Chapter 61

Compared with the Ye family's luxurious lineup, the dozen or so people from the Wu family can only be regarded as a small scene.

After Ye Manzhi got to know a group of people and received several red envelopes for the New Year, the tense mood she had been in all the way finally showed signs of easing.

"Grandma, you are too partial. When our Qiu Ling came to visit you, you didn't give her such a big red envelope!" The speaker was Wu Zhengrong's fourth brother Wu Chongshan.

Grandma Wu smiled and glared at him. "Your wife hasn't said anything yet, and you're already getting anxious!"

"My wife is shy and doesn't dare to express her opinions!"

Meng Qiuling blushed and complained, "I received red envelopes from my grandma when I was a child. This is Xiaoye's first time visiting, so please don't make me sound petty!"

"I'm speaking for you," Wu Chongshan said after a while, then said to Ye Manzhi, "Xiao Ye, don't mind me, we were just joking!"

Ye Manzhi's eyes quickly swept across his face, and she smiled shyly.

Wu Zhengrong's cousin has a square face, thick eyebrows and big eyes. Apart from the military uniform, he looks nothing like Wu Zhengrong.

Not only are they different in appearance, but their personalities are also different.

My cousin is a good talker. Since she came in, he and Aunt Wu have been responsible for adjusting the atmosphere. Not only did they make Grandma Wu and Mother Wu smile, but even the serious Grandpa Wu looked at him kindly.

Ye Manzhi usually enjoyed spending time with people like her, like Liu Jinbao. The atmosphere was always lively when they were around. But today, for some reason, she felt a little annoyed with this cousin.

She subconsciously turned her gaze to Wu Zhengrong, who was wearing a white shirt and a pretty green wool vest. He was sitting in the chair opposite her with a relaxed posture, like a proud peacock.

Wu Zhengrong seemed to be paying attention to her movements. At the slightest sign of trouble, he would raise his eyebrows slightly and look at her to ask what was wrong.

Ye Manzhi shook his head imperceptibly, and then suddenly felt relieved.

With a face like Wu Zhengrong's and a personality like his cousin's, wouldn't he be a complete playboy?

Fortunately, he didn't become like that. She didn't want to fall in love with a smooth-talking man!

Wu Xiulan sat with Ye Manzhi and saw that she was listening quietly with a smile and didn't like to talk much. It was just as her grandmother said, she was a very quiet girl. She couldn't help but glance at her cousin. Today was Xiao Ye's first visit. Her cousin had a cheerful personality and was always talking and laughing, so he inevitably seemed to be the main guest.

She grabbed a few candies, gave one to Ye Manzhi, and asked with a smile, "Xiao Ye, my brother told me you were in the newspaper a while ago, and it was even on the front page? You're really capable!"

Upon hearing this, everyone's attention once again focused on the protagonist Ye Manyi.

Ye Manzhi actually didn't care about being overshadowed by other guests. She wished there were a few more people to distract everyone's attention.

For example, when Wu Zhengrong was at her house, he just had to eat and drink, and all the words were said by her relatives.

However, being in the newspaper did make her proud. Even though she had been bragging about it at home for half a month, she still felt particularly happy when someone asked her about it.

As usual, she said modestly, "I went to the conference to receive the award on behalf of my unit. I didn't expect that the newspaper would pick up the photo of me speaking and publish it in the paper."

After hearing this, Wu Zhengrong couldn't help but curl up the corners of his lips. Although Cadre Xiao Ye was humble, he still emphasized three key points in just one sentence.

First, she went to receive the award; second, she went on stage to speak; third, the speech must have been very good, otherwise she would not have been selected by the newspaper.

Wu Xiulan was pursuing an academic career and was just a female college student. After hearing what Ye Manyi said, she did not realize that she was secretly showing off, but only thought that her future sister-in-law was quite amazing.

She was about to support her sister-in-law when her cousin interrupted again, "You've been on the newspaper at such a young age, you're already more impressive than us. When we were your age, we really didn't have this ability!"

Aunt Wu laughed and said, "You must be mistaken. Zhengrong took first place in the provincial entrance exam that year, and it was even reported in the newspaper. I still have several copies of that newspaper. It seems Xiaoye and our Zhengrong are a perfect match!"

