Xu Xiangjuan saw Zhou Chengning move the shelf to the outer room and stopped, "You've put it outside, are you worried or what?"
Zhou Chengning: "Juan, do you think I can wear it tomorrow night?"
"I think it's cloudy, so I shouldn't be able to wear it." There is a radio in the village, but it has never broadcast the weather. As farmers, they have to know how to read the weather. She was deliberately trying to scare him.
Look at him, he's gone crazy. He won't be able to sleep at night if I don't give him a word of encouragement.
In fact, as long as it doesn't rain, it will definitely dry if it is left outside to dry overnight and during the day tomorrow. It is not even wet to the touch, but has been wrung dry. It seems that her man is really eager to wear it.
Zhou Chengning wanted to say something else, but Xu Xiangjuan stopped him, "That's enough! If you don't go to bed, you'll stay outside tonight and I'll let you watch over you all night!"
"I'm asleep. I won't watch you anymore." After taking a reluctant look, Zhou Chengning followed Xu Xiangjuan, who had already carried a lantern into the inner room.
Tonight was not the same treatment as last night. Xu Xiangjuan waited for Zhou Chengning to go to bed, then turned off the lights, covered herself with a quilt and went to sleep.
"Juan, my colleague said chestnuts are delicious." Zhou Chengning couldn't sleep, so he whispered to Xu Xiangjuan through Niu Niu.
Xu Xiangjuan said indifferently: "Yeah."
Zhou Chengning continued: "When asked where I bought it, I said my wife made it."
Not sure what her man wanted to say, "And then?"
Zhou Chengning: "Then we continued to eat, Juan, they all know that you cook delicious food and they envy me."
Xu Xiangjuan felt that her reputation as a "shrew" was not big enough to spread to the school. It was probably because she usually brought meals for her man that made people think that she was stingy and abused her husband.
Although she did not have as hard a life as her brothers and sisters, she still remembered those hard times. There was less food at that time, so she saved it. It was not that she did not allow her husband to eat, but she was afraid that her husband would be stupid and the good food would be shared by others... In fact, there were not many good food at home.
Aning was the same. Sometimes she was too busy to take care of him, so she asked him to prepare his own lunch boxes. He was so stupid as to put chopped wild onions in it and kept it there for a few days. She asked him why he didn't bring dried radish or something like that. How could the rice be eaten with just chopped wild onions?
He said she was not at home, so he did not dare open the jar of radishes, for fear that it was not sealed properly and the radishes would go bad.
She’s afraid that the radish will go bad, so she’ll scold him, right?
I don't know how to say good things about him.
Xu Xiangjuan: "Your colleagues all envy you, you should be happy. Go to sleep now. Maybe you will wake up in the middle of the night not because of the urchins, but because of laughter."
Zhou Chengning: "Juan, can you sleep in the same bed with me? I will definitely wake up laughing if I do that."
Xu Xiangjuan: "You're dreaming. Go to bed early. Don't blame me for being mad at you if you disturb Niu Niu." It's probably less than eight o'clock now, which is early enough.
When his lover was about to get angry, Zhou Chengning immediately calmed down. As expected, his status in the family was not high.
...
When he got up early in the morning, before Guagua woke up, Zhou Chengning first went to move the clothes drying rack to the yard and told him, "Juan, help me take care of it during the day. If it rains, take it back as soon as possible."
"I understand." If you didn't know, you would think I was helping him look after some treasure.
Zhou Chengning touched it and felt that he would be able to finish the day by sunbathing and enjoying the breeze outside. He would have to take a good bath after dinner in the evening.
After breakfast, Zhou Chengning wanted to talk, but Xu Xiangjuan quickly interrupted, "Guagua, take Dad out."
Guagua listened to his mother and opened his little arms, "Dad!"
"Okay." Zhou Chengning picked up Gua Gua and vaguely felt that his lover was annoyed, so he didn't mention it in front of his lover again.
After carrying Guagua to the gate of the yard, Zhou Chengning saw that his wife had gone back to the inner room. He squatted down and said to Guagua, "Guagua, if it rains today, help Dad remind Mom to bring the clothes in."
Guagua nodded: "Yeah!"
Zhou Chengning was afraid that Guagua would not remember, so he said it again, "When it rains, tell mom to collect the clothes. Don't forget."
My wife basically stays in the house, but Gua Gua can't sit still as soon as he wakes up. He runs here and there and he definitely knows whether it is raining outside earlier than my wife.
Guagua still nodded, "I know, Dad!"
After seeing Guagua come back, Zhou Chengning closed the yard door and went to work.
