Chapter 172 Su Laosan is no ordinary person

"If it weren't for my cousin and cousin-in-law, my life would be ruined. It couldn't be worse than this... Don't worry, Auntie, I'll take care of you when I'm successful..."

"You silly child." Erniu's mother sighed, feeling sorry for her niece who came from such a family. "Since you insist on leaving, your aunt won't stop you. Have you decided when you're leaving?"

Hu Erya nodded and said, "My cousin-in-law is buying me a ticket. He'll leave once he gets a sleeper berth."

“…Okay, wait two days, and I’ll make you two sets of clothes. Take them with you,” Erniu’s mother said hurriedly.

Hu Erya didn't stand on ceremony and thanked her generously.

Erniu's mother sewed several small pockets into her clothes and put a total of two hundred yuan inside. There were fifty-yuan notes, ten-yuan notes, five-yuan notes, two-yuan notes, one-yuan notes, fifty-cent notes, and small coins. She told her to take as much money as she needed and not to let anyone see that she had money hidden on her. She also told her to come back if things didn't work out there.

Hu Erya's eyes reddened with emotion as she hugged Erniu's mother and called her "Second Aunt," saying, "Thank you, Second Aunt."

"...Why did you have to go so far away, kid?"

Erniu's mother felt terrible. The thought of her teenage daughter running away alone from the north to the south made her resent her older sister. How could she be so heartless to her own flesh and blood?!

"...What if you run into bad guys? We can't even reach out to help you. What will you do all by yourself?"

Su Laosan peeked out from the side and called to Erniu's mother, "Auntie, Erniu's cousin isn't alone. We have acquaintances there, a retired veteran, my uncle's comrade-in-arms. He went there to do business a couple of years ago, and Uncle Xiao helped him make the connections. I specifically asked my uncle to contact him. He said he'd pick her up at the train station and guarantee to find her a stable job..."

Erniu's mother looked at him in surprise.

"...I wouldn't dare let my cousin go so far away by herself if there's no one around." Su Laosan felt embarrassed under his future mother-in-law's gaze, scratched his head, and gave a dry laugh.

Erniu's mother noticed his embarrassment and glanced at her daughter.

Fang Erniu nodded repeatedly.

He said, “Mom, I’ve already told you, Su Laosan isn’t an ordinary person. His family is very wealthy. You know my future sister-in-law, right? She’s a high school English teacher, and her sister-in-law works for the government and gets a government job—she’s really impressive! Her older brother owns a company and has hired a lot of people. My sister-in-law told me that if our business doesn’t go well, I can go work at her brother’s company. They can pay me seventy or eighty a month. And my future child’s second uncle is in the army with Su Laosan’s older brother…”

He got more and more excited as he talked, and his eyes lit up.

"...Old Su is good-looking, treats me well, and makes money. I'm telling you, I couldn't find such a good partner even with a lantern, and you're still complaining..."

Fang Erniu's praise made Su Laosan beam with joy.

Erniu's mother, "..."

He cursed his silly daughter in his heart, calling her a simpleton.

She was carrying a lantern, and she looked at her daughter's eyes, which were like lanterns, big, blinking lanterns.

Fang Erniu looked at Su Laosan with a grin, her eyes practically overflowing with admiration.

That look in his eyes that said, "The man I found is awesome," made Su Laosan feel smug and proud. He stood up straight and couldn't be happier.

Erniu's mother looked at Su Laosan, who was completely under her daughter's thumb, and felt both annoyed and amused.

These two are truly a perfect match, like a turtle eyeing a green bean.

She sighed and said, "Girls really are like that; once they grow up, they're gone. If you try to keep them here, they'll just turn into enemies."

Hu Erya smiled to herself.

The gloom in the little girl's eyes had disappeared, and she looked much more cheerful. Her smiling eyes were very endearing.

Seeing this, Erniu's mother sighed again, "What a tragedy."

After seeing Hu Erya off, Erniu's mother went home and reassured her family.

They said, "Erniu can't delay any longer. She's already twenty-two. If she doesn't get married soon, people will gossip about her. What do you think?"

"...I already told you. Every morning when I go to the fields, people ask me why my little sister isn't married yet, wondering if she's trying to take advantage of us. They're so gossipy, I had to yell at them back."

Fang San Sao lightly spat to the side, glanced at her husband who looked satisfied, and raised an eyebrow at Fang Da Sao.

Sister-in-law Fang rolled her eyes. "Anyone who dares to gossip about my little sister in front of me, I'll give them a good slap!"

Erniu's mother glanced at her two daughters-in-law and then went to look at her two sons.

The two brothers weren't afraid of being gossiped about; as long as Fang Erniu married well, it would be fine sooner or later.

“…If you don’t want to marry and stay at home, we can support you,” Brother Fang said.

Fang Xiaodi nodded repeatedly, "Yes, we can support Second Sister!"

Sister-in-law Fang and Sister-in-law Fang exchanged a glance, their expressions not very pleasant.

Erniu's mother saw this, frowned, and called for Erniu's father.

The couple looked at each other, and Erniu's father coughed and said, "If you don't think Su Laosan is suitable, then let Mom find a matchmaker to look for Erniu again. There's bound to be someone good..."

"I don't think Su Laosan is bad."

Erniu's mother glared at Erniu's father. What kind of eye contact was that? Was he blind?

"Compared to those burly, rough men in the village, or those weak, helpless chickens, Su Laosan is infinitely better. I am..."

She couldn't quite explain what was wrong, but the thought of her daughter getting married made her feel uneasy.

Who knows how long Su Laosan's business will last? If it goes under, he won't even have a piece of land left. What will Erniu eat if she follows him?

What will they do if they have another child?

Even if she could work at her sister-in-law's company, she would still be living under someone else's roof. As sisters-in-law, she would be inferior to them, and she didn't want her daughter to suffer that.

"mom……"

Brother Fang guessed his mother's concerns and advised her, "I heard that many factories in the area have started restructuring and laid off a lot of people. These days, even a secure job isn't guaranteed. You can't have too high expectations for Erniu's boyfriend. Think about Su Laosan's family background; in fact, we're marrying up..."

"What do you mean by 'marrying up'? When he first started dating my second sister, he was incredibly lazy and good-for-nothing. Whenever he went out with my second sister, he would ask his mother for money. If his mother didn't give him any, my second sister wouldn't even get an ice pop on a hot day." Fang Xiaodi was dissatisfied with his older brother's description of "marrying up".

Brother Fang glanced at him and said, "Let me finish what I have to say."

Fang Xiaodi turned his head away.

"Su Laosan seems to be a promising guy. I asked my younger sister about him, and she said he can earn about ten yuan for each trip, which adds up to several hundred yuan a month. My younger sister said he plans to save up a thousand yuan to propose marriage, and then save up money to get thirty-six legs for her. His mother has a dowry of six hundred and sixty yuan and a bicycle ticket. Mom, none of us in the surrounding villages can afford that. And even if we take a step back..."

Fang Xiaodi wanted to say that Su Laosan had only made progress in the last two months, but was interrupted by Fang Dage's look, so he could only hold his breath and wait for his elder brother to speak first.

"Even if Su Laosan is useless, his parents can make money, and his older brother and sister-in-law, along with so many capable people in his maternal family, would they let their little sister go hungry?"