Chapter 141 It didn't work out again, no matter what everyone felt...
No matter what doubts people may have, it has nothing to do with Mingxi.
Should she take Huangli to the Zhao family to meet the prospective husband, or should she take Huangli to the Zhao family to meet the prospective husband?
The Zhao family lived in a dormitory-style building allocated by the railway bureau. The entire building was inhabited by railway bureau employees. When Mingxi led Huangli and her mother upstairs, people kept casting curious glances at them.
As Mingxi reached the third floor, a man emerged from a room near the stairwell. Upon seeing Mingxi, his eyes lit up: "Comrade Ming!"
Mingxi nodded to the other person. This was a tall, dark-skinned, and honest-looking man, one of the main figures being interviewed today—Zhao Lei.
Zhao Lei scratched the back of his head: "I didn't expect you to arrive so early. There are several buildings in this area, so it's not easy to find. I was worried you might have gone to the wrong place, and I was just about to go down to meet you when I found out you were already up here."
"It's alright. I've been here a few times, so I remember where your house is." Mingxi smiled and pulled Huangli behind her to introduce them.
"This is the person I introduced to you before, Comrade Zhao Lei."
"Zhao Lei, this is Comrade Huang Li, and this is Comrade Huang's mother."
Zhao Lei hadn't expected Huang's mother to come along today, and he was a little reserved for a moment. He pressed his hands tightly against the seams of his pants, nervously swallowed, and said, "Hello, Auntie."
Huang's mother: "Oh, hello, hello."
A hint of appreciation flashed in Huang's mother's eyes; this young man looked quite spirited.
They were quite polite.
Not bad, not bad.
Mingxi smoothed things over, saying, "Comrade Zhao, don't be nervous. Comrade Huangli is still here. Why don't you greet Comrade Huangli first?"
Zhao Lei was still a bit confused when he realized that he hadn't greeted Huang Li yet. He quickly wiped his hands on his clothes, then slowly extended his hand, revealing a set of white teeth, and smiled at Huang Li, saying, "Hello, Comrade Huang."
Huang Li also extended her hand, shook hands briefly with the other person, and said, "Hello, Comrade Zhao."
Their hands touched lightly, then quickly separated after a moment.
Even so, Zhao Lei's face still turned red.
At that moment, a curious middle-aged woman peering into the hallway couldn't help but peek over and ask, "Lei Zi, what's this...?"
Zhao Lei scratched his head sheepishly: "Um, this is my friend, my friend."
The older woman shook her head, gave Huang Li a knowing look, and thought to herself, "No way."
Mingxi brought this over; is this probably her blind date?
Zhao Lei was shy, and with the neighbors staring at him, his face turned as red as a ripe tomato. He quickly turned to Mingxi and said, "Let's go inside and talk."
"Okay." Mingxi invited Huangli and her mother into the house together.
The Zhao family lived in a two-bedroom apartment. Upon opening the door, one was greeted by a small living room with a dining table, coffee table, sofa, television, refrigerator, and other amenities.
Huang's mother scanned the room with her eyes, her gaze lingering on the refrigerator for a second longer.
There's even a refrigerator at home. It seems Mingxi was right; Zhao Lei is a good earner, and the Zhao family is well-off.
Huang's mother sat down on the sofa with Huang Li with satisfaction. At this moment, the door to the inner bedroom opened, and a thin, middle-aged woman came out. Seeing Mingxi and the other two, she smiled and said warmly, "I heard some noise in the room and guessed that it must be you."
Huang Li and her mother looked at Ming Xi with suspicion, and Ming Xi quickly stood up to introduce them.
"This is Zhao Lei's mother, Aunt Cao."
"Aunt Cao, these two are Huang Li and Huang Li's mother."
Upon hearing this, Huang's mother quickly stepped forward and warmly grasped Aunt Cao's hand, saying, "Hello, Aunt Cao."
Aunt Cao grasped Huang's hand in return: "Hello, sister. Oh, I'm so sorry, I was just taking care of my old man inside. I thought you wouldn't be here for a while, so I didn't come out. I didn't expect you to arrive so quickly."