When Guagua came back, Xu Xiangjuan asked him, "Guagua, did Daddy say anything to you?"
Guagua: "Dad said it was raining so he asked Mom to collect the clothes."
It was indeed like that. Xu Xiangjuan was helpless. She didn't know when her man's enthusiasm for novelty would wear off.
Maybe Zhou Chengning urged her too hard, Xu Xiangjuan went to collect the underwear and socks in the afternoon and did it. He must have been very happy when he got home and knew that it was done.
When Zhou Chengning came home in the evening, Xu Xiangjuan didn't even wait for him to speak, "It's already dry. Put it where you usually put it. I threw away the old one. I also cleaned the pot and boiled hot water. Two pots of water, should that be enough?"
If she didn't throw it away, would she wait for him to throw it away? How could he bear to throw it away?
"It's enough." Zhou Chengning's expression was happy at first, then he felt pain, and then he seemed to have convinced himself and felt relieved.
Xu Xiangjuan knew that after getting married, the stingiest person in the family was actually her husband, the father of her children.
Strictly abide by the rule of "three years new, three years old, and three years of mending".
It was Guagua who came back early again in the evening. The little girl knew it. As soon as she felt something was wrong, like her father had to stay to work or something and she couldn't go back to the inner room to sleep after washing the pots and dishes, she would run back by herself immediately.
Xu Xiangjuan gave herself, Guagua and Niu Niu a bath in the afternoon. Giving little kids a bath is tiring, but after the bath, everyone feels refreshed.
Noticing that it was getting darker last night, Xu Xiangjuan prepared a kerosene lamp in the kitchen. Their kitchen is not easily damp, so even if you take a shower in it, the water will flow out if it spills on the ground.
Guagua and Niu Niu are both asleep tonight. Xu Xiangjuan didn't intend to urge them to go to bed, but then she thought, what if they take too long to take a bath at night and catch a cold?
Go and see what they are dawdling about!
Xu Xiangjuan: "Aning, come back to bed early after taking a shower. Don't linger too long, or you'll catch a cold easily."
The kitchen door was closed, and she talked outside, then prepared to go back.
It's really chilly tonight.
But before she turned around, the kitchen door opened. Xu Xiangjuan said, "Put on your clothes and pants quickly after washing. How old are you? Are you still a three-year-old like Guagua? Guagua knows to call mom to add more clothes for her when she's cold."
"It's warm inside, Juan, come in." Zhou Chengning was still drying his hair, and he had a tight-fitting outfit on.
Xu Xiangjuan went into the kitchen and found it was indeed warmer than outside.
Xu Xiangjuan: "Didn't you bring any clothes? Why are you still so thin? Where did your food go?"
The ribs could be seen clearly, but she was in no mood to appreciate anything. She just felt distressed.
"The clothes I brought with me are in the basin over there. I...I eat a lot at every meal." He also felt that he had gained weight.
Xu Xiangjuan: "Do you eat lunch normally at school?"
He always ate very cleanly, without leaving even a grain of rice. "I ate it all myself."
"Then continue to eat well from now on... When your hair is no longer dripping, go back to the inner room and wipe it. Don't stay in the kitchen too long. Put on your clothes quickly. I'll go back first." Xu Xiangjuan didn't stay too long either. After she finished speaking, she left the kitchen.
Zhou Chengning first put on his underwear in the kitchen slowly, then slowly went back to the inner room and climbed onto the bed. Xu Xiangjuan was knitting a sweater, and when she saw Zhou Chengning coming back, she didn't even glance at him. She knitted for a while, gathered up the small tail, and put the wool basket away. "Come over here, let me feel if your hair is dry."
Hearing his lover say this, Zhou Chengning immediately leaned over happily.
Xu Xiangjuan reached out and touched Zhou Chengning's hair. "It's almost dry. Bring me your hair towel and I'll replace it with a dry one. Just wipe it for a while and you can go to bed."
Until the lights were turned off and we went to bed, my lover never mentioned the new underwear he bought for her.
Zhou Chengning wanted his wife to ask him how it felt to wear it, but his wife didn't ask, and he was too embarrassed to say it. He felt it was very comfortable to wear and it was new.
Xu Xiangjuan was thinking about knitting a sweater for her man as soon as possible so that everyone could see that he was wearing new clothes and he could be happy.
Also, should Aning be allowed to hold Guagua in the future? Aning is so thin, and Guagua is so heavy... But maybe holding Guagua can also be considered a form of exercise?
