Ugly girl only wants to farm

My new account, "The Widower Is So Charming," hopes you'll support it. Author: Little Peach in Fermented Rice Wine.

"Girl, please respect yourself."

Shen Lanshi revealed a cunning look: "I'm not heavy at all. Why don't you hold me and see for yourself?"

Su Yu'an said coldly, "I am a widower. It will affect your reputation if you stay with me."

"What a coincidence! You're a widower and I'm a widow, we're such a perfect match."

Later, with red eyes, Su Yu'an said softly, "Lan'er, can you be more gentle with me?"

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Xu Chaoyan was stunned for a moment before realizing that all the groundwork had been laid just to wait for her here.

She tapped his forehead to stop him from getting any closer. She looked at him with a beaming smile: "What? You're so young and already want to be a father? You don't even want a little sister-in-law, you need a child to keep things going."

Meng Jiuhe grasped her hand and gently coaxed, "That's not Xia Xia, it's Xia Xia. Our two children are ours. Seeing Qi Yu buying snacks for his girl all day and teaching her to read, I suddenly felt a little warm inside."

Xu Chaoyan chuckled and said, "You haven't suffered enough. You'll know when they start bothering you every day."

Meng Jiu said gently, "My dear wife, would you be willing to give me a child now? If it's a daughter who looks like you, I'll teach her to read and write every day, and I'll bring her candied hawthorns every time she comes back from school."

Looking at his serious expression, Xu Chaoyan thought to herself that at his age, other people's children were already old enough to run errands.

It's normal for him to be envious. After thinking for a moment, she gently explained to him, "Our family's situation has improved a bit now. But it's still not appropriate to have children at this stage. You and I are not very old. How about we wait another year or two until we find our parents before we consider it?"

Meng Jiuhe didn't insist any longer and just patted her head: "I'll do whatever you say, my wife."

He paused abruptly and said somewhat awkwardly, "I thought you were unwilling to have children with me after what happened with Zhang Qiao'er. I thought you had a lingering resentment towards me."

Xu Chaoyan punched him a few times: "You're so petty. It's been so long, why are you still holding a grudge now?"

To reassure Meng Jiu, she patiently explained why it was not the right time to have a child.

Meng Jiuhe looked ashamed: "Wife, I'm sorry. I didn't consider your health. You're not even twenty yet, and it's really not good to give birth too early. In the past, many women in the village had difficult or premature births. Just thinking about it makes me feel uneasy. I really didn't think things through."

Xu Chaoyan patted him: "It's good that you understand what I'm thinking."

The days passed by unhurriedly, and the four seasons and three meals a day were filled with the warmth of everyday life.

Thanks to Xu Chaoyan's careful management, the small shop made a considerable profit every month.

The old lady and her family's business gradually stabilized, and they saved up some money, so they decided to take over a tofu shop.

The courtyard where they currently live is a bit crowded. The elderly woman and her husband grind tofu next door, and they have to get up early every day to stand inside. There's not even enough room for one more person to turn around.

In the second half of the year, Zhang Yueniang suddenly had good news about her pregnancy.

During that time, Qi Yu took great care of her, afraid that she might get hurt or bruised, and wouldn't let her do any housework.

The old lady was also very nervous, after all, this was Qi Yu's first child. She and several other women would go to the temple to burn incense on the first and fifteenth of each lunar month, saying that they would pray for Yue Niang to give birth to a son and for her relationship with Qi Yu to become more stable.

Qi Yu is good-looking and academically excellent, considered outstanding in the prefectural school. He had been ill and had limited energy in the previous exam, but according to the teacher, he will definitely be on the list this time.

Qiao Yue would visit Xu Chaoyan's shop every few days. After spending some time with her, Xu Chaoyan discovered that this young girl had no particular thoughts. She spoke directly and frankly, but sometimes she wasn't good at expressing herself, which often led to misunderstandings.

Sure enough, today she brought some candied fruit and snacks to see her again, and started complaining nonstop as soon as she saw her.

"Sister Xu, let me tell you, my family is urging me to go on a blind date again. I don't know where they find those ugly girls. Is it because they're rich in this generation? People say wealth doesn't last three generations. They all look like short, stout gourds, yet they have higher and higher standards than anyone else."

Xu Chaoyan wasn't going to spoil the mood: "How so?"

“Take the son of the wealthy Li family on East Street, for example. They said that when I entered their household, they would have to bring four concubines with me, and I must give birth to a son within a year. If I don’t, they would have to take in a few more concubines. What’s even more outrageous is that the Wang family said that when I go to their house, I don’t have to do anything. I just need to eat, drink, and have babies. Ideally, I’d have two babies in three years and three in five years. Look at what kind of families these are. I’m not a sow that only knows how to give birth.”

