Rebirth: Not Being a Waste - Chapter 40

After the marriage proposal, Zhang Shu and Li Mujin grow more relaxed around each other. In the eyes of the villagers, they are no different from a newlywed couple.

The wedding banquet is set for early November. The weather then won’t be too cold, making it comfortable for both the couple and the guests.

These days, Zhang Shu feels like he’s floating on air, as if walking on clouds. His happiness is beyond words—until he hears a troubling piece of news.

The young master of Wang Yuanwai’s family in town collapses in bed after returning from a brothel. The doctors in town and in the county can’t cure him, and his condition worsens by the day. Desperate, someone suggests that a wedding banquet might bring him back to health.

With no other options left, the Wang family seeks out a yin-yang master, who calculates the young master’s horoscope overnight. After careful calculations, he provides two matching horoscopes, explaining:  “If you wish to marry a girl, use this horoscope. If you wish to marry a ger, use the other one.”

The Wang family pays him handsomely, and the yin-yang master is thorough in his work, considering all possibilities. After further deliberation, he advises them to choose a ger, as the young master is possessed by a female spirit.

Grateful for the guidance, the Wang family dismisses the yin-yang master and immediately sets their plan into motion.

The Wang family’s situation is dire. They once had three sons, but only this one remains—and now he, too, teeters on the brink of death. If he dies, their lineage will end.

Although they initially prefer to find a bride, believing that a woman is more likely to bear children, they decide to follow the master’s advice and search for a ger first. If that doesn’t work, they’ll then seek a girl.

Servants are sent out to the villages, inquiring about potential matches. The Wang family announces that they will offer a betrothal gift of one hundred taels of silver for any unmarried boy with the matching horoscope.

One hundred taels!

In some of the poorer mountain villages, people have never even seen silver before. This astronomical sum is unimaginable to ordinary folk. Some even wish they could suddenly give birth to a son with that horoscope just to claim the reward. Those who don’t have such a child frantically ask around, wondering which lucky family will receive this fortune.

When Zhang Shu hears the news, his entire body goes cold. Fortunately, he and Li Mujin are already engaged, and no one else knows Li Mujin’s birth date.

The Wang family has committed countless evil deeds, bullying men and women alike. Their lack of descendants is their own karma. But in his previous life, Li Mujin is the one who suffers for it. The tragedy of that life was caused by many factors, but this time, things are different.

In fact, some people do know Li Mujin’s birth chart, but upon hearing about the Wang family’s search, they only lament that Li Mujin is “unlucky” to have gotten engaged half a month too early—otherwise, his family could’ve pocketed that hundred taels.

Despite their efforts, the Wang family’s search turns up nothing. The chances of finding an unmarried ger with that exact horoscope are slim. Realizing this, they adjust their approach and ask for another set of birth dates.

When Zhang Shu hears about this second birth chart, a name immediately comes to mind—Wu Liniang! In his past life, his own birth chart was deemed compatible with hers, so he naturally knows what kind of fate she carries.

How ridiculous.

That means he and the sickly young master of the Wang family share the same fate. No wonder his marriage with Wu Liniang was a disaster—it was an ill-fated union from the start.

Dark thoughts flash through Zhang Shu’s mind. He could tell the Wang family about Wu Liniang’s horoscope and let her suffer the same fate that Li Mujin endured in the past life.

But in the end, he abandons the idea.

Even if it would ease his resentment, it would also entangle him in the Wang family’s affairs. He has seen what kind of people they are, and if he interferes, he’ll become part of their misdeeds.

Wu Liniang is a terrible person, but he isn’t. Unless she wrongs him again, he won’t dirty his hands for the sake of revenge. What if the King of Hell only judges people based on their deeds in this life?

While Zhang Shu lets go of the thought, someone else has the same idea—Wu Liniang’s stepmother.

As her stepmother, she’s the one who keeps track of Wu Liniang’s birth date and horoscope. When she overhears the Wang family’s servants discussing their search, she feels as if a mountain of silver has fallen into her lap.

One thought consumes her—wealth.

But there’s a problem. She has scolded and mistreated Wu Liniang so many times that the girl has gone to stay with her maternal family. If she can’t bring her back, she’ll lose this golden opportunity.

Determined, she hatches a plan.

First, she needs to lure Wu Liniang back home. After all, in matters of marriage, the father’s word is final. As long as her husband is still alive, no one can bypass him to make a decision.

With this in mind, she convinces Wu Liniang’s father to go fetch her.

When he arrives at her maternal home, he first harshly criticizes the stepmother’s past actions, washing his own hands of any blame. Then, he softens his tone, speaking sweetly to Wu Liniang, claiming he still loves her and that her stepmother has realized her mistakes.

