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Wang Xuan was curious about where her brothers had gone, but with others around, it wasn’t convenient to ask. However, she made a mental note to inquire about their whereabouts when they returned home.
“The bride is here! The bride has arrived!” someone shouted from the street.
Wang Qian and her cousins rushed outside to see the commotion. The leading horse carriage carrying the bride had entered the village, and the bells on the horse’s neck were jingling. However, the sound of the bells, combined with the wailing from the neighboring house, created an eerie atmosphere.
In the meantime, the villagers were busy making arrangements for the funeral. Upon hearing the news, Wang Zhenhe and his wife hurried over to help Zhang Yongxi’s family. They were relieved to see their children standing on the street, unharmed and watching the spectacle.
The entrance of the Wang family’s house was crowded with people eager to catch a glimpse of the bride. However, when the carriage entered the village, the bride’s family members on the carriage seemed displeased. Celebrating a wedding next to a house in mourning brought an air of ill omen.
Meanwhile, Wang Zhi was anxiously pacing in the courtyard. She was about to welcome the bride as she got off the carriage, but the tray of gifts was missing.
She quickly slipped into the house and quietly informed Zhu Qiyu about the situation. Zhu Qiyu’s face immediately darkened upon hearing the news.
She grabbed Wang Zhi’s hand and twisted it hard. “You foolish girl, do you know what day it is today? Why do you always cause trouble? You were supposed to have the tray of gifts ready since this morning. How could it have gone missing at a time like this?”
The old lady was anxious as well. The “xi bao bao” (a type of pastry) for the bride’s arrival and the “xi yu” (a type of fish) for the wedding bed were essential customs. But where could she find the “xi bao bao” at this moment? There wasn’t even enough time to steam it.
Wang Zhi’s face flushed with a hint of grievance. “Mom, don’t blame me for this. I went to the outhouse for a moment and when I came back, the ‘xi bao bao’ was gone. You need to come up with a solution quickly.”
Zhu Qiyu glared at Wang Zhi, who seemed clueless, and said impatiently, “There’s no time for a solution now. Go to the kitchen and find two small steamed buns to use as a substitute. I don’t know if the bride’s family will accept this. You foolish girl, did you lose the money that was inside the ‘xi bao bao’ as well?”
Remembering the money tucked inside the “xi bao bao,” Wang Zhi nodded pitifully. “Yes, Mom. Please give me a coin. I’ll put it inside the steamed buns.”
The old lady took out a coin from her pocket and handed it to her daughter. “Hurry and take care of it. The guests will be here soon.”
Wang Zhi sprinted to the kitchen with the coin in hand. Fortunately, there were some leftover steamed buns from the previous day. Regardless, she had to deal with the immediate situation. She found two small steamed buns, inserted the coin, tied them with red thread, and quickly ran back to the street.
Ma Fenqing and his family had just arrived at the entrance of the Wang family’s house. Wang Zhenjiang’s children were helping to shower the bride and groom with confetti.
Wang Qian and her group were squeezed in the crowd and witnessed Wang Zhi handing two steamed buns to Ma Fenqing. The bride, who had been smiling moments before, saw the steamed buns and her expression immediately fell. She managed to hold back from saying anything, but the look she gave Wang Zhi was not friendly.
Wang Qian couldn’t help but find the situation amusing. She had never heard of the tradition of presenting steamed buns to the bride. It was quite a comical sight. Mingyuan and Zuo Hao were trying to stifle their laughter, and Wang Xuan, who had a clear view, suspected that this mishap was related to Mingyuan and Zuo Hao. Nonetheless, she was quite pleased to see Wang Zhi embarrassed.
Ma Fenqing’s elder sister from the bride’s family was not pleased. First, there was the sound of mourning, and now the “xi bao bao” had been replaced with steamed buns. She pulled Wang Zhenhai aside and asked in an unfriendly tone, “Brother-in-law, what kind of event are you hosting today? First, there was the sound of mourning, and now we have steamed buns. Is this how you celebrate a wedding? Are you taking our family for a joke?”
On a wedding day, the bride’s family held the upper hand, and the groom’s family had to serve the visiting guests with great care, fearing that the bride’s family might take the bride away if they found fault.
Wang Zhenhai had no choice but to respond with a smile, “Sister-in-law, it’s just an unfortunate coincidence today. Who would have known that there would be a funeral at this time? Who wouldn’t want to live a few more days? We couldn’t have predicted this. We didn’t mean to offend you. Fortunately, the two households are separated, so it won’t have a big impact on our wedding. As for the steamed buns, we’ll explain it to you later. I’m not sure what happened. Please understand, and rest assured that our family would never look down on yours. It must have been an accident. Please bear with us for now. I’ll make it up to you later.”
