◎The Wedding Procession◎
Early in the morning, the Qian household was already bustling with activity. Zhao Sufen helped her daughter put on the wedding dress, applied her makeup, and dabbed rouge on her lips.
There was only one small bronze mirror in the house, kept in Zhao Sufen’s room. Usually, Tao Hua would look at her reflection in the water’s surface to see herself. Now, with makeup and rouge applied, paired with her fair and delicate skin, her features appeared even more tender and lovely.
“Here, Tao Hua, have a boiled egg to fill your stomach.” Her eldest sister-in-law, Mrs. Sun, entered the room with a bowl containing two boiled eggs.
Zhao Sifen glanced at her. Mrs. Sun handed the bowl to Tao Hua with a forced smile. “This is your last meal at home. Two eggs aren’t much, but don’t look down on them.”
The second sister-in-law, Mrs. Wang, who usually spoke little, stood stiffly to the side without saying a word.
Regardless of what they truly thought, they had put on a proper show for the occasion. Tao Hua reached out to take the bowl and quietly began eating with her head lowered.
Something as precious as eggs had never been her share, whether in the Zhou family or the Qian family. Her mother had never been harsh to her, but the family was poor, and nothing good ever came her way. In the Zhou family, there were her second father and second brother, while in the Qian family, there were not only her third brother but also two nephews. How could it ever be her turn?
Tao Hua was not greedy, but even this bowl of boiled eggs brought her no joy.
As the sunlight outside grew brighter, relatives and neighbors arrived to offer their congratulations. Several girls who were usually close friends with Tao Hua came to her room to chat and joke with her.
“Tao Hua, you look so beautiful today.” Wu Cuiliu gazed enviously at the wedding dress, wanting to touch it but not daring to. Her hands were rough, and she feared she might damage it.
Tao Hua felt a little shy and whispered, “It’s nothing special.”
“Beautiful is beautiful—why can’t we say it? You really do look beautiful today.” The neighbor’s girl examined her makeup. “There’s no comparison, really no comparison. During the autumn harvest, we were all out in the fields gathering grain. I’m still as dark as charcoal from the stove, but you, Tao Hua, have only stayed indoors for a few days and already regained your fair complexion.”
Wu Cuiliu grew even more envious. Her situation was similar to Tao Hua’s: Tao Hua was a stepdaughter brought into the family by her stepmother, while she herself was a girl with a stepmother. Her life at home was even less pleasant than Tao Hua’s.
Many people came to see the bride today. In rural households, there weren’t many formalities. Qian Gouzi, followed by his two nephews, ran around the house recklessly. Taking advantage of the joyous occasion to avoid a scolding, they occasionally sneaked into the kitchen to steal a bite. The sadness of his sister getting married was completely forgotten.
Several tables had already been set up in the Qian family’s courtyard. Relatives, neighbors, and villagers sat together, eating dried fruits and chatting idly. The women helped by preparing vegetables and bustling about in the kitchen.
The autumn harvest had just ended, and everyone was free. Bringing a few copper coins, some eggs, or a handful of vegetables as gifts, they all gathered at the Qian household to share in the festive atmosphere.
Chef Qian was once again in charge of the cooking today. As the head of the household, he was extremely busy, leaving the task of greeting guests to his two sons.
Amid the lively and noisy atmosphere, someone suddenly shouted loudly, “The groom is here!”
Whoa! Everyone turned their heads in unison. The young people in the village rushed outside in a noisy crowd, only to be met by a procession of people playing music as they approached. At the front was a man wearing a large red flower on his chest. Tall and robust, his stature was as imposing as a mountain. Beside him was an ox cart, with a festive red flower tied around the ox’s neck.
The suona blared deafeningly as the men from Dahe Village, coming to fetch the bride, swiftly arrived at the Qian family's doorstep.
The two villages were not far apart, and years of intermarriage meant there were familiar faces in the crowd. In no time, jokes and banter filled the air. A group of men stood at the Qian family's gate, where a few of Qian's clansmen brothers put on a show of blocking the way, drawing continuous laughter from the onlookers.
In front of the bride's chamber, Qian Gouzi spread his small arms wide, blocking Wei Dahu from entering the room.
The men in the courtyard cheered in unison, with some even teasing Qian Gouzi loudly, calling the visitors bandits here to steal his sister and urging him to hold his ground.
Qian Gouzi secretly curled his lip. He was clever enough to find these adults' talk annoying. Tilting his head back to look up at the tall man before him, he slowly extended his small hand.
