Qingmu said sullenly, "I've hardly ever spoken to her. We're not familiar at all. What's this talk about liking her!"
There was something else he left unsaid. 'Zhang Huai probably likes Liu'er, right? So why didn't she ask Huai Zi for help?' But when he glanced at Juhua in the shadows, he didn't dare say it aloud. He knew his younger sister liked Huai Zi, and he was afraid the words would pierce her heart.
Juhua couldn't help but say, "Liu'er is so unlucky—ending up with a mother like that! She was crying her eyes out today, but there was nothing I could do to help her."
Qingmu fell silent. 'My sister is the unluckiest one of all,' he thought, 'and here she is, pitying someone else!'
The siblings were quiet for a moment. The autumn wind rustled outside. Through the small, square window, Juhua gazed out at the deep darkness of the night, where a few scattered stars twinkled on the horizon.
After a while, she said to Qingmu, "After you've studied for two years, our family will be doing better. We'll definitely find a good wife for you then."
But hearing this made Qingmu's heart ache.
He was quiet for a moment before saying to Juhua with conviction, "Juhua, don't you be afraid. I'll always treat you well. Even if you never marry, I'll support you! I won't let anyone bully you!"
"Pfft!" Juhua let out a soft laugh.
She was truly touched. 'In a place like this, having a brother and parents like mine is a real blessing. Heaven is fair. It may have given me an ugly face, but it also gave me a family's love that gold could never buy!'
"Yes, I believe you, Brother! But you shouldn't worry about me all day. Look how capable I am. Even if I don't get married, I can still make a good life for myself! And with you, Dad, and Mom helping me, it'll be even easier!" In the darkness, her soft voice was filled with confidence.
Qingmu had indeed noticed a change in Juhua's spirit lately. He felt his own spirits lift as well and said, "Alright! Let's work hard for two years and build a house like the village chief's. Then I'll fix up a beautiful room just for you."
Juhua was delighted. This warm conversation was intoxicating. She suddenly remembered something and asked, "Brother, when you have a chance, could you ask around and see if anyone has puppies? We could get one to raise. Since we're the only family living here by the mountain, having a dog would make me feel a bit safer. Besides, I like dogs!"
Qingmu had noticed that Juhua, who used to be timid and withdrawn, seemed to have unleashed her true, innocent nature after her brush with death. This, of course, made him happy.
So he readily agreed, "That's not hard at all. Uncle Zhao San has a female dog, but she isn't pregnant yet. I'll ask around and find someone who has puppies and bring one back. When we're less busy, I'll take you up the mountain to catch rabbits."
Juhua quickly asked, "But you can't use a bow. How will you catch them?"
Qingmu said, "We can set traps! Or I can use a slingshot—I'm a great shot with one. I'll just stun it with a pebble first, and then it'll be much easier to catch."
Just then, Mrs. Yang entered the room and said to the siblings, "Why are you two still up in the pitch dark? You'll never get up in the morning."
Juhua said to Mrs. Yang, "Mother, my stomach feels uncomfortable if I sleep right after eating! Let's have someone make us a heating barrel. In the winter, after dinner, our whole family can gather around it to keep warm and chat before going to bed. Wouldn't that be nice?"
Mrs. Yang walked over to the bed and sat down. "What kind of heating barrel?" she asked. "It's not even winter, and you're already worrying about it."
Juhua said softly, "I get cold so easily. I've always found the winters so hard to get through, so I think we should prepare early this year! The heating barrel is very simple. It's just a bottomless ring of wooden planks bound together. Inside, there's a shelf. You put a brazier under the shelf, and we can sit on stools around the barrel, rest our feet on the shelf inside, and drape a small quilt over our laps. Wouldn't that be warm?"
Qingmu understood immediately. "That's very simple," he said, "and it won't take much wood. I'll go find Li the carpenter soon to have him make one, and we'll have it by winter."
Mrs. Yang sighed. "When our family's situation improves, I'll have a new quilt made for you." 'It wasn't just a quilt,' she thought. 'The girl didn't even have a proper padded winter coat. They just scraped by every year. No wonder she's cold!'
She was about to tell her son to go to bed when Qingmu suddenly asked, "Mother, did you go to Qingbei Village to see a matchmaker this morning?"
Mrs. Yang was taken aback. "Yes," she answered. "I've already asked Matchmaker Wang to go to Liujiatang to discuss a match. Why do you ask?" 'Could it be,' she wondered suspiciously, 'that my son has already fallen for some girl?'
In the darkness, Qingmu was quiet for a moment before replying, "I was just thinking, our family has no money right now. Wouldn't it be better to wait two years to talk about marriage? By then, I'll at least be able to read a little, our family's finances will surely be better, and it'll be easier to arrange a match. Isn't that a better idea? Why do we have to push for it now, when we can't even afford padded coats or new quilts!"
Mrs. Yang was quite surprised to hear her normally taciturn son say so much at once. 'But what he says makes sense,' she thought. 'He's not that old anyway, so what's the rush? There's no reason for the whole family to pinch pennies for his marriage, making our daughter suffer in the process!'
She sounded troubled. "You didn't say anything to me earlier. I've already engaged Matchmaker Wang. What are we to do now?"
