Integrity Pension System

"The ancestors are above, and today there is Zhang Xiaoran, a descendant of the Zhang family..., I would like to report to my ancestors, and I hope that the ancestors will protect me!"

The patriarch of the Zhang family in Taoyuan Village, who is also Zhang Xiaoran's uncle, lit incense with a very serious expression, and prayed to the ancestral spirit tablet placed in the main hall. Zhang Xiaoran, who followed behind him, also bowed with a serious expression, and then knelt on the ground and kowtowed .

There is a custom in the Daqingshan area, that is, when getting engaged, the whole family must go to the ancestral hall to pray to the ancestors under the leadership of the elders, and tell the ancestors that someone of their descendants is getting engaged, which family is the chosen girl, and how is the girl's character? Sample.

The purpose of doing this is to show respect to the ancestors, so that the ancestors can bless the marriage of future generations, live a harmonious and beautiful life, and the family incense will be passed down forever.

After paying homage to the ancestors, Zhang Xiaoran, led by her elder sister Zhang Shufang, worshiped her parents' spiritual tablets and told her about her marriage, the name, age, and personality of her future daughter-in-law. parents.

The whole sacrificial ceremony took more than half an hour. After the sacrificial ceremony, Zhang Xiaoran, who looked like a teenager, was dressed up completely. Under the leadership of the matchmaker Wu Po, he and the uncles and cousins ​​who came to help carried the betrothal gifts. After leaving the small courtyard, he walked towards Zhang Qianqian's house.

The uncles and cousins ​​of the family were very helpful, except for some who couldn't make it back from other places, they basically came over.

On the dirt road to Zhang Qianqian's house, some villagers who watched the excitement had been waiting for a long time, pointing to Zhang Xiaoran who was walking in the front with the fifth wife in a straight Armani with a burst of laughter.

"Xiaoran, congratulations. From now on, you will be Zhang Qianqian's husband-in-law. Zhang Qianqian is not only beautiful, but also very sensible. You must treat her well in the future."

"That's right, if you treat Zhang Qianqian badly, we won't agree!"

"Get engaged this year, get married next year, and have a fat baby the year after!"

Many villagers congratulated Zhang Xiaoran with faces full of joy from the heart, which made Zhang Xiaoran smile happily, and expressed his gratitude to these enthusiastic villagers.

I feel that it is very correct to invite the whole village to an engagement banquet today, otherwise so many people would not come to bless them.

Zhang Xiaoran had already made up his mind that when he and Zhang Qianqian got married, he would invite the whole village to a wedding banquet again, and he would not even accept a single red envelope.

Of course, there are also some young people who look at Zhang Xiaoran with jealousy and hatred. In their eyes, Zhang Xiaoran, an old man in his 40s, is actually engaged to the young and beautiful Zhang Qianqian. !

It's just that today is a good day for Zhang Xiaoran's engagement, no matter how jealous they are, they can only curse secretly in their hearts, cursing that when Zhang Xiaoran faces Zhang Qianqian, he can't get up, can only watch and can't use it, and both of them have tears in their eyes.

There is a mentality that if you can't eat grapes, then cut off the vines, and no one can eat grapes. Some men who have long thought about Zhang Qianqian are thinking like this now.

Of course, no one dared to stand up and make trouble today. Look at the uncles and cousins ​​in the 30s behind Zhang Xiaoran. If they want to make trouble, they have to weigh the consequences.

Receiving the blessings of many villagers along the way, Zhang Xiaoran and Yiqian's uncles and cousins ​​came to the gate of Zhang Qianqian's house with burdens.

"Dad, Mom, I'm Zhang Xiaoran, come to my house and invite you and Zhang Qianqian to come over to my house!" Zhang Xiaoran patted the door slightly and shouted loudly.

Before coming to Zhang Qianqian's house, everyone discussed how to address Zhang Qianqian's parents.

After all, whether it is based on seniority or age, it is definitely inappropriate for Zhang Xiaoran to call Zhang Xiaodong and his wife uncle and aunt.

Calling names is even more unacceptable!

In the end, it was the fifth wife who made the decision. Since she is marrying the daughter of Zhang Xiaodong and his wife, don't care about her seniority and age, just call her father-in-law and mother-in-law after getting married.

To be honest, Zhang Xiaoran was still a little bit hesitant to call Zhang Xiaodong and his wife "Dad, Mom" ​​all of a sudden, but he got used to it by shouting a few more words in front of the mirror.

Shouting it out now can be said to be very smooth.

"If you want to enter the courtyard door, you can, it depends on whether you understand the rules, if you don't understand the rules, this door can't be opened!"

