Hongji... This is really becoming a kidnapping scenario, but a wise man does not suffer in front of him, and besides, he would secure a woman to bear his children.
Wealth is external; now that the family is large and prosperous, a hundred taels is nothing. Annoyed, he thought the old woman was too meddlesome. He was taking a wife, not buying a slave, and saw no downside for himself in this.
He glared fiercely at Mrs. Lai, who he’d grown to detest.
At this moment, Mrs. Lai began to panic, wondering when her family had become so ruthless, like a den of wolves and leopards.
Her body shook, and the little maid, young and naive, struggled to support her, one hand on her mistress, the other steadying herself against the bed.
The little maid, still young and unaware, was scared enough by their fierce quarreling and the looming threat of a fight. If possible, she wanted to run away.
Seeing the couple genuinely scared, Mrs. Lai’s relatives snickered to themselves, pleased.
In truth, they were just putting on an act; they wouldn’t dare to actually kidnap or hit anyone. They knew if they killed these two elders, their entire family would be doomed, possibly even executed.
They wouldn’t end up with the money and would get hurt in the process; the couple’s son had connections with wealthy individuals and officials.
Hongji’s father didn’t want the written evidence he provided to become the basis for someone else’s complaint. After considering it smartly, he pulled out several silver taels from his pocket and offered them as a down payment.
They would choose a day to send someone to fetch her, but as he’d already said, he wouldn’t come himself; he would send someone else to come along.
The negotiation had reached the outcome they wanted, hence they sent the couple and the little maid out.
"Oh my, big sister-in-law, how come you took so long to find uncle!"
At this point, Mrs. Lai’s relatives finally appeared at the door, coincidentally.
Back then, the couple wasn’t thinking about the coincidence.
All they wanted was to leave quickly; such news getting out was bad for everyone.
When they reached her parental home, they only saw the relatives loading the return gifts onto the carriage; Mrs. Lai couldn’t care less what they were. She let the maid help her onto the cart.
She wanted to lie down in the cart, never to see or hear from her relatives again.
Mrs. Lai now despised her own family, though she hadn’t realized they were involved too.
If she had suspected, she wouldn’t have left so readily; she would have made a scene with her true kin.
As for marrying into the family and then dealing with her relatives, it was too late; later, she would bear a grudge, not favoring her own family, losing the desire to visit her parental home, and fighting with the concubines at home. (This is a well-known saying)
By this time, Hongji’s father had sobered up, and no matter what the relatives said or how often they came, he quietly drove the ox cart without a word.
The couple didn’t respond, and the relatives didn’t seem embarrassed. The two families exchanged looks, waiting until the ox cart was out of sight to gather and discuss dividing the money.
The girl’s father and family said their daughter, who they had raised with difficulty, was marrying without a dowry, but she needed to take some private money with her to avoid being bullied in her new home.
The thought of sharing a hundred taels with others caused some regret for collaborating; after quarreling for so long, they should have demanded more. Now, it was too late for regrets; they could only hope that once the girl married into the family, she would bring their wealth back home.
"There’s also the banquet for ten tables and three gold." Mrs. Lai’s brothers felt that splitting it evenly wasn’t enough, they wanted a larger share. Without their help, the daughter would never have married into such a wealthy family, showing how much the family had already gained.
"Our family has raised a daughter with great difficulty, do you think it’s easy? You’re getting money without doing much, we naturally deserve the bigger share, give you thirty taels, take it or leave it!"
The girl’s father had already been reluctant to share with these people, and now he was becoming domineering, thinking that once his daughter enjoyed wealth and honor, they wouldn’t need to please her big brother’s family.
"Humph, only giving thirty taels, aren’t you afraid I’ll tell big sister!" Mrs. Lai’s brother, of course, was not satisfied. Receiving only thirty taels out of a hundred was too little, they should at least split it evenly.