Chapter 1639: Paying Out of Pocket

~23 min read 4,408 words

Early the next morning, as soon as the rooster crowed, the families all hurried to get up and get busy. The men went to buy vegetables, and the women prepared breakfast.

These two days of the wedding were naturally eaten at Ye Yaopeng's house.

It wasn't until the men brought the vegetables back that it was truly time to get busy.

Ye Chenghai was also dressed up anew, wearing a crisp woolen coat, with a red flower pinned to his chest, hair styled with mousse, and a slicked-back hairstyle, making the other young men envious.

Ye Chenghu looked at him admiringly, "Wow, never seen Brother Ahai so handsome, when can I be as handsome..."

Ye Chenghai said happily: "When you get married, you'll definitely be as handsome as me."

He shook his head, "Forget it."

Ye Dasao joked: "Ahai was just like you a few years ago, shaking his head when talking about marriage, but after growing up, he was chasing after my butt and arguing to get married."

"No way!" Ye Chenghai's face flushed, "It was clearly you who urged me to bring someone back and urged me to get married quickly after you knew I was dating, so the person wouldn't run away."

Ye Chenghe said proudly: "Wait until it's my turn to get married in a few days, I'll have an outfit like this too, and I'll be more handsome than Ahai!"

"Ass, you don't look as handsome as me."

"Nonsense, I clearly look better than you."

"Go pee and look at yourself."

"I'll pee for you to look at."

Ye Chengyang laughed and said: "Should I pee for you guys to look at?"

Both glared at him.

"Dad said later, when the bride enters the door, let me go to the room and pee boy's urine in the sub-grandson bucket."

Ye Dasao interrupted their bickering, "Ahai, why hasn't your Third Uncle's friend's car driven into the village yet?"

Ye Chenghai looked at his watch, "Isn't it not time yet? Soon, wait a bit longer."

"Why don't you go ask your Third Uncle?"

"Ask what? It was agreed to come before 8 o'clock, isn't it just past 7 o'clock? It's normal if it hasn't arrived, wait."

Originally they thought about using a tractor to pick up the bride, which was good enough.

Ye Yaodong said that you only get married once in a lifetime, and it just so happened that Hong Wenle bought a car last year, so he could drive it over to help pick up the bride and eat the wedding banquet by the way.

This was also a happy event, and it was the New Year, so eating and drinking was normal, and there weren't many things to do, so Hong Wenle agreed very simply and said it would arrive before 8 o'clock in the morning.

In the past few years, cars could be seen everywhere on the roads in the provincial capital, but they were rare in this rural place, and there were only one or two in the town.

After all, the road conditions were too poor, and rural areas were mainly based on tractors and bicycles, with most people relying on their two legs.

And they didn't wait too long. Around 7:30, the car drove into the village, and a large group of old and young chased after the car.

Even the dogs chased after the car, barking loudly.

"Eh? Why is there a car in our village?"

"Whose car is this? My goodness, could it be Dong's family's? Really amazing, driving a car?"

"There's actually a car, driving toward the seaside..."

"Ouch, it has to be your family, even using a car to pick up the bride."

"This car is too high-end, too foreign..."

Ye Dasao looked at Hong Wenle getting off the car with glowing eyes, "Ouch, finally here, Comrade Hong, hurry and eat breakfast."

"You children don't touch it, you'll touch it broken..."

"Touch it again, I'll take a stick..."

She invited people into the room, then hurriedly went to watch the car, lest those children touch and rub it without knowing the weight.

Ye Chenghe and the others had already taken red silk ribbons to hang on the car's ears to set the scene, making it festive, and tied the big red flower on the front hood of the car.

The tractor next to it was also decorated for them in the morning, and the front of the car was also tied with a big red flower.

They had to sit in the tractor to pick up the bride, and the bride would sit in the car.

Ye Dasao was satisfied no matter how she looked at it, feeling that she had both face and substance.

"Right, just like this, it's festive like this. After tying it, watch it, don't let the children touch it, don't let people touch the car dirty, we have to go pick up the bride right away."

