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Lin Yuan covered her feverish cheeks and turned her head away with a light cough and a noncommittal hum.

Xia Zheng, however, snorted in a blend of disappointment and annoyance.

Last time it was Xiao Linzi, this time it was Liuzi.

It seemed all these people were his nemeses, just as he was about to gracefully end his courtship.

He had to endure these blundering fools coming in and causing mayhem, which absolutely infuriated him!

Lifting the curtain, Xia Zheng was the first to hop out of the carriage, then carefully helped Lin Yuan down.

Liuzi watched Lin Yuan flee-like and couldn’t help muttering to himself, "What’s with Miss Lin? Why is her face so red? Was it hot inside the carriage? Ouch, Young Master, my foot."

Having walked halfway, Xia Zheng turned back and looked down apologetically at Liuzi’s foot that he had "accidentally" stepped on, saying, "Oops, I’m so sorry. I didn’t notice just now. My bad."

After saying this, whether intentionally or not, he ground his shoe against Liuzi’s foot—specifically over the little toe—before reluctantly moving away.

Liuzi, close to tears, pulled off his shoe and vigorously rubbed his red little toe, pouting and complaining, "Boss, you can even tell whether the birds flying in the sky are male or female, how can you not see Liuzi’s big feet right here?"

Meng Liangdong’s dried goods store truly lived up to its reputation as an old establishment of over ten years, with an excellent location and a decent customer flow. Had Meng Liangdong’s heart been set on business, this store might have thrived for another decade with potential.

Just from the location of the shop, Xia Zheng was already nodding in approval, silently praising Lin Yuan’s keen eye.

Despite the shop’s small size and lack of a proper signboard, it still managed to leave a lasting impression on passersby, making it easy to remember the place that sold dried goods.

Once inside the shop, Xia Zheng finally understood why Lin Yuan could tell at first glance that the shop was poorly managed.

Not to mention the shelves of dried goods that had not been replaced with fresh stock for days, the thin layer of dust in the corner of the shelves was telling enough.

On top of that, the shopkeeper’s desk didn’t hold account books or abacuses but rather thick volumes discussing the way of Confucius and Mencius.

Looking at "The Analects of Confucius," which had been thumbed through until it was twice the thickness of a new book, Xia Zheng shook his head with amusement.

Meng Liangdong was certainly not a lazy man; it’s just that his heart wasn’t in the shop at all. His full attention was devoted to scholarly pursuits.

Yet, fate was not on his side.

As Lin Yuan and her party entered, Meng Liangdong was in the back hall packing up his belongings.

The property comprised a front shop, a back hall, and side rooms. Since Meng Liangdong lived alone, he had made do with living in the back hall and converted the side rooms into a storeroom to stock various goods.

"Mr. Meng lives alone?" Seeing Meng Liangdong awkwardly standing there, still holding a thin winter jacket, Lin Yuan smiled kindly.

Meng Liangdong, realizing his haste in coming out and not even taking the time to put down his jacket, chuckled dryly and carelessly placed the jacket on a shelf filled with red dates.

He nodded and said, "I have been devotedly studying for over twenty years in hopes of passing the exams to honor my parents.

Unexpectedly, after failing three times, I let my depressive mood miss the chance of marrying. "

He didn’t mention that ever since the death of his parents, there was no one to arrange a marriage for him, and he himself was not skilled in socializing.

Despite repeatedly failing the exams, he remained engrossed in his studies day after day, neglecting the shop to the point of ruin and, naturally, putting marriage and children out of consideration.

Lin Yuan shook her head in pity. Meng Liangdong was earnest but not to the point of obstinacy, and despite being in his thirties, he was naturally handsome.

Though he did not possess Xia Zheng’s dashing and sunny appearance, he was still better looking than average.

Such a man would have been eagerly sought after by the ladies in his twenties.

Lin Yuan guessed, perhaps back then his dried goods store saw matchmakers knocking at the door regularly.