Chapter 58 The Wedding Gossip: Mingxi, curious, hugged...
Out of curiosity, Mingxi went to Aunt He to inquire, hoping to see what was going on.
"Aunt He, have you heard? Qian Jinhua has been introducing potential partners to someone lately."
"Who does she introduce potential partners to?" Aunt He thought for a moment. "I've never heard of that. What? What did you hear?"
Her eyes gleamed with curiosity as she looked at Mingxi, her meaning quite clear.
Let's share the gossip together.
Mingxi: "It's not that I heard anything, but today I saw Qian Jinhua and Tian Zhaodi walking together outside the department store, chatting and laughing."
Aunt He frowned slightly: "Tian Zhaodi, you're not talking about that Tian Zhaodi from our village, are you?"
Mingxi nodded: "Yes, it's her."
Mingxi recounted how Tian Zhaodi stopped her halfway when she went to the He family to propose marriage last time, and asked her to introduce a potential partner to her son.
"ha?"
Aunt He raised her eyebrows and let out a cold laugh: "That Tian woman is really all looks and dreams. With her son like that, she wants to find a daughter-in-law from the city? And she even requires her to be a high school graduate with a job? Doesn't she just wish a free lunch?"
Although Aunt He has been married into the city for many years, she has always maintained a good relationship with her family. During holidays, her parents would either come to the city to visit her or ask someone to bring her gifts.
When He's mother came to the city last time, she told her about Tian Zhaodi's marriage proposal to her family, which she had rejected.
He's mother rejected Tian Zhaodi not only because she felt that Yang Shulin's conditions were not good enough for He Li, but also because she looked down on the Yang family's preference for sons over daughters.
The He family and the Yang family were separated by only a wall. What did the He family not know about the Yang family's affairs? He's mother had seen it all: how Tian Zhaodi and her husband usually favored sons over daughters and treated their daughter like dirt.
Yes, the Yang family does have daughters.
Despite Tian Zhaodi's constant mention of Yang Shulin being the only son in three generations of the Yang family, Yang Shulin actually has two older sisters and a younger sister.
However, all three daughters of the Yang family are now married.
When Yang's eldest daughter reached the legal marriage age, she was sold by Tian Zhaodi to a man in the next village for a dowry of sixty yuan. Yang's second daughter suffered the same fate.
When it was the turn of the Yang family's third daughter, she learned a great deal from the mistakes of her two older sisters and stole money from her family and ran away just before she came of age.
The Yang family was furious. They called the police and sought help from the villagers, determined to get their third daughter back. No, to be precise, Tian Zhaodi and her husband were determined to get back the money their third daughter had taken.
They don't care whether their daughter comes back or not. To be honest, a daughter who dares to steal money from her family would be better off dead outside, but the money still needs to be returned.
Unfortunately, Tian Zhaodi and her husband searched frantically for several days, even looking for their eldest and second daughters' in-laws, but they still couldn't find their third daughter.
They later heard that on the day the Yang family's third daughter left home, someone saw her at the train station. It seemed she boarded a train heading south, but no one knew exactly where she was going.
The story of the Yang family's three daughters running away caused quite a stir in the village.
Some say she ran away because she couldn't stand the abuse at home; others say she had a boyfriend, but her parents wanted to marry her off to someone else, so she eloped with him; still others say she never had a boyfriend at all, and that the man her parents chose for her was terrible—a blind man with a missing leg—and she ran away because she didn't want him…
There are all sorts of stories, but they all have one thing in common: Tian Zhaodi and her husband treated their daughter badly, which is why she ran away.
It was common knowledge in the village that Tian Zhaodi and her husband favored sons over daughters. After this incident, people from several nearby villages also learned about the Yang family's preference for sons over daughters.
As a result, families who valued their daughters were unwilling to marry them into the Yang family, treating them as less than human. Families who wanted to make money from their daughters' dowries also looked down on the Yang family because they couldn't afford the dowry.
That's why Yang Shulin is still unmarried at such an old age.
Mr. and Mrs. He were among the few in the village who supported their daughter through high school, which speaks volumes about how much they valued her. Naturally, they looked down on the Yang family and disagreed with Yang Shulin's marriage proposal.
He's mother knew that Tian Zhaodi was petty, so when she refused, she didn't explicitly say that she looked down on Yang Shulin. Instead, she politely said that He Li was still young and they wanted her to stay at home for a while longer.
