155: Chapter 155 When the Plums Ripen: Childhood Sweetheart Male Lead 33

On the night they returned from Yuxiang Mountain, night fell heavily.

In Yihe Courtyard of the main residence, warm yellow light spilled across the floor.

A faint scent of agarwood lingered in the air.

Meng Zhu lifted the door curtain and walked in, bringing with him the slightly chilly night air.

Old Madam was sitting on the couch, flipping through a book in her hands.

Hearing the movement, she raised her head and took off the reading glasses on the bridge of her nose.

"Have things been settled?"

Old Madam's voice was gentle and filled with composure.

"They have been settled."

Meng Zhu sat down on the mahogany chair and casually took the hot tea handed over by Auntie Hua.

"The people at the spice workshop have all met Zhaoyu, and over at Uncle Lin's side, the golden seal is also beginning to be made."

Old Madam put the book in her hand aside, her gaze falling on her outstanding and steady grandson.

She sized him up for a moment, then suddenly sighed.

"Courtesy Name, give your grandmother a bottom line. What on earth are your feelings for that girl Zhaoyu, and what are you thinking?"

Meng Zhu put down the teacup with an open expression, without any concealment whatsoever.

"Grandmother, rest assured. Since the founding of the Meng Family, there has never been a practice of forcing a marriage since ancient times."

His voice was low and calm.

"Naturally, I will not force Zhaoyu either."

He paused slightly.

"If Zhaoyu also has feelings for me, that would naturally be best. This Wenshao Spice Workshop will then be her deserved betrothal gift; giving it early or late makes no difference."

"If Zhaoyu has no feelings for me, then this spice workshop will be the dowry I prepared for her."

Old Madam was slightly stunned.

Meng Zhu continued to speak:

"Zhaoyu lost her natal family and is only considered an adopted daughter of the Meng Family. In the future, if she finds someone she fancies, she will inevitably be looked down upon and bullied by others. With the spice workshop, no matter where she marries, she will have a backbone."

Hearing this, Old Madam shook her head helplessly.

"But this spice workshop is the private property of the eldest branch's daughters-in-law down the generations. This is a rule set by our ancestors. If you really treat it as Zhaoyu's dowry, what will your future wife do?"

Meng Zhu smiled faintly, his brows full of confidence.

"Grandmother, your grandson is still young; I can just build another one."

Old Madam looked steadily at her grandson, and after a long while, she nodded gently.

She already cherished Nan Li dearly, long treating her as her own flesh and blood. Now that her grandson had this kind of daring and handled it this way, it was indeed comprehensive.

"You child, while saying you will not force it, you have even paved an escape route for her."

Old Madam said with a solemn expression again.

"However, since you have not expressed your feelings to her, yet you are in such a rush to give her the golden hairpin at this time, I presume you already have a decision regarding the matters on the corporate side?"

"Yes, Grandmother's eyes are discerning."

When discussing serious matters, Meng Zhu's gaze also turned sharp.

"I have no intention of forcing Zhaoyu. Originally, this hairpin could have been given later, but the current timing is indeed the best."

Meng Zhu analyzed methodically.

"First, those people from the collateral branches have been making continuous moves recently, wanting to manipulate Zhaoyu's marriage. With this hairpin, their thoughts can be completely cut off."

"Second, pretending that Zhaoyu is already the young madam can also make them mistakenly believe that the shares in Zhaoyu's and my hands are going to be merged, making them hesitate to act rashly."

Meng Zhu picked up the teacup, his tone ice-cold.

"During this period, I can be considered to have personally entered the game. I have investigated all the petty tricks done by the collateral branches clearly; the ancestral worship ceremony will be the day of reckoning."

After listening, Old Madam was completely reassured.

"It is good that you can control the overall situation."

She looked at him earnestly.

"Grandmother knows that you refuse to express your feelings because you are afraid Zhaoyu will wrong herself."

"But Zhaoyu is a good girl. If you two are fated, Grandmother will naturally be one hundred or ten thousand times happy. Do not worry too much either; let everything take its course and follow fate."

