The Butcher's Little Husband - Chapter 13

On the tenth day of the seventh lunar month, it was an auspicious day for marriage proposals, as well as for the customs of dispelling bad luck and making offerings to the kitchen gods.

By July, the weather was unbearably hot. To ensure they arrived early at Tian Xiaoman’s house, Li Wenxuan and his brothers set off at dawn. Because the journey was long, they had already sent the wedding dowry to a distant relative of Li Wenxuan who lived in the neighboring village. Since traveling in person was faster, they reached the relative’s house right at the hour of the Snake (around 9 a.m.).

This relative was from Li Wenxuan’s maternal side. Though he should have been called “Old Uncle” due to their generational difference, he was only in his fifties. His surname was Niu, and everyone in the area called him Old Niu.

Though the families had drifted apart after Li Wenxuan’s grand-amu passed away, they had reconnected for the sake of Li Wenxuan’s wedding.

When they arrived, Old Niu hurried out to greet them. “Xiao Wenxuan, I’ve already moved everything to the yard. Do you want to head out now?”

“Wenxuan thanks you, Old Uncle,” Li Wenxuan said, cupping his hands. “I think we should set out now. It’ll take some time on the road, and if we miss the auspicious hour, it won’t be good!”

“Alright, I’ll have them move it all out immediately,” Old Niu replied enthusiastically.

In truth, he had his own little calculations. The Li family’s circumstances were improving steadily. Back when the elder generation had passed away, they had stopped keeping in contact, and whenever Old Niu wanted to ask for help, he felt too awkward to approach. Now that Li Wenxuan was marrying and needed his help, of course he had to put in his utmost effort.

Li Wenxuan had prepared more than ten large chests of betrothal gifts, so he had gathered plenty of manpower. Aside from four childhood friends from his own village, he had also invited four good brothers from the county city, specifically to give him face, because they had horses.

Others proposing marriage usually had someone carry the bride price, but Li Wenxuan was different. He harnessed the cart to his own horse and delivered it in a carriage. Four people sat in the carriage while another four rode on horseback. This was quite an impressive sight in the small mountain village.

As soon as they reached the entrance of the village, someone ran to the Tian family to announce the good news. The children in the village and some married men followed the team toward the Tian household.

It was rare to see something new in the village, and this marriage proposal scene was the first of its kind, making it the talk of the village for more than half a year!

When the Tian family received the news, they immediately brought out a large string of firecrackers, which Tian Xiaoman’s eldest brother, Tian Fu, lit. The crackling sound filled the air with excitement.

Two boys clapped their hands and jumped up, shouting, “It’s New Year! It’s New Year!”

“You silly children,” their Amu said with a smile, “your brother Xiaoman is getting married!”

“Oh, oh, oh, getting married, getting married!” The children didn’t care whether it was New Year or a wedding—as long as there was something lively to watch, they were happy.

Tian Xiaoman sat shyly in his room, accompanied by Yang Xiaoguo.

“Xiaoman, it’s really happening. You’re getting married,” Yang Xiaoguo said, his eyes sparkling. “My Amu always says that because I’m so greedy for food, no one will want to marry me. But Xiaoman, you’re greedy too, and someone still wants to marry you! That’s really amazing!”

“What’s so good about getting married!” Tian Xiaoman blushed. He didn’t want to get married!

Yang Xiaoguo curled his lips. “If you don’t want to get married, why are you blushing?”

Seeing his doubt, Tian Xiaoman quickly grumbled on, “It’s true! I don’t want to marry! I don’t even like him. I like men who can read books. He’s not good at all…”

“No way!” Yang Xiaoguo retorted. “My Amu said your husband’s family are hunters. He’s a butcher and kills pigs. They can eat meat every day!” To him, that was as great as living like a god.

“That’s true.” Usually Tian Xiaoman only thought of Li Wenxuan as an uneducated pig butcher. But after hearing Xiaoguo say this, he suddenly realized—eating meat every day didn’t sound so bad. He giggled.

The two boys instantly sank into a fantasy of endless meat meals, and if one listened closely, one could even hear them swallowing their saliva.

“Wow!” A chorus of exclamations outside broke their fantasy.

It turned out Li Wenxuan’s betrothal gifts had already been carried into the courtyard, and the chests were being opened for everyone to see!

In several nearby villages, there was a custom of displaying the dowry for all to see, called “showing off the happiness.” Normally, people only opened the less important boxes, such as those with candies or ceremonial candles, to spread the joy. But Li Wenxuan didn’t know this. As soon as he heard that the boxes were being opened, he hurriedly opened all of them.

The sight stunned the villagers!

Wasn’t Willow Tree Slope very poor? They had heard earlier that a ger was married off with only a bushel of millet, yet here was the Tian family’s future son-in-law showing off such a grand dowry! Look at these golden items—bracelets, rings, necklaces, and earrings! Did he empty his entire family’s savings just for this?

For those from small families, they only need to prepare one item to look radiant.

