He said tactfully, "Comrade Wang, I still think it’s too fast. Let’s not discuss this issue right now. I see it’s already early, so I invite you to watch a movie, and then we can go eat afterwards. How does that sound?"
Zhao Tianhe knew that watching a movie and having a meal were essentials of a date.
Although he hadn’t yet asked a female comrade out to watch a movie.
But had he not seen Third Brother and his sister-in-law going out for movies and meals on dates?
Yet Wang Dongmei didn’t want to.
Wang Dongmei immediately suggested they part ways, "I have other things to do, so I’ll take my leave first."
Not going to watch a movie and have a meal?
Today, for the matchmaking appointment, Third Brother had taken over the shop for him, and Da Li and sister-in-law Lanhua had told him not to hurry, that they had the shop covered.
Since the lady had other matters, Zhao Tianhe didn’t insist on her staying.
After seeing her off, Zhao Tianhe paid for the tea and headed back to the shop.
"Xiao He, how come you’re back so soon? Didn’t the lady take a liking to you?" Zhang Lanhua asked out of curiosity.
Little Candy lay sleeping sweetly in her little pushcart.
Zhao Tianhe glanced at the pushcart and sighed, "Sister-in-law Lanhua, there’s something I don’t understand. Today, after meeting with Comrade Wang and introducing some details to each other, she brought up the subject of the bride price."
Cao Dali also came over to ask, "How much for the bride price?"
Having spent so much time in Capital City, Cao Dali was somewhat familiar with the situation.
He wanted to know exactly how much the other party was asking for the bride price.
"Five hundred for the bride price, three turns and a sound, and the marriage must happen within a month."
As soon as he said this, Cao Dali and his wife exchanged glances. In Capital City, this bride price wasn’t too high, but why the rush to get married within a month?
This indeed made one wonder.
"What does she look like?" Zhang Lanhua wanted to know what kind of woman would dare to ask for such a high bride price.
She was truly curious.
Zhao Tianhe couldn’t describe that kind of beauty.
If Yun Xiaoxiao saw Wang Dongmei, she would definitely know that the other woman was quite glamorous.
Was it because she was good-looking, that she demanded such a high bride price?
"As long as you like her, that’s all that matters," Cao Dali, as someone who had been through it, commented.
Back then, Li Cuixia was average in looks, but made up for it with her hard work. Still, he hadn’t expected her father to start off by demanding three hundred for the bride price, not to mention three turns and a sound.
The situation was different when he married Lanhua; his in-laws hadn’t been .
They had asked for eighty in bride price and two new sets of clothes.
After their marriage, when they went to visit for the new year, he gifted his father-in-law an electric rice cooker and did not protest.
Zhao Tianlei visited the electronics store and noticed Zhao Tianhe’s poor mood.
"No mutual interest?"
Otherwise, why look so dejected?
"Third Brother, I’m not sure if it counts as mutual interest. The lady wants a five hundred yuan bride price, three turns and a sound, and intends to have the wedding within a month?"
A five hundred yuan bride price?
Three turns and a sound.
These weren’t issues.
But why the rush to get married within a month? That seemed a bit odd.
Was someone pressuring her from her side?
Otherwise, why the urgency to marry?
"What does she look like?"
Was this a sign of affection?
Otherwise, there wouldn’t be such dilemma.
Three turns and a sound, nowadays, in their electronics store, they had radios; an inexpensive one cost only a few dozen yuan.
If it were a watch, then a plain watch would cost eighty-one yuan.
There were no bicycle tickets, so one needed to purchase a ticket then buy the bike, which would cost close to two hundred yuan.
As for a sewing machine, one did not need a ticket for that, and he could procure one, which would cost around one hundred and twenty yuan or so.