Shi Qingluo's words stunned the duo.
They had never heard such bold words before.
Mother Xiao was in deep thought while Xiao Baili and Xiao Erlang were a little nervous.
They liked Shi Qingluo very much, especially her personality. It would be great if she could be her sister-in-law.
Shi Qingluo did not want to rush Mother Xiao in making the decision. Seeing that her clothes in the yard had dried, she told her that she was going to change.
Mother Xiao went to Xiao Hanzheng's room.
Seeing that the blush on her son's face had faded a lot, she hurriedly touched his forehead and realised that it was no longer hot.
She put her hands together.
The medicine given by Miss Shi was really effective. Thank God!
Mother Xiao stared at her son for a while before saying, "Zheng'er, you're almost seventeen. It's time for you to get married.
"Looking at our current situation, there's nothing more for a girl to gain from joining our family. In fact, our bride would have a hard time the moment she marries.
"If there's a lady willing to marry into the family, then she must be a good lady.
"Therefore, I'll help you with the marriage first.
"Your younger siblings and I are all fond of her. I believe that you will like her too.
"She saved your younger brother and sister. The medicine you are drinking now is also useful. She is our family's benefactor.
"Isn't there a saying that 'we should devote our heart to our saviour'? Let's turn it into a marriage."
She reached out and shook her son's hand as if to cheer herself up. "It's a deal then."
After a moment, she stood up and walked out with determination.
When she saw Shi Qingluo sitting in the courtyard chatting with her son and daughter, a smile appeared on Mother Xiao's face.
In the past, she had been thinking about what kind of daughter-in-law she should find for her son.
In fact, she had always hoped that she could find a more powerful daughter-in-law so that she would not be afraid of her ex-husband's family members and could protect her children.
Shi Qingluo was in line with her fantasies about her ideal daughter-in-law in all aspects. Everything was good.
She walked over, sat down beside Shi Qingluo and asked seriously, "Miss Shi, are you really willing to marry into our family?"
Shi Qingluo nodded. "That's right. Otherwise, I wouldn't have brought it up."
Mother Xiao smiled and said, "I agree with what you said. Furthermore, I can assure you that after you marry, we will become a family.
"I will treat you like a daughter.
"I know that I am soft-hearted and not suitable to be the head of the family, so if you marry in, I'll let you be the head of the family."
She continued nervously, "But I also have a request, as long as you treat Zheng'er, Yi'er, and Li'er well."
Shi Qingluo smiled lightly and said, "Of course, I'll use my intuition as a gauge. As long as you treat me well, I will naturally give you similar returns."
She then promised, "Don't worry. If I were to marry in, I will definitely not bully your three children, and I won't let others bully them either."
She felt that opening up and promising each other were a good beginning.
After all, she did not marry Xiao Hanzheng because of their relationship. She was just fond of the Xiao family.
Now that they had opened up, they would rarely have any estrangement or tensions in their relationship in the future.
Xiao Baili and Xiao Erlang's eyes lit up. "We're going to have a sister-in-law."
Mother Xiao thought for a moment and asked, "Then when are you going to marry over? Do you want to wait for Zheng'er to wake up?"
Shi Qingluo thought of Mdm Wang's action and replied. "How about the day after tomorrow? It will also help to chongxi 冲喜 (a joyous occasion such as a wedding for a very sick young man in hope to hasten recovery). Others will not think that it was too rushed too."
"If your extended family members dare to cause trouble again, I'll help you guys settle it."
She was especially protective of her own people and would not allow others to bully them.
"I don't want my family to face those troublemakers every day either."
The ladies there were too terrible at cooking.
Shi Qingluo did not want to agitate her stomach anymore.
Mother Xiao was once again surprised. Was there a need to be in such a hurry?
However, it made sense when she thought about it.
She had also heard that Shi Qingluo's life at the Shi family wasn't easy. Otherwise, she wouldn't be sent to the Taoist temple since she was young.
"Will the Shi family agree to it?"
She said with a blush, "Moreover, our family won't be able to provide luxurious betrothal gifts right now."
