Spring comes to the desperate place

Chapter 309 Preparing Dowry

It’s better that he doesn’t like her, otherwise where would this old man Gu Fengyun find a wife?

Apart from Su's background, his knowledge, skills, and character are impeccable. Even his appearance is considered heroic, probably because he has been playing the role of a man for many years.

Moreover, he has his own skills. Even in this social atmosphere that is not very friendly to brothers, he can rely on his skills to gain a foothold in the capital. This alone makes the two men admire him very much.

Brother Su didn't know that he was so powerful in their hearts. He was still a little nervous. The two people in front of him, one was the Grand Marshal of the dynasty, and the other was the sharpshooter who was personally appointed by the emperor to protect the country. Both of them were big figures that he could only look up to on weekdays. He didn't expect that one day he would have an intersection of status with them, and even marry their brother and become their sister-in-law. It was impossible for him to not be nervous.

However, Song Chunlin and Gu Fengyue got along better than he thought, especially Song Chunlin, who was still smiling when he left, and even reminded him to relax and concentrate on preparing his dowry.

When Su Xiaoge heard a boy younger than him teasing his marriage, two blushes appeared on his face and he felt quite embarrassed.

After seeing Song Chunlin and Gu Fengyue off, Brother Su heaved a sigh of relief. He patted his chest and walked back to his room. He sat on the chair in a daze for an unknown amount of time. It was not until his mother came back from visiting that she found her son worriedly in the room again.

Seeing her son like this, Su's mother felt uncomfortable. She had just gone out to ask the neighbors about the Yongyi Marquis' Mansion and the current Yongyi Marquis. The old marquis's affairs were naturally well known to everyone, but as a woman, Su's mother knew very little about the current Marquis Gu. However, she heard that he was extremely concerned about his younger brother. When Gu Fengyue was a child, if he lost a single hair, he would drag his sick body over to bully him back. To his younger brother, he was indeed a good brother.

However, what Su's mother fears most is that the elder brother cares too much about his younger brother. Now that his younger brother has become the Grand Marshal, if Gu Fengyun still doesn't learn to let go, then her son's life in the Marquis' Mansion will not be easy in the future, especially when there is a conflict between the sister-in-law and the brother-in-law. Will Marquis Gu think about his wife or side with his younger brother?

Seeing her son in such a daze, Su's mother felt a little uncomfortable, so she simply sat over and started to persuade her son.

"Son, it is said that a great match is not a good match. Lord Gu's family background is far different from ours, not to mention that your biological father is in such a situation. If someone with ulterior motives finds out, Lord Gu might abandon you. We cannot grasp such a marriage. You have been losing your appetite these past few days because of this matter. I see it and am worried. Listen to me. Let's reject Lord Gu. I will find someone more suitable for you in the future."

When Su Xiaoge heard this, his whole body trembled and his eyes were immediately filled with tears. He remembered the moment when Gu Fengyun stood in front of him and prevented the Li family from taking him away. His heart had already fallen. Even though he only saw Gu Fengyun's back at that time, he was deeply fascinated by that back.

From childhood to adulthood, there has never been a person who would stand directly in front of him and protect him from all harm. Neither his brother nor his mother has done so. It’s not that they don’t want to, but they are under pressure from their father’s remaining power and dare not disobey him at all.

Every time, they could only watch themselves being punished. If they did not walk as majestically as a man, they should be beaten. If they spoke in a petty manner, they should be beaten. If they did not do their homework well and embarrassed their brother, they would be punished to kneel in the ancestral hall after being beaten. If they ate too little and did not grow tall, they would also be beaten. After being beaten, they would have to drink various soups and medicines that could help them grow taller.

His father scolded him more than once, saying that it was because he had robbed his brother of nutrients when he was in Su's mother's womb, which caused his brother to be bedridden since birth. The healthy body he has now was originally his brother's. He had robbed his brother of what belonged to him, so he had to live for his brother and live for his brother all his life.

Brother Su still remembers that when his brother died, his father's eyes were red and he wished he could strangle himself to death. He was so scared that he knelt on the ground, his body seemed to be frozen and unable to move. If the housekeeper beside him had not shouted several times and his father woke up, he might have strangled him to death.

