After Chen Zhancai finished speaking, he glanced at everyone, clasped his hands in a fist salute,
"Fellow villagers, please don't be impatient. Before the banquet begins, I, Chen, will announce some great news to everyone. I ask all the elders of the village present to be my witnesses."
No sooner had he finished speaking than someone shouted, "Scholar, what's the good news? Tell us quickly, or we'll gnaw the table in!"
"Don't rush, don't rush, it'll be ready soon." Chen Zhancai waved his hand with a smile and instructed Erdanzi, who was standing not far away, "Go and get ready."
"Alright, Scholar, I'll be right there." Upon receiving the order, Erdanzi slapped his buttocks and leaped out of the village.
Everyone was completely bewildered by what they saw, whispering among themselves and making various guesses.
"What good news is it? Could it be that Chen Zhancai has received an award from the imperial court?"
"Impossible. What's a little scholar? Who would reward him? If you ask me, maybe Chen Zhancai is planning to open a private school in our village. That would be a benefit to the community, and the children in our village wouldn't have to go to town to study anymore."
“What you’re saying is even more impossible. Chen Zhancai is quite ambitious. Would he stoop to the level of a mere schoolteacher?” After saying this, Da Longzi stroked his chin, pondered for a moment, and then said, “In my opinion, he must have made the acquaintance of some high-ranking official, such as a village head or elder, who would come to congratulate him.”
The sixth son's wife snorted, "Impossible, you're all wrong. If you ask me, maybe Liu Fengjiao is pregnant. Having children is one of the greatest joys in life."
“Yes, yes, this is reliable.” Liang Fugui agreed wholeheartedly.
Hearing the villagers' chatter, Liu Bao approached Liu Dashan with a mischievous grin and said, "Dad, did you hear that? They just said my sister seems to be pregnant."
"This is double happiness, what's all the fuss about?"
"Dad, that's not what I meant. A few years ago, I overheard my sister secretly telling Mom that they wanted to have more children while they were still young, but for some reason, my sister just couldn't get pregnant. Later, she went to see a doctor, and guess what?"
Liu Dashan glared at him angrily, "You bastard, why are you playing coy with me? Speak up if you have something to say, or get to the point."
Liu Bao pouted in dissatisfaction, then whispered mysteriously, "The doctor said my brother-in-law can still farm, but the seeds are too bad and won't sprout."
Think about it, so many years have passed. If my sister is really pregnant, it means the seeds have been switched.
My sister definitely cheated on Chen Zhancai, and Chen Zhancai, a complete bastard, doesn't even realize it and is still showing off like this.
"Bullshit! Who told you this nonsense? I know nothing about it. If you dare to talk nonsense again, I'll beat you up!" Liu Dashan glared angrily.
Liu Bao shrank back in fright and quickly explained, "Dad, don't scold me! If you don't believe me, ask Mom. The second and third brothers can also testify to whether what I said is true or not."
“Yes, my brother is right. We were there at the time, and that’s exactly what happened.” Liu Gen and Liu Gou nodded in agreement.
Liu Dashan looked at Granny Liu, "Is that really true?"
Old Mrs. Liu glared at her three sons reproachfully. Liu Fengjiao had told her this in private, but her three rascal sons had overheard everything from outside the door.
If he denied it, Liu Dashan would definitely not let his three precious sons off, so he had no choice but to bite the bullet and nod.
"Honey, our son-in-law is indeed not good, but don't worry, he will never know he's sick."
"You make it sound so easy. Anyone can tell whose child it is, unless they're an idiot. If the son-in-law really finds out, he'll divorce our daughter. What good will that do us?" Liu Dashan said anxiously, scratching his head.
Granny Liu glared at them irritably. "I think you guys are just bored out of your minds. This is all just speculation from those people. It's completely baseless. Why are you all so anxious?"
"Yes, yes, yes, it's definitely too early to worry before we know what good news it is."
At this moment, Chen Qingqing, who was not far away, tried to get up and leave several times. She didn't want to see Chen Zhancai's smug and ugly appearance anymore, showing off like a crazy monkey. But each time, she was stopped by the village head's wife.
Seeing that Chen Zhancai was keeping him in suspense again, he stood up to leave once more.
Seeing this, the village head's wife quickly tried to persuade her again, "Qing girl, don't be anxious, let's see what kind of happy event he has."
"Auntie, haven't you had enough yet? If I listen to his ramblings any longer, I'll probably feel nauseous and throw up. Let me go first!"
“You’re right, Chen Zhancai is indeed too showy. To be honest, I’m getting a little restless too. But then again, if we all leave now, it would be a huge loss of face for the host. Since we’re already here, let’s just bear with it a little longer!” The village head’s wife also looked helpless.
Left with no other choice, Chen Qingqing had to patiently sit down again.
Just when everyone was confused, they suddenly heard the sounds of gongs, drums, and trumpets coming from the direction of the village entrance, accompanied by the sound of firecrackers.
The villagers all showed expressions of surprise at the same time.
"What's going on? Why are they making music and setting off firecrackers?"
"Yes, judging from the excitement, it must be someone's wedding!"
"Don't talk nonsense. Everyone in the village is here. Who can hold a wedding?"
"Yes, so what happened?"
"Who knows? But the sound is getting closer, so it should be coming this way."
"Yes, it came this way."
Hearing the approaching sound of gongs and drums, Liu Fengjiao was quite excited. It seemed that she had guessed correctly. The surprise her husband had mentioned was that he would hire a sedan chair to marry her again in a grand and glorious manner.
Liu Fengjiao involuntarily gripped the hem of her dress tightly with both hands, her heart pounding wildly as if it would leap out of her throat.
She imagined the moment when she, with a red veil on her head, would sit in the bridal sedan chair again, amidst the deafening sound of gongs and drums, the sedan chair bearers swaying to the beat—what a magnificent sight that would be...
Thinking of this, she couldn't help but feel guilty.
After Wang Qizhang succeeded in his scheme, she was forced to have an affair behind her husband's back.
But her husband remained steadfast, completely unaware of her mistakes.
She secretly vowed to herself that from now on she would be devoted to her husband, manage the household well, and raise their children with utmost care.
I will never again do those despicable things that would humiliate my husband.
She couldn't help but look at Chen Zhancai beside her, her eyes filled with emotion, "Husband, thank you for the surprise. I will definitely repay you in the future."
"Okay, I understand." Chen Zhancai was so engrossed in his own joy that he didn't hear what she was saying at all and just said something casually.
Liu Fengjiao didn't mind, she stood on tiptoe and craned her neck to look out the door...
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