Chapter 14 014 The Pretty Boy
When Guan Yuehe first entered the backyard, she thought her mother and sister-in-law were really patient, not even bothering to watch the commotion. But as soon as she stepped inside, she found them both listening intently, completely forgetting what they were doing.
"Why are Aunt Xie and Brother-in-law Jin arguing?"
Zhou Hongqi and Jin Junwei got married last summer. Like Lin Sitian and Xu Chengcai, she initially called him "Brother Jin". Later, Jin Junwei asked her to change her address, saying that since they called Zhou Hongqi "Sister", she should call him "Brother-in-law".
To distinguish Jin Junwei, her brother-in-law, from her biological brother-in-law whom she hadn't even met yet, Guan Yuehe called him "Brother-in-law Jin."
It's quite a mouthful. But once you get used to saying it, it becomes natural.
Jiang Guiying raised her chin in the direction of Aunt Xie's house and said disdainfully, "She sent a matchmaker to our house saying she wanted to find a city wife for her youngest son in the countryside, and she made all sorts of demands. Even the matchmakers that Granny Liu introduced without any conscience wouldn't accept her matchmaking fee."
"She couldn't find anyone to introduce her to someone, so she came back and took it out on Junwei, calling him a gigolo. She's got a sharp tongue, so she deserved to be scolded. Just wait, when Zhou Hongqi comes back from get off work, she'll get scolded again."
Lin Yufeng wholeheartedly agreed. Zhou Hongqi was protective of her husband, especially feeling sorry for him who had only been married for less than a year. Courtyard No. 3 was sure to be lively tonight.
Before Guan Yuehe could ask, Jiang Guiying continued, "Not only will Zhou Hongqi scold us, but Liu Axiu will also give us a hard time when she comes back. Last year, she said she wanted to introduce a girl from the city to her youngest son, and she invited her over, but she stayed for two months. It was only when Liu Axiu's family came that she was driven away. Aunt Xie invited her over again... Just wait and see!"
Lin Yufeng suddenly glanced at Guan Yuehe, a guess forming in her mind. After hesitating for a moment, she reminded her mother-in-law, "Mom, we can't let Aunt Xie bring her youngest son."
"If she insists on bringing people here, there's nothing I can do to stop her."
"No, our Yuehe and Sitian next door are both of marriageable age and in good circumstances. Who knows if their family might have bad intentions?"
Jiang Guiying and Guan Yuehe shouted sternly, "He dares?!"
"If he even dares to have such thoughts, I'll put a sack over his head and break his legs!"
Just in case, Jiang Guiying decided to report Aunt Xie to Liu Axiu after she got off work.
In short, Xie Zhenxing cannot live in their No. 3 compound!
Jin Junwei and Aunt Xie argued all afternoon. Aunt Xie was too tired to keep arguing, so she excused herself by saying she had to take care of her granddaughter and left the scene. Jin Junwei didn't chase after her to yell at her either.
Someone outside shouted, "Why did you stop?" but no one responded.
Because of Lin Yufeng's reminder, Jiang Guiying started talking about her daughter moving to a new house again.
"It's good to move to a bigger house, but it would be even better if we could move to one in our compound!"
Why can't something so good be perfect?!
Lin Yufeng didn't interrupt, thinking to herself: How could all the good things be enjoyed by one person?
Even though that's what I think, it's still a pity. I wish my sister-in-law could also move to the No. 3 courtyard.
Putting everything else aside, Aiguo will definitely need a room when he gets married, right? By then, Weiwei and Jingjing will be older and will need to live separately. It would be perfect for Jingjing to stay with her aunt...
She only dared to think about it; she didn't have the guts to say it out loud. Otherwise, she would be the one getting scolded.
As for Guan Yuehe?
She wants to live close to her family, but not all the same. Distance makes the heart grow fonder; living together for too long will only lead to more conflicts.
