Chapter 91 You He's Marriage (part 2)
The second day of May was suitable for getting married.
Su Family's marrying off daughter banquet was arranged at noon. Along with it, was the dowry parading. However, Su Family didn’t have many relatives and friends in Wuliqiao. Only five-six tables were set up for a little liveliness.
Today's main star, You He, had been prepped by the matron of honor long ago. Wearing heavy makeup, her appearance was very different from her usual simple and elegant appearance. Still, she was extremely beautiful. Her pair of watery red phoenix eyes was full of joy and shyness. Su Family’s little girls couldn't keep their eyes away: "Elder Sister You He is so beautiful today!"
"Alright, alright, girls, Liu Family's wedding procession is coming soon. Girls, quickly halt them!" The matron of honor jollily walked in and coaxed everyone out. Afterward, she served the glutinous rice balls to You He: "Bride, have something to eat first. If not, you’ll starve."
You He accepted the glutinous rice balls brought by the matron of honor. She took a few mouthfuls before putting them down. Hearing the sound of gongs and drums getting closer outside, she was both nervous and excited.
From the start, Liu Zhuo Ting was handsome. Today, he was wearing a red gown. Due to passing a minor examination, his face was full of joy. Appearance-wise, he was very suitable for You He. But at this moment, Su Family’s son-in-law was stopped by his little sister-in-laws outside the door: "If you want to marry Elder Sister You He, you have to pass our test first!"
The matron of honor invited by Liu Family hurried forward. She handed out sweets and spoke pretty words. Su Family’s sisters halted them for a good while before letting them go under You Jin's signal. The new son-in-law entered the house.
Standing outside You He's boudoir, Liu Zhuo Ting's face flushed. Still, he shouted loudly according to the custom: "Wife, Husband is here to pick you up!"
Hearing the shout from outside, the matron of honor put the nearby red veil with mandarin duck playing with water design on You He's head. The door of the bride's boudoir opened with a creak after the groom shouted the third time. The bride with her head covered came out: "The bride is coming out!"
Taking the end of the red ribbon that the matron of honor handed over, Liu Zhuo Ting stood beside You He and firmly held her: "Don't be afraid."
You He, who was initially nervous, relaxed a lot when she heard what he said. She didn't know where she was going and just followed the footsteps of her future husband. Under the support of Sister-in-law Ge and Chun Hua, she bowed farewell to Mrs. Su. After leaving the gate of Su Family, she boarded the wedding procession’s bridal sedan chairs. lAccompanied by the sound of firecrackers and joy for a long time, they left Wuliqiao and headed for the city of Luohe Prefecture.
Standing outside the gate, Mrs. Su watched the wedding procession heading to the distance and felt a little s for some reason, Mrs. Su felt a little sense of loss: "In the future, she will be the daughter-in-law of another family. Don't know if Liu Family can treat her well?"
This was just marrying off her niece. How sad will she be when it comes to her daughters in the future?
You Jin, who was snuggling beside Mrs. Su, said in a low voice: "Our two families lived close, so Elder Sister You He won't be wronged."
To put it bluntly, as long as the maternal family was tough enough, Liu Family will never dare to bully You He.
***
Backt to Liu Family. Seeing Su Family's dowry being carried into the house one after another and the bride was followed by two servant-like people in light red clothes, they felt a little uneasy. They feared that the bride was spoiled and the family will be in chaos from now on.
Both sides were a little uneasy. Though they saw the new daughter-in-law was dressed luxuriously the next day, she was very submissive. Liu Family’s two elders felt relieved: "In the future, you must serve Zhuo Ting well and soon spread branches and scatter leaves for our Lir Family."
Today, You He was wearing a water-red thick jacket and skirt and had a set of gold plated head accessory. It was quite glamorous and charming. Accepting the teaching, she nodded her head. Everyone in Liu Family except Liu Zhuo Ting heaved a sigh of relief.
Liu Zhuo Ting was quite satisfied with his newlywed wife and was protective of her: "You He is wonderful, Father, Mother, you can rest assured."
Thinking about how the girl who was like a white lotus in the early summer when he first met her on the street became his wife, Liu Zhuo Ting inexplicably felt proud and satisfied.
The overall layout of Liu Family's house was similar to that of the houses in the countryside. There were east and west wing rooms on both sides of the main house, but it occupied a smaller area. The east wing was Liu Zhuo Ting's bedroom and study. The west wing was the residence of his two younger sisters. As for the two servants that You He brought, they were also arranged to live in the lower room of the West Wing. Although it was a bit crowded, it was passable.
