Chapter 7 Inventory of the Bride Gift
What a pity.
Chen Qi sighed inwardly, because both of them had their backs to her, and no matter how hard she stood on tiptoe, she could only see their backs and necks.
The nose, eyebrows and eyes were always completely covered and could not be seen.
Perhaps God heard Chen Qi's thoughts. It happened that the second uncle of the Xie family took a sip of wine, leaving a gap for conversation. The eldest brother Shen Shao said something that made everyone at the table laugh.
Xie Yuduo also laughed with everyone. While laughing, he turned around naturally and gently patted the shoulder of the eldest brother of the Shen family beside him.
The moment he turned around, Chen Qi saw a straight nose, like a slanted blade, with smooth and handsome lines.
She suddenly squatted down with a "whoosh", her movements as agile as a frightened deer, then took her sister-in-law's hand, and the two of them ran towards the inner courtyard like the wind.
When they turned around, they were panting heavily under the tree. After they caught their breath, they couldn't help but smile at each other.
My sister-in-law asked anxiously while patting her chest to calm her breathing.
"How is it, did you see it clearly?"
"Just...just saw the nose."
After saying this, Chen Qi couldn't help but laugh.
When my sister-in-law heard this, she laughed so hard that she fell forward and backward.
"Ah, nose? What can you see clearly with that?"
Chen Qi was half coquettish and half complaining.
"Who told him to keep his back to us and not look back? How could anyone see clearly?"
Seeing this, my sister-in-law rolled her eyes and made a suggestion.
"How about we go and take another look?" There was a hint of teasing and provocation in his tone.
When she heard this, she was so scared that she waved her hands and shook her head like a rattle.
"No, no, I don't dare to watch it."
"What are you afraid of? Your brother and I met openly when we first came to my house to betrothal."
"Amitabha! My dear Bodhisattva sister, you two have known each other since you were seven or eight years old. When you were little, you would see each other at least five or six times a day. As you grew older, you saw each other less often, and you often ran into each other every three or five days. Why would you need to see each other when you send your betrothal gifts?"
Chen Qi paused and continued.
"Besides, we'll always see each other in the future..."
The sister-in-law couldn't help but laugh and embarrass her. After Shen Qi said this, she also felt shy and quickly turned around to get the hot teapot.
The two men returned to the table one after the other and poured tea and wine for everyone. Everyone was still busy chatting and eating, so no one noticed.
The banquet came to an end when the sun was setting.
Everyone in the Xie family brought their horses and prepared to go home.
It was just that Xie Yuming, the eldest son of the Xie family, was drunk and couldn't ride his horse, and his second uncle was also drunk.
However, the groom-to-be was not drunk at all and was in a clear mind. His father was also fine, so he let Xie Yuming take the carriage, while his father and Erlang rode slowly on horseback, returning home the same way.
The Shen couple entertained their guests very attentively and sent them all the way to the main road intersection before returning home.
Everyone in the Xie family was very satisfied with this marriage.
Xie Yuduo, in particular, was rarely in a good mood today. Xie Yan was even more relieved, saying that seeing his son getting married, his deceased wife could rest in peace in heaven.
Although my grandmother felt that the family background was not good enough for her, the girl was an outstanding person, so she didn't complain.
The most angry person was Feng. She came here today with great enthusiasm to laugh at the Shen family, but she didn't expect that the Shen family was busy but orderly, without making any mistakes, and even the etiquette was not messed up.
The young wife who had not yet married was even more graceful and generous. She smiled at everyone she met and was so friendly that it was impossible to find fault with her.
It was the little brother, about eight or nine years old, who was a little irritable and running around in the crowd. Just as he was about to say something to him, his eldest son was quick-witted and pulled the little brother out of the crowd, telling him to stay put and go out to play.
What a small family that managed to make their old lady smile so happily.
However, her husband and son were trying to be competitive at the banquet. Not only did they not refuse, but they insisted on having a few drinks with her and ended up being completely drunk.
"Glad...happy!"
Second Uncle was still mumbling to himself while drunk.
Second Aunt was so angry that she slapped him.
After seeing off everyone from the Xie family, the Shen couple closed the courtyard gate, put away the tables, chairs, bowls and plates, and counted the betrothal gifts sent by the Xie family together.
