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After the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, Chu Lingxuan no longer acted as a negligent shopkeeper. Instead, he busied himself with Steward Luo and his son preparing the bride price to given to Luyuan before marriage.
On the seventh day, Chen Shi’s family returned to Dingzhou Prefecture.
By the ninth day, Chu Lingxuan returned to his official duties.
On that day, Wu the Carpenter also came to Luyuan to finish the last bit of work. Chen Feng, Mrs. Wang, and Chen Ming were busier than ever. While they were busy with the dowry preparations, they also made various arrangements for Chen Feng’s upcoming marriage.
On the twentieth day, Chen Lu and Dabao’s holiday ended, and they resumed their studies with Mr. Liao. However, only Dabao went to Tangyuan that day as Chen Lu had an important matter to attend to.
In the early afternoon of that day, with the main gate of Tangyuan wide open, Chu Lingxuan, dressed in festive attire, escorted the matchmaker to deliver the bride price to Luyuan. Chen Lu and Chen Gui, both beaming, stood at the gate to welcome them. Inside the main hall sat Chen Ming and Mrs. Wang, accompanied by grandma Chen and Chen Ye, waiting for the prospective son-in-law to pay his respects. Mrs. Hu and Chen Jue also arrived, standing in the courtyard, eager to see how much bride price Tangyuan would present.
Gifts such as betrothal cakes, seafood, sacrificial offerings, various gift boxes, jewelry, and more, filled the first batch delivered to Luyuan, with more coming from Tangyuan.
Many villagers and children gathered on either side of the path to watch the spectacle.
Feeling embarrassed, Chen Feng stayed hidden in Fengyuan. Chu Hanyan knew it was the day her father was delivering the bride price, and though she wanted to watch, the commotion outside frightened her, so she peeked through the slightly open Fengyuan gate from inside.
When she saw Chu Lingxuan pass by Fengyuan, she turned and loudly exclaimed to Chen Feng in the main room, “Auntie, Hanyan saw Daddy. Daddy is wearing red clothes and looks so silly.”
This amused the young maids, who giggled, prompting Chu Hanyan to add, “Hehe, my daddy is quite handsome too.”
As the noise outside and at Luyuan settled down, Mrs. Hu eagerly reached out to open the gift boxes, wanting to see the silver and gold jewelry inside. Chen Ye reprimanded her, scolding, “What are you rummaging around for at your age?”
Mrs. Hu had to retract her hand.
Chen Ming had already reviewed the gift list, and the bride price consisted of two thousand taels in silver notes. He opened a few boxes revealing various gold items like bracelets, anklets, gold ingots, and gold accessories, dazzling everyone’s eyes.
Grandma Chen chuckled, “A’Lu is fortunate to have the betrothal gifts for his future bride.”
Chen Ming replied, “We won’t keep any of these betrothal gifts, they will all go towards Chen Feng’s dowry.”
Chen Ye was taken aback, exclaiming, “Are you out of your mind? A’Feng’s dowry should be arranged by her own father. Mr. Chu giving you these betrothal gifts is a token of gratitude for raising A’Feng in the Chen family. You can use the furniture and other valuable items from the backyard, as well as the materials you purchased for her, to accompany her dowry. A’Feng has a wealthy father, and it wouldn’t be right for you to withhold these things from her. Send them all along with her.”
Shaking his head, Chen Ming said, “A’Feng suffered a lot in her childhood, and the good times she experienced later were also through her own hard work. As a father, I feel uncomfortable keeping the betrothal gifts given by the groom’s family. I want all of it to go to her, so her dowry can be splendid. It will not only impress the in-laws but also ensure she lives a comfortable life.”
Chen Ye interjected, “You don’t have to keep everything, just the bride price. Give all the gold jewelry and items to A’Feng. With her wealth and her wealthy father, her future will be secure. It’s different for you, although you’re better off than me, you’re still far from those wealthy landlords. With your means, you could become a landlord. Why pretend to be well-off and give all this money to the wealthier Chu family, living frugally yourself?”
Grandma Chen added, “The eldest son is right. A’Feng has money, and the Chu family has even more. They won’t care about this amount. Wise women understand the value of money, you and A’Lu need this money, so you should use it for your own benefit.”
However, Chen Ming persisted, saying, “The Chu family didn’t need to give us betrothal gifts. They could have just presented them directly to Mr. Chen, considering that A’Feng’s marriage is directly from there. Yet, they chose to send us these gifts. They are kind-hearted, and they have shown me respect. I cannot be greedy.”
Fuming, the old lady scolded, “How did I raise such a blockheaded son like you? It’s not greed, it’s what you deserve. You raised A’Feng like your own daughter.”
“A’Feng wasn’t raised by me, she was raised by my wife.” stubbornly insisted Chen Ming.
This angered Chen Ye, who shouted, “So our Chen family has always protected A’Feng? She was able to grow up safely because she was born into our Chen family, living in the name of our Chen family’s descendants. Otherwise, who knows how many times she would have faced death. Furthermore, whenever she faced trouble, it was Mother, me, and A’Gui who stood up for her.”
Chen Ming asserted, “Yes, the Chen family did protect A’Feng, but A’Feng has also repaid our family. Our current good life is largely due to A’Feng’s support. As the second brother, I understand my brother’s feelings, but A’Feng has repaid what she owed me and all of you. There’s nothing more owed. In the future, Big Brother, please don’t always talk about how the Chen family has been kind to A’Feng, she has given back all she could.”
This marked the first time Chen Ming had confronted Chen Ye. Enraged, Chen Ye raised his hand to strike at Chen Ming but stopped abruptly in front of him. Frustrated, he muttered, “Mother, we’ve meddled too much. Let’s go.” Then, he pushed Mrs. Hu, Chen Jue, and Chen Gui out.
Grandma Chen and Mrs. Wang, witnessing Chen Ye’s attempt to strike Chen Ming, screamed in terror. Seeing the blow halted, they breathed a sigh of relief.
Observing Chen Ye’s retreating figure, grandma Chen said to Chen Ming, “Don’t blame your elder brother, his just thinking of you.”
She then caught up to Chen Ye and advised, “You brothers are grown now, we can’t resort to hitting each other like in the past. Fortunately, that slap didn’t land, or it would have destroyed the bond you’ve built over the years…”
Seeing them leave, Mrs. Wang hesitated and suggested, “A’Feng doesn’t lack money. Why don’t we just keep this bride price?”
With a grim expression, Chen Ming responded, “No, this decision must be mine. All these betrothal gifts will go towards A’Feng’s dowry. Greed can easily arise in people. I fear that if I start taking, I’ll keep wanting more. This wouldn’t be good for A’Feng, for you, for A’Lu, or for our family.”
Chen Lu chimed in, “I also think everything should go to Sister.”
Chen Feng arrived at Luyuan with Chu Hanyan, witnessing a room filled with various betrothal gifts. Instead of joyous expressions, Chen Ming, Mrs. Wang, and Lu wore pained expressions.
Chen Lu recounted the situation to Chen Feng.
She responded, “I came to talk to Father about this…”
The previous night, Chu Lingxuan had discussed the bride price with Chen Feng at Fengyuan, specifically mentioning the two thousand taels of silver as the bride price for Chen Ming to keep, whether for buying land or a shop…