It was like a battlefield at Lin Chuan's home.

Initially, Nuo Xiaoxi didn't understand the meaning of it all. When the first wave of matchmakers arrived, she had courteously let them in.

"Girl, where's Lin Chuan?" the matchmaker auntie asked.

"He's not back yet." Nuo Xiaoxi shook her head. Wearing an apron, she scurried about offering tea and water to the matchmaker, and curiously asked, "Auntie, what... what business do you have with Brother Lin? Do you want me to pass on a message for you?"

"Oh, no need." The matchmaker shook her head, saying, "I'm here to introduce a prospective bride to Lin Chuan. I have a girl in mind, pretty and lovely, with a spotless reputation, considering her to be his wife. Hehe..."

"Ah?" Nuo Xiaoxi was startled, dropping the cucumber from her hands.

"What's the matter with you?" The matchmaker frowned and said, "Clumsy and careless, don't you know to be more careful working in the Lin family's house?"

To outsiders, Nuo Xiaoxi simply seemed to be helping out at Lin Chuan's home. Nuo Xiaoxi's mother had told many people about Lin Chuan helping their family. The story spread from one person to ten, then from ten to a hundred... Virtually everyone at Changlin Factory knew about it, which indirectly proved Lin Chuan's capability, not only in earning money but also his compassionate heart in helping others.

Consequently, people at Changlin Factory thought that Nuo Xiaoxi was working in Lin Chuan's house, cooking and cleaning as a way of repaying the favor. Only both families knew about Nuo Xiaoxi being the future bride of Lin Chuan, and absolutely no one else knew about this.

"I..." Nuo Xiaoxi wanted to firmly tell them that she was Lin Chuan's wife. But, being a girl with a thin face, she was too embarrassed to say it out loud. She could only go to the kitchen, furious. However, Nuo Xiaoxi didn't want these people to introduce a girlfriend to Lin Chuan and after going back to the kitchen, she began to cook, pouring a whole bucket of chili peppers into the wok. As the oil sizzled, a strong aroma of chili peppers spread immediately and Nuo Xiaoxi quickly put on a mask.

But the two people in the living room were in panic.

"Oh my, where's this strong chili smell coming from?" The matchmaker immediately started to cough uncontrollably.

"The smell's getting stronger." The other person was also choking.

The two coughed violently and wanted to rush into the kitchen to stop Nuo Xiaoxi's actions, but the girl was still vigorously wielding her spatula, as if she desperately wanted them to stop. Unfortunately, as soon as they entered the kitchen, they were smoked out; the overwhelming chili odor was like demons clutching at their throats, almost leaving them unable to breathe. Panting hard, the matchmaker was on the verge of collapsing.

"Quick, run." The two covered their noses, their nostrils and eyes filled with tears from coughing.

After running out of the house, the two were utterly indignant and decided to go home first and come back to find Lin Chuan the next day.

Nuo Xiaoxi covered her mouth and laughed, sneakily ran out to peek from beside the window and especially upon seeing the two matchmakers leaving dejectedly, her delight was beyond measure, almost bursting into tears of laughter.

"Hmph, I am Brother Lin's wife, who are you to introduce a wife for him?" Nuo Xiaoxi snorted lightly and, feeling satisfied, she turned back to the kitchen to continue cooking.

Who would have thought, before she finished cooking, there was another knock on the door.

"Who is it?" Nuo Xiaoxi called out.

"It's me!" A voice of an auntie came from outside the door.

Nuo Xiaoxi hurriedly ran to open the door. Outside, stood an auntie from Changlin Factory, leading a pretty girl, as they smilingly came over and said, "Hey, Xiao Xi, is Lin Chuan home?"

"This is..." Nuo Xiaoxi peered out from the door, her face full of wariness as she looked at the two.

"Oh, this is my granddaughter. Isn't Lin Chuan still unmarried?" the granny smiled and said: "I'm trying to set them up, see if it works out, right? My granddaughter is very pretty, isn't she?"

It must be said, that girl was indeed quite attractive, but her face bore a disdainful expression, seemingly rather unwilling to come for a blind date. Nuo Xiaoxi glanced at her and quickly said, "Lin Chuan isn't here, he... he called and said he won't be back tonight, so... you should come back tomorrow instead."

Having said that, Nuo Xiaoxi immediately shut the door, leaning against it, panting, feeling nervous as it was her first time lying. She was afraid that Lin Chuan would suddenly return at that moment, wouldn't then her lie be exposed?

"What's so great about him?" The girl grumbled outside the door, "If he really had money, would he live in such a shabby place?"

"Silly girl, you don't understand." The granny laughed and said, "Lin Chuan has money, but he just doesn't want to leave Changlin Factory yet. Some people have a strong sense of nostalgia in their bones. Even if Lin Chuan doesn't have money now, I believe that he will definitely be wealthy in the near future."

"Who would believe that?" The girl said disdainfully, "Alright, granny, let's go, they've already shown us the cold shoulder."

"Alright, let's leave, we can come back tomorrow," the granny laughed and said.

"I'm not coming back." The girl shook her head, "You can come back by yourself if you want."

"Why are you so disobedient?" Granny Zhou frowned.

No sooner had the door closed, than there came another knock. Nuo Xiaoxi was a little impatient now, shouting through the door, "Stop knocking, I already said Brother Lin isn't home, even if you knock the door down, it's useless."