Around six o'clock, the alleyway became busier. The jingling of bicycle bells never stopped, and the sounds of adults calling their children home for dinner ranged from gentle to irritable.
Guan Yuehe stood in the middle of the living room doorway, first greeting Xie Zhenhua, and then saying hello to Liu Axiu.
The couple arrived home one after the other. Xie Zhenhua, being a college student, didn't like to talk much, while Liu Axiu was always quiet.
Their daughter, Tingting, was like a little tail, always following them around. She was well-raised; both her parents worked, and she was their only child, so she always got the best of everything. She had chubby cheeks and a personality unlike her parents; she was very talkative.
Although her words were incoherent, she looked very serious. One moment her grandmother was talking about a "pretty boy," and the next her "little uncle" was coming. Liu Axiu guessed what was going on, her face darkened, and she rushed into the house, calling out, "Mom!"
It seemed she truly disliked her brother-in-law coming to their house. Guan Yuehe felt much relieved.
Before long, Zhou Hongqi from the front yard came in a rage to settle accounts, blocking the Xie family's door and giving Aunt Xie a thorough dressing-down.
"Your youngest son is such a scoundrel! He wouldn't even qualify as a gigolo! What is he? Does he even deserve to be compared to our Jin Junwei?"
"Ah Xiu, don't give some people too much face. What kind of person is she? Doesn't she know who she relies on for food and shelter? I think she doesn't want to find a partner for her youngest son, she wants you to support her youngest son!"
Xie Zhenhua and his wife kept avoiding him, and it was only after Liu Axiu spoke up that they were persuaded to go back.
Zhou Hongqi and Liu Axiu worked in the same workshop; one was a level-four welder, and the other was a team leader. They got along well at work, but Aunt Xie was always stirring up trouble between the two families.
Zhou Hongqi wanted to curse Xie Zhenhua for being a coward. His mother had stirred up trouble, but he, as the son, hadn't uttered a word. He let Liu Axiu handle all the anger from outsiders, while he steadily played the role of a noble intellectual.
Bah! He's the biggest show-off in the whole alley!
Zhou Hongqi came in a huff and left in a huff, but his anger quickly subsided.
Jin Junwei didn't care about the stares from others, and kept saying things like, "Sister Hongqi, there's hot water in the pot, you can clean up first," and "Sister Hongqi, I made your favorite dishes today."
Guan Yuehe heard the noise in the backyard and suddenly shuddered, goosebumps rising all over her body.
She now understood why Lin Sitian would unconsciously shake her hands and legs whenever Zhou Hongqi and Jin Junwei were mentioned.
"Yuehe, go and call Weiwei and Jingjing. They haven't come back yet, it's almost time for dinner. Are they hungry?"
Guan Yuehe responded with an "Oh," then looked up and saw that there was no need to call out anymore; Guan Aiguo had already carried the two little ones back, one in each hand.
Needless to say, he must be doing something bad outside.
"Sister-in-law, Guan Wei and Guan Jing want to watch someone blow up a toilet!" Guan Aiguo complained before even entering the house.
Lin Yufeng came out and slapped the two little ones twice on the bottom. "You learn bad things instead of good ones! If you dare to go with others to blow up the toilet, I'll call Police Chief Song to arrest you!"
"Waaaaah! We didn't blow up the toilet!" They just wanted to take a look, but their uncle caught them and brought them back. It's so unfair!
At the same time, someone shouted from the alley entrance: "Aunt Ding! Stop showing off your family's wealth! Oh dear, such a big kid, doesn't he know anything? You can't just blow up a toilet like that! Luckily, an adult saw it and stopped him. If this happens again, we'll report it to Police Chief Song!"
"That's right! They're really despicable! They need to be taught a lesson by Officer Song!"
Guan Yuehe shook her head in disgust. From a young age, she knew that you shouldn't throw things into the toilet, and blowing up a toilet was absolutely forbidden! Some kids these days are really lacking in manners!