The first three days of marrying in, there was no need to establish rules. In addition, the two people selected by You Jin for You He were both good at housework. Elder Sister-in-law Ge was good at cooking. After discussing with Liu Zhuo Ting, You He told her mother-in-law, Mrs. Qin about it- it was decided that Sister-in-law Ge would be in charge of Liu Family's works like laundry and cooking in the future, while Chun Hua would follow and serve You He.
Mrs. Qin wasn’t someone who made things difficult for her daughter-in-law. On the contrary, she was inexplicably in awe of You He. After all, she was the daughter of a rich family. She fully supported You He's considerate thought of contributing her accompanying servants to the main labor force of the family: "Since they are your people you brought in, you can arrange them yourself."
"Also, when I got married, my family prepared ten mus of fertile land for me. Mother, do you think it's better for us to hire people to farm the land, or to rent it to tenants?" Don't know if she trusted Mrs. Qin too much or she was truly stupid, to actually reveal all the dowry that You Jin gave her in private.
Mrs. Qin knew that Su Family was rich, but You He's surname wasn’t Su. So she assumed the gold plated head accessory was the biggest asset. Never thought there were also these! She stuck out her tongue and licked her somewhat dry lips. After a while, she replied: "This matter, you should decide for yourself."
If she intervenes and something happens in the future, Su Family would say that she had embezzled Daughter-in-law's dowry. Then, it’ll be bad. In conclusion, the gap between the two families was quite large. If it wasn't for Mrs. Qin knowing her son’s thoughts and asking a matchmaker to inquire, she wouldn't have dared to set her eyes on a family with such conditions as Su Family.
In fact, this was only a small part of You He's dowry. Because of the kindness of Mrs. Han who gave charcoal in the midst of snow and You He's own good character, Mrs. Su and You Jin didn't want her to be wronged. So they prepared a decent dowry: It wasn’t just ten mu of fertile land. There was also a set of gold-plated head accessories, two sets of sterling silver head accessories, six sets of clothes for each season, and fifty liang in the fund box. Altogether, it was nearly two hundred liang. On top of that, when You He was about to travel afar, Mrs. Han gave her twenty liang. Now You He had seventy liang of cash in her hand.
If Qin Family were to find out, they might really be startled. You He wasn’t so stupid as to reveal her dowry and the whole story. She just brought up the ten mu of fertile land to let Liu Family know that she also had money and avoid some trouble in the future.
No matter what, Su and Liu families were satisfied with this marriage. Everyone in Su Family waited eagerly for the third day. On the morning of the Dragon Boat Festival, they finally waited for the arrival of their new son-in-law, who brought back married off cousin miss for the third day return.
Liu Zhuo Ting was pulled aside by Mrs. Su to speak in the front yard, while You He was dragged into the backyard by Su Family’s sisters. Seeing the young couple's eyes full of reluctance of parting for even a moment, Mrs. Su was very delighted. It was evident that Liu Zhuo Ting loved You He very much. She spoke: "I am You He's aunt (from father side). In a way, you can still use that. How about I call you Zhuo Ting?"
"Aunt is being excessive with me!" Liu Zhuo Ting wore a bamboo green gown today. He looked as good-looking as a clump of green bamboo. On the wedding night, he knew Su Family's kindness to his wife and knew that his wife regarded Su Family as her maternal family from the bottom of her heart. So he also respected Su Family.
Mrs. Su signaled Auntie Song to bring some tea and snacks and urged Liu Zhuo Ting to sit down. She merrily chatted: "Those girls are reluctant to part with You He. They had been expressing how much they missed her every day these days. I'm afraid the sisters have a lot to say. Zhuo Ting, you may as well rest in the front yard. We’ll talk."
"Since it’s like this, I’ll will be noisy." Liu Zhuo Ting cupped his hands and acknowledged. Sitting very dignifiedly, he seriously listened to Mrs. Su's words.
While the two people in the front spoke cautiously, You He’s former boudoir in the backyard was very lively. Su Family’s girls formed a circle and stared at the married-off cousin without blinking. Little Eighth pulled You He’s sleeve to express that she wanted a hug.
You He held up two years old little Eighth and sat her on her lap. She smilingly asked: "Does little Eighth miss Elder Sister?"
Currently, Little Eighth liked shiny things the most. She childishly answered that she missed. Seeing the gold plated hairpin on her head, she reached out to grab it: "Elder Sister You He, little Eighth wants it!"
Afraid that she would mess up You He's bun, You Jin hurriedly carried her away: "Take Eighth Miss to the front yard to talk to brother-in-law."
