Chapter 150 Li Gang's Nephew

In the evening, Lu Liangjin and his wife came home from get off work. When they heard that Lu Liangchen was going to get engaged and go shopping, Lu Liangjin's wife Shi Shulan immediately took out a lot of bills from her pocket, counted out fifty yuan, and handed it to Jiang Haitang, saying, "I have to go to work tomorrow and can't go shopping with you. This is a little gift from me."

Jiang Haitang quickly waved her hand and declined: "Sister-in-law, I have my own money, I can't accept this."

Shi Shulan smiled and stuffed the money and bills into her hands: "What you have is yours, this is a little gift from me as your sister-in-law."

He Wanyi also smiled and said, "Just accept your sister-in-law's kindness. You don't have to be polite as we're all family."

Jiang Haitang looked at the money and tickets in her hand, her heart deeply moved, her eyes reddened again, and she sincerely thanked Shi Shulan.

Although she had brought gifts to everyone in the Lu family before, they were all worthless little items.

At this moment, she secretly decided that after returning, she must find a way to send some good things to the Lu family to repay everyone's kindness.

As night fell, Jiang Haitang and Xiao Taozi moved into Lu Liangchen's original house.

The room is not big, but it is clean and tidy, with a faint smell of sunshine.

The bed was covered with brand new bedding, soft and warm, which showed that the family had put a lot of thought into its preparation.

Jiang Haitang originally thought that she would not be able to sleep in the new environment, but lying on the comfortable bed, thinking about the warm things that happened that day, her heart was full of peace and happiness, and she soon fell into a sweet dream.

Jiang Haitang woke up early in the morning. She got up very quietly, for fear of waking up Xiao Taozi who was still sleeping beside her.

There was a thin layer of frost on the window lattices, sparkling in the morning light.

Jiang Haitang carefully combed her two black braids in front of a palm-sized mirror and changed into a navy blue tweed jacket.

"Mom, are we really going to the department store?"

Little Taozi rubbed her sleepy eyes and jumped out of the bed, her little face full of excitement.

"Yes, Xiao Taozi, do you like it?" Jiang Haitang gently helped her daughter put on her clothes.

Xiao Taozi nodded immediately: "Sister Erni said that the department store in Beijing is very beautiful."

Jiang Haitang laughed when she heard this. She was just a child who had never been to Beijing, but she could imagine how beautiful the department stores were. It was obvious that she longed for the capital in her heart.

“Mm, very beautiful!”

Little Peach cheered and jumped off the bed impatiently, her two little braids bouncing happily behind her head.

Jiang Haitang smiled and shook her head, but a warm feeling welled up in her heart. Since coming to the Lu family, Xiao Taozi felt like she had found her real home, and her family really loved her.

In the kitchen, Aunt Wang had already cooked the millet porridge. Steam was rising from the steamer, emitting the tempting aroma of steamed buns.

Shi Shulan was helping to cut pickles in the kitchen. When she saw Jiang Haitang come in, she immediately called out, "Haitang, come and have breakfast. Mom said we should leave early because the department store will be crowded before the New Year."

"Sister-in-law, didn't you say yesterday that you were going to work?" Jiang Haitang asked in surprise.

Shi Shulan smiled and blinked: "I asked for half a day off from work. How could I be absent for such an important event?"

Lu Liangjin came in from outside with a few bills in his hand: "I exchanged some industrial coupons with my friends, which should be enough."

Jiang Haitang's eyes grew warm again. She knew how valuable these bills were in this era of material scarcity.

"Thank you, brother, thank you, sister-in-law." Her voice was a little choked: "It's just an engagement, there's no need to do this."

"Yes, although it's an engagement, it has to be decent so that everyone knows that our family values ​​you." Shi Shulan said with a smile.

Jiang Haitang was not from a high-class family. She thought about it for a long time last night, worried that people in the compound would gossip about Jiang Haitang because of her background. The only way to prevent this from happening was to let everyone see that the Lu family valued this new daughter-in-law.

"We're family, so we don't have to talk behind each other's backs." Lu Liangjin smiled innocently, "Let's eat quickly. Liangchen went to borrow a car from the company and will be back soon."

As they were talking, the sound of a jeep engine came from the yard, and Xiao Taozi was the first to rush out: "Dad is back!"

Lu Liangchen picked up the little Taozi who rushed over to him and walked into the house with a smile: "I've borrowed the car, let's go after we finish eating."

Aunt Wang brought out a hot breakfast and the family sat around the table. The atmosphere was warm and lively.

After breakfast, He Wanyi, Yuan Yinan, Shi Shulan, Jiang Haitang and Xiao Taozi squeezed into the old jeep.

Lu Liangchen was driving, Jiang Haitang was sitting in the passenger seat, and He Wanyi, Shi Shulan, Yuan Yinan and Xiao Taozi were squeezed in the back seat.

Although it was a bit crowded, everyone's face was filled with joy.

"Hold on tight, let's go!" Lu Liangchen started the car and drove towards the department store.

"Where is my aunt?" Jiang Haitang asked.

"Your aunt is waiting for us at the department store."

