If you don't consummate the marriage for three years and then marry a successful educated youth

Liu Dongmei followed the matchmaker out, ignoring the onlookers' stares. She just wanted to get home quickly and take a shower; the smell of cooking oil was too unpleasant.

When the villagers saw them come out, they gathered around and asked, "You clever talker, are you going to be a matchmaker for Lai Zi's family?"

"Yes, both families have agreed to Dongmei and Laizi's marriage. Once the betrothal is finalized, we can start preparing for the wedding."

"...Ah, it really is them. Even Lai Zi agreed."

The matchmaker smiled and said, "It doesn't matter. A child's marriage is decided by his parents. He'll know how good Dongmei is later. A pretty daughter-in-law is useless; it's better to have strength and be able to work."

The villagers looked up at the big man, swallowed hard, and thought, "That's true, but who wants to marry someone so much stronger than themselves? Otherwise, the man will be the one getting beaten up."

Once the two men were out of sight, the crowd started chattering: "Oh no, our brigade is going to have another man now."

"Shh, you can't say that. It would be a good thing if Liu Dongmei really married into the family. The brigade would have another capable worker. One person can do the work of two or three men. That would be great."

"We only get one set of work points; we're the ones who are getting a good deal."

"...That makes sense."

*

Two days later, Lai Zi's family bought their gifts and pushed a cart to Liu Dongmei's house to present their betrothal gifts. After the gifts were put away, the two families began to discuss the details of the wedding.

The mother of the leper wanted to bring a dowry, otherwise she would feel too bad about marrying such an ugly daughter-in-law. After she explained her intentions, she saw Dongmei's father smile.

"Sister, my Dongmei is hardworking and can endure hardship, as you can see. Marrying her is like marrying two or three laborers. What more could you possibly want?"

"As for the dowry, as you can see from my family's situation, we have many children and live in an old mud house, so we really don't have any extra money for the dowry. Please bear with us."

Seeing her future mother-in-law's expression change, Liu Dongmei put down her cup and said, "Auntie, I will take every penny of the betrothal gifts your family gave me back with me. Please don't be angry that my parents didn't bring any dowry."

"I've saved over a hundred yuan over the years, and I'll use that as part of my dowry to buy cotton and fabric to take to my husband's family. You can rest assured about that."

"Oh, okay then. I'm not trying to argue about anything, but since our family values ​​you, you should also value my Lai Zi a little more, right?"

Dongmei's father didn't say anything, but just glanced at his daughter.

"Young lady, when are you planning to get married? I think there's an auspicious day next month, so why don't you get married as soon as possible? Then your brigade will be harvesting the autumn crops, and my Dongmei will be able to help with the work."

Lai Zi's parents thought about it and agreed: "Okay, then let's go with the 28th of next month. An even number is nice too."

The matter between the two families was settled. After dinner, Liu Dongmei took Lai Zi to the hillside. The wind brought a bit of coolness. One of them was expressionless, while the other looked impatient.

The leper said with disgust, "Liu Dongmei, let me tell you clearly, I will never like you in this life. Marrying you is not my intention; I was forced into it."

"Oh, really? I don't care whether I like it or not. You can't just crush it up and eat it anyway, what's the point?"

"As long as you're ready to get married, that's enough. You'll know what you should and shouldn't do in the future. You can like whoever you want, just don't make a scene and embarrass yourself."

Liu Dongmei looked down at him: "By the way, you said someone was forcing you to marry me, who is it?"

Lai Zi pursed his lips and remained silent.

"Tsk, looks like you're scared. Did you do something wrong and get threatened?"

"Hmph, why are you asking so many questions? Even if you knew, would you go and beat him up? Don't pretend here. I know you don't like me either; you're only after my family's wealth."

Liu Dongmei shrugged and gave a wry smile: "I'm the kind of person who believes in reason, not people. I might be biased, but you're not within my protection range right now. We'll see how you behave in the future."

"However, we should have a child as soon as possible after we get married. Once we have a child, I don't care what we're like or what, we must be good parents to our child."

The leper scoffed, "Kid, don't even think about it."

"So ugly, who would want to have a child with you?"

Liu Dongmei wasn't angry. She sat on the hillside enjoying the breeze, a relaxed smile on her face. She was finally married off, and she was still satisfied with the Lai Zi family.

We'll just take things one step at a time. If things don't go well, we'll use some methods. There's nothing that can't be solved behind closed doors.

A gust of wind blew by, and the leper shivered for no apparent reason.

After the betrothal ceremony, Lai Zi went to town to buy some alcohol and drank with his good brother to relieve his bitterness.

The villagers teased him, saying, "You're back from buying wine, you rascal! You'd better relax quickly, because once you have a wife, you won't have time to relax anymore."

"Haha, that's right. You have to keep an eye on your wife. Her constant nagging is so annoying."

"But Lai Zi's family is different. Other people's wives might nag a bit, but his wife can hit people directly. Just by looking at her fists and muscles, you can tell she'll hurt a lot."

The leper ignored him and quickened his pace to walk away.

He called up a few of his buddies, and they went up the hillside to drink and eat roast chicken. His face was very gloomy.

Dog: "Hey, who inflicted those injuries on you before?"

"...Why bring this up? Just enjoy your drinks and food. Don't bring up things that shouldn't be mentioned. I don't want to hear people talk about this."

"Uh, okay then, I misspoke."

Lai Zi stared at one spot with venomous eyes, took a deep breath, and said, "Let's drink. Stop talking nonsense. How's your life after you got married?"

The dog spread his hands: "Not so good. My wife is very strict. If I don't listen, she makes me sleep on the floor and won't let me touch her. Otherwise, she'll make a racket while I'm knitting socks, which is annoying."

"Oh, so a beating will make him obedient."

"Sigh, I can't have an abortion. My parents are on her side. Besides, she's pregnant, how can I have an abortion? Just thinking about it gives me a headache."

"Speaking of which, you're the most pitiful one. You're an only child, and your family is well-off. How could you choose a shrew with your eyes closed?"

The others suppressed their laughter: "Yeah, she's such a big shrew, how are you going to have your wedding night? Are you going to be on top of her, or is she going to be on top of you?"

The dog laughed nonstop: "Stop joking, it's all the same with the lights off. It's just that our Lai Ge has such skinny arms and legs, I'm afraid that she might break them if she uses her strength."

Lai Zi glared at them: "Shut up, you're so annoying."

Everyone was watching the drama unfold, eager to see how Lai Zi's family would manage. Little did they know that before this spectacle was over, another one was about to begin.

The brigade leader and his family took their belongings and went directly to the educated youth compound to propose marriage to the ugliest educated youth. Yes, you heard right, there are really a lot of strange things happening this year.

"Hey, have you heard? The brigade leader's family went to propose to Wen Yao. Is he possessed? Otherwise, why would he fall for such an ugly educated youth?"

"you do not say."