Chapter Two
Having received Mu Jin's message, Zhou Ling went to find Mu Mei early the next morning after breakfast, asking him to sound out the Zhou family's opinion. If there were no problems, the wedding could be held next spring.
Mu Mei and Mu Laoqi's family have been neighbors for so many years, and Mu Mei is on their side. Hearing this, she said tactfully, "You may not know, but the eldest son of the Zhou family is a truly filial son. He hands over all his money to the public and his own pockets are practically empty."
Zhou Ling smiled and said, "Such a good man, you must help my Jin-ge'er. Besides, since we haven't separated the family, it's only right that we hand over the money to the public."
Mu Mei smiled awkwardly. Zhou Ling usually seemed like a clever person, so why didn't she understand? Was he being too subtle? He had been a matchmaker for many years and knew that while it was good for a man to be filial, if he was only devoted to his parents and didn't care about his own family, then the man he married would almost certainly suffer.
"Alright, I'll go and put in a good word for you." Mu Mei thought for a moment, but didn't say anything more. Apart from this one bad thing, Zhou Lin was a good man. He had thick eyebrows and big eyes, and he was also good at farm work. He was very strong, and Mu Jin wouldn't go hungry if she followed him.
Zhou Ling thanked the matchmaker profusely and gave him ten copper coins. Although her heart was bleeding with heartache, she still wore a smile on her face. "Then Lao Qi and I will wait at home for your good news, matchmaker."
The Zhou family.
The only sound at the dinner table was the slurping of brown rice porridge. Zhou Lin's bowl had the fewest grains of rice, and it was more like brown rice soup than porridge. The eight-foot-five-inch man was as thin as a stick.
The head of the Zhou family was the third son, and everyone in the village liked to call him Zhou Laosan. He married Wu Chunhua from the neighboring village, and they had four children.
The eldest son was Zhou Lin, a kind and honest man who was the most hardworking, but also the least favored by Zhou Wu Shi.
The second son, Zhou Ming, was strangely lazy and cunning. A couple of years ago, he took a fancy to the son of a big pig farmer in the village, named Mu Qing, and coaxed Zhou Wu Shi into arranging the marriage before his eldest brother got married.
The third son, Zhou Si, was a boy. Zhou Wushi favored boys over girls, and like his eldest brother, he was not well-liked. He was the only one who did the housework, except for Zhou Lin.
However, Zhou Si was beautiful, with big eyes and eyelashes that fluttered like butterfly wings when she blinked. She was engaged to Mu Liang from the village when she was ten years old, and she would get married next year when she was eighteen.
Old Fourth Brother Qiang was a lazy and gluttonous man with a lot of tricks up his sleeve, but unfortunately, Zhou Wushi and Zhou Laosan loved this son the most. There was nothing wrong with him except that he was good-looking. He was the best-looking among his brothers and could be considered one of the most handsome men in Mujia Village.
Now most of the family's money is spent on him. It can be said that the whole family has put together the effort to support his studies. He is now fifteen years old and plans to take the imperial examination next spring. Zhou Wushi dreams that her fourth son will pass the examination and return home in glory. In her eyes, no one is more handsome or capable than her fourth son.
“Well, eldest son, I asked a matchmaker yesterday to find out which young men are willing to be your match. You’re not getting any younger, and your family has been a burden on you.” Zhou Wushi took a sip of thick brown rice porridge and said, her voice seemingly tinged with apology.
Zhou Lin is now twenty-two years old. In the village, men his age are old enough for children to run errands. However, if it weren't for the fact that men over twenty-five don't have to pay a late marriage tax, Zhou Wu would have already arranged a marriage for him long ago.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Lin's honest face lit up with joy. He also longed for a warm home with his husband and children, but unfortunately, his fourth brother's education required a lot of money. After his second brother got married, his mother told him that the family's money was not enough for his wedding, so it had been delayed until now.