Who would have thought that these words would be interpreted by Tian Zhaodi as the He family disliking Yang Shulin for being too old.
She was resentful and cursed at He's mother. Later, she spread rumors about He Li and the He family behind their backs, saying that He Li was unrealistic and only wanted to climb up to city people. She said that He Li's standards were too high and that she would eventually fall hard and learn a lesson.
He's mother even fought with Tian Zhaodi over this matter. Later, Tian Zhaodi didn't dare to say it openly, but she still whispered about it to others behind their backs.
Aunt He heard all of this from her mother.
Aunt He also looked down on the Yang family and Tian Zhaodi.
Now that she's heard that Tian Zhaodi still wants to marry Yang Shulin and find him a wife from the city, she really thinks that old shrew is delusional.
Mingxi also thought that Tian Zhaodi was being delusional, but then again...
"Aunt He, you know what, maybe a pie really does fall from the sky."
Judging from how Tian Zhaodi and Qian Jinhua were chatting and laughing today, it seems that the matter of introducing a potential partner to Yang Shulin is progressing very smoothly.
Aunt He: "What kind of pie is this? It looks more like an iron disc!"
Don't they know who Qian Jinhua is? How could the men she introduces be good people?
That's what they said, but Aunt He also became curious.
What kind of woman did Qian Jinhua introduce to Yang Shulin?
This question was answered with the arrival of He Li.
He Li came to the city to see Guan Lixin, but in addition to seeing Guan Lixin, she also had an important task: to help Tian Zhaodi deliver wedding invitations.
When Mingxi received the wedding invitation from He Li to Yang Shulin, her eyes widened in surprise.
"No, who's getting married? Yang Shulin?"
She's never even met Yang Shulin, so why did he send her a wedding invitation?
Could it be that Tian Zhaodi invited her over specifically to show off that Yang Shulin was able to marry a city girl?
Not to mention Mingxi, even Aunt He looked confused: "No, I've been married off for so many years and have no family ties with the Yang family. Why would Tian Zhaodi send me a wedding invitation when Yang Shulin is getting married?"
He Li: "Aunt Tian sent messages to a lot of people this time. She notified everyone in our village, even those who have married out."
Aunt He scoffed: "Is Tian Zhaodi desperate for money? Giving so many people information? Where is she holding her banquet? Can she even seat so many people? She's not just thinking about getting money as gifts, but doesn't actually want people to come to the banquet!"
He Li: "That can't be that bad..."
That's what she said, but He Li still had some hesitation in her heart.
Aunt He: "Hmph, that's hard to say."
In her opinion, Tian Zhaodi was the kind of person who would do such a thing.
Aunt He: "Yes, you still haven't told us where the wedding will be held."
He Li: "Oh, the wedding was held at the bride's home. I heard that the bride is from the city and her family is quite wealthy. Her family are cadres working at a department store, and the bride herself also works at a department store."
Aunt He hissed and said, "With such good conditions, why did you choose Yang Shulin?"
She frowned and thought about it, realizing that things were not so simple.
At this moment, Mingxi noticed the key point. Pointing to the wedding invitation, she said, "The wedding date is set for this Sunday!"
It's been less than a week since Mingxi refused to introduce Yang Shulin to a potential partner, and Yang Shulin has already gone through the process of getting to know the woman and is preparing to get married?
This speed can't be described as fast; it's like riding a rocket, it's incredibly fast!
Although most young people these days settle down after meeting a few times, it's still rare to see someone like Yang Shulin who gets married after knowing each other for less than a week.
There's definitely something going on here.
Driven by a desire to see the excitement, Mingxi took the wedding invitation and set off with Aunt He on Sunday.
Aunt He didn't want to give Tian Zhaodi a gift of money, but she wanted to watch the excitement!
She gritted her teeth and decided to give a dime as a gift.
However, she was still reluctant to part with it, so in order to have a lunch banquet, she hadn't eaten since noon the day before. As she walked with Mingxi to the wedding venue, her stomach kept growling.
"Gurgle, gurgle—"
Hearing this voice, Mingxi couldn't help but ask, "Aunt He, why don't you eat something to fill your stomach first?"
Don't let yourself go hungry before you even get to the feast.
