Chapter 80

Upon entering the main room, while Shu Wanxiu went to pour water, Xun Ai surveyed the entire house of the Shu family.

It was a fairly spacious room, with not many items inside. Apart from chairs, most things were hanging on wooden hooks nailed to the wall, and were not piled up haphazardly.

The ground was uneven and muddy, but it was swept clean and not much dust was stirred up.

Shu Wanxiu moved quickly, returning with a bowl of clear boiled water in both hands.

Xun Ai stood up and accepted the gifts with both hands. After sitting down again, he explained his purpose and handed over the items he had brought.

After finishing the initial pleasantries, Xun Ai changed the subject and started chatting casually.

He first praised Shu Wanxiu's cooking skills, and then talked about the local customs and culture of the North.

Xun Ai and Xun Yi's father were originally from the north, and they had heard about the scenery of the north since childhood.

Shu Wanxiu, who was initially a little reserved, relaxed as the conversation went on.

Xun Ai sat in the main room of the Shu family for a full quarter of an hour.

In the woods outside, Xun Yi, who had been leaning leisurely against a tree, began pacing back and forth anxiously.

"Why did you take so long?"

As soon as Xun Ai came out and was out of Shu Wanxiu's sight, he chased after her and asked her questions.

"Because I get along well with Sister Shu."

As long as we click, that's fine.

Xun Yi felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from his heart.

As for what the two had just talked about, Xun Yi felt he shouldn't ask, so he simply lifted his leg and said, "Let's go, aren't we going to Aunt Chen's house?"

This was part of the plan that had been in place for some time. Xun Ai brought things for Chen Sanhe, and she followed Xun Yi down the mountain along the path.

"Brother, have you thought about what kind of betrothal gifts you should prepare for Sister Shu?"

Xun Yi took it as casual conversation, so he told her what he had planned.

"Ten taels of silver as betrothal money, two gold hairpins, two silver hairpins, two bolts of cloth, plus three kinds of sacrificial animals, betrothal cakes, and yellow wine..."

The more Xun Ai listened, the more familiar it seemed, and in the end, he was both amused and exasperated.

Isn't this almost the same as the betrothal gift the Wu family gave her back then?

Generous as it may be, but...

"Brother," Xun Ai said solemnly.

"What if I told you that there's something Sister Shu really wants to buy? Would you include it in the betrothal gifts?"

Xun Yi saw that she didn't seem to be joking, so he became serious and asked, "What is it?"

...

Xun Ai's visit was quite unexpected for Shu Wanxiu.

But as the saying goes, an ugly daughter-in-law must eventually meet her in-laws. Since she had verbally agreed to the marriage, she would have to meet Xun Ai sooner or later. It was just that their meeting today was a bit unexpected.

Xun Ai is not difficult to get along with; in fact, he can be described as extremely kind and lovable.

After talking with her for a while, Shu Wanxiu had already formed a very good impression of her.

Now that Xun Yi has confessed to his family, it's time for her to discuss it with her uncle.

besides……

Shu Wanxiu's gaze fell on Shu Shouyi.

She didn't know how to bring it up with Shouyi.

Admittedly, she was Shu Shouyi's aunt and an elder, and her marriage did not require Shu Shouyi's approval.

However, the two had been living together day and night, relying on each other for survival, and had already developed a deep affection for each other. In addition, after she married Xun Yi, Shu Shouyi also had to live with her.

Therefore, Shu Wanxiu had to inform him and also ask him what his feelings were towards Xun Yi.

She looked at the sky and thought: I'll go to Wuli Village first thing tomorrow morning, and then tell Shu Shouyi when I get back.

If the three-day downpour delayed Xun Ai's return to her parents' home, it also caused someone to be filled with worry.

Since the rain started, Shu Yanrong has been depressed all day.

Why?

Because the rain came at just the right time.

The rain started the day after they went to the county town to pay the deposit for the grain.

