The sky was not even dark when the Leader, Zhan Shideng, walked into Nuannuan's yard. Nuannuan and her family were sitting in the yard to have dinner. Zhang Shideng called out as he opened the gate: "Uncle Chu, are you having dinner?" Dad, flattered, was still in shock. He remembered clearly that this was the first time that Zhan Shideng had walked into their house in dozen years as the village committee leader. It was also the first time that he had addressed Dad as Uncle Chu. Every time they saw each other, the Leader either paid no attention, or simply called him by his full name. Sometimes he would call him Old Chu, not as respectful as Uncle Chu. Dad hastened to put down his chopsticks and offered a seat: "Mr. Leader! Sit! You are a rare guest! Have you eaten? I'll get Nuannuan to give you some noodles. They are made of green beans. Nuannuan, come —"
"No bother. I have eaten." Zhan Shideng waved his hand.
Nuannuan did not make a big move. She stood up to show courtesy, but her bowl was still in her hands. She figured out the guest's intentions almost immediately: Mister Tianfu must have failed to express her refusal, and things just got more complicated.
"Uncle Chu, you know me, I'm a straight-forward man. I come here tonight for no other reason: the marriage of Shiti and Nuannuan. Has Tianfu given you a clear picture of this? I'm here to make sure you understand: me, the Leader, the big brother, I sincerely support the marriage. After Nuannuan enters my family, we Zhan's will make sure of her happiness. I had a good thought and decided about Shiti's shop. I will put Nuannuan in charge, and she will lead a good life, sheltered from the wind and the rain! …"
"I believe you, I do." Dad nodded and glanced at Nuannuan, his face lit up with a smile.
Nuannuan sneered silently and thought to herself: "I didn't even agree to anything at all, yet he is already talking about the married life and the shop! He's so sure about this!"
"If you ask me, both Shiti and Nuannuan have come of age. So if both of you agree, let's choose a good date for the wedding. And you need not worry anymore!" Zhan Shideng also looked at Nuannuan. The glance seemed unquestionable.
Of course Nuannuan anxiously put down her bowl and said: "I'm afraid …"
"I agree." Dad spoke out before her, his eyes more serious than before. Nuannuan looked at him in surprise: she didn't expect Dad to say that, as he knew that it was Kaitian she wanted to marry.
"I will not bother you for any longer. Please continue eating." Zhang Shideng didn't give Nuannuan the opportunity to talk as he quickly rose and walked towards the door. "Uncle Chu, you always ride your bike to Juxiang Street to sell the fish. I'll have Shiti buy you a motorcycle soon. It's faster, and lighter."
"No no, I'm OK." Dad waved his hand. He looked very happy.
Dad seemed quite excited when he came back from sending the Leader off. He kept rubbing his hands: "Who'd have known? Who'd have known?"
Nuannuan threw her chopsticks away in anger, making a loud noise against the bowl: "I decide my own marriage! What a time are we living in? Are you trying to arrange my marriage?"
"What are you talking about?" said Dad in a cold voice. "Mom and I, we won't give you anything bad! It's all for your own good!"
"For my own good against my wish?" said Nuannuan as she glared angrily. "You hear me now, I lived in Beijing, I knew things! I am in charge of my marriage! No one tells me what to do!"
Mom tried to make peace: "Nuannuan, we can talk about this."
"Talk? I already told you I want to marry Kaitian. But Dad just agreed to marry me into the Zhan's! What do I do?"
Grandma suddenly spoke: "Nuan, I have been in your place. I wanted to find someone I liked. But days are days, and you cannot pass even one day without money and food. Kaitian is a good boy but his budget is always tight. It will be too late to regret after you marry him. Young people always talk about feelings and love, but you'll understand after you get married. Those things never last. Only your days last."
Nuannuan walked out with a pout. She did not want to listen to Grandma's nagging any more. The village seemed in peace after a busy day. Some people were still doing their dishes whilst some others had already been in bed with their lights out. The dog next door heard her steps and growled quietly. Then it paced away, wagging its tail. Maybe it recognized her figure. Nuannuan walked slowly alongside the road towards the lake. The sky had turned dark, but the reflection on the lake lit up the road for her. Truth is, Nuannuan knew the road by heart. She could tell all the bumps and puddles even with her eyes closed. How many times had she walked on this road in her life?
"Who is it?" someone shouted suddenly.
Nuannuan realized that she had reached the doorstep of Mister Tianfu's house. She responded: "Mister Tianfu, it's me! Are you still up?"
"Ahh, Nuannuan. That boy, Kaitian, he ruined my rest. He asked me to make sure that I go to your house again and talk about his marriage with you. How dare I! I just went there for the Zhan's! I asked the boy, 'what were you doing earlier? Nuannuan is promised to the Leader's little brother. They are planning the wedding now! If you step in now, what will the Leader do?'"
"Where is he?"
