Chapter 33 : Bargaining

A piece of pork tied with a straw rope was thrown out, then pushed out, and Zhao Xiangyu, Zhuang Guoliang’s mother, also fell to the ground.

She was furious. “What a virgin girl! She’s nothing but a money-loser. And she wants a hundred yuan betrothal gift. Ugh!”

“If you don’t want to marry, then don’t. When your daughter gets pregnant, let’s see who she can marry! Son, let’s go home!”

Zhao Xiangyu was just bluffing. She said she was going home, but she didn’t move a foot.

She also knew very well that this marriage was going to happen, but it couldn’t happen just like that, and she needed to bargain.

Isn’t that what shopping is all about?

If you show that you want to buy something, the price will be extremely high.

“Mom, stop making trouble…”

Zhuang Guoliang felt ashamed and went to hold Zhao Xiangyu’s hand.

Jiang Changyi also chased out, noticing the mocking eyes around him, his face was burning, “My dear, we need to talk nicely, sit down and talk, don’t be so angry…”

Zhao Xiangyu loosened her grip and pretended to be pulled back into the yard by Jiang Changyi.

Jiang Hongmei was also trying to persuade her mother in the room, “Mom, that’s enough. You and my mother-in-law are fighting like this, how am I going to live my life after I get married?”

“Besides, I’m attracted to Zhuang Guoliang as a person, not as a betrothal gift.”

Wang Juhua glared at her troublesome and stupid daughter, rolling her eyes. “Are you a fool? She is trying to intimidate you! If you bow your head now, you’ll have a hard time after you get married.”

“How can a woman who pays for you be treated well? She will only think you are worthless and mistreat you even more!”

Wasn’t it because she was pregnant when she entered the family and felt ashamed so she didn’t ask for a dowry, which led to her being suppressed by Old LMrs. Zhou and suffering for so many years?

Jiang Hongmei was very unconvinced. Her mother said nice things, but in reality, she just wanted a high bride price so she could save it for Jiang Tianci when the time came.

She said she was doing it for her own good, but in fact, she cared most about her son. Otherwise, why would she be reluctant to give the bracelet to herself?

But she couldn’t say that. “Mom, I know you’re doing this for my own good. But I can’t just not get married. I gave my body to him, and who knows, I might even be pregnant with Zhuang Guoliang’s son now!”

Wang Juhua glanced at the girl with her elbow bent outward and sighed, “Girls shouldn’t be kept when they grow up. If they are kept, they will become enemies.”

Forget it. How her future will be depends on herself.

On the other side, Zhao Xiangyu was invited into the main hall and sat down. Jiang Changyi personally poured her a glass of water.

“Don’t worry. This marriage is a done deal, you and I both know that. Don’t go too far and turn a happy event into a sad one.”

Zhao Xiangyu’s heart skipped a beat. This damn Jiang Changyi actually threatened her.

What it meant is that if the marriage negotiation fails, they will sue Guoliang for being a hooligan and have him shot.

But they have to do this despite the pressure.

“So what do you say we should do?”

“Let’s both compromise and give fifty as the betrothal gift. I’ll bring the girl home tomorrow.”

Jiang Changyi’s words seemed to hit Zhao Xiangyu’s vital point, and her voice was split, “Impossible. A country girl also wants 50 yuan for the betrothal gift. Is she worthy? A clean and honest girl would only be given thirty, and for her, fifteen at most.”

“Our Hongmei is well-educated, and who knows, she might even be pregnant with your son’s child! Fifteen dollars is not enough!”

Jiang Changyi shook his head. These days, he had lost his monthly pension of five yuan, and his family was suddenly struggling to make ends meet.

Tianci is still studying in the county. Seeing that his family is living beyond their means, the betrothal gift from Hongmei must not be too low!

Zhao Xiangyu snorted coldly. What’s a grandson? She already has ten grandsons in total.

Even Guoliang’s baby is five years old, how could he be interested in the baby in Jiang Hongmei’s belly?

“She’s shameless enough to climb into a man’s bed before getting married. Whose child is she pregnant with?”

“Old Zhuang, don’t go too far!” Jiang Changyi’s face turned pale. This old woman’s words were becoming more and more unpleasant.

“Twenty bucks, no need to set out the wine, bring the person over tomorrow, if it works, fine, if it doesn’t, forget it!”

Zhao Xiangyu gave the final price. Jiang Changyi was silent for a moment but eventually nodded.

The gossip among the villagers was growing more frequent. As long as Jiang Hongmei stayed at home, he wouldn’t have the courage to go to work.

The marriage was settled, but no one in the room was happy.

Even Jiang Hongmei was unhappy. They didn’t even hold a banquet for the occasion. What did they think of her?

At this time, a person dressed as a matchmaker came to the door, bringing Qi Shaoqiang, his mother, and a white-haired old lady.

“Aunt, you look unfamiliar. What brings you to the Jiang family?”

“What a great event! I’m here to propose marriage to the Jiang family. I’m talking about Jiang Li from the Jiang family.”

“Oh, this is really a good opportunity. Cousins are proposing marriage together.”

Zhao Xiangyu had already decided on the marriage and didn’t want to stay any longer. Jiang Changyi, for the sake of face, took Wang Juhua with him to see her off, and they happened to run into Qi Shaoqiang.

Some people who liked to watch the fun asked, “How much is the betrothal gift?”

“That depends on how much the girl wants. Five hundred or eight hundred is not too much, one thousand or two thousand is also acceptable.”

Roar! As soon as these words came out, it was like pouring a basin of water into a pan of oil, and the pan exploded all of a sudden. Could such a wealthy family be from the city?

But the way she dresses doesn’t look like it.

Wang Juhua’s eyes were filled with hatred, and she rushed over to tear Qi Shaoqiang apart. “You look down on our Hongmei! Are you blinded by this vixen?”

“Yes, I was wondering why this guy looked so familiar. Isn’t he Captain Qi who was engaged to Jiang Hongmei?”

“How did you get together with my sister? Could it be that they have been hooking up for a long time?”

“It’s hard to say. Do you think Jiang Hongmei got mad at the two of them for hooking up and then climbed into Zhuang Guoliang’s bed in a rage?”

“So Jiang Hongmei is a good person, and her cousin Jiang Li is the bad one?”

This was exactly the effect Wang Juhua wanted. She wanted everyone to despise Jiang Li and make her life difficult.

“Bullshit!” Old Lady Qi had killed Japanese devils in the past. She was over seventy years old now, but she was in good health, energetic, and her fighting ability was as strong as ever.

She pointed at Wang Juhua’s nose and scolded, “Our Shaoqiang just returned home from retirement, and he has just arrived in the county and has yet to settle down. Jiang Hongmei came to him and said she didn’t like him and wanted to break off the engagement.”

“It’s fine to cancel the engagement, but you also let our Shaoqiang tell everyone that he didn’t want to. Tell me, everyone, does that make sense?”

“During the engagement, you took rice, flour, pork, grain coupons, and cloth coupons from my Qi family in quantities too numerous to count. Now the marriage is called off, but you’ve taken the things for granted. How shameless! Pay me back!”

Wang Juhua panicked for a moment. She hadn’t expected Old Lady Qi to bring up the matter of breaking off the engagement.

Those things had been eaten long ago, and the food coupons and cloth coupons had been sent to the county town to be used for Tianci’s subsidies. How could there be anything left to pay back?