Chapter 559-560: Wedding Night
"Uncle also told me that!" Before he finished speaking, a little boy of about seven or eight years old opened the door a crack, "Uncle, where is the red envelope you mentioned?"
"The big red envelope is here, take it!" Zhou Yiding took out the red envelope specially prepared for the two brothers from his pocket and handed it over. Zhou Huaian and others took the opportunity to squeeze open the door and enter the room.
Wan Xuejiao was seen sitting on the bed wearing a bright red double-breasted embroidered dress and a bright red skirt, with a red scarf covering her head.
After Zhou Yiding went in, he took a stack of red envelopes and gave them to everyone he met, calling them "sisters" all the time.
Zhou Huaian and a few others helped find a place to hide the shoes.
"Uncle..." Wan Erwa, who received a big red envelope, secretly told Zhou Yiding where Wan Xuejiao hid her shoes, which earned him slaps from several girls!
He took the bright red leather shoes from the top of the cabinet and put them on her, then ran out with her on his back. Someone followed behind him to scatter grains, and then firecrackers rang out. When they took the bride out, old man Wan Xuejiao threw a basin of water out...
After picking up the bride, they arrived at Funiu smoothly. When the wedding procession arrived at the drying dam, the sound of firecrackers rang out in front.
Several young people in the village stopped the wedding procession, asked for wedding cigarettes and candies, and then happily dispersed.
Zhou Yiding carried the bride into the house, stepped over the brazier and went straight to the main room.
Zhou Huaian saw Wang Zhen and Huang Yongcai standing at the gate with smiles on their faces, and greeted them with a smile, "Rare guests, rare guests, please come in and see the worship hall."
"Okay!" The two of them smiled and nodded, and walked towards the yard together.
The Eight Immortals Table in the main hall was also moved to face the door and placed against the wall. Zhou Daqing sat beside the Eight Immortals Table. Matchmaker Liu presided over the couple's wedding ceremony. After they bowed to heaven and earth and their parents, the couple bowed to each other and entered the new house. The sound of firecrackers rang out again, and the banquet officially began outside.
Zhou Huaian pulled Wang Zhen and Huang Yongcai to sit at the same table, "Are the nine big bowls in the countryside the same as in the city?"
Wang Zhen: "It's better here, casual, festive and lively!"
Huang Yongcai smiled and said, "That's right. The countryside is much more lively. Such a banquet cannot be held in the city."
Zhou Huaian: "Brother Huang, you are too modest. Your yard is so big, it's no problem to set up more than ten tables!"
Huang Yongcai: "It is possible now. Before, we could only put three tables at most."
Just then the old man and Zhou's father also arrived. After exchanging greetings, everyone found a seat and sat down.
Zhou's mother and her two daughters-in-law sat at a table with their grandchildren, on which were already several cold and braised dishes.
Several women carried plates and started serving nine large bowls. The first bowl was crispy pork. The half-fat and half-lean pork was coated with batter and fried, then sliced and steamed. After steaming, the excess steam was poured out, and fresh soup was served on top. The dish was sprinkled with chopped green onions, and the aroma was refreshing!
Then there is stewed whole chicken, stewed pork knuckle, steamed fish... The last dish is sweet braised pork with bright red color, fresh, sweet and glutinous, moderately soft, fat but not greasy.
There is another reason why the “Nine Big Bowls” are also called “Nine-Dou Bowls”, which is that people regard “nine” as an auspicious number. There are sayings such as “Nine-nine longevity”, “Nine sons passing the imperial examinations” and “eternal love”.
There is also a folk song called "Nine Bowls Song": The host invited me to lunch, and the nine bowls were better than Suzhou. The first bowl was fried fish liver and fish belly, the second bowl was stewed with chicken and Fritillaria. The third bowl was boiled carp and bird's nest, and the fourth bowl was braised pork and tofu.
