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Glimmering waves, the night cool as water, unknown insects chirping in the leaves and grass on the shore. It was late, and the people on the boat had already gone to sleep. A few spots of warm yellow light shone from the windows on the second floor of the painted boat. Two women had returned to their room and were having a pre-sleep conversation. Search: (Complete Book Website) to read high-quality literature for free.

"So, my brother-in-law… that's how he… made his name?"

"Specifically… that's how it is… Just a few poems he couldn't refuse to write. Others want to say he's the number one talent in Jiangning, but he doesn't really think so… Heh, he has a strange personality…"

"Since ancient times, only extraordinary people can do extraordinary things… But, is my brother-in-law really not interested in the imperial examinations?"

"He said he wasn't, but I don't really want to ask too much about these things…"

"How did you and your brother-in-law meet?"

"We only met after the wedding."

"How could that be…"

Dim lighting, fragmented sentences, it was late. Su Tan'er and Lou Shuwan kept their voices soft as they discussed these things about Ning Yi.

Tonight, during the banquet on the painted boat, it was impossible for no one to have heard of the name Ning Liheng. Even though information wasn't very developed, the circle of literati in the entire country was only so large. After a few poems passed through the mouths of the courtesans, the name Ning Liheng would have been heard by everyone at least once or twice. Scholars at this time valued broad knowledge and strong memory. After Ning Yi introduced himself, some people couldn't help but feel that the name was familiar.

However, preconceived notions were also very strong. With Lin Tingzhi and Lou Shuwan as a reference, since the other couple was also a matrilocal marriage, it was easy for people to have various associations. On the other hand, Lin Tingzhi wanted to show off, so he couldn't help but point out Lou Shuwan's family background to everyone, hinting that she was a married woman of status and temperament who was now captivated by his poetry and had a good impression of him. Since Lou Shuwan's friend was also of such status, everyone could curry favor with her. In this way, everyone focused their attention on Su Tan'er, and subconsciously filtered out her husband, Ning Yi.

In most cases, the status of a matrilocal son-in-law is low, and this isn't just said verbally. The vast majority of men who enter a matrilocal marriage, even if the woman is openly unchaste, dare not say anything. These men are like hired laborers or house slaves. Occasionally, some who have some backbone and are forced into a matrilocal marriage, if they can't swallow their anger when they encounter such things, there have been news reports of them killing their wives, fathers-in-law, and the whole family.

These kinds of things are extremely rare. The Wu Dynasty always talks about the Three Obediences and Four Virtues, but it's originally based on inequality. When everyone around feels that the two people are unequal, the relationship between the matrilocal couple will naturally not develop very well. If the woman initially had the intention of looking down on the man, and the man isn't very promising, dissatisfaction will grow over time. At this point, it wouldn't be uncommon for the woman to find a lover or have a good friend outside.

Someone like Lou Shuwan, with such family conditions, having some entanglement with scholars and talented men in the open or in secret isn't a strange thing. She's young, beautiful, rich, and has a good temperament. Any scholar who's with her is just taking advantage and not losing out. In this era, it's considered elegant for high-ranking families to give each other concubines. Hooking up with a married man, once it's spread in a small circle, is just a romantic affair that proves one's charm. Jiangnan is a place of romance, and there's never a lack of lewd lyrics praising such things.

In this way, after a sudden introduction, only one or two people were suspicious. Everyone wasn't interested in dealing with a matrilocal son-in-law, so they didn't ask at the time. After Ning Yi and Su Tan'er left, the formal banquet also ended. Only then did someone ask Lin Tingzhi about the origin of the couple, or ask Su Wending and Su Wenfang about their family's background in Jiangning. After some discussion, someone said, "That Ning Liheng just now seems to have the same name as the author of 'Shui Diao Ge Tou'."

The Qing'er girl on the painted boat also smiled and said, "I was thinking just now that they're both from Jiangning. What a coincidence." She makes a living from this, so she's more sensitive to these things. She doesn't think that the matrilocal son-in-law of a merchant family would be a great lyricist. She only asked the Su brothers, "Young Master Wending, Young Master Wenfang, have you ever seen that Young Master Ning in Jiangning?"

Su Wending said, "Isn't that just my brother-in-law just now?"

