At the front of Qiaotou Hui Niangzi’s cloth shop, Liang Shi, after finishing her inquiries and seeing off the young lady, noticed that Kang He had gone to the outhouse and hadn’t returned yet.
She hesitated, wanting to say something to Fan Jing: “That young man’s way of speaking…”
Fan Jing said bluntly, “He’s not much for words.”
Liang Shi found it hard to express, but she knew the situation with the Fan family.
Finding a good son-in-law wasn’t easy.
The village wasn’t like the county; during the waves of conscription, many families in the county with money paid to avoid the draft, sparing their men from the battlefield.
Rural households, with little savings, had no choice but to comply when conscription came, leaving fewer men in the surrounding villages.
In recent years, more young men and women had been heading out to find work.
She comforted Fan Jing softly, “No one’s perfect. As long as he’s of good character and can live steadily, that’s enough.”
“I know,” Fan Jing replied.
Liang Shi noticed Fan Jing had just returned from outside and didn’t say more.
She showed them some clothes: “The fabric’s good, mid-grade fine cloth. Are you sure you want to trade it?”
Kang He couldn’t understand the local dialect the woman spoke and looked at Fan Jing.
“Trade,” Fan Jing said.
“If you trade for money, I won’t make a profit—three hundred coins,” Liang Shi told Fan Jing.
Fan Jing gestured the amount to Kang He with his fingers.
Kang He changed his mind about trading for money and pointed at the cloth in the shop, wanting to trade the clothes for fabric instead.
Liang Shi brought out a few bolts of cloth, patiently using gestures to explain the grades and prices to Kang He.
He chose a bolt of dark blue coarse cloth and a bolt of apricot-colored coarse cloth.
Liang Shi wrapped the two bolts and then pulled out a bolt of thick cotton-lined fabric, wrapping it together.
She said to Fan Jing, “I don’t know if I’ll have time to attend your wedding, so consider this cotton cloth my gift to you.”
She wanted to attend, but it was hard to find the time.
Her husband was away getting goods, and she didn’t know when he’d return.
She had to mind the shop, look after their five-year-old, and was pregnant with another.
If she couldn’t attend, the gift still had to be given.
“Too expensive, I can’t accept,” Fan Jing refused.
A bolt of thick cotton cloth cost no less than four or five hundred coins.
Liang Shi ran a business, and while it earned more than farming, it wasn’t easy.
Everyone was scraping by to support their families; such a generous gift was too much.
“When your mother was alive, she brought you to play at the shop, and I promised her I’d give you cloth when you married. Though Ling Niang is gone, I can’t break my word,” Liang Shi said, pushing the cotton cloth forward.
“When Zhen’er grows up and marries, I’ll give her cloth too.”
Fan Jing said, “We’re not holding a wedding feast, so don’t trouble yourself, Aunt. You’ve given us cotton cloth today, and when my younger siblings are born, I’ll return the favor with a generous gift.”
Liang Shi paused at his words.
“You child,” she said.
His reasoning was sound, but he was too blunt.
Knowing Fan Jing’s straightforward nature, she didn’t take offense, though others might have.
He refused to take it, so she let it be.
The two thanked Liang Shi and headed home with the bundles of cloth.
It wasn’t late, but the sky had darkened, and the light drizzle on the way turned into a steady rain by the time they reached home.
Qiao’er, hearing the noise, ran out from the house. Seeing Kang He holding the cloth, her eyes widened.
“Brother-in-law, you and Big Brother bought so much cloth! What styles are they?”
Kang He knew the little girl loved cloth.
Though he didn’t understand her words, he could tell her excitement from her expression.
He crouched down good-naturedly to show her the fabric.
Qiao’er touched the cloth—styles and colors common in the village—but she exclaimed, “Brother-in-law, you have such good taste! This cloth feels like top-quality stuff!”
The girl’s words were sweet as honey.
Kang He gave her the bright-colored cloth meant for the two girls.
The other bolt was for Zhang Shi and Father Fan.
A bolt of cloth, if cut skillfully, could make two sets of clothes for adults or three for children like Zhen’er and Qiao’er.
Qiao’er happily took the cloth, her eyes curving with her smile.
“Thank you, Brother-in-law!”
She darted back into the house like a rabbit, as if afraid Kang He might change his mind.
Kang He found the little girl adorable.
He went to give the other bolt to Chen Shi but, at the closed door, heard low sobbing from inside.
“I don’t know how to live like this anymore. Da Jing, you tell me, does your father have a conscience?” Fan Jing knocked and called Chen Shi out, asking what was wrong, and she burst into tears.
That afternoon, as it started raining, the village women who’d come to see the excitement left, but Zhang Jingui, from the main branch, stayed, hoping to catch a glimpse of the new son-in-law’s family.
Hearing Chen Shi say there’d be no wedding feast, she saw Father Fan return in the rain and remarked that such a joyous occasion deserved a celebration.
Father Fan, slurring, said Chen Shi wouldn’t allow it.
Zhang Jingui, taking on the air of an elder sister-in-law, criticized Chen Shi’s decision.
She said not holding a feast would distance the family from village relations, and if they needed help later, no one would come.
She added that skipping the banquet was disrespectful, making the Fan family lose face, and accused Chen Shi of being too stingy with money.
She even suggested Chen Shi was biased as a stepmother.
Chen Shi took these words to heart, her expression changing.
Zhang Jingui, seeing trouble, slipped away.
