Chapter 26 : Dowry Controversy

When Li Cuihua heard the news, her face instantly turned green.

Could it be that she was mistaken? What kind of remarkable background did this Su Zhiqing have?

Otherwise, how could Li Yue’e be willing to give such a high bride price?

When her eldest son got married, her family only gave a dowry of 200 yuan, which was already considered high, especially since her eldest son’s wife was still a salaried worker.

The more Li Cuihua thought about it, the more she felt something was wrong. She became extremely anxious and stopped picking peanuts, walking back and forth on the threshing floor.

“Cuihua, what are you doing? You’re making me dizzy,” an aunt said with some dissatisfaction.

“It’s okay. I ate too much at noon and need to digest the food,” Li Cuihua waved her hand casually.

The aunts looked at each other in bewilderment. People couldn’t even get enough to eat these days, yet she still had to “digest” her food. If you’re just talking nonsense, at least make it sound serious.

An aunt who didn’t get along with Li Cuihua laughed and said, “Don’t tell me you’re worried you’ll be outshined again because Li Yue’e gave a high betrothal gift?”

Li Cuihua was about to start scolding, but suddenly stopped.

Yes! Maybe this was Li Yue’e’s trick, and she spread it deliberately for her to hear.

The money was sealed in red, so it could be exactly as much as she said. Even if it wasn’t that much, Su Zhiqing, being an outsider, wouldn’t dare to speak up or openly slap her mother-in-law in the face.

Maybe she just felt that she couldn’t compare to the old daughter-in-law, and that’s why she said it to annoy her.

Her daughter-in-law was earning a salary while Su Zhiqing was working in the countryside. This was an obvious fact. No matter how you looked at it, her daughter-in-law was superior.

Even if Su Zhiqing’s family was better off, they could support her for a year or two, but after three or four years, who would remember she had a daughter living in the countryside? She might stay in the countryside for the rest of her life.

After figuring it out, Li Cuihua instantly felt happy again.

“Why should I be so anxious? It’s her business if she gives a high betrothal gift. It’s not like that in my family. I treat everyone equally. If I give so much to only one daughter-in-law, how can the other daughters-in-law feel happy? This will only cause trouble for our family.”

Li Cuihua was so happy when she said this. It would be best if they all started fighting so that Li Yue’e would never have a peaceful life.

Besides Li Cuihua, Lu Guihua’s mother, Zhao Jiuxiang, also felt uncomfortable when hearing the news.

The mother-in-law must have been extremely biased. Her daughter only got a betrothal gift of 50 yuan at that time. When she came to propose marriage, she only brought a small bag of white flour.

To put it bluntly, they looked down on their family. Over the years, they had been lukewarm toward them.

Her daughter had given birth to two big fat boys for their family.

The more she thought about it, the angrier she became.

Zhao Jiuxiang didn’t even bother picking the peanuts. She told the team leader she was going to drain the water, then secretly ran to where Lu Guihua was working, grabbed her, and started asking.

“Did your mother-in-law really give that Su Zhiqing 400 yuan as a betrothal gift?”

Lu Guihua was unhappy about this. It was clearly stated before that she would give 200 yuan, but now it became 400 yuan.

“I don’t know why she would tell me, a daughter-in-law, about such a thing. If everyone is spreading it, it must be true.”

Zhao Jiuxiang was really angry at her daughter for not fighting back when she saw her like this.

“Come on, how can you not know anything? You gave birth to two boys, so you’ll get the lion’s share of anything the Lu family has in the future. If you give all this money away, how much will you get when the family splits up? You need to stand up and make a scene when you get back, do you hear me?”

“Not to mention 400 yuan, I need at least 200 yuan.”

“Did you hear that?”

“Hey, you silly girl, stop working and listen to me, do you hear me?”

Lu Guihua was impatient to listen to her mother and could only wave her hand and say, “I know, I know.”

“After you make up the betrothal gift, remember to give half of it to your family. Your brother is about to get married.” Zhao Jiuxiang didn’t forget to give instructions.

Lu Guihua curled her lips and said nothing more.

In the afternoon, Su Mo received another three acres of land.

Because of the marriage proposal and the 400 yuan betrothal gift, Su Mo could clearly feel the villagers’ increased attention toward her. From time to time, she saw groups of two or three aunts passing by, pointing at her and whispering.

When they saw her looking over, they pretended nothing had happened and quickly walked away.

Su Mo was also speechless.

No wonder they say that rumors in this era can drive people to madness. It might be tolerable for a day or two, but if it lasts for a long time, it would be unbearable.

What she did wasn’t a bad thing. If those who encountered bad things were pointed at and criticized like this for a few days, people with poor tolerance might even commit suicide.

In the afternoon, Lu Changzheng went to the commune post office to make a phone call, but didn’t get a definite reply, so he had to return to the brigade and call again in the evening to urge the delivery.

Lu Changzheng first helped his mother pick peanuts before going to look for Su Mo.

When he got to the field, he found his wife working hard to pull peanuts, not even taking a break. Lu Changzheng hurried over to help so that his wife could go back and rest earlier.