"Oh dear, I'm talking about the Young Master Ning who wrote 'Shui Diao Ge Tou' and 'Qing Yu An'. I've been singing those songs for a while, and I've always wanted to see what kind of romantic figure the author is. Although I can't see him now, it would be good if Young Master Wending and Young Master Wenfang could tell me about him if you see him."

Su Wending and Su Wenfang looked blank. "Yes, that's… my brother-in-law."

For a time, the expressions of everyone in the boat were wonderful, mostly dumbfounded, then whispering to each other. There were also people like Lou Shuwan who didn't pay much attention at first, but only came over to ask after realizing what was going on. In fact, Su Wending and Su Wenfang were also a little mischievous. They originally thought that with so many scholars, their brother-in-law would be greeted with exclamations of admiration upon reporting his name, and they would also share in the honor. Who knew that those people didn't have any reaction at all. Only now did they finally wait. After seeing it to their heart's content, they bid farewell with innocent faces and went home to brag to their sister and brother-in-law.

As for Lou Shuwan and Lin Tingzhi, they also returned not long after. Lin Tingzhi didn't want to ask Ning Yi too much, but Lou Shuwan was different. She herself wasn't very interested in poetry, but what really attracted her was the atmosphere of literature and noise that existed behind the poetry. Like the annual literary gatherings in Suzhou and Hangzhou, the praise and applause of the crowd, the attention when the literati recited poetry and wrote prose…

She's a smart woman, and with a little study, she can distinguish between good and bad poetry. But unlike Su Tan'er, Su Tan'er hopes to integrate into the words themselves in addition to doing business. Not only can she tell the difference between good and bad, but she also hopes that she can be like those literati. Even if she can't create it herself, she can at least integrate into the artistic conception of poetry and become an elegant person herself. However, she's burdened with many things, and she's a woman, so she doesn't have enough talent in this area. Sometimes she feels that she's full of the stench of copper and has no elegant atmosphere, so she admires those literati.

Lou Shuwan is more looking forward to the appearance brought by poetry. It doesn't matter if she's not elegant in essence, it's enough for others to think she's elegant or likes elegance. She doesn't know how powerful the number one talent in Jiangning is, but hearing this title naturally makes her think of titles like the number one talent in Hangzhou or the number one talent in Suzhou and Hangzhou. Usually, people who can be called that, whether rich or poor, are the center of attention outside. They either participate in a certain literary gathering and win the top prize, or they're praised or valued by great Confucians and officials in a certain occasion. Some of them pass the imperial examinations and become officials in one place in a short time. Even if the examination isn't smooth, they're always the center of attention in Suzhou and Hangzhou.

Lou Shuwan can only imagine what the number one talent in Jiangning is like based on this impression, but she can't connect it with Ning Yi's status as a matrilocal son-in-law no matter what. She was puzzled all the way, but it wasn't good to ask directly after returning. Fortunately, she also knew the art of conversation. After chatting for a while, she mentioned this, and her tone was calm and indifferent.

However, Ning Yi didn't have much intention of communicating about this. His literary talent was also fake. Ning Yi had no qualms about this. If it was in front of his wife and family, including Su Tan'er, Xiao Chan, and Nie Yunzhu, he could pretend to be a great writer to make them laugh and make them proud. But to show off too much in front of outsiders like Lou Shuwan, with his current state of mind, there was really no need. He only said that his literary talent wasn't high and that others praised him too much.

So Lou Shuwan had to assume that she had been too rude to her brother-in-law a few days ago, so the other party was somewhat angry. She had to wait until late at night before talking to Su Tan'er about it.

However, even after this half-evening conversation, she still had some doubts in her heart after Su Tan'er fell into a deep sleep. She didn't understand why such a great talent would marry Su Tan'er, and she didn't understand why Ning Yi would have such a personality. When she got up the next morning and saw Ning Yi practicing boxing on the deck, she had to think that he was a truly versatile and unruly talent who admired chivalry. And when Lin Tingzhi saw Ning Yi practicing martial arts again, the expression on his face was complex and unspeakable.

