◎Betrothal Gifts◎
Let us set aside how satisfied Zhao Sufen felt after Auntie Wang went to the Qian family to deliver the reply.
Although the Wei family was poor, they were genuinely intent on marrying her daughter. They were preparing to formally propose marriage, not simply hand over two sacks of grain to settle the matter. This was the proper way to show serious intent in forming a marriage alliance.
Zhao Sufen was not the kind of mother who would sell her daughter. Naturally, she did not wish for her in-laws to treat the marriage as a transaction—like "buying a wife."
The reason she had taken her daughter with her through her second and third marriages was precisely because she knew how difficult it was for women to survive in this world. One cannot choose their birth, but marriage is like a second chance at life.
If the husband's family is good, even if life is a bit hard, as long as the family is united, with fewer quarrels, the days can still be comfortable and carefree. But if one marries into a den of wolves or tigers—with a harsh and biased mother-in-law, a muddle-headed father-in-law who takes sides, a husband who does not know how to cherish his wife, and brothers, sisters-in-law, younger siblings, and sisters all fighting tooth and nail over the two steamed buns in the pot—then life truly becomes a dead end, with no hope for the future.
Since Tao Hua was born from her womb, how could she, as a mother, not worry about her marriage? She feared nothing more than her daughter marrying the wrong person and ruining her entire life.
This situation was the best possible. The Wei family conducted themselves properly. Although she had never met Wei Dahu, at this moment, she could not be more satisfied with the Wei family.
When seeing Auntie Wang off, Zhao Sufen discreetly slipped a large handful of copper coins into her palm, her face beaming with a smile, her attitude exceedingly affectionate: "Auntie, I truly don't know how to express my gratitude. Thank you for running back and forth in this sweltering heat."
Auntie Wang graciously accepted the hard-earned money without the slightest hesitation. Zhao Sufen admired her straightforward nature and held her hand, reluctant to let go, whispering: "As the matchmaker, please make another trip for me tomorrow. Tell Old Man Wei that since he is an open and honest man, not like those who care so much about appearances, I, Zhao Sufen, am certainly not either. Tell him not to fret over the betrothal gifts; something passable will do. The two children still have to live their lives in the future." Whatever you do, don't try to keep up appearances beyond your means!
She swallowed those last words.
Auntie Wang was a clever woman. After hearing this, she nodded repeatedly.
"This is what it means to be a parent. I haven't made a mistake in arranging this match. I only hope the two children can build a good life together in the future, so that all your parental worries won't have been in vain." Seeing Zhao Sufen so concerned for her daughter, Auntie Wang couldn't help but think of her own childhood friend who had passed away early, her eyes welling up with tears.
What did it matter if she made a few extra trips? She truly hoped this would be a good match and that both children would live well.
The next day, Auntie Wang went to the Wei family early and learned that Dahu had left for town at the fifth watch.
"My goodness, he's in such a hurry to get married!" Upon hearing that he had crossed mountains and traveled in the dark early in the morning to go to town to prepare the betrothal gifts, showing such an enthusiastic attitude, Auntie Wang laughed, her face crinkling with wrinkles.
Old Man Wei was in the yard splitting bamboo strips. Seeing her arrive, he hurried to the kitchen to fetch her water. Auntie Wang stopped him, happily relaying Zhao Sufen's message. After finishing, she didn't wait to see his reaction, as she had a pile of chores waiting at home: "Since Dahu has gone to town, I won't stay long. Later, you and your son can discuss and pick an auspicious date. Once you've decided, let me know, and then we'll take the betrothal gifts to the Qian family to formally propose!"
Old Man Wei nodded in agreement, thanking her for making another trip.
"Arranging the marriage proposal is one thing, but you two need to think carefully about the wedding date. The autumn harvest is approaching—do you want to bring the bride home quickly to help with the work, or let the girl stay with her family through the busy farming season…" Auntie Wang trailed off, hesitating.
This was the inconvenience of having no woman in the household. Matters of marriage should be handled by women, but the Wei family lacked a woman to take charge. Everything had to be discussed with Old Man Wei, and some things couldn’t be spoken too plainly.
These men were as rough as wooden stakes—how could they understand the subtleties of women’s concerns? When it came to the busy farming season, there were considerations about whether to marry early or late.
Auntie Wang muttered to herself inwardly. Old Man Wei wasn’t foolish either. Although the proposal hadn’t been formally made yet, Zhao Sufen had specifically sent Auntie Wang all this way today to discuss the betrothal gifts. She was worried his family couldn’t afford decent things and also feared he might misunderstand and strain himself to put on a show. This was the future in-laws showing consideration.
