As Ouyang Lei got past Dama, he started coming up with bad ideas.
"You all saw Ouyang Meihua and Li Rongguo drinking too well, and they left together to rest, right?"
"Yes, yes," Tian Jing chimed in with a smile.
Now that Daxia Tian agreed, Ouyang Lei felt even more at ease. "Dama, you go back first and open the courtyard gate and room doors. I'll bring them over right away."
Dama looked at her uncle and aunt.
Li Zhengguo looked at Tiantian.
Tian Jing nodded.
Dama immediately got up and went out, glancing left and right outside the dark courtyard gate, looking like she had a guilty conscience.
Tian Jing found it amusing. She nudged Li Zhengguo, "Go with Dama and keep an eye on Ouyang Lei to make sure he doesn't go too far."
Li Zhengguo went back inside to get a flashlight and soon chased after his niece.
Ouyang Lei followed them out, carrying one person in each hand.
Soon, the uncle and niece returned.
A while later, Ouyang Lei came back. "Done, time for bed. Dama, Xiaomai, you can stay here! I've locked the courtyard gate from the inside."
Li Mu listened to her eldest son's drunken complaints and shed tears with him. Later, when she heard about these people's antics, she didn't stop them.
Ouyang Lei was right, having a wife with high combat power was indeed good, just like Tiantian.
Her eldest son and granddaughter needed a capable woman to manage the household, and this woman was Ouyang Lei's elder sister.
At this moment, she continued, "Dama and Xiaomai will sleep in the east room with us."
From the moment she saw Ouyang Meihua and realized she was still unmarried at 34, Li Min understood what her sister-in-law meant by women's strength not being tolerated by the world.
Meihua Jie was clearly a bold woman, yet no man was willing to marry her. Were those men blind? They'd rather have someone like Zhang Fangcao or Zhao Xiaofang?
Well, her eldest cousin wasn't blind; Zhao Xiaofang was just too good at acting, and Zhang Fangcao was also a good pretender.
However, "Mom, we can't treat Eldest Cousin like this."
"Don't worry about it, you take care of your own affairs."
Li Mu pulled Dama and Xiaomai, "Come, let's go boil water to take a bath."
Li Min: "..." Should she save her eldest cousin?
Glancing at Ouyang Lei, Li Min immediately backed down. The courtyard gate was locked, and she couldn't get in. Eldest Cousin, good luck to yourself.
...
In the west room, Tian Jing took out the box from the Chen family. "Zheng Ge."
"You put it away first. After we're done tomorrow, we'll go up the mountain."
"If this lock is part of the same set as that key, then the key wouldn't be that useful?"
"Silly girl, if it can be opened, it means you've already found it."
"Found what?"
"The reason for Xiao Wei's fortune."
"Because of this?" Tian Jing pointed at the golden lock in the box.
"It hasn't been opened yet, so we can't jump to conclusions. However, since Grandpa Chen has this, perhaps..."
"Perhaps what?"
Tiantian's question made Li Zhengguo's eyebrows curve with laughter. Could pregnancy really make one foolish for three years?
"Grandpa Chen's surname is Chen, Xiao Wei's husband's surname is Chen, and you should have been named Chen Jing."
Tian Jing slapped her forehead. "Oh, I'm so stupid. I always forget what I should have been named. According to your deduction, Chen Suozhu and I are family?"
Li Zhengguo quickly grabbed Tiantian's hand. Don't get any sillier by slapping your head. "It should be quite distant. Although the Chen family wasn't the first to settle in Kushan, they've been there for many generations."
With one hand grabbed, Tian Jing scratched her head with the other. "Then, if I find something good with this lock, should I share it with Chen Suozhu?"
"You should share."
Li Zhengguo nodded. "But before you share, you should talk to Grandpa Chen. I don't think his intention in taking out this lock was to truly give it to Ouyang Lei. Chen Suozhu learned many things from Grandpa Chen."
"Right!" Tian Jing agreed. "Sometimes, I can feel Grandpa Chen's wisdom from what Chen Suozhu says."
"Think about the day your family came. What did you say?"
Tian Jing refused to use her brain. "I said too much."
"You said you could change your surname to Chen. I think Grandpa Chen must have heard something from that. This lock of his is a test."
Tian Jing pulled her hand back, closed the box, and put it away. "I'll just play it by ear. Whether to share it with Chen Suozhu, and how much to share, will be decided by my mood. Going to sleep."
Tiantian was getting impatient, so Li Zhengguo went along with it. "Okay."
After all, he was her brother-in-law. Whether Tiantian wanted to share or not was up to her.
May 22nd.
At four in the morning, the Chen family was busy, killing chickens and slaughtering sheep. It was very lively.
At the end of the village, in Li Rongguo's house, the two people sleeping in each other's arms were awakened by the quiet yet lively atmosphere.
He opened his eyes, and after a few seconds of stunned silence, Li Rongguo was so scared he pushed away the person in his arms.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."
Ouyang Meihua, who was still a bit dazed, woke up immediately with the push. She rubbed her slightly sore forehead. "What do you mean by this? Are you disgusted with me, or are you abandoning me after getting what you want?"
"I didn't, I didn't. I, I don't know how this happened, and, and, I, I don't remember. I was drunk."
So cowardly! Although Ouyang Meihua was dissatisfied with the man's pushing away, she could guess that her younger brother had set it up. Otherwise, wouldn't her younger brother protect her?
She tried to get up but stumbled back into Li Rongguo's arms because their four legs were tied together.
Li Rongguo raised his hands to prove his innocence. "I didn't touch you."
Ouyang Meihua narrowed her eyes. She hadn't said anything about being taken advantage of, so why was this man acting like he wanted to clear his name?
She tried to sit up and pull off the strip of cloth binding their four feet.
Li Rongguo then realized his feet were tied to this tomboy. "Ou, Ouyang, this strip of cloth, this was intentional... *whimper*"
Li Rongguo's mouth was gagged, and he looked in shock at the enlarged face before him.
Ouyang Meihua was annoyed that this man wasn't straightforward. She hadn't said anything, and he was already acting like he was framed, which inexplicably made her angry.
Being tied up must have been her younger brother's doing, but she just didn't want this man to say anything bad about her younger brother.
He wanted to clear his name? Fine, she'd make sure he couldn't.
But the shock and fear in this man's eyes only made her angrier. Fear? Was he afraid she would do something to him?
Her original intention was just a touch and a leave, but now she'd just go all the way.
Whether it was the lingering effects of the alcohol or something else, the two of them were a mess...
...
Li Min was woken up early, showered, and changed into new clothes. Her mother had specially made her a red floral long-sleeved shirt and gray corduroy pants.
After half a year of using face cream and hand lotion, Li Min looked completely different in her new clothes, no less than someone from the city.
Li Mu wiped away tears. Her daughter was about to become someone else's wife.
Although Li Min was scared, she still had to comfort her crying mother. "Mom, when I return for the first visit, I'll come home every day. I'll come back so much that you'll be annoyed with me."
Li Mu smiled through tears. "Okay, come home every day. Mom will miss you."
This sentence made Li Min cry too. The mother and daughter simply burst into tears.
In the west room, Li Zhengguo's face darkened. What were his mother and sister doing?
Tian Jing rubbed her eyes. "Who's crying?"
"Mom and Minmin."
"Oh, let's get up and send Minmin's dowry to her."