When Wang Xiaoqiang returned to Sanmiao Village with gifts, he was immediately surrounded by villagers, who all asked him in turn, "Little Qiang, is that movie actor you?"

In the countryside today, every household has a television, and some even have LCD TVs. Many blockbusters are often broadcast on television, especially now that the village has cable TV and can watch several programs from the central television like the movie channel, which shows movies almost every day, including Hollywood blockbusters. Consequently, villagers inevitably saw Wang Xiaoqiang on TV and their eyes nearly popped out of their heads in shock.

Wang Xiaoqiang had built up a big business, even expanding it overseas, but having a successful business doesn't mean one can act. Wang Xiaoqiang had always seemed frail to the villagers, and even though he had bulked up a bit later on, he was still far from being considered strong. But in the movie, that Wang Xiaoqiang turned out to be a kung fu master, beating up Shi Tailong from the United States until he was looking all over the place for his teeth. Amazing!

At first, no one could believe it. They ran to Old Wang's Family to ask Mr. and Mrs. Wang Kuishan. Parents know their own children best, and although they too had watched that movie and didn't quite understand what it was about, they did remember the male actor. That was clearly their son, Wang Xiaoqiang. But to say that their son was in the movie seemed like a tall tale; when did Wang Xiaoqiang become such an actor, and would they even let him act?

Facing the villagers' inquiries, Mr. and Mrs. Wang Kuishan flatly denied it.

So, the crowd turned to ask Xia Guifang.

Xia Guifang wasn't sure either, only Xia Sanwa immediately banged the gavel down and declared that it was indeed Wang Xiaoqiang. Consequently, everyone gathered around Xia Sanwa, urging him to tell the story of how Wang Xiaoqiang ended up acting in the movie.

Xia Sanwa had finally become the center of attention, greatly enjoying the moment. Pretending to know more than he did, he put on an air of inscrutable depth and boasted wildly. Thus, the scene of Wang Xiaoqiang being besieged as soon as he entered the village took place.

Wang Xiaoqiang didn't want to hide it and simply nodded, saying, "Yes, it's true, I acted in a movie."

Once he said this, everyone believed him.

Some of the village's young people immediately crowded around him, pulling out pens they had prepared to get Wang Xiaoqiang's autograph.

After being hassled by the villagers for a while, Wang Xiaoqiang finally returned to his family home to catch his breath, but before long, another group of idlers entered the yard, saying they wanted to take a photo with Wang Xiaoqiang.

Seeing so many villagers had suddenly arrived and their usually quiet courtyard had become lively, Mr. and Mrs. Wang Kuishan were also delighted, especially seeing their son being surrounded like a big star for photos made them feel extremely proud.

Of course, Xia Sanwa was present too. Anything Wang Xiaoqiang didn't want to talk about, Xia Sanwa would answer for him, vigorously promoting Wang Xiaoqiang. But Wang Xiaoqiang, seeing that Xia Sanwa's boasting was getting a bit excessive, sent him to Big Mouth Supermarket to buy cigarettes and candy to entertain the villagers.

Now that he had money, of course, he needed to be generous, or else people might talk. Besides, returning to the village so infrequently and seeing that the villagers were still as simple and honest as before, Wang Xiaoqiang was also very happy.

After the crowd dispersed and Xia Sanwa was preparing to leave, Wang Dakui called out to him, "My dear relative."

When Xia Sanwa heard Wang Dakui call him "relative," his body jolted with excitement and joy flooded his heart. His daughter had a child for Wang Xiaoqiang, and now Little Bao was almost three years old; he had not yet become a real relative of the Wang Family, and Mr. and Mrs. Wang Kuishan had never called him that before. Now, all of a sudden, hearing it from them, he immediately understood that Old Wang's Family was planning to arrange a wedding for Little Qiang and Little Fang.

"My dear relative, hold on, I have something to talk to you about."

Wang Kuishan gestured for Xia Sanwa to come closer.

Xia Sanwa turned back, his face no longer sporting a playful smile but taking on a serious demeanor as he walked into the house to sit down with Wang Dakui.

"Relative, I want to arrange a wedding for Little Qiang and Little Fang to let them get properly married so that Little Fang will also have a status," said Wang Kuishan.

At these words, Xia Sanwa's eyes immediately filled with tears, and he nodded vigorously, "Okay, okay."

Since Wang Kuishan had already discussed the matter with Little Qiang beforehand, he didn't bother to ask Little Qiang again.

The two elders sat down and discussed the matter, finally deciding to organize the wedding in the most traditional style and to hold it right in the village to make it festive.

The local wedding customs typically follow this process:

When the bride leaves her boudoir, her sister-in-law will comb her hair. There are two possibilities: one is to arrange the hair into a bun, signifying the sister will become a bride. The other is to comb the hair in the style of an unmarried girl, meaning a long braid, signifying the sister remains a maiden until she goes to her husband's family, where her sister-in-law or aunt will then arrange it into a bun. There is a song for combing the bride's hair. In Yubei Changtan County, the lyrics go, "Seven tufts at the front, eight at the back, both her husband's and her own family vie in giving. The husband's family gives two and a half acres, her own family gives two and eight, halfway through the journey they settle at the groom's estate."

2. For the engagement, dowry gifts are given, and both families share a meal.

3. About a month before getting married, the groom's side brings sufficient money to buy the bride clothes and jewelry. Several outfits are purchased for her to wear during the wedding ceremony.

