USWHC -Chapter 39 Sweet Words That Could Fool Someone to Death (Part 9)

“That’s right! I brought her to town to make a new set of clothes!” Old Madam Ji immediately said with a proud expression. Her smile was exaggerated, clearly showing off a little.

But the moment she said that, a chorus of surprised voices immediately followed.

“No way! Aunt Ji struck it rich or something? First marrying off a son, now making new clothes too? Aunt Ji treats her new daughter-in-law really well!”

“Exactly! I don’t remember Erhan wearing new clothes for years. How come Aunt Ji suddenly wants to make clothes for his wife?”

“That’s right, Sister Ji, you’re not fooling us, are you?” Ergou’s mother also looked doubtful. The way she looked at Old Madam Ji was as if she were seeing a barren tree bloom or a miser suddenly pluck out his own feathers.

“Why can’t we make new clothes? It’s not like we’ve never done it before! When my eldest son’s wife first entered the family, we made clothes for her too!” Old Madam Ji immediately said unhappily.

“That’s right, I get new clothes every year!” Ji Mei added, as if afraid everyone would look down on their family.

But the crowd burst into laughter.

“Yes, you all get new clothes—except Erhan never does! Looks like Erhan’s wife is different from Erhan!”

Old Madam Ji glanced at Ji Yi and Zhu Jie, who both looked a little embarrassed, and immediately said irritably, “Erhan isn’t lacking clothes to wear. Doesn’t he wear his older brother’s hand-me-downs? He’s a man—having something to wear is enough!”

Listening to the crowd chatter, Zhu Jie gradually understood a few things. Once again, she looked at Ji Yi standing quietly behind the crowd with a hint of sympathy.

Indeed, the clothes he wore were already worn thin, with three or four patches sewn onto them. Even the pant legs looked like a fashionable “patchwork” style—clearly the original pants had been too short, so another piece had been added awkwardly at the bottom. Judging by the crude stitching, it might even have been Old Madam Ji’s handiwork.

Even the cotton jacket he wore looked unusually thin, as if the stuffing inside had long been worn away. Clothes like that probably took years of wear to become so shabby.

Old Madam Ji glared angrily at the group of gossiping aunties, then pulled Zhu Jie through the crowd. At the same time, she muttered loudly, “We can buy clothes for whoever we want. What’s it to you?”

Ji Mei also looked displeased. She held her head high and squeezed through the crowd, grumbling angrily, “Move, move! Don’t you people have anything better to do? Are you here to shop or just to watch the excitement?” As she spoke, she rather unfriendly nudged this one with her elbow and bumped into that one.

Seeing the mother and daughter act like that, the crowd couldn’t help laughing.

“What kind of golden daughter-in-law did they find? How much did Erhan spend to marry her, to treasure her like that?”

The moment Old Madam Ji heard this, her annoyed steps suddenly stopped. She turned around proudly and snorted smugly at everyone.

“Our Erhan is capable—didn’t spend a single coin! Bet you’re all jealous!”

“Didn’t spend anything?” Everyone was shocked again. “Such a beautiful girl, and you married her without spending a penny? That’s impossible!”

The sound of astonished murmurs spread everywhere, like a hundred sparrows suddenly taking flight.

But Old Madam Ji still looked extremely proud. “Ah, our Erhan just has good fortune. A bride fell from the sky and just happened to land in our house. We didn’t even want her, but heaven insisted on giving her to us. What could we do?” As she spoke, Old Madam Ji even spread her hands theatrically, looking like someone who had gained an advantage yet was still pretending to be modest—a truly punch-worthy expression.

This only made everyone even more amazed. A bride falling from the sky? Could she really be some fairy descending to the mortal world?

But Old Madam Ji and the others deliberately stopped explaining and simply pulled Zhu Jie forward again, finally leaving the stunned aunties behind.

Zhu Jie noticed that Old Madam Ji was unusually enthusiastic toward her today. She held Zhu Jie’s hand as they strolled around the market, explaining the sights of the town along the way like a very attentive tour guide.

“This shop sells hairpins and pearl hair flowers. Their designs are new every year, and the prices are fair too. If you like them, we can go take a look later!” Old Madam Ji said enthusiastically, even patting the back of Zhu Jie’s hand repeatedly—smack, smack.

Zhu Jie wanted to pull her hand back, but Old Madam Ji’s enthusiasm was impossible to refuse. She simply couldn’t free it. Even so, she still had to put on a gentle smile and say, “I don’t mind either way. If Mother likes them, we can go take a look later.”

“Oh, I’m just an old lady—what would I want with hair ornaments? Those are things you young wives like!” Old Madam Ji said with a cheerful laugh.