"Hahaha, who can compare to Zhengrong!" Wu Chongshan said with a grin, "Zhengrong inherited grandfather's legacy. He was brought up by grandfather and taught by example. How could he not get first place in the exam? We brothers and sisters are so envious of him. Our generation hasn't had a high level of education in our family. Fortunately, Zhengrong and Xiulan are college students, otherwise our Wu family's reputation as a scholarly family would be ruined in our hands!"

Sun Ruzhen said disapprovingly, "The situation was turbulent at the time, and the situation on the front lines was tight. It was already quite good that you were able to go to middle school. There's no need to belittle yourselves."

After hearing what Wu Zhengrong's cousin and mother said, Ye Manzhi couldn't help but complain in his heart, according to what you said, as long as anyone follows Grandpa Wu, they can get the first place in the province.

Reading requires talent, right?

Only one or two students from their school can get into university every year. Is it really that easy to get into university?

With just a few words from you, getting into college becomes as easy as eating and drinking water.

She had originally planned to be a quiet and pretty girl in the Wu family, but now she couldn't help but want to defend Comrade Wu Zhengrong.

However, to her surprise, Wu Zhengrong had completely different styles at home and at work.

Before she could respond, a look of sarcasm appeared on his handsome face.

"If you say so, even pigs near a temple can chant. Fourth brother, you and your elder brothers have indeed been delayed in your studies by the current situation. However, there's no need to underestimate yourself. You've been following Political Commissar Wu around for years, and you'll definitely surpass him and become a commander or political commissar in the future."

Ye Manzhi looked at her cousin's epaulettes.

Unlike Wu Zhengrong's casual outfit, his cousin was wearing a military uniform today.

She was not very good at recognizing military ranks, but her cousin had one less star on his shoulder than Wu Zhengrong. She didn't know what he did in the army, but judging from the stars alone, his rank should be lower than Wu Zhengrong's.

"..." Wu Chongshan was choked by his counterattack. After a long pause, he replied, "How can it be so easy to be a commander? This is Xiao Ye's first visit. Can't you give me, your brother, some face?"

Wu Zhengrong smiled and said nothing.

Others may not understand the meaning of his smile, but Wu Xiaogu raised him and could fully understand what he meant - it was the first time my wife came to your house, and you didn't even give me face.

Her two nephews are only one year apart in age. One has lost his biological parents and lives with his uncle and aunt, while the other has biological parents and lives with his grandparents.

In fact, it’s not easy for both children.

But in this world, the crying child always gets the milk. Every time Chongshan goes back to his hometown, he always complains intentionally or unintentionally and asks for some benefits from his grandparents.

Because his son died early, the old man was relatively tolerant of his grandson.

The rigid dogma applied to Wu Zhengrong was not applied to Wu Chongshan.

However, Zhengrong's spiritual world seemed to be different from other children. When his cousin of the same age provoked him, he would either ignore him or look at him as a fool.

This was the first time she had seen such a direct and positive response.

Wu Xiaogu guessed that it might be related to the fact that his daughter-in-law was visiting them for the first time.

She quickly tried to smooth things over, saying, "You two are so grown up, why are you still bickering like children? It's really making Xiaoye laugh! The food's ready, let's eat! I heard Xiaoye likes seafood, so I specially made a braised prawn and yellow croaker. Xiaoye, try my cooking today!"

Ye Manzhi thanked him with a smile, and at the same time breathed a sigh of relief in her heart.

Fortunately, Wu Zhengrong spoke up in time, otherwise she would not be able to maintain her image as a quiet and well-behaved lady in front of the elders of the Wu family!

The overall family environment of the Wu family is relatively harmonious, and there is no habit of not talking while eating or sleeping.

Because she was the bride's wife and it was her first official visit, the elders didn't discuss marriage in front of her. Instead, they mostly asked about her work and hobbies. Of course, Grandpa Wu was also concerned about the young man's academic progress.

Except for Wu Zhengrong, he took care of the academic situation of several young people one by one.

The cousin still dominated the dinner table. Wu Zhengrong didn't talk much, not even as much as when the two of them ate alone at the factory.

