After everyone boarded the carriage, they headed towards Shili Pu together.
After a long journey, Jiang Yuwei arrived at Shilipu just before the auspicious time. As soon as she entered the village, she felt that it was very deserted and there was no atmosphere of a wedding.
It's said that everyone living in this village is related in some way, so they'd all lend a hand if someone had a happy occasion. Right now, everyone should be beaming with joy.
To everyone's surprise, when the carriage arrived at Yao Guang's house, there were only a few people scattered around in the courtyard.
Granny Yao was chatting and eating melon seeds with another woman when she saw Liu arriving in a horse-drawn carriage. Her eyes lit up, and when she saw the oxcart at the back carrying the entire dowry, she was overjoyed.
He hurriedly shoved the melon seeds in his hand into the woman's hand, rushed forward, and laughed:
"Oh my, they even came in a horse-drawn carriage, how impressive!"
Then, he hurried to the back to look at the things in the carriage. Seeing that the dowry fabrics and quilts were all made of the finest materials, things that people like them could never afford, his face immediately lit up with a smile.
"Madam Jiang, please get out of the carriage quickly. I have prepared a seat for you long ago. Today is the wedding of Yao Guang and Liu Shi. It doesn't matter if anyone doesn't come, but you can't be absent. You are their matchmaker and the hostess. You've come to the right place."
With just one sentence, Granny Yao offended everyone in the courtyard. Granny Yao had a terrible reputation in the village, and since Old Man Yao died, few families in the village were willing to associate with this unreasonable Granny Yao.
The few people who are here to help today are also close relatives of the Yao family. Now that Yao Guang is getting married, even if they don't care about anything else, they have to bite the bullet and come to help for Yao Guang's sake.
Granny Yao was notorious in the village for her stinginess. Today, Yao Guang was getting married, and she only prepared three tables of food. Moreover, all the dishes on these three tables were vegetarian dishes grown in her own garden. There wasn't a single meat dish to be seen at Yao Guang and Liu's wedding banquet.
If word gets out, those who didn't come should be glad they don't have any real kinship with the Yao family, thus avoiding the possibility of going hungry after giving a gift.
Jiang Yuwei glanced at the food on the table and lost her appetite. It was bad enough that Granny Yao had only prepared vegetables, but she didn't know who had helped cook them, as not a single dish was palatable.
The cucumber salad was so salty it was almost unbearable. You had to drink a whole glass of water after just one bite to get rid of the saltiness.
A stir-fried vegetable dish was made so dark and black, I don't know if it was because too much soy sauce was added or the fire was too strong. Just one look at it made me lose all interest in eating it.
There was also a plate of stir-fried potato chunks. Why do I say potato chunks instead of potato shreds? Because none of the potatoes were cut into shreds, and they looked half-cooked.
Looking at the steamed buns that Granny Yao had prepared, they were impossible to bite. Picking one up and throwing it on the ground made a loud popping sound like setting off firecrackers during the New Year. No one dared to take a bite of these rock-hard steamed buns. If someone actually took a bite, they would probably break half of their front teeth.
Jiang Yuwei shook her head helplessly, but sat down without touching her chopsticks.
Cheng Yi, who had originally planned to have a big feast at Yao Guang's wedding, gave up his drinking plans upon seeing this scene. Putting aside whether the food was even palatable, Cheng Yi searched the entire courtyard but couldn't find any wine or drinks prepared by Granny Yao.
After Liu and Yao Guang finished their wedding ceremony, Liu lifted her veil and saw the food on the table. Her face turned red to the roots of her neck. She had never been so embarrassed before.
Liu glanced at Yao Guang, who was clearly in a very awkward situation. Before Yao Guang left, she hadn't seen him prepare any food, but unexpectedly, when he came back with his wife, the whole table of food was already prepared and on the table.
When Yao Guang returned from the capital yesterday, he said he wanted to go to the butcher shop to buy some meat to entertain guests today. However, his wife, Yao, was reluctant to spend the money and refused to let him go. She said she had her own plans for tomorrow and told Yao Guang not to worry about such things.
Yao Guang couldn't refuse his mother, so he went back to the village empty-handed. He never expected that his mother would serve such a meal to guests. Wouldn't his family's reputation in Shilipu be ruined from now on?
At this moment, neither Yao Guang nor Liu Shi were ashamed to face Jiang Yuwei and the others. Seeing that no one was touching their chopsticks, Liu Shi shoved the red veil in her hand into Yao Guang's hand and bowed deeply to everyone.
"I'm so sorry everyone, my mother-in-law can't cook, and this food doesn't look very appetizing. I'll go to the kitchen and make a few more dishes for everyone."
As she spoke, Liu turned to walk towards the kitchen, but Jiang Yuwei quickly got up and stopped her.
“Liu, you are the bride today, how can we ask you to do anything? We don’t have time to eat this meal, there is still a lot of work to be done in the shop. Now that I have safely delivered you, I am relieved. From now on, you two will have to live on your own.”
As she spoke, taking advantage of Granny Yao's inattention, Jiang Yuwei quickly stuffed the cloth bag in her hand into Liu's hand and whispered:
"Keep this set of silver jewelry safe and don't tell anyone else. Don't let your mother-in-law take it."
Having said that, Jiang Yuwei glanced at Granny Yao and said loudly:
"We'll be leaving with Gou Dan today. Tomorrow morning, you and Yao Guang should hurry back to the General's Mansion to get things done."
Upon hearing this, Liu and Yao Guang quickly nodded in agreement.
When Granny Yao heard Jiang Yuwei say she was leaving without eating, she was even happier, and thus another table of food remained uneaten.
"Oh dear, Madam Jiang, you are such a busy person. You didn't even have time to eat, yet you specially sent Liu over. I feel so bad about it."
Jiang Yuwei glanced coldly at Granny Yao.
“If you really feel bad about it, then treat Liu well in the future. It’s not easy for her either. It’s fate that she was able to come together with your son and become your family. First comes the mother-in-law, then the daughter-in-law. If you do well, she will naturally not treat you badly in the future.”
Upon hearing Jiang Yuwei's words, Granny Yao turned and glared at Liu Shi, then turned back to Jiang Yuwei and smiled.
“Madam Jiang, you are overthinking it. Now that my son has spent money to marry her, I, as her mother, can’t say anything more. Rest assured, I will treat Liu Shi like my own daughter from now on.”
Jiang Yuwei then looked at Yao Guang and instructed him:
“Now that your wife has married into the family, you should take good care of her. Liu is a virtuous woman who swallows her bitterness in silence. As long as you treat her well in the future, she won’t feel wronged by what she has done.”
Yao Guang looked at Liu Shi, reached out and grasped her hand, then nodded solemnly to Jiang Yuwei.
"Madam, please rest assured, I will definitely treat Liu well in the future."
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