CHAPTER 378: CHAPTER 378: GU YUMEI’S ENGAGEMENT

Gu Dafu had already planned to agree to the marriage proposal from the Wan Family, so he didn’t stand on ceremony, and handed the things over: "Alright, you take it. It’s a bit heavy, be careful."

They were on their way to apologize to the Wang Family and had bought many items today, including cloth, meat and vegetables, sweets and wine, and even purchased two live chickens.

The two lively chickens were hopping vigorously, pecking fiercely a few times at Wan Lifang, causing Wan Lifang such pain that he almost wished to throw the things away.

Enduring the pain, Wan Lifang held on with a smile on his face and led Gu Dafu and Gu Dagui into the side room on the right, introducing his mother and little brother to them.

"Uncle Dafu, Uncle Dagui, this is my mother; she heard that the food from Gu’s Restaurant is delicious and came with us father and son to try it. This is my little brother Zheng; Brother Zheng, come greet them." Wan Lifang placed the items he was carrying onto two chairs to the side; if he continued to hold them, those two chickens would peck him to death.

Wan Lizheng had been thoroughly coached by Wan Lifang to be modest and polite in front of the Gu Family People. After successfully forming a marriage alliance with the Gu Family, he would be rewarded with five taels of silver as compensation.

Thinking of the silver, Wan Lizheng immediately stood up, bowed to the brothers Gu Dafu and Gu Dagui, and respectfully greeted, "Brother Zheng greets Uncle Dafu and Uncle Dagui."

Seeing that he was about the same age as Brother Wang and had a plump and lovely appearance, Gu Dafu felt a burst of fondness and said with a smile, "Very good, very good, you must be Brother Zheng. It’s my first time seeing you, and I don’t have anything nice to give, but you can take this bag of caramel to eat."

Wan Lizheng looked at the bag of caramel handed to him, feeling quite unhappy inside. Country bumpkins are indeed country bumpkins, giving caramel as a meeting gift instead of even a single tael of silver – stingy indeed.

However, for the sake of the five taels of silver promised by Wan Lifang, he accepted the caramel cheerfully, saying, "One cannot decline a gift from an elder; Brother Zheng will happily accept it, thank you, Uncle Dafu."

Seeing that Wan Lizheng had good manners, Gu Dafu felt even more satisfied with the Wan Family.

Gu Dafu and Gu Dagui looked towards Scholar Wan and Ms. Ni, saying, "Scholar Wan, Mrs. Wan, nice to meet you."

Scholar Wan’s face broke into a smile, saying, "Brother Dafu, no need to be polite, please sit down and join us for a meal."

Ms. Ni rolled her eyes inwardly, thinking what a meal there was to eat – if they kept up with all this fuss, when would they get to finalize the marriage? They may be able to wait, but Ruiniang’s belly could not.

Ms. Ni spoke directly, "Brother Dafu, I won’t hide it from you; we knew you were coming to town today and purposely waited for you here at the shop. You should guess why we are here. Everyone is clear and honest, and I won’t beat around the bush with you. We have taken a liking to your daughter, and we truly and sincerely wish to ask for her hand in marriage, hoping that Brother Dafu will consider our sincere hearts and agree to this marriage."

She glanced at Wan Lifang, saying, "You’ve seen what our Brother Fang is like during this time; he’s truly a good boy, does well in his studies, and come next spring, he will participate in the examination for scholars. The county’s scholar who has tested Brother Fang’s knowledge says that his learning is excellent and that there would be no issue with him becoming a Scholar."

Wan Lifang, feeling somewhat embarrassed, lowered his head, saying, "It’s just overpraise from the scholar; I still ought to work hard and study."

Ms. Ni tenderly said, "Brother Fang, you write essays late into the night every day, and you rise before dawn to study, you’ve already worked hard enough."

After listening to this, Gu Dagui was truly impressed: "Brother Fang is so diligent; back when I was studying, I wouldn’t even flip open a book unless my father beat me."

