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Liu Guifeng didn’t actually intend to take her younger sister-in-law away, but they definitely wanted to assert themselves. After the Wang family had humiliated them earlier, Ma Fenkai had been holding back his anger. Today, with the incident caused by the Wang family, his frustration naturally erupted.
Zhu Qiyu was the first to approach Ma Fenkai. “Nephew, please don’t be angry. Today’s incident isn’t Zhenguo’s fault. Everything was arranged properly in the morning, but someone unscrupulously replaced the axe. Please calm down. I’ll have someone come and replace the axe right away. If you’re still upset, you can even slap me. Let’s finish the wedding joyfully. Fenqing is your sister after all. If you have any grievances, feel free to voice them. I’ll take the blame for this. Once I find out what happened, I’ll give you an explanation.”
Zhu Qiyu didn’t know who was responsible, but she had to calm down the bride’s family first. They could address the situation later. As long as they could get through today, the Ma family wouldn’t cause a scene.
Seeing the old lady’s approach, Ma Fenkai’s tone softened slightly. “Aunt, what are you saying? You’re my sister’s mother-in-law. How could I hit you? But today’s incident is truly frustrating. Since we arrived, your family’s customs have changed completely. If we didn’t know any better, we’d think you were looking down on our Ma family. How are we supposed to face others in the future? Our family values its reputation.”
Zhu Qiyu quickly sent Wang Zhi to find a new axe to place under the bedding. “Nephew, now it’s resolved. It’s my fault for being confused. Once the wedding is over, my husband and I will personally come to your house to apologize. Everyone, please disperse. The banquet is about to begin.”
Zhu Qiyu, Wang Mei, Yang Liu, and Zhao Dagui managed to calm down the bride’s family. After watching the commotion for a while, Wang Juan returned to help with the cooking, wearing a smile. “Sister-in-law, is everything settled? Is it quiet now?” Han Cui asked as she tended to the fire.
“Wang Juan said without looking up, “What’s all the fuss about? It’s a joyous occasion, just some minor conflicts that have been resolved. Have the dishes been prepared, younger sister-in-law?”
Wang Juan had cooked a few of her signature dishes, and the other daughters-in-law extended their hands. However, she hadn’t had a chance to taste them or assess their quality. Han Cui, chewing on a piece of candy, mumbled, “Not yet, I’ll go check in a bit. None of us have experience cooking such a large dish, so we’ll have to make do.”
Wang Zhenhai and Wang Zhenjiang were feeling overwhelmed by the number of people who had come to help. Many had gone to assist with the funeral arrangements at Zhang Yongxi’s house, leaving them short-handed.
“Younger brother, quickly find some people to help serve the dishes. We’re short-staffed,” said Wang Zhenhai.
Wang Zhenjiang hesitated, “Big brother, where do you expect me to find people at this hour? We’ve already asked everyone available. Some are even up in the mountains digging caves. They’ve gone to help at Yongxi’s house. We can’t compete with a funeral.”
It was a difficult and unenviable task, and Wang Zhenjiang was not willing to do something that would cause trouble, especially when it involved unappreciated efforts.
However, when Wang Zhenjiang saw the children running around the courtyard, an idea struck him. “Big brother, why don’t we get these kids to help? They can definitely handle carrying plates and bowls. We have enough manpower with them.”
Wang Zhenhai’s eyes lit up, and he quickly said, “Younger brother, you handle this. Give the kids some candy and have them carry the dishes.”
The task of serving the dishes was now in the hands of the children, which left the wedding guests shaking their heads in disbelief. What was happening?
As the time came to serve the dishes, chaos ensued. Some tables had yet to receive their food, while others were being served repeatedly. Issues arose at all the banquet tables, with some receiving incomplete portions and the children serving the dishes seen munching on the food.
The problem wasn’t just the incomplete and insufficient dishes, but the fact that the food ran out halfway through. It was a major taboo at banquets for the food to run out, leaving guests waiting for the next course. This was the worst banquet in the history of their village. Experienced individuals were shaking their heads in disbelief, saying, “What kind of event is the Wang family hosting? We’ve never seen guests left waiting for food at a banquet before.”
Outside, people were discussing the situation, and the cooks in the courtyard were at a loss. Zhu Qiyu was urging them on, and the cooks were feeling the pressure. Even the hands that were adding salt were shaking. When the dishes were finally served, they were too salty, leaving the guests feeling uncomfortable.