Huang's mother: "No, no, it's just that we arrived early."
After exchanging pleasantries with Aunt Cao and Aunt Huang, Aunt Cao pressed Aunt Huang down to sit down, then called into the house, "Old man, old man, come out and see who's here."
As soon as Aunt Cao finished speaking, a pale-faced, thin old man came out of the house. Mingxi recognized him; this was Zhao Lei's father, Uncle Zhao.
Grandpa Zhao was in poor health and looked even thinner than Grandma Cao. He was just skin and bones. He walked out shakily, smiled at Huang's mother and Huang Li, and was about to speak when he started coughing.
He coughed so hard it was almost unbearable, as if he were coughing up his lungs.
Aunt Cao quickly stepped forward to pat his back, and Zhao Lei also quickly brought water to Grandpa Zhao.
After a while, Grandpa Zhao finally recovered. He calmed his breathing, his face looking even paler. He weakly smiled at Mrs. Huang and said, "I'm sorry, I'm not feeling well."
Huang's mother waved her hand dryly and said, "It's nothing, it's nothing."
But her eyebrows still inevitably furrowed.
She had heard from Mingxi that Zhao Lei's father was in poor health, but she didn't expect that his health was so bad.
It looked like it was made of paper. To put it bluntly, she was afraid that the other person might accidentally cough and pass out.
The slight satisfaction that Huang's mother had felt for Zhao Leisheng instantly diminished considerably.
Zhao Lei's father doesn't look like he'll last much longer. If the old man suddenly passes away one day, according to the rules of Beicheng, children must observe mourning for a year after their parents pass away and cannot get married. Wouldn't that mean Huang Li would have to postpone her marriage for a year?
Her oriole is not young anymore; if she delays for a year, who knows what might happen.
While Huang's mother was still having doubts, Aunt Cao had already helped Uncle Zhao back to his room.
After settling her husband in, Aunt Cao came out to explain, "It's getting colder lately due to the changing seasons. My husband's illness can't stand the cold; he gets sick and uncomfortable when it's cold, so I didn't let him come out. Please don't mind."
Mingxi smoothed things over, saying, "It's alright, it's alright. Grandpa Zhao isn't feeling well, so let him rest in the house while we chat."
Aunt Cao smiled and said, "Yes, it's the same whether we talk or not."
As she spoke, she glanced at the coffee table and, seeing that it was empty, slapped her forehead and said, "Look at me, so clueless! You've all been here for ages, and I haven't even made you any tea yet. Please have a seat, I'll go make you some tea."
As she spoke, she quickly walked outside. The tenement building had no kitchen; the stoves were placed in the hallway, with a makeshift stove set up next to them. To cook or boil water, one had to go outside.
Aunt Cao went to make tea, leaving only Mingxi and the other three people in the room.
Mingxi glanced at Zhao Lei, then at Huang Li, and suddenly burst out laughing.
Huang Li and Zhao Lei were somewhat puzzled, and both of them looked at Ming Xi at the same time.
Mingxi: "Hey, I just noticed that you two both have canine teeth."
Huang Li and Zhao Lei were taken aback. They subconsciously looked at each other and, sure enough, saw that the other had canine teeth just like them.
The oriole rubbed her face sheepishly: "My teeth are crooked, they don't look good."
Mingxi was about to retort when she heard Zhao Lei's voice: "What's wrong with it? I think it's quite beautiful and unique. When I was little, people even told me that tiger teeth represent wealth, and that I would definitely become rich when I grew up."
The oriole's interest was piqued: "Really?"
Zhao Lei: "That's not true!"
Zhao Lei: "You really shouldn't disbelieve me, the person who told me this..."
The two of them didn't need Mingxi's help to find topics; they just started chatting and began talking to each other.
When Aunt Cao brought in tea and cut fruit, the two were already chatting enthusiastically.
Mingxi gave Aunt Cao a look, and Aunt Cao didn't disturb the two. She quietly placed the tea and fruit on the coffee table, then led Mingxi and Huang's mother to Zhao Lei's bedroom to chat, leaving the living room to the two young people, Huang Li and Zhao Lei.