"Heh, congratulations, big brother. I wonder what you'll look like?" Zhou Ming laughed. He looked down on his honest older brother from the bottom of his heart, and his words lacked the respect a younger brother should show to his older brother.
"What, if you marry a handsome husband, do you want to divorce me and marry someone even better?" Mu Qing teased.
"How could I dare?" Zhou Ming said with a forced smile.
Zhou Lin's ears turned slightly red from their teasing. He took a sip of rice porridge as a cover-up, and the atmosphere at the dinner table gradually became more lively thanks to the jokes of Zhou Ming and his wife.
With a sallow complexion and a thin build, Zhou Si grinned and said, "Big brother, congratulations."
After finishing the last sip of the brown rice soup, Zhou Lin waved his hand and said with a simple smile, "Mother just found a matchmaker, but there's no sign of it yet."
No sooner had the words left his mouth than a voice came from the doorway, "Is the Zhou family here?"
Zhou Lin's heart jumped. What man of his age wouldn't want to get married and have a loving and caring partner by his side?
Zhou Si smiled at his elder brother, got up, and went out to welcome Mu Mei into the house.
"We're eating. You've come at a bad time," Mu Mei said with a smile.
Madam Zhou said gently, "Matchmaker, you've come at just the right time. We were just talking about the eldest son's marriage. Is there good news? Have you eaten yet? Would you like some more?"
Mu Mei found a chair and sat down, waving her hand. "I've eaten, I'm full. You just told me yesterday that not long after, my neighbor, Mu's husband, came over. I mentioned it to him, and I didn't expect him to take it to heart. He went back and asked Jin'er at home, and Jin'er had a very good impression of our Lin boy. So, he came over early this morning and asked me to come and ask if Lin boy has any thoughts about it."
"Wow, Mu Jin? She's taken a liking to my older brother?" Zhou Qiang found it hard to believe. Was Mu Jin blind? It must be Mu Mei talking nonsense.
This hibiscus was a rare beauty in the village, with fair skin, a small and delicate nose, and a pair of phoenix eyes that captivated countless men with their captivating gaze.
The Mu family's doorstep was almost worn down by suitors a few years ago, but Zhou Ling said she couldn't bear to settle Mu Jin down so quickly and wanted to keep her for a few more years, so nothing came of it.
Unexpectedly, the one Zhou Lin was interested in was Mu Jin.
"Brother, you're so lucky!" Zhou Ming said sourly, this time with genuine envy. He had also wanted to marry Mu Jin back then, and he was one of the men who were rejected.
Mu Qing pinched him lightly, making him hiss in pain, and he didn't dare to say anything more.
Zhou Lin used his large, calloused hands, like a palm-leaf fan, to nervously touch the patched hem of his clothes. His wheat-colored face flushed slightly. "How could such a fine young man be interested in me?"
Zhou Ming nodded repeatedly in his heart. For the first time in all these years, he felt that his elder brother was right. If this marriage were to happen, he would be so jealous.
"Hey, they just have their eye on you. Besides, what makes you any worse than others? You're tall, good-looking, and a good farmhand. That's what people in our village look for when choosing a man. Give me a straight answer. If you're willing, I'll go back to the Mu family and pick an auspicious day to get engaged."
Zhou Wu's eyes flickered slightly, and she smiled, "As for the matchmaker, he's very willing. You should go back to the Mu family. The eighteenth of this month is an auspicious day. We'll prepare gifts and go to his house."
She never expected that her eldest son, who was so quiet and unresponsive, would have such good fortune. She had heard that Mu Jin was not only beautiful but also a capable woman who could do both housework and other chores, making her a perfect match for her eldest son.
"Well then, I'll head back to the Mu family. I'm sure Jin-ge'er will be happy," Mu Mei said with a smile.
After Mu Mei left home, Zhou Lin stood there, his heart racing, and his palms sweating slightly.
He had seen the hibiscus by the river.
