Chapter 337 The Bride's Dowry

Songwang Township.

Shanxin Village.

Today is Zhu Junjie's wedding day. Although the place for the banquet is not in the village but in the Suifeng Hotel in the county town, it still caused quite a stir in the village.

After all, Zhu Junjie could be said to be the most promising young man in Shanxin Village at present. He became the director of the county public security bureau at a young age, which made him even more powerful than the top leader of Songwang Township. It was inevitable that the whole village would be shocked when such a big shot got married.

At this time, hundreds of people gathered in front of the Zhu family's old house. Most of them were from Shanxin Village, and there were also people from the neighboring village who came to watch the fun. While waiting for the groom to bring back the bride, they chatted with the people around them.

The topic of conversation, without a doubt, focused on the bride.

"I heard that the bride's family is a self-employed business owner?"

"He is a self-employed person, but not the kind that runs a small stall. He is the kind that does a big business."

"No matter how big the business is, a self-employed person is still a self-employed person, and it's a bit embarrassing. With Zhu Junjie's status, why doesn't he find a job in a public institution? That way, both the husband and wife can eat the government's food, which is so face-saving!"

"Look at what you said. Can face be eaten? Do you know how big the bride's family's business is? The largest and most upscale restaurant in the county is owned by the bride's family. The money they make in a day is probably equivalent to the salary of many people who eat state-funded food for several months!"

"No way? Is this how much money you can make running a restaurant?"

"What do you think? That's the best restaurant in the county."

"But her family is rich, so it's hers. The bride should have many brothers, right? It's said that a daughter who is married off is like water spilled out. No matter what, she is just a daughter. How much can she benefit from the family? So, in my opinion, it's better for Zhu Junjie to marry a sister who has a job in a public institution. In this way, the salary she gets after she marries will be from her family, which is much better than being the daughter of a self-employed person."

"What you said does make sense. A married daughter is unlikely to receive many benefits from her parents' home."

"You all only know one side of the story!"

"What do you mean?"

"You only know that the bride's family is self-employed, but you probably don't know that the bride has two younger brothers, one is from Tsinghua University and the other is from Peking University. The Peking University one has already started working, and it is said that his rank is not lower than Zhu Junjie at all!"

"No way? Is this true or false?"

"Of course it's true. This is what Zhu Junjie's mother said."

"If that's the case, it's amazing. No wonder Zhu Junjie didn't look for someone who works in a public institution, but instead looked for the daughter of a self-employed person. It turns out that her brother is so awesome!"

“…”

People from the neighboring village who came to watch were talking about it, and the villagers in this village were also talking about it, but the focus of their discussion was different from that of the neighboring village.

"Guess how much dowry the bride will have today?"

"How can I guess that? But considering the family background of the bride, a dowry is definitely necessary."

"I guess the dowry should be three turns and one ring!"

"The four major items of three turns and one ring are outdated. Aren't the new four major items popular now? I guess this dowry should be the new four major items."

"I only know about three turns and one ring, what are these new four major items?"

"No way? You don't know this? It's just the four major appliances: refrigerator, washing machine, TV, and tape recorder!"

"Oh my god, if it's these four big things, then the dowry is a bit scary."

"Given the financial resources of the bride's family, these four items will definitely be no problem. It just depends on whether her family is so generous."

"That might be a bit difficult. Although the man gave a full 1399 yuan for her, it's still far from enough to buy the four major items. He's marrying off his daughter, so it's fine if we don't make any money, but we can't let him lose money, right?"

"That's true. They are marrying off their daughter, not marrying their daughter-in-law. It's really not appropriate to ask them to pay money for marrying off their daughter."

“…”

Inside the house, Old Lady Zhu said to her sons, daughters-in-law, and grandchildren, "Xiaojie will bring the bride back later. You must receive the guests attentively and leave the best impression on them. You must also keep smiling throughout the whole process. Did you hear me clearly?"

Brother Zhu said helplessly: "Mom, we heard it clearly. You have said it several times."

Old Mrs. Zhu glanced at him and said, "You think I'm being too long-winded, don't you?"

Although the family has been separated for many years, my mother's authority is still there. Brother Zhu shrank his neck and shook his head, saying, "No, I just said that we heard it clearly!"

Mrs. Zhu said, "Don't think I'm being long-winded. The main thing is that Xiaojie's wedding this time is different from other weddings. It will be on TV."

