Bai Lan had initially thought the matchmaker’s visit wouldn’t affect the Xu family. But she soon realized she was being naive.
“What? Someone wants to find a match for Xu Jiandong?”
Bai Lan stared wide-eyed at Liu Meiling, wondering if she had heard wrong.
Liu Meiling also looked utterly speechless. “Isn’t that right? Who knows who came up with the idea. Someone came to the house and asked Mom if they could set Xu Jiandong up with someone!”
Ever since Su Xiaomei’s incident, Xu Jiandong had been packed off to the textile factory’s dormitory. The family didn’t pay him much attention, except for Miao Daju, who went to the factory every month to collect Xu Jiandong’s wages. After getting his pay, two-thirds went to support Xu Jiandong’s two sons, and the remaining third was given to Xu Jiandong as living expenses.
As for his marital status with Su Xiaomei, Xu Jiandong had been pushing for a divorce, but Su Xiaomei didn’t want one. And now, Su Xiaomei had been sent to a labor farm for reeducation. So the divorce had never gone through. To make matters worse, the couple had never registered their marriage when they wed. Strictly speaking, Xu Jiandong was still an unmarried man.
Bai Lan was shocked when she heard this. And now, someone had actually come forward wanting to find a match for Xu Jiandong. What could they possibly want from him? Aside from half a house, Xu Jiandong had nothing worth coveting.
“Then Mom must have chased them away!” Thinking of Miao Daju’s temperament, Bai Lan couldn’t help but say.
Liu Meiling said, “Of course! The moment that matchmaker opened her mouth, Mom got angry and cursed her out. Who knows which vile person told the matchmaker about Xu Jiandong.”
—
At the same time, several families in the compound were also talking about the matchmaker’s visit.
Take Aunt Qin, for example—she had been the one to bring the matchmaker in the first place. Now she was telling Qin Yan about finding her a match.
Qin Yan said, “I thought you were looking for someone for my brother?”
Aunt Qin replied, “Your brother and you will both be matched. Good prospects are hard to find these days. The sooner we act, the better—otherwise, all the good ones will be taken. You, you… you spend all your time with Bai Lan. Why can’t you learn from her? Don’t you know yet? Xu Jianbei is about to get promoted. Bai Lan has such good judgment. You hang out with her all the time—how come you haven’t picked up on that?”
Qin Yan was momentarily at a loss for words.
Meanwhile, at the Ning household in the front courtyard, a similar conversation was taking place.
“Didn’t I say I didn’t want to find anyone? Why did you go to a matchmaker?”
Da Tou had just come home when his mother excitedly started talking about finding him a match. As usual, he directly stated his decision.
But Ning Ma, who usually listened to her son, broke from tradition this time. “This matchmaker knows a lot of people. She said your situation is actually quite good. The only shortcoming in our family is your father. But I told the matchmaker that after you marry, you can focus on your own little family. I can take care of your father. That way, with the money you earn as a driver, you can definitely support a family.”
She had it all planned out. Ning Ma thought the matchmaker was right. Her son was almost twenty. If he didn’t start looking now, he’d end up a confirmed bachelor. Then it would be even harder to find someone. It was better to start early and look for someone from a family worse off than theirs. That would surely work out.
Da Tou still shook his head. He had his own considerations. So he refused again and went inside to do his chores.
He thought the matter would just pass, as it always did. But who knew that right after dinner, someone would come knocking on their door.
—
At that moment, Bai Lan and Xu Jianbei had also just finished dinner at the Xu home. The couple was preparing to walk back to the screw factory.
But before they could leave, they heard a commotion coming from the front courtyard.
Bai Lan tugged on Xu Jianbei’s hand in confusion. “Is that Da Tou’s voice?”
Xu Jianbei listened carefully and nodded. “Yes, sounds like he’s arguing with someone.”
The voices weren’t loud, with several women’s voices mixed in. But Xu Jianbei could still pick out Da Tou’s.
Bai Lan was even more curious about what was happening at Da Tou’s house.
The next moment, they heard Widow Hu’s sharp voice: “Ning Geda, you’re the head of this household. Tell me, how is my daughter being wronged by matching with your son? If Sister Wu hadn’t vouched that your son would live separately after marriage, I wouldn’t have dared to set foot in your home!”
Upon hearing this, Bai Lan and Xu Jianbei looked at each other in astonishment. She hadn’t misheard, had she? Widow Hu wanted to marry Hu Aihua off to Da Tou?
This pairing left Bai Lan stunned!
Da Tou was known throughout the neighborhood as a pitiful, hard-luck kid. No one would willingly marry their daughter to him. And although Widow Hu favored sons over daughters, she had always treated Hu Aihua decently. Moreover, she was known for snubbing the poor and currying favor with the rich—how could she possibly want to marry Hu Aihua to Da Tou?