In early November, the autumn breeze brought a cool breeze, and every household was busy with the autumn harvest and drying of rice. Xu Xiangjuan also received a package from Huadu.
The packages for my brothers and sisters are all sent directly to my parents, and the ones sent to her house are most likely from my aunt.
A long time ago, if you wanted to pick up a package, you had to go to the county town yourself and pick it up. The package would then be placed in the village and announced through a loudspeaker. Now it is more convenient and the package can be delivered to your doorstep.
When Gua Gua saw someone sending something to his home, he wanted to know what it was and pestered his mother to open the package. He had seen packages at his grandparents’ house before, and they always contained delicious food.
Xu Xiangjuan said, "Guagua, this is Dad's package. You can't open it until Dad comes back."
Guagua's little head was filled with doubts, "Why should I wait for Dad to come back?"
Mom is the boss in the family, doesn’t Dad listen to Mom? Isn’t what belongs to Dad also what belongs to Mom?
Xu Xiangjuan patiently explained, "This is what Dad's aunt sent to Great Grandpa. Do you remember Great Grandpa? Great Grandpa who lived in a thatched house."
Although Guagua’s memory is not very good at the age of three, his great grandfather still remembers it, “Remember, great grandfather, the straw house.”
Xu Xiangjuan: "It's for my great grandfather, so my father has to come back to open it, okay?"
"I know." Gua Gua stopped worrying.
For my great-grandfather who lives in a thatched house. He is too thin and must be starving. If there is food, give it to him.
Xu Xiangjuan didn't want to preach to Gua Gua at this time. If a little kid gets entangled, it can drive adults crazy. Seeing that Gua Gua didn't insist on opening the package, she took the package to the inner room. You know what, it was still quite heavy.
When Zhou Chengning came back, Xu Xiangjuan told him about the package, "Aunt really sent us a package, and we're waiting for you to go home and see what it is."
Zhou Chengning had just returned and was eager to eat dinner. He was obviously not as interested in the package as in dinner. "Just read it before going to bed."
After eating two bowls of rice and feeling alive again, Zhou Chengning said, "I'll bring it to Grandpa on my day off. Can Guagua and Dad go to see Great Grandpa together?"
Xu Xiangjuan has been busy recently. Although she doesn't have to go to the fields, she still has to cook for her parents who work in the fields, take care of Niu Niu, and prepare winter clothes and a small quilt for Niu Niu... She is busy preparing for the winter.
Now you basically have to do it yourself. Where do you get the money to buy them? Every family is financially tight. If you can do it yourself, you don’t waste the money.
Guagua: "Yes! Mom, I want some candy for Grandpa."
The little guy probably just wanted to eat candy. "Candy, candy, candy all day long. Are you giving it to your great-grandfather or are you hiding it for yourself?"
Guagua: "To great grandfather."
"You can only have two candies, no more." There was no fruit candy at home, so she got it from her mother. Her parents occasionally had candy, but most of the time they gave it to the children. The children only had candy from her family, so she wouldn't give any to them. Can a three-year-old child eat candy whenever he wants?
"Okay." Two is better than one, and better than nothing.
In the evening, after everyone in the family washed up and went back to their rooms, Gua Gua, for once, did not go to bed immediately and watched his father unpack the package.
Xu Xiangjuan: "You are so generous, how can you just put it in a package and send it over? Is there a letter? Let me see how much it is, yes, yes."
She found a thick envelope and was shocked when she opened it.
There were no hundred-dollar bills at the moment, the largest one was the Great Unity. She looked at the thick stack, which was quite a lot. How could she put it directly into the package?
Her husband Aning only earns 37 yuan a month now, and the three big pieces of silver are so thin that you can't feel their thickness.
Zhou Chengning found another envelope, "There's another letter here, let me take a look."
"Gua Gua, don't think that mom didn't see it. Take it out. If you don't have one, you won't have breakfast tomorrow." Xu Xiangjuan noticed Gua Gua hiding with a can, and immediately asked Gua Gua to take it back.
Gua Gua hesitated for a while, and finally took the can out from behind him.
Children need to be taught from the beginning. Although Guagua will be successful in the future, he still has some small actions at the age of three. As a mother, you should still educate him. "Don't take things without your parents' permission in the future, understand?"
Guagua: “I know, Orange.”
Xu Xiangjuan: "There is an orange tree in grandma's yard. When the oranges turn yellow, mom will pick some for you to eat."
Guagua said in a weak voice, pushing the can of oranges back and saying, "Hmm."
Zhou Chengning found a letter, "Juan, there is 1,000 yuan. Auntie said in the letter that she would give 300 yuan to our children, and the remaining 700 yuan would be used to buy a new quilt and clothes for grandpa to get through the winter."