Five bowls of vinegar with a golden hook. Six bowls of gold coins hanging from a gourd. Seven bowls of chunky meat. Eight bowls of fat meat dripping with fire. Nine bowls of clear soup to rinse your mouth, and you will feel full after a good meal.
Huang Yongcai tasted a few dishes and said, "Youngest brother, the chefs here are really good!"
Zhou Huaian smiled and nodded, "He has booked all the banquets for our three villages, as well as the villages inside. I heard that he has never stopped for a year."
Wang Zhen smiled after reading it and said, "It's very interesting, just like the flowing banquet described in the book, when enough people come and fill a table, the feast begins!"
Zhou Huaian: "It's better for Yiding who has fewer family members. Some people in the village who have more relatives and friends can have dinner until the afternoon."
Zhou Yiding came out of the room with Wan Xuejiao, who had a big red gauze flower in her hair, and started to toast each table, starting from the table of elders. He was also pulled aside by his uncle's family and scolded for taking advantage of his seniority.
When they arrived at the table where Zhou Huaian and his friends were sitting, the two men smiled and toasted them, then went to another table.
No one forced them to drink at the two tables of elders and Zhou Huaian's table, but at other tables, some people made things difficult for them to drink. After Zhou Huaiqing and others helped to use threats and inducements, the two of them finally didn't have to drink much.
After the main meal, relatives from near and far left one after another.
Zhou Huaian and Zhou Yiding saw Wang Zhen and Huang Yongcai off, and before they finished their work when they came back, the evening banquet had already started.
After the banquet comes the most lively part, the bridal chamber prank. People these days are more conservative and reserved, so the prank will not be too excessive.
Zhou Huaiqing poured two glasses of wine and looked at the two of them with a smile: "Cousin, cousin, you are very happy today. I wish you a happy marriage and a son soon."
"Thank you, cousin." Zhou Yiding and Wan Xuejiao took the wine glasses, but before they could put them to their lips, Zhou Huaiyin stopped them, "It's a happy day, let's drink the wedding wine first."
"Come on!" Zhou Yiding took Wan Xuejiao's hand, hooked their arms around each other, and they both drank it down neatly.
"Okay~"
Zhou Huaiqing took a cigarette and handed it to Zhou Yiding, "My cousin's wife and my cousin have to light this cigarette together."
Zhou Yiding was dumbfounded, "We two light a cigarette together?"
Zhou Huaiqing nodded with a smile, "Yes!"
Zhou Yiding glared at him and said, "Brother, I remember you got engaged a few days ago! Just wait for me!"
Yes! I will be having a wedding in the second half of the year!
Thinking of this, Zhou Huaiqing felt numb. He scratched his head and said with a smile, "Brother, how about we change it? How about you and sister-in-law eat longan?"
"Hahaha..." Everyone burst into laughter when they saw this.
After laughing, several people echoed, "Yes! Eat longan and wish the bride and groom to have a baby soon!"
A longan with a little bit of flesh pierced through it with needle and thread was brought in front of Zhou Yiding and Wan Xuejiao by Zhou Huaiqing, and was swaying back and forth between the two of them.
Wan Xuejiao looked at the shriveled longan as big as a glutinous rice ball between the two of them, her eyes rolling around. How could she eat something so small?
Zhou Huaiqing looked at the two of them proudly, "Cousin, I've changed them all to longans for you, so hurry up and eat them!"
Everyone started to make a noise, "That's right, hurry up and spread it!"
Zhou Yiding glanced at Zhou Huaian and Xu Erchun, and seeing them walk behind Zhou Huaiqing, he said calmly: "I'm not panicking, why are you panicking?"
Zhou Huaian shouted as he stepped forward and patted Zhou Huaiqing, "Huaiqing, hurry up and feed them. I still have to go back and wash the diapers!"
"Hehe!" Zhou Huaiqing smiled and turned his head after hearing this, "Youngest brother, you want one too..."
