Zhang Jianguo's family visit leave is 15 days long. The round trip by train takes 4 days, and he can only stay at home for two or three days before he has to prepare to return to the army.
Since being rejected by Xia Qingqing last time, Zhang Jianguo has never taken the initiative to contact her again, because he didn't want to put her in a difficult position or cause her any trouble.
But Zhang Jianguo felt bitter. He never expected that after living for more than 20 years, he would lose his heart on this trip home.
Lan Meili noticed her son's absent-mindedness these past few days and vaguely sensed something was wrong.
When her son came home last time, he said he didn't like Xia Qingqing. Although she felt a little regretful, she could only sigh that the two children were not meant to be.
But judging from her son's behavior these past few days, he clearly looked like he had just broken up with his girlfriend. Only then did Lan Meili realize that her son might have been lying to her before.
It wasn't that he didn't like Xia Qingqing, but that Xia Qingqing didn't like him.
Lan Meili has always felt sorry for her second son, who left home to join the army when he was a teenager. Over the years, her second son has only come home a few times, each time in a hurry and then leaving again in a hurry.
"Jianguo, come here, Mom wants to talk to you," Lan Meili called her son, who was staring blankly into space, and led him to her room.
Zhang Jianguo obediently followed Lan Meili into the room and asked in confusion, "Mom, what do you want to talk to me about?"
Lan Meili pulled him to sit next to her: "Tell Mom honestly, did you lie to me last time? Did you actually have a crush on Qingqing?"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Jianguo froze, and said with a bitter expression, "No, how could that be? I don't want to think about marriage right now. Let's talk about it in a few years."
"You came from my belly, how could I not know you? If you didn't like Qingqing, why have you been looking so lost and dejected these past few days?"
Zhang Jianguo fell silent. Any explanation would be futile now; he just hadn't expected to be so obvious.
After a long silence, Zhang Jianguo said in a low voice, "Yes, I like her, but she doesn't like me."
"So she has someone she likes?" Lan Meili was a little surprised. She didn't seem to have heard of it. But if she did have someone she liked, she would have to advise her son to cut his losses in time.
Zhang Jianguo shook his head: "No, she just said she doesn't want to think about marriage for the time being."
Lan Meili glanced at her stunned son and pressed, "So what did you say to her?"
Zhang Jianguo scratched his neck somewhat embarrassedly: "I told him that I don't want to get married right now, and I want to wait a few years before thinking about it."
"You're such a blockhead! How did I give birth to such a stupid son?" Lan Meili looked at Zhang Jianguo with a mixture of disappointment and frustration.
Xia Qingqing is only 18 years old this year. She has read a lot of books, so it's normal for her to want to get married a couple of years later. But who says she has to settle down now? She can win someone over first and then get married in a couple of years.
"If you like her, go after her! How can you win a girl's heart if you're like a block of wood?"
Zhang Jianguo looked at Lan Meili hesitantly: "But, won't this cause her trouble?"
Hearing her foolish son's words, Lan Meili pinched her philtrum; she was so angry she was about to explode.
He said, panting heavily, "As the saying goes, 'A family with a daughter will have a hundred suitors.' If you don't take some real action, why would anyone like you? Why would anyone marry you?"
"Before your eldest brother and third brother got married, they helped the bride's family with chores, and brought them food and red ribbons..."
Lan Meili talked at length about her other two sons' techniques for pursuing women, which opened up a whole new world for Zhang Jianguo.
A thoughtful look flashed across his eyes as he said, "Is that so?"
——
The next day, Zhang Jianguo specially selected a pair of butterfly hair clips from the supply and marketing cooperative early in the morning.
Xia Qingqing was chopping pig feed when she suddenly heard Zhang Jianguo calling her.
"Hey, Brother Jianguo, what brings you here?" Xia Qingqing stopped what she was doing, stood up, and greeted Zhang Jianguo with a smile.
Looking at Xia Qingqing, who was smiling sweetly, Zhang Jianguo nervously touched the hair clip in his pocket and stammered, "I just came to take a look. Um, let me help you."
As he spoke, Zhang Jianguo squatted down and began cutting pig feed.
Xia Qingqing quickly stopped her, "Oh, really, there's no need. Brother Jianguo, you don't have to be so polite."
"It's okay, I'm faster than you, I'll be done in a minute," Zhang Jianguo said, chopping the pig feed without stopping.
Xia Qingqing looked at his skillful movements and was somewhat surprised: "Brother Jianguo, you cut it so fast. Did you cut pig feed in the army?"
The military has a mess hall, so they probably raise pigs too, otherwise how could they afford to feed so many soldiers?
Upon hearing this, Zhang Jianguo shook his head and said with a smile, "No, it's just that I cut a lot of pieces when I was a child, and practice makes perfect."
The two chatted idly, neither noticing the figure crouching in the bushes not far away.
That person was He Xiaohua. After being rejected by Zhang Jianguo last time, she overheard her parents saying in private that they had found a suitable match for her and that the man would come to propose in a few days. She panicked immediately.
She had originally come to see Zhang Jianguo, but before she could even call out to him, she saw him walking towards the pigsty with a smile on his face.
Who else could be over there besides Xia Qingqing, the Bego person? He Xiaohua gritted her teeth in anger and secretly followed Zhang Jianguo to see what he wanted with Xia Qingqing.
Zhang Jianguo was so nervous thinking about Xia Qingqing that he didn't even notice that there was someone following him.
After chopping the last bunch of pig feed, Zhang Jianguo asked, "It's all chopped up. Should we cook it?"
Xia Qingqing nodded: "Brother Jianguo, I can do the rest myself. You've already chopped the pig feed for me, so how can I trouble you any further?"
If it were before, Zhang Jianguo would have stopped, but after his mother's lecture, he knew that some girls were just shy and embarrassed to ask for help, and that he shouldn't take it seriously if she refused.
After all the work was finished, Zhang Jianguo finally revealed the reason he had come to find Xia Qingqing: "Um, Qingqing, I..."
Xia Qingqing looked at Zhang Jianguo with a puzzled expression, waiting for him to continue: "What's wrong, Brother Jianguo? Is there something you want to say?"
Zhang Jianguo was so nervous he couldn't speak. He closed his eyes and handed the butterfly hair clip from his pocket to Xia Qingqing: "This is for you."
"No, I can't take this," Xia Qingqing quickly stepped back a few paces and put her hands behind her back.
What's going on? Didn't they agree that neither of them was interested in each other? How come it seems like Zhang Jianguo likes me now?
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