Chapter 1 1

September 8, 1980, sunny

Postman Lao Zhang struggled to push his 28-inch bicycle up the slope. The Chaoyang Production Team was located deep in the mountains, and the roads were narrow and steep. Delivering a letter could wear out a pair of shoes. Fortunately, there was a hemp rope hanging on each steep slope, which he could use to pull the packages and bicycle up the slope one by one.

After climbing an almost vertical steep slope, Lao Zhang and his 28-inch bicycle collapsed to the ground. The wheels turned twice and stopped, but Lao Zhang's heavy breathing continued.

After panting for a while, Lao Zhang picked up the kettle and drank some water, but only two or three drops came out. He pursed his lips, picked up his bicycle, put the large package on the back seat, and continued delivering mail.

This time, the letter and package were sent from the neighboring city, and the recipient was the third daughter of Xu Laoer.

The third child in his family had been dating a young man from the educated youth class for several years, and he had returned to the city this year to take the college entrance examination. However, this young man was very conscientious and sent Xu Shanshan such a large package that it almost broke his spine.

After bumping down two hills and riding along a short stretch of relatively flat road, Lao Zhang finally arrived at Xu Laoer's house.

The three-room mud house had a thatched roof and several dents in the mud walls. Broken straw stalks mixed into the mud stuck out like threads on clothes, and the yellow earth looked dirty and worn. Old Zhang thought to himself, "Everyone in the village plasters their walls with new mud every year and keeps them spotless. Only Xu Laoer is the laziest. He doesn't plaster for several years. He's not afraid that heavy rain will break through the mud and collapse the house."

But when he thought about the five beautiful girls in his family, Lao Zhang could understand Xu Laoer's laziness.

It's really not worth it to have no son and no roots and work hard for others all your life.

Inside, as Lao Zhang's bicycle stopped, Zhao Xiaohe had already arrived at the door, having heard the noise. Years of hard work had left their mark on her face. Her skin was sallow and dark, her hair was messy, and she looked nothing like someone who could have given birth to a daughter as beautiful as Xu Shanshan.

"Lao Zhang, come here, drink some salt water, don't get a heat stroke."

Old Zhang gulped down a few mouthfuls of wine like a cow, and after catching his breath, he smiled and said, "Your third son-in-law is a conscientious man. Look at how big this package is."

"I haven't gotten married yet." Zhao Xiaohe smiled when she heard it was something sent from the neighboring city. But she wasn't one to show off, so she modestly stated the truth.

"Such a big package, I think your family is about to get married. When Shanshan gets married, remember to leave some wedding candy for me."

"Of course, of course, Lao Zhang. Come on, give me the pot and I'll fill it with salt water for you."

"Okay, I'll carry the package inside for you. I don't know what good things Zhou Kai bought, it's really heavy."

Zhao Xiaohe didn't hear clearly what Lao Zhang was nagging about. Her mind was full of Zhou Kai and Shanshan's affairs.

Zhou Kai was an educated youth sent to the countryside in 1974. He and Shanshan started dating in the spring of 1976, more than four years later. When the national college entrance examination was reinstated in 1977, she urged them to get married. But Shanshan, for some reason, encouraged Zhou Kai to take the exam.

It’s not that there were no people in their commune who wanted to marry educated youth, but no family was willing to let a married educated youth take the college entrance examination.

Everyone is afraid of being abandoned by their significant other.

After all, they have all heard the story of Chen Shimei.

But her third daughter was different. Not only did she not marry, she also encouraged Zhou Kai to take the Gaokao. Zhou Kai had taken the Gaokao four times since 1977, and this year he finally got accepted into the Linshi Normal University in his hometown. I had assumed he would be like everyone else, abandoning everything in the countryside when he returned to the city. I hadn't expected him to send such a large package after just over two weeks of separation.

It seems that Zhou Kai has intentions.

Zhao Xiaohe felt relieved and was happy for her third daughter.

Because she had to stay at home to guard the package sent by Zhou Kai, she shouted to the neighbors and asked her niece Xu Guo to run to the field to call for help.

After a while, Xu Shanshan came back, followed by the other members of the Xu family.

Xu Shanshan looked at the large package in the house and couldn't believe it. Although she looked calm and composed every day, she was actually worried and couldn't sleep every night.

She tried to maintain a calm and confident appearance, but when she saw the words on the envelope, she was stunned.

She had never been to school, having only attended literacy classes in the brigade. It was only after several years of serious study with Zhou Kai that she made some progress. Her education level wasn't particularly high, but writing and reading were no problem for her.

