"Out of the blue, why start talking about finding a match for Nianhua, that girl?"
As soon as she stepped into the house, Liu Sanmei scrutinized her own daughter, who had given birth to two sons for her husband’s family. Although the mother-in-law was somewhat difficult, things were quite good for Xu Qinghu considering her two grandsons.
"Mom, they took a fancy to Nianhua." Xu Qinghu herself wasn’t very clear about it, except that the boss’s son had taken a liking to her, which was naturally what she thought.
"Has he seen Nianhua?" Liu Sanmei thought about the recent times when Xu Nianhua and her siblings often went to the county town to sell plums.
Could those sour and astringent plums really sell?
"Isn’t Nianji working at the brick factory? Maybe when Nianhua went to see Nianji, she ran into him." Xu Qinghu guessed, holding Liu Sanmei’s hand, saying, "Mom, if this works out, your son-in-law could be promoted to team leader, and then his salary could increase by ten yuan every month.
"After that, we can truly take better care of you." Xu Qinghu looked at Liu Sanmei with a grin, her expression ingratiating.
"I don’t get a say in this matter; schmoozing me is useless, your eldest brother and sister-in-law have to agree." Liu Sanmei looked at her daughter’s well-preserved face, asking, "How old is the son of the brick factory owner?"
"Thirty," Xu Qinghu paused, then added, "A bit more."
"How much more?" Liu Sanmei asked frowning.
Xu Qinghu added, "However, his family is especially wealthy, they even have several houses. The Yue Family said that as long as Nianhua is willing to marry over, they will let the couple live in the county town, separate from the family, and they’re offering a generous dowry too—five hundred yuan."
Xu Qinghu felt that although the man was a bit older, an older age could mean more tenderness, right? And there were the houses, the town household registration, and a five hundred yuan dowry. Once the match was made, the Yue Family had also promised to give her fifty yuan for matchmaker’s fees. With such a good opportunity, she didn’t delay a moment and immediately returned to her maternal home.
"The age difference is too much." Liu Sanmei shook her head, saying, "Your eldest brother adores his daughter, and he originally wanted Nianhua to go to college. How could he agree to marry Nianhua off so early, especially to someone so much older?"
Five hundred yuan was a lot of money, and even Liu Sanmei felt her heart sway slightly, but could she agree to marry off Xu Qinghe’s cherished daughter?
"Mom, an older man will be more caring, and besides, when a girl is of age, she should marry. No matter how much she has studied, won’t she eventually marry off anyway? Now that she’s met someone with good conditions, why not marry?" Xu Qinghu urged, "Mom, please help me out. You’re Nianhua’s grandmother, if you step in and say something, others would dream of such a good opportunity."
Liu Sanmei gave her a look but said nothing.
If it’s indeed such a sought-after opportunity, why are you pleading with me? Why not directly approach Ji Ying instead?
"Mom, after it’s all settled, there’s an additional benefit fee of thirty yuan, all of which I’ll give to you." Xu Qinghu said this.
Liu Sanmei pondered for a long while and then said, "This matter..."
"Mom, look around our village, whose daughter-in-law’s dowry could reach five hundred yuan? Not to mention, five hundred, even three hundred is considered a lot." Xu Qinghu added, "The Yue Family agreed, besides the five hundred yuan dowry, there are the ’three rounds and one resounding shot’ plus ’thirty-six sturdy legs’, all complete."
"The house has been divided; I can’t make decisions for your elder brother’s household." Liu Sanmei had a lot on her mind, but she still refused. Xu Qinghu praised the Yue Family to the skies, but it was this very exaggeration that made Liu Sanmei feel uneasy. With the Yue Family being so wealthy, what kind of daughter-in-law couldn’t they find?