Shen Qing looked at Wang Po's departing back, feeling sad. Her least beloved son lived a life a thousand times better than hers and would never come back. She could only continue to endure a hard life in the village. And because of Wang San's departure, there must be some unrest in their family because of who worked more or less. For Wang Po, this could be considered a lesson.
He pulled Song Kaiji's hand away, and there was a red mark on the palm of his hand. He complained: "You're always causing trouble. Did you get burned?" Originally, Shen Qing didn't plan to come out to help carry the pot. It was Song Kaiji who wanted to come, but he didn't do the job well and burned his hand. Shen Qing was afraid that he would get burned again, so he took it.
Song Kaiji chuckled. Shen Qing blew on his hand, and seeing his expression, he felt embarrassed to blame him. They went back to the room hand in hand to apply medicine. Whether it was Mrs. Wang or Wang San, those not-so-long-ago past events, like the steam rising from rice porridge, gradually dissipated in this cold winter.
The next day, Lian Ou got married.
Shen Qing came down the mountain early in the morning and went to Lianou's room to accompany him. There were a few guys in the room who were good friends with Lianou but not familiar with Shen Qing. At first, they were a little restrained in front of Shen Qing - after all, Shen Qing had a fierce reputation and a good record. But they were all guys of similar age, especially today was a good day for Lianou, Shen Qing also tried to ease the atmosphere, and gradually everyone relaxed, and a group of people laughed and joked.
Wu Guixiang is serving as Mrs. Quanfu today, which means she is a perfect person with both parents alive, two children, and a harmonious marriage. In Miao Hexiang's eyes, Wu Guixiang's ability to become the real person in charge of the village makes her envious and hopeful, so she insists that she be the one to do the face and hair for Lian Ou to be Mrs. Quanfu, thinking that this is more blessed than ordinary blessings.
Wu Guixiang was so flattered that she was at a loss for words and agreed without hesitation. At this moment, she held a boiled egg in her hand and rolled it carefully on Lianou's face, and then pinched two thin ropes to twist the fluff on Lianou's face.
The face that had been twisted immediately became white, tender and smooth - mainly because the sweat hair was twisted away. But soon Lian Ou's face began to turn red again. Shen Qing and the other boys were all licking their teeth when they saw it: "Brother Ou, does it hurt?"
Lian Ou thought for a while before saying, "It doesn't hurt at all, but it hurts occasionally when I stretch a hair, but it's bearable."
Several young men held their faces, as if imagining what that would feel like. Wu Guixiang took the time to look at Shen Qing's face. Yes, the hairs were all there. Even though he was pretending to have been married outside, Wu Guixiang had the idea of teasing him and said, "When Qing'er holds a wedding banquet in the village, do you want to hold one too? Then ask your mother to invite me to be the bride and groom, and I will also pinch your face."
Why are you hiding this? Even if you say you want to hold another one, who in the village dares to say anything!
Shen Qing was stunned, his face flushed, "I, I'll go back and ask."
At this time, Lian Shi moved several loads of dowry from the wing room to the yard: this was to be displayed for the guests, and those who were close to him would add more dowry. Seeing this, the young men in the room could not sit still, and Shen Qing also hurriedly followed him and ran to the yard.
Miao Hexiang said that she didn't have time to buy anything, but in fact she rushed to get a lot of things for Lianou. The main thing was that she didn't have time to make the big furniture. Fortunately, Minghe bought Shen Qing's small courtyard at the foot of the mountain, which had a kang, bed, table, chairs and kang cabinet. Shen Qing left them all to them. They were just two people, so they didn't need a lot. These were enough.
Miao Hexiang bought exquisite things. Pots, pans, chopsticks, spoons, basins, buckets, and six quilts of different thicknesses. For a farmer, this was a good dowry worth a lot of money. What was even more eye-catching was the two pieces of satin, which sparkled in the sun. The neighbors and the young men who came to watch the fun were all amazed. One of them enviously said, "When I get married, I wish my parents could give me so many things."