However, thanks to his help in picking up food from time to time, Ye Manzhi ate half a plate of braised prawns.

Moreover, Wu Zhengrong is left-handed, so she put the peeled shrimp shells between the two of them, making it impossible to tell who ate them.

Hehehehe.

Wu Xiaogu wanted to organize a mahjong game after dinner and asked Ye Manzhi to join them. Ye Manzhi was still only half-baked at the game and didn't find it particularly enjoyable at the moment, but she had just had a very satisfying meal and felt that she should return the favor by playing a few rounds with Xiaogu.

When she came to visit this time, she not only brought red envelopes for the Wu family's children, but also brought a wallet for herself.

I can still afford to lose today!

However, Wu Zhengrong turned down her sister-in-law's offer on her behalf. "She has to go back early this afternoon. I'll show her around my house and then we'll go to the provincial university campus later."

The aunt was just trying to find some entertainment to prevent the little girl from feeling embarrassed. Upon hearing this, she immediately said, "That's even better! You can take Xiaoye around to see her around!"

So, Ye Manzhi was taken upstairs by Wu Zhengrong for a tour under the gaze of the whole family.

"It's okay for us to come in alone. Grandma and Auntie are still downstairs."

Wu Zhengrong closed the door and said casually, "I told you a long time ago that just a casual visit with my mom would be enough. They work out of town all year round, and we haven't seen each other in years. My grandmother likes you very much, so you might spend more time with her in the future."

Ye Manzhi didn't notice it at first, but after a meal, he basically understood everything he needed to see.

This mother and son seemed to have hardly spoken to each other. It wasn't that they were unfamiliar or polite, but they just had nothing to talk about.

Wu Zhengrong is not the kind of person who would make small talk, and Sun Ruzhen seemed to have no idea what to say to her son.

So there was zero communication throughout the whole process.

Compared with Wu Zhengrong, her cousin looks more like her future mother-in-law's biological son!

If Chang Yue'e dared to treat other children better than her, Ye Manzhi would definitely make a big fuss and turn the roof off.

But Wu Zhengrong just watched silently.

Why.

Ye Manzhi felt a little sad for him and couldn't help but put her arms around his waist and rubbed her head against his chest.

Just give him a little comfort.

Wu Zhengrong didn't realize she had already made him look like a poor little thing. He patted her on the back and asked, "How do you feel today?"

"It's quite nice! Apart from a vegetable cellar, I've never seen a house with stairs inside! And there are lots of calligraphy and paintings hanging on the walls. It's obvious that it has a lot of cultural heritage."

Wu Zhengrong was amused by her description. "Then you can come over often in the future. My grandma likes you very much."

Ye Manzhi looked up at him and asked, "Do you like me more, or does your grandma like me more?"

"I."

After hearing the answer he wanted, Ye Manzhi felt a little uncomfortable.

Wu Zhengrong is so good! Even she likes Wu Zhengrong so much, why is his mother so cold!

I haven't seen my son for years. Now that we finally meet, shouldn't I be nicer to him?

Compared with her mother, she felt that Grandpa Wu became adorable.

"We're participating in the National Quyi Festival, and there will be friends and family tickets. Do you want to invite grandpa and grandma to watch my performance?"

"Do you want an invitation?"

Grandma really likes this kind of performance, but Wu Zhengrong was afraid that Ye Manzhi would feel pressured, so she didn't tell her family that she was going to join the team in the performance.

"You can invite them," Ye Manzhi asked, "When will Auntie, Xiulan, and Fourth Brother leave?"

"I'll be back after the Chinese New Year, so I might not be able to catch your performance."

"Oh, that's a pity." Ye Manzhi sighed halfheartedly, and then asked worriedly, "If I invite grandma to watch my performance, do I need to write an invitation?"

Wu Zhengrong thought her fearful expression was quite adorable, so he said cooperatively, "If you want to write, then write. If you don't want to, just give her a ticket."

Of course Ye Manzhi wanted to write the invitation.

After all, when Grandma Wu invited her to visit, she also wrote an invitation.

But her handwriting is not up to par yet. Wouldn't it be exposing her weakness if she took the initiative to write an invitation?

