sjar Chapter 691 Sixth Sister's Marriage
Chapter 691 Sixth Sister's Marriage
The daughters of the Chiang family are all in Beijing now, and the landlord Chiang already has four great-grandchildren.
Among the married daughters, Jiang Lian'er has just been found to be pregnant, and only Jiang Fei'er is left to get pregnant.
However, the Xiao family did not put any pressure on Jiang Feier. After all, her younger brother was now a fifth-rank lecturer, while their own son was still a seventh-rank official, stagnating.
Of course, none of the five brothers-in-law who got married took concubines. It's unclear what led to this agreement, but Jiang Xiaoqi was quite satisfied with it.
After the New Year, Jiang Xiaoqi will be seventeen years old, while Jiang Weier, who is three years older than him, will be twenty.
Jiang Xiaoqi didn't think there was anything wrong with a woman not getting married or engaged by the age of twenty, but her grandparents were becoming increasingly anxious.
Jiang Xiaoqi tried to stop him privately a few times, but he couldn't be sure he could do so next year.
According to my grandparents, if things don't go well this winter, I'll be a twenty-year-old aunt by next spring.
At least she can still be considered a nineteen-year-old girl, not someone in their twenties.
Jiang Xiaoqi was also helpless. She thought back to her previous life when she was thirty-eight years old, unmarried and childless, which would be the age to be a grandmother now. Back then, she never heard any gossip.
After all, there are plenty of unmarried women in their forties around me, so at thirty-eight, she's still considered young.
The grandparents were eager to arrange a marriage for their sixth granddaughter, and Jiang Xiaoqi could no longer stop them.
All I can say is that this matter was entrusted to him, but after looking around, he couldn't find a suitable one.
Lin Yueniang is currently in the capital, and as the nominal mistress of the house, she should indeed be concerned about Jiang Weier's marriage. However, Lin Yueniang only knows business people, so naturally they are not a good match for Jiang Weier.
Although there were some virtuous and wealthy women, the first five all married talented officials, while the sixth young lady married a merchant, which inevitably made people say that the treatment was not fair.
So this problem was thrown back to Jiang Xiaoqi. There was nothing he could do but let his son worry about it.
Just as Jiang Xiaoqi was worrying, the Tan family, a royal merchant family, sent him an invitation.
"This is?"
"The Tan family's son has been appointed to a substantive post in the imperial court. Isn't Master Tan throwing a lavish banquet to celebrate?"
Li Mo had obviously inquired about the details before accepting the invitation. Although he hadn't become an official after passing the imperial examination, the person in question was wealthy.
To fill a vacancy of the seventh rank for someone who has passed the imperial examination, they offered a real sum of 100,000 taels of silver.
Those who passed the imperial examinations were qualified to be candidates for official positions, but some people had to wait indefinitely, while others could be promoted to the seventh rank right away.
This is true strength. The Tan family has no shortage of this strength, nor does it lack 100,000 taels of silver.
Tan Hao was disheartened after failing the exam again, realizing that his childhood talent might not translate into adult success.
He accepted the option of paying money to fill the vacancy, since he was the only male in the Tan family to carry on the family business, and it would be impossible to succeed without connections in officialdom.
Holding the invitation, Jiang Xiaoqi inexplicably recalled the time when she was a child and had to fight with Tan Hao and Zhao Hongxuan over a house.
The whereabouts of Zhao Hongxuan remains a mystery, and when asked, Tan Hao also remained tight-lipped.
However, none of that matters. Tan Hao has filled a real vacancy in the imperial court, which means he has an official position. Moreover, the Tan family is wealthy, so he is a suitable candidate.
I just don't know what Sixth Sister's wishes are; I should ask her before I go.
Jiang Xiaoqi decided to attend the Tan family's banquet first. If Tan Hao was willing to do so, and her sixth sister didn't object, then the matter could be settled.
Sigh, this is the last time he'll act as a matchmaker, and he's a little nervous.
I thought Sixth Sister would act as if it were none of her business as before, but her eyebrows twitched when she heard the name Tan Family.
"Mingfei, how do you know that they didn't mention it? Isn't it too abrupt to ask like this?"
"Does Sixth Sister mean she doesn't object to me handling this matter?"
Jiang Weier didn't say anything, but gave Jiang Xiaoqi a look that he could figure out for himself before going back to her room and not coming out again.
"Okay, I understand. Girls are easily embarrassed."
Three days later, the Tan family—
Mr. Tan greeted the guests with his proud only son, his eyes beaming with joy.
Tan Hao is tall and handsome, with a touch of scholarly elegance, but after several years of experience, he has also gained the shrewdness of a businessman.
At this moment, there was a sense of disharmony between Tan Hao and the overweight Mr. Tan standing together.
Jiang Xiaoqi presented the gift, and Tan Hao spoke directly to Master Tan before personally leading Jiang Xiaoqi into the Tan family home.
"Just find a servant to take me in, you go about your business."
This wasn't Jiang Xiaoqi's first visit to the Tan family. With his memory, he wouldn't forget the way, not just in the past three years, but even in thirty years.
However, out of politeness, someone still needs to lead the way, lest we accidentally wander into areas of the host's home that are not open to the public.
“I don’t have much to do. My dad’s here outside. We haven’t seen each other in a long time. Come on, let’s go to my yard for some tea.”
Guests should have gathered in the flower hall and warm room to drink tea, but Tan Hao taking Jiang Xiaoqi to his private area was a blatant act of differential treatment.
This is actually normal, since most of the people who came today were Mr. Tan's friends and connections, and Jiang Xiaoqi was the one who was closest to Tan Hao.
Upon entering the courtyard, Tan Hao personally brewed tea, his movements fluid and graceful, a delight to behold.
At this moment, Jiang Xiaoqi was somewhat filtered through the lens of her future sixth brother-in-law, seeing only his good points.
He secretly despised himself, wondering how he could now be just like his grandparents, worried that their daughters would never get married.
It's wrong to have one's values influenced by the Great Zhou era.
The two men chatted over tea. Jiang Xiaoqi tentatively asked, "Brother Tan, now that you have an official position and have established yourself, when will you consider settling down?"
Tan Hao put down his teacup and said with a wry smile, "There's always been someone in my heart, but I don't know how she feels."
Jiang Xiaoqi's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly asked, "Which family's girl is it?"
Tan Hao hesitated for a moment, seemingly very conflicted.
"Um, well, how about we change the subject?"
Jiang Xiaoqi raised an eyebrow. Since the other person already had someone they liked, she shouldn't have interfered. Oh well~
Good men are not circulated in the market, just like the older single men and divorced men in later generations; those that are circulated are the ones that people don't want anymore.
"Since Brother Tan is unwilling to say, I will not inquire further."
Jiang Xiaoqi's words only made Tan Hao more conflicted.
"What's wrong? Can't a grown man just speak his mind? Or have we become so estranged?"
Jiang Xiaoqi felt that his tone was normal, but Tan Hao felt an invisible pressure. Could this be the official demeanor that comes from years of immersion in the officialdom?
"Um, if I may ask, is your sixth sister engaged yet?"
Tan Hao broke out in a sweat after saying that, and didn't dare to look at Jiang Xiaoqi's face.