Chapter 227: Chapter 209: Fancy Sales Pitch_1
Dong Yuanxuan arrived with Zhou Chengye and a few others, and immediately, the whispering girls fell silent. Several of the older girls, whose families were about to seek marriage alliances, even shyly lowered their heads.
Watching the madams busily questioning their eldest brothers, Zhou Jingwan’s face revealed a sudden understanding as she whispered to Daohua beside her, “That’s why my mother is here. She’s here to help my brother find a wife.”
Daohua was taken aback for a moment before looking toward the girls present. Seeing them all sneakily appraising Dong Yuanxuan and the others, she instantly came to a realization.
This was just like a blind date in ancient times!
Zhou Jingwan continued, “Among these, there must be a girl my mother approves of.”
Daohua asked, “Are you sure?”
Zhou Jingwan nodded, “Otherwise, why would my mother have so eagerly responded to Aunt Dong’s invitation for my brothers to come over? She must be planning to let the girl’s family take a good look at my brother first.”
Daohua turned to look at Dong Yuanxuan and his companions, who were being bombarded with questions by the madams. Seeing her own three brothers also attracting attention, her eyes swiveled, and after a moment’s thought, she said, “This kind of mutual assessment won’t do any good!”
“Why not?” Zhou Jingwan immediately looked over.
Daohua explained, “Think about it, whether it’s Big Brother Dong and the others, or the young masters standing behind the screen with their fathers, aren’t they all handsome, elegant, and well-spoken? With so many talented young men, how can you ensure that the girls remember your brother?”
It was clear that many families here were taking the opportunity of this outing to observe potential matches in secret.
Zhou Jingwan was startled, “That’s right! While we’re picking out families, they’re choosing us too. The family my mother likes might not be interested in me. What should I do then?”
Daohua squinted her eyes, “We have to find a way to make your brother and mine stand out.”
Zhou Jingwan first nodded, then looked surprised, “Didn’t you say your mother wasn’t in a hurry to find matches for your brothers?”
Daohua replied, “She’s not in a hurry, but I think the girls here are all quite decent, and any of them could be my future sister-in-law.”
Zhou Jingwan was speechless, “Your mother isn’t even here, what’s the point of you stirring things up?”
Daohua said, “It’s not about settling things right away. Right now, I’m just swinging at the tree; doesn’t matter if there are dates or not.”
Zhou Jingwan asked, “What are you thinking of doing?”
Daohua gave her a look, “What can I do? I just need to find a way to make sure all the madams and misses here remember my eldest brother.”
Zhou Jingwan’s spirits immediately lifted, “You have an idea? Quick, tell me. I also want to ensure that every madam and miss here remembers my brother well.”
Daohua glanced at Zhou Jingwan, “We’ll need to work together on this.”
Zhou Jingwan’s eyes widened, eager to try, “How do we cooperate?”
Daohua looked over at the group of madams, “Look, although your elder brother and mine are standing here, whether it’s the madams or the girls, they can only see their appearances; they can’t truly get to know them.”
“Without understanding them, they won’t know if they’re suitable. Not knowing if they’re suitable, they will hesitate, consider others, and thus, your brother and mine might miss out on some fine girls.”
Zhou Jingwan nodded, “What you said makes so much sense. My mother couldn’t make up her mind when picking out families, considering one isn’t bad, then hesitating and not being able to decide until the girl’s engagement is set elsewhere.”
Daohua said, “All because the information isn’t fully disclosed. Men fear getting into the wrong profession, and women fear marrying the wrong man. All the madams are extremely cautious when choosing sons-in-law.”
“So, what we have to do is to make sure that all the madams and girls understand enough about your brother and mine.”
Zhou Jingwan became animated, “Tell me, what should we do?”
Daohua said, “All we need to do is talk about both the strengths and shortcomings of our brothers.”
Zhou Jingwan was surprised, “Even their shortcomings?”
Daohua stated, “Of course, by revealing shortcomings, we’ll know whether the other party can truly accept the person. I know that when matchmakers talk about marriage matches, they generally only talk about the good aspects and never mention the bad. When the couple gets married and then discovers they’re incompatible, they end up living a life full of arguments and chaos. Do you want that for your brother and your future sister-in-law?”
Zhou Jingwan quickly shook her head, then hesitantly said, “But isn’t it inappropriate to expose my brother’s faults in front of outsiders?”
Daohua said, “That’s why how we talk about it is going to be a test. For instance, I can say that my brother has been getting up before dawn to study since he was young, spending almost all his time in the study.”