4. A few days before the wedding, both families need to meet to discuss the details of the ceremony.

5. On the day of the wedding, the groom needs to go to pick up the bride early in the morning—the earlier, the better fortune.

6. If the bride has a brother or nephew "guarding the sedan door," the groom's family must prepare enough red envelopes for him. If the guard doesn't grant passage, the bride won't "get off the sedan." This "guard of the sedan door" also holds the keys to the bride's dowry chests and other items, demanding one red envelope for each keychain.

7. After the bride enters the groom's home, they begin to worship heaven and earth, the high hall, and perform mutual bows. Once done, the officiant will lead the bride to "change her form of address," calling her in-laws "dad" and "mom," for which the groom's parents will give a "name-changing fee."

8. Entering the bridal chamber follows, everyone else steps aside while the bride changes her clothes. Afterward, the groom's sister or niece brings a basin of water for the bride, who merely pretends to wash her hands, then gives the sister or niece a red envelope.

9. Then, it's time for some playful fun, which usually involves teasing the groom with playful jokes and smearing soot on the faces of the groom, bride, bridesmaids, and groomsmen. These people need to dodge cleverly to avoid getting their clothes dirty—it's quite distressing if they fail.

10. Next, it's time for the feast, a grand banquet with drinks.

The wedding banquet consists of the three-eighths style: eight hot dishes, cold dishes, and soups each.

Eight and four, it seems four soups or cold dishes have been reduced.

Eight bowls and four, the simplest menu with eight hot and four cold dishes.

Counting from the wedding day, on the third day, the son-in-law must perform the Return Ceremony, which means going back to the bride's parental home to set up a banquet for the guests.

The two elders ask Wang Xiaoqiang if he's satisfied with such arrangements. He responds, "This will do. Just make sure the banquet is respectable. Don't be afraid to spend money. The bottom line is to be presentable..."

Both elders have no objections.

Thus, Wang Xiaoqiang's wedding preparations begin. Everyone in the family gets busy. Neighbors from left and right come over to help. According to local customs, both the groom's and bride's families should sew several padded quilts, usually six or eight sets. Six signifies good luck all around, while eight symbolizes wealth every year. No matter what, it's all about coming up with a lucky number. At this time, the groom's family has to buy clothes and gold and silver jewelry for the bride. Of course, Wang Xiaoqiang wouldn't shortchange Xia Guifang. He takes her and his son to the Chow Tai Fook in the Provincial Capital and gets a full set of jewelry. He also buys a necklace worth tens of thousands for his son. Wang Xiaoqiang himself doesn't like to wear gold and silver, but wedding rings are indispensable.

When buying the wedding rings, they encounter a funny incident. Wang Xiaoqiang and Xia Guifang look young, with him being twenty-three and her twenty-two—in the Provincial Capital, they'd still be considered kids. Plus, although Xia Guifang has a child, her figure hasn't changed, and she looks very much like a young lady. Taking her and the child to buy wedding rings, no one would suspect anything and would simply offer blessings. Yet, since they brought Little Bao, it puzzled everyone. A sweet-talking salesperson asked, "This handsome young man must be your little brother, right?"

"Cut it out, you're the little brother," Little Bao shoots back with a glance, "I'm their son."

What? Son?

Everyone present was stunned. Then their eyes wandered over the three of them.

This can't be—having a child before getting married? But then again, having children out of wedlock isn't something new, so nobody paid too much attention.

Once all the wedding items were in place, the auspicious day arrived. That day, Sanmiao Village witnessed unprecedented liveliness, with Wang Xiaoqiang having hired ten bands to play music simultaneously, symbolizing perfection.

The villagers love the excitement, and a wedding isn't seen as worth attending if it isn't lively. Conversely, a lavish wedding ensures a full house. More importantly, Wang Xiaoqiang is generous; the cigarettes he provides for guests are thirty yuan a pack. A thirty-yuan pack of cigarettes is nothing in big cities, but in Sanmiao Village, it's a luxury few indulge in. Wang Xiaoqiang originally wanted to use sixty-yuan packs, but Wang Dakui objected, fearing they'd all be taken as soon as they were brought out. And indeed, if someone were to offer sixty-yuan cigarettes for a wedding, they'd likely be stolen before the event was over. Even the thirty-yuan packs were stolen quite a bit. But what can be done? Even the simplest among villagers have a few bad apples. Wang Xiaoqiang wouldn't fuss over it.

After discussing cigarettes, they mentioned alcohol. The toast was made with Moutai—hundreds of yuan per bottle. Alcohol is different from cigarettes; it's hard to steal because it's only brought out at the start of the meal, and once it's out, the bottle is opened, leaving no chance for theft.

While no one stole it, there were those who drank directly from the bottle, but no one discouraged them. Wang Xiaoqiang didn't mind; if he dares to use Moutai for the wedding, he's not afraid of the villagers drinking it.

The banquet had sixty tables, practically covering half the village. Everyone from Sanmiao Village was invited, regardless of whether they brought gifts or not.

Men, women, elderly, and children, not a single one was left out.

In fact, even without an invitation, they wouldn't miss out. The banquet wasn't ordinary: usual village weddings peak at three hundred yuan per table, and explosive households might go to five hundred. Wang Xiaoqiang set his at a whopping six thousand, serving dishes the villagers had never seen before, with cold dishes so numerous they hardly fit on one table. (To be continued. If you like this work, we invite you to vote for it on Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to continue reading.)

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