RMCF: Chapter 10

 

Chapter 10

Since returning  with the medicine from town, Xu He hadn't gone out much these past few days. Using the excuse of making winter charcoal, he rested at home for a while.

The weather was nice today. Seeing the scab on his knee and feeling much better after taking several doses of cold medicine, he took a basin to the riverbank to wash clothes.

The family's clothes filled a large basket. Carrying the basket on his back and holding the wooden basin, he headed out. There weren't many good weather days in winter, and the riverbank was already crowded with gers and women washing clothes. Everyone was chatting and laughing, making it quite lively.

“He Ger’s here to wash clothes too? Come on, we'll make space for you.”

A woman very enthusiastically called him over. Xu He didn't stand on ceremony and went straight over to put his basin down.

“Madam Mao, you called He Ger over; you're not trying to pry for information about his Second Sister, are you?”

“What's wrong? Can't we ask or inquire about a young lady's situation?” That Madam Mao was also straightforward and said directly, “He Ger, has your family found a match for your sister yet?”

Xu He scrubbed the clothes. “No.”

He was telling the truth, and it was also the line his second sister and mother had instructed him to use. Whenever anyone asked him, he was to say no, so there would be more families to choose from.

“Madam Xu will surely pick and choose carefully; how could she settle on a family so quickly? If you're serious, Madam Mao, why not find a matchmaker and go directly to their house to discuss it? Wouldn't that be better?”

Among those washing clothes were not only married women but also many unmarried girls and gers. Hearing women with sons asking about Xu Shaochun naturally made everyone unhappy. All the good things in the village already went to Xu Shaochun. Coming out to wash clothes and still having to hear about her marriage prospects—who would be happy about that?

Just then, a man passed by on the ridge in the distance. Someone with bright eyes immediately changed the subject, “Look, isn't that the Guang family's second son? He really went to the city to get medicine.”

“What a sin. That butcher in our village is really inhuman.”

Two girls who hadn't been out much and weren't very well-informed, sensing some gossip, couldn't help but ask, “What happened?”

“You don't know about Zhang Fangyuan's marriage proposal?”

Hearing this name, Xu He's scrubbing hands paused. He couldn't help but look up at the man in the distance, his brows suddenly furrowing.

“Earlier, the matchmaker proposed the Guang family's fifth daughter to Zhang Fangyuan. A while ago, the butcher went to meet them. He looked down on the Guang family for being poor, even insulted Guang Er for being idle, they had a disagreement, and the butcher, with his violent temper resorted to violence, broke their table, and beat up Guang Er. Madam Guang was so angry she's still lying in bed at home.”

The two girls opened their mouths in disbelief, “Is that true?”

“How could it be false? That Guang Er walks around all listless and dejected, and he went to the herbalist for medicine. When Madam Guang is asked about it, she just wipes her tears. I find it pitiful.”

“Zhang Fangyuan was never a decent sort anyway. Didn't he himself fool around in the city, fight, cause trouble, and even work as security for a gambling den? Is that a proper trade? His standards are so high, finding fault with this and that; it'd be strange if he could ever get a wife.”

“His Fourth Uncle and Aunt, pressed for answers, shielded and argued, saying the Guang family wasn't a good family, that Guang Er had sticky fingers, and told everyone to be careful themselves.”

The woman snorted disdainfully, “I've never seen a family shield a relative like that. Even if the marriage doesn't happen, you're still fellow villagers. Getting into a physical fight, and when you can't find a justified argument, you say such ugly things, slandering a family that moved here from elsewhere. It's really going too far."

“I originally thought He Shi was a reasonable person. I never expected her to have such character. I wouldn't even consider proposing a match for their Xiaomao in the future.”

“Still talking about Xiaomao? He's so young. Right now, the Zhang family's biggest headache is probably that eldest nephew, Zhang Fangyuan. Causing trouble like that, does it seem like something a proper person would do? I'm afraid even if he offers a huge bride price, he can forget about finding a wife in this village.”

“All you unmarried girls and gers, you need to be alert, keep your eyes open, don't be deceived. Otherwise, you'll face plenty of suffering later.”

Just as everyone was chatting animatedly, a sudden voice cut through the buzz, cold and firm. “Auntie He was telling the truth. She wasn't shielding Zhang Fangyuan. The Guang family's second son really does have sticky fingers.”

Everyone was taken aback. They saw Xu He, his face cold, righteously refuting their conversation. They were both surprised that someone as aloof and quiet as him would participate, and displeased that he wasn't following the general consensus.

“What do you, a mere ger, know? The Zhang family isn't even related to yours. Why are you speaking up for them?”

Xu He remained unperturbed. “I'm just telling the truth.”

The woman scoffed, “Hey, look at this He Ger, being so stubborn.”

Another ger teased, “He Ger, you're speaking up for the butcher so much; don't tell me he's coming to propose to your family? Did your family agree?”

“Yeah, your sister has such high standards; she definitely wouldn't be willing. Are your parents betrothing you to him? Even if your options are limited, you should think carefully. Zhang Fangyuan isn't easy to get along with. Who knows, he might hit you someday.”

The crowd burst into laughter.

Xu He ignored their jokes. He picked up his washing basin, intending to leave the gossip hub and wash separately. Before leaving, he said coldly, “Believe it or not. If you don't guard against the Guang family, don't cry for your parents when you lose something.”

