The woman with the short hair took another sip of water, took a long breath and said to Xie's mother: "I'm talking about Taozi's marriage with the youngest son of the Ruan family. You were at a loss because his third sister rejected this marriage!"
Xie's mother didn't know why she brought up this matter. It had been more than half a year. Besides, what loss did their family have? If they let Xie Tao marry, it would be a loss. Ruan Changsheng's third sister is a big burden and a big trouble.
She asked for a divorce and lived in her parents' home. Not only did she bring shame to the Ruan family, but she also had to eat and drink at her parents' home. If she could get married, it would be fine, but her in-laws did not agree to the divorce, so she couldn't get married again.
With such a third sister, which girl would be willing to marry him, Ruan Changsheng?
So she looked at the woman and said, "Why am I getting more and more confused the more I listen, where did you go to drink?"
The woman raised her hand and slapped her thigh, "Who would invite me to drink for no reason? I'm not drunk and running here to talk nonsense with you. You don't know other things, but do you know the old tailor in Jinguan Village?"
Xie's mother said, "Didn't he die a month ago?" The woman said, "
When he was dying, he called all the cadres in the village to come over and gave all the family property and the shop to his apprentice, the young tailor. Now the shop belongs to the young tailor, did you know that?" Xie's mother nodded, "I heard some things." The woman looked at her and asked, "Then do you know who this young tailor is?" Xie's mother said, "How should I know? We are a million miles away. If we weren't so far away, We wouldn’t have been confused by the matchmaker surnamed Fang before, which wasted so much trouble for my family. I get angry just thinking about it.” The woman didn’t beat around the bush and said directly: “The little tailor is the granddaughter of the Ruan family, and the niece of the youngest son of the Ruan family. And her third sister, the third aunt of the little tailor, has also learned the craft and is now a tailor! I don’t need to say how popular and profitable the craft of tailoring is. It can be said to be a golden rice bowl!” Hearing this, Xie’s mother sat up straight instantly. She frowned and looked at the woman for a long time, then asked, "Where did you hear that?" The woman said, "That's not the way I heard it. I went to the tailor shop today to ask a young tailor to come the day after tomorrow to make two sets of clothes for my little boy. When I arrived at the tailor shop, the youngest son of the Ruan family and his third sister were there. It was he who asked me if Taozi had a boyfriend, and that's when I found out. Otherwise, how would I know?" Mother Xie frowned at the woman, "The old tailor has been in poor health for a long time. It won't work. He has a strange personality and can only take in one apprentice, the little tailor, in his lifetime. The little tailor will only be able to make clothes by himself in the next two or three months. He doesn't need the old tailor to take care of him anymore. Who taught Ruan Changsheng's third sister the craft? Are you really not talking nonsense?" The woman was just sorting out this matter in the tailor shop. She felt that it was a pity that the Xie family had lost a good relative. She couldn't keep it to herself, so she hurried back to tell Xie's mother. She didn't have any other intentions, she just wanted to let the Xie family know about this. After all, who knew that such a thing could be kept in mind! After she finished speaking, she felt relieved, and didn't care whether Xie's mother believed her or not. She didn't sit any longer, and stood up and said, "The day after tomorrow, the little tailor and her third aunt will come over to make clothes. There are many people in the village who want to ask her to tailor clothes. Even if you don't want to tailor clothes, you can come and see the hustle and bustle. You will know then, right?" She walked out the door, "I won't say more to you. I have to go home to make dinner." Mother Xie stood up and sent her to the door, frowning as she walked away. After a while, Mother Xie turned around and saw Xie Tao opening the curtain on the door of the room and coming out. Xie Tao stood in front of the door and looked at her, not saying a word. Mother Xie looked unhappy, and after a while she said, "I think she is just talking nonsense to make trouble for our family. The old tailor has been in poor health for the past six months, and the young tailor has just graduated. Who did Ruan Changsheng's third sister learn her craft from? And your second mother went to Fengyan Village to inquire, why didn't she find out these things?" Xie Tao felt upset, "We will know when the young tailor comes the day after tomorrow." In the past six months, she has met several people, but none of them are as good-looking as Ruan Changsheng, nor do they look as tall as Ruan Changsheng, which makes people feel at ease. She just gave up after the first meeting. She is very satisfied with Ruan Changsheng, but it is only this