Two gaunt, dark-skinned women stood at the yard entrance, one tall, one short, one old, one young – Peng Fei’s mother and sister.
Today was a big day for them; the family’s only man was getting married.
Originally, Peng Fei refused to marry because they didn't have enough money. His mother talked him into it for a long time, even hitting him a few times, but he still wouldn't agree. In desperation, they had to call his maternal uncle.
The uncle was indeed capable. Look, he went out for a stroll and brought someone back in less than half a day.
Seeing her son carrying a young woman back, with hair so long and black it gleamed, covering his back, Madam Peng was so delighted her wrinkles rearranged themselves into shapes of affection.
“Your brother is back, you have a sister-in-law now. Come, go with me to see what she looks like.”
Peng Fei met his mother and sister at the entrance. His mother reached out to grab Zhan Jingchun’s hair to get a look at her face, but Peng Fei moved aside.
“Don’t touch her yet. She threw up and feels very unwell.”
His mother: “…”
The uncle, puffing on his pipe, waved to his sister with a hint of pride.
“What’s the rush? She’s already part of your family, she’s not running away. You can see her when we get back.”
They all walked towards the western side of the yard, into the largest room in the house.
Since the family had planned to marry Peng Fei off a year ago, his mother had already prepared the bridal room.
In the rough, uneven yellow-earth room, against the wall stood a red-lacquered wooden bed. Beneath it were newly woven straw mats, and on top, the family’s most intact reed mat.
At the foot of the bed was a pair of old wooden cabinets with double doors, built by Peng Fei’s father with his own hands before he passed away.
It was also the newest, most modern, and most valuable piece of furniture in the house.
Not far from the bed was a creaking wooden stool.
What was called a bridal room was nothing more than being a bit larger and cleaner than other rooms.
Peng Fei, tall with long legs, carried Zhan Jingchun into the room in a few strides, supporting her back as he gently placed her on the bed.
Zhan Jingchun felt a wave of dizziness and nausea again. But she hadn't eaten or drunk anything for two days, so she had nothing to throw up.
She retched a couple of times, too exhausted to even lift her eyelids.
Seeing her lying there like a half-dead person, her small face ashen.
Beneath a white t-shirt and light blue denim shorts, her skin was as white as snow, but her arms and legs were as thin as chopsticks.
Only then did Madam Peng belatedly express her dissatisfaction.
“Why is she like this? Skinny as a bamboo pole, looking so sickly. Does she have some kind of illness?”
“Why did you pick someone like this? Can she do the work, can she raise children? Second Uncle, how much did you spend?”
People in their region, accustomed to farming, needed strong bodies. When choosing a wife, they preferred someone tall and sturdy.
Whether the skin was fair or not, whether she was beautiful or not, were secondary. The key was that she should be a capable helper at home and able to bear children.
Madam Peng had worked hard for six or seven years to raise her son, expecting her daughter-in-law to help share the family’s burdens in the future. And now, this is who she found?
The uncle’s views were originally the same as his sister’s: marry for virtue, not beauty. Beautiful women were often troublemakers. Whether she was good-looking or not didn’t matter; as long as she was a woman, could continue the family line, and could work, it was fine.
He had always advised Peng Fei not to be picky.
Who would have thought that upon seeing the heavenly beautiful Zhan Jingchun, even at his age, a man’s natural instincts were stirred, and he couldn’t help but be smitten.
Having married a pampered daughter whose future was uncertain, and paying several thousand more yuan, equivalent to two years’ income for the family, the uncle dared not say much and tried to skirt the main issue.
“She looks a lot like you did when you were young. You’re just a bit darker. Otherwise, how could you have given birth to a handsome young man like Xiao Fei, famous throughout the villages?”
“I think this girl has a good match with him, and a good mother-in-law-daughter-in-law look with you. She’s good. Besides, she’s the last one available, no other choice. Who knows when the next person will come. Xiao Fei is already twenty-two and a half, you can’t let him drag on any longer, can you?”
Her brother’s words had some logic, and Madam Peng could only shut her mouth, but she was still worried about the money.
“How much did it cost in the end? For someone like her, she shouldn’t be worth much, right?”
“Second Brother, you know our family’s situation. We spent as little as possible. I don’t know when I’ll be able to repay the five thousand yuan I owe you.”
The uncle knew that if he continued, his sister would likely explode. He wisely extricated himself.
“My child is still young and not in a hurry to get married, so there’s no rush to repay the money. Alright, alright, I’ve kept you busy for a while, I should be going back. Quickly get her some water to drink and food to eat, and let her regain her spirits. Lock the door, I’m leaving. If there’s anything, have Fangfang call me.”
With that, the uncle made a timely retreat.
Seeing her son standing by the bed, staring blankly at Zhan Jingchun, Madam Peng stepped forward and nudged him.
“Do you know why she’s the last one available? Someone like her, I dare say, no one else in the villages would want her, except you.”
“Why does she look like a jinx to me? How much did it cost in total? If the conditions aren’t good, you should have strongly negotiated the price. You two men, you didn’t haggle, did you? I told you to let me go, let me go, you…”
Peng Fei ignored her words and turned to his sister.
“Is there any lunch left?”
His sister, in her life, had never seen such a beautiful woman before. The shock in her heart was no less than Peng Fei’s.
Thinking her brother wanted to make lunch for his new sister-in-law, she nodded eagerly, “Yes, yes.”
“Is it still warm? Go get me a bowl. And pour a glass of water.”
“Okay,” the sister dashed off.
It was the middle of summer, and everyone was feeling the heat. But Zhan Jingchun, curled up on the bed, her face the color of earth, trembled all over, seeming very cold. Peng Fei still had to find something to cover her with.
And to make his mother shut up.
“I said I didn’t want to marry before, but you insisted. Now that she’s here, you have so much to say. If I knew nothing would satisfy you, I wouldn’t have listened to anything.”
Madam Peng: “…”
“It cost twenty-five thousand. They wouldn’t budge on the price. They said if I didn’t want her, they’d take her back and keep her themselves. I owe my uncle twelve thousand. Don’t worry, you won’t have to bear this debt, I’ll pay it back myself.”
How much?
Madam Peng was almost scared to death.
This jinx, this seemingly useless thing, cost twenty-five thousand? And made her shoulder over ten thousand in debt?
Peng Fei knew that his mother hated parting with money. From the moment he decided he wanted Zhan Jingchun, he had prepared himself to be scolded.
“Later, when there’s less farm work, I’ll find some jobs to do. Don’t worry, you won’t have to repay a single cent.”
“Ungrateful thing! Is that what I meant?”
Madam Peng hit him.
“You brainless fool, Mom is just afraid you’ll make a losing deal! Spending so much money to find someone useless, what if… you’ll have no one to cry to then!”
“Then what should we do? Send her back now and get the money back?”
Madam Peng fell silent.