Chapter 48: Dowry

Mr. Liu opened the door, and it was indeed Liu Qian. The dinner outside was already prepared.

Although tonight's dinner was a bit rushed, it was still quite abundant. Most of the dishes were already prepared by Liu Yuanyuan's family, and the dishes and pastries made by Liu Qian added to the feast, greatly satisfying everyone who hadn't tasted her cooking for a long time. During the meal, the guests and hosts were all in high spirits, chatting about various topics. The Liu family learned Mr. Liu's intentions and were very happy for Liu Qian, offering many blessings. However, since the engagement with the Zhang family had not been formally arranged, their words were still quite reserved.

Everyone was very happy, except for Zhang Xiaohu, who occasionally glanced at Liu Yuanyuan. Unfortunately, Liu Yuanyuan's attention was not on him, which made him quite disappointed.

After dinner, they chatted for a while. Liu Qian, who had walked all afternoon, was already yawning, so Liu Kai arranged for the Zhang brothers to stay overnight. The Liu family also returned home to rest.

The next morning, the Zhang brothers were ready to leave for Guo Village. Liu Qian, considering she hadn't been home for a long time, decided to stay for a few more days. Moreover, Zhang Xiaolong was going back to discuss the engagement with his parents, and she felt too shy to go with him. Mr. Liu specially instructed Zhang Xiaolong to explain his intentions to Zhang Cai and not to hold any grudges over the previous refusal. He also asked Zhang Xiaolong to choose a good day to come back and finalize the engagement.

Zhang Xiaolong naturally agreed, and with Liu Qian's lingering gaze, the two set off.

The journey to get there was filled with sweetness, and the journey back was filled with joy.

When they returned to Guo Village, they could see the Zhang family standing in the courtyard, looking towards the village entrance from a distance. It seemed that, except for Zhang Xiaohua, no one had slept well the previous night. Seeing Zhang Xiaolong and Zhang Xiaohu appear, Zhang Xiaohua jumped up first and ran out quickly, asking Zhang Xiaolong excitedly, "Big brother, how did it go? We are all waiting for good news! Hey~~ Why didn't Sister Qian come back? Is it because..."

Zhang Xiaohua didn't dare to ask further.

Before Zhang Xiaolong could speak, Zhang Xiaohu said irritably, "Can't you see that Big Brother is beaming with joy? You should first take the bottle from my hand; I've been carrying it all the way."

Zhang Xiaohua then became happy and ran back home to tell her parents the good news.

Zhang Cai and Guo Sufei were overjoyed to hear the good news and ran to the courtyard gate to welcome their son. Zhang Xiaolong and Zhang Xiaohu were welcomed into the Zhang family courtyard like heroes. After Zhang Xiaolong sat down and took a few sips of the water Zhang Xiaohua brought, he began to recount the events in Bayili Gou. Zhang Cai and Guo Sufei listened with great interest, feeling a great weight lifted from their hearts. When Zhang Xiaolong proudly mentioned Mr. Liu's apology and the plan to choose a good day for the engagement, the two felt a mix of joy and worry. They were happy that they had not misjudged Mr. Liu, who was a good friend and would now be a reliable in-law. However, they were worried about the dowry, as their family's financial situation made it a challenge. Giving too little would be embarrassing for Mr. Liu's family, while giving too much would burden Zhang Xiaolong and Liu Qian's future life.

However, these were concerns for later. For now, they could celebrate and set a date. Guo Sufei also shared the good news with her bedridden grandmother, who became much happier.

In the following days, the Zhang family was immersed in joy. As spring returned, so did Zhang Xiaolong's spring. Zhang Cai and Guo Sufei were busy with the engagement, while Zhang Xiaolong and his brothers were busy with spring plowing and planting. The weather was getting warmer, and the soil in the fields had already thawed. The gentle spring breeze reminded people that it was not too early to start spring plowing.

The engagement customs were quite simple. The groom's parents would bring various gifts and the groom's birth date to the bride's home. The bride's family would accept the gifts and give the bride's birth date to the groom's family, thus completing the engagement. Sometimes, the wedding date would be set at the same time, but more often, it would be discussed later.

