After Liu Tiesheng left, Xiao Ming called Li'er into the room alone and asked her what she meant and whether she was willing to get married.
Li'er girl almost burst into tears when she heard that the girl was going to marry her off: "I won't marry, I won't go anywhere, I will just follow the girl."
Tears flowed out as she spoke. Li'er was simple-minded, but she was not stupid at all. She knew who was kind to her and who was cruel to her. Since arriving at Xiao's house, she could eat whatever she wanted, and she had always been well-dressed. No more hunger.
What is it like to be married, can you not be hungry? When she was a child, she often saw in the village that people in the same village were willing to starve their wives and girls in order to save food. They were only allowed to work and not eat.
Her mother could only eat two meals a day, the kind of porridge that could make a shadow. She ate too much and the family couldn't afford to feed her, so she sold her to An Po. When she was with An Po, An Po She was not allowed to eat enough, so she would take food secretly, and An Po would catch her and beat her every time.
who is it? Want to marry her? That Liu Tiesheng, good, good, very good. I will go find him tomorrow, teach him a lesson, beat him until he cannot take care of himself, and let him marry me...
For the first time, the stubborn Li'er decided to use force to defend her belly. All factors that prevented her from eating were eliminated.
Li'er's eyeballs frightened Xiao Ming, and she quickly comforted her: "Good Li'er, don't cry, I didn't want you, I just asked you to choose someone you like to marry, and after you get married, you will With your own home, there will be people who like you, care about you, take care of you, talk to you every day to relieve your boredom, and you will also have your own children."
"Besides, it's just an engagement now, and we won't get married until two years later. After we get married, you are still working by my side. How can I be without your protection?"
"Really?" Li'er looked at Xiao Ming, her disc-like face covered with tears.
"Of course, our Li'er is so capable. No one can let me go without you. After we get married, you will still be by my side as you are now." Xiao Ming comforted her softly. Li'er is sixteen this year and will get engaged first. They got married two years later, when they were eighteen, and they were just the right age.
As Li'er's mistress, she has to be responsible for Li'er and find her a home.
"Okay then! Then they have to let me eat well, otherwise I won't marry." Li'er held back her tears and finally nodded. She cared more about food and clothing than her appearance and temperament.
"You will definitely be full. I will buy you a dowry, ten acres of paddy fields to grow rice, and ten acres of dry land to grow wheat and corn. In this way, you can eat whatever you want, and you don't have to worry about being hungry at all. I will also give you You save the money in the box, and you can buy whatever snacks you want." Xiao Ming told her plan. The dowry she prepared for Li'er was rich enough to feed and drink the whole family.
The so-called dowry refers to things prepared by a woman's parents when she gets married, such as pots and pans, bed sheets, bedding, clothing, jewelry, etc. It can be as small as a needle and a thread, as large as a field of silver, or even a bucket to solve three emergencies. And so on, all the things needed in life will be prepared by the mother's family, which means that her daughter will not need to be supported by her husband's family after becoming a monk, so the dowry is a woman's confidence in her husband's family.
The richer the dowry, the more honorable it is. Some families with abundant financial resources have started making preparations for their daughters when they are born. If possible, they will privately buy more land and shops for their daughters, or give them more money. This is the bottom line.
A woman's dowry cannot be taken by her husband's family by force.
Xiao Ming had already planned Li'er's dowry in her heart, so that she would have enough food and clothing to live a happy life.
You will definitely be full.
"Okay, I'll marry you." Li'er didn't refuse once she heard that she was full. She didn't have a rough idea of the dowry money. In her eyes, it was not worth as much as five big meat buns. It was enough to be able to eat well and stay with the girl all the time.
"No." Xiao Ming was a little stupid, feeling that things were going a bit wrong, and said quickly: "I am talking about Liu Tiesheng in the village, Liu Yu's brother, the eldest son of the Wang family's aunt. What do you think of him? If you don't If you like it, I’ll pick someone else for you.”
Marry only if you like her. If you don't like her, choose another one. We can afford it. At this time, we don't need to discuss whether this person is good or not. Meat buns are always available, so your future husband must choose carefully.
"That one!" Li'er thought for a while and felt some vague impression, so she nodded again. In her opinion, the girl would not harm her.
The girl must be right.
"I have to have enough to eat..." Li'er, who was psychologically affected by hunger, worked hard to get enough to eat.
Xiao Ming: "..."
This is not about having enough food, it is about getting married. If marriage is about living together, then you have to find someone who sees you right. Please don't be so hasty.
"Good Li'er, you have to think carefully. A woman only gets married once in her life. If you think you don't like Liu Tiesheng, I will give you a serious choice." Xiao Ming persuaded her nicely. She was so attracted by Li'er. The haste was frightened. Although Liu Tiesheng was someone she valued in advance, she would not impose her own will on Li'er.
Just like she let the news out in advance and let Liu Tiesheng decide whether to marry Li'er as his wife.
She will not use her privilege to force one party over another.
Being taken so seriously by Xiao Ming, Li'er calmed down and thought for a while before saying, "As long as they don't beat me in the future and let me eat enough, I'm willing."
Li'er thought of her mother, a woman who had suffered all her life and was now unknown. In her limited memory, her father could beat and scold her mother at any time. Her grandmother's harsh curses were always with her in her childhood.
What did the girl say she liked? Does father like mother? Does mother like father? If you like your father, will you still hit your mother?
She didn't know whether she liked it or not, but she knew that if a family could receive her as kindly as a girl, without beating or scolding her, and give her plenty to eat, she thought she could get married.
Xiao Ming felt a little sad and couldn't help hugging Li'er. Her wish was so simple. A girl gave up her most beautiful years just to be fed and not abused. So there was no reason for her not to protect her with all her strength.
"Okay, okay, they don't dare to beat you, and they don't dare to deny you food. If Liu Tiesheng or anyone in the Liu family treats you badly or treats you poorly in the future, just tell me and I will do it for you." You make the decision, and anyone in the Xiao family can make the decision for you."
Li'er is simple, kind-hearted, and doesn't have many scheming ideas. Sometimes she may not even know when someone is plotting against her, so she chose the Liu family. On the one hand, the Wang family is straightforward and kind-hearted, and they don't have so many twists and turns. Liu Tiesheng is honest and filial. On the other hand, he is close to home and can take care of him easily.
