Ger, So Proud

Chapter 90

For the next three days, He Ze was busy scouring the town.

Many of the items in the old house were outdated. Since they were moving to a new home, he decided to replace everything with new items. After discussing with He Youcai and Dad Li, He Ze brought back several beds and large cabinets from town. As for smaller items like tables and stools, He Youcai would make them gradually, as there was no immediate rush.

Once the new furniture and household items were arranged, making the new house look less empty, He Ze began preparing the betrothal gifts.

According to the village customs, there wasn’t much need for extravagance. Poor families might offer a few bags of rice, some bolts of cloth, and a couple of chickens or ducks. Wealthier families might replace the chickens and ducks with pigs and sheep. For a ger, this would already be a significant honor.

When He Bao’er married into town as a concubine, the bride price was ten taels of silver. It had to be acknowledged that he wasn’t treated unfairly, considering this amount could buy two young calves.

In the end, He Family Village was just too poor.

He Ze couldn’t bear to let Lin Yu be treated so poorly.

The one person in two lifetimes he genuinely wanted to marry deserved the best. After discussing with He Youcai, He Ze divided the nearly three hundred taels of silver earned on the shop’s opening day into four shares and put his entire share towards the betrothal gifts.

However, once he had the silver, he wasn’t sure what to buy. Neither He Youcai nor Dad Li had seen a grand household wedding, so they simply told him to buy whatever he thought necessary. With no other choice, He Ze went to Yu Family Restaurant to seek advice from Manager Yu.

When he returned to the village in the afternoon, He Ze brought back three to four ox carts loaded with goods and ten large boxes. Four of these boxes contained bolts of silk and cloth, four contained exquisite porcelain, and the rest held essential symbolic items like rulers, combs, shoes, mirrors, and ru yi scales, as well as two boxes of preserved fruits, dried nuts, tea leaves, and wedding candies.

Although He Ze found it odd to include food items in the bride price, he followed Manager Yu’s confident advice.

While He Ze was busy with these preparations, others were not faring so well.

Lin Tiangui walked along the field ridge with his hands behind his back and his waist hunched, his steps heavy. The few strands of hair drooping over his shoulders had already turned white. A villager who was bent over working in the field looked up and recognized him. He then nudged the person beside him and whispered, “Look, isn’t that Lin Tiangui? It’s karma!”

“Isn’t it just? What goes around comes around. He brought this upon himself, and now he’s paying for it.”

“What kind of heartless parents would do that? I heard from my dad that his second son was beaten so badly that he was unrecognizable when he died.”

“That’s why they are now homeless and destitute, with their family shattered! That old Liu-ge is blind, his two sons – the eldest in prison, the youngest dead, and both son-in-law either ran away or were sold. The two grandsons weren’t any good to begin with, so there’s no point mentioning them… That old Lin used to be so high and mighty, but look at him now! Tsk!” More and more people joined in, and some even laughed, their voices growing louder.

“I heard it was the He family boy who got his eldest son put in jail? Has he been released? What’s the story there?”

“That Lin’s eldest son was nothing good. He uprooted all the medicinal herbs on He Youcai’s land – the kind we’re hired to plant, which is said to be quite valuable. In my opinion, people like him should never be released! Otherwise… Hey, why are you pulling me? I’m not done talking.”

The man, pulled by his wife, glanced at Lin Tiangui and saw him glaring furiously. He laughed, straightened up, and spat to the side, “Why should I be afraid to speak my mind? That Lin’s eldest son is just trash. Our upright officials know what’s what. They’re sure not to release him. I’ve heard all sorts of people end up in prison, and who knows, he might just have an ‘accident’ and meet the King of Hell!”

“You, you…” Lin Tiangui trembled with rage, his teeth grinding audibly.

“Come on down if you dare!”

This man, about thirty years old and robust, saw that Lin Tiangui hesitated to move, so he taunted him even more, “I thought this land looked familiar while I was working on it. Now I remember, wasn’t this your family’s land? It’s a shame it’s someone else’s now, the very person who got your son jailed. That person is doing quite well now, building houses and opening shops, and soon he’s going to propose to your Yu-ge. Oh, right, I forgot. Yu-ge doesn’t recognize you anymore; he severed ties long ago. Ha ha ha…”

As the man’s laughter echoed, others couldn’t help but join in, starting to discuss how heartless and foolish the Lin family was.

“You, you all…” Lin Tiangui’s eyes turned red with fury, the veins bulging on his old, bark-like neck, but he didn’t dare to step down. Muttering a few words, he staggered away as if being chased by ghosts.

Back at the thatched cottage, Lin Tiangui’s pent-up anger finally exploded. He kicked over the stove and upended an old dining table, even stomping twice on the bamboo mat they used for sleeping.