Wang Zhenhai gestured respectfully to the other party. As the eldest son of the Wang family, he had lowered himself to such an extent. Ma Fenqing’s sister-in-law, Liu Guifeng, didn’t say anything, but her expression was not very pleasant.
Wang Zhenhai was also quite annoyed. It seemed like everything was going wrong today. He just wanted the wedding to be over so he could go home and rest. He felt like he was running around like a dead dog, exhausted and left out of all the good things. He was tired of being treated like a grandson.
Seeing his father’s troubled expression, Wang Minglin ran over with concern. “Dad, is everything okay?” Wang Zhenhai saw the caring look in his son’s eyes and patted his head with a smile. “It’s nothing. Once today is over, everything will be fine. Minglin, you and your brother need to look after Mingcheng and the others. Don’t let anyone cause trouble for them.”
Wang Minglin nodded. “Dad, we’ve got it covered. They won’t dare to bully our younger siblings. Take care of yourself and take a break when you can.”
He didn’t finish his sentence, but he was referring to the things that had been done by the people from the bride’s family. Even if they were sincere, it didn’t turn out well. What was the point?
Ma Fenqing was dressed in a red floral cotton jacket and navy blue trousers, paired with black leather shoes. She wore a small red silk flower on her head, and perhaps due to her grooming, she looked more presentable than usual.
Wang Qian glanced at her waist and was relieved to see that there were no signs of pregnancy yet.
As for Wang Zhenguo, he looked exactly as she had expected. His head was covered in dust, and there was no shine from the hair oil. He gave a displeased look at the neighbors who were arranging the funeral, then helped Ma Fenqing out of the carriage and walked into the courtyard. Wang Zhenhai grabbed a handful of candies and threw them to the crowd outside, saying, “It’s a wedding! Let’s all celebrate together.” Both adults and children happily squatted down to pick up the candies.
Wang Mei, Yang Liu, and the wedding party escorted the bride’s family into the courtyard, carrying red-wrapped bundles. Wang Zhenguo led the bride into the courtyard and warmly called out to the two elderly people guarding the house, “Dad, Mom.”
Ma Fenqing’s expression was not very good, so her address to the elderly couple sounded forced. Zhu Qiyu, hearing her daughter-in-law’s change in address, was delighted, and her face lit up like a blooming chrysanthemum. “Ah, this is the money for changing the way you address them.”
The old lady took out a prepared red envelope from her pocket and handed it to the young couple. Wang Zhenguo led his new bride into their new home.
Ma Fenqing and her family were quite satisfied with the arrangement of the new home. However, when she sat on the kang and felt something poking her, she stood up with a start. According to tradition, the extra bedding on the kang symbolized abundance. However, the issue was not the extra bedding, but the fact that underneath it was supposed to be an axe, symbolizing good fortune.
But today, what was under the bedding was something that the bride couldn’t tolerate.
The bride’s elder sister-in-law quickly lifted the bedding and was not just displeased but furious. She immediately turned her anger towards Wang Mei. “Is your family conducting some kind of ritual today? Look at what’s under the bedding—a piece of rotten stone. What do you mean by this? If you don’t explain this to us today, this matter won’t be over. Fenkai, come and see how the Wang family is treating our sister. I think they have ill intentions and are cursing our sister.”
Wang Zhenguo’s emotions changed several times in an instant. He was unaware of the commotion during the wedding procession. What was supposed to be a perfect wedding had turned into a heart-wrenching experience, and he couldn’t even come up with a reasonable explanation.
Ma Fenkai had only one sister, and he had been dissatisfied from the start with the wedding and the funeral coinciding. However, he had tried to restrain himself for the sake of his sister. After all, he was representing his parents in sending his sister off to get married. But when he saw the rotten stone on the kang and then glanced at his sister’s belly, the pent-up anger inside him erupted.
“Wang Zhenguo, explain to me, what do you take my sister for? You placed a rotten stone here. Do you even want this marriage to happen? Are you trying to bully our Ma family? Fine, if you disrespect my sister like this, we’re done. Guifeng, let’s pack up and leave. We’re not going through with this marriage.”
Wang Zhenguo was terrified by his brother-in-law’s words and quickly apologized. At this point, Wang Mei began to explain to her sister-in-law. The commotion inside the room attracted the attention of the people outside, who gathered around the new house to witness the spectacle. It was the first time they had seen such a commotion on a wedding day.
As the crowd gathered, Zhu Qiyu knew that something was amiss. Nothing had gone smoothly today, and she hoped that there wouldn’t be any trouble in the new house.
She quickly squeezed through the crowd and entered the new house. Ma Fenqing was at a loss about what to do. Her elder brother, sister-in-law, and the relatives who had come were all demanding to leave. Although she was also angry, this was supposed to be a joyous occasion. If they really left, what would she do in the future?