mesbooks Chapter 159 Sweet pastry
Chapter 159 Sweet pastry
The servant of the Lin family carried down several pieces of silk and satin from the carriage, which sparkled in the sun. After putting down the cloth, he took out a dozen gift boxes of various sizes, which made the onlookers amazed. Erhe hurriedly moved the inkstone away, for fear that the ink would accidentally splash on the satin.
"Brother Lin, why did you bring so many gifts?" Zhang Pingan was also stunned. This was too much.
"Not all of them are mine. Some are from other classmates and teachers in the academy, and some are from Xiao Yifei and others who asked me to bring them here. I've made a list for you, take a look." Lin Junhui was also helpless. He came here as a representative of the academy because the Zhang family was too far away.
Zhang Ping'an took the gift list and glanced at it, then invited Lin Junhui to have tea and snacks. Xu knew that her son's classmate was of great importance, so she was extremely attentive and brought out the best snacks and tea prepared at home.
The other women watching in the yard also secretly inquired about the background of this noble young man. If he could become their son-in-law, they would wake up laughing in their dreams.
Shen approached Xu with a shy face and said, "Third sister, I wonder if this young master is married?"
Before Mrs. Xu could answer, Second Lady Xu rolled her eyes and whispered, "Don't daydream about that. Others won't look down on your lotus flowers."
"Second sister-in-law, what are you talking about? What's wrong with my lotus?" Shen was very dissatisfied when she heard this and asked her to say that her lotus was a good match for this young man.
Xu Granny couldn't stand it any longer and lowered her voice to scold him, "Alright, stop saying such things and make yourself look bad. It's easy for others to laugh at you."
Little Yu also smiled meaningfully and said, "That's right, even a student doesn't look down on our girl, let alone a scholar!"
Upon hearing this, Xu looked embarrassed and could only pretend not to hear it.
After entering the courtyard, Lin Junhui only sat for a moment and drank half a cup of tea before apologizing, "I should have stayed for dinner, but the journey back to the county town is long, and my relatives are having a banquet tomorrow, so I really can't stay long. Please forgive me."
Zhang Pingan waved his hand and said with a smile: "Brother Lin, what are you talking about? It's inconvenient to travel from the county town. I'm already very happy that you can come."
"Okay, then I'll take my leave. We'll get together again when we get back to the county. There's a wedding banquet at my house on August 28th, so remember to come and have a feast," Lin Junhui stood up and bowed to say goodbye.
After everyone left, the women in the yard began to chatter, "Wow, this noble young man from the county is really different. Look at his imposing demeanor!"
"What? You still want someone to be your son-in-law? Stop daydreaming," a woman joked.
"I'm just saying. We can't get close to such a person. But Ping'an hasn't got married yet," the woman who spoke just now retorted. She still had self-awareness.
Everyone then remembered that the scholar's marriage had not yet been decided, and they could not help but ask Xu: "Second brother, what kind of girl does your Ping'an want to marry? I tell you that my niece is very beautiful, sensible and reasonable. How about I introduce her to your Ping'an?"
"I'm afraid your niece from your mother's side is as short as you and looks like a carrot. She is not worthy of the scholar. But I have a granddaughter who is only twelve years old. She is tall and pretty, and she is very good at cooking. I think she is a perfect match for the scholar." Another elderly lady said, patting her thigh.
Everyone was talking at once, and the topic gradually turned to finding a matchmaker for the scholar. Mrs. Xu was no fool. She knew none of these country girls were worthy of her son, so she said perfunctorily, "It all depends on what the child's father says. The child is still young, so there's no need to rush!"
Everyone felt very sorry after hearing this. This was such a popular couple. Maybe this scholar could pass the imperial examination and become a juren in the future. What a great match!
The one who regretted the most was Xiao Yu. She had a keen eye and saw at first glance that her nephew had a promising future. Unfortunately, her daughter Juhua did not seize the opportunity, and now there was no hope for her to become a scholar.
Everyone in the yard was chatting happily, and many mule carts arrived outside one after another. The Sun family, Si Ya's in-laws' family from the county town, also came. Most of the others were landlords and gentry from nearby villages and towns who came to congratulate them. Some came in person, and some sent servants to deliver gifts. Zhang Lao Da was someone who could not be relied upon, and Zhang Lao Er and Zhang Ping'an were so busy that they were dizzy.
Fortunately, there were capable cousins in the clan and the village chief Uncle Changqiang who helped arrange the banquet, otherwise we would have been very busy. The banquet at noon was even more sumptuous than that in the morning, and we were busy until almost the afternoon before we could rest.
At present, except for the real relatives who stayed for dinner, the villagers and other guests had already been sent away. Zhang Ping'an's four aunts didn't want to leave at first, but they left reluctantly after being glared at and scolded by Zhang.
Zhang Laosan pounded his lower back and sighed, "Fortunately I listened to my mother and only had a buffet for one day. If I had done that for three days, I'd have been half dead."
Erhe felt the same way: "I gave a few dozen coins as a gift, but they brought their entire family to the banquet. This banquet is going to be a big loss."
Zhang Pingan said with a smile, "It's just this once after all. If we don't let others enjoy their meal, they'll talk about us being stingy behind our backs. When we have a happy event, we have to let others take advantage of it."
Zhang was also exhausted. She nodded while smoking a cigarette and said, "That's right. One should not be too superficial. Besides, our family is not well-off. We need to think more carefully before doing anything."
Erhe handed the gift list he had written down for today to Zhang and said, "Grandma, this is today's gift list."
Zhang didn't take it, but waved her hand and said, "Give it to your second uncle. These gifts should also be given to the second wife. In the future, these favors will also be repaid by the second wife."
Ma was originally waiting with great joy to share these gifts, especially those given by Ping'an's classmates and the gentry, which were obviously good things.
Now that she was assigned by Zhang like this, she was immediately unhappy, but she knew that it was useless for her to say anything, so she secretly pulled Zhang Laosan's sleeve.
Zhang Laosan pretended not to know and did not say anything. He knew that his second brother and nephew were both smart people and it was impossible for them to be completely confused.
Sure enough, Zhang Pingan said, "My family has put in a lot of effort to prepare the banquet for me today. It's very hard work. I see there are a lot of food and daily necessities among the gifts. Let my mother share some with everyone later."
Zhang Lao Er also nodded in agreement and said, "I'll check the gift lists and then have Sanniang distribute the gifts to you."
Although Xu was not very happy, she didn't say anything.
Knowing that their family would get something, the atmosphere in the hall instantly became much better. The topic of conversation turned to Zhang Ping'an's marriage, and Zhang Laoer also perfunctorily avoided the question by saying that the child was too young.
"Then the fifth and sixth girls are old enough, so it would be perfect for our third boy to marry them. They will be cousins even closer," said Mrs. Shen.