Chapter Forty-Six
No matter how much Zhou Wushi and Zhou Laosan tried to persuade Bai Qiqiu, she remained resolute and insisted on marrying Zhou Qiang.
Chief Kimura was helpless in this situation. The two had been intimate and he had saved his life. After much thought, he decided that the only way out was for Zhou Qiang to marry him.
With a sigh, Chief Kimura said to Zhou Wushi and Zhou Laosan, "Now you have two choices: either agree to his demands or make Qiang boy stop studying."
Mu Jin chimed in, "Father and Mother, I think Qi Qiu is a good man. Let Fourth Brother marry him."
He genuinely felt that Bai Qiqiu was a better match for Zhou Qiang, and that Zhou Qiang was the one who got the better deal.
Zhou Wu was already fuming and had nowhere to vent her anger, so she retorted angrily, "Do you even have a place to speak?!"
Mu Jin pursed her lips, looking rather hurt, and stepped aside.
Mu Bai was a little angry and said crisply, "Like a dog biting Lü Dongbin, not recognizing a kind heart. My elder brother spoke up out of kindness, but it's become his fault!"
These words were somewhat disrespectful to an elder, so Mu Jin quickly pulled him aside, "Bai'er, don't say that. Mother is angry, I don't blame her."
“Jin-ge’er is a filial son.”
"That's right, no matter how angry Zhou Laosan's family is, they can't take it out on Ren Jin Ge'er."
Hearing the villagers' comments, Zhou Wu was so angry that she was about to completely disregard her reputation, which she had maintained in the village for many years, and start cursing at whoever she could.
Zhou's relatives arrived just in time, and Zhou Wushi swallowed back the breath she had been holding in.
Bai Qiqiu quite liked Mu Jin who spoke up for him, and said to Zhou Wu Shi, "No matter how many more people you bring, there's no room for discussion. I'm determined to marry Zhou Qiang."
The crowd was in an uproar; they had never seen such a shameless and eager-to-marry young man.
The Zhou family elders who had rushed over looked at each other, shook their heads, and were also helpless.
Zhou Wushi and Zhou Laosan had no choice but to back down and allow Bai Qiqiu to marry Zhou Qiang as a concubine.
Bai Qiqiu was naturally unwilling, and after a stalemate of half an hour, for the sake of Zhou Qiang's career, Zhou Laosan finally nodded helplessly and agreed to the marriage.
"Why didn't you just agree earlier? It's such a hassle and a waste of time. I still have to go back and weed."
When Bai Qiqiu received the marriage certificate and saw that it stated they would get married next autumn, a smile appeared in his eyes.
He felt it was a bit late, but then he thought that Zhou Qiang was not old, so he could just pay the late marriage tax for another year.
Zhou Wushi said with a stern face, "Don't be so smug. The Zhou family is not a place you can easily enter."
Upon hearing this, Bai Qiqiu, who had just stepped out of the courtyard gate, stepped back in. "It's easy to get in."
After saying that, he left with a smile. Before leaving, he said to Mu Jin, "I live quite close to you. I've run into you before. I'll come to your house to chat with you another day."
Mu Jin smiled and nodded. Although Bai Qiqiu's appearance did not suit Zhou Qiang's taste, he was cheerful and a good person.
The Zhou family's affairs were settled. After Zhou Qiang slowly woke up, he found himself with an arranged marriage. No matter how much he argued, it was all in vain.
Not long after Zhou Si was slapped, Mu Lingyun took him home.
When Mu Jin returned home, Zhou Si was applying a wet towel to her face, while Mu Lingyun was helping Uncle Huang mix yellow mud.
Are you feeling better?
Zhou Si looked up, her face still showing some anger, which showed how much effort Zhou Wu had put in while she was still angry.
"Much better, brother."
Mu Jin took a closer look and said, "It will take a day or two to heal. And you, why are you so close? Look at your second brother, he's been keeping his distance for a long time."
Now that Mu Qing is pregnant, she naturally doesn't dare to go to crowded places.
"I just happened to be there." Zhou Si smiled helplessly.