"Xiao Xi, it's me!" Lin Chuan's voice came through.

"Huh?!" Nuo Xiaoxi was stunned and ran toward the front door, then hurriedly opened it and excitedly said, "Brother Lin, is it you?"

"What did you just say? Did someone come looking for me?" Lin Chuan asked.

"No... nothing like that," Nuo Xiaoxi quickly shook her head. Her gaze flitted about, and after hemming and hawing for quite some time, she said, "Brother Lin, you... you rest first; I'll bring out the food."

After saying that, she dashed into the kitchen.

Watching Nuo Xiaoxi's complex expression, Lin Chuan felt something odd. He thought to himself, what's gotten into this girl, why does she keep changing moods? Could there be some kind of problem? While it puzzled him, Lin Chuan didn't dwell on it. Having been busy all day, he took off his coat and hung it on the rack nearby.

Nuo Xiaoxi stood at the kitchen door, poked her head out, and stole a curious glance at Lin Chuan. Seeing that Lin Chuan didn't seem to suspect anything, she breathed a sigh of relief, patted her chest gently, and said, "That was close, almost got caught by Brother Lin."

Nuo Xiaoxi didn't want those people to set Lin Chuan up with someone. Everyone knew Brother Lin was wealthy now and were all eager to get close to him. Nuo Xiaoxi liked Lin Chuan and didn't want him to be snatched away by someone else, so she used her own little methods to fend off these hidden rivals. The girl had her wits about her.

Before long, Mrs. Lin also came back from work, the closer to the end of the year, the busier it got.

The three of them gathered around the table to start their meal.

"It's getting busier lately," Mrs. Lin muttered while eating, "From now on, you don't have to wait for me to have dinner; I can't exactly say what time I'll be back. You guys go ahead and eat; I'll just warm up my food when I return."

"How can that be okay?" Lin Chuan shook his head and said, "No matter how late you come back, we should wait for you."

"Right," Nuo Xiaoxi nodded, adding, "Auntie, I and Brother Lin will definitely wait for you."

Knock knock knock...

At this moment, the sound of knocking at the door came again. Nuo Xiaoxi's heart skipped a beat. She thought to herself, this isn't good, could it be the matchmakers coming for Brother Lin again? Nuo Xiaoxi quickly stood up and said, "I... I'll go open the door."

After speaking, she hurried over and opened the door, only to find it was Aunt Zhou from the neighborhood committee.

"Granny Zhou, it's you?" Nuo Xiaoxi was pleasantly surprised and said, "Have you eaten? Please come in."

"What a good girl," Aunt Zhou said with a smile. "How's it working out for you at Lin Chuan's place?"

"Mm-hmm, everything's great," Nuo Xiaoxi nodded vigorously, then added, "Granny, please come in. Don't catch a cold out there."

"Alright," said Aunt Zhou, nodding quickly. After walking in, she commented, "Oh, this smells delightful, Xiaoxi. You have good cooking skills."

"You flatter me," Nuo Xiaoxi replied with a smile.

"I'm not flattering you," Aunt Zhou laughed, "Mrs. Lin always talks about this. Hehe..."

Upon hearing this, Nuo Xiaoxi blushed. Did this mean Mrs. Lin really liked her? Surely she would have a pleasant time living with her in the future. Otherwise, why would she always sing her praises? Nuo Xiaoxi was even more thrilled and quickly said, "Oh no, it's nothing like that."

"Oh, has Sister Zhou come over?" Mrs. Lin hurriedly welcomed her.

"Yes." Aunt Zhou had always been respected in the Changlin Factory community, so wherever she went, she carried a certain presence. Mrs. Lin, supporting Aunt Zhou by the elbow, said, "Come on, have something to eat."

"I've eaten, I'm getting old, so I don't eat much, just a little," said Aunt Zhou with a smile.

"Alright then, please have a seat," Mrs. Lin responded with a smile. "Xiaoxi, pour a glass of water for Granny Zhou."

"Okay," Nuo Xiaoxi quickly nodded.

After some bustling about, Aunt Zhou got straight to the point, "Mrs. Lin, I came today for a specific reason."

"What's that?" Mrs. Lin inquired.

Lin Chuan was also showing keen interest, eating his meal while curiously watching Aunt Zhou. She, too, looked at Lin Chuan with great interest, as if they admired each other. Aunt Zhou said with a smile, "My visit today is mainly to set up a blind date for Lin Chuan. The previous attempts didn't work out, and I've reflected on it. The first couple of times I was too careless, so this time, I have someone trustworthy in mind to introduce to him."

"Ah?" Mrs. Lin was taken aback.

"Oh, don't be so surprised. This time, I won't be asking you guys for any money," Aunt Zhou said with a grin. "This time, I want to introduce my niece, Zhou Rui, to Lin Chuan. What do you think, is it suitable?"

"Zhou Rui?!" Mrs. Lin looked at Aunt Zhou in surprise and said, "Sister Zhou, you... you're not mistaken, are you?"

"Of course not," Aunt Zhou laughed. "My Zhou Rui is beautiful and good-looking, and she has also studied abroad, so she's somewhat of a returnee, right? She will be here tomorrow, so I was thinking about bridging a connection between the two, let them get to know each other, and if it works out, we could settle the marriage after the New Year. What do you say?"

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