After hearing this, Xu Xiangjuan immediately made arrangements, "Just buy the quilt from my parents. My mom has saved new cotton to make quilts and cotton clothes. Go buy them for grandpa when you go to the department store to buy a car this month. And buy some supplements for him while you're at it."
Seeing that Guagua didn't cause any more trouble for her, Xu Xiangjuan opened the envelope and counted the money.
One hundred Great Unity tickets are half of what she has in the sealed jar. She is really generous.
She thought about it, she didn't say it in her previous life, but her intention was to make her man break off all ties with those weirdos in the family, so she didn't know much about what was going on over there, she only knew that her aunt was in Huadu.
If you are not doing business, this amount of money would definitely be a considerable expense.
Zhou Chengning never disobeyed his wife's words. "I will listen to Juan. This canned aunt said one orange will be given to grandpa, and the remaining two... the remaining two will be given to our family."
Zhou Chengning was cautious and did not say the original words in the letter, which were to leave two for Guagua to taste.
It’s for Guagua. Of course I can’t just say it’s for Guagua, otherwise Guagua will hold on to the can and won’t let go. Besides, my wife just scolded Guagua.
Xu Xiangjuan ordered the Great Unity once, yes, she was ordering it for the second time. Hearing this, she said, "Open a can tomorrow and give Gua Gua a few bites."
Her brothers and sisters also sent her canned food, but not often. The few times she did, Guagua was still too small to finish it, so she would try it at her parents’ house and then come back.
Gua Gua Aning has probably never eaten it, so I might as well open a can tomorrow and let the father and daughter try it.
"Good, Mom!" When Gua Gua heard that he could eat canned food tomorrow, he was so happy that he almost jumped up.
Xu Xiangjuan corrected him: "Don't be good mom, this is Dad's, not Mom's. Guagua should thank Dad."
After ordering twice and finding no problem, Xu Xiangjuan began to divide the money, dividing it into seven hundred and three hundred.
Guagua is a perceptive child, "Good dad!"
"Guagua, although it's Dad's, you need Mom's permission before you can eat it... Juan, there's also a can of milk powder, two air-dried ducks in sauce, and a big ham. One of the ducks in sauce is for Grandpa... Aunt said she'll come back home for the New Year."
Zhou Chengning hadn't eaten meat for a while. When he saw meat, he imagined how wonderful it would taste. His wife could cook vegetarian dishes so deliciously, and meat dishes were even more delicious. He still remembered how fragrant the fish and stewed chicken in delicious soup were.
Xu Xiangjuan: "Nothing else?"
Zhou Chengning read the contents of the letter again and said, "That's all."
Money is the biggest thing. Although the aunt said that 300 yuan was for the child, the child doesn't need so much money. Zhou Chengning thought that his tricycle was settled.
Xu Xiangjuan: "Okay, I'll keep the money for now, and we'll talk about it later. Bring the pickled duck when you take Guagua with you on your day off. I'll steam it and put it in a bamboo basket for you that day. Don't give the money to Grandpa yet. I'll give you as much as you have left after buying. You and Guagua can just stay and have lunch with Grandpa."
Zhou Chengning felt embarrassed: "It's for grandpa. It won't be good for me and Guagua to keep it."
Xu Xiangjuan knew the old man’s habits. If Aning and Guagua didn’t eat it, grandpa might keep it and not eat it. Many old people would not bear to eat something even if it went bad after being stored.
"Grandpa's appetite will be better if you stay. Will your little brother and little sister Zhou take you away if you leave? I understand now. Your little brother and little sister Zhou are the ones who stick out. Your parents always let the two little ones do whatever bad things they want. They are used to it and have very vicious mouths."
Zhou Chengning: "Juan, you say..."
"say what?"
"What should I say then, if they know that we wrote to Gu?"
Xu Xiangjuan had dealt with bad relatives before: "Just tell them that if you don't take good care of Grandpa, our family will take him in, and let Aunt send all his stuff to us in the future... Zhou Chengning, I'm telling you, I'm just talking, don't really take Grandpa in, there are two kids at home who can't take care of him."
And grandpa may not be willing to come and live here. Although I don’t know how he ended up living in thatched house, after living there for decades, he must be used to being alone.
Zhou Chengning really thought about it, but he quickly denied it. He was a "married-in-law", and if his grandfather moved in too, his mother-in-law would definitely have a worse impression of him.
"No, I won't take Grandpa over, Juan. I'll listen to you and know what to say."
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