Aunt Zhang's laughter arrived even faster than these sounds.
As a matchmaker, she had already spoken a basketful of auspicious phrases before she even arrived.
"The groom is as handsome as a young scholar, the bride as beautiful as a blooming flower; this year we invite you to taste sweet tea, next year we'll hold a baby for you to see."
"The bride is fair and clever, like a peony in bloom; with a cup of tea, she offers genuine kindness, wishing you joy and prosperity together."
"A heaven-sent union for all, a match of talent and beauty unequalled; a harmonious marriage will soon bear fruit, and early childbirth will bless the husband."
"At the auspicious hour, the bride and groom enter, may your business flourish and wealth abound, may you have a son plump and fair, and may your descendants be brilliant talents for generations."
As the last sentence finished, Aunt Zhang had already stepped into the courtyard.
"The sedan chair has arrived, please have the bride come out," she said, wearing a dark red dress and holding a large red handkerchief, smiling at Ning Wei and the others.
The procession behind her also slowly approached, just like that night they first arrived; behind her was a large coffin, adorned with a big red flower.
"Where is the bride?" Ning Wei spoke first.
Aunt Zhang flicked her handkerchief, and a fragrant scent wafted over. Ning Wei instinctively held her breath, but those behind her were not so fortunate, inhaling quite a bit.
"I know that a bride's family is reluctant to let their daughter go, but girls grow up and must eventually marry. Moreover, she is marrying the eldest young master of the Zhou family. To be chosen by the young master, that's truly a blessing from heaven, a sign of immense good fortune. Please, have the bride come out quickly."
"As I said, there is no bride here," Ning Wei said, looking at Aunt Zhang with a half-smile.
Although Aunt Zhang had sent off many girls, looking at the young woman before her, she still felt a pang of fear.
"Don't joke, have the bride come out quickly, it will be bad if we miss the auspicious time," Aunt Zhang forced herself to remain calm.
Ning Wei moved aside, "If you don't believe me, go and see for yourself. We've already told you there's no bride, and you still don't believe us."
Aunt Zhang swallowed and mumbled, "I'll look then, I'll look."
She turned to the people behind her and said, "Wait here for a moment, I'll go inside and take a look."
This courtyard was very familiar to her. She first walked around the courtyard, then looked at the people standing inside. The one called Yuanyuan was indeed not there.
Full of confidence, she strode through and pushed open door after door.
Finally, she found the unconscious Yuanyuan on a bed. To her even greater surprise, Yuanyuan's wedding dress was gone!
"What is going on!" She had thought this matter was a sure thing, and now such a mishap had occurred.
She couldn't believe her eyes and rubbed them hard before looking at the bed again.
It was indeed the bride chosen by the young master, but the wedding dress she had sent over during the day was missing!
The wedding dress was not on the bride, nor was it in the room.
This was a situation Aunt Zhang had never encountered before. She turned pale with fright and hurried out to question Ning Wei, "What is going on? Where have you hidden the wedding dress?"
Ning Wei feigned innocence, "She participated in that ritual to wash away bad luck earlier and has been feeling drowsy and unwell ever since, so she went to bed early to rest. As for the wedding dress you mentioned, we truly don't know anything about it."
Aunt Zhang pointed at Ning Wei, "You… you… you!"
The makeup on her face was falling off from anger, but she couldn't utter a single word.
Ning Wei reached out and pushed away the short, thick finger pointing at her, "I advise you, I don't like it when people point fingers at me. Rest assured, I can get angry."
She said the most ruthless words with a smile, and Aunt Zhang's hand retracted slightly.
"You dare to play tricks on me! The eldest young master of the Zhou family is not someone you people can afford to offend!" Aunt Zhang could only bring out her powerful backing.
"What eldest young master? Do you think this is still the feudal era? Please go out and see, it's the socialist era now. We advocate democracy and reject feudalism!" With Ning Wei there, Zhu Yilian also grew bolder and regained her sharp tongue.
"Good! Good! Good!" Aunt Zhang said "good" three times in a row, which showed how furious she was.
At this moment, her husband rushed over and said in a voice that was neither loud nor soft, "The grave pit has been filled in by someone!"
The grave pit was also an important part of the wedding ceremony tonight. It was not easy to dig one, as it required specific depth and width, and even the bride had to lie in it personally to test its comfort.
Moreover, that grave pit was where the eldest young master Zhou and Yuanyuan would consummate their marriage tonight, and absolutely no mistakes could be made!
Everyone heard this, and the people Aunt Zhang brought began to whisper amongst themselves.
"How did the grave pit get filled in?"
"Who knows."
"This is the first time the Zhang couple has made a mistake. I wonder how the Zhou family will deal with them." The person who said this sounded somewhat gloating, but it was too dark to see who it was.
Aunt Zhang was now completely flustered. She glared at Ning Wei and the others, "It's you! You're causing trouble!"
"Don't accuse us without evidence. We were playing in the village this afternoon, and everyone saw it. Why would you say we did all this?" Mei Nan also stepped forward.
By now, they had understood Ning Wei's intentions: they would deny everything to the death!
Just as Aunt Zhang was at a loss, someone appeared.
Zheng Qu pushed through the crowd and came to Aunt Zhang's side, accusing Ning Wei and the others of filling in the grave pit and knocking out the bride.
Song Zhi was so angry he wanted to rush forward and hit him, but Mei Nan held him back tightly.
If they lost their temper now, it would be tantamount to admitting that they had done it all.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Ning Wei remained calm, refusing to admit anything.
"You say it was us, do you have any evidence?" Wang Jing also mustered her courage, standing with the others and questioning Zheng Qu.
As Song Zhi had said, this Zheng Qu was indeed suspicious.
They just didn't expect him to be a traitor among the passengers, turning against them at such a crucial moment.
Zheng Qu had no evidence; he had only been part of the discussion.
"I heard it with my own ears, is that false?" Zheng Qu insisted through gritted teeth.
Not only that, he directly pointed to each person and explained the plan.
He first pointed at Mei Nan and Song Zhi, "It was you two who took the hoes to fill the grave pit. If you don't believe me, go and look at the hoes now; they should have soil from the graveyard on them."
The people behind them could no longer wait. They placed the coffin on the ground and then found the shovel Zheng Qu mentioned.
The shovel did have dirt on it, but it wasn't from the graveyard; it was from the soil in this courtyard.
Fortunately, Ning Wei had been prepared and had erased all traces.
"So what, we planned to dig a hole to make roast chicken, is that also wrong?" Ning Wei looked at Zheng Qu coldly, thinking she would remember this.
Zheng Qu, a grown man, felt his scalp tingle under Ning Wei's gaze.