Zhou Jingwan said, “But that’s praising your brother, saying he’s hardworking, diligent, and studious.”
Daohua shook her head. “It’s not just these, think deeper. My brother spends all day in the study, doesn’t that mean he has less time for the family? He’s been like this since we were children, doesn’t it mean he’s particularly strict with himself?”
Zhou Jingwan nodded.
Daohua continued, “My brother doesn’t spend much time with the family, so those girls who need their husbands to spend a lot of time with them naturally wouldn’t consider my brother.”
“My brother is very strict with himself, so those girls who are a bit more carefree and unrestrained, nine times out of ten, wouldn’t choose my brother either.”
“However, even if they don’t choose him, in their hearts, my brother is still seen as someone diligent and progressive, which doesn’t affect his reputation negatively at all.”
Zhou Jingwan looked at Daohua with admiration. “Daohua, you’re so amazing!”
Daohua waved her hand modestly. “Just average, average!”
Beside them, Su Shiyu looked shocked as she watched Daohua and Zhou Jingwan discussing how to make their brothers stand out. She swallowed hard and glanced at Dong Yuanyao with a look that asked, ‘Should we stop them?’
Dong Yuanyao shook her head with a wooden expression. She knew that Yan Yiyi was bold, but she hadn’t expected her to be bold enough to sell her brother in public!
Though she felt a bit shocked, she was also somewhat expectant and wanted to see how she would market him.
Soon, everyone witnessed the thick-skinned approach of Daohua and Zhou Jingwan.
While people in the cabin were happily talking and chatting, suddenly, two somewhat childish, clear voices stood out.
“Jingwan, why do mosquitoes only bite me and not you?”
“That’s because my brother prepared a scent pouch for me. He said that there are a lot of mosquitoes when traveling, and he was worried that my mother and I would suffer from their bites. So he consulted many doctors and specially made this scent pouch for us which contains more than twenty types of herbs. The scent pouch is great, it’s just that it smells a bit unpleasant. Every time we go out, my brother insists we have to wear it, I can’t even refuse.”
(Pros: attentive, considerate, filial, protective of his sister. Cons: a bit autocratic.)
“Your brother is really nice, I wish I had a brother like that.”
“Don’t be envious of me, Yan Yiyi’s brother is great too. I remember once when we went shopping, you accidentally knocked over a vendor’s stall. The vendor wanted to trouble you, but Yan Yiyi’s brother stepped in front of you without a word and took a punch from the vendor to protect you.” (Brave, responsible, undertakes his duty, makes one feel safe.)
“But when we got home, my mother wanted to punish me, and he didn’t plead for me. He also said that making mistakes should be punished to learn from them.” (Deals with issues based on facts, doesn’t cater much to sentiment.)
“That’s why I still think Zhou Chengye is better. Look, whenever we go out, you never lack anything. Zhou Chengye takes care of everything for you, and you don’t have to worry.” (Thorough in his affairs.)
“But I don’t necessarily like the things he prepares for me. For example, rouge, I like to use the one you gave me, but he insists on buying a whole bunch for me from outside.” (Too controlling.)
“Still, Yan Yiyi’s brother is better. Look, he never forces you to do anything you don’t like, nor does he force you to eat anything you don’t like.” (Respects others’ opinions and preferences.)
“But he doesn’t play with me, just buries himself in books all day, saying he wants to pass examinations to gain titles and honor for the family.” (Neglects family feelings, strong sense of family honor.)
“So Zhou Chengye is still better…”
“Yan Yiyi’s brother is better…”
“Zhou Chengye is better…”
“Yan Yiyi’s brother is better…”
Thus Daohua and Zhou Jingwan went on, praising Yan Wenxiu and Zhou Chengye from inside out, from head to toe, in a style full of compliments. Whether the implied shortcomings could be discerned wasn’t something they could control.
In the cabin at that moment, a dead silence prevailed.
Whether it was the female family members or the men outside, every single person was dumbfounded.
All they could hear echoing in their ears was how great Yan Yiyi’s brother was, and what Zhou Chengye was like…
At this moment, Su Shiyu was so stunned that her handkerchief fell to the ground unbeknownst to her.
Even Dong Yuanyao, who considered herself thick-skinned, looked up at Daohua and Zhou Jingwan, who were speaking enthusiastically, with a sense of concede defeat.
And the subjects in question, Yan Wenxiu and Zhou Chengye, began without much reaction, but as they listened further and realized their sisters’ intentions, they blushed with shame, wishing they could find a hole to crawl into.