The villagers, upon hearing the old patriarch's words, did not hesitate. One person grabbed an arm each, and they carried Lin Dawei out. Finding a hidden patch of grass, one man covered Lin Dawei's mouth while the others gave him a good beating.
Lin Dawei's cries were muffled, and the villagers showed no reaction as he was carried away. Everyone continued to laugh and chat as before.
However, they were inwardly thrilled. He deserved it! It was long overdue.
Fu Wenwen took the braised pork from Zhang Cuihua's hands and helped her to sit down beside Liu Qiang. "Sister Cuihua, you're pregnant, you should sit down!"
"Little sister, I'll leave it to you." After the recent incident, Zhang Cuihua was quite shaken. If Fu Wenwen hadn't supported her, she would have fallen to the ground.
Liu Qiang held Zhang Cuihua and looked at Fu Wenwen with sincere gratitude. "Fu Zhiqing, thank you so much! If it weren't for you, my Cuihua would have suffered."
Fu Wenwen smiled gently, placed the braised pork in the center of the table, and walked to Lin Feng's side.
Lin Feng was still holding the braised pork, looking at Fu Wenwen with concern in his eyes.
Fu Wenwen shook her head, indicating she was fine.
She took the braised pork from Lin Feng and placed it on the main table, presenting the first main dish before the old patriarch.
"Lin Feng's wife?" The old patriarch glanced at Fu Wenwen and asked the village chief.
The village chief nodded. "Yes."
"She's good-looking. If it were in the past, she would have been a wealthy young lady! Lin Feng is a lucky man." The old patriarch was very pleased with Fu Wenwen's quick thinking earlier, and seeing her beauty up close only made him more so.
When Fu Wenwen placed the braised pork before him, the old patriarch was extremely satisfied.
"Indeed!" the village chief chuckled, then told the old patriarch about Fu Wenwen's idea of using the loquats from the back mountain as a village attraction. The old patriarch nodded repeatedly. "Excellent idea."
Fu Wenwen nodded at the old patriarch and turned to go back to the kitchen. As she did, she noticed that all the men were seated at the tables, while the women were waiting on the side.
While returning to the kitchen, Fu Wenwen took the opportunity to ask Aunt Ma, "Aunt Ma, why aren't the women at the tables? If we squeezed a bit, there should be enough space, right?"
"Fu Zhiqing, you haven't been in our village long, so you don't know our customs. In the beginning, women were not allowed to sit at the table!" Aunt Ma explained.
"The old patriarch is the former village chief, and he served for decades. Following the old customs, in the past, during ancestral worship or village banquets, we women had to stay at home, with no status at all," Aunt Ma explained with a smile to Fu Wenwen. "After the current village chief took office, he fought for a lot of our rights. Now, once the men finish listening to the old patriarch's speech, we can sit down! With the village chief here, you don't need to worry!"
Fu Wenwen hadn't expected such a backward custom. She knew the village chief was upright, but she hadn't realized he had done so much for the women in the village. It was no wonder that people of all ages and genders in the village held him in such high regard; it was all thanks to his efforts.
"Only our village is like this. If you go to other villages, during festivals or ancestral worship, women aren't even allowed into the ancestral hall," Aunt Ma said, patting Fu Wenwen's shoulder.
"You're from the city, so you might not understand these old customs. Don't be nervous when you sit at the main table later. Although the old patriarch has some old-fashioned ideas, he won't make things difficult for you. And with the village chief there, he'll help you," Aunt Ma said with a smile before heading out with the dishes.
After everyone had served all the dishes, Fu Wenwen was invited to the main table and sat next to Lin Feng. All the dishes on the table were neatly arranged, and no one had touched their chopsticks yet.
"Let's begin!" Seeing Fu Wenwen seated, the old patriarch picked up his chopsticks, lightly tapped his bowl, and addressed everyone.
This was like a switch. Upon hearing the old patriarch tap his bowl, the wives and children happily took their seats. Everyone held their chopsticks, waiting for the old patriarch to make the first move before they could start eating.
Lin Feng also held his chopsticks, waiting.
The old patriarch, with his chopsticks, tremblingly reached for the braised pork, picked up a piece, placed it in his bowl, and took a gentle bite.
The tender, melt-in-your-mouth texture of the braised pork allowed the old patriarch, whose gums had long since loosened and could no longer chew meat, to finally taste the braised pork.
"Delicious!" The old patriarch was overjoyed after taking a bite.
With the old patriarch's chopsticks moving, it signaled that everyone could begin. While Fu Wenwen was still dazed, everyone else had already started, and chopsticks flew across the table like shuttles.
Lin Feng was well-prepared. He immediately grabbed a bowl full of food and placed it in front of Fu Wenwen. "Eat quickly! If it's not enough, I'll grab more for you."
After speaking to Fu Wenwen, Lin Feng immediately turned and rejoined the scramble for food. He then presented a full bowl of his spoils. Only after he had grabbed food for Fu Wenwen and Lin An did Lin Feng begin to grab food for himself.
Fu Wenwen blinked in surprise. It was her first time attending such a banquet. She had expected everyone to eat while chatting and laughing.
She hadn't expected that attending a banquet involved scrambling for food.
"Lin An!" Lin Feng called out, and Lin An immediately ran over. "Dad, coming, coming, I'm here!"
Lin Feng lifted Lin An and sat him next to Fu Wenwen, placing the bowl of food he had already grabbed for him in front of him. "You know the rules, eat quickly!"
"Mom, you eat too! Let Dad grab more after you finish!" Lin An tugged at Fu Wenwen's clothes, urging her to eat quickly.
"Oh... oh!" Fu Wenwen looked around and, seeing everyone almost fighting over the food, finally accepted the situation and lowered her head to eat.
The scramble for food at the main table was naturally not as fierce as at the other tables. However, the few elderly people, being advanced in age, could not eat much. After a few bites of braised pork, they were already satisfied.
"Good, the food today is excellent. I haven't had such authentic dishes in a long time," the old patriarch said contentedly. "Who made these dishes?"
"Old patriarch, Fu Zhiqing made them!" Aunt Ma and Aunt Li quickly stood up and replied. "Fu Zhiqing made four of the ten dishes today, and Aunt Ma and I made three each."
"You made them?" The old patriarch was surprised it was Fu Wenwen. "You're very good, very good indeed."
"Thank you for your praise, old patriarch," Lin Feng said with a proud smile.
"Hahahaha..." Seeing that it was Lin Feng who stepped up to respond, everyone burst into laughter. "We were praising Fu Zhiqing, why are you stepping up, Lin Feng?"
"That's right, when did you become so thick-skinned?" The old patriarch also laughed.
"She's my wife, Lin Feng's wife," Lin Feng declared proudly, raising his chin and announcing to everyone.
"Hahahaha... This boy is deliberately showing off!" Everyone understood Lin Feng's meaning.