Chapter 133 Taking Action
There were many guests at home today, and two tables of food needed to be prepared. Xu Cuilian couldn't manage it all by herself, so she instructed Zhang Erkui and Zhang Xiaokui to do the work in the kitchen.
As the eldest son, Zhang Daikui stayed behind to entertain his cousins.
Feeling stifled inside, these people went outside to the courtyard to chat with their elders, leaving only the women in the main room.
Perhaps feeling that no one was backing Zhang Zhaodi up, Zhang Sangu became bolder and kept scrutinizing Zhang Zhaodi with a critical eye.
Zhang Zhaodi was displeased, but because she was an elder and had not done anything excessive, she pretended not to see anything and chatted with Aunt Zhang and the others.
Aunt Zhang had a good impression of Zhang Zhaodi, and always had a smile on her face: "Da Kui is an honest boy. After you marry into the family, you will definitely be the one to make the decisions about your marriage."
Zhang Zhaodi hurriedly said, "Da Kui and I are too young. We need to discuss how to live our lives together, and we need our elders, Uncle and Aunt, to give us advice from time to time."
Da Kui may be a bit simple-minded, but he's not completely without his own opinions. She never thought about controlling him after marriage or having him prioritize her ideas in everything.
Aunt Zhang could tell that Zhang Zhaodi was speaking from the heart, and couldn't help but sigh, "Da Kui has good taste in finding such a sensible girl as a wife."
Zhang Zhaodi feigned shyness: "Auntie, you're exaggerating how wonderful I am."
Seeing this, Aunt Zhang Er happily chimed in, "Your aunt is right, you are a good girl, and it is Da Kui's good fortune to marry you."
Aunt Zhang echoed this sentiment, clearly very satisfied with her future niece-in-law from her maternal family.
Seeing her sisters praising Zhang Zhaodi so highly, Zhang Sangu's fault-finding habit kicked in again. She said with a forced smile, "It's not easy for the Zhang family to get a wife. They gave thirty taels of silver just for the betrothal gift. How could such a gold-plated wife not be good?"
Aunt Zhang's face immediately darkened: "If you can't speak properly, then shut up! Who doesn't spend money to get a wife?"
This third sister is getting more and more outrageous. What good will it do her to offend her niece-in-law from her own family?
If Zhao Di were to whisper sweet nothings in Da Kui's ear and he were to disown her as his third aunt, what dignity would she have left in her maternal family?
Aunt Zhang pursed her lips: "Thirty taels is too much. Marrying a city wife only costs seven or eight taels for the dowry. This is enough to marry three women."
At this point, she glanced at Zhang Zhaodi and said something even harsher: "I heard you have three younger brothers. This thirty taels of betrothal money is more than enough for them to get married."
My brother and sister-in-law are so foolish! They actually gave them the money when the other party asked for an exorbitant amount!
Thirty taels to marry a country wife? If word got out, outsiders would laugh their heads off. Luckily, on the day of the engagement, my sister-in-law said she only gave ten taels. She must have known that people would laugh at her if she told the truth.
No matter how you look at it, this woman isn't worth thirty taels. If she can't give the Zhang family seven or eight sons, it'll be a huge loss!
Seeing that Zhang Sangu was getting more and more out of line, Sheng An's smile disappeared, but he remained seated and did not go to the kitchen to find Xu Cuilian.
If even someone like Aunt Zhang can control Zhao Di, what will happen when Zhao Di encounters even bigger conflicts in her husband's family? She'll be crying in her bed.
Let her practice on Aunt Zhang today.
Zhang Zhaodi was furious, but she forced herself to retort, "It's true that I have three younger brothers. Finding wives for them is my parents' business, so I won't trouble you, Aunt."
Zhang Sangu heard this and felt that she was guilty:
“Sigh, your parents toil in the fields for a living, and they can’t even save two taels of silver a year. How are they going to get wives for your brothers? It’s nothing to use your daughter’s dowry to get your son a wife; that’s how people in the countryside do it.”
Zhang Zhaodi was furious. She stood up abruptly and walked up to Zhang Sangu: "What do you mean? Do you look down on country folk, or on me and my family? Do you dare come back to the village with me now and say such things in front of my family?"
Aunt Zhang seemed surprised by her temper, and her face darkened immediately: "As expected of someone from the countryside, daring to yell at your elders like that, is this your upbringing!"
Aunt Zhang slapped her thigh and, displaying the authority of an elder sister, angrily rebuked her: "Shut up!"
Zhang Sangu stubbornly insisted, "I didn't say anything wrong."
Zhang Zhaodi laughed in exasperation, stepped forward and grabbed her hand: "Since you think you're not wrong, then come to my house and we'll talk things out."
Zhang Sangu's face changed, and she screamed as she tried to shake off her hand: "What are you doing? What are you trying to do? You're not even married into the Zhang family yet, and you dare to put on airs in front of me? Why should I go with you!"
Zhang Zhaodi's eyes were icy cold, and her hand gripped Zhang Sangu's wrist tightly like a crab claw: "Just because you look down on country people and laugh at me and my parents."
Seeing that things were about to escalate out of control, Aunt Zhang and the others became extremely anxious and stepped forward to smooth things over:
"Meihua, you're in the wrong. You should apologize to Zhaodi right away! Zhaodi, it's the New Year, calm down. You can't let outsiders laugh at you, can you?"
The commotion in the main room reached Xu Cuilian's ears in the kitchen.
She guessed the reason immediately, her face darkening as she instructed her two sons to keep an eye on the heat. Then she rolled up her sleeves and ran into the main room, yelling, "Zhang Meihua, Zhang Meihua, today I'll tear your stinking mouth apart!"
Zhang Erkui and Zhang Xiaokui looked at each other, sensing that something terrible was about to happen.
Zhang Xiao Kui quickly said, "I'll go outside and call Dad and my older brother. You keep an eye on the pot so the food doesn't burn."
After saying that, he turned and rushed out.
Xu Cuilian stormed into the main room, only to see her beloved future daughter-in-law grabbing her sister-in-law's wrist, her eyes red and brimming with tears of grievance as she accused her:
"You look down on me, you look down on my parents, and you think you're right? Then come back with me and explain yourself to my parents. If you explain yourself clearly, I'll break off the engagement with Da Kui and return the betrothal gifts in full. Do you dare?"
Xu Cuilian was furious. She rushed forward and slapped Zhang Sangu across the face.
"You stinking troublemaker! You've already messed up my relationship with your mother and my relationship with your brother, and now you want to mess up Da Kui and Zhao Di's marriage! What are you up to?!"
With a sharp "smack," Zhang Sangu's head was turned to the side, her expression blank and completely unable to recover.
This was the first time Xu Cuilian had slapped her. No matter how much she had provoked Xu Cuilian before, Xu Cuilian had never laid a hand on her out of consideration for her parents-in-law and her own husband.
This time, she offended Zhang Zhaodi, and even angered Zhang Zhaodi to the point of saying she wanted to break off the engagement. Xu Cuilian's pent-up resentment of many years suddenly exploded.
Aunt Zhang and the others were also shocked, and they were all at a loss for words.
Zhang Zhaodi unconsciously loosened her grip on Zhang Sangu, her expression somewhat tense and uneasy.
Did she make a huge fuss?
Since her future mother-in-law has already taken action, things are out of control. Should she slap this foul-mouthed woman too, to vent her anger for herself and her parents?
Sheng An, unaware of Zhang Zhaodi's thoughts, assumed she was afraid. He took her hand and whispered in her ear, "Don't be afraid. Your aunt has wanted to slap her for a long time. You're giving your aunt the chance."
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