When the pears are green

Chapter 140 Greed, anger and ignorance

Song Li noticed Ruyi's nervous expression. She smiled and patted Ruyi's arm a few times, signaling Ruyi not to be too nervous.

Jiang looked at Ruyi and continued to ask Song Li: "Xiao Li, don't keep me in suspense. Tell me which family it is from."

"He is a constable from the town's yamen, named Chen Yuan. A few days ago, Qingzhou and I were selling bean sprouts in the town, and we talked about Ruyi's marriage while chatting with the vendors around us. Constable Chen who was passing by happened to hear it. He said that his family was also urging him to get married, so he asked Qingzhou and me to test the opinion of the aunt first. If the aunt agrees, he will find a matchmaker to propose marriage in a few days. Qingzhou and I used to hear from the vendors around us that Constable Chen has a good character, and we also want to find a good marriage for Ruyi, so we agreed. I wonder what the aunt thinks?" Song Li erased the fact that Ruyi and Chen Yuan knew each other. She knew that although Jiang was a kind mother, she was also a strict mother, and Chen Yuan's situation was a bit special. If he was regarded as a playboy by Jiang, the chances of this marriage would be even smaller.

Jiang didn't answer Song Li directly. She continued to ask Song Li about Chen Yuan's situation: "Xiao Li, which village is this Constable Chen you mentioned from? What's his family situation like? How many brothers are there? How many acres of land does his family have?"

"Aunt, Constable Chen is not from our town, but he bought a yard in town and he doesn't plan to return to his hometown in the future. He also wants to buy some land now, but he hasn't found a suitable one yet." Song Li smiled and half-truthfully told Jiang about Chen Yuan's situation.

Ruyi was stunned. Although she realized from the beginning that Chen Yuan must have asked Song Li and Jiang Qingzhou to come, that was just her own guess. Now that Song Li confirmed it, her heart was filled with countless waves. It had been a month since she last saw Chen Yuan, and she had made countless guesses in her heart during this time. Every morning she hoped that Chen Yuan would find someone to propose marriage, and every night she wondered if Chen Yuan had forgotten her and if Chen Yuan had already fallen in love with another girl.

Xia Lin, who was holding Zhang You, took in all the changes in Ruyi's expression. She could see that Ruyi and Chen Yuan should know each other, and she also realized that Song Li did not tell the truth to Jiang.

Xia Lin and Ruyi had a good relationship, and she was afraid that Jiang would see something from Ruyi's expression, so she put Zhang You next to Ruyi. Zhang You kept pulling Ruyi's sleeves, and at the same time pulled Ruyi's thoughts back.

Jiang fell into deep thought after hearing Song Li's words. She knew in her heart that Chen Yuan's conditions were much better than the two or three companies she had considered before. However, based on the fact that Chen Yuan had no land, the balance in her heart tilted a lot towards those two or three companies.

Xia Lin saw the thought in Jiang's eyes, and she smiled and said to Jiang, "Mom, I think this Chen policeman Xiaoli mentioned is better than the previous ones. If I propose to other girls, they will probably agree immediately."

Jiang glared at Xia Lin and retorted in a reproachful tone: "What do you know? Just take good care of the child. You don't have to worry about Ruyi's affairs."

Xia Lin shrank his neck out of habit, then stood next to Ruyi, bending over and picking his nails.

"Mom, do you remember what my brother said before he left?" Ruyi stood up and gave the stool to Xia Lin, then looked at Jiang angrily.

Jiang Shi continued to dislike Xia Lin. She ignored the presence of Song Li and Jiang Qingzhou and continued to say, "I am still here as a mother, so how can it be her turn as a sister-in-law to worry about it?"

After hearing this, Jiang Qingzhou couldn't help but say to Jiang: "Aunt, cousin's wife is also doing this for Ruyi's own good. How can you let Brother Jixiang earn money outside with peace of mind if you treat cousin's wife like this?"