He couldn’t be unreasonable either. When people spoke like this, it was all out of love for their daughter.
"Judging by the heavens’ will, the harvest will likely begin in another half-month. Crops wait for no one, but good things shouldn’t be rushed either," Old Man Wei said.
Who would rush to marry off their daughter right before the busy farming season? What, are you in a hurry to bring her home to harvest your crops?
"Ah!" Auntie Wang’s smile grew more genuine. They were all sensible and understanding people. If all parents were this reasonable, matchmakers in this world wouldn’t be chased out with brooms.
While the family discussed the marriage proposal, Wei Dahu in town was busy preparing the betrothal gifts.
Wei Dahu walked out of the fabric shop carrying two bolts of cloth. The shop assistant eagerly saw him to the door, calling out loudly, "Take care, esteemed customer! Come again next time!"
Next time, I won’t be coming alone to buy fabric, Wei Dahu thought gleefully to himself. With confident strides, he crossed the street to the pastry shop opposite.
The two bolts of cloth had cost nearly half of the silver he had on hand. He and his father usually wore coarse hemp clothes that lasted forever—they had never bought such fine things from a fabric shop before. Though expensive, the cloth was irresistibly beautiful, dyed a vibrant red like ripe fruit on the mountain. Under the sunlight, it seemed to glow with a translucent, juicy sheen.
It looked sweet just to behold.
The thought of his bride wearing that bright red wedding dress to marry him filled his heart with indescribable joy.
Wei Dahu stood nine feet tall with broad shoulders and a sturdy build, towering conspicuously in any crowd. Not just in this town, but across the entire Great Yu Dynasty, few men could match his height and strength. This was also why Wei Dahu preferred staying in the mountains and disliked coming to town—people couldn’t help but sneak glances at him, their furtive looks annoyingly bothersome.
The pastry shop was filled with women and children. As soon as Wei Dahu entered, the spacious shop seemed to shrink by two sizes, the air growing tense. The once lively shop fell silent in an instant.
Timid children hid behind their mothers in fright.
Just like at the fabric shop, Wei Dahu felt utterly uncomfortable. Fortunately, the shop assistant was perceptive and hurried over to greet him. "Esteemed customer, are you here to buy pastries? Please step this way to see our signature date paste pastry…"
Hearing the word "signature," Wei Dahu quickly followed him to the front.
A child peeking out from behind his mother stared wide-eyed at the mountain-like figure, mouth slightly agape as if witnessing something rare and extraordinary.
"Our jujube paste pastries are limited, only twenty portions sold each day. Many ladies and young misses in town adore them, sending servants to queue at our shop daily to buy them," the shop assistant explained.
Wei Dahu couldn't tell good from bad: "Aren't they bought by queuing? Why are there so many left today?"
The assistant choked: "Customer, I wouldn't dare deceive you. Our jujube paste pastries are indeed our specialty, and there is indeed a queue every day. Today, perhaps the important people were all delayed by matters."
Wei Dahu laughed. What a coincidence—all the good things were left for him today. This wife was truly meant for him to marry.
He laughed heartily: "Alright, wrap up three portions for me."
The assistant's eyes lit up, hurriedly agreeing as he happily went to pack. But catching a glimpse of Wei Dahu's attire from the corner of his eye, a bucket of cold water instantly doused his fervent heart. Hesitant because the customer seemed not easy to provoke, he tentatively said: "Sir, these jujube paste pastries cost one tael of silver per portion…"
Wei Dahu fished out three taels from his pocket and tossed them onto the table, his thick brows furrowing fiercely: "Quickly wrap them up for me. If the pastries are crushed or ruined, I'll come back tomorrow and smash your shop."
Even without your threats, I'm already scared, the assistant thought, both timid and delighted as he took the silver and hurried to pack the pastries.
Wei Dahu glanced around, took out some copper coins from his person, and pointed at one spot: "That candy, wrap up a portion."
"Right away!" the assistant called out cheerfully.
Leaving the pastry shop, Wei Dahu went to a wine shop and bought two jars of fine wine. After splurging recklessly, the silver he earned from catching Little Dragon yesterday was nearly gone.
Having been busy all morning, his stomach was already rumbling loudly. Wei Dahu carried his purchases to a noodle stall and ordered three large bowls of noodles, barely filling himself to about thirty percent. Seeing the sun growing fierce, he left the town.
Taking a shortcut into the mountains, he then circled along the mountain path into the deep woods, disappearing from sight in the blink of an eye.
At noon, cooking smoke rose from both ends of the village.
