Chapter 228

Out on the road, life was incomparable to back home, but the men from Shanshui Village were already quite content.

Thinking of the generous rewards and ample food, the exhaustion of pulling carts was bearable.

They weren’t afraid of hard work; they feared working hard and not earning enough silver to support their families.

After dinner, with the night watch arranged, everyone found a spot to sleep.

The night watch was divided into two shifts, one for the first half of the night and another for the second half. On this trip, they would be spending at least two to three nights outdoors, and every man took his turn on guard duty.

After a tiring day, everyone seized the opportunity to rest. Hu Wenhua was part of the first shift of guards. He held a sharp large knife and occasionally tossed dry mugwort into the fire pit to burn.

Mugwort could repel mosquitoes, which were abundant in the wilds and could devour a person. So, they had harvested mugwort upon arrival and dug three large pits, filling them with firewood and burning mugwort after cooking.

This not only drove away mosquitoes, snakes, and rodents but also deterred carnivorous animals.

After adding mugwort to all three fire pits, Hu Wenhua came over to sit with everyone by the convoy filled with goods.

Li Wu had been traveling with Hu Wenhua all day and thought this young man was quite good. Moreover, there was his sister’s relationship layer to consider. Thinking of his own cousin, Tian Tian, his thoughts stirred.

He asked Hu Wenhua, “Hey, Wenhua, have you proposed yet?”

Night watch duty was naturally dull, especially after everyone was exhausted from the day. Without topics to discuss, it was easy to fall asleep.

When others heard Li Wu’s question, they perked up, their eyes shining in the darkness as they looked at Hu Wenhua.

Hu Wenhua’s rugged face was illuminated by the firelight, not showing any blush. After a while, he shook his head, “Not yet.”

His mother had mentioned it to him. Originally, their family had more than twenty taels of silver saved up. Brewing liquor had earned them more than forty taels, which was their entire family’s wealth. Their current house was too small, and his parents planned to buy the adjacent house for expansion or buy a new piece of land to build a new house for him after he got married.

This would cost more than thirty taels of silver. The remaining money would be used for betrothal gifts and banquet expenses, and they could still host a grand celebration.

Considering the girls his family deemed suitable, this amount of money was more than enough. However… he had heard his sister mention casually that Uncle Ding and Aunt Ding made good money collecting herbs. He didn’t know the specifics, but just helping his sister process yams had earned him nearly five taels of silver in dividends last time.

Having grown up in a prosperous family, the family he married into couldn’t be too poor.

Upon hearing that Hu Wenhua hadn’t proposed yet, Xu Laosan patted him on the shoulder, excitedly saying, “Isn’t this a coincidence! My eldest niece hasn’t been proposed to yet either. She’s sixteen this year, and I remember you’re also sixteen, right? It’s fate!”

Li Wu, having been preempted, protested unhappily, “Hey hey, don’t you understand first come, first served? I asked first. Wenhua, have you seen my little cousin Li Tiantian? Her mother is Mrs. Li. If you marry her, you’ll definitely be well off with our family!”

Xu Laosan quickly added, “It’s not like our Xu family isn’t good either. If he marries my eldest niece, our Xu family will also be a good family-in-law!”

“But your sister-in-law isn’t as efficient as Tiantian’s mother, nor is she as generous and open-minded. It’s important for the prospective bride’s mother to be supportive at home. When it comes to marriage proposals, the mother-in-law’s opinion is crucial,” Li Wu retorted without thinking.

Xu Laosan opened his mouth to argue but realized Li Wu’s point seemed reasonable.

Others laughed and chimed in, “The prospective mother-in-law is indeed crucial! If she understands the situation, our lives as sons-in-law will be much easier.”

“When it comes to marriage proposals, the mother-in-law’s opinion carries more weight than the father-in-law’s. Daughters usually listen to their mothers. You young men who haven’t proposed yet should keep that in mind. It’s better to offend the father-in-law than the mother-in-law.”

“You can’t offend either! But if you must choose one, it’s better to offend the father-in-law, or you might end up with no food.”

“Hahaha.”

Hu Wenhua quietly took note and resolved to treat Aunt Ding even better when he returned home!

In front of her, he should behave well. Previously, he had only worked hard in front of Uncle Ding, realizing he had been directing his efforts in the wrong direction. He needed to help Aunt Ding more with chores…

Fan Dazhu listened from the side, feeling a bit bitter. He was a year older than Hu Wenhua—why wasn’t anyone asking for his opinion?

Hu Wenhua was Auntie Er’s younger brother, whereas he was Uncle Er’s nephew!

He glanced at the village men around him, gritted his teeth, and spoke up, “Uncle, we’re all from the same village. How come none of you care about your nephew here?”

The atmosphere suddenly fell silent.

It was awkward.

Li Wu cleared his throat and chose a face-saving approach, “Your family is well off, and your parents are resourceful. We don’t need to worry about you.”

It was precisely because they were from the same village that Fan Qian and Sun Jinhua’s behaviors were well-known. That girl from the Ding family hadn’t said a word, yet this family had relentlessly criticized her for years. Oh, Fan Qian hadn’t joined in the criticism, but as a grown man, not stepping in when his wife and son were involved was tacit approval!

Marriage wasn’t a feud. They had no grievances with their niece and nephew, so there was no need to harm them.

These four sons of Fan’s family, encountering such a meddling mother as Sun Jinhua, no girl who married into their family would have an easy time. They even thought they were in a golden nest, gaining an advantage by marrying anyone.

They couldn’t imagine!

Xu Laosan chuckled twice.

Embarrassed yet polite.

His eldest niece was someone he had watched grow up! She was the first child of the next generation of the Xu family. Their emotions were different. How could she marry into Fan’s family? Wouldn’t that mean relying on her mother’s family for support all the time?

It was better for him to use his old bones to cultivate his own daughter-in-law. He didn’t want to get involved in Fan’s family mess.

Fan Dazhu felt a mix of bitterness and joy upon hearing the praise for his family’s good conditions.

He was pleased because his vanity was satisfied in front of everyone, but bitter because their family was now just an empty shell—fields, forests, houses, but no money.

There wasn’t much food either.

Every household in the village had stocked up a lot in preparation for rising prices after flooding. Only their family had nothing prepared, no silver ready.

The money he and Erzhu earned hadn’t arrived yet, and Mother had already planned how to use it. It was like waiting for rice to boil.

But he couldn’t say this in front of others. He straightened his chest proudly and said, “That’s right. My mother says there are plenty of girls who want to marry me. There’s no rush.”

Li Wu, Xu Laosan, and the others pursed their lips and remained silent in the darkness.

They knew the situation in Fan’s family. They used to be among the top three in the village, but now other families were catching up.

Not to mention silver, at least they had stored a lot of grain. Before they left, the old man at home had said the rabbits would soon be ready to sell. They would ask the old village chief’s opinion on how to sell them.

If they sold the rabbits, they could also increase their silver reserves.

… If they couldn’t sell them, would they eat rabbit meat?

No, no, silver was more important than eating meat—having silver was more important, and they could eat meat later.