LW chapter 44

In April, the entire village of Luohe was busy.

The villagers were busy harvesting wheat and turning the soil. After turning the soil, they quickly planted corn seeds. They were extremely busy.

Zhou Yuan only asked for help harvesting his and Chen Qing’s wheat while they focused on wedding preparations.

It was Zhou Yuan’s first time planning a wedding. Although Chen Qing had been married before, it had been too rushed, and he didn’t know much. The two of them seemed busy all day, but no one knew what they were actually doing. They were like two headless flies buzzing around.

In the end, the mothers of both families took care of things, which put the villagers at ease.

With Zhang Yin’s help, Zhou Yuan finally arranged everything and regained his usual composure.

Their courtyard was big enough to hold the banquet. They didn’t want to invite the whole village to the wedding, but the courtyard was big enough to fit everyone.

They could borrow tables, chairs, and benches. The villagers were happy to lend theirs for the wedding.

Meng Qi helped arrange for the same chef who had cooked for Zhou Yuan’s wedding. Zhou Yuan had eaten there before and thought the food was good.

He didn’t want to leave the shopping to someone else, so he had been going to town almost every day recently.

During the day, Li Xin and Qi Shuning came to help decorate the house. Since Qi Shuning had just finished the college entrance exams, Zhang Yin told him to stop reading all day and to let Li Xin show him around the village and introduce him to more people.

Although Li Xin didn’t know how to sew, he was very good at paper cutting. Li Xin cut the “囍”¹(xǐ) Double Happiness (similar to 喜喜) — A symbol of good luck, especially in marriage. character on one side while Qi Shuning used the paste Aunt Sun had prepared to stick them up. Qi Shuning was so serious about his work that he even stuck one on the cowshed.

The Li family kept Zhou Yuan busy in an orderly way, making Chen Qing seem a bit lazy.

It was the first time he hadn’t been busy at this time, and he felt a little uneasy. He woke up at the first crow of the rooster. After dressing in a daze, he remembered that he didn’t have to get up so early; Zhou Yuan had arranged for others to work the fields.

He walked into the courtyard. It was still dark outside. The weather was gradually warming up. Chen Qing was lying on a recliner in the courtyard.

As he looked at the dark night, Chen Qing thought that everything that had happened last year felt like a dream.

Maybe when the sun rose, the dream would be over and he would find plenty of wheat waiting to be harvested.

Many sounds filled his ears: the crackle of firewood, the clucking of chickens and ducks, and the hungry piglets who had been noisy all night, seemingly wanting to escape the pigpen.

Footsteps slowly approached, and Chen Qing heard someone ask, “Why are you sleeping here?”

He slowly opened his eyes and saw Zhou Yuan squatting beside him, looking at him.

“I guess he’s not used to not getting up early to work,” said Aunt Sun.

She had seen Chen Qing sleeping on the recliner when she got up early. Thinking it was fine, she didn’t wake him. Since the morning breeze was cool, she covered him with a blanket.

Chen Qing blinked hard and woke up.

Was he still not awake from his dream? Zhou Yuan was still beside him.

Zhou Yuan touched his face and whispered, “If you’re still sleepy, go back to your room and sleep.”

He felt the thick calluses on Zhou Yuan’s palm; they were a little rough on his face. They didn’t hurt, but the sensation was noticeable.

Chen Qing looked at him. So, it wasn’t a dream.

Zhou Yuan was far busier than Chen Qing. Today, he came to continue discussing the wedding with Aunt Sun.

Chen Qing no longer had any brothers. Normally, there would be a banquet at noon at the groom’s home, but since Aunt Sun and Chen Qing only knew people in the village, it seemed unnecessary.

“So, we don’t need to have another banquet. Just have it at my place in the evening. No need for more trouble.”

Aunt Sun nodded. “That’s fine.”

Then, they discussed the route for going out. Since the two families lived close to each other, tradition dictated that they should take different routes to and from the wedding. Zhou Yuan had already planned another route with Meng Qi.

