Voices were heard from outside.
“Whose family in the village raises chickens, yet the courtyard can still be kept clean? Only you, Shouzhong’s wife, are the most diligent.”
Very familiar.
It was Li Lian’s voice.
Hui-niang didn’t expect her to come so early, quickly wiped her hands, and was going to pour tea.
Li Lian stopped her.
“I know things are busy at your house. I’m idle anyway, so I came over to lend a hand.”
In the village, when handling happy events, who isn’t ‘you help me, I help you’?
She looked around, secretly nodded.
The snow on the ground had already been shoveled to the corners early in the morning. Even the stools for receiving guests had been wiped again and again, as if they could shine.
There were red lanterns hanging at the door—new ones. One glance and it was clearly Hui-niang’s handiwork.
It could be seen that the Wei family valued Yu Tingwan.
“How many tables are set at home?”
Hui-niang: “Didn’t invite many people. If one table isn’t enough, then two.”
Li Lian nodded, rolled up her sleeves and went to the water trough.
“Auntie, the water’s cold, let me do it.” Hui-niang quickly spoke up.
“You go do your stuff. My skin is thick, flesh is rough, washing some vegetables is nothing. And don’t be polite with me, I’ve been craving your cooking for a long time.”
Seeing her say that, Hui-niang didn’t say more.
Inside the kitchen house, Yu Tingwan didn’t go look at the change in Wei Zhao’s expression in his eyes, just ate sweet potatoes and walked out.
The sweet potatoes were homegrown, especially sweet and glutinous.
She came to Li Lian’s side and called out: “Mother-in-law.”
Li Lian didn’t even want to pay attention to her!
Yu Tingwan stood beside her, also wanting to wash vegetables.
“Go away, how can I let you do work today?”
Yu Tingwan knew—in the countryside, they all say the new daughter-in-law must not do work or get tired in the first few days of marriage, otherwise she will labor her whole life.
So she withdrew her hands.
Then Yu Tingwan da da da was about to walk off.
Li Lian: “Come back.”
Yu Tingwan: ???
Li Lian had a stern face: “Don’t you have anything to say to me?”
Seems like there isn’t.
Yu Tingwan thought for a long time. Seeing Li Lian’s face looking worse and worse, she hesitantly spoke:
“…Then thank you for the trouble.”
Li Lian: ???
So these past few days, she had been tossing and turning because of Yu Tingwan’s matter, but this girl herself wasn’t afraid at all of becoming a widow!
She lowered her voice, still speaking rather tactfully: “Some words aren’t suitable to say, but since the rites have been performed today, you no longer have room for regret.”
From the corner of her eye, another figure appeared by the kitchen house.
Li Lian instinctively looked over—and saw Wei Zhao, tall and straight like jade, standing there.
The light spilled across his bloodless face, casting a bit of a broken feeling.
His appearance was surprisingly handsome.
Just… very lifeless.
???
Wei Zhao could walk?
Yes. Not only could he walk, when he heard Hui-niang telling him to drink medicine, he even plucked off a peanut hanging on the aspidistra.
It was at that moment Wei Zhao received Yu Tingwan’s death stare.
Wei Zhao looked spiritless.
After a short pause, unwillingly, he put the peanut back.
Li Lian, seeing this scene, widened her eyes.
In her ears, however, came the girl’s calm voice:
“Mother-in-law, I’m not confused. I’m more clear-headed than anyone.”
————
Yu Tingwan wasn’t allowed to do chores, but she couldn’t sit still. She also couldn’t bear to see Wei Zhao doing nothing, so she let him help paste the wedding character paper.
Wei Zhao didn’t really want to, but Yu Tingwan split half of them into his hands.
The young girl’s eyes were clean, without any seduction or flirtatious charm, just raised her head like that to look at him.
“My mother told me before she died, for a wedding you must paste these. The more you paste inside the house, the more smooth and prosperous the days will be. When my father married her, if the house hadn’t been so small, he would’ve wanted to buy out the whole shop’s supply of wedding paper.”
“They were famous for being affectionate—never quarreling with red eyes.”
“The red paper was bought by my father. But ours is hand-cut by me.”
As she said this, she nodded, her tone exceptionally firm:
“We will definitely be even more deeply in love as husband and wife than they were.”