Village Chief Gu wanted to bring honor to his family, pinning his hopes on Gu Dagui, hoping he would study diligently in order to acquire an official position. But Gu Dagui would feel sleepy as soon as he looked at books and couldn’t learn anything at all.

Brother Wang also followed him, not cut out for studying.

"Brother Fang stays up late to study because he thinks that Brother Dafu considers him a man without an official position, not worthy of trust. Thus, he resolves to study desperately to obtain an official position, to then propose marriage to Da Fu’s family again."

As Ms. Ni spoke, her voice choked up, and looking at Gu Dafu she said, "Brother Dafu, I am a mother and cannot stand to see my son struggle so fruitlessly. Today, I shall brazenly ask you for an honest answer. Do you actually think highly of my Brother Fang? If you do, then agree to this marriage. In a few days, I will ask an official matchmaker to come to your door, and our two families can settle this marriage."

Seeing that Ms. Ni was a good person and would not likely be a terrible mother-in-law in the future, Gu Dafu no longer hesitated and said, "Sister-in-law is straightforward. In that case, Sister-in-law, please go ahead and manage it."

After hearing this, Ms. Ni was inwardly disdainful, having thought that finalizing matters with Gu Dafu’s family would be difficult, but it turned out to be settled with just a few empty words. Yet, outwardly, she joyfully asked, "Brother Dafu, are you agreeing to this?"

Mrs. Chen smiled and said, "Mrs. Wan, you heard correctly, my elder brother has agreed. Your family can select a date to come over and propose."

"Very well, I will find someone to pick a date as soon as I get back. Once the date is chosen, I will ask matchmaker Zhou to come to your family and propose."

She then asked, "Is it fine to choose matchmaker Zhou? If she was disrespectful during her last visit to your house, Sister-in-law, please do tell me. If so, I won’t choose her, and will spend more silver to find a better official matchmaker."

Mrs. Chen, seeing how much Ms. Ni valued her family, was grinning so widely she could hardly contain her happiness, "No, no, the official matchmaker you find is certainly good. Let’s go with matchmaker Zhou. We are all familiar with her, and that makes communication easier."

Mrs. Chen and Ms. Ni exchanged words, and quickly almost finished discussing the matter. Seeing that it was past noon, and not wanting to force a smile any longer, Ms. Ni bid her farewell and returned home.

Upon returning home, Ms. Ni immediately called Shuzi and ordered him, "Drive the mule cart to Xianggui Town and bring Miss over."

Scholar Wan frowned and said, "Why bring Ruiniang over at this time? What if the Gu Family People find out?"

"Ruiniang is carrying our family’s golden grandson; naturally, I want to bring her over to take good care of her, so she doesn’t tire herself out with chores at home." Fearing Scholar Wan might disagree, Ms. Ni glared at him and insisted, "What could the Gu Family possibly know? Ruiniang is my niece; if I want to bring my own niece over to stay for a few days, can the Gu Family have any wild thoughts about that?"

Unable to argue against Ms. Ni, and thinking that the marriage was settled anyway, Scholar Wan did not object, "As you wish, just don’t mess up the marriage arrangements."

Wan Lifang was even happier about Ni Ruiniang staying at their house, as it was difficult to return to a vegetarian diet after having tasted meat.

Shuzi immediately drove the mule cart to Xianggui Town to pick up Ni Ruiniang.

Meanwhile, Ms. Ni sought out someone to calculate an auspicious date. Two days later, matchmaker Zhou brought Wan Lifang’s birth date slip to Gu Dafu’s family. The families exchanged birth date slips, thereby settling the marriage arrangement.

Before the marriage between Gu Yumei and Wan Lifang was fixed, Gu Dafu discussed the matter with several relatives. They were not opposed to it; after all, they had signed the commitment letter. If Gu Dafu’s family did something to harm the workshop, it was their family who had to withdraw their shares, and the relatives would not suffer any losses.

However, Third Grandma felt, "This marriage was settled too swiftly. In the past, engagements took at least six months to a year of consideration. It’s only been a little over a month now; what if we’ve made a mistake? Sister Mei’s entire life could be ruined."