“All right,” said Aunt Sun. “I’ll send out the red invitations later.”

Zhou Yuan quickly replied, “No, Li Xin and Shuning will go.” Aunt Sun was getting older.

As they spoke, Chen Qing drifted off in thought. Today was April 8th, and there were only seven days left until the 15th.

None of their busyness seemed to involve Chen Qing. Both wedding robes had long been embroidered. Chen Qing’s work was flawless. Aunt Liu and the others came to see them and said they were even better than the wedding robes they had bought.

During this time, Chen Qing hadn’t actually gone out much. The things Aunt Sun had worried about still impacted him somewhat. Although he had prepared himself mentally, he chose not to listen to such things.

He told Aunt Sun about his decision, but she just smiled and didn’t respond.

By April 11, everything was ready. He was accustomed to visiting their house every night to discuss the progress of the preparations. But today, when he arrived, Aunt Sun stopped him outside.

Zhou Yuan was taken aback when she said, “You can’t see each other for three days before the wedding.”

Zhou Yuan went home, looking back every few steps. The house had been completely redone. Li Xin and Qi Shuning had neatly arranged the small courtyard. Tables, chairs, and benches were currently stacked on one side of the yard, and the kitchen was stocked—ready for April 15th.

Red gauze curtains hung in the room, and the bed was piled with bright red wedding quilts. Zhou Yuan was so overwhelmed by this that he didn’t sleep in the bedroom for the rest of the day and stayed in another room instead.

On the night of April 14, Li Xin slept with Chen Qing.

Like Zhang Yin before her, Aunt Sun brought a booklet in a mysterious way, not avoiding Li Xin. After all, Li Xin was a married man and naturally understood everything.

Chen Qing was still shy. Li Xin, who was already reading happily, said, “Auntie, yours is too unclear. Good thing I brought mine.”

Li Xin jumped off the bed, took out the booklet that Zhang Yin had given him, and read it with Chen Qing, who was still embarrassed.

“Oh, you’re getting married soon—what’s wrong with reading this?” He lifted the booklet and held it up to Chen Qing’s eyes.

Chen Qing had no choice but to take it, flip through a few pages, and put it down.

Aunt Sun looked at him and gently took his hand. “Zhou Yuan is a good man. Our Ah Qing has suffered for so long. Now, it’s time for the hardship to end and for good days to come.”

Li Xin nodded beside her. “Yes, yes, my cheap brother is indeed a good person. Auntie, you don’t know—before this…”

He kept talking about the past without stopping. “They always used me as a cover, you know. I suffered, but I couldn’t say anything. I even had to help them keep it a secret.”

Aunt Sun laughed. “Eat and drink more tomorrow. Don’t hold back.”

Li Xin laughed too. “Zhou Yuan said I could sit at the main table.”

Aunt Sun coaxed him. “Yes, you’re the only one allowed to sit there.”

After chatting for a while, she returned to her room, leaving Li Xin and Chen Qing alone. Li Xin’s chatter eased a lot of Chen Qing’s tension.

When he woke up the next morning, Li Xin’s legs were pressed against his again.

He had no choice but to wake him up. Meanwhile, Aunt Sun had cooked a bowl of sugar water with boiled eggs for each of them.

Li Xin didn’t hesitate and ate it right away.

Next door, Zhou Yuan’s house was already bustling. Many of Aunt Sun’s friends were in the courtyard. Several tables had been set up with plates of dried fruit and snacks. Aunt Sun had prepared all of this. Zhou Yuan had originally wanted to buy the food, but Aunt Sun said she wanted to do something for Chen Qing.

Chen Qing wasn’t wearing the wedding robe yet. He went out to greet the women. Everyone who came had some connection to Aunt Sun. Although they had thoughts in their hearts, they didn’t say anything.

They all knew Chen Qing’s character. After offering a few congratulations and exchanging smiles, Chen Qing returned to his room.

