Chapter 195: The Wedding (Part 2)
Zhang Yuanzheng felt a complex mix of emotions. He held the marriage certificate in his hand, glancing at the photo. It was a typical black-and-white portrait, the surface textured with the familiar grain of older photographs. In the picture, his daughter smiled brightly, while Hou Weidong appeared slightly more serious.
The thought that his daughter had finally become the wife of the man in that photograph stirred a whirlwind of feelings within him—sour, sweet, bitter, and spicy, much like the condiments in a bowl of mixed noodles. It was an emotional journey every father-in-law had to endure. The daughter he had raised with such care had blossomed into a beautiful flower, only to be taken by a stranger. From now on, this stranger would be the person closest to her, the one she would live with and raise the next generation alongside.
Of course, Zhang Yuanzheng understood this was the natural order of things, passed down through thousands of years. Yet, he still felt a sense of loss. Deep down, he felt as though the man in the photograph had stolen away his beloved daughter.
Chen Qingrong did not share Zhang Yuanzheng’s complexity. She set the marriage certificate down and asked, “When are you planning to hold the wedding banquet?”
Xiaojia took the two certificates into her hands and said, “We had a meeting yesterday. I’ve officially been transferred to the Landscape Management Bureau, serving as the Section Chief of the Planning and Finance Department.”
Chen Qingrong had always considered the Landscape Management Bureau a mediocre unit, with a reputation inferior to that of the Construction Commission. However, she did not interfere too much with her daughter’s choice. She remarked, “So you’re satisfied now? Others are killing themselves to get into the Construction Commission, yet you go out of your way to jump out of it.”
Xiaojia smiled. “The Landscape Management Bureau and the Construction Commission are parallel units, both under the municipal government. Many people from our Construction Commission have been transferred to the Landscape Bureau.” She continued, “The unit has just been established, so there is a lot of work to do. Hou Weidong has also just been transferred to the Organization Department. I think we should delay the banquet and keep it simple. We’ll just invite close relatives and friends for a few tables.”
Chen Qingrong’s face fell. “Marriage is a major event. How can you handle it so casually? My daughter deserves to be married off with grandeur and dignity.”
Chen Qingrong’s request was normal. Xiaojia and Hou Weidong had discussed this matter the previous night. Hou Weidong said, “Auntie.”
Xiaojia glared at him from the side. Hou Weidong immediately realized his mistake and, feeling a bit shy, corrected himself: “Mom.”
This was a title previously reserved exclusively for Liu Guangfen, but now it was shared with another person. Hence the folk saying, “A son-in-law is like half a son,” and “Marrying a daughter-in-law means losing a son.”
“Mom, we should choose an auspicious date for the banquet. Should you calculate the date, or should I?” After calling her “Mom” a few times, the words felt more natural on his tongue.
Chen Qingrong replied, “I’ve heard that the wedding date should be calculated. You can handle the date for the banquet.”
After lunch, Xiaojia and Hou Weidong bid farewell and headed home. Chen Qingrong and Zhang Yuanzheng stood by the window, watching their daughter and son-in-law’s figures flash briefly through the leaves. Zhang Yuanzheng looked gloomy and depressed. Chen Qingrong knew what was on her husband’s mind.
“I know you miss Xiaojia,” she said. “But she has grown up and should have her own life. Besides, she lives in the Xinyue Building, so we can see her every week.” She tried to persuade him further. “Men must marry, and women must marry. It’s inevitable. Think about it this way: it’s much better for her to settle down in Shazhou than to go to Yiyang.”
His daughter was the apple of Zhang Yuanzheng’s eye. Despite Chen Qingrong’s repeated persuasion, he still felt a knot in his heart. “It’s been more than three years, and Hou Weidong still hasn’t been transferred to Shazhou. He is young now and has many opportunities. If a few more years pass and he exceeds thirty, it will be difficult to transfer him. Last time he came over, I should have asked about this.”
Chen Qingrong leaned against the window sill. “Hou Weidong is quite capable. He has bought a car and a house after working for just a few years. As long as his financial condition is good, whether he transfers back or not is not too important. After all, it takes only an hour or so to travel between Shazhou and Yiyang by bus.”
At this time, both Chen Qingrong and Zhang Yuanzheng were idle at home. They had both taken early retirement. Since they had not yet reached the official retirement age, they could not receive pensions from the social security bureau. Each received a monthly early retirement allowance of over three hundred yuan, so their days were tight. Fortunately, Xiaojia had provided considerable support over the past two years—giving two thousand yuan for birthdays and ten thousand yuan for the Spring Festival—so their life was manageable.
On the phone, Liu Guangfen expressed her opinion on holding the banquet in Shazhou. “Holding the banquet in Shazhou is fine, but we must also hold one in Wuhai. If we don’t hold one in Wuhai, my old colleagues will scold us.” Liu Guangfen did some calculations and said, “That would be about ten or twelve tables.”
