Zhou Guiyun was delighted and planned to go to Han Family Village tomorrow to find her younger sister-in-law.
However, before she could even make her way to Aunt Jiang’s house, Matchmaker Zhang came rushing to her door first thing the next morning!
Zhou Guiyun had things to attend to today and did not want to listen to Matchmaker Zhang ramble. “Why did you come over so early? Is something wrong?”
Time was precious, and Matchmaker Zhang did not beat around the bush. “After leaving your house yesterday, I went home and found my son, then had him take me to Han Family Village to visit the Han family!”
Zhou Guiyun thought to herself, Wasn’t this like having a pillow delivered just when she was sleepy?
“Have a seat.” Zhou Guiyun invited Matchmaker Zhang to sit, then smiled and said to her eldest daughter-in-law beside her, “Make Matchmaker Zhang a cup of brown sugar water, and add plenty of sugar.”
Zhao Aiying went to prepare a cup of brown sugar water, adding a generous amount of brown sugar.
Seeing Zhou Guiyun’s attitude, Matchmaker Zhang felt completely reassured!
But as she had said, time was precious. She did not even have time to drink her brown sugar water before recounting what she had learned about yesterday’s events: “Your Second Uncle and his wife went to the Han family yesterday to break off the engagement. They said Han Shiguo was too busy and worried that their daughter would suffer in the future, so they wanted to call off the marriage. The Han family wanted to salvage it and said that Han Shiguo was coming back, so why not let them meet first and discuss it afterward? But your Second Uncle’s family was determined to end the engagement. Although the Han family could not bear to lose a match that had been discussed for three years, they knew they were in the wrong and were not the sort to make an unreasonable fuss. Seeing how firm your Second Uncle and his wife were, they could only agree to break off the engagement!”
These were the details of Second Uncle Jiang and his wife going to the Han family to break off the engagement.
But Zhou Guiyun was not interested in that. She only asked, “Han Shiguo is coming back?”
At this, Matchmaker Zhang grew even happier and said with a smile, “He’s already back! Your younger paternal uncle and the others had barely broken off the engagement before Han Shiguo returned. You have no idea—I saw him yesterday, and he really is something. I’ve been arranging marriages for many years and have seen plenty of fine young men, but he is the first with such a manly bearing. His talent and appearance completely outshone every young man I had seen before. If I were thirty years younger, those little girls wouldn’t stand a chance—I’d go for him myself!”
At the end, Matchmaker Zhang even made a joke.
Zhou Guiyun laughed and scolded her, “That would still depend on whether he took a liking to you!”
Zhao Aiying, Zhao Aifeng, and Su Zhirou, along with the other sisters-in-law, were all left laughing helplessly.
As for Jiang Shouhai, Jiang Shoutao, Jiang Shouhe, and the other brothers, they had already taken dry rations and gone into the mountains first thing in the morning to gather firewood for the coming winter.
None of them were at home.
Seeing that the atmosphere had relaxed, Matchmaker Zhang finally took a sip of the sweet brown sugar water. “I’m serious. I’m not joking with you. I’m not looking at him as a matchmaker, but from the perspective of a mother-in-law. A young man like Han Shiguo is guaranteed to satisfy you, Sister Guiyun. If I had a daughter, I would immediately marry her to him. I wouldn’t ask for any betrothal gifts at all. I’d even be willing to send a dowry with her!”
“You’re exaggerating,” Zhao Aifeng said with amusement.
“Exactly. Send a dowry? I’ve never seen a mother like you. Are you trying to ruin your daughter or what?” Zhao Aiying added.
Really, it was fine to ask for a token amount of betrothal gifts, but sending a dowry was simply too much.
What kind of girl needed a dowry to get married? How humiliating would that be?
“I’m not exaggerating!” Matchmaker Zhang hurriedly said. “Compared with Han Shiguo, that boy from the Wang family has nothing to boast about. He’s of average height and appearance, and at his workplace he’s merely a runner. It’s not as if he’s some high-ranking official!”
