Chapter 73: Approaching 1/2

In the afternoon, Jin Xiaoshu drove Jin Xiaoye to the county town.

They headed straight to Sister Wang’s house and breathed a sigh of relief when they learned that Mrs. Fang hadn’t caused trouble.

Thinking about it, it made sense. Fang Jinniang had threatened Mrs. Fang so severely that Mrs. Fang wouldn’t dare cause trouble.

If this matter escalated, Fang Zijian would be finished. Mrs. Fang valued her son so much that she definitely wouldn’t dare provoke Fang Jinniang again.

Although Mrs. Fang hadn’t come, there were still quite a few people inquiring about Fang Jinniang’s situation. Fortunately, Fang Jinniang’s reputation hadn’t been greatly affected.

Mainly because this place was quite small, and everyone knew a bit about what happened in each other’s homes. Fang Jinniang used to stay at home every day, sewing, and hardly ever went out. Although she had been out lately and spent the whole day at Sister Wang’s house… everyone noticed, but no one thought she had done anything wrong.

In comparison, many people felt that Mrs. Fang was too much.

Of course, there were busybodies who fabricated stories about Fang Jinniang and Jin Xiaoshu, but hardly anyone believed them, so it didn’t matter.

Jin Xiaoye said, “Sister Wang, Mrs. Xu, and Jinniang are now staying at the Zhu family’s house. My younger brother will go propose to her in a few days. If anyone asks, just tell them about it, nothing else needs to be said.”

The more you say, the easier it is to be manipulated by others, so it’s better to say less.

“That’s what we’ll say.” Sister Wang smiled and looked at Jin Xiaoshu. “Xiaoshu, you’re about to get married in the blink of an eye. Be good to Jinniang in the future.”

Jin Xiaoshu nodded earnestly. “I will.”

On this day, Jin Xiaoshu’s mood could be said to have experienced ups and downs. At this moment, besides wanting to treat Fang Jinniang well in the future, he had no other thoughts.

Seeing him like this, Sister Wang said to Jin Xiaoye, “Xiaoye, people about to get married are really different! Xiaoshu seems to have grown up all of a sudden!”

“That’s right! By the way, we have something to attend to at home. We’ll go now.” It was already late, so Jin Xiaoye hurriedly took Jin Xiaoshu and left.

By the time they returned to Miaoqian Village, the villagers already knew about Jin Xiaoshu’s intention to marry a city girl. Some were curious, while others regretted it.

“How could a city girl be interested in Jin Xiaoshu?”

“I find it strange too. Jin Xiaoshu doesn’t seem particularly outstanding.”

“I guess Jin Xiaoshu must have made a lot of money! If I had known last year, I would have talked to Jin Dajiang. My daughter is a year younger than Jin Xiaoshu, and they would have been a perfect match.”

“My niece would have been a perfect match too!”

…

People inevitably asked Jin Xiaoye about the city girl.

Naturally, Jin Xiaoye praised Fang Jinniang over and over again. “She’s the daughter of a scholar!”

“And she’s so beautiful!”

“She can earn more than one tael a month”

…

Although Aunt Jin was outspoken about Fang Jinniang’s shortcomings while she was at the Jin family’s house, once she left, she also praised Fang Jinniang.

They were all members of the Jin family. If the bride Jin Xiaoshu married wasn’t good, it would be embarrassing for everyone in their family!

For a while, Jin Xiaoshu marrying a city girl became the hottest topic in Miaoqian Village.

The Yao family, Mr. Yao, envied, “The days of Jin Xiaoye and Jin Xiaoshu are really getting better and better!”

Mrs. Yao also said, “Yes, who would have thought Jin Xiaoshu would actually be able to marry a city girl.”

“You don’t know about that Miss Fang’s situation. If you knew what she was like, you wouldn’t think Jin Xiaoshu was so lucky,” Yao Zhenfu suddenly said.