Because he was young and full of vigor, he came to the river to wash his underwear early in the morning, thinking that there would be no one there so early. But he unexpectedly met Mu Jin, the young man who was coveted by many men in the village.
Zhou Lin still remembers how embarrassed and at a loss he was at the time. But Mu Jin was an unmarried young man who didn't know anything about such things. She just nodded to Zhou Lin and then went to a stone block a little further away to wash the clothes she had brought.
Zhou Lin blushed deeply, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down, unaware that the young man had no idea what was going on. After all, the young man's feelings didn't come from the front, but from the back.
From then on, Zhou Lin would always dream of a young man washing clothes by the river, with handsome features, appearing in his dreams every night.
Unexpectedly, his dream came true. Zhou Lin was overjoyed and didn't know what to do. In the dead of winter, ignoring the biting cold wind, he picked up an axe and chopped down most of the firewood in the yard.
"Brother, that's enough, that's enough. This is enough for the New Year." Mu Qing chuckled, clearly pleased that his brother-in-law was genuinely happy.
When Gu Mei returned to the Mu family, the Zhou family agreed. Mu Jin, who was standing to the side, was stunned. Her marriage was settled just like that. She felt excited, uneasy, expectant and scared at the same time.
"Big brother is getting married? No, I can't bear to part with big brother!" Upon hearing this, Mu Bai hugged Mu Jin's waist tightly and refused to let go.
Mu Mei laughed and said, "Look how good these two brothers are. Brother Bai, your older brother is married, but he lives in our village. You can see him anytime you want."
Mu Bai hugged Mu Jin's waist and shook his head, "I don't want my eldest brother to get married, our family will never be separated!"
These childish remarks made Mu Mei laugh heartily, wiping away the tears that came from the corners of her eyes. "When you reach your older brother's age, you'll have to get married too. Mu Mei will pick out a really good man for you then, to match our Brother Bai, okay?"
"No!" Mu Bai said indignantly, he didn't want to get married at all.
Mu Mei was so amused by Mu Bai that he was still laughing even after leaving the Mu family. He had thought that Zhou Ling didn't care for Mu Jin as much as he had shown, and that such a smart person wouldn't be unable to understand him. But now it seemed that he had been thinking too much. Look how good the relationship is between Mu Bai and Mu Jin.
"Alright, stop clinging to your older brother. Your father bought two pounds of meat today. Jin-ge, go to the kitchen and cook it. Make it braised." Zhou Ling said calmly.
Mu Jin nodded, but Mu Bai wouldn't listen to his uncle and wouldn't get up from Mu Jin, which made Zhou Ling very angry. She didn't know how her son could be so close to Mu Jin.
Helpless, Mu Jin could only take Mu Bai into the kitchen, where Mu Bai helped him start a fire. "Big brother, how about you don't get married? When my second brother and I grow up, we'll take care of you!"
As Mu Jin cut the pork into pieces, she found the childish words amusing. "If you don't get married, you won't be able to see your little nephew."
"My little nephew?" Mu Bai's eyes lit up.
Mu Jin smiled and said, "Yes, after your elder brother and brother-in-law get married, your little nephew might arrive in two or three years. He'll be so tiny and cute, don't you want him?"
"I want it! Is my little nephew just like my third uncle's little nephew?" Mu Bai nodded vigorously.
Mu Bai's uncle's son-in-law recently gave birth to a grandson, which made Mu Bai extremely happy, and he would go over to take a look every now and then.
Mu Jin nodded gently. The thought of having children before marriage made him feel a little embarrassed, but he still nodded and said, "Yes."
Thinking about his and Zhou Lin's child, he must be better looking than his third uncle's grandson, since he and Zhou Lin are better looking than his cousin and cousin-in-law.
Unexpectedly, Mu Bai's next words were: "Then I don't want it anymore, it's too ugly."
Hibiscus: "..."
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