Xu Chaoyan listened patiently to her rambling on and on, and even handed her the cooled tea.

"Don't blame your mother for nagging. As parents, we naturally want our children to have a good life. Besides, your parents didn't know about those people's family affairs before. If your mother knew what kind of people they were, she would definitely regret it."

Qiao Yue slumped on the table, looking utterly dejected. "Sister Xu, you're not allowed to laugh at me, but I took a liking to your husband because he's good-looking, and more importantly, because he's academically gifted and has a promising future. That's why I wanted him to be my husband, but it turns out he's already married. How come all these good men have been snatched up by you girls? Sister Yue Niang's husband is also quite good. Why are all the good-looking ones left for me?"

Xu Chaoyan smiled and comforted her, "You need to broaden your perspective and not limit yourself to who's in this academy. You probably already know most of them."

Qiao Yue nodded: "I often used the excuse of going to see my father to secretly sized up all the good students in Class A. Did all the bad ones end up in your house?"

Xu Chaoyan watched her hesitate for a long time before thinking to herself, "Why don't you just be direct? Have you ever thought that your destined person is right in front of you?"

Qiao Yue looked puzzled and said, "They're right in front of me, how come I didn't notice them? How could I let such a good person slip by?"

Xu Chaoyan smiled helplessly and then simply said, "You and Zhang Xuyang are always bickering and joking around. Don't you think you two are actually quite compatible?"

Qiao Yue laughed as if she had heard something funny.

"You say Zhang Xuyang and I are a good match, but we're just natural enemies and we always argue whenever we meet. If we were to get together, it would be a chaotic mess, and we could never become a family. He's not my type."

Xu Chaoyan touched on the point without saying much more, only saying, "There's plenty of time in the future, and things can develop gradually. You can try to get to know him. Actually, Xuyang is a pretty good person, just a little sharp-tongued. He doesn't have any interest in other women. Let me tell you, back when he was in the county school, there was a woman who pursued him for a long time and even offered to give him her entire fortune to support his exams, but he didn't agree."

Qiao Yue looked at him incredulously: "That black mudfish, someone actually wants him? Are you kidding me?"

Xu Chaoyan sighed and said, "Why would I tease you? Don't be fooled by how dark Xuyang's eyes are now. He'll look good again when he's fair in winter. He has a tall and straight figure and is quite handsome. He just got a little tanned from helping his aunt and the others grind and sell tofu. You can imagine that someone who is so filial to his parents will definitely treat his wife well in the future."

After hearing her words, Qiao Yue looked thoughtful. She muttered to herself, "That's true, but besides being sharp-tongued, he's also unforgiving. Sister Xu, are you sure you're not just self-praising?"

"Alright, let's stop here for today. As you get to know him better, you'll understand. Instead of meeting those scoundrels, you should consider the people around you. With Xuyang's grades, he should be able to pass the imperial examination with flying colors, if not become the top scholar. You just want to find an official's wife so you can hold your head high in the future, right?"

Qiao Yue smiled sheepishly: "I'm sorry, Sister Xu, for making you laugh. I am a bit vain, but it was my cousin who provoked me first. Because her older sister married and moved to the capital, she often acts arrogantly in front of me. She even bullies my mother every time, so I vowed to find a husband who is better than her brother-in-law, so that they will no longer look down on me."

Xu Chaoyan patted her shoulder, looking very earnest.

"I've been through this, so take my advice. Although Xuyang has a sharp tongue, you'll find his good points once you get to know him better. Besides, he's good at his studies and will be successful in the future. Being a little sharp-tongued has its advantages, you know. Your cousin is always arguing with you, isn't she? Well, here comes your perfect mouth-splitter."

Qiao Yue was persuaded by Xu Chaoyan in a rather confused way.

"Alright then, I'll try to observe him slowly and see if I can change him a little?"

That day, Meng Jiu and his two companions had just left the academy when a ragged man grabbed them by the ankle. The man had disheveled hair and emitted a strong, sour stench that immediately reached them.

Zhang Xuyang tried to pull Meng Jiu away, but the man wouldn't let go: "Who are you? Are you trying to scam me? Let me tell you, we didn't run into you."

The man hugged Meng Jiu and her ankle, wailing and sobbing uncontrollably.

After Zhang Xuyang finished speaking, he suddenly asked Qi Yu, "Brother-in-law, don't you think this person's figure looks familiar? And that voice also seems familiar."

Just as Meng Jiuhe lifted his foot to make the person on the ground release him, he suddenly recognized a familiar face. He exclaimed, "Shen Siheng, what happened to you, you look like this?"

