Chapter 6
The daughter-in-law had been out for a long time and had not returned yet. Zhang Weilan could not help but put on her clothes and go out to look for her.
When she saw the little figure squatting at the gate of the yard, covering her face and crying, and she didn't even notice her beautiful long hair dragging on the ground, her heart ached.
"Miaomiao, your dad has gone far away. Let's go back to the house first so we don't get frozen. Your dad would be very worried if you got sick."
"Well, let's go, mother-in-law." Zhong Miao was still well-behaved.
Zhang Weilan was almost shocked when she saw how the father and daughter got along today. Old Zhong really valued his daughter more than anything else. This was the first time in her life that she had seen a father who doted on his daughter so much.
Today she also noticed the changes in Zhong Miao. When her father was around, the child had a smile on her face, but when her father left, she seemed to have lost her soul.
The daughter-in-law was not a cold person, she just had different opinions on people. For the first time, she began to doubt this marriage. Could this young and delicate flower be attracted to her unreliable son? Could her son warm up this cold girl?
At night, Pei Ze tossed and turned in bed.
He had never seen a father and daughter who were so close to each other, nor had he seen a father who spoiled his child so much. Old Zhong wanted to feed the girl with food and took care of her like a moron.
At the same time, Zhong Ming also took special care of Zhong Miao's emotions, accepted all her coquettishness, coaxed and praised her. No two-year-old girl in the village had such treatment.
Zhong Miao's eyes only light up when she looks at her father; she is cold to everyone else.
It was only after listening to the conversation between the father and daughter that he realized that his wife didn't like him either, had no sense of belonging to his family, and was a cold-hearted person who would abandon her husband and children at any time.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help feeling a little uncomfortable. Zhong Miao already lived better in his family than most people in the village, and his old mother treated him like a daughter-in-law and treated her like the apple of her eye.
He used to think that Zhong Miao was just a noisy girl. Even though she was calmer now, she still had nothing to do with university.
But after hearing what my father-in-law said today, the father and daughter seemed very confident about getting into art school.
Pei Ze secretly laughed at the father and daughter for being so ignorant and immature. They really dared to think so.
These days most people still don’t know what an art school is. Art exams are different from college entrance exams. Without guidance from professionals, you probably won’t even be able to get started.
The faint fragrance coming from Zhong Miao made him a little irritated. It turned out that he was overthinking the idea of having a wife, children and a warm bed.
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Zhong Miao had been accompanying An An to write long ago after dinner. She held a small notebook in her hand and with a few simple strokes she sketched out a little An An working at the desk.
Zhang Weilan came over curiously and asked, "Miaomiao, you can also paint?" She was a little surprised because she had never heard of anyone in the village who could paint.
"Yeah." Zhong Miao flipped through the small notebook page by page and showed it to her mother-in-law. She had drawn a lot of sketches this morning, some of An An and some of her busy mother-in-law.
"I want to see it too." An An put down his pen and came over to join in the fun.
"What a great painting! Our Miaomiao is really amazing."
"Yeah, my mom is the best." An An was proud because none of her friends had moms who could draw.
"Then An An, do you want to learn painting from me?" Zhong Miao felt a little tired from sitting on the small stool, so he stood up and rubbed his waist.
"Yes, I want to learn." An An thought that if he could draw, he could show off to his friends, so he immediately nodded in agreement.
"Miaomiao, go to the store and buy Mom a bottle of vinegar. An'an, how about you go with Mom?"
Zhang Weilan was observant. Seeing Zhong Miao rubbing her waist, she knew she was tired from sitting and wanted her to move around.
"But I still want to learn painting." An An was unhappy.
"There's no rush to learn painting. Wait until the afternoon. Writing and painting hurts your eyes."
"All right."
Zhong Miao put on her cotton-padded jacket, took An An's cotton-padded jacket and helped him put it on. Zhang Weilan stuffed a dollar into her pocket.
"Grandma, I have money."
"That's your pocket money. Save it for buying something nice when you go to town."
"Well, thank you, grandma."
"You don't have to take the rest back. The store sells snacks. Just buy whatever you want."
