Chapter 136: Chapter 96: So, Brother-in-law, Are Three Wives Enough for You?

"Brother-in-law, a toast to you.

I’m thanking you from the bottom of my heart. You have no idea what kind of life my sister used to live.

Every year, on the second day of the New Year when I’d come to visit, it didn’t matter if there was a great wind or a heavy snow.

My sister would be standing at the main gate, just waiting and watching for me.

How could I not know? It was because no one in that residence liked her, and she had no one to talk to."

Lu Yuan didn’t say much. He just clinked his cup with Song Chi’s, and the two of them drained them in one go.

Song Chi, however, had become talkative, sighing as he spoke:

"Brother-in-law, you don’t know this, but I used to dread visiting for the New Year. Every time I saw my sister standing at the main gate, waiting...

It was just gut-wrenching. There was nothing I could do but watch helplessly.

Our parents didn’t care for her, so I was the only close family she had.

But with my job, I could be sent here one day and there the next. There was no way for me to look after her!

Every time I left, I’d ask my old vice-general to help keep an eye on her.

But every time I came back, I’d hear from him how that old hag had done this or that to my sister again.

It made me so angry I wanted to grab my sword, lead my men, and slaughter their whole family!"

Zhao Qiao’Er, sitting beside Song Meiqin, sighed as she heard this. Under the table, she took Song Meiqin’s small hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

Zhao Qiao’Er knew what her sister-in-law’s life was like. It looked glamorous on the outside, but she suffered terribly in secret.

She knew all this, of course, but hearing someone else say it still made her sad.

Beside her, Song Meiqin lowered her head and wiped away a tear, then looked up with her beautiful, red-rimmed eyes.

"Alright, alright. Let’s not talk about the past.

It’s the New Year. Why bring this up? Come on, let’s drink."

Song Chi poured himself another cup of wine and nodded.

"Yeah, what’s past is past. Anyway, seeing my sister like this today really makes me happy.

She’s completely different from before.

Come on, Brother-in-law. My sister dotes on children. Every New Year when we see her, she showers my kids with a ton of stuff..."

Song Chi had barely gotten that far.

At the other table, the oldest of the children immediately chimed in loudly:

"Yeah! Auntie is the best! We love Auntie the most~"

The child’s words made everyone at Lu Yuan’s table grin.

The child’s mother, however, quickly told her kid to lower their head and eat, scolding them,

"When adults are talking, children shouldn’t interrupt. You have no manners!"

After speaking, the child’s mother looked over at Lu Yuan’s group with an apologetic smile.

Of course, no one was actually going to blame the child for anything.

Then, Song Chi raised his cup, grinned at Lu Yuan, and said:

"Come, Brother-in-law, another toast to you.

This year, I hope you and my sister have a few kids of your own, so she stops doting on mine all the time."

At Song Chi’s words, Song Meiqin glanced shyly at Lu Yuan.

Lu Yuan also picked up his cup and grinned.

"Deal. We’ll have eight or ten of them, so she can dote on them to her heart’s content."

Lu Yuan’s words made Song Meiqin blush and scoff playfully, but she didn’t object.

’Fine by me~’

’If he wants twenty, I’ll give him twenty~’

Song Chi, however, blinked with a deadpan expression and said:

"Isn’t ten a bit much? My sister’s getting on in years. Wouldn’t she have to keep having them until she’s forty?

Can she still have kids by then..."

Before Song Chi could finish, Song Meiqin stood up and gave him a big smack on the back of his head, exclaiming in feigned anger:

"What nonsense are you talking about?! Why couldn’t I?!"

Song Chi looked at his own sister with a wronged expression.

"What are you doing?!

It’s the New Year, why are you hitting me again!"

But Song Meiqin just glared at him.

"So you *do* know it’s the New Year!

Then why would you say something like that on New Year’s Day!"

Beside them, Zhao Qiao’er blinked as she watched the scene unfold.

HISS~

’After the New Year...’

’I’ll be thirty-six...’

’This...’

’Song Meiqin is two years younger than me, and she’s already worried about whether she can still have children.’

’Then what about me...’

’No! This won’t do!’

At this thought, Zhao Qiao’er made up her mind.

’I don’t care if that factory makes money or not. I have to claim my sweetheart for myself.’

’I’m going all out! I’m not going to worry about saving face anymore!’