The medicine pot on the stove shattered, scattering medicinal dregs all over the floor. The dining table lost a leg, and the few remaining bowls and plates in the house didn’t survive either. The stirred-up ash filled the air, leaving a scene of utter chaos.

Lin Shou and Lin Fu returned from gathering firewood, only to be greeted by this sight.

“Grandfather, what happened? Our home…”

“Your father can’t be saved.”

Lin Tiangui had calmed down by now. Sitting on the edge of the bed, he looked up at his two grandsons, his tone calm but his voice cold. He had gone to the county yamen every day, seeking help from everyone he could think of, but he hadn’t even been able to meet the county magistrate. He had tried his best.

“Ah, ah ah…”

Dad Liu, who had been silent through all the commotion, now clutched Lin Tiangui’s sleeve tightly. With no money left, they hadn’t bought medicine in a long time. Dad Liu had been using old medicine dregs, boiling them over and over until it was like drinking water. His health had deteriorated so much that he couldn’t even speak anymore.

“I’ve thought it through. Don’t worry, our eldest son was only sentenced to three years. He’ll be out in three years. It’ll be fine.” Lin Tiangui pried Liu’s hand away, digging his nails into his flesh. “But our eldest can’t be saved. Those who harmed him and our family are living well. We must get revenge, revenge!”

Lin Fu was so frightened by the sinister expression on Lin Tiangui’s face that he retreated several steps.

“Grandfather…” Lin Shou’s face turned pale. He too resented the He family, who had harmed their family so badly. But he was more afraid. Their family was already in such a dire situation, with their dad gone as well. If something else happened…

“Grandfather, we, we…” He mumbled, trying to say something, but fell silent when he met Lin Tiangui’s gaze.

On the bed, Liu squirmed uneasily and called out, “Ah, ah” twice. Lin Tiangui patted his back. “Don’t worry, I won’t do anything foolish. They’re recruiting soldiers soon. If that He family boy goes to the battlefield, how many lives can he have left? I plan to talk to the village head; he’s in charge of these matters.”

Upon hearing this, Lin Shou let out a deep sigh of relief. Lin Tiangui glanced at him, then stood up and dug out a cloth bundle from a corner of the room. Inside were some broken silver pieces and a few strings of copper coins.

“I’ve calculated. Recently, spending on meals and drinks for the people at the yamen has cost nearly two taels of silver. We only have five taels left at home.” The village head had a big appetite; five taels of silver might not be enough to satisfy him.

Lin Tiangui’s eyes scrutinized his two grandsons, finally fixing on the elder one, Lin Fu, and said meaningfully, “Why couldn’t your brother be a ger?”

His voice was so low it was almost inaudible.

However, Lin Shou, standing very close, heard him. His heart pounded as he quickly shielded Lin Fu behind him, forcing a smile. “Grandfather, my brother isn’t a ger. He’s also not very smart and recently keeps asking why you haven’t caught crickets for him.”

Lin Tiangui didn’t respond, just stared at Lin Fu for a long time, his gaze filled with fleeting, unreadable emotions that Lin Shou couldn’t grasp.

…

Whatever Lin Tiangui’s family was up to, He Ze had no idea, nor would he care if he knew.

The betrothal gifts were almost ready, filling a total of sixteen chests.

In addition to the originally prepared fabric, porcelain, and the like, He Ze had carefully selected some clothes, jewelry, hairpins, and jade ornaments. Dad Lo insisted on adding a pair of chickens and a pair of geese, all adorned with large red flowers, looking very festive.

On the last day before the proposal, He Ze took Lin Yu’s bow and went up the mountain, returning with a pair of plump, live geese.

On February 28th, the sky was clear and the sun was shining.

The He family woke up early. He Youcai put on a grey-black patterned long robe, meticulously groomed his hair, and wore boots, looking even more dignified than on the day the flower shop opened.

He Ze’s clothes were chosen by He An, a sapphire-blue scholar’s robe, with a matching belt and a circular white jade pendant at the clasp. He looked every bit the image of an elegant young gentleman.

Dad Li helped straighten He Ze’s collar, his eyes reddening. When He An called out to him, he sniffled but then smiled, “Today, Dad is happy. Look at my son, he’s really handsome…”

“Of course he is! Our son takes after me, haha!” He Youcai was delighted, his usually dark face appearing exceptionally spirited, and when he smiled, a row of white teeth showed.

“You shameless old fool!” Dad Li scolded him playfully with a glare.

The two younger ones watched their parents bicker and exchanged smiles. They only quieted down when a villager came to help carry the chests and knocked on the door.

For the marriage proposal, only He Youcai and He Ze went. Under Dad Li’s repeated instructions, they set off. As soon as they took a few steps, the villagers ahead began beating drums and gongs, and set off firecrackers, stirring up the whole He Family Village.