Zhulan had been accompanying Wu Li for a while. Wu Li was still crying, crying very sadly. Wu Li finally calmed down. Zhulan asked with concern, “Auntie, are you feeling better?”

Wu Li Shi wiped away her tears and said in a choked and hoarse voice, “I’m much better now. I’m sorry to have embarrassed you today.”

She really had no one to vent her anger to, and she didn’t dare cry in front of the old man. Thinking that Yang Shi was a tight-lipped person, she came over.

Zhulan understood that everyone has a fragile side, and as Wu Li Shi was getting older, it was normal for her to be sentimental. “Aunt, what you said is untrue.”

Wu Li Shi sighed, “I’m not afraid of you laughing at me. I’m really sad. Wu Ming became a scholar and studied under a famous teacher. The eldest brother’s family came to repent. Even if you are angry, it’s because of me. People tend to be soft-hearted when they get old. In addition, your uncle and I are old and don’t have the energy to go out with Wu Ming, so we forgave the eldest brother and his wife. Who would have thought that they would set their sights on Wu Ming’s marriage.”

Wu Li Shi felt a little embarrassed when she mentioned marriage. She had once liked Xuehan.

Zhulan thought it was no wonder that Wu Li Shi was so sad. Children were the most deliberate in hurting their parents. Seeing that Wu Li Shi had no intention of continuing to talk, she changed the subject and said, “Aunt, try the cakes made by Li Shi.”

Wu Li Shi took a piece of the rice cake and tasted it. “Your eldest daughter-in-law is a really good cook. You are a blessed person.”

She was really envious. She only had two daughters-in-law, one of whom was dead, and the other was still calculating. Whenever she gave her something, she would not be satisfied unless she got more in return. They were nothing like Yang Shi’s daughters-in-law, who were not only obedient and sensible but also nice to Yang Shi.

Zhulan kept smiling. Except for Dong Shi, the other two daughters-in-law were all taught by her personally. However, Li Shi was a good cook, so she was really lucky.

Zhulan saw that Wu Li Shi was upset and she knew why. Nowadays, Wu Li Shi was sensitive and could relate everything to her own family. It was better not to continue the conversation along that line and so to change the subject she said, “I noticed that Wu Ning has built a good foundation. When do you think she should formally take on a master?”

This was a happy event. Wu Li Shi’s depressed mood improved and she was a little excited. “Become an apprentice?”

Nowadays, some skills were not passed on to outsiders. She came here shamelessly just hoping to get some guidance. Unexpectedly, she could become an apprentice. If her granddaughter had the embroidery skills, she would be looked up to by her husband’s family in the future.

Zhulan smiled and said, “Yes, Zhao Shi really likes Wu Ning and thinks that they are a good match. That’s why she mentioned it to me. Even if you didn’t come today, I would have gone to tell you.”

Wu Li Shi Wu Li was pleased. Not everything these days was bad news; there was some good news. “Auntie is thankful for this,” she said.

She knew in her heart that without Yang Shi’s help, Zhao Shi would not easily accept a disciple.

Zhulan: “You are being too polite, Auntie.”

Wu Li Shi stood up and said, “Then I will go back. She will have an apprenticeship ceremony tomorrow. What do you think?”

“Tomorrow is a good day, so let’s set it for tomorrow.”

Wu Li Shi smiled again, “You don’t have to send me off.”

Zhulan knew that Wu Li Shi was not being polite, but she still had to see her off as it was etiquette. After seeing Wu Li Shi off, Zhulan informed Zhao Shi.

Zhao Shi also liked Wu Ning. The little girl was very understanding. “Mom, do I need to prepare anything tomorrow?”

This was her first time accepting an apprentice.

Zhulan said: “You are officially accepting a disciple, so you need to prepare a gift for the meeting. You can give it as you like!”

Zhao Shi had money and jewelry in her hands, so she no longer had to envy her dàsǎo. After thinking about it, she knew what to give her, “Yes.”

On the next day, Wu Li Shi came with a gift for becoming an apprentice.

The gift consisted of six items, including food and clothes. It was a very valuable gift coming from the Wu family.

Zhao Shi accepted the gift, and after becoming the disciple, she took a pair of silver earrings as a gift.

