Chapter 159: Good News and Marriage
Morning.
Deepwater Village.
Guan Dewei was happily sitting at the doorstep, knitting something.
Today, his eldest daughter had married into a good family and was living a happy life. The family was also thriving. Seven hundred Cinnamon Flavor lychee seedlings had been planted, and many new branches and leaves had grown. The entire orchard was full of vitality and a joy to behold.
The children had become obedient, and even the chickens and ducks seemed to be growing faster than before.
All in all, everything was going well at home.
Beside him, Yongying's mother lit two cigarettes and said, "Old man, if you calculate the date, Yongying should be giving birth soon!"
Guan Dewei nodded and said, "It will probably be in the next few days!"
Yongying's mother said, "I hope she can give birth to a son as her first child. Then her parents-in-law will treat her even better."
Guan Dewei smiled and said, "It doesn't matter whether the first child is a boy or a girl. If it's a boy, that's great. If it's a girl, then she can just have a boy as the second child."
Yongying's mother said, "That's true, but if the first and second babies are both girls, that would be bad news."
Guan Dewei glanced at his wife and said, "You're worrying for nothing."
Yongying's mother continued to stuff tobacco into her cigarette holder and sighed, "I don't want to worry either, but this just makes me feel uneasy!"
Guan Dewei said, "Maybe the first baby will be a son!"
Yongying's mother lit a match, took a few puffs of her cigarette, and then said, "If the first child is a son, then we won't have to worry about her anymore."
Just as the couple was discussing their eldest daughter, the voice of their son-in-law, Deng Changfu, came from afar: "Dad, Mom."
The couple looked in the direction of the sound simultaneously and saw their son-in-law Deng Changfu riding a bicycle toward them. Hanging from the handlebars were a chicken, a piece of pork, wine, and other gifts. They were shocked and immediately thought of one possibility.
Their daughter had given birth!
It was no wonder that Guan Dewei and his wife thought so, as it was a local custom for the son-in-law to bring eggs, chicken, pork, and wine to announce the good news after his wife gave birth. This was commonly known as "announcing ginger wine."
Now, seeing the gifts their son-in-law had brought, combined with their daughter's due date, it was easy to guess the truth.
So, when Yongying's mother saw her son-in-law, she put down her cigarette holder, stood up, and asked, "Ah Fu, has Yongying given birth?"
Deng Changfu parked the bicycle in front of his in-laws and said with a smile, "Yes, Dad, Mom, Yongying has given birth!"
Yongying's mother smiled and asked, "Seeing how happy you are, Yongying must have given birth to a son?"
Guan Dewei was also somewhat pleased. He noticed that the smile on his son-in-law's face was genuine, indicating that their daughter had done well and given birth to a son as her first child.
Deng Changfu laughed and said, "Dad, Mom, you would never have guessed—Yongying gave birth to a pair of twin sons for our Deng family."
"What did you say?"
"Did I hear correctly? Yongying gave birth to twin sons?"
Guan Dewei and his wife cried out in surprise, completely shocked!
Their conversation was also overheard by the neighbors, who quickly gathered around in amazement.
Deng Changfu chuckled and said, "Dad, Mom, you heard it right. Yongying gave birth to twin sons for our Deng family."
"Great! Yongying is truly amazing!"
Yongying's mother's face was full of excitement. Just moments ago, she had been worrying about what would happen if her daughter gave birth to two daughters in a row. She never expected her daughter to be so successful, giving birth to a rare pair of twin sons on her first try. She was incredibly lucky!
"Good! Good! Good!"
Guan Dewei was so excited that he repeated the word "good" three times. With twin sons, his daughter's position in her husband's family would be as solid as a rock.
The neighbors who had gathered around were all amazed and offered their congratulations.
Next, after accepting the gifts brought by her son-in-law, Yongying's mother began happily preparing a meal, killing the chicken and cooking the pork.
After the chicken and pork were cooked, she chopped the chicken into small pieces and the pork into bite-sized portions. She then took out a dozen bowls, placed a piece of chicken and two pieces of pork in each bowl, and poured the wine brought by her son-in-law into the bowls.
She then went door to door, delivering the wine to close relatives and neighbors, informing them of the specific time of her grandson's birth and inviting them to celebrate with a drink.
In Bobai County, both city dwellers and rural residents place great importance on celebrating a child's full moon.
Especially for families with a son as their first child, there would typically be a grand celebration. Even if the first child was a daughter, many families would still hold a banquet.
However, for the second child, some families would choose to continue holding a banquet, while others would not.
In short, the importance given to the second child is different from that of the first.
There are also various customs associated with celebrating the full moon.
For example, if the first child is a boy and the second is a girl, the banquet for the boy can be held earlier, while the banquet for the girl must be held exactly one month later.
Another custom is that when inviting people to celebrate, you must first serve them a bowl of wine containing meat. Without these elements, people would not attend.
As Deng Changfu came to announce the good news, within less than half an hour, the entire Deepwater Village knew that Guan Yongying had given birth to twin sons.
Everyone was naturally envious. In this era, where strength in numbers was highly valued, families with many sons were considered powerful in the village. If a family had six or seven sons, no one in the village would dare to cross them.
In May, good things continued to happen in Thatchfield Village.
Shortly after Deng Changfu's family welcomed twin sons, Deng Changyuan got married and held a wedding banquet.
As the matchmaker, Deng Shirong gifted a piece of fine khaki cloth.
In this day and age, cloth was considered a valuable gift, suitable for any happy occasion.
Deng Yuntai and Zhang Xiuping gifted a quilt and a red envelope containing two ten-yuan bills.
This was a significant gesture. The importance of quilts in this era cannot be overstated. Among the dozens of households in Thatchfield Village, only a few could sleep warmly in winter. Many families dreamed of having a new quilt to get through the cold months.
Therefore, when the guests saw the quilt gifted by Deng Yuntai and his wife, they were all envious.
As for the red envelope of twenty yuan, it was also the largest. Even the closest relatives of Deng Changyuan's family could not give such a generous gift.
I won't go into detail about the wedding process, as it was quite similar to others. Deng Changyuan's wedding had six tables, which, although far smaller than the grand affair of his childhood friend Deng Yuntai's wedding, was still considered a significant event in Thatchfield Village, where most families only had three or four tables.
The dishes were standard, featuring the expected chicken, duck, fish, and meat. They were neither shabby nor extravagant.
Normally, the bride would likely shed tears when bidding farewell to her family, but this time, the bride, Ou Guohua, was an exception. She was indeed a little sad as she watched her relatives leave, but when she saw her good sister Zhang Xiuping by her side, her sadness quickly faded.
(End of this chapter)