Mrs. Zhu was surprised and asked, "Mom, Xiaojie is going to be on TV for his wedding? What does this mean?"

The others also showed surprised expressions.

Mrs. Zhu said, "I don't really understand the details, but Xiaojie told me that he invited people from the Cultural Bureau to come over and film something, and we can be seen on TV then, so you all should pay attention and keep smiling when entertaining the guests."

Once these words were spoken, everyone really took them seriously.

In this day and age, even taking a photo is something that people take very seriously, and appearing on TV is even more so, it is definitely a major event that deserves great attention.

Seeing this, Mrs. Zhu nodded in satisfaction and said, "Okay, now that you all know what to do, then everyone should take their positions and do their own things."

…

9:30 in the morning.

Two large buses drove into Shanxin Village.

Seeing the two large buses with the word "囍" pasted on them, all the villagers waiting there knew that the groom had brought back the bride, and they all stretched their necks to look to see what this bride of such a prominent background looked like.

Of course, there are also some people who have seen the bride.

After all, they had come to visit Zhu Junjie's house the year before last. At that time, the Zhu family also slaughtered a pig and cooked, making it a grand ceremony.

However, meeting her the year before last is meeting her the year before last, and now as a bride, things are naturally different.

Soon, the bus stopped at the door of Zhu's old house.

The first people to get off the bus were the people from the Cultural Bureau. They were carrying video equipment and cameras, which made the villagers who were watching the fun look surprised.

Next, the people who went to pick up the bride got off the car, followed by the wedding guests, and finally, Zhu Junjie, the groom, helped the bride get off the car. The whole process was naturally filmed.

Getting married in this era is not as particular as in ancient or later times. Even now when many people get married in the village, the bride walks halfway with the wedding guests, and then the groom brings people to greet her. Therefore, it is normal for the bride to walk on the ground, and she does not need to be carried by someone when getting in or out of the car.

Of course, having said that, this refers to those brides who are not pretentious. No matter what era, there are always some brides who are more pretentious.

In rural areas these days, some brides require the groom to pick them up on a bicycle, and once the bride gets on the bicycle, she will not get off the bicycle during the entire journey.

You know, the roads in the countryside are not like the smooth roads in the city. There are many rugged mountain roads, and even some long and steep uphill roads. Even an empty car cannot ride up, let alone carrying people.

But even so, the bride would sit on the back seat of the bicycle without hesitation. There was no way she would get off the bicycle. She would never get off halfway in her life. No matter what situation she encountered, the groom riding the bicycle would have to handle it.

Fortunately, the groom is usually well prepared. When he rides a bicycle to pick up the bride, he will arrange people to wait on these steep slopes in advance. When the groom rides his bicycle to bring the bride here, the groom will get off the bike and push the bride up the steep slope together with the people who have been arranged in advance.

If no arrangements are made in advance and the bride refuses to get off the bike, the situation will be very embarrassing. The groom will have no choice but to use all his strength to push the bike carrying the bride up the steep slope.

The bride Deng Yunzhen was naturally not that pretentious. She got in and out of the car by herself and had no intention of asking the groom or anyone else to carry her.

The moment the bride got off the car, the onlookers saw it clearly and the whole scene instantly became boiling.

Everyone exclaimed in amazement. The bride was so stunningly dressed, as if she had walked out of a TV show.

In fact, Western wedding dresses have been introduced to my country a long time ago, but they are generally popular in cities. Rural people are unlikely to wear such things when getting married. It is considered good to have a red dress to wear when getting married.

Therefore, for the villagers present, the white thick wedding dress that the bride Deng Yunzhen was wearing was the first time they had ever seen it.

Coupled with the exquisite makeup created by professional stylists, the effect is really explosive.

It is normal to cause the villagers to exclaim.

The Zhu family members all came forward warmly to greet Zhang Xiuping, Deng Yunheng, Deng Yunzhu and other guests who came to see them off.

The two sisters-in-law, Zhu Dasao and Zhu Ersao, were responsible for greeting the bride. After they welcomed her into the house, they immediately served her fruits, snacks and tea.

After a short rest for a few minutes, they went to the A-Zu Gong Hall to worship the ancestors of the Zhu family.

At this time, the villagers had come to their senses and started talking about the bride's dowry.

"Why don't I see the bride's dowry?"

