Chapter 5 The girl ran into the house, wishing for a son soon…
The girl trotted into the house, stopped in front of Chen Gengnian, looked at him with affectionate eyes, and said, "Brother Nian, you've come!"
"Hmm." Chen Gengnian responded lightly, and quietly moved closer to Lin Qing'an until his body was pressed tightly against Lin Qing'an's arm before he stopped.
"Tingting!" the village head suddenly called out, scolding, "What kind of behavior is this for a young lady!"
The girl walked towards the inner gate with a coquettish air.
"Dad, I just haven't seen Brother Nian for a long time."
It turns out that this girl is Wang Tingting, the village head's daughter.
Lin Qingan glanced at Chen Gengnian and met his gaze. The probing look in Lin Qingan's eyes was so obvious that Chen Gengnian could easily see it.
He nudged Lin Qing'an's arm almost imperceptibly, his eyes conveying a sense of explanation.
Lin Qingan ignored her and turned his eyes to Wang Tingting.
Wang Tingting is indeed a gentle and beautiful girl. Her family must treat her very well, which is why she can act so spoiled.
The village head noticed Lin Qing'an's scrutinizing gaze, and he also happened to see Chen Gengnian's every move towards him.
He sighed silently before gently saying to his daughter, "You can go down now. We have something to talk about."
"Father, I'll stay here and won't disturb you, I..."
"You can go out now."
Wang Tingting tried to stay as she was being coquettish, but before she could finish speaking, her father called her away again.
Moreover, her tone was noticeably more serious this time. Only then did Wang Tingting say to Chen Gengnian, "Brother Nian, I'll come find you again later," before reluctantly walking out.
Everyone had seen what had just happened, so the village chief naturally didn't dare to bring it up again. Before Chen Gengnian could even speak, the village head spoke first.
"You just said you wanted to get a marriage certificate? Who are you marrying into?"
“Him, Lin Qingan.” Chen Gengnian pointed to the person beside him.
Their arms remained touching, and the unspoken understanding between them was enough to prove their determination to each other.
The village headman's gaze lingered on Lin Qing'an for a while before he spoke again to persuade him, "Young man, have you thought this through? Although there are precedents for marrying into a family in our country, they are few and far between. They are more common among high-ranking officials, nobles, and princesses. They are almost non-existent in our rural area."
The village headman offered them tea, gesturing for them to sit down, but they remained motionless.
He took a sip of tea in anger and then asked Chen Gengnian, "Do you know how much damage a man's reputation is caused by marrying into his wife's family?"
Chen Gengnian said, "I know, but I don't care! In my opinion, there is no difference. When he marries, he will also come to my house alone. What is the difference between marrying and marrying into the family? As long as it is the person I want, that's fine."
It seemed that the stubborn Chen Gengnian was determined, and the village head knew his temperament to some extent and knew that there was no room for negotiation.
Lin Qingan then respectfully clasped his hands in a salute to the village head before speaking, "Village head, I will not let Chen Gengnian suffer any injustice. In this family, we will treat everyone equally and be considerate of each other."
"Furthermore, I've come here today not just to trouble the village head."
At this point, Lin Qing'an took out a yellowed piece of paper from his pocket. As soon as he unfolded it, the village chief and Chen Gengnian saw it and were both surprised.
Lin Qing'an raised the house and land deeds in her hand and said, "I am willing to share all my property with Chen Gengnian, so that he can be my husband with dignity."
The village head was also startled, and his expression towards Lin Qing'an changed drastically.
Chen Gengnian hurriedly stepped forward to take the contract from his hand, "Qing-ge'er, you don't need to do this."
Lin Qing'an smiled at him and said softly, "I have nothing else to give you besides this, so please put my mind at ease!"
Lin Yanfeng, who hadn't dared to speak until now, hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Yes, brother-in-law, this is the most presentable betrothal gift that my brother and I have discussed. Please accept it!"
