Yang PeiMin laughed heartily. She hadn’t told her sister not to speak about it to others, yet her little sister acted as though she was safeguarding a secret, which made PeiMin find her endearingly cute.
Yang Peiying was laughed at to the point of slight embarrassment, even though she didn’t know what was so amusing.
"It’s okay, as long as you find it useful for yourself. As for what others ask, just say whatever you want. If someone asks you to share, tell them to come to me. Everyone’s skin is different and it might not suit them. Plus, don’t shortchange yourself and end up not having enough for your own use."
Peiying looked at her sister and nodded, "I understand, sister."
Lying in bed, Yang PeiMin closed her eyes ready to sleep, but then Yang Peiying shifted, calling out to her. This perked PeiMin up. After all, it had been more than half a year since they’d had a good chat.
So she asked her sister about her daily life.
Truthfully, there wasn’t much to talk about. Peiying’s life and social circle were very simple, revolving just around a few people. Yet, the warmth she felt from them was very real and tangible.
Then Yang PeiMin started to talk about her life in T city and about school.
Yang Peiying, curious as a child, asked all sorts of questions, and PeiMin answered each one.
"Sister, is your sister-in-law staying with you too?"
"Yes, my mother-in-law doesn’t feel at ease with me alone there, so she wanted my sister-in-law to come and take care of me."
"Doesn’t she have school? Does she agree? I mean, is she okay with giving up work to help out?" Peiying remembered telling their mother before that the youngest sister-in-law didn’t quite get along with her.
"She quit her job. After the new year, if everything is okay here with our mother-in-law, she’ll probably come with us... I get along with her quite well now, which is nice. She’s been a great help to me."
"I see... So, she’s going to follow you. Is she going to take care of you during your confinement period too?"
"That’s what my mother-in-law is thinking."
After uttering ’oh’, Yang Peiying suddenly fell silent.
Yang PeiMin turned her head to glance at her sister, "What’s the matter? Why don’t you ask mom for some time off and come visit us? What’s the farthest place you’ve ever been?"
"I’ve been to the town." Peiying’s voice carried a hint of curiosity, "Would mom let me go?"
"Well, do you want to go? There are lots of delicious things there, and some customs and culture that are different from ours here. Consider it a vacation."
"I probably shouldn’t. I still need to help mom with the candy making. Business has picked up, and big brother is helping out too... If I left, things would be even busier..."
Such an honest child.
"Then I’ll ask Mom for you," Zhang Minghua said. "If she agrees, would you want to go? Yingzi, actually, Mom is right. You know, if things fall through with the Yu Family and it gets mixed up with Uncle San’s family, the village will start gossiping about you. If you have a chance to get away for a while and then come back after some time, things will have calmed down. I know you might not care about what people say, but it will upset Mom."
Zhang Minghua had thought it through. Her sister had always stayed at home, never went to school, and with her introverted nature, she was not much into socializing, which had shaped her into someone who just went along with whatever came her way. This kind of personality would lead her to be taken advantage of in the future.
If possible, she wanted to bring her sister with her to slowly learn other things, to stand up for herself. She might not become someone very assertive, but at least she could become independent.
Yang Peiying responded softly.
Later, Yang Peimin felt like she couldn’t hold up anymore and didn’t know when she fell asleep.
When she woke up in the morning, the bright sun was already shining, casting a glaring light that lifted her eyelids.
She looked at her watch; it was already past eight o’clock. She had overslept, as her usual wake-up time was seven unless she felt like indulging in a lazy morning when alone.
It wasn’t long before Yang Peiying came in, and Yang Peimin asked, "Are they calling me in for breakfast?"
Yang Peiying nodded and then added, "Second Aunt Yang came over."
Second Aunt Yang was indeed proactive.
Yang Peimin quickly got energized, dressed up, and sat at the vanity to do her hair while asking Yang Peiying, "Who did she come with?"
"With the matchmaker."
Yang Peimin raised an eyebrow. Was this about proposing or breaking off the engagement?
By the time she left her room, the conversation had already begun in the main room.
She had breakfast in the kitchen before going in.
Second Aunt Yang and the matchmaker were still sitting on the kang, and the matchmaker was talking to Zhang Minghua: "Even if you don’t become in-laws, you can still be friends. It’s a pity, but there was no fate... I just happened to be passing by, so I came to sit for a bit and let you know their intention. Your younger daughter is such a good girl; she will definitely find someone better."
Zhang Minghua’s smile faded a bit, and she nodded as if to agree.
Even though she knew this outcome, hearing her daughter being rejected still didn’t make her happy.
After saying what she had to say, the matchmaker was in no mood to stay any longer, as the people here didn’t seem too pleased.
After the matchmaker left, Second Aunt Yang stayed behind and sighed to Zhang Minghua and the others, "I told you, you were beating around the bush yesterday, not giving a straightforward answer. Maybe if we took the initiative, they would have agreed."
Yang Dahai’s face darkened. "What are you talking about? What kind of aunt encourages her niece to shamelessly court suitors?"
Zhang Minghua was also angry. "Second sister, I want to ask you, what kind of person did you find? They couldn’t even wait a moment and sent the matchmaker especially to tell us that our families weren’t formally engaged. Was that necessary? What will others think? Does it sound good to say we were turned down? I said from the start, Yu Aiguo’s apathetic demeanor, with no vigor, just sitting there daydreaming while everyone else talked, seemed like someone forced him here at gunpoint, with no sincerity at all!" Now that her daughter had been spurned, the more she thought about it, the more despicable Yu Aiguo seemed to her.
Second Aunt Yang was also displeased, "These are their city customs. Why are you getting angry with me? I only tried to help. Whether the matchmaking is successful or not, doesn’t that depend on both parties? It’s not like it’s up to me, the matchmaker, right? I even avoided introducing girls from my husband’s family out of consideration for you, and yet I get no thanks for my efforts! I won’t be involved in your family matters anymore!"