Siheyuan: Starting from the driver

Chapter 763 Everyone has their own agenda
"How wonderful it would be if I could marry into that family!"

Qin Huairu couldn't help but fantasize about how wonderful life would be if she married Li Kailang!
Look at Li Kailang, he's tall and strong, giving people a great sense of security.

She is a highly educated and excellent student. She is kind in dealing with people and things, has a good reputation, and you can't find fault with her at all.

She's a normal girl; who wouldn't want to marry him!

For a moment, Qin Huairu's mind wandered, imagining what life would be like after she married Li Kailang.

There were no elders in her family, so she was just a housewife, and her life was pretty much the same as it is now. She didn't have to go out to work hard, and she didn't have much to do.

All you need to do is take good care of Li Kailang, and things will naturally get better.

Compared to her deceased husband, Jia Dongxu, it was a world of difference.

The thought of marrying him filled Qin Huairu with excitement, and she felt the water flowing beneath her.

For a moment, Qin Huairu was so preoccupied that she could barely walk, and she staggered home.

Then he plopped down on the stool, propped his face up with his right hand, and stared blankly outside.

"Qin Huairu! You vixen, thinking about men again?" Upon seeing this, Madam Jia Zhang was so angry that she cursed loudly.

Qin Huairu immediately snapped out of her daze and feigned grievance: "Mom! What are you saying! What man am I thinking about!"

"Still pretending? Do you think I can't see through you? With your looks, what else could you be but a man-craving woman!" Madam Jia Zhang was fearless.

"Qin Huairu, let me tell you, you were born a member of the Jia family, and you will die a ghost of the Jia family. As long as I'm alive, don't even think about finding a man to remarry!"

"Don't forget, you have three children. I'd like to see which man would dare to marry you!"

These last words instantly shattered Qin Huairu's dreamlike illusions, destroying them completely.

How could Li Kailang, a virgin, fall for a widow who has three children?

Qin Huairu lowered her head in disappointment, touched her stomach, and lifted her clothes to see that the stretch marks were still visible.

Even if she takes great care of herself, she still has what she needs.

My previous idea was simply wishful thinking.

"Hmph!" Seeing Qin Huairu rendered speechless by the insults, Jia Zhangshi became even more smug and arrogant, her triangular eyes filled with meanness.

"Qin Huairu! You'd better give up on that idea now. I will never let you ruin the reputation of the Jia family!"

With her illusions shattered, Qin Huairu, who was already harboring a lot of grievances and anger, was completely ignited and flew into a rage!
"What's all the noise about! Is the food ready yet? All you do is cause trouble for no reason. Have you even finished burning the matches? Believe me or not, I'll kick the kid out today!"

In a single sentence, Jia Zhangshi's arrogance was instantly extinguished.

It even left her at a loss.

Qin Huairu suddenly stood up and pointed at Jia Zhangshi's nose.

"I work myself to death at work, and when I come home I still have to serve you, this Buddha. And you, on the other hand, have nothing better to do than think of ways to annoy me."

"I think you're just bored. I'll give you another 2000 matchboxes tomorrow and see if you're still bored!"

"What are you standing there for! Go cook! Do you want me to starve to death?!"

"Hey, hey... don't... I'm going right now, I'm going right now!" Jia Zhangshi fled in panic.

"Hmph!" Qin Huairu grew angrier the more she thought about it. "A piece of trash!"

Originally, the Jia family and the Li family had a so-so relationship, but after Jia Zhangshi and Banggeng made such a fuss, the relationship between the two families was completely broken. Otherwise, she might have been able to do it!
If I can't be Li Kailang's wife, can't I at least be his mistress?!
This thought stirred a strange flutter in Qin Huairu's heart once again.

She shook her head vigorously, trying to suppress this inappropriate thought.

backyard.

At Liu Haizhong's home, the atmosphere was completely different.

Aunt Erda described to Liu Haizhong, embellishing the story she had overheard in the courtyard about Li Kailang looking for a partner.

"Old Liu! Little Li is looking for a girlfriend, should we help him out?" Auntie Er's voice was filled with barely suppressed excitement, as if she had discovered a gold mine.

Liu Haizhong, who was sipping tea from a large teacup, didn't even lift his eyelids upon hearing this, and gave an impatient snort:
"What business is it of ours if he finds a partner? Why are you meddling in things that don't concern you? You're just being nosy!"

"Look at you, you blockhead!" Auntie Er slapped her thigh in anger and plopped down opposite Liu Haizhong.

"I'm doing this all for Guangqi's sake! It's a fantastic opportunity!"

"Guangqi?" Upon hearing his eldest son's name, Liu Haizhong frowned even more and slammed his teacup heavily on the table.