This was truly bizarre!
Not only Bai Lan and Xu Jianbei found it strange. Everyone gathered in the front courtyard watching the spectacle felt they were witnessing something unprecedented.
Aunt Wan, ever the instigator, chimed in, “Sister Hu, what made you set your sights on Da Tou? Didn’t you used to say you wanted your daughter to find an office job?”
Widow Hu spat disdainfully. “It’s that Sister Wu who came to our compound this morning. She and Ning Geda’s wife put their heads together and decided my Aihua would be a good match for her son.”
By then, Bai Lan had already made her way to the front lines of the gossip with Xu Jianbei. Hearing these words, she couldn’t help but look over at Da Tou and his mother, who were standing at their doorstep.
The mother was busy trying to explain things to Widow Hu, while Da Tou was telling his mother it was impossible. Add to that the cacophony of everyone chiming in, and it was pure chaos.
Xu Jianbei said quietly to Bai Lan, “I’ll go pull Da Tou out.” This kind of back-and-forth bickering was clearly not going to solve anything.
Bai Lan nodded. “Go ahead. I’ll meet you at the alley entrance.”
After the couple agreed, Xu Jianbei called out directly, “Da Tou, I need to talk to you about something. Come out.”
Da Tou, already overwhelmed, immediately reiterated to his mother, “Mom, I told you, I’m not doing any matchmaking. I have something to take care of—I’m going.”
With that, Da Tou slipped away and pulled Xu Jianbei outside.
With one of the main parties gone, the rest of the conversation fizzled out.
Miao Daju went over to Ning Ma and started trying to talk some sense into her. Seeing that there was nothing left for her to do, Bai Lan prepared to go outside to find Xu Jianbei.
Just then, she noticed Hu Aihua standing by the second gate, watching the commotion in the front courtyard. Recalling the situation at the recycling station that morning, Bai Lan wondered—could it be that Hu Aihua actually had feelings for Da Tou?
Hu Aihua caught Bai Lan’s gaze and immediately turned and ran back inside.
Widow Hu’s scolding voice could still be heard.
Bai Lan truly found it strange that Widow Hu had suddenly set her sights on Da Tou. No matter how skilled Matchmaker Wu was, she couldn’t possibly have convinced her that quickly.
—
“Do you think she’s lost her mind?”
Bai Lan found Xu Jianbei and Da Tou at the alley entrance, just as Da Tou was complaining. “My mother is way too soft-hearted. She actually wants to set me up with Widow Hu’s daughter. What kind of person is Widow Hu? And that scrawny good-for-nothing, Hu Aimin, isn’t any better. His wife, Gao Qingqing, is completely unhinged. Getting tangled up with a family like that would be eight lifetimes of bad luck.”
Besides, Da Tou really didn’t want to go through with any matchmaking. He already had someone he liked.
Xu Jianbei could see right through to Da Tou’s deepest feelings. He waved Bai Lan over, then sighed.
“If you really have feelings for someone, you need to talk to your mother properly. Your mother isn’t unreasonable. If you make yourself clear, she won’t keep flailing around blindly like a headless chicken. Look at what happened today—Widow Hu caused such a scene. Never mind why she suddenly came up with this idea; just the fact that it happened will make it even harder for you to find someone.” The onlookers would think the Ning family lacked backbone. A woman had come to their door to discuss a match, and they had cowered. Moreover, Widow Hu was such a formidable person. Now that people knew she had set her sights on Da Tou, many would be reluctant to deal with the Ning family at all.
Da Tou hadn’t thought that far ahead. He immediately reached up to scratch his head, then squatted on the ground and groaned.
“Brother Bei! Brother Bei! Teach me what to do!”
Xu Jianbei didn’t have much experience with this sort of thing. After a moment’s thought, he said, “Why don’t you go home and have a good talk with your mother. Then ask the transport team to assign you a long-haul trip. Get away for a while, and things will probably blow over.”
The main thing was that they really didn’t want to get entangled with the Hu family. Under the circumstances, this was the best solution.
“Honestly, you don’t need to be so afraid. Hu Aihua isn’t Gao Qingqing. Your family doesn’t live in the back courtyard. Since you’re not in the same courtyard, you won’t run into each other much.”
Da Tou caught the teasing note in Xu Jianbei’s voice and groaned again.
Bai Lan had also long since learned from Xu Jianbei about Da Tou’s true feelings. Seeing him like this, she patted him on the shoulder. “Anyway, you need to come clean with your mother as soon as possible. No more beating around the bush. I get the feeling Widow Hu has some scheme up her sleeve. Don’t let your mother get played.”
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