Xia Ning recently inquired about the Bai family, but the Bai family members rarely went out, so she didn't get much information!
Xia Ning thought for a moment and said:
"The Bai family consists of only two people: Grandma Bai and her grandson Bai Pangui. Grandpa Bai has two brothers, and Grandma Bai has two sons. All of them are martyrs. It can be said that there are more martyrs than living people in Grandma Bai's family!"
Xia Ning stopped there, which was why she didn't disturb Grandma Bai.
She greatly admired Grandma Bai, and Grandma Bai deserved everyone's respect.
She wanted to live with her granddaughter and didn't want to be disturbed, and Xia Ning respected her wishes!
Grandma Bai's family is the only one where, even though it's just the two of them, no one on the entire farm would bully them, and no scoundrel would climb over the wall!
Upon hearing this, Li Jing didn't know what to say.
If we're talking about who should be chosen, Grandma Bai's family is definitely the most suitable. There are two of them, grandmother and grandson, and they also have an empty house.
Their presence certainly wouldn't disturb the grandmother and grandson; on the contrary, they could even help with some chores.
But Grandma Bai doesn't want to be disturbed, so that's the biggest problem!
Li Jing sighed:
"What about the other options? Which one do you think would be suitable?"
Xia Ning pondered for a moment and said:
"Let's go to Aunt Wang's house. Although Aunt Wang likes to take advantage of small things, we'll just stay there for the whole winter. We can bear with it!"
"When the time comes, I'll find a way to buy an iron stove, which can be used for both heating and cooking. That way, she won't be able to gain much advantage!"
Iron stoves are not cheap at all. A stove plus several sections of the stove pipe will cost at least 40 yuan, and a large ladle for cooking will cost another 20 yuan.
Li Jing said somewhat embarrassedly:
"This money is for the three of us, but Yang Xiaohong and I don't have much money left. We'll pay you back when we earn work points next year and exchange them for cash at the end of the year!"
There was really no other way; Yang Xiaohong and Li Jing's family situations were almost identical, with both families favoring sons over daughters.
If it weren't for Yang Xiaohong's help in finding a solution, her family would have withheld even her rural allowance, and she would have suffered a serious illness last winter, which would have been even worse!
Neither of them has any money right now. Each of them only has a little over ten yuan. They set aside ten yuan to build a house and a few yuan for emergencies. They really don't have money to buy a stove or a large ladle!
We can only owe Xia Zhiqing for now, and wait until we earn more work points next year and ask for less grain at the end of the year to exchange for some money, then we will have the money to repay Xia Zhiqing.
Unlike Tang Zixuan and Bai Yueyao, Li Jing didn't pretend that nothing had happened. Instead, she openly said that she didn't have the money and even said when she would pay her back. This made Xia Ning feel that she had indeed made the right choice in partnering with her.
Xia Ning nodded and asked:
"Can you two make cotton wadding and cotton-padded jackets and trousers?"
Li Jing pointed at Yang Xiaohong and said:
"She's incredibly skilled with her hands. She made all our clothes and pants. Look how dense the stitches are on my clothes!"
Yang Xiaohong was a little embarrassed by the praise and said:
"It's just something we're doing haphazardly. Xia, you need thick quilts, thick mattresses, and cotton-padded jackets and trousers, right? We'll help you make them. The three of us working together can be quick. We guarantee we'll finish within a week!"
Xia Ning agreed:
"Alright, then I'll give you two my quilts, mattresses, cotton-padded jackets and trousers. I'll charge you 1.5 yuan per item for the labor. There will be one quilt, one mattress, and two cotton-padded jackets and trousers, totaling 9 yuan. I'll deduct that from the money I spent on the stove and the large ladle!"
Li Jing disagreed, saying:
"Making quilts, cotton-padded jackets, and cotton-padded trousers is part of our partnership and mutual assistance, so I can't charge you for it!"
"We'll help you with this. Do whatever you can to help. Don't be too calculating when living together, otherwise it'll be impossible to live together if you're so meticulous about every penny!"
"But the stove and the large ladle—those are things you actually spent money on; you can't compare them!"
Yang Xiaohong chimed in:
"Li Jing is right. That's how we've always gotten along. We help each other with work and keep our finances separate!"
"They charge us for making quilts, cotton-padded jackets, and cotton-padded trousers. Xia, the educated youth, doesn't treat us like friends at all!"
"If you feel bad about it, there will definitely be some fabric left over from making clothes for you. Then, Li Jing and I can make enough cotton slippers!"
Xia Ning was deeply moved after listening to their words!
She and Zhong Wanwan interacted in a reciprocal manner; Zhong Wanwan would lend a helping hand when she needed it.
When I was with Li Jing and Yang Xiaohong, the two of them were both very clear about how to keep track of money.
When it came to contributing money, the two were very clear about the costs. But when she asked them for help, they refused to accept anything, even though she could tell they were desperately short of money!
So this is how girls should get along!
Xia Ning had many male friends from his childhood in the military compound, but not a single female friend.
Oh, if I had to say, there is one: Bai Yueyao, Grandpa Xia's housekeeper, who is also the nanny's daughter!
Xia Ning was a tomboy when she was little, and she always followed her older brother around, so she was mostly around boys.
Later, as they grew up, Bai Yueyao became close to him, and Bai Yueyao would often speak ill of other female classmates, intentionally or unintentionally.
Xia Ning had no contact with other female classmates. She spent every day with Bai Yueyao, so she naturally believed what Bai Yueyao said. If Bai Yueyao said someone was bad, Xia Ning would simply have less contact with them, or even avoid contact with them altogether.
Over time, he really did lose all his female friends!
In Xia Ning's interactions with Bai Yueyao, it was always Bai Yueyao who would act coquettishly and indirectly ask Xia Ning for things.
Or if Bai Yueyao takes a liking to her things, she can borrow them and use them until they are worn out or she no longer likes them, then she will return them to her!
Xia Ning sometimes felt that she wasn't very happy getting along with Bai Yueyao.
Who made Bai Yueyao have such a good helper, Tang Zixuan? Tang Zixuan always said that this is how girls get along.
He told her not to be too calculating, as he didn't like girls who were too calculating. Xia Ning then reflected on whether she had really done something wrong!
And so, this abnormal relationship between the three of them was maintained as the other two people exploited Xia Ning!
Later, he met Zhong Wanwan, who pointed out the ambiguous relationship between Tang Zixuan and Bai Yueyao.
Xia Ning then realized that Tang Zixuan didn't like her at all; he only liked Bai Yueyao.
Xia Ning wasn't the type to hold grudges. If someone didn't like her, there was no need to force it. She let them be together!
Later, their relationship changed again. They got married, but their relationship only got worse!
Xia Ning thought to herself with a self-deprecating smile, "Without the romance of flowers and moonlight, all that's left is the mundane realities of life. And with no one to be our blood transfusion bag, we finally understand how tough life is."
Or, for Tang Zixuan, a proper relationship is not as exciting as a secret one?
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