Ye Guo got married and, unusually, he was extravagant, packing five jin of White Rabbit candies in a cloth bag.
Ye Gen followed closely behind his brother. It wasn't that this guy hadn't caused trouble or adapted to the countryside; the endless farm work had already exhausted him.
Ruan Xianxian refused to lend her bicycle, so the Hu family clan pushed one over. Ye Guo straddled the old bicycle with a happy expression, a cloth bag full of White Rabbit candies tied to the handlebars.
Some of it was to be sprinkled on the road for children who spoke auspicious words, and some was also to be given to the guests who came to offer their congratulations.
Wenrou and the Jiang brothers, as the husband's family, accompanied her throughout the trip, along with several burly younger members of the Hu family clan who came to lend their support.
As the bicycle drove out of the educated youth settlement, the children who had been waiting outside for candy ran alongside it, chattering sweet nothings as if they didn't care about money. They opened the cloth bag a little, and some milk candy fell out.
The children who managed to grab the candy were overjoyed, and their cheers really created a lively atmosphere.
Ruan Xianxian, who was carrying a suona in one hand, stared intently at the milk candy in the snotty-nosed child's hand, and said in an unfriendly tone, "It's all my money."
Forced to take a pair of broken gongs, Chen Zhaodi banged them loudly, "How do I play them? I don't know how!"
Ruan Xianxian tried out the suona's tone and noticed that its lung capacity was better than in modern times. Hearing this, he turned his head to teach her.
"Whatever, just tap it when you feel like it."
Chen Zhaodi and Wu Xueliang, who had a waist drum tied around his waist, exchanged glances, their eyes then turning to Mu Xia and Chu Li, who were hiding far away.
With a face full of resentment: "Why are we the only two who got conscripted?"
Chen Zhaodi rolled her eyes. "She can't afford to offend those two! Hasn't she seen through their cowardly and bullying nature?"
"What's that chirping about? Hurry up, let's go! It's a educated youth's wedding, let's go and offer our sincerest blessings!" This guy took the lead and ran off excitedly, holding his suona (a traditional Chinese wind instrument).
The bicycle picked up the bride and rode around the village. Since they couldn't afford a bright red new dress, the bride wore a slightly worn purplish-red skirt with an apricot-yellow long shirt on top.
Dark yellow skin, red lips, and when she smiles, the thick blush on her cheekbones falls off in a flurry.
Halfway there, Ruan Xianxian suddenly saw the bride and slammed on the brakes. She swallowed hard.
I knew Hu Daya was ugly before, but on her wedding day, how could Ye Guo really bring himself to kiss her in such an unusually ugly way?
Is the combination of apricot yellow and purplish red, along with that makeup that looks like it needs no further embellishment and could be cremated immediately, for real?
She said, seemingly both impressed and genuine, "The food in Ye Country is really good!"
The onlookers: ? ? ?
When the crowd arrived at the Hu family's house, the place where a banquet should have been held was packed with people. Shi Dafu arrived as promised, wearing a red armband, and even though there were tables available, no one dared to set them up.
Mr. and Mrs. Hu, who sat in the main seats, had dark and gloomy faces.
Is this really a daughter's wedding, and not some large-scale spectacle being watched?
Shi Dafu stood with his hands behind his back, smiling, but did not say a word as the officiant throughout the entire ceremony.
The ceremony was considered complete when Ye Guo carried Hu Daya back to the Hu family home and simply said, "Live a good life from now on."
Just as the Hu family breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that this wedding that didn't really feel like a wedding had finally passed peacefully... a loud suona horn rang out in the already noisy courtyard.
Then a loud gong rang out.
Mr. and Mrs. Hu were jolted awake, nearly killed by the sudden commotion.
They suddenly stood up, glaring angrily at the instigator. The crowd automatically parted to make way for Ruan Xianxian, who appeared with her face up, holding a suona (a traditional Chinese wind instrument), wearing a white long-sleeved fitted dress.
Behind them followed Chen Zhaodi and Wu Xueliang, who were clearly forced into the role.