“But Han Shiguo is already a battalion commander. His future is absolutely limitless!”
“He also has an older sister living in the County Party Committee Compound in the city. Even if he retires in the future, he definitely won’t lack for an arrangement!”
“And just by looking at him, I know he’ll never amount to anything less than excellent!”
“If Qianqian marries him, she’ll be destined to enjoy a life of comfort!”
“This time, listen to me. Just arrange one meeting. I’ll stake my decades-long reputation as a matchmaker on it. If you aren’t satisfied with Han Shiguo, I’ll quit being a matchmaker!”
“…”
Zhou Guiyun had been even more pleased when she heard that he was already a battalion commander, but after hearing Matchmaker Zhang dare to make such a bold claim, she could not help becoming tempted.
Aunt Jiang had originally rushed back to her maternal family’s home to arrange the engagement for her niece as soon as possible, precisely because she was afraid someone else would get there first!
However, Zhou Guiyun did not speak. As the eldest daughter-in-law, Zhao Aiying spoke up instead. “A matchmaker’s mouth is full of lies. You’ve said so much, but you haven’t even told us how old the man is now. If he’s too old, we won’t take him no matter how good he is.”
“He isn’t old, he isn’t old. He’s only twenty-six this year,” Matchmaker Zhang repeatedly assured them.
As a mother-in-law, Zhou Guiyun naturally had to be a little picky at this point. After all, only someone who criticized the goods was a true buyer.
She said, “He’s already twenty-six? That makes him six years older than my Qianqian. That’s quite a difference.”
“It isn’t much, it’s only six years. That’s not much at all. Besides, a slightly older man knows how to cherish his wife, doesn’t he?” Matchmaker Zhang hurriedly said. “Sister Guiyun, you really must listen to me this time. I’m not boasting—there isn’t a second young man in the surrounding villages as suitable for your Qianqian as he is. Only such an outstanding young man is worthy of a beautiful young woman like Qianqian! Truly, the moment I saw him, I felt he was practically born to become your son-in-law!”
Otherwise, how could she be a matchmaker? Her talent for praising people was truly rare.
Even Zhou Guiyun could not help feeling tempted after hearing her. She had originally planned to go to Han Family Village today to speak with her younger sister-in-law.
However, no matter what she was thinking inside, Zhou Guiyun revealed nothing on the surface.
“Second Uncle’s family only broke off the engagement with the Han family yesterday.” Zhao Aiying and Zhao Aifeng, the two sisters-in-law, both understood their mother-in-law. Seeing that she remained silent, they immediately picked up the conversation.
Matchmaker Zhang knew what concerned the Jiang family. As a matchmaker, how could she arrange a marriage without dispelling the other family’s concerns?
She never fought a battle without confidence!
She immediately said, “You can put your minds completely at ease about this. When I went to their house yesterday, Han Shiguo’s mother treated me incredibly warmly. She is eager to find a match for her son too. I heard her say that Han Shiguo has ten days of leave this time, so there isn’t much time to waste. But her son has high standards and doesn’t take an ordinary girl seriously. So when I mentioned your Qianqian, Han Shiguo’s mother’s eyes lit up at once. She grabbed my hand and asked whether she was the Teacher Jiang from the Jiang family’s First Branch who teaches at the township primary school.”
“I was surprised and asked her whether she had met your Qianqian before.”
“When Han Shiguo’s mother heard that it really was your Qianqian, she was overjoyed. She said she had met Qianqian before. She had come to town to visit relatives during a lull in farmwork, but accidentally twisted her ankle because she wasn’t paying attention. No one helped her at the time—only Teacher Jiang from the township primary school gave her a hand!”
“That happened?” Zhou Guiyun and the three sisters-in-law all turned to Jiang Qian, who had just woken up and come out to brush her teeth and wash her face.
Jiang Qian had naturally heard their conversation as soon as she came out. She froze for a moment and thought back. It seemed that something like that had indeed happened.