Meanwhile, Zhou Dana sat in the brigade office, clutching his tobacco pipe with his brows knitted into a tight knot.
Zhou Zhijun was Wangjiazhai’s number-one troublemaker. With him around, Zhou Dana, the village Party secretary, always found himself holding back whenever he tried to get anything done.
What irritated him even more was the thought that if Zhou Zhijun really took over the fishpond and made a fortune, he would become even harder to control. That would be a serious threat to Zhou Dana.
Zhou Dana had absolutely no desire to lease the riverbank to Zhou Zhijun. But after turning the matter over in his mind again and again, he had to admit that there was no one else in the village bold enough to take on the troublesome project.
The riverbank had been lying unused for a year. If no one leased it, the village would lose several hundred yuan in rental fees—a very real loss.
“Old man! We’ve got a visitor at home. Hurry back!”
Wang Jinzhi came rushing over. Her voice arrived before she even stepped through the door.
Zhou Dana said nothing. He simply drew hard on his cigarette, without even lifting his eyelids.
Wang Jinzhi hurried over and lowered her voice. “Bald Immortal is here. He’s waiting for you at home!”
Bald Immortal was from a neighboring village. He had earned that nickname because he was bald and made a living reading feng shui. Many people didn’t even know his real name.
Whenever someone in the surrounding villages was arranging a wedding or funeral, building a house, or renovating one, they liked to ask him to take a look and calculate their fortune. He had quite a reputation throughout Qingshan Commune.
“What’s he here for?” Zhou Dana’s brows drew together even more tightly. He tapped the bowl of his pipe against the sole of his shoe.
“He wants to play matchmaker for Pandi!”
The moment Zhou Dana heard that, he shot to his feet. His pipe nearly fell to the ground.
Ever since Zhou Pandi had been left with those lingering health problems, she had been too good for the unsuitable men and not good enough for the desirable ones. Her marriage had been delayed for years, and the matter had worried him sick.
Now that someone had come to propose a match, it was at least a glimmer of hope, no matter what kind of family the man came from.
Zhou Dana hurried home. He cupped his hands toward Bald Immortal in greeting but had no time for small talk. He went straight to the point.
“Cousin, my second girl has read a few more years than most, so her standards are pretty high. Which young man are you talking about?”
Bald Immortal took a sip of tea. After pondering for a moment, he slowly replied, “You know him. He’s your paternal cousin’s eldest son.”
Zhou Dana’s eyes went round, and he shook his head like a rattle drum. “No way! They’re relatives. How could we arrange a marriage between them?”
“Oh, come on. A niece marrying into her aunt’s family—that’s keeping the marriage in the family!” Bald Immortal waved his hand. “Besides, by the children’s generation, they’re already four generations apart. The regulations allow it. What are you worried about?”
Zhou Dana’s objection had nothing to do with their family connection. His paternal cousin’s family was so poor they could barely scrape by. They had three grown sons, and not one of them had managed to find a wife.
Zhou Dana had been the village Party secretary for more than a decade. He was, at the very least, a respected figure in the village. How could he let his daughter marry into such a poor family?
He flatly refused. “No way! That eldest son is more than ten years older than Pandi. The age difference alone makes it impossible!”
Wang Jinzhi had originally been hoping they might have found a good family for their daughter. But the moment she heard which family it was, she immediately chimed in, “Don’t say we won’t agree—even Pandi has a fiery temper. She definitely won’t agree!”
Bald Immortal let out a deliberately profound sigh. He stubbed out the cigarette in his hand and slowly rose to his feet.
“Alas, looks like my effort to help you has all been for nothing.”
As he spoke, he patted the dust from his backside and prepared to leave. Then he suddenly changed his tone and deliberately left them hanging.
“Forget it. I was only trying to help. I wanted to save your second daughter’s life, but if you don’t want to hear it, I won’t force you.
“But this is the only marriage that suits her. If she misses this chance, I’m afraid that in the future…”
His meaningful words made Zhou Dana and Wang Jinzhi’s hearts skip a beat. They exchanged a look.
“Bald Immortal, what do you mean by saying you can save our second daughter?” Wang Jinzhi hurriedly grabbed him.
“I won’t hide it from you.” Bald Immortal stopped and lowered his voice. “The illness your second daughter was left with can only be completely cured by a destined marriage.
“To put it plainly, she needs a wedding to drive away the bad luck!”
The couple’s eyes widened at the same time, their faces filled with disbelief.
Wang Jinzhi quickly tugged at him. “Cousin, sit down, sit down! Tell us everything!”
Bald Immortal continued putting on airs, pretending to decline. “There’s no need. You don’t believe what I say anyway.”
Zhou Pandi had seen countless doctors and taken every kind of medicine, but nothing had cured her.
As long as his daughter could get better, Zhou Dana would have accepted a man ten years older than her—let alone a few decades older.
He cleared his throat and softened his tone. “Cousin, we’re listening. Please explain it to us in detail.”
Only then did Bald Immortal sit back down, with great reluctance. He proceeded to spin an elaborate tale, spraying spittle as he spoke.
In the end, it all came down to one thing: Zhou Pandi and the eldest son were a match ordained by Heaven. Only by marrying him could the root of Zhou Pandi’s illness be completely removed.
Hope flared in Zhou Dana and Wang Jinzhi’s hearts, but they still refused to commit themselves.
