Red Chamber 26

When the matchmaker revealed the identity of the prospective groom, the Xue family was overjoyed.

The second son of the Liu family!

The Liu family was a branch of the Li Duke Mansion, so their family background was already superior to the Xues'.

The Liu family's eldest son had placed third in the palace examination. Though still young, he already held a high position in the Ministry of Revenue and was one of the emperor's trusted confidants.

Although the Liu family's second son was not as studious as his elder brother, he was skilled in the martial arts and had already passed the provincial military examination. He would go on to take the metropolitan military examination.

His bright future was plain to see.

Compared with the Liu family, the Mei family was a hundred and eighty thousand miles behind.

And now the Liu family had sent a matchmaker to propose?!

Xue Pan was the first to leap to his feet. "Mother, Second Aunt, say yes! Hurry and say yes. I know Liu the Second. That fellow is handsome, and he's especially good at martial arts. He's very capable. If Cousin Qin marries Liu the Second, she'll be a hundred times happier than if she married Mei Eldest Son."

"Sit down," Aunt Xue scolded her son irritably.

What kind of girl's family acted so immodestly, rushing to marry off their daughter?

Xue Ke chuckled and said to the two elders, "Aunt, Mother, Eldest Brother is right. Liu the Second is an excellent young man, capable and with a bright future."

Behind the screen, Xue Baoqin blushed.

After meeting Liu Xianglian once in the garden, the young maid who knew what was on her mind had gone to inquire about his identity, and she'd learned that the man was Liu Xianglian.

But Liu Xianglian was such a good match that Xue Baoqin didn't think she could marry him. She could only bury that little flutter of attraction deep in her heart.

She hadn't expected him to send a matchmaker the very next day.

Xue Baoqin raised both hands to cover her burning cheeks. Her eyes sparkled with joy, and the corners of her mouth lifted beyond her control.

Because Liu Xianglian was such a good match, and Xue Baoqin had already broken off one engagement, Aunt Xue and Madam Xue the Second didn't put on airs. They immediately agreed to the matchmaker's proposal, brought out Xue Baoqin's birth particulars, and handed them over.

They also gave the matchmaker a very generous red envelope.

The Xue family was wealthy, and Lady Wang hadn't swindled them out of much money. They were flush with cash, so even a casual red envelope for the matchmaker contained fifty taels of silver.

The matchmaker was delighted!

With such a generous client, she would do everything she could to bring the two families together.

And the thank-you red envelope after the engagement was settled would surely be even bigger, wouldn't it?

With such a tempting incentive, the matchmaker made even more frequent visits and became even more persuasive.

With such a tireless matchmaker on the case, the Liu and Xue families soon settled the engagement between Liu Xianglian and Xue Baoqin.

The wedding was set for after Liu Xianglian passed the metropolitan military examination.

Before then, Xue Pan and Xue Ke's marriages had to be arranged.

The marriages of both Xue Pan and Xue Ke were settled.

Xue Ke's betrothed was his destined match, Xing Xiuyan.

Although Lady Xing hadn't married into Rongguo Mansion in this life, she had still married into a family in the capital, wedding a clansman of the Niu family of the Duke of Zhen's household.

That clansman was also related to the Shi family of the Baoling Marquis Mansion, so Xing was distantly related to Rongguo Mansion.

Xing had visited Rongguo Mansion to pay her respects to Lady Jia Shi.

The change in her status had also changed Lady Jia Shi's attitude toward her.

Lady Jia Shi treated her relatives on her mother's side quite well and liked Xing.

In truth, Xing was straightforward and capable, too.

It was only because the original story's eldest branch had been suppressed by Grandmother Jia and the second branch, and because Grandmother Jia looked down on her while Lady Wang bullied her, that she came across as petty and obsessed with money, as though she had no ability.

In this world, Xing was very capable and managed her husband's household impeccably. She came across as dignified, and since she had no conflicts of interest with the people of Rongguo Mansion, both Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang enjoyed chatting with her.