As soon as this was said, little Sixth and little Seventh also followed over to see brother-in-law. Only the few older ones were left sitting in You He’s room.
Seeing that You He, who had just become a married woman, was as beautiful and charming as a lotus flower in full bloom in the early summer morning, You Jin knew that she was mostly likely living well in Liu Family. She was quite relieved: "If Elder Cousin Sister suffer in Liu Family, you must come back and tell us. We will definitely back you up."
With a chuckle, You He poked You Jin's head: "Marriage is a good relationship between the two families. Why do you say it like I married over to be bullied?"
You Jin didn't get angry. The sisters chatted for a long time; until Qiao-er came in from outside to invite them. Qiao-er notified them the food was ready. The sisters held hands and went to the dining room in the front yard.
You He couple had dinner at Su's house before rushing back before it got dark. Liu Zhuo Ting hired the mule cart back to the city early in the morning. In order not to let Liu Family look down on You He, Su Family stuffed half a cart full of things for the two of them to take home. You He was moved and dissuaded for a long while. Seeing that the time was getting late, the young couple rushed to the city.
At night, in the east wing of Liu’s house.
In the room, the word ‘喜’ was still posted. The curtains on the bed swayed without wind for half an hour before gradually stopping. Liu Zhuo Ting hugged his lovely wife into his arms. Stroking You He's back lightly, he savored her tenderness with greed and said in a hoarse voice: "He-er, your aunt's family treats you very well."
"I know." The blush-faced You He leaned in her husband's arms. Still immersed in the earth-shattering excitement, she couldn't catch her breath. Even his kind act of helping her breathe made her tremble. Her voice was like a kitten scratching someone: "Aunt's family allowed me to be reborn. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't be able to marry you..."
The husband and wife quietly had an evening conversation. Liu Zhuo Ting's initially well-behaved hands became more and more naughty under the constant shrinking of his wife. Finally he turned over at once and blocked the red lips that were still whispering. Another round of red waves began.
Mrs. Qin, who was up at night and outside, heard the subtle movements coming from the east wing room. It was very clear in the silent night. She couldn't help showing a satisfied smile. It seemed that she would be able to hold her big fat grandson soon.
The second day of May was suitable for getting married.
Su Family's marrying off daughter banquet was arranged at noon. Along with it, was the dowry parading. However, Su Family didn’t have many relatives and friends in Wuliqiao. Only five-six tables were set up for a little liveliness.
Today's main star, You He, had been prepped by the matron of honor long ago. Wearing heavy makeup, her appearance was very different from her usual simple and elegant appearance. Still, she was extremely beautiful. Her pair of watery red phoenix eyes was full of joy and shyness. Su Family’s little girls couldn't keep their eyes away: "Elder Sister You He is so beautiful today!"
"Alright, alright, girls, Liu Family's wedding procession is coming soon. Girls, quickly halt them!" The matron of honor jollily walked in and coaxed everyone out. Afterward, she served the glutinous rice balls to You He: "Bride, have something to eat first. If not, you’ll starve."
You He accepted the glutinous rice balls brought by the matron of honor. She took a few mouthfuls before putting them down. Hearing the sound of gongs and drums getting closer outside, she was both nervous and excited.
From the start, Liu Zhuo Ting was handsome. Today, he was wearing a red gown. Due to passing a minor examination, his face was full of joy. Appearance-wise, he was very suitable for You He. But at this moment, Su Family’s son-in-law was stopped by his little sister-in-laws outside the door: "If you want to marry Elder Sister You He, you have to pass our test first!"
The matron of honor invited by Liu Family hurried forward. She handed out sweets and spoke pretty words. Su Family’s sisters halted them for a good while before letting them go under You Jin's signal. The new son-in-law entered the house.
Standing outside You He's boudoir, Liu Zhuo Ting's face flushed. Still, he shouted loudly according to the custom: "Wife, Husband is here to pick you up!"
Hearing the shout from outside, the matron of honor put the nearby red veil with mandarin duck playing with water design on You He's head. The door of the bride's boudoir opened with a creak after the groom shouted the third time. The bride with her head covered came out: "The bride is coming out!"
Taking the end of the red ribbon that the matron of honor handed over, Liu Zhuo Ting stood beside You He and firmly held her: "Don't be afraid."
You He, who was initially nervous, relaxed a lot when she heard what he said. She didn't know where she was going and just followed the footsteps of her future husband. Under the support of Sister-in-law Ge and Chun Hua, she bowed farewell to Mrs. Su. After leaving the gate of Su Family, she boarded the wedding procession’s bridal sedan chairs. lAccompanied by the sound of firecrackers and joy for a long time, they left Wuliqiao and headed for the city of Luohe Prefecture.
