Chapter 679: Chapter 679 Carpenter Yao Chapter 679: Chapter 679 Carpenter Yao Following closely behind, Lu Erbai entered with a smile on his face.
He hadn’t had time to look up at the people in the courtyard when he turned around and invited the person behind him inside as well.
As he walked in, he laughed and said, “Honey, quickly pour two cups of warm water, prepare some snacks to accompany the drinks, today I need to have a good drink with Brother Yao. The issue with our family’s stall has been resolved, thanks to Brother Yao.”
Before he could finish, Shu Yu had already walked out from the living room, standing on the steps with a beaming smile, “Dad.”
Lu Erbai was startled, suddenly turned his head back, and looked bewildered at the figure standing not far away.
“Ah, Yu!” Lu Erbai exclaimed with joy, quickly taking a few steps forward, his gaze filled with concern as he looked at her, “You’re back? How have you been these past days?”
“I’m fine, Dad. Let’s talk about my matters later, please invite the guests inside first.”
Lu Erbai opened his mouth but then nodded, “Right, right, we’ll talk later.” He then turned to Carpenter Yao, who had just entered, and said, “Brother Yao, this is the Erya I told you about from my family. Yu, this is your Uncle Yao.”
Shu Yu nodded politely and called out, “Uncle Yao.”
Carpenter Yao looked her over and laughed, “So this is the Second Young Lady you’ve been endlessly praising? She does seem very clever indeed, but it’s a pity that her status hinders her.”
The Lu family’s public statement was the same as the one in Righteous Dao Village–they all came here searching for their missing daughter.
This was already known by everyone in Righteous Dao Village, though not many people in the county town were aware. Since Lu Erbai and Carpenter Yao were acquainted, they would occasionally chat, and Lu Erbai would disclose the matter when asked.
There was nothing that couldn’t be shared; it would be even weirder to keep scheming and hiding it.
In Linzhang Prefecture, there weren’t few convicts; it used to be a desolate place with few inhabitants, but later it became an exile area where many criminals were banished to, gradually starting to settle down, marrying, and having children, propagating their descendants.
About half of the people here probably had convict ancestors dating back three generations.
So, having Shu Yu, a convict’s daughter who had been exiled, didn’t make anyone think the Lu family was entirely composed of wicked people unworthy of association.
At least now, the look in Carpenter Yao’s eyes was devoid of any disdain or contempt toward Shu Yu; rather, it bore the semblance of an elder viewing a younger relative, even tinged with a hint of pity.
And why not have pity? An adopted daughter inadvertently mired in troubles because of the Shu family.
Shu Yu smiled and said to Carpenter Yao, “There’s no need for pity, I’ve found my family, and they all cherish me so much.”
“That’s true, Brother Lu is indeed a rare sincere man, just like me.”
Shu Yu almost laughed out loud; Carpenter Yao was quite interesting. Was he praising her dad, or was he praising himself?
She led the two men into the kitchen where the dinner was, in fact, already prepared.
Because of Shu Yu’s return, dinner was quite lavish and there was no need to prepare any additional dishes for drinking.
Madam Ruan brought out two jugs of wine, and didn’t prepare a separate table for them, as country people hosting guests didn’t bother with too much fuss.
Sitting next to Lu Erbai, Shu Yu poured wine for him and Carpenter Yao, then asked, “Dad, when you came in, what did you mean when you said the issue at our stall has been resolved?”
Lu Erbai took a sip of wine, released a long breath, and said, “It’s nothing major, it’s all been resolved anyway.”