thing about his third sister that she cannot accept. If her third sister was a tailor now and earned more than anyone else in the Ruan family, wouldn't she be so upset? She thought it was better if this was fake, otherwise she would become a joke in the village! Such a good in-law family, her father-in-law is the brigade secretary, her eldest brother is a prestigious cadre in the army, her third sister follows her niece to do tailoring and bring a lot of money to the family, and Ruan Changsheng himself is strong and hardworking, where can she find someone if she misses it! She, Xie Tao, cannot become a joke, this must be fake! Before going out to make clothes, Ruan Xi and Ruan Cuizhi each packed a few clothes at home before going to the tailor shop. Not long after they opened the door of the tailor shop, the person who came to help her lift the sewing loom came over. Now that the old tailor was gone, the sedan chair was no longer useful and had been placed in the corner of the yard. Ruan Xi and Ruan Cuizhi followed the sewing machine to Akabane Village. When they arrived at Mrs. Qi'erfa's house, it was lunch time. So they didn't rush to sit down and work immediately, but had lunch first. Of course, they didn't rest after lunch, but took out their tools and started working directly. Ruan Xi drew several styles of uniforms according to the appearance and temperament of Mrs. Qi'erfa's son, each one was different, and asked Mrs. Qi'erfa and her son to pick two sets. Mrs. Qi'erfa liked every set she looked at, and it took her a long time to decide on two sets. Ruan Xi drew paper patterns according to the styles she decided on, and Ruan Cuizhi helped with various handicrafts beside her. Not long after they started working, people from the village came to see the excitement. The villagers had no other entertainment activities, so they would go wherever there was excitement. Normally, a boar being castrated would attract a crowd of people to gather around to watch the excitement, not to mention making clothes. There were children, young unmarried girls, some women and old ladies who came to join in the excitement. Mother Xie did not go to the production team to work this afternoon. After dinner, she went to Mrs. Qi'erfa's house. She had not been able to eat or sleep well in the past two days. If she did not come to see it with her own eyes and figure out the matter herself, she was afraid that she would not be able to eat or sleep well tonight, so she had to come and take a look in person. When she was leaving, she called Xie Tao: "Are you going?" Xie Tao hid in her room and couldn't come out, "I'm not going." She felt very upset and was afraid of losing face, so she didn't want to go. But not long after Xie's mother left, her good friend Ermei came over again.
Ermei didn't know what was going on, so she just said to Xie Tao, "I heard that the little tailor is here to make clothes. I just happen to have a piece of clothes that I want her to alter. You can go with me. It's so boring to stay at home, let's go and see what's going on."
Xie Tao said that she didn't feel well and didn't want to go, but Ermei dragged her over.
When they arrived at Mrs. Qi'erfa's house, Ruan Xi and Ruan Cuizhi were doing the tailoring work.
Ermei took a look and said, "This little tailor is so beautiful."
Xie Tao looked at Ruan Xi and then at Ruan Cuizhi beside her. Her heart felt like it was stuffed with a ton of cotton, and she felt it was difficult to breathe. If Ermei hadn't been holding her arm, she would have gone home long ago.
She hadn't seen Ruan Changsheng for more than half a year, but when she saw Ruan Cuizhi's face, she could still tell at a glance that she looked very similar to Ruan Changsheng. So she didn't even need anyone to tell her, she was sure that this was Ruan Changsheng's third sister!
Her face was burning, and it felt like she had stepped on two hedgehogs!
She thought Ruan Changsheng's third sister was a shameful burden, but she didn't expect that she would become a skilled seamstress. Not only did everyone have to greet her politely, but she could also make a lot of money!
Ermei didn't look at Xie Tao's face, she was watching Ruan Xi and Ruan Cuizhi doing things. Others were looking at Ruan Xi and Ruan Cuizhi like her. Someone asked curiously, "Little tailor, is this your apprentice?"
Ruan Xi smiled and said, "I taught her the craft, but she is not an apprentice, she is a serious tailor."
Hearing this, Ermei said beside Xie Tao, "This little tailor is really amazing. She is so young, and she can learn well by herself, and she can also teach others, and she teaches very well. Look at the craft of the elder sister."
Xie Tao knew that the elder sister Ermei was talking about was Ruan Cuizhi. She also saw that Ruan Cuizhi was not a little tailor who did odd jobs for a living, but also learned the craft seriously, and was very skilled in everything she did.
But the more she thought about it, the more upset she felt.
Ermei finally took her eyes off Ruanxi and Ruan Cuizhi. She turned to look at Xie Tao, and seeing her red face, she was startled and said, "Taozi, do you have a fever? Your face is so red!"
