Lu Shiqiu looked down and saw a little girl staring at him blankly.

He recognized this little girl.

She was the only “simpleton” in the village.

She was five years old but about the size of a seven-year-old, strong and sturdy.

It was said that this child could eat five or six steamed buns in one sitting, and she had extraordinary strength.

It was also fortunate that her father was a traveling merchant who earned more than others.

Otherwise, they wouldn’t be able to afford to raise this child.

At that moment, she was sucking on her finger and staring at him in a daze.

Lu Shiqiu furrowed his brow and waved his hand as if swatting away a fly. “This path is blocked. You should go home.”

The little girl continued staring at him.

Lu Shiqiu stared back at her, and they locked eyes.

At that moment, a woman’s voice called out, “Er Ya? Er Ya?”

The little girl seemed not to hear, still gazing at Lu Shiqiu.

The woman’s voice grew nearer, and Lu Shiqiu grew more anxious.

He called out to the little girl, “Your mother is calling you for some toffee.”

Er Ya immediately responded, “Mother, I’m here!”

Lu Shiqiu closed his eyes in frustration.

【Host, lying is wrong. You shouldn’t deceive her!】

Lu Shiqiu snapped, “Shut up!”

Just as the words left his mouth, a slender figure appeared at the end of the alley. “Er Ya?”

Before the woman could finish speaking, she spotted Lu Shiqiu, her gaze full of confusion.

The Lu family was in chaos, yet the person involved seemed to be hiding here like nothing was wrong.

Lu Shiqiu nervously shifted his back.

The woman was Er Ya’s mother, the only traveling merchant’s wife in the village, known to everyone as Madam Yu.

He still remembered when Yu Dalang, her husband, married her.

He had joined in the wedding fun, and when the woman’s veil was lifted, she was truly stunning.

He heard several men gasp in awe.

He never expected that in just a few short years, she had aged so much.

While Lu Shiqiu was lost in thought, Madam Yu turned and embraced Er Ya, walking away.

Lu Shiqiu stared at her back.

Huh?

Is she just leaving like that?

【Host, according to this system’s scan, she is quite suitable for you! In her past nine lives, she was born into poverty, either dying before twenty or becoming a nun. The fortune she has accumulated over those lives will ensure that in this one, she will be blessed with prosperity and many children.】

“She’s married,” Lu Shiqiu gritted his teeth, frustrated.

No amount of talking would change that fact.

Even if he was shameless, he would never stoop to stealing someone else’s wife.

【Rest assured, Host. This system will continue searching for a suitable partner for you, expanding the search to a radius of a hundred miles.】

Lu Shiqiu nodded. “Then keep looking. The kingdom is so big, and there are so many women. We’ll find one.”

【Host’s attitude is very good; it’s worth encouraging!】 After this, the sound of applause echoed in his mind.

Lu Shiqiu felt his head hurt from the noise.

An hour later, when his stomach was growling from hunger, he heard the sound of hooves approaching.

Lu Shiqiu perked up his ears to listen.

Soon, several constables on tall horses clattered away from the Lu family village.

The villagers who had been gathering at the Lu family house finally dispersed.

“Such a waste, one or two taels of silver. Lu San really is a spendthrift. He doesn’t know how to make money, only how to spend it.”

“Who’s to say otherwise? That old man Lu, a man of integrity, ended up with such a reckless son. If it were me, I’d be so angry I’d die.”

---

Lu Shiqiu jumped out from the alley, hands on his hips, and yelled, “What business is it of yours? Keep your mouths shut! I’m not spending your silver!”

Suddenly, a person appeared from the side.

Even though it was broad daylight, it was enough to scare them.

The two elderly women were so frightened that they stared at him in shock, realizing he must have overheard their gossip.

As gossips, they didn’t think there was anything wrong with what they were saying.

They weren’t making things up or exaggerating.

They thought of themselves as the bearers of justice, and the people they talked about should be the ones ashamed.

In this day and age, it was truly a strange sight! If this had happened to them, being talked about like this would’ve been embarrassing enough to keep them from leaving the house.

But the man in front of them didn’t feel the slightest shame.

Instead, he was acting with confidence.

The two women looked at him as though he was a lunatic, too tired to argue.

They just turned and walked away.

Lu Shiqiu walked proudly toward home, and as he passed by the villagers, he noticed the strange looks they gave him.

But instead of feeling embarrassed, he glared back fiercely.

What an incredible level of shamelessness!

Lu Shiqiu sneered, “Chatterboxes! All day long talking about this family and that. Aren’t you afraid the wind will blow your tongues off?”

【Host, they seem to be right. You really aren’t filial.】

“Shut up! Hurry up and find me a wife!” Lu Shiqiu snapped, not wanting to hear any more nonsense.

Had he spent other people’s silver?

Had he eaten their rice?

All they did was gossip, and yet they didn’t seem to be making any money.

At that moment, the Lu family was in chaos.

“Father! Mother! We worked hard all year to earn two taels of silver. We’ve been frugal, and now Third Brother has squandered most of it.

In the past, even though he didn’t earn anything and didn’t go to sea, we could still support him.

It was still money spent within the family, and I didn’t mind. But now, he’s actually robbing people on the road. Our whole family is being shamed because of him.”

Mrs. Hong was truly furious.

Their family of seven had to brave the wind and rain and go to sea to make a living.

They worked all year to save that little bit of silver.