The Zhang family was now troubled by the dowry. Zhang Cai believed that Liu Qian was a good daughter-in-law and that they should give a substantial dowry to show the Zhang family's respect and to save face for Mr. Liu. Guo Sufei, however, thought that while they should show some respect, their financial situation was limited, and they couldn't afford to give too much, as it would make their life difficult.

Zhang Cai understood this situation and had thought about it before, but now he was hesitant. After all, they still had several hundred taels of silver hidden. With this possibility, he naturally wanted to do things better. When Zhang Cai mentioned the silver, Guo Sufei was also hesitant. When they had discussed it with Liu Qian before, they had decided to use the silver, but Liu Qian had stopped them. Now, since they had the silver, why not use it? Moreover, over a month had passed without any trouble, so it seemed the money was truly theirs. Why not use it?

The couple's disagreement seemed to be resolving, and they both leaned towards using the silver. Guo Sufei then took out the silver notes and the token from the bottom of the chest and called Zhang Xiaolong into the inner room.

Zhang Xiaolong's injuries were healing rapidly, and he no longer needed to immobilize his arm, though he still couldn't lift heavy objects. When he entered the inner room, he asked, "Father, Mother, what's the matter? I was just about to go to the fields to loosen the soil."

Guo Sufei said lovingly, "Your arm hasn't fully recovered yet. You should do less work and let Xiaohu and Xiaohua do more."

Zhang Xiaolong smiled and said, "I've been in bed for a month. My bones feel like they're rusting. Moving around now is quite comfortable. Besides, Xiaohua is still young and growing. How can we make him do more work?"

Zhang Cai said, "We know you're eager, and we don't intend to stop you, but you need to take care of your health in the long run."

Zhang Xiaolong replied, "I understand, Father. What's the matter? You didn't just call me in to rest, did you?"

Guo Sufei said, "Oh, it's like this. Your father and I plan to go to Bayili Gou to finalize your engagement with Qianqian in the next few days. However, we can't afford a good dowry, so we plan to use the silver notes from last time to exchange for some."

She then placed the two silver notes and the token in front of Zhang Xiaolong and pointed to the token, saying, "Take this token with you. If anything happens during the exchange, this might help."

Zhang Xiaolong looked at his parents' earnest faces and the silver notes and token in front of him, sighed, and did not pick them up. He said, "Father, Mother, didn't we agree not to use the silver notes anymore?"

Zhang Cai smiled bitterly and said, "Yes, we did, but circumstances are stronger than people. If we don't have a decent dowry, won't Liu Qian's family lose face?"

Zhang Xiaolong said, "Father, if we talk about financial status, there are many families in the area who are better off than us. Many people have proposed to the Liu family, and we can't compare. Liu Qian is willing to marry into our family not because of our financial status. Mr. Liu told me a lot the other day. He knows our situation and didn't mention any dowry. I think we don't need to put on a show."

Guo Sufei said, "Xiaolong, just because they don't mention it doesn't mean they don't care. It's better to be prepared."

Zhang Xiaolong said, "No, Mother, I can't ruin our family just to marry a wife. The silver notes are a source of trouble, and we must not use them."

Guo Sufei said, "Your father and I have discussed this. Since no one has come to trouble us for so long, it should be fine. Besides, we have this token, so they won't dare to do anything to us."

Zhang Xiaolong smiled bitterly and said, "Mother, the token is a safeguard given by Lady Xu to protect us. It only means that if any bully comes, we can use it to prove that she is protecting us. And didn't Great Hero Wen say not to use the silver notes? If a bully comes, we should return the money quickly. What will we do if they come and we don't have the silver notes to give them?"

Zhang Cai and Guo Sufei were speechless. They knew these things, but they had become confused due to their concern for their son.

Zhang Xiaolong continued, "The Liu family appreciates us not for our wealth. Besides, don't we have something more precious than money? We can give more to Mr. Liu in the future."

Zhang Cai smiled bitterly and said, "What do we have that's better than money? I don't know."

Zhang Xiaolong smiled mysteriously and said the following words.

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