This was precisely where Zhu Shunyao’s intelligence lay. He knew his own weaknesses, and because of that understanding, he had made his two sons-in-law agree to his conditions. He simply trusted they could handle things well.
So, anyone who called Zhu Shunyao a simple, honest farmer was completely wrong. In truth, Zhu Shunyao was the biggest cunning fox. The problem was, Yan Aohan and Taishu Yuanxiang had to smile and accept it.
The two men exchanged a helpless smile and took on the burden. What else could they do? They had chosen the man’s daughters as their wives. It was only right to help their father-in-law share his worries.
News of Zhu Shunyao’s return spread quickly through Gǎn'ēn Village. Zhu Enfu said to Zhu Chanyao, "Since Shunyao is back, you should go talk to him about this matter."
Zhu Enfu knew that the Zhu family in Sichen Town could only thrive thanks to Zhu Shunyao’s contributions. Not to mention, without Zhu Shunyao, the current Zhu family ancestral hall would not have been built so well.
Zhu Chanyao nodded after hearing Zhu Enfu’s words. "I’ll go find Brother Shunyao to discuss this right away."
Zhu Enfu hummed in agreement. "Take something with you when you go. Don’t go empty-handed."
"Alright." Zhu Chanyao agreed and went out to prepare.
Zhu Shunyao had taken Yan Aohan and Taishu Yuanxiang for a tour and then returned home. He just happened to see Xie Xinlian and a few others, along with Luo Gang and his group, cleaning the house.
"Are we doing the year-end cleaning today?" Zhu Shunyao saw this and came over to help.
"Tomorrow is Little New Year’s Eve. By the way, the four hundred catties of rice cakes you asked Shengyu to soak last time are ready. Why don’t you take people to drain the water? Then go to the rice cake factory to queue up. Check when they have space and get them made quickly. They won’t be making them in a few days." Xie Xinlian found that after returning home, there was always a lot of busywork.
"Uncle, Yuanxiang and I will drain the water for the rice cake rice. You take people to check the rice cake factory. If I knew the people there, I would have gone to ask for help myself," Yan Aohan said with a smile.
"No need for Father to go. I’ll go," Zhu Zhibin said with a smile. He could only wipe tables here and do nothing else, so it was better to go out for a walk. "Brother Niu Jiu, let’s go to the rice cake factory." He handed the feather duster to Yan Aohan and called Niu Jiu to leave.
Although this was Gǎn'ēn Village, where most people were honest and simple, one could never be too careful. So, Zhu Zhibin automatically brought a bodyguard with him when going out.
"This kid can’t sit still. He wants to go out for a stroll," Zhu Shunyao scolded him jokingly but did not stop Zhu Zhibin. He only called Yan Aohan and Taishu Yuanxiang to help him drain the water for the rice cake rice.
When Zhu Chanyao entered, he saw Zhu Shunyao and the two young men working hard. He naturally recognized Yan Aohan. Although he didn’t know Yan Aohan’s full name back then, he knew Zhu Shunyao called him "Little Yan." He didn’t recognize the other one, but judging by his appearance, he must have some status.
"Brother Shunyao," Zhu Chanyao said.
Zhu Shunyao looked up, saw Zhu Chanyao, and smiled slightly. "Chanyao is here." He then called into the house, "Ani, your Uncle Chanyao is here. Bring out a chair and remember to make tea." Then he said to Zhu Chanyao, "We are cleaning the house, so it’s quite dirty inside. Since I’m here draining the rice cake rice, let’s talk here."
"That works," Zhu Chanyao said, knowing the house was indeed very dirty during the cleaning.
Hearing Zhu Shunyao’s call, Zhu Yanyi brought out a chair and a small tea table. She then made a cup of tea for Zhu Chanyao, placed it on the small table, and added a plate of Lv Da Gun (rolling donkey cakes). "Uncle Chanyao, we brought these from the capital. Please try them. If you like them, you can take some with you later." She then added, "I’ll go back inside to continue cleaning."
"Ani has grown up," Zhu Chanyao said. She hadn’t seen Zhu Yanyi in the past two years, so seeing her grown up suddenly felt a bit unfamiliar.
"She has indeed grown up. She even has a boyfriend now. Next March, after her birthday, I plan to arrange her engagement. This daughter… once she grows up, she belongs to someone else," Zhu Shunyao sighed helplessly.
"Ani has a boyfriend? Who is it?" Zhu Chanyao asked curiously.
"Not just Ani. An’ni has already registered with someone in the capital," Zhu Shunyao pointed to Taishu Yuanxiang and Yan Aohan. "It’s these two. This one is Taishu Yuanxiang, An’ni’s fiancé. This one is Yan Aohan, Ani’s fiancé."
"Then I must congratulate you, Brother Shunyao," Zhu Chanyao said, looking very happy.
Zhu Shunyao also smiled. "An’ni has already registered with Yuanxiang in the capital. We came back this time to hold the wedding banquet. The date is set for the tenth day of the first lunar month, for An’ni and Yuanxiang’s banquet. In a couple of days, after we tidy up the house, we will send out the invitations. Then you can invite Uncle Enfu to come along."
"Definitely, definitely," Zhu Chanyao said. Seeing Zhu Shunyao so happy, he was happy too. After all, this was indeed something worth celebrating.
Seeing Zhu Shunyao focused on the rice cake rice, Zhu Chanyao paused for a moment and then said, "Brother Shunyao, did the Zhu family from Zhushi send a message?"
Zhu Shunyao raised his eyebrows slightly and looked at Zhu Chanyao. "Do they still have designs on our family?"
"I don’t know if they really have designs on your family, but they said they will come to Sichen Town on the third day of the first lunar month. They said they want to burn a stick of incense at our branch’s ancestral hall. I can’t refuse that reason," Zhu Chanyao said helplessly.
Although he was now the head of the Zhu family in Gǎn'ēn Village, the Zhu family in Zhushi was indeed related. When relatives asked to burn incense for their ancestors in the name of kinship, he truly couldn’t refuse.
"If they want to come, let them come," Zhu Shunyao understood Zhu Chanyao’s dilemma, so he only chuckled lightly, looking unconcerned. "This is our territory." His eyes revealed a serious glint.
Zhu Chanyao was slightly stunned, then understood what Zhu Shunyao meant. Since they were coming as relatives, they were guests. As the saying goes, a strong dragon cannot fight the local snake. No matter how powerful the Zhu family from Zhushi was in Zhushi, once they arrived in Gǎn'ēn Village, they were just guests of the Gǎn'ēn Village Zhu family. Even if they had any ulterior motives, they couldn’t achieve them, let alone scheme against Zhu Shunyao’s family.
Hearing Zhu Shunyao’s words, Zhu Chanyao felt relieved. Zhu Shunyao indicated he had a plan and wouldn’t misunderstand them, so he didn’t need to worry anymore. Zhu Chanyao chatted for a while longer before leaving, as everyone was busy at the end of the year.
After Zhu Chanyao left, Yan Aohan took out his phone and went aside to make a call. The Zhu family from Zhushi was coming to Gǎn'ēn Village. No matter what, Yan Aohan needed to find out their purpose. He couldn’t let any ill-mannered people ruin his family’s good mood during the New Year holidays.