The village head, who had been indignant on behalf of his daughter, had completely lost his mind. He could tell that this young man Lin was an upright man, and that the young man Nian truly cared about him. So he didn't want to make things difficult for the two of them anymore, and said, "Alright, I'll write it for you."
“But…” He suddenly changed the subject and said to Lin Qing’an, “There’s something I need to make clear to you, Brother Lin.”
Lin Qingan nodded, looking all ears and waiting respectfully.
The village head then continued, "My Tingting and Nian have absolutely no relation. It's just that Nian saved her life back then, so she considers him her most relied-upon older brother. So, young man, please don't misunderstand. Their relationship is completely innocent, and I hope you two won't have any grudges in the future."
The village head's words were clear and unambiguous; it would be impolite to argue about them further.
"The village chief I know would never do that. I trust Brother Nian."
Lin Qing'an remained humble and polite throughout, which impressed the village head.
To avoid putting the two of them in a hurry, the village head quickly wrote a marriage certificate for them.
Three copies were made: one was kept by the village head, one was kept by the village chief, and the other was given to Chen Gengnian and Lin Qingan.
The two men brought household registration certificates, and the village head wrote Lin Qingan and Chen Gengnian's names and their closest relationship on them.
This is the rule of the ancient Xia Kingdom. Every household here has a household registration certificate, which records the names and relationships of the family members. If a new child or a daughter-in-law is born, the village head or village chief will add the child back into the household and stamp the certificate.
Both certificates were stamped with a red seal. Lin Qingan had barely glanced at them before Chen Gengnian took them away.
He said, "Give it to me, in case you accidentally lose it."
Lin Qingan didn't refute it, but felt that this person seemed to have some ulterior motives.
Without thinking too much, Lin Qing'an handed the land deed and house deed in his hand to the village head and said, "Village head, there's still this one that hasn't been processed."
He didn't know how to do it, so he handed it over.
"Are you sure?" the village head asked.
Lin Qing'an nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes."
The village head then wrote Chen Gengnian's name on the list of recipients as well.
Then he took his hand and pressed his fingerprint on it, followed by a personal seal, before folding it up and handing it to Lin Qing'an.
Everything went smoothly, and things were much easier than Lin Qing'an had imagined, so he breathed a sigh of relief.
Chen Gengnian, Lin Qing'an, and the others got up to say goodbye to the village head. The village head wanted to invite them to stay for lunch, but Chen Gengnian said he still needed to take Lin Qing'an to town to buy some things, so he couldn't insist on keeping them. After all, there was still a long way to go back, and although he hadn't heard of any bandits recently, he still wanted to be careful.
As she was leaving, Wang Tingting chased after her; she had actually heard everything.
With her eyes red, she handed a white jade bracelet to Lin Qing'an and sincerely called him "Brother and Sister-in-law".
"I won't be attending your wedding; it's too far and inconvenient." Holding back tears, Wang Tingting bowed to Chen Gengnian and Lin Qingan, offering her blessings: "Tingting wishes you, elder brother and sister-in-law, a long and happy marriage, and many children!"
"Thanks!"
Thank you!
Lin Qingan and Chen Gengnian said in unison.
Wang Tingting shook her head, looked at Chen Gengnian as if she wanted to say something but hesitated, and then turned and ran into the house as tears fell.
The village head and his wife, Madam Wang, stood by the door, looking somewhat sad. They waved to Chen Gengnian and the others, saying, "Go ahead! Let me know when the wedding date is set. If you have time, come and have a drink at the wedding."
Chen Gengnian clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Definitely."
The group then slowly walked away.
Lin Qing'an handed the bracelet to Chen Gengnian, saying, "This is a token of Miss Wang's affection. Whatever it may be, it can be considered her farewell. Please accept it."
Chen Gengnian took the bag and put it in, and finally spoke up to explain, "I really have no other feelings for her whatsoever."
