Chapter 48: Caught Each Other’s Eye (Part 2)

While the siblings were chatting away, the morning shift had ended.

Lucky people often had a knack for speaking things into existence.

Just as they were talking about matchmaking, savings, and blind dates, a woman appeared on the path ahead.

An auntie spotted the siblings and called out, “Oh my! Zhuo boy! Did you two just come back from the mountain?”

Mu Zhuo greeted her, “Yes, I took my sister up the mountain. Aunt Yang, where are you headed?”

Aunt Yang waved her hand. “Where else would I go? I’m heading home. You’ve been away for years—have you already forgotten your aunt? My house is near the educated youth dormitory!”

Mu Zhuo chuckled, “Of course, I haven’t forgotten! Aunt Yang even carried me when I was little—I still remember!”

Mu Mian tilted her head. Her brother was really good at smooth-talking.

Aunt Yang’s eldest son was only fifteen. When her brother was five or six, Aunt Yang had just married into the village. How could she have carried him?

But no one cared what Mu Mian was thinking.

Aunt Yang beamed with enthusiasm. “That’s right! Young people have such good memories. Back then, I knew you would grow up to be someone successful!”

Mu Mian: “………………”

A hug through the air?

This familiar enthusiastic opening—she could already guess what Aunt Yang would say next.

Sure enough, Aunt Yang immediately followed up, “You haven’t found a partner yet, have you? Let me tell you, it’s best to find one early. Look at the brigade leader’s boy, Gaoyi—his kid is already old enough to run around in the fields. Aren’t you two about the same age? If I remember correctly, you’re even half a year older than him?”

Mu Zhuo corrected her, “You remember wrong, Aunt. Gaoyi is actually half a year older than me.”

Aunt Yang clicked her tongue. “Same thing. You’re not young anymore. Let me tell you, my elder brother’s niece is only nineteen, has been to middle school, and she’s bright and good-looking. She used to visit me—you two might have even met before.”

“She’s now working as a scorekeeper in her brigade. She’s capable in both fieldwork and housework. No matter how messy her home gets because of those mischievous little ones, she can tidy it up in no time. And that’s not all…”

Seeing that Aunt Yang was about to go on indefinitely, Mu Zhuo smiled and interrupted, “Aunt, my mother and grandmother have the final say in my marriage. I’ll listen to them.”

Aunt Yang was momentarily speechless, a bit displeased. “I asked your mother this morning, and she said it’s up to you.”

Mu Mian lifted her head to look at her brother, and Mu Zhuo looked back at her at the same time.

The siblings exchanged a glance. “………………”

Awkward. They hadn’t coordinated their answers.

Mu Mian quickly put on a bright smile. “I have the final say!”

“Aunt, I make the decisions in my house. My brother already said that his future wife has to pass my approval first. Otherwise, conflicts between a sister-in-law and sister are hard to deal with.”

“Look at Wang Mazi’s family—his wife and his younger sister are always fighting. Just the other day, I saw them pulling each other’s hair out!”

“If I don’t get along with my future sister-in-law and we end up fighting, it’ll be a mess. Most women can’t beat me. If I slap her and she flies into the wall, that wouldn’t be appropriate, right?”

“And if she calls her family for backup, and I end up slapping them into the wall too, that’d be even worse. Aunt, don’t you think so?”

The nearly thirteen-year-old girl wore a sweet and obedient smile as she seriously spouted these alarming words. Mu Zhuo almost hurt himself holding in his laughter.

But he was a pro at this. Even though he was trembling with laughter inside, his face remained completely calm, showing an expression of admiration, as if thinking, “My little sister is amazing!”

He looked completely unfazed by her words—even proud.

Aunt Yang’s mouth twitched violently, and she forced a laugh. “You and my niece will definitely get along.”

Mu Mian also laughed. “That’s not necessarily true. My grandmother says whether people get along depends on fate. What if she thinks I eat too much and dress too well?”

She had just remembered—her brother might not have seen Aunt Yang’s niece before, but she had.

Just last year, that girl had whispered behind her back along with Aunt Yang. It was Lele who secretly told her about it.

The two of them had said that she, as a girl, ate too much and wore too nice of clothes.

They even called her parents foolish—saying a girl shouldn’t be raised like that, that she couldn’t have everything she wanted.

A girl should do more work, be diligent, and only then could she find a good husband.

As Mu Mian flipped through the little notebook in her mind where she kept grudges, she rattled off her words with a smile and then looked at Aunt Yang expectantly.

Aunt Yang opened and closed her mouth several times but couldn’t manage to say a word.

Mu Mian, acting like nothing had happened, said, “Aunt, we’ll be heading home now. Grandma must be waiting for us to eat. Next time, if we get the chance, we can talk more about how sturdy—no, how diligent your niece is.”

Without waiting for a reply, she grabbed her brother’s arm and left.

—

By the time they got home, Comrade Liu Shuangcui had already returned. She was splashing water on her face from a basin. Hearing movement, she turned her head and glanced at the siblings, casually asking, “Why did it take you so long?”

Mu Mian grinned. “Hehe, Mom, guess what we ran into on the way?”

Liu Shuangcui played along. “What did you run into? Someone asking about your brother’s marriage?”