And before it even had a chance to warm up in their hands, it was gone, used to cover Lu Shiqui’s debts.

Old man Lu took a puff from his dry pipe and glanced at Lu Shichun.

“Is that what you think too?”

With a light glance, Lu Shichun made the back of Lu Shiqiu’s head tingle.

He slapped his wife, “What are you shouting for? Whatever our father says goes. Is this the place for you to speak?”

Hong Shi, slapped in front of so many people, turned red-faced, tears pouring out, and she turned away to cry on the bed.

Lu Shichun didn’t care about her, “Father, my wife is just anxious. Don’t worry, I’ll teach her a lesson.”

Old Lu nodded.

He glanced at his second son and his wife, saw them lower their heads and say nothing, and was finally satisfied.

It was Lu Shidong, the fourth son, who spoke up, “Father, mother, big sister-in-law’s words may be harsh, but there’s some truth in them. Don’t forget the three corpses hanging at the city gate. The new county magistrate doesn’t tolerate nonsense. He cleared out the big bandit den in Yanshan without hesitation, so would he be afraid to deal with third brother, a small-time thug?”

Everyone was stunned.

They didn’t expect the usually bookish fourth son to speak up and advise their parents on controlling the third brother.

Just then, an irritating voice sounded from the door, and Lu Shiqiu grinned and spoke to everyone, “Oh, things are lively! Who wants to deal with me?”

The fourth son, a straightforward person, was caught off guard.

It was the first time he had spoken ill of someone behind their back, and now he had been caught in the act.

His face turned bright red, and he felt awkward and unsure what to do.

Lu Shiqiu looked at him with a smile that wasn’t quite a smile.

The fourth son endured his initial embarrassment and spoke earnestly, “Third brother, you don’t know what’s going on in the county. We’ve got a new magistrate. He has some capable people under him, and he even had the county chief and the deputy county chief killed. He wiped out more than half of the bandits in Yanshan. If you don’t believe me, you can ask father and mother. The three biggest bandits from Yanshan are hanging at the city gate. I’m not lying.”

Lu Shiqiu furrowed his brows.

Lu Shichun straightened a crooked chair and helped Old Lu sit down.

Old Lu puffed on his pipe, his voice rough as he said, “Er… Third, you shouldn’t go out anymore. Don’t you like eating pork? Tomorrow, your mother can stew some for you. You should just stay home and avoid mixing with those hooligans.”

His words were soft, almost pleading.

Hong Shi, standing by the door, felt confused.

Who was the father here, and who was the son?

She had never seen a patriarch speak so gently.

Clearly, Old Lu was tough with the other sons, keeping them in line and making them obey without daring to utter a word.

But when it came to the third son, he indulged him without measure.

She had just lost one or two taels of silver, and Old Lu didn’t even scold him.

It was ridiculous!

Lu Shiqiu casually picked up a chair and sat down, saying nonchalantly, “Fine.”

Old Lu let out a sigh of relief.

No one took this too seriously.

Every time he made such a request, the third son would agree but continue to make mistakes the next time.

Everyone silently began cleaning up the things on the floor, but Lu Shiqiu raised his hand to interrupt, “Alright, hold on. I’ve got something to say.”

Everyone looked at him in unison.

“Father, I want to get married. How much silver will you give me?”

Old Lu paused, his hand holding the pipe, and instinctively glanced at his son’s waist.

Just one glance made Lu Shiqiu snap, his face turning red with anger, “It won’t affect my marriage.”

It wasn’t that he couldn’t have children—he just couldn’t have heirs, but that didn’t affect his marriage.

What kind of look was his father giving him?

Old Lu took a deep puff from his pipe and exhaled slowly.

Everyone was stunned by this conversation.

Lu Pozi, however, was overjoyed at the idea.

If he married, then he would have a wife to manage him, and maybe he would finally change.

She had thought about finding him a wife before, but every time she brought it up, he would just sneer at her.

Now that he was willing to get married, Lu Pozi immediately expressed her approval, “Oh, that’s good. Tomorrow, I’ll go find a matchmaker to arrange it. Since it’s the New Year, we can visit relatives, and you can meet some girls.”

Everyone agreed.

At the right age, it was time for a man and woman to marry.

Lu Shiqiu was already twenty-five, an age when most men in the village would already be married.

Even Hong Shi, who was inside the house, agreed.

Maybe having a wife and children would help him turn things around.

Even if he didn’t change, once the fourth son married, she could convince the mother-in-law to split the family.

They couldn’t keep supporting a lazy man like the third son anymore.

Everyone seemed to see a light at the end of the tunnel, representing the hope for a better future and the opportunity to get rid of the burden.

But, unexpectedly, it was Old Lu, who had always doted on Lu Shiqiu, who was the first to object. “No!”

Everyone was stunned, almost thinking they had heard wrong.

Old Lu stood up, his face dark, and walked into the main hall, hands behind his back.

Lu Pozi hurried after him and nudged his arm, whispering, “Old man, why are you against it? Our third son finally wants to get married. Why are you stopping him?”

There were actually sons who wanted to get married, but the father was blocking it. This didn’t make sense anywhere.

The four sons followed him, and the daughters-in-law and children wanted to follow as well, but Old Lu stopped them, asking his only daughter, Lu Shi Nuan, to stand by the door and prevent anyone from entering.

With a thud, the door was shut.