166: Bai Yan arranges a marriage alliance.

When Bai Yan pushed the door open, she was quite surprised.

Hu Xiaoqiu, her younger brother Bai Ci, her younger sister Bai Hui, and Bai Jinkun were all gathered around the Eight Immortals table.

Bai Yan greeted them, "Dad, Mom."

Hu Xiaoqiu still didn't have a good expression, and said eagerly, "You're here, come in and sit down quickly."

She looked up, glanced at the doorway, and saw Wu Fan, saying coldly, "Why are you here again? Our family has important matters to discuss, it's not appropriate for you to come in."

Wu Fan didn't get angry; he smiled slightly and said, "Auntie, I'll be taking Bai Yan home later, so I'll just wait at the doorway for a bit, alright?"

Hu Xiaoqiu rolled her eyes at him in annoyance, no longer bothering with him.

She was afraid this man would get in the way by staying there, but she didn't expect him to be so thick-skinned that he wouldn't leave even after being told to.

Bai Hui curiously craned her neck to glance at Wu Fan, her face unconsciously flushing.

He's so handsome.

Bai Hui, in the throes of first love, had a soft spot for mature older men.

Her heart actually started pounding involuntarily.

Junior high students nowadays are precocious to an alarming degree, and their tastes are becoming increasingly sophisticated.

Bai Jinkun, with a cigarette dangling from his mouth, caught sight of the gifts Wu Fan was carrying, his eyes darted, and he decided to play the good guy.

He stood up and said very politely, "Young man, come in and sit for a while. Your auntie might have misunderstood you last time; she has a bad temper, so please don't take it to heart."

Wu Fan was just looking for an opening, and raising an eyebrow, he said, "Auntie is an elder; if she's in a bad mood, it's only right for her to scold me a few times."

As soon as he said this, he almost couldn't hold back his laughter.

After entering, he deliberately placed the tea, baijiu, and cigarettes in the very center of the Eight Immortals table, saying, "Uncle and Auntie, just a small token, please don't mind it."

Bai Jinkun's eyes crinkled into a smile, "Young man, you're too kind, why bring anything?"

He had long noticed that everything Wu Fan brought was good stuff, and he was happy inside.

Hu Xiaoqiu didn't know much about these items and still kept a cold face, not speaking.

Wu Fan pulled two supermarket cards from his pocket, handing one to Bai Jinkun and placing the other in front of Hu Xiaoqiu.

"Uncle and Auntie, I wasn't sure what nutritional supplements to buy for you, so I just got two supermarket cards to make it convenient for you to buy things."

Bai Jinkun looked down at the amount and was surprised.

It was five thousand yuan.

This young man is truly generous.

Hu Xiaoqiu's expression visibly softened when she saw it.

She was an extremely greedy person, and five thousand yuan was not a small sum in her heart.

She felt too awkward to put away the supermarket card immediately, so she could only say faintly, "Sit down."

Bai Yan's previously tense heart finally relaxed a little. She didn't want Wu Fan to be given the cold shoulder; it would make her feel very uncomfortable.

She patted the seat next to her with her hand and gave Wu Fan a faint smile.

Wu Fan sat next to her, side by side on the long bench.

The atmosphere suddenly became a bit awkward.

Hu Xiaoqiu glanced at Bai Jinkun, cleared her throat, and said, "Will you speak?"

Bai Jinkun quickly shook his head, "You do it; I won't express it well."

Hu Xiaoqiu sat up straight and began, "Bai Yan, it's like this."

She paused, then continued, "Your brother is not young anymore. In our village, there's an old tradition that boys over 18 should go on blind dates and get married. You know this, right?"

Bai Yan nodded, pondering, "What exactly does Mom mean? Blind dates and marriage cost money, so she must be asking for money again, right?"

"Mom, just say it directly."

Hu Xiaoqiu gave Wu Fan a meaningful look, "There's a family named Zhu in the neighboring village; both the brother and sister are very good-looking, but their family situation isn't great. The brother is already 23 this year and not yet married."

She paused again, picked up her teacup, and took a sip of tea.

Bai Yan was a bit confused; what did the Zhu family brother not being married have to do with her brother getting married?

Wu Fan was also completely bewildered; what exactly did all this mean?

Hu Xiaoqiu sighed lightly, "Our two sets of parents have discussed it and decided to marry you to their brother and their sister to your brother, killing two birds with one stone."

"Ah?"

Bai Yan exclaimed.

She never expected that calling her here was for a 'wife exchange'.

What era was this, that such a thing could still happen?

It was very common among the older generation.

At that time, families with poor financial situations, who couldn't find wives, would exchange daughters to help their sons start families.

There were also daughters-in-law who were raised together since childhood.

"Mom, I can't agree."

Bai Yan refused very firmly.

Hu Xiaoqiu's face immediately darkened, "This is not up to you. Since ancient times, it's been the parents' command and the matchmaker's words. Where do you have room to choose?"

Upon hearing this, Bai Yan's stubbornness flared up.

She felt her dignity was being trampled, that she was like a commodity, being used for exchange.

Seeing this, Wu Fan naturally put his arm around Bai Yan's shoulder and whispered in her ear, "Don't be afraid, calm down, I'm here."

Bai Yan sniffled, feeling a little more at ease, and said no more.

Bai Ci sat on the side, very embarrassed, not saying a word.

He had seen the Zhu family's daughter; she was petite and delicate, and he had long been fond of her.

After Hu Xiaoqiu learned about this, she started having ulterior motives.

To get her son a wife for free, she came up with the idea of a 'wife exchange'.

Hu Xiaoqiu raised her voice and said, "Bai Yan, you're not getting any younger, and this is a good thing! Wife exchange wasn't my idea; it's existed since ancient times. It kills two birds with one stone, how good is that?"

Bai Yan pursed her lips and remained silent.

Bai Hui looked at Wu Fan with affection in her eyes and interjected, "Sister, wife exchange is quite good. You'll get married sooner or later anyway. The Zhu family's brother is quite handsome, I've seen him, so don't worry."

At such a young age, she was already harboring ulterior motives. If her sister and Wu Fan weren't together, she would have a chance.

Wu Fan interjected, "Uncle and Auntie, if your son were to get married without a 'wife exchange', how much money would it cost?"

Marriage is ultimately a matter of money.

Problems that can be solved with money are not really problems.

Hu Xiaoqiu said sarcastically, "What? Are you going to cover this expense?"

Out of respect for Bai Yan, Wu Fan didn't argue with her and said very amiably, "I have no obligation to cover this expense, but I am willing to help you out."

Hu Xiaoqiu sneered, "A bride price of 180,000, buying a house in the county town for 1,000,000, and then another 30,000 to 50,000 for miscellaneous expenses. Since you're so generous, why don't you give me 1,300,000?"

Upon hearing this, Bai Yan became anxious, "Mom, you're asking for too much! How can you be so shameless?"

Hu Xiaoqiu snorted coldly, "He himself wants to disrupt my 'wife exchange' plan. How is 1,300,000 asking for too much? A wedding house is standard now. Is it too much for me to buy a 1,000,000 house?"

"Nowadays, a slightly better one costs at least 1,500,000."

Bai Hui's face was slightly flushed as she secretly kept looking at Wu Fan.

He was so composed, with no hint of embarrassment on his face; he was truly cool.

The more she looked, the more her heart fluttered.

Wu Fan said very directly, "I'll pay 1,500,000."

Hu Xiaoqiu's eyes widened; she could hardly believe her ears.

She was stunned for a long while, "What did you say?"

Wu Fan's tone was calm, "The 'wife exchange' plan is canceled. I'll pay 1,500,000."

...