Chapter 104: Chapter 104

Chaoyang Commune Third Team, Niu Family.

The whole family sat together for a family meeting to discuss Niu Yingying and Wang Yongsheng’s situation.

"My dear daughter! You and Yongsheng should hurry up! Nowadays Yongsheng is a hot commodity, and every family with daughters is eager to send them to the Wang Family!" Grandma Niu reminded her daughter.

Niu Yingying was also at her wit’s end. She used to disagree with marrying Wang Yongsheng, but now she’s in a rush to get married.

What is she supposed to do about this?

"Yongsheng has gone to work in the city, and he can’t come back without a holiday! His parents...Yongsheng hasn’t told his parents about us! Moreover, he just started working, and he can’t afford the hundred-dollar dowry you asked for!" Niu Yingying explained one by one.

As anxious as she was, she was twenty-two, practically an old maiden. Her parents wanted a hundred-dollar dowry, and they’ve been dragging this out. Nobody could understand the hardship in her heart.

"What? Grandpa Wang and Grandma Wang don’t even know about this? That’s not good! What if a matchmaker comes over and they agree? What would we do?" Niu Yingying’s eldest brother, Niu Zhengde, exclaimed.

"Shut your mouth, from now on don’t call him Grandpa Wang! Call him Uncle Wang!" Grandpa Niu spoke sternly.

"Okay, okay, but that’s not what’s important right now. I mean, sister, Yongsheng’s parents have no idea about you two, what are you thinking? Isn’t it clear that they don’t consider you important?" Niu Zhengde looked at Niu Yingying.

"Isn’t it because you all never agreed with us being together? Yongsheng is afraid to tell his parents, fearing you all disagree, and then his parents would be anxious too!" Niu Yingying now had the confidence to blame her family, as now they didn’t really hope for her to marry Yongsheng.

"Alright, alright, Yingying, you said Yongsheng couldn’t afford the dowry, why don’t you have him borrow it first? He’s working in the city now; in two or three months, he’ll be able to pay it back, and he can borrow from anyone!" The only sister-in-law, Li Xiaohua, couldn’t hide her calculating gaze.

Niu Yingying had two younger brothers, one sixteen, and the other eighteen, both unmarried. Only the eldest brother had married. Niu Zhengde was thirty-four, over ten years older than his siblings.

"What a nice thought, sister-in-law! Anyway, I’ve said all I have to say! Either wait for Yongsheng to save enough dowry to marry or you ask for less!" Niu Yingying said to her parents with confidence.

"This..." Grandma Niu suddenly had no idea, and she looked at Grandpa Niu.

Grandpa Niu pondered for a moment, "Yingying, take a day off tomorrow and go to the city. Give Yongsheng some food and dry vegetables, and tell him, for the dowry... we’ll accept eighty. Tell him to hurry and sort out your matters!"

"Dad! Wasn’t it a hundred? Why is it eighty now?" Li Xiaohua protested loudly.

Her own family had a twenty-five-year-old brother who was already at an age where he should be marrying, still lacking a wife, hoping that once the sister-in-law gets married, the dowry can be borrowed for her brother to marry.

But she didn’t think of it, Grandma Niu was such a calculating person, would she lend money to her family? There are two more sons in the family who are soon to reach marriage age.

"The dowry is settled! No more talking!" Grandpa Niu declared.

"Alright, alright, Xiaohua, go cook! Everyone’s hungry!" Niu Zhengde nudged his wife.

"Got it! Why are you pushing me?" Li Xiaohua gave Niu Zhengde a glare of irritation, dragging her feet as she walked out.

"Wife! Tomorrow we should take some time to visit the Wang Family!" After the daughter-in-law left, Grandpa Niu said, looking at Grandma Niu.

"Alright! I’ll go see if there’s anything we can bring!" Grandma Niu was ready to give it a go. A person who previously didn’t want to shed a penny was now preparing to give gifts.

