70s Delicate Girl: A Guide to Being a Rich Woman-Chapter 45: Ximei

Back at home, Xu Hai closed the door to the room, and all seven family members sat together.

"Eldest son, hurry and bring out the money so we can see how much you’ve earned?" Madam Chen said a bit impatiently.

"Mom, don’t worry, it’s all here. Take a look." Xu Hai took out a cloth bag from his chest and then pulled out the money from it.

Xu Mumu was also staring intently at the money Xu Hai took out. Inside, there was not just money but also various kinds of tickets.

Xu Mumu helped count the money again. In total, it was more than sixty yuan, plus various tickets, nearly two hundred jin of pork. Selling so much brought in a good sum, and Xu Mumu was already very satisfied.

"Wow, so much money, Dad, and you didn’t bring me anything tasty back." Xu Minglei, sitting on his dad’s lap, said unhappily. Even though they had earned money, he knew it would soon be taken by his mom, and they wouldn’t see a cent of it.

"You little rascal, isn’t there already enough meat at home for you to eat?" Xu Hai gave the little boy a smack on the backside. Besides, there were still some snacks at home, but these were brought back by Xu Mumu.

The wild boar sold entirely for meat, and there was still a big pig head left, along with quite a bit of offal. If they ate it sparingly, it could last several meals. As for the meat, Li Caixia and Madam Chen had already marinated it, so it could be kept for slow consumption, slicing off a few pieces when they craved it and adding it to dishes.

"Take out some of these cloth tickets to make a new outfit for Mumu. Our Mumu is a big girl now," Madam Chen said with a smile. The little home now had an income, making her quite happy, though she worried that the eldest son’s family might not manage well.

"Don’t worry, Mom. Tomorrow I’ll get two meters of cloth to make a dress for Mumu. The weather is getting hotter," Li Caixia said with a smile. With the family’s savings increasing, they could start planning to find a wife for the eldest son.

There was still a lot of work to do around the house. Having just separated from the larger family two days ago, she was a bit overwhelmed, as in recent years the tasks had mostly fallen on the second and fourth households, so she hadn’t done much of it.

Moreover, she wasn’t particularly diligent, so when household chores fell on her, though Xu Mumu helped, she was reluctant to let her daughter do those tasks.

So, they should quickly bring in a daughter-in-law, but she needed to come from a well-off family and be diligent as well.

Li Caixia silently managed her little plans in her mind, thinking that once she had a daughter-in-law, household chores could be passed on, and she could enjoy the joy of being a mother-in-law.

Li Caixia soon put the money away, and everyone in the family got a brief look at it.

Xu Mumu felt her mother had many good traits; at least she was good at sharing blessings with others.

"Mom, do you think we should find a wife for Minghui now?" After everyone left, Li Caixia spoke to Madam Chen while doing laundry. Xu Minghui was already nineteen, and in rural families, some at that age already had children.

"It’s time to find him a wife. Ask Minghui what kind of girl he likes," Madam Chen was quite concerned about her eldest grandson’s marriage.

However, if Xu Minghui were to get a wife, the house wouldn’t have enough space, thus another room would need to be built. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be enough room. Building a house costs money, and getting married also costs money. The money at the eldest son’s place probably wouldn’t be enough. In two more years, Xu Mumu could also get married, and a dowry would cost quite a bit too.

Thinking about all this, Madam Chen started to get a headache. It was all due to being poor.

"That boy has high standards. He wants to marry a city girl. Where on earth can I find such a naïve girl for him?" Li Caixia scoffed.

City girls generally have high standards, and the bride price would surely be substantial, which the family definitely couldn’t afford.

Only if she were foolish would she bring a pile of stuff as dowry to the Xu Family to suffer. How could they possibly find such a foolish girl?

"Alright, I’ll talk to him later," Madam Chen continued, feeling another headache. Everyone was a bit of a handful.

"If you ask me, Captain Zhao’s Ximei isn’t bad. She looks like she’ll be good for childbirth," Li Caixia’s standards weren’t low either. She had her eyes on Captain Zhao’s daughter, Zhao Ximei. Ximei’s reputation in the village was quite good, she was diligent and honest, and more importantly, Captain Zhao’s family was relatively well-off, and the dowry would surely be considerable.

Li Caixia had made her calculations, and with Ximei’s gentle nature, once married, she figured it would be easy to manage her.

"Don’t think about Ximei. I reckon she’s going to marry an educated youth," Madam Chen said with a headache. She wondered why her eldest grandson had such picky tastes; it must be inherited from Li Caixia.

Do they even know their own worth? Still dreaming of marrying Captain Zhao’s daughter. Minghui was always lazy at work, and the captain could see that. Although the captain favored his son more, he wouldn’t push his daughter into a fire pit.

"Marry an educated youth? What’s going on?" Li Caixia’s gossip-loving side was instantly hooked by Madam Chen because she hadn’t heard a word about it. Li Caixia prided herself on being the most well-informed in the brigade and was surprised she hadn’t heard anything.

"Yesterday, I saw her at night taking things to the educated youth’s place for Huo. The captain also treats Huo quite well. I think the captain has tacitly agreed to this, but don’t go spreading it around," Madam Chen said calmly.

Though rural areas weren’t overly strict about gender separation, running to a man’s house at night was something else entirely.

"Huo, that kid can’t do hard labor. What does the captain see in him?" Li Caixia wondered.

She knew that these educated youths’ hearts weren’t here. They hadn’t settled because, given the chance, they could return home. Many of the educated youths at the place were not young, yet they hadn’t married, all waiting to go back.

"Huo isn’t too bad. When I fell last time, he helped me up. Maybe he thinks going back is hopeless and wants to stay here. The captain’s family is among the top in terms of conditions, so marrying Ximei would bring many benefits," Madam Chen explained calmly.

"I see. What a pity. I wanted Minghui to have more chances to meet Ximei," Li Caixia said with regret. She had also set her sights on the captain’s family’s good conditions. Ximei was already eighteen and of marrying age. Quite a few had proposed, but the captain had rejected them all.