“It’s my fault for not holding the feast. Even if we have to sell everything, use the tax money, and please your father and the main branch, we’ll hold a grand banquet, the liveliest!” Chen Shi said angrily.
Father Fan, seeing her upset, said, “Big Sister was just joking. Why take it to heart?”
“She’s joking, but I’m petty. Fine, I’ll be generous for once!” Chen Shi retorted.
“Tomorrow morning, I’ll arrange for chicken, duck, fish, and meat, and have the village head check the almanac for a good day.”
Fan Jing, having gone out briefly, saw them arguing again over his wedding, not for the first time.
“No need,” Fan Jing said flatly.
Chen Shi wouldn’t have it.
“If we don’t, they’ll say I’m a cruel stepmother. Word will spread, even back to my hometown. They’ll say the Chen family has a daughter like me—how could I hold my head high? My younger cousins’ marriages might suffer because of me, and I won’t dare return home.”
Fan Jing asked, “No money, so what then?”
Using tax money was just talk; failing to pay taxes would lead the county to seize someone for extra labor.
With no men to spare, they’d take Father Fan, and Chen Shi wouldn’t allow it.
The only option was to borrow.
In these hard times, who could easily lend money?
“You’re the one being unreasonable,” Father Fan muttered as Chen Shi fell silent.
“Me, unreasonable? You’re reasonable! Old man, if you hadn’t been sly in front of Big Sister, would she have said those things about me?” Chen Shi, sparked by his words, went from crying to raging.
She rolled up her sleeves, ready to fight Father Fan.
Father Fan jumped from his stool, dodging.
“Da Jing, look at her! What a shrew!”
Kang He didn’t understand the situation but could see a fight brewing.
He stepped between them, his height separating the two.
Chen Shi was still furious.
“Kang He, move! I’m going to scratch that old man’s face so he can’t go around saying I don’t listen to him!”
“Enough!” Fan Jing snapped coldly.
“If we must, we’ll do it. I don’t have enough money now, but I’ll save up and hold it in the twelfth month.”
With Fan Jing’s decision, Chen Shi and Father Fan glared at each other but stopped fighting.
Kang He, seeing them deflate like punctured balloons, silently marveled at Fan Jing’s authority.
Chen Shi, appeased and delighted with the new cloth from Kang He, cheered up.
Father Fan, who wanted the feast for appearances, was also pleased despite the earlier clash.
In the end, Fan Jing took charge.
That night, after dinner, he packed rice and grains, preparing to head into the mountains the next morning.
“I’ll make two pancakes for Brother to eat in the mountains,” Qiao’er said.
The girls cleaned up, and Qiao’er hurried back to her room, eager to make a new dress from the bright cloth Kang He brought, hoping to wear it before winter.
Zhen’er didn’t go inside.
She sought Fan Jing and whispered something to him.
Shy but sharp, she knew why her parents fought.
The family often argued over money, and it was always Big Brother who resolved it with his earnings.
Her parents seemed used to it.
But she knew how hard her brother worked in the mountains for that money.
Seeing it happen again, she couldn’t help feeling sorry for him.
“Too much trouble, don’t bother,” Fan Jing said, looking at the thirteen-year-old girl, thin and small like a ten-year-old.
“Go to bed early.”
Zhen’er lowered her eyes.
Kang He was to sleep in the newly cleared west storage room, where a small bed was made with boards and a bench, freshly laid with bedding.
He remembered his chest was still in Fan Jing’s room and went to get it.
He saw the little girl leave Fan Jing’s room, looking downcast, and wondered why.
He found Fan Jing packing clothes and grains into a basket, as if preparing for a trip.
“Where… going?” Kang He asked.
“Into the mountains,” Fan Jing replied, seeing Kang He at the door.
Realizing he might not understand, he pointed to the mountains outside.
Kang He understood; on the way to the county, he’d asked Fan Jing how to say “mountain” and remembered.
It looked like Fan Jing would be gone for days.
Kang He paused.
“I… go.”
Fan Jing stopped packing.
“What for?”
Kang He guessed Fan Jing was asking what he’d do there.
He pointed at the tools on the wall and pulled the small bow Fan Jing had given him.
“You can’t handle those,” Fan Jing said, not caring if Kang He understood, and handed him his chest and bundle.
Kang He took the bundle but blocked the door, refusing to let Fan Jing close it.
“I go!”
They stared at each other, neither yielding.
After a moment, Fan Jing nodded.
This Fan dad is so f***ing useless😑 his mouth is so capable, but the family is still standing because of Jing ge’er. He wants to save face so badly he’ll hinder his family way of surviving 😒
“for appearances…” 🙄🙄 Just use the tax money and throw a wedding feast/farewell party and let this useless man be taken away for forced labor, maybe when he’s being whipped to keep working on an empty stomach he won’t be so useless anymore. Such a waste of space. It’s Chen Shi’s bad luck to be married to this piece of something and Fan Jing and the girls’ misfortune to be born as his children. Maybe the stress of being stuck in a marriage with this kind of man was what killed Fan Jing’s mother. Maybe the late wife is already rushing to get reincarnated so as to be born earlier and not be married to this man again in the next life, lucky her. What “strained relations” with fellow villagers, what “disrespecful”, that big mouth sister-in-law was obviously only saying it to cause trouble just because it’s not her money. Everyone’s living day-to-day just to survive, what can’t they understand when one family doesn’t set up a feast. Even if they talk, their words, whether good or bad, won’t feed anyone, so just let them talk. All good-for-nothing people really has the biggest most useless faces.