Chapter 640: Chapter 640: The Good Son-in-Law Grandma Found for You
"I always said that kid had such delicate and tender skin, so pale he doesn’t look like a living person. Just looking at him you can tell he’s lacking in yang energy. Turns out, he came to our village looking for it."
The village women burst into roaring laughter, exchanging all sorts of intimate and racy gossip.
Finally, they added, "It’s such a pity, such a fine young man, just wasted."
"Look at the clothes he’s wearing; those fabrics are clearly top-notch, not cheap at all. Whichever family gets him as a son-in-law will really strike it rich."
"Strike it rich, my foot," He Daguang’s wife spat. "With his delicate looks, are we talking about getting a son-in-law or a daughter-in-law here?"
"Eh, but the guy’s loaded. Even taking him as a daughter-in-law wouldn’t be too shabby. Your boy hasn’t taken a wife yet, and he’s got a solid build. Maybe that madman would actually agree to marry in."
He Daguang’s wife cursed, "Pah! You old hens are all farting nonsense. So what if he’s rich? If he can’t lay eggs, what use is it marrying him into your home?"
Gu Dewang has truly inherited Mrs. Chen’s spirit; he loves a good spectacle. Having heard the village women’s chatter, he ran to the village entrance to get a look at this madman, then off he went to the workshop to relay this wonder to Gu Jinli.
"A madman dressed in a large cloak, with delicate and handsome features, obviously not a real man, sitting atop an ox cart drooling over our village’s strong men?" Gu Jinli was flabbergasted, "What in the world is this? More village women’s gossip, right? Their gossip is all watered down, not a single true word to it."
However...
"Take He Sanlai with you to keep an eye on that person, don’t let him enter the village. It might well be he’s here for our Mingya Grass, planning to tamper with it."
These past three years, our village has gotten wealthy from Mingya Grass, and it’s made a lot of people envious. Every year when it’s time to harvest Mingya Grass, people from other villages come lurking around.
Worried something might go wrong, Gu Jinli talked to Village Chief He. When harvesting Mingya Grass, strangers are not allowed into the village, to prevent any incidents.
In front of Gu’s Workshop, a row of tables was set up, and Brother Cheng stood behind one of them, noting down the weight of the Mingya Grass. Hearing this conversation, he suddenly had a bad feeling, and images of the Zhan Family’s uncle and nephew’s lunatic behavior popped into his head.
He hurriedly called out to the departing Gu Dewang, "Brother Dewang, how old is that madman you mentioned? What color is the large cloak he’s wearing?"
Gu Dewang replied, "He seems to be in his early twenties, with really good looks, definitely a pampered noble young master. He’s wearing a gray cloak, but there’s an eye-catching tuft of red fur around the collar."
Brother Cheng’s mouth twitched. A large cloak with red fur at the collar, wasn’t that Zhan Er?
Gu Dewang, keen-eyed, seeing the reaction, asked, "Brother Cheng, do you know that madman?"
Brother Cheng nodded reluctantly, "He should be a guest who’s recently arrived at Master Xia’s."
Gu Jinli reacted, "There’s really a guest at Master Xia’s?"
Indeed, every time Lady Xia sent invitation cards to her elder sister, there was always some trick up her sleeve.
Brother Cheng, "Yeah, he came last night at midnight. He’s from the Zhan Family in Jiangnan. He went crazy singing and dancing all night at the teacher’s home. I thought for sure he would have to sleep, but it turns out he’s made of iron. Now he’s come to see the Mingya Grass."
He then recounted how he’d run into Zhan Er in the courtyard and how Zhan Er had expressed a desire to come to the village to see the Mingya Grass.
Hearing this, Gu Jinli’s face turned a little green, telling Brother Cheng, "Don’t bother with him, pretend we don’t know he’s here. Don’t go out to meet him. Because if you do, he’s surely going to follow you home."
The first time we met, he said he wanted to stay with Brother Cheng, such a person is too frivolous, too much trouble to deal with.
Brother Cheng quite agreed, nodding and nodding again: "Second Sister is right, I won’t meet him. He is a guest of the teacher, not mine."
Scared, can’t face it.
However, Zhan Er is a troublemaker, although he couldn’t enter the village, he gave Silver to the villagers to find Brother Cheng.
Brother Cheng, looking bewildered, asked He Dayuan: "Uncle Dayuan, you’re saying that madman at the entrance of the village asked you to give me a message?"
This is the end, the village women’s ability to gossip, it won’t take an hour before they start rumors about him and Zhan Er.
He Dayuan said: "Yes, the young man said he knows your family lives in the village, but since he can’t enter and it would be impolite not to greet, he chose a compromise by letting the villagers pass a message to greet your elders for him, saying that he will come for a visit with Master Xia when there’s an opportunity."
He Dayuan, seeing the troubled face of Brother Cheng, laughed: "Don’t worry, Brother Cheng, I’ve been watching him. As soon as I saw him looking for someone, I went over right away. No one knows he’s acquainted with you."
That young man is a fool, completely unaware of how his actions would be twisted by the village women.
Brother Cheng is relieved, he doesn’t want to be linked to a madman: "Thank you, Uncle Dayuan."
He Dayuan smiled: "No need for thanks, I work for your family’s workshop."
He Dayuan did odd jobs in the Gu’s Workshop, and now his monthly salary has reached a tael of Silver. The Gu’s Workshop is reasonable; knowing that he has responsibilities in the He Family Members and would let him go to attend to those family or village matters without docking his pay, guarding the village entrance was one such case.
After He Dayuan left, Gu Jinli and the others talked a bit about Zhan Er and then dropped the subject, as Village Chief He arrived with villagers bringing Mingya Grass.
Every time the Mingya Grass is harvested, Village Chief He is in charge of bringing people over, to better control the villagers.
He Tongsheng also brought his family’s sundried Mingya Grass, he was the first to sell: "Miss Gu should see our Mingya Grass this year, it’s grown very well, dried according to your requirements, without a single weed or a speck of dirt. Unlike some, who for the sake of weight, mix dirt into the bundles of Mingya Grass."
Gu Jinli laughed hearing this: "No worries, if they mixed dirt, we’ll no longer buy their Mingya Grass in the future, let their grass rot in the field."
They went back and forth, frightening the villagers who came to bring Mingya Grass, worried about accidentally mixing in dirt, they hurriedly shook their bundles of grass.
He Laoqiao’s family also came to bring Mingya Grass, seeing others shaking their bundles, yet they didn’t.
He Laoqiao’s wife, pulling her granddaughter, whispered pointing at Qin San Lang beside Gu Jinli: "See there? That’s Company Commander Qin, the man Grandma has picked out for you."
Fang Haitang heard this, her face flushed crimson, speaking faintly as a mosquito: "Grandma, please don’t say such things... I still don’t know if it’s possible."
Now saying he’s her man, if someone were to hear, how could she face others?
Moreover...
"Seeing all these people, should I really go talk to him? Isn’t that improper?" Fang Haitang felt, where is it suitable for a young woman to approach a young man for a chat, people would scold her as shameless.
He Laoqiao’s wife retorted: "What’s there to fear? Do you see the girl next to Company Commander Qin? Isn’t she also a girl, standing with Company Commander Qin unafraid, what’s wrong with you talking a few words to him?"