Chapter 65 Marriage Proposal

Chapter 65: A Marriage Proposal

Lu Yun told the story in vivid detail. She had only gone to look for dried mushrooms and stayed overnight at the production brigade. Heading out for a stroll with Chen Qiao in the evening, who would have thought they'd see Aunt Jiang watching the Sun family?

Later, they saw Zhao Lan sneaking out for a secret meeting, Aunt Han and Aunt Jiang fighting, the upstart betraying Zhao Lan, Aunt Jiang refusing to stand by, and finally discovering that Widow Li had orchestrated the whole thing.

They also saw Widow Jiang fleeing.

Her dad said, "I really regret not going to Red Star Commune with you!"

When Lu Yun had planned to go to Red Star Commune, her father had considered going along—the dried mushrooms there were truly top quality. But he had to work overtime. If he'd known there would be this much juicy gossip, he would have taken leave to go with her!

The family was so caught up in the gossip that they forgot lunch entirely. Her dad hadn't cooked either, so Lu Yun simply took them all out to eat!

There were plenty of restaurants now, but Lu Yun still sometimes chose the state-run restaurant because they had the braised pork meatballs (lion's head) she loved.

The braised meatballs with rice were great, and the sauce mixed into the rice was delicious too.

In the afternoon, Lu Yun went to the shop. Business wasn't as good as before, but Lu Yun didn't let it get her down. The weather was warming up, so their knitwear naturally wouldn't sell well.

Li Cai was anxious and had even been counting customers. Lu Yun was glad she'd found Li Cai as an employee.

Lu Yun said, "Don't worry. I'll be bringing in new merchandise soon. We can't exactly sell sweaters in the summer, after all."

It wasn't like she ran a yarn shop or a dedicated knitwear store.

Li Cai trusted Lu Yun completely. One word from Lu Yun was enough to calm her down. "Boss, if there's anything you need me to do, just say the word. I don't mind working on weekends."

Lu Yun replied, "Okay, but if you work weekends, I'll pay you overtime."

She needed to prioritize hiring someone new.

Li Cai couldn't work without any days off. Lu Yun would cover the shop one day a week so Li Cai could have a day off. If Li Cai didn't want to take her leave, she could keep working and earn overtime pay. So far, Li Cai hadn't taken a single day off, and Lu Yun had paid her overtime for all of it.

Lu Yun said, "The shop can't just have you working alone—that's too much. I plan to hire one more person. Once I bring in new stock, there's a lot to sort through, clothes to iron, and the shop to clean. Plenty to do."

Lu Yun wrote a hiring notice and posted it outside. "If someone comes for an interview, you can screen them. If they seem suitable, have them come next weekend and I'll meet them then."

Li Cai said, "Yes, boss!"

On Monday at work, Lu Yun saw Sister He in the office. Since Lu Yun hadn't placed another order with her, Sister He had free time—cleaning the office one minute, running errands for everyone the next.

Sister He said, "Knitting sweaters was tiring, but now that I'm not knitting and have free time, I feel like I've got nothing to do. There's nothing to do in the office."

Lu Yun said, "I thought you said you weren't tired."

Sister He replied, "At first I wasn't. Just the thought of making money was exciting, and actually making it was even better. Later, after knitting for a long time, it did get tiring. But whenever I thought about the money, I was tired but happy!"

Sister He couldn't make any money now. The next time Lu Yun would order from her would be when it got cold again. Sister He was anxious, but there was nothing to be done—who's going to buy sweaters in warm weather?

After a day at work, Lu Yun walked out and felt the weather was perfect.

Zhou Yanze was taking Lu Yun to look at peach blossoms. Sitting in the passenger seat, Lu Yun was confused. "Peach blossoms? Where are there peach blossoms blooming right now?"

Zhou Yanze said, "They really are in bloom."

When they reached the park, Lu Yun really did see peach blossoms—but only a few. They weren't fully bloomed—more like buds just starting to open. Barely any flowers at all.

Lu Yun and Zhou Yanze stood looking at the peach blossoms. Lu Yun asked, "How did you even find this peach tree in the park?"

Zhou Yanze said, "I was passing by and took a walk around. Didn't expect to find this."

They had dinner out before returning to the courtyard, where they immediately saw more drama.

The Sun family was back, and Zhao Lan was too, cooking with her big pregnant belly.

"What's going on with the Sun family?"

"Who knows."

"When Zhao Lan first got pregnant, Sun Zhi did the cooking. Now she's about to give birth, and the Sun family had to talk her into coming back from her parents' home. And now that she's back, she's cooking for them?"

Han Gang was there too. He said, "The Sun family is really taking advantage of her, aren't they? Aunt Jiang, what do you think?"

Aunt Jiang didn't say anything. Widow Li was in the courtyard, and as for herself, she'd already let it go. It was better to keep a low profile these days—she wasn't sure if Widow Li had seen her that day.

Aunt Jiang said, "You're still a bachelor! Mind your own business—go find yourself a wife first!"

Aunt Jiang went back inside without another word, but turned around at her door. "Look at Zhao Lan—she never wanted to divorce in the first place. If she really wanted one, the Sun family probably couldn't have talked her into coming back. Maybe last time was all their scheme! The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law plotted against me together!"

