Today's lunch was prepared by Qiao Lu's mother, Lu Xiuhua.

The main course for lunch was steaming in the pot. Lu Xiuhua took out the white flour that she usually didn't want to eat and made white flour steamed buns. She also fried some bamboo shoots that Qiao Yuefu had dug from the mountain. There were also a few potatoes at home, which she stewed as well. She originally wanted to cut some of the fresh pork that Qiao Lu brought and stew it, but Niu Qiaoli refused, saying that she wanted to marinate it with salt and save it for Chinese New Year as fresh bacon. She said she was afraid that she wouldn't be able to afford meat during the Spring Festival.

In fact, she had quite a bit of money in her hands, so even if it was not enough, she could still afford a meal of meat for the New Year.

In the end, Qiao Yuefu had no choice but to take down the old bacon hanging on the beam, which had been dried by the wind for who knows how many years. He took it down, washed it, and prepared to cook and slice it for lunch.

Since it was the first time that Qiao Lu's boyfriend came to her house, she had to find a way to cook a bowl of meat, otherwise there would be nothing to eat.

Of course, Lu Xiuhua was mainly afraid that Xu Haizhou would feel that the Qiao family did not value him as their future son-in-law, and that he might treat her daughter badly in the future because of this... In any case, she had to treat him well.

Qiao Lu felt sour in her heart when she saw the rough dough buns that were not finished from the last meal.

"Mom, I heard from my sister that she sends you five dollars every month. How come your home is even poorer than before I left..." Five dollars is enough to buy fine grains, but this coarse grain makes my throat hurt.

Lu Xiuhua whispered, "Don't say that in front of your sister-in-law."

"She is still like this?" The "she" here naturally refers to Niu Qiaoli.

I thought that after Qiao An and I left, my sister-in-law would treat my mother-in-law and father-in-law well, but I didn't expect that there would be no improvement after she left?

His brother is really something, he can't control his own wife at all, and I don't know what's the use of having this son!

Qiao Lu was so angry that her head was smoking: "Mom, you never told us this. My sister's money is for you to spend, not for my sister-in-law to enjoy! My sister and brother-in-law work so hard in the factory. If it's still like this in the future, I can't send you money!"

Being scolded by her daughter, Lu Xiuhua seemed a little at a loss: "This, this... Alas."

…

After dinner, Qiao Lu took Xu Haizhou for a walk around the village. Unfortunately, the villagers were too "enthusiastic" and kept asking them questions. Qiao Lu quickly found an excuse to get away and took her son and Xu Haizhou to a secluded path.

The two planned to return to the city after dinner. Although she had a room in the house, when she sneaked in to take a look, she found that it had become a storage room.

There is no doubt that it must have been her sister-in-law's idea. She just hoped that she would leave and never come back.

Sighing, I feel helpless.

"Haizhou, you tell me... my sister-in-law treats my parents like this, and my parents are soft-hearted. It's almost impossible for them to resist on their own. How can I teach my sister-in-law a lesson? If I just leave like this, I'll always feel a little bit reluctant to let them go."

This matter has been bothering her since she returned home. After all, she has taken over the body of the original owner, and she should still help the old couple within her ability.

Xu Haizhou thought for a moment, then suddenly smiled mysteriously: "Just wait and see what happens."

Somehow, even though he didn't tell me the specific method, it made people feel reliable and at ease.

After touring the village, as soon as she entered the Qiao family compound, she heard heated conversation coming from her eldest brother's room. She guessed that the couple was arguing again.

Qiao Luxi thought it was nothing serious, but when she passed by the door, she couldn't help but hear the conversation between the two.

"I won't go! You asked me to clean up such a big room with so many groceries piled up, why don't you clean it up! Isn't that your sister?"

"What do you mean my sister, your sister? You are my wife! Qiaolu is also your sister! If you don't clean up that room, where will they sleep for three nights?"

"I don't care where they sleep, just don't sleep in my room."

"Tell me, why are you like this?"

"That's me! It's your first day meeting me!"

"Okay, if you don't go, I will!"

The arguing stopped, but the footsteps continued. Qiao Lu quickly pulled Xu Haizhou into the main room.

As soon as Qiao Guobin walked out of the door, he saw three people in the main room and walked in in surprise: "Qiao Lu? Are you done shopping now?"

Qiao Lu smiled and said, "Yeah, I just wandered around."

"Where can we go in such a short time? Take your partner out for a walk. I'll go clean up the south house so you can stay overnight. What do you want to eat? I'll go pick it from the fields."