After a pause, she continued without waiting for Qingmu's reply, "I wasn't planning on arranging a match for you right now, but your grandmother told me that Liu Fugui's daughter is a good girl, and I was afraid someone else would get to her first. These days, it's not that hard to find a wife, but it's not easy to find a virtuous one. A virtuous wife makes for an easy life later on. But if you get a flighty, unreliable one, you're in for a world of suffering. Just look at Granny Hua in our village. She's a perfect example of 'all mischief and no work,' always sticking her nose in everyone's business. And that's not even the worst of it. She's just a gossip, which you could learn to ignore. But she's also famously gluttonous and lazy! Her mother-in-law was a saint, and Granny Hua literally drove her to an early grave. Li Laoda can't do a thing with her. They're old now, so he just lets her run wild. What's the point of hoping she'll change? Their two sons are over twenty, and the family is dirt poor with nothing to their name. But is she worried? No, she just spends all day going from house to house, gossiping!"
Juhua couldn't help but ask, "Mother, is Liu Fugui's daughter really that wonderful? Have you met her?"
Mrs. Yang laughed. "How often do I get to go back to my maiden home? I saw her more often when she was a little girl, but I've hardly seen her since she grew up. She's probably running the household now and is too busy. But your grandmother watched her grow up, so her judgment can't be wrong. Otherwise, why would so many families be lining up to ask for her hand?"
Juhua said in a small voice, "My brother is wonderful, too! If she has any sense, she'll accept the proposal!"
Hearing her defend Qingmu, Mrs. Yang couldn't help but chuckle. "You're his sister, so of course you think your brother is the best. I think my own son is great, too! But marriage is a once-in-a-lifetime decision for a woman, so naturally, she's going to be picky and choosy to find someone who suits her. It's the same for the man's side, really. No one wants to marry a lazy wife, right? Both sides are selective. When they find a match they both like, they become family."
"Of course she should be selective," Juhua said, "but my brother has nothing to fear from her scrutiny. Mother, I was at the ancestral hall today, and out of all the young men there, Brother was by far the most distinguished!"
Mrs. Yang said proudly, "That's right! Not to brag, but my son and daughter are both wonderful, better than most of the children in the village. Didn't your grandmother say the other day that your uncle's sons, Laifu, Laixi, and Laicai, can't hold a candle to you two!"
Juhua giggled, the sound ringing out clearly in the silent night. 'Not to brag? What more could you call that but bragging?'
Being showered with praise by his mother and sister made Qingmu's face burn with embarrassment. He sat in silence, not saying a word. Fortunately, the room was so pitch-black that no one could see his awkward expression. In his heart, however, he was ecstatic. 'So Mother and Sister think that highly of me!'
Mrs. Yang's voice grew softer as she continued, "Speaking of being selective, it really takes good judgment. There was a family over by Xiatang Market. The man of the house died, leaving a woman with five children. In less than a year, the woman took her youngest daughter and remarried, leaving four siblings behind—three boys and a girl—with just a few dilapidated rooms to their name. But even so, the eldest son soon married his cousin and moved out. As for the second son, he married a wife without spending a single piece of silver. His mother-in-law was the one with real foresight! She lived far from Xiatang Market, deep in the mountains. She'd heard about the family and how good the children were, so she took notice. She secretly came to check on them twice, decided the second son was a truly good man, and married her daughter to him on the spot without asking for a bride price. Can you imagine that kind of resolve! And guess what? Within two years, with the help of his wife's family, that second son had built a brand-new, two-story, tile-roofed house. Their life is thriving! Last year, the sister also made a respectable marriage. Now only one brother is left, and the matchmakers are practically breaking down their door. It's nothing like the miserable state they were in a few years ago! Now, wouldn't you say that mother-in-law has a good eye for picking a son-in-law?"
Juhua listened and thought to herself, 'Now that's a woman with good judgment. That son-in-law was certainly lucky to get a mother-in-law like her!'
Qingmu, however, thought, 'Not everyone is lucky enough to meet a mother-in-law with such foresight. Wasn't Huai Zi belittled as worthless by Liu'er's mother? And Huai Zi is certainly no worse than that second son from Xiatang Market.'
'Our family might have good judgment, but then there's my sister's situation... Yes, Sister also needs someone with good judgment to see her true worth. I hope someone with a good eye will choose her in the future!'
After discussing that family's life a bit more, Mrs. Yang finally turned to Qingmu in the shadows and asked, "So, what should we do about this match? If they agree, are you saying you'll refuse? The Liu Family's daughter is a real catch. An opportunity like this doesn't come twice."
Qingmu said in a low voice, "If her family doesn't ask for a large bride price, we can agree to the match. If they ask for too much, then let's just forget it. Besides, didn't Grandmother say the other day that their family wants her to stay with them for a few more years? Even if the match is successful, we could postpone the wedding for two years. I imagine her family would agree to that."
Mrs. Yang thought for a moment. "That's a good idea. Let's do that! Ai, in that case, I'll get some new quilts and padded coats for the family this year. It's no good to keep scrimping like this. Frugality with food and clothing won't make you poor, but a life without a proper plan will! I've been a fool, scrimping blindly! My dear girl, you've suffered so much these past few years!"