Aunt Jiang looked a little smug. Go ahead—if they dare, let them explain what really happened that day!

Zhao Lan kept quiet. She'd barely managed to keep the marriage by using the kid!

Lu Yun and Chen Qiao agreed to go buy new stock together. The two of them went together, but the Lu family was worried, so Lu Yun had Lu Cheng come along. Even though he was a lovesick fool, Lu Cheng was pretty reliable when it came to anything other than romance.

They set off together and chatted on the train. Before they left, Lu Yun reminded Chen Qiao not to mention Lu Cheng's wife at all!

The trip went smoothly, and they came back with even more clothes!

Lu Yun and Lu Cheng brought the stock to the shop. Lu Yun hadn't been in for days. She asked Li Cai, "How's everything at the shop?"

Li Cai said, "Everything's fine. Quite a few people came in to apply. I went through them over a few days and narrowed it down to four. They'll come this weekend."

Lu Yun said, "Great!"

Lu Yun had really good taste. Li Cai loved the clothes Lu Yun had brought in. Lu Yun offered, "You like them? If you do, I'll sell them to you at cost."

Li Cai quickly said, "That's not right! You had travel and lodging expenses, and buying stock is hard work. You can't just give them to me at cost."

Lu Yun said, "It's fine. Think of it as an employee perk. One piece won't hurt. If people see you looking good in it, they might want one too. Want it?"

How could Li Cai say no? She had a salary now, a good boss, and was living a life she'd never even dared to dream of. She smiled and said, "Yes!"

Lu Yun said, "Pick out a few more."

This time, Lu Yun hadn't just bought stock—she'd bought gifts for the whole Lu family. She'd even bought something for Lu Cheng's wife, her sister-in-law. Of course, Lu Yun suspected her sister-in-law might not care much about the gift, since Lu Cheng had already bought his wife plenty of stuff.

Lu Yun lugged a bunch of stuff home. When she got home, her dad was cooking.

Her dad was surprised and happy. "You're back! Where's your brother?"

Lu Yun said, "He bought gifts for his wife and went home to see her."

Her dad was speechless for a moment. Lu Yun had called ahead before coming home, and her dad had been making hot pot—Lu Yun's favorite—assuming Lu Cheng would come too. He'd bought a bunch of ingredients Lu Cheng liked.

Her dad said, "Is there anything in his head other than his wife?"

Lu Yun said, "Well, think about Zhou Jun."

Lu's dad: "Think about Zhou Jun, my son is still pretty good. At least his lovesick nonsense doesn't cause us any trouble."

"At least his lovesick nonsense doesn't cause us any trouble." Lu Yun nearly burst out laughing; she just couldn't hold it back.

They finished up the hot pot, and Lu Yun called her mom and dad over to check out the gifts she'd gotten them. Lu Cheng had picked up a few things for them too, but of course, Lu Yun bought the most stuff for herself! The wholesale prices were super cheap—and not just cheap, the styles were great too. Lu Yun loved everything!

Li Cai bought new clothes and wore them to work the very next day. When Lu Yun came over and saw her, she gave Li Cai an appreciative look, while Li Cai stared back at her in amazement.

Li Cai started showering Lu Yun with compliments, and she was totally sincere about it. Lu Yun felt too embarrassed to return the compliment—her words compared to Li Cai's were way too half-hearted!

Lu Yun: "You should dress up more. See, you look so pretty now, and you're awesome too! You've contributed to the store's success too!"

Li Cai wasn't just hardworking—she was pretty sharp too!

Lu Yun had also bought a gift for Zhou Yanze this time. They'd arranged to meet up, and Lu Yun hung around the store for a bit before he showed up.

Lu Yun handed Zhou Yanze a wrapped gift, and he gave her one in return.

Lu Yun: "We're totally on the same wavelength!"

Zhou Yanze: "Of course we are."

The gift Lu Yun gave Zhou Yanze was a belt. She really liked it, and it was pricey—she didn't hesitate at all. And earlier, when she'd already bought a ton of clothes and wanted to keep shopping, she'd hesitated for a few seconds.

Lu Yun: "I'm good to you, right?"

Zhou Yanze: "Of course you are!"

Lu Yun told Zhou Yanze about her shopping thought process, and after hearing it, he was even more touched. "What did I do to deserve you!"

Lu Yun laughed so hard she nearly collapsed onto Zhou Yanze's shoulder. She thought he was joking, but it turned out he didn't seem to be.

Zhou Yanze asked, "Should we get married?"

Lu Yun: "Why would you want to marry me?"

Lu Yun and Zhou Yanze had always just gone with the flow. They'd known each other for a long time before the right moment came, and Zhou Yanze had asked her to be his official girlfriend. Lu Yun had thought it would be a long time before they got married.

Zhou Yanze: "Once we're married, you'll have no reason to refuse my money, and you won't have to hesitate!"

This proposal reason left Lu Yun stunned, and Zhou Yanze was very serious.

Zhou Yanze: "It's fine if you reject me, but can you at least, seeing how pitiful I am after being rejected, spend my money?"

Lu Yun couldn't help but kiss Zhou Yanze.

With Zhou Yanze saying such things with that face, Lu Yun really couldn't hold back.

Author's note:

None.