’If I have to, I’ll spend all night on the bed with my bare ass in the air, wiggling it until I seduce my sweetheart!!’

’I have to hurry, while I can still have children!!’

’After all, I’m the oldest one here!’

...

The lunch didn’t last long.

They didn’t drink much, either.

The main reason was that Song Chi kept thinking about the guns and cannons, constantly asking about them at the table.

Since things felt so unsettled, it was better to just go ahead and show the items to Song Chi.

Lu Yuan immediately had someone bring over the guns and cannons.

However, even after they were delivered, Song Chi wasn’t satisfied.

After fiddling with them for a while, Song Chi wanted to test them.

In that case, they might as well go to an empty spot outside the city to try them out now that they had eaten.

As it happened, Lu Yuan also needed to make a trip outside the city to check on the factory.

Because, according to the schedule, the first bicycle should have been produced today.

He had to go take a look.

The three women at home couldn’t sit still either and decided to go along.

Zhao Qiao’er in particular. She had always heard about how powerful cannons were but had never seen one, so now was her chance to witness it.

The convoy of carriages first arrived at the factory outside the city.

It was bustling outside the factory today.

Not only was there all sorts of activity inside the factory, but the outside was lively too!

All kinds of stalls were set up in the surrounding area, especially food stalls.

Of course, not many people came to eat at noon, since the factory provided lunch.

But in the mornings and evenings, the place was packed.

However, these people wouldn’t be able to set up their stalls here for much longer. Once the buildings around the factory—the commercial street—were completed, they’d be gone.

Lu Yuan would have to drive them away then.

It wasn’t that Lu Yuan had it in for these Shopkeepers, but really, why let others earn money that he could earn himself?

Besides, this crowd was chaotic and disorderly.

It looked too messy. What if someone started a fire that spread to his factory?

This was especially concerning since the location was very close to the official road.

Some of the more reckless ones had even set up their stalls on the official road itself.

What if, one day, an urgent 800-li dispatch from the Court was delayed because this section of the road was blocked?

When the time came for property confiscation and family execution, who would be held responsible?

After reaching the factory gate, Song Chi’s men went ahead to clear an empty area to test the Flintlock Guns and the Mortar.

Taking advantage of this time, Lu Yuan went to inspect the factory first.

Arriving at the main gate and getting out of the carriage, Lu Yuan immediately said to the few Travelers guarding the entrance:

"Get some men to clear the official road over there. Tell them they are not allowed to block it."

The Travelers nodded immediately and led some men to clear the area.

The factory had quite a few Travelers working as security.

After all, these workers had just been hired, and he didn’t know what their character was like.

What if there were troublemakers, or two rival groups from the same village had been hired and then started fighting or something?

Wouldn’t they tear the roof off the place?

Of course, generally speaking, they wouldn’t dare.

The rules were very strict, after all. Anyone caught fighting would be fired immediately and never rehired.

But it was still better to take precautions.

The group went inside and wandered around. They had never seen this kind of large-scale workshop production before and stopped to watch with curiosity.

Lu Yuan, however, headed straight for the bicycle workshop, making his way to the shipping area to see.

He wanted to see if any finished bicycles had been produced.

"Oh, my name is on here too~"

Song Meiqin said excitedly, having suddenly noticed the factory’s brand name.

At her words, everyone else immediately looked over. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

It was obvious where the name "QiaoYan" came from; both Su Liyan and Zhao Qiao’er had happy expressions on their faces.

Song Meiqin hadn’t expected her name to be included, since she was the last to join the family and the last to meet Lu Yuan.

But Lu Yuan just smiled and raised an eyebrow.

"What are you talking about? Of course it is. No one gets left out.

But let me explain it to you, Aunt Song. The only reason your name wasn’t added directly is because ’QiaoYan’ rolls off the tongue. Adding ’Qin’ would have made it a mouthful, so I added yours separately. You’re not allowed to be picky about it, okay!"

Song Meiqin, looking utterly ravishing, gazed shyly at Lu Yuan.

"How could I be~? Auntie is very happy~"

After Song Meiqin finished speaking, Song Chi chose the worst possible moment to lean in and ask Lu Yuan curiously:

"So, Brother-in-law, are three wives enough for you?

You’re not going to marry any more?

What will you do if you marry another one later?"