“I’ll be right there,” she said. “And I’ll get you good and drunk.” She took Wang’s wife out with her.
They all drank another round as firecrackers exploded again downstairs, followed by the sound of hurried footsteps. “Who could that be?” Niu Yueqing wondered aloud. “Go greet them, Liu Yue.”
The girl went out, but returned quickly. “Dajie, it’s—”
“Who is it?” Niu Yueqing asked.
“It’s — you know,” Liu Yue said as she went to her room.
“Anyone who comes is a guest, so why are you acting like that?” Niu Yueqing looked up to see a refrigerator being carried in, followed by more people bringing in more things: a TV set, a washing machine, a stereo system, an air-conditioner, a toaster oven, four blankets, two pillows, vacuum water bottles, washbasins, mirrors, rinsing cups, toothbrushes, toothpaste, towels, a porcelain bowl, and a pair of chopsticks. After putting down their loads, the newcomers went out into the hallway, since there was no place for them to sit. The last to enter was Dazheng, whose appearance elicited a cry from Niu Yueqing.
“Ai-ya! It’s you, Dazheng. Why didn’t you call first? We’d have gone down to meet you at the gate.”
“My mother told me to have these dowry items delivered. There are also two large modular cabinets, sofas, and loveseats, but they’re too bulky to move, so we put them in the new place. You have a lot of guests today.”
“Zhidie, come out here!” Niu Yueqing shouted. “Come see who’s here!”
Zhuang was pleasantly surprised when he came out of the bedroom. After inviting Dazheng to have a seat, he asked the men in the hallway to come in.
“No need for that,” Dazheng said. “I’ll send them home.” They waved and walked off, but Zhuang caught up with them and passed out cigarettes.
When he came back inside, he said to his friends, “Do you know who this is? It’s Dazheng, our mayor’s son and Liu Yue’s future husband.”
Supporting himself on the sofa back, Dazheng stood up, smiled, and took out a pack of cigarettes. He tore it open and passed them around. He was grinning. Everyone had heard about the engagement between the mayor’s son and Liu Yue, and that had made them envious of the girl’s good fortune. Now, after seeing what he was like, they entertained their own thoughts about the pair; they stood up to accept the cigarettes. He was invited to sit with them amid a cacophony of “Pleased to meet you,” “Congratulations on your engagement to a beauty.” Someone even mentioned the mayor’s accomplishments and asked Dazheng to pass on their regards. Business cards were offered.
“You’re all Xijing celebrities,” Dazheng said as he read the cards.
“Stop that celebrities nonsense,” Meng said. “Have a drink. I’ve been looking for someone to play finger-guessing games with. Now I can do that with the bridegroom.”
“Are you drunk on coconut juice?” Niu Yueqing said. “They’re not married yet, so he’s not a bridegroom. Raise your glasses, everyone, and toast the mayor. Dazheng, you are your father’s surrogate. Pick up your glass. Make yourself at home. Liu Yue, where are you? Why are you acting so shy?”
Liu Yue came out of her room in a new outfit. “You go ahead and drink,” she said bashfully. “I can’t hold my liquor.”
“At least you’ll have to toast him.”
“I thought she’d disappeared,” Meng said. “Turns out she went in to put on makeup. Like they say, a woman makes herself up for the one she loves.” They all laughed.
Dazheng raised his glass to toast Liu Yue, who clinked hers with his and ran into the kitchen.
“Why is she acting like that? After bringing over so many dowry items, Dazheng will send a festooned sedan to fetch her on the wedding day, and that will surely dazzle the people along the streets,” Meng continued. “You’ll have to deliver the invitation yourself, Liu Yue. Tell us what we should give you, so the gifts won’t overlap. What else do you need?”
“I need a bank,” she said from the kitchen.
“Ouch!” Meng exclaimed. “I won’t go to the wedding, then. I was hoping for your help if we become beggars one day, but obviously we can’t rely on you.”
“I’d like to thank you for your kind thoughts,” Dazheng said. “Of course Liu Yue will deliver the invitations, and I hope you will all come celebrate with us. Here’s to you all.”
“Just this one and no more,” Wang said. “We’ve been at this for quite some time, so why don’t you drink with Meng Yunfang.”
“Meng Laoshi is having a soft drink. He’d surely get me drunk,” Dazheng said.
“Go ahead and play the finger-guessing game, Meng Laoshi,” Hong cut in. “I’ll drink for you when you lose.”
Meng and Dazheng began the game, creating a din as the other men watched. The women, on the other hand, sat idly around. Soon, however, Wang’s wife left to chat with Liu Yue, while Xia Jie went to check out the dowry, followed by Hong Jiang’s wife, who touched the items and commented appreciatively, trying to guess their prices.
“The mayor has power and status, but he’s no match for you business types when it comes to spending money. This skirt of yours had to cost at least two or three hundred.”
“Twelve hundred. It’s a luxury brand.”
“Wow, that much!” Xia Jie said. “There are celebrity writers, painters, performers, and braggarts among the guests today. Now I know there’s even a fashion celebrity. You are really doing much better than the mayor.”
“We may have more money than the mayor, but there’s more gold in his cache,” the woman said, before joining Wang’s wife and Liu Yue to gossip about Liu’s good fortune. She took them all into her room and closed the door. “You’re mocking me, aren’t you? Look at him. Who but a housemaid like me would marry him?”
“Don’t talk like that,” Wang’s wife said. “The mayor’s family has so much to offer you. Besides, he’s really not that bad.”
“My dear sister, you’ve been around, and you think Dazheng’s not too bad?”
“His thick brows are nice, and he looks dependable,” Wang’s wife said.
“He looks fine except for that leg,” Xia Jie added.
“That’s right,” Hong Jiang’s wife said, but Liu Yue began to cry.
“I know what you’re saying. He’s a dependable man with thick brows. But what’s so fine about him with that leg? I’m so mad at him. Why did he have to pick today to bring the dowry?” Liu Yue said tearfully. The others tried to console her.
“You can’t have everything,” one of them said. “Besides, no average girl could have your kind of good fortune.”
“Liu Yue, your husband is failing,” Meng shouted from the living room. “Come drink for him.”
“He lacks common sense,” Liu Yue complained. “He’s a guest here, so how could he let himself go like that? Obviously Meng Laoshi is trying to make a fool of Dazheng by getting him drunk.” She refused to go out, as the people in the other room clamored for Dazheng to drink more. Soon Zhou Min and Hong Jiang carried him in, so drunk he looked like a mountain of mud. As they tried to put him on Liu Yue’s bed, his shoes fell off. One of his feet was straight, the other one crooked with the toes pinched together. Liu Yue sobbed as she draped a blanket over his feet.
When the men saw her crying, they thought she was upset with them for getting Dazheng drunk. Ruan Zhifei, who was fairly drunk himself, complained that Dazheng was no fun, that he got drunk too easily. He bragged that in his crazy younger days he could match Gong Jingyuan glass for glass, and once single-handedly finished off four jin of liquor as if it were water. But the mention of Gong saddened him, and he was soon sobbing. A couple of the women talked about Liu Yue in whispers; everyone’s mood soured.