Chapter 3389 Extra Zhou Yin 4
When the villagers of Qili Village heard that Zhou Yin had learned so many characters without spending a penny, they all praised him, saying, "Zhou Yin is really smart."
"It's a pity that I was born in Zhou Jin's family. If I was born in the village chief's family, or another more affluent family, maybe I could go to school and study for a few years."
Zhou Yin didn't feel sorry for himself.
There are many brothers in the village who quarrel and become enemies, but there are not many who are as harmonious as they are (Zhou Jin expressed his doubts).
After all, his biological parents had passed away, and his brother and sister-in-law not only raised him, but also treated him like his nephews, even better than his nephews.
During the non-farm season, he could go to the county town, escape his work at home and go up the mountain to steal things, but Zhou Dalang and the others couldn't do that.
Although his elder brother had been keen on teaching him a lesson in the past two years and had a bad temper, picking up a stick and chasing him every now and then, he rarely actually got hit.
So he didn't think there was anything wrong with being born in the Zhou family. Although his eldest brother was a little stupid, lazy, and a little irritable, he had a good heart.
What's more, there is my sister-in-law.
Zhou Yin was raised by his eldest sister-in-law, who told him that to see whether a person is good to you, you can’t just look at what he says, but also what he does.
Some people may obey you, praise you, and be nice to you in every way, but their actions are detrimental to you.
Some people will lecture you verbally and seem to find fault with you in every way, but everything they do is to benefit you.
His eldest brother belongs to the second type.
The Zhou family has always lived a peaceful life. Although his eldest brother and sister-in-law have given him many nephews and nieces, they can still support them including him.
There was just a little trouble. After his eldest nephew Zhou Dalang got engaged, he was targeted by his brother and sister-in-law.
But he didn't want to get married at all. Zhou Jin kept nagging him about this, "You're already fourteen. Get engaged and prepare. You'll be sixteen by the time you get married. How long do you want to delay?"
He said, "You have to think it through. If you don't get engaged now, when Sanlang grows up a little, your family won't have enough money to arrange a marriage for you."
Zhou Yin: "Then let Sanlang decide first."
Zhou Jin slapped him on the head and said, "You, his uncle, haven't even got engaged yet, so why should he get engaged? Stop interrupting me."
He glanced into the room and saw his wife busy inside, so he moved closer and said to his brother in a low voice, "Do you know why I arranged for Dalang to marry your sister-in-law's niece?"
Zhou Yin looked bewildered. "Didn't they just fall in love with each other?"
"If I hadn't urged them, would they have settled on it so early?" Zhou Jin lowered his voice and said, "I've inquired with the Qian family. They ask for a low betrothal gift, which will save us a lot of money. We can then find a partner for you. I've asked your sister-in-law to talk to the matchmaker. You're good at farming, you can read, and you're good-looking. We can look for someone in a big village or town."
Zhou Yin's eyes widened, and he couldn't help but shout, "Brother, you are bullying my sister-in-law and the Qian family!"
Zhou Jin covered his mouth with his hand and dragged him behind the wall to speak, "Keep your voice down. My brother-in-law agreed to this because he loves your sister-in-law and Dalang."
Zhou Yin was angry, "You still did it even though you knew that?"
"Who am I doing this for?" Zhou Jin complained irritably. "It's all because of you. We only have a few shabby thatched huts at home, and we can't even build a yard for you. You can't get any land until you're sixteen, and the land we have now isn't very good. It'll take at least two years of cultivation before we can get a decent harvest."
Zhou Jin said, "Now that your parents are gone, you're living with us. Once those families outside hear that you were raised by your brother and sister-in-law, and that we have so many children, they think it's hard for you to get married. Do you know how difficult it is to find a partner for you? Without giving a little bit of betrothal gifts, how can you get a good daughter?"
Zhou Yin lowered his head unhappily and kicked the stones on the ground.
Zhou Jin peeked into the yard, and seeing that no one inside was disturbed, he continued to speak to him from the heart, "As someone who has been through this, I'm telling you, you have to marry a good wife, otherwise you won't be able to live like this."
"Like your sister-in-law. If we didn't have your sister-in-law, I wouldn't even be able to support you, let alone your nephews and nieces."
Zhou Yin couldn't help but exclaim, "You actually knew that."
Zhou Jin reached out and patted him on the head, "I'm not stupid, do you think you're the only one who's smart? Well, if it weren't for the difference in generation, I'd actually like to tell you about the eldest girl. She's so capable..."
Zhou Yin shuddered when he thought of the Qian family's daughter, who would only follow Da Lang around and call him "Uncle," and said, "Brother, don't mess around..."
"What nonsense are you talking about? She is already engaged to your eldest nephew."
Zhou Yin wiped the sweat from his forehead and breathed a sigh of relief.
Zhou Jin said, "Anyway, don't go to the county town lately, and don't go to the mountains too much. Take care of your skin. When you have nothing to do, carry your hoe and go to the fields to wander around. Let people see how hardworking you are. After the New Year, I will take you to a few nearby villages. I'm sure you'll find a good wife."
Zhou Yin: ...
Zhou Yin yearned for places outside the county town and didn't really want to get married.
After getting married, he could only stay in Qili Village, working from sunrise to sunset, just like his elder brother's current life.
He couldn't just abandon his wife and children and go out.
So after weighing the pros and cons, he said to Zhou Jin seriously, "Brother, let Sanlang propose first, and there is also Xier."
"Xi'er, don't worry. She's a girl. When we get the betrothal gift, we can give it to her as a dowry. We can still keep a little bit. We can see if it's enough to find a marriage for Sanlang later. If not, we can put it off. You are the most important thing now."
Zhou Jin said: "Once you have discussed the marriage, I will have completed my instructions to my parents."
"Okay, I knew it. You just want to get rid of me because you think I'm a burden," Zhou Yin jumped up and said, "If I don't get married, you have to support me."
"You little bastard..."
Zhou Yin started running. Zhou Jin chased him for a few steps and saw that he ran like a rabbit and disappeared in a flash. He was so angry that his nose was smoking. He turned around and went home cursing.
In the end, Zhou Jin still couldn't find a marriage for Zhou Yin because the weather was not very good after the Chinese New Year.
At first, there was little rain in the early spring, so everyone carried water to plant in the fields, thinking that since there was little rain at the moment, it would rain after they planted the rice seedlings.
But unexpectedly, from February to May, there was only one drizzle, which lasted less than half an hour.
The atmosphere in the Zhou family was getting worse and worse. Zhou Jin and Qian's eyes were red from staying up late. How could they have the energy to talk about Zhou Yin's marriage proposal?
Zhou Yin was also worried. Last year's harvest wasn't very good, with the autumn harvest less than two-thirds of previous years'. He had hoped this year's harvest would be better...
After paying taxes last year, there was not much food left at home. In March, the family only ate thin porridge once a day. Only during the busy farming days did they have two meals a day, also thin porridge.
After the busy farming season, the family returned to eating one meal a day. By May, there were even fewer grains of rice in the porridge.
(End of this chapter)
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