Chapter 52: Inquiry

Chapter 52: Inquiry

At the end of the month, Deng Changbao began sending workers to deliver blue bricks to Deng Shirong's home.

Since the distance wasn't far, they didn't waste money hiring a truck. Instead, they used ox carts to deliver the bricks one by one.

As the blue bricks arrived continuously, the construction of Deng Shirong's house resumed. Relatives and idle young men from the village came to help. Some built walls, some moved bricks, and others carried lime slurry. Everyone had a task, and the work was in full swing.

Although the family was busy, Deng Shirong had no intention of staying home to help. After preparing the meat for the day, he said to his eldest daughter, "Ah Zhen, I'll leave the house to you!"

Deng Yunzhen knew her father was going to New Dock Village today to inquire about her future sister-in-law, so she nodded and said, "I know, Dad. Don't worry, I'll take care of everything at home!"

Deng Shirong trusted his eldest daughter's cooking skills, which had improved significantly. After giving her instructions, he rode his bicycle to New Dock Village, Flourish Brigade, Dragon Lake Commune, to find out about the reputation of the girl he had chosen as his future daughter-in-law, her family's interpersonal relationships, and whether she got along well with her parents and brothers.

A few days ago, Deng Shirong had driven his two daughters to Dragon Lake Village, which took him an hour and a half. This time, riding alone, he naturally went much faster. He arrived at New Dock Village in just over an hour.

Seeing someone at the entrance of the village, Deng Shirong rode his bicycle over.

Arriving at the house, Deng Shirong got off his bike and parked it. He then smiled and greeted an old farmer, about 50 years old, who was repairing farm tools: "Uncle, do you have a pipe here?"

In the rural areas of Bobai at that time, the most common way to socialize was to borrow a pipe to smoke, similar to offering cigarettes to others in later generations.

The old farmer responded with a "yes," stood up, and fetched a water pipe from the corner of the door. He handed it to Deng Shirong while saying, "Cousin, from your accent, it seems you're not from our Dragon Lake Commune?"

There were three common languages in Bobai County: Mandarin, Dilao, and Hakka.

Dilao dialect was the ancient dialect of the region, or as Professor Wang Li said, "Dilao dialect is the original dialect of this county."

Bobai Dilao dialect belongs to the Cantonese dialect-Guangxi Southern dialect, mainly distributed in the northern communes of Bobai County, such as Bobai, Mouth Capital, Plain Wave, and Twin Phoenixes, as well as in the central and western communes like Prosperous Growth, Elegant Mountain, Three Shoals, Water Chime, Eternal Peace, East Ancient, Thatch Forest, and Tranquil River.

It is the Chinese dialect with the most tones in the country, with as many as 10 tones.

Hakka dialect (Xinmin dialect) is also called Ya dialect or Mai-jie dialect because it uses "Ya" for "I" and "Mai-jie" for "what."

Xinmin dialect is mainly distributed in the southern communes of Dragon Lake, Great Dam, Double Prosperity, Pine Mountain, Dongping, Spirit Corner, and Sand River, as well as in the eastern communes of Phoenix Mountain, New Field, Great Section, Sandy Dam, Hero Bridge, Wendi, and Peace Pool.

In later generations, Bobai County was known as the world's largest Hakka county, with a population of nearly two million, 77% of whom were Hakkas.

However, although they all spoke Hakka dialect, the accents of different communes varied slightly, so the old farmer could tell Deng Shirong wasn't from Dragon Lake Commune.

Deng Shirong took the pipe and smiled. "I'm indeed not from Dragon Lake Commune. I'm from Help and Correct Brigade in Pine Mountain Commune."

The old farmer sat back down and asked, "Cousin, are you visiting relatives in our village?" as he continued repairing his farm tools.

Deng Shirong took out tobacco and matches, shook his head, and smiled. "No, I'm a matchmaker. I'm free today, so I came to your village to ask around and see if there are any young men or women suitable for marriage. I'd like to introduce them."

The old farmer became interested. Whether in this era or in the future, when parents meet a matchmaker, especially if they have children of marriageable age, they can't help but chat.

The old farmer happened to have a young son who was unmarried. When he learned Deng Shirong was a matchmaker, he smiled and said, "There are many young men and women in our village suitable for marriage. Not to mention those far away, I even have a young son who's not married. Cousin, if you have a suitable match, please introduce one to my son."

Deng Shirong stuffed tobacco into his pipe and smiled. "Of course, no problem. Tell me about your youngest son's situation, and I'll see if there's anyone suitable in our village. If there is, I'll help match them up."

The old farmer stopped what he was doing and enthusiastically introduced his son: "My youngest son is 23 this year. He's…"

As a potential customer, Deng Shirong listened attentively while smoking. After the old farmer finished, he said, "Cousin, I'll keep an eye out. If there's anyone suitable for your son, I'll help match them up."

The old farmer nodded, then sighed. "This kid has a bit of a temper. I hope he'll settle down after he gets married."

Deng Shirong lit a few cigarettes and chatted with the old farmer for several minutes before asking the question he most wanted to ask: "Cousin, I heard there's a very beautiful girl in your village, only 20 years old. I wonder who she is?"

"The one you're talking about must be Zhang Zhenfa's daughter."

The old farmer smiled knowingly. "In terms of looks, I've never seen a girl prettier than Zhang Zhenfa's daughter in this area."

"Is she really that beautiful?"

"This girl is truly beautiful, like the actresses in the movies."

Deng Shirong blinked and asked, "What's the girl's name? Has she mentioned her in-laws?"

The old farmer said, "Her name is Zhang Xiuping, and she hasn't mentioned her in-laws yet!"

Deng Shirong felt reassured and asked, "If this girl is really that beautiful, why hasn't she found a husband yet? Is it because of her personality or is she too picky?"

"Neither." The old farmer waved his hand and praised, "This child has a good personality. She's filial, can farm, raise chickens, feed pigs, wash clothes, and cook. Her parents wanted her to marry into a wealthy family so they could help her two younger brothers find wives. Otherwise, she would've been married off long ago."

Deng Shirong frowned. "Cousin, are you saying her parents are putting the responsibility of marrying her two younger brothers on her?"

The old farmer sighed. "It's not entirely her parents' fault. Their family isn't well-off. She has five siblings—two older brothers and two younger brothers. To find wives for her eldest and second brothers, her parents not only emptied their savings but also went into debt.

If they don't put the burden on her, her parents probably won't be able to help her two brothers find wives."

Deng Shirong thought about it and understood. Although it was unfair for Zhang Xiuping's parents to do this, in many families, daughters were never as important as sons. To find wives for their two younger sons, Zhang's parents, who had no means of earning extra money, could only place the burden on their daughter.

(End of this chapter)