Leo Family's Son-in-law

Old Mrs. Su started stirring things up, and Mrs. Zhao jumped in, pointing at Lily Evans’s nose and scolding smugly, “If you don’t pay up now, don’t even think about cozying up to us later! So what if you’re chummy with Mr. Zhao from Fragrant Pavilion? That means nothing! My son, Simon Evans, is about to become the Leo Family’s son-in-law. Soon he’ll be dripping in gold and silver, living in luxury—people like you country folk aren’t even in the same league! Lily, if you know what’s good for you, hand over your money, jewelry, and house. Butter us up, and maybe you’ll get a taste of our soup one day! But if you make us mad, do you really think Mr. Leo Liu from Fragrant Pavilion would offend Mr. Leo Liu for your sake?”

“Pfft!” Lily Evans was completely unimpressed and spat, “Last time it was the magistrate’s daughter, now it’s the richest man’s girl from the neighboring city. Who knows if this one will fall through too, and yet you’re already acting high and mighty! If Mr. Leo Liu is so amazing, why don’t you ask him for money and a house? He’s loaded—why would he want to be your in-law? You’re all just desperate to climb the social ladder!”

Mrs. Zhao saw that Lily didn’t believe Simon Evans could marry the richest man’s daughter, so she stiffened her neck and hurriedly said, “What, you don’t believe Simon will marry her? Listen, Simon’s really made it! Miss Lucy is already expecting Simon’s child—whether she wants to or not, she has to marry him! The Leo Family can’t refuse this marriage!”

"Oh, wow—pregnant before marriage, sneaking around without a matchmaker! Simon Evans, a scholar, actually pulled off such a disgraceful stunt!" Lily sneered.

Mrs. Zhao realized she’d said too much and quickly covered her mouth. Old Mrs. Su slapped the back of Mrs. Zhao’s head and scolded, “Can’t you keep your mouth shut? You blurt out everything—doesn’t Simon care about his reputation?”

Mrs. Zhao panicked. Even though Simon Evans was about to marry Miss Lucy, if this got out, it would ruin his reputation. She immediately threatened Lily, "You wretched girl, if you dare spread rumors outside, I’ll tear your mouth apart!"

Lily spat again, “You should worry about your own mouth! You go around telling everyone that Simon Evans got Miss Lucy pregnant before marriage—give it a few days and the whole village will know!”

Lily couldn’t be bothered to waste words on these two fools. She grabbed a broom and chased them both out the door.

Mrs. Zhao stomped her feet in anger, running away while cursing, “Lily Evans, you wretched girl, let’s see how long you can stay smug! Once Simon becomes the Leo Family’s son-in-law, I’ll ruin you for good!”

Even though Lily had chased Old Mrs. Su and Mrs. Zhao away, she couldn’t help but feel a bit uneasy. If what Mrs. Zhao said was true, and Simon Evans really did become the Leo Family’s son-in-law, then a wealthy and powerful family like that could easily crush people like us.

Simon Evans was narrow-minded and Lily’s sworn enemy. If he gained power, he definitely wouldn’t let Lily’s family off easy.

The Vegetarian Bistro hadn’t even opened yet, the mushrooms and greenhouse vegetables were just planted, and her family’s fortunes were only starting to rise. If Simon Evans ruined things now, Lily would be devastated.

Mrs. Chen understood the stakes and comforted Lily, saying, “Don’t worry too much, Lily. When your uncle comes home tonight, ask him about Mr. Leo Liu. He’s traveled far and knows a lot of people. If Mr. Leo Liu isn’t easy to deal with, your uncle can help smooth things over. I doubt Mr. Leo Liu would make trouble for our family.”

Lily forced a smile and said, “Alright, I’ll listen to you, Aunt Chen. I’ll ask Uncle Arthur when he gets back tonight.”