The gate of the yard was blocked by Zhang Qianqian's cousins ​​and good sisters, and she replied with a smile.

Zhang Xiaoran's cousin, Zhang Xiaorong, took out a few red envelopes from the bag, counted them, handed eight red envelopes in, and said, "Of course we understand the rules, be careful, all beauties, let's open the door of convenience!"

These red envelopes are all wrapped in advance, and each red envelope contains 600 yuan.

The rules here in Yunshui County, whether it's an engagement or a marriage, if you come to pick up the woman's family and go to the man's house, you have to buy the money for the way to the woman's family.

Of course, in addition to the opening red envelope, people like brother-in-law, nephew/daughter, and matchmaker all need to give red envelopes, which are big numbers.

Of course, the most is the 18 gift money!

"Wow, six hundred!"

"What a hero, Cousin Qianqian is really lucky to have found a rich husband."

"Cousin Qianqian will be a rich woman in the future."

Inside the door, a few cousins ​​who opened the door were a little surprised to see six bright red banknotes in the red envelope. Generally, the opening red envelope is 200 yuan.

What a surprise!

The cousins ​​and good sisters of Zhang Qianqian are all about the same age as Zhang Qianqian, and many of them are still studying. They received a red envelope of 600 yuan at once, which is a lot of money for them.

Although I am very satisfied to receive such a big red envelope, but according to the custom, I have to dawdle for a while, which is embarrassing for the man.

But it's not too much, just let Zhang Xiaoran sing a festive song.

After Zhang Xiaoran sang "Today is a good day", the gate opened, allowing Zhang Xiaoran and a group of people to enter the yard.

Seeing the door open, Zhang Xiaoran breathed a sigh of relief, the first test was finally passed, and he didn't know what test was waiting for him.

Although Zhang Xiaoran is 42 years old, this engagement is the first time, and it is still a new one.

Zhang Xiaoran went in first, followed by uncles, cousins ​​and others who were carrying the dowry, and put the dowry in the courtyard

Although a large group of watching villagers did not come in, they all stood on a high place outside the yard, watching the situation of the yard through the fence.

Zhang Xiaodong and his wife were sitting in the main room, while Zhang Xiaoran was led in by the matchmaker fifth woman. After bowing to the sitting Zhang Xiaodong and his wife, Zhang Xiaoran stood up and said respectfully: "Dad, Mom, I'm here to pick you and Zhang Qianqian to my house, the house has already prepared a feast, please go over and discuss with my elders about my marriage with Zhang Qianqian!"

"Okay, let's pack up and go!"

Wu Guifang said with a smile, and then went to the yard to check the betrothal gift from Zhang Xiaoran and the others together with her sister-in-law and sister-in-law.

This is also a very important ceremony in the engagement. The woman's family sees the dowry gift brought by the man, which shows the man's financial resources and proves that he can give the daughter a prosperous life.

The second is to show gratitude to the natal family, and to give a certain amount of thanks for the man who has raised the girl for more than ten years.

Third, it is for others to see, to show the strength of my daughter's future husband's family.

The heavier the dowry gift from the man, it means that the man values ​​this marriage, and the more attractive the woman is in the local area.

"Guifang, Xiaoran's family is quite grand, this dowry is quite generous!"

Zhang Qianqian's aunt, Zhang Xiaohong, looked carefully at the betrothal gifts brought by the man, especially the piles of red cash in the basket, and said excitedly.

This piece of Xiaoran's family is really not ordinary rich, so much dowry will cost at least 10,000+!

My younger brother's family has found a good son-in-law. With such a rich son-in-law, the couple can be considered to have come out of the misery.

The days to come will be better.

When my younger brother was rescued in the hospital, he spent more than 30 yuan. Although he has paid back some money one after another in the past two years, he still owes more than 20 yuan.

Especially my family lent him more than 8 yuan, which was the money for my family to decorate a new house. In order to save my brother's life, I lent him all the 8 yuan to save my life, which was a delay in my son's life. marriage.

My son said that if he doesn't decorate the new house, his girlfriend will run away, and Zhang Xiaohong is also very anxious.

But my younger brother's family is so empty, how can I return 8 yuan to her!

If you really have to force your younger brother's family to pay back the money, it will kill your younger brother's family!

But his son's marriage can't be delayed!

How difficult it is to marry a daughter-in-law now!

Besides, what a nice girl my son's girlfriend is, she is reasonable, and when she heard that she was using money to save his uncle's life, she said on the spot that the house could be renovated later, and the marriage could also be postponed.