Wei Zhao: …
Someone like him, born as a mistake, destined to carry sin, unable to move even a single step forward.
He didn’t want deep affection. He just wanted to die.
But a whole bunch of people were watching—he couldn’t even die if he wanted to.
Yu Tingwan carefully and seriously pasted the wedding characters. Her efficiency was very slow, fearing it would stick crookedly.
She had good looks—red lips and white teeth—not at all like a girl raised in the countryside.
Her temper—if you say it’s good, it is, say it’s bad, it’s also very bad.
At this moment, she turned her head and glared at the unmoving Wei Zhao.
“Why are you doing things so slowly? Can’t you hurry up a bit? Don’t drag me down.”
Wei Zhao: …
Heh.
Doing it that slowly and still has the nerve to urge him?
————
By dusk, the Wei family became lively. Yu Tingwan returned to the old house.
There was no bronze mirror, so she casually did up a simple hair bun. She just sat in the room counting the time, waiting for the firecrackers next door that would come to welcome the bride.
First marriage, no experience—Yu Tingwan was a bit nervous. Just as she was about to change into the wedding dress, Aunt Wu came over carrying large and small bundles.
She had hurried on the way and was panting slightly.
“Good thing I made it in time, Auntie will give you a face-opening.” [开脸 kāi liǎn – “face-opening” is a traditional Chinese bridal ritual where the bride’s face is cleaned and lightly made up before the wedding, symbolizing maturity and becoming a married woman.]
“This kind of thing shouldn’t have been my turn, but you can’t count on your aunt-in-law either.”
She opened her bundle—inside were brow pencils and lip rouge.
“Didn’t Xiufen’s third younger brother just get married? That new bride put on rouge when she came over. I thickened my face and made a trip over to borrow these.”
Once they heard it was for Yu Tingwan, how could they not agree?
Yu Tingwan looked over curiously.
Aunt Wu casually said, “You look good already—if you doll yourself up, even more incredible. The Wei family’s A’Lang sees it, he’ll definitely dote on you hard tonight.”
After saying it, she regretted it. With Wei Shen like that, what could he even do? Saying this really spoiled the mood.
But Yu Tingwan, not shy at all, nodded and felt Aunt Wu wasn’t wrong!
After having her face opened and changing into the wedding dress, not long after, noises came from outside, followed closely by a crackling sound of firecrackers.
From outside came the aged voice of Wei family’s grand-uncle: “A’Lang, hurry and go invite your wife out the door.”
Wei Zhao, sick and listless, was surrounded by a group of people and brought to the door.
It was his first time coming to the house next door.
The old house looked especially shabby, but because Yu Tingwan lived in it, it had gathered some human warmth.
Wei Zhao tugged at the half-old wedding robe, as if not hearing anything, lowered his head to undo the knot buttons.
This was still something Wei Shouzhong put on him despite his cold looks.
Wei Zhao was very dissatisfied.
Before, Hui-niang said if it didn’t fit, they’d alter it—but these sleeves and pant legs were short by a whole chunk. Couldn’t be altered.
Seeing him like this, the Wei family grand-uncle had a big headache.
But on such a joyous day, he couldn’t scold; and with the person this sick, he couldn’t beat either.
Hearing the commotion, Yu Tingwan hurried to open the door—her movements so quick that Aunt Wu simply couldn’t hold her back.
She got anxious.
“Eh! The bridal veil! You forgot the bridal veil!”
No matter what, the groom should invite her three times, four times [三请四请 sān qǐng sì qǐng – a traditional wedding formality where the bride must be invited repeatedly before she comes out], to properly show the bride’s style and bashfulness!
Creak—the door was opened by someone from inside. The girl with makeup on, radiant as peach and plum blossoms, appeared in front of everyone.
Wei Zhao, spiritless, glanced at her with no energy, then lowered his head to continue undoing his knot buttons.
Yu Tingwan, however, stepped forward, brushed away Wei Zhao’s hand, and the three buttons he had undone, she gently buttoned them back up.
“So many people are watching—don’t be like this outside.”
Wei Zhao: one ear in, the other ear out.
Yu Tingwan leaned in and coaxed him in a low voice:
“Don’t rush, be reserved. If you want to take it off, wait till we go back to the room and close the door, then slowly take it off.”