The day passed quickly. As dusk approached, Aunt Sun finished her work and entered Chen Qing’s room. The dressing table was already set up inside. Aunt Sun looked at Chen Qing in the bronze mirror, her eyes stinging.

Chen Qing had lived here for more than five years. Aunt Sun still remembered how thin and frail he was when he first arrived. In the blink of an eye, he was about to get married.

Aunt Sun wanted to comb Chen Qing’s hair but, thinking of all he had been through over the years, she set the comb down on his dressing table instead. “Ask Aunt Liu to comb your hair later.”

Chen Qing took her arm. “Mom, I don’t believe in that. Can you comb it for me?”

Aunt Sun wanted to refuse, but Li Xin held her shoulder. “Auntie, please comb his hair; otherwise, it’ll be too late.”

She picked up the comb again and began to comb Chen Qing’s hair, stroke by stroke. “May our Ah Qing be safe and smooth in the future.”

Chen Qing was dazed all day and didn’t even notice when Zhou Yuan arrived.

He didn’t have many friends. Li Xin decided not to block the door—he felt that Chen Qing and Zhou Yuan should be together without obstacles.

When Zhou Yuan entered, Chen Qing’s eyes were fixed on him. His bright red wedding robe made him look even more handsome.

In Zhou Yuan’s eyes, he could see only Chen Qing.

It was the first time Zhou Yuan had seen Chen Qing in red. His small face made him look delicate. Usually, he seemed old-fashioned, but today, people could see this side of him. No wonder Zhou Yuan fell for him.

Aunt Sun stood beside them while Li Xin held her arm and wiped her tears.

After bidding farewell to Aunt Sun, Zhou Yuan lifted Chen Qing directly into his arms.

Chen Qing didn’t have any brothers, so there was no one else to carry him. Zhou Yuan did it himself. After all, Zhou Yuan was his husband, and he didn’t want anyone else to carry him.

Chen Qing was small, leaning his whole body into Zhou Yuan’s arms. In their culture, they didn’t need to cover their heads with a red veil when getting married—only their faces with a fan. The fan that Aunt Sun had prepared for Chen Qing was for when going out.

During the wedding ceremony, there were three seats in the hall: one for Zhou Yuan’s grandmother and two for Chen Qing’s two fathers.

Chen Qing was stunned. The names of his two fathers were written on the chairs. He looked at Zhou Yuan, who smiled at him.

He had mentioned the names of Chen Qing’s fathers during New Year’s Eve chatting.

His father’s name was Chen San; even Chen Qing didn’t know his little father’s name. Everyone in the village called him Sheng Ge’er at that time, so Zhou Yuan gave him the Chen family surname.

Zhou Yuan looked at the high hall, which had only a few seats, but he still invited Aunt Sun, Blacksmith Li, and Zhang Yin to sit there.

After the ceremony, Chen Qing was taken to the new house.

It was lively outside. He kept playing with the tassels he had embroidered on his wedding robe while waiting for the noise outside to gradually fade.

When Zhou Yuan came in, Chen Qing noticed the redness on his face; he must have had a lot to drink.

He looked at Zhou Yuan for a moment, then shyly turned away. “Did you drink a lot?”

Zhou Yuan shook his head. “They blocked most of it for me.”

After all, it was his wedding night—he couldn’t drink too much.

“But now you have to drink one more cup.” Zhou Yuan walked to the bed with two cups of wine in his hands. “This is wedding wine.”

Chen Qing took the cup from Zhou Yuan and was about to drink, but Zhou Yuan stopped him, linking their wrists together. “Drink like this.”

There wasn’t much wine in the cups. After they had both drunk their fill, Zhou Yuan put his cup away and Chen Qing stood up.

Zhou Yuan pressed his shoulder. “Just sit.”

Chen Qing looked at him, then stood up and saw that it was completely dark outside. The people outside had already dispersed. He sighed. “It’s time for me to go home.”

Zhou Yuan:…

“What are you saying? Go where?”

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  (xǐ) Double Happiness (similar to 喜喜) — A symbol of good luck, especially in marriage.