"I want to eat candy." An An got so excited when he heard about eating that he even forgot about drawing or not.
"Okay, I'll buy it for you." Zhong Miao touched An An's head. She felt a little pity for this child who had lost his parents.
The small shop at the entrance of the village is a bit simple and does not sell many goods. The best and most expensive items are nutritional supplements such as malted milk and milk powder. The rest are simple daily necessities and snacks, and there are not many varieties.
When buying vinegar, Zhong Miao realized that this dollar could buy five bottles of vinegar. Her mother-in-law was coaxing her out for a walk by buying snacks, just like coaxing a child.
Zhong Miao had just taken An An out of the convenience store when they met Pei Ze and Erwa who were passing by driving a ox cart.
Pei Ze saw his wife and child coming out of the store, holding a bottle of vinegar, and asked, "Are you running errands for Mom?"
"Well, why are you back so early?"
Zhong Miao hasn't seen him go to the furniture factory these days. He has been staying at home. No wonder he went bankrupt in the end. He is really not doing his job properly.
"What? Don't you want to see me?" Pei Ze looked nonchalant.
She definitely couldn't tell the truth, but she would also feel guilty if she lied. Zhong Miao considerately compromised, "It's okay."
Pei Ze was unhappy. "Tell me, what does it mean to be okay? I'm your man, do you understand?"
Erwa on the side covered his mouth and laughed. This sister-in-law is so arrogant. She doesn't buy into Brother Ze's words at all and dares to say anything.
Zhong Miao understood, but she just didn't take it seriously. "Don't make a fuss, the child is still here."
An An held Zhong Miao with one hand and put candy into his mouth with the other hand. His little mouth was so stuffed that he didn't even have space to say hello to his father. He could only wave to his father.
"Eat, eat, eat. You two only know how to eat. Pei Mingan, eat slower. Don't you want your teeth anymore?"
An An finally swallowed some of it, "Dad, you don't understand. My mom not only knows how to eat, she also knows how to draw."
Pei Ze couldn't help but become interested when he heard about painting. "Let's go home and see what your mother has painted."
Erwa drove the ox cart and followed slowly behind, looking at the family of three.
Pei Ze was tall, with broad shoulders and long legs. Zhong Miao looked particularly petite next to him, only reaching his shoulders. The child jumped around them, excitedly talking about the few words he had learned in the morning.
This scene stimulated Erwa and made him think about getting married. Ze Ge said this and that were not good, but his behavior was not the same.
When this delicate new bride stood aside, Brother Ze spoke a little more gently than usual, a typical example of someone who says one thing but does another.
When they arrived at the door of the house, Pei Ze removed the thick cloth covering the cargo on the ox cart, and Zhong Miao saw what was on it, which was a few pieces of furniture.
"Why are you standing there like an idiot? Go open the door to your new home."
Pei Ze nudged Zhong Miao with his elbow. He didn't hold back his strength, and Zhong Miao was caught off guard and almost fell. Fortunately, Pei Ze grabbed her clothes in time.
"Why are you touching me? Don't you know how strong you are?" Zhong Miao was unhappy, her little face tense.
"I didn't hit you. Who knew you were so vulnerable to teasing?" Pei Ze laughed midway through his words, revealing his characteristic Pei-style smirk. "Besides, I'm your husband. What's wrong with touching you?"
Zhong Miao glared at him and turned to open the door.
"Oh my brother, look at how sticky you are, wow." Erwa joked while helping Pei Ze unload the goods.
"What a jerk! My buddy married a fake wife who can't do any work and glares at me when I touch her."
"Hehe, you're just being stubborn. My sister-in-law is so kind, how can you bear to let her work? If I married her, I would definitely beat her with a stick and make her a scapegoat."
"Get lost, if you want to marry someone, go get one yourself, stop staring at my wife."
"Brother Ze, did you notice?"
"What did you find?"
"You are protecting your food, hahaha." Erwa teased while dodging Pei Ze's big hand.
Zhong Miao opened the door. The day before yesterday, her father came and was given a tour by her mother-in-law. She had never been into this room before, and the room in front of her had completely changed.