When she said this, the others who were watching the excitement suddenly turned their eyes over.
Including Ruanxi and Ruan Cuizhi who were working.
Xie Tao was so embarrassed that she wanted to die. She wanted to lower her head and find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
There was no crack in the ground to crawl into, so she raised her hands to cover her face, turned around and ran out immediately.
Ruanxi and Ruan Cuizhi retracted their gazes and asked the woman with straight ears and hair, "Is the one who ran out Xie Tao?"
The woman with straight ears and hair said, "Yes, yes, that's Taozi."
Ruanxi nodded, thinking that she was indeed good-looking, and that face looked delicate and comfortable.
Sensitive people heard the inner meaning in these two sentences, so they asked: "Little tailor, do you know Taozi?"
Ruan Xi smiled and said to the woman who was talking: "No."
How could she ask if she didn't know him? This statement was obviously contradictory.
Then the old lady said: "It doesn't seem like she doesn't know him."
Ruan Xi didn't answer, not wanting to talk more about Ruan Changsheng's affairs. The woman with Qi Erfa didn't say anything more for the sake of Xie's mother. But she had talked a lot about Ruan Changsheng and Xie Tao when she went out these past two days, and many people knew about it, so someone in the crowd said, "The young tailor's surname is Ruan, and she is Ruan Changsheng's niece!"
But, "Who is Ruan Changsheng?"
People in the crowd were murmuring, "Isn't he the guy that Taozi almost got together with, because his third sister got divorced and lived in her mother's house, but it didn't work out in the end. That guy was called Ruan Changsheng, I remember it clearly."
Then someone cleared his throat, pointed at Ruan Cuizhi and whispered, "She is Ruan Changsheng's third sister."
As soon as these words came out, the crowd suddenly became noisy. Someone looked at Ruan Cuizhi and asked, "Are you really Ruan Changsheng's third sister? The one who...the one who...has been living in her mother's house..."
The word divorced didn't sound good, and people just skipped it for Ruan Cuizhi's sake. Ruan Cuizhi herself didn't care, and said openly: "Yes, I am his third sister."
Someone said: "Oh, you actually learned the craft to be a tailor?"
Ruan Cuizhi smiled and said: "It's not good to live in my mother's house. I can't always be supported by my parents and younger brother. My niece is a tailor, so I learned this craft from her. My parents can't support me for nothing, I have to respect them."
When she said this, Xie's mother's face in the crowd also blushed.
The matter was clear at this point. There was no doubt that Ruan Cuizhi's craft was taught by the little tailor! The person who was despised by their family now has a popular and profitable craft and has become a respected tailor in this mountain!
They used to think that Ruan Cuizhi was a burden to live in her parents' home and eat at her parents' home, and they were afraid that Ruan Changsheng would have to support her for the rest of his life. But now, she is bringing a lot of money to the family with her niece, and it is no problem for her to support Ruan Changsheng for the rest of his life!
Someone saw the look on Xie's mother's face and said, "Your Taozi is unlucky." She
said such things without any manners, and it was deliberately meant to stab her! Xie's mother's face darkened when she heard this, and her expression became even more distorted and ugly. But she was mostly depressed and embarrassed, and she didn't say a word of rebuttal. She held her breath and didn't respond.
She turned around and pushed the people next to her away and walked out the door.
Ermei still had a confused expression on her face. After seeing Xie's mother leave, she suddenly understood - why Xie Tao was unwilling to come over, why her face was so red just now, and why she ran away in a hurry! After
sorting out the whole story, she immediately turned around and ran out.
She ran to Xie's house and found Xie Tao, only to see Xie Tao sitting on the bed in the room, pursing her lips and her face was flushed, as if she had suffered a great embarrassment. Looking at the expression on her face, she was angry, annoyed, and aggrieved, and she was about to cry.
Ermei walked over and sat down next to her, and said tactlessly: "It turns out that it was Ruan Changsheng's niece and third sister."
Xie Tao looked at Ermei, angry and about to cry, "Do you think I am unlucky?"
She actually rejected such a good in-law family!
Ermei thought for a moment, looked at her and said, "Find someone better than his family!"
Xie Tao was so angry that she wanted to kick her legs, and said with tears in her voice, "It's not that easy, I can't find one at all! The ones the matchmaker mentioned before were either short or ugly, and their families were also very ordinary, relying on work to make a living!"