Wei Dahu was well-prepared. First, he pulled out a red envelope, then, as if performing a magic trick, produced a packet of pastries. "Take these and enjoy!"
"Wow, pastries!" Qian Gouzi happily reached out to take them, instantly forgetting his duty to block the way. He called out to his nephews Shuanzi and Louzi behind him and ran outside, chattering excitedly as they went to share the treats.
The onlookers burst into laughter, all scolding Qian Gouzi for being unreliable—selling out his sister for just a packet of pastries!
With no one blocking the door, Wei Dahu smoothly welcomed the bride.
Traditionally, the bride should be carried out of her home by her own brothers, but no one mentioned this. The two Qian brothers stood unmoving in the courtyard, and Qian Gouzi was still shorter than Tao Hua's legs. So, the groom entered the room himself and escorted the bride out of the house.
Zhao Sufen watched her daughter leave, her eyes reddening before she turned away and wept.
A mother's heart truly understands only at the moment her daughter marries. The women nearby quickly comforted her, "Don't cry now. This is a joyous day. I think Wei Dahu is a good man, and he will surely treat Tao Hua well in the future."
With the bride in tow, the wedding procession made its way back to Dahe Village, accompanied by lively music.
At the fork in the road marking the boundary between the two villages, a somewhat thin and gaunt-looking young man stopped one of the men in the procession—Chen Dashi, who happened to be bringing up the rear.
Chen Dashi glanced at him a few times but didn't recognize him, so he asked, "Young brother, is there something you need?"
Zhou Mancang hesitated before extending the basket in his hand, a hint of awkwardness on his face. Softly, he said, "Please, elder brother, pass this basket to the family hosting today's wedding. Just say… it's from Zhou Mancang of Zhou Family Village, congratulating the newlyweds on their joyous union."
Zhou Family Village? Zhou Mancang? Who was that? A relative of the bride?
But why would a relative of the bride stop them halfway…
Chen Dashi thought that since the gift wasn't sent to the Qian family but instead handed to him, it was meant for the Wei family. Regardless of which relative you were, if you brought a gift, you should come and join the feast.
Instead of taking the basket, Chen Dashi pushed the young man into the wedding procession and called out, "Come on, come on, let's go enjoy the feast."
Zhou Mancang was completely bewildered. Before he could react, he was surrounded by a group of men from Dahe Village. "We've got the bride! Let's hurry back to the village for the feast. Dahu hunted a huge wild boar yesterday, and there's plenty of good wine and food prepared. Today, we brothers are going to drink our fill!"
"Hey, young brother, which family are you from?" one of the men asked, curious about this unfamiliar face who had suddenly appeared.
"I, I'm from the Zhou family." Zhou Mancang tightened his grip on the basket, sneaking a glance at the groom leading the procession as he spoke, then peeking at the bride sitting on the ox cart, veiled in red. He couldn't leave, nor did he dare call out to anyone.
No one knew which Zhou family he meant, so they paid him no mind, hurrying along the way, anxious not to miss the auspicious hour for the wedding ceremony.
Tao Hua, hidden beneath the red veil, could see nothing. She only felt the ox cart travel for what seemed like an eternity. The journey wasn't particularly bumpy, but her heart was filled with unease and nervousness. Clenching her fingers, her heartbeat raced wildly.
Until a voice beside her announced, "We're here."
Then, a man's large hand reached over and firmly grasped hers.
Tao Hua instinctively tried to pull back, but her hand was held tightly, unable to move an inch.
Guided by that hand, she stepped down from the ox cart, crossed the fire basin, and entered the courtyard… Amidst the cheers of the villagers, she lifted her foot and crossed the threshold into the Wei family home.
In the main hall, Old Man Wei sat in the place of honor, his face flushed with joy.
Following Auntie Wang's loud, jubilant cries of "The auspicious hour has arrived!" Wei Dahu and Tao Hua began the wedding ceremony, bowing and paying their respects.
First bow to heaven and earth—the newlyweds knelt and kowtowed, facing the sky and the earth.
Second bow to the elders—the newlyweds knelt and kowtowed before Old Man Wei, seated above them.
Third bow to each other—the newlyweds faced one another and bowed deeply.
Tao Hua felt her veil sway slightly and quickly straightened up.
As the words "Ceremony complete!" rang out, the villagers gathered inside and outside the house erupted in cheers!
Amidst the clamor, Tao Hua was escorted into the bridal chamber.
Wei Dahu, however, was intercepted by a group of young men from the village. They crowded around him, pushing him toward the banquet tables, shouting, "Where does the groom think he's going? Trying to sneak off to hug his bride without even checking the time!"