But this time the handwriting on the envelope was different, it was too sloppy.

This is not Zhou Kai's handwriting.

She was still pondering the reason when Xu Shanshan's aunt and two cousins ​​bent down to open the package. Xu Shanshan's fourth sister snatched the things away and said, "Hey, hey, hey, these are my sister's things. Why are you rummaging through them?"

"The claws are really fast."

Yang Dani glared at Xu Ruyi unhappily. The second daughter had five girls, but only the fourth was the irritant. For Shanshan's sake, she decided not to argue with her. With that in mind, she pressed for the contents of Xu Shanshan's letter.

"Shanshan, what did Zhou Kai write? Can you read it to us?"

"Shanshan, can I read it to you?"

Xu Shanshan quickly closed the letter, her face red and she felt a little embarrassed. Everyone understood that Zhou Kai must have written some disgusting words in the letter.

That's definitely not suitable for them to hear.

Seeing that her fourth sister couldn't stop her father from opening the package, Xu Shanshan quickly suppressed the confusion in her heart and said, "Zhou Kai asked me to go to Lin City and even sent me a ticket. Mom and Dad, you can't touch the things in the package. Zhou Kai asked me to keep it for face."

When Boss Xu heard this, he immediately got excited and said, "Oh, this, isn't this just asking you to come over? Shanshan, Zhou Kai wants to marry you."

"Shanshan, Daddy will go with you."

"Dad, Zhou Kai sent a ticket." Xu Shanshan showed the ticket to Boss Xu. As soon as he saw the ticket price, Boss Xu immediately gave up the idea of ​​going to the nearby city to make some money.

There is no rush. As long as Zhou Kai and Xu Shanshan get married, they will reap the benefits sooner or later.

"Third sister, we don't want your things, so why not take a look? What, now that you're rich, you don't recognize your relatives anymore?" Du Yanzi, the cousin's wife, asked with a sneer. As soon as Du Yanzi finished speaking, her sisters-in-law also joined in the scolding.

Xu Shanshan suppressed her irritation. Her two cousins-in-law truly lived up to the old saying, "If you're not from the same family, you won't enter the same house." They kept their eyes on her family all day long, and even their children had to get eggs from her house.

Because her mother didn't give birth to a son, the uncle next door and his family naturally ordered her whole family around.

The most disgusting thing was that one year when the weather was hot, her uncle was reluctant to tire the cows, but was willing to order her parents around.

And my parents were happy to help.

Thinking about the mess at home, Xu Shanshan could hardly control her temper and the expression on her face. She sighed, and while holding down her two sisters who were about to speak up for her, she said coldly, "Okay, I won't even look at the things in the bag. I'll just give them all to my sister-in-law."

"As long as you don't regret it, sister-in-law."

"I don't regret it! Are you serious?"

Of my second uncle's five daughters, only the third, Xu Shanshan, has a rather unpredictable personality. She's been married for so many years, and while she's faced plenty of rejection, she's never taken advantage of anyone. What's wrong with her today? Is she being so generous?

"Of course it's true. I'm about to marry into the city, so why would I care about such a small thing?" Xu Shanshan said with a dignified look. Then she turned to her younger sister Xu Ruyi and said, "How many of these things can't I get in the future?"

"But Third Sister, this is a door-to-door gift."

"It doesn't matter if you come to me for a gift. It's not like you haven't seen how much your brother-in-law loves me."

"Don't worry, I have Zhou Kai to protect me. But it may be difficult for me to help you in the future."

"But don't worry, as long as I have established myself, I will definitely find a way to get you to Lin City as well."

Xu Ruyi and Xu Meili were about to rejoice, but their aunt immediately became unhappy. How could such a good thing be given to two little girls? It must be given to her three sons.

Yang Dani put her hands on her hips and threatened Xu Laoer and Zhao Xiaohe. Of course, she still said the same old things, such as taking care of them in their old age and seeing them to the end of their lives.

But those words were like a cow's nose ring or a dog's chain. As long as Yang Dani opened her mouth, Xu Laoer and his wife would obey obediently.

Xu Shanshan had seen a lot, and apart from snorting coldly, she was no longer willing to step forward.

She just smiled at Boss Xu and said, "Dad, you know Zhou Kai too. He didn't like you guys very much in the first place, and now the eldest cousin's wife is like this. Well, you tell me, how do I start this?"

"After all, you know, Zhou Kai is just like that."

