Chapter 141 Extra 1
Zhao Xiheng subconsciously raised her head and stared wide-eyed.
two thousand?
In the past, she would never have been tempted by two thousand yuan, but now two thousand yuan could save her mother's life and take her to Shanghai, to the best Zhongshan Hospital.
Aunt Liu was so frightened that she fell off the tree stump, her bottom throbbing with pain. She yelled loudly, no longer afraid of Wei Li, "What? How much?"
Was she deaf, or had Wei Li gone mad?
two thousand?
His cousin works in the city and is very arrogant, but he only earns fifty yuan a month.
Two thousand yuan is enough to buy ten medium-sized adult cows and a 19-inch Panda TV.
"Two thousand? If you're deaf, don't come out here and embarrass yourself." Wei Li's dark pupils swept over her coldly. Aunt Liu felt scared and resentful, but she still kept quiet.
She knew Wei Li earned money driving a car, but she never imagined he could earn this much. Two thousand yuan to get married, he just took it without hesitation.
Aunt Liu's heart was trembling.
Wei Li stared at Zhao Xiheng, determined to get her to nod.
He's already given her half his savings; this brat better not take it lying down. If she dares to refuse, he... he...
He then killed her.
Zhao Xiheng had nothing to hesitate about. Marrying a fool or a good-for-nothing made no difference to her. As long as she had money to pay for her mother's medical treatment, that was enough.
"I'll marry him."
Wei Li's breath hitched. He never expected her to agree so quickly, without even thinking about it, which stunned him.
With his tarnished reputation, she'd marry him for two thousand yuan?
It took him a while to react. He blinked and frantically patted all his pockets, straightened out the wad of money, and counted it.
"That's fifty-two yuan in total, here's your deposit." He slapped the money into Zhao Xiheng's hand.
The banknotes carried the warmth of his body, and Zhao Xiheng subconsciously pulled her fingers away.
Seeing that there was no hope, Aunt Liu still didn't want to let Zhao Xiheng go, so she whispered, "Have you thought this through? He's not a good person."
Wei Li glared at her, and Aunt Liu fell silent.
Zhao Xiheng held the money, and Wei Li coughed twice to add to her, "This is not included in the bride price."
He finished speaking and left, tripping over his own feet as he went, nearly falling to the ground.
Zhao Xiheng glanced at Aunt Liu, whose expression was complicated, and wanted to say something, but Aunt Liu waved her hand, signaling Zhao Xiheng to stop talking, and then walked away with her basket of eggs.
What a waste of time, what a pointless trip.
The money in her hand was burning hot. Zhao Xiheng didn't have time to think, nor did she care about her shame, anger, or heartache. She hurriedly ran to the village store and bought half a pound of brown sugar and half a pound of eggs. She then used hot water to make brown sugar and egg drop soup and forced it down her mother's throat.
Zhao's mother has always been in poor health, a condition she was born with, and it gets worse when she's exposed to stress. This illness is sensitive to both cold and heat, requiring careful care and adequate nutrition. When it flares up, she needs to be hospitalized for treatment, with doctors and nurses watching over her constantly.
Zhao Xiheng crushed the fever-reducing medicine, brewed it, and gave it to her mother. The fever subsided and she slowly woke up in the middle of the night.
Of course, Zhao's mother knew that it wasn't easy for her daughter to raise her. She knew her daughter's temper and didn't dare to say anything like "I don't want to get treatment" or "I don't want to live anymore." She just held Zhao Xiheng's hand and comforted her, "Adan, Mom will definitely get better. Mom still has to help your father find you a good family. You must take good care of yourself. Don't let Mom get better and then you fall ill again."
Zhao Xiheng cheered up and leaned against her mother's chest, finally feeling reassured. "Mom, I also think you'll definitely get better."
She knew she couldn't hide the fact that she was getting married sooner or later, so she downplayed it and said, "Mom, I found a good young man. He's a really nice guy." Zhao Xiheng thought for a moment and said, "He's good-looking, tall, and can earn money. He's good to me... to me too..." She swallowed her sobs, "He accompanies me to the river to fetch water every day and brings me food. I'll bring him to you to meet him when I have time."
Bah! He's not nice to her at all! He throws candy at her every day and stares at her constantly. What a lecherous old bastard! Waaah, she lied to me.
Zhao's mother had no idea about the trickery involved. Her pale lips curled up slightly as she patted Zhao Xiheng's head affectionately, "My daughter is just so lovable."
Given her family's circumstances, the young man doesn't mind, so he must be a good person. As long as Ah-Dan is happy and the two of them can support each other, that's enough. Ah-Dan has suffered too much; she will only be a burden to her daughter.
Zhao's mother sighed again, "If only this hadn't happened at home, A-Dan would be in college by now."
Before dawn, a series of dog barks came from outside the window, rhythmic and regular.
Zhao Xiheng turned over, her heart pounding. Looking at her sleeping mother beside her, she tiptoed off the kang (a heated brick bed).
She cautiously pushed open the door and went out, and sure enough, she saw Wei Li standing in the courtyard. He probably sneaked in, and Zhao Xiheng didn't bother to ask any more questions.
By the dim moonlight, Zhao Xiheng saw that he was wearing a brand new Dacron jacket. Dacron was expensive and hard to buy; you needed money and connections to get it.
"Why are you barking like a dog?" Zhao Xiheng asked him. Everyone else imitates a cuckoo.
"I'd like to." Wei Li rolled his eyes. Dog barks are the easiest to imitate, after all.
"Then what are you doing here?"
"I'll take you to get our marriage certificate."
"Today?" Zhao Xiheng's eyes widened in surprise. So soon? It's not even dawn yet!
Is this guy out of his mind? He wants to take her to get a marriage certificate before dawn?