Standing outside the gate, Mrs. Su watched the wedding procession heading to the distance and felt a little s for some reason, Mrs. Su felt a little sense of loss: "In the future, she will be the daughter-in-law of another family. Don't know if Liu Family can treat her well?"
This was just marrying off her niece. How sad will she be when it comes to her daughters in the future?
You Jin, who was snuggling beside Mrs. Su, said in a low voice: "Our two families lived close, so Elder Sister You He won't be wronged."
To put it bluntly, as long as the maternal family was tough enough, Liu Family will never dare to bully You He.
***
Backt to Liu Family. Seeing Su Family's dowry being carried into the house one after another and the bride was followed by two servant-like people in light red clothes, they felt a little uneasy. They feared that the bride was spoiled and the family will be in chaos from now on.
Both sides were a little uneasy. Though they saw the new daughter-in-law was dressed luxuriously the next day, she was very submissive. Liu Family’s two elders felt relieved: "In the future, you must serve Zhuo Ting well and soon spread branches and scatter leaves for our Lir Family."
Today, You He was wearing a water-red thick jacket and skirt and had a set of gold plated head accessory. It was quite glamorous and charming. Accepting the teaching, she nodded her head. Everyone in Liu Family except Liu Zhuo Ting heaved a sigh of relief.
Liu Zhuo Ting was quite satisfied with his newlywed wife and was protective of her: "You He is wonderful, Father, Mother, you can rest assured."
Thinking about how the girl who was like a white lotus in the early summer when he first met her on the street became his wife, Liu Zhuo Ting inexplicably felt proud and satisfied.
The overall layout of Liu Family's house was similar to that of the houses in the countryside. There were east and west wing rooms on both sides of the main house, but it occupied a smaller area. The east wing was Liu Zhuo Ting's bedroom and study. The west wing was the residence of his two younger sisters. As for the two servants that You He brought, they were also arranged to live in the lower room of the West Wing. Although it was a bit crowded, it was passable.
The first three days of marrying in, there was no need to establish rules. In addition, the two people selected by You Jin for You He were both good at housework. Elder Sister-in-law Ge was good at cooking. After discussing with Liu Zhuo Ting, You He told her mother-in-law, Mrs. Qin about it- it was decided that Sister-in-law Ge would be in charge of Liu Family's works like laundry and cooking in the future, while Chun Hua would follow and serve You He.
Mrs. Qin wasn’t someone who made things difficult for her daughter-in-law. On the contrary, she was inexplicably in awe of You He. After all, she was the daughter of a rich family. She fully supported You He's considerate thought of contributing her accompanying servants to the main labor force of the family: "Since they are your people you brought in, you can arrange them yourself."
"Also, when I got married, my family prepared ten mus of fertile land for me. Mother, do you think it's better for us to hire people to farm the land, or to rent it to tenants?" Don't know if she trusted Mrs. Qin too much or she was truly stupid, to actually reveal all the dowry that You Jin gave her in private.
Mrs. Qin knew that Su Family was rich, but You He's surname wasn’t Su. So she assumed the gold plated head accessory was the biggest asset. Never thought there were also these! She stuck out her tongue and licked her somewhat dry lips. After a while, she replied: "This matter, you should decide for yourself."
If she intervenes and something happens in the future, Su Family would say that she had embezzled Daughter-in-law's dowry. Then, it’ll be bad. In conclusion, the gap between the two families was quite large. If it wasn't for Mrs. Qin knowing her son’s thoughts and asking a matchmaker to inquire, she wouldn't have dared to set her eyes on a family with such conditions as Su Family.
In fact, this was only a small part of You He's dowry. Because of the kindness of Mrs. Han who gave charcoal in the midst of snow and You He's own good character, Mrs. Su and You Jin didn't want her to be wronged. So they prepared a decent dowry: It wasn’t just ten mu of fertile land. There was also a set of gold-plated head accessories, two sets of sterling silver head accessories, six sets of clothes for each season, and fifty liang in the fund box. Altogether, it was nearly two hundred liang. On top of that, when You He was about to travel afar, Mrs. Han gave her twenty liang. Now You He had seventy liang of cash in her hand.
If Qin Family were to find out, they might really be startled. You He wasn’t so stupid as to reveal her dowry and the whole story. She just brought up the ten mu of fertile land to let Liu Family know that she also had money and avoid some trouble in the future.