Xu Shanshan spoke half a sentence, but she swallowed the rest, which made people imagine a lot. Xu Lao Da was a smart man. He glared at Yang Dani and signaled her with his eyes to pull her stupid daughter-in-law away. Then he smiled and comforted Xu Shanshan, "Shanshan, your sister-in-law is a fool. She doesn't know how to behave. Don't bother her."

"Big Daddy is happier than anyone else that you can marry into the city."

"Hey, Daddy just doesn't have any money, otherwise I would have bought you something to take with you."

"I know that Daddy is the best. Also, even though Zhou Kai bought some things for me to show off, I can't really not bring anything. So, Daddy, my mom has a lot of chickens and ducks, can you bring me a couple? Then I'll have a good talk with Zhou Kai and change his mind about you guys."

Yang Dani frowned and said, "Can you really help your brother?"

Xu Shanshan didn't answer directly, but just smiled and said, "Auntie also said that she didn't want me after Zhou Kai returned to the city."

"I didn't expect him to treat me the same as if I were on the team."

Boss Xu thought of how Zhou Kai had treated Xu Shanshan before, coaxing and pampering her every day, and immediately said with a smile: "I'll bring you two chickens, ducks, and geese, and you can also bring a basket of eggs. Oh, and your aunt just made a jar of salted duck eggs not long ago, you can bring that too."

Xu Shanshan was naturally grateful for the benefit. She immediately said, "Don't worry, Dad. When Zhou Kai and I get married, I'll make sure he toasts you with a few glasses of wine."

Yang Dani said angrily: "Lao Xu, are you crazy?"

Yang Dani, who had taken advantage of the second family all her life, was not used to giving up the benefits herself.

This was like cutting her flesh and drinking her blood, and it hurt her terribly.

Not only Yang Dani, but everyone's eyes widened. Xu Laoer and Zhao Xiaohe were even more moved, but they refused again and again, saying that it was good enough to have this intention, and they didn't care about anything else.

Xu Shanshan didn't continue the topic, but turned to her sister and said, "Your third brother-in-law wrote to me and told me that his mother is planning to retire this year and pass her job to her daughter-in-law."

"Sister, really?"

Xu Shanshan nodded without feeling guilty at all, "Yes, so your brother-in-law asked me to go to the city so that I could arrange my marriage and job."

After hearing this, Boss Xu's eyes instantly became bigger than cow eggs, and his heart was burning. He immediately shouted at Yang Dani: "What I say is what it is. It's not your turn to make the decision in this family."

"As her father, how can I not support my niece's wedding and give her dignity?"

"Shanshan, I look at you like my daughter."

Xu Shanshan got the upper hand, so she naturally said a lot of flattering words. In this way, the situation is naturally good for you, me, and everyone.

After Xu Lao Da and his family left, Xu Shanshan tried to coax her parents again. She said, "Dad, Mom, Zhou Kai told me that there are complete sets of information in big cities. With that information, even if I don't attend the teacher's lectures, I will definitely be able to get into university."

"Xu Fei will also take the college entrance examination next year. I'm thinking of buying him a set of materials."

"That's right, I just don't have any money."

When Xu Laoer heard this, he knew that this was a major matter concerning the future generations of their Xu family, so he naturally took it seriously and immediately expressed his willingness to pay for Xu Shanshan to take care of her.

Xu Shanshan knew everything about the family's savings. After all, her parents could not save any money, and the little money they had now was earned by her sisters from selling eggs and half an acre of corn the day before yesterday.

This half acre of corn field was reclaimed by the eldest and second sisters.

The sisters work hard, so the money cannot be given to the neighbors cheaply.

After all, if she didn't take it, her father would definitely find a reason to borrow it later.

You have to know that Daddy's family pays attention to everything they do.

Whenever they fart, the eldest uncle has to come and smell it to see if there is any meaty smell.

So she said again: "Dad, you have to give me some more. If you only buy things for Xu Fei and leave nothing for the eldest and second brothers, I'm afraid it will cause discord between them. By the way, Congcong from the second brother's family is the root of our Xu family. As an aunt, I have to buy some things when I go out. Give me all the money."

When Xu Laoer heard this, he thought it made sense, and he actually took out a broken pottery basin from under the bed and took out some of his coffin book.

Xu Shanshan was a little surprised, and then took the money without hesitation.

When she is away from home, her parents don’t think about her, so she has to think about herself.

As the old saying goes, a poor home makes a rich journey. It was her first time to go on a long journey, and she felt uneasy without money.