On the way, He Wanyi counted the things she wanted to buy: "The fabric must be red, for celebration; the thermos must be a Double Happiness brand; the washbasin must have the Chinese character for happiness on it; and I'll buy you and Liangchen a new set of clothes..."

Jiang Haitang listened, feeling both touched and anxious: "Auntie, we're just engaged, we won't need these."

"They are all necessities if you can use them."

Shi Shulan interrupted, "Now that conditions are better, and my family doesn't lack this little money, I'm going to give you a decent wedding."

Lu Liangchen turned his head and glanced at Jiang Haitang in the rearview mirror, his eyes full of tenderness: "Listen to mom and sister-in-law."

Anyway, these things are necessities, so it’s not a waste to buy them.

Jiang Haitang lowered her head, her cheeks slightly red.

Little Peach asked curiously, "Mom, what is engagement?"

Everyone in the car burst into laughter.

Shi Shulan teased her: "They will be Xiao Taozi's parents forever from now on."

Little Peach tilted her head and thought for a while before saying, "But Mom and Dad will always be my mom and dad."

The laughter in the car got louder.

The department store is very grand, a four-story Soviet-style building, with crowds of people in front of it.

On the eve of the Spring Festival, there is an endless stream of people coming here to buy New Year's goods.

Lu Liangchen found a parking space, and the whole family got out of the car and followed the crowd into the building.

He Wanyi held Xiao Taozi's hand tightly, fearing that she would get lost. Yuan Yinan was also nervously protecting Xiao Taozi.

Lu Liangchen simply held the little girl in his arms and lifted her up high to prevent her from getting bumped or hurt.

Shi Shulan held Jiang Haitang's arm and pointed at the merchandise in the window to show her from time to time.

"Let's go buy watches first," He Wanyi suggested. "Of the 'Three Turns and One Ring', watches are the hardest to buy."

"Auntie, Liangchen and I already have watches, so there's no need to buy another one. How about buying a radio for grandpa?"

When Jiang Haitang heard that he wanted to buy a watch, she immediately dissuaded him.

He Wanyi felt a little regretful when she heard that Jiang Haitang already had a watch.

How come there is a watch?

"Is it convenient for you to buy a radio and take it back with you? Or, how about I give you the money and buy it yourself when you get back?"

Jiang Haitang hurriedly said, "Auntie, buy it for Grandpa."

"The old man has a radio. Besides, I'm buying things for you today." He Wanyi insisted.

After retiring, the youngest son stayed in the northwest, thousands of miles away from home, and I couldn't take care of him on a daily basis. I already owed him something, so naturally I had to make up for it through his marriage.

As parents, we hope that every child can be well, and we will try our best to subsidize those who are relatively poor.

He Wanyi is in this state of mind now.

"Then let's buy a radio and take it with us when we go back."

Lu Liangchen knew that if the family didn’t buy anything, they would definitely feel uneasy.

"Okay, let's buy a radio today and take it back with you. We can buy the sewing machine and bicycle in Jincheng when you get married." He Wanyi made the final decision.

Jiang Haitang and Lu Liangchen looked at each other, and neither of them mentioned that they already had a sewing machine at home.

"Or, I'll give you the sewing machine and bicycle tickets later. You don't have to buy things at the time of the wedding. It's more convenient to buy them in advance and use them in advance." He Wanyi said again.

"What my sister-in-law said makes sense."

While a few people were talking, Lu Simin also arrived. When everyone was together, they walked towards the radio counter on the second floor.

When they arrived, there were already more than a dozen people queuing in front of them.

I heard from the person in front that a batch of Red Star brand radios arrived today. The quantity is limited, so it’s on a first-come, first-served basis.

"Then we have to line up quickly. How about I let my uncle line up?" Shi Shulan said hurriedly, "There are so many of us, it's not good to line up together."

Lu Liangchen didn't say anything, but took big steps and stood directly at the end of the team.

"Auntie, younger aunt, younger sister-in-law, let's go to the side and rest for a while." Jiang Haitang was worried about the health of the elders and worried that they would get tired after walking for a long time.

"It's okay, it's not that long." He Wanyi smiled happily.

At this moment, a man in a tweed coat and a shiny backcombed hair walked straight to the counter and said something to the salesperson. The salesperson took out a radio from under the counter and handed it to him with a flattering smile.

"Hey! Why are you cutting in line?" The old man at the front of the line was unhappy.

The old man came early and had been waiting in line for a while. When he saw someone cutting in line, he became very angry.

"That's right, we've been waiting in line for a long time!" Others also protested.

No one wants to see someone cutting in line and damaging their own interests.

The man glanced back and said disdainfully, "I'm the nephew of Director Li Gang of the department store. If you have any objections, go talk to my uncle!"

The crowd suddenly quieted down.

The word "relationship" has a special weight. How could an ordinary person dare to offend the relatives of the leader?

Especially since the person in question was the director of the department store, they were even more afraid to offend him.

Lu Liangchen frowned and strode forward: "Comrade, please observe the queue order."

The man with slicked-back hair and powdered face looked Lu Liangchen up and down and sneered, "Hey, where did you come from? Do you know who I am?"