Chapter 16: We’re Not Compatible

Wei Zhao, who had hurt his head in the fall, was emanating a gloomy aura.

He was truly annoyed.

But Wei Shouzhong stayed by his side, continuing to chatter. “Do you remember when you were six years old? You got into a fight with kids your age, lost, and even chipped a tooth. You cried all the way home.”

Wei Zhao: …

What a coward that was.

He stared at the ceiling without blinking.

Wei Shouzhong: “You used to cry the most.”

Wei Zhao: …

Since his father’s passing, he hadn’t known what tears were. He remained unmoved by whatever Wei Shouzhong said.

Old Man Qian came in from outside carrying medicine.

“Drink this. Hey kid, weren’t you from the Wei family army? When your body recovers, you can still pay your respects when General Wei’s coffin passes through Ze County.”

Hmm..

He would be paying respects to himself.

Old Man Qian often sold herbs he gathered from the mountains to the county and town, so he heard lots of news.

“That General Wei was the only son of the Duke of Shun’s household. I heard when news of his death reached the capital, the Duchess fell ill immediately.”

Wei Zhao’s eyes remained empty.

“His Majesty, grieving the loss of his beloved general, even suspended morning court for several days.”

Wei Zhao continued staring blankly.

“The Heir of the Marquis of Zhongyong refused to believe it. With red eyes, he beat up the soldiers who brought the death notice, saying General Wei still owed him money.”

Wei Zhao continued staring blank—

His eyes moved.

What nonsense!

Wei Shouzhong was shocked: “How could General Wei be so poor he needed to borrow money? The heir must be making this up now that the General can’t defend himself.”

Old Man Qian: “After the news spread, many prominent people who respected General Wei confronted the Marquis’s heir, demanding justice and telling him not to slander the dead.”

“But the heir said the money was used to improve the food for Wei’s army.”

“Those who went to confront him were moved, saying this selflessness was exactly what General Wei would do. Soon after, many noble houses came offering to help repay the debt in General Wei’s name.”

Wei Zhao: …

He could guess what happened.

Xiao Huaiyan was accepting all offers and was going to get rich.

Even profiting from a dead man’s name.

Finally, a cold laugh escaped the corner of Wei Zhao’s lips.

*

After settling in the old house, Yu Tingwan hadn’t received any more memories from her past life.

After the wound on her leg had scabbed over, Li Lian brought good news.

“Miss Wan, get ready to come with me. Butcher Wu is at my house right now.”

Yu Tingwan’s eyes lit up. There wasn’t much to prepare – she just tidied her hair a bit.

“Auntie, I’m ready.”

Li Lian saw that she was afraid of the cold. She put on all the clothes she could wear, making her look a bit plump. The clothes had many patches, which made Li Lian frown.

But she understood it wasn’t that Yu Tingwan didn’t take this seriously – the outermost layer was probably her best piece of clothing.

Still, the young lady was naturally beautiful – even wearing rags couldn’t diminish her grace.

The village chief’s house wasn’t far. Li Lian chatted with her as they walked.

“Why are you shaking?”

Was she still cold?

Yu Tingwan said softly: “Nervous.”

Li Lian: “He seems quite interested. When I mentioned it before, he agreed right away.”

“Your match will most likely work out.”

“He won’t look down on you.”

Yu Tingwan nodded and turned to say very seriously, “What if I’m the one who doesn’t like him?”

Then she’d have to start searching again.

Just thinking about it was troublesome.

Li Lian choked: …

Women heading to their vegetable patches saw them and asked with smiles, “Where are you going?”

Li Lian didn’t mention the matchmaking, just smiled back. “Taking Miss Wan to sit at my house for a while.”

The village chief’s house was the most impressive in Xilin Village. They raised many chickens, which were pecking around in the courtyard.

Li Lian had sent all the family members away, worried that too many people would make them uncomfortable.

Butcher Wu sat restlessly, occasionally glancing outside.

The village chief had initially thought this marriage would be good. But after seeing Yu Tingwan’s composure the previous night, he now felt Butcher Wu wasn’t good enough for her.