For small families, preparing even one radiant item was enough. But aside from gold, the cloth, lacquerware, and other things were all the most expensive in the county.

Everyone thought the Tian family had made a great match! 

The villagers exchanged glances, thinking, who would have imagined that such a good match would fall to Tian Xiaoman, that troublesome boy? 

The gers present were all regretful. Could it be that rich people these days prefer this type of character?

When everyone finally reacted, they laughed and congratulated the Tian family.

There were also some envious comments. “Looks like you’re going to live a life of luxury now, with your son-in-law bringing so many good things for you.”

Others said vaguely, “If I had known, I would’ve had my son learn from Xiaoman. Maybe he could have found a good match like this too!”

Some secretly asked, “Your son-in-law is surrounded by several young men. Are they married?”

To these comments, Tian Amu smiled proudly. He sincerely thanked those who truly congratulated him. For those with sour attitudes, he replied, “Yes, I never imagined my son-in-law would be so honest, giving all his family’s wealth to our Xiaoman.”

To those with a backhanded tone, he countered, “It’s not too late. While Xiaoman hasn’t married yet, you can still have your gers learn from him! We’ll be happy to teach them a few things.”

And to those asking for information, he cheerfully promised, “I’ll inquire and definitely keep an eye on the good ones for your gers.”

Don’t blame Tian Amu for being smug. He’d heard plenty of gossip about his son Xiaoman from the villagers, and now it was time to show them how things really stood.

But one thing was true: he had never expected the Li family to be so generous. 

Normally, a large portion of the dowry stayed with the bride’s family, and some families even took it all—the ger couldn’t take a single cent with him.

Xiaoman was the only ger in their family, raised with great care in the palm of their hands. Of course, they wouldn’t let him marry into a family that would look down on him because of the dowry. But this generosity was a pleasant surprise—it clearly showed how satisfied Li Wenxuan was with Xiaoman.

Li Wenxuan’s dowry had definitely earned him a good reputation with the Tian family, but Li Wenxuan himself wasn’t very happy, because the person he most wanted to impress had not appeared yet.

He kept glancing toward Tian Xiaoman’s room, a gesture that did not escape Tian Amu’s notice. Smiling, he said to the crowd, “Alright, everyone, please head home. These young men have traveled a long way and must be tired. Let them rest. In a while, we’ll all gather for a drink!”

When the villagers heard this, they dispersed. Only the Tian family and the men who had come with Li Wenxuan remained in the courtyard.

Father Tian and his two sons ushered them into the main house for tea and snacks so they could rest, while Tian Amu went to Tian Xiaoman’s room to help him tidy up.

The betrothal gifts were carried into Tian Xiaoman’s room, completely filling it.

As soon as Tian Amu entered, he heard Yang Xiaoguo sighing, “Xiaoman, your husband is so good to you, sending all this stuff! I wish I had some too.” Resting his chin on his hand, he grumbled, “Why hasn’t anyone come to propose to me yet? I want to eat meat every day too.”

This silly boy had linked marriage proposals with eating meat.

“Xiaoguo, don’t be envious. You’ll definitely have all these too!” Tian Amu looked at Yang Xiaoguo’s chubby little face with affection.

After finishing with Xiaoman’s affairs, he still had to think about his eldest son’s matters.

“Amu, why are you here?” Tian Xiaoman asked, wondering why his Amu hadn’t stayed outside to entertain the guests.

Seeing through his doubts, Tian Amu said, “Don’t worry. Your father and brothers are there. I came in to help you clean up. Otherwise, you won’t be able to finish by yourself before nightfall.”

Tian Xiaoman had spent most of his skill points on eating and was completely useless when it came to doing chores.

“Hehe,” Tian Xiaoman stuck out his tongue and smiled sheepishly.

“Still laughing? Even if I help you, you must learn. Later you’ll have to rely on yourself. I can’t follow you to your husband’s house to tidy things for you.”

Hearing this, Tian Xiaoman reluctantly agreed and began helping.

Watching this, Yang Xiaoguo shrank back guiltily, thinking maybe it was better to marry later—let his Amu tidy up for him for two more years.

With Tian Amu taking charge, everything was quickly put away. If not for Xiaoman’s clumsy interference, it might have been even faster.

By the time the tidying was done, it was already late. Tian Amu hurried to the kitchen to prepare the meal.

The Tian family had one shortcoming—their household was too small. Whenever something big happened, they always had to rely on neighbors.

When he arrived in the kitchen, it was already bustling. Several close friends were washing rice and vegetables, chatting and laughing.

“Thank you, everyone. Once this is done, we’ll all have a proper meal together!”

“Ha! Look at him, being so polite! Even if you hadn’t asked, we’d have stayed to share in Xiaoman’s joy!” Lin Miao laughed loudly.

Not long ago, Shen Ying had already secretly told him that his eldest son wanted to marry Xiaoguo. That news had been a relief to him. At last, someone wanted his unlucky boy. And since the Tian family lived close by, and his father-in-law was familiar with him, he wasn’t worried Xiaoguo would be mistreated.