Aunt He waved her hand: "No need!"
She won't eat it!
She wanted to save her pregnancy for lunch.
She's determined to get her money's worth this time, to get back every penny she gave as a gift!
Mingxi's face darkened: "Alright then."
Mingxi and Aunt He took small, quick steps and soon arrived at the bride's house.
The woman's family was quite well-off; they lived in a two-story villa arranged by the department store.
Although it's also an apartment building, her family's conditions are much better than Huang Pingping's family, who live in a tenement building. Her small villa has only one household, with its own kitchen and bathroom, and a large courtyard. It's incomparable to the tenement buildings where more than a dozen families live on a single floor.
When Mingxi and Aunt He arrived, there were already many guests. Tian Zhaodi, wearing a big red flower on her chest, was standing at the door, cheerfully greeting the guests.
Upon seeing Mingxi and Aunt He, Tian Zhaodi's smile widened. She raised her hand and waved, raising her voice: "Oh, Aunt He Li and Comrade Ming are here!"
She walked over and deliberately said, "You've finally arrived! Speaking of which, my Shulin was able to marry Lufang today thanks to you all!"
"First of all, it's He Li's aunt. If your He Li hadn't rejected our Shulin's marriage proposal, our Shulin wouldn't have remained unmarried for so long, and he wouldn't have been so lucky to meet Lu Fang. By the way, He Li's aunt, why didn't your He Li and her parents come today? Didn't I notify them?"
Tian Zhaodi had a bright smile on her face, but her triangular eyes clearly showed ill intent.
Anyone could see that she came here today with the intention of showing off, and that she said those words only to mock He Li.
Although Aunt He came to watch the fun, she didn't intend to tolerate Tian Zhaodi's bad behavior.
She began, "Your Yang Shulin has no education, no job, and no looks. So what if He Li rejected his marriage proposal? You don't actually think our He Li will regret it, do you? Ha, you're really overthinking it. He Li didn't come here simply because she couldn't be bothered with you. I came today because I was curious—curious about what kind of woman could be so blind as to be interested in your son."
Aunt He launched into a tirade, and Tian Zhaodi instantly lost face.
She originally wanted to show off how good her daughter-in-law's conditions and family background were, but after Aunt He said that, how could she still show off?
No matter how she showed off, it just didn't feel right.
Tian Zhaodi gritted her teeth, pretending not to hear what Aunt He said, and turned to look at Mingxi.
"And I also have to thank Matchmaker Ming. If you hadn't refused to introduce someone to my Shulin, I wouldn't have met Matchmaker Qian. If Matchmaker Qian had helped introduce someone to my Shulin, then Shulin wouldn't have met Lu Fang."
As she spoke, she pulled Qian Jinhua over from the side.
"Matchmaker Qian, thank you so much. But if you ask me, you should find an older, experienced matchmaker. Some young girls seem to have a good reputation and have successfully introduced many people to potential partners, but they're actually no good at all. If you want her to introduce you to someone, she'll ask all sorts of questions, inquiring about this condition and that condition, wasting half your time, and then she'll say in the end, 'I can't introduce anyone.' Can you believe that?"
As Tian Zhaodi spoke, she deliberately glanced at Mingxi and said, "Ming, don't mind me, I wasn't talking about you."
Mingxi was so angry she almost laughed. Right in front of her, Tian Zhaodi was clearly implying something to her. Was she really alright?
Seeing that Mingxi's expression was not good, Qian Jinhua, who had been pulled over, shrank her neck.
Oh my god!
She only knew that Tian Zhaodi was stupid, but she didn't know that this woman also had a heart to cause trouble!
When Qian Jinhua realized that Mingxi was the daughter of that crazy woman Zhao Sulan, she quickly waved her hand in an attempt to clear her name.
"Haha, Xiaoming, please don't misunderstand. I didn't mean it that way. A young man like you is like the sun at eight or nine in the morning, while someone like me is at most the setting sun. I can't compare to you. Also, um, I didn't know Tian Zhaodi had introduced you to someone. I really didn't know. I swear, if I had known, I wouldn't have introduced anyone to her son!"
Qian Jinhua was genuinely afraid that Mingxi would send Zhao Sulan to settle scores with her, so she spoke with great conviction, almost as if she were about to swear an oath.
Mingxi: "..."