"My parents probably won't buy me satin. My mother doesn't love children as much as Second Aunt Lian does."
"You little heartless girl, don't you see how much betrothal gifts Ou'er's husband gave? I've never seen such a generous betrothal gift for marrying a girl in this area. If you can find a man who gives such a large betrothal gift, I will also be willing to give you so much as a gift!"
"You know what, monks who have returned to secular life are quite wealthy..."
A little sour, but generally envy in good faith. Several young men also took out their gifts. Now that Shen Qing's workshop is in the village, everyone's life is better and they can give away more things. Some people gave a headband, some gave a purse, and some gave a pair of shoes they sewed themselves. Shen Qing looked around and didn't take out his gifts that didn't fit in. He went back to the room and put two heavy silver bracelets on Lianou's wrists without telling anyone.
Lian Ou was surprised: "Qingge, this is too expensive."
"Take it," Shen Qing held down his hand that was about to take it off, "When I gave birth, you and Aunt Lian stood in front of my door. This friendship is worth any number of bracelets."
Lian Ou touched the bracelet on his wrist while listening to these words. He seemed to remember the danger at that time, and his eyes became a little sore again.
"Don't cry, you need to put on your makeup now. It won't look good if your makeup is smudged by crying." Wu Guixiang advised quickly. She was watching from the side but was not angry at all. Qing'er has always been a kind person who repays kindness and has never treated their family badly.
"Put on your makeup later!" Lian Rong came out of the kitchen, holding a bowl of steamed eggs with sesame oil and minced meat on top. "Brother, eat before you put on your makeup, or it will look smudged."
Lian Ou had to hold out for the whole day today and also had to wear her wedding dress, which was not convenient, and it was best not to eat anything with soup. Lian Rong got up early and steamed a bowl of minced meat and eggs for her second brother, and sprinkled some dried shrimps from the betrothal gift on it. It tasted amazing.
Lianou lowered her head to eat, and Lianrong took out a small red satin purse embroidered with gold thread: this was her gift to her second brother. She wrapped two snacks in oil paper and put them inside, then tied them to Lianou's body: "Second brother, if you get hungry later, eat this!"
Lianou agreed with a smile. He was wearing a bright red wedding dress. Although it was not made of satin, it had beautiful laces, and now it was even more beautiful with this exquisite sachet. After eating the steamed eggs, Wu Guixiang wanted to comb Lianou's hair and put on makeup. Miao Chunlei also came at this time. She thought Wu Guixiang's hands were not dexterous enough, so she also came to help make Lianou look good.
As soon as Miao Chunlei entered the room, she said, "Xiao Song and her mother-in-law are here too. They are sitting at the next table." Shen Qing responded and went out.
At noon, the Lian family had to set up a banquet. The Lian family had good relationships in the village, and Miao Hexiang was married from Shiqu Village, so many relatives from Shiqu Village came to have a feast. The Lian family’s house couldn’t accommodate everyone, so they borrowed several houses next door, mainly because it was too cold to have a feast in the courtyard in the twelfth month.
There were about ten tables of various kinds, and Shen Qing's house was relatively close, being right next door.
If it weren't for giving Shen Qing face and understanding how weddings are held in this world, Zhang Sujuan didn't really want to go down the mountain. She was a little scared of this unfamiliar environment, but fortunately no one came to talk to her - this was the mother of a nobleman, Zhang Sujuan was scared, and the villagers were even more scared. They all stood far away, pretending to be casual, and observed Zhang Sujuan with their peripheral vision.
Zhang Sujuan was dressed very richly today, with two wigs and several hairpins on her head. She sat there staring at the empty table, her eyes watching her nose and her nose watching her heart. It was not until she saw Shen Qing coming in that she smiled: "Qingqing!"
"Mom," Shen Qing came over and shook hands with Song Kaiji before sitting next to Zhang Sujuan. Seeing Zhang Sujuan staring at the table, he said, "Are you hungry? The meal will start soon."
