The girls chatted and laughed, as if they had forgotten their previous depressed mood because of Que'er's marriage.
But in the end it is just "seemingly".
When several girls were discussing Mu Xingzhi's demeanor, mentioning how he always sat so upright, never hunched over or looking sloppy even when leaning on the back or armrest of his wheelchair, Liu'er jokingly said, "Speaking of which, Sister Que'er likes to imitate Mr. Mu's posture..."
This sentence seemed to break some kind of taboo, instantly destroying the relaxed and joyful atmosphere of the previous moment, and making everyone fall silent unconsciously.
Seeing this, Tian Xing'er glanced at her companions out of the corner of her eye, and with a forced effort, she tried to cheer them up and comfort them: "Let's not worry about it here for now. What if... What if the Chen family is older, but they understand our needs. Besides, their son is grown up, so we don't need to worry too much..."
As she spoke, Tian Xing'er's voice became smaller and smaller, and she became less and less confident, as she spoke these words that could not even be called "comfort" and could barely be considered "self-deception".
Su Qingluan remained silent all the way and said nothing.
She was able to transcend the limitations of time and space, expanding her perspective to a broader scope. However, even looking back at those couples in history who were once "equally matched" and "talented and beautiful," very few of them were able to achieve happiness and beauty. Most of them were just heartless men and women with resentful feelings.
What's more, in Que'er's marriage, her parents were only thinking about "selling their daughter" and did not consider her happiness and future at all. The man was not only old enough to be her father, but also looked like a sickly man who would not live long.
My parents are unreliable, and my husband's family is unreliable. To say that this kind of marriage is a hell is an understatement.
But Su Qingluan couldn't even comfort her with a few words, "At most you can just leave. Who can force you?", which seemed like the most common words in her previous life.
Because in this era, "parents' orders and matchmaker's words" can really force a person in a sense!
If he escaped without a care in the world, he would be unable to move forward without a household registration. If he was caught and made a slave, no one would care about him being an illegal resident!
Compared to the girls including Su Qingluan who looked bitter and resentful, Que'er, the bride-to-be, looked relatively calm - except for the slightly red tear marks at the corners of her eyes that betrayed her.
"Don't worry," Que'er stroked the red cloth used to make her wedding dress. "We can always get by. No matter what, the difficulties will eventually pass."
After saying that, she even started discussing with a few friends who came to visit her what patterns would be good to embroider on the wedding dress and veil, and what kind of silk thread would be more beautiful.
Que'er seemed to be really looking forward to her upcoming marriage - if it weren't for the envy in her eyes when a few girls talked about the new hairpin styles and various rouge and powder in the market outside.
Su Qingluan recalled how Que'er had been the first to comfort everyone when they'd discussed their troubles. Even knowing she was about to enter a difficult marriage, her first thought was that she couldn't disobey her father, or else her mother would be beaten.
She has always been a careful and considerate girl.
However, now, this careful and considerate girl has been pushed into an irresistible vortex by her biological parents, but she still smiles so calmly.
An inexplicable feeling of unwillingness welled up in her heart, causing her to subconsciously clutch the hem of her clothes tightly.
Suddenly, I felt a strange, paper-like touch on my palm—what was that...?
Su Qingluan narrowed her eyes and made up her mind.
No matter how reluctant the girls were, they couldn't stay at Que'er's house forever, especially since Que'er's father was sitting in the yard, muttering and blaming others, trying to drive them away.
Su Qingluan wanted to "reply" to Que'er's father, but she was afraid that Que'er would be caught in the middle and feel embarrassed. She was even more worried that after they left, this man might take his anger out on her daughter if he was unhappy. Then, her momentary verbal pleasure would be more than worth it.
After thinking about it, she made the excuse that she was not good at needlework and did not want to be laughed at by Tian Xing'er and the others. Que'er was good-natured and good at needlework, so she wanted to ask her a few questions in private. In the end, only she and Que'er were left in the room.
Que'er put away the red cloth for her wedding dress, took out the needle and thread, fabric, and frame for ordinary embroidery, and asked with a smile, "Daya, do you have any questions?"
Su Qingluan walked forward slowly. When she was only one step away from Que'er, she slowly squatted down and glanced at the person outside the wooden lattice window. She couldn't see this side, so she quickly took out a small cloth purse from her arms, took out something from it, and placed it in Que'er's palm.
"What is this...?" Que'er opened her eyes wide in surprise.
"Shh..." Su Qingluan pressed her index finger against Que'er's lips. "Sister is good at sewing. It would be best if you could sew it inside your clothes, just in case."
Que'er opened her palm slightly, and saw a ten-liang silver note lying in her palm!
The monthly food expenses of an ordinary family of five are only three or five taels. This ten taels of silver note is a huge sum of money for Que'er!
If she spends it frugally, this banknote can even guarantee her food and clothing for at least half a year!
She was startled, her hands trembling, and she hurriedly tried to push the banknote back, but Su Qingluan held it down: "Sister, we have known each other for a long time. I can't help you escape from your suffering, but at least I hope this little money can be of use to you in times of need."
Judging from how unreliable Que'er's father is, there is probably no hope for the dowry, which is his daughter's only property after marriage - he has already sold his daughter, so how can he afford a decent dowry for Que'er?
Su Qingluan also knew that the little money she had was just a drop in the bucket and could only treat the symptoms but not the root cause. However, the anger and unwillingness in her heart made her feel that she had to do something, otherwise she would be very uneasy.
Seeing that Que'er was still trying to push the banknote back, Su Qingluan lowered her voice and said, "I heard that the Chen family is very wealthy." She blinked, "If my sister lives a wealthy life in the future, I can marry a rich lady with this little money!"
Que'er knew Su Qingluan was saying this to comfort her, but she also felt that Su Qingluan really wanted to help her, so she nodded with tears in her eyes, "Sister, I promised you that if you live a rich life in the future, you will definitely take me to enjoy the good life together!"
Seeing that she accepted it, Su Qingluan secretly breathed a sigh of relief, nodded, and glanced warily at Que'er's father outside the lattice window. She leaned over and whispered, "Don't let anyone know, not even mother," then quickly turned and left, leaving Que'er holding the silver note tightly in her hand in a daze.
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