“What’s wrong with Miss Fang?” Jin Moli asked immediately. In the morning at the Jin family, Jin Xiaoye and Jin Xiaoshu had decided on Fang Jinniang, so she had nothing to say, but she still felt a bit unwilling.

Yao Zhenfu sneered, “Fang Jinniang’s brother, Fang Zijian, is my classmate. As far as I know, his older sister is seven or eight years older than him. Fang Jinniang is almost twenty-five, she’s an old maid.”

Mr. and Mrs. Yao thought their son would reveal some earth-shattering news, but… that’s it?

“Is there nothing else?” Jin Moli asked.

Yao Zhenfu said, “Is there anything else?”

Jin Moli didn’t say anything more.

Fang Jinniang might be a bit older, but she wasn’t that much older. What’s the big deal?

Not to mention, there were some families here who raised “child-brides,” meaning they brought girls from other families to raise, let them raise their sons, and then married them off to their sons… These child-brides were usually about seven or eight years older.

Mr. Yao said, “Jin Xiaoshu has really lucked out. She must not have been able to find a suitable girl in the county town, so she was willing to choose him… He does indeed look handsome.”

Mrs. Yao nodded seriously.

Yao Zhenfu: “…What’s wrong with these people? If it were me, I definitely wouldn’t marry someone eight years older than me!”

On the other side, in the Jin family.

Mr. and Mrs. Jin were honest and listened to others. Originally, they thought that whoever Grandma Jin chose for Jin Xiaoshu’s future wife would be fine. Of course, if Jin Xiaoshu didn’t want to, they would listen to Jin Xiaoshu. 

As a result… Jin Xiaoshu found a city girl!

That evening, after Jin Xiaoshu returned home, Mrs. Jin took out their savings of over five taels: “Before, when your brother-in-law came back and your sister had to borrow money to treat him, the money wasn’t enough, so we lent them a little. But it’s all been paid back now. We have this much money in the house now, you take it.”

Mr. and Mrs. Jin’s financial situation was something Jin Xiaoshu had always known. After taking the money, he said to his parents, “Dad, Mom, don’t worry. I’ll pay you back once I make money in the future!”

“No need, no need. It’s our responsibility to provide the money for your marriage,” Mr. Jin said. In his opinion, it was only natural for parents to provide financial support for their children’s weddings.

Jin Xiaoshu didn’t say anything. He had already made up his mind to earn more money in the future. Then he could ensure that Fang Jinniang, as well as his parents, would have a good life!

At this moment, Mr. Jin continued, “Tomorrow, your mom and I will tidy up this house and move out. After you get married, you can live here. This house is big enough for you, and when you have children, they can also live here…”

“What about you?” Jin Xiaoshu couldn’t help but ask. He had thought about where he would live after marriage, and according to his plan, he wanted to build a new house.

“We’ll live in the firewood shed,” Mr. Jin said.

“The firewood shed? How can people live there? Let’s build a new house instead.” Their firewood shed was made of straw and bamboo walls, and it would be freezing in the winter.

“But building a house will cost a lot of money…” Mr. Jin hesitated.

As they were talking, there was a knock on the door.

Jin Xiaoshu opened the door and saw his grandmother.

After Grandma Jin entered the room, she said to Jin Xiaoshu, “Xiaoshu, after thinking about it, there’s something I need to tell you.”

“What is it?” Jin Xiaoshu asked.

Grandma Jin said, “A girl who can earn over one tael per month is quite a catch, even if she’s been married before. You must treat her well! Don’t treat her poorly just because of her past.”

Grandma Jin, like Aunt Jin, suspected that this girl had been with other men before. Otherwise, why would she be willing to marry Jin Xiaoshu?

But even so… this girl could earn over one tael per month!

Even if she had been married before and had children, she was still a treasure.

Jin Xiaoshu: “…”

Without hesitation, Jin Xiaoshu asked Grandma Jin for money. Naturally, Grandma Jin didn’t want to give it, so Jin Xiaoshu politely showed her out.