The same logic, Ruyi's words were far less powerful than Jiang Qingzhou's. Jiang knew she was in the wrong and lowered her head, then softly apologized to Xia Lin: "Xia Lin, mother didn't mean it, don't mind it."

"Mom, I know." Xia Lin straightened her back. She and Jiang had been mother-in-law and daughter-in-law for many years, so she knew Jiang well. Zhang Jixiang was not at home, so she had better quit while she could.

After hearing this, Jiang forgot about Xia Lin and took Song Li's hand and said, "Xiao Li, this Constable Chen is indeed a good person, but he is from another place after all. If anything happens, he has no uncles or brothers to help him. In addition, he has no land. Let me think about it and give you news in two or three days, okay?"

"Of course you can. The corn is too tall now, so we won't let my aunt run back and forth. Qingzhou and I can come again in a few days." Song Li guessed from Jiang's words that Jiang had completely denied Chen Yuan. Now they could only hope that Ruyi could firmly refuse the other two or three families.

When Jiang heard Song Li say this, she could only nod in agreement.

Song Li glanced at Jiang Qingzhou who was talking to Zhang Pingan, and Jiang Qingzhou understood and said goodbye.

Jiang asked the two to stay at home to eat and feed before going back. Jiang Qingzhou smiled and said that he had to go home to feed the pigs, so Jiang did not try to keep them.

Ruyi took Song Li's arm and was about to send her off. She didn't expect Jiang would refuse so directly. If Song Li hadn't pretended not to understand the meaning of Jiang's words, there would probably be no chance between her and Chen Yuan.

Song Li stopped under a tung tree not far from Zhang's house to comfort Ruyi who looked unhappy: "Ruyi, don't be like this, there will always be a way to solve it. Although Constable Chen has the job of a constable, the villagers regard them as ruffians, so it is reasonable for the eldest sister-in-law to refuse. Constable Chen will come to our house again tomorrow, and we will find a solution then. If someone else comes to propose marriage in the next two days, you must find a way to refuse it."

Ruyi rubbed her red eyes and nodded to show that she understood.

Ruyi watched Song Li and Jiang Qingzhou disappear around the bend of the village entrance. She tried to smile and then returned to her home.

After Song Li and Jiang Qingzhou returned home, Song Li cut the cracked watermelon into two halves. She and Jiang Qingzhou each held half a piece of watermelon and started eating with a spoon.

"Qingzhou, if I tell my aunt about Constable Chen's rich sister, will she not refuse so bluntly? What should I say when Constable Chen comes tomorrow?" Song Li stuffed a large piece of watermelon into her mouth in annoyance. The corners of her mouth curved up involuntarily, so sweet!

Song Li's expression made Jiang Qingzhou laugh. He smiled and said to Song Li, "Just tell the truth. Let Chen Kuai have a chance to talk to Aunt about the situation of his sister. Aunt mainly thinks that Chen Kuai has no land. Although you said that Chen Kuai wants to buy land, he hasn't bought it yet. When the villagers marry their daughters, they will attach great importance to the amount of land in the man's family."

Song Li nodded in understanding. Jiang had been in charge of the Zhang family for nearly twenty years, and it was not someone who could be fooled by just a few words.

After returning home, Ruyi sat in the yard. As the sun slowly rose to the south above the sky, the shade around Ruyi had completely disappeared. However, Ruyi seemed not to notice and continued to sit in a daze under the scorching sun.

Xia Lin walked forward and pushed Ruyi. She whispered to Ruyi, "Ruyi, help me look after Xiaoyou. I'm going to cook."

Ruyi finally came to her senses. She wiped the sweat from her forehead with her sleeve, then pulled Zhang You back to her room.

After dinner, Ruyi was still lying on the bed in a daze. She was wondering if she could not marry Chen Yuan, would she be willing to marry someone else? She thought about it over and over for a long time, and finally cried secretly by herself.

The cicadas outside the window were still chirping hysterically. Occasionally, a breeze blew by, driving away the heat, but it could not drive away the deep sadness in the heart of the girl who was crying softly.