Although Gu Xinmin’s home had quite a few rooms, they did not actually have a guest room.
She and her husband occupied the main room. Their two sons, one ten and the other eight, had not yet been given separate bedrooms, so the brothers shared the eastern side room.
Gu Xinmin prepared the western side room for Shen Jiao. Since no one usually lived there, it was filled with miscellaneous items. Fortunately, it was not being used as a proper storeroom, so there was not too much clutter. After a few trips carrying things out, the room was ready.
“Jiaojiao, you can sleep here tonight. Let me know if you need anything. We’re about to become one family, so don’t stand on ceremony with me.”
“I understand, Sister. I won’t be polite with you.”
“That’s what I want to hear. Come on, you must be hungry. Let’s go and eat.”
Gu Xinmin took Shen Jiao by the hand and pulled her outside.
Now that she mentioned it, Shen Jiao really was hungry.
Gu Xinguo had originally planned to keep Shen Jiao and Gu Xinmin in the county town for dinner, but Gu Xinmin thought eating at a restaurant was a waste of money. She insisted that it was not as comfortable as eating at home and brought Shen Jiao straight back with her.
“I wonder what your brother-in-law cooked. He might not be particularly capable in other areas, but he’s a good cook. Whenever our village holds a wedding or funeral banquet, people like asking him to take charge of the kitchen. Spring isn’t so busy, but when winter comes and more families hold events, he practically never eats at home.”
“Really? Brother-in-law has such a useful skill? No wonder you didn’t want to eat at a restaurant. It turns out you have a master chef at home. I’m in for a treat today.”
“Don’t listen to your sister’s nonsense,” Wang Chengjun hurriedly said from the kitchen, where he was setting out the meal. “My cooking is passable when I’m preparing large pots of food for the village, but how could it compare with the chefs in town?”
He did not want his brother-in-law’s new wife to think he was someone who overestimated himself.
“Brother-in-law, the chefs at the large restaurants in town aren’t necessarily that impressive. I actually think the large-pot dishes we make in the countryside are more satisfying.”
Wang Chengjun smiled and waved his hand, insisting they could not be compared.
Shen Jiao praised him a few more times with a smile.
Meanwhile, Gu Xinmin listened to them chat while grabbing her two sons’ hands and pressing them into a basin to wash.
“Mother, my brother’s hands and mine are perfectly clean. There’s nothing on them. We don’t need to wash them,” Xiaobei protested.
“Oh, you don’t need to wash them? Then who was the one whose stomach hurt because he had worms?”
Xiaobei immediately fell silent.
A few days earlier, his stomach had hurt, so his mother had taken him to the clinic. The doctor said there were roundworms in his stomach and prescribed him pagoda-shaped deworming sweets.
After eating them, he had passed several worms and nearly frightened himself to death.
Xiaodong, despite being the older brother, showed no brotherly affection whatsoever and had laughed at him from the side.
He had promptly received a knock on the head from his mother.
Watching them, Shen Jiao felt deeply envious.
This kind of lively commotion was what a real home should feel like.
When the two mischievous boys returned to the table after washing their hands and saw Shen Jiao, their little faces immediately turned red.
While their mother had been washing their hands, they had forgotten that their new aunt was watching.
Remembering how they had refused to wash, they wished they could crawl into a crack in the ground and disappear.
They did not want their new aunt to think they were filthy children who paid no attention to hygiene.
“Now you know how to feel embarrassed? It’s too late. Your aunt already saw you refusing to wash your hands,” Gu Xinmin said.
The two children grew even more ashamed.
They buried their faces in their bowls and noisily slurped their millet porridge, not daring to raise their heads.
“Don’t only drink the porridge water. Eat some solid food too, or you’ll be hungry tonight,” Wang Chengjun advised when he saw his sons keeping their heads lowered and drinking without eating anything else.
Gu Xinmin rolled her eyes at her husband.
“Go on, keep spoiling them.”
“They’re still young,” Wang Chengjun replied cheerfully.
His refined face was filled with indulgence towards his children.
Wang Chengjun was delicate in appearance and very mild-tempered, perfectly complementing Gu Xinmin’s thick eyebrows, large eyes, and forthright personality.