"It's a bit strange indeed. Even if we don't hold the wedding banquet here in our hometown, we should at least bring the dowry back to show it off!"

"There must be a dowry. Maybe there was too much dowry and it was too troublesome to haul it around, so she just moved it to her home in the county town, right?"

"That should be the case. If they hadn't come back to worship their ancestors, they probably wouldn't have come back. After all, it takes several hours to go back and forth!"

"You'll know if you ask later."

“…”

In the village, whether now or in the future, once someone in the village gets married, everyone will be very interested in topics such as "how much did the man give to the woman, how much dowry did the woman bring, how many dishes were there at the banquet, how many red envelopes did the man give to the wedding guests, and how much gift money was received in total at the wedding". As long as the villagers get together, they will definitely talk about it.

Soon, under the leadership of the Zhu family, the bride and groom returned after worshipping their ancestors.

Then the bride and groom distributed wedding candies to the villagers together. With so many people present, it would take dozens of kilograms of candies. Fortunately, the Zhu family had made preparations in advance, otherwise it would have been embarrassing if they couldn't even afford to distribute the wedding candies.

After the bride and groom had distributed the wedding candies, a female neighbor who had a good relationship with Old Lady Zhu came up to her and asked in a low voice, "Third Aunt, what is the dowry for your daughter-in-law?"

Old Mrs. Zhu has been keeping it to herself for a long time since she found out about her young daughter-in-law's staggering dowry. Even if no one asked, she would have found a chance to reveal it and let the villagers envy her. Now that someone has come up to her and asked, it's like she's hitting the pillow.

She said, playing hard to get: "I'd better not tell you about my daughter-in-law's dowry. I'm afraid it will scare you if I tell you."

The female neighbor laughed and said, "Third Auntie, although I haven't seen much of the world, I won't be scared by the dowry. Don't keep me in suspense, just tell me!"

Old Mrs. Zhu said, "My daughter-in-law's dowry consists of two items."

The female neighbor cooperated and asked, "Which two things?"

Mrs. Zhu smiled and said, "The first one is a house in the Deng's community in Naye."

The female neighbor couldn't help but widen her eyes when she heard this. The Naye Deng family community has long been famous throughout the county. There was a girl in their village who married a man from the Naye Deng family. Now she has become the envy of all the girls in the village. Naturally, she had heard of it as well.

The dowry was a house, which was really beyond her expectation.

It is said that this house cost 5,000 yuan when it was raised, which is not inferior to the four major items at all!

"Third wife, your in-laws are really generous. They actually gave their daughter a house as a dowry. No wonder you said you were afraid to scare me if you told me about it."

The female neighbor sighed and then asked, "Third Aunt, what is the second dowry?"

Old Mrs. Zhu still had a smiling expression on her face, and she said slowly, "The second dowry is the best restaurant in the county."

The female neighbor cried out, "Third Auntie, is this the Suifeng Restaurant in your daughter-in-law's home?"

When Deng Yunzhen came to visit the family two years ago, the villagers knew what kind of business her family was in. The Suifeng Restaurant, which was open to the public, was well known to the villagers. Now, according to what the third mother-in-law said, this Suifeng Restaurant was actually one of the bride's dowries, which was simply unbelievable.

In Bobai, which family marries off their daughter like this?

Mrs. Zhu nodded and said, "It's the Suifeng Hotel."

After getting the confirmation, the female neighbor was shocked! Soon, the news was spread by the female neighbor, just like a 12-level typhoon, blowing everyone all over the place. The news was really too shocking. Such a dowry was definitely a historical event in Bobai County.

Especially those villagers who had been to the county town and seen the Suifeng Hotel were extremely shocked. A hotel like that was given as a dowry for a daughter, especially when there were many sons. Such a move really made the villagers incomprehensible.

Just as the villagers were shocked by the bride's dowry, the groom's side also began to load gifts into the car.

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These gifts were all given by Zhu’s family, relatives and friends.

After all the gifts were loaded into the car, the bride and groom, wedding guests, wedding reception staff, Zhu family members, relatives and friends, etc., also started to get on the car one by one. The videographers and photographers from the Cultural Bureau recorded these and then got on the car.

So, two large buses full of passengers drove out of Shanxin Village and headed towards the county town.

Seeing this scene, the villagers were filled with emotion.