Suddenly, Guan Ai, the scoundrel, sidled up to her, smiling ingratiatingly, "Second Sister~"
Guan Yuehe got goosebumps again, thinking that if her younger brother wanted to be a gigolo, he could probably live off a woman.
She pushed his head away with one hand, saying, "Get to the point."
"Second sister, I want a pair of Warrior sneakers."
"Our factory also makes sports shoes; I'll buy you a pair next month."
In the past, she would have had to twist Guan Aiguo's ear and say to him: What are you daydreaming about in broad daylight?
She's about to become a "big spender" with a job and a house, so gifting Guan Aiguo a pair of shoes is still an option for her.
Guan Aiguo chuckled again, "I want Warrior brand sneakers."
"Take it or leave it." Guan Yuehe's patience had run out.
The athletic shoes produced in her own factory could be bought without coupons, while sneakers sold outside required ration coupons, and some even required industrial coupons. She still needed to save up coupons for her new family's belongings!
"Then let's go with the Excellence brand."
Guan Aiguo looked up to the sky and howled. Only his second sister had agreed to buy him a pair of sneakers. Although they weren't Warrior brand sneakers, the Zhuoyue brand would be fine too!
When will he be able to start working? When he does, he should be like his older sister and buy himself clothes and shoes as soon as he gets his salary!
Guan Yuehe couldn't hold back any longer and finally pinched his ear, gritting her teeth as she said, "What kind of tone is that? What's wrong with the Zhuoyue brand? Our factory has a great reputation in other provinces!"
No one can remain calm and not get angry when they hear their factory being criticized!
Guan Aiguo muttered, "Your factory is good at sportswear, not sports shoes."
"Hmph! Our factory's sports shoe workshop is going to be renovated. You won't be able to buy them even if you want to!"
Guan Aiguo pursed his lips, not daring to continue his argument. He didn't believe it at all.
Just as Guan Yuehe was about to tell him how amazing her factory was, the other three people in the family who worked came home.
The eldest brother pushed his bicycle in, followed closely by her father and eldest sister. Oh, and there was also Grandpa Lin and Lin Sitian.
Grandpa Lin looked too tired to speak, and said, "Yuehe, come visit us often when you have time," before staggering into the house.
Lin Sitian was also tired. She parked her bicycle under the eaves, waved to her without saying a word, and then called out, "Mom, is dinner ready?"
"Hurry up and go wash your hands." Seeing that the father and daughter looked exhausted, Aunt Fang asked worriedly, "What's wrong?"
"Sigh! I'm exhausted from breaking up fights at the alley entrance! I'm tired enough after a long day at work, and then I have to break up fights on my way home... The clinic is so busy today, we barely have time to eat. Lots of people have caught colds... Aunt Jiang, you should also take care of yourselves and tell Weiwei and Jingjing not to go out to play these next few days."
Jiang Guiying wiped her hands, walked to the door and replied, "Okay! Auntie will remember."
He then turned and told the two younger ones to stay home and behave themselves for a few days.
There was meat on the table at home today, but not much. Jiang Guiying sliced it thinly and made meat sauce. Guan Yuehe really wanted noodles right now, as she wished there were some.
But meat sauce with steamed corn bread is just as delicious!
Guan Jianguo chewed it up and said, "It would be even better with white flour steamed buns."
Jiang Guiying rolled her eyes at him, saying, "Be grateful you have meat to eat!"
"We haven't used the meat coupons for this month yet, so Yuehe will be home for dinner this Sunday."
"Mmm!" Guan Yuehe was very enthusiastic when there was meat to eat.
"Do all the new workers at your factory move into the newly built dormitories?"
Guan Yuehe nodded and said happily, "In order to settle the workers and start work as soon as possible, the factory has found two more construction teams and is striving to complete the first and second batches of dormitory buildings before May!"
"We can move into our new house next month?"
"Yes!" Otherwise, would she have been willing to treat herself to two meat buns and also buy Guan Aiguo a pair of shoes today? She was just too happy!
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