170 new cars
When Gu Yu learned that this year's spring outing was canceled, she was sad for only a few minutes. She turned around and went inside to chat with Lin Ting for a while. When she heard the voices of her friends outside the alley, she only wanted to find her friends to play with again.
When Gu Mannian came home from get off work in the evening and picked up Gu Yu, Jiang Guiying came looking for him.
"Did Ding Laosi find a girlfriend? Did you introduce her to him or did he meet her on his own?"
No need to ask, it must have been Gu Yu's little lousy mouth that said it.
Guan Yuehe spread her hands, "I don't know. They may have talked about it but haven't said anything. I guess they haven't officially started dating yet. Oh, don't ask. I don't know who it is either."
There's nothing to ask. Once he's in a relationship, wouldn't he tell them?
Who knows, maybe one of the times they ate together, he'd bring someone to introduce them.
"One or two of you, you're keeping your relationships a secret... Forget it, I'm too lazy to ask about your affairs."
"That's right, worry less and you'll be healthier."
Jiang Guiying clicked her tongue in annoyance. Right now, she seemed to have the most reasons, one after another.
"Alright, the couple from Guaziwang are back. You go practice your driving. I'll stay home and watch over Lin Ting."
In Ginkgo Hutong, the only family that actually owns a motorcycle is the Guazi Wang family. Song Gong'an's family doesn't count; his motorcycle is a government vehicle, and he can only use it for official business, not for personal use.
Therefore, if Guan Yuehe wanted to borrow a car for practice, she could only go to the Wang family who sells melon seeds.
Fortunately, the Wang family was generous; as long as they could pay, they were happy to do a favor for their neighbors without damaging the car.
"Oh dear, I've said all that and you've already worried about me again." Guan Yuehe chuckled. "When I get the car back, I'll take you on a tour around the whole of Beijing."
Jiang Guiying chuckled and playfully patted her on the shoulder, waving her hand to tell her to hurry up and leave. She warned that Lin Ting would cry again if she woke up and couldn't find her.
This kid has a bigger appetite now, and his voice has gotten louder too. His gentle demeanor from when he was little is gone; when he cries, he wails.
Most importantly, Lin Ting can now recognize people.
Even though Guan Yuehe and Lin Yiku only came back to take care of her at night, she was still most attached to them. When they weren't around, she was perfectly fine, eating and sleeping as usual. But when they were around, it was different; they had to stay within her sight.
Guan Yuehe didn't dare to waste any more time, so she put on a light coat and went out.
"Yuehe went to driving practice again?"
"Yes, shall I give you a ride?"
Aunt Hu waved her hand abruptly in refusal, thinking to herself: That Tiger Girl rides a bicycle like she's flying an airplane, what would she do on a motorcycle? Her old bones can't withstand such a commotion.
Aunt Hu didn't have the guts to get into Guan Yuehe's car, and Guan Yuehe didn't take it seriously either. She went straight to the Guazi Wang family's house and soon brought out her motorcycle.
The alleyway suddenly became lively.
Some people were playing ping-pong, some were watching TV and discussing tonight's drama, and others were riding motorcycles back and forth at the entrance of the alley, the clanging sound coming from afar and then fading away.
Guan Yuehe was practicing when she ran into Lin Yiku, who was coming home from get off work. She invited him to get in her car, drove him to the Zhuoyue Garment Factory's residential compound, and then drove him back.
When Grandpa Ming's small restaurant closed, he strolled back and saw the two of them, exclaiming, "Hey, you two captains practicing flying again?"
The elderly folks in the alley were saying in private that the two of them should have been assigned to fly planes.
But only Uncle Ming called them "Captain" to their faces.
Guan Yuehe corrected, "There is only one captain, and he is a passenger."
Then he asked, "Are you flying? It's faster than walking, and at a discounted price, a bowl of noodles with soybean paste will do."
When it comes to seizing opportunities, Uncle Ming truly admires Guan Yuehe.
Unable to earn a bowl of noodles with soybean paste from Grandpa Ming, Guan Yuehe and Lin Yiku rushed into the kitchen after returning home to prepare a bowl of noodles to share between the two of them.
"Mom, would you like some too?"
"How long has it been since I had dinner? I'm not hungry, I'm not eating." Jiang Guiying looked at Lin Ting, who was sleeping but still smacking his lips, and found it amusing.
The three members of the family are all the same.
—
On the eve of the May Day holiday, all the elders in my family went to the Zhuoyue Garment Factory to watch Gu Yu's May Day performance.
The little dress that Gu Yu was wearing was made little by little by Guan Yuehua two months in advance. It was the only one of its kind in the entire event, making it one of a kind, which made her extremely proud.
Guan Yuehua specially went home in the afternoon to dress her up. Her cheeks and lips were smeared with lipstick, and her forehead was dotted with red dots, making her look like a New Year's picture doll.
Jiang Guiying said that she had never seen anyone more vain than Guan Yuehua.
Although she has toned it down a bit in recent years.
From the moment Gu Yu left her house, she showed off to everyone she met, all the way to the factory's new auditorium, grinning broadly.
Guan Yuehua was the envy of her friends, and they all stared at her with longing eyes.
Guan Yuehua could only keep a straight face and make a group of little kids line up, applying lipstick to their cheeks, foreheads, and mouths one by one, like stamping an official document.
When Guan Yuehe returned from get off work, the performance was already coming to an end, and she missed Gu Yu's wonderful performance.
But I didn't miss Director Zheng's speech at the end of the performance, which was as concise, clear, and inspiring as ever.
Guan Yuehe also contributed to the thunderous applause in the auditorium.