“You little ger, how can you speak so unpleasantly!” The woman threw down her washing baton, put her hands on her hips, and started cursing. “No wonder the men in the village all think highly of your Second Sister and not you. With a temper like yours, you're a perfect match for that savage butcher.”

Xu He wasn't angered or shamed. People always compared him to his second sister behind his back anyway; this was just saying it to his face. He had heard such words many times before. He simply squatted down elsewhere and continued scrubbing his clothes.

The woman wanted to pick a fight, but the other party wasn't engaging. It was like punching cotton, leaving her furious but helpless. After cursing a few more sentences, she was finally persuaded to stop by the others.

“What a person, really.”

“His temper is just too strange.”

Xu He turned a deaf ear, continuing to wash his clothes methodically.

Unbeknownst to him, on the other side of the small river, shielded by dense bamboo, Zhang Fangyuan, had been fishing in the deep water. He’d been listening to the quarrel for the time it takes an incense stick to burn, not making a sound.

These days, the idle chatter had made his ears callous. It was truly a case of suffering in silence, unable to voice his grievances.

He never expected the Guang family to be so shameless. He had left them some face, and they turned around to bite him, playing the victim everywhere and pretending to be pitiful. His reputation in the village was already poor, which gave the Guang family an opening. They really thought he was bullying the weak, picking on a newly arrived family, making villagers avoid him wherever he went.

He had grown thick skin by now and was quite open-minded about it himself, but still felt very sorry for his Fourth Uncle's family. They had gone to great trouble for him, only for things to end up like this, and to be slandered by the village gossips.

If Xu He hadn't stood up and spoken for him just now, given his temper, he would have thrown down his fishing rod and confronted the gossipmongers in an instant. But with Xu He on the other end, he held back, choosing not to intervene. Beating women or gers was something he still couldn't do.

The fishing rod twitched. Feeling irritated and distracted, he pulled it up. A two-cun long crucian carp flopped about vigorously. He roughly pulled it off the hook and threw it into the fish basket.

Xu He seemed to have recovered well. Compared to his previous hoarse, wild-duck-like voice, his current tone was now clear and distinct.

His voice was rather pleasant now that he was well.

Especially when uttering the three words: ‘Zhang Fangyuan’.

Despite his usual nature of not liking to talk or engage with people, he had actually spoken on Zhang Fangyuan's behalf. In the entire village, besides his fourth uncle's family, no one else would speak up for him.

It took a good while before he belatedly realized that he seemed to be smiling.

…

“Aunt, I caught a few fish in the river. Let's stew them tonight.”

After returning home briefly with his fish basket, Zhang Fangyuan made a beeline for his fourth uncle's house, shamelessly bringing ingredients to scrounge a meal.

He possessed the shortcomings of most men in this era: spending money recklessly, not knowing how to cook, and not knowing how to manage household chores. Recently, he had become increasingly adept at scrounging meals at Zhang Shicheng's house.

“And these things I bought for the previous meeting. I have no use for them. Aunt, take them and see if you can use them.”

The pastries had been given to Xiaomao to eat earlier; they wouldn't keep long. The remaining cloth and silk flowers were left at home. Today, seeing them annoyed him, so he brought them all over to He Shi.

“The cloth and silk flowers can be kept for later use.”

Zhang Fangyuan replied, “No, they'll likely go to waste.”

“You child, how can you lose heart so quickly?”

“I'm not losing heart. It's not appropriate to use gifts from one meeting for the next family; it's improper if word gets out.”

He Shi nodded; that was true.

Everyone tacitly avoided mentioning the current village gossip, sticking to happier topics. “Having fish tonight is good. We'll cook it with some pickled bamboo shoots and pickled vegetables; you uncle and nephew both like that. Xiaomao has been pestering his father to catch a couple of fish for ages. Your Fourth Uncle's skills are okay for catching fish in the fields in summer, but in winter, he can go out for half a day and come back empty-handed. He's been putting it off, unwilling to go.”

Zhang Fangyuan chuckled. He lingered in the kitchen for a while, chatted with He Shi for a bit, and then went inside. Xiaomao was practicing needlework; his plum blossom pouch was already vividly embroidered. It was said he could already take on work from cloth shops in the city. He was very motivated and didn't even go out to play anymore.

His fourth uncle, Zhang Shicheng, was in the central room, twisting dried hemp. Zhang Fangyuan plopped down beside him and twisted a few strands himself.

“Don't take to heart what people say outside. You did nothing wrong in that matter. If you can't find someone in our village, go look in other villages.”

Zhang Fangyuan had originally been eager to settle down, but this incident had calmed down instead. This matter ultimately depended on fate; it couldn't be rushed. “I'm not taking it to heart. Tell Aunt not to rush around and work so hard for it anymore. I have other plans in mind.”

Zhang Shicheng put down his work, worried that Zhang Fangyuan might be thinking of giving up again. “What plans have you made?”

“A proper livelihood, doing some small business.” Zhang Fangyuan said, “The villagers look down on me, firstly because my past reputation is ruined, and secondly because I don't have a proper job.”

“Rest assured, Fourth Uncle, I won't mess around.”

Zhang Shicheng took a long look at the person before him and ultimately didn't say anything.

 

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