"Husband, with things as they are, I fear A Yuan cannot hold his betrothal ceremony with the Wu Household, can he?"
Bai Jing entered the courtyard, looking worriedly at Xu Chuan as he sat cross-legged on a cushion, practicing his breathing.
"It would indeed be inappropriate. Then let them marry directly next year."
Xu Chuan pondered briefly before adding, "Have Shitou visit the Wu Household in the county town on my behalf, as a show of sincerity."
"Yes, let us do that..." Bai Jing still seemed reluctant and grumbled, "Look at the mess Heaven has made. A perfectly good betrothal banquet, gone just like that. I hope A Yuan will not take it to heart."
"As his mother, do you not know his temperament?" Xu Chuan smiled faintly. "The drought is severe now. People are dying in more than a dozen nearby counties. In circumstances like these, are you not afraid of people pointing accusing fingers behind our backs?"
"You have a point, husband." Thinking it over, Bai Jing realized that if the Xu Household held a lavish celebration in such dire circumstances, countless people might come flooding into Dongxi.
"I will go tell Shitou."
Bai Jing went to the South Mountain Courtyard and told him about it.
Xu Mingwei did not hesitate much either. A short while later, he set off for the county town.
A refugee camp lay not far outside the town, with a river channel nearby. However, many stretches of the river had now run dry, and sources of water were becoming increasingly scarce.
Passing by, Xu Mingwei saw stooped old farmers scraping elm bark and old women with faces wrinkled like chicken skin carrying baskets as they searched for edible wild greens.
Gaunt people were everywhere, like walking corpses.
Fortunately, the hottest days had passed.