Chapter 12: Mutual Observation

Now, Shulan is not like the girl from the story who was exchanged for a bag of grain as a child bride, so she has nothing to do with the Liu family anymore.

In the Liu family, there are both grandsons and granddaughters—three boys and two girls. Although Shuxin and Shulan are not born of the same mother, they are the only two girls in the Liu family, so they naturally have a good relationship.

Even back then, Shulan loved her younger sister Shuxin very much and would always share with Shuxin whatever she had. Shuxin, not being ungrateful, would often give back to Shulan.

Shulan is much better off in the Liu family than in the Liu family. After all, in the Liu family, she is a granddaughter, while in the Liu family, she was a child bride.

The Liu family’s parents treat Shulan well enough to ensure she isn’t hungry, whereas in the Liu family, she had doting grandparents, loving parents, protective brothers, and a very caring younger sister.

The Liu family’s conditions are quite good as well. When Shulan was 15, there were already marriage proposals coming in. Aunt Liu thought her daughter was still young, so they delayed until now to meet the potential match.

As for the Liu family, without Shulan as a child bride, there would naturally be others to fill the gap. Previously, the Liu family’s parents had someone approach the Liu family, hoping to arrange a marriage between Shulan and Liu Fu.

After all, the Liu family’s circumstances aren’t too bad—they can exchange grain for a bride even in times of disaster, making them somewhat well-off in the countryside. Aunt Liu isn’t someone who seeks high status either and thought the Liu family was acceptable, so she agreed, but it was ruined by Shuxin.

Shuxin didn’t want her cousin Shulan to get involved with the Liu family. Liu Fu seems fine for now, but there’s no telling when he might run off wildly; what would happen to her cousin then?

Shuxin didn’t do much, just mentioned Liu Fu’s interest in that child bride to Aunt Liu. Naturally, Aunt Liu didn’t like that.

Shuxin wasn’t wronging Liu Fu; the current child bride in the Liu family isn’t innocent. Not only has she captured the attention of the elder Liu brother, having been intimate with him long ago, but she’s also gotten close to Liu Fu. Although there hasn’t been anything substantial between her and Liu Fu, there’s definitely some ambiguity.

Shulan’s connection with the Liu family ends at this point; there’s nothing more to it. Shuxin didn’t intend to retaliate against the Liu family. As long as the elder Liu brother doesn’t die, the child bride in the Liu family won’t be a simple character, and the Liu family won’t have an easy life.

As for whether Liu Fu would still go off to the army in the future, she couldn’t say. Right now, the Liu parents aren’t forcing him to marry the child bride.

These thoughts were enough; there’s no need to dwell on them. Her life is quite good now, so there’s no need to waste time on unimportant people. She just needs to live in the present and take care of her own life.

When she returned home, she put down her backpack, set the pigweed aside, and carefully sorted her medicinal herbs to dry, intending to take them to town for money in a while.

Grandma Liu and Shulan saw her organizing and didn’t disturb her. Ever since Shuxin started junior high and learned that some medicinal herbs could be exchanged for money at a collection point in the county, she often brought some back.

Naturally, the Liu family wouldn’t let go of this chance to earn money, so they asked Shuxin to teach them how to identify common medicinal herbs. Therefore, the Liu family often enjoyed going up the mountain to gather medicinal herbs to exchange them together with Shuxin.

Seeing this, Grandma Liu wasn’t too stingy. She let them keep half of what they collected, with the rest distributed among the households, since the children are grown, and she still needed to leave something for her two sons.

After dinner, Grandma Liu said to Uncle Liu and his family, “I found a match for Shulan—a family from a nearby village, Shizimo, which isn’t far from us—just over an hour’s walk. They have three brothers, and this young man is said to be the youngest. The matchmaker says he’s quite good, honest, and capable. I thought about it and believe it’s pretty good. How do you both feel? If it’s suitable, I can arrange for them to meet.”