Thanks to this connection, when Xue Ke's family traveled to the capital, they made the journey together with the Xing family.

Xue Ke and Xing Xiuyan spent time together along the way, and he developed feelings for her.

Madam Xue the Second liked Xing Xiuyan, too, so she asked Aunt Xue to have Lady Wang act as an intermediary and settle the marriage between Xue Ke and Xing Xiuyan with the Xing family.

As for Xue Pan's betrothed, it wasn't Xia Jingui. Instead, Jia Hu helped find him the daughter of a military officer. She had practiced with swords and spears since childhood. Though she looked delicate and frail, she was stronger than most grown men.

Xue Pan would never be a match for her.

Jia Hu had helped arrange the match so that she could keep Xue Pan in line.

Aunt Xue was extremely pleased with this choice of daughter-in-law.

Never mind that her background was respectable; the mere fact that she could keep her son in line made Aunt Xue thoroughly satisfied.

Though whenever her daughter-in-law beat her son, Aunt Xue felt awful for him.

The Xue family celebrated two weddings in a row, but the greatest joy came when news of Xue Baochai arrived from the palace.

In all the years since Xue Baochai had entered the palace, they hadn't received any news of her, and the Xue family had been terribly worried.

They had tried every possible way to find out what was happening to Xue Baochai in the palace, but no news had ever come out.

After entering the palace, Xue Baochai had seemed to vanish. The Xue family had all prepared for the worst.

Now there was news of Xue Baochai, and it was wonderful news. The Xue family was overjoyed.

Xue Baochai had become the emperor's woman and been made a Noble Lady.

That made the Xue family relatives of the imperial household, didn't it?

On the day Xue Pan got married, Xue Baochai, the newly appointed Noble Lady, sent eunuchs to the Xue family with gifts, turning them into one of the capital's newly prominent families.

It was a pity the Mei family had already left the capital; otherwise, they would have regretted it bitterly.

They had nearly become relatives of a palace lady!

So what if the Xue family came from a merchant background?

As the sister of a Noble Lady, Xue Baochai had a higher status than many noblewomen!

Not long after Xing Xiuyan and Xue Ke married, Yingchun got married as well.

Her marriage had been arranged long ago, but her fiancé had to pass the imperial examination before they could wed.

Now that her husband had passed the examination, the Zhang Family helped him secure an appointment as a county magistrate in the Jiangnan region.

Their wedding preparations were swiftly completed. Once they were married, Yingchun left the capital with her husband.

When she would return was hard to say.

Perhaps Jia Yingchun would never be able to return to the capital in her lifetime.

After that, Liu Xianglian took the military examinations, became a military presented scholar, and received a sixth-rank official post.

The Liu family held the wedding and welcomed Xue Baoqin into their home as Liu Xianglian's bride.

A month after the wedding, Father Liu and Mother Liu made the decision to split the household between their two sons.

Liu Zhong had bought a residence beside Liu Mansion long ago. Liu Xianglian and his wife moved into it, and they could still walk to Liu Mansion each day to pay their respects to Father Liu and Mother Liu. It was hardly any different from when they'd lived in Liu Mansion.

Over the years, Father Liu had made a great deal of money in business by following the ideas Liu Zhong occasionally suggested.

Father Liu and Mother Liu had used their earnings over the years to buy plenty of land and shops.

The Liu family's assets were now fifty times what they had been when the family was first separated from the Li Duke Mansion.

As the second son, Liu Xianglian could only receive thirty percent of the family assets, but that was already a substantial sum.

It was still more than Second Uncle Liu had received when he was given his share, apart from the ancestral estate of the duke's mansion.

On top of that, he had a wife like Xue Baoqin, who came with a generous dowry. Even though Liu Xianglian wasn't good at managing money, he could live comfortably all his life and still leave something for his descendants.