The Whole Village Thrives After Adopting a Lucky Girl

Chuchu finished brewing the tea and poured a bowl for everyone.

The tea was boiled with the core of bamboo leaves. Yingbao said it could cool the body and calm the mind.

Chu Matriarch took a sip, saying, “Chuchu, you are due to give birth soon. Your mother is pregnant again and it’s inconvenient for her to look after you. So, your grandfather and your father have discussed letting Chu Man stay with you for a while.”

Chuchu’s face fell immediately, “Thank you, Grandmother and Grandfather, but my husband will look after me, there’s no need to trouble Cousin Chu Man.”

Her words darkened the faces of everyone present.

Especially Chu Man. Her face turned red and she was on the verge of bursting.

Sun’s second wife quickly patted her daughter’s hand, saying with a laugh, “Chuchu, you’ve never given birth, so you don’t know how dangerous it is. If no one is here to care for you, a single mistake could result in dying in childbed.”

Yingbao, who was listening by the side, could not take it any longer. She bluntly asked, “Madam, is Chu Man a midwife?”

Unable to contain herself any longer, Chu Man stood up in fury, declaring, “You are the midwife!”

Yingbao replied calmly, “Yes, I am indeed a midwife. With me around, Chuchu and her baby will certainly be safe.”

No mother’s family would dare to utter such things about their daughter dying during childbirth. It’s extremely bad luck.

The Chu Matriarch also felt something was not right. She shot a sharp glare at Sun’s second wife, then turned to Chuchu and smiled, “Your aunt is too blunt and often speaks without thinking. She has a good heart despite her sharp tongue. She meant well.”

“Thank you, Grandmother, but I have Yingbao to look after me, and my godmother is also here. You do not need to worry.”

Chuchu continued, “I’m sorry, but I need to go to my godmother’s house, so I won’t keep you all.”

With that, she picked up a lock and stood at the door, her intentions clear as she looked back at everyone in the house. She was planning on locking the door and leaving.

Upon seeing Chuchu’s blatant attempt to drive them out, everyone reluctantly got up and walked out of the house.

Chuchu promptly locked the door, gave a respectful bow to the Chu Matriarch, and holding Yingbao’s hand, turned to leave.

Sun’s second wife and Chu Man were so angry they could hardly speak, stomping their feet as they spat out, “Look at her attitude! She’s an ungrateful wretch! Since she got married, she’s forgotten her own family and doesn’t care about us at all!”

Chu Matriarch’s face also darkened. After thinking for a moment, she said to Sun’s second wife, “As Chu Chu’s stepmother, you should be here to help her when she’s about to give birth. Let Chu Man stay with you.”

Although Sun’s second wife was not enthusiastic about the idea, she didn’t dare to offend the old woman, so she could only nod.

In this manner, the Chu Matriarch and Sun’s second wife left, leaving Sun’s second wife and Chu Man sitting at the door of Chuchu’s house.

When Zhang Meng returned home, he saw that his front door was locked, with his wife’s stepmother and an unfamiliar girl sitting at the door.

“Aunt, why are you here?” Zhang Meng greeted them as he approached.

Sun’s second wife quickly stood up and stammered, “I… came to look after Chuchu’s confinement.”

Zhang Meng glanced at the lock on the door and replied, “Chuchu’s due date is still some time away. You don’t need to trouble yourself. You should go home.”

Sun’s second wife just stood there with her head bowed, seeming to be determined to stay.

Chu Man, however, just wandered around aimlessly, picking up the golden ears drying at the entrance, looking bored.

Seeing them act like this, Zhang Meng finally understood why his own door was locked.

With great patience, he repeated, “Chuchu doesn’t need your care. It’s getting late, you should go home.”

Seeing that they ignored him, Zhang Meng frowned and said, “Chuchu won’t be back tonight. It’s not appropriate for you two ladies to stay with a man overnight.”

Then, he started picking up the golden ears from the bamboo plate.

He put all the golden ears into a basket, carried them into the kitchen, locked the kitchen door, and walked off.