Qiao Lu shook her head and refused, "No need, brother. We plan to go back to the city after dinner."

"What? So urgent? What are you in such a hurry for?" Qiao Guobin walked up quickly, wondering if they had heard the quarrel between him and Niu Qiaoli.

Jolu could lie without blushing or beating her heart.

"I have a lot of things to do at home. I have to send An An to kindergarten tomorrow morning. I didn't ask for leave from the teacher there. If I skip class, the teacher will have a bad impression of me."

So this was the reason. Qiao Guobin felt very disappointed.

"Well! It doesn't matter whether you go to kindergarten or not. Rural kids don't go to kindergarten. What's there to be afraid of?"

"I really can't. I have to go back tonight." Qiao Lu pushed his brother out of the yard and said, "Please pick some radishes for me. I want to eat some radishes."

"Are you really not going to stay overnight? Why don't you stay one more day?"

Qiao Lu shook her head: "I have to work in Haizhou tomorrow. I won't stay here any longer. I'll lose a few bucks if I stay one more day."

Upon hearing that the delay would last several days, Qiao Guobin was so scared that he dared not say a word and hurried to the vegetable garden to pick radishes for her.

"Okay, I won't keep you here. I have your favorite pickled garlic in the kitchen, I'll make it all for you tonight."

Hearing that Qiao Lu was not living at home, Niu Qiaoli happily packed dinner. Xu Haizhou said that he wanted to give her mother a betrothal gift, and took this opportunity to pull Lu Xiuhua and Qiao Yuefu into the house to talk.

As soon as the door was locked, a large pile of balls appeared from his pocket like magic.

Two hundred! Twenty big group tickets!

Not to mention Qiao's father and mother, even Qiao Lu was stunned.

Is the stall so profitable? She didn't know how much he had.

"No, no, we can't have this!" Qiao's father and mother were terrified and pushed his hand away in panic.

The old couple had never seen such money in their lives. When Qiao Yan first married into the city, her husband only gave her fifty yuan. Although fifty was not a small amount, two hundred yuan was an astronomical figure in comparison.

Xu Haizhou took Qiao Yuefu's hand and stuffed it into his pocket: "We came here in a hurry and didn't buy anything. Please accept this gift money.

Qiao Yuefu was not good at speaking and could not utter a word in this situation, so he turned to look at his wife.

Lu Xiuhua quickly refused: "How can we use so much money? We are marrying off our daughter, not selling her. Besides, the countryside doesn't spend much throughout the year. It would be a waste to give us this money. You two need money more than we do. Don't forget, there is also Qiao An! There are always places to spend money."

Xu Haizhou smiled and shook his head, saying, "It's not easy for you to raise Qiao Lu, so you have to give her a betrothal gift. This is also the amount I can afford. I'm not showing off. I know what I'm doing."

"You know? I think you don't. If you knew, you wouldn't take so much money!" Lu Xiuhua frowned.

Although Qiao Lu felt a lot, she still persuaded her parents to accept it.

"Please accept it. After we get married, I will live in the city and won't be able to accompany you to fulfill my filial duties. Now I have a daughter-in-law like my sister-in-law. If I don't bring some money with me, I won't have money to go to the hospital if I get sick or have a headache."

Since Xu Haizhou gave the money on his own initiative, he must have thought carefully before giving this number. She believed that he was not an impulsive person.

Moreover, if Xu Haizhou regrets the two hundred yuan or has a conflict with her in the future, it would be a good thing for her to see his true face in advance.

"This..." Qiao's father and mother were in a dilemma. If they accepted it, it was indeed too much... If they didn't take it, seeing Xu Haizhou's tough attitude, it seemed that they couldn't refuse it.

"Take it. It's a little more money. Doesn't this mean that Haizhou values ​​me?"

It can also be considered as honoring the original owner's parents who died early. No matter how foolish the old couple are, at least the original body was spoiled and raised by Qiao's parents before she was eleven years old. For this reason alone, Qiao Lu has no right to blame them.

She consoled him earnestly, "Just buy some delicious food and don't let my sister-in-law see you. You've been good enough to her, so don't feel any psychological burden."

Lu Xiuhua looked at Qiao Lu. Her little daughter looked exactly the same as she remembered, but she seemed to have grown up.

The last time her brother-in-law came to pick her up, the girl wished she could grow wings and fly away quickly. But now that she’s back, her demeanor is completely different.

Now that I have my own ideas, I feel sorry for my parents.

Lu Xiuhua felt mixed emotions, but she finally compromised.

"Don't worry, even if you kill me, the money will never go to your sister-in-law!"