NOVPUB
Chapter 129: Chapter 123 Discussing the Marriage Proposal (Part 1)
This year Gaijiatun had a good harvest, so after the autumn harvest, every family’s grain was distributed in fixed quantities. What followed were some wrap-up tasks, which the villagers would deal with leisurely, making sure they would finish before the first snowfall in November.
One day, an outsider came to Gaijiatun, heading straight for the Shen patriarch’s house and shouting before even entering, "Is Old Brother Shen at home?"
At home were only the Shen matriarch and Shen Yunxiu; the patriarch had taken advantage of the busy farming period to help his two sons build houses, and Fang Chengjian had gone to the commune.
"Who could that be? It doesn’t sound like someone from our village," said the Shen matriarch as she rose from the kang, peering out the window.
The person at the door shouted again, and she, shuffling into her shoes, headed outside, "You stay inside, I’ll go and see what this is about."
The visitor, seeing an elderly woman emerge from the house, hurriedly said, "It must be the older sister-in-law, right? I’m from Taoshu Village, sent by the Li Family. I’ve come to bring you some good news."
The Shen matriarch understood right away, this was the mediator sent by the Li Family from Taoshu Village, here to propose a marriage match for Yunfang.
"Oh my, what a rare guest! Please, come inside, let’s talk in the house," the Shen matriarch eagerly said, opening the courtyard door and inviting the person in.
"Haha, thank you, sister-in-law. Is Old Brother Shen here?" the visitor asked with a beaming smile.
"He’s out working, but it’s not a problem—he’s nearby and will come if called," the matriarch said as she ushered the visitor inside. With only the daughter at home, she quickly sent her to fetch the patriarch, "Yunxiu, go quickly and bring back your father. Tell him that someone from the Li Family in Taoshu Village has come."
Shen Yunxiu felt unhappy upon hearing this; why should she exert herself for Shen Yunfang’s affairs when she clearly remembered how Yunfang had treated her.
"Mother, I’m not going—I’m feeling quite uncomfortable in the stomach," she said, feigning discomfort by touching her abdomen.
Having been married for two months, she had confirmed her pregnancy. It was because of this child that her parents had softened their attitude, allowing her to come home and freeload, although the Shen patriarch still did not look kindly upon her, either scolding or cursing whenever they met. However, Shen Yunxiu was now married and had grown a thicker skin; no matter how much she was scolded, it seemed as though she hadn’t heard and she would always turn up at the dining table when it was time to eat.
The Shen matriarch could see through her daughter’s little ruse, but since a daughter claimed to be unwell, she couldn’t very well insist. She shot Yunxiu a look and then explained to the visitor before going off to look for someone herself.
"Uncle, you’re from Taoshu Village?" Shen Yunxiu, seeing the house empty, turned the conversation with the visitor jovially.
The visitor, a well-known mediator from Taoshu Village named Li Fugui, was the go-to person for all village matters, and of course, he also balanced his work with that of a matchmaker.
Li Fugui had already heard about the incidents concerning the team leader’s daughter from Gaijiatun at his end; he hadn’t expected to encounter the actual person today.
While he was curious to see for himself what a woman accused of such infamous conduct would look like, Li Fugui remained mindful of the task at hand, so after taking a quick glance around, he casually continued to chat with Shen Yunxiu, smiling amiably.
"Yes, indeed, I’m from Taoshu Village, here to discuss the marriage matter between the Li Family and the Shen Family with your father."
"Has the Li Family inquired about my cousin’s character yet? Logically, since we’re all family, I don’t like speaking ill of others, but I still advise you to go back and have the Li Family investigate further. After all, marriage is a lifelong commitment and not something to be taken lightly. It would be unfortunate if you were unaware of anything beforehand and only discovered issues after getting married, at which point our two families would become enemies rather than in-laws," Shen Yunxiu said with an air of looking out for everyone’s best interest.
Li Fugui could clearly discern the implication in her words. He thought to himself that it seemed this woman harbored a grudge against her cousin; her straightforwardness was really something. Nevertheless, if all the girls from the Shen Family were like this, he really would have to speak to Elder Brother Li about it upon his return.
"Hehe, is that so? Well, thank you very much for the advice. When the two families arranged the marriage, it was precisely because they valued Elder Brother Shen’s character. But I’ll keep this in mind and will certainly discuss it further with the Li Family upon my return," Li Fugui said with a laugh.
"No need to thank me, no need at all. I just mentioned it offhandedly, I..."
Before Shen Yunxiu could finish, Uncle Shen and Aunt Shen returned.
Uncle Shen first cast a glance at his daughter, which made Shen Yunxiu shrink back slightly with a guilty conscience before he warmly greeted Li Fugui, "Ah, such a rare visitor, you must have been waiting for a while. How did the wife entertain you? Why didn’t she offer you a cup of hot water?" He then turned to Shen Yunxiu and said, "We have a guest, and here you are dilly-dallying. Hurry back to your own room and stay there." Although he didn’t raise his voice, it was stern.
His daughter seemed to have lost all sense of shame, having done something so disgraceful, yet she still had the audacity to wander around outside every day. Uncle Shen was irritated at the sight of her; recently, he had endured all sorts of judgment from others, and he felt like he had lost all his face.
"Ah, it’s all my fault, I was so busy that I completely forgot about it. You discuss things inside, and I’ll go boil some water."
"No need, sister-in-law, I’m not thirsty. Please, don’t trouble yourself."
After a few courteous exchanges, they sat down to discuss the main affair.
"Big Brother, the Li Family and ours are practically confirmed for the child betrothal, and after all these years, both families are familiar with each other. I won’t bother with pleasantries. Elder Brother Li suggests that since the children are not so young anymore, we should perhaps start making wedding arrangements. He felt it was not appropriate for him to come over himself, so he sent me to discuss the plans with you," Li Fugui explained the purpose of his visit.
Uncle Shen had anticipated that the visit from Taoshu Village was likely about the children’s marriage. He had thought through the matter thoroughly on the journey home, so now he replied calmly, "Li Fugui, you’re aware of Yunfang’s situation. My younger brother has only one daughter, and her affairs are my affairs. However, as her uncle, I can make arrangements for her, but I cannot make decisions on her behalf, so the marriage ultimately depends on what she thinks."
"I understand that, I do. It’s not easy being an uncle in such matters. So, I’ll just convey the Li Family’s thoughts for now. You can see if there’s anything unsatisfactory, and later we can sit down with Yunfang to discuss together. Does that sound good to you?" Li Fugui had thought through all the possible scenarios before he came.
"That sounds fine, go ahead, Li Fugui."
Li Fugui then began to outline the Li Family’s stance point by point, and Uncle Shen’s frown deepened as he listened.
The Li Family had three main conditions. First, the children were both of age to marry—in the countryside, a girl could marry at sixteen, not necessarily following the legal marital age—and they wished to have the wedding by the end of the year.
Second, the dowry had already been given previously, so now the Li Family would only be responsible for the cost of the wedding banquet and making a set of clothes for the bride. The bride was expected to bring over two quilts as part of her dowry. As for any additional necessities for their life together, those would be arranged later on.
Third, since the Li Family patriarch was still alive, even after the marriage, they could not split the family household. As for Yunfang’s future, whether she preferred to follow her husband on military duty or stay in the Li household, was up to her.
