Free Web NovelChapter 42: Chapter 42: Li Hua’s Marriage
The young couple had just gotten home when Li Yuan arrived with Li Bo. "Big Brother, Big Sister-in-law, my mom told me to come get you for dinner," Li Yuan said, happily munching on the wild apricots and mulberries Zhou Lian had given her.
Li Xiu smiled and said, "Talk with your sister-in-law for a bit. I’ll just tidy up and we’ll head over." ’It must be about Li Hua’s marriage,’ he thought. Li Hua was a year younger than him, and in his last life, she had gotten married this very year. The man was a decent sort, handpicked by Aunt Li herself.
Li Xiu took the basket to the kitchen and discovered that besides the suckling pig, his father-in-law had also added a large pork knuckle. He couldn’t help but smile. His father-in-law was too generous. A whole pig seemed like a lot, but it wasn’t enough to go around. There were his three brothers-in-law’s in-laws, a share for his eldest brother-in-law, a share for his eldest sister-in-law, and his mother-in-law’s side of the family. His father-in-law’s own household had seven people. ’Oh well,’ he thought, ’I’ll just have to be more filial to them when I have the chance in the future!’
Carrying two catties of meat, supporting his wife, and with his young cousins in tow, Li Xiu greeted people with a broad smile all along the way. "Yes, we’re going to see my grandma."
"It’s meat from my father-in-law. Taking some to my grandma..."
When they arrived at his uncle’s house, Aunt Li was displeased. "That meat is for your wife to build up her strength! What are you doing bringing it here?"
Li Xiu smiled and said, "Aunt Li, my father-in-law gave us a lot. This is so Grandma and the kids can have a taste of meat too."
"Don’t bring any more next time. Your wife is pregnant now; she needs to eat well. By the way, what’s going on with your father’s health? How did they get it wrong?" Aunt Li asked as she took the meat. The rumor had been spreading all over the village for the past two days, but Li Xiu had taken his wife to his in-laws’, and Second Brother Li couldn’t explain it clearly. Now that she saw Li Xiu, she had to ask immediately.
Li Xiu looked around and saw that his uncle’s family and his grandmother were all there. He sat down next to his wife and said with a smile, "Oh, it’s fine now. The doctor said it’s not tuberculosis. It’s just from smoking too much; his trachea is in bad shape. The medicine he’s been taking all these years wasn’t treating the right problem. If he quits smoking and takes some medicine for half a year to recuperate, he’ll be fine!"
Seeing everyone’s surprised expressions, Li Xiu gave a wry smile. "It’s a good thing we went and got it checked. If my dad had kept going like that, his coughing could have gotten so bad that his trachea might have ruptured, causing a major hemorrhage. He would’ve been a goner!"
Grandma Li trembled with anger when she heard this. She had seen how ferociously he smoked and how terribly he coughed, and she had always told him to quit. Now look at this mess—it was all his own doing. When he came by yesterday, all he said was that there was a mix-up, it wasn’t tuberculosis, and he just had to take new medicine for six months. ’That bastard,’ she thought. ’How did I ever give birth to such a creature?’
Seeing that Grandma Li was upset, Zhou Lian quickly comforted her. "Grandma, don’t be angry. Look, isn’t this good news? The most important thing is that his health is fine. Grandma, I had an ultrasound. It’s a girl."
"Really? You can actually tell if it’s a boy or a girl?" Grandma Li asked in surprise.
"Yes, you can. They said you can tell after about three months, but the doctor normally won’t say. Li Xiu secretly slipped him some money, and the doctor only told us because he knew we were newly married and this is our first child."
Zhou Lian gently stroked her belly as she spoke. ’The preference for boys over girls has been so strong since ancient times,’ she thought. ’How could a doctor dare to say anything casually? What if they found out it was a girl and decided to have an abortion? Who would take responsibility for that?’
"That’s true. They wouldn’t dare say. Many families go crazy trying to have a boy; they’d do anything," Aunt Li chimed in from the side.
"Grandma, Aunt Li, my daughter is going to be very beautiful. I’ve already picked a nickname for her: Nuonuo," Li Xiu showed off happily.
Li Cui burst out laughing. ’Good grief, my big brother is really something else.’ "Big Brother, Nuonuo... as in the ’nuo’ from ’chengnuo,’ promise, right?"
Li Xiu shot her a glare and retorted, "What, you have a problem with it, Auntie?"
Li Cui clutched her stomach, bent over with laughter. Seeing her big brother’s dark expression, she quickly waved her hands. "No, no problem at all."
"We ’aunties’ don’t have a problem with it, but who knows if our little niece will!" Li Fen shot back directly. ’Her big brother was just a paper tiger when it came to his female cousins. What was there to be afraid of? It’s not like she was one of the boys. If his little brothers provoked him, they might get a beating, but she was his little cousin. The most he’d do was glare at her and that would be the end of it.’
