Huo Tianzhou Strangeness (Part 3)

Noticing a slight change in Liang Hongyu's expression, she quickly changed her tune, "But marriage is a serious matter and must be consensual. If you ask me, it's just that this young girl is unfortunate…"

Mrs. Sun's family showing such kindness in finding a good match for Huo Tianzhou made Liang Hongyu scoff internally.

She interrupted, "What exactly did Mrs. Sun say to you?"

There are things that someone can and cannot say when they're being paid to handle matters, and Mrs. Deng looked troubled.

But with Liang Hongyu sitting there with her imposing presence, she just wanted to get it over with.

After weighing her options, she decided to speak, "She just asked me to make sure the marriage happened and promised to pay me extra if I succeeded. That's all she said."

"But I heard Mrs. Sun went there first. That family has many members, with several siblings of marriageable age. Otherwise, they wouldn't have agreed…"

It wasn't hard for Liang Hongyu to guess Mrs. Sun's real intentions in pushing for Huo Tianzhou's marriage.

If Huo Tianzhou were to marry, Liang Hongyu would divorce him, which was an unspoken understanding among the villagers.

Mrs. Sun's hesitation about Huo Tianzhou's health last time made it clear they didn't have high hopes.

To put it bluntly, if Huo Tianzhou's health kept deteriorating, and they hadn't divorced, the house and land would be hers.

Mrs. Sun and her family had been scheming for a long time and they're determined to prevent this possibility.

If Huo Tianzhou married again and then couldn't survive, it would be different.

They could use their elder status to interfere.

In these times, although a woman's position was almost equal to a man's in terms of the workplace; but if they were married and became widowed, they couldn't remarry and would have to return to her parental home without any compensation from her husband's family.

That's why Liang Hongyu admired Huo Tianzhou's mother.

Fortunately, when Huo's father split from the family, it was under contentious circumstances.

The elders and Huo Dagou from the Huo family didn't dare to openly interfere.

Huo Dagou and his family wanted Huo Tianzhou to marry again not only because they coveted his land and house but also to guard against Liang Hongyu herself.

When Liang Hongyu returned last time, she thought they would restrain themselves, but they were still relentless.

When Liang Hongyu arrived at the dock, it was almost lunchtime.

She waited for Gong Banyun to finish his work, and they walked to the tavern, chatting along the way.

After sitting down and ordering a few dishes, Gong Banyun said, "I asked around for you. There's a landlord in town looking for a long-term worker, someone to handle purchasing for the household. How has hunting been going for you? If not well, you might want to check this out."

"I've never done purchasing work before. Hunting might be better," Liang Hongyu replied, "At least with hunting, I can keep an eye on things at home."

Previously, the original household responsibilities fell entirely on Huo Tianzhou due to Liang Hongyu's busy schedule.

Gong Banyun knew her situation very well.

"That's true. I've noticed you've become more talkative since you started hunting," Gong Banyun said with a smile, "Losing the dock job might not be such a bad thing."

The waiter brought the dishes to the table.

Liang Hongyu smiled, took the wine jug, and poured Gong Banyun a cup.

The original Liang Hongyu was always focused on her work and paid little attention to the outside world.

Her efficiency and competence earned her the favor of her superiors, which inevitably aroused envy among many people at the dock.

Liang Hongyu had been thinking about quitting the dock work for a while, and this was one of the reasons.

"By the way, I saw Tianzhou on the street yesterday. Is he not doing bamboo weaving anymore?" Gong Banyun asked while eating, suddenly remembering.

In the past, Tianzhou used to bring his bamboo weavings to the market, but it had been a long time since Gong Banyun had seen him at the market.

"Where did you see him?" Liang Hongyu sipped her wine.

"Near the notice board in the eastern part of town. I passed by there yesterday and saw him walking away, so I didn't go over to ask him," Gong Banyun replied.

He had previously tried to find a more stable job for Tianzhou through his connections, but everyone refused after hearing about Tianzhou's situation.

Tianzhou occasionally took odd jobs in town.

Gong Banyun mentioned it in passing and didn't probe further.

Like Liang Hongyu, Tianzhou didn't like to trouble others with his personal matters.

After chatting about the dock work and drinking for a while, Liang Hongyu asked, "Is it true that a landlord in the western outskirts of town is recently looking for workers?"

"Yes, it's true."

Gong Banyun grabbed a handful of the newly served five-spice peanuts, which still had their shells, and began shelling them, "I heard they're in a hurry to plant some medicinal herbs. They didn't have enough hands at home, so they hired people from outside."

"Do you know how long they'll need help?"

Liang Hongyu tasted the fried soybeans on the side.

They were slightly bland due to insufficient salt.

"These landlords usually have their permanent workers. They only hire temporary workers when they're in a rush. Typically, it takes just a few days to complete the work. To avoid the hassle of hiring people who might leave after a day, they usually pay everyone at the end of the last day…"

Huo Tianzhou went to work in the western outskirts.

These temporary jobs have set hours, and workers typically return before dark.

Huo Tianzhou arrived home late yesterday, dusty and tired, indicating he came back by walking.

He gave Huo Tianzhou a hundred wen as a backup, knowing his thrifty nature, he wouldn't use it unless absolutely necessary.

But even without the money he gave, Huo Tianzhou had some coins of his own, enough for the round trip to town.

It was unlikely he went out without taking any money.