“Cousin, the children must make their own decision about marriage. We’ll discuss it with her carefully before we decide.”
After Bald Immortal left, the couple gathered in the room and discussed the matter for a long while. In the end, they gritted their teeth and decided that perhaps it was worth a try.
When Zhou Pandi returned from visiting a neighbor, Wang Jinzhi cautiously approached her and told her what had happened.
The moment Zhou Pandi heard, her face turned livid with rage. Her chest heaved violently, and she nearly couldn’t catch her breath.
“That bald bastard! He looks down on people, and this is the match he found for me? I’d rather die than marry him!”
“Your father and I don’t want it either. With a daughter as good as you, how could we marry you off to a man more than ten years older?” Wang Jinzhi wiped away her tears as she tried to persuade her. “But for the sake of your health, we don’t have many choices left!”
“If the doctors couldn’t cure me, how could marrying him make me better? This is obviously some kind of trap! I’m not falling for it!” Zhou Pandi shouted, slamming her hand on the table.
“Sometimes you can’t believe these things completely, but you can’t dismiss them completely either.”
Zhou Dana tapped his pipe and said sternly, “There’s an old saying: an unconventional remedy can cure a serious illness. People don’t say that for no reason!”
Just as the argument was reaching its peak, Zhou Zhaodi came sashaying in.
“What’s going on? Why are you all shouting?”
Zhou Dana snapped irritably, “Nothing!”
“If it’s nothing, then why are you so angry?” Zhou Zhaodi turned to Wang Jinzhi.
“Someone has proposed a match for Pandi, but she doesn’t want it.” Wang Jinzhi wore a worried expression.
Zhou Zhaodi frowned and curled her lips. “When I was her age, I already had a child.”
As she spoke, she glanced toward the curtain separating the inner room and continued asking, “What kind of family is the young man from?”
“Your sister doesn’t want him, so what does it matter what kind of family he comes from?” Wang Jinzhi answered vaguely.
She knew Zhou Zhaodi couldn’t keep her mouth shut. If she let the information slip, who knew what version of the story would spread through the village?
Zhou Zhaodi didn’t press the matter. She had come for something else.
Earlier, she had run into Huang Meili at the village entrance. That woman had whispered mysteriously that she’d seen Zhou Zhijun sneaking off to the brigade office early that morning. Curious, Zhou Zhaodi had come over especially to find out what was going on.
“Dad, I heard Zhou Zhijun came to see you first thing this morning. What was it about?”
Zhou Dana had been planning to spread the news about Zhou Zhijun wanting to lease the riverbank. The moment he heard her question, his spirits lifted.
“That boy Zhou Zhijun wants to lease the riverbank and raise fish. The riverbank in our village is a real treasure. If he manages to lease it and start farming fish, he’ll surely make a fortune and lead the village to prosperity!”
The moment Zhou Zhaodi heard this, her face darkened. She stomped her feet anxiously. “You can’t give it to him! If he gets rich, his tail will be up in the clouds. Who’ll be able to keep him in check then?”
She was afraid that Zhou Zhijun would become even more insufferable once he made money—and even more afraid that Chuntao would enjoy a life of comfort with him.
Gripping Zhou Dana’s arm tightly, she said urgently, “Dad, Zhou Zhijun is far too arrogant. You can give the river dam to anyone, but not him!”
“Whoever offers the highest price gets it!” Zhou Dana shook off her hand, already working out a different plan in his mind.
Before half a day had passed, Zhou Zhaodi had spread the news throughout the village that Zhou Zhijun wanted to lease the river dam for fish farming.
The villagers reacted in all sorts of ways. Some were waiting to see Zhou Zhijun make a fool of himself. Some were jealous and worried that he might actually strike it rich. Others wanted to take the contract themselves but didn’t dare.
Everyone still remembered how the Zhang family had been driven to ruin after someone poisoned their fish farm.
The reason Zhou Dana had deliberately spread the news was to lure out competitors and drive up the bidding price.
In truth, he really didn’t want the river dam to fall into Zhou Zhijun’s hands.
Everyone in Wangjia Village knew how capable Zhou Zhijun was. Whatever he did, he was almost certain to succeed. Zhou Dana didn’t want to see him get rich.
But although everyone in the village knew that Zhou Zhijun wanted the contract, no one stepped forward to compete for it.
This left Zhou Dana thoroughly anxious. If he couldn’t lease out the river dam, he would lose several hundred yuan in annual fees.
He didn’t go looking for Zhou Zhijun himself. Instead, he sent Zhou Xiaowei to call him over.
But Zhou Xiaowei returned with the news that Zhou Zhijun had already left for the reservoir.
“My second uncle isn’t planning to take the contract after all!”
Before leaving, Zhou Zhijun had already instructed Aunt Zhou that if Zhou Dana came asking, she should tell him that he wasn’t going to lease the river dam.
When Zhou Xiaowei relayed the message, Zhou Dana let out a cold snort. “Fine, then he can forget about it! If he won’t take it, there are plenty of others who will!”
Zhou Dana knew very well that quite a few villagers coveted the river dam. They were simply afraid of ending up like the Zhang family—bankrupted and ruined—so no one dared to come forward and take the contract.
He was secretly plotting to find a few shills to drive up the bidding price once Zhou Zhijun returned.
Just then, a hurried flurry of footsteps suddenly sounded outside the courtyard gate.