And just like that, moved by his words, Wu Liniang agrees to return home.

Of course, she doesn’t actually believe her father’s nonsense. She knows perfectly well what kind of man he is—weak-willed and obsessed with women. But life at her maternal family’s home isn’t any better.

She followed her cousin, Wang Cuilan, to the Zhang family, hoping to marry into it. However, Zhang Shu wants nothing to do with her and drives her cousin’s family away.

She takes care of her sick cousin for several days, only to be sent back by her uncle-in-law just because she spoke a few extra words to his son, Zhang Huai.

Her aunts aren’t easy to get along with either. They resent having an outsider eat and drink for free at their home and assign her a heavy workload. Just washing the family’s laundry takes her until noon, and if she picks up an extra bite at the dining table, she’s met with disdain. She cries in secret multiple times, but her grandmother only tells her to endure it.

Though she has a fiery temper, she has no choice but to bow her head. After all, her biological father is unreliable. Now that she’s being offered a way out, she has an excuse to return home. At the very least, there won’t be as many clothes to wash.

When Wu Liniang is brought back, her stepmother greets her with an unusually warm smile. She grabs Wu Liniang’s hands, admits her past mistakes, and even puts on a show by slapping herself twice. Then she presents a set of newly tailored clothes and encourages her to try them on. Lunch is especially generous, with large, fatty slices of meat placed into her bowl.

Although Wu Liniang remains wary, she can’t figure out what her stepmother stands to gain from her return. As an unmarried girl, she has no knowledge of the schemes that play out beyond the household.

Meanwhile, her stepmother has already gone to find the Wang family’s servants, bringing Wu Liniang’s birth date and horoscope.

Once the match is confirmed, she receives the 100-tael betrothal gift, sets an auspicious wedding date, and tells Wu Liniang they’ll be visiting a relative who works at the Wang residence.

As soon as she delivers Wu Liniang, she leaves without looking back.

By the time Wu Liniang realizes something is wrong, she’s already being held down by the Wang family. Young Master Wang has no brothers, meaning there’s no one else to marry her.

Instead, she’s forced into a humiliating wedding ceremony, where she’s married off to a rooster.

But it isn’t until she’s sent into Young Master Wang’s chamber and catches the stench of decay that she truly understands what hell is.

No one outside knows what has happened. When people ask about Wu Liniang, her stepmother claims she has been sent to work at a needlework shop. After all, the contract she signs with the Wang family isn’t a marriage agreement but a bill of sale.

Young Master Wang’s condition worsens due to the delay, so the Wang family makes two preparations. If the wedding ceremony restores his health, Wu Liniang will become his wife. If not, then at least their son will have a companion in the afterlife.

Zhang Shu knows nothing of this. After letting go of his dark thoughts, he pays no further attention to the matter. Those people have nothing to do with him anymore.

With the wedding day approaching, his grandmother instructs him to invite the village chef to finalize the banquet menu.

The chef is a short, dark-skinned, heavyset man with excellent culinary skills. After confirming that the Zhang family wants a respectable feast, he lists the dishes:

 “For the six cold appetizers, there’s no need to be particular in winter—one plate of melon seeds, one of thousand-layer cake, one of vinegar-soaked peanuts, one of cold shredded radish, one of braised pig ear shreds, and a plate of boiled eggs.

 “For the eight hot dishes, according to tradition, chicken and fish are a must. That’s two. Then a plate of braised pork knuckles and one of braised pork belly—that’s four. Add Four-Happiness Meatballs, Eight-Treasure Vegetables, stuffed tofu, and cabbage hearts, and that makes eight.”

 “To finish, we’ll serve sweet glutinous rice soup and candied sweet potatoes. That’s a total of sixteen dishes. In this village, only the village chief’s family has ever had such a grand spread for a wedding.”

The chef, whose surname is also Zhang, specializes in high-end banquet spreads. Most villagers can only afford ten dishes at most, sometimes as few as six or eight.

Seeing how much importance the Zhang family places on the banquet, he proposes an extravagant selection.

Grandma Zhang does some quick calculations. The feast will cost at least one or two hundred coins. But since they’ve already committed to the major expenses, there’s no point in worrying over the smaller ones.

“Alright, Old Zhang, we’ll go with this menu. The day after tomorrow, Ah’shu will go with you to buy the ingredients. Oh, and do you think we should just buy a whole pig? That way, we’d have everything we need, and we’d only have to buy some chicken and fish.”

The chef nods in agreement. Buying an entire pig will be more economical than purchasing meat in smaller portions. Besides, with the weather turning colder, any leftover pork can be salted and preserved for the New Year’s feast.