Mu Mian gave her a thumbs-up. “Exactly! You really know everything! It was that woman from the Yang family, west of the educated youth dormi. She wanted to introduce her niece to my brother.”

Liu Shuangcui snorted. “Her family won’t do. They’ve already spoiled that girl.”

Mu Mian nodded. “I think so too, but that’s not the main point. The main point is, up on the mountain…”

At this, she stole a glance at her brother before leaning close to her mother’s ear and whispering, “Mom, listen to this. After we finished pulling weeds from Grandpa’s grave, we ran into Sister Sihui, and then my brother…”

Mu Mian was a great storyteller. She turned a short half-hour event into a thrilling and vivid tale.

Mother and daughter squatted on the ground—one chatting nonstop, the other reacting with changing expressions.

They looked absolutely amusing. Anyone unaware might have thought they were discussing some shocking secret.

At some point, the old lady had also joined in, squatting on the other side of her granddaughter.

For some reason, even though they were inside their own home, they looked like gossiping neighbors whispering in an alley.

Well…

They were gossiping, openly and unrestrained.

As they talked, they would occasionally glance at Mu Zhuo, who was pretending to be busy.

Being stared at by the three most important women in his family, Mu Zhuo: “………………”

This young man, just beginning to understand romance, had never felt so awkward before.

But the three ladies were too engrossed to care about his discomfort and continued chatting excitedly.

Mu Mian concluded with a confident statement, “I think they have a chance!”

Zhao Meihua and Liu Shuangcui, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law duo, looked at their strong and sturdy young man with great interest.

Liu Shuangcui’s eyes were filled with surprise. She had been worrying about her son’s future wife, yet before she could even take action, her boy had already set his sights on someone.

Now she had nothing to worry about. She walked over to Mu Zhuo, who was busy washing the dishes for who knew how many times. “I quite like that girl, Xiao Nie. If you’re interested, you should make a move!”

Zhao Meihua followed closely behind. “The only question is whether she’s interested in you too.”

Mu Zhuo touched his face. It seemed like he had become rougher over time—darker and no longer smooth.

With an uncertain tone, he said, “She should be, right?”

People really do adapt quickly. Not long ago, he was feeling awkward about all this, and now he was casually discussing it himself.

Mu Mian, unaware that her big brother had started to care about his appearance, gave him her full support and encouragement.

The little girl was brimming with enthusiasm. “Definitely!”

She was determined to play matchmaker!

When she had time, she would go ask Sister Sihui what she thought.

The four of them were chatting excitedly when Shiyi suddenly walked over at some point, holding its dog bowl in its mouth.

Then, with a ‘plop,’ it placed the bowl right in front of its owner and lifted its big black head, silently staring at Mu Mian.

Only then did Mu Mian realize how hungry she was. She rubbed the dog’s head and exclaimed, “I’ll get your food right away!”

Shiyi: “Woof…”

Zhao Meihua chuckled. “If it weren’t for Shiyi reminding us, the food would’ve gone cold.”

Shiyi: “Woof…”

The table had already been set by Mu Zhuo, and the dishes were ready.

The food wasn’t actually cold—after all, the weather was hot.

—

After dinner, Mu Zhuo took on the task of washing the dishes, while Mu Mian didn’t rest either. She grabbed the basket with the venomous snake inside and headed straight to Old Li’s place.

With the hot weather, she couldn’t leave it sitting around for too long. It needed to be dealt with as soon as possible.

Under the blazing sun, she successfully exchanged it for eleven yuan.

Since the venom gland was still intact, it was worth a few extra yuan.

Snakes were valuable all over. Besides the venom gland, snake oil could be used to make burn ointment. A big snake like this could produce several bottles, which meant Old Li could also make a profit.

Mu Mian handed the eleven yuan to Mu Zhuo. “Here! That rock you threw was worth eleven yuan!”

Mu Zhuo didn’t take it and simply smiled. “Why are you giving it to me? Didn’t I tell you to keep it?”

Mu Mian tilted her head. “Are you sure you don’t want it? This is a witness to the first time you spoke with Sister Sihui!”

“If you two end up together, then this snake will be your matchmaker, and this money will be the matchmaker’s fee!”

As she spoke, Mu Mian looked at the eleven yuan in her hand and suddenly realized, “Hmm, the number eleven doesn’t seem too lucky for you two.”

It carried a bit of a ‘single forever’ vibe.

She pulled out one yuan and said, “I’ll take this as my errand fee. Now it’s a perfect ten!”

Mu Mian’s eyes twinkled mischievously as she thought of something. Her little mouth didn’t stop talking. “You could wrap it up and keep it as a memento. Ten is such a lucky number!”

It might look like an ordinary banknote, but in reality, it was a symbol!

She kept going. “After some time, when you and Sister Sihui have gotten to know each other better, and if you feel like she’s open to dating, you can give this to her. It’d be so meaningful!”

It would be like confessing with the witness money!

Mu Zhuo looked at his little sister in amazement. “That’s a great idea! We’ll do it your way!”

His little sister’s brain worked wonders in every possible way.

The young girl beamed with pride, feeling quite pleased with her brilliant idea.

See? Her theoretical knowledge was top-notch!

She might not have been in a relationship before, but she knew exactly how to navigate one!

No doubt about it!