He shook his head silently, “You’re not as steady as the young lady.”

“My wife told you about Miss Wan’s situation?”

“Yes.”

In front of him, Li Lian praised Yu Tingwan extensively.

Said the girl was sensible and beautiful.

During matchmaking, everyone tends to emphasize the good points.

Butcher Wu didn’t take it too seriously.

Until Li Lian brought in the bright and lovely young lady, he was stunned speechless, unable to react for a moment.

Yu Tingwan was also sizing him up.

!!

His skin was dark, his looks weren’t particularly good, but he couldn’t be called ugly either.

His clothes were neat and seemed new, probably bought specially for this meeting, showing he took this matchmaking very seriously.

He was tall and strong, clearly capable in a fight.

The village chief kicked Butcher Wu. “Why are you just standing there stupidly? No class.”

Butcher Wu snapped back to his senses, hurriedly hiding his hand missing a finger under the table: “I… I…”

Yu Tingwan gave him a bright, genuine smile.

Seeing this, Li Lian had a good sense of how things stood.

“Everyone sit, sit.”

She poured Yu Tingwan some hot water to warm up.

“I won’t make formal introductions. We’re all straightforward people, and you’re both of marriageable age. No need for pretense.”

She deliberately gave them space to talk. “Old man, the clothes outside need to be hung up to dry, come help me.”

She wasn’t worried about leaving them alone since the door was open and she could watch from the courtyard.

She’d arranged things properly.

Before leaving, she added one more thing:

“Xiao Wu, many people in the village saw you coming. After what happened last night, I can’t keep Miss Wan for too long.”

This clearly meant they should speak quickly if they had anything to say.

Li Lian could still hear their conversation from outside.

In such situations, the man should typically take the initiative, but what she heard was Yu Tingwan’s voice without any shyness.

“Can you cook?”

Butcher Wu nodded quickly.

Yu Tingwan said very tactfully, “I’m not very good at cooking.”

Before coming, Butcher Wu had thought that if the girl was passable, they could settle things, neither finding fault with the other.

With a wife at home, his daily meals would be taken care of.

But now…

Butcher Wu didn’t dare look too much at Yu Tingwan, unable to hide the joy in his eyes. He stated, “My parents died early, so I’m used to doing these things.”

Yu Tingwan: “How much bride price are you prepared to offer?”

“How much do you want?”

Butcher Wu: “I brought three taels of silver with me this time, is that enough?”

In Xilin Village, three taels of silver was already quite respectable.

But he felt some regret – if he’d known earlier, he should have brought more.

“I don’t have any relatives and don’t interact much with neighbors. At home, I have three rooms and a kitchen, with a well in the courtyard for convenient water access. I make my living as a butcher, no farmland, so you won’t need to work in the fields.”

“Over these years I’ve saved some silver too. After the bride price, there should be about six taels left, which I’ll hand over to you afterward.”

“…”

After speaking himself dry and revealing everything, he finally asked carefully, “What do you think of me?”

Yu Tingwan took a sip of water then said, “Let’s set a date and have the wedding before the new year.”

Butcher Wu was overjoyed and tentatively asked, “Alright, should I go to your aunt’s house now?”

Yu Tingwan was slightly startled.

“I’ve moved to an empty house in the village now.”

“I heard about that.”

Butcher Wu: “The bride price should still be given to the elders.”

“Just give it to me, Aunt Wang won’t prepare my dowry anyway.”

“It’s fine. A harmonious family is the foundation.”

He said: “I also know she treats you badly, but there are some things with elders that can’t be taken too seriously.”

“We can’t completely cut off relations – your maiden home is your backing.”

He spoke from the bottom of his heart.

But Yu Tingwan’s expression had completely cooled.

She never beat around the bush.

She stood up: “I think we’re not compatible.”

*

Author’s Note:

Yu Tingwan: I’m not very good at cooking.

Wei Zhao remained silent.

Yu Tingwan kicked him.

He responded lifelessly, dryly: Then let’s starve to death together.