bookbashuk Chapter 102 Introduction
Chapter 102 Introduction
Du Mei was suddenly pulled in front of everyone and met Xu Sui's clear and beautiful eyes. She was instantly at a loss and stammered for help.
"Hello, Second Cousin-in-law."
"Hello." Xu Sui smiled and nodded.
The girl in front of me was very thin, with a sallow complexion and severe malnutrition. She had almost no flesh on her body, and her gray clothes were all made of coarse cloth from the countryside, with patches here and there.
I thought Tianhua was already thin and malnourished enough, but compared to Dumei, she was still much better off.
Hao Lihong, the mother, wasn't much better off; she was also covered in grime and patches.
After receiving warm greetings and inquiries from the Qin family, Xu Sui returned to her room and sat down.
I just sat down.
Hao Lihong quickly pulled her daughter aside and squeezed Tian Hua aside, sitting down next to Xu Sui. Her attitude was warm and ingratiating, and she smiled very enthusiastically.
"Sui Sui, we're all family, so I won't hide it from you. The reason I brought Xiao Mei to the city this time is not only to see you and Yun Zhou, but also to find a partner for your cousin. She's not young anymore, and she can't find a suitable one in the countryside, so she can only try her luck in the city."
"See if you know anyone suitable and introduce them to Xiaomei. We don't have any other requirements, as long as the man has a city household registration and a job."
"Even if he is older, has lost his wife, or is remarried, I can accept it."
Xu Sui was slightly taken aback and glanced at Du Mei, who was looking down and clutching the hem of her clothes, barely saying a word.
"Auntie, how old is Xiaomei? She looks like she's not even eighteen yet, right?"
Girls in the countryside marry young, it's common for them to get married at fifteen or sixteen. It's a bit better in the city, where they usually get married at eighteen or nineteen, or even in their early twenties.
Judging from Du Mei's appearance, she shouldn't be very old.
Hao Lihong immediately understood what Xu Sui meant, and she quickly shook her head, "This girl is not young anymore, it's time for her to get married."
"Sui Sui, you have a wide network of connections and are very capable. If you know anyone suitable, please introduce them to Xiao Mei."
These days, the longer you stay at home, the more mouths you have to feed.
Their family was struggling to make ends meet, and their daughter was getting on in years; she couldn't stay at home any longer.
But she couldn't bear to let her daughter marry into the production brigade.
The other families in the brigade were in similar situations; if they married into the family, they would still go hungry.
It's different in the city; at least you won't starve, and you still have a decent life.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have gritted her teeth and endured the heartache to bring all those eggs from home to the city, specifically to ask her old mother for help.
Thinking of this, Hao Lihong raised her hand to wipe away her tears and looked at Old Lady Qin again.
"Mother, Xiaomei is your own granddaughter. You watched her being born. Please think of a way to help her."
"Your own daughter has already lived like this for so long. Back then, you only cared about yourself and never thought about your own daughter from the countryside."
"I can't just watch my own daughter marry a farmer from the countryside and live a life of earning meager work points in the fields every day."
She harbored resentment towards her biological mother, resenting that she never considered her own daughter's feelings and always thought of her stepson when it came to good things.
Now that she's older and has a daughter of her own, she doesn't care about resentment anymore. She just wants to beg her for help in finding a husband for her daughter in the city.
But after talking for a while, the old lady didn't say anything at all.
Grandma Qin pursed her lips and glanced at her granddaughter's dark and ordinary face, as well as her somewhat timid nature.
"...It's not that your mother doesn't want to help you, it's just that this matter is really difficult to handle."
If my granddaughter were even a little bit pretty—not as pretty as Xu Sui, but at least somewhat decent-looking—this wouldn't have been so difficult to handle.
But unfortunately, her granddaughter took after her dark-skinned father and, to be honest, wasn't very pretty.
City men aren't stupid. They can marry an ugly city woman or a beautiful country woman, but no one would marry a woman who is both ugly and from the countryside.
If someone is willing to marry her, there must be something wrong with her. You can't just marry a troublesome person without wanting anything in return.
Tianhua also felt that this would not work out. In previous years, things were better. Life was not so difficult, and there was no famine. You could still see people marrying women from the countryside.
But in the last two years, marrying a wife from the countryside means saving a portion of the food rations from everyone in the family and sharing it with the wife.
Life is tough for everyone, and when it comes to food, who would want to be involved?
She thought for a moment and then said tactfully, "Lihong, it's not that I don't want to help you, it's just that this matter probably won't work out. Xiaomei is still young. Why don't we wait another year or two and make plans slowly?"
"No rush."
Hao Lihong didn't like her sister-in-law Tian Hua very much. Not only Tian Hua, but also Qin Youtian's older brother, who wasn't related to her by blood, she didn't like him either.
The old lady was biased; she always put the Qin family first and never considered her own daughter.
"Sister-in-law, you should put in a good word for me. After all, Xiaomei calls you aunt. We've come all the way to the city just to ask you for this favor."
"As relatives, you can't just stand by and do nothing and make sarcastic remarks."
Xiao Fen couldn't stand it anymore. "I'm not trying to be mean, Aunt, but what you're saying is wrong."
"This is a difficult matter to begin with. My mother is just telling the truth. Think about it carefully. If you were a city person, would you let your son marry a country girl?"
"It's not that we don't want to help, it's just that we really can't. My sister-in-law is from the countryside, and I regret letting her into the family. Now the young couple is living a miserable life, even worse than in the countryside."
"If you're coming here with that in mind, you should forget about it. There's really no way to help with this, and no one can help with that either."
"Sui Sui, don't you think so?" Xiao Fen said, then gave Xu Sui a meaningful look.
Xu Sui: "..."
She thought for a moment and then spoke.
"Aunt, this is indeed a difficult matter. Xiaomei is still young. Why don't you go back and wait? We'll keep an eye out for Xiaomei, and if we find someone suitable, we'll naturally introduce her to them."
Getting married too young is bad for your health. If you get pregnant, the lack of resources and poor nutrition in recent years will cause even greater harm to your health.
Hao Lihong's gaze swept over everyone in the Qin family, finally settling on Xu Sui and Old Madam Qin. Seeing that they were both silent, her heart sank.
She remained silent for a long time, then took a deep breath and shamelessly said.
"How about this, let Xiaomei stay here with you for a while. Maybe she'll meet someone suitable in this city."
"Mother, sister-in-law, I'm begging you."
After saying that, Hao Lihong stood up and pulled Du Mei to kneel down in front of the two of them. "Xiao Mei, please beg your grandma and your aunt to help you."
Following her mother's instructions, Du Mei knelt down and kowtowed three times.
"Grandma, Aunt, please help me. I'll do anything you ask me to do. I can do anything and won't cause you any trouble."