Chapter 20: Chapter 20: Satisfied With the Match, Betrothal Gift Needed

While Wang Miaomiao was busy studying, Wang Zhaodi successfully went on a blind date arranged by Li Yinfeng.

Afterwards, the parents from both sides sat down to discuss the terms.

Because Liu Yulan said it had nothing to do with her, no one from the Wang Family attended. Li Yinfeng called Li Dalong to accompany her, prepared a table full of dishes, and hosted the guests.

The other party was from Huinan Village, three villages away from Shanghuang Village, about half an hour’s walk, not too far.

The conditions of the Zhu Family were, on one hand, good, and on the other, not so good. Old Zhu was the village head of Huinan Village, holding some minor power, which was a good aspect. The downside was that the family had too many members.

Old Zhu had five sons and two daughters. Even if the family had some assets, with so many children, there wouldn’t be much leftover for each.

Now, the eldest and the second have already married. Old Zhu helped them build new houses to move out, although they were just mudbrick houses, it still made people envious.

Old Zhu was calculating and shrewd, letting the children move out and live separately when they got married. Of course, he still expected them to contribute to living expenses yearly.

When it came to the third son, most of the family assets were depleted, and there was no longer any means to build another house.

Yet Li Yinfeng also demanded a bride price of eighty-eight yuan and a watch as the betrothal gift.

She had no choice; Zhou Fengjuan’s previous words still lingered. The Zhu Family’s conditions definitely weren’t as good as the Yang Family’s. She didn’t want to compare, but she also couldn’t accept falling too far behind.

She thought it through well to prevent people from gossiping. She didn’t ask for a bicycle or a sewing machine because the comparison would be too stark; she only mentioned the watch.

However, upon hearing this, the Zhu Family was dumbfounded — they couldn’t meet these terms.

The atmosphere turned a bit awkward. A meal that started happily ended hastily and blandly. Until the Zhu Family left, there was no conclusion about the children’s matter, seeming to come to nothing.

As the Zhu Family left, Wang Zhaodi hung her head low, tears welling in her eyes. She had a good impression of Zhu Zicheng, her blind date. He was handsome, had a good job as a temp in a gear factory, and who knows — he might become a full-time staff one day, securing a stable job.

Seeing her niece silently weeping, Li Yinfeng felt even more choked up. She had arranged and prepared everything tirelessly, prepared the meal, got scolded behind her back by her husband’s family, yet did not succeed — all in vain. How could she not feel wronged?

This could happen once or twice, but she couldn’t keep organizing it three or four times…

Meanwhile, as the Zhu Family walked on, Zhu Zicheng felt unsettled. He had taken a liking to Wang Zhaodi at first sight, feeling she matched his ideal of a lover. But her family couldn’t come up with the bride price.

He had been working for over two years. Except for the initial lower apprentice wages, which was only ten yuan, later it increased to twenty yuan a month after he became proficient, and he handed it all to his family.

Calculating it, it should be around four hundred yuan… Where did all the money go? Ha, it all went to the eldest, of course. When it was his turn, there was nothing. Then why arrange a blind date for him at all!

All five fingers are not equal; Old Zhu pampered his eldest son, Zhu Zihua, who was spoiled, lazy, and unskilled. After marrying and living separately, he not only didn’t pay living expenses but also needed Old Zhu to secretly subsidize him.

The second son, Zhu Ziqiang, was serving in the army and not at home, leaving his wife and daughter behind. The money he sent home barely covered their living expenses besides the living expenses for the elderly.

The third son, Zhu Zicheng, was the most promising. He was proactive, got himself into middle school, and found a way to work as a temp in the gear factory.

The fourth son, Zhu Zili, was an honest man, lacking ambition, only working hard in the fields.

The fifth was still young, not attending school, spending all day fooling around and nowhere to be seen.

Amidst the fourth and fifth, there was also a pair of twin sisters at home, who weren’t given much importance.

“Dad, I like Miss Wang. How much money is left at home? I can borrow some more to settle the marriage.” Zhu Zicheng pondered all the way home and then confronted Old Zhu.

Old Zhu furrowed his brows and sighed, “Only a little over twenty left. I can only give you twenty; after all, the family needs expenses too.”

Of course, Old Zhu was lying. He was only willing to give out twenty. Truth be told, he favored his eldest son, and since the third son was capable, why not let him arrange his own marriage. He had no intention of worrying about it.

He was getting old, and his ability was limited…

Hearing this, Zhu Zicheng felt both heartbroken and helpless, “What about the house?”

“The house…” Old Zhu furrowed his brow deeply and took a heavy puff of his pipe, “Let’s fix up the back room for now, and you can manage. When you have the ability, build your own.”

Zhu Zicheng clenched his fists tightly, swallowing his resentment, “Okay, let’s do it that way. Next month, I won’t bring my salary home. After all, I have debts to pay.”

“Oh, come on, how can you not bring money back? You’re eating off your brothers even when you’re not working…” Wu Jinhua’s words were very hurtful. She had been listening for a while at the door and was inherently dissatisfied with the woman who had ensnared her third son. She wanted her third son to bring money home for a few more years to support the youngest.

Yes, Wu Jinhua favored her youngest son.

This matchmaking was arranged by her husband’s second aunt, and it was hard to refuse. Initially, they planned to go through the motions, but who knew the third son would be so interested. Now, it was a waste of time and effort — she should have disregarded the second aunt’s face and refused back then.

Zhu Zicheng frowned, not expecting his mother to speak this way. What did she mean by ’freeloading’? The money he brought home every year was enough to feed two people, really…

Calming himself, he said, “Then let’s just split the family today. Give me twenty yuan, and I’ll handle the marriage myself and live separately after getting married.”

“You…” Wu Jinhua was furious, “Old man, hurry and divide. As the saying goes, once he marries, he forgets his mother. Not wrong at all.”

Old Zhu was also unhappy; if he suggested splitting, it was fine. But if his son brought it up, he lost face, “Is this what you really want?”

“Dad, I have no choice either.” Zhu Zicheng scoffed at himself, “Mom is right; I can’t take advantage of my younger brothers.”

“You…” Old Zhu sighed deeply, “Alright, as you wish, let’s divide the family.”

Zhu Zicheng resolutely divided the family and went to Shanghuang Village to find Wang Zhaodi the next day.

The moment they saw each other, there was an exchange of affectionate glances as they poured out their hearts to one another.

When Wang Zhaodi heard that Zhu Zicheng had divided the family but got nothing more than a twenty-square-meter house and twenty yuan, she surprisingly felt elated.

Great, if she married him, she’d be in charge of her own house and no longer have to suffer under anyone’s thumb. That alone made her happier than anything else. She was even eager to marry him right away…

In the future, she would have her own home — a home with just her, her lover, and her child.

After discussing it, Wang Zhaodi suggested they take their household registration booklets and get married the next day, skipping the banquet for now, and holding it off until they had money for it in the future.

Moved by this, Zhu Zicheng vowed to give her a proper wedding ceremony when he had the means.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep