Chapter 61: Chapter 61: Li Hua’s Homecoming
That evening, everyone from the Li family gathered at Li’s house to talk about sending off the bride earlier that day.
"Eldest Sister-in-law, don’t you worry," said Aunt Li. "I could tell her mother-in-law is an agreeable person. Our girl won’t be mistreated." ’She’d seen the young wife from the fifth branch whispering with Li Hua’s mother-in-law. She must have been repeating what her eldest nephew’s wife had said. After that warning from her, Li Hua’s mother-in-law would have to think twice.’
"Aunt Li, it’s fine. If they dare to wrong my big sister, my brother and I will storm their house and see who has the guts!" Li Guo said defiantly.
His words made everyone laugh. Grandma Li smiled and asked, "Since when does the bride’s family just go and beat up the groom’s family? Who told you that?"
"Eldest Brother! Eldest Brother said it’s only right and proper for a younger brother-in-law to beat up his sister’s husband!" Li Guo immediately sold out his older brother.
As all eyes turned to him, Li Xiu just smiled and said, "He’s not wrong. An older brother-in-law can’t go around beating up his sister’s husband, but a younger brother-in-law beating his sister’s husband? That’s perfectly appropriate. No matter who over there wrongs Eldest Sister, we’ll just have Li Bao and Li Guo beat up Zhang Chuanzhi. As long as his family cares about their son, they won’t dare to mistreat her!"
Everyone said Li Xiu was ruthless, but the Li family members had never experienced it firsthand. These words, however, gave the Li family members a glimpse of his darker side.
Li Yun burst out laughing. Seeing everyone looking at her, she started to show off. "At the banquet today, Eldest Brother and the others really put our new brother-in-law in his place. I doubt he’ll dare to try anything!"
"What happened?" Eldest Li asked curiously. ’My eldest nephew is a reliable person. He wouldn’t do something as rash as causing a scene at the wedding banquet, would he?’
"I know, I know!" Li Bo waved his little hand and recounted, word for word, everything his older brothers had done at the banquet.
The three older Li brothers were dumbfounded. ’That works? But isn’t that causing a scene?’
Seeing her three sons looking so stunned, Grandma Li chuckled happily. "It’s fine. Li Bao started it, and he’s the younger brother-in-law. His eldest brother managed the situation perfectly, so the Zhang family will be wary and won’t be able to find any fault with it. Besides, didn’t his brother say that Li Bao couldn’t bear to see his sister get drunk? This is the best outcome for Li Hua. Everyone in the Zhang family will be very polite to her now."
Li Xiu just smiled without a word. ’Those three uncles of his have probably forgotten. He’s just Li Hua’s older cousin, not an elder. With one person playing the heavy and another smoothing things over, the Zhang family just has to take it. When it comes to how they treat Li Hua, they’ll have to think very carefully.’
Seeing Li Xiu’s smile, Grandma Li smiled in satisfaction. ’Her eldest grandson knows exactly what he’s doing! With him as the pillar of the fourth branch of the Li family, they can’t go wrong!’
On the day of Li Hua’s homecoming visit, all the Li family members were present. The new son-in-law looked at the eight brothers-in-law, young and old, filling the room, and his legs felt a little weak. Aside from one older brother-in-law, the other seven were all younger brothers-in-law who, by rights, could beat him up whenever they pleased.
Seeing her husband’s timid expression, Li Hua laughed heartily. Three days of married life had made her understand the importance of her brothers. If it weren’t for the warnings from her eldest brother and sister-in-law, her life wouldn’t be this easy.
The men went to one room to drink. At a signal from Li Xiu, Li Bao and Li Guo were determined to get the new son-in-law drunk before sending him home.
In the women’s room, seeing the concerned looks from her family, Li Hua spoke with a tearful smile, "None of you have to worry. Eldest Brother and Eldest Sister-in-law have already smoothed the path for me with my new in-laws. My life is very easy."
Aunt Li asked anxiously, "Tell us the details, so we can rest easy too."
Seeing Zhou Lian smiling silently, Li Hua said with a grin, "What Eldest Sister-in-law said when she sent me off reached my mother-in-law’s ears that very day. At the banquet, with Eldest Brother putting on pressure and Brother Bao smoothing things over, everyone in the Zhang family learned that I have a formidable older brother and several fiercely protective younger brothers. They’re all especially polite to me. The young sister-in-law from the fifth grand-uncle’s branch is my mother-in-law’s biological niece, and she repeated everything Eldest Sister-in-law did for my send-off to my mother-in-law. So now everyone in my husband’s family knows."
Hearing Li Hua’s words, everyone stared at Zhou Lian in a daze. They all knew Li Xiu doted on his younger siblings and cousins, but for Zhou Lian to be so considerate toward Li Hua was truly remarkable.
