Chapter 99
Widow remarriage application form.
After filling out the form, just hand it in to the Jiēdào.
Jia Zhangshi was at a loss for words.
Even if she doesn't want to, she must marry.
Marry.
Jia Zhangshi would be happy inside, but at least on the surface she had to pretend reluctance.
It also depends on the man's conditions.
Good conditions.
Jia Zhangshi felt pleased, as if she and Jia Dongxu were justifiably enjoying Yi Zhonghai's extinction bonus, thinking it was what the Jia family deserved.
Conditions are bad.
Jia Zhangshi guessed she would disagree.
At that time, if she said she wouldn't marry.
It's like slapping the street office director's face hard.
Xu Daming's move.
High.
Shazhu glanced at Xu Daming, his only thought: the Xu Daming currently hunched over the table helping Jia Zhangshi fill out the single mother's happiness pursuit application form—is he the Xu Daming who was his enemy in his previous life?
Shazhu's feeling.
A bit startled.
It's as if the Xu Daming before him isn't Xu Daming.
Came in a hurry.
Left in a hurry.
After finishing the application, Xu Daming didn't appear in the Siheyuan for several days.
These days.
The Siheyuan says it's plain, yet it's a bit not plain; say it's not plain, and it still has a bit of plainness.
Several trivial things happened.
First, Jia Dongxu, who was arrested over the music box incident, was educated by the Jiēdào and released; the price was the music box being confiscated, and it's said the Yagangchang also gave Jia Dongxu a major demerit.
Yi Zhonghai is also miserable.
The music box bought for several hundred thousand yuan brought Yi Zhonghai a lot of trouble.
Second, Qin Huairu returned from the hospital to the Jia family; the child in her womb was gone, but it doesn't affect fertility, though she needs bed rest for a few days.
Jia Zhangshi, uncharacteristically, bought a chicken for Qin Huairu, letting her drink chicken soup for several days; Jia Zhangshi herself didn't want to eat the chicken meat, saying the chicken was all for Qin Huairu.
Can be called a major oddity of the Siheyuan.
The wicked mother-in-law suddenly became not wicked.
Qin Huairu also tearily promised, promising to recover her health, saying no matter what she must let Jia Zhang hold this big fat grandson.
Jia Zhangshi happily reserved the name Bangeng.
Third, the conflict among Long Laotaitai, Yi Zhonghai, and the Jia family has intensified these days.
The cause is that chicken the Jia family bought to nourish Qin Huairu.
Long Laotaitai, who had been eating cornbread and cabbage soup for a couple of months, went to Yi Zhonghai and said she wanted something better; Yi Zhonghai, for unknown reasons, didn't agree. Long Laotaitai turned and went to the Jia Family, sitting there refusing to leave, dropping hints, and was eventually kicked out by Jia Zhangshi. Long Laotaitai and Jia Zhangshi had a big argument, saying Jia Zhangshi hadn't kept the Dayuan ancestor in her heart, and demanded Yi Zhonghai call a Dayuan meeting; Yi Zhonghai gave Long Laotaitai a few assurances, and thus the conflict didn't reach a deadlock.
Fourth, Jia Zhangshi's remarriage matter.
After not appearing in the Siheyuan for several days, leading Shazhu to mistakenly think Xu Daming was just a petty person showing off, he appeared in the Siheyuan.
Just entered the courtyard.
Xu Daming then gave Shazhu a look.
In Shazhu's dazed, bewildered gaze, a figure that left a vivid memory appeared before his eyes.
Jia Gui, Team Captain.
At this moment, the Jia Team Captain appearing in the Siheyuan must have specially dressed himself up: wearing a black forward cap on his head, an earth-gray Zhongshan suit on top, grass-green trousers on his legs, and cow-head cloth shoes on his feet, while also holding a box of snacks.
To Shazhu, it felt like even wearing a dragon robe wouldn't make him look like a prince; the hat, clothes, trousers, etc., everywhere exuded a strong sense of incongruity.
It seemed as if the clothes weren't worn on a person, but on this beast.
That looks wrong.
The Jia Team Captain arrived at the Siheyuan.