Upon hearing this, Mu Lingyun, who was mixing yellow mud, blamed herself and said, "It's my fault. I shouldn't have brought you there."
Zhou Si said helplessly, "It's nothing, it doesn't hurt anymore. It made me feel like I was seriously injured."
Uncle Huang laughed from the side, "The injury is on your body, but the pain is in his heart. It hurts you more than he does when he gets beaten."
As soon as the words were spoken, Mu Lingyun and Zhou Si both blushed and were too embarrassed to look at each other.
Mu Jin chuckled; this Uncle Huang seemed to have a story to tell.
Zhou Qiang caused a scene at the Zhou family's place, but Bai Qiqiu was completely unaffected and went to the Zhou family every day, as if he were clocking in.
In the end, Zhou Qiang simply decided to avoid seeing it and went back to the teacher's place in town to continue his studies.
Unexpectedly, Bai Qiqiu followed him directly the next day and found Master Zhou Qiang's residence.
The servant led him through the door and, upon seeing Master Zheng, said directly, "Master Zheng, I am Zhou Qiang's husband, and I have come to accompany him in his studies."
Master Zheng was surprised, as he had no idea when Zhou Qiang had married.
Seeing the young man's confident demeanor, Zhou Qiang was called over with some skepticism.
Zhou Qiang was filled with anxiety, fearing that the teacher would test his knowledge. When he arrived, he was so nervous that his eyes almost popped out of their sockets when he saw Bai Qiqiu.
Seeing this, Master Zheng understood. He stroked his beard and said, "Now that you are married, you should still be more composed and restrained. Alright, take your husband back to your residence first. It's a bit late today, so we'll take him home tomorrow."
The scholar who was studying under Master Zheng has not yet returned, and Zhou Qiang is alone in his residence.
Zhou Qiang didn't dare to act rashly in front of the teacher. He opened his mouth to explain, but in the end, he followed the teacher's instructions and led Bai Qiqiu away.
Back at his lodgings, Zhou Qiang felt utterly helpless. "Brother Qiu, I really don't like you like this. How about we become brothers? When you find your sweetheart and get married, I'll give you a big dowry."
Bai Qiqiu sat down on the bed casually. "I like someone like you. I know you like someone like Wen Zhaoran, but that's a shallow liking. I believe that feelings can develop over time. If we date and you still don't like me when we get married, I will never bother you."
Looking at Bai Qiqiu, who was sitting casually on his bed, Zhou Qiang felt that Bai Qiqiu didn't treat him like a man.
"Do you keep your word?"
Bai Qiqiu nodded, "A man's word is his bond."
Zhou Qiang had just breathed a sigh of relief when he heard Bai Qiqiu say, "However, I have to accompany you on your studies. Otherwise, how can we spend every day together and develop feelings for each other over time?"
Zhou Qiang asked helplessly, "Aren't you going to cultivate the wasteland in your village?"
Bai Qiqiu laughed and said, "You can read during the day, I'll go back and tend to the fields."
Zhou Qiang sighed, “Once my classmates come back, you won’t be able to stay here anymore.”
Bai Qiqiu thought for a moment, realizing that he couldn't pursue a man too closely. "Then you must go home during your days off, and you're not allowed to avoid me."
Zhou Qiang reluctantly nodded. He regretted going to the riverbank a few days ago. How could he have slipped, fallen into the water, and ended up with such a husband?
………
When Zhou Lin returned home that evening, he learned that Zhou Qiang had gotten engaged. As the eldest brother, he was naturally happy that his younger brother had found a partner.
It just so happened that it was the old lady of the Zhao family's birthday, and all the servants and maids in the mansion were given bonuses.
Zhou Lin and Mu Heng were also rewarded with ten catties of meat and a string of cash.
"This old lady Zhao's birthday celebration is truly grand, with meat served in ten-pound portions."
Zhou Si stared at the meat with shining eyes, as if she wanted to cook it through.
"Fourth brother is engaged, Ah Jin, shall we cut two catties of meat and send it over?" Zhou Lin put the meat on the dining table and asked in a low voice.
