After breakfast, the elders who were in charge of the wedding directed the younger generation to bring out the tables and chairs. Then they sat down, spread out red paper, and used brushes dipped in ink to paint.
A boy of about ten years old began to sing, swaying his head: "The groom's grandfather gives ten yuan as a gift, the groom's grandmother gives a century-old ginseng root as a gift, the groom's uncle gives ten catties of meat, five yuan, a basket of duck eggs, and ten carp as gifts..."
My family members all gave gifts to the best of their ability, and the scale of the gifts was no less than that of people in the city.
After the relatives from Ke Yuanda's grandparents' and maternal grandparents' families finished giving their gifts, it was time for the neighbors to arrive.
The city dwellers, looking at the villagers carrying heavy baskets and beaming with smiles, had a bad feeling.
Sure enough, the person at the front of the line was the old man next door. He stood ramrod straight, glanced at the city folks before giving his gift, lifted the cloth covering his basket, and said in a loud voice:
"Yuan Da has finally grown up and is ready to get married. As his uncle, I must give him a generous gift!"
"Five pounds of meat, fifty cents, twenty eggs, and a basket of dried shrimp!"
After registering here, the next person also stepped forward with a slightly raised chin, said a few official words, and revealed their gift.
Three pounds of meat, five cents, two rabbit skins, a jar of sorghum liquor...
The city dwellers' faces grew increasingly grim. They watched as every household in Luofeng Village came to give gifts to the Ke family, and each gift included meat, more than two jin (1 kg), along with many rare items.
The problem is that every time someone finishes reading out the gift money, the people around them start clapping loudly and cheering in unison, as if they are mocking the city people.
Several elderly gentlemen were copying the gifts at the same time, so they were able to register the gifts from the guests very quickly. From breakfast, it only took about an hour to register all the gifts from the villagers.
Next came the close relatives and friends of the Li family, who were also holding their breath and gave the bride generous gifts to save face for both the Ke and Li families.
Then everyone's gaze turned to the city VIPs who wanted to remain invisible.
At this moment, Director Zhao stepped forward and took out a piece of paper covered with signatures and handprints from his pocket.
"Friends from the city, I think we are all adults. What's said is said, and there's no going back."
"It's just a harmless little joke, everyone. Don't let it ruin the wedding."
As he spoke, he handed the paper to the person next to him.
“Director Zhao, we understand these principles. It’s just ten yuan as a gift for Comrade Li Juanmei. We’ve been neighbors for decades, and we’ve practically watched Li Juanmei grow up. We’d be happy to give her a generous gift.”
As he spoke, the man readily pulled out ten yuan from his pocket and slapped it crisply on the table.
"Alright, young man, what's your name?" After taking the money, the old man fiddled with it for a while to make sure it was real, then dipped his brush in ink and asked.
“Grandpa, you don’t need to write my name. We agreed that this money is not considered a gift, and the young couple doesn’t need to keep track of it and give it back.”
However, the man turned to Director Zhao and asked, "Director Zhao, may I remove my signature and fingerprint?"
Director Zhao nodded, took out a pen from his breast pocket, and crossed out the man's name.
With this person leading the way, the others exchanged glances, dejectedly lined up, and pulled out ten yuan from their pockets one by one. Some people hadn't brought any at all and awkwardly borrowed from acquaintances.
At this moment, they were filled with regret, wondering why they had turned down money.
Ten yuan is almost a quarter or a fifth of one's salary!
Now they've squandered their money on gifts to the Ke and Li families—no, gifts can be returned! It's a one-way street for them!
Hindsight is always 20/20; they really learned a profound lesson.
From now on, no matter what kind of spectacle they're watching, don't bring up money. After all, if a bet is possible, it means everyone has a chance to win! Nobody's a fool.
The city dwellers, heartbroken, finished giving their gifts, secretly resolving to eat as much as they could later to make up for their losses.
By this time, the food was almost ready.
Everyone sat down around the table in a lively atmosphere.
The tables and chairs were borrowed from the village committee. Since the end of the communal dining system, the village only opens the canteen during the busy farming seasons of spring, summer, and autumn to save time.
With the addition of city guests who filled six tractors, the Ke family borrowed most complete tables and chairs from the entire village, so there were at least several dozen tables, if not hundreds!
First came six appetizers: salt-baked peanuts, crispy fish, cold lotus root salad, cold rabbit, pickled cabbage, and preserved egg tofu. Then there were six small snacks: Buddha's Hand green tea cakes, pumpkin cakes, peach crisps, glutinous rice sticks, popcorn balls, and hawthorn berries.
These dishes are all made with ingredients from her own home and the mountains behind her house. The dishes may look ordinary, but Ke Meiyu pays great attention to the taste, color and presentation of the food, making it feel like a feast for the senses.
Moreover, the bowls and plates used to serve the dishes were exquisite and beautiful. Director Li applied to the leaders and borrowed about a hundred sets from the supply and marketing cooperative's inventory, which also became one of the configurations to enhance the wedding banquet's level.
Sure enough, these twelve elaborate dishes left the city dwellers speechless.
Next came ten dishes, a soup, and rice. The presentation was really beautiful, and the taste was really delicious. However, everyone ate like they were in a battle, piling food into their own bowls and plates as soon as a dish was served.
From the moment the wedding banquet officially began, everyone's mouths were full of food, and no one said anything unpleasant.
Just then, a postman, his bicycle bell ringing, stopped at the entrance of the alley with a cheerful expression.
"Comrade Xiao Huang, how did you know we were all having a wedding banquet here?"
Whose letter arrived this time?
"The village chief is so lucky to have a brother who's a military officer; he gets a huge sum of money every month..."
Huang the postman smiled and shook his head: "You're wrong. This time I'm not delivering a letter to the village chief, but I'm here to see Director Li of the supply and marketing cooperative."
"Wow, the director is really something else. Even when his daughter got married, he was always busy and had to be called away..."
The villagers couldn't stop sighing.
Postman Huang didn't explain in detail to them, but simply asked them to send someone to inform Director Li.
Not long after, Director Li hurried over, followed by a large group of people.
He was a distinguished guest of the Li family, the bride's biological father, and always had two or three guests accompanying him.
Moreover, many neighbors in the city, hearing the news, couldn't help but come out to see what was going on. As soon as one person left, a large number of people followed behind, causing others to stand up and follow as well.
As soon as Huang the postman saw the man, he laughed loudly and said, "Congratulations, Director Li!"
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