Transmigration: The Little Chef Calls The Shots-Chapter 1398 - 217, Settle Down (14)

"Good grief, cousin, could your ears be any sharper? You heard all of that! But let’s get this straight, we weren’t eavesdropping. We were simply being lazy and napping, and it was purely coincidence that we heard anything!"

With those words, Liu Zhiguang jumped down from the carriage.

Following him were Liu Zhiyang, Lin Yi, and two other young men of similar age who were strangers to her.

Liu Zhiguang was shamelessly grinning from ear to ear.

Liu Zhiyang still had that old-man look about him, but he couldn’t help curling his lips into a sly smile when he saw Lin Yuan, and coughed lightly in seeming jest.

Lin Yi was typically stoic-faced, but today, his expression seemed especially bright.

The two young men at the rear smiled bashfully, but, exceptionally and without exception, nobody paid any attention to the several young ladies with pale faces.

"Heh, there sure are a lot of people enjoying the show!" Lin Yuan teased as she rolled her eyes at Xia Zheng. It was all because of this guy; if he weren’t so handsome, he wouldn’t attract so much attention.

Liu Zhiguang and Liu Zhiyang, who were already spoken for, didn’t even glance at the women in front of them but clicked their tongues, shaking their heads in relief, "Luckily, the girl I like isn’t among these folks; otherwise, I definitely..." freewebnøvel.coɱ

Though he didn’t finish his sentence, the expressions on those young ladies darkened further after hearing it. They recognized almost all the men present, and aside from the three who were already taken, the other two were the most eligible bachelors—one from Liu Family Village and the other from Jeng Ruyue’s home—both highly sought-after by the ladies.

Now that these top choices had witnessed their frivolous behavior, any hopes of forming a good relationship with these men vanished.

Looking at Xia Zheng, ever since Lin Yuan appeared, his eyes were fixed solely on her face. And even before Lin Yuan showed up, his back was turned toward them; his gaze never lingered on anyone else.

This was disastrous. Not only had they failed to allure Xia Zheng, but they had also lost the chance with the best men in their own village! Finding a good match had just gotten significantly harder.

The few young ladies, all too concerned about their reputation, quickly left the scene, chagrined by the way Lin Yuan and the men had treated them.

Once they were gone, Lin Yuan rolled her eyes again and stared at the men, "Seriously, cousins, did you do that on purpose? No matter what, those girls are Aunt Liu’s relatives. How could you humiliate them like this?"

Liu Zhiyang stayed silent, but Liu Zhiguang was the first to become agitated, pointing at Xia Zheng who stood behind Lin Yuan, shouting, "Cousin, aren’t you a bit too biased? It was clearly Xia Zheng trying to embarrass those girls on purpose. How can you blame us?"

Xia Zheng, hiding behind Lin Yuan, deliberately raised his eyebrows and winked at them, chuckling smugly.

Lin Yuan seemed not to hear Liu Zhiguang’s words; she blinked and looked upwards at the sky, her obvious favoritism infuriating Liu Zhiguang even more, causing him to howl again.

The two young men quickly tried to smooth things over, "Miss Lin, you really misunderstood. We were indeed napping, and Young Master Xia just went outside to enjoy the view when those girls appeared."

"They weren’t really all that virtuous. If they were truly good girls, they wouldn’t harbor thoughts of seducing other men. Also, I don’t know about the others, but the leader among them has always been too conceited in our village. Several matchmakers have been rejected by her family; they demand either a rich man or someone from a governmental family from the town. Tch, as if anyone with status would consider our simple families."

"That’s right, even without today’s incident opening our eyes to their real intentions, I wouldn’t marry such unsteady women. Ordinary women are the best."

At this, Lin Yuan was speechless. Why did this remind her so much of Lady Ma and Lin Siyu in the past?

Well, hopefully, after this lesson, these girls would amend their ways, realizing their station and forsake any impractical dreams. Otherwise, they might truly end up like Lin Siyu, married off as a concubine.

That seemed to be the end of today’s events. Since they probably wouldn’t meet these women again, Lin Yuan didn’t bother further with them.

However, back in her room, Lin Yuan couldn’t help but feel the glare from the woman she had caught cheating earlier, as if she wanted nothing more than to marry her daughter to someone better than Xia Zheng and then come back to disgrace her.

Lin Yuan found it amusing and chose not to judge the woman’s childish behavior, hoping instead that all the women present would marry better than herself.

After lunch, the relatives gradually left. Jeng Ruyue’s mother, having cared for her for a whole postpartum month, was uneasy leaving her husband alone at home and also returned.

When everyone had left, Lady Liu collapsed in her chair, exhausted by the day’s events—not so much from the labor but from the discomfort of dealing with those scheming women.

It wouldn’t do; Lin Yuan’s and Xia Zheng’s union had to be settled sooner.

Princess Anle had already hinted several times about fixing the engagement; Lady Liu had been reluctant before, and Lin Yuan herself did not want to marry too early. But after today, Lady Liu was resolved to secure the union soon.

Today, Lady Fan had no time to chat properly with the kids, only thinking to have them stay overnight and leave the next day. But they had arrived with maids and carriages, and Liu family’s house was simply too cramped to accommodate everyone, so they had to hurry back before nightfall.

Before leaving, Lady Fan mentioned that Jeng Ruyue’s parents missed their granddaughter and planned, in a few days, to have the couple and the child stay with them. This would also allow Lady Fan and Liu Huaiqing to accompany her younger sister’s family on a trip to the Capital city for a while.

Moreover, Liu Zhiyang was also going to the Capital city this time. His achievements at the academy were outstanding, recognized as the most exceptional student after Ma Junying.

The academy’s instructors recommended him to a college in the Capital city, where he could enroll after the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Seeing her cousin doing so well, Lin Yuan was genuinely delighted.