Siheyuan: Five mouths waiting for food at the beginning

"My dear, how much is the betrothal gift? How about ten dollars?" Jia Zhang asked

"Our family doesn't want a dowry," Qin Xiaomei's father took a puff of his cigarette and tapped his heels.

"Really?" Jia Zhang was so excited. Qin Huairu asked for five yuan as a dowry at the beginning, and now she gave ten yuan. The girl actually didn't want any dowry. Country girls are just good. Jia Zhang's eyes were so happy that they became slits.

Banggeng and Qin Huairu were also happy. They didn't expect that such a beautiful girl would not ask for a dowry.

But their happiness seemed to be short-lived. They fell from the clouds to the bottom of the valley with the words of Qin Xiaomei's father: "Dear relative, you only need to give two worker quotas, one for me and one for my son."

"You are not talking nonsense, are you? Do you know how much two worker quotas are worth? In a large factory, a regular worker is 1200, and an apprentice is 800. In a small factory, a regular worker is 1000, and an apprentice is 600. Is your daughter made of gold?"

"Anyway, I don't care. My daughter is worth this price. Otherwise, don't even think about marrying her. You all know my uncle's daughter Jingru. She is worth four places. She even treated the whole village to a pig. I only asked you for two places. It's already too little."

Jia Zhang was so angry that she wanted to vomit blood. Bang Geng in her family was just an apprentice, and the two places would cost more than a thousand yuan, which was more than enough to marry a girl from the city.

"Impossible. The betrothal gift can be increased. There are no quotas. You should think about it carefully."

"Then why are you even considering it? My little sister is so beautiful. I have raised her for seventeen years. I only want two places from you. You can't even afford it. Your family is in the city, so forget about this marriage."

"That's right. I thought Huairu was living a good life in the city, but I didn't expect that she was far worse than Jingru. He can't even get two places, and yet he wants to marry the most beautiful girl in our village." said a neighbor.

"Who says it's not true? I heard that Huairu is not doing well in the city. Every time she comes back, she takes things from her parents' home. I guess she can't afford to marry a city girl, so she comes to the countryside to take advantage of her."

"Don't you know that Uncle Qin and Uncle-in-law are long gone, and Huairu is the only one supporting the family. I heard that there is also a wicked mother-in-law who likes to take advantage of others. It turns out to be true."

"I thought it was fake before, but today I believe it. Look at her mother-in-law, she's fat and white, and you can tell she's lazy and greedy. If a girl marries her, she'll be unlucky for the rest of her life, unless she's given two places."

"Everyone knows about our Qinjia Village now. City guys who want to marry our girls don't ask for a dowry, they just ask for a quota. Suddenly, they become city people. My uncle is lucky to have a good girl."

The villagers were talking about it in a flurry. Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu's faces became increasingly pale, and they cursed Zhao Shanhe in their hearts. The atmosphere of Qinjia Village was corrupted by Zhao Shanhe.

"Grandma, Mom, what should I do?"

"Great! This little sister Qin is a foxy woman. If she doesn't marry us, we won't marry her. It's hard to find a two-legged frog, but there are many two-legged girls. Let's find another girl who doesn't need a quota."

"Grandma, didn't you tell me to let me pick anyone I want when I get to the countryside? I've already fallen in love with Qin Xiaomei, so go talk to her again."

"Bang Geng, you know our family situation. We can't even get one quota, let alone two."

"Mom, go ask my uncle-in-law for two more places."

Qin Huairu felt that her son had been spoiled by him, and the two places were easily obtained. If Zhao Shanhe was so easy to talk to, she wouldn't have to pay for them.

"Little sister's father, how about we talk about it again? Two places are not realistic."

"That's fine. Then a quota and a bicycle. Can you afford that?"

"Little sister's father, we really can't give you a quota. Don't you know that the factory is not hiring at all right now? Even if it is hiring, there are not many quotas. It's not our turn at all, let alone for you."

"I don't care. If you want to marry my daughter, you must have a worker quota."

"Humph, then our Jia family can't afford it. With the price you're asking, I don't think your daughter will ever get married."

"How can you talk like that, old lady? If you can't afford the betrothal gift, just say you can't afford it. Why are you cursing me? Believe it or not, I will make sure you can't leave Qinjia Village today."

Qin Huairu hurried over and said, "Fifth brother, don't be angry. My mother didn't mean to curse you. You may not know that the man who can afford the quota will definitely not marry a country girl.

My brother-in-law Zhao Shanhe's case is just an exception. If the bride price you mentioned is the same, few people can afford it, and my sister might really not be able to get married. If there really is a vacancy, people would marry city girls. Think carefully about whether what I said is true.

My Bang Geng was originally going to marry a girl from the city. I came from Qinjia Village, so I thought that the girls in the village knew me well, so I wanted to let our village girl go to the city to enjoy life. I didn’t expect that ~ Alas.”

"Okay, Qin Huairu, you are treating me like a fool. Our two families live so close to each other, and I know what your family situation is like. You bring big and small bags from your parents' home every New Year, and I follow you to the city to enjoy life. I'm afraid you are going to suffer in the city.

And your son, who has been stealing since he was a kid, is not a good guy. I am willing to marry my daughter to you just for the quota. If there is no quota, I will not agree no matter how much you say. "

"That's right. You are nothing like the son-in-law of the youngest uncle's family. When such a high-ranking official came, he still called uncle and aunt all the time and gave them cigarettes. Your kid hasn't done anything yet, but he's already so arrogant. We're relatives, and he has no manners at all."

"Also, look at this kid, he looks pale, and his legs are a bit sloppy when he walks. It's obvious that he couldn't marry a girl from the city, so he came to the village to feel superior."

"That's enough. You have nothing to do, so go and work. Why are you running here without looking down on my grandson? You are jealous of my third son's family who work as workers. You all want to marry your daughters to the city to work as workers. Do you have the fate to do that?

"You won't marry your daughter off if there's no quota. Don't you know it's that easy to be a worker? There are still so many people in the city who haven't become workers. Don't you think it's outrageous? Why, your daughter won't marry off if there's no quota? Do you want to raise her until she's old and nobody wants her?"

"Uncle, don't be so easy-going. These are your daughter and grandson, so of course you are speaking in their favor. You are saying nice things, but don't think I don't know that you also rushed to introduce your relatives to your nephew when he got married. But you can't do that when it's our turn."

"Get out, get out, get out now."

"What's wrong, uncle? Don't let me tell you the truth. Your daughter is not as good as Jingru, and you are not as good as the youngest uncle. I think you are just jealous. You have an unmarried daughter now. If you had me, I think you would want more than I want. Go away if you want. I don't even want you to be here."

After everyone left, Qin's father said to Qin Huairu, "You should leave too. Don't come here again. I don't know what's the point of marrying in the city. You have lost face."