Chapter 27 Zhao Ergou's Sweetheart
The dinner was exceptionally sumptuous.
Two eggs are cracked and mixed with white flour to make egg pancakes. Seven bird eggs are boiled, peeled, and placed on a plate. There is also a stir-fried vegetable dish, a fried lotus root ball, and a large bowl of white rice in front of each person.
Although they had eaten their fill for several days in a row, the four boys still couldn't help but drool.
Cheng Wanwan placed a bird egg at the bottom of each person's bowl, and placed the extra one in front of Wu Huiniang.
Wu Huiniang was somewhat flattered: "Mother, one is enough for me, this one is for you..."
“One egg for each person, that’s fair.” Cheng Wanwan glanced at her belly. “Once I’m done with these few days, I’ll ask Doctor Zheng to come and take a look at you.”
She had never been pregnant and didn't know what to pay attention to during pregnancy, but in modern society, pregnant women have to undergo a prenatal check-up every month, so it would definitely be right to ask Dr. Zheng to take a look.
Wu Huiniang's eyes felt a little hot.
She had been tormented for a year after marrying into the Zhao family. If it weren't for Dashan's pity for her and his secret saving of food for her, she probably wouldn't have survived.
The mountains used to be her light.
Now, she feels that her mother-in-law is also radiating light.
There were seven bird eggs in the house, and she was able to eat two of them. She never imagined that her mother-in-law would treat her so kindly.
"Mother, I..."
Wu Huiniang wanted to say something, but her throat felt blocked, and she couldn't say what she wanted to say.
Cheng Wanwan patted the back of her hand: "You're going to be a mother soon, so don't cry. Otherwise, the baby will cry every day after it's born and drive you crazy."
Wu Huiniang immediately held back her tears.
The family was about to have their meal.
A timid voice suddenly rang out in the courtyard.
"Brother Er Gou, are you there?"
It was a girl's voice.
Zhao Ergou didn't even bother to eat; he threw down his chopsticks and headed out of the yard.
Cheng Wanwan looked over curiously and saw a girl wearing a lotus-colored patched dress standing outside the courtyard wall. She looked graceful and elegant, but the girl was very thin, obviously from a famine.
Her eyes blazed with gossip: "Fourth Egg, stop eating! Look, isn't that girl your second sister-in-law?!"
With his mouth full of food, Zhao Sidan nodded vigorously: "Yes, it's Sister Shuiqin. I've seen her once before. So she's the future second sister-in-law!"
Zhao Sanniu's eyes widened: "Second sister-in-law is so beautiful."
The girl had well-defined features and large eyes; she was indeed beautiful, especially since she was wearing clean clothes, which made her stand out even more.
The orange sunset fell on the girl, her pupils reflecting the glow of the evening glow as she looked up at Zhao Ergou standing in front of her.
Zhao Ergou didn't dare look the girl in the eye at all, and his hands were awkwardly placed, not knowing where to put them.
Cheng Wanwan couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Youth is wonderful; their love is undeniable and captivating.
Immediately, she stopped laughing.
Judging from the second brother's lovestruck expression, you can tell that he's determined to marry her. The fact that the girl took the initiative to come to him means she must also be interested in him.
In other words, their family is about to have a happy occasion.
Holding a wedding means spending money.
She wasn't short of money; she had 120 taels of silver from selling ginseng, enough to last her a long time. But she lacked a legitimate reason to spend it.
Making sure this money goes through the proper channels is a major challenge she is about to face.
Cheng Wanwan casually asked, "Dashan, how much money did you spend on your wedding?"
Zhao Dashan's face suddenly turned red, and he stammered, "I...I don't know..."
Wu Huiniang was so shy that she almost buried her head in her rice bowl.
Zhao Sidan answered on her behalf: "Mother, I know. Grandma said that my sister-in-law didn't spend a single penny when she came in."
As soon as he said that, the original owner's memories surfaced before Cheng Wanwan's eyes.
When Da Shan went to town to exchange salt, he fell in love at first sight with Wu Huiniang, who sold eggs in town. The two got together after a while.
The Wu family wasn't the type to trade their daughter for a dowry. Seeing that the Zhao family was quite well-off and had a father-in-law who was in the army, they agreed to marry their daughter off to them without hesitation. Even the half-string of cash that the Zhao family gave as betrothal gifts was brought back by Wu Huiniang as part of her dowry. Of course, this money eventually ended up in the original owner's pocket and was sent to the Cheng family.
Unexpectedly, Da Shan's father died as soon as Wu Huiniang married into the family. Then, the original owner of the body started making a fuss about dividing the family property, and Wu Huiniang began a nightmare-like life.
Despite living such a miserable life in her husband's family, Wu Huiniang didn't go back to her parents' home to complain, fearing that her parents would come over and chop Dashan up.
Just then, Zhao Ergou walked in from the doorway.
He grabbed his hair, opened his mouth, and after a long while said, "Mother, Shuiqin heard that every household in Dahe Village has dug up jade bamboo shoots, so she came to borrow grain."
Cheng Wanwan asked, "How much do you want to borrow?"
Zhao Ergou held up two fingers, then folded one back: "Ten jin."
Ten catties of jade bamboo shoots is not much.
Er Gou clearly likes that girl, so it's not unreasonable for him to help her with ten catties of jade bamboo shoots.
Cheng Wanwan told Zhao Ergou to go to the cellar and get the jade bamboo shoots himself, then looked at Wu Huiniang and said, "You've been married for a year and have never been back to your parents' home. Tomorrow, take ten catties of jade bamboo shoots back to your parents' home and see what the situation is like there."
The eldest daughter-in-law has already married into the family, so the Wu family is a proper in-law family. Giving them ten catties of grain is not excessive.
Upon hearing Cheng Wanwan's words, Wu Huiniang's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
Over the past year, her mother-in-law has taken countless things from the Cheng family and openly and secretly criticized her for using her family's belongings to subsidize the Wu family.
In all honesty, she never took a single grain of rice from the Wu family after she married into the family.
She was very careful not to mention the Wu family's name in front of her mother-in-law.
Unexpectedly, her mother-in-law brought it up herself and even asked her to bring ten catties of bamboo shoots over. This huge surprise made her eyes widen in astonishment.
But at the gate of the courtyard, Sun Shuiqin's eyes were filled with disappointment.
She asked to borrow twenty catties of grain, but Zhao Ergou only took out ten catties. How was she going to explain this to her father when she got back?
"Water celery, my family really can't afford any more..."
Zhao Ergou spoke with some difficulty.
These jade shoots were dug out by the four brothers together, each of them digging out about thirty or forty catties. If he were to lend out twenty catties in one go, what difference would there be between him and his mother who used to deliver things to the Cheng family?
“I know, these days it’s not easy for anyone.” Sun Shuiqin’s eyes were filled with tears. “Then, Brother Ergou, I’ll go back first.”
Zhao Ergou didn't dare look her in the eye: "Then I'll see you off."
Sun Shuiqin walked in front, and he walked behind, always keeping a distance between them. Before their relationship was confirmed, he didn't want to ruin Shuiqin's reputation.
Cheng Wanwan sat in the room, looking somewhat worried.
There are only two rooms in the house. After the second son's wife comes in, where will the couple sleep?
In those days, building four or five mud-brick houses would cost about two taels of silver. She had the money, but the source of it was unclear.
After assessing the girl's character, we can give her some betrothal gifts and arrange a marriage between the two children. Then, after the New Year, we can marry her into the family.
Cheng Wanwan silently made up her mind.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