The painted boat set off again on this morning. There were still nearly two hundred miles of waterway from Jiaxing to Hangzhou, but with the wind and water, even if the boat wasn't traveling too fast, by this afternoon, the waterway had become increasingly busy. The villages and pedestrians on both sides of the canal began to increase significantly. Occasionally, gardens and villas were hidden in the nearby tea mountains and forests, proving that Hangzhou was approaching.

Even though Hangzhou wasn't the capital of the country at this time, as one end of the Grand Canal, Hangzhou has been an extremely prosperous metropolis since ancient times. By the time evening was approaching, the city's buildings were overlapping in front of her eyes. In the distance were the busy freight terminals, no less than Jiangning.

After that, nothing unexpected happened. Lou Shuwan found her family's servants to move the goods off the boat. On the other hand, she strongly invited Ning Yi and his wife to stay at the Lou family temporarily, after all, the group had come from afar and probably hadn't found a specific place to live yet. However, although future business might still depend on the Lou family, Su Tan'er still shook her head and refused. In fact, the Su family has some property in Hangzhou. Although it's just two small shops that were casually opened, she had arranged for people to rent a small courtyard from the time she prepared to go south. As for the house she really planned to live in in the future, she was preparing to find it while playing around these days.

So many people from the Su family came here, naturally they also had the idea of expanding their business. It's not a good sign to live in someone else's house all of a sudden. Lou Shuwan opened her mouth slightly and didn't say anything more. She was curious about Ning Yi, but naturally it was only curiosity. The next day, Ning Yi and Su Tan'er visited the Lou residence, had a meal, and saw Lou Jinlin, the current head of the Lou family.

This person was slightly older than Su Boyong, probably in his early fifties. His beard and hair were black and white, but he was in good spirits. His appearance was dignified and bold, and he was extremely energetic. When he calmed down, his aura was pressing. Judging from his appearance and conversation, this person was a true business tycoon. The Lou family has a thicker family background than the Su family. Although it's still a merchant family, it has already accumulated a truly stable family style. Lou Jinlin must have been pampered since he was a child, but he's not mediocre. He has talent and skill. He has experienced truly fierce business battles, so he can cultivate this kind of noble and oppressive feeling.

He obviously treated Su Tan'er with the kind attitude of an elder to a younger generation, and his attitude was relatively kind. But towards Ning Yi, the head of the Lou family had some doubts and hostility. During the meal, he asked a few relatively sharp questions, and then squinted his eyes and looked at him with a smile that wasn't a smile, feeling almost like a lion staring at its prey.

Ning Yi probably knew where his hostility came from. Judging from the conversation during the visit, Lou Shuwan had obviously told her father what had happened along the way. Lou Jinlin must have felt that his daughter had been teased by Ning Yi and his wife, who were pretending to be pigs to eat tigers after listening to his daughter's statement. He might not have had too many ideas about testing Su Tan'er, but after hearing Ning Yi's identity, he subconsciously wanted to figure out his background.

Unlike Lou Jinlin, in his previous life, Ning Yi started from scratch and went all the way up. When he reached a certain level, he had seen many true business tycoons with a long family history. When these people examine the younger generation with a vigilant or testing attitude, they often have this kind of gaze. It's not to say that young people will really be afraid when they see this kind of gaze, but under this kind of gaze and aura, ordinary people will inevitably be flustered. Some people show weakness subconsciously considering the other party's power, some people try to hold on, or simply put on a slightly arrogant attitude, which is actually messing up their own strategy. In the eyes of experienced people, it's easy to see the depth of this person. This isn't knowledge that can be learned, but experience that can be cultivated through long-term recognition of people.

Being stared at by Lou Jinlin like this, Ning Yi couldn't help but smile, almost nostalgic. In the past years, the people who had looked at him like this were later surpassed by him one by one. Among them were opponents and partners, but he started from scratch and fought all the way. Although he had restrained himself later, his aura still seemed sharp if he was serious. The farewell with Tang Mingyuan was also like this. Deep down, he only felt emotional and tired, and couldn't cultivate the lion-like laziness.

At this time, Lou Jinlin naturally couldn't make him feel much pressure. He smiled and looked at Lou Jinlin's expression several times, and then he just made a simple gesture of chatting, answering as usual, without adding or subtracting any embellishments to his expression. As for what Lou Jinlin would judge after the matter, that was none of his business.