There's absolutely no need for that.
Anyway, she didn't agree to introduce Yang Shulin to anyone.
Tian Zhaodi was stunned again.
She originally intended to use the praise of Qian Jinhua to belittle Mingxi, letting Mingxi know that it wasn't that her son wasn't good enough, but that Mingxi lacked the ability to introduce potential partners to her son.
Before she could even begin to speak, Qian Jinhua had already slid to her knees.
Tian Zhaodi was unhappy. She had specially invited Aunt He and Mingxi over to show off, but now she had lost face instead of showing off, and she was furious.
She looked at Qian Jinhua: "Matchmaker Qian, what do you mean by this? You..."
Qian Jinhua was too lazy to waste words with a fool like Tian Zhaodi. She raised her hand and said, "I have something to do. I won't eat at the banquet. Give me the referral fee now so I can leave."
Tian Zhaodi choked, all the words she wanted to say stuck in her throat.
Qian Jinhua: "Hurry up, give me the money right away."
Tian Zhaodi: "Why do you need the money so early? Can't I give it to you later?"
At this point, Qian Jinhua also became displeased, her sharp eyebrows raised high: "What do you mean? You don't want to pay? I've never seen anyone like you before. You find someone to introduce your son to a potential partner, and you don't even pay the introduction fee before the wedding. Do you believe I'll tell the bride's family about this, and see what they do..."
"No, no, no, I'll give it to you!"
For Tian Zhaodi now, the most important thing is for the wedding to go smoothly.
If Qian Jinhua were to actually go and spread rumors to the bride's family, causing them to have a problem with her and the wedding to go wrong, then it would truly be a case of losing more than she gained.
Thinking of this, Tian Zhaodi quickly took out her money.
She plopped down on the ground, took off her shoes, and pulled a plastic bag from under the insole. Inside the bag was a handkerchief rolled up, and inside the roll were layers upon layers of toilet paper.
She peeled back the layers one by one, finally taking out the large coin wrapped inside.
Tian Zhaodi took out two bills and reluctantly handed them to Qian Jinhua: "Here you go, Matchmaker Qian."
Qian Jinhua didn't mind that the money was stuffed into Tian Zhaodi's shoe. She couldn't wait to reach out and take it, but unexpectedly, Tian Zhaodi was reluctant to let go at this moment.
Qian Jinhua gritted her teeth and forcefully pulled the money toward her: "This is the referral fee we agreed on before!"
Tian Zhaodi: "It was agreed before, but look at you, it's just a simple introduction, it's not much work, isn't twenty yuan a bit too much for an introduction fee? How about this, I'll give you less, ten yuan is fine?"
"no!"
Qian Jinhua stared wide-eyed. She had seen people haggle over prices when buying clothes, and she had seen people haggle over prices when buying vegetables, but she had never seen someone haggle over prices when asking someone to introduce them to a potential partner.
Qian Jinhua has finally met her match today!
Tian Zhaodi: "Why isn't that enough? In the end, it's still our Shulin who's better. Didn't you say that Lu Fang agreed as soon as she heard Shulin's conditions? You didn't do anything, you just introduced Shulin to Lu Fang, so ten yuan is enough for you!"
Qian Jinhua laughed in anger.
Is Yang Shulin excellent?
Yang Shulin is nothing but a load of rubbish!
She only said that to coax Tian Zhaodi; how could that fool actually take it seriously!
Qian Jinhua's face turned cold, too lazy to waste words with Tian Zhaodi: "In short, if you don't pay the amount we agreed on beforehand, you can forget about getting married today!"
Upon hearing this, Tian Zhaodi quickly let go.
She can tell whether ten dollars is more important or today's wedding is more important.
Qian Jinhua took the money, stuffed it into her pocket, and, too lazy to argue with Tian Zhaodi, strode away.
Tian Zhaodi pursed her lips, carefully wrapped the remaining wallets layer by layer, put them into a plastic bag, and finally stuffed them under the insole.
Mingxi: "..."
Don't you feel uncomfortable stuffing so many layers of stuff into your shoes?
Clearly, Tian Zhaodi didn't find it uncomfortable to walk on.
Despite being reprimanded twice and failing to negotiate a price, Tian Zhaodi's determination to show off remained undiminished. She put on her shoes, stood up, noticed the new guests at the door, and immediately greeted them with a smile.
