After a male student transmigrated into the body of a widow,

Chapter 118 Pairing

Several months had passed since Gu An traveled with Chen, the scholar. During this time, Gu An sent back several letters, but judging from the letters, Gu An was not sure when Chen would return to the prefectural city.

Hearing Gu Lin mention Gu An, Aunt Zhao also missed him: "How old is he? While other children his age are still playing in the mud, Xiao An dares to travel with the teacher."

Although Gu Lin still cared about the other person, he supported Gu An and Chen Juren's trip to broaden their horizons.

He said, "I'm glad that Xiao An has his own ideas and thoughts."

Upon hearing this, Sister Zhao smiled, her face, which had become increasingly round as the year drew to a close, and said, "Both of them are men of their own mind."

Gu Lin couldn't help but chuckle when he heard this. Indeed, from Zheng Hao to Gu An, they were all young but had their own ideas. Once they made up their minds, no one could change their minds.

Gu Lin looked somewhat helpless and smiled, "Maybe they resemble their parents."

Sister Zhao shook her head slightly, raised her hand and pointed at Gu Lin, saying, "I don't think so. If you ask me, they're like you."

Upon hearing this, Gu Lin paused for a moment, then looked at Zhao's sister-in-law with a puzzled expression.

Sister Zhao put down her work and started listing examples on her fingers: "Think about it, before you had even a few taels of silver in your pocket, you dared to send Zheng boy to school. If it were anyone else, they wouldn't dare to send him without thinking it over for several years. Later, when you moved from the county town to the prefectural city, you didn't hesitate much either, hastily abandoning your restaurant and shops in the county town to move here, and..."

Aunt Zhao recounted the incidents one by one, and finally said to Gu Lin, "The two brothers are similar to you in temperament. I've watched Zheng grow up since he was a child, and you could say that he inherited his temperament from Hunter Zheng. But I think Xiao An learned it from you. Take eating fish for example. Others spit out fish bones as they eat, but Xiao An is just like you. He absolutely won't eat fish without picking out all the bones from the meat."

Seeing that Sister Zhao was speaking with such conviction, Gu Lin was both amused and exasperated.

He opened his mouth as if to say something, when suddenly, the thick cloth hanging in front of the lobby door, specially used to block the wind, was gently lifted.

Zheng Hao stepped in, and Gu Lin looked up. At first, he felt a little strange, not understanding why the other party had returned so early today.

However, when Gu Lin's gaze swept to Zheng Hao's back, he discovered that the man had not returned alone; a teenager was following behind him.

Gu Lin immediately put down the pastry he was eating, stood up from his chair, and said with a look of surprise, "Xiao An, you're back."

Stepping out from behind Zheng Hao, Gu An walked past him and knelt down in front of Gu Lin, saying, "It is Gu An who has caused Uncle Gu so much worry."

Then, he looked up at Gu Lin, his cold expression softening as he said, "Uncle Gu, Gu An is back."

Faced with Gu An kneeling, Gu Lin didn't react in time and didn't reach out to help him up.

Unlike the ancient belief that children should not travel far away and should stay at home to be filial to their elders, Gu Lin had no objections to Gu An's trip, except for worrying that the other party might encounter danger.

After bowing, Gu An stood up.

The other party moved quickly as soon as they entered, and Gu Lin didn't get a good look at them.

Now, his gaze fell on Gu An's travel-worn clothes, and he asked with concern, "When did you and Mr. Chen return?"

Facing Uncle Gu's concerned eyes, Gu An's gaze lingered briefly on Zheng Hao before returning to Gu Lin and saying, "The teacher and I returned last night, but the prefect ordered that people were not allowed to enter or leave the city at will. So we could only wait outside the city for one night. On the second day, we asked the soldiers guarding the city to take a message into the city. After receiving my message, Brother Zheng... Hao came out to meet us, and we were able to enter the city."

In just a few months, Gu An had changed even more. He spoke fluently without a single stutter.

Gu Lin saw this and was very happy for the other person.

Then, a thought crossed his mind.

Gu Lin turned to Zheng Hao and asked, "My sister-in-law and I were discussing returning to the county town in a few days. The prefect has closed the city gates. Will we still be able to go back?"

Zheng Hao pondered for a moment and said, "If I explain this matter to Prefect Zhen, I can leave the city."

"However," Zheng Hao changed the subject, looking at the young man in front of him, and said seriously, "I don't recommend going back to the county town."

Under Gu Lin's slightly questioning gaze, Zheng Hao explained, "Although Prefect Zhen and the garrison commanders have suppressed the refugees outside, we will definitely encounter many more refugees on the way back to the county. When our group returns, in addition to myself, Uncle Gu, Aunt, and Brother Yu, we will definitely need to hire more than a dozen bodyguards and a team of several dozen people for safety. Refugees and bandits along the way will definitely be eyeing us covetously, and the journey will be turbulent."