On the other hand, Su Tan'er noticed Lou Jinlin's attitude. After the visit, on the way home, her expression was a little angry: "This family, we went to visit them out of kindness, but they actually gave us that kind of look. Husband, did you… not feel anything?"

Su Tan'er looked at Ning Yi and asked hesitantly. In the conversation just now, Lou Jinlin asked about Ning Yi's background and so on. Some of the questions were relatively sharp, and the other party's expression could also make people feel pressured. However, Ning Yi answered casually while eating. There were two questions that he didn't want to answer because they were related to the relationship between husband and wife, so he casually turned them into rhetorical questions. Under those circumstances, she herself might not be able to be so natural. He actually directly took the initiative under the old man's strong home advantage, and then handed the home back.

Ning Yi just shook his head and said peacefully: "His daughter was more or less tricked, so it's not surprising that he has this reaction. This Uncle is still very powerful. If it's not necessary, try not to make such an enemy."

Tan'er nodded: "I know." She was good at business and interpersonal relationships, and she wasn't necessarily much inferior to Ning Yi - at least, it's difficult to see these differences based on the current contact, after all, she herself is a very talented and highly skilled businesswoman - but hearing Ning Yi's casual words like a warning, she didn't feel much resistance in her heart, but nodded obediently and felt at ease.

Even so, no one would think that she's inferior to Ning Yi. At this time, the setting sun was setting, and in the carriage, only a young and tacit couple who sang in harmony was reflected in the light. Ning Yi thought about it and smiled, and then she smiled too.

The carriage drove through the beautiful and unfamiliar streets for them. Right now, it's already the streets of Hangzhou…

This visit was only to see Lou Jinlin, Lou Shuwan, and her husband. Lou Shuwan's two elder brothers weren't at home. It was a polite visit without too much purpose. They might not be able to leave a deep impression on each other. Although Lou Shuwan's husband was also a scholar, his status as a matrilocal son-in-law was extremely low-key in the Lou family. Of course, people of that age can only be low-key in front of a family head like Lou Jinlin.

The day after the visit, it rained. Lou Shuwan came to the small courtyard where the Su family was temporarily staying. She originally planned to lead everyone to play in Hangzhou as the host, but it was canceled due to the heavy rain. The next day, the heavy rain didn't stop, so Lou Shuwan went to deal with business matters at home. So, when it cleared up, she didn't come again, but sent a servant from her family to lead Su Tan'er and others to see some courtyards and storefronts, only saying that Miss was busy now and couldn't come, and asked them to bear with her.

At this time, everyone had just settled in Hangzhou. The Su family originally had several properties here, and there were also several storefront properties that the Wu family ceded. Originally, they were too far away, but now it was quite troublesome to formally receive and sort them out. Su Tan'er was thinking about the fact that she had originally come to play with her husband, but all kinds of trivial matters were mixed together. In Ning Yi's opinion, these days were quite interesting.

After a few days, they officially took a fancy to a courtyard in the city and bought it directly, and then began to plan and arrange it. This was a residence located near Taiping Lane. Although it was expensive, it was Ning Yi who mainly bought it. According to his calculations, if the capital was moved south in the future, Jiuli Imperial City would be built not far away. At that time, this place would be worth a lot of money whether it was to be sold or lived in by themselves. He didn't plan to compete with any dignitaries for a place. As long as there was a slight relationship, selling it would make a lot of money.

The streets near this house were still relatively prosperous, and doing business was easy, but the adjacent area was residential, suitable for living. There was a small martial arts hall at the corner of the street, which was constantly heaving and hawing all day long, but Ning Yi, who had lived in a big city for a long time, naturally wouldn't find it noisy, but found it interesting. Then he thought about it, since he had nothing to do anyway, he might as well join this martial arts hall and find some actual combat.

He liked mysterious things like internal energy and somewhat yearned for martial arts, but it was just an exploration of unknown magical things. He wasn't really enthusiastic about actual combat and fighting, and he didn't think that he would really become a Jianghu person who licked blood from the edge of a knife in the future. However, after experiencing several things, and now that he had nothing to do, he felt that it seemed good to practice.

Of course, after slightly opening his mouth and proposing it, he was met with strong opposition from his always obedient wife and maids… (To be continued.) Vote for recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

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