stingy landlady

Chapter 8 The Fourth Prince Gets Married

The elderly couple agreed to build a thatched hut for their fourth son first, and then there would be no further discussion about the engagement and marriage.

The couple, Erzhu and his wife, couldn't sleep that night and started whispering among themselves. "Erzhu, do you think our eldest brother and sister-in-law made so much money after they separated from the family? They even bought an oxcart! Our father went with them, could it be that our mother gave them some money?" Zhao asked in a low voice.

Erzhu also pondered, "Our mother couldn't possibly borrow that much money. Could it be that my eldest brother had saved up some savings before the family divided the property? And then used it to buy cattle after the division?"

Erzhu himself also secretly saved up his own money, hence this speculation.

"Father and Mother, I see they sell so much rice and dumplings, they must be making money. They carry so much every day, how many people are carrying it!" The eldest son, Zhao Dalang, chimed in, offering his opinion.

"Kids shouldn't meddle in adults' business! You should learn to do more chores from now on! Stop being lazy and go to sleep!" Erzhu scolded in a low voice.

Zhao tossed and turned on the kang (a heated brick bed): "I think what Dalang said is right. Only by working independently after the family is separated can we save money. At least we won't have to give our earnings to our mothers anymore. Look, after the family is separated, we can get silver and grain, and spend it however we want."

Erzhu felt uncomfortable. "Big brother is rich now, and he's filial to our parents. We all rely on our parents to arrange things for us! Don't think about it so much, go to sleep!"

The two remained silent, each lost in their own thoughts, which we will leave aside for now.

On Biao Dazhu's side, Li was excited and couldn't sleep. Life had been turned upside down; she had never imagined it could be like this—owning her own oxcart, so much cloth and cotton, all belonging to her family. She thought it was a dream, afraid it wasn't real. Afraid that she would wake up and have nothing left.

Dazhu, who had already been excited, warned Li Shi in a low voice, "Father said not to spread this around. You absolutely mustn't go out and talk about it. We can't tell anyone about making money. If we do, everyone will go and cook and sell, and we won't be able to sell anything, so we won't make any money."

Li felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over her, and immediately covered her mouth: "I won't say! I don't know anything no matter who asks me. Besides, I stay at home taking care of the kids and doing needlework every day, what would I know?"

Seeing that their parents understood the importance of keeping their wealth private, the daughters exchanged smiles and went to sleep.

The next morning, Dazhu got up to go herd the cattle. But the old man had already driven them to the riverbank. The old man was still happy that his eldest son had bought cattle.

After the cow had eaten its fill, Grandpa led it back, and the two of them harnessed the oxcart. Dazhu's family then loaded food boxes onto the cart to prepare for the day's business.

The old man told his fourth son about building him a thatched hut. He told his son to go to carpenter Xu to order doors, windows, cabinets, and other furniture, while he went to find a bricklayer, ask people to help inspect the land where the house was to be built, buy bricks and other materials, and find a well-drilling master. He was extremely busy.

During dinner that evening, I casually mentioned to Erzhu's family that we were going to build a house for the fourth son. The fourth son happily replied, "Thank you, Dad! Thank you, Mom! I'll work hard and try to haul more firewood to sell for more money!"

Erzhu was a little surprised: "Father, Mother, why do you suddenly want to build a house? Building a house will cost a lot of money, let's just make do with what we have for now!"

Zhao also said, "Yes! Father and Mother, we just sold the grain, and there's not enough food and drink for so many people in the family. We still need money for the fifth son's schooling! Where would we get extra money to build a house?"

Upon hearing this, the fourth son immediately looked at the old man and then at the old woman, feeling distressed. He ate silently without saying a word, but the food no longer tasted good, and he swallowed it without any flavor.

"Eat your food! Zhao, if you don't want to eat, go feed Xiaoshan! Erzhu, your father is just informing you! It's not your turn to run the household yet!" The old lady scolded, displeased.

“Father and Mother, we’re doing this for the good of the family! My eldest brother is now earning money from selling food and has bought a cow and a cart. Why don’t we go sell food too?” Zhao tentatively suggested.

