Wedding

Before long, they arrived at Zhao Family Ravine.

The village was small, with perhaps twenty or thirty households scattered unevenly among a grove of jujube trees along a gentle slope.

They could hear the clamor of voices from afar, mixed with children's laughter and cries.

The bridal procession had barely reached the village entrance when a group of half-grown children spotted it. Clapping and jumping, they shouted:

"The bride is here! The bride is here!"

Before the cries had faded, a great many people poured out from the village lanes.

There were white-haired old women, women carrying babies, men with dry pipes clenched between their teeth, and girls standing on tiptoe to watch the excitement.

Everyone wore a smile, as though this somewhat shabby wedding were the joyful occasion the entire village had been awaiting.

When the bride arrived at her husband's home, there was customarily a whole set of rituals to observe.

By tradition, the groom had to come out and kick the sedan door.

But the groom was only an honest young man. Pushed and jostled out by several other youths, he stood before the sedan with his ears turning red.

After quite a while, he finally lifted his foot and lightly kicked the sedan pole, as though afraid of hurting the person inside.

The onlookers burst into laughter, and someone called out to egg him on:

"Put some strength into it! What are you afraid of?"

The groom's face reddened even more, and he only lowered his head and went to lift the sedan curtain.

The bride emerged from the sedan with her head lowered, supported on either side by two women.

As she crossed the threshold, someone stuffed a scale weight wrapped in red cloth into her arms, then had her step on and shatter several