164 red envelopes

Guan Yuehe couldn't go out, but that didn't stop her from joining in the fun.

The kang (heated brick bed) in the small room was also heated. After feeding Lin Ting and changing her diaper, the two of them went to the small room. Just like last year, there was a shed outside the window with a TV on it, and the sounds of people eating sunflower seeds and chatting never stopped.

Everyone was waiting for the Wang family to set off fireworks.

That's why the Wang family makes so much money from sunflower seeds, but there aren't many people who are so envious that they want to take away their livelihood.

Look how generous they are! They specially set aside a color TV at the entrance of the alley to benefit everyone, and they can even let everyone watch fireworks during the New Year.

The King of Sunflower Seeds is truly top-notch.

As soon as the TV program ended, people outside started dismantling the tent, saying they couldn't block other people's view of the fireworks.

This year, Yuanbao learned from last year's experience and came knocking on the door, saying he wanted to go up to their rooftop to take a look.

Zhou Hongqi and his family of three climbed the ladder up and instantly felt that climbing the roof was well worth it, as they could see much more clearly from up there.

But Guan Yuehe, who was watching from inside the house, felt uncomfortable. As more and more neighbors went out to watch the fireworks, and some even stood behind her window, she couldn't see the whole thing.

"I'll climb the roof to look again next year!"

"We'll buy fireworks to set off next year too."

The two spoke at the same time, but Guan Yuehe disagreed, reaching out to tug at Lin Yiku's ears, "You can only watch this for a short while, why don't you just watch the melon seeds at Wang's place?"

She also solemnly reminded him, "Our family now has two salaries and three people to support us. We should save where we can, spend where we should, and absolutely not spend money on things we shouldn't."

"Okay, I'll follow CFO Guan's instructions."

With the fireworks over, the neighbors outside the alley gradually dispersed. They returned to their bedrooms, lying on either side of Lin Ting, looking at the tiny Lin Ting lying in the middle.

"Hey, doesn't her face look a little different?"

Lin Yi leaned forward, supporting herself on her elbows, to look. "It's peeling, but the doctor said it's normal."

Guan Yuehe made another new discovery: "Her hair was black and thick."

"It's up to us."

Now that she's gotten used to it, Guan Yuehe finally thinks Lin Ting is cute.

Although she knew the baby would grow up to be more beautiful, she couldn't help the fact that newborn babies are ugly.

Lin Yiku watched as she praised Lin Ting from beginning to end. The child was only two days old, but in her eyes, he already had many good qualities.

Not long after, her voice disappeared, and she fell asleep head to head with Lin Ting.

Lin Yiku moved Lin Ting to the side and lay down in the middle to separate the two of them.

He could handle her flailing arms and legs, but Lin Ting couldn't.

Yesterday at the hospital, Guan Yuehua specifically reminded him to have her and Lin Ting sleep at opposite ends of the kang (heated brick bed) to avoid harming the child.

Luckily, she was asleep at the time, otherwise she would definitely have argued with Guan Yuehua, saying that Guan Yuehua was the one who had been a restless sleeper since childhood.

He hadn't rested well in the hospital these past two days, and now that he was holding her, he quickly closed his eyes, and the three of them fell into a deep sleep.

They have been married for almost five years, and this year's Lunar New Year's Eve was the quietest and went by the fastest.

When Guan Yuehe woke up, it was already broad daylight outside.

There was a thick quilt piled up next to him, and on the other side of the quilt was Lin Ting, who was fast asleep with her hands raised next to her head.

"Awake? Don't get up. I'll bring you some water. You can wash up in the room."

Guan Yuehe called out to him, and with some unease, she reached out and placed her hand under Lin Ting's nose. He was breathing, and this time she breathed a sigh of relief.

Lin Yi chuckled bitterly; he had the same reaction when he woke up in the middle of the night last night.

"It's already past eight o'clock. Is there something wrong with her sleeping for so long without complaining of hunger?"

“She woke up once around 4 a.m., and you got up to feed her.”

"Is that so? I don't recall it."

"After feeding you, you two went to sleep." When it comes to falling asleep quickly, Lin Ting definitely inherited Yue He's talent; both mother and daughter would fall asleep as soon as they were tired, and they slept very soundly.

Lin Yiku was very pleased. Just based on this point, their Lin Ting couldn't possibly be a brat.

