Chapter 7

Jian Lu wrote a short letter to Aunt Wang from the brigade. She handed the letter over and felt a little embarrassed when she saw the handwriting on it, which looked like it was written by an elementary school student.

Her handwriting is actually quite beautiful, and she had practiced it before. But now she wants to maintain her illiterate image and deliberately writes as if it is falling apart.

It's so awful.

"Auntie Wang, my handwriting is not very good. Can your son understand it?"

Aunt Wang took the letter and looked at the fourth daughter of the Jian family in front of her with a loving smile, "I can understand it. Your handwriting is already pretty good. You've only been learning for a week, right? I think it's better than many people who have studied for a year! Lulu, if you had gone to school before, you might have been able to go to junior high school!"

Being in junior high school is already a great academic compliment in this era, and junior high school students are already in high demand.

Jian Lu felt mixed emotions when Aunt Wang praised her with such pride. It seemed like she was praising me, but also like she was downgrading my academic qualifications.

As the two were talking, Jian Lu was ready to accompany Aunt Wang to the post office to mail a letter. However, just as she was about to get up, she heard the voice of her third sister who had just finished shopping.

"Lulu, Mom is calling you, get ready to go home!"

Jian Lu looked back and saw Jian Xin holding something big in her arms. It was an enamel basin with the word "囍" printed on it, and inside the basin were a pair of enamel cups and a thermos.

"Okay, I'll come!"

Aunt Wang held Jian Lu's hand and urged her to go back. "I'm very familiar with the post office. You should go back with your family. Lulu, thank you for today!"

"Auntie Wang, it's okay. We are all in the same team. Fine, you go to the post office to mail the letter. I'll go home first."

Jian Lu, Jian Xin and Zhang Cuixia joined together. All three of them had reaped a lot and had their hands full. It was almost noon, and Jian Lu was already hungry after rushing around and squeezing in and out of the supply and marketing cooperative all morning.

When passing by the state-owned hotel, she could hardly move.

The state-owned hotel in the county town was a bungalow with a red-painted wooden door and a plaque with four large characters on it. Its glass windows reached the ground, and from outside one could see the state-owned factory workers in work clothes enjoying a feast inside.

Yangchun noodles, braised pork, pot-stuffed pork, sauerkraut vermicelli stew...

"What are you looking at?" Zhang Cuixia rolled her eyes at the two girls. Is that a place that they can enter? "You need food stamps to buy things in state-owned hotels, and we don't have any."

"I know." Jian Xin nudged her fourth sister with her elbow, signaling her to leave, her eyes still lingering on the diners in the state-owned hotel, "Looking at it will satisfy your hunger."

"Yes, I have three buns in my pocket. I will eat them and go home for lunch."

Sitting on the ox cart returning to the brigade, Jian Lu placed a few feet of cloth on her legs and chewed on the wowotou in her right hand. The wowotou, which had been left for the whole morning, was cold and hard, and it took a lot of effort for her teeth to bite it.

She wants to eat meat, all kinds of food, hot pot, skewers, spicy hot pot, fried chicken, burgers, cola...

Unfortunately, dreams contain everything.

After returning home, Zhang Cuixia prepared to make new clothes for her daughter. The red fabric belonged to Jian Xin, as the wedding had to be a happy occasion.

In the brigade, everyone made their own clothes to save money. Almost every daughter-in-law had this skill. Zhang Cuixia was also a good clothes-maker, but unfortunately there were too few cloth coupons at home, so she rarely had the opportunity to show her skills.

"Mom, Lulu said she wanted to show me how to make clothes. It will definitely look good." Jian Xin hurriedly stopped her mother.

Zhang Cuixia didn't know where the fourth girl learned all this, but after listening to her talk and imagining what it would look like when it was made, it seemed really good.

"Lulu, where do you know all these things?" Zhang Cuixia looked at the fourth lady and felt a little strange. This girl didn't shrink all day long anymore and now she had some ideas about making clothes.