When Huang's mother saw the two young people chatting so well, she felt a little awkward being pulled into the bedroom.
Mingxi vaguely sensed something, but she didn't expect the reason for her awkwardness. She was thinking of asking Huang's mother what was wrong when she got back.
Huang's mother was an adult, and although she felt awkward, she didn't show any displeasure on Zhao's turf. She followed Aunt Cao into the house and sat down, and they started chatting.
Aunt Cao is straightforward, quick-witted, and has an interesting way of speaking. Huang's mother can really get along with her.
They hadn't been chatting for long when they heard another heart-wrenching cough coming from next door. The sound continued for quite a while, and Aunt Cao's expression gradually became worried.
Mingxi was also worried that something might have happened to Grandpa Zhao next door, so she asked, "Aunt Cao, is Grandpa Zhao alright?"
"It's nothing, he's always like this." Although she said that, Aunt Cao still couldn't help but frown.
Seeing that the coughing next door was getting louder and louder, to the point that Grandpa Zhao across the street was coughing so hard he could hardly breathe, Grandma Cao couldn't sit still. She suddenly stood up and said, "Comrade Ming, please sit down first. I'll go check on the old man."
Huang Li and Zhao Lei in the living room also heard the sounds coming from the bedroom. Zhao Lei pursed his lips and stood up worriedly. Aunt Cao came out of the room and met Zhao Lei's eyes.
She waved her hand and said, "It's okay, it's okay. You two continue chatting. I'll go check on your dad."
Zhao Lei stopped and sat down again, but his expression remained bad, and he seemed somewhat absent-minded when talking to Huang Li.
Huang Li could understand, after all, he was his father.
But at times like this, she didn't know what to say.
Just as the two fell silent, Aunt Cao suddenly called out.
"Lei Zi, Lei Zi, come quick! Your dad's having a relapse, he can't breathe! Come over here right now and take him to the hospital!"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Lei quickly stood up and carried Old Zhao to the hospital. Mingxi and Aunt Huang in the next room also heard Aunt Cao's shouts, and the two of them quickly squeezed out of the room and squeezed to the door of Old Zhao and Aunt Cao's room.
Mingxi: "Aunt Cao, are you alright? Do you need us to call someone for help?"
At this moment, Zhao Lei had already carried Old Zhao on his back and walked quickly out of the house. Aunt Cao followed behind Zhao Lei, and she hurriedly waved her hand at Mingxi: "No need, no need."
She didn't have time for anything else, and only had time to tell Mingxi, "I'm sorry, Comrade Mingxi, I'm in a hurry to take my old man to the hospital. Let's continue with the matchmaking another day."
Mingxi had no reason not to agree, so she quickly nodded.
"No problem, no problem. Grandpa Zhao's health is the most important thing. Aunt Cao, you two should go to the hospital right away. I'll take care of the rest."
Aunt Cao and Zhao Lei hurriedly took Old Zhao to the hospital, while Mingxi could only lead Huangli and Huang's mother away.
Mingxi was afraid that Huangli and her mother would have objections, so on the way back she tried her best to appease them: "Huangli, Auntie, I'm really sorry about what happened today. I didn't expect this to happen."
This situation was truly unexpected; not only Mingxi, but no one else would have anticipated it.
Huang's mother and Huang Li understood, and neither of them was angry with Mingxi.
Seeing that the two understood, Mingxi breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Then how about this, let's arrange another time when Zhao Lei is available and Huang Li is also suitable, so we can go see each other again?"
Mother Huang pursed her lips: "I think we should forget about the matchmaking."
After saying that, she looked at Mingxi with some reproach: "Xiaoming, you should have known better than to introduce this person. Before you came, you told me that Zhao Lei's father was in poor health and had asthma, but you didn't say that his father was this sick. From what I can see, his father is barely hanging on by a thread."
Mingxi gave a dry laugh: "So what you mean is?"
Huang's mother said, "What I mean is, maybe we should just let it go. Zhao Lei's father is in such poor health that he might pass away any day. If our Huang Li really gets together with Zhao Lei, wouldn't she have to observe mourning for his father and wouldn't she be unable to get married? A woman's youth is very precious."