—

The children in the alley started visiting each other's homes to offer New Year's greetings, probably because they had been instructed by their parents and a few sensible children reminded them. A group of children rushed into the No. 1 courtyard, but did not go to Guan Yuehe's house.

Lin Yiku closed the door to prevent the wind from getting in, took a stack of one-cent coins and a basket of fruit candies, and called them over to line up. He gave each of them one cent and a few candies.

There was a lively scene in front of their house for a while. The little kids were quite sweet-talking, spouting a string of New Year's greetings. Their pockets were bulging as they skipped and hopped off to the second courtyard.

In the afternoon, Xu Cheng and Qin Zilan brought the child over.

"Even though you can walk now, don't keep walking. Come and sit down."

Guan Yuehe came out of the bedroom, which meant she replaced the kang (a heated brick bed) with a sofa and continued to lie half-reclined. After lying like that for a month, her bones were getting lazy.

But she still lay there obediently, wrapped in a thick blanket.

She had heard her two mothers repeatedly emphasize that postpartum care must be done properly. They said that in their time, they didn't have the means to do so, and after giving birth, they would only rest for ten days to two weeks before rushing back to work. Now that they are older, they are prone to back pain and headaches, all of which are ailments caused by not taking proper care of themselves during their postpartum period.

“You two didn’t come back to No. 3 Courtyard for dinner yesterday, and Aunt Xu scolded you again at home.”

She couldn't go out, and all the gossip in the alley was told by Jiang Guiying.

Qin Zilan was used to it and waved her hand dismissively, "It's not the first or second time that the old couple has scolded us. They feel better after being scolded, so let them scold us all they want."

"Why this time?" I heard they were yelling fiercely, but nobody in the No. 3 courtyard knew the reason.

“There are so many things to do.” Qin Zilan picked out the most crucial one to say: “Dabao got a spot to return to the city and came back after the New Year. His mother wants us to arrange a job for him at the factory.”

"Isn't Grandpa Xu about to retire? Da Bao might take over his job at the car factory."

Qin Zilan rolled her eyes. "The father-in-law's position is reserved for Erbao. Dabao is left without a job, so he wants us to solve it for him."

It's impossible to arrange a job for Da Bao. Her own nephew didn't get into university back then, and it was her mother who took his place after she retired.

The factory has repeatedly emphasized that, unless it is a temporary job, all other job openings must be publicly announced, and several departments are involved in the selection process.

"Our factory might be breaking the 'iron rice bowl' system," Qin Zilan said. "The factory is undergoing reforms, and in the future, everyone will receive the same salary regardless of how much they work. However, we don't know the specifics of the reforms yet. At the year-end workers' representative meeting, the factory director mentioned it briefly, and the entire staff compound was discussing how the factory would reforms last night."

Guan Yuehe said admiringly, "Our factory's leaders are truly decisive."

"Did the workers cause a disturbance?"

"It's alright, only a few troublemakers who are lazy and shirking their responsibilities have complaints." Over the years, what decision has the factory leadership made that wasn't for the good of the factory and the workers? The workers all have their own standards; they'll listen to whoever can lead them to a better life.

"Where did this troublemaker come from?" The door creaked open a crack, and Ding Xuewen squeezed in sideways.

Ding Xuewen lifted the two bags he was carrying higher. "Where should I put them?"

"What did you buy?" A loud clanging sound followed.

"This bag is for you, nutritional supplements. This bag is for Aunt Jiang and Aunt Lin, I'll deliver it to them later." Ding Xuewen stood by the stove warming his hands, then turned his head around, asking, "Where are the children?"

"Sleep inside."

Ding Xuewen didn't rush to see the child, but continued to warm himself by the fire. "What's his name?"

"Lin Ting."

Several "yo" sounds suddenly rang out from inside and outside the house, and the door creaked open, indicating that Chen Lizhong and Lin Sitian, who were supposed to return that evening, had arrived early.

"That's a great name! Who came up with it?"

"Is there even a question? It must be Yuehe. It couldn't possibly be my brother's name."

As soon as Lin Sitian finished speaking, her older brother shoved her head down, saying that all he ever did was ruin her image.

Guan Yuehe raised her eyebrows smugly, pointed to herself, and praised, "A cultured person."

“You used to say that cultured people are the most pretentious,” Lin Sitian reminded her.