"Why bring up that unfilial son? He's been gone for so many years and hasn't even written a letter back. What a waste of raising him! What does Li Kailang finding a partner have to do with him!"

"Why can't you understand! You're so stupid!" Auntie Er rolled her eyes in anger, lowered her voice, and started explaining to Liu Haizhong on her fingers.

"Think about it carefully! What is Li Kailang now? A college graduate! He became a technician as soon as he entered the factory! How old is he? In his early twenties!"

"In a few years, will it be difficult for him to become an engineer with his abilities?"

"So what?" Liu Haizhong still didn't understand.

"What's wrong? An engineer! He's the factory's prized asset! His words carry more weight than those of ordinary cadres!" Auntie Er said, exasperated.

"What if Guangqi wants to come back someday, but there's no work in the city? How could he possibly come back?"

"Then I'll have to trouble Xiao Li to help arrange it. Besides, if Xiao Li were more capable, if he became an official, a high-ranking official, it would be a piece of cake for him to bring Guang Qi back."

Liu Haizhong's eyes lit up for a moment, but then he asked in confusion, "What does that have to do with him finding a partner?"

"It's incredibly important!" Auntie Er slammed her hand on the table. "If we can introduce him to a suitable partner now, and the marriage goes through, wouldn't we be the great matchmakers?"

"Won't Li Kailang owe us a huge favor? If we use it on Guangqi in the future, and ask him for a favor, wouldn't he agree? Isn't this a hundred times better than us having to beg and plead with him later?!"

"Slap!" Liu Haizhong slapped his thigh suddenly, instantly realizing, "That's right! How come I didn't think of that! You're so quick-witted! Yes, yes, yes!"

"You said if I help Xiao Li, I can get a cadre position too? That's great, that's great!"

Even after going through all that, Liu Haizhong still managed to find a way to benefit himself.

"Hmph, now you know how to praise me?" Auntie Er raised her chin smugly, looking like she had a plan that had been perfected.

"Then what are we waiting for!" Liu Haizhong stood up excitedly. "Hurry up and go find someone!"

"Are you stupid?!" Auntie Er rolled her eyes at her again.

"I just praised you, and now you're acting silly again! Didn't you hear what Xiao Li said today? It's his first day of work, he hasn't even had a chance to settle in yet!"

"Are you rushing to introduce someone to a potential partner right now? Are you helping or making things worse? Isn't this just blatantly telling them that we have ulterior motives, that we're trying to use this to get close to them, and that we're interfering with their work?"

"Matchmaker Wang already said that the formal introduction will take place next month. We don't know the proper etiquette, so we can't ruin their plans!"

The problem isn't with Matchmaker Wang, but with Li Kailang; he's the real culprit.

"Yes, yes, yes! I was confused! I was confused!" Liu Haizhong nodded repeatedly after being scolded, and sat down again with an embarrassed smile.

"Then you... then you'd better think about it quickly. Among the people we know, which girl is good enough for Xiao Li? We need to find someone good, someone from a similar social standing!"

"Do you even need to tell me?" the second aunt said irritably. "Do you think this is a forced match? Xiao Li has all the qualities: good looks, good education, a promising future, and he's a city resident with a guaranteed job! Do you think we can just find some ugly duckling to fool us?"

"That's a bad introduction; it's not about marriage, it's about making enemies!"

"I need to think carefully about finding a girl who is well-educated, has a decent appearance, and preferably comes from a well-off family or has a respectable job."

"Yes, yes, that makes sense." Liu Haizhong nodded vigorously.

"Alright, don't worry about this. You're just making things worse by sitting here. Go cook! Let me think about this by myself."

The second aunt waved her hand and started to shoo people away.

"Hey! Hey! I'm going right now! I'm going right now!" Liu Haizhong quickly got up and went into the kitchen without a word of complaint.

The second aunt sat alone at the table, her fingers tapping lightly on the surface. Her brows furrowed slightly, and her gaze drifted into the distance as she began to carefully sift through the "resources" at her disposal.

From my wife's family, from my husband's family, from old neighbors and neighbors.
The criteria for each eligible girl flashed through her mind.

The Zhang family's daughter works as a sales clerk at the supply and marketing cooperative. She's fairly good-looking, but a bit petty.

The Li family's daughter works in a textile factory. She is honest and hardworking, but her education level is low; she only graduated from primary school.
Wang's niece is a high school student who just graduated and hasn't been assigned a job yet, but I've heard she's a bit spoiled.

'No, neither of them is quite good enough; we need to find someone more outstanding.'

Suddenly, Aunt Er thought of a friend's daughter, whom she had heard had been admitted to a vocational school. She wondered if the daughter had graduated and where she had been assigned. She needed to ask around to find out.

Think about it again.
For a moment, Aunt Er was overwhelmed with thoughts and completely lost.