No matter what, Su and Liu families were satisfied with this marriage. Everyone in Su Family waited eagerly for the third day. On the morning of the Dragon Boat Festival, they finally waited for the arrival of their new son-in-law, who brought back married off cousin miss for the third day return.
Liu Zhuo Ting was pulled aside by Mrs. Su to speak in the front yard, while You He was dragged into the backyard by Su Family’s sisters. Seeing the young couple's eyes full of reluctance of parting for even a moment, Mrs. Su was very delighted. It was evident that Liu Zhuo Ting loved You He very much. She spoke: "I am You He's aunt (from father side). In a way, you can still use that. How about I call you Zhuo Ting?"
"Aunt is being excessive with me!" Liu Zhuo Ting wore a bamboo green gown today. He looked as good-looking as a clump of green bamboo. On the wedding night, he knew Su Family's kindness to his wife and knew that his wife regarded Su Family as her maternal family from the bottom of her heart. So he also respected Su Family.
Mrs. Su signaled Auntie Song to bring some tea and snacks and urged Liu Zhuo Ting to sit down. She merrily chatted: "Those girls are reluctant to part with You He. They had been expressing how much they missed her every day these days. I'm afraid the sisters have a lot to say. Zhuo Ting, you may as well rest in the front yard. We’ll talk."
"Since it’s like this, I’ll will be noisy." Liu Zhuo Ting cupped his hands and acknowledged. Sitting very dignifiedly, he seriously listened to Mrs. Su's words.
While the two people in the front spoke cautiously, You He’s former boudoir in the backyard was very lively. Su Family’s girls formed a circle and stared at the married-off cousin without blinking. Little Eighth pulled You He’s sleeve to express that she wanted a hug.
You He held up two years old little Eighth and sat her on her lap. She smilingly asked: "Does little Eighth miss Elder Sister?"
Currently, Little Eighth liked shiny things the most. She childishly answered that she missed. Seeing the gold plated hairpin on her head, she reached out to grab it: "Elder Sister You He, little Eighth wants it!"
Afraid that she would mess up You He's bun, You Jin hurriedly carried her away: "Take Eighth Miss to the front yard to talk to brother-in-law."
As soon as this was said, little Sixth and little Seventh also followed over to see brother-in-law. Only the few older ones were left sitting in You He’s room.
Seeing that You He, who had just become a married woman, was as beautiful and charming as a lotus flower in full bloom in the early summer morning, You Jin knew that she was mostly likely living well in Liu Family. She was quite relieved: "If Elder Cousin Sister suffer in Liu Family, you must come back and tell us. We will definitely back you up."
With a chuckle, You He poked You Jin's head: "Marriage is a good relationship between the two families. Why do you say it like I married over to be bullied?"
You Jin didn't get angry. The sisters chatted for a long time; until Qiao-er came in from outside to invite them. Qiao-er notified them the food was ready. The sisters held hands and went to the dining room in the front yard.
You He couple had dinner at Su's house before rushing back before it got dark. Liu Zhuo Ting hired the mule cart back to the city early in the morning. In order not to let Liu Family look down on You He, Su Family stuffed half a cart full of things for the two of them to take home. You He was moved and dissuaded for a long while. Seeing that the time was getting late, the young couple rushed to the city.
At night, in the east wing of Liu’s house.
In the room, the word ‘喜’ was still posted. The curtains on the bed swayed without wind for half an hour before gradually stopping. Liu Zhuo Ting hugged his lovely wife into his arms. Stroking You He's back lightly, he savored her tenderness with greed and said in a hoarse voice: "He-er, your aunt's family treats you very well."
"I know." The blush-faced You He leaned in her husband's arms. Still immersed in the earth-shattering excitement, she couldn't catch her breath. Even his kind act of helping her breathe made her tremble. Her voice was like a kitten scratching someone: "Aunt's family allowed me to be reborn. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't be able to marry you..."
The husband and wife quietly had an evening conversation. Liu Zhuo Ting's initially well-behaved hands became more and more naughty under the constant shrinking of his wife. Finally he turned over at once and blocked the red lips that were still whispering. Another round of red waves began.
Mrs. Qin, who was up at night and outside, heard the subtle movements coming from the east wing room. It was very clear in the silent night. She couldn't help showing a satisfied smile. It seemed that she would be able to hold her big fat grandson soon.
I'm super glad the two families mesh well :D Hopefully it'll stay that way even as they get older! Thank you for the chapter!
ReplyDeleteI reread in CN this recently but I don't remember, did Madam Su use 姑 to describe herself?
ReplyDelete