The matchmaker, Wu, knew there might be some hidden details about this marriage she didn't know, but tempted by Li Xiaoyuan's promise of a large sum of five yuan if she did a good job, she decided to go with her.
You know, she usually only gets a dollar when she acts as a matchmaker. Many people just give her some eggs and vegetables or a few cents to get rid of her. Five dollars is a lot.
I didn't expect things to turn out like this.
Matchmaker Wu quickly stepped in to smooth things over: "Officer Gao, Old Zheng's wife spoke a bit too hastily. Don't take it to heart. We have other things to do, so we'll be leaving now."
With that, he pulled Li Xiaoyuan, who was now in an awkward position, and they slunk away.
After leaving Gao Shujing's house, Matchmaker Wu released Li Xiaoyuan's arm and couldn't help but complain, "Even if the marriage doesn't work out, we should still be on good terms. How could you handle things like this? You even threatened Gao Shujing."
"Is that Officer Gao someone to be trifled with? Putting aside how much stuff his brother brought here and how good his family background is, just look at Officer Gao himself—he's an officer in the commune and a technician in the brigade."
"There are few people in the entire Dongyuan Commune who can match his abilities. Even the brigade leader has to fawn over him. How dare you offend him? If you want to offend him, do it yourself. Why drag me into it?"
"If I incur the wrath of Director Gao, just wait and see how I deal with you."
Zheng Lanlan was Li Xiaoyuan's youngest daughter, her only child born after she had several sons, so she was naturally very precious to her. She didn't even have to do any housework, as they were afraid of tiring her out.
She's never even washed her own clothes in her life, leaving all her personal hygiene to her sisters-in-law or nieces. When there's something good to eat, she always gives it to Zheng Lanlan first. Her wives are very unhappy about this and have argued with Li Xiaoyuan several times.
What she did was not much different from what Li Cuiniang did, except that Li Xiaoyuan was better at creating a facade, unlike Li Cuiniang who would even scold the dog that passed by their door.
Li Cuiniang was a notorious shrew in the brigade, while Li Xiaoyuan had a much better reputation. Apart from a few people who knew her well, no one else knew her true nature.
Wu, the matchmaker, had been going from street to street for twenty or thirty years and knew a bit about the people in Shangfen Brigade, so she naturally knew Li Xiaoyuan's true nature.
She wanted to get back at Li Xiaoyuan. If she could stir up trouble among Li Xiaoyuan's wives and make a big scene, her reputation would be ruined, and Zheng Lanlan would never be able to find a good husband.
Li Xiaoyuan clearly knew this as well; matchmakers were one of the types of people you couldn't afford to offend, mainly because they were too good at talking.
Li Xiaoyuan pulled Wu the matchmaker's arm again: "Don't be angry. I was embarrassed by that cadre Gao just now, so I couldn't get over it and said a few harsh words to vent my anger."
"Don't you know how capable I am? How could I possibly harm Officer Gao in the slightest?"
Li Xiaoyuan was busy comforting Wu the matchmaker, while Gao Guojing came out of the children's room after the two left.
He sneakily approached Gao Shujing and said, "Brother, you're quite popular. If Sister Rujia finds out about this, you're in big trouble."
When the two arrived, he was playing with his child in the backyard, which was separated by a wall. The poor soundproofing of the house, coupled with Li Xiaoyuan's loud voice that she couldn't control due to anger, allowed him to hear their conversation clearly.
Gao Shujing gave him a cool look: "If you're free, go wash the clothes that Duofu and the others took off."
Thinking of the dirty clothes that Duofu and the others had changed out of last night, Gao Guojing's face fell. Since arriving at Shangfen Brigade, he had eaten a lot of delicious food and done a lot of work. Couldn't he just eat without doing any work?
Thinking this way, Gao Guojing suddenly understood Yu Rujia's previous idea of just taking things without doing any work, and it felt so good.
After seeing Gao Guojing off, Gao Shujing entered Yu Rujia's house through the back door. Gao Guojing overheard their conversation, as did the children who were with him.
Gao Shujing felt that she should report this to Yu Rujia first, so that she wouldn't get angry if she heard these words from the child.
Yu Rujia was taking out some damp herbs to dry in the sun to prevent them from spoiling.
After Gao Shujing came in, he washed his hands and helped with the setup.
Gao Shujing glanced cautiously at Yu Rujia, who was busy at work, and tentatively asked, "Rujia, Matchmaker Wu just came to the door."
Thinking about what Huang Guihua mentioned yesterday, Yu Rujia guessed that this must be the matchmaker that Zheng Lanlan's mother had invited to propose marriage.
Yu Rujia calmly fiddled with the herbs, feigning ignorance as she asked, "Which family's daughter does she want to introduce to you?"
Seeing that her expression was normal, Gao Shujing breathed a sigh of relief: "She came because of Zheng Lanlan, but I refused."
Yu Rujia advised, "You've rejected her before, and she's come to your door again. Even if you reject her this time, she might not give up. You need to be more clear-headed in your daily life."
Gao Shujing: "I don't usually have much contact with her. I keep my distance when I see her, so nothing will happen."
Yu Rujia: "You have no connection with her. If she wanted to have a connection with you, she could find many ways. Let me be clear: if you get tainted, I will throw you away immediately, without even keeping you overnight."
Gao Shujing understood what she meant. Women only knew a few ways to get close to someone: either by creating physical intimacy, or by spreading rumors and then using moral blackmail.
Gao Shujing paused in arranging the medicinal herbs, but quickly resumed his work: "I will handle this matter."
This man was always quick-witted, and Yu Rujia believed that with his vigilance, he could resolve Zheng Lanlan's matter, so she didn't ask too many questions.
With Zheng Lanlan on his mind, Gao Shujing greeted Yu Rujia after drying the herbs, then took the two apples and some biscuits distributed by the commune and went out.
There were so many people visiting each other during the Chinese New Year that Captain Huang had just seen one person off when Gao Shujing arrived.
Upon seeing him, Captain Huang greeted him happily: "Shujing, Happy New Year! I didn't expect you to come and wish me a Happy New Year."
Gao Shujing placed the things on the table: "Since I came to the brigade, you have been supporting me. Even if I don't wish anyone else a Happy New Year, I can't forget to visit you. I hope I haven't interfered with your plans?"
Captain Huang: "I don't have any plans. Your arrival is perfect for chatting with me."
Gao Shujing: "You should relax during the New Year. Here, these are apples from the commune. They're quite sweet. My kids were fighting over the chores at home to get them. I saved two for you. Try them."
Captain Huang was not a commune official, so he only received some meat and biscuits as New Year's gifts from the commune, but no apples.
Apples are a rare commodity here. Even though he's a big shot in the Shangfen Brigade, the last time he ate an apple was several years ago.
The apples back then were wrinkled and could not compare to the juicy apples that Gao Shujing brought. He could smell the apples' fragrance even from an arm's length away.
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