It was certainly a good thing that the rice wouldn't die from drought, but Shu Yanrong would sigh dozens of times a day, regretting that he had bought the grain too early.

"Uncle? You..." Shu Wanxiu paused, unable to finish her sentence.

She set off early in the morning, but unexpectedly saw the three members of the Shu family carrying grain, and she was filled with self-reproach.

She'd been so busy these past few days that she'd completely forgotten about asking her uncle to buy grain.

It's not appropriate to have my cousins ​​do all the work of transporting the grain when no one is guarding the water.

As for regret, once she made the decision to buy grain, Shu Wanxiu decided that she could not regret it.

After all, it was something that had been carefully considered in terms of both advantages and disadvantages long ago.

Seeing Shu Yanrong and the others carrying grain, she had another thought besides remembering that she had bought grain herself—now that there was surplus grain, she could cook a little more grain for each meal in the future.

She maintained a very positive attitude, her expression showing no trace of gloom, and said, "Eldest cousin, second cousin, are you carrying grain?"

"Uncle, is the grain I asked you to buy included here?"

Seeing Shu Wanxiu's smiling face, Shu Yanrong's brows relaxed a little.

The Shu Yanrong family had just had an argument last night.

Shu Yanrong proposed that his family pay for all the grain and then return it to Shu Wanxiu in cash.

The three, led by Xu Zhen, held opposing views.

“We don’t have much money left. If you hoard all the food at once, things will get tough later on.”

The argument last night didn't reach a conclusion, so now they're moving the grain. This is Shu Yanrong's private decision, despite the objections of Xu Zhen and the others. He plans to mix all the grain into his own granary.

Shu Yanrong's expression changed noticeably. After greeting Shu Wanxiu, the two Shu brothers, Shu Chenglin and Shu Wanxiu, quickly put down the grain and stood aside with a keen eye.

"Why did you come here today? Come on, let's go inside and talk."

Shu Yanrong invited them into the house, and Xu Zhen also saw Shu Wanxiu and the others.

Xu Zhen was dissatisfied with Shu Yanrong's decision, but had no objection to Shu Wanxiu. When she saw Shu Wanxiu bringing Shu Shouyi over, she came out to entertain them.

Shu Wanxiu noticed that the atmosphere at her uncle's house was a bit tense today. After thinking about it, she thought it might be related to the grain.

She persistently asked the question that Shu Yanrong hadn't answered before: "Uncle, were some of the grains outside bought by you last time?"

Her persistent questioning finally made Shu Yanrong nod, "Yes."

“I was worried about rising grain prices, so after discussing it with you that day, I went to the county the next day to order that grain.”

"Once the deposit is paid, it can't be destroyed. Although we only brought back a small portion that day, but... sigh!"

The deposit is one-third of the total price of the grain. You can cancel the contract if you want, but the deposit will not be refunded.

Left with no other option, they went to the county town yesterday after the rain stopped, transported all the grain back, and paid the remaining balance at the same time.

The original plan to transport supplies in batches to conceal the truth was no longer necessary. The rain had filled the streams and ponds, ensuring that even if there was little or no rain later, the crops would not be completely lost.

"It's alright, it's not like we were scammed out of our money. We did spend the money correctly, and we got the grain."

"We bought this grain as a life-saving measure. Wouldn't it be better if we didn't use it? If it really came to that, how difficult it would be!"

"Life is the most precious thing, and food is second only to it. Rice and soybeans are easy to store, so let's keep them safe and eat them slowly."

Shu Yanrong looked guilty, so Shu Wanxiu said some kind words to comfort him.

Most importantly, she stated that she would transport the one shi (a unit of dry measure) of rice and one shi of soybeans she had ordered back to her location.

This is a result that pleases everyone.

After settling the matter, Shu Wanxiu let Shu Shouyi go out of the house to have some fun.

"Uncle, there's something I need to tell you."