Chapter 55: Glorious Deeds

Upon learning that Xu Muzhou and Xiao Qingru had obtained their marriage certificate, the Xu couple prepared to head to the northwest.

Before they left, they needed to prepare some local specialties to take along.

“The last time our daughter in law called, she said my pickled vegetables were delicious. Her brother also said they were good when he came to our house. Let’s bring them some this time,” said Xu’s father.

Xu’s mother nodded. “Of course, Qingru sent us some vermicelli, which is a lot more complicated to make than pickled vegetables.”

Thinking about the things they received recently, a smile never left Xu’s mother’s face.

Given the conditions of the Xiao family, if they didn’t care, they could have easily bought ready made gifts.

Why go through all that trouble?

The in laws are considerate, so they should show gratitude in return.

If the two families get along well, the young couple’s life will be easier.

After all, marriage should not breed enmity. If things aren’t handled well, the ones caught in the middle might end up having trouble eating and sleeping.

“This time we go to the northwest, we should bring more things, let’s take everything we can. Who knows when we’ll come back next time?”

“Okay, let’s bring the two chickens we have at home, we can have fresh ones then.”

“Get a bamboo cage to put the chickens in.”

“No need for that hassle, it’s easier to just put them in a bag.”

“Fine, but you’re responsible for carrying it. They stink, so remember to clean them well, or people will complain on the train. And seal their beaks too.”

Xu’s father nodded repeatedly, indicating he understood.

After calculating what to take, if it weren’t for limited manpower, Xu’s mother would have wanted to move the whole family to the northwest.

When the neighbors heard the couple was going to the northwest for a wedding, most held a congratulatory attitude, but some made sarcastic comments.

“Why don’t you hold the wedding at home? If you didn’t know better, you’d think Xiao Zhou was marrying a daughter in law from our family.”

With a wedding in the family, Xu’s mother didn’t want to argue with anyone, fearing it would bring bad luck.

“It’s too far, and it would be such a hassle to come back. We’ll take care of things in the northwest first. If we have a break during the New Year, we’ll come back then and give you wedding candy.”

“If it were me, I’d suggest marrying a girl from the capital, at least she could help take care of you two.”

Xu’s mother smiled thinly, “We’re marrying a daughter in law, not hiring a housekeeper. Everyone has parents; it’s not right to ruin someone else’s daughter.”

“Isn’t it the duty of a daughter in law to serve her in laws? How can that be called ruining?”

“That’s your family’s custom, right? Our Xu family doesn’t do that, we marry daughters in law for our sons. We don’t interfere in the young couple’s lives.”

The neighbor had originally wanted to marry their daughter to Xu Muzhou, but with that idea dashed, they felt resentment bubbling inside.

So, their words became less friendly.

“I think a daughter in law should be kept close and taught well, or how will she serve the family in the future?”

Xu’s mother almost rolled her eyes. Was this person out of their mind?

It seemed she would have to minimize interactions in the future.

“Our daughter in law works at the Cultural and Arts Troupe, she’s not like someone who can only take care of the family.”

“What? She has a job? I thought Zhou was marrying a country girl?”

What kind of rural girl could compete with a city girl from the capital?

This was the thought of many neighbors.

Most remained silent, but this one had spoken out.

The Xu family was low key and never flaunted anything, but they never expected the rumors to be so outrageous.

Whether they were from the capital or the northwest, weren’t people just people?

Even if they did marry a country girl, so what?

They had two permanent positions in their family, wouldn’t that mean their daughter in law would have a good life?

Out of a sense of revenge, Xu’s mother smiled brightly, “Our in laws are a commander over there, and they’ve raised two outstanding kids one’s a pilot, and the other’s a dancer in the Cultural Troupe.”

Having a daughter inlaw from the Cultural Troupe was already enviable enough, now hearing the girl’s father was a commander was shocking! One expression of envy wasn’t enough to describe everyone’s feelings.

Those who wanted to make snide remarks suddenly became awkward, “Zhou is indeed successful, he’s marrying someone with such good conditions.”

No wonder the Xu family was so composed, how could they afford to offend such a daughter in law?

It would be better to pamper her instead!

“Our daughter in law is a great person, when she returns to the capital, you’ll see.”

Those watching from the sidelines chimed in, “The better the family conditions, the more they focus on raising their children. Unlike us, we’re just raising them casually, your family’s really fortunate!”

Xu’s mother smiled, “As long as the young couple lives well, my husband and I will be at ease.”

“Your Muzhou is a solid boy, whoever marries him will have a good life.”

After chatting with the neighbors for a while, Xu’s mother went out to buy things.

For the past few years, she and her husband had been preoccupied with their son marrying, saving their money and not spending. This time, they could prepare more to take to the northwest.

As long as it wasn’t extravagant, the more presentable, the better!

Once Xu’s mother left, the neighbors started to gossip.

“I knew Xu Muzhou couldn’t possibly be interested in a country bumpkin. I didn’t expect his father in law to be so influential! The Xu family is going to be quite proud.”

“I’ve never seen such a big official in my life! Who would have dreamed of having a commander as an in law?”

“People are so competitive, it’s infuriating.”

“I was looking forward to seeing Muzhou bring his new wife home so I could laugh at them, but who knew…”

“Don’t you think about it? Muzhou is successful, and he’s good looking, how could he marry someone undesirable?”

“It’s not that he’s had low standards, he just works in a unique position, and probably doesn’t have much contact with women, so his expectations aren’t high.”

“There are plenty of girls in our alley who like him, if he had low standards, would he still be single? He’d probably have a few kids by now.”

“The main thing is his job is good, I heard pilots make significantly more than others. Whoever marries Xu Muzhou will never have to worry again.”

“Exactly! I was thinking of introducing my daughter to him, it would have been a good match, but he climbed too high!”

“No wonder you were talking so sarcastically earlier, it turns out you had that idea!”

“Honestly, don’t you want to marry your child to Xu Muzhou?”

The Xu family’s conditions were evident to everyone, and Muzhou himself was quite successful. Anyone with a daughter had entertained that thought.

Now that Muzhou was married, there was no use talking about it anymore.

Everyone laughed and quickly moved on from the topic.

In less than half a day, everyone knew about Xu Muzhou’s glorious deeds.

It’s human nature to seek benefits and avoid harm, many people want their daughters to marry well, and likewise, many hope their sons will marry good wives.

Now that Xu Muzhou had achieved that, some families were so envious they were practically seeing red.

With frustrations bubbling, everything became grating, and families with sons even complained about their own boys’ short comings.

If they were really capable, marrying the daughter of a commander wouldn’t be a dream, even marrying the daughter of a factory director would be impressive.

The Xu family had lived in the alley for decades and knew the neighbors well.

It was just idle gossip, let them talk.

They wouldn’t let unimportant opinions spoil their good mood.

After preparing everything over the next half month and taking a leave from the factory, the Xu couple boarded the train to the northwest.