Ermei added, "If it weren't for the little tailor and his third sister, Ruan Changsheng's family would also rely on work to make a living. If you don't like such a family, then don't look for one in the mountains, look for one in the town."
Xie Tao looked at Ermei, bit her lip and said, "I'm not a fairy. Why would people in the town look for me if they don't want to find someone in the town? The matchmaker doesn't even know people in the town, how can she find someone in the town for me?"
Ermei was completely at a loss, "Then what should I do?"
Xie Tao stamped her feet a few times, bent down and covered her face with her hands, she was so angry that she didn't want to talk.
Of course, she was not angry at others, but at herself. She wanted to punch herself now.
Ruan Xi and Ruan Cuizhi were half-sisters in Chiyu Village. Because of Ruan Cuizhi, the affairs of Xie Tao and Ruan Changsheng were brought up by people who were watching the excitement, and soon it spread to every household in the village.
Many people gossiped behind her back, saying that Xie Tao was unlucky.
If she had not cared about Ruan Cuizhi living in her parents' home and had directly married into the Ruan family, wouldn't she be living a comfortable life now? Maybe she could learn a craft from Ruan Xi and Ruan Cuizhi, and make money as a tailor in the future!
Now, the Xie family must be regretting it so much!
The atmosphere at the Xie family's dining table was depressing.
Especially Xie Tao's aunt, who had gone to Fengyan Village to inquire about the situation, lowered her head and ate without saying a word.
She is regretting it so much now. If she had known earlier, she should not have involved in this matter. Although she feels that she is not responsible, after all, the news she inquired about is true, but the eldest brother's family must have opinions about her.
Sure enough, no one spoke for a long time. The first thing Xie's mother said was: "You went there to ask but didn't find out that the little tailor is from the Ruan family and is the niece of Ruan Changsheng?"
Aunt Xie Tao said: "Sister-in-law, when it comes to marriage, everyone looks at parents and brothers, why look at the next generation? And she is a girl who is going to get married, who would care? Who would have thought that she is so capable at such a young age, not only has she learned the craft herself, but she can also teach her third aunt? If you didn't see it with your own eyes, would you dare to believe it?"
Xie's mother was so choked up by what she said that she couldn't speak.
Indeed, before she saw it today, she didn't believe it.
But no matter what, she felt so choked up that she was almost suffocating!
Aunt Xie Tao looked at the faces of the family at the table, especially the faces of the eldest son's family. She rolled her eyes a few times, and suddenly looked at Xie's mother and said, "Sister-in-law, do you know whether the youngest son of the Ruan family has found a girlfriend?"
Xie's mother was stunned by the question, and said after a moment, "I don't know."
Aunt Xie Tao said, "Then go and ask around. If it hasn't been found yet, and there's still a chance, isn't there? At that time, he and Taozi got along very well, and he liked our Taozi very much..."
Hearing this, Xie Tao, who was eating, slowly raised her head.
Xie's mother looked at her aunt, then at her, "I suddenly remembered that Sister Wu came to tell me about this the night before last. She said that Ruan Changsheng asked her if Taozi had a partner. Could it be that... he doesn't have one either?"
A look of hope instantly appeared on Xie Tao's face. She looked at Xie's mother, then at her aunt.
Her aunt shrank back, "I won't go and ask around this time. I'm afraid my brain is not good enough, and I can't find out clearly, which will ruin things. The tailor and his third sister are still here, Taozi, you might as well go and ask them yourself."
Xie Tao pursed her lips, "I'm embarrassed... I can't bring myself to do this..."
The men in the family were more concerned about their reputation, and they didn't get involved in this matter from beginning to end, and they didn't say anything, so Xie's mother took a deep breath and said, "Then I'll go and ask later, I don't want to lose face."
So she didn't stop at anything, and after dinner she took some presentable things from home to Mrs. Qi'erfa's house. When she got there, she first exchanged pleasantries with Mrs. Qi'erfa, and then went to find Ruan Xi and Ruan Cuizhi.
Ruan Xi and Ruan Cuizhi were sitting together doing handicrafts.
Xie's mother came up to the two of them and greeted them with a smile, looking very enthusiastic.
Ruan Xi and Ruan Cuizhi knew that she was Xie Tao's mother, and guessed about her purpose. But they did not show it, nor did they say anything, and responded to her enthusiasm politely.