"...No." Zhang Sujuan whispered, "It's just that people keep looking at me, which makes me feel uncomfortable. I don't know where to look, for fear that I might accidentally make eye contact with them, which would be very embarrassing."
Shen Qing couldn't help laughing, and introduced Zhang Sujuan: "Everyone in this room is close to the Lian family. Most of them have a good relationship with me. Let me introduce them to you." Shen Qing looked around and met someone's eyes: "This is Aunt Yan Zi, who has a good relationship with my mother. When I was having a hard time in the past, Aunt Yan Zi often secretly gave me food. Now her son Tieshan is a constable in the government office, and he is very promising."
Aunt Yanzi smiled and said, "No, it's all thanks to Qing'er that he was able to get a job." After chatting for a while, it was still a bit awkward, and neither side knew what to say. Aunt Yanzi found an excuse to go out, and turned around and said to others, "Qing'er's mother-in-law is really impressive. You can tell at a glance that she comes from a wealthy family. Her tone of voice is different from ours."
"That's right. I was so scared when Qing Ge'er wanted to introduce me to someone. I didn't know where to put my hands and feet in front of that rich man."
"But she is really kind and nice to Qing Ge'er."
"He's being so kind to us, probably because of Qing Ge'er's sake..."
A group of people grumbled, but Zhang Sujuan achieved her goal. Now everyone in the village knew that Qingge'er's mother-in-law was a rich lady with a certain style, but she was especially kind to Qingge'er, and for Qingge'er she was willing to talk to these country people in a friendly manner!
After a while, the dishes were served one after another. At this time, the eldest wife of the Lian family finally arrived.
Originally, when Lianou got married, the closest relatives were his own family members, so they should have come to help early. However, the two families had a big fight over the separation of the family, and their relationship had long been alienated. If it wasn't for the fact that it was inappropriate for the family members not to come when his brother got married, Miao Hexiang didn't even want to invite the eldest wife!
But it was not very appropriate to do it at the right time for the feast. When Wang arrived, she looked around the dowry in the yard. Lian Rong stared at her closely, afraid that she would take something away: Wang was not incapable of doing such a thing.
But today, many people came to see the dowry, and Wang didn't take anything. She just looked at it for a while and said sourly, "A brother gets married with so many things. It's more than what you give to your own brothers."
This is about Lian Lao Er, but no one paid attention to her at this moment. Wang was extremely jealous. At first, when she heard that Lian Ou was going to marry a monk in a hurry, she felt a little gloating. Who knew that this monk was so rich and valued Lian Ou so much! There were some rumors in the village at first, but when the betrothal gifts were sent to the Lian family, there was only envy.
No one responded to her, and she couldn't even find anyone to talk to her weirdly. Wang walked around the yard before returning to the table in a depressed mood.
There were two cold dishes on the table: Miao Hexiang put them on a large plate to create a perfect auspicious omen. There were not many dishes but they were very filling. One plate was made of cut salted duck eggs and preserved eggs, and the other was made of cold gluten, bean curd, vegetarian chicken, shredded chicken, and aspic.
Then there were two vegetarian dishes. They were called vegetarian dishes, but they were also tainted with meat. One was fried tofu with green onions and pork slices, and the other was stir-fried dried shrimp with vermicelli and celery. These used seafood from the betrothal gifts. There wasn't much, but it was to show how much the son-in-law had put in! Whose betrothal gifts would have this stuff? They could just buy some snacks in the city!
After that, it was meat dishes. For today's feast, Miao Hexiang bought two pigs! Pigs before the New Year are precious, and they are waiting to sell them, but the Lian family doesn't lack this little money. Besides, the Lian family also wants to give face to Lianou: Lianou's man is the only one in the village, so his mother's family must show how much they value Lianou, so that the couple will not be looked down upon in the village in the future.
There were four main dishes: a whole pork elbow in rock sugar, pig's trotters for the chicken, a large braised carp, and a large pot of pickled cabbage, spareribs and blood sausage. Just these four dishes made the villagers praise them endlessly. The Lian family was really wealthy and they lived a better life after the separation!
