Courtyard House: My Wife is Xu Huizhen

Page 160

Although He Yuzhu and Tian Zao were both residents under the same military control commission in the 5th District, they did not belong to the same neighborhood committee. Soon the neighborhood committee election began, and there was nothing He Yuzhu could do to help.

Fortunately, Tian Zao was a warm-hearted person who sincerely helped everyone get through the various upheavals in the early days of liberation, and was elected director of the Sanhai Neighborhood Committee with a high number of votes.

Li Hongying was elected as the director of the street in the subsequent election and married Lin Zheng. The wedding banquet was even hosted by Uncle Gui and He Yuzhu.

After the wedding banquet, Uncle Gui had drunk quite a bit, so He Yuzhu escorted him home. Aunt Li complained a few times and then poured Uncle Gui some tea to help him sober up.

Li Fugui said, "I'm not drunk, I'm just a little sentimental. When will Zao'er get married?"

Aunt Li was also worried, saying, "Yes, we've been talking about this for years, and Zao'er is still like a child."

He Yuzhu said, "Why don't we get them both drunk and put them in the same bed?"

"No way, what kind of terrible idea is this?" Aunt Li immediately objected.

He Yuzhu knew this was a bad idea, and smiled and said, "Why don't we prepare in advance, get everything ready, and then force Sister Zao to enter the bridal chamber? If we rely on her, who knows how long it will take?"

“Great idea! Let’s not let her know first, then talk to Tiedan and get everything ready. Then we can tell Zao’er and put her in the bridal sedan chair.”

Aunt Li then mobilized the entire courtyard. Suo Qian and his wife, as well as the fourth son Tong Xiaoting, all got to work. In just a few days, everything was ready.

After Tian Zao became the director of the neighborhood committee, she became even busier. When she returned home that day, she was still confused and was ushered into the house by He Yuzhu and a few others.

Tian Zao stared in astonishment at the new furniture, four brand-new quilts, and various everyday items decorated with the character for "happiness."

Then he asked, "What are you doing?"

Aunt Li laughed and said, "What do you mean? We know you're busy, so you don't need to prepare anything. Everything is already prepared for you. The wedding date has been set for three days from now."

"What? This was all prepared for me?" Tian Zao still couldn't believe it.

He Yuzhu said, "Of course! You're over twenty and you don't know any needlework. Only Tiedan would want you. Hurry up and get ready to get married!"

"You stinky pillar, I'll tear your mouth apart!"

Tian Zao immediately got angry. She was most afraid of people saying that she was always rushing around like a boy and didn't know anything about housework.

He Yuzhu felt embarrassed when he brought up his old wounds at this moment.

"Alright, you're about to get married, why are you still acting so crazy? Get ready in the next couple of days and get married quickly."

"Auntie!" Tian Zao called out shyly.

Li Xiulan advised, "I heard from Dapeng that Tiedan is all ready and just waiting for you to get into the bridal sedan chair."

"You stinky iron egg, you haven't said a word these past few days," Tian Zao said angrily.

Although Tian Zao was very angry, she could only nod and agree in the face of several elders who cared about her.

The banquet was mainly organized by He Yuzhu and Uncle Gui, who set up several tables in her courtyard.

Xu Huizhen also came to help, acting as a maid to escort the bride. The wedding was very joyous. After finishing their work, He Yuzhu and Xu Huizhen packed up and headed back.

He Yuzhu asked, "Huizhen, look how happy Sister Zao is after her marriage?"

Xu Huizhen blushed instantly. Her master's wife had asked her about He Yuzhu's birth chart a couple of days ago and then gave it to her to take back and give to her parents. They had to wait until both sides confirmed that their birth charts were compatible before they could proceed with the next step of the engagement.

She said shyly, "Yes, Sister Zao looks the most beautiful today."

He Yuzhu suddenly took Xu Huizhen's hand and asked, "You've got my birth chart, right? When are you going home?"

“I…” Xu Huizhen thought for a moment before lowering her head and saying, “I will go back with my brother in a couple of days.”

Xu Huizhen knew that He Yuzhu had been waiting for her to come of age for the past two years. Now that she was finally 18, she met the requirements of the Marriage Law and could get a marriage certificate. He Yuzhu couldn't wait to ask his teacher's wife to act as matchmaker.

Two days later, as expected, Xu Hui took Xu Huizhen away and drove back to their hometown.

When the two returned home, Xu's mother was quite surprised. She took their luggage and asked, "What happened? Why are you back at this time? We were just saying we were going to visit you."

Xu Hui smiled and said, "You should ask Huizhen about this."

Confused, Xu's mother called Xu Huizhen into the inner room and asked, "Did you quarrel with Zhuzi? You're 18 years old, but you still act like a child every day. Look at Xiaofeng, she's two months younger than you, and she's already crawling all over the place."

“Look at yourself again. You’re still causing trouble. What did I tell you during the New Year? You had to take better care of Zhu Zi, be obedient, and spend more time together. You can’t be willful anymore.”

Xu Huizhen's parents had long seen He Yuzhu's feelings for Huizhen, and two years ago they thought about getting engaged, but the girl never came to propose; it was always the boy who took the initiative.

He Yuzhu owns shops and businesses in the city. For him to be able to take a liking to Xu Huizhen, in her father's words, it must be incredibly lucky for her ancestors to be able to marry her.

After all, the Xu family lived dozens of miles from the capital and were just an ordinary rural family. This was a stroke of good luck for the Xu family.

But after waiting and waiting, there was still no news from He Yuzhu. She was very anxious and even thought that He Yuzhu was not satisfied with Huizhen. Later she learned that people in the city got married late and that men had to wait until they were 20 years old before they could get engaged.