Aunt He pouted and said, "Shall we go in too?"
Mingxi nodded.
The two were holding hands, about to give their wedding gifts, when a middle-aged woman with a bob haircut and dressed smartly walked out of the small Western-style building.
She stormed out with a stern face and a look of anger, strode past Mingxi and Aunt He, and walked straight up to Tian Zhaodi.
She roared, "What's going on? Why are so many of your relatives here? My relatives haven't even arrived yet, and there aren't enough seats at the table. Where are the rest of us supposed to sit?!"
Tian Zhaodi smiled ingratiatingly and said, "In-law, don't be in such a hurry. Your house has such a big yard, there's no problem with where you can sit. Just put a few tables there, and people can sit down."
Middle-aged woman: "How can you just sit here like this?! I arranged seats according to the number of people you agreed on. Where did all these extra people come from?!"
Tian Zhaodi gave two dry laughs.
She couldn't very well say that she was only thinking about showing off and ended up sending out too many wedding invitations.
She fawned over the middle-aged woman and patted her on the back: "Father-in-law, don't be angry. It's just that our relatives are too enthusiastic. They got excited as soon as they heard that Shulin was getting married and came to offer their blessings uninvited."
The middle-aged woman took a deep breath: "I don't care where you got so many relatives from, just find a place to get rid of them right now!"
"Whether you find them a place to sit or kick them out, you just need to clear out the seats I arranged to keep for them right now!"
After she finished speaking, she left in a flurry, like a gust of wind.
Mingxi pointed in the direction she left and asked, "Is this the bride's mother today?"
Aunt He: "I think so?"
Mingxi: "Looks pretty impressive!"
Aunt He nodded with a sorrowful expression.
Mingxi: "Let's not talk about that now, let's go inside quickly."
She and Aunt He quickly finished giving their monetary gifts, then went inside the small villa and found a place to sit down.
I must say, today's wedding was quite a grand affair, with more than ten tables set up on the two floors of the small villa. However, Mingxi and Aunt He didn't recognize many of the guests.
The two of them didn't care about that. They were mainly there to watch the excitement and have a meal, so they just found a table with empty seats downstairs.
As Mingxi sat down, she heard someone at the table complaining: "What kind of show is the Lu family putting on today? We've been here for ages and the Lu couple haven't come out to greet us, and no one's even offered us seats. When we asked, they just told us to find somewhere to sit. I've never seen anything like this before!"
"That's for sure! When I arrived, there was only the groom's mother at the door. She didn't recognize me and almost didn't let me in. She only let me in after seeing that I had given a wedding gift!"
"Good heavens, is that woman at the door the groom's mother? I was wondering why she was invited. She's so rude, always loitering around the gift registration area and pouting when she sees others giving less."
"No way, how could Old Lu have found such a family to marry into!"
"Sigh, don't say anymore. Someone like Lu Fang is lucky to even get married..."
"That's true..."
Mingxi listened intently to their conversation.
If she remembered correctly, today's bride's name was Lu Fang.
What is Lu Fang like?!
Mingxi was incredibly curious, but the people at the table stopped talking.
Curious, she nudged Aunt He and whispered, "Aunt He, do you know what's going on with the bride today?"
Aunt He: "I don't know! The name sounds unfamiliar!"
There was nothing Mingxi could do but wait until the wedding started, then he could see the bride and know what was going on.
And so, time passed little by little, and with Mingxi eagerly anticipating it, the wedding finally began.
The wedding officiant on stage spoke auspicious words with great joy, followed by speeches from the bride's parents, and then the groom's entrance.
Mingxi finally met Yang Shulin, the only son in three generations of the Yang family.
Well, his looks are just average. He has a square face and eyes that are neither too big nor too small. He's the kind of person you wouldn't notice in a crowd.
However, since it was his wedding day, he dressed up specially, wearing a slightly ill-fitting black suit with a big red flower pinned to his chest. His face was beaming with joy, and he looked quite energetic.
Even after Yang Shulin had been out for quite some time, Mingxi still hadn't seen the bride.
She craned her neck, peering curiously: "What's going on? Where's the bride? Why didn't she come out?"
Aunt He: "Yes, if the bride doesn't come out, how can the banquet start?"