Upon seeing this, Chu Man and Sun’s second wife panicked. After standing at the door for a while, they had no choice but to leave dejectedly.

When they walked past the entrance of the school, Chu Man suddenly stopped and stared intently into the courtyard.

Sun’s second wife followed her gaze and saw a young scholar in his twenties talking to two children.

“Is that the Scholar?” Chu Man shyly asked.

Sun’s second wife hastily replied, “The Scholar your Second Aunt told you about is not him. This man is from out of town and does not plan to marry locally.”

Chu Man frowned, “Then who was she talking about? Is there another Scholar here?”

“His name is Chen Changping and he lives nearby.”

Little Sun and Chuchu’s father had been to Dongchen Village twice, so they were somewhat familiar with the place.

Chu Man asked with displeasure, “Who is Chen Changping?”

Little Sun hesitated, unsure of how to explain.

At that moment, a tall man was seen walking from the distance towards the school.

Little Sun’s eyes lit up. She discreetly tugged at Chu Man and pointed with her lips, “That’s him.”

Chu Man saw him too, her eyes widening in surprise.

The man was wearing a new blue robe, a black turban on his head. He had a face as fair as jade and extraordinarily handsome features, far more mature than the young scholars in the yard, his every movement exuding charm and elegance.

Chu Man’s face turned an even deeper shade of red as her mind began to wander.

“Is it really him?” She was a little incredulous.

Little Sun nodded, “Yes, it’s him.”

Who wouldn’t know this newly recognized scholar? He was a famous handsome man in the entire town.

Only a young girl like Chu Man, who was a bit slow, would be unaware.

Chu Man suddenly felt shy, “Then, how do we strike up a conversation with him?”

They couldn’t just go up and introduce themselves out of the blue.

The reason why Granny Chu and Sun Mom had painstakingly sent Chu Man to Chuchu, was to give Chu Man the opportunity to interact more with Chen Changping.

If a man and a woman contact each other often, they would naturally develop feelings. When the time comes, it would be natural, and the Chen family would have to agree to the marriage.

However, Chuchu was unwilling to accept Chu Man, which created a problem.

Little Sun sighed, “Let’s go back for now, we’ll come back after Chuchu gives birth.”

No matter how much they wanted the two young people to interact, they must first find a suitable place to stay. Since Chuchu was unwilling to accept Chu Man, they had to go back and figure out another plan.

Chu Man reluctantly followed Little Sun back home, occasionally looking back at the school yard.

The two scholars were sitting on a stone bench in the courtyard, seemingly engrossed in a conversation.

Little Sun and Chu Man hitched a ride on a donkey cart and slowly went downhill.

From her home’s courtyard wall, Yingbao witnessed everything. She began to connect the dots with what Chen Zhao had said and she had a fairly good idea of what was going on.

The Chus have such thick skin, they could even come up with such a plan.

They weren’t here to take care of Chuchu, they were here to fish for a wealthy son-in-law.

Coming down from the wall, Chuchu anxiously asked, “Yingbao, did they leave?”

“Yes, they left.” They are likely to come back though.

Yingbao decided not to mention that last part to Chuchu in order to avoid worrying her excessively.

Chuchu took a sigh of relief and said, “I’m really scared of Granny Chu and her party.”

That Granny Chu also belonged to the Sun Clan and she was the cousin of Chu Man’s mother, Sun. She was of the same clan as Chu Man’s stepmother, Little Sun. She, like the clan leader, was willing to do anything for the clan’s benefits, even disregard her face.

They had initially coerced and lured Chuchu and her father into making an innocent girl a stepping stone for the clan, regardless of what would become of her future.

After a few years, they were planning to use her as a stepping stone again to pave the path for Chu Man.

Chu Man wanted to get married, but she needed to use Chuchu to lay the groundwork.

Speaking mildly, this could be considered a favor for an adult, but to put it bluntly, it was akin to procuring.

As a soon-to-be mother herself, how could Chuchu let herself be associated with such a title for an outsider’s sake?

Therefore, no matter who came, she would not compromise this time.