Yu Laowu was a grain and oil merchant and a good friend of Chen Botou. His family became well-known in the town through their business. Yu Laowu's eldest son Yu Liang was engaged to Chen Mo through a baby marriage arrangement arranged by both families when Yu Liang was two years older than Chen Mo. The Yu family later tried to conceal that Yu Liang had an illegitimate child and planned to let Chen Mo marry in as a fait accompli to become a concubine.
