After fleeing the famine, my older sister and I married the brother next door.

Chen Xiaohe came down from the mountain, his clothes covered in pollen and leaves. The pollination of the fruit trees was finally over. He had spent every day waving a feather duster among the flowers, his neck aching from looking up. But the results were obvious: many flowers hung, the fruit set firmly, and this year's harvest would be good.

"Xiaoqing, I'm back." Chen Xiaohe walked around from the backyard to the kitchen, scooped up a ladle of cold water and drank it down, then took a breath. "The work on the fruit trees is finally done. But the melon patch and vegetable garden need watering and fertilizing again. This work just never ends."

Su Xiaoqing served him a bowl of porridge and brought over a plate of pickled vegetables, her tone full of concern: "You'll feel better once this busy period is over. Eat first, don't go hungry."

Chen Xiaohe took the bowl, slurped down two mouthfuls, then broke off half a steamed bun, picked it up with pickled vegetables, and chewed it heartily. Year after year, farmers work like this: spring sowing, summer weeding, autumn harvesting, winter storage, spinning like tops. But if they ever have a moment of leisure, they feel restless.

----

While the Chen family was busy with their own things and living peacefully, Nanshan Village was in an uproar.

That afternoon, Su Xiaoyin was collecting the clothes drying in the yard when she suddenly heard a cry coming from the east end of the village, followed by the sound of bowls and pots being smashed and broken, mixed with a woman's shrill curses. The sound could be heard clearly from several houses away. She was stunned for a moment. Chen's mother also put down her needlework, pushed open the door and looked over, frowning as she said it sounded like the voices from Li Dazui's house.

Su Xiaoyin folded the clothes and put them inside. Before she could go out to ask what was going on, the courtyard gate was pushed open. Aunt Ermu rushed in, panting, her face filled with the excitement of watching a spectacle: "Dashan's family, you don't know yet, do you? Li Dazui's family and Lao Wang's family got into a fight! The whole family joined in, and everyone's bleeding. Even Brother De went!"

Chen's mother hurriedly asked what had happened, and Su Xiaoyin also came over. Er Mu's wife slapped her thigh and recounted the whole story from beginning to end, speaking with great enthusiasm, spittle flying everywhere.

It all started with a marriage proposal. Li Dazui's son had reached marriageable age, and Li Dazui, through a matchmaker, had found a girl he liked in a neighboring village. She was said to be pretty and skilled at embroidery. Li Dazui's family was overjoyed. They bought wine and meat, treated the matchmaker impeccably, and sent a pile of gifts to the girl's family, all while waiting for the girl's family to agree to a marriage proposal. But then, out of nowhere, Old Wang's family also found the same girl, hired a matchmaker, and sent gifts.

Li Dazui objected, saying there's a first-come, first-served rule. We've looked around, and if we don't like it, then you can come first. There's no way you can intercept someone halfway through! Old Wang's wife, stubborn as ever, immediately retorted. The argument escalated, turning from verbal to physical, until finally the entire family was involved. Li Dazui suffered a cut on his forehead from a stool leg, and Wang's second son's arm was bitten and bleeding profusely.

When Brother De arrived, the two families had already been separated by their neighbors. The courtyard was surrounded by layers of people, with children crying, chickens flying, and dogs barking—it was complete chaos.

De Ge stood in the middle of the yard, looking at the strip of cloth wrapped around Li Da Zui's head, then at the bloody teeth marks on Wang Jia Er's arm, his face turning pale and then red. Suppressing his anger, he asked, "What did you fight about? And why did you fight so fiercely? Look at you all, all bruised and swollen. You're all from the same village, neighbors, are you really going to make a blood feud?"

Upon seeing Brother De, Li Dazui seemed to have found his pillar of support. He grabbed Brother De's sleeve, his voice trembling, "Brother De, you be the judge! I went to the matchmaker first, but their family interfered halfway through. Isn't this bullying? How can they do things like this? My son is waiting to get married, and with them meddling like this, what about my son's reputation?"

Old Wang's wife, not to be outdone, stood with her hands on her hips and retorted, "Don't make baseless accusations! The woman agreed to meet us first before we went to arrange the meeting. Don't listen to that matchmaker's nonsense. She accepted your gifts; what wouldn't she say?"

Brother De shouted, "Shut up, both of you!" and the two families finally quieted down.

"You mean, the bride's family accepted the gifts from both of your families?" Brother De frowned and asked again.

Li Dazui nodded, his tone certain: "Yes, if they accept our gifts, it means they agree to be our matchmaker. If the matchmaking doesn't work out, the gifts will be returned. That's the rule, and no one can break it."

Granny Wang also said, her voice half an octave higher than Li Dazui's: "We've accepted our gift. They said they think we're honest and are willing to consider a marriage proposal with us."

Brother De was silent for a moment, then suddenly asked, his voice not loud, but every word carrying a chill: "Are you sure this is the only eligible woman you're looking for?"

Li Dazui paused for a moment, blinked, and said, "Yes, they only have one daughter; all the previous ones were sons. This daughter is the youngest, and the whole family spoils her rotten. We've inquired, and we're not mistaken."

Brother De sighed, his tone tinged with helplessness and pity: "You've been taken advantage of. They only have one daughter, yet they accepted gifts from two families. Didn't you even consider what if there's a third or fourth family involved? They're just treating you like lambs to the slaughter."

Li Dazui and Granny Wang's expressions both changed.

Brother De told them to go back and find out from the matchmaker how many families the woman's family had accepted gifts from. The two men each called their relatives, and the two families walked dejectedly towards the matchmaker's house. Brother De stood there, watching their departing figures, shaking his head and sighing.

Less than an hour later, Li Dazui and Granny Wang returned, their faces even more grim than when they left. The two looked like wilted eggplants, listless and dejected, neither daring to look at the other.

Brother De asked, "How's the investigation going?"

Li Dazui squatted by the wall, silent. Granny Wang spoke first, her voice low and hoarse: "They...they're engaged to the son of a wealthy family in town. That young master owns a silk shop; they're very rich. The gifts we gave them were called 'additions to the dowry'—the bride's family said their daughter shouldn't be poor when she gets married, so they need to save up a lot for her dowry. They not only took from our two families, but also from two other families, a total of four families. We've been completely fooled. They even said if we dared to spread this around, they'd come to our village and cause trouble. They said that whenever our son is interested in someone, they'd come and ruin all our son's marriage plans."

A commotion erupted in the crowd.

After a long silence, Brother De finally said, "Take this to heart. Before you start a matchmaking, do your research. Don't just rush in because you hear a girl is nice. Find a reliable matchmaker; the one you found is unreliable. Offering one girl to four different families—this isn't matchmaking, it's business!"