Chapter 80 The Brothers Are Here
Seeing that it was getting late, Xia Qianqian, with her two children on her mind, got up to say goodbye. Lin Shulan was reluctant to part with her daughter, but seeing her daughter's resolute attitude, she couldn't insist that she stay and could only nod in agreement.
She kept saying, "When the New Year comes, I must bring the children back and stay at home for a few more days."
When Xia Qianqian returned to Xiangyang Village, she could see her house brightly lit from afar, and bursts of hearty laughter came from inside.
"Sister-in-law is back!" It was Peng Fei's voice.
"Qianqian, you're back?" Lu Zheng, reeking of alcohol and beaming with joy, strode out of the house to greet her. His face was flushed, showing a mix of drunken naiveté and excitement.
Xia Qianqian smelled the alcohol on him and raised an eyebrow in surprise: "Why are you drinking?"
She remembered that Lu Zheng never drank alcohol at home.
“My brothers are here,” Lu Zheng said, reaching out to grasp Xia Qianqian’s wrist, his palm burning hot. “They all volunteered to help when they heard we were setting up tents tomorrow. I had a few drinks with them. Come on, I’ll take you inside to meet them!”
Last night, after breaking through that barrier with Qianqian, Lu Zheng's heart felt like it had found a safe harbor, and he was completely at peace.
As he held her hand and introduced her to his brothers, he stood tall with a proud and honored expression.
"Brothers, this is your sister-in-law, Xia Qianqian! She used to be a young lady living in Nancheng, but she willingly came to our Xiangyang Village for me!"
As Xia Qianqian listened to his half-truthful, self-aggrandizing words, a gentle and knowing smile appeared on her lips.
Men always want to save face in front of their brothers.
She greeted everyone in the room with a generous smile: "Hello everyone, I'm Xia Qianqian. I've often heard Lu Zheng mention you, saying you're his brothers who would risk their lives for him. It's great to finally meet you all today!"
Seeing Xia Qianqian's graceful demeanor and refined speech, with the unique charm of a city girl in her eyes, the curiosity in everyone's hearts instantly turned sour, like a spilled jar of vinegar.
One of the more impatient ones punched Peng Fei, laughing and scolding, "You little rascal, Peng Fei! No matter how much we asked you before, you wouldn't tell us anything, making us all think that Brother Lu had found an ordinary rural woman. Who knew that his wife was from the city! Just by the way she talks and acts, we knew she was no ordinary person!"
"Exactly!" someone immediately chimed in, staring intently at Lu Zheng with envy in their voice. "Brother Lu, you're truly our brother! You've found such an excellent wife, when are you going to show us the ropes? We're all still single!"
As he spoke, he deliberately let out an exaggerated "wolf howl" at Lu Zheng, making everyone in the room burst into laughter.
Listening to his brothers' complaints and jeers, Lu Zheng felt sweeter than if he had eaten honey. He straightened his back, raised his chin slightly, revealing a set of gleaming white teeth, and said smugly, "A woman as good as Qianqian, you guys... you'd be hard-pressed to find one even with a lantern!"
That smug look of his is incredibly infuriating.
These words immediately drew a barrage of criticism from the brothers, who were all seething with anger, rolling up their sleeves and itching for a beating.
Of course, that was just talk; after all, they couldn't beat Lu Zheng!
Xia Qianqian stood aside, watching Lu Zheng's childishly smug look, a gentle smile appearing in her eyes.
She gently pushed Lu Zheng and scolded him, "Get lost, all you do is talk nonsense. I'm not as good as you make me out to be."
Although I said that, I felt a sweet warmth in my heart, like I had a piece of candy in my pocket.
Peng Fei grinned and interjected, "Sister-in-law, don't forget about me!"
Ever since he met Xia Qianqian, he felt that other girls were just not quite right.
Upon hearing Peng Fei's words, the others also realized what he meant, their eyes lighting up as they chimed in, "That's right! Sister-in-law, you can't just help Peng Fei; we bachelors can't be left out!"
Xia Qianqian was both amused and exasperated by the commotion, unsure how to respond, when Lu Zheng switched into protective husband mode: "You all have no sense of propriety! Can't you see your sister-in-law has been busy all day and is exhausted? She doesn't have time to worry about these things! Go drink, stop crowding around!"
Seeing Lu Zheng's expression, the others stopped teasing him and continued drinking and chatting.
Lu Zheng escorted Xia Qianqian back to her room, closed the door for her, and then turned to leave.
Not long after, Daya came in carrying a rough porcelain bowl: "Mom, Dad asked me to bring you dinner."
She put the bowl on the table and whispered, "Dad said he specially saved this for you. Men drink until very late, so you don't have to wait for him. After you finish eating, go to bed early."
The food in the bowl was still steaming, clearly having been kept warm on the stove. Xia Qianqian looked at the bowl of rice, a warm feeling welling up inside her. Lu Zheng's seemingly rough but actually thoughtful consideration always touched her unintentionally.
Feeling a sweet warmth in her heart, she smiled and looked at Daya: "Have you eaten yet? Why don't we eat together?"
Daya's eyes lit up, and she immediately ran out with a smile to call Erya. A little while later, the two sisters came to Xia Qianqian's room carrying their own bowls.
Xia Qianqian's heart suddenly stirred, remembering something she hadn't had a chance to ask. She put down her chopsticks and asked softly, "Da Ya, Er Ya, did you go to school?"
In those days, most people in the countryside were illiterate. The village literacy classes had only recently started, but many families felt that learning to read was useless and would only interfere with farm work, so they found various excuses not to attend.
Later, having no other choice, the production team leader could only hold evening meetings to teach everyone to sing and, incidentally, to recognize a few characters. Even so, very few people in the village could recognize all of their own names.
Xia Qianqian didn't want her two children, Daya and Erya, to be illiterate in the future. She had read the descriptions of the future in the comments and knew that the world would undergo tremendous changes, and knowledge would become increasingly important. If these two children couldn't even read, they would likely suffer greatly in the future.
When Da Ya saw Xia Qianqian suddenly asking about school, she didn't know what her mother meant, so she said softly, "Mom, we never went to school. When we learned to sing with the villagers, the team leader would teach us a few words along the way."
Er Ya's eyes lit up: "Mommy! Can you teach us to read?"
If she could recognize all the characters without waiting for the captain to teach her, she would definitely be looked up to by everyone! Just thinking about that scene made Er Ya's face turn red with excitement, and her eyes were full of longing.
Xia Qianqian said, "If you want to learn, Mom is naturally willing to teach you. No matter when, it's always good to know more characters."
Upon hearing that Xia Qianqian was willing to teach them, Er Ya happily rushed into Xia Qianqian's arms, pouting, "Mom, you're so good!"
Daya, standing to the side, also looked eager to try, but in the end, she didn't dare to pounce like her younger sister.
Seeing her expectant yet timid expression, Xia Qianqian's heart melted. She smiled and gently pulled her into her arms with her other hand, saying softly, "Da Ya wants to learn too, right? Mom will teach you both later."
Daya was taken aback when she was pulled into her warm embrace. Then, a shy yet happy smile bloomed on her face, and she softly hummed in agreement.
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