The old furniture had long been moved out and burned as firewood. The kang board looked like a new one, so clean that it was reflective. The yellowed old newspapers on the wall were gone, and it was spotlessly white after being painted.
The two men moved the furniture into the house one by one. Zhong Miao couldn't help but feel a little sorry for the cow. It must have been very strong after pulling so many things.
A square desk, two chairs, a dressing table, a bathtub, a wardrobe and a half-length mirror.
Looking at the new house after the major renovation, Zhong Miao couldn't help but feel a little dazed.
"I told you you're clueless, and you're still not happy about it. What are you standing there for? Go to Mom's room and bring our clothes and bedding over."
"Ah?" Zhong Miao was stroking the pattern on the wardrobe, thinking it was simple and beautiful, and didn't react for a moment.
Pei Ze wasn't angry either. Seeing her dazed look, he couldn't help but teasing her, "Wife, the walls are dry and the furniture is ready. We'll sleep in this room tonight, and Mom will take An An to sleep in the main room."
"An An won't sleep with us?"
"An An sleeps with grandma." Pei Ze approached her, curious about her expression.
"Okay, got it."
After moving the furniture, Erwa drove the ox cart away first.
Zhang Weilan helped the couple clean up the room, while Zhong Miao and Pei Ze moved things one by one.
While packing up, Zhong Miao dug out a few high school textbooks from the cabinet. Thinking about the college entrance exam next year, he said, "Can you lend me these books?"
"Okay, if you can understand it, then read it. An An said you drew something this morning. Show it to me."
Zhong Miao picked up the small notebook on the table and handed it to Pei Ze.
Pei Ze studied mechanical engineering in college. He didn't know how to draw, but he could tell that Zhong Miao was a good painter.
These are the sketches that Zhong Miao casually drew, or you could say they are drafts.
The lines she draws are majestic and smooth, and she can easily outline the structure of the characters. The pencil tones on the picture are black and white, light and heavy, and slow and fast, showing the light and dark relationship between light and shadow.
"The painting is good. You want to borrow the book to read? Are you planning to take the college entrance examination?" Pei Ze asked tentatively.
"Well, I don't know when Qingmei's school exam is. My dad went to find out."
"Are you so confident?"
"Of course." Zhong Miao was certainly confident. Apart from cheating her father, she only had this one skill, so she was naturally very skilled in it. The art exam was not difficult for her.
"Then I'll give you an assignment." Pei Ze raised his eyebrows.
Zhong Miao ignored him. No wonder this guy had a bad reputation in the village. He never spoke seriously and even assigned homework. Why?
"Draw me some furniture."
Pei Ze just wanted to embarrass her and didn't take it seriously.
Zhong Miao thought that Pei Ze worked in a furniture factory, and now she had to rely on her husband's family for support. It was not difficult for her to help him draw a few furniture design drawings, but drawings were just drawings. As for the production process, she had no idea.
"OK."
Zhong Miao did it right away. He sat down next to Pei Mingan's small desk, took out a larger piece of straw paper, used a pen as a ruler, and started drawing.
Pei Ze came over curiously. He wanted to see what this girl was capable of.
An hour later, Pei Ze's eyes lit up, and he could even be said to be a little surprised.
Two hours later, Pei Ze frowned.
The painting shows a complete set of dining tables and chairs, a sofa, and a bed. Although it is just a sketch, it can be seen that it is a very novel style.
What made him frown was that Zhong Miao had marked the specific dimensions of each piece of furniture, and even the patterns on the furniture were drawn separately with specific markings.
This was even more professional than the drawings made by a carpenter. He wondered where a country girl like her could learn this.
"Where did you learn this?"
Zhong Miao was asked again, could she say that she had seen many manuscripts of design masters?
"My dad taught me."
"Don't try to fool me. If your dad knew this, how could he be so poor?"
"Stop talking nonsense, love it or not." Since she couldn't answer anyway, she just gave up and let it go.
"Yes, just draw it like this. If you have time, draw more." Pei Ze picked up the paper, folded it carefully, and put it in his coat pocket.
"You have a nice idea."
“I call this making the best use of things.”
Zhong Miao was speechless. She had experienced Pei Ze's bad mouth before.
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