The Sea Queen of 1985

Chapter 325: Chapter 325: Marrying Far Away is Out of the Question

Ye Feng laughed heartily. ”Yes, yes, the customer’s deeper spiritual needs. That’s a better and more fitting way to put it.”

”Since we’re aiming for the high-end market, we should go to a place with a rich heritage in porcelain and pottery to have a batch of items custom-made.”

Han Xiaorui smiled and asked, ”You have connections?”

Ye Feng nodded. ”I do. A comrade from my army days is now a salesman at a state-owned ceramics factory in Jingdezhen. He wrote to me before, asking for help finding a market in Shencheng.”

”Shencheng isn’t exactly short on things like bowls, plates, and spoons, so I couldn’t find a good project for him right away. But for making fengshui fish tanks, nothing has more of a classic feel than porcelain and pottery!”

Hearing this, Han Xiaorui’s eyes widened in surprise. ”I never would have guessed, Ye Feng. You actually have such a wide network of contacts. Okay, I’ll find an expert in this field to create a nice set of designs and see if they can make them over there.”

The two returned home. They had just taken a sip of water when Wu Cuicui came in, pushing a rattan baby carriage and sobbing.

Han Xiaorui was taken aback. ’What is going on today?’

’Is everyone around me having a bad day?’

”Sister Cuicui, what’s wrong? What are you crying about? Did my Brother Jianguo have a fight with you?” Han Xiaorui asked, shooting Ye Feng a look to tell him to leave.

This was a time for the women to talk, and it wasn’t convenient for a man to be present.

Ye Feng raised an eyebrow, grabbed two insulated flasks, filled them with warm water, and headed to the kindergarten to pick up his daughter.

After Ye Feng left, Wu Cuicui finally choked out, ”Xiao Rui, you’re Lingling’s boss. Please, talk to her. Tell her not to date a guy from Yue Province.”

Hearing this, Han Xiaorui didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. ”Sister Cuicui, we can’t be prejudiced against people from other regions. We’re all Hua Country people.”

Wu Cuicui wiped her tears. ”I’m not prejudiced against guys from Yue Province, I just don’t want my sister to marry so far away. She’s dating a man from Yue Province now. If she marries him and moves to Guangdong, how many times will we get to see her all year?”

”My parents don’t have a son; they only have me and my sister to count on. To look after my sister, forget marrying far away—I married someone right here in the village. If she, a young woman, marries someone so far from home, who’s going to back her up if she gets bullied?”

It was true. If she were local and Wu Lingling were bullied, she, her parents, and her husband, Yang Jianguo, could all back her sister up.

But Yue Province was so far away. Even if they wanted to have her back, they couldn’t reach her.

In Wu Lingling’s first marriage, her husband died just three days after the wedding, crashing his motorcycle into a tree.

The groom’s family said Wu Lingling was a jinx who caused her husband’s death and they were going to beat her. Uncle Wu, along with his son-in-law Yang Jianguo, took their family over and gave the groom’s family a thrashing.

Not only did they bring their daughter home, but they also took back the dowry!

And what’s more, they didn’t return the betrothal gifts!

Even if the other family went to sue, they wouldn’t win. Of course, the betrothal gifts weren’t worth much anyway—not even as much as the wrecked motorcycle the Wu Family had provided as part of the dowry.

If her family hadn’t lived nearby, Wu Lingling would have definitely gotten beaten.

And this was in Shencheng, where people would rather argue than resort to violence.

One could only imagine what would happen in a place with more aggressive customs; women who married far from home often suffered more.

Han Xiaorui scratched the tip of her nose. ”Sister Cuicui, don’t cry, and don’t worry. I’ll go talk to Lingling in a bit and find out what’s really going on.”

”How did she end up with someone from out of town all of a sudden? She works in the city, so even if she’s dating someone from elsewhere, he should be working in Shencheng, not planning to go back to his hometown, right?”

Wu Cuicui shook her head. ”He doesn’t work in Shencheng. They met at a trade show in Yue Province. His sister seems to work at a wholesale market, and the man often sends Lingling new styles of clothes.”