Mother Xie smiled and said without beating around the bush, "It was the matchmaker's fault. She had to keep this a secret. It wasn't a big deal, but she made it worse. The more she kept it a secret, the more complicated it felt. We got angry and messed up a deal that was set in stone."
Ruan Cuizhi smiled softly and said, "It's okay. It's been so long. Why bring it up? We are unlucky and don't deserve a girl as good as Taozi."
There was something fishy about her words, and Mother Xie's smile froze for a moment.
But she came here fully prepared and would not leave because of this little thorn. She still put on a smile and looked at Ruan Cuizhi and asked, "I still want to ask, has your Changsheng found a partner?"
"We're talking."
Ruan Xi added, "My fifth uncle is very fashionable. He was also angry about what happened last time. He said he doesn't want to talk to a matchmaker anymore. It's meaningless. He insists on finding a girl and talking to her on his own. Now he has found one and is talking to her now."
Xie's mother had an embarrassed expression on her face, but still asked, "Are they engaged?"
Ruan Cuizhi responded, "Soon."
Hearing this, Xie's mother couldn't keep the smile on her face. She hesitated for a moment and stood up and said, "Then I won't disturb you from doing your work. I'll go back first."
Ruan Cuizhi and Ruan Xi didn't see her off. They just said, "Goodbye."
When Xie's mother returned home, there was no smile on her face at all.
Xie Tao had been sitting at the door waiting for her to come back. Before she even walked to the door, Xie Tao came to greet her. Seeing her face so ugly, Xie Tao felt cold and flustered instantly. She looked at her and asked, "What's the matter? He already has a partner?"
Xie's mother took a deep breath and said, "He said he was keeping up with the times and had a date. They are about to get engaged."
Hearing this, the light in Xie Tao's eyes completely extinguished.
She felt sad again, her eyes suddenly turned red, and she sniffed and asked, "Which brigade is he dating? Whose family is she from? How does she look? Is her personality and temper good?"
Xie's mother said, "I don't have the nerve to ask more details. They said they were about to get engaged, so I came back."
After that, she stopped standing outside to avoid being surrounded by people asking questions and laughing at her.
Xie Tao lowered her head and followed her back to the house.
As soon as they sat down in the house, Xie Tao's aunt came over and asked, "What did you say?"
Xie's mother simply said, "She said she talked about it herself, and it was successful. She will be engaged soon."
Xie Tao's aunt was very curious, "Did she talk about it herself?"
This is a new thing. Village people have never heard of many people who found a partner by themselves. They all rely on matchmakers.
Xie Tao lowered her head, raised her head after a while and said, "I'm afraid he is saying this to irritate us. If he really succeeds, what will he do if he asks me if I have found a partner? Tomorrow I will go to Fengyan Brigade by myself and ask him in person."
Xie's mother said unhappily, "It's such a long way, why are you going there? Do you think our family is not embarrassing enough? How can a girl rush to do this? I just went to see that little tailor, and they were talking in a weird way. I think we should just forget about it."
Xie Tao was unwilling, and lowered her head again with red eyes.
Her aunt suddenly cleared her throat and said, "If Taozi wants to go, let her go. Maybe it's really his third sister who is holding a grudge and is talking nonsense here. Think about it, sister-in-law, what are the conditions of the Ruan family now?"
Xie's mother was very angry, "What conditions? Isn't it just his third sister who is a burden? Can she make some money? What's the big deal? Look how proud she is of being a tailor. My daughter can't get married or something!"
Xie Tao's aunt smiled and said, "It won't cost you anything to ask. What if Ruan Changsheng also has our Taozi in his heart? Wouldn't that be a win-win situation? We have offended his third sister. Can we believe his third sister's weird words?"
Xie's mother looked at Xie Tao's aunt and said nothing, with a thoughtful look in her eyes.
Aunt Xie Tao continued, "Think about it carefully, sister-in-law. Apart from Ruan Cuizhi, who can earn money for the family as a tailor and take care of her younger brother Ruan Changsheng, although Ruan Changsheng cannot count on the younger tailor, the younger tailor has the family property left to her by the old tailor. The younger tailor will get married sooner or later, and maybe even go to her parents' home, which is even farther away, and basically means she will never come back. Who do you think will get such a big house and yard in the end? No matter if she gives it to her grandparents or to Ruan Cuizhi, in the final analysis, isn't it all for Ruan Changsheng? The second son of his family has split up, and he can't get it even if he wants to."
Mother Xie looked into Aunt Xie Tao's eyes and slowly fell into deep thought.
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