"Oh dear, I've met so few cultured people before." The cultured person she knew best was Xie Zhenhua. Back then, he didn't care about anything and didn't like to associate with the neighbors in the alley. He was extremely aloof, and she looked down on him.

Guan Yuehe held her palm up, "New Year's money."

"This is for Lin to hear, not for you." Lin Sitian held onto the corner of the red envelope tightly, refusing to let go.

But she was no match for Yuehe's strength and was easily pulled away. Guan Yuehe said the phrase that parents love to say, "I'll keep it for her first."

That's what they say, but she and Lin Yiku are able to earn money, so they don't need to spend Lin Ting's New Year's money for the time being.

She plans to open another savings account to save all the red envelopes that relatives and friends give to Lin Ting, so that when Lin Ting grows up, he can become a small wealthy person.

She received three large red envelopes at once, and without any hesitation, she squeezed them, saying, "They're really thick."

He also said to Ding Xuewen and Lin Sitian, "When you two have children in the future, I will give you a generous red envelope as well."

Lin Sitian immediately waved her hand, "My family isn't in a hurry, we'll talk about it in a year or two."

While everyone was busy giving red envelopes to Niu Niu and her brother, Guan Yuehe gave Lin Sitian a knowing look: they had just gotten married, so they needed to use contraceptives more often; she understood.

"Tsk." Lin Sitian couldn't bear to look; she could tell at a glance that Yuehe wasn't thinking about anything serious.

Of course, she and Chen Lizhong did want to spend more time together as a couple.

Lin Sitian immediately shifted the blame, asking Ding Xuewen, "Didn't your boss say he'd help you with your personal life? Why didn't he introduce you to anyone later?"

"ah?"

Ding Xuewen had just finished giving red envelopes to the two younger children and was about to pay back 100 yuan to each of the three families he owed when he suddenly heard this question.

Weren't we talking about the children? How did we end up talking about his personal life again?

Everyone in the room was looking at him, so he had no choice but to speak.

"My supervisor enrolled me in a social event organized by the trade union, which was held around New Year's Day. I met a female colleague from the cultural bureau, watched a movie together, and then lost contact with her."

The group asked in unison, "Why?"

Although Lao Ding is 32 years old this year and not young, he has a good job, is not bad-looking, and can buy a house with his own money, so his conditions are not bad.

Ding Xuewen's expression was complicated. "I asked my colleagues for help. The woman's family went to my neighborhood to inquire about the situation. Someone told her family that I had a family in Northeast China during the ten years I was sent to the countryside. I abandoned my wife and children to go back to the city to study at university. I bought the house with a lot of debt."

Others: "......"

"Who's so unethical? It's not that company in the office next door, is it?"

"No, no matter who's talking nonsense, we have to go over there another day and clarify this matter."

"That's right. If a lot of people spread this and believe it, you'll not only have trouble finding a partner, but your reputation with your superiors will also suffer. Won't they have a problem with you?"

"Yes! We must clarify this! If all else fails, we'll ask the elderly folks in our alley to help us spread the word. Let me tell you, the elderly folks in our alley will definitely help in times like this."

Everyone chimed in with their own ideas, and a whole host of suggestions came up.

Lin Yiku didn't forget the main point, "Do you want to date that woman?"

Guan Yuehe and the others immediately paused their discussion and stared at Ding Xuewen.

Ding Xuewen remained silent, a hint of hesitation flashing in his eyes, before finally shaking his head.

"At my age, I'm definitely looking for someone to marry. I don't know many people, and the people others introduce me to might not be reliable. You know a lot of people, so please help me find someone."

If the person is introduced by a leader, and you feel it's not suitable, you still have to find an excuse to refuse.

The neighbors introduced them... they had all sorts of conditions, and the woman was afraid of choosing the wrong partner, and he was quite afraid too.

After thinking it over, I realized that his childhood friends were the most reliable.

Ding Xuewen quickly made a decision, stating matter-of-factly that they had to help him solve his personal problems, and also making his own demands.

"I'm looking for someone who likes to study, at least has to have finished high school, looks are okay, and a simple family background is preferred, not someone with many siblings or a lot of trouble. Yeah, that's all."

Seeing them staring at him blankly, he added a few more words, "You all know my situation. In addition, after we get married, I can guarantee that I will hand over my salary and any extra income I earn. My home is close to my workplace; I can get home just by crossing the street after get off work. I can take care of most of the housework... Is there anything else you want to add?"

