, which girl doesn’t want to get married?"

The Eldest Young Master Chai came to his senses after thinking for a while and smiled, "You’re right, I’m just not used to it for the moment."

The eldest sister-in-law of Chai Eying glanced at the side room and snorted softly, "The two clan elders are here, you go see them, I’ll check on the people in sister’s room." Over there was Miss Chai.

The Eldest Young Master Chai’s face turned cold, and with a flick of his sleeve, he walked over.