Chapter 106: Attending the Banquet

But Qin Huairu had already made up her mind about this matter.

Otherwise, her children would all be ruined in the hands of this pair of bizarre mother and son; she also blamed herself for being blind back then, actually marrying into such a family.

Moreover, Bang Geng was now a eunuch, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him crippled; if he didn't learn some culture now, how would he get by in the future? She couldn't just send him to the palace to be a eunuch.

Time quickly arrived at the next day.

Early in the morning, firecrackers were set off in the Middle Courtyard, one string after another, ringing for a full hour; all of these were bought with money spent by Zhao Gangzi, and the Siheyuan had never been this lively before.

When Qin Huairu first married into the family, Jia Dongxu had only bought a small box of throw-poppers, throwing half the box one by one against the wall, and saving the rest for the New Year.

Look at Zhao Gangzi's family; this is what you call grand. Just the firecrackers set off alone were worth five or six yuan.

"It's so lively today. Gangzi went to pick up the bride early this morning. Let's get prepared too. I heard they invited over a hundred people," Third Uncle Yan Bugui said, rubbing his hands. The cooking area was set up in the Front Courtyard, which happened to be his territory, so Third Uncle was helping out and even managed to skim off quite a bit of profit.

Nangua, the Rolling Mill chef who had been invited over, didn't pay much attention to it. After all, he often handled these events, and aside from his smoking habits, he was no different from Third Uncle in his stinginess.

The two felt they had met too late; if not for their age difference, they would have sworn brotherhood on the spot.

But Nan Yi was different. He had specifically taken leave from the Machine Repair Factory to come and host the wedding banquet for Zhao Gangzi; he usually couldn't stand this kind of "wool-pulling" behavior.

If it weren't for the fact that Zhao Gangzi was the host and had specifically told him not to take these trifles to heart, he would have definitely given these two a good lesson.

"Not bad! This Zhao Gangzi invited the head chefs from two factories. We're in for a treat today. We only gave a few mao for the gift money, isn't this easily eating back several yuan worth of food?"

"From now on, Gangzi is my big brother. Whoever goes against Brother Gangzi, I'll be the first to get worked up with them!"

Liu Guangfu and the other immature guys had already taken Zhao Gangzi as their boss, firmly believing that following Zhao Gangzi meant they could eat nine meals a day.

Many young women in the courtyard, including He Yushui, had also run over to be bridesmaids for Lou Xiaoe. According to word of mouth, the red envelopes alone were eighty-eight cents each.

"Spending money like this every day, he'll squander his family fortune sooner or later, hmph!" Shazhu wore a green padded jacket, sitting at his doorway with his hands tucked in, looking at the coming and going guests with great displeasure.

Almost everyone in the courtyard had been invited, except for him, Shazhu, and the members of the Jia Family.

This made Shazhu feel like an outcast. Moreover, the new chef from the Rolling Mill, Nangua, had also come. Shazhu had specifically gone out to watch him cook, but it looked mediocre; compared to his own Tan Family Cuisine skills, it was far inferior!

And he was only temporarily down on his luck; after all, gold will always shine. Don't look at him as a molting Phoenix now; in the future, he might even live better than that guy.

Shazhu had been out strolling these past two days and had heard a lot of news from others. They said that in a few years, they would start cracking down on families like the Lou Family, and when that time came, Zhao Gangzi would be implicated too—none of them would escape!

On the other side, Jia Zhangshi also poked her head out from the Back Courtyard. The Back Courtyard was cold and desolate with no one in sight, while the Middle Courtyard was packed with people, and the Front Courtyard was filled with the scent of food.

It made the old woman crave it terribly.

Bang Geng also drifted out, smelling the fragrance. If Jia Zhangshi hadn't been holding him back, Bang Geng would have gone over and gotten beaten up. "Good grandson, let's wait a bit. The dishes aren't stir-fried yet. Impatience won't get you hot tofu..."

"Oh, oh, Grandma, my bottom hurts a bit, I need to go to the toilet again!"

Bang Geng nodded obediently, then returned to the Back Courtyard to find a secluded spot, secretly squatting down to pee, quite afraid of being seen by others.

Not long after.

The sound of trumpets rang out outside the courtyard, along with a crisp sound of bicycle bells. Everyone rushed out to look, and sure enough, it was Zhao Gangzi returning with the bride.

The neighbors and street folks all came out to offer congratulations. Zhao Gangzi didn't hold back; melon seeds, peanuts, milk candies, everything was there, and no one was left out.

"Gangzi! Why is the bride still covered with a veil? Hurry up and let us all have a look! Hahaha!"

Someone had already started heckling, and others followed with laughter. Even Lou Xiaoe under the veil couldn't help but giggle, her body trembling with laughter.

Behind them, Liu Guangfu and the others were drooling as they watched. If they could also marry such a wife, they would wake up laughing even in their dreams.

A while later, Lou Bancheng and Mother Lou also arrived. They only had this one daughter, and seeing her marry off today, Mother Lou felt somewhat sentimental and shed tears in front of everyone.

"Don't worry, Auntie, I will treat Ezi well," Zhao Gangzi promised, patting his chest.

"Gangzi, why are you still calling her Auntie? Hurry up and change it!"

Yan Bugui reminded him with a smile from the side, and Zhao Gangzi realized it, quickly changing his words: "Mom, I will definitely be good to my wife!"

"Good, good, good! If I didn't trust you, I wouldn't have married this daughter to you."

Mother Lou broke into a smile through her tears, and Lou Bancheng beside her couldn't help but laugh either. It seemed his daughter had found a good home, and as a father, he didn't need to worry.

Soon, those with closer relationships were invited to the main seats. Because there were so many people, tables were set up not only in the Middle Courtyard but also in the Front Courtyard.

This kind of expense must have been at least several hundred, but for Zhao Gangzi, it was nothing. Not to mention anything else, the amount of Hatred Value in the system alone would be worth several thousand yuan if converted.

What's more, there was the Jia Family in the Siheyuan, providing him with Hatred Value every single moment of every day. They were his big benefactors! He couldn't bear to send them to prison.

"Everyone, take your seats, the food is here!"

"The first dish, the cold bean curd skin platter, to whet everyone's appetite; the second dish, crispy fish; the third dish, braised pork knuckle..."

Dish after dish was brought to the tables. Most people in the Siheyuan had never seen such a scene; their eyes were glowing, and the chopsticks in their hands were trembling.

There wasn't just food; even the wine was arranged, and it was all decent grain liquor, yellow wine, and the like. Cigarettes were handed out to the men, and candies to the women.

Soon, everyone began to feast heartily. Shazhu lived right across from Zhao Gangzi, and watching this scene, he wished he could hit his head against a piece of tofu and die; he didn't even have a share.

"Can't take it anymore," Shazhu cursed under his breath, then took two yellow corn buns from his house, got a small dish of pickles, and walked out without a word.

Liu Guangfu and the others who were eating the banquet thought this guy was coming to mooch, and they had already prepared the fire poker under the table, but Shazhu didn't even turn his head and walked straight toward the outside of the Siheyuan.

He didn't even stay long in the Front Courtyard; he found a corner in the alleyway and squatted down, eating buns with pickles, and by the way, smelling the fragrance wafting over, he could barely manage to swallow.