Ye Fu walked around the car again and again, liking it no matter how he looked at it, and pulled Ye Mu to say: "This car is just better looking than a tractor..."

"It's better looking, but it can't hold much, it can only hold a few people, unlike a tractor that can hold a carload of things and a carload of people."

Ye Mu shook her head while speaking, "Tractors are more practical, this car is not useful."

"Then this car doesn't get blown by the wind or rained on, it's better than a tractor."

"What's that, who runs out on a rainy day, definitely stay at home."

"This car is just more decent and majestic than a tractor, foreign!"

"Where is the tractor not decent? Not everyone has one."

Ye Fu couldn't argue with Ye Mu, so he didn't argue with her, "Anyway, I just think this car is good, don't sit in it if Dongzi buys one in the future."

Ye Mu glared at him, "Why shouldn't I sit? It's my son's car, I want to sit, and I won't let you sit."

Ye Fu was proud, "Then you're wrong, I'm behind his butt every day, it must be me sitting every day, you won't get to sit."

The car wasn't even there yet, and the old couple started arguing.

The old lady smiled and interrupted, "Don't argue, I'll tell Dong not to buy."

Ye Mu said: "Then you can't persuade him, he's been muttering about buying one for a long time, but the road is too poor, and it's eighteen bends in the mountains, it's not as convenient as a motorcycle, and it's more convenient to take a boat home."

"This car, Dong will buy it sooner or later. He's not buying it now just because it's not necessary and he can't use it."

Ye Fu's words were loud, and everyone around followed suit.

On the other side, Ye Chenghe also craved this car. If he could also sit in a car to get married, it would naturally be very face-saving.

He leaned over and asked his mother in a low voice, "Mom, can I also sit in this car when I get married in a few days?"

"Then you have to ask Third Uncle, he borrowed it from a friend."

"Then I'll talk to Third Uncle later. Big brother is getting married in a car, and we two brothers are just a few days apart. If we do it differently, I don't care, but everyone will definitely compare."

Ye Dasao patted him, "I'll talk to Third Aunt later and see."

Ye Chenghe happily said "Ah".

She thought for a while and asked again: "The eldest daughter-in-law brought so much dowry, did Xiuni say anything when she saw it yesterday?"

The banquet started yesterday, and Chen Xiuni, Ye Chenghe's partner, was only a few days away from getting married, so she came over as a family member to eat the banquet.

Seeing that carload of things being moved down, she must have seen it. Just as Ye Chenghe said, the two daughters-in-law were getting married one after another, only a few days apart, so they would definitely be compared.

When discussing the bride price, they didn't say they would give dowry of large appliances. Now that they saw the eldest daughter-in-law's dowry, I don't know if their family had any say.

It was reasonable that they took the initiative to increase the bride price, so they should give some small appliances as dowry.

However, it wasn't mentioned before, so it's not good to ask directly now, and Chen Xiuni's family didn't say they would bring all the bride price back. These things are asked about sideways afterward, and cannot be mentioned face-to-face.

Ye Chenghe's smile faded a bit when he heard this.

"She said it, saying the eldest sister-in-law brought so much dowry, if she didn't have something similar, she would be talked to death, and then she went home and said it last night, and heard it was quite a scene."

"When she came over this morning, her eyes and nose were red, saying her family didn't agree. We gave 1800, and her family used it to buy some quilts, washbasins, and other wedding items, spending a lot."

"Said that the eldest brother's side also had gold, so she naturally had to have it too. It was also made before the New Year, saying that only less than 1300 was left."

"Said her father and mother said the rest had to be deducted by half to help the family, raising her so big, now that she's married, she has to take some money back to repay their upbringing."

"Then the remaining money isn't enough to buy large appliances. Let her father and mother not keep it, and they quarreled, and it really wasn't enough to buy appliances, and the remaining money wasn't enough to look at when the dowry was displayed in the hall on the wedding day."

Ye Dasao's brows furrowed tightly, "Then forget it, as long as she's not afraid of being discussed and compared, anyway, I gave the same to both daughters-in-law, I can't say I'm unfair."