Everyone thought he was joking, but once these specific conditions were listed, it became clear that he was serious.

"cough."

Lin Yiku broke the silence first. He knew even fewer women than Ding Xuewen, so he wouldn't get involved in matchmaking.

"I'll go in and check on Lin Ting."

Next was Lin Sitian, who knew the most people and could chat with anyone, but at this moment, even after racking her brains, she couldn't think of a female comrade who met Ding Xuewen's requirements.

"The main problem is that I don't know who likes to read. When we chat, we don't talk about which books are good." We just gossip.

"Among my classmates who studied in Tianjin, there were suitable candidates, but they don't work in Beijing. What about your classmates from university who stayed in Beijing to work?"

Ding Xuewen was also helpless, "The female classmates in my class who are not married are all ten or eight years younger than me."

That's really the last resort.

Chen Lizhong quickly shook his head, "Don't look at me. There are few female classmates in our class, and the unmarried ones are all young. The men who are of suitable age haven't stayed in Beijing to work."

“I have relatives who love reading, but those families are all troublemakers, so I’ll pass.”

As for his workplace? He already had a girlfriend before he joined, so his colleagues wouldn't introduce him to anyone. After he got married, he would keep his distance from female colleagues even more, and they wouldn't discuss personal matters outside of work, so he knew even less about their relationships.

Xu Chengcai and Qin Zilan couldn't think of a suitable match either.

"If you mean someone who loves making clothes, then we have plenty of suitable women in our factory. How about someone who loves reading, like the broadcaster at our factory's radio station?"

"No, no." Qin Zilan rejected Xu Cheng's suggestion. "He has a boyfriend. He even brought his boyfriend home before the New Year."

"I really can't think of anything."

In the end, only Guan Yuehe was left, and she was speechless. "Why didn't you say so earlier if you had ideas?"

Cheng Shuang originally wanted to find someone who loved studying and doing research like her, and who could also take care of housework.

She should have introduced them earlier. But it's too late now; Teacher Cheng is already dating someone.

"I didn't want to get married so soon before." But now, seeing them get married, start families, and have children, he feels extremely envious.

"Remember to keep an eye out for me, and if you find anyone suitable, please mention it to me." Ding Xuewen pushed the matter to them. It was still far from certain, but his face was visibly happy. He touched his hands, which were warm, before turning into the house to see the child.

"Hey, I haven't seen it either." Xu Cheng called out to Qin Zilan. He originally wanted to go with the two children, but when he turned around, he found that they were no longer in the room.

"After receiving the New Year's money, he ran out, probably to find a friend to go to the melon seed king's general store together."

Niu Niu attends the primary school affiliated with the Wuxing Automobile Factory. She has several classmates in Ginkgo Hutong and often goes to school with Yuan Bao, so she has no trouble finding playmates.

Lin Sitian didn't go in with them, but squeezed in next to Guan Yuehe and sat down.

Only the two of them remained in the living room.

Lin Sitian glanced at the bedroom and heard the "ooh ooh" sounds of playing with the child inside. She leaned close to Guan Yuehe's ear and whispered, "I guess Ding Xuewen wants to find someone who is close to us."

“It’s him who’s looking for a partner, not us,” Guan Yuehe said, puzzled.

"Let's find someone we're on good terms with, so we won't lose touch in the future."

Guan Yuehe understood now.

Qin Zilan was a friend she had known since she first joined the Zhuoyue Garment Factory, and they had always had a good relationship. After Qin Zilan and Xu Chengcai got married, they often met with her and Lin Sitian, and over the years, their relationship grew closer and closer.

Not to mention Chen Lizhong, after the ten years he and Ding Xuewen helped each other in the countryside, they were practically brothers. In the three years after they returned to the city, he was present at every one of their childhood friends' gatherings. Even before he married Sitian, he was still an unofficial member of their childhood friends group.

Lin Yiku goes without saying.

“We’ve been friends for so many years. He found someone he doesn’t know well. Are we going to isolate them?” Guan Yuehe rolled her eyes.

“Exactly! Could we be that kind of people?” Lin Sitian chimed in.

But then again, I really don't know who would be a good match for me.

"Don't worry, he's been single for so many years, one or two more years won't make a difference."

Guan Yuehe nudged her, "Bake me a bun, I'm hungry."

Author's Note: [Cat's paw]