"Go and come back soon." Wei Li took out a bankbook from his pocket. "After we get the marriage certificate, this is for you."
Zhao Xiheng was still thinking about how to settle her mother. Getting the marriage certificate would definitely require taking a bus to the county, and the round trip could take a long time.
"A-Dan, who are you talking to?" Zhao's mother's weak voice suddenly came through the crack in the door.
Zhao Xiheng and Wei Li both froze.
"Is that the young man? I saw his shadow. Why is he here so early?" Zhao's mother sat up, looked at the two figures standing face to face outside the paper window, and asked with a frown.
Wei Li raised an eyebrow. "Did you tell Mom about us?"
Bah! Shameless! Who's his mother?!
Zhao Xiheng cursed inwardly, but if she didn't coordinate her statements now, things would be exposed, and her mother might be so angry that she would die, or she might be beaten to death by her mother.
Since she needed a favor, she had to soften her voice, "I told my mom we were in a free-love relationship..."
Wei Li understood, and he immediately became smug, straightening his back and saying in a smug tone, "So what are your demands now? Speak up."
Zhao Xiheng, who was usually thick-skinned, was now so embarrassed that her face was almost bleeding. Fortunately, the night provided cover. "You... could you pretend to be a good son-in-law? Just make it look like we're in a free-love relationship meeting each other's parents. Don't let my mom notice anything amiss."
"Beg me."
Zhao Xiheng was so angry she rolled her eyes inwardly, but she still managed to be flexible. She put her hands together and quickly said, "Please."
Wei Li was satisfied. He grabbed her hand, intertwined their fingers, and seeing her bewildered expression, said casually, "Didn't you say we were in a free-love relationship?"
He suddenly leaned closer, and Zhao Xiheng's face turned even redder. The intense heat of his palm made her stiffen all over. "Yes...yes..."
But how come you take advantage of others so easily?!
Her hands were small, soft, and smooth. Wei Li casually pinched them a couple of times and rubbed them in his hands.
Zhao Xiheng stiffened her body, silently chanting that she was a dead pig, and went inside hand in hand with Wei Li.
Upon seeing Zhao's mother sitting on the kang (a heated brick bed), before anyone could react, Wei Li called out, "Mom!"
Zhao's mother was startled, and Zhao Xiheng quickly pinched the flesh on his waist to tell him to be careful with his words and actions.
Wei Li didn't care. He took out the bankbook again and handed it to Zhao's mother, "Mom, I'm here today to propose marriage."
Mother Zhao then realized what was happening and quickly said, "Sit down, please sit down."
Is he here to propose marriage? No wonder he's here so early and dressed so formally.
She looked Wei Li up and down with a kind gaze, then said to Zhao Xiheng, "Go and pour him a cup of sweet soup."
Zhao Xiheng dared not leave, but facing her mother's increasingly stern gaze, she could only slink away to make the sugar water, giving Wei Li a pleading look.
Wei Li looked away, refusing to look at her, with a smug and irritating expression.
"How many people are in the child's family? Where is the family located? Who are the parents? What year were they born?"
“There’s no one left in my family. My family isn’t from here. I was sent to this village when I was a child. I was born in 1950,” Wei Li answered one by one.
"She's twenty years old, and our A-Dan is eighteen. They're a perfect match." Zhao's mother nodded, shifting her gaze from Wei Li's slightly long hair. No wonder her hair was so long and untidied; it turned out that no one in the family was left, and it was already difficult for her to take care of herself and make a living.
"What do you do? Ah-Dan said you earn a lot."
A barrage of questions left him barely a chance to catch his breath, and Wei Li couldn't help but clutch at the fabric of his trousers on his thigh.
"It's a car that's driven outside."
"How long have you known our Ah-Dan? Why do you need to ask beforehand, young man?"
“We’ve known each other for over half a month,” Wei Li thought for a moment, then suddenly added, “but it feels like we’ve known each other for a long time.”
A mischievous smile appeared on Zhao's mother's face. "You know my situation, aren't you afraid I'll be a burden to you?"
Wei Li handed her the bankbook again, "Mom, this is the betrothal gift for A-Dan." He learns to speak quickly, and he even calls Zhao Xiheng by her nickname on his own.
“I don’t lack money. I love Ah-Nan and want to get married soon so that we can take care of you together.”
There was three thousand yuan in the savings account, which was indeed a lot, but Zhao's mother was not impressed. She just felt more pity for the boy. He had grown up alone and had to work very hard to save three thousand yuan. The young man was very sincere.
She didn't actually want to marry Ah-Dan off so soon, but she knew her own body was failing and she couldn't afford to waste any more time. If she could find Ah-Dan a reliable home, she could go to see her husband in peace.
These days, almost everything is arranged by matchmakers, and two people get married shyly after just one meeting.
Ah-Dan and Xiao-Wei are lucky to have fallen in love freely; it's a thousand times better than being introduced by a matchmaker.
Zhao's mother wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and looked at him with a smile, "You and A-Dan should discuss the marriage."
“Our A-Dan has been spoiled since childhood, has a big temper, and is a bit arrogant, but she is kind-hearted, smart, and learns everything quickly. If there are any conflicts, you must talk them out calmly. Once you talk it out, everything will be fine. A-Dan is very reasonable and will listen.” Zhao’s mother naggardly instructed him, “This betrothal gift doesn’t need to be so much, you…”
Before she could finish speaking, Zhao Xiheng came in and overheard her mother saying that she didn't want so many betrothal gifts. She was furious and immediately interrupted her, "Mom! If he's willing to give them to us, we should take them. Don't be polite with him."
The agreed-upon amount was two thousand, how could it be less than that!
"Three thousand is too much."
Three thousand?!
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