"He left, in anger. Oh well, what a bad matchmaker I am. If I knew you both had this thought, I wouldn't have helped the Leader! Let Kaitian step in now!" mumbled Mister Tianfu as he walked back into the yard.
Nuannuan stood for a while in silence. Then she turned back to walk to Kaitian's house. Before she entered, she heard Kaitian's mother: "Marriage is pre-arranged by gods. If she's yours, she cannot escape; if she's not, you can't push her. Think about this: without Nuannuan, are you never going to marry?"
Following was the voice of Kaitian's father: "If you ask me, all that men want from their wives are children. Whoever can give birth to your child, marry her."
Nuannuan did not want to listen. She raised her hand to knock on the door.
Kaitian opened the door. His parents were surprised to see Nuannuan, and they forgot to speak. Before his parents reacted, Kaitian took Nuannuan's hand, and walked her towards his room. In his room, Kaitian spoke in desperation: "Mister Tianfu told me that he dare not be part of this anymore. He told me the little brother asked the Leader in tears. He told me the Leader promised his mother that you will be her daughter-in-law. He told me that your parents and grandma all agreed."
Nuannuan sneered: "What a joke! Like I'll just marry because the Leader wants me to!"
"So what are you going to do?" Kaitian's eyes were wide open. He noticed the tear marks on Nuannuan's face, as well as her red eyes.
Nuannuan stared at Kaitian in expectation: "The two of us are the only people that have a say in this!"
Kaitian shrugged: "What about the two of us?"
"Can't you use your head?"
"My head?" Kaitian stared at Nuannuan. All of a sudden, he pat her on the head: "We can run away! Far away! To Zhengzhou, Beijing, or even Guangzhou! And they'll never find us!"
"No running," rejected Nuannuan. "Our family will suffer if we do. The Leader will be so angry; not to mention how much our family need both of us. My mom is sick. Your dad is lame."
"What now …"
"Use your head!"
"I'll go to your house and give your family hundreds of yellow split beans, all that we got from last year's harvest. Your parents and Grandma will think again about this marriage."
"How can your present compare with the Leader's? They are talking about a motorcycle for Dad's fish selling on Juxiang Street."
Kaitian took one step back: "gee!"
"Use your head! C'mon!"
"I'll go persuade your parents and the Leader. I'll tell them we have been an item from the beginning."
"Persuade? How do you persuade them about this? Even my parents won't listen to you. Not to mention Zhan Shideng!"
"Then what …"
"Your head! Use it!"
"I don't know." Kaitian answered as he touched his head, looking helpless.
Nuannuan suddenly dropped her voice: "When I worked in Beijing, I heard of this thing called a de-facto marriage."
"De-facto?" Kaitian gazed at her, and did not understand.
"It's like … two people did not get a marriage registration, but live like husband and wife without their parents' admission. Others have to recognize their marriage like that." Nuannuan lowered her head to hide her blushing face.
Kaitian bit his tongue in surprise: "So you mean …"
"You should sneak out to buy a couple of crackers from Juxiang Street, and some papercuts of the Red Double Happiness."
Kaitian stared at Nuannuan in shock. But his eyes revealed his fast thinking.
"I'll drop by your place in secret tomorrow after breakfast. You will light the crackers as soon as you see me. Then we'll stick the Red Double Happiness on the doors. The neighbours will come over to see what happened and you should tell them that you just married me. We'll see what the Leader can do about that!"
"What if the Leader send people over to force you —" Kaitian hesitated.
"What? They dare not! It's not like the old times anymore. We've got the Women's Federation, the police, and the court!"
"What if he think of other ways to make trouble —"
"If you are so scared, well, I'll leave. Just you wait for the Zhan's to take me as a bride." Nuannuan turned her back.
Anxiously, Kaitian pulled her back and gave her a regretting smile: "I just want to make sure everything's fine. If we do so, what about your parents and Grandma —"
"There's no other way. I have to ignore how they feel. They were the ones that insist going against my wish." Nuannuan sighed.
Kaitian pulled Nuannuan into his arms, feeling quite moved: "Nuannuan, I don't know what to say. I will pay you back in the future. I will give you a good life. I will be good to you. I will only love you my whole life. I won't glance at any other woman …"
Kaitian rushed to tell his parents about Nuannuan's idea after she left. His parents were in shock, too. After a while, his mother said: "Good Gracious! What if Nuannuan's dad and the Leader's brother came over to make trouble?"
"That's nothing," answered Kaitian's father. "We didn't force Nuannuan into the house, it was her own wish. What can they do about it?"
Kaitian's mother put her hand on her chest: "I'm scared. I haven't seen anything like this in my life."
Kaitian answered in a deep voice: "Mom, this is the only way that I can marry Nuannuan. Nuannuan, she's a girl, and she's not afraid. Why should we be then? I heard from Bolt, he worked in Guangzhou, that a lot of people in big cities live together without getting married. It's legal now, they call it a 'common-law partnership'. All you need to worry about is cleaning the house …"