After hearing Zheng Hao's explanation, Gu Lin understood, but he felt a little regretful that he couldn't go back to the county town for the New Year. After all, the county town was where he had lived for three or four years when he first arrived, and Gu Lin still had some feelings for it.

Gu Lin sighed slightly and said to Zheng Hao, "I originally wanted to take you back to pay respects to your father before the provincial examination, but I didn't expect to be delayed by other things."

Zheng Hao looked calmly and gently at Gu Lin, comforting him, "I will go back to pay my respects after I pass the provincial examination next year. I believe my father will be happy then."

Looking at the composed yet sharp-minded, confident yet humble young man before him, Gu Lin chuckled and teased, "Then I'll wait for the day you achieve your goal and share in your joy."

Zheng Hao's cold expression softened slightly, revealing a hint of warmth as he said, "I am very fortunate."

Although he learned from Zheng Hao that he couldn't go back to the county town for the New Year, Gu Lin's disappointment and regret quickly disappeared because Gu An had returned. Looking at Gu An, whose baby fat had disappeared after his trip, Gu Lin thought about making delicious food for him every day.

Sister-in-law Zhao and Brother Yu, among others, knew they couldn't return to the county town for the New Year. Although they felt a little regretful, their own lives were more important. So, Brother Yu and his wife wrote a letter and sent it back to Xiahe Village. There were literate people in the village, and Uncle Chen could ask them to read the letter for him.

November has quietly passed, and December is just around the corner.

Zhao Saozi was in charge of the New Year's goods and other New Year's arrangements at home. Lin Xiaoyao, Xiao Cui, and Yu Ercheng were busy with the New Year's goods for the employees of Haoyunlou Restaurant, as well as the New Year's gift exchanges between Haoyunlou Restaurant and other restaurants and shops. Gu Lin, the owner, only needed to personally check the goods at the end to make sure there were no mistakes.

Gu Lin then planned to help Zheng Hao and Gu An prepare New Year's gifts for their teachers. In ancient times, the concepts of Heaven, Earth, Ruler, Parents, and Teacher were not a joke, and giving New Year's gifts to one's teacher was a very solemn matter.

However, Zheng Hao made it clear that there was no need to trouble Uncle Gu to help prepare New Year's gifts. Now that the city was covered in heavy snow, he had to remind Gu Lin every day not to go out and play, but to stay at home. How could he let the other party go to the trouble of preparing New Year's gifts for them?

Gu Lin couldn't argue with him, so Zheng Hao took Gu An to the bookstore, pastry shop, and spice shop to prepare appropriate and thoughtful New Year's gifts. Then, he personally took Gu An to deliver the gifts to Mr. Zhou and Mr. Chen.

During this time, Fang Jiyue sent many things to the Gu family. They were all novelties specially bought from the capital and the prefectures they passed through. Some were expensive and some were practical. However, because of the jade jewelry last time, the other party did not send too expensive gifts. They were all things that Gu Lin could afford.

But the endless stream of gifts delivered to the house still left Aunt Zhao dazzled. She couldn't help but whisper to Gu Lin, "Are you and Young Master Fang getting along?"

Upon hearing Zhao's words, Gu Lin's brow twitched, and fearing that she might misunderstand, he quickly explained: "A few days ago, Young Master Fang returned from the capital and asked me to develop new bath products. These gifts were probably sent by him because he thought it would be too much trouble for me."

After hearing this, Sister Zhao breathed a sigh of relief and said, "That's good. You can't be fooled by him. That young master Fang is straightforward in business, but he's not suitable to be a man at home. You can tell at a glance that he's always been surrounded by women. In the words of scholars, he's a playboy... a womanizer. He's not a good family to entrust your life to."

Upon hearing Zhao's description of Fang Jiyue, Gu Lin burst out laughing and said, "...Pfft, butterfly...Sister-in-law, you mean a playboy, right?"

Sister-in-law Zhao knew she had misspoke. She pretended to be annoyed and lightly patted the young man's arm: "Anyway, you should stay away from him."

Seeing the stern look in the other person's eyes, Gu Lin immediately became serious and nodded repeatedly, but he couldn't hide the smile in his eyes, which made Zhao's wife sigh inwardly.

Lin-ge'er is such a good person, beautiful, kind-hearted, hardworking and capable. No wonder so many people want to marry him. Over the years, many families have inquired about Lin-ge'er, but after looking around, the best one is actually the young master Fang, whom she didn't initially like.

The men who came to propose to Lin Ge'er were not as honest and hardworking as Fang Jiyue, nor as wealthy. Those with a little money in their families had not yet married Lin Ge'er, but they were already thinking about how to take over Lin Ge'er's property. After counting them, Zhao Saozi actually felt that the young master Fang looked quite handsome.

