Chapter 2568 - 2632: The Wedding Is Off
In the morning, Li Yifei and Zheng Mingrui were woken by the scolding of their Second Uncle, and when they went out, they saw Second Uncle wearing large shorts and standing in the yard, grumbling about why there was so much noise last night and why they were still not up so late. Li Yifei gave Zheng Mingrui a look, and the latter immediately went to the car trunk to take out a pack of cigarettes, returning to stand in front of Second Uncle, smiling as he said, "Second Uncle, sorry for troubling you, please accept these cigarettes."
Sure enough, Second Uncle’s expression improved a lot instantly, and he unceremoniously took the pack of cigarettes, glancing at it sideways to know it was good stuff, he then chuckled lightly and said, "You guys from the squad are doing pretty well, even smoking such good cigarettes."
"Second Uncle’s joking, we came out to attend a wedding, of course, we have to look presentable." Zheng Mingrui replied with a smile.
"The car is not bad either, I recognize this brand, it costs quite a bit of money."
"Suitable for these mountain roads, but not that expensive." Zheng Mingrui said.
"I don’t have breakfast here, you guys freshen up and go eat at Tianxing’s house." Second Uncle said in a very mercenary manner, then turned to leave. Zheng Mingrui raised an eyebrow; if it were before, his words wouldn’t have been pleasant to someone like this, but since the other is a relative of Zhang Tianxing, he had to somewhat maintain his composure.
The two women in the car also woke up, but they looked a bit haggard and didn’t seem to have slept well last night. Li Yifei and Zheng Mingrui had checked the surroundings outside multiple times during the night to prevent any unexpected incidents.
Judging by Second Uncle’s demeanor, there was no hope for breakfast, and even washing up seemed impossible. Li Yifei hadn’t adequately assessed the situation before coming; besides bringing some food, he didn’t bring any toiletries, and the same was true for Zheng Mingrui and his wife. Who could have thought that Zhang Tianxing’s hometown would be so difficult to reach and so backward? So the four of them made some simple preparations, drove towards the mountain village, and since there was food in the car, they simply resolved it on the spot. After eating, Lin Wanqing blushed and softly said she wanted to go to the restroom, and Na Yi took the initiative to accompany her to the nearby woods.
"Boss, a few other brothers are almost here; yesterday when they saw it pouring down, they stopped directly in Lin City and waited for the others."
Li Yifei upon hearing said, "Let them rent a couple of better cars and drive in, also bring some alcohol and food, and better bring a few tents; you’ve seen the conditions here, we should solve our own problems and not create trouble for Tianxing."
"Alright, I’ll notify them right away!" Zheng Mingrui nodded immediately upon hearing this. Those brothers had all been part of the Flying Hawk Squad. Now scattered across the country, each has developed in their own way; some are still serving in the military, while others have transferred to civilian jobs. It’s basically certain that those who came out of Flying Hawk Squad, as long as they weren’t too clueless, aren’t doing badly now. This group coming was pretty close with Zhang Tianxing back then, and on hearing that the Captain was there too, they got really excited. So they quickly rented cars and bought supplies, heading over.
Zhang Tianxing said yesterday that he would come to deliver breakfast, but he didn’t show up, not because he forgot. How could he forget something like that? It’s just that something else happened, and he was forced to delay.
Li Yifei and the others drove to the village entrance and saw several villagers carrying hoes and other tools walking out. Seeing Li Yifei driving, those people stopped to watch!
"It’s not easy to get inside." Zheng Mingrui frowned as he looked, not having seen clearly last night due to darkness, but today he could see that the road into the village was merely a narrow path, and it was muddy. Although the car could drive in, it would block the path; people from the village could barely squeeze past, but carts or wagons wouldn’t make it through.
"Let’s park here." Li Yifei pulled the car over to the side of the road, parked it, turned off the engine, and got out.
"Are you here for the wedding?" a male villager came over and asked.
"Yes. What’s your last name, brother?" Li Yifei nodded and handed over a cigarette at the same time.
The man took it, saw it was a good cigarette, and grinned, revealing his yellow teeth, "Zhang, the same family as Zhang Tianxing, in terms of seniority, you’d call me cousin!"
"Then we also should call you brother. Brother Zhang, what are you guys up to?"
"We’re going to fix the road; there’s been heavy rain over the past few days, and you’ve seen how lousy the road is. Tomorrow is Tianxing’s wedding, we’re lending a hand because the procession has to go down this road!"
"Oh oh! We’ll help out when we see Tianxing later."
"Sure thing, let’s go fix it first!"
"Boss, maybe ask about it." Zheng Mingrui signaled to Li Yifei.
Li Yifei shook his head and said, "No rush, let’s head to Tianxing’s house first." He then turned to the two women and said, "You can wait in the car, the road is indeed rough."