He was still holding a box of snacks.
Simply absurd beyond belief.
Shazhu was dazed.
Those people in the Siheyuan were also stunned.
I vaguely recall that these people in the Siheyuan have no relation at all to Jia Gui.
In other words.
Jia Gui also shouldn't have chosen to visit the Siheyuan on a Sunday.
What happened?
Why did he come?
Everyone was filled with doubt.
Shazhu's gaze shifted from Jia Gui to Xu Daming; not sure if it's because he knows Xu Daming too well, Shazhu always felt that Jia Gui's visit to the Siheyuan was greatly related to Xu Daming, and suddenly he recalled the widow remarriage application Xu Daming had written in front of him a few days earlier.
His heart stirred.
Isn't Jia Gui the one who came to propose a match with Jia Zhangshi?
The more he looked.
The more he felt his speculation was correct.
Pure scoundrel Xu Daming truly makes the Jia family sick to death; he neither does it early nor late, but picks Sunday to do this, and damn it, in front of Jia Dongxu his son, he openly lets Jia Zhangshi meet Jia Gui, the team captain.
Shazhu recalled the few retorts he had once thrown at Jia Dongxu: "Jia Dongxu, do you call your stepfather uncle? Or dad? Or grandfather?"
Taking advantage of everyone's stunned moment, Shazhu tugged at Xu Daming's left cuff, speaking in a low voice only the two could hear: "Xu Daming, you little brat, you really did find a remarried partner for Jia Zhangshi; where did you dig up this piece of goods? Just looking at him in broad daylight makes one feel sick. I tell you, this thing probably won't work out—Jia Zhangshi's character simply won't take to Jia Gui, the team captain. Your damn effort is wasted."
"Shazhu, you've really hurt us brothers. We're not really trying to find a remarried partner for Jia Zhangshi or a stepfather for Jia Dongxu; we just want to disgust Jia Zhangshi, let the Jia family know the consequences of offending me, Xu Daming. Besides, Jia Gui wasn't someone I sought out—I ran into him by chance on the street. Jia Gui asked me where the siheyuan was, saying he came to the siheyuan to meet Jia Zhangshi for a match, so I followed him back to watch the show. The remarried partner I introduced to Jia Zhangshi has family matters and will come later."
Shazhu's head buzzed.
He thought Jia Gui's coming to propose a match with Jia Zhangshi was Xu Daming's doing.
Actually, no.
He hadn't heard Xu Daming say that the remarried partner he'd introduced to Jia Zhangshi was still en route.
For Jia Zhangshi today.
It was an absolute surprise—unexpectedly being set up on a match, and not just once but twice.
I suppose Jia Zhangshi's reputation will, in the near future, become after-dinner gossip in the siheyuan and the surrounding hutongs.
Jia Dongxu will also become famous at the steel mill.
"You really pulled it off?"
"When have we brothers ever lied to you?" Xu Daming, after exchanging a few words with Shazhu, pointed at Jia Zhangshi watching the show in the courtyard and said to Jia Gui: "Comrade Jia, that plump middle-aged woman over there is the Jia Zhangshi you're looking for."
Having said that,
He pointed at Jia Gui and greeted Jia Zhangshi.
"Aunt Jia, this Jia Gui is a relative of yours; I ran into him outside the courtyard just now. He asked how to get to the siheyuan and to the Jia family home, so I kindly brought him back."
Jia Zhangshi's gaze fell on the pastry in Jia Gui's hand.
On the pastry's wrapping paper was a clear upside‑down fu character.
The pastry from the time‑honored brand Ju Fude in the capital, once presented as tribute for the emperor, is quite expensive and fragrant; Jia Zhangshi had never eaten it.
Laoqianpo speculated about Jia Gui's origins, certain that her memory held no such relative, and with his unprecedented looks, he simply wasn't a Jia family kin.
Therefore, in Jia Zhangshi's mind, the 'Jia family relative' Jia Gui spoke of ought to be someone sharing her name and surname; Jia Gui and Xu Daming both misunderstood, and by sheer chance they brought a non‑relative Jia Gui to her doorstep.