"Ah..." Jian Lu's clear eyes flashed, her eyelashes trembled slightly, and she immediately thought of something to say, "I heard from the educated youth from Shanghai that they have a lot of different styles of clothes there."

"Oh, Shanghai." Zhang Cuixia lowered her head again, holding the red cloth and preparing to start. "I heard it's quite lively."

Zhang Cuixia was very quick and efficient. She first took two days to make a red wedding dress for Jian Xin, and then spent another day to hastily make a light blue short-sleeved double-breasted top for Jian Lu, just in time to wear it after the spring.

If it were in the future, Jian Lu would definitely think that such clothes were tacky and did not suit her aesthetic taste, but at this moment, having a new dress was already good.

When the clothes were ready, a letter came from the matchmaker He Hongmei.

Jian Lu went to He's house again. This time, He Hongmei was so happy to see her that she stood up and dragged her inside.

"Lulu, are you impatient?" He Hongmei had her hair tied up, her temples neatly combed, and her face wrinkled from smiling. "Auntie really picked a good match for you this time."

"Did you really find it?" Jian Lu was a man who knew how to handle things. Today, she brought a handful of peanuts from home. Regardless of whether it would work out or not, she had to establish a good relationship with the matchmaker. "Auntie Hongmei, have some peanuts."

He Hongmei was warmed by the behavior of this well-behaved girl Jian Lu. She felt that this person was one in a million, handsome in appearance and meticulous in work!

It's time to find a good match.

She cracked open the peanut shells, savored the aroma of the peanuts, and quickly spoke, "This man is the son of the accountant of the Wanfang Commune next door. He is 23 years old, good-looking, and quite tall. In short, he fits your requirements perfectly!"

From the next commune? Jian Lu became interested when she heard this. It would be better to marry far away, away from Jian Hualin and Zhang Cuixia. Even if something really happened, she probably wouldn't see them more than twice a year. How comfortable it would be.

"He has good conditions, why hasn't he married yet?" Jian Lu still knows what she is talking about. In this era, if someone hasn't married at such a late age, he must be greedy!

"You better be careful. He wants to find a good-looking partner just like you. Don't you think this is a coincidence?"

Well, they are all obsessed with looks!

This is human nature, and Jian Lu deeply understands it.

Next, He Hongmei praised Jian Lu about how handsome the man was, how well-off his family was, how he could eat meat every now and then, and even how he had a brother-in-law who was an educated youth from Shanghai who had gone to the countryside to work. He had even eaten White Rabbit milk candy.

"If you marry her, you will definitely live a happy life!"

Jian Lu felt a little moved after hearing this, but she had to wait and see, and she had to do it secretly. If she was not satisfied, she would not go on a formal blind date, which would only add to the trouble.

It happened that the next day, the neighboring commune was organizing a film screening. It was a war movie that everyone had seen many times. The major communes could only half-ask, half-invite film projectionists to screen movies a few times a year.

At that time, entertainment activities were scarce and it was difficult to go to an open-air movie.

When a movie was shown in the neighboring commune, many members of other communes would walk seven or eight miles to watch it.

Jian Lu also went there, and took the third sister with her as a shield.

It was too cold to watch a movie in winter, but the open space was still packed with people. Jian Lu and Jian Xin stood outside the large group, trying to tiptoe. Fortunately, Jian Xin's boyfriend, Jian Lu's future brother-in-law Meng Fan, came over and got two stools, so they could sit comfortably in the front row and watch the movie.

"Third sister, my brother-in-law is quite capable."

Jian Lu looked at her brother-in-law who was smiling shyly. The look in his eyes when he looked at her third sister was like sparks and lightning.

Tsk tsk, it seems like she has already held on!

"Don't talk nonsense!" Jian Xin looked at the person shyly, then turned her face to the girl and said in a low voice, "He and I haven't had a wedding yet."

"It's almost there, only one week left." Jian Lu felt that the air was filled with sweetness due to the couple's ambiguity, so she smiled too.

But after eating the dog food, we still have to get down to business.

Halfway through the movie, she used the excuse of going to the toilet and quietly slipped out to find He Hongmei. The two of them moved to the other end of the theater. Following the direction of He Hongmei's finger, Jian Lu saw a man.