Eighty taels of silver, this heavy gift money, has been locked intact in the bottom layer of a box at home, ready to be used as a dowry for his daughter.
This huge betrothal gift was equal to the net profit of the yarn shop for three years. When the neighbors saw it, they couldn't help but envy and talk about it.
Thinking back, it only cost me thirty-five taels of silver to buy a few rooms and a small courtyard.
Now, the Xie family can actually offer eighty taels as a betrothal gift. Their generosity is really eye-opening.
Four sets of embroidered clothes, six square gold-woven handkerchiefs, a pair of gold rings, gold bracelets, and a silver necklace—of course, these were gifts for Chen Qi to wear and bring with her when she got married. Zhang showed them all to her daughter and then put them away in her box.
As for the rolls of cloth and silk, Zhang had already decided to use them to make bedding and quilt covers for the dowry, as well as clothes for all four seasons, and to put them in her daughter's box.
As for the sixteen carefully prepared plates of soup, fruit, and tea, while not treasures, they were filled with thoughtfulness. These things couldn't be kept, and in July, the weather was even more deteriorating.
In addition to distributing it to the neighbors today, Zhang gave six plates to her relative-in-law Qiao to take back, and there were four or five plates left. There would be a lot of visits and celebrations these days, so it would be fine to share some among the neighbors and relatives.
The four large jars of Jinhua wine from the south are something that can be stored for a long time and will be indispensable for future visits, marriages, and entertaining guests.
Normally, Shen and his son were not heavy drinkers. They only drank a few glasses with the guests. The father ordered the eldest brother to put the wine in a cool place in the inner room and open it when the son-in-law came to visit.
In the front shop, there were more than a dozen loads of various dried fruits, and boxes of various medicinal herbs, spices, and teas. Although they could be stored for a long time, they were too many and took up too much space.
If it were for personal use, it would probably take three to five years to finish. But if it were given as a dowry, it wouldn't look good.
Chen Qi knew that this was her own betrothal gift, and her parents, brother and sister-in-law were reluctant to say anything, so she made her own decision.
Apart from keeping half a dou or a full dou of each item for our own consumption and to give to others, I would like to ask my brother to ask the guys at the grain and dried fruit shops who usually go to business with the rest. If anyone wants any of them, they can take them over and exchange them for cash. This will make it easier to store them and purchase other things.
Everyone listened to her and thought it made sense, so they agreed with her.
The rest of the herbs, spices, and tea leaves were originally precious things and were rarely used. I'm afraid there wouldn't be any shops in the town that knew about their goods, so I kept them at home for future use.
The marriage certificate sent by the Xie family stated the wedding date agreed upon by the two families. August 16th was chosen as an auspicious day for the wedding.
Seeing that there was less than a month left, the Shen couple no longer cared about the business in the store and left it to their son and daughter-in-law to take care of.
The old couple went around shopping for gilded boxes, curtains, dressing gowns, tables, chairs, and brocade stools for the dowry, spending more than twenty taels of silver in total.
The old couple discussed it and then gritted their teeth and spent eighteen taels of silver to buy a gold-painted step-out bed.
Although his family is not as wealthy as the Xie family in the county, he cannot hold his daughter back.
Seeing that Xiaoyue'er's parents had prepared a complete dowry and they had nothing else to buy, Chen Shao and Qiao Shi used their own private money to make a gold hairpin weighing about two taels for their sister. The hairpin had a pattern of flowing clouds supporting the moon, which was very beautiful.
In private, Shen Shao asked with a smile, "You usually only have a plain gold hairpin, which was the betrothal gift I gave you back then. How could you be willing to buy such an expensive hairpin for Xiaoyue'er?"
Qiao pretended to be angry.
"Don't come here and ask for trouble. Look at all the things the Xie family sent us. It's not easy to just give them away as dowry. Shouldn't we leave them to you and me? Although the Xie family is not as small as you and me, if we don't buy some good things for Xiaoyue'er, people will look down on us. Wouldn't Xiaoyue be sad in the future?"
Shen Shao laughed heartily, and then stayed close to his wife and whispered a few words to her, which made Mrs. Qiao feel embarrassed and laugh at the same time.
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