"No need to bring anything, we’ll just drop by! Just to see what they’re thinking!" Grandpa Niu’s eyes were full of calculations.

Niu Yingying also didn’t stay in the room for long, going out to help her sister-in-law with the cooking.

Over here with Bai Ruxue, after slaving away all day, the five siblings managed to plow just one mu of land and were exhausted when they returned home.

"Mom will make you dinner, you all rest a bit!" Wang Cuihua looked at her exhausted children, feeling heartbroken, and after coaxing two of them to sleep, she tiptoed out.

"Mom, I want meat, pork ribs, braised chicken, and I also want..." Bai Ruxue lay on the kang and listed the dishes.

"Alright! Mom will make them for you! You all rest up!" Wang Cuihua tenderly promised as she went out.

It was still cold enough at night to freeze outside, so there was still quite a bit of meat and dumplings frozen in the big vat, ready to eat whenever desired.

After Wang Cuihua left, Bai Ruyun got up and rummaged through her sewing basket, and began sewing with several pieces of cloth that Bai Ruxue had bought for her.

"Second sister, aren’t you tired? Can you still do needlework?" Bai Ruxia curiously scooted over to watch.

"I was just shaking off the soil, not tired. This piece of clothing I’m making for the eldest sister is almost finished, and I want to finish it quickly for her to wear! It’ll definitely look beautiful!" Bai Ruyun said softly, her face glowing when she talked about making clothes.

"Xiao Yun, you’re making clothes for me again?" Bai Ruxue said, sitting up to look over.

Bai Ruyun was using the piece of bright red woolen cloth she had bought for herself; it looked like it was going to be a short trench coat from the half-finished product.

Bai Ruxue observed for a bit and noticed that this little girl probably modified it based on Zhang Yuan’s black trench coat, with the style quite similar but a bit altered at the cuffs and waist to make it more feminine.

"Xiao Yun, are you making a couple’s outfit for me? To match Zhang Yuan’s black trench coat, right?" Bai Ruxue cheerfully said without a hint of shyness.

"Eldest sister, you figured it out? I saw that the clothes brother-in-law was wearing were so good-looking, so when I saw this fabric, I thought of making you a set too! But eldest sister, what’s a couple’s outfit?" Bai Ruyun asked curiously.

"A couple’s outfit is when the style, color, or pattern is the same for two garments, one male and one female, and they match well when worn together!" Bai Ruxue satisfied the curious little one.

From then on, the clothes she wore with Zhang Yuan were made by Bai Ruyun and would often emerge as a new couple’s outfit, looking particularly designed.

Whenever the younger siblings found partners, the first gift from Bai Ruyun was always a couple’s outfit, each one different.

But that’s a story for another time.

"Eldest sister, when I finish it, when brother-in-law comes back, you two have to wear it to show us!" Bai Ruyun sped up her sewing, eager to see how the couple’s outfit she accidentally made looked.

"Alright! I’ll lie down for a bit, I’m exhausted!" Bai Ruxue agreed as she lay back down.

Thinking of Zhang Yuan, he should still be on the train right now, if she hasn’t miscalculated, it’ll be three to four more days before he reaches the Capital City.

When Wang Cuihua brought the food in, only Bai Ruyun was sewing, while the others were fast asleep.

"Alright, time to eat! I made pork rib soup, braised chicken, and sour and spicy potato strips! Get up and eat!" Wang Cuihua woke each child up.

"Braised...braised chicken? I’m here!" Bai Ruchuan was the first to jump up and dash for the food.

"Go wash your hands first, how can you eat without washing your hands?" Bai Ruxue quickly stopped Bai Ruchuan, who was reaching out to grab the meat with his hands.

"Eldest sister, you’re so particular!" Bai Ruchuan looked longingly at the meat on the table, turned, and quickly went to wash his hands. Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn NoveI-Fire.ɴet

"Hahaha..." Bai Ruxue burst out laughing and also went out to wash her hands.

The family enjoyed their hearty dinner and went to bed early.