Chapter Thirty-One
Mu Jin leaned on her hoe, looking at this and that, adopting the air of a mother-in-law looking at her son-in-law.
However, the two had been exchanging glances for about twenty days, but Mu Lingyun hadn't taken any action, nor had he asked a matchmaker to propose marriage.
With Zhou Si about to pay the late marriage tax this year, there are concerns that Zhou Wu's side might cause some trouble regarding Zhou Si's marriage.
We need to find a way to finalize this as soon as possible.
"Big brother, I'm here!"
Mu Bai carried a bamboo basket covered with a cloth, the contents of which were unknown, and walked over with light steps.
"Why are you here at this hour? Have you finished with things at home?"
Mu Jin took the bamboo basket and patted Mu Bai's little head, who was not yet ten years old and still a child.
“My uncle’s family and our family take turns doing spring plowing. There are several cousins and several uncles, so I don’t need to do it.”
Mu Bai took Mu Jin's arm and said softly, "Big brother, I've been learning to cook at home these past few days."
Mu Jin chuckled, "How could your father bear to let you cook? Is this basket filled with the food you made today?"
Mu Bai laughed and said, "Big brother is so smart. My father wasn't feeling well a few days ago because he was pregnant with my little brother. Today he's feeling much better, so I finally had some free time."
Hibiscus: "..."
Thinking about it carefully, Zhou Ling is not yet thirty years old, so it is quite normal for her to give birth to a younger brother for Mu Zhou and Mu Bai.
"Brother, Uncle and the others helped out at our house today. Dad bought meat and slaughtered a chicken, which is stewing in a pot. I brought you two bowls."
Mu Jin felt somewhat gratified; she hadn't raised this younger brother in vain.
"How's Zhou'er's studying going?" Mu Jin put the bamboo basket down on the ground and asked softly.
"My second brother told Dad that there shouldn't be any problem. My uncle was very happy and made him steamed egg custard every day to nourish him. I was so envious."
Mu Jin poked his nose. "Didn't your second brother give you any?"
Mu Zhou doted on his younger brother the most; he wouldn't believe it if Mu Zhou didn't give him a few bites of food.
Mu Bai nodded shyly, "I only eat one bite each time. Second Brother studies hard and should eat more good food."
After talking for a while, Mu Bai stood up and said, "Big brother, let me help you hoe the ground."
As he spoke, he reached for the hoe in Mu Jin's hand.
Mu Jin waved her hand and said, "Today's main task is to till the land. Brother Lingyun brought mules to help, so we don't need to till it. You can sit here and rest for a while."
Although Mu Bainian is young, he is full of energy and can't sit still. "I'll go help Si-ge."
Mu Jin quickly pulled him back, not daring to let him disturb Zhou Si and Mu Lingyun.
"You and I will go together to pick out the pebbles that have been turned over."
Mu Bai nodded, picked up the basket, and followed Mu Jin down to the ground.
The early spring sunshine is warm and pleasant, not scorching, and very comfortable.
Turning over the soil is deeper than digging it. We dug up a lot of stones before, and today we dug up a lot more.
The rotting branches and leaves of the hibiscus that were not picked up from the ground can be left in the field to fertilize it.
Thanks to the mules' help, we saved a lot of effort today.
It was almost noon, and Mu Bai didn't eat at Mu Jin's house. All his uncles were eating at home today, and he had to go back to help his father-in-law take care of them.
Mu Jin glanced at Mu Lingyun, thought for a moment and said, "Brother Lingyun, come over for a meal. Thank you for your hard work today. My brother from my mother's family brought some meat."
Mu Lingyun glanced at Zhou Si, pondered for a moment, and nodded.
"Okay, I'll drive the mule home first, and my son will be here soon."
Mu Jin smiled and said, "Then I'll go back and make lunch."
Zhou Si blushed. "Big brother, I'll go with you."
With a teasing expression, Mu Jin and the other person returned home and steamed a pot of hearty brown rice and stir-fried a plate of wild vegetables that Wen Liangzhao had dug up in the yard that day.
Take out Wen Liangzhao's portion and put it in Zhou Si's room so that he can eat it by himself first.
When Mu Lingyun came, he also brought a pheasant. "Two of them fell into the traps we dug on the mountain this morning. My uncle told me to bring one for you to try."
Mu Jin smiled and said, "Brother Lingyun, this is really too much of a waste."
Farmers rarely eat meat throughout the year, so pheasants are a rare treat.
Mu Lingyun tossed the pheasant with its legs tied aside and looked at Zhou Si, saying, "This thing is easy to catch, it's not expensive or anything."
Mu Jin chuckled to herself as she and Zhou Lin served the food to the table.
During the meal, Zhou Lin and Mu Lingyun chatted about the work in the fields. "Once the land is plowed in the next couple of days, we can start sowing."
Mu Jin put a piece of chicken on Zhou Lin's plate, while Mu Bai brought a bowl of chicken stew with hazelnuts and a bowl of braised pork.
It's not a large portion, but at least it has some meaty flavor.
With a quick glance, Mu Jin said, "Sigh, I'm also worried about this. There's work to be done in the fields and at home. Si'er is getting older, and I haven't had time to find a matchmaker. I need to find a good family for her to marry into this year. Brother Lingyun, do you think Uncle Mu has any good families he can introduce to?"
Zhou Si blushed and glanced at Mu Jin, opened her mouth but didn't say anything.
He also wanted to see what Mu Lingyun was really thinking.
As soon as he finished speaking, Mu Lingyun paused in his chopsticks, then put them down and stared at Zhou Si intently, as if he had made up his mind.