Zhang Xuyang was the first to react, jumping the highest: "What? He's Shen Siheng, Brother Meng? You can't be lying to me. That kid is always very clean and hates the smell of sweat the most. How could he be in this state? You're kidding me."

The man suddenly stood up and started yelling at him.

"Why can't it be me? Are you blind? I'm a grown man and I can't see you. I've been so good to you before. You can't even recognize me and you have the nerve to accuse me of trying to scam you? So what if I'm trying to scam you? I'll scam you today."

Zhang Xuyang was speechless after being rebuked. In the past, it was always Zhang Xuyang who was rebuking Shen Siheng, but now that the roles were reversed, he was a little unaccustomed to it.

Qi Yu spoke first: "Why don't we go back first? It's not good for those people outside to be pointing fingers and gossiping."

The three of them took Shen Siheng back to clean him up and then brought him some food.

Xu Chaoyan looked at the two bowls stacked in front of her. Shen Si stared at her expectantly and could only ask, "Are you still not full? There's still some in the pot?"

"Sister-in-law, you are so kind to me. You have no idea how long it has been since I've had a proper meal." She then started to sob again.

Zhang Xuyang slammed his hand on the table: "Alright, what are you crying for? If you're a man, hurry up and eat. I'll go get you another pot of tea so you don't choke."

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, the group sat together. No one spoke, but Zhang Xuyang couldn't stand the silence any longer and finally asked a question.

"How did you end up in such a sorry state? Did you run away from home without your father's knowledge?"

Shen Siheng lowered his head somewhat guiltily and offered a few words of explanation in his defense.

"I wouldn't say I ran away from home. I left them a note before I left, saying that I was coming to find you. I'll be back in a few days."

Meng Jiuhe: "Then you didn't have to come to this mess. Didn't you have enough money on you?"

"Speaking of money, let's not talk about it. I swindled a lot of my father's savings this time. I plan to open a restaurant in the prefectural city. I'll follow you wherever you are. If any of you become the top scholar in the imperial examination, my restaurant will be the place where the top scholar eats. You'll be asked to write a name for me afterward. My restaurant will be renamed Zhuangyuanlou (Top Scholar Restaurant) and become famous throughout the country."

Zhang Xuyang burst out laughing and pointed at him: "You opened a restaurant and became famous all over the country, but looking at you like this, people will think you're a beggar."

Xu Chaoyan didn't laugh at him: "Then how did you end up like this? Did you spend all your money?"

Zhang Xuyang looked at him with disdain: "You didn't spend your time drinking, gambling, and womanizing, did you?"

Shen Siheng was so angry she was about to jump up and down: "Zhang Xuyang, we've known each other for so long, do you think I'm that kind of person? Can't you wish me well for once?"

Zhang Xuyang touched his nose and chuckled sheepishly: "Then how did you manage to squander all the money?"

"It's a long story."

"Then let's make a long story short."

"Is this how things went?"

Zhang Xuyang rolled his eyes at him: "Stop dawdling and wasting time, get to the point."

Shen Siheng lowered his head and spoke in a muffled voice: "When I was passing through a town, I happened to meet a little girl who had sold herself to bury her father. She looked so pitiful. She was pale and thin and hadn't eaten for many days. She and her sister had sold themselves to bury their father. Her sister saved all the cornbread she had begged for for her. I couldn't bear it, so I buried their father for them."

Zhang Xuyang glanced at him: "I didn't expect you, Shen Siheng, to have such a compassionate heart. What happened later? You couldn't possibly have buried all the fathers, could you? You even threw a lavish banquet for them and carved a tombstone or something, could you?"

Shen Siheng spoke in a softer voice: "It's also my fault for not recognizing people well and for not being knowledgeable enough. That night, the two sisters said they were cooking a table full of dishes to thank me for saving my life. When I woke up, they were nowhere to be found. I had to beg all the way to find you."

Zhang Xuyang burst into laughter: "I've seen stupid people, but I've never seen anyone as stupid as you. Do you think you took a fancy to that beautiful woman and had wicked thoughts about her, so you drugged me and stole your money?"

Shen Siheng lowered his head further and further: "You can't say that. A beautiful lady is sought after by a gentleman. I just glanced at her a couple of times. I didn't have any other intentions. You know I only have lustful thoughts but no guts."

Upon hearing about his experience, Xu Chaoyan and her husband tried their best not to laugh, while Qi Yu struggled to hold it in.

"You all go ahead with your work. I'm going back to check on Yue Niang. She said she wanted to eat something sour today."

Zhang Xuyang laughed so hard he almost fell to the ground. Today might be the last day for updates. I'll try again tomorrow to see if I can publish it. Thank you all for being with me all this way. I was supposed to finish it at 100 million words, but I have to break my promise.