"Zhu Junjie is so lucky!"

"Yes, in the entire Bobai marriage, I have never heard of a bride's dowry being so exaggerated."

"Forget about the house. I heard that it was only worth 5,000 yuan when the funds were raised to build it. But the best restaurant in the county is different. It is a golden goose that lays golden eggs. I don't know how much money it can make in a year. Such a restaurant is actually used as a dowry for their daughter. How much do the bride's parents love their daughter?"

"Look at what you said, is 5,000 yuan a house worth too little?"

"It's not that it's too little. This amount of money is a huge sum for us, but it's still a lot less than what we paid at the hotel."

"Everyone knows this. Restaurants can make money continuously, but houses are just for living."

"Whether it's a house or a restaurant, this kind of dowry is unprecedented. I've never even heard of it before."

"I haven't heard of that either. The bride's parents are so nice to her!"

“…”

The bride's dowry was indeed too shocking. After the villagers present dispersed, the news spread at an extremely fast speed, and everyone who heard it was shocked. After all, such a large dowry could not be seen even in Bobai in later generations, let alone Bobai in the 1980s.

…

county seat.

Sui Feng Hotel.

Today, the Sui Feng Hotel is covered with the word "囍" (囍) everywhere, and one can tell at a glance that a wedding is going to be held.

Passers-by and diners alike are no longer surprised by this.

Because Suifeng Hotel, as the largest and most upscale hotel in the county, has long been the first choice for couples to hold wedding banquets, and one or two wedding banquets have been held almost every month in the past two years, so everyone has long been accustomed to it.

At this time, it was already past eleven in the morning, and Deng Shirong and his relatives and friends were all waiting at the hotel.

The wedding customs in Bobai are not uniform. In some places, the wedding banquet is held in the morning or at noon, and in some places, it is held in the evening.

Shuangwang Township and Songwang Township belong to the former.

…

County government staff quarters.

The home of County Magistrate Song.

At this time, County Magistrate Song had his hair combed neatly, and was wearing a suit, tie, and leather shoes. His image was still very OK.

Now it is the late 1980s, and even the big brothers ranked at the top of the list have started wearing suits in public. Following the example of their superiors, the officials below naturally followed suit and started wearing suits.

Although Song Yu is now a deputy section-level cadre, she is still young after all. Naturally, she does not dress as seriously as her father. Instead, she wears a beautifully knitted turtleneck sweater with jeans, looking full of youthful vigor.

Seeing the father and daughter preparing to go out, Song's mother couldn't help but say, "Xiaoyu, today's bride is one year younger than you. It's time to think about your marriage."

Song Yu had already prepared herself for her parents to urge her to get married. She smiled and nodded, "I know, Mom. If I find a suitable partner, I will definitely get married as soon as possible."

Song's mother immediately responded, "You said so. Tomorrow your father will go to Nanning to visit his old boss. He will ask the boss's wife to introduce you to a date. If they are a good match in every aspect, you can't make excuses to refuse the blind date. Do you understand?"

Song Yu looked at her mother and then at her father, and knew that they had discussed this long ago. She couldn't help but frown and said, "Dad, Mom, I originally had no objection to asking someone to introduce me to a date, but Dad, it's a bit inappropriate for you to ask the leader's wife to introduce me to a date, right? If it's not suitable, should I agree or refuse?"

County Magistrate Song smiled and said, "Don't worry about that. I have already thought about this issue. When you ask the leader's wife to introduce you to someone, I will make it clear in advance that she is only responsible for introductions. Whether it will succeed or not is up to you. You don't have to worry about offending the leader's wife by refusing."

Song Yu smiled bitterly and said, "Okay, since you have all considered it, I will follow your arrangements. I can participate in the blind date, but I can't guarantee whether it will succeed or not."

Song's mother said: "As long as you are willing to participate in the blind date, it will be fine. As for whether it will work out, it depends on fate."

County Magistrate Song said, "Okay, let's talk about this later. It's getting late now, we should go."

…

Sui Feng Hotel.

The groom Zhu Junjie and the bride Deng Yunzhen stood together at the door to welcome the guests. Old Man Zhu, Old Lady Zhu, and parents Deng Shirong were naturally also present.

At this time, the hotel's cash register also became a temporary gift counter.