“Hey, you don’t have to pull it out, just help me pick them,” Su Mo hurriedly stopped him, telling him not to pull away her energy.

“I’ll pick them after we’ve pulled most of them out. It’ll only take a few trips.”

“My land is easy to dig. It doesn’t take much effort. You go ahead and dig first. I’ll do one trip, and then you’ll do one trip. We’ll take turns.”

“No, I’ll help you pull it out first, so you can go back and rest early after that.”

“Aren’t you afraid that others will say you’ve forgotten your mother now that you have a wife?” Su Mo said with a smile.

“Whether I’ve forgotten or not, only my mother knows,” Lu Changzheng didn’t care what others said.

“Even though you’ve helped me pull them out, I can’t go back yet. I have to help other educated youth pull them out. They’ve helped me before, so I can’t finish them myself, so I’ll go back first.”

Lu Changzheng: …

“Okay, I’ll pick them first.” Lu Changzheng silently put down the peanut vines and started picking peanuts.

After Su Mo finished pulling out the welts, she went to help Ma Xiaojuan. By the time they were done, it was almost 6 o’clock. Su Mo asked Ma Xiaojuan to help Chen Lan while she went back to cook.

—

After Lu Guihua returned home, she started smashing pots and pans in the kitchen, making a lot of noise. She was very upset and scolded her two sons until they cried.

Li Yue’e was impatient and came out of the room, saying, “What are you dissatisfied with? Just say it directly, don’t talk about it in a roundabout way.”

Lu Guihua didn’t dare speak again for a moment.

“Why don’t you tell me? I’m giving you a chance now. If you have any dissatisfaction, tell me quickly. Maybe I can help you solve it. After today, it won’t be so easy.”

“Mom, mom, you are too partial,” Lu Guihua said timidly.

“Oh? Why am I biased? Because I gave 400 yuan to the third brother’s family as a betrothal gift, and you only get 50 yuan?”

“The third brother’s family got 400 yuan because the third brother gave me another 200 yuan privately and asked me to give it together. If you want more, ask your man for the difference.”

“Well, the family also gave 200 yuan, so you should treat them equally.”

“Treating everyone equally?” Li Yue’e laughed angrily.

“The third brother served in the army for seven years. Except for the first two years when he sent 5 yuan a month, he sent 20 yuan a month for the next five years. Not to mention the food, clothing, and daily necessities he sent back from the army from time to time, in terms of money alone, he sent 1,320 yuan in those seven years.”

“Third brother has not had anything to eat or drink in these years. If I really want to treat him equally, I have to give him more than two hundred. I have to give him at least five or six hundred.”

“Didn’t you build a house for your third brother? That house is much more magnificent than ours,” Lu Guihua retorted in a low voice.

“His house is so grand because he sent money separately. The money his family spent on building his house was the same as yours,” Li Yue’e was furious. “If you want it to be grand, spend your own money on it. Don’t just dream of good things without contributing anything to the family.”

“Why haven’t we contributed to the family? Weiguo pays money to the family every month, and I’ve given birth to two big fat grandsons for the Lu family,” Lu Guihua said indignantly.

“The second son is paying money to the family, but don’t you eat and drink at home? Paying money has only happened in the past two years, but what about before? There are four of us in the family, and you do the least work but eat the most.”

“Mom, how can you say that about your eldest grandson?”

“What’s wrong with my eldest grandson? Let me tell you, I’m not Zhao Jiuxiang, who only treats boys as treasures. To me, having a son is not a hero. To me, only filial piety is useful.”

“If all the sons I gave birth to turn out to be like my second son, I might as well not give birth to any.”

Ever since Lu Weiguo did that to marry Lu Guihua, she has been disappointed in him.

As soon as Lu Weiguo returned home, he heard his mother say this and immediately felt wronged: “Mom, how did I offend you? Why is it better not to have a baby?”

“How did you offend me? Look at the good wife you married, she’s simply a troublemaker. When the third brother sets up the feast, immediately separate the family and take your wife with you to another place, and don’t get in my way.”

“Lu Guihua, what good things have you done again?” Lu Weiguo yelled directly.

Damn it, he works so hard in the factory and now he has to endure this when he comes home.

“What can I do? I just asked mother to treat everyone equally,” Lu Guihua cried, “Mother gave 400 yuan as a betrothal gift to the third brother’s family, and I can’t say a word.”

“Of the 400 yuan betrothal gift, 200 yuan was given by the third son, and the family only gave 200 yuan,” Li Yue’e said coldly.

“It’s your turn,” Lu Weiguo nodded vigorously.

“I gave your wife 50 yuan as a dowry. Wasn’t that too little?”

“Not too little,” Lu Weiguo said. At that time, giving 50 yuan in the countryside was considered very respectable.

“How much do you want your family to give as a betrothal gift? Does your wife have the right to control it?”

“No.”

“Then ask your wife what she is making a fuss about. If she is dissatisfied with our family, let her pack up and go back to her parents’ home, and I will marry you another one,” Li Yue’e said this and walked into the room.

Lu Guihua was so frightened that she stopped crying. She dragged her two sons back to her room in shame, not daring to make a fuss anymore.