The more Zhao looked at the men outside, the less she felt they were suitable. Her son, Lin, was innocent, simple, kind, and soft-hearted. He needed to find a man who would be devoted to him and cherish him like the apple of his eye.

However, such good men are hard to find even in ordinary families. When Zhao's wife came to the prefectural city, she saw more prosperity and wealth than before, and naturally understood that those so-called wealthy families could suck Lin Ge'er's flesh and bone marrow dry, so how could they possibly cherish Lin Ge'er?

Because of this, Zhao's wife, who was already a bit irritable from sleeping on a heated brick bed in winter, developed blisters on the corners of her mouth that very night.

When Gu Lin saw this, he thought that the other party was just suffering from internal heat, so he specially brought a bowl of pear soup to Zhao's sister-in-law and instructed her: "In the next few days, sister-in-law, you should eat a lighter diet and eat less of those rich and oily foods."

Brother Zhao nodded in agreement and picked up some cabbage and radish for his wife.

Zhao's sister-in-law was upset and waved her hand. As her gaze shifted, she suddenly saw Zheng Hao sitting opposite her, who was next to Gu Lin.

Under the bright candlelight, as the years passed, the once-naive boy gradually acquired the sharp and resolute bearing of a grown man. He inherited the stature of Zheng the hunter, towering over everyone around him just by sitting there. He was handsome, with skin as white as jade. At such a young age, he had already become a scholar, and was favored by his teacher and the prefect. Next year, he would be taking the provincial examination, and considering his age... he was only eight years younger than Lin Ge'er...

Zhao's sister-in-law stared straight at Zheng Hao. Zheng Hao was perceptive and had noticed it long ago, but because the other person was Zhao's sister-in-law, he did not show it.

Seeing that the other person was staring at him, Zheng Hao looked up at Zhao's wife and asked, "Auntie, is something the matter?"

Upon hearing the way the other person addressed her, Zhao's unrealistic ideas were instantly extinguished as if doused with a bucket of cold water. Lin Ge'er was of the same generation as her and was also Zheng Xiaozi's stepfather. She must have lost her mind to think of pairing Lin Ge'er and Zheng Xiaozi together.

Seeing Zheng Hao looking at her seriously, Sister Zhao felt a little embarrassed and said, "It's okay, it's okay, let's eat."

Zheng Hao didn't mind Zhao's unusual behavior and said with a hint of concern, "I'll buy you some medicine powder to reduce your internal heat when I come back from the academy tomorrow."

Sister Zhao was touched when she heard this. What a filial child! Then she saw Zheng Hao slightly turn his head and pick up the empty bowl next to him. It was Gu Lin's bowl. He scooped half a bowl of soup into it, and then turned his head and whispered to the young man not to eat too much, so that he would be careful not to have indigestion at night.

"Look how many men like this there are," Sister Zhao shook her head slightly. "None of the men outside are up to par. It's not easy to find one who's good in every way, but he's from my own family."

Sister-in-law Zhao sighed at the cruel twists of fate.

Gu Lin originally thought that Fang Jiyue's gift was a subtle reminder to him about making bath oil. Considering that the person Fang Jiyue had promised to send was a concubine in the palace, Gu Lin took some time to hurry up and make the bath oil to send to her.

Unexpectedly, Fang Jiyue did not stop sending gifts after giving away the bath oil. One day, when Fang sent someone to deliver the gift, it was seen by Zheng Hao who happened to be returning home.

Looking at the gift boxes that almost filled the table, Zheng Hao remained calm and approached Gu Lin, asking, "Uncle Gu, how long has Fang Jiyue been sending gifts to our home?"

Gu Lin was preoccupied with this matter and did not notice that Zheng Hao had changed how he addressed Fang Jiyue.

He looked up at Zheng Hao with a helpless expression and said, "From the first day I returned to the prefectural city, they started sending things. I originally thought Fang Jiyue wanted something, so I quickly made the items and sent them out. I didn't expect them to keep sending them."

Seeing Uncle Gu's troubled expression, it was clear that the other party was not affected by it.

Zheng Hao said in a calm tone, "Uncle Gu and Fang Jiyue have a business relationship, so it's not good to refuse them outright, as it could easily hurt their relationship. But one shouldn't accept gifts without merit, and Fang Jiyue's constant gift-giving only adds to Uncle Gu's troubles."

Gu Lin said helplessly, "I sent Yu Ercheng to return the gift a few days ago, and also asked them not to send any more, but..."

Gu Lin looked at the gifts that were as high as a small mountain in front of him.

Zheng Hao said, "If Uncle Gu is at ease, he can leave this matter to me."

Gu Lin looked at him with a puzzled expression. Zheng Hao did not express his thoughts, but only said, "Uncle Gu, don't worry about me and Fang Jiyue having a falling out. This matter will be resolved in a few days."

Gu Lin agreed with some skepticism.