Wu Ning took it with both hands, “Thank you, Master.”

Zhao Shi smiled and said, “Just call me sǎozi.”

Wu Ning glanced at her grandmother and saw her nod. She smiled and said, “Sǎozi.”

Zhao Shi liked the little girl very much. Even when she didn’t get along well with her eldest dàsǎo before, she was willing to help take care of Yulu who was a few months old, all because she liked the girl. “Good child, come and learn tomorrow.”

Wu Ning was happy, “Yeah.”

Not only did she like embroidery, but she could also supplement the family income by learning it, so her elder brother didn’t have to work so hard.

After becoming Zhao Shi’s apprentice, Wu Ning came to Zhou’s house every day. Zhulan liked Wu Ning in the first place, and the little girl was always in front of her, so Zhulan paid more attention to her. Suddenly, she found that Wu Ning had grown up a lot. The grown-up Wu Ning looked really good. When comparing looks, Wu Ning and Xuehan each had their own merits, as were their personalities.

Xuehan was calm and steady because her family was very happy. Xuehan’s eyes were bright and her smile gave people a sweet feeling.

Wu Ning was different. She lost her mother and father due to accidents when she was young, and she tried her best not to cause trouble to others. The girl was very sensible and precocious. She seldom smiled, and when she did, she smiled with her lips pursed, giving people the impression that she was very well-behaved.

Zhulan sighed. Wu Ning had a capable personality but was too quiet. She didn’t know what kind of husband she would find in the future. She really liked this girl.

In addition, the little girl lost her father and mother at a young age. In ancient times, people would inevitably think that Wu Ning had a strong horoscope. It was okay for the men in the Wu family, but it was difficult for women. There were very few who did not care about horoscopes. In ancient times, when looking for a daughter-in-law, people hoped that her parents were still alive and had a good horoscope.

Zhao Shi was a perceptive person. She noticed how her mother-in-law looked at Wu Ning several times. She also understood the pity in her mother-in-law’s eyes. She also felt sorry for Wu Ning. This child had a hard life. If her parents were still alive and she had a good brother, her marriage would not be bad. But it was hard to say now.

In the blink of an eye, it was the day when Zhou Shuren would go to participate in the competition. The sons of the Zhou family only knew that their father was very busy recently, but they had no idea what he was busy with.

Zhou Shuren wanted to bring one real and one fake antique to the competition, and he took Zhulan’s jade bracelet.

Zhou Shuren left at noon. After he left, Zhulan became absent-minded, worrying about the result in her mind. She went out from time to time to look at the sky and calculate the time.

On the other side, Zhou Shuren and Jiang Ming were sitting upstairs. It was not yet his turn to participate in the competition, and now they were competing in another way.

Jiang Ming drank his tea with a playful look in his eyes. At first, he didn’t think much about it when he met Zhou Shuren. But when he got home, he realized that the man was deliberately stalking him. He was not angry but found it interesting. Later, he sent someone to the antique shop to ask. It turned out that the man caught him the first time, proving that Zhou Shuren was a really capable person.

In fact, he never cared about his father-in-law’s mention of Zhou Shuren several times. He had seen many talented scholars, but it was not enough to have talent, but also luck, or to put it bluntly, luck in becoming an official. Before Zhou Shuren passed the imperial examination, he had never thought of meeting him.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Shuren wanted to borrow his strength and went through such a big detour, but this was also the smartest part because Zhou Shuren knew clearly in his heart that Zhou Shuren had no weight at all.

He found it interesting and really wanted to see Zhou Shuren’s appraisal skills. He had been waiting for a long time to watch the fun, so he came today to give him some face.

An hour later, the first game was over, and Zhou Shuren stood up. “It’s my turn, Lord Jiang. I’ll go down first.”

Jiang Ming held up the teacup, “I’ll use tea instead of wine. I hope you can win the game.”

He would be disappointed if he lost after putting in so much effort, and Zhou Shuren would also have a low reputation in his heart.

Zhou Shuren understood, but he didn’t say much after drinking the tea. No matter how much he said, it was all empty talk, and no matter how beautiful the words were, they were not as good as the results.

(End of this chapter)

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