Chapter 85: Who in Their Right Mind Would Marry a Fool?

The news stunned everyone present.

“Let’s talk this over calmly, daughter-in-law…” Father Liu immediately stepped in to smooth things over.

Both sides exchanged a few conciliatory words, and only then did the quarrel come to an end. What should have been a joyous reunion meal ended in discord.

Liu Yan’er walked Lin Xiaodou to the door, her face apologetic. “I’m sorry, Sister Xiaodou. You had to witness such a scene today, and you didn’t even get to eat.”

Lin Xiaodou shook her head. “It’s nothing. Go and comfort your mother.”

From the look of her aunt today, she seemed truly furious.

Furious was putting it mildly.

At that moment, Mother Liu was already lying in her room, groaning with a splitting headache. Seeing his mother in such a state, Liu’s eldest brother, standing at the door, felt miserable himself.

When he returned to his room, he found his wife in high spirits, happily eating chestnut cake.

Liu’s eldest brother frowned. “That chestnut cake was a gift from Comrade Lin for Mother. Why did you bring it here?”

His wife retorted, “So your mother can eat it and I can’t? You’re always so partial.”

“I’m partial?” Liu’s eldest brother said gloomily, “I’ve already fallen out with my parents for your sake. What more do you want?”

She snorted. “You have so little backbone. No wonder your parents always had you under their thumb.”

He looked defeated. “It wasn’t being under their thumb; it was filial piety. Now I’m an unfilial son.”

She stood up and jabbed his forehead with her finger, unhappy. “Liu Jianjun, wipe that long face off. Don’t you care about your son?”

“Of course I do!” He grabbed her arm anxiously. “You’re finally pregnant. Please, don’t do anything foolish!”

“Relax, I wouldn’t. What I said earlier was just to scare your parents,” she replied, looking smug. “If I hadn’t threatened them, they wouldn’t have agreed to give us the money.”

“There’s nothing else we can do,” he sighed.

After today’s incident, his parents were probably utterly disappointed in him. But with his wife pregnant, how could he just stand by? If she got upset, it might affect the child.

Ah, caught between a rock and a hard place—it was simply too difficult.

——

On the other side, after clearing away the dishes, Father Liu returned to his room.

Seeing his wife lying on the bed, eyes red from crying, he walked over and said, “Let’s talk, dear.”

“What is there to talk about? Send her back to her parents’ house. Just because she’s pregnant, we have to indulge her?” Mother Liu’s voice was hoarse—she’d obviously been crying in secret.

She had raised her son with so much effort, and now, because of her daughter-in-law, he was estranged from her. Who could bear such a thing?

“Don’t act on impulse,” Father Liu soothed her. “After all, she’s carrying our Liu family’s child…”

Only after much coaxing did he finally calm her down. When her reason returned, a trace of reluctance surfaced.

“While our eldest daughter-in-law is difficult, the child in her belly is innocent. For the sake of the child, I’ll forgive her,” Mother Liu said at last.

After all, it was the grandson she’d longed for. She didn’t want any mishaps. Thinking that she’d soon be holding her grandchild, Mother Liu’s spirits lifted. She sat up. “Let’s see how much money we have left and scrape together whatever we can.”

Father and Mother Liu had always treated their children well. Their eldest son had served in the army for years, and Mother Liu felt sorry for the hardships he endured. Before his marriage, she only let him send half his salary home; after he married, they barely saw any of it.

When he got married, the family spent another sum. In recent years, the village’s harvests had been poor, and as the brigade leader, Father Liu had to subsidize here and there. Add to that the medical expenses for his late mother last year and their youngest daughter’s schooling costs, and their savings were meager.

They licked their fingers and counted the money over and over. After three counts, they confirmed: they had only 83 yuan and 53 cents.

Mother Liu’s face fell. “Not even a hundred yuan. It’s not enough.”

Father Liu said, “I’ll borrow some from your younger brother’s family to round it up to a hundred for our eldest daughter-in-law.”

Mother Liu nodded. “It’ll have to do. We don’t have any more.”

All their savings were emptied out. Fortunately, grain would be distributed soon; otherwise, she really feared the family would go hungry.

Once they’d agreed, Father Liu went out to borrow money. Half an hour later, he returned with a pleased expression. “It’s done.”

At dinner, Mother Liu brought out the hundred yuan they had scraped together. “This is all that’s left, and part of it is borrowed from your uncle.”

“Thank you, Mom and Dad. You’ve worked hard,” the eldest daughter-in-law said.

She was well aware of the family’s situation and didn’t press further. Having received the money, she was much more agreeable. That very night, she returned to her parents’ home with half a packet of chestnut cake and a hundred yuan, cheerful as could be.

But when she came back for lunch the next day, her face was dark.

Father Liu sensed something was wrong. “What’s happened?”

She replied, “My brother’s fiancée is pregnant—with twins.”

Father Liu exclaimed, “Double happiness! That’s wonderful news!”

She said angrily, “Wonderful? The bride’s family suddenly raised the bride price from 166 to 266 yuan! We’d barely scraped together enough for the dowry and the three wedding essentials, and now they want another hundred. Isn’t that bullying?”

Mother Liu said, “If she’s already pregnant, they don’t have to go through with it. The bride’s family must be anxious.”

She replied, “That’s what my parents thought too, but early this morning, the bride’s family came and said that if we don’t agree, they’ll abort the babies. They even said they’d had someone secretly check, and both are boys. When my parents heard that, they panicked and insisted the wedding must go on.”

Mother Liu was speechless. Wasn’t this the same tactic their own daughter-in-law had used on them yesterday? She hadn’t expected her in-law’s family to face the same situation so soon.

Liu’s eldest brother frowned. “Your family has already borrowed everywhere for your brother’s wedding. Where will you find another hundred?”

“Exactly. My parents are at home crying from worry,” she sighed. “But the bride’s family offered another condition—they said if we meet it, they’ll forgo the bride price and the three essentials entirely.”

“What condition?” everyone asked, intrigued.

She answered, “The bride has an older brother who’s not quite right in the head—he’s in his thirties and never married. The family said if we can find him a wife, someone willing to marry him without a bride price, then the families can exchange brides and write off all debts.”

Liu’s eldest brother said, “Who would agree to marry someone like that…”

She lamented, “That’s exactly my worry. My parents have left it all to me, but where am I supposed to find a suitable girl? I have no unmarried sisters left.”

At those words, Liu Yan’er, who had been eavesdropping, suddenly shivered.