Outsider: The Fifth Young Master of the Kang Family

Chapter 48 Wanling gets married (Part )

January 2001, 1, the fourth day of the first lunar month, is a good day for marriage and engagement.

Kang Qirui got up before dawn that day. After a quick wash, he went to wake up Big Brother Guang and said, "Big Brother, don't sleep any more. There are many things to do today."

Big Brother Guang had woken up a long time ago. Today was his younger brother's big day, so he would not sleep in. As soon as Kang Qirui called him, he opened the door, "Come on, come on, let's go, A Rui."

So the two of them went out to the market. When they entered the market, they had a clear goal. They bought a pair of chickens, five catties of pork, and a pair of dace and went home. It was less than 7:30 when they got home. The eldest brother took the things to the patio, and Kang Qirui went to knock on the door of the second brother's wife. "Second brother, sister-in-law, get up." After the second sister-in-law answered, Kang Qirui continued to knock on the doors of other rooms.

It was 8 o'clock when everyone got up, washed up and were eating breakfast. "Everyone, hurry up and eat. After eating, check again to see if everything is complete. Don't miss the auspicious time," the old woman urged.

"Thank you brothers and my second sister-in-law for your hard work today. Let's go out for a big meal tonight." Kang Qirui promised. The old lady urged everyone, so Kang Qirui gave everyone a sweet treat. And today was indeed a hard day. Today was the day for Kang Qirui and Zhu Wanling to celebrate the big gift. According to what was discussed before, my second sister-in-law was a lucky woman, and the four brothers who brought honor to the family were responsible for moving and lifting.

Originally, the woman should have been invited by the bride's family, but many of the Zhu and Bai families had immigrated, and Mrs. Zhu had no particularly close relatives in Guangzhou, so she asked her second sister-in-law to come. The second sister-in-law was a blessed person, with parents, children, a loving husband and wife, and brothers and sisters living in harmony. It was very appropriate for her to be the woman with good fortune.

After breakfast and the gifts were counted, at about 9 o'clock, the professional aunt-in-law invited by Kang Qirui also arrived, "Eighth Aunt, let me introduce you." Then she introduced the Kang family to this aunt-in-law, who was a very famous figure in Cantonese. She had been a professional aunt-in-law for many years and was also named an inheritor of intangible cultural heritage.

When the auspicious time arrived, the second sister-in-law led the way, followed by the eighth aunt, and the people from the Kang family followed carrying things. The group deliberately went around Changsheng Street before arriving at the Zhu family. Of course, the news of the wedding had to be spread, and the more people who congratulated them, the better.

Mrs. Zhu let everyone in. The eighth aunt first instructed everyone to put the gifts in place, and then asked the second sister-in-law to invite Zhu Wanling out. This is because the rules of the gift-giving ceremony stipulate that the bride can personally receive gifts at the bride's home, but cannot watch the gifts enter the house to avoid conflict. The bride must first avoid the room, and wait until the gifts are placed before coming out to accompany her parents to receive the gifts.

After Zhu Wanling came out and sat down, the eighth aunt introduced everyone in the Kang family according to the procedure, the eldest brother and his wife, the second brother and his wife, A Yao, Xingzi and A Zu. Yes, that's right, Kang Qirui is not in this list, because the groom does not enter the bride's house to participate in the grand ceremony. If the groom personally delivers gifts and carries things into the bride's house, it means he will have a hard life.

After a brief introduction, the eighth aunt handed over the gift book and said loudly: "I wish you, my dear in-laws, to be respected. The peach blossoms are so bright today, which is a good day for a good family. I am offering a small gift as a token of my respect. I hope you will accept it."

"The gift money is 68,888 yuan." Following the words of the eighth aunt, the eldest brother handed a big red envelope to Mrs. Zhu.

"Four pairs of pure gold dragon and phoenix bracelets, three taels and two cents per pair."

"Diamond earrings, a pair."

"Eight types of seafood: four packs each of scallops, mushrooms, dried shrimps, hair algae, abalone, fish maw, shark fin, and dried oysters,"

"A pair of chickens, five pounds of pork, and a pair of dace."

Over there, the Eighth Aunt was singing the ceremony loudly, and here, the Kang family was talking in low voices. Sachiko said to Xianglan with some jealousy, "Arui is so generous. Such pomp and such gifts are really different from those given by the Kang family's daughters-in-law." Just now, they deliberately took a detour before entering the Zhu family. Now, the eldest aunt was singing the ceremony loudly again. The entire Zhu family was very lively, and there were many neighbors watching. The gift money and gifts were absolutely generous in this era, and the neighbors who were watching said that Zhu Wanling was lucky.