"No, while there's still half a moon in the sky, we have to search carefully and find a few suitable candidates for Xiao Li."

"This is a matter of great importance to Guangqi; whether he can return depends on this favor!"

Auntie Er secretly decided that she would do everything in her power to find a few suitable people, no matter what.

If we're talking about who most wants Li Kailang to be well, it's probably Matchmaker Wang.

Matchmaker Wang walked home with light steps, muttering to herself, "Good lad, what a good lad."

A young man like him, with both good looks and a bright future, is a rare find in her hands.

If the introduction is successful, it will be a golden achievement in her matchmaking career! How much will the neighbors praise her?

From now on, when you're matchmaking for other families, you'll have to be even more assertive!
"I can't be careless, I can't be careless," she muttered to herself.

"He needs to find a good girl who is truly capable of living a good life and is worthy of him. He can't just look at her appearance; he has to know her temperament, family situation, and everything else very well."

"She should be able to manage a household, understand his busy work schedule, preferably have some education, and be able to get along well with him."

As soon as she entered the house, Wang the matchmaker didn't even bother to drink water and went straight to the inner room.

From the very bottom of the dresser, he carefully took out a large notebook wrapped tightly in blue printed cloth.

Unwrapping the cloth revealed a thick booklet with worn edges and yellowed pages.

This is her "treasure".

The document is filled with detailed information about eligible men and women that she has collected over the years by going from street to street:
Name, age, address, occupation, family situation, personal requirements, strengths and weaknesses, and remarks. Some entries even have small photos attached next to them, which I don't know where they came from.

If you didn't know better, you'd think he was a spy.

The information is even more comprehensive than that of spies.

Matchmaker Wang solemnly opened the thick booklet. She moistened her fingers with saliva and carefully turned the fragile pages, making a soft "rustling" sound.

She skipped over the records with mediocre qualifications and those that had already been introduced.

I flipped directly to the section that contained information about girls with good qualities from the past two years.

"Old Zhao's daughter from Dongchenggen works at the grocery store; she's reliable. It's just that she has many younger siblings, so the burden is a bit heavy."

"Foreman Qian's daughter. A high school student, she just started working as a statistician at the factory. She's pretty, but seems a bit frail."

"The second daughter of Teacher Sun from Xihutong. Graduated from teachers' college, teaches in elementary school! That's good! Cultured, stable and respectable job, and I remember she was quite dignified-looking too."

Matchmaker Wang tapped on this line and carefully read the note: "Requirements for the man: educated, with a stable job, and no bad habits."

"Hmm, she and Xiao Li are quite a good match! However, we need to get to know the girl's personality and temperament better, and also what kind of people Teacher Sun and his wife are."

She took out a small notebook and wrote down the important point: "Teacher Sun's second daughter".

Then I continued scrolling down.

"The niece of Director Zhou from the textile factory?"

"Dr. Chen's daughter from the small clinic?"

She observed very carefully, occasionally jotting down a few names in her notebook and making notes on key information beside them, her mind rapidly calculating the pros and cons.

At this moment, Wang the matchmaker was like a general reviewing his troops on the battlefield.

Li Kailang, a "blue-chip stock," is her most valuable asset when properly introduced.

If the introduction is ruined, half of her reputation will also be destroyed.

She had to be extremely careful and strive for perfection.

Even if Li Kailang wasn't the best or most outstanding person she had introduced over the years, he was still among the top.

The key is that it's a stock with potential, and there's hope for future development.

After writing it down, Wang the matchmaker brought up Li Kailang's requirements for a partner.

"Sigh! I can't find it." I flipped through it left and right, but I still couldn't find it.

"Could I have forgotten to write it down? My brain, how could I forget something so important?" Matchmaker Wang patted her head in annoyance.

"Should we go ask? No, no, not now. It wouldn't be good if Xiao Li didn't like it."

"Let's pick out the girls first and see who's suitable. We should ask around in the next few days and see who's a good fit."

Soon, Wang the matchmaker made up her mind and began to look through the books one by one.

It wasn't just these three people who had designs on it; Yan Bugui was also naturally having designs on it.

Even his master Zhang Jinwu and his mistress Han Xiaohui were thinking of him.

Such a good apprentice, we shouldn't let the good stuff go to outsiders. We didn't even think about it properly, how could we let it go to someone else?

"Oh, what a pity."

Han Xiaohui sighed, looking at her precious daughter Zhang Ya, who was still in school.

Of course, studying isn't the key point; the key point is that Li Kailang and Zhang Ya don't see eye to eye, otherwise they could have gotten married.

The protagonist, Li Kailang, is unaware that there are undercurrents and different thoughts among everyone regarding his "finding a partner".

(End of this chapter)