He is quite tall, with a typical northern man's build. His appearance should also be in line with the aesthetic of the time. He has a square face, thick eyebrows and big eyes, and looks very upright.

But, how should I put it, it doesn't suit my aesthetic! Too strong and too simple.

He Hongmei was also a smart person. She knew from Jian Lu's eyes that she didn't like him.

"Lulu, you don't like this?" He Hongmei felt a little regretful. In her opinion, the two of them were really a good match.

Jian Lu shook her head, feeling a little confused. This guy seemed to be the best match she could find right now? Should she just settle for it?

"Auntie Hongmei, this girl doesn't look like what I like. Are there no other suitable ones? There is no one left?" When asking this, Jian Lu felt a little guilty, as the conditions she proposed seemed to be quite embarrassing.

"Your requirements are too high. It's not easy to find one..." He Hongmei thought of several eligible gay men in the nearby communes, and then eliminated them one by one. "He must be good-looking, tall and strong, and he must marry far away. There are no such people around us... Hey, it seems that Shitou is the only one who meets the requirements."

He Hongmei had a flash of inspiration, and the image of a tall and handsome man emerged in her mind.

"Is there really someone who can satisfy me?" Jian Lu immediately became interested. From what Aunt Hongmei said, it seemed that someone could meet her requirements! "Aunt Hongmei, who is it? Does he really satisfy all of her requirements?"

"Yes, he's good-looking and very handsome. Even the girls from the neighboring commune asked about him and wanted to marry him. He's tall and strong, and he's a soldier, so he's very capable." He Hongmei also became excited. "He wore that white military uniform very neatly. So many people from the commune came to surround him that day!"

Jian Lu confirmed again, "Is he really handsome?"

Aunt Hongmei nodded vigorously, "You won't find anyone more handsome than him anywhere in the country."

"He is tall and strong?"

"Yes!"

"You're still a soldier, you look very energetic in your military uniform?"

"She's so crazy that I want to kidnap her to be my son-in-law." He Hongmei gradually calmed down as she spoke. "But I heard that she was seriously injured. She's not worth marrying."

It is inevitable that soldiers will get injured while defending their country. Jian Lu's curiosity was aroused. From what Aunt Hongmei said, this man must be quite good. "How old is he?"

To be honest, she doesn't accept relationships between men and women who are younger than her. This is her bottom line.

"The new year starts at the age of twenty-seven, which is the most promising time."

Jian Lu:?

She shook her head and said without hesitation, "Forget it, he's too old."

After all, she is now a 19-year-old lesbian.

He Hongmei:?

Is this the reason for looking down on it?

Jian Lu looked at Aunt Hongmei's surprised expression and smiled, then listened to her speak.

"But even if you like him, there's nothing you can do. He's far away and hasn't been back for many years."

Jian Lu: Oh, that’s quite unfortunate.

——

At this time, Cheng Zheng, who was "too old", was on the deck of the warship, and had no idea that thousands of miles away, a pretty girl was seriously complaining about her age.

He has a straight body, sharp eyebrows, bright eyes, a handsome face, and a sharp jawline that seems to be carefully carved. He looks more energetic in a military uniform, and his dark eyes are fixed on the azure sea.

Next to him was the Chief of Staff Xu Lang, who was doing ideological work on him. Xu Lang was a sharp-tongued man and was very good at talking about people. Cheng Zheng's personal problems had always been a matter of great concern to the regiment.

Excellent military officers get married and start a family, and even the brigade commander takes this into consideration. So he specially asked Xu Lang, Cheng Zheng's good partner, who is the same age as Cheng Zheng but already has a wife and children, to stimulate him.

However, Cheng Zheng was unmoved and Xu Lang's words were almost worn out without any reaction from this man. He became furious and started to insult his old partner.

"Old Cheng, look at you, you are still young and you don't want to seize the opportunity. Are you going to drag it out until you are 30? By then, no matter how handsome you are, young girls will still look down on you because you are too old!"