Yang Shulin obviously didn't know why the bride wasn't coming out. It was the wedding officiant who came out to explain that it was the bride's family tradition not to come out for the wedding ceremony. Only the groom could offer a toast, and only after that could the groom enter the bridal chamber to see the bride.
Mingxi and Aunt He looked at each other in bewilderment.
They had never heard of such a tradition anywhere.
Yang Shulin was also taken aback, but Tian Zhaodi smiled and said, "Different places have different customs, we understand, we understand. Son, hurry up, go with your father-in-law to toast them!"
"Why!"
Yang Shulin responded and, along with the woman's father, raised his glass and toasted everyone in the room.
There weren't many guests from the bride's side, only four tables were occupied. Yang Shulin and his father-in-law went from table to table toasting, and soon arrived at Mingxi's table.
"Ridiculous!"
Upon seeing the woman's father's appearance, Mingxi gasped.
This person really doesn't look like a good person.
Cough cough, no.
Mingxi didn't have any problem with the other party, but the woman's father was a big guy, almost 1.9 meters tall, with broad shoulders and a thick waist. He probably weighed 200 pounds. When he walked over, he looked like a moving wall.
Looking at his face, he had a face full of fleshy muscles, a scar running across his forehead to his temple, and a downturned mouth that exuded an air of authority. He looked just like a gangster boss from a Hong Kong gangster movie.
The bride's father raised his glass: "Thank you all for coming to my daughter's wedding today. I won't say anything more; it's all in the wine!"
He raised his glass and downed the liquor in one gulp.
Even a normal-sized wine glass looked extremely tiny in his hands.
Seeing this, Yang Shulin, who was following behind him, quickly raised his hand and drank a glass as well.
After the two finished toasting at this table, they turned and walked to the next table. Seeing the bride's father leave, Aunt He breathed a sigh of relief and murmured her feelings.
"The bride's father looks really scary. I didn't dare to breathe loudly when he was next to me!"
Mingxi nodded in agreement.
That said, although the bride's father looks quite intimidating, his eyes look very honest, so he shouldn't be a bad person.
Aunt He sighed, but didn't take the matter to heart. For her, the most important thing right now was to enjoy the banquet.
She's been skipping meals for two days straight, and now she's so hungry she'd love to gnaw on a table leg.
Aunt He picked up her chopsticks and began to devour the dishes on the table, with Mingxi following closely behind.
However, she was actually a little disappointed.
She thought she would see something exciting today.
After finishing her meal, a satisfied Aunt He clutched her belly and exclaimed, "It was worth it!"
She definitely got her money's worth today!
Mingxi: "..."
Aunt He really hasn't forgotten her original aspirations!
Just then, a loud scream suddenly came from the second floor: "Ahhh!"
Mingxi's eyes lit up. Was this the start of something exciting?
She silently made the sign of the cross in her mind. It was really wrong of her to be hoping for an unexpected situation at someone else's wedding.
But the next second, she honestly craned her neck and looked towards the stairs.
Yang Shulin, who had just finished toasting and gone upstairs, stumbled downstairs. His hair was disheveled, and his suit jacket had come undone from the movement. He looked extremely disheveled.
Seeing her son like this, Tian Zhaodi rushed forward to ask with concern, "Son, what's wrong? What happened?"
“People, people… no, not people!” Yang Shulin pointed upstairs in a panic.
Tian Zhaodi was completely confused and couldn't understand what he meant.
Mingxi was also baffled.
Yang Shulin's face was like a spilled palette, showing three parts fear, three parts grievance, three parts lingering fear, and one part urge to escape.
Just then, another person came down from upstairs. The thumping sound of the stairs made Mingxi subconsciously look up. She saw that the person coming down was a tall, burly man, just like the bride's father, except that this one was a woman.
After she rushed down, Mingxi finally saw her face: thick, dark eyebrows joined together, a flat nose, and full lips. She wasn't particularly beautiful, but she had clear, bright eyes.
The woman came downstairs with a thud and came to Yang Shulin, calling out, "Shulin, weren't we going to the bridal chamber? Why did you run away?"
Yang Shulin kept his eyes closed, deliberately avoiding looking at the person in front of him. His lips trembled as he said, "You...you shouldn't call me that. Please call me Comrade Yang Shulin!"