At that time, the housekeeper said, "Master, you can't beat or scold the second young master. He still has to find a wife for the eldest young master."

The father came back to his senses from his trance. He stared at his second son and smiled sinisterly: "Just wait, I will deal with you after your eldest brother marries his eldest sister-in-law. Don't worry, I have found a few strong men for you. They will be responsible for accompanying you during the time when your eldest brother is getting married. Remember, if you don't give birth to a son for your eldest brother, don't even think about escaping from this house."

At that moment, Brother Su felt disheartened. The last bit of admiration he had for his father was completely wiped out by his harsh and vicious words.

At that time, he thought that was his future destiny. Cheng Huan would be with different men, continuing the family line for his deceased elder brother.

However, government officials came later and his fate was finally rewritten. His eldest brother died, his father was arrested, and his family was in ruins. Su Xiaoge felt that he finally saw a ray of light from the darkness, like the morning light. In a flash, he was already in the light.

When Brother Su thought of this, he stood up suddenly, took a deep breath, and said to the surprised Mother Su:

"Mother, I want to give it a try." I thought, Lord Gu, he is not my father, he and my father are two different people, so he decided to go all out this time. If he wins, he will be happy for the rest of his life. If he loses, he is not afraid. He has been in purgatory before. Is there anything more miserable than being a tool to pass on the incense?

Brother Su felt that it must be gone.

Mother Su looked at her son with a determined face, sighed softly, then lowered her head, wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief, and composed herself again. This time she reached out and pulled her son to sit down, and spoke to him earnestly.

"You have always been a person with your own ideas. If you hadn't been suppressed by your father, you would have achieved something. What a pity... However, since you chose me, I have no objection. I couldn't protect you at the beginning, but now you have met someone who can protect you. I am very relieved."

"My son, remember, if you encounter any problems, come back to me. If you are not happy in the Marquis's Mansion, come back. We have a shop and skills. We are not afraid of starving to death wherever we go. At worst, we can move our family to a place where no one knows us and start over. We are familiar with this and are not afraid."

When Mr. Su heard what his mother said, he was so moved that he threw himself into her arms. His tears gradually wet her clothes. The mother and son hugged each other and cried bitterly. After venting all their emotions, they washed their faces and began to calculate how much dowry they could buy for their son with the money in the family.

Listening to Mother Su's count one by one, Young Master Su frowned and said with some dissatisfaction: "Mother, what you said has almost spent all our savings of the past two years. I am marrying into a marquis's mansion, not into a poor family. The dowry only needs to buy a few cotton quilts and a few jewelry for me to show off. You can keep the rest. I am afraid that your son will not be able to stay with you to fulfill his filial piety in the future. You need to buy a maid to take care of you. You can't do this without money."

However, Su's mother did not agree with her son's idea. She thought that her son's marriage was a big deal, and if the dowry was too little, he would be gossiped by his in-laws. What's more, the other party was the wealthy and powerful Yongyi Marquis Mansion. If their dowry was too shabby, it would be embarrassing for the Marquis, and he might even be laughed at. If this affected the relationship between the couple, her son's life in the Marquis' Mansion would be even more difficult in the future.

Seeing that he couldn't persuade his mother, Brother Su had to go along with her for the time being. At worst, he could just reduce the amount as appropriate when shopping.

However, Su's mother seemed to see through his thoughts. In the following days, Su's mother did not let her son get involved in all matters concerning the preparation of the dowry, for fear that her son would bring shame to the Marquis' Mansion in order to save money.

While the mother and son were fighting for the dowry, Gu Fengyun was also busy. It was different from the time when Gu Fengyue and Song Chunlin were engaged. Last time it was Gu Fengyun and the housekeeper who were busy running around, but this time it was Gu Fengyue and Song Chunlin who were busy running around, with the housekeeper assisting them.

It was a rare occasion for such a big happy event to happen in the family so soon. The housekeeper couldn't stop smiling. He didn't care who Gu Fengyun married. In his heart, Gu Fengyun had a very sharp eye for people. The person he chose must be good. He just needed to happily take care of everything for him.