Huang's mother also went through a great deal of internal struggle.
Zhao Lei is indeed a good catch; he can earn money, seems to have a good personality, and his mother is also a good person.
But Zhao Lei's father's health is really frightening.
Moreover, Huang's mother is also a little superstitious.
Although Zhao Lei's father was in poor health, he hadn't had a relapse before Huang Li went to the Zhao family. So why did he have a relapse right when Huang Li and Zhao Lei were getting to know each other?
Is it possible that Huang Li and Zhao Lei are incompatible, which is why Zhao Lei's father is affected?
Huang's mother knew that her idea was unfounded, but fate is such an unpredictable thing, who can say for sure?
What if Huang Li and Zhao Lei's horoscopes clash, and they can't live peacefully together in the future?
Huang's mother dared not experiment.
Mingxi was unaware that Huang's mother was once again pondering metaphysical matters, but she agreed with Huang's mother's statement about the preciousness of women's youth.
Therefore, she could understand why Huang's mother did not approve of seeing each other again.
I just don't know what the oriole was thinking.
Mingxi turned her head to look at Huangli: "What do you think?"
Huang Li pursed her lips: "I also think there's no need to look at each other anymore."
It wasn't because of Zhao Lei's father's health; she simply didn't have any feelings for Zhao Lei as a person.
Zhao Lei is quite good, and he's also quite interesting to talk to, unlike the taciturn Wang Tianyang.
But she still didn't feel anything; she just didn't feel any attraction.
She doesn't mind chatting and talking when the two meet, but the thought of her becoming husband and wife with someone like that and spending her life with him makes her feel awkward.
Mingxi fully respected Huangli's idea and nodded seriously, saying, "It's okay, I have other male comrades here, you can choose again."
As for Zhao Lei, she'll tell him another day that Huang Li didn't like him.
When Mingxi returned, she opened the information on gay men again. This time, she learned her lesson and selected several more candidates, presenting them all to Huangli for her to choose from.
The men were all quite eligible, although none of them quite met Huang's mother's requirements for an only son. However, because they were otherwise quite good, Huang's mother and Huang Li eventually nodded in satisfaction and agreed to meet them.
Based on Huang Li's level of satisfaction, Ming Xi arranged three meetings for her with three men of completely different appearances. After a week, all three men had been met, but Huang Li and her mother were not very satisfied.
In the end, Mingxi was so exasperated that she lost her temper.
Huang's mother thought all the young men were good, but after meeting each one, she wasn't entirely satisfied. It wasn't that she chose one who hadn't separated from the family, fearing Huang Li wouldn't get along with the whole family living together; it was that one had a bad job and low salary, making her afraid Huang Li would suffer after marrying him; or it was that one was too honest and too obedient to his mother…
Huang Li was similar. When they met, they chatted quite well, but when Mingxi asked her for her opinion, she always felt something was missing and she didn't feel anything for him.
After a week of observation, Mingxi felt that this wouldn't work and it was time to have a proper talk with Huangli and her daughter.
However, before Mingxi could take any action, Huang's mother brought Huangli to their door.
Holding a box of pastries, Huang's mother handed it to Mingxi with a warm smile: "Xiaoming, thank you for your hard work. You've been running around for our Huangli all week, haven't you..."
She chuckled twice and said, "It's just that the young men you introduced aren't quite right. Don't misunderstand, I'm not saying the people you introduced are bad. The young men you introduced are all nice, just not quite suitable for my Huangli. Please put in some more effort and help my Huangli choose carefully, and see if there are any other suitable men."
Mingxi pushed the other person's things back.
“Auntie, you’re too kind. I promised to introduce Huangli to someone, and I will definitely do my best to do so. Even without your words today, I would still help Huangli find a suitable partner. But I need to make this clear to you.”
Huang's mother nodded repeatedly: "Go ahead."
Mingxi: "Finding a partner isn't like custom-made dolls, where you can have whatever you want. It's not easy to find someone who's perfect in every way. Besides, we also have to consider ourselves. You have your requirements, and others have theirs. You understand what I mean?"