Wang felt even more upset when she heard the villagers praising the second wife and criticizing her own family. Lian Laoda pulled her aside and said, "Just be quiet. Aren't you tired of making trouble?"
Wang lowered her head in grievance. She also knew that if she wanted to live a good life now, she had to bend down and lower her head to please Miao Hexiang and Shen Qing. But how could she swallow this? She should be better than Miao Hexiang in every way...
It was all Shen Qing's fault. He had always been partial to the Second Branch, allowing the Second Branch to surpass his own family! Wang looked around and soon saw Shen Qing sitting at another table, as well as the handsome man and wealthy wife next to him.
Everyone ate enthusiastically, their mouths full of oil, and praised the Lian family endlessly: now they no longer call it the second branch of the Lian family, but only the Lian family, as if the separated first branch did not exist. Someone even joked: "Eat more at noon, when you get there in the evening, the monks will only serve you vegetarian dishes!" This caused the villagers to laugh and scold: "You can't even eat enough, and you still have time to arrange a groom! People have returned to secular life and married a husband, and you can't eat meat?"
When the meal was almost over, the groom came to pick up the bride. Several young men came out with Lian Ou, who was dressed up. He was a young man who looked like a girl, and now with makeup on, he looked like a beautiful woman. Ming He just smiled foolishly when he saw him, and his face turned red.
After that, there was the wedding ceremony and the sedan chair dinner. Miao Hexiang was really reluctant to let her son go. No matter how nice she said, she was worried that her son would not live happily after marriage. She shed two tears. Lian Ou was just overjoyed. Why was she crying? She was marrying so close to him, and he was her sweetheart. There were no old father-in-law or old woman at home to pressure her. She had the final say in everything. She could go back to her parents' home in just a few steps. Lian Ou was not worried at all. Miao Hexiang shed two tears and looked up, wishing she could slap Lian Ou a few times.
You have no conscience!
They got on the sedan chair and soon arrived at the new house. They thought the groom was an orphan, and there was no one to help him and not many guests. But it turned out that there were no fewer guests than the Lian family. The workshop next door also lent him a room: some monks from the temple ran away secretly, and most of them were vendors from Miaoqian Village. They were good friends with Ming He and knew lotus roots. They all came to congratulate him and help Ming He with the arrangements.
Several young men came with Lian Ou, but Miao Hexiang and his wife could not follow them. They just stood at the door of their house and looked over there. Shen Qing also put down his bowl and chopsticks: "I'll go with you. After we finish eating, you and mom can go back first."
Song Kaiji nodded. Their family was on good terms with the Lian family, but they were not familiar with Ming He. Shen Qing was just accompanying Lian Ou as a friend. It would be inconvenient to bring the whole family to the banquet. Miao Chunlei did not go with them either. Song Kaiji thought that after the meal, he would send the two mothers home first, and then he would come to pick up Qingqing.
But after dinner, Miao Hexiang felt uncomfortable again. She started to miss her brother as soon as she got married, and she talked to Miao Chunlei for a long time. When they returned, they had been delayed for quite a while. As soon as the three of them walked out of Lian's house, they saw a little boy trembling and rushing towards Song Kaiji as if he was going to die.
Song Kaiji: “…” Do you think he is blind?
He slightly turned his body, and the young man, who must have been extremely scared, rushed towards him with his eyes closed and passed straight past him.
Song Kaiji: “…”
Miao Chunlei: “…”
Zhang Sujuan: “…”
Wang couldn't help it any longer, so she rushed over from the side, grabbed the boy who had closed his eyes and rushed over, and pointed at Song Kaiji tremblingly: "Someone come here, you are flirting with a decent boy in broad daylight..."
Miao Chunlei was so angry that she said, "Wang, are you sick? Open your dog eyes and see if you have touched the edge of our brother and son-in-law's clothes!" If she had a knife at hand, she really wanted to chop Wang to death!