Xianglan doesn't mind being compared with others, but she also has some things she doesn't understand, "Why are they all in pairs? I heard that shouldn't it be an even number?"

The second sister-in-law had nothing to do now, so she explained, "That's because Wanling's father is gone, so a pair is enough. It's not easy to buy too much chicken, fish, pork, etc., so just buy a pair." After explaining to Xianglan, the second sister-in-law said to Xingzi, "We can't envy these. You are from other provinces. I won't say anything. After all, Uncle Yao and Wanling are locals."

While the three sisters-in-law of the Kang family were talking, the eighth aunt had already finished talking about the candies and tea. She continued, "Sixty-four wedding cakes, two boxes of supplies, and a handout. It includes everything."

Mrs. Zhu took the gift book with a smile, and the second sister-in-law quickly opened a bag of tea from the gift, brewed a pot of tea, poured two cups and handed them to Mrs. Zhu and Zhu Wanling. The two took it and drank it with a smile. This is the tea ceremony. It means that the woman has drunk the man's tea gift and agreed to the marriage and will not regret it.

After the tea ceremony, the next step was for the woman to return the gift. Mrs. Zhu returned a gift of 10,001 yuan, which meant one in a million. Then she took out half of the gifts sent by the Kang family and added her own gifts such as big tea, lotus root, etc., as well as a pair of trousers and a pair of shoes, and sent them back to the Kang family. Because this time it was the Zhu family who sent the gifts to the Kang family, the Kang brothers could not carry them, but Mrs. Zhu asked several distant relatives to be responsible for carrying them.

After the things were carried into the Kang family's house, the eighth aunt sang a ceremony loudly on the Kang family's side. After singing, she blessed: "I wish Mr. Kang Qirui and Miss Zhu Wanling a happy marriage and a long life together." The ceremony of gift-giving was completed.

Kong Yingda's commentary on the Book of Rites states: "Na Zheng means accepting the betrothal gift. Zheng means completion. First accept the betrothal gift and then the marriage is complete." After this ceremony, the marriage contract is completely established. From this moment on, Kang Qirui and Zhu Wanling can call each other fiancée (husband).

It can be said that people are in high spirits when they are happy. Even after the Spring Festival holiday, Kang Qirui was back to school to prepare for the new semester. He was smiling all day long, feeling that the days passed so quickly and he was off work in the blink of an eye. When he was about to go back to his room to put something away after work, he saw A Yao in the kitchen. He walked to the kitchen curiously and said, "Wow, the rooster laid an egg today and the sun rose from the west. Is the Third Young Master going to the kitchen?"

“Hahahahahahaha” the old woman who was also working in the kitchen laughed and explained, “Sachiko’s relatives are coming.”

"Third sister-in-law's relative?" Kang Qirui was surprised. Could it be him?

As A Yao was fiddling with the chicken feathers, he said, "It seems like he's a representative from a foreign company in Shanghai who was stationed in Guangzhou. It's the first month of the year, so he came to visit Sachiko."

"Ayao, the chicken needs to be cooked through, people from other provinces are afraid of seeing blood." The old woman ordered when she saw Ayao finishing the chicken feathers. Kang Qirui was just about to ask Ayao more questions when Sachiko's voice came from outside, "Ayao, guests are coming. Come out soon." Ayao put the chicken aside and went out to greet the guests.

Kang Qirui followed him to the living room, and so did the others. Sachiko pointed at the man she had just brought in and said, "Let me introduce you to everyone. This is my cousin Hu Huaixi." She then introduced everyone in the Kang family to Hu Huaixi, and after greeting them one by one, everyone sat down.

"This is my first time to come home, and I don't know what to bring. This is a small gift I brought back from a business trip abroad." Hu Huaixi opened a gift box he brought, "Putting these shoes in the living room as decoration will give it a sense of art."

Hu Huaixi took out a Dutch wooden shoe, which looked like a boat and could be used as a decoration or a vase. It was the most national handicraft of the Netherlands. However, the Kang family members did not appreciate it and thought it was strange to give the shoes as a gift. The second sister-in-law even laughed and said, "Uncle, remember to put it at the bedside."

The old maid was afraid that the second sister-in-law would say something impolite again, so she asked the second sister-in-law to go to the kitchen with her to cook. At this time, Kang Qirui asked a question that everyone had been curious about for a long time, "Third sister-in-law, Mr. Hu. You both have the surname Hu, but how can you be cousins?"

"It's like this, there's an alley over there called Hujia Lane, and everyone in it has the surname Hu. My mother and cousin Huaixi's mother are sisters, and both married into this lane. Although my father and his father both have the surname Hu, they are both within the fifth degree of mourning, so naturally they are relatives from our mother's side, that is, cousins." Sachiko explained.

