The Incense Monopoly Order

Chapter 85 Life Choices
"Second sister, how is Chen Dalang?" Shang Mingshu approached Shang Zishu, who was lying in front of the beauty in the waterside pavilion out of boredom, and teased her.

Mrs. Chen made it very clear that day. She did not point out that she liked Shang Zishu, but Shang Mingshu knew that it had nothing to do with her. Mrs. Chen admired Shang Zishu's knowledge of tea, her fearless, decisive and straightforward personality.

Just as Mrs. Chen said, Chen Che was raised to be a little naive. If he did not marry a wife who could control Lingfengfang, Lingfengfang would surely be defeated by Chen Che a hundred years later.

Shang Zishu rolled her eyes at her sister and puffed out her cheeks: "She's just okay looking."

Chen Che has nothing in common with Shang Zishu's ideal man except for his face. Although she doesn't necessarily want to find a calm and capable man, she doesn't want to find a "son" either. Chen Che is mentally normal, but in Shang Zishu's eyes, he is like an immature baby.

"If you don't like it, just reject it." Shang Mingshu already knew that Shang Zishu looked down on Chen Che, but Shang Zishu stopped Xiao Yu and clearly refused.

"If I reject this marriage proposal, where can I find the method of frying Longjing tea?" Shang Zishu was reluctant.

"Are you really going to marry off just for the method of roasting Longjing tea?" Shang Mingshu had been worried about Chen Jin before, and later Chen Jin was abandoned by Shang Zishu. Shang Mingshu finally breathed a sigh of relief, but now she fell into Mrs. Chen's temptation again.

Shang Zishu turned her face away, her empty eyes falling on the water surface swaying gently in the breeze below. She raised her hand and pulled off a half-yellow leaf that was hanging within her reach and threw it down with force. However, the leaf could not gather force and was light in itself. No matter how hard she tried, it did not cause any ripples on the water surface.

"Third sister, I'm just an ordinary woman among you all, just like this leaf. Even if I use all my strength and even with the help of the east wind, I can hardly create even a ripple under the sky." Shang Zishu suddenly spoke with a hint of meaning, "In this world, who can have everything go their way? And who doesn't have to weigh the pros and cons?
I know you want to persuade me that the roasting method of Longjing tea may not be suitable for new tea, but if I don't give it a try, I will regret it for the rest of my life. Whenever I think of it, I will beat my chest and stamp my feet. In recent years, I have even tossed and turned, unable to let it go.

How many noble ladies, daughters of wealthy families, can decide their own marriages? Since ancient times, arranged marriages have been a sacrifice for the family. My father is not forcing me to marry, so why not arrange a marriage for myself?

It turned out that Shang Zishu had been thinking so much these days. Shang Mingshu felt emotional, but she had to remind him: "Mrs. Chen only has one son."

Not to mention that Chen Che is the only son, even if there are more sons, given the Chen family's wealth and reputation, they cannot allow their sons to marry into the family.

"Third sister, you don't understand. My eldest sister and I want to marry into our family, not to take over our father's family business." Shang Zishu opened her heart to Shang Mingshu for the first time. "My eldest sister believes that she is the eldest sister, and she should work hard and shoulder heavy responsibilities. She was taught the wrong way by our father when she was young, and she has the word 'eldest' on her shoulders. The family is her responsibility, and you and I are also her responsibility. She has put one burden after another on herself."

"how about you?"

"Me?" Shang Zishu chuckled. "I'm not as selfless as my elder sister. I just want to be free. I don't want to marry out because I don't want to leave the home where I live happily and want to go to another place where I live in fear and timidity."

Shang Mingshu understood the hesitation in Shang Zishu's heart: "Second sister, you feel that marrying into the Chen family will not only fulfill your wishes, but also prevent you from being suppressed by your in-laws."

"Mrs. Chen is the head of Lingfengfang herself. She knows Chen Che doesn't have the ability, so she will devote all her energy to supporting her daughter-in-law." Shang Zishu and Shang Mingshu analyzed, "She won't restrict me from studying tea ceremony. She might even favor me. She also doesn't believe that a woman's responsibility is to support her husband and raise children. From now on, I will be the head of the Chen family."

"Where is Chen Che?" "What?" Shang Zishu didn't understand what Shang Mingshu was asking.

"What about Chen Che?" Shang Mingshu said bluntly, "Haven't you ever considered the man you'll sleep with in the future? Is he willing to spend the rest of his life with you? Will he betray you like his father did..."

"I don't care." Shang Zishu propped herself up and faced Shang Mingshu with a frank look in her eyes. "Third sister, people's hearts are fickle. Even if Third Master Cheng's heart and eyes are completely devoted to you, can you be sure that he will always be loyal to you in the future?"

"You can't." Shang Zishu answered for Shang Mingshu. "The future seems so long and distant. I never imagine it. People and things are unpredictable. Thinking too far ahead is just adding extravagant hopes to yourself. When extravagant hopes are not fulfilled, you will feel unwilling and resentful. I only care about the present. Right now, Chen Che is a good husband for me."

If there was someone like Du Zhong to her elder sister, Shang Zishu would naturally not settle for second best. But how many perfect people are there in this world? How many people can get what they want?
When opportunities come, if you stubbornly insist on what you want, only a few people can get what they want. Most people will end up empty-handed and wake up in the middle of the night regretting that they did not seize the opportunity that was once in front of them.

"So, you want your aunt to agree to this marriage?" Shang Mingshu never expected that Shang Zishu was actually seriously considering marrying Chen Che, a man she had only met once, in the past two days.

"I don't reject it." Shang Zishu must still be dissatisfied with Chen Che. "Can it be done? I need to meet Chen Che privately without letting Mrs. Chen know. Can you help me?"

"Okay, I'll find someone to bring him here." Shang Mingshu didn't ask Shang Zishu why she wanted to see Chen Che.

Chen Che is a very easy person to deceive. Shang Mingshu only needs to find out his daily whereabouts with a little investigation.

Cheng She did not lie to them. Chen Che really loved wine. His love for wine was not alcoholism, but like Shang Zishu's love of tea, he liked to taste and study, and liked to explore the brewing process of wine.

For this reason, Shang Mingshu also heard a rumor about Chen Yuanwai and Chen Che.

It is said that Mrs. Chen was in love with a neighboring brother who grew up with her as a child. Later, because someone was killed in the neighbor's tavern, his parents were implicated and exiled to the border where they died of illness. Mrs. Chen then married Mr. Chen.

The Chen family has been running a tea business for generations. Not to mention their management skills, they have been exposed to tea since childhood. They can talk about tea competitions and tea tastings, and are familiar with all the famous teas from ancient times to the present.

Unfortunately, Chen Che was born not to like tea, but only loved fine wine. He knew nothing about tea, but he could draw inferences about wine by analogy. Rumors spread that Chen Che was not Chen Yuanwai's biological son.

Although Mr. Chen was a handsome young man and Mrs. Chen was also dignified, neither of them had the best looks. However, Chen Che was born like the golden boy under the seat of Guanyin, and he was a famous handsome man in Hangzhou since he was a child.

(End of this chapter)