“The head cook, are you running a kitchen or a salt shop? This food is so salty it could kill someone,” the diners complained.
Wang Deying quickly stepped in to defuse the situation. “Everyone, please bear with us. The head cook’s family has had an emergency, and we were caught off guard. These women have never cooked such a large meal before, and it’s natural for them to struggle with the salt. Please, bear with us.”
The members of the Ma family who had come to escort the bride were not as understanding. They were not having a smooth day, and even the meal was overly salted. They began to confront the Wang family, questioning whether they were supposed to eat or not. The situation was unacceptable. There was no reason to serve a meal if there wasn’t enough food to go around.
In the end, all they received was a plate of overly salty food that was inedible.
Inside the house, Zhu Qiyu couldn’t sit still and quickly took her two daughters to apologize to each household. They had been involved in everything that had gone wrong that day. Zhu Mancong and Zhu Jianshe were also holding onto Ma Fenkai, showering him with flattering words as the elder in-law and nephew. Ma Fenkai was caught up with the two of them, and the others couldn’t make a scene. They could only grumble in frustration.
Meanwhile, Wang Qian and her relatives were not interested in the apologies. Once the food was served, they tasted it lightly and then decided to take the leftovers home. They preferred to eat in peace rather than listen to the commotion outside.
Wang Yu retrieved two basins from the old cabinet in her grandmother’s house and handed one to Wang Xuan. “Sister, let’s take some home. There won’t be any left for us otherwise.”
The siblings divided the food equally and packed some for each household. Mingyuan and Zuo He took the food home first, while Wang Minglin carried the basin to his own house. The rest of the family remained seated in the house, unfazed by the commotion next door. They had no interest in witnessing the quarrel, having seen enough fights before.
It wasn’t until Zuo He and Mingyuan returned with the basins that the food was finally served. The neighbors, who hadn’t eaten their fill, began to look over, hoping for a meal. They were still hungry, and with the food not yet served, the prospect of additional dishes seemed unlikely.
“Wang Zhenhai, what’s going on today? Why can’t the food be served?” someone asked.
Wang Zhenhai wiped the sweat from his forehead and replied somewhat embarrassedly, “I’ll go and check for you.”
The situation was chaotic at Wang Juan’s place. When Wang Zhenhai went to remind them to serve the food, one of the cooks suddenly remembered that there was still a pot of rice that needed to be served. However, when they went to serve it, they found that the rice had burnt, emitting a strong smell of charred grains. The woman looked at Wang Zhenhai with embarrassment and said, “The rice has turned out like this. Can it still be eaten?”
At this point, Wang Zhenhai didn’t want to say anything. He simply replied, “It’s fine. As long as it fills their stomachs. Hurry and find a few basins to serve the guests and explain the situation to them.”
Wang Qian felt sorry for the food brought over by the helpers. The rice had been ruined. It was a dilemma—eating it would mean enduring the burnt taste, but not eating would leave them hungry.
“Zuo He, let’s have some. It’ll tide us over until we get home for a proper meal in the evening,” Wang Qian said, concerned about them getting hungry at the rural wedding, which was their first experience of this kind.
Zuo Hai and Zuo Yu were nonchalant. “It’s fine. We can eat rice with sand, let alone a bit of burnt taste.”
They served themselves the food and started eating with the pickled vegetables on the table. After taking a bite, Wang Qian exclaimed, “Wow, this is incredibly salty. I bet they don’t even have to pay for salt in their house.”
The others at the table laughed along. “It’s not just free; it seems like they’ve spilled the entire salt shaker. Let’s make do with it. We can’t attend a wedding and go hungry. We need to justify the money our families spent.”
Zuo Yu teased and encouraged everyone to eat more while quietly adding extra food to his brothers’ plates.
“Brother, is it tough for you up north?” Zuo He’s casual remark caught his attention. Seeing the concern in his younger brother’s eyes, Zuo Hao was touched and patted his hand.
“Ha ha, the conditions weren’t great when we first arrived, but fortunately we met Grandpa’s old comrade, who helped and sheltered us little by little. But that’s all in the past. Grandpa taught us to cherish food, right? The rice may be a bit burnt, but as long as it fills our stomachs, it’s fine. Come on, have some more. Don’t dwell on the unpleasant things. It’s not easy for the three of us brothers to be together. Listen to your big brother and eat a bit more.”