Xiaoxiao and Yang Ming took the child and left, and soon it was time for Wang Xiangxiang’s homecoming after marriage.
On this day, the old Yang Family had been bustling since early in the morning, as they had always taken marrying off and receiving daughters-in-law seriously, but it was their first time dealing with a daughter’s homecoming. Therefore, they valued it greatly.
Old Man Yang even deployed the fourth son of the Yang Family, Yang Dong, to keep watch at the entrance to the village.
As soon as Yang Dong saw the arrival of the carriage adorned with red cloth strips, he knew they had arrived, and he ran back home frantically to report, "Dad, Mom, they’re here, they’ve come, at the village entrance, and they’ll be here any moment."
Hearing this, the family hurried out of the house, all standing at the front door waiting.
The carriage soon stopped at the doorway of the Yang Family.
As the carriage door opened, Chu Lian hopped down first, then helped Wang Xiangxiang out of the carriage.
Seeing her waiting family, Wang Xiangxiang felt a rush of emotion as well, her face was flush with color as she called out, "Dad, Mom."
Chu Lian offered a deep bow and said, "Father-in-law, Mother-in-law."
"Eh, eh," Old Man Yang hurriedly responded, "Please come inside quickly."
The family then entered the house one after another, and the coachman also brought the homecoming gifts inside before withdrawing.
All the womenfolk, except for Yang Ming’s mother, went off to prepare the meal for midday.
As they settled inside, Old Man Yang began, "Master Chu, I really didn’t expect that in the end it would be you who married our Xiangxiang."
"Father-in-law, you should call me by my name, Chu Lian, or simply call me your son-in-law."
"Ah, right, I’m not used to that yet. Chu Lian, I felt something was off with you that day, why were you so drunk? So that’s what it was all about, hehe," Old Man Yang said with a laugh.
"Father-in-law, I made a fool of myself that day," Chu Lian replied somewhat embarrassedly, probably having made a fool of himself in front of his father-in-law, "Father-in-law, we’re family now, rest assured, I will take good care of Xiangxiang."
Old Man Yang nodded repeatedly, "I believe you."
The men sat drinking tea, chatting with each back and forth. With two elder brothers-in-law and one younger, Chu Lian couldn’t avoid being queried about how he ’stole the bride’, and he could only answer each question as they came.
On the other side, Yang Ming’s mother took Wang Xiangxiang’s hand. She was, after all, a woman, and more attentive than those old gents. She was more concerned about whether Wang Xiangxiang was carving out a good life for herself, especially with such events being talked about outside, and if a prominent family could accept such matters?
"My girl, are your mother-in-law and father-in-law treating you well?"
"Mom, they treat me very well, you don’t need to worry," Wang Xiangxiang spoke truthfully. They hadn’t been unkind to her because of that incident or shown her a cold shoulder; on the contrary, they even comforted her, telling her not to care about others’ opinions, so she was no longer afraid or fearful now.
Seeing that she seemed to be in good spirits, Yang Ming’s mother was reassured, "As long as they treat you well. I heard from the wife of your third brother-in-law that you are with child, how severe is your morning sickness?"
"It’s not severe, I only vomit maybe once or twice a day," Wang Xiangxiang responded, thinking that Xiaoxiao would certainly explain it to the family when she returned, and she couldn’t hide her pregnancy.
"Now that you are pregnant, you must be extra careful yourself. Be cautious when walking to avoid falls, and don’t overexert yourself. If the morning sickness becomes severe, get something sour..."
Once the topic turned to pregnancy, Yang Ming’s mother, usually a woman of few words, became more talkative, starting to instruct Wang Xiangxiang on the matters related to her pregnancy.
"Mom, I’ll take care, don’t worry. They treasure this child even more than I do," replied Wang Xiangxiang.