"Is there something wrong with the name?" Aunt Li asked curiously, looking at her four daughters who were all bent over laughing, and even their father, who had a wide grin on his face.
Uncle Li, in a rare moment of teasing, joked with his nephew, "What kind of promise did you make to your wife that you need your daughter to remind you of it every day?"
Grandma Li and Aunt Li were a bit bewildered. ’So you can even name a child like that. This young couple really knows how to have fun!’
"Aunt Li, did you call us over today to talk about Big Sister’s wedding?" Seeing his wife’s face turn red with embarrassment, Li Xiu quickly changed the subject. Braving his uncle’s teasing grin, Li Xiu shamelessly asked Aunt Li.
"Oh, the Zhang Family had the matchmaker come and ask about the wedding date. They want your big sister to marry over after the wheat harvest," Aunt Li said, looking at her eldest daughter.
"Make it after the autumn harvest. Just say the timing is too tight and the dowry isn’t ready yet," Li Xiu said after a moment of thought. In his past life, his cousin’s father-in-law had fallen ill from the exhaustion of the wheat harvest and his son’s wedding. It made his cousin live on eggshells until she became pregnant.
"Is something wrong?" Aunt Li asked quickly. Her nephew was always reliable; he wouldn’t object to something for no reason.
Seeing his aunt’s anxiety, Li Xiu reassured her, "It’s nothing major, don’t worry. It’s just that my cousin’s future sister-in-law has a child who is very sick. If something were to happen, it would cast a pall over the wedding." In his past life, that child had died right around the time of the wheat harvest.
"I did hear about that. Is it very serious?" Li Hua asked cautiously. She had heard the child was sick but hadn’t realized it was that bad.
"Yes. The county hospital can’t cure it." ’It’s probably brain cancer,’ he thought. ’There’s nothing that can be done about it right now. Not just now, but even decades from now, there won’t be a cure.’
"Then tell the matchmaker we’ll do it after the autumn harvest. That gives us more time to build a few more pieces of furniture anyway," Uncle Li said, taking a drag from his cigarette and making the decision on the spot. ’Since my nephew said after the autumn harvest, that child must not have long to live.’
After a long silence, Grandma Li said, "Don’t have the girl work during the autumn harvest. Let her rest up and look her best for the wedding."
Seeing that her husband and mother-in-law had both made up their minds, Aunt Li didn’t say anything more. ’It’s all for my daughter’s own good,’ she thought. ’We really didn’t dote on this nephew for nothing. He’s a good, kindhearted boy. Even though it wouldn’t be a huge deal if she got married then, running into something like that would still make a new bride feel uneasy.’
After dinner, Grandma Li and Aunt Li gave them another round of earnest instructions before letting the couple go home. Li Xiu’s own mother wasn’t very attentive, so as the grandmother-in-law and aunt-in-law, they had to show more concern. They couldn’t let their grandson’s wife and nephew’s wife think that the people of the Li family were inconsiderate.
On the way back, both of them started smiling. ’Grandma’s one thing, but it must be hard for Aunt Li,’ Li Xiu thought. ’She can’t be too distant with her nephew’s wife, but she can’t be too close either. If she says too little, it seems like she doesn’t care. If she says too much, she’s afraid her nephew and his wife will overthink things. But in both of his lives, Aunt Li has always handled it perfectly!’
"Bao’er, do you still want to eat roast suckling pig?" Li Xiu asked Zhou Lian as soon as they got home. The weather was getting warmer, and it wouldn’t keep for long.
Zhou Lian shook her head. She was a little tired of eating meat these past few days. After a moment, she asked, "But suckling pig is only good roasted, and it won’t keep. What should we do?"
"It’s fine. I’ll marinate it with some seasonings in a bit, and tomorrow I’ll roast it slowly over a low fire. I’ll roast it until all the moisture is gone from the meat and even the bones are crispy. You can eat it like a snack, and it won’t be too rich that way!" Li Xiu said with a smile. ’My wife has a small appetite. Once this is roasted until it’s fragrant and crispy, she’s sure to love it!’
"But how long will that take?" Zhou Lian said with a frown. The wheat harvest was starting in a few days, and she wanted Li Xiu to get some proper rest. A single harvest was enough to wear a person to the bone.
Li Xiu pulled her into his arms and kissed her, saying gently, "It’s not tiring. It’s not too hot right now; I’ll just be sitting there turning it. It doesn’t take much effort, so it’s fine."
Knowing she couldn’t convince him, Zhou Lian just nodded and didn’t say anything more. Seeing her quiet and obedient look, Li Xiu couldn’t resist whispering in her ear, "If you’re really that worried about me, then promise me one thing, okay?"
