Reborn in 80: Starting with hunting in the mountains to get rich

Chapter 272 Li Ju'an visits the Lin family

After realizing what was happening, Lin's father silently took another drag of his cigarette, then nodded and said, "Li Ju'an from the Li family is a very good kid. He's hardworking, honest, and capable. He's just had some bad luck, but he's a good person, filial, and a good kid."

Lin's mother had a very complicated expression and still wanted to struggle. This time, Lin Mei mustered up her courage, straightened her back, and looked directly at her mother, saying, "Mom, Li Ju'an lives in the village. You don't want me to marry someone far away and never come back, do you? If you don't let me marry Li Ju'an, I'll marry an old widower. Anyway, I won't have to have children myself. That old widower already has three children."

Lin's mother was furious, unable to believe that her usually obedient daughter would say such outrageous things in order to rebel. That old widower was of bad character and had even been reported for hooliganism; if there had been evidence, she would have been locked up and arrested long ago.

Lin's father also advised, "Alright, children and grandchildren have their own blessings. Li Ju'an is a good kid, I think highly of him. Let's invite him over to take a look, and have a chat with him."

"okay."

Lin Mei's smile had never been so radiant. Overjoyed, she ran out the door, called Lu Wenqian from the Lu family, and together with Zhang's niece, went to find Li Ju'an.

Just as Lin Mei stepped out, Xu Da arrived with Zhang, the matchmaker.

When Xu Da's car stopped in front of the Lin family's house, the whole village was in an uproar.

"Wow, this car looks so stylish."

"That's really impressive. The Xu family's son is so young, and he's already working as a driver in the forestry farm's motorcade."

"Those who drive in the mountains are quite something, oh my, carrying all those big bags and small packages, these canned fruits must have cost a lot of money."

Xu Da, beaming, carrying many gift packages, stood with the matchmaker Zhang at the Lin family's door, knocking. The car parked outside filled him with smugness, and he couldn't suppress the smile on his face.

Zhang the matchmaker gave him a low wink and said, "Don't worry, with our conditions, not to mention Lijiatun, no young man in any of the neighboring villages can compare to you."

These words put a huge weight off Xu Da's mind, and his smile became even brighter. He said, "Of course. With our conditions, we have no choice."

Matchmaker Zhang glanced at him with a smile and said, "If we had a daughter, we wouldn't let you be chosen by others. We would have already settled you as our son-in-law. There are girls of all kinds waiting in line for you to choose from."

Xu Da, flattered and praised like this, became even more smug and dizzy with pride, completely losing his bearings. He was now certain that the marriage was a done deal and would go smoothly.

Lin's mother opened the door. As soon as Xu Da saw Lin's mother open the door, his smile widened and he shouted, "Aunt Lin!"

He was practically calling her "Mom" out loud. You see, Lin's mother used to be extremely pleased with him, showering him with compliments. Even the matchmaker, Zhang, told him that Lin's mother was very satisfied with him and had definitely chosen him as her son-in-law. So, seeing Lin's mother so relieved, Xu Da's brow unfurrowed.

When Lin's mother looked up and saw the two of them, there was little joy in her eyes, and she was rather indifferent. She said, "It's windy outside, come in and have some tea."

This sudden change in attitude froze Xu Da's expression, leaving him somewhat bewildered. He muttered to himself, while Zhang, the matchmaker, reassured him softly, "Don't worry, every woman has her bad days. It just happened, it has nothing to do with you."

Xu Da thought about it and realized that made sense. He had been hospitalized for three months; what could Lin's mother's worries have to do with him? It certainly wasn't because of him. He cheerfully handed over the canned fruit, the gift bag of biscuits, and the red wine he had bought in the city.

He shouted, "Aunt Lin, Uncle Lin, this is just a small token of my appreciation. Please accept this little something later."

According to the betrothal customs of the Xingan Mountains, men should marry when they reach a certain age, and women should marry when they reach a certain age. When a son grows up, his parents will arrange for him to marry. The criteria for marriage are mostly diligence, frugality, and upright character. After a matchmaker has chosen a woman, the matchmaker will ask someone in the woman's family to speak on his behalf to propose marriage.

However, at this time, the woman's family would often use the excuse of "waiting for a reply" to secretly observe and inquire about the man. If the man's character, appearance, or family situation were not good, then the matter would end. In Lin's father's generation, family background was very important when choosing a partner, and poor peasants were preferred.

In the 80s, one needed a skill to earn money and find a suitable match. One also needed to consult a fortune teller to analyze birth dates and times to determine compatibility and zodiac sign compatibility.

Matchmaker Zhang often says that a white horse clashes with a blue ox, a sheep and a rat are doomed to part ways, a golden rooster clashes with a dog, and a sheep and a tiger will never last. He also says that a dog and a monkey will have a broken marriage, a tiger and a snake will be like enemies, a dragon and a rabbit will shed tears, and there are also snakes coiled around rabbits, monkeys riding sheep, and tigers and dogs.

However, in later generations, these ideas were scorned by the vast majority of young people, who believed that mutual affection was the best approach.

Lin's mother was unusually cold today, only offering half-hearted chatter to Zhang, the matchmaker, leaving Xu Da puzzled. He remembered that Lin's mother had been quite satisfied with him last time, and he wondered if he had done something improper, or if his parents hadn't come along. That's why he came to see Lin Mei first, to sound her out; there was no reason for his parents to come so early.

Xu Da pondered for a long time but couldn't figure it out. He could only stare blankly and listen to Lin's mother and Zhang the matchmaker chat.

Just then, a commotion erupted in front of the Lin family's house, and a large group of children swarmed around them.

The noisy commotion, along with the laughter and chatter of Li Ju'an and Lin Mei, alerted Xu Da, who quickly sat up straight.

Xu Da finally asked, "Aunt Lin, Meimei hasn't come back yet. Where did she go?"

Lin's mother was not as enthusiastic and proactive as before, and just said indifferently, "The child is grown up and has his own ideas. I can't control him anymore."

The Lin family's house was filled with large and small packages of congratulatory gifts sent by Xu Da, including various valuable city items, fountain pens, ink, large gift boxes of biscuits in hard-canned packaging, imported red wine, and rare and exotic items from the city, which amazed Zhang the matchmaker.

Li Ju'an led Lin Mei into the house.

Li Ju'an didn't come empty-handed. He brought dumplings filled with wild mountain vegetables made by his mother, Song Lanhua. He also brought dried flower tea made from rhododendron, wild rose, and golden lotus, which smelled wonderful in the basket.

Recently, Aunt Zhang asked Song Lanhua to go mountain picking. They gathered quite a few wild vegetables, blanched them in boiling water, added salt, and enjoyed their pure, natural flavor. They could also add meat filling to the wild vegetables to make steamed buns and dumplings. Opening these baskets of buns filled the whole house with their delicious aroma.

Lin Mei happily picked up a basket of steamed buns, threw herself into her mother's arms, and said, "Mom, Aunt Song made these. Aunt Zhang, try some too, they're so delicious!"

Matchmaker Zhang picked up a steaming hot bun, took a bite, and found it truly delicious, leaving a lingering fragrance on the palate. Wild mountain vegetables have always been a part of springtime memories for a generation.

When Zhang, the matchmaker, looked down, she discovered that Li Ju'an had brought quite a few other things.