Zhou Wuguo's mother was almost forty years old when she gave birth to him. Although her legs were not very good, so what? He was a boy who could carry on the family line.
She suddenly stood tall in her husband's family and treated Zhou Wuguo like a precious treasure.
But when it came time to arrange a marriage for her son, she had already chosen a capable girl in the village. If she married into her family, she could take care of her son and earn work points in the fields—how wonderful!
But who knew that the son was bewitched and insisted on marrying that vixen Fan Xiaofan.
Everyone in Zhoujia Village knows that he's a sickly man. Zhou Wuguo's mother was hoping to have a grandson someday. What good is it for Fan Xiaofan to be good-looking? He's obviously infertile.
Aunt Zhou exclaimed and slapped her thigh, saying, "Auntie, what you say is so true! My niece, she's so sickly, she really doesn't seem like she could have a grandson. But isn't it because the child likes her? Everyone in our village knows that Wu Guo has always been given whatever he wanted since he was little. She's the best mother in our village. If you try to stop him from marrying her, won't you make him resentful?"
Her flattery and analysis pleased Zhou Wuguo's mother, and her gloomy expression softened somewhat.
Aunt Zhou pressed on, saying, "To be honest, there's no telling how long my niece will live. Once we've married her, Wu Guo won't care anymore. You can just arrange for her to marry someone you like, right?"
Zhou Wuguo's mother stared blankly at her: "You're quite heartless as an aunt."
These words clearly implied a curse that his niece would die young.
It means they don't expect her to have a good life.
Aunt Zhou chuckled awkwardly, "You can't say that. I'm only doing this for the child's own good. Look at her health, which family would want to marry her? Only your family is kind-hearted enough to let her know the good things about getting married..."
She suddenly changed her tune, praising Zhou Wuguo's mother no matter what. Zhou Wuguo's mother relented and brought up the matter of the bride price. The two sides went back and forth...
Zhou Wuguo's older sisters all married well and provided substantial financial support to their families...
Zhou's eldest aunt wanted to ask for more money, but Zhou Wuguo's mother was not easy to deal with. She was afraid that if she pressed too hard, the man would not marry her. In the end, she gritted her teeth and set the bride price.
There were more girls than usual in the village, but also more than many in the city. They were reluctant to give her any grain, so they set the price at three yuan.
Nowadays, people wouldn't even bother to bend down and pick up three yuan if it were thrown in front of them. But in this era, three yuan was a considerable sum of money in the countryside. Villagers worked hard all year round and couldn't save that much money; in fact, they often ended up owing money to the village committee.
Aunt Zhou returned home happily and told Uncle Zhou, "Who wouldn't be happy to get money for free?"
But nobody considered whether Fan Xiaofan was willing.
Zhou's eldest aunt nudged her husband: "Go to Xiangyang Brigade tomorrow and settle this matter. Our son is of marriageable age, so we need to get this money quickly to avoid delaying him."
Zhou's eldest uncle responded.
Her daughter, Zhou Xiaoru, was feeding the chickens nearby when she overheard the conversation, and a smug look of satisfaction spread across her face.
Fan Yunli had privately promised her that if this matter succeeded, she would give her a Dacron shirt...
Her parents favored sons over daughters, and she was of marriageable age, so she wanted to present herself well and marry into a good family.
She looked down at the chicken feed in her hand, dreaming of marrying a worker in the city...
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