The woman seemed amused by his words and let out a loud, booming laugh: "Hahaha, Shulin, you're joking! We're married, why are we being so polite?"
Yang Shulin opened his eyes instantly: "Who, who, who married you!"
"Of course it's you! You're marrying me today! Look, there's a banner on the wall that says, 'Congratulations to the newlyweds Yang Shulin and Lu Fang on their happy marriage!'"
Yang Shulin's pupils dilated for a moment: "Lu Fang? You're Lu Fang?!"
By the end, his voice was high-pitched, and he looked incredulous.
"Yes, I am Lu Fang."
Upon hearing this, Mingxi and Aunt He's eyes widened instantly.
Aunt He: "Oh my, oh my, I never expected that the girl Yang Shulin is going to marry would look like this!"
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Yang Shulin screamed, clutching his head. "Mom, didn't you meet Lu Fang? You told me she was very beautiful! How could she look like this?! Mom, say something!"
Tian Zhaodi was also stunned at this moment.
She stared wide-eyed, her eyeballs almost bulging out of her eyes.
She had seen Lu Fang before; Qian Jinhua had led her to see her at the department store. However, Qian Jinhua had told her that Lu Fang was at work and they shouldn't disturb her, so she just pointed her out from a distance.
Even though it was from a distance, Tian Zhaodi could clearly see the other person's appearance, and she was certain that it wasn't that person at the time!
Tian Zhaodi's voice trembled as she subconsciously searched for Qian Jinhua's shadow in the crowd, but couldn't find her.
She then realized that Qian Jinhua had left long ago.
Unable to find Qian Jinhua, Tian Zhaodi panicked. She stammered, "Shulin, don't worry, our in-laws must be joking with us."
As she spoke, she looked at the bride's mother with a pleading expression: "Father-in-law, stop making a fuss, please call out the real Lu Fang."
The bride's mother frowned: "What the hell? What are you talking about? This is my daughter, Lu Fang."
Tian Zhaodi was really about to cry. She waved her hands repeatedly, "No, no, that's not the one I saw back then. The Lu Fang I saw was so beautiful, tall and thin, with fair skin and a big butt!"
It only now did she realize that the "Lu Fang" she had met was not the Lu Fang who was supposed to marry her son at all. She glared angrily and said, "You're lying! You're committing marriage fraud! You fooled us with a pretty girl, but then this female Zhang Fei showed up at the wedding! You can't do this to us! Even if your daughter can't get married, you can't just cheat us like this!"
Mingxi's eyes widened. "No way, another marriage scam?"
However, the Lu family doesn't seem like the kind of people who would do such a thing.
Aunt He curled her lips. Although Lu Fang wasn't very good-looking, how dare Yang Shulin call her a female Zhang Fei? She was much better off than him. If she didn't look like that, would she even be interested in him?
Upon hearing her say that her daughter was a female Zhang Fei, Lu's mother's face darkened: "What nonsense are you talking about? When have we ever met your son? Matchmaker Qian only showed us photos. You said you were satisfied with the photos and didn't need to meet him. Now you're going back on your word? What do you mean by that?"
Lu's mother was truly angry. She knew that her daughter wasn't very good-looking and that it wouldn't be easy for her to find a partner. She had consulted many matchmakers, but only Qian Jinhua brought good news, saying that someone had taken a liking to her daughter.
It wasn't easy for my daughter to find a boyfriend. To keep Yang Shulin as her son-in-law, she agreed to every outrageous request the Yang family had made these past few days. Now, the Yang family wants to call off the engagement and is blaming her family for it.
Isn't this just deliberately playing a trick on people?
Lu's mother couldn't stand the insult, and Lu's father was also unhappy. He grabbed Yang Shulin by the collar and lifted him up like a chick.
"What do you mean by this? You've already taken the dowry, gotten all the benefits, and even held the wedding banquet. Now you want to call off the engagement? And you even called my daughter a female Zhang Fei? You want to die, don't you?"
Yang Shulin hurriedly waved his hands: "No, no, father-in-law, I didn't."
Tian Zhaodi screamed, "No, you can't call Shulin your father-in-law! He's not your father-in-law!"
She absolutely could not accept her son marrying such a woman, Zhang Fei! Absolutely not!
If you marry a daughter-in-law like that, where will she put her face?
No, she's lost all face now.
