In less than a minute, Wang Chuncao came in carrying a basket woven from wicker, which contained a pile of steamed bread.
The cornmeal steamed bread Zhang Weifang had eaten before was golden yellow, and the sorghum flour steamed bread was dark red. Today, she saw a steamed bread that was actually straw yellow, and she didn't know what was added to it.
Wang Chuncao put the basket in the middle of the kang, and each member of the Wang family reached out and took one. Wang Ni saw that the guests did not touch anything and thought they were shy, so she picked up the steamed bread and gave one to each of them.
"Eat it, you're welcome. This year's new rice harvest makes delicious steamed bread."
The Wang family members were now wolfing down their food, with the sounds of "crunch" and "slurp" coming one after another.
Li Hongdong picked it up and took a bite. With a "ouch", the steamed bread in his hand fell directly to the ground, rolling "thump thump thump" a long way away.
"What's wrong?" Li Gaitang was startled when he heard the voice.
"This, this steamed bread is too hard, like a rock, it almost broke my teeth."
Before Li Gaitang could say anything, he heard Wang Chuncao sneer:
"Oh, it's true that a full man doesn't know the hunger of a hungry man. It's all food, there's nothing that can't be eaten."
After Wang Chuncao finished speaking, he picked up the steamed bread on the ground and stuffed it directly into his mouth, not caring whether it was dirty or not.
Wang Chuncao's words made the Li family members look disheartened, even Li Hongqin remained silent.
Wang Ni quickly stepped in to smooth things over: "Hey, her brother, don't listen to this girl's nonsense. Today's steamed bread is made with fresh rice bran, ground very finely, so it won't get stuck in your throat."
"You may not be used to it, just eat slowly." Wang Chunfeng also added.
Zhang Weifang had completely lost her appetite and just watched others eat quietly.
Li Gaitang and Li Hongqin tried it, but found it so hard to swallow that they each took a bite and put it down.
"Tsk, he has so many problems. He is indeed a rich man and cannot endure any hardship. By the way, brother, is it okay to marry into a family with such a person?" Wang Chuncao started to sneer again.
"Shut up, are you annoying?" Wang Chunfeng stopped Wang Chuncao and was very dissatisfied with her nonsense.
At this moment, not only Li Hongqin felt embarrassed, but Zhang Weifang could no longer maintain the fake smile on her face.
"Brother, sister-in-law, let's go!"
"Hey, let's go, let's go." Li Gaitang couldn't wait to pull Li Hongdong out.
Even the howling northwest wind outside could not blow away the shadow in their hearts.
Before leaving, Zhang Weifang turned his head to look at Wang Chunfeng and asked with a smile:
"Wang Chunfeng, hello. We're here today with our parents' wishes. I'd like to ask how much betrothal gifts you're prepared to give, and where you're going to live after we get married."
"Third sister-in-law, I have already prepared the betrothal gifts: 30 kilograms of coarse grains. As for the living quarters, you can see that they are just these two cave dwellings."
"Okay, I will convey your message, Hongqin, go home!" Zhang Weifang said and left.
She will never come back to this disgusting place in her life.
Wang Ni followed him out, holding onto Hong Qin with her hand that had just blown its nose:
"Xiaoqin, our matter is settled. You should marry me soon. Remember to bring your food with you. There are so many people in the family, and we don't have enough to eat."
Li Hongqin broke free from Wang Ni and ran out without saying a word. This was the first time in her eighteen years of life that she felt life was so difficult.
On the way back, no one spoke. No one knew what to say.
Li Gaitang hesitated several times before finally saying:
"Hongqin, don't come home after you get married. Don't lead my Dahua and Xiaohua astray."
Zhang Weifang was not idle. When she met acquaintances on the road, she even greeted them politely:
"Uncle, have you eaten? We went to Wang's house, yes, that one. Oh, it's hard to say. I'm going home to eat first."
"Aunt, have you eaten? Oh, the Wang family provided the meal, but it's just steamed bread with rice bran. I really can't swallow it. It's too cold. I'm leaving now."
"Uncle, Wang Chunfeng said the betrothal gift would be 30 kilograms of coarse grains. I'll go back and ask my parents-in-law for their opinion!"
“…”
When they returned home, almost everyone knew the Wang family's true colors. They ate rice bran and only received 30 kilograms of coarse grains as a betrothal gift. Everyone secretly scolded Li Hongqin for being stupid and the Wang family for being useless.
As soon as she returned to her husband's house, Zhang Weifang saw Li Hongru walking towards her. She instinctively took two steps back.
"Hongru, stay away from me. Go get me some hot water. I want to take a shower."
"What's wrong?"
"I'm itchy, I might have lice."
Li Gaitang was scratching his neck. When he heard this, he was so frightened that he stuttered:
"Third sister-in-law, no way, I'm itchy too."
After a period of chaos, the four people who went out were all washed, and Zhang Weifang also exchanged for anthelmintic medicine in the system mall.
It cost her twenty points. Zhang Weifang now really hopes that Li Hongqin can complete the task, otherwise it will be a big loss.
She gave the medicine to other people as well, fearing that the insects would multiply everywhere.
Li Gaitang was very grateful to Zhang Weifang for giving her the anthelmintic medicine, but she knew that this medicine was not cheap.
Fortunately, no one asked her why she had the anthelmintic, otherwise she would have to make an excuse.
Zhang Weifang changed her clothes inside and out and sprayed them with medicine just in case something happened.
She had no clothes at her husband's house, so Li Hongru rode his bike home to get them.
Same room, same people, same meeting content.
Li Guifang knocked on his pipe and asked:
"Tell me, what's going on with the Wang family?"
Li Guifang had just finished speaking when Li Gaitang interrupted:
"Dad, don't blame me for speaking harshly. If my little sister really marries him, she won't come back. It will affect the whole family."
Then, Li Gaitang told everything about the Wang family in detail, including the Wang family's attitude towards them.
"Hongqin, have you decided to marry into a family like this?"
"No, I won't marry, but, Dad, I've already ruined my reputation today." Li Hongqin couldn't help but burst into grief when she thought of what happened today. She just lay on the kang and burst into tears.
Li Guifang was feeling very nervous at this moment. He was happy that the girl had come to her senses and turned back, but he was also worried that she would become depressed.
Ma Shulan directly expressed her opinion:
"Reputation isn't the most important thing. Your ability to recognize Wang Chunfeng for who he is today is your greatest achievement. Since you don't want to marry me, I'll refuse tomorrow."
On this day, many families in the village found lice on their bodies, and everyone was wondering how such things could appear in such a cold weather.
Later, when these people met, they found out that those who had lice had contact with Zhang Weifang.
Now they all understood that the lice came from the Wang family, and the Wang family's reputation became even worse.
People in Beiguan Village also spread the word that when looking for a partner, you must never choose someone from Wang Chunfeng's village, because they are not only poor but also dirty.
Wang Chunfeng single-handedly ruined the reputation of the village, and it became difficult for people in their village to find a partner.
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