Miao Hexiang also rushed out of the house. She was in a bad mood, and Wang was still bumping into the muzzle of the gun! But Song Kaiji rarely came to the village, and even less often without Shen Qing. Wang had this idea and didn't want to give up easily. She bumped into Lian Ye several times, forcing him to raise his head.
Doesn't this noble lady have a special fetish for ugly guys? Lian Ye in her family doesn't look that good either!
Song Kaiji, on the other hand, looked thoughtful when he saw Lian Ye's face. The Miao sisters were cursing at Wang and were about to attack her, but Song Kaiji suddenly said, "I know what you are thinking. He didn't touch me just now, and many people saw it. How about this, sell this boy to me for ten taels of silver, and I won't bother with you."
Wang had been doing this reluctantly, but now that Song Kaiji was willing to buy Lianye, she was overjoyed. Sure enough, this nobleman just liked the ugly boy!
She subconsciously thought that Song Kaiji bought Lian Ye just to do that.
Miao Chunlei was stunned for a moment, and looked back at Song Kaiji, as if she wanted to get angry, but hesitated. She was in a dilemma for a moment, but didn't say anything. Miao Hexiang rushed over and slapped Wang twice: "How shameless! You are rushing to send your son to someone else to be a concubine!"
Wang originally wanted to negotiate the price, but after being hit by Miao Hexiang, her anger overwhelmed her reason: "How dare you hit the noble! The noble has set his eyes on our Lian Ye, what can you do if you are not convinced?"
Miao Hexiang stared at Song Kaiji, but didn't dare to make a move. Wang was even more proud. Song Kaiji raised his eyebrows, but didn't refute. He looked around and found Zhao Youdang: "Come on, village chief, help me write a personal contract."
Wang felt something was wrong at the moment, and said hesitantly, "At least we have to give some gifts and get a sedan chair to pick him up..." As long as Lian Ye from their family is favored by the noble, wouldn't their family get more benefits than the second branch of the Lian family who is one floor away?
Song Kaiji acted impatient and said, "Then forget it."
"Sell! Sell! Take it away now!" Wang was suddenly anxious. Opportunities are rare and will never come back again. If missed, such a good opportunity will never come back!
Song Kaiji glanced at the eldest brother of the Lian family who had been silent at the side and said, "You don't have any objections, right?"
The eldest brother of the Lian family was silent for a while and then nodded.
Miao Hexiang started cursing again, this time at the eldest son of the Lian family. It turned out that two people could not be two different even if they slept in the same bed. What was the difference between him and Wang?
Song Kaiji whispered a few words in Zhao Youdang's ear, and Zhao Youdang took out a pen and ink and wrote a deed. Lian Laoda and Wang Shi could not read, but since it was written by the village chief, they did not doubt it and happily pressed their fingerprints, and also pulled Lian Ye to press his fingerprints.
Song Kaiji took out ten taels of silver from his pocket, threw it to Wang, and dusted off the deed: "From now on, this boy will have nothing to do with your Lian family."
Wang was a little dissatisfied. How could it be okay? Their family would always be Lian Ye's family. Even if Lian Ye became rich by marrying a noble, she could not forget her parents, and she could not forget to support her brothers. But when Lian Laoda secretly pulled her again, Wang stopped talking.
Why bother to upset the noble now? When Lian Ye is favored and wins the noble's heart, they will naturally have a good life! When the time comes, that ugly guy Shen Qing and that bitch Miao Hexiang, just wait and see!
So when Shen Qing came out of the small courtyard at the foot of the mountain - now it was the Ming family courtyard, he saw Song Kaiji waiting outside, with the trembling Lian Ye beside him.
Shen Qing:?
He looked at Song Kaiji in confusion: "What is this?"
"Qingqing," Song Kaiji ran over happily to ask for praise: "Didn't you tell Lianou last time that he was so pitiful that he couldn't get around his parents to help him? I bought him."
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