This time, Mu Jin shook her head and said, "This time, Fourth Brother's engagement was caused by an accidental fall into the water. He's probably in a bad mood, and Father and Mother are still angry. In a couple of days, I'll make some meat buns, and you can send some to Father and Mother."
Zhou Lin smiled, unconcerned, "How could a man be unhappy about getting engaged?"
Unexpectedly, Zhou Qiang was so angry that he returned to his teacher's place a few days later.
With ten catties of meat, Mu Jin quickly cut four catties of the fatty part, dug up some shepherd's purse, and made thirty-six large steamed buns. The dough was made of half dark flour and half fine flour, with thin skin and large filling. One bite and it was so delicious it made your teeth ache.
That evening, Mu Jin, Zhou Si, and Wen Zhaoran ate two buns and were already full, while Zhou Lin ate four and barely managed to stop picking up the buns.
The steamed buns were big and filled with generous amounts of filling; I was craving them, but I couldn't eat anymore.
Early the next morning, upon hearing that Zhou Wushi was ill in bed, Mu Jin thought that if she didn't go to see her now, the villagers' unfilial gossip would probably drown them.
He picked out ten steamed buns, placed them in a shallow bamboo basket, and showed them to the villagers without covering them with a cloth.
"Jin-ge'er, are you going back to your mother-in-law's house or your parents' house?"
Mu Jin deliberately chose a time when there were many people and asked Zhou Lin and Mu Heng to take half an hour off. The couple returned to the Zhou family home with Zhou Si.
Sure enough, they encountered wave after wave of villagers carrying hoes and weeding in the fields.
"Go back and see my mother. I heard she's sick. Yesterday, A-Lin got a few pounds of meat, so I made some buns and brought some to her to try."
"Wow, these steamed buns are huge! One is enough to fill you up."
"It smells so good, I can smell it even here."
"I'll have my wife go and buy two pounds of meat later, I'm so hungry."
"The Zhou family is blessed."
Mu Jin smiled slightly, thinking that the more people knew about her filial piety, the better.
Zhou Lin didn't care about anything else, and his steps seemed a little hurried.
"Big brother, big brother, Si'er, you're back."
Mu Qing's belly was slightly protruding. She glanced at the steamed buns in the basket that Mu Jin was carrying and smiled.
Zhou Wushi was truly ill; she lay in bed, clutching her chest and sighing repeatedly.
"Mom, I brought you some steamed buns. Please try them. Children and grandchildren have their own blessings. The doctor said that being too narrow-minded can easily make you sick. Please be more magnanimous and don't ruin your health by getting angry."
Zhou Wu glared at him, pointed at his nose, and angrily said, "Get out."
Zhou Lin hurriedly said, "Mother, A-Jin's intentions were good, how can you do this?"
Zhou Wushi glanced at him and said, "You still know how to come back? There's so much work to do in the fields and you never come back to help. Even if I don't get sick from anger, I'll get sick from exhaustion!"
Zhou Lin was at a loss. "Mother, I have a job in town and I can't manage it. A-Jin and Si'er are the ones who take care of things at home. I really can't spare the time."
Zhou Wu snorted, "Since you found work in town, you send a few tattered buns to your mother?!"
Mu Jin looked at Zhou Lin with a wronged expression, "Mother, we have nothing at home right now and are short of money. This meat was given to A-Lin by the master yesterday. If you don't like it, I can take it with me."
After saying that, with tears welling up in her eyes, she picked up the basket and went out of the house.
Zhou Lin felt sorry for her and sighed, "Mother, please rest well. I know you look down on everything I do. The things I bring you are just a few tattered buns. Even these tattered buns, I would only eat once, I can't bear to eat them."
After saying that, he went out the door. Ever since he got married, his mother really couldn't stand him and disliked him in every way.
During spring plowing, my cousins are helping with the fieldwork, so I'm always busy. It's just that seeing him annoys me.
It's better to go home less often in the future, so as not to upset my mother and make myself uncomfortable.
As soon as Mu Jin left the house, she covered the cloth that had been under the buns with the cloth, picked up her basket, and chose a quiet spot to go home.
Zhou Wushi looked down on these few tattered buns; he didn't even want to give them to her.
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