"Erzhu, back then you looked down on the eldest son's family for not having a son, only a bunch of girls, who weren't strong enough to farm! Oh! Now that the family has separated, you see them making money! Don't you think about it? Your eldest brother and sister-in-law can only make a little money this way!" The old lady said earnestly.

"Mrs. Zhao, before the family divided, your nieces did a lot of housework, washing clothes, cooking, feeding chickens and pigs. Your daughter was spoiled, but no one said anything to you! Now that the family has divided, your eldest brother's daughters are still cooking and selling food, and your good daughter still doesn't lift a finger!" The old lady felt that she had really spoiled this daughter-in-law too much!

"Alright! I've already hired people to start building the house tomorrow, and we'll try to finish it before the ice freezes. Second brother, you guys shouldn't be thinking about your eldest brother's business anymore! He's your own brother, you have to leave him some way to make a living! After you finish eating, go to bed early. Tomorrow, Erzhu and Fourth Brother will help with the work, and Erzhu's wife and your mother will cook together! Let Taozhi come out and help you too." The old man made the final decision.

The thatched hut on Lao Si's side was under construction in full swing, while Da Zhu's business continued as usual. Whenever he had free time, Da Zhu would go and help with the work. Whenever Da Ya and her sisters had free time, Li Shi would keep them indoors, not letting them go out, and they would learn to do needlework, making quilts and cotton-padded clothes. Tao Zhi from Er Shu's family couldn't just stay indoors embroidering anymore these days; she also had to help her mother with laundry, cooking, and washing dishes.

November arrived in the blink of an eye, and Lao Si's thatched cottage was finally finished before the first snowfall! He invited close relatives and friends from the village to his home for a feast to celebrate the completion of the new house. Because his wedding banquet was coming up in a few days, the celebration was simple, just a meal with close friends and family, and no monetary gifts were accepted. They were worried that holding several banquets a year and receiving too many gifts would lead to gossip. Nobody wants to be talked about behind their back.

Fourth Uncle is getting married. Guizhi asked Dazhu, and Li asked, "Father, Mother, should we give a gift or something for Fourth Uncle's wedding?"

"Of course we have to give a gift! How much should we give, sir?" Madam Li answered without hesitation, then looked at Dazhu and asked.

"How much should we take? Taking too little won't look good, but taking too much will make a huge difference?" Dazhu was also in a dilemma.

Da Ya and Er Ya said they didn't understand and wouldn't object.

Guizhi, ever the clever one, said, "Dad, let's ask Carpenter Xu to make a wardrobe for Fourth Uncle! It won't cost much, and everyone can see it. Fourth Uncle and his new aunt will be happy to see it every day!"

Er Ya said, "Third Sister, I saw that Grandpa and Grandma made a new cabinet for Fourth Uncle. It's the same as ours."

"Then let's make something different!" Guizhi thought of the kangqin. "Kangqin? What's that?" Dazhu and Li had never heard of this novelty before.

Guizhi explained, "I heard it's a long, narrow piece of furniture that's placed on the kang (heated brick bed). It can be used as a table, and you can put things on it, or draw pictures on it. It's very pretty!"

Dazhu nodded, "Alright, I'll go talk to carpenter Xu tomorrow and ask him to give me a raise so he can make a more novel kangqin."

The next day, Dazhu led Guizhi—well, Guizhi was practically a little tagalong—to Xu the carpenter's house. Xu the carpenter listened to Dazhu's idea and thought it was feasible; the two discussed the design and price. Guizhi said, "Why don't we draw it?"

"Who can draw?" Dazhu shook his head. "I can't. Carpenter Xu can draw." Guizhi said, "I like to draw, I'll draw!"

Guizhi picked up a piece of charcoal from the stove pit and drew a long, rectangular table with four compartments inside and four doors on the outside. She casually drew lotus flowers, birds, fish, and water on the doors. A neatly made quilt lay on the table. "Beautiful!" Dazhu and Carpenter Xu exclaimed in unison.

Carpenter Xu rubbed his hands together. "Sanya, I can't carve the picture on this door."

“Uncle Xu, you can buy some pretty paintings to stick on it! Or you can paint it along the natural grain of the wood, and it will be a natural painting,” Guizhi said with a smile.