Zhou Yiding took the opportunity to stand up and took a bite of the longan, then brought it to Wan Xuejiao and asked her to take a bite. "Okay, okay, we've eaten all the longan, brothers, hurry up, it's over..."
"No way! We have to finish one more round before we leave!" Zhou Huaiyin shouted and pushed Zhou Huaian, "Youngest brother, you're married, so you're not afraid of their tricks. Come on!"
After hearing this, Zhou Yiding also sat back and motioned for him to go up!
Seeing his anxious look, Zhou Huaian deliberately thought for a moment before saying, "How about letting the bride and groom sing a song called "The Camel Returns Home"?"
Everyone nodded, "Where do we start singing?"
"Just because her wife looks like a wife..."
Zhou Yiding glared at Zhou Huaian, pulled Wan Xuejiao to stand up, and imitated the hunchback's posture while hunching over and singing: "Other people's wives are like wives, but my wife is like the King of Hell..."
Wan Xuejiao blushed, hesitated for a moment, and then sang generously: "Other people's men are like men, my man is like the kitchen god..."
Everyone in the room applauded and shouted, "Good! Great singing!"
Zhou Yiding finished singing a verse, "Brothers, come on, that's enough!"
"That's enough, the singing is over, it's time for us to go back!" Zhou Huaian saw the two finished singing, and he and Xu Erchun pushed Zhou Huaiyin and others out. The relatives who were standing at the door watching the fun also retreated.
When Zhou Yiding saw that everyone had gone out, he quickly closed the door.
Zhou Huairong stood in the yard and saw Zhou Huaian coming out, "The youngest one is gone, I've been waiting for you for a long time!"
"Okay!" Zhou Huaian walked out with him, "Where are the second and third brothers?"
Zhou Huairong walked out of the yard with a flashlight and said, "I'll leave after dinner."
Zhou Huaian stepped forward and embraced him, and asked with a smile: "Brother, how do you feel about being a team leader for a few days?"
Zhou Huairong smiled naively, "I don't have any feelings. There is nothing to do in the village now. It's not like before when we had to call people to work every day. Some people flattered me and assigned me an easier job!"
"That's true!" Zhou Huaian thought of the electricity supply, "Brother, is there any plan to supply electricity to the village?"
"Yesterday, I heard from Uncle Datian that Fangtian Brigade will be installing electric poles to connect electricity in the second half of the year. Our village should be about to be connected soon!"
Zhou Huaian curled his lips, "It's almost time, right? It means it's still early!"
Zhou Huairong smiled and said, "Don't complain. Life is much better now than before. It's the same if you light up the wick of a kerosene lamp!"
Zhou Huaian didn't want to continue this topic after hearing this, "Sixth Aunt is still living in Fang's house?"
"He's still living there! The old lady said they beat him up, and the cow is still there, so why did they lock her son up? She also said if he's not released she'll hang him in front of Fang Laoer's house." Zhou Huairong sighed, "I heard from Xu Hongbing that some people are betting on this, betting on when the Fang family will go to the police station to withdraw the case!"
Zhou Huaian didn't expect such a thing to happen. "It will be troublesome if it really happens. In the future, those petty thieves will be caught, and those with elderly people at home will follow her example. Then the law and order in the village will be impossible to maintain."
"Why not!"
The two brothers chatted as they walked, and Zhou Huairong sent him to the doorstep before turning back home.
The old man opened the gate and said, "It's so early, I thought you would be here for a while!"
"Everyone wanted to let him go, so they left early." Zhou Huaian locked the gate. "Is my mother asleep?"
"I just went to bed!" The old man glanced at him, "It stinks. Go wash up first before going back to the room, so as not to suffocate Xiaojiu."
"Oh oh!" Zhou Huaian took a few steps and turned back, "Old man, you are biased!"
"Go!" the old man laughed, "You are already in your twenties or thirties, and you are still jealous of your son!"
(End of this chapter)
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