Tian Zhaodi looked at the guests in despair. To show off that her son had married a city girl, she had specially invited relatives, friends, and villagers. Now they all knew that their daughter-in-law was a female Zhang Fei (a legendary femme fatale).
Enraged, Tian Zhaodi glared at the Lu family, feeling that she had lost face today because of them.
"Your whole family are bastards, a bunch of scoundrels! Your own daughter is ugly and can't get married, so you deliberately lied to people! I told you I'd never heard of the custom of the bride not bowing to the ancestors during the wedding ceremony. Are you trying to prevent my son from seeing the bride's face before the wedding night? You must be planning to get my son drunk and take advantage of the situation to force him into marriage, right?"
Mother Lu was so angry that her chest heaved violently: "You're talking nonsense! It was clearly your family that made the request. Your family said that my Fangfang is not good-looking and that they were afraid that the relatives would say something bad, so they would not have the wedding ceremony. If anyone asks, they will say it is our local custom!"
She originally disagreed with this request, as it was obvious that they looked down on her Fangfang and were afraid that she would embarrass her.
But Qian Jinhua told her that the groom didn't actually think that way; it was the bride's mother who was concerned about saving face. And since it was only a one-time thing, she should just agree to it to avoid the groom's mother causing trouble. The most important thing was that the two young people would be happy together after the wedding; the wedding was just a matter of appearances and wasn't important.
She and her husband had just agreed, and now Tian Zhaodi was turning around and blaming her. She wouldn't stand for it!
Tian Zhaodi: "You're the one talking nonsense! We never made that request!"
Mother Lu: "You had Qian Jinhua mention this to me! Where is Qian Jinhua? Make her come out and confront me, and see if this is true!"
Tian Zhaodi: "Qian Jinhua... she... she went home."
She was still wondering why Qian Jinhua had to go home. If she hadn't gone home, Qian Jinhua could have easily explained it away!
Mingxi, however, had heard most of what was going on and had almost guessed that Qian Jinhua was probably behind this whole thing.
She lied to the Lu family, saying that Yang Shulin had taken a liking to Lu Fang, while simultaneously using a fake "Lu Fang" to deceive Yang Shulin.
Tian Zhaodi didn't think that much about it. She still thought Qian Jinhua was an honest and good matchmaker. But the important thing now was not Qian Jinhua, but her son.
This is the Lu family's home turf. She probably won't get an explanation. Looking at Lu's father and Lu Fang, the two "Zhang Fei" standing here, even if they fought, she might not be able to win. Her previous arguing momentum has dropped by half.
She became even more terrified when she saw Lu Fang staring at her son with predatory eyes, as if she wanted to pounce on him and devour him.
Tian Zhaodi quickly ripped the red flower off Yang Shulin's chest and said, "No, we're not getting married. Son, let's go!"
Let's go first and talk later!
Mother Lu: "You wish! You took three hundred yuan from my family as dowry and expected us to have a grand wedding, and now you want to call it off? We may be a good-natured family, but we're not so easily bullied!"
"hiss--"
A series of gasps were heard from the scene.
Aunt He clicked her tongue in amazement. "My goodness, three hundred yuan as dowry!"
The Yang family is really bold to ask for that!
Yang Shulin is such an ordinary man, yet he dares to ask for such a high dowry. Does he think he's so precious just because he's a man?
Everyone's eyes were scanning Yang Shulin, making him extremely uncomfortable.
He blushed and retorted, "No way! The matchmaker only gave our family one hundred yuan as dowry! It wasn't three hundred yuan at all!"
Tian Zhaodi: "That's right, the matchmaker Qian only gave me 100 yuan, and I even gave her 20 yuan as a referral fee!"
At this point, Tian Zhaodi finally realized something was wrong.
During this period, Qian Jinhua was in charge of dealing with the Lu family, and the dowry was also given to her through Qian Jinhua.
If Qian Jinhua lied inside and took some of the money, then she...
The Lu family also realized this problem.
Father Lu: "That money-grubbing matchmaker, how dare she play us for fools!"
Tian Zhaodi: "Report to the police! You must report to the police!"
It's one thing that Qian Jinhua committed marriage fraud, but the real problem is that she swindled money from her; she secretly pocketed two hundred yuan from her dowry!
That money originally belonged to their family!
We must report this to the police and have Qian Jinhua arrested!
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