These days, the world is relatively stable. If you go back a few decades, the entire court was in chaos with wars everywhere, and the common folk had no peace. If a hunter from the mountains wanted to settle down in the village, it was extremely difficult—the villagers were very unwelcoming. Of course, being unwelcoming was one reason; another was that hunters often dealt with bloodshed. Without knowing their character or background, who would dare to casually accept a hunter? That would be like asking for trouble.
Many who killed people fled into the deep mountains. Who knew if the person standing before you was a great villain with several lives on their hands?
The saying "going up the mountain is easy, coming down is hard" refers to exactly this.
Of course, there were still ways. For example, Old Man Wei—formerly Wei Dalang—married a girl from the village and eventually transformed from a hunter into a resident of Dahe Village, barely gaining acceptance from the villagers. Although the villagers agreed to let him settle, he could only build his house in a remote area. At the time, Wei Dalang also preferred peace and simplicity, choosing a spot at the foot of the back mountain.
The foot of the mountain was quiet, but it was a bit far from the village.
Old Man Wei was eating in the courtyard with a bowl in hand. After just a couple of mouthfuls, he heard movement from behind the mountain. He stood up and walked to the backyard, only to see his son descending like a fierce tiger, with two bolts of cloth tied to his back, two jars of wine hanging from his neck, and his large hands carefully holding a small rope with several packages of pastries.
…What a vexing creature, running through the mountains with delicate, fine cloth on his back—isn't he afraid of tree branches tearing it up!
"Dad, I'm back." Seeing his father holding a bowl, Wei Dahu quickened his pace. Too lazy to go around to the courtyard gate, he simply swung his long legs over the fence into the yard. After setting down his purchases in the main room, he hurriedly bent over to enter the kitchen, grabbing a basin and spoon to serve himself some food. "I'm starving. That bowl of noodles sold in town wasn't even enough for two mouthfuls—barely enough to fill the gaps between my teeth."
"You had twenty taels on you and only ate one bowl of noodles?" Old Man Wei strolled into the room, carefully examining the things his son had bought, nodding inwardly. The boy had handled things decently.
"Spent it all, only got a few dozen copper coins left, enough for just three bowls of noodles." Wei Dahu was so hungry he felt dizzy. Last night, preoccupied with thoughts of getting married, he had tossed and turned in excitement, unable to sleep. In the end, he simply took advantage of the moonlight to trek over the mountains to town. The mountain path took him two hours, and by then, he was already starving, his stomach practically sticking to his back.
After inspecting his purchases, Old Man Wei picked up his bowl again. Father and son each squatted in their own spots, eating as they talked. "Auntie Wang came by today. That girl's birth mother is a sensible woman. With a mother like that, the daughter probably won't be too bad either. I was thinking the day after tomorrow is an auspicious day. I'll go propose the marriage for you."
Wei Dahu nodded repeatedly. "So when's the wedding?"
"You're already in a hurry to get married before the proposal's even been made? What kind of wishful thinking is that? Now you're in a rush—what were you doing all these years? People tried to arrange matches for you before, but you never showed any interest." Old Man Wei glared angrily. Their family might be poor, but his son was tall and sturdy, clearly a capable farmhand, which had led some suitable families to privately express interest. It was just that this rascal had looked down on them.
All he cared about were the snake holes in the mountains, spending his days thinking about catching snakes to sell.
"Everyone in the village my age already has kids running around. What's wrong with me wanting to get married? Don't you want to be a grandpa?" Wei Dahu shot back. What kind of matches were those earlier? They'd demand ten taels of silver as bride price right off the bat, complain about our family being poor, say our thin fields don't yield enough grain and would starve their daughter, gripe about our rundown house leaking wind and rain, and look down on you for being lame and unable to work the fields, calling you a burden. They'd act like their daughter was a fairy descended from heaven, needing golden bricks to pave the ground beneath her feet.
Then why did they even come to our house to propose? Something must be wrong with them.
When the son sticks out his rear, the father knows exactly what he's thinking. Old Man Wei gave him a once-over. "Takes after your grandpa—tall and big, looks like a good hand in the fields. Who wouldn't be envious?"
"Envious, but I won't farm for her family," Wei Dahu said.
What an infuriating brat, always talking back.
Back then, no matter how nicely the other side put it—how pretty the girl was, how many brothers she had to help out—he'd just reply, "I eat half a bucket of rice per meal. If our family runs out of grain, can I borrow some from my mother-in-law?"
That made them spit twice on the ground in anger and leave without looking back.
Half a bucket of rice per meal? Why don't you just fly to heaven! Can you plow ten acres a day or work like ten oxen? Borrow grain? What kind of pipe dream are you having!
With that attitude, you still want a wife? Go chew on tree bark!
Since then, no matchmaker had ever come to the Wei family to propose a marriage.