This time, the people who were about to get married had a rare moment of free time. They were only occasionally pulled to try on wedding dresses. As for other things, the housekeeper prepared them according to the specifications of the last time Gu Fengyue was engaged, with some extra details added, in order not to bother Gu Fengyun with these issues.

Gu Fengyun listened to the housekeeper reading the list of betrothal gifts at night. The more he listened, the more he felt something was wrong. He suddenly looked at the housekeeper.

"I can understand the ginseng and purple fungus in it, but what is the powerful pill? Can it be a serious thing? The name sounds unreliable. I guess it must have been taken out by Chunlin, right?"

The butler was sweating coldly with embarrassment and just kept fake smiling to show that he was unaware of the situation.

Gu Fengyun snorted coldly: "You little brats, you're making fun of me. Next time I see them, I'll teach them a lesson. How can they fool their sister-in-law with these unknown things?"

The butler was suddenly stunned. It turned out that this man felt that his future wife was fooled, so he was angry. The butler was speechless. How come this marquis showed signs of being dominated by his wife even before getting married?

Would this future master be someone with a bad temper?

Thinking about the fact that his lord would be strictly controlled by his future wife, the butler shuddered all over. It was not a pretty picture and he felt it was impossible.

After Song Chunlin received the tip-off from the housekeeper, he walked back dejectedly. Seeing him like this, Gu Fengyue asked him curiously what was wrong.

Song Chunlin sighed: "Your brother thinks our powerful pills are something improper."

Gu Fengyue: “…” Thank you for the invitation. That is clearly your magic pill.

Not to mention that Gu Fengyun thought it was not serious, even Gu Fengyue thought this thing was not a serious thing. What kind of weird name is this "Da Li Wan"? Will you become stronger after taking it?

But where in the world is there a pill that can increase a person's strength? Isn't this something dishonest? No wonder the two brothers of the Gu family think that this pill is not very reliable.

Gu Fengyue looked at Song Chunlin hesitantly, wondering how to make Song Chunlin give up his decision to give him the powerful pill.

However, Song Chunlin did not give up. He just secretly changed the name of Dali Pills to Ruyi Pills. Well, this name is very auspicious now. Gu Fengyun would not be picky about even the two words "Ruyi", right?

Of course, Gu Fengyun did not dwell on these two words. He just remained strangely silent for a long time. Finally, he pinched his brows and waved at the butler, and the matter was over.

No matter whether it is the Dali Pill or the Ruyi Pill, he would never eat it even if he is beaten to death.

But Gu Fengyun forgot that this thing was on the betrothal gift list, so it was not actually for him at all, but for the Su family. And this thing was not something improper, but a Xiaoyao Pill made of spiritual spring water mixed with some thousand-year-old ginseng powder, milk powder and honey. Taking one pill could prolong one's life.

This thing was researched by Dabao. He always remembered that last time Song Chunlin gave Princess Baohua a thousand-year-old ginseng and ganoderma lucidum, it not only cured Princess Baohua's daughter's illness, but also increased the person's lifespan by an extra ten years.

Song Chunlin also wants to have such a good thing. Grandpa Song is now seventy years old. It is said that it is rare for an old man to live to seventy. Song Chunlin has developed a close relationship with Grandpa Song and Aunt Song. He also hopes that the old man can live longer and stay with them longer.

So as soon as the Ruyi Pill was developed, he gave one to each of the two old men. And because they had been drinking Lingquan water all year round, their physical constitutions had changed, and the medicinal power of the Ruyi Pill was absorbed better. Dabao excitedly told Song Chunlin that the two old men had lived an additional 15 years, which meant that they could stay with them for another 15 years.

Song Chunlin wanted to feed the two of them another one, but was stopped by Dabao.

"Master, extending your life span is against the will of heaven. Therefore, extending your life by fifteen years is like borrowing money from above. This is like you overdrawing your future money in advance. Now that the money has been overdrawn, the credit limit is gone. Therefore, eating more will not help."

Song Chunlin then gave up the idea of continuing to feed them the Ruyi Pills, but he fed these pills to all the elders in the family, even Lu Ming and Fu Nian. As for the younger generations, Song Chunlin planned to wait until they were older and let the Lingquan water have more time to transform their physique before feeding them the pills, hoping that the pills could exert their maximum effect.