A few days later, a beautiful kangqin (a type of traditional Chinese stringed instrument) was finished and delivered to Lao Si's new house. Lao Si and his grandparents were very pleased, praising the kangqin as both practical and beautiful. Da Zhu's family also felt very proud.

Erzhu agreed, but Zhao was extremely envious! "Big brother, fourth brother has a kangqin, and Erzhu is also your brother. Shouldn't you treat us equally and give us one too?"

Dazhu was speechless. Guizhi, though young, was quite precocious: "Second Aunt, this is our family's wedding gift for Fourth Uncle. Does Second Aunt hope Second Uncle will marry another bride?"

Everyone in the room laughed. "This Sanya is still just a child. If your second uncle remarries, it'll be like taking a concubine!" Carpenter Xu, who delivered the goods, joked with a smile.

Zhao rolled her eyes at Erzhu, "We don't even have enough to eat for the few of us in our family! Where would we get the money to help your second uncle take a concubine! You'd better have the ability to do it too!"

The fourth son's wedding was set for December 8th. The kang (heated brick bed) in the new house was heated every day, and the fourth son would move in after the kang dried. He wanted to warm up the house first and then slowly clean it inside and out.

The old lady was busy making her son's wedding luggage, and she called Li Shi and Tao Zhi over to help with the needlework. They needed to make a set of quilts and a groom's suit. Da Zhu also bought some fabric and made a new coat for each of the two elders.

The house was bustling with activity, much more so than usual, as preparations were underway for a wedding. Adults were busy preparing, and many children had also been brought along.

The third son's family of four, along with the fifth son, returned two days before the fourth son's wedding. The third son worked as a cart driver at a cart shop in town and had changed his name to Wang Yifeng. He had two children, a son and a daughter, Wang Mingjie and Wang Guiying. One was six years old, and the other was four. Both were fair-skinned and dressed in clean and pretty clothes, and their every word and smile was endearing.

Qian's family lived in the town; her father was a scholar who had passed the imperial examinations for many years but failed to advance further. Due to limited resources, he had to give up. He supported himself by teaching at a private school in town.

Under her father's influence, Qian was also literate. Wang Yifeng lived not far from her father-in-law's house, and since her in-laws didn't live with her, it was convenient for Qian to visit her parents' home. She often took her children back to her parents' home. Her son, Wang Mingjie, started his formal education at his maternal grandfather when he was five, and now he studies with him. Her daughter, Wang Guiying, came back to her hometown with her parents, and everything was new and exciting to her. She didn't run around, but sat there like a little adult, her eyes constantly darting around, looking here and there.

The old lady hadn't seen her grandchildren in a long time and was overjoyed. She quickly gave the two children some pastries, saying, "Eat up, eat more! Were you cold on the way? I don't know if you missed Grandma. Grandma missed you so much."

The two children looked at their mother, Qian, who nodded. They both reached out and took the pastries, saying in unison, "Thank you, Grandma!"

"Oh my! How polite! I'm your grandma, no need to thank me!" The old lady was overjoyed.

"You've taught the two children well. Mingjie, are you having a hard time studying with your grandpa now?" The old man nodded in approval.

"Grandpa, I'm not afraid of difficulties! Where there's a will, there's a way! I'm going to study hard!" Wang Mingjie had heard his parents' instructions in town to behave well when he returned to his hometown. That way, his grandparents would be more willing to pay for his schooling, as the cost would increase as he progressed through his education.

"Good, good, good! Study hard, and you'll be successful in the future, able to pass the imperial examinations and become an official! Third son! You have a really good son!" The old man was even happier!

Madam Qian took out two sets of clothes and two pairs of shoes. "Father and Mother, these are clothes and shoes I made for you two, all made according to your old sizes. Take a look and see if you like them."

Wang Yifeng brought over two bottles of wine. "Father, this is the fine wine that a distinguished person gave me when I escorted him to the county town last time. I couldn't bear to drink it, so I brought it back to you as a token of my respect."

The two elderly people said they didn't want to waste money, but they were secretly overjoyed. What child wouldn't love such filial and understanding children!