In later generations, some well-off families in Bobai who valued their reputation would not accept gifts when they held a banquet to celebrate something special. They simply invited relatives and friends to come for a meal to celebrate and did not want to let them spend money.

Originally, Deng Shirong also wanted to learn from the practices of these people in later generations, but after thinking about it, he finally gave up.

After all, in this day and age, everyone accepts gifts at weddings. If your family is the only one that doesn't accept them, then that would be too unconventional. And there is another point: if you don't accept gifts when relatives and friends come to your wedding, then when your relatives and friends invite you to your wedding, should they accept the gifts you give?

Therefore, it was finally decided that gift money should still be accepted, but the person who gave the gift money could give a red envelope in return to each person in approximate proportion to the amount given by others.

For example, if a relative gives you a gift of 10 yuan, you can give him/her a red envelope of 8 yuan in return. This way, he/she will feel proud and it won't be too costly. This approach will definitely attract praise from relatives and friends behind your back.

"Director Zhu, Mrs. Zhu, congratulations to both of you!"

"Director Zhu, Madam Zhu, congratulations, I wish you two a happy marriage and a son soon!"

"Boss Deng, congratulations!"

"Congratulations……"

As noon approached, the heads of various departments began to arrive.

Attending a wedding is like attending a meeting. The later you show up, the higher your rank. After all, you can't let your boss wait for you, right? A sensible subordinate should arrive before the boss.

As the heads of various departments arrived, the supervisors from above also arrived one by one.

The last to arrive were County Magistrate Song and his daughter, as well as the county magistrate.

"Boss Deng, congratulations!"

"Uncle Deng, congratulations!"

The county magistrate and County Chief Song and his daughter greeted Deng Shirong first, and then greeted the groom's parents and the bride and groom.

The current county magistrate of Bobai is none other than the county chief who originally granted the land to Deng Shirong. In the past few years, he has successfully ascended to the position, and County Chief Song has taken over his position.

After Deng Shirong expressed his gratitude, he and his second son Deng Yunheng led the three to Box No. 1 to meet up with other leaders. Box No. 1 of today's wedding banquet was undoubtedly for the most distinguished group of guests, all of whom were department-level cadres. Those who were not at this level were not qualified to enter this box.

Box No. 2 is for the heads of each department. Those who are not of sufficient rank will not be assigned to this box.

Whether it is now or in the future, classes or circles exist at all times, and this is also vividly reflected in wedding banquets. Anyone who has attended a wedding banquet should understand that there are always one or two tables of guests that the host attaches great importance to, and those who can be arranged at these one or two tables are all rich, powerful and prestigious people.

Deng Shirong has to take charge of the overall situation, so it is impossible for him to stay in any box all the time.

Fortunately, he had someone to use, and this box was naturally occupied by his second son Deng Yunheng.

As a leader who has made a name for himself in the system, he knows too well the value of a degree from Peking University and a background in the State Planning Commission. As long as such talents do not "die prematurely", it is normal for them to surpass their level in ten years.

The leaders present couldn’t believe what kind of high position he would be able to reach in 20 years.

In short, that is definitely a height they cannot reach.

Nowadays, showing goodwill when the other party is in its early stages is the most cost-effective deal.

In box number two, Deng Shirong sent his third son Deng Yunsong to accompany him.

Although Deng Yunsong is still a student at present, his identity as a Tsinghua University student will always be looked up to in any era, so having him accompany him is enough.

As for box number three, it was headed by Zhu Junjie's four comrades.

In fact, with the level of these four people, especially Xiao Guangrong's level, they could be arranged in Box No. 1. However, they were not familiar with the local leaders and were too lazy to be polite with them, so the four of them chose to go to Box No. 3.

The one who accompanied them was Deng Yuntai, the eldest brother.

Box No. 4 is where the leaders of Shuangwang Township are.

The other boxes were also filled with some notable figures, such as the old patriarchs of the Naye Deng family, Deng Yungui, Deng Changbao, Deng Changxiong and so on.

After all the guests arrived, the wedding ceremony began.

This wedding ceremony was not as complicated as that of later generations. It was presided over by the leader of the Education Bureau, who gave his blessings to the newlyweds. The parents of the bride and groom were invited to speak on stage, and then the bride and groom gave speeches.

The whole process was not lengthy at all and the ceremony was completed within fifteen minutes.

Then, the part that all the guests were looking forward to came - the feast started! (End of this chapter)