"Your grandson understands."

Meng Zhu nodded gently in acknowledgment.

After chatting casually about family matters with Old Madam for a few more sentences, Meng Zhu got up and took his leave.

After Meng Zhu disappeared behind the door curtain, Auntie Hua, who was serving nearby, suddenly came to a realization.

She lowered her voice and said.

"I was wondering earlier why you gave the hairpin and deliberately kept it a secret. So that is how it is; this matter was handled so precariously!"

Old Madam smiled, took a sip of tea, and did not speak.

Auntie Hua had served Old Madam for a lifetime, so her speech was a bit more casual.

"The Old Matriarch, looking at Courtesy Name's intention, he is clearly deeply in love with Miss Zhaoyu. But he keeps it bottled up inside and refuses to express it; how can there be any hope?"

Old Madam shook her head gently, her sigh carrying a hint of heartache.

"This is also something that cannot be helped."

"The very first generation of our Meng Family ancestors set a rule: the marriage of the eldest branch must be mutual affection, absolutely no political marriages, and not a shred of compulsion."

Old Madam's gaze looked towards the heavy night outside the window.

"That girl Zhaoyu is different from others. Her sense of belonging to our Meng Family is too strong, and she is of a good nature that knows gratitude and repays kindness."

Old Madam looked at Auntie Hua.

"If Courtesy Name expresses his feelings to her and reveals everything, then in order to repay the kindness and not make Courtesy Name sad, she would probably agree to it."

Auntie Hua was stunned.

"Zhaoyu has been clever and sharp since childhood. If she wants to act, disguising a look of liking Courtesy Name and wholeheartedly serving as a young madam, I am afraid none of us would be able to see through it."

Old Madam ultimately had an information gap and did not know the entanglements in Nan Li's heart.

But what she said was indeed one of the reasons.

"Therefore, Courtesy Name can only wait."

Old Madam's voice echoed in the inner chamber.

"Wait until Zhaoyu one day can fall in love with him, and then take the initiative to express her feelings to him..."

"Or else, wait until she falls in love with someone else, dates, and gets married."

Hearing this, Auntie Hua's eye sockets became a bit red.

She only felt that the young master's romantic sentiment was somewhat too bitter.

[Good thing I did not leave following Meng Zhu's perspective; there really is an unexpected pleasant surprise.]

[So the meaning of the hairpin is like this; it is so blissful!]

[What kind of immortal family is this? No wonder they could be passed down for so many years.]

[Nan Li still has a good life; I am jealous.]

[Do you have to be so vicious? All her relatives are gone, and you call this a good life?]

[Alright, alright, stop arguing. The truth about the hairpin has come to light, but it is a pity their feelings got misunderstood.]

[Indeed, what the Meng Family fears is that Nan Li will wrong herself out of gratitude, but what Nan Li fears is actually being afraid she cannot go on with Meng Zhu in the future. They got it completely wrong!]

[Those in front do not understand; if neither of them speaks up, what can be done? In this movie, the most important thing is having a mouth to speak out.]

[Only you understand. Meng Zhu has no way to speak out, okay? Meng Zhu has the same thoughts as Old Madam, so he cannot speak first.]

[On the contrary, Nan Li is just fearful; if she can overcome it, it should work out.]

[Is it that easy? Easy to say.]

The bullet comments analyzed everything logically and clearly.

But unfortunately, Meng Zhu did not have the exact same thoughts as Old Madam; he just happened to know Old Madam's thoughts.

Furthermore, as for Nan Li's thoughts nowadays, Meng Zhu also had a good grasp of them.

This ancestral worship can be considered to have resolved any lingering worries.

Once everything is settled, he is going to give Nan Li a strong medicine.

He has already confirmed that Nan Li has developed feelings for him, and enough time has fermented.

Then, to make a woman confess her love proactively is actually very simple.

Just add a little fire, and most men know what to do.

Some methods are very tacky and also very cliché.

Even the reputation is not good.

But on someone who has already fallen in love with you, they are absolutely effective.