Without this packet of pastry, Jia Zhangshi would likely have outright denied that Jia Gui was a relative.
Having this pastry as a bargaining chip, Jia Zhangshi instantly felt clever; she planned to first acknowledge Jia Gui as a relative, trick him into handing over his Ju Fude pastry, then have Jia Dongxu, Qin Huairu, and herself eat it all, after which she would turn face and deny Jia Gui was a relative, unafraid of his high‑handedness—with so many people in the siheyuan, an outsider really couldn't lay a hand on her.
Her self‑cleverness turned into a big mistake; the Jia Zhangshi who thought victory was assured squeezed out a belated look of sudden realization.
"So it's you, then."
"Or am I not?"
Jia Gui answered with a grin and stepped toward Jia Zhangshi.
The figure of Jia Gui walking toward her was Jia Zhangshi, her eyes fixed on the pastry in his hand.
Jia Zhangshi had but one thought: how to get the pastry into her hand without letting these siheyuan folk take advantage of the Jia family. Especially that deaf old lady—she's utterly shameless, insatiably greedy; if she set her sights on the Jia family's Ju Fude pastry, she'd come anyway, begging to eat it, and then would the Jia family give it or not? Jia Zhangshi resolved not to give it. If the deaf old lady really came on strong, Jia Zhangshi would have Jia Dongxu find Yi Zhonghai.
"Aunt Jia, is Jia Gui really a relative of yours?" Xu Daming, making an excuse to clear his own suspicion, said, "If he is a relative, that's fine—don't later start yelling he isn't and come after me for settlement."
Jia Zhangshi's mind was full of thoughts of eating the Ju Fude pastry; she missed the exact meaning of Xu Daming's words, replying, "Xu Daming, look at what you're saying—these days who still randomly acknowledges relatives? He really is a relative of ours; we just haven't seen each other in years, and for a moment I couldn't recall. He is a relative of ours, so I won't come after you for settlement. Old lady that I am, I should be thanking you for coming; otherwise I wouldn't even get to see our relative."
As she spoke, Jia Zhangshi reached for the pastry Jia Gui was holding.
This matters.
If it weren't for this, Jia Zhangshi wouldn't bother with Jia Gui.
Jia Gui smiled and handed the pastry to Jia Zhangshi.
Jia Zhangshi took it, saw it was indeed a Ju Fude pastry, and casually passed it to Jia Dongxu.
A mother knows her child best.
As Jia Zhangshi's son, Jia Dongxu naturally knew what she was thinking; he himself craved the pastry, and besides, Shazhu and Xu Daming were his rivals.
For show, he deliberately opened the pastry in front of outsiders, revealing twelve pieces neatly arranged, each embroidered with a zodiac motif.
The deaf old lady exclaimed, "The twelve zodiac signs!"
"Old lady, you're truly a foodie—this is exactly the Ju Fude twelve‑zodiac pastry."
"I, the old lady, have heard of the Ju Fude twelve‑zodiac pastry but never eaten it; back then it was tribute for the emperor and empress, looks delicious, and in old age I crave such things—only my legs aren't up to walking that far, otherwise I'd go buy some from Ju Fude myself."
The deaf old lady was manipulating the Jia family; now that the pastry is open, she says, "Hurry up and give the old lady a piece!"
The Jia family pretended not to hear; Jia Zhangshi casually snatched a piece, gave it to Qin Huairu, another to Jia Dongxu, and took one for herself.
Without avoiding anyone, they openly devoured the pastry before the siheyuan crowd. Also, they feared Jia Gui might realize Jia Zhangshi wasn't his relative and try to take the pastry away; Jia Zhangshi thought, "Once it's in my stomach, you can't make me spit it out."
While eating, they laughed and praised Jia Gui.
"Or it's that my brother Jia Gui dotes on this old sister‑in‑law, knowing I've never enjoyed anything in my life, specially buying this expensive pastry to see me; after eating this box, even if I die, I'll be content."
"Zhonghai!" Seeing the Jia family ignore him and eat even faster, the impatient deaf old lady shouted Yi Zhonghai's name.