Even when it came to disciplining their children, one played the strict parent while the other played the gentle one. Their teamwork was flawless.
Although Xiaodong and Xiaobei were mischievous, they knew where the limits were and understood right from wrong. That was the result of their parents working so well together.
Wang Chengjun’s cooking truly was excellent.
The dishes on the table were ordinary home-cooked food: hot-and-sour shredded potatoes, cold-dressed wild greens, and a bowl of pickled radish strips, served with millet porridge and steamed buns mixed with cornmeal.
Yet the food was so fragrant and delicious that a person could nearly swallow their own tongue.
“Brother-in-law, your cooking is incredible. It isn’t easy to make such simple dishes taste this good. In this respect, you’re better than the chefs in the state-run restaurants.”
“I can’t compare with them. They received proper training. I learned everything on my own through trial and error.”
“That only makes you more impressive, Brother-in-law. You’re self-taught!”
By the end of the meal, Shen Jiao had coaxed the entire family into beaming with happiness.
Only then did Gu Xinmin realise that her new sister-in-law had a particularly sweet tongue.
But that was a good thing.
Someone who could speak pleasantly and make others happy was far better than someone who spent the entire day with a cold expression.
Gu Xinmin had endured more than enough of An Qing’s icy face. Every time An Qing returned to the Gu family, the visit was never particularly pleasant.
Seeing everyone happy put Shen Jiao in a good mood as well.
When she was young, she had not understood the value of saying pleasant things.
Only after growing up and entering society had she realised that having a sweet tongue rarely brought disadvantages.
Saying something nice did not cost her a piece of flesh. The true skill was being able to get things done.
“Chengjun, later take Jiaojiao’s and Xinguo’s birth dates to the blind fortune-teller and ask him to calculate an auspicious wedding date,” Gu Xinmin said while clearing the bowls and chopsticks after dinner.
“When I go to the hospital tomorrow, I’ll take the dates to Grandma so she won’t keep worrying about it.”
She had originally planned to go herself, but Shen Jiao was still at her home. How could she leave her there alone?
She therefore had no choice but to send her husband.
The blind fortune-teller was a man from their village who specialised in fortune-telling.
He was already in his seventies.
Apparently, he had been born blind and later learned fortune-telling from someone else. Surprisingly, he had acquired some genuine skill.
People from all the villages within several miles liked to ask him to read their fortunes. Even during the turbulent years when such practices were most heavily discouraged, his business had never completely stopped.
Thanks to this ability, the blind man had never lacked food or clothing.
He had even married a young widow and fathered two sons.
It proved that people with genuine ability could live well in any era.
Shen Jiao helped Gu Xinmin clear the dishes and chopsticks.
Gu Xinmin tried to send her back to her room to rest, but Shen Jiao refused to listen. Instead, she stayed and worked alongside her.
While Gu Xinmin wove cloth, Shen Jiao helped wind thread around the shuttle.
“We still have some cloth at home, but it’s all white. Later, I’ll ask someone to dye it and make several new sets of bedding for you and Xinguo,” Gu Xinmin said while weaving.
She was very satisfied with this sister-in-law and naturally did not want Shen Jiao to feel short-changed.
Because of Grandma’s health, the wedding had to be arranged in a hurry. However, Gu Xinmin intended to provide everything else properly.
If there was not enough cloth at home, she would spend money to buy more.
If other new brides received several sets of bedding, then her sister-in-law would receive just as many.
“Thank you, Sister. You treat me so well. I must have accumulated great virtue in my previous life to meet such a wonderful elder sister-in-law. You’re even closer to me than a biological sister.”
“Xinguo is my only younger brother, and you’ll be my only sister-in-law. If I don’t treat you well, who else would I treat well?”
“I don’t expect anything from you. I only hope you’ll live peacefully and steadily with Xinguo.”
“Don’t worry, Sister. Brother Gu saved my life. No matter what happens, I would never do anything to betray him.”
The two women were still chatting when Wang Chengjun returned.
He held a sheet of paper with several dates written on it—the auspicious dates calculated by the blind fortune-teller.
