“Haoyang, stop chatting and go wash up quickly. It’s almost time,” Li Suli called out. Li Haoyang stood up, “Haochen, I’m going in first. You go back and rest. Tomorrow, you’re coming with me to pick up the bride.”
The next morning, the village’s rooster started its duty early, its professionalism worthy of praise. Amidst the crisp crowing, Li Haochen woke up.
He checked his watch; it was only 5:30. He couldn’t fall back asleep, so he lay in bed and started scrolling through videos. Watching videos was as addictive as nicotine.
As he scrolled, dawn broke without him realizing it. The village had already become lively. After quickly washing and dressing, he walked to Li Dehai’s house. Many people were already busy there, and some elder villagers who were skilled cooks were preparing side dishes for the banquet.
“Haochen, come over and have breakfast quickly. You’ll join your brother later for some fun.” Li Dehai and his wife, dressed in new clothes today, looked spirited and wore constant smiles.
“Uncle, Aunt, let’s talk in the room.” Li Haochen pulled the elders into the room and took out the gold bracelets and pig pendant he had bought last night from his satchel. “Uncle, this is for sister-in-law. Put it on her during the entrance ceremony.”
“Haochen, you…”
“Uncle, last night I heard my brother talk about sister-in-law’s family background. Our Li family will definitely not lack anything in the future. This is about… matching status.”
Li Dehai and his wife wanted to refuse, but they couldn’t. From their two interactions with their future in-laws, they felt the gap in their social standing and felt powerless. After borrowing from everywhere, they finally managed to gather the humble amount of 300,000 yuan for the bride price. For the gold jewelry, they were truly unable to fulfill the wish, having only prepared two rings that looked large but were actually very thin and light.
Tears welled up in the elders’ eyes. They kept patting Li Haochen’s shoulder, unsure of what to say.
“Haochen, we’re leaving!” Li Haoyang’s call came from outside the room.
“Okay, coming. Uncle, Aunt, today is a joyous occasion, so you should be happy. I’ll go with my brother to pick up the bride first.”
Outside, by the roadside, eight small cars decorated with “Fu” characters and ribbons were already parked. The main wedding car was a Honda Accord, quite new, considered decent for the county. The brothers helping out were from nearby villages; they looked familiar, but Li Haochen didn’t know their names. After greeting them one by one, he took a large bag handed over by Li Haoyang. “Haochen, you help distribute the cigarettes and red envelopes. Also, when we pick up the bride, you’ll be responsible for opening the door and the bridesmaids. Don’t be stingy with the cigarettes.”
“Brother, wait a moment.” Li Haochen took out the large gold chain from his thick satchel and draped it around Li Haoyang’s neck, smiling. “This is more fitting, haha!”
“Haochen, you…”
“Stop talking, hurry into the car. It’s not good to miss the auspicious time.” Li Haochen didn’t give Li Haoyang a chance to continue before quickly jumping into the car behind.
Half an hour later, the motorcade arrived at the hotel. Led by the groomsmen, they marched confidently into the business suite. The door was heavily guarded by over a dozen bridesmaids dressed in strapless dresses, their hands extended. The lead bridesmaid announced, “If you want to take the bride, your red envelopes must be full. If you have money and people, leave if you don’t.”
“Beautiful ladies, open the way boldly. Brother’s red envelopes won’t go astray,” the groom’s party responded, creating a lively atmosphere.
Li Haochen also stepped forward, giving a red envelope to each bridesmaid. After some back-and-forth, there were no indecent actions; everyone was quite cooperative. After being teased around once more by the bridesmaids for more red envelopes, they successfully passed. Inside the room, a tall woman was guarding the door. Li Haoyang’s brow furrowed upon seeing her.
“What’s wrong, brother?”
“My sister-in-law. She strongly opposes my marriage to her sister and things are quite strained.”
As the groomsmen reached the doorway, the woman’s voice was cold. “Li Haoyang, if you want to smoothly take my sister today, you have to put down 99,999 yuan. Otherwise, go back where you came from.”
“Xiaomin, I… can you reduce the amount?”
Just as Li Haoyang was feeling awkward and helpless, the door suddenly opened. Zhuang Xiaoxia, wearing a holy wedding dress and with a bulging belly, glared at Zhuang Xiaomin. “Go aside. If you delay my auspicious time, I’ll never forgive you.”
“Sister… I was just…”
“Go stay aside and don’t speak.”
Seeing the awkward atmosphere, the bridesmaid hiding the shoes quickly took them out. Li Haoyang swiftly walked over, helped Zhuang Xiaoxia sit on the bed, and said, “Wife, sit properly, don’t be angry.”
“Hurry up and put them on, we’re going home.” Zhuang Xiaoxia raised her foot and called out to Li Haoyang.
“Oh, coming.” He took the wedding shoes and carefully and gently put them on Zhuang Xiaoxia. He then turned to the two middle-aged couples sitting nearby and said, “Dad, Mom, we’ll be going back now.”
“Mm.” The middle-aged man looked displeased but said nothing, just giving a soft “Mm” and ignoring them.
Although there were some twists and turns during the bride pick-up, it was still relatively smooth. An elder from the bride’s family followed the bride holding a red umbrella. Li Haochen walked to the bridesmaid group, gave a red envelope to the bridesmaid who had handed him the shoes, and returned to the room. He took ten unopened stacks of banknotes from his thick satchel and placed them on the table. He pulled out one bill and said with a smile, “Miss, this is my brother’s door-opening red envelope. Uncle and Aunt, please bear with us in the future. We country folk are honest and don’t know how to say much.”
After nodding to them, he quickly followed, leaving the Zhuang family members looking at each other in a daze.
“This…”
“It’s all because you two were stubborn. If Axia resents us in the future, what will you do?”
“Then… what about these?”
“You caused it, so you figure it out. I’m not getting involved.”
In the wedding car, Zhuang Xiaoxia saw the large gold chain around Li Haoyang’s neck and frowned, asking, “Tell me honestly, where did you get this gold chain?”
“My brother gave it to me.”
“Then… can you return it after some time?”
“No, I have to wear it. When he gets married, I’ll buy him a bigger one.”
The motorcade arrived on time. The umbrella holder got out first, opening the red umbrella to shield the bride as she entered the house. Two children followed, giggling and holding the hem of the wedding dress.
Since Zhuang Xiaoxia was heavily pregnant, many traditional rites were waived. She only needed to serve tea to the Li family elders. When Li Suli took out the gold bracelet and the large pig pendant and put them on Zhuang Xiaoxia, Li Haoyang was stunned. The Zhuang family relatives who had followed also showed more smiles on their faces. Li Haochen’s large red envelopes also made the Zhuang family relatives smile even more, and they seemed to show less disdain for the dilapidated house.
Outside, Li Haochen sat on a stone boundary, wiping the sweat from his forehead. “Phew, the wedding procedures are really complicated. So many rituals.”
“Beep beep…” A honk caught Li Haochen’s attention. Following the sound, he looked out. Not far outside, a black Cullinan slowly drove over and stopped at the entrance. The car window rolled down, and Murong Yanran and Xie Baolian looked at Li Haochen with smiles. “Surprise, surprise, hehe!”