Mingxi's words were actually a tactful advice to Huang's mother not to set her expectations too high. Although Huang Li's conditions were quite good, they weren't exceptionally good.
Huang's mother also demanded that the man be of good character and that none of his parents be a burden; she wanted the man's family to be neither too controlling nor completely uninvolved, and that Huang Li not have to serve them, but if Huang Li gave birth, the other woman would have to take care of her during her postpartum period and help with childcare; she also wanted the man's siblings not to interfere in his life, but ideally, they would be able to provide financial support to him at the time of the wedding…
To be honest, Mingxi genuinely felt that Huang's mother's request was somewhat inappropriate. Finding someone who could meet those conditions would be extremely difficult.
Huang's mother understood what Mingxi meant, and her expression immediately turned somewhat unpleasant.
But she also knew that Mingxi was telling the truth.
So after a long silence, she nodded and said, "Okay, I understand. I don't need to ask for so much, but I still have one request: that the man's family be simple and not have too many siblings. My Huang Li isn't that cunning; she can't outsmart others."
Mingxi: "Okay, I'll definitely remember that."
After settling things off with Aunt Huang, Mingxi turned to Huang Li.
To be honest, she felt that compared to the oriole, Aunt Huang was not difficult to deal with.
Aunt Huang has many requirements and high standards, while Huang Li doesn't have many requirements, but she's never satisfied with any of the matches they meet.
Mingxi pondered for a long time and concluded that the problem still lay with Huangli.
She felt that Huang Li wasn't ready to date and get married.
Mingxi sat down, adopting a posture of having a heart-to-heart talk. Huangli couldn't help but feel nervous when she saw Mingxi like this. She subconsciously straightened her back and gripped the hem of her clothes with both hands.
Mingxi smiled and said, "Don't be nervous, I just want to talk to you."
The oriole swallowed hard: "Mmm..."
She said she wasn't nervous, but she still couldn't relax.
Mingxi: "It's nothing, I was just having a casual chat. You're only a year older than me, and you're only twenty-one this year, not that old. Why are you in such a hurry to find a partner and get married?"
Huang Li: "Well, I've reached the age where I need to be. Besides, my older brothers are already married, so I have to think about the rest of the family."
Huang Li didn't say it directly, but Mingxi still understood.
Huang Li's two sisters-in-law had a problem with her.
Mingxi changed the subject: "I heard you used to take jobs at the neighborhood office?"
Huang Li nodded: "Yes, I used to work at the neighborhood office pasting cardboard boxes for the match factory."
Speaking of this, Huang Li smiled more: "I work fast, so I always get the most pay and earn the most. The most I ever earned in a month was ten yuan."
Mingxi: "Joke, you're pretty amazing."
Mingxi isn't just blindly praising Huangli; she genuinely thinks Huangli is quite amazing.
Pasting cardboard boxes is a job that doesn't require much skill; anyone can do it, so the unit price is low. You can only earn a few cents for pasting one box, and you can earn ten dollars a month, which shows that Huang Li really did a lot of work.
The oriole proudly raised its head, then quickly lowered it again: "It's a pity I can't get this job now. Otherwise, I wouldn't..."
The work assigned by the neighborhood committee is not something anyone can take on. The neighborhood committee will give priority to the poor households in the alleys, and only after the poor households have been dealt with will the unemployed youth be given the work.
There are too many unemployed young people in the alley now, and they are all vying for jobs at the neighborhood committee office. It's becoming increasingly difficult for Huang Li to find work.
There's nothing we can do about it.
Because she couldn't get any work and couldn't earn any money, Huang Li became even more insecure. In front of her gossipy sisters-in-law, she couldn't stand up straight and just wanted to get married and move out as soon as possible.
Mingxi vaguely grasped the root of the problem. She looked up at Huang's mother, then shifted her gaze back to Huang Li and asked, "Do you want to find a job?"
Mingxi's words were like a sudden thunderclap, and Huangli was stunned for a long time before she could react.
After a long pause, she stammered, "This...who wouldn't want to?"
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