A husband found in the village? I bought a regent for a penny!

Jiang Mingyuan gazed in the direction the donkey cart had gone, a faint warmth welling up in his eyes.

But when he turned to Elder Gu, his eyes were calm as still water, revealing no clue whatsoever.

"Boss Gu is indeed extraordinary. Although she is a woman, the Gu family has a successor."

"As long as everyone follows her obediently, whether they can become rich and powerful in the future depends on their own opportunities, but I think there is a good chance that their current lives will get better and better."

The old man stroked his beard and smiled, "You don't need to tell me, this old man can see it too."

"That's not what I want to hear from you. You've been smart since you were little, don't you know why I called you here specifically?"

Jiang Mingyuan paused for a moment, facing the piercing gaze of Elder Gu.

Knowing there was no way to avoid it, he could only sigh helplessly, "Old man, please don't joke with me."

"Ms. Gu has a fiancé."

The elder of the Gu clan said, "That kid ran away a long time ago."

Jiang Mingyuan laughed and said, "You're just teasing me. I just heard people talking about how a few days ago at the village's land temple, Mr. Chen asked someone to bring something to Xixi."

"They're doing great together."

Elder Gu sneered, "Whether he's good or bad, he's also a convicted criminal and an exile!"

"Whether he has reformed and become a respectable person is another matter. Even if he is now an ordinary commoner, being exiled to the Northwest was a serious crime! We don't know his background, so who knows what bad things he did in the past?"

"He's an outsider with no connections. Besides being educated and good-looking, what makes him a good match for Xixi?"

Jiang Mingyuan stared in astonishment. "Grandpa, you've found out quite a lot."

The elder of the Gu family said, "Xixi is the hope of our Gu family. Now that I know about her, I naturally have to worry about her."

Mentioning this, Elder Gu got angry and sneered, "Xixi's great-grandfather, second great-grandfather, and her third uncle, they're all useless!"

"Such a capable girl, and instead of giving her guidance and support, they don't care about her where they should. Instead, they can't stand seeing her do well and try to trip her up at every turn!"

"If they hadn't acted like elders, would Xixi's marriage have fallen to that exiled criminal of unknown origin?"

Why has our Gu family been unable to flourish and prosper for so long?

"It's all because of these useless bastards, they're incompetent at doing anything productive, and all they care about is fighting amongst themselves!"

Seeing that Elder Gu was getting angrier and angrier, Jiang Mingyuan quickly advised him:

"Now it's not just that you have a discerning eye, but things will finally take a turn for the better."

The elder of the Gu clan nodded angrily, "That makes sense. The previous incidents have clearly shown that Xixi is a girl with her own opinions. Don't underestimate her just because she's young. With her in charge, she'll definitely be able to keep those who always complain in check when faced with any major issues in the future."

Jiang Mingyuan laughed, glanced around, and whispered, "Looks like you're tired of managing things all these years?"

The elder Gu was amused. "Some things are better left unsaid, just keep them to yourself. It makes you look so clever!"

He glanced sideways at Jiang Mingyuan and said, "You'd better try to be more capable."

"The marriage that this old man has chosen is a win-win situation for both of you."

Jiang Mingyuan smiled wryly, "Grandpa, I thought we had changed the subject, why did you bring this up again?"

Elder Gu glared at Jiang Mingyuan, "You don't like Xixi?"

Jiang Mingyuan replied truthfully, "It wouldn't be accurate to say that. When I first met Xixi, I did admire and respect her."

The elder of the Gu clan said, "That's right. As long as you are willing to get close to her, feelings will naturally develop naturally."

“But she…” Jiang Mingyuan still wanted to argue his point.

"But what but!" Elder Gu glared. "In terms of appearance and knowledge, do you think you're inferior to that prisoner surnamed Chen?"

Jiang Mingyuan sighed helplessly, "It's not that we necessarily have to compete..."

The elder of the Gu clan said, "I've already discussed this matter with your parents."

"I will arrange the marriage, and we can be united in marriage. You don't have to marry into the family. If you have a child, half of the child will take your surname, Jiang, and the other half will take Xixi's surname, Gu."

The elder of the Gu clan had long lamented the difficulty of the local Gu family to prosper. In his old age, he finally found a capable person with the surname Gu, Gu Xixi, who gave him hope for the revival of the Gu family.

This year, Jiang Mingyuan passed the imperial examination again, and the Gu clan elders turned their attention to Jiang Mingyuan and Gu Xixi.

Considering that no matter how close Jiang Mingyuan was, he was still an outsider, Elder Gu suddenly came up with a solution.

If these two people could become husband and wife, one would be capable of farming and building a family fortune, while the other would enter officialdom.

With them around, they will surely be able to motivate the entire Gu family.

Some even say that dragons beget dragons and phoenixes beget phoenixes, and the child born from the union of two outstanding individuals is bound to be exceptional.

When the time comes to determine the heir with the surname Gu, the future of the Gu family in the area will be even more secure!

Although Elder Gu had his own selfish motives in this matter, he might not even live to see his own plans.

But he did indeed want to do good for Gu Xi.

After all, someone like Jiang Mingyuan, who had already achieved the highest score in both imperial examinations at the age of eighteen, was a rare find in the entire Northwest, with his looks, temperament, character, knowledge, and even future prospects.

The Gu family elders believed from the bottom of their hearts that Gu Xixi deserved to be married to the best man.

He disliked Chen Fang because he was an exiled criminal, and he wasn't just making trouble or looking for excuses.

Unfortunately, Elder Gu still didn't understand that the more outstanding the younger generation was in his eyes, the more they had their own ideas.

Marriage is a major life event; how can it be decided by a few words from others?

Just now at the banquet, Jiang Mingyuan and Gu Xixi were whispering to each other, but they deliberately kept their distance in front of everyone, afraid that their every move would be noticed by the clan elders and other leaders, who would think that there was something going on between them and would try even harder to match them up.

Finally, seeing that the elder's ideas were becoming increasingly far-fetched, Jiang Mingyuan had no choice but to say seriously, "I don't want to force anyone and embarrass Sister Xixi."

"She is close to the Gu family now because she is here to do business, not to go on a blind date. Especially since she has only recently become the person in charge, the millet harvest will be the time for her to make her first move after taking office and truly win people's hearts."

"Before that, if she realizes what you mean, do you think it will be awkward or hinder her when she's working among the Gu family?"

Although Gu Xixi never said it outright, after chatting with her today, Jiang Mingyuan had a feeling that she was going to do something big.

He then added harshly, "Or perhaps if you push her too hard, she'd rather not be in charge and return to the past, maintaining a clear separation from the local Gu family?"

Elder Gu was taken aback, and his face immediately wrinkled up.

"yes……"

“You’re right. This matter can’t be rushed. When this girl was planting fruit trees in their village, she said that whoever wanted to work could stay, and whoever didn’t wanted to could leave.”

"If she's not willing, she might actually quit."

"So we still have to take it slowly. We must wait until she gains everyone's trust and firmly establishes herself as the leader, but..."