But two years have passed, and the girls are getting older every day, so it's normal to be anxious to get married.

For this reason, Zhang Xiaohong and his wife are also grey-headed!

Two days ago, I suddenly heard that Zhang Qianqian was getting engaged, which made Zhang Xiaohong and his wife very happy.

As long as you are engaged, you are not far from getting engaged.

In Yunshui County, when getting engaged, the man has to give a lot of money as a dowry!

At the very least, my brother's family can pay back the 8 yuan I owe.

It can be said that Zhang Xiaohong and his wife were the most active and contributed the most in Zhang Qianqian's engagement and engagement.

"Yeah, Qianqian has found a good family, that is..., an older man, who knows how to love others, will definitely treat Qianqian like a daughter, and the days to come will definitely be peaceful and beautiful .”

Eldest sister Zhang Xiaofang originally wanted to say a few words about Zhang Xiaoran's age, but when she thought that today is a good day for engagement, she immediately changed her words.

Back then, Zhang Xiaoran was still a kid in crotch pants in his eyes, but now he actually wants to marry his beautiful niece.

You must know that I am of the same generation as Zhang Xiaoran, and when Zhang Xiaoran saw him wanting to call her "sister" before, she would change her name to "aunt" in the future.

"Yes!"

Wu Guifang casually flipped through the dowry gifts she brought, and after she made a show, it was over. Anyway, she mainly followed the rules, and she didn't care about the things Zhang Xiaoran brought.

She is just such a girl, Wu Guifang only hopes that she will live a peaceful and beautiful life in the future.

"Ah, Zhang Tiangui and his wife used to say that Zhang Xiaoran was doing well outside, but many people in the village didn't believe it. Just look at the betrothal gift, the pile of red money, and the pile of golden ornaments. , if this is not a human appearance, then what is it? "

"That's right, look at our village, and those nearby villages, who is engaged to give the woman so many betrothal gifts, it's really extravagant!"

"Also, Zhang Xiaoran also booked the largest hotel in the county to host the engagement banquet and invite all of us to have a drink. I've heard people say that the hotel is the best hotel in our county, not everyone can book it Catering."

"Xiaoran Zhang is really promising, he is a capable person!"

"With such a capable son-in-law as Zhang Xiaoran, Zhang Xiaodong and his wife have come to the end of their hardships!"

"That's right, with a son-in-law as capable as Zhang Xiaoran taking care of him in the future, he and his wife will enjoy a happy life."

The villagers who watched the excitement around the courtyard were discussing, obviously very envious of Zhao Xiaodong who was so lucky to have a rich and capable son-in-law.

After the dowry ceremony, Zhang Xiaodong and his wife came out with Zhang Qianqian who was wearing a red dress with a shy face, and followed the team greeted by Zhang Xiaoran back.

As for the dowry gift brought by Zhang Xiaoran, some relatives of Zhang Xiaodong's family helped to watch over it. After all, it was a dowry gift worth more than 20 yuan.

Of course, it is impossible to leave all these betrothal gifts to the woman's natal family. When the girl gets married, she must take part of the betrothal gifts as a dowry.

The parents of the woman from a good family may add some dowry on top of the betrothal gift. If the woman's family is not well-off, they will leave some dowry to subsidize the family.

Wearing a red one-piece long dress, the shallow round neck collar makes Zhang Qianqian's slender neck more beautiful, and the tailored waist makes Zhang Qianqian's small waist more slender, hanging down to the hem of the heel, making Zhang Qianqian The whole person looks elegant rather than beautiful, charming yet dignified, as beautiful as the most noble princess, with an indescribably obsessive aura.

After Zhang Qianqian's cousin who was in the beauty business helped put on light makeup, her elegant, slender figure, and delicate, delicate face all made every man who saw Zhang Qianqian's heart flutter, and every woman was jealous.

Looking at Zhang Qianqian who looks like an elf, Zhang Xiaoran couldn't help feeling excited...

After today, this beautiful elf-like girl is my bride-to-be...

It turned out that I had been waiting for more than 40 years for the moment of her appearance...

At this moment, Zhang Xiaoran felt that everything was worth it...

With excitement, Zhang Xiaoran stepped forward and held Zhang Qianqian's small hand with ten fingertips like bamboo shoots and a wrist like a white lotus root.

"Big... Uncle..."

Zhang Qianqian blushed, and whispered in a flustered voice.

"Uncle will take you home!"

Zhang Xiaoran said domineeringly.

Along the way, Zhang Xiaoran held Zhang Qianqian's hand, and with the blessings of the onlookers, he returned to his small courtyard.

With the sound of firecrackers...