Chapter 191?
The matchmaker was shrewd; she never got angry no matter what I said.
Seeing that Song Chunxue and her son didn't like her, she didn't stay long. She said that she had another marriage to arrange, and since it was on this estate, she went to someone else's house first.
After sending the people away, Song Chunxue was busy sifting the bean dregs for feeding the pigs, and didn't care about Lao Si's marriage at all.
The fourth son felt very uncomfortable because his mother didn't care about his marriage at all, while the third son's marriage was already arranged.
"Mother, aren't you going to arrange a marriage for me?"
Hearing what the fourth brother said, Song Chunxue was stunned for a moment.
"Don't you dream of leaving Li Family Village? What if you don't come back in the future? Wouldn't that be a waste of a good girl's time?"
The fourth brother squatted at the entrance of the thatched kiln, holding a hard clod of earth in his hand, unconsciously picking at it.
"That was before. I don't feel that much about leaving now."
"Why?" Song Chunxue asked him, "Do you want to stay at home and farm, or continue raising sheep?"
The fourth brother didn't say anything; clearly, he wasn't cut out for farming and couldn't endure hardship.
“If you want to farm, that’s fine too. You think raising sheep is hard work, but farming is actually harder. Look at all that grain in our yard that hasn’t been milled yet. We’ll have to find time to mill it next spring.”
"Sorghum, sesame, buckwheat, wheat, and corn in the yard—that's all my work. If you want to farm, you'll have to share the burden," Song Chunxue asked him calmly. "Are you capable of doing it?"
“Although you’ve been very diligent lately, doing all the chores around the house, there’s not much work to do in the fields now. After spring arrives, I’ll be even busier, spinning like a top, unable to stop even if I want to. I can only find a little time to make pancakes after dinner and washing the dishes.”
No one understands the fourth brother better than her, not even the fourth brother himself.
Hearing about this endless work, he must have regretted what he just said.
“You said before that you wanted to save money for school, but you don’t like studying at all. It’s a waste of time and money. I know you’re not doing well in school either. I’m not going to make you steamed buns and send you to school like I used to.”
"If you don't want to venture out into the world, learn a trade. Having a skill will make you successful in the outside world."
The fourth brother fell silent.
"I'm going to chop the sorghum." After a while, he got up and left.
A leopard can't change its spots. Even if the fourth brother could be saved, saying some innocuous things won't change him.
Only after he suffered losses outside would he realize that Lijiazhuangzi was the last place he wanted to stay.
Song Chunxue had thought it over carefully. She would wait until her fourth son and his classmates went out to make their way in the world before moving to the county.
Otherwise, if the fourth son knew she had two courtyards, he might try to get one of them.
When the eldest son finds out, the fourth son will join him in fighting her for the yard and property, and they'll even take away her land.
She knew that the fourth son didn't care about her land; he only cared about money.
If he knew that his mother had suddenly become rich, he might not even be able to venture out into the world, and he might even become a bottomless pit.
Therefore, she cannot be soft-hearted.
It's getting colder and colder.
Song Chunxue didn't want to raise pigs anymore, so she called the neighbor who had slaughtered a pig before, and they slaughtered the pig in early November.
In previous years, like most people in the village, she would raise the pigs until the twelfth lunar month in order to make them fatter and stronger.
But this year, she felt the pigs were fat and big enough, and wanted to lighten her burden a bit.
In the blink of an eye, it will be Chinese New Year.
When Sanwa returned from school, he told Song Chunxue with a joyful expression that he could go to school in the countryside next spring.
Song Chunxue reassured him, saying that as long as he wanted to study, he could study for another ten or eight years without any problem.
Sanwa was as happy as a child. When Song Chunxue was cooking, he helped with the fire and peeling potatoes. His cheeks were red from the cold, but he didn't go to stay on the heated kang.
"Oh, by the way, Mother, I heard that Niu Xiuhua, the one you swore brotherhood with, is getting married." Sanwa observed Song Chunxue's expression and knew that his mother didn't want anyone to mention the sworn brotherhood.
To become sworn brothers?
Embroidered cow?
Song Chunxue paused for a moment as she vigorously stirred the dough in the pot with a rolling pin.
Oh!
The foolish things she had done in the past, things she had buried deep in her heart and never wanted to mention for several lifetimes, were brought up again.
How did you hear that?
Sanwa touched the tip of his nose. "Today she was picking up her nephew from school and we ran into each other. She then spent a long time chatting with me."
"What did you talk about?"
Seeing his mother twirling the rolling pin with both hands, Sanwa felt that the pot was going to break tonight.
“Quite a few. She said she’s noticed you’ve been going to the market a lot lately, and you’re dressed more smartly. Once she saw you riding a donkey, and the donkey’s back was full of people,” Sanwa said in a low voice. “Anyway, the things she said weren’t nice.”
Song Chunxue knew without guessing that they were definitely making up stories about her hooking up with a rich man, and asking Sanwa to persuade her not to be deceived and not to lose face for money.
"So what was your answer?"
“I told her to mind her own business. Mother just picked up money on the road and scolded me for wasting my education,” Sanwa said in a deep voice. “She even asked you to go to her son’s wedding. I think she wanted to borrow money. She kept telling me that getting married would cost money. She even knew we sold the sheep.”
Song Chunxue didn't find it strange. First of all, every time they went to the market, they had to pass by the entrance of Niu Xiuhua's village.
Secondly, Niu Xiuhua and Li Dazui are related by marriage; Li Dazui's daughter married Niu Xiuhua's son.
"I understand. If she dares to come, I'll make her eat shit."
Sanwa suppressed his laughter and remained silent.
"By the way, there are a lot of auspicious days lately, and there are many happy events in the village. The eldest son of the Cheng family is getting married, which should be tomorrow. You and the fourth son can discuss who should attend the wedding banquet."
Sanwa nodded, "Let Lao Si go, he likes to join in the fun."
"Then you can go to the Wang family's daughter's wedding in a couple of days."
"Alright."
"Oh, by the way, Xia Ying's family has some good news lately, and Xia Mulan will probably be coming too. Do you want to go and see her?"
Sanwa blushed and readily agreed, "Okay."
Song Chunxue couldn't help but chuckle to herself; she had never seen Sanwa so shy in her past life.
"What good news? I remember Li Yong's eldest daughter is already engaged, but the wedding is still a long way off." The belatedly curious Sanwa added, "Isn't his son supposed to have an eye problem and have been unable to find a wife?"
Song Chunxue sighed, "A girl came to his door, saying she wanted to be his wife."
"Who is it? How much dowry did Li Yong give?"
"She's the granddaughter of the Wang family. One of her parents is deceased and the other is mentally ill. She's only thirteen years old, and they haven't given her a betrothal gift yet."
"ah?"
Sanwa was shocked. He knew the girl; because no one was raising her, she was living with her maternal grandparents and was not yet of marriageable age.
"They say it's because her belly is big."
"Huh?" He was still young, his eyes wide open. "Isn't that like being a father unexpectedly? Would Li Yong's son be willing to do that?"
"Of course he's willing. Otherwise, his son would only be able to find someone who's mentally challenged, deaf, or paralyzed to be your daughter-in-law. That girl may not be very pretty, but she's physically healthy."
Sanwa added two bundles of firewood, saying, "That's to get her pregnant; she's only thirteen."
"Do you remember that Wang family's daughter-in-law? She had a lover outside."
"ah?"
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