"Isn't it you who's here? How could you let me fall?"
Walking backwards without falling is something Ruan Ruan can definitely do. She's naturally skilled, and with Huo Haocheng, who dotes on her, by her side, falling is impossible.
"You!!!"
Hearing Ruan Ruan's words of trust, Huo Haocheng felt incredibly sweet inside, and his tone was full of doting affection.
And so, Ruan Ruan walked backwards while chatting with Huo Haocheng, who held Ruan Ruan's hand.
From a distance, the people in the field could only see the two holding hands and gazing at each other.
"Brother Haoshi, you said Ruan Ruan is back. Do you think I should go see her?"
As soon as the two arrived at the girl's house, they heard Li Huan asking. Li Huan's house was located at the westernmost part of the village, at the foot of the mountain, and only Li Huan and her grandmother lived there.
Li Huan's parents were rescued from a flood a few years ago when the village's grain was washed away. After the flood receded, the villagers searched for them and found their bodies. After discussion among the villagers, the brigade leader reported the matter to higher authorities. Now, the brigade provides 200 jin of coarse grain and 50 jin of fine grain every year, and the town government gives 1 yuan per month until Li Huan gets married and her grandmother passes away.
After her son and daughter-in-law passed away, Grandma Li's health deteriorated. At that time, Li Huan was only 11 years old, but she was already sensible. She knew that her grandmother was now her only relative, so Li Huan wanted to drop out of school and go home to work to take care of her grandmother.
When she shared this idea with Ruan Ruan, Ruan Ruan strongly objected. She even pulled Li Huan in front of her brothers and said, "We're good sisters. From now on, my brothers are your brothers too. So you can focus on your studies. After school, we'll help you gather pig feed. That way, you can earn two work points every day, and with the brigade's allowance, it'll be enough to support you and Grandma Li."
And so, for the past seven years, Huo Haoshi initially took care of Li Huan because of his sister, but gradually his feelings changed, and he became attracted to this gentle and strong girl.
"Okay, they should still be at home at this time. We'll go after I finish clearing this plot of land."
Ruan Ruan and Huo Haocheng stood at the gate of the Li family's house, watching Huo Haoshi bend over and swing the hoe in his hand, while Li Huan was in the yard sorting through the wood that Huo Haoshi had carried back.
Huo Haoshi carried the wood blocks back from their lumber mill. The mill had a lot of useless small wood blocks, which were distributed to the mill's workers every day. Huo Haoshi simply moved them to the Li family's house.
Where are you all headed?
Ruan Ruan crossed her arms over her chest, watching the two with a look of anticipation. Huo Haocheng stood behind Ruan Ruan, also with an expression of "I see."
"Why are you here?"
Huo Haoshi looked at the two people by the door, straightened up, and placed his hands on the hoe handle, as if to say, 'It's just as you see it.'
"Ruan Ruan, Brother Huo, please come in and have a seat."
Li Huan put down the firewood she was holding, ran into the house and brought out a long bench and a small table, and then went to get the snacks that Huo Hao had bought for her earlier.
After Ruan Ruan and Huo Haocheng sat down, Li Huan lowered his head somewhat shyly and slowly moved to Huo Haocheng's side.
Seeing this, Huo Haoshi put down his hoe, took a stool from inside the house, and pulled Li Huan to sit down.
"Why did you suddenly come here?"
Huo Haoshi broke the deadlock first.
"I came to see my best friend, is that not allowed? But you, what are you doing here? You'd better explain yourself honestly."
Ruan Ruan saw that Li Huan put Huo Haoshi first, and Huo Haoshi's actions also showed that the two had a relationship. Why had she never heard them mention it before?
"The relationship you see is exactly what it is; Huanhuan and I are going to build a revolutionary bond."
As he spoke, Huo Hao pulled Li Huan's hand and held it between the two of them, showing his brother and sister-in-law through his actions.
"Do your parents know about what's going on between you two? Does Grandma Li know?"
Huo Haocheng didn't pry into Huo Haoshi's romantic relationships. He knew his younger brother was grown up and should be responsible for his own actions.
"Grandma Li knows, but my family hasn't told us yet. I plan to tell my parents after you get married, and then have my mother find a matchmaker to propose to Grandma Li."
"Why don't you tell them tonight? That way, the family can be prepared. Otherwise, if it's too sudden, I'm afraid you'll get a beating."
Ruan Ruan knew her aunt's personality quite well. She was straightforward, organized, and liked to do things in a planned way. If she had just finished her eldest son's wedding and then her second son suddenly did this, she could have given in to her son, since he was an adult. But if this happened without any warning, a beating would be inevitable.
Moreover, given the Li family's situation, Huo Haoshi will likely live with them after their marriage. Even if he doesn't marry into the Li family, he will still have the responsibility to take care of Grandma Li.
"Then I'll talk to my family tonight and discuss when would be a convenient time to propose marriage."
Huo Haoshi thought about it and felt that Ruan Ruan's words made sense. He also needed to talk to his grandfather about taking care of Grandma Li after the marriage. There needed to be a set procedure for this matter within the family.
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