When he walked, he could avoid stepping in the mud, but not them. Let’s not even mention staying clean, they might actually fall right in if they’re not careful.
The two women hesitated for a moment but then said, "We’ll go with you. You guys walk your pace, we’ll take it slow!" As it was their first time visiting Zhang Tianxing’s house, they wanted to see for themselves.
As they walked in, they realized there were very few people in the small village, seemingly only about twenty households. Most lived in wooden or bamboo houses, while others were simply small houses supported by wooden planks. One could only wonder how such houses would withstand the cold in winter.
Zhang Tianxing hadn’t forgotten to deliver the meal; something had indeed come up. And it wasn’t a small matter. At this moment, the atmosphere in the Zhang Family house was somewhat tense. In the small house, several people were either sitting or standing. Among them was an elderly man in his fifties or sixties seated in the main seat. His recent words had caused the expressions of the Zhang Family members to change dramatically. This old man was Lang Yonggan, none other than the father of the woman Zhang Tianxing was supposed to marry, essentially his father-in-law.
Lang Yonggan had arrived early at the Zhang Family’s house to be catered to, only to say, "My daughter won’t marry."
Zhang Tianxing felt as if he was struck by lightning. In truth, he had no feelings for the daughter of Lang Yonggan’s family. They had only met twice, through a matchmaker’s introduction. Lang Lili was far from being considered pretty; at most, she was seen as having two hands and feet, a nose and eyes, and was sturdy-built. She was older than Zhang Tianxing by two years, even older than most unmarried women in the area, notoriously known for being unable to find a husband. Most men shook their heads at her, and even if interested, would soon find she was neither virtuous nor hardworking, instead quite lazy. Zhang Tianxing had no fondness for her, but he couldn’t go against his parents’ orders.
Zhang Tianxing was already at an age where if he didn’t marry and have children, he’d become an old bachelor. In rural areas, this is hard to comprehend, so getting married and having children was a command from Zhang Tianxing’s parents. Especially now that he was physically disabled, having someone willing to marry him who was also physically whole was considered fortunate. Who would willingly marry a limping person with one wasted hand, even if the person was nice?
Everything was initially arranged, otherwise they wouldn’t have set a date for the wedding, which was a major event here. Whether rich or poor, the Zhang Family was bustling about. They even bought a piece of land in the village, planning to build a house for Zhang Tianxing within two years so he could live independently.
As for the dowry, the Zhang Family was indeed struggling financially, but they managed to gather money and borrow some for the bride’s dowry, delivered just a few days ago. Now, Lang Yonggan bluntly said his daughter wouldn’t marry without offering an explanation, making it hard for the Zhang Family to accept.
Zhang Tianxing’s father’s face turned red as he pinched his thigh, and after much effort, he said, "Big Brother Lang, why? The date is set, and you agreed. The wedding is tomorrow, how can you back out now?"
"Back out? Your son looks this way, aren’t you afraid of disgracing my daughter!" Lang Yonggan said loudly, with great confidence. He continued, "Originally, it didn’t matter as long as the person was decent, but I’ve heard your son did a lot of bad things a few years ago, causing you to lose everything, and he became disabled. When we first met, you didn’t mention any of this. If I hadn’t found out, my daughter would have been tricked by you!"
"This..." Hearing this, Zhang Tianxing’s father was at a loss for words. Indeed, they had no defense, and Lang Yonggan continued, "I thought he was honest; no wonder he’s crippled. Clearly, he’s no good. My daughter definitely won’t marry someone like this, so the wedding is off!"
The Zhang Family parents and others in the room appeared angry. Mother Zhang said, "Marriage is a major event, how can you just say no and cancel it? In-laws, it was indeed wrong of us to hide it, but it was due to some rumors outside. My son’s injury happened during his military service when he was wounded by the enemy on a mission. He was forced to retire early, otherwise, he might have been a regiment commander by now!"
"Regiment commander my foot, just a scoundrel soldier, how is he worthy of my daughter? I’m not here to negotiate with you today, I’m here to inform you that my daughter won’t marry someone like that!"
"You! How can you do this? Have you asked your daughter?" Mother Zhang was anxious. Invitations were already out, and some distant guests would be arriving today, with the banquet set for tomorrow. The food had been prepared, but the other side backed out, this was no joke.
"Why not? Your son may be a scoundrel, but you’re not letting my daughter marry into your family? Ridiculous. Besides, how does your son fit my daughter? Just a cripple, he can’t be relied on for anything at home!" Lang Yonggan said arrogantly. He didn’t just have one daughter, but three sons, all established in nearby villages. They had some prowess due to their labor, hence his unreasonable behavior. If his daughter’s age and looks hadn’t made it difficult for her to find a husband, he wouldn’t have agreed to marry her to Zhang Tianxing.