Shi Qingluo smiled and waved her hand. "I don't need any betrothal gifts. The things I brought here are my personal belongings and will not be considered as dowry. I'll settle the people in the Shi family."
Those troublemakers would probably be eager for her to get married.
She added, "Since it's to chongxi 冲喜 (a joyous occasion such as a wedding for a very sick young man in hope to hasten recovery), we don't need a wedding banquet."
The taels of silver in Mother Xiao's hand were from the chief to treat Xiao Hanzheng's illness.
In addition, he was still in a coma so they shouldn't waste them on a wedding banquet.
The same goes for the betrothal gift. She didn't want to take advantage of the Shi family.
In the future, if she and Xiao Hanzheng did not get along, or if he likes someone else, then she would divorce with him.
In the past two days, she had flipped through the books that Shengyuan had brought back and found that there was actually a Daliang glossary in it.
After flipping through, she found out that as long as a married woman didn't bear any children for three years, after the divorce, she could choose to set up her own household aside from returning to her maternal family.
She wanted to marry into the Xiao family because this law could serve as a backup plan.
If she could get along with Xiao Hanzheng and become a real husband and wife, she would just hold another wedding banquet in the future.
She wouldn't feel guilty and didn't need to force herself.
She asked Mother Xiao, "Then it's settled. So, I'll marry over the day after tomorrow?"
Mother Xiao felt embarrassed. "You can marry first. When our family' situation improves in the future, I will ask Zheng'er to hold a make-up wedding banquet.
"The same goes for the betrothal gifts."
"Alright!" Shi Qingluo wasn't interested in these things, but Mother Xiao's response showed that she was sincere in this wedding.
Hence, the two of them discussed how to get married and so on.
In the end, Mother Xiao asked, "Then I will invite someone from your house to propose the marriage tomorrow?"
She could see that Shi Qingluo did not care about these things, so she emphasised, "This is a must, otherwise, I am afraid that someone will say something nasty about you in the future."
Even if they accelerated this marriage, they still have to get someone to propose it.
The Shi family had to agree with it.
Only then, Shi Qingluo would be considered to have officially married into the Xiao Family.
If they didn't, in the future, others would criticise that Shi Qingluo married without a matchmaker.
Usually, this only happened for mistresses.
Shi Qingluo knew that Mother Xiao was thinking from her point of view, and her smile deepened. "Alright, then you can get someone to propose the marriage to the Shi family tomorrow morning."
Mother Xiao nodded. "Alright!"
After the discussion, Shi Qingluo gave them a few fish and left.
Mother Xiao went to the chief's house to inform him of this matter. She wanted to ask his wife to help her propose the marriage tomorrow.
Xiao Hanzheng, who was lying in the room, seemed to have a nightmare.
His brows were tightly knitted and his forehead was covered in sweat.
He struggled to wake up but was unable to open his eyes.
At this moment, he still did not know that he was going to have a wife.
In the Shi family.
Shi Qingluo returned home.
The moment she walked into the courtyard, the members of the Shi family kept glancing at the three fish she was carrying.
Shi Qingluo threw the fish on the table and arrogantly ordered, "Stew the fish."
She emphasised, "Fry them in oil first before stewing them."
Old Lady Shi's face immediately darkened. "There's not much oil left in the house."
Shi Qingluo raised her eyebrows at her. "Grandma, do you want to try the rattan?"
No, she didn't want to.
Recalling how her daughters-in-law had been beaten up by this vile creature in the kitchen a few days ago, she felt a chill down her spine.
With a strong desire to live, she snorted coldly. "Fry. Fry it for her."
She wished she could fry this fiend as well.
If only she could send this fiend away.
She really couldn't take it anymore.
The Niu Family also had similar thoughts.
Just as they were thinking about this, Shi Qingluo exclaimed, "I'm getting married!"
All the troublemakers of the Shi family stared at her as their eyes widened.
Footnote:
chongxi 冲喜 – People in the olden days were more superstitious. When someone in the family was seriously ill, they would celebrate a joyous occasion (such as marrying a fiancée) to exorcise evil spirits, hoping to turn the crisis into a safe place.