Wu Zhengrong caught a glimpse of the confusion on her face and whispered, "My grandmother never went to school before. She only started learning to read after she married my grandfather. She started practicing calligraphy when she was a teenager and spent her entire life practicing to achieve her current level of writing. How old are you? There's no need to compare yourself to her. Your handwriting has improved greatly compared to six months ago."

Having said that, when Ye Manzhi said goodbye to the Wu family that day, she did not invite the elders to watch her performance.

She wanted to go home and cram for a while and write a few copies of calligraphy.

When the time comes, show off your skills and write a good invitation!

Whenever she needed to write, she missed Aunt Feng especially and wished she could be possessed by Aunt Feng.

If it really doesn't work, being possessed by Wu Zhengrong would be a good thing!

*

When Ye Manzhi visited her future husband's family for the first time, besides herself, the person who cared most about the outcome was Chang Yue'e.

That night, Chang Yue'e reviewed the day's visit with her daughter.

As a result, Ye Manzhi was surprised to find that her future mother-in-law not only didn't talk much to Wu Zhengrong, but also didn't talk much to her.

Apart from asking about her age and job when giving her a red envelope, there was no other useful communication.

Chang Yue'e asked, "Did she have anything to say to anyone else?"

"I didn't notice it. It seems there was nothing to say."

Chang Yue'e didn't want her daughter to have wild thoughts, so she came to a conclusion directly: "Then your mother-in-law is a quiet person, not warm to anyone! She is not warm to her own son, how can she be warm to you? It's impossible for someone not to like someone like you. If she can't be warm to you, that's her problem!"

Ye Manzhi felt relieved all of a sudden. Yes, she didn’t think there was anything wrong with her, so it must be the other person’s problem.

In any case, after visiting the Wu family, Ye Manzhi had overcome the most difficult hurdle of this Spring Festival.

After putting her worries aside, she had a great time at home for two days. When she went to work again, she greeted her colleagues and neighbors with great energy, perfectly demonstrating what it means to have a new year and a new look.

Director Mu held the first regular meeting of the new year. Everyone was in high spirits and the meeting atmosphere was very lively.

The three most important things at the beginning of the year are to mobilize young people to get vaccinated, to continue to mobilize the surplus labor force to return home, and to start preparing to build primary schools after the spring.

These three things are not particularly urgent tasks, and people's response after hearing them was not enthusiastic.

It was not until Director Mu suggested that Ye Manzhi serve as the liaison officer of the street and go to the district to participate in the "cooperative to factory" reform that different voices suddenly emerged in the office.

"Director, cooperatives fall under the category of industry, right? Isn't industry my responsibility?"

Zhuang Ting is in charge of the street’s industrial work together with Zhang Qinjian.

By participating in the "cooperative to factory" reform, you can contact the district directly and may also come into contact with comrades from the Industrial Bureau, Finance Bureau and other units. Being a liaison officer is a good opportunity to expand your network.

If it was something else, then it was missed. There was no need for her to fall out with her colleagues over work.

But if you do this job well, you will obviously be able to achieve results. If you use your connections, you may even have the opportunity to work in the district.

There is no way Zhuang Ting would give up her opportunity to others.

She is a young cadre with a very active mind, and Mulan can guess some of her thoughts.

Mulan doesn't mind young people striving for progress. If she tries to find a way to change jobs privately like Xiao Liu, Mulan won't stop her.

But it is not okay to use the job opportunities provided by the streets as a stepping stone.

"The full name of the cooperative is the Handicraft Cooperative, and its primary focus is handicrafts. Previously, it was managed vertically by the city's Handicraft Union, so our neighborhood committee had little to do with it. Neither the industrial work you're responsible for nor the family handicrafts Xiaoye is responsible for have much to do with the cooperative. Xiaoye made some achievements in handicraft work last year, so this time, she'll serve as a liaison with the district. Zhuang Ting's work enthusiasm is commendable, and she can cooperate with Xiaoye. Let's do our best to complete this reform successfully."

Zhuang Ting: “…”

Not only is she not allowed to be a liaison, but she is also required to cooperate with Ye Manzhi's work?

Ye Manzhi had originally wanted to be a liaison officer for the district, and after Zhuang Ting suddenly suggested it, she felt that this liaison officer was even more popular.

Privately, she felt that she was more suitable than Zhuang Ting and Zhang Qinjian!

Guangming Street's work in industry last year could only be considered average, but she won the second-class model award for her family handicraft!

She felt that she had earned this opportunity through her own strength, so even though her relationship with Zhuang Ting had become a little subtle, she still accepted Director Mu's arrangement with peace of mind.

…

"I've been going to the district people's committee every day lately. Do you think I should buy a monthly bus pass?"

Wu Zhengrong asked: "How much is the monthly ticket?"

"If you only want to ride the trolleybus, it's more than three yuan. If you buy a ticket that allows you to ride both the trolleybus and the tram, it seems to cost more than seven yuan."

The district people's committee is quite far away, and Ye Manzhi really can't stand walking to and from get off work every day.

Wu Zhengrong suggested: "You can actually learn to ride a bicycle. The money you spend on a few months of monthly passes can buy you two wheels."

"I took my bike away, what are you going to do?"

"Once you learn how to ride, you can consider buying a bicycle of your own."

Ye Manzhi was tempted to try, but shook her head and said, "Forget it, I'm not going to learn. Buying a bicycle and paying 2.4 yuan in taxes every year is too much. I'd rather take a car."

She only stayed in the district for a while and would continue to work near her home.

It costs too much to get a bicycle. It's not worth it.

Ye Manzhi suppressed the idea of ​​learning to ride a bicycle, sorted out the relevant information of the handicraft cooperative, and went to the district to report.

The "Handicraft Cooperative to Factory Reform Office" is a department temporarily established by the District People's Committee.

The District People's Committee allocated an office on the first floor for this new department.

When Ye Manzhi went over with his bag, there were already seven or eight people in the office, busy cleaning.

Just as she was wondering who the leader was and who to report to, a middle-aged female cadre in the office waved at her.

"Xiao Zhang, right? Come here quickly!"

Ye Manzhi turned around and looked behind her, and found that there was no one else behind her. The "Xiao Zhang" she was calling might be her.

Seeing her standing there motionless, the female cadre waved again, "Xiao Zhang, I'm calling you!"

Ye Manzhi had no choice but to walk over, pull down her scarf and say, "Leader, you can call me Xiao Zhang, but everyone is used to calling me Xiao Ye."

The man looked her over for a few seconds, then exclaimed, "Look at the look in my eyes. Haha, I got the wrong person. Xiao Ye, right? Which unit are you from?"

"I'm the liaison officer sent by the Guangming Subdistrict Office. My name is Ye Manzhi."

"Oh, Ye Manzhi, I know. Your Director Mu told me that the young cadre who was in the newspaper is pretty good. Mulan has sent a capable person to our office!"

Liang Qiuyan took off her gloves, pulled out a small piece of paper, and said, "Our office has just been established, and we haven't even cleaned it up yet. There's so much work to do! Take this to the logistics department to get our office meal tickets and bus tickets. We'll be relying on these for meals and travel from now on."

Ye Manzhi was very excited and asked, "Leader, does the district provide meals?"

"Of course. From now on, you, the seconded cadres, will eat two meals a day in our People's Committee cafeteria! The district understands that the long journeys are tiring for our comrades, so they've allocated three special vehicles for us. You can go directly to the logistics office to pick up one!"

Ye Manzhi really didn't expect that she would receive such good treatment after working in the district.

Oh my god, she can ride in the official car when she goes out from now on!

She inquired about the location of the logistics department and excitedly ran to apply for a special car.

Then, I followed the young cadre from the Logistics Department all the way to the bicycle shed in front of the People's Committee.

"These bicycles are all available for you to use. Pick three first!"

"..." Ye Manzhi asked with a stern face, "Bicycle?"

"What else?"

Ye Manzhi: “…”

She thought it had four wheels!

She doesn't know how to ride this bike!

It seems that she still has to go back and learn how to ride a bicycle from Wu Zhengrong, otherwise she won’t be able to enjoy the treatment of this special car!