A Good Country Wife
Chapter 177: Embarrassment and Difficulty_1

Chapter 177: Chapter 177: Embarrassment and Difficulty_1

"Yes, sister-in-law, the gift you gave was indeed too generous. You should take back the pair of silver bracelets. Otherwise, Lin Yue’s wife won’t be at ease, right?" Zhao Yunxiang didn’t know if she was feeling sorry for herself or genuinely concerned for Zhao Erhu, but either way, it was quite embarrassing.

As soon as Zhao Yunxiang finished speaking and saw everyone staring at her, her face turned red with embarrassment. She was too eager and said something so impulsive; now that the words were out, it was too late for regrets.

What Zhao Yunxiang said made everyone feel awkward. The Han Family had only been polite, and even if they didn’t covet what Lin Yue had given, there was no precedent for taking back a gift once given. It would not look good for Zhao Erhu and his wife to return it, but with Zhao Yunxiang’s statement, if they didn’t return it, it would seem as if they were indeed greedy. They couldn’t afford such a reputation; it was a no-win situation.

"Tsk tsk, this really is curious. It’s the first time I’ve heard of such a thing. When it comes to gifts, either you don’t give them or you can’t take them back once given. This sister here, what relation is she to my brother-in-law? She must be from the countryside, hence the lack of sophistication. No wonder she would do something like this," Qin Family said mockingly, her words sharp and sparing no one’s dignity. She had come to stir up trouble and wouldn’t miss the chance for amusement at someone else’s expense.

Zhao Erhu, standing by, also felt very uncomfortable. To him, it felt different from how Lin Yue saw it. Lin Yue just regarded Zhao Yunxiang as a somewhat familiar stranger with an additional layer of kinship, but for Zhao Erhu, Zhao Yunxiang was his blood-related sister. If Zhao Yunxiang lost face, he felt shame as well. Fearing that Qin Family’s barbs would provoke Zhao Yunxiang to say more, he rebuked her, "Sis, don’t talk nonsense."

Zhao Yunxiang, already regretful, refused to admit her own fault and blamed everything on Lin Yue. If it weren’t for this reckless woman urging her brother to give such generous gifts, she wouldn’t have lost her composure in front of everyone. Now faced with such mockery and scolded by Zhao Erhu, Zhao Yunxiang was even more vexed and glared fiercely at Lin Yue.

Lin Yue ignored Zhao Yunxiang’s glare and quickly tried to smooth things over with a laugh, thinking to herself that Zhao Erhu’s sister must be out of her mind to create such havoc in these circumstances, not minding the loss of face.

"Look at what sister is saying, there’s no reason to take back something once given. Although for a family like my sister-in-law’s, these things are trivial, they still represent the regard my husband and I have for our little nephew. My husband has been in a coma for some days, and we’ve been grateful for the help my cousin and his wife have given us. We can’t thank you enough, and you must accept this modest gift. Otherwise, I would feel terrible," Lin Yue said.

The Han Family was a reasonable person. Though she was displeased, her feelings were directed at Zhao Yunxiang, not Zhao Erhu and his wife. Seeing Lin Yue’s gracious manner, Han Family wouldn’t make things difficult for Lin Yue and happily accepted her sincerity with a smile.

"Don’t say such things, sister-in-law; now I feel guilty. Besides, it’s only right for brothers to help each other. During the time of Erhu’s trouble, we couldn’t really help much, yet we received quite a bit from you. But our family, Zhao Xinglin, has said that these things aren’t important between brothers. Since this is the heartfelt gesture of my brother and his wife, I’ll shamelessly accept it," Han Family said.

Both the Han Family and Lin Yue were clever people and so this matter was smoothly settled in just a few words. The Han Family preserved her gentle and polite demeanor, but her look towards Zhao Yunxiang had changed. She had thought Zhao Xinglin’s rural relatives being poor was no issue, but such embarrassing relatives should be avoided in the future to prevent becoming the butt of people’s jokes. The recent incident seemed to be over, but with her sister-in-law’s gossipy nature, and it being targeted to make her uncomfortable, their family would undoubtedly become the talk of the town.

After that incident, while others were merely watching and laughing, the couple Zhao Dahuo and his wife, who were with Zhao Erhu and Lin Yue, felt rather uncomfortable in their own skin. Zhao Erhu had given such a generous gift, and all they had brought was less than half a basket of eggs. Moreover, with so many eyes on them, Mrs. Liu could not bring herself to offer the basket, so Zhao Dahuo found a moment when no one was looking and secretly gave the gift to Zhao Xinglin.

"Xinglin, these eggs are to help your wife recuperate. It’s not much, but please don’t look down on them," Zhao Dahuo said in a few short sentences, pushing the basket into Zhao Xinglin’s hands, feeling awkward and embarrassed.

One could say that the Wei Family was being too stingy. During the times when the Zhao family held banquets at the old house, the gifts from the third uncle and others were never this meager. When Zhao Cheng got married, the third uncle’s family even gave a gift of one tael of silver. Now it was their turn to host a banquet and the Wei Family only brought half a basket of eggs, which was simply indefensible. Zhao Dahuo felt his face burning with embarrassment.

The Wei Family had done it on purpose; they couldn’t wait to see Zhao Dahuo and his wife lose face at Zhao Xinglin’s feast. It was a way to put down the third uncle’s family, and any embarrassment would not fall on them.

Zhao Xinglin saw Zhao Dahuo’s difficulty and embarrassment and sighed inwardly, "Brother Dahu, don’t feel bad. Regardless of the amount, it’s the thought that counts. I’m well aware of your family’s situation. It’s good that you and sister-in-law could come. It’s rare that we get together; let’s have a proper drink at noon."

As noon approached and it was almost time to start the feast, Zhao Erhu led everyone to the restaurant. Zhao Dahuo, Zhao Erhu, and Zhao Yunxiang, being siblings, naturally sat together, along with a few neighbors from their village. Everybody knew each other, so there wasn’t much restraint, and they began to converse freely.

"I must say, Xinglin is really something, having a banquet at such a fine restaurant must have cost a fair amount of silver. I’ve never enjoyed such a grand feast in my life. I’ll have to tell my old lady about it when I get back, make her a little envious," said Old Li, with a humorous and playful tone.

Hosting a feast in the village usually meant setting up a few tables at home, but the dishes and the atmosphere at the restaurant were of an entirely different level, both beautiful and delicious to the extent that people were reluctant to even start eating.

Aside from Lin Yue, who had seen the world, and Zhao Erhu, whose taste had been refined by Lin Yue, everyone at their table was from the countryside and shared the same mindset. Some even sneakily stuffed food into their pockets to take back for their wives and children. Even when spotted, they didn’t feel embarrassed; it was common practice during village feasts. However, this behavior was met with disdain by the Han Family’s city relatives.

Lin Yue didn’t see anything wrong with it. In her eyes, although such actions might be considered ’improper,’ the thoughtfulness and care for their families were indeed touching and heartwarming. On the other hand, Zhao Yunxiang had already made a fool of herself earlier, so she tried to act more properly on this occasion. She had done the same in the village before, but now she felt that these people’s actions were causing her to lose face too. She sat with a stern face, as if someone owed her money.