Yi Zhonghai glanced at the deaf old lady.
He cursed the deaf old lady's eight generations of ancestors in his heart.
That mouth.
He didn't know when he'd stop being greedy.
Typical—remembering to eat but not to fight.
Having tucked tail and behaved for two months, he started acting up again.
Yi Zhonghai couldn't afford to lose this person.
Seeing Yi Zhonghai ignore her, the deaf old lady noticed Shazhu and Xu Daming standing to the side watching the show, and shouted "Shazhuzi!"—her aim being to have Shazhu step up and demand the Jia family hand over the Ju Fude pastry, or else have Shazhu pay for a box himself.
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No names.
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This refers to Shazhu.
Xu Damao gazed at Shazhu with starry eyes.
This refers to Xu Damao and Shazhu.
Good buddy.
No names.
This is misleading the hypocrite in the opposite direction.
No names.
"You're the Head Steward of our Siheyuan, representing its honor; we can't let you be blamed for mistreating the old lady. We juniors are watching you—you need to set a good example. If you don't spend money on chicken, duck, fish, or meat, as head chef I'll make sure the old lady eats well, and you and the first madam will enjoy a fine meal."
This refers to the Siheyuan, the Head Steward, and the first madam, with references to the old lady and the speaker being the head chef.
Yan Fugui and Xu Damao instantly perked up.
This refers to Yan Fugui and Xu Damao.
This tactic.
No names.
They couldn't be more familiar with it.
No names.
Even if you guessed with your toes, everyone would know what Shazhu is planning.
This refers to Shazhu.
Nominally, it's to prepare a meal for the deaf old lady.
This refers to the deaf old lady.
Actually, Shazhu is once again trying to fleece Yi Zhonghai.
This refers to Shazhu and Yi Zhonghai.
Last year, Yi Zhonghai brought half a kilo of pork and asked Shazhu to cook a meat dish for the deaf old lady. Shazhu gave Yan Fugui two taels of pork, used the remaining three taels to let the old lady enjoy a treat, and he and Yushui also got their meals sorted out along the way.
This refers to Yi Zhonghai, Shazhu, the deaf old lady, Yan Fugui, and Yushui.
A typical reverse extortion scheme.
No names.
If Yi Zhonghai actually takes Shazhu's advice, Yan Fugui believes he can profit, and Xu Damao thinks he can get a benefit.
This refers to Yi Zhonghai, Shazhu, Yan Fugui, and Xu Damao.
In the Siheyuan, the two families have a good relationship with Shazhu.
This refers to the Siheyuan and Shazhu, with "the two families" pointing to the Jia Family and Yan Fugui's household (though not a formal name).
"Shazhu, you're really thoughtful. If anyone dares claim the Head Steward isn't feeding the old lady well, I, Xu Damao, will beat them to a pulp."
This refers to Shazhu, the Head Steward, and Xu Damao.
Shamao eagerly goes along with Shazhu, shooting provocative looks at the Jia Family members.
This refers to Shamao, Shazhu, and the Jia Family members.
Inadvertently, this backed up Shazhu's earlier allegation that someone had been spreading rumors about Yi Zhonghai, effectively framing him.
This refers to Shazhu and Yi Zhonghai.
Yi Zhonghai also looked at the Jia Family members.
This refers to Yi Zhonghai and the Jia Family members.
Because of the radio and Qin Huairu's miscarriage, Jia Zhangshi has been causing a scene with Yi Zhonghai, assuming Shazhu and Xu Damao's claims are true.
This refers to the radio, Qin Huairu, Jia Zhangshi, Yi Zhonghai, Shazhu, and Xu Damao.
The one spreading the rumor is Jia Zhangshi.
This refers to Jia Zhangshi.
Yan Fugui also chimed in.
This refers to Yan Fugui.
Xu Damào, Shazhu, what are you guys doing? Daye has his own considerations; San Daye knows you mean well, worried that Daye's reputation will suffer loss. Your good intentions, Daye has taken them to heart. Arranging for the old lady to eat meals, Daye and Daye's wife have arrangements in their hearts.
End of Chapter