So that's how it is. Everyone nodded in sudden enlightenment. The old man looked at Hu Huaixi and asked, "Is Mr. Hu married?"

"I don't have a girlfriend yet." Hu Huaixi said embarrassedly.

"This is the style of a real man, get married first, then start a career." The old man obviously didn't want to embarrass the guest. Kang Qirui was stunned when he heard it. Isn't this just a big deal? So he kept making eye contact with the old man. When the old man saw Kang Qirui's eyes, he remembered that he was wrong and quickly said, "No, no, no, it's first start a career and then get married. Get a career first, haha."

Hu Huaixi didn't mind at all. "No, no, no, to be honest, I can't find it."

"Mr. Hu, you are too modest. You are so handsome, the girls who like you must be lining up outside the door." Everyone laughed at what the old man said, but Kang Qirui rolled his eyes, thinking, why didn't you say the line would stretch all the way to Paris?
After dinner, Hu Huaixi was about to leave. A Yao suggested exchanging business cards so that they could keep in touch in the future. When Hu Huaixi was taking the business card, a photo fell to the ground. The second sister-in-law quickly picked it up and said, "It's a photo of a woman. You said you don't have a girlfriend?"

Hu Huaixi didn't take the photo that his second sister-in-law handed back. Instead, he pointed at the woman in the photo and asked, "You don't even recognize her?"

The second sister-in-law was curious, "Why is the photo of a woman I know here?" The second sister-in-law looked at it carefully for a few more times, "But she does look familiar. Is it the weather forecast broadcast on TV?"

"This is Ruan Lingyu, a famous actress in the 1930s." A Yao walked over, looked at the photo and recognized who it was at a glance.

"This Ruan Lingyu is your relative? She should be your grandmother, right?" The second sister-in-law's gossipy soul was burning.

"I wish she was my grandmother." Hu Huaixi sighed, "It's a pity that she is just my idol."

"Idol?" A Yao asked in surprise, "Are you that old? She is so old, and not very pretty."

"That's not the case. Look at her eyes, they are so melancholy and kind. Where can you find such a woman now?" Hu Huaixi said of his idol with full praise. "It has been 65 years since she left us. I will never forget March 8, 1935."

"Uncle, was he born three or five years ago?" The second sister-in-law was sitting next to Kang Qirui. When she heard Hu Huaixi's words, she whispered to Kang Qirui in confusion. The big brother Guang next to her also came over with a curious look on his face.

"On March 8, 1935, our father wasn't even there yet, let alone him." Kang Qirui rolled his eyes, not understanding what his second sister-in-law and Big Brother Guang were thinking.

"Ruan Lingyu finally couldn't stand the oppression of the world and committed suicide by taking poison at the age of 25. She left behind the four words 'people's words are scary' and three exclamation marks." Hu Huaixi covered his stomach while speaking, looking very painful.

"Do you have to be so exaggerated?" The second sister-in-law thought that Hu Huaixi was in pain because of the death of his idol. As a result, Hu Huaixi said, "Oh, I can't take it anymore. My stomach hurts so much. Ouch." After saying that, he fell to the ground and twitched.

"Are you not used to the boiled chicken here? I told people from other provinces that they can't eat it raw." The old woman looked at Sachiko and said, "Sachiko, go and ask Wanling to come over and take a look."

"Wait." Kang Qirui quickly stopped Xingzi. Are you kidding? Will this allow Wanling and Hu Huaixi to meet? Although Kang Qirui is very confident that Zhu Wanling will never fall in love with Hu Huaixi in this life, it's better to have less trouble, right?
"Mom, according to the rules, Wanling can't come to our house now." Kang Qirui brought up the traditional custom. The woman really can't enter the man's house during the period before marriage. Then he said: "Besides, Wanling is just a nurse. It may not be helpful if she comes. Let's send her to the hospital, Third sister-in-law?"

No one could find fault with Kang Qirui's words. No one knew what happened to Hu Huaixi, let alone whether the nurse Zhu Wanling could cure him. Sachiko thought about it and felt that it made sense, so she asked everyone to help Hu Huaixi go out and hail a taxi to go to the hospital. Kang's house was not far from the hospital, and it would be faster to take a taxi than to call 120.

Through the previous contact and the understanding of later generations, Kang Qirui still insisted that Hu Huaixi was not a good match. He only liked Wanling because she looked like his idol. Later, he found that she had a good temper and so on, so he slowly fell in love with Wanling. In addition, Hu Huaixi was a mama's boy. It was not easy for Wanling to marry far away in Shencheng. He also sided with his mother in the relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, and finally ended in divorce.

Since they are not a good match, then let's not meet. Kang Qirui is not afraid of trouble, but he avoids it if he can. Why bother himself with trouble?

(End of this chapter)