What Bridal Gifts Are You Planning to Give Me This Time?

Zhou Fusheng modestly shook his head and said, "Not at all, not at all. It's just the kids' little squabble, nothing to worry about."

Zhou Fuyu smiled faintly and said, "That's no small matter. We set up a hundred tables today, which cost us 200 taels of silver!"

Everyone was completely dumbfounded. "How... how much? 200 taels of silver? That's way too much!"

"Tsk tsk tsk... I really didn't expect this! They're even taking advantage of their own brothers. Isn't this just profiting from someone's misfortune?"

"If it were my brother's daughter or son getting married, I would absolutely not accept any money. How could I possibly accept 200 taels?"

"Zhou Fusheng, is your family that rich? You don't care about these 200 taels, so just forget about it!"

Zhou Fusheng quickly waved his hand and said:

"This isn't my business; I don't have the final say. Besides, we have to support our employees."

My family is dirt poor right now, and we're just surviving on this little bit of money!

Look how high the price of grain has become, and the prices of vegetables are even more outrageous. It's hard for you to even get a decent vegetable these days, isn't it?

The cost of our vegetables is so high that we can barely afford to feed our employees.

Don't you think we're quite pitiful too?

Look at the clothes we're wearing now, they're all tattered and ragged.

Third brother, you've always been the best to me. My family is struggling financially right now, you'll definitely help us, right?

"I paid five thousand taels of silver for your son's wedding last time. How about you return those five thousand taels to us?"

Zhou Fusheng has no shame now; what's the use of having any shame?

He used to care about his reputation, but those people who fawn over the powerful and belittle the weak continue to put him down.

Some people are just being shameless.

Zhou Fuyu coughed and said:

"Where would I get the money? The money I used to pay for my daughter's wedding was all borrowed."

"Fine, fine, but you still have to do something for my daughter's dowry!"

Liu Su'e nodded and said, "That's natural."

Zhou Fuyu was overjoyed; even a few pieces of gold jewelry would be worth several hundred taels of silver.

As soon as they entered the courtyard, Qian Huihui greeted them, saying, "You've finally arrived! Zhou Mei has been waiting for you for a long time. Let me show you around!"

She led Liu Su'e and Zhou Wanwan directly into the bridal chamber.

Zhou Mei kept complaining:

"This wedding dress isn't as nice as Zhou Xiaoyan's last one! Zhou Xiaoyan's dress last time was really impressive."

They're both her nieces, so why is she treated differently when it comes to me?

So what if they don't take me seriously? I'm going to marry into that family soon, and I'll be the legitimate wife of a scholar. You snobbish bastard."

Qian Huihui smiled awkwardly, coughed, and said, "Meimei! Wanwan's here. Didn't you say you really missed her?"

Zhou Mei glanced at Zhou Wanwan with disdain and said:

"Zhou Wanwan, you're here! What do you plan to do for me this time?"

I remember last time you were very generous to Zhou Xiaoyan, buying her gold hairpins, gold bracelets, earrings, and necklaces.

"I'm sure you'll spend a lot on my dowry this time too, right?"

Zhou Wanwan smiled faintly and said, "No, no, look how many good things I brought you!"

Zhou Wanwan pulled out a lot of jewelry from her sleeve, all of it was gold.

Liu Su'e coughed and said in a low voice, "Didn't you say you weren't going to prepare a gift?"

Zhou Wanwan replied, "If we don't prepare gifts, we might not even be able to eat in peace. We might as well prepare some."

Zhou Mei looked at her with a beaming smile and said, "Cousin, you're so kind! Make sure you eat well for lunch today, after all, our family spent two hundred taels of silver!"

After Zhou Wanwan finished applying her makeup, she came out, and Liu Su'e asked, "What exactly happened? Why did you give her so many things?"

Zhou Wanwan said softly:

"Those things are all fake, you know that."

Our counterfeit goods are so realistic they're indistinguishable from the real thing; they're all made of brass and aren't worth much.

Liu Su'e tapped her head and said, "You little rascal, I'm afraid you'll cause another big scene."

Zhou Wanwan shrugged and said, "I just want to An'an a peaceful meal."

Sure enough, after the makeup was done, the Zhou Family's attitude improved a lot.

Qian Huihui looked at Zhou Wanwan and asked, "When are we going to serve the food?"

Zhou Wanwan looked at her and said, "The dishes have arrived. If you think it's suitable, I'll have them serve them."

Qian Huihui nodded. "We can serve the dishes now; almost everyone is here."

Soon, the people from the mountain village began to bring the dishes from the cart inside.

Everyone was staring in amazement; the maids in those mountain strongholds were all incredibly beautiful.

Furthermore, their matching uniforms made them even more eye-catching.

The wedding party was completely dumbfounded; this was a pre-wedding banquet, not a formal wedding ceremony.

Today's groom is named Xiao Yuhan. He stared intently at the maids and said:

"These maids are all incredibly beautiful, each one more stunning than the last."

"We have dozens of brothers here today. Don't you think it would be wonderful if we kept them here tonight?"

His brothers swallowed hard and said, "Isn't this inappropriate? I'm afraid your wife will object."

Xiao Yuhan laughed heartily, "What objections could she possibly have? I'll go talk to my father-in-law in a bit and ask him to make some arrangements for us."

He leaned close to Zhou Fuyu's ear and whispered:

"Father-in-law, many of the men who came with me to fetch the bride are sons of high-ranking officials and nobles; they will all be staying overnight."

Look at these girls, each one has grown into a beautiful young lady. Maybe I should let them keep my brothers company.

Zhou Fuyu paused for a moment and said, "This... this might not be appropriate, right? These people are all from Black Wind Stronghold."

Xiao Yuhan frowned and said, "So what if they're from Black Wind Stronghold? We're not afraid of them. They're just some mountain bandits."

Zhou Fuyu quickly waved his hand and said, "Black Wind Stronghold is no ordinary mountain stronghold..."

Xiao Yuhan said with a displeased expression:

"Father-in-law, let me tell you the truth!"

Those who accompanied me this time were all prominent figures in our county.

I've already made that boast, do you expect me to go back on my word?

Did you see those young masters? They're all scions of prominent families; they're just here to watch the show with me.

If I keep them happy, getting me a minor official position will be a piece of cake, won't it?

And you... you might get a promotion too.

Zhou Fuyu was tempted. After a moment's hesitation, he said, "Okay, I'll arrange it in a bit. Let's eat first, and then we'll talk."

Before long, dishes and wine were served one after another.

The feast was generous with its portions and delicious flavors; the villagers ate with gusto, their mouths greasy with oil.

Even the young masters from prominent families who came along ate with relish, nodding repeatedly in approval.

As someone picked up some food, they laughed and said, "This feast looks simple, but the taste is really good, better than many restaurants in the city."

Someone even picked up their glass, took a sip, and exclaimed, "This watermelon juice is so sweet and refreshing, it tastes absolutely delicious! I never expected Black Wind Stronghold to be so good at hosting banquets."

Several people nearby chimed in, "That's right! I think this soup is the most delicious; you can't really make it taste like this at home."

Someone else pointed to the chicken on the table and said, "And this chicken is something else entirely. The meat is firm and flavorful; it's definitely not an ordinary home-raised chicken."