Only then did she feel a little relieved. It had only been a few days since the New Year when the brother and sister suddenly returned, which terrified Xu's mother.

"Mother, what nonsense are you talking about? I came back this time on important business."

Xu Huizhen spoke for a moment, then took out a piece of red paper from her pocket and handed it to her mother.

"This is Brother Zhu's birth chart. Now you're not scared anymore, are you?"

Looking at her youngest daughter's shy appearance, Xu's mother instantly understood what it meant. Taking the other party's birth chart to a fortune teller for analysis was the first step in marriage and engagement. Only when the birth charts were compatible could the next step be taken.

Xu's mother was overjoyed. She had been waiting for news from the He family for so long, and now it had finally arrived.

The huge weight that had been hanging over my heart finally lifted, and I relaxed. I had been worried that Zhu Zi would regret it, but now there was no problem.

"Huizhen, wait at home. I'll take the birth chart to a fortune teller to take a look."

"Mom, why are you in such a hurry?"

"How can I not be anxious? I wish you would get married tomorrow."

"Mom, I won't get married. I'll stay home and take care of you."

"Silly girl, I have your brother. Hurry up and get married. I don't want to support you at home."

"Are you still my mother?"

Xu's mother had been looking forward to this day for a long time, and she hurriedly went out with He Yuzhu's birth date and time.

Xu Huizhen returned to her small room and looked at the familiar objects. Suddenly, she felt sentimental. She had started going on blind dates, and in the blink of an eye, she would be getting into a bridal sedan chair and becoming Brother Zhu's wife. Time flew by. She had known He Yuzhu for three years. She had been tricked by He Yuzhu in a daze and then opened a tavern. Many people jokingly called her Boss He's wife.

Lost in thought, Xu Huizhi pushed open the door and said, "Sister, I just saw that Auntie was very happy, and that's when I realized it was you who came back."

Chapter 117 The Overlord forced his bow

"Huizhi is here." Xu Huizhen invited her younger sister to sit down and chatted for a while about family matters.

Xu Huizhi asked, "Sister, are you going on a blind date?"

"You found out too?" Xu Huizhen asked shyly.

"Yes, my mother said it herself, it's your brother Zhu Zi."

Xu Huizhi paused for a moment, then said, "Sister, could you help me find a marriage partner in the city? I don't want to stay at home and farm."

"Well... that's fine. I'll ask a matchmaker to find out more, and then I'll tell you."

Before liberation, everyone thought about fleeing to the countryside to escape the chaos of war. But after defeating the so-called coalition forces on the peninsula last year, everyone felt relieved and started thinking about moving to the city.

This has led to a severe shortage of jobs in the city, with many people willing to accept lower wages in order to find something to do.

After the two sisters talked for a while, Xu's mother came back with the birth charts, beaming from ear to ear: "I've already had the fortune teller look at them. Your birth charts are a match made in heaven, and you can get married."

My biggest fear before was that my husband would say our birth charts were incompatible. This was the first hurdle to getting married. If our birth charts clashed, then the marriage would have to be called off.

Xu Huizhen breathed a sigh of relief. The other steps didn't matter. The most important thing was whether the two people's birth charts were compatible, otherwise the marriage would be troublesome.

Worried about the tavern's business, the brother and sister rested at home for a day, and then brought Xu Huizhi to the capital the next morning.

Xu Hui initially built a wine pot in the back room to brew wine. Although he had to fetch water from Yuyuquan Mountain outside the city to brew the wine, he still persevered.

In addition to supplying his own tavern, he also sold to many other small taverns, which made Xu Hui a fortune.

He has recently bought three houses in a nearby alley and still brews wine in this courtyard, but he doesn't live here.

He Yuzhu was puzzled when he saw the three siblings come in, wondering why they had brought Xu Huizhi back.

But now is not the time to talk about that. He Yuzhu really brought all the luggage in, and Xu Huizhen was shy like a young girl who had just arrived in the city.

After putting down Xu Huizhen's luggage, Xu Hui said, "I'm going back first. Zhu Zi, you and Huizhen can discuss it. Our family has no objections. Whatever you decide to do, we'll do it."

There are many customs and traditions associated with marriage. Sometimes, due to the so-called "face," the two sides argue fiercely, and in the end, the marriage cannot take place.

The Xu family didn't want to argue about this and simply lay down. However, since He Yuzhu could marry Xu Huizhen, everything was negotiable, and all wedding rules were to be based on the He family's wishes.

Before Xu Hui arrived, his parents told him to talk to He Yuzhu about this matter when he returned to the city, so that the He family could rest assured.

"Okay, I understand the rules, and I will follow them."

He Yuzhu didn't actually like the current rules, but when in Rome, do as the Romans do. After all, it was only 1954, and he couldn't act according to the views of later generations.

Xu Hui took Xu Huizhi out. Xu Huizhi was shy and wanted to run away, but He Yuzhu grabbed her hand and asked, "Where do you want to go?"

"I..." Xu Huizhen didn't know what to say.

He Yuzhu smiled and asked Xu Huizhen, whom he was holding in his arms, "What do our birth charts look like? Are we compatible?"

"Let me go!" Xu Huizhen didn't expect He Yuzhu to be so bold. Last time it was an accident, but this time it was even more outrageous. He directly hugged her and she could clearly feel He Yuzhu's two big hands on her lower back.

"Then you go first." He Yuzhu hugged her even tighter.

Xu Huizhen lowered her head, not daring to look at him, and said shyly, "My mother had someone look at it, and said... said..."

"say what?"