Xiaojia thought about having to play the bride twice and grimaced. “What about Yiyang? Should we hold a banquet there?”
Hou Weidong was playing with the telephone receiver. “We won’t play the role of bride and groom in Yiyang. We’ll just invite a few good friends for a meal: Zeng Zhaoqiang, Zhu Bing, Qin Feiyue, Zeng Xiangang.” He listed a string of names and finally added, “And Li Jing. She caused us to argue several times. How could such a character miss our wedding?”
Xiaojia was in a good mood. Seeing Hou Weidong’s openness, she felt relieved. “I’m afraid your ‘lover’ won’t be able to stand our wedding. If she comes to cause a scene, how will you handle it?”
“This ‘lover’ is entirely a fabrication by Bu Gao. As the old saying goes, ‘A husband and wife’s discord is all due to instigation.’ The days ahead are long, and since your husband is so excellent, you must be prepared to accept various instigations.” Xiaojia pinched Hou Weidong. “From now on, I will implement the ‘Three Clears’ policy: clear out your money, occupy all your time, and squeeze every bit of energy from your body.”
When she said “squeeze every bit,” Xiaojia’s face flushed with rosy clouds. Hou Weidong stepped forward and hugged Xiaojia. “I’ll let you squeeze me dry right now.” After her chest was assaulted, Xiaojia had no strength to resist. She hugged Hou Weidong tightly, burying her face in his hair, smelling the masculine scent. “I will squeeze you dry every day.”
They were newlyweds, in the honeyed phase of their relationship. A single word or a subtle physical hint became the prelude to intimacy.
That evening, Liu Guangfen called. “I’ve calculated the dates. The twenty-seventh is an auspicious day. I feel that since Xiaojia is marrying into the Zhang family, we should hold the banquet in Wuhai County first.”
Hou Weidong saw that Xiaojia was still busy in the kitchen, so he lowered his voice. “Your thinking is wrong. It doesn’t matter which side holds it first.”
Liu Guangfen said, “Silly boy, this is a matter of principle. We must stick to it. You need to handle this well. Your father and I have many old friends in Yiyang. We need to host at least dozens of tables. The gift money collected will be at least one hundred thousand yuan. We will give it all to you, considering it as parents providing for your wedding items.”
Hou Weidong said, “Mom, I don’t lack money. You two can keep the gift money.”
“Bridges are bridges, and roads are roads. This money is for you. Take it. If you want to show filial piety later, you can give us money separately. Actually, we don’t need your money. Giving money is a sign of your filial piety.”
After Xiaojia came over, Hou Weidong openly shared his mother Liu Guangfen’s thoughts, though he softened the tone considerably. “Sigh, my mother is quite traditional. She went fortune-telling and said we should hold the banquet in Yiyang first, then go to Shazhou. I couldn’t persuade her.”
Xiaojia knew that Liu Guangfen liked feng shui and fortune-telling. She believed Hou Weidong’s words without doubt. “Mom believes in this stuff. If we make her unhappy, it’s really not worth it. I’ll talk to my parents about this. There shouldn’t be any major problems.”
Xiaojia hid in the bedroom to make the call. Chen Qingrong listened to the mother-in-law’s request and said, “They are really people from a small place, with so many twists and turns in their minds.”
Xiaojia explained, “Hou Weidong’s mother treats me very well. She just believes in fortune-telling. For events like weddings and moving houses, she always asks someone to calculate the dates.”
Chen Qingrong sneered. “You naive girl, don’t use feudal superstition as an excuse. Their family definitely has a patriarchal mindset and wants to hold the banquet on the man’s side first.”
Xiaojia was anxious. “Does it matter which side holds it first? Mom, just turn a blind eye to these small matters.”
Chen Qingrong said angrily, “We Shazhou people are marrying into Yiyang. Their family has already gained an advantage. I’ll discuss this with your father before deciding.”
“What era is this? You still have such old-fashioned thinking. I’m too tired to talk to you. I’ll go home tomorrow.”
Xiaojia failed to persuade her mother and was too depressed to speak. The next day, Xiaojia went home early in the morning to do some ideological work on her mother.
Hou Weidong slept until ten o’clock. He was sitting in the dining room, drinking thin porridge and eating small steamed buns, when Xiaojia returned.
“Wife, did Mom and Dad agree?”
Xiaojia smiled broadly. “It took a lot of effort, but I finally persuaded them. I asked if there were any other issues we needed to discuss, so we wouldn’t be caught off guard.”
“It’s about the money. My idea is that we shouldn’t take the money collected from either side. Let the elders keep it. Consider it our filial piety.”