“Mom, go ahead and arrange it. I trust your judgment,” Aunt Liu agreed with Uncle Liu. Since her mother-in-law thought it was suitable, she had nothing to say against it; after all, she wouldn’t want to harm her own child.

“Alright, then let’s do it the day after tomorrow. I’ll talk to the matchmaker tomorrow.”

When Shulan heard her parents and grandma confirm the date, she shyly lowered her head, feeling half excited and half embarrassed. Many of her friends were already married at 16, and her loving family was the reason they had delayed until now.

Usually, Shulan had an older sister’s bearing in front of Shuxin, but she was still a 17-year-old girl, and discussing marriage definitely made her shy.

Hearing Grandma Liu mention the date for the meeting, Shuxin decided to push back her trip to the city. She and Shulan would definitely need to keep an eye on things and ensure that Shulan was matched with the right person.

Early in the morning, Grandma Liu instructed everyone in the household to clean the yard thoroughly, bustling with preparations.

Shuxin went to Shulan’s room, pulled her up, and encouraged her to change into the floral dress she had prepared. She then helped Shulan style her long hair to one side, braiding it to rest on her shoulder, and tucked a wildflower she had picked from the mountains into her hair.

Shuxin looked at her handiwork—it looked good. Shulan already had a nice appearance, but with Shuxin’s help, she looked even prettier.

Shulan looked at her reflection in the mirror, pleasantly surprised. What girl wouldn’t love looking beautiful, especially today for a matchmaking meeting?

“Xinxin, thank you! I never knew I could look this good! You bought this dress, right? I’ll pay you back later!”

“There’s no need! I bought it specially for you knowing you were going on a blind date. Look at how beautiful my sister is; she’ll definitely charm my future brother-in-law!”

Hearing her sister’s teasing, Shulan felt shy and had no intention of paying her back, knowing that Shuxin wouldn’t accept it anyway. There would be plenty of opportunities to repay her sister in the future.

Shulan certainly had captivated someone’s attention. Since the moment he saw her, he couldn’t tear his eyes away. His mother was also quite pleased with this daughter-in-law. With good family conditions, a decent appearance, and some education since she attended junior high, she couldn’t be any better.

Shuxin carefully assessed the potential brother-in-law as well. He looked good, and as the youngest in the family, he was doted on by his parents. He was perceptive and had a friendly personality, making him a good match for her cousin.

His parents were nice too, gentle in temperament and favoring their youngest son. Now that their youngest was about to become Shulan’s husband, they naturally had no objections.

Uncle Liu and Aunt Liu were also pleased. Both families were on good terms, and they quickly settled everything. Now it was just a matter of making sure they were a good match; marriage would not be far off. It was unlike in the past when relationships took ages to develop.

The wedding date was set for after the autumn harvest. Grandma Liu also mentioned that half of the betrothal gifts should be sent with Shulan and that she would also prepare a dowry.

The potential in-laws were satisfied that their daughter-in-law was not only bringing half of the betrothal gifts but also a dowry, making her one of the top choices among nearby villages.

Seeing that her cousin’s marriage was settled, Shuxin felt relieved. Shulan was completely bidding farewell to her original fate, and Shuxin no longer had to worry about Liu Fu messing around with her cousin.

Previously, Liu Fu had tried to get involved with the Liu family again and wanted to chase after Shulan. Once Shuxin found out, she took the chance while Liu Fu was drunk and dealt with him. Liu Fu had thought he just fell while drunk and took two or three months to recover.

Shulan’s beauty was evident; in her original fate, being a child bride in the Liu family meant she could only struggle to make ends meet, and it was no wonder Liu Fu had developed ill intentions. Now that she had the Liu family and Shuxin supporting her, her skin and figure improved dramatically. Liu Fu definitely wouldn’t give up, letting such an excellent choice for a daughter-in-law slip by.

Before this, Shuxin thought Liu Fu was a scoundrel who abandoned his wife and children and was ungrateful to his parents. After all this, she added a new label to him: narcissism is a sickness, and arrogance is a poison.