”Lingling has always loved pretty things, ever since she was little. One thing led to another, and they started chatting through letters and phone calls, and now they’re dating.”

As Wu Cuicui spoke, Han Xiaorui recalled someone: Yao Ziqian. His sister was the director of the local clothing wholesale market.

Back when they were at the trade show in Yue Province, Yao Ziqian had led a large group of them to the wholesale market on the last afternoon, and they had all bought a lot of things.

Thanks to Yao Ziqian, they were able to buy a lot of affordable and fashionable clothes.

He was also the apprentice of Master Feng Shui Zhao. To think that he and Wu Lingling would share this twist of fate.

”Oh, that must be Yao Ziqian then,” Han Xiaorui said with a smile. ”Sister Cuicui, you haven’t seen him, but he’s a handsome young man. More importantly, he’s the final disciple of a Feng Shui Master and is quite well-known in Yue Province.”

Hearing this, Wu Cuicui stopped crying. ”It doesn’t matter how great he is! Lingling can’t marry so far away. If they want my approval for this marriage, fine, but Yao Ziqian has to move here.”

”I’ll provide a house, I’ll pay for the wedding, but he must settle down in Shencheng. If they plan to live in Yue Province, I won’t agree. My dad is so angry he’s just chain-smoking in silence, and my mom’s blood pressure is high from all the crying.”

”If Lingling doesn’t listen and insists on marrying into Yue Province, I doubt my parents will last many more years. Xiao Rui, Lingling respects you. Please, think of something, talk some sense into her.”

Han Xiaorui agreed. ”Okay! I’ll talk to Lingling!”

It wasn’t until Yang Shunshun started getting hungry that Wu Cuicui finally pulled herself together to go mix some milk for him.

After Yang Shunshun had eaten his fill, Han Xiaorui followed Wu Cuicui to the Wu Family’s home.

Wu Lingling was hiding in her room, wiping her tears.

She was also heartbroken, torn between not wanting to lose Yao Ziqian and not wanting to be separated from her parents.

She understood her parents’ and sister’s worries, but she couldn’t help the ache in her heart.

”Lingling, come on out for a minute. I’ll take you for a walk!”

Hearing Han Xiaorui’s voice, Wu Lingling finally came out of her room.

Uncle Wu was sighing heavily and Aunt Wu was constantly wiping her eyes. ”Xiao Rui, you have to talk some sense into Lingling for us. Don’t let her do anything foolish.”

Han Xiaorui smiled. ”Don’t cry. It’s not the end of the world! There’s always a good solution to be found.”

Wu Lingling kept her head down and followed Han Xiaorui outside.

”Sister Xiao Rui, I know my parents and my sister just want what’s best for me. But whenever I think about how wonderful Yao Ziqian is, I just can’t bear to let him go.”

Han Xiaorui smiled. ”So how did you two get in touch anyway?”

Wu Lingling’s face flushed slightly. ”At first, I really just wanted him to help me get some clothes that suited me. Partly for myself, and partly for my colleagues.”

”One thing led to another, and we started writing to each other more often. After writing for a while, we started talking on the phone. Yao Ziqian was basically always the one who called me. But now that my parents disapprove... I’ll call him tonight and break up with him.”

Han Xiaorui hadn’t even started to persuade her, yet Wu Lingling had already made up her mind.

”To be honest, I wasn’t sure how to advise you, but since you’ve already made a decision, I won’t say any more on that. Romance is important, and family has to be considered, but we can’t let our work slip either.”

”This year, the office fish tanks, especially with the addition of the fengshui aquariums, are selling great. All the factory owners love to have one in their office to attract wealth and fortune. Lingling, our sales need to keep up.”

Wu Lingling nodded and wiped her tears. ”Don’t worry, Sister Xiao Rui. I won’t let my work suffer. I’ll grab hold of this opportunity. I’ve even hired a salesperson who’s running around drumming up business. Our sales volume has increased quite a bit, at least in the areas around Shencheng.”

Han Xiaorui said approvingly, ”Even if you’re unlucky in love, you can be successful in your career. You have to succeed at one of them.”