SFS Chapter 473 Engagement
Chapter 473 Engagement
Time flies, the stars move, and in the blink of an eye it is the end of the year.
Looking down at Niutoushan Village, I saw more than a dozen tall and short houses around the village, some made of blue bricks and gray tiles, and some made of adobe and thatched roofs.
But if you look at the entire Niutoushan Village, you will find that there are more than a dozen newly added blue brick houses.
This does not include the four new three-room blue brick houses built on Zhao Dong's side of the road. This is a huge change.
It was already December, and Wen Wuyan had already returned from private school, and the children at home had finished school a few days earlier than him.
There was a heavy snow a few days ago, but the weather has been good recently, and there is no trace of snow anywhere else except in the mountains.
The little girl Wen Shengxi was wearing a crabapple-colored cotton-padded jacket, a pomegranate-red skirt, and a pearl flower on her head today. When she saw Gu Qingqing, she blushed and called out "Sister". Her watery eyes were very lively.
Yes, today is her engagement day, December 16th.
Because of her happy event, Lu Xiaocao and Gu Zhuangzhuang did not go to the shops in town today, but stayed at home to help with the tidying up.
People wear thick clothes in winter, and it became increasingly difficult for Gu Qingqing, who was carrying a nine-month-old belly, to carry things. However, she still got up early, asked the children at home to change into new clothes, and carried some items on a tray to the backyard.
"Oh, Shengxi doesn't usually dress up, but now she looks like a flower. When Zhao Bei sees her, he will be so fascinated."
"Sister, you always like to tease me." Wen Shengxi felt his face burning.
Gu Qingqing looked at her shy appearance and couldn't help but teasing her, "You'll be getting married in a few years, and you blush all the time. Now that you're engaged, you'll be an adult. You should dress yourself up and wear more beautiful clothes. I've chosen a piece of brightly colored cloth for you, so you can make a few more sets of clothes for yourself in the future."
Gu Qingqing put down the tray in her hand, stepped forward and put a silver hairpin she had brought on her head, then said, "You are getting engaged today, so I can't give you something too eye-catching. When you get married in the future, I will give you a nice headdress."
"Thank you, sister. Sister, does it look good?" Wen Shengxi looked at the first sister and Uncle Gu Qingqing, while the second sister looked at Lu Xiaocao with expectant eyes.
"It's beautiful, how can it not be beautiful. Sister, please spoil her. When I was her age, I didn't even have a pair of earrings, let alone a silver hairpin." Obviously, Lu Xiaocao's latter words were directed to Gu Qingqing.
"She is your biological sister and now she is also a member of the Wen family. If I don't treat her well, who will? Is this place ready? If so, let's go to the front yard. When I came here just now, your brother-in-law said that the meal will be ready soon. Let's eat early today."
The three of them went to the front yard together.
Zhao Dong and the others didn't come to the house for breakfast today, so only their family and Old Yang were there for breakfast. Wen Shengxi was even more polite when eating breakfast than usual.
Not long after breakfast, Wu Fang's festive and loud voice was heard outside the yard.
The person proposing marriage has arrived.
Wenrou ran out when she heard the voice, and then everyone heard her voice at the door, "Uncle Zhao Bei, my aunt is so beautiful today. Please hurry up and come in to have a look."
Wen Wuyan, Gu Qingqing, Lu Xiaocao and Li Xin also stood up and went outside to greet them.
Except for the youngest child of the Zhao family, all six people from east to center came. Because they were so familiar with each other, they did not specially invite a matchmaker, so Wu Fang and Zhao Qin acted as the matchmaker.
When everyone met, Wen Wuyan greeted them politely and then invited them into the yard to talk.
Li Xin and Wen Xin were responsible for serving tea and water, and the table was filled with melon seeds and dried fruits for everyone to eat.
As soon as everyone was seated, Wu Fang brought out the gifts she had prepared.
A piece of red satin, on which was placed a pair of silver rings strung together with red cloth, and a silver hairpin that was not bulky but rather delicate. There was also a bracelet that was gilded enough.
At the same time, this bracelet is also the most valuable item in today's order.
"We just settled down this year and are building a house, so we prepared these things first. Don't be disgusted. When they get married, we will definitely prepare them well for you."
What can Gu Qingqing say?
One is her own family member, and the other is half a family member. For her, it is just a matter of passing from left hand to right hand.
She roughly estimated in her mind that the betrothal gift Zhao Bei bought would cost about three taels of silver.
These are really good. Some time ago, Wang Jie's younger brother Wang Chu made an order with a family in Lijiazhuang, and they gave them a piece of fine cotton cloth and a very simple silver fork.
The betrothal process in the village is extremely simple. All they have to do is put an item on the woman's head.
Silver ones are considered good. Many people used copper hairpins before.
"Look at what you are talking about. My little sister will live in a big blue brick house after she gets married. This is something that many people envy. Besides, we eat and drink together all day long, and we are so familiar with each other that we don't care about these things. As long as..."
Lu Xiaocao said this while looking at Zhao Bei with a smile, "Just be nice to Shengxi in the future."
"Hahaha, don't worry about this. If Zhao Bei dares to treat Shengxi badly, we, his sisters-in-law, will be the first to not forgive him." Wu Fang continued with a laugh.
"I won't bully Shengxi. I don't even have time to love her." The childish words immediately made everyone laugh.
As a result, the atmosphere immediately became lively.
It's just that these people are too familiar with each other, so there is no sense of restraint at all.
Having said almost everything, Gu Qingqing called Wen Shengxi over, took out the gilded bracelet she had ordered and put it on her wrist, and the deal was done.
We had lunch here at noon.
Gu Qingqing didn't have to worry about cooking because of her big belly. They just chatted and laughed while stewing a pot of vegetables.
After dinner, the adults in the family were chatting, and the girl who was good at needlework was also busy. She helped Gu Qingqing make clothes and swaddling clothes that the baby would need after he was born. Everyone knew that Gu Qingqing was good at everything except needlework.
Several people were busy with their work and chatting.
"Qingqing, are you really going to let Daxin take the exam next February?" Zhao Qin asked.
"Yes, otherwise what's the point of studying every day, isn't it just for the exam. What about your Jiang He, do you want to participate next year? He studies very hard, I think he can give it a try." Gu Qingqing said casually.
Zhao Qin hurriedly shook her head and said, "I have discussed this with your brother Zhong. We want him to try next year. If he passes the exam, we will sell everything we have to support him. If he fails for two consecutive years, we will let him help at home."
"Why are you in such a hurry? There won't be an exam next year. In two years, Jiang He will only be ten years old. He is at the age of being sensible and eager to learn. Just let him study. Besides, if our children study with Uncle Yang, they don't have to pay tuition. The paper we use now is the flying-edge paper produced at home. It only costs a few brushes and ink sticks."