Lin Qingan nodded, "Yes, I know."
Upon arriving in town, the group split into two groups. Lin Qing'an, Chen Gengnian, and Lin Yanfeng walked one way, while the village chief walked the other, saying he was also going to buy some things and that they would meet under the signboard at the town entrance.
Lin Qing'an looked at the buildings in the town. They were mostly two-story wooden structures, which did resemble modern ancient towns. However, the rotten and faded wood made them look quite old, even dilapidated.
However, it doesn't affect the lively street scene at all.
Two rows of lofts stand facing each other. The first floor is a shop selling all kinds of goods, and the second floor is a living room. However, some restaurants also have seating on the second floor.
The central walkway is paved with smooth stone slabs, so it's comfortable for pedestrians to walk on.
Lin Qingan and his group hadn't gone far when they encountered vendors carrying loads of food and hawking their wares.
"Selling sweet osmanthus cakes!"
A fragrant aroma wafted by, and Lin Qing'an sniffed it; it was indeed the smell of osmanthus cake.
At this moment, Lin Qingan and Lin Yanfeng's stomachs also began to rumble.
"Wait a minute~" Chen Gengnian suddenly called out to the vendor, "Two bowls of sweet water and two pieces of osmanthus cake, please."
"Okay!"
The vendor quickly packed the cakes for Chen Gengnian, who then handed them to Lin Qingan and Lin Yanfeng. After paying them, he started peeling the wrappers off the osmanthus cakes for them.
The two osmanthus cakes were wrapped separately. He peeled one and handed it to Lin Qing'an, then peeled another for Lin Yanfeng. The two of them took the cakes and stood there blankly without making any move.
"Hehe." Chen Gengnian gently patted Lin Qingan's shoulder and reminded him, "Eat quickly, or the sweet soup and osmanthus cake will attract mosquitoes and won't taste good."
It took Lin Qing'an a while to find her voice before she said, "You...you're not going to eat?"
Chen Gengnian shook his head: "I don't like sweets."
Lin Qing'an said knowingly, "Okay, I'll go buy you some salty ones later."
Chen Gengnian hummed in agreement and waited quietly for the two to finish eating before leaving.
The sweet water wasn't actually very good. It was similar to modern ice jelly, but not as thick. It only had a little bit of sesame powder in it, so the texture was okay. So I turned around, scooped up a spoonful, and held it to Chen Gengnian's lips, saying, "Try it. It's alright, not greasy."
Chen Gengnian did not expect Lin Qingan to make such a sudden move. Although he often came here, his thinking was indeed deeply rooted in feudalism. He took a step back uncomfortably, but the next second Lin Qingan caught up with him again.
"Ah~ take a bite."
Lin Qing'an coaxed him like a baby, and Chen Gengnian had no choice but to open his mouth and swallow it.
The moment my tongue touched the spoon, my ears instantly became unbearably hot.
He quickly said, "Okay, okay, I really don't like eating this."
He really doesn't like these sweets. He often comes here to buy things but has never bought anything. Now that he's tried them, he really doesn't like them.
Seeing that he really didn't like the food, Lin Qing'an didn't force him. He took a couple of bites and then didn't want to eat anymore.
Turning his head, he saw that Lin Yanfeng's bowl was empty, so he poured his own into Lin Yanfeng's bowl. Lin Yanfeng paused, looked up at his brother, and Lin Qing'an smiled and said, "Brother doesn't like it either. You eat quickly, and then we'll go buy something else."
The two brothers finished eating quickly, and their rumbling stomachs stopped before they continued walking.
Chen Gengnian went to the pharmacy to get medicine for Chen Yuetao first, saying that he was afraid there would be a shortage of medicine if it got late.
It was only then that Lin Qing'an learned that Chen's mother had a serious stomach ailment, a chronic condition left over from the famine years, requiring long-term medication and recuperation.
Lin Qing'an had some ideas in mind.
A note from the author:
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