After the performance, Gu Yu refused to go home to her family compound, insisting on going to Ginkgo Alley to see Lin Ting.
The adults didn't call her out, but everyone knew she just wanted to show off to her friends in Ginkgo Hutong dressed like that.
The good omen brought by Grain Rain was that early the next morning, several houses in Ginkgo Alley were filled with wailing sounds like pigs being slaughtered.
Upon inquiry, it was discovered that several children had used the lipsticks of their female elders, smearing them all over their faces as if covered in blood, which greatly alarmed their parents.
He deserved to be beaten.
Guan Yuehe didn't have time to stay home and watch the excitement. She dragged Lin Yiku out early to queue up at the Jialing Motorcycle store to pick up their motorcycles and go home.
This year's May Day celebrations in Ginkgo Hutong began with the cries of children, and then reached their climax with the distinctive clanging of two Jialing motorcycles, one in front and one behind.
"Yuehe, you bought a motorcycle?" This was expected, and everyone asked casually when they saw her.
Then came the shock: "Wu Jiawang, you bought a motorcycle too?!"
No one expected that the third motorcycle shop in Ginkgo Hutong would be owned by Wu Jiawang!
Nobody had ever seen Wu Jiawang borrow a motorcycle to practice on. How did he manage to buy it without a word and even ride it back? Judging from Wu Jiawang's demeanor, he clearly already knew how to ride it.
Wu Jiawang scratched his head and explained that Grandpa Hai had a motorcycle, and he had borrowed it to practice during the day.
"It's not practical for you to collect scrap metal and drive a motorcycle. Why waste money buying this thing?"
“You can ride it normally.” Wu Jiawang didn’t say much, let his underling who was circling the motorcycle get on the bike, and drove off with him.
Not wanting to be left behind, Guan Yuehe invited Jiang Guiying and Aunt Fang to get in the car for a drive as well.
The two mothers turned and left.
"Hey!" Do you not trust her or what?
Guan Yuehe pushed the car into Courtyard No. 1 and parked it in front of her house, alongside two bicycles.
Every household knows this, and before going to bed at night, they all push their cars inside and lock them to prevent thieves from entering.
Guan Yuehe was happily troubled: "With an extra motorcycle, the house will be even more crowded at night!"
Three people and three cars.
Then Lin Yiku noticed that she would peek out from time to time to check on her new car, and he wished he could cover the car with a cloth to keep it from getting dusty.
Lin Yiku got used to it; she always did this when buying big items, and it was a rare treat. She got used to it after a while.
The hustle and bustle of Ginkgo Alley is not over yet.
In the afternoon, Jin Junwei and Yuanbao also returned with a brand new motorcycle.
Another family has bought a motorcycle!
"Why was it pushed back?" Guan Yuehe asked curiously.
Jin Junwei smiled sheepishly, "I got a ticket yesterday at the last minute, and when the store asked today, they happened to have extra bikes, so I brought it back... I can't ride one."
Guan Yuehe was envious. She had waited in line for a month to finally get a car, while Jin Junwei got his car on the same day. You have to admire his luck.
Oh, not only that, he gets tickets way too easily!
Yuanbao immediately shouted, "My mom won the Model Worker award and got a ticket as a reward!"
That makes it impossible to be envious; Sister Hongqi's skills are beyond my reach.
Three motorcycles suddenly appeared in Ginkgo Alley, instantly arousing everyone's interest: why not buy one too?
That very day, people were busy asking where to get tickets.
The second day of May Day was Sunday, which was also the day when Guan Aiguo and Wan Xiujuan officially met their respective families.
It's true that every family has different habits.
When Guan Yuehe and Lin Yiku were discussing marriage, they ate together with four elders besides the two of them.
When it was Guan Aiguo's turn, in addition to his parents, he also invited his older brother and sister-in-law, as well as his older sister and brother-in-law, to go along.
Thanks to Guan Aiguo, she was able to go to Grandpa Ming's small restaurant for another delicious meal.
After they returned from dinner, Guan Yuehua asked her, "What do you think of the Wan family?"
"They're not going to live with me anyway, so why should I care what they do?" Although everyone will be relatives in the future, her aunt and maternal grandparents are also relatives, and she hasn't had much contact with them, let alone Guan Aiguo's in-laws.
"Besides, even if I don't like it, it won't stop Guan Aiguo from getting married this National Day."
Guan Yuehua's question was shut down by her, and after a moment of surprise, she quickly smiled.
Guan Yuehe was the one who understood things best, and what she said made sense. Whether these relatives were easy to get along with or not really had nothing to do with them.
However, Guan Yuehe also lived in Ginkgo Hutong, and she would inevitably have to interact with Wan Xiujuan in the future, which is why she asked so many questions.
She was worrying unnecessarily.
After a brief period of quiet, the two sisters started arguing again.
Guan Yuehua disliked the little hat that Guan Yuehe made for Lin Ting, thinking it was ugly, and Guan Yuehe also disliked her for being fussy.
They only stopped after waking Lin Ting up.
Gu Mannian, who was outside, was used to this. He smiled and greeted Aunt Hu, who was craning her neck to look in his direction. Aunt Hu clicked her tongue and gave up her interest in gossiping.
—
Monday.
Guan Yuehe got a new car and drove into the workplace with great fanfare.
She didn't need to show off; the clanging sound of the motorcycle was already very attractive.
Among a sea of old-fashioned bicycles, her red motorcycle stood out.
With the new car, Guan Yuehe felt more motivated to go to work.
Author's note: I finalized the work schedule with my supervisor today. My National Day holiday starts on the 6th, and I'll make up for the two days I requested earlier later.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