Zhou Lian smiled nonchalantly and said, "I am the main daughter-in-law of the Li family. Since Li Hua calls me ’Eldest Sister-in-law,’ I have to live up to that title. The daughters of our Li family are all precious. Even after they marry, they are still part of the Li family."
Seeing the emotional expressions on Aunt Li and Aunt Li, Zhou Lian continued, "It’s not just for Eldest Sister; it’s the same for every sister in the family. Your eldest brother remembers how you all treat him, making him insoles and shoes year after year. How could he bear to let you be mistreated? In the future, no matter which sister in the family gets married, your eldest brother and I will smooth the path with your in-laws. All we ask is that you live your lives well. If you are truly wronged, don’t keep it to yourself. You still have us!"
The young Li sisters all looked at Zhou Lian, moved beyond words. Eldest Sister-in-law was telling them directly that as long as they didn’t cause trouble, their eldest brother and she would not let them suffer at the hands of their in-laws after they married.
Ge Er Ya and Li Xin lowered their heads in embarrassment. The unspoken implication in Zhou Lian’s words was that this promise did not include Li Xin, who, after all, had never made a single thing for Li Xiu.
Grandma Li patted Zhou Lian’s hand in satisfaction. ’It was the Li family’s great fortune to have gained such a magnanimous daughter-in-law. Zhou Lian’s perspective was much broader than Aunt Li’s.’
"Niece-in-law, thank you for all your trouble!" Aunt Li said gratefully. "I was worried sick over my five daughters, but with the help of my nephew and you, I feel much more at ease."
"I won’t mince words either," Aunt Li said bluntly. "With you two helping my three daughters, I can relax a lot more!"
Zhou Lian smiled and waved her hand. "We’re all family. There’s no need to be so formal!"
Grandma Li glanced at Ge Er Ya and her mother and shook her head. ’The second branch of the family is a lost cause,’ she thought. ’Oh well, children and grandchildren will have their own fortunes. I’m too old to manage them anymore. Let them be!’
"Eldest Sister-in-law, you hardly ever leave the house. How did you know that the young sister-in-law from the fifth grand-uncle’s family is my mother-in-law’s niece?" Li Hua asked curiously. Her sister-in-law was such a homebody, so how was she so well-informed?
Hearing this, Zhou Lian laughed. "You still don’t understand your eldest brother. Just think about it. Do you really think he would have let you marry into that family without first investigating every single one of their relatives?"
The four Li women—the grandmothers and mothers of the family—were all stunned. They knew Li Xiu would investigate, but they never expected him to be so thorough and meticulous.
Zhou Lian continued, "Your eldest brother investigated everything for three generations back into the Zhang family—your mother-in-law’s maiden family, the maiden families of all your husband’s sisters-in-law, even your husband’s older sister’s in-laws. He turned over every stone. If he had found even one thing out of place, he would never have let you marry into that family!"
"Since everyone is here today, let’s talk about Li Yun’s marriage match. Li Xiu has mentioned it to Aunt Li before. What do you think, Aunt Li?"
Aunt Li smiled and said, "I’ve heard of that young man. His family is said to be very kind. There aren’t any problems, are there?"
"None at all. Li Xiu investigated thoroughly," Zhou Lian said with a smile. "If you agree, we can send word for him to arrange a matchmaker’s meeting. If Second Sister takes a liking to him, then we’ll have him come with a formal proposal."
"Eldest Sister-in-law, as long as Eldest Brother has no objections, I agree," Li Yun said, her face flushing. ’Her eldest brother had such high standards; anyone he approved of was sure to be fine.’
Aunt Li laughed and teased her, "Aren’t you even going to meet him first? What if he’s not handsome?"
Li Yun paid no mind to her aunt’s teasing and said very seriously, "My eldest brother’s standards are high. If someone has earned his approval, then there’s definitely no problem. You just have to look at my two brothers-in-law to know that."
The four Li women were stunned again for a moment. It was true. A matchmaker had once proposed a suitor for Li Hua who seemed excellent in all respects. Aunt Li had almost agreed, but Li Xiu sabotaged the match. He discovered the man had a habit of getting violent when drunk, a fact his family had hidden so well that even the matchmaker didn’t know. Li Xiu had made sure to expose it during the New Year.
As for Li Gui’s marriage, it had started as a drunken joke from Third Brother Li, but the Ge Family unexpectedly took it seriously. Their son, Ge Yulian, had taken a liking to Li Gui. To save Third Brother Li from embarrassment, Aunt Li had agreed to the match. When Li Xiu found out, he personally took Ge Yulian under his wing and "trained" him for four or five years. Now, there wasn’t a person in the village who didn’t envy Li Gui for finding such a good husband.
Both Aunt Li and Aunt Li felt a secret sense of relief. This nephew of theirs was just so endearing. He did things even a biological older brother wouldn’t do. Just based on how much he cared for their daughters, no amount of doting on him could ever be too much!
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