They were both intelligent people. It goes without saying that Mu Jin's purpose in saying such things to him, an outsider, was obvious.
If he backs down again, Zhou Si might have to marry someone else.
Thinking of his parents, his elder brother, and his younger brother's repeated admonitions, Mu Lingyun mustered the greatest courage of his life.
"Brother Lin, brother, I know I'm a cripple and not good enough for Si'er, but I can promise you that even if I'm crippled, my feelings for Si'er are not crippled at all. I will never let Si'er suffer because of me!"
Zhou Si blushed so deeply after hearing Mu Lingyun's words that her face turned as red as if it were about to bleed.
"Big...Big brother, I'm done eating."
He ran back to his room before he had even finished his meal.
Mu Jin chuckled, and after Zhou Si ran back into the house, she said, "Since that's the case, you know Si'er is getting old, so why didn't you invite a matchmaker to the house?"
Mu Lingyun watched Zhou Si run away and sighed, "I'm lame. If Si'er can find a better family, I... But after hearing what you said today, I feel so unwilling. If Si'er is interested in me, even with my limp, I can still make sure she lives a life free from want."
"After the land is plowed, I'll ask a matchmaker to go to my mother-in-law's place and finalize the marriage as soon as possible."
Although Zhou Si lived with them, they were not actually cut off from their family ties. The engagement still had to go through Zhou Wushi and Zhou Laosan's side.
However, as long as the dowry is sufficient, they probably won't refuse.
Upon hearing this, Mu Lingyun's eyes lit up, but then he hesitated and asked, "Where is Si'er?"
Mu Jin smiled and said, "Since I've spoken, there must be no problem with him."
Mu Lingyun quickly stood up, grinning and showing off her white teeth, and said happily, "I'll go back and tell my little father right away!"
After saying that, he hurriedly left the house, his joy almost overflowing from his back.
"Alright, there's only this much left. Call Si'er out and let's eat."
Zhou Lin smiled and nodded, then got up and went out of the kitchen to call out Zhou Si and Wen Liangzhao.
Zhou Si was both happy and embarrassed. When she was turning the soil in the afternoon, her face was red and she didn't dare to look at Mu Lingyun.
Mu Lingyun's lips never left her mouth. She treated Zhou Lin's place like her own family home, putting all her effort into her work and giving it her all.
Two days later, after the land was plowed and the late spring cold snap had passed, the villagers could start sowing, and they had a little free time.
The villagers, who were sunbathing and watching their children at the door, saw the Mu family dressed neatly, with the matchmaker following behind, pulling a cart full of betrothal gifts. They didn't know which family they were going to propose marriage to.
The father and son of this hunter family are both skilled hunters, and they never lack meat to eat.
Mu Lingqiao got married, presumably to arrange a marriage for Mu Lingyun.
Although he was lame, with the help of his elder brother and parents, his life wasn't too bad.
Because he was highly sought after by families in the village with eligible bachelors.
"Hunter Mu, whose house are you going to propose marriage to?"
"Which family's young master or lady is so fortunate?"
With nothing else to do, many people went to watch the excitement. The women and husband who had come with them were still a little dazed when Mu Liehu entered the Zhou family's gate.
"The Zhou family? Isn't it just Zhou Si, that one boy?"
"A man who has broken off his engagement with his wife is actually so lucky?!"
Inside the house, Zhou Wu was also somewhat incredulous. Zhou Lin had returned home yesterday, and she was still angry with him, so she naturally didn't have a good attitude towards him.
When she heard that the Mu family was coming to propose marriage today, she thought that Zhou Lin and Mu Jin, those bad boys, had gone astray and were here to mess with her.
He asked Zhou Lin to chop up the firewood in the house, but after thinking it over, he was afraid it was true, so he went to the wood matchmaker's place to sound him out.
Such a good thing, the matchmaker naturally didn't hide it from her. He pulled her aside and talked for a long time about how lucky Zhou Si was. The matchmaker had told him that the Mu family would give him five taels of silver for the engagement.
Among so many, it's rare to find a young man who's never been engaged.
This morning, the whole family dressed up and waited for the hunter's family to arrive.
Mu Jin and Zhou Lin also came over, but Zhou Si stayed in the room she had been staying in before.
Mu Qing's belly was showing, her lower abdomen was slightly protruding, and she looked very pregnant.
Five taels of silver as betrothal money—this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity—so Zhou Wushi and Zhou Laosan happily accepted the silver as betrothal gifts.
Without any major issues, Zhou Si and Mu Lingyun's marriage was settled smoothly.
After the wood hunters and the wood matchmaker left, Mu Jin wanted to pull Zhou Lin back quickly as well. They hadn't been to Mu Heng's place for so long, and it was time to pick up the carpentry again.
After glancing at the betrothal gifts in the courtyard, he had other ideas.
The courtyard was filled with betrothal gifts: geese, rice, flour, and cooking oil—more than you'd expect.
After everyone left, the villagers who had come to see the betrothal gifts all felt a pang of sadness.
"Congratulations, Zhou family. The Mu hunter family is a very good match."
"It's just that Mu Lingyun has a limp and can't do any heavy work."
Zhou Wushi enjoyed seeing their jealous looks at her family, and as a result, she found Zhou Si much more agreeable.
After everyone had dispersed and gone home, Zhou Wushi spoke up.
"Let Sige move back home. He should stay at home and wait to be married before the wedding."
Zhou Si shook her head. "Mother, there are many things to do with my elder brother, and he can't be left alone. The family division agreement states that I will only leave the betrothal money to you and Father. I will take this rice and flour back with me."
Zhou Wu's upturned lips froze, and she stared at Zhou Si in disbelief, as if she were seeing him for the first time.
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