Wu Xueliang, who comes from the Wu family, is no stranger to musical instruments. Zhao Di grabbed a gong and started banging it loudly. The team members looked on with amusement. A wedding without a troublemaker always feels like something is missing.
Finally, the trip was worthwhile.
The loud suona melody suddenly changed, from high-pitched and passionate to melodious and plaintive, and the listener's expression instantly changed from watching a play to feeling sad.
Someone clutched their aching chest and said, "I don't know why, but I want to cry."
An elderly woman who had been deep in thought from the beginning suddenly slapped her thigh and exclaimed, "This...this...isn't this the mournful melody of a funeral procession before the Cultural Revolution?"
Everyone: ? ? ?
Hu Bin's face turned from pale to red, and he suddenly roared, "On my son's wedding day, is Ruan Zhiqing playing funeral music to promote feudal superstition?"
Before Ruan Xianxian, who was engrossed in playing the suona, could answer, Shi Dafu, with a beaming smile, took over the conversation.
"Comrade Hu, please don't be angry. Ruan Zhiqing is clearly preparing her talents for the next reception of foreign guests. How can that be considered feudal superstition?"
"Nonsense! Utter nonsense!"
The clan patriarch was so angry that his lips trembled. The older people get, the more superstitious they become. Playing funeral music on a joyous occasion was, in the old man's eyes, an ominous sign.
As soon as this guy appeared, the villagers secretly called him a plague god. Relatives and friends standing in the yard ran far away to watch the show, all afraid that bad luck would taint their homes.
"Shut up, shut up!" The old man was so angry he was shivering. After the song ended, the boy raised his little face in a daze, his ears temporarily deaf.
"What? You want more?"
She waved her hand shyly, "I just learned this one. It's the only tune I know. I like to play it outside your wall in the middle of the night when the old lady likes me to."
The clan elder fell silent for a moment, truly afraid that she might suddenly decide to send him away in the middle of the night, as if she hadn't lived enough yet!
After the clan elders were defeated in one round, Hu Bin gritted his teeth and said, "The process is complete. Ruan Zhiqing and everyone else, please go back."
Being subjected to funeral music at a wedding banquet will bother him for years.
“That won’t do.” Ruan Xianxian said seriously, “I’m here to ask for my money back. A month ago, Ye Guowen was the mastermind behind the theft of two thousand yuan from me.”
"We have both witnesses and physical evidence. The debt is split equally among the five of us. We've already paid back 200 yuan, but Ye Guo still owes me 360 yuan. A son-in-law is like half a son, so the Hu family has an obligation to help him pay this debt."
Hu's mother became anxious, "Why don't you just rob it?"
Ruan Xianxian looked around and smiled, her expression seemingly saying, "I'm robbing you!"
As a daughter, Hu's mother was pampered by her family; after marriage, she was pampered by her husband. Even though she gave birth to a mentally challenged son, Hu Bin, who was capable of handling things, never openly criticized her.
When have we ever been attacked like this before?
"Eldest brother, second brother, third brother, fourth brother, fifth brother, don't let Ruan Zhiqing stand there doing nothing. Invite him to come and sit down at our family home."
After saying that, he thought that his five brothers would rush up in front of her as they always had in the past and teach this vixen a lesson without lifting a finger.
She was full of anticipation, thinking that her fifth brother might even be able to take the opportunity to get married. But after a long while, her brothers, who used to treat her like a daughter, looked at the sky and the ground...
Just kidding, didn't you get beaten enough at the threshing ground last time?
Hu's act of admitting defeat and her clown-like appearance, which was ignored by everyone, amused the villagers.
Taking advantage of everyone's attention being drawn to his wife, Hu Bin called over Hu Dabao, who had food all over his hands and mouth, and pointed to Ruan Xianxian, who was smiling provocatively at the front of the crowd.
"See her? Go over and hug her and give her a kiss. From now on, she'll be your wife."
Despite his seemingly madness, Hu Dabao possessed extraordinary strength; three farmers who worked in the fields year-round couldn't out-arm him.
Seeing Ruan Xianxian's fairy-like face, Hu Dabao drooled onto his clothes, his international face beaming into a wide grin, and he shouted "Wife!" incoherently before charging towards her like a cannonball...
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