"Someone, hold the groom down! We must get him drunk today!"
Pinned down by the men, Wei Dahu laughed heartily, picked up a bowl of wine from the table, and downed it in one bold gulp. Even the rough liquor tasted sweet in his throat on such a joyous day. "Today is my wedding day! Eat, drink, and be merry—no one leaves sober!"
"Good! That's the spirit!"
"What a drinker!" The atmosphere instantly heated up, with cheers, table-slapping, and bowl-clinking echoing all around.
Wei Dahu, accompanied by a few cousins, made his way from table to table, toasting the guests, his face glowing red from the wine. A few troublemakers, displeased by his high spirits, kept pouring him drinks, vowing to ensure he wouldn't make it to the bridal chamber that night.
Chen Dashi and his brothers were run off their feet, trying to shield Wei Dahu from the endless toasts while also attending to the village elders seated at the tables.
The kitchen was a hive of activity, with hot dishes served in rapid succession. The host family had spared no expense, instructing the skilled village women they'd hired to cook with all their might, using every bit of the wild boar.
News of Wei Dahu hunting a wild boar the previous day had spread throughout the village, and today, nearly everyone from Dahe Village had come. The Wei family had even dismantled their courtyard to make space for the feast. Tables, chairs, bowls, and chopsticks were brought by the guests themselves. While some families with a sense of pride might have hesitated, the poorest households, who rarely tasted meat, arrived with their entire families in tow to enjoy the feast.
Though people might grumble privately about families bringing everyone along to feast, no one dared say it openly. At most, they'd whisper that such families lacked propriety and vow never to invite them to future events.
Children ran around the feast grounds, chattering noisily, their little hands clutching meat bones, their faces smeared with grease and grime.
The village dogs were weaving between the tables, searching for bones to gnaw on.
The village elders, seated at their own table, drank and chatted idly—discussing this year’s land tax, poll tax, the newly imposed city entry tax by the county magistrate, and the sudden emergence of various other exorbitant levies. Nowadays, even carrying a shoulder pole into town felt risky, as one never knew what new taxes the officials might dream up next. Fortunately, there was no conscription for corvée labor this year, or life would have become truly unbearable.
The elders sighed repeatedly, then shifted their talk to next year’s crops and the weather, praying only that the heavens would show mercy…
The young men, meanwhile, talked about finding work in town during the farming off-season, drinking as they debated wages and the difficulty of earning money. Some brought up their wives at home, occasionally cracking crude jokes that sparked roars of laughter.
The women ate meat while tending to the children, occasionally huddling together to whisper about the hosts of the day. They remarked that although the Wei family was poor, they were exceptionally generous—using an entire wild boar to feast their guests, clearly valuing their newlywed daughter-in-law.
This comment immediately drew a scornful laugh from an old woman. "The Wei father and son don’t know how to manage a household. They care too much about face. It looks lively today, but who knows if they’ll have to tighten their belts and go hungry tomorrow?"
A sensible woman promptly scolded her, "What a foul mouth! You’re still eating their meat right now, yet you’re already speaking ill of them?"
"If the meat can’t even shut you up, you might as well not eat at all!"
The old woman had thick skin. Even after being rebuked, she didn’t budge an inch, instead stirring the serving bowl with her chopsticks and grabbing whatever she could, much to the disgust of everyone at the table.
Tao Hua was completely unaware of all the commotion at the feast. Sanhua had coaxed her into lifting her bridal veil, then immediately handed her a bowl of rice.
A full bowl of freshly cooked rice, piled high with meat and garnished with a few green vegetables—it looked utterly mouthwatering.
Tao Hua had long been hungry, but holding the bowl, she didn’t start eating right away. Instead, she looked at the young girl before her with a gentle smile. "Thank you."
"You’re welcome," Sanhua replied shyly, stealing a glance at her before lowering her head and whispering, "Brother Dahu told me earlier to bring you food once the wedding ceremony was over."
"But the kitchen was so busy, I had to wait a long time," she explained the delay.
Hearing that it was Wei Dahu who had arranged this, Tao Hua felt an indescribable emotion. His thoughtfulness left her momentarily at a loss.
Sanhua had no idea what she was feeling. She stole another long look at her new sister-in-law—so fair-skinned! Pulling a chair to the bedside, she sat down beside her and said sweetly, "Sister-in-law, you should eat. Brother Dahu asked me to keep you company so you wouldn’t get bored."
"Alright." Blushing slightly under her gaze, Tao Hua was too hungry to dwell on her discomfort and began eating from the bowl.