"It would have been better to let you get married last year, it would have saved money, and this year we took the initiative to increase the bride price to be the same as your eldest sister-in-law, just to avoid comparison, so that they wouldn't be unhappy after marriage, and have to scold each other every day."

This was actually just talk, getting married early would also be compared, after all, the interval wasn't long, just a year apart, and a 10-year gap could be dug up and talked about.

Ye Chenghe also had a big head, "It's annoying, I regret it so much, a pile of trouble, and have to compare, it's all money, money, money."

"Fine, it's almost time to get married, let their family look at it, we didn't make demands on her."

"I also feel it doesn't matter, but she keeps arguing in front of me, saying that if she's too different from the eldest sister-in-law, she'll be laughed at."

"Then what can be done, it's not that our family gave differently, it's that her family is unwilling to buy it. The 1000 yuan we gave more, two washing machines could be bought, and her family is unwilling to give her a washing machine."

Ye Dasao's face sank as she spoke, and she pursed her lips, "Dare to say that if I hadn't given that 1000 yuan more, her family would have deducted all 800, and wouldn't have to buy anything?"

Ye Chenghe grabbed his hair in frustration, "Alright, stop nagging in front of me. Why are you all saying things to me? It's not my problem, is it?"

"I'm also thinking that everyone will compare after seeing it, so I asked a question, this is also caring about you guys."

"Don't be annoyed, I'll pay for a big color TV to bring over when I get married."

Ye Dasao raised her voice in disbelief, "What for?"

Seeing people around looking over, she put on a smile again, and then pulled Ye Chenghe to the corner to continue whispering.

"Why do you have to pay for a color TV for her? Did our family give too little?"

"Then what can be done? Her family can't afford it, and isn't willing to buy it, and she's crying and saying she'll be laughed to death, what can I do? I can only pay for it myself to make up for it, saving trouble."

"There's no such reason, the bride price was given to her family, and then the dowry has to be paid by you, why, you aren't unable to marry a wife."

Ye Dasao was anxious, feeling that her family had lost a lot. Who spends so much money to marry a wife?

She was so angry that she scolded again, "If you can't afford to get married, don't get married. Our family isn't necessarily her, and it's not that we can't marry a wife. There are plenty of people in this ten-mile and eight-town area for you to choose from."

Ye Chenghe regretted it, knowing that he shouldn't have told his mother about him buying a color TV as dowry. It was over, it was endless.

"Don't mess around, the wedding invitations have been sent out, and it's only a few days away. You tell me not to get married now, do you want to lose face?"

"It's you who is making me angry, I'm going to die of anger. It was you who insisted on getting married, and now it's you who is saying this. Do you want to kill me?"

"If you want me to get married, don't nag, it's annoying, the matter is solved, it's not like we can't afford it."

"Shameless, thinking that you can hold me hostage because you're getting married soon, whatever you do, you have to agree."

Ye Chenghe frowned and said: "Fine, don't talk about it, it's solved, it's not like we can't afford it."

"You know she has no face..."

"If you want me to get married, don't nag, it's annoying, the matter is solved, it's not like we can't afford it."

"I'm just angry that we have to pay and pay, and if we can't afford it, we shouldn't compare with city people, it's normal not to be able to compare, but we have to compare."

"Now that the eldest sister-in-law bought a washing machine, she doesn't have one and will be laughed at, then the dowry money she brought back isn't as much as the eldest sister-in-law's, then tomorrow will she have to quarrel with Chenghe again, and ask him to make up for this money?"

Father and son were silent again.

They thought about it, besides more appliances, the number of bride price money they could bring back was also different.

It was really hard to say, whether she would ask Chenghe to make up for it again.

Ye Dasao was even angrier, staring at Ye Chenghe with her hands on her hips.

"People are marrying a wife, not buying a wife. You gave so much money, and after spending it, you have to continue to stick it, why, you aren't unable to marry a wife."

Ye Chenghe responded honestly, "Got it."

"Shameless, thinking that you can hold me hostage because you're getting married soon, whatever you do, you have to agree."

Ye Chenghe rubbed his temples, "Fine, don't nag in front of me, you guys are all saying things in front of me, is it my problem?"