“Why are you back so quickly? Was the fortune-teller not at home?”
“He was. He was,” Wang Chengjun replied. “Xinguo and Sister-in-law’s birth charts are extremely compatible. The fortune-teller kept saying they were a match made in heaven.”
“He also said that judging from Sister-in-law’s birth chart, she should have died young. But since she survived that life-and-death calamity, her future days should be smooth.”
“Oh my, that blind fortune-teller truly has some ability. He even calculated that I suffered a life-threatening calamity.”
Shen Jiao smiled.
“Speaking of which, I only survived that calamity because of Brother Gu.”
“Hahaha! That’s exactly why you’re a match made in heaven. You were clearly destined to become a member of our Gu family.”
Gu Xinmin then asked, “Did he say which dates were suitable?”
“He did. The eighteenth day of the second lunar month is one. Another is the sixteenth day of the third lunar month. After that, the next good dates won’t be until the second half of the year.”
“The eighteenth of the second month is too soon. That would only give us five or six days to prepare.”
Gu Xinmin thought for a moment.
“I think the sixteenth of the third month is better. What do you think, Jiaojiao?”
“I’m fine with either, Sister. What matters is which date Grandma and Brother Gu think is most suitable.”
Far from being dissatisfied by Shen Jiao’s refusal to give a definite answer, Gu Xinmin was extremely pleased.
The fact that she was considering Grandma and Xinguo’s opinions showed that she genuinely intended to live a good life with her younger brother.
The night passed without incident.
Early the next morning, after breakfast, they filled yesterday’s basket with food prepared for Gu Xinguo.
The two sisters-in-law then set off for the hospital.
The weather was pleasant.
The spring breeze brushed softly across Shen Jiao’s face, making her heart soften along with it.
No matter how hurried the marriage appeared to outsiders, the attitudes of Gu Xinguo and his family showed that they took it very seriously.
That filled her with confidence about her future life.
“Sister Xinmin, are you going to the hospital to visit Grandma? I happen to be heading there today as well. We can travel together.”
When they reached the crossroads, they encountered a young woman from Shuanma Village named Wang Xiangxiu.
Strictly speaking, she belonged to the same extended Wang clan as Wang Chengjun and should have addressed Gu Xinmin as Sister-in-law. However, she always called her Sister instead.
They were not particularly close, so Gu Xinmin could not be bothered correcting her.
“When we reach the county town, I’ll visit Grandma too. Has her health improved recently?” Wang Xiangxiu asked.
“Xiu’er, you’re going to the county town today too? Good, then we can keep each other company along the way. Grandma is doing much better. Thank you for thinking of her.”
“Hehe, Grandma has always treated me well. It’s only right that I visit her.”
Wang Xiangxiu looked towards the back of Gu Xinmin’s bicycle.
“Sister Xinmin, who is the woman riding behind you? She looks unfamiliar. I don’t think I’ve seen her before.”
“She’s Xinguo’s wife, Shen Jiao. This is her first time coming to our village, so it isn’t strange that you don’t recognise her.”
Gu Xinmin then introduced Shen Jiao and Wang Xiangxiu to each other.
Shen Jiao greeted her openly and graciously.
Wang Xiangxiu, however, reacted strangely.
Her face turned pale, and the gaze she directed at Shen Jiao contained hostility and hatred.
Even if Shen Jiao’s emotional intelligence had been extremely poor, she would have understood what was happening after being targeted by a young woman for no apparent reason.
This girl clearly had feelings for Gu Xinguo.
Unfortunately for her, the moment he became single again, Shen Jiao had acted quickly and snatched him up.
It was only natural for Wang Xiangxiu to feel hostile towards her.
Sometimes, finding a man was no different from doing business.
The moment you spotted something good, you had to act quickly.
Otherwise, someone else would eat the meat while you were left standing there crying.
When Wang Xiangxiu heard Uncle Ming say the previous night that Gu Xinguo had remarried, she had refused to believe it.
She had deliberately come early that morning to intercept Gu Xinmin.
Yet the news that had left her heartbroken all night was actually true.
What was she supposed to do now?
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