The two of them arrived at the main hall. Second Aunt was serving food on the table. Jiang Mengxue felt a little embarrassed: "Sorry, Second Aunt, I slept a little late."
Li Cuiying waved her hand: "You've been tired all day. I'll ask Xiaobei to wake you up later. Come and eat. After eating, have a good rest tonight. You have to go back to your family tomorrow, so you have to get up early."
During the meal, Gu Zhenjiang handed the two of them today's gift book and a small bag: "This is the gift I received today. It doesn't matter to the elders and relatives at home, you don't have to return them, but you have to remember the gifts from your peers and your comrades-in-arms. You have to return the gifts in the future."
Most of the personal relationships in Gu Qingbei's family are handled by Gu Zhenjiang. Gu Zhenhai has not been back for more than ten years. Gu Qingbei does not know all the people in his family, and it is basically Gu Zhenjiang who maintains the family.
There is no way to avoid some of them. It is impossible to cut off the relationship directly if the relationship is close. It is estimated that it will be almost the same by the next generation. The children will not know each other and will have little contact.
Jiang Mengxue flipped through it and took a quick look. Dan Changjiang was fifty, Xu Ming was forty, and Liu Yang was thirty.
Of course, it’s not because of distant relationship that the amount paid is less. Xu Ming may not want to pay higher than Dan Changjiang, so Liu Yang also paid ten yuan less.
Jiang Mengxue didn't know much about the interpersonal relationships in Gu Qingbei's family. In her opinion, what she gave was a bit too much. Generally, those with closer relationships would only give three or five yuan, and ten yuan would be considered a lot. You have to know that the monthly salary of a worker nowadays is only twenty or thirty yuan.
Jiang Mengxue also noticed that not only did Uncle Gu put in ten yuan, but several cousins behind him also followed suit and put in five yuan.
Li Cuiying said, "This gift between you cousins is also normal. You should also return it when your nephews and nieces get married."
Jiang Mengxue nodded. Her way of dealing with interpersonal relationships was to see how others acted. If the relationship was similar, she would just follow their lead.
After dinner, Li Cuiying didn't ask the two to help clean up, and asked them to go back to the house.
Gu Qingbei immediately started looking through the account books when he arrived. Besides the fifty yuan Dan Changjiang had given, the couple also gave them a set of pillowcases and a bed sheet. Xu Ming and his wife had given them a thermos and a box of canned goods. Liu Yang had someone bring back dried seafood, kelp, and seaweed—pretty fresh for a place not near the sea.
Jiang Mengxue gathered nearby and saw that some people gave money of one or two yuan, most of which were fifty or twenty cents. Some people also gave ten or eight eggs, as well as grain, half a pound of pork, a few pounds of wheat, and a few pounds of chestnuts, red beans, and mung beans. A lot of grain was collected.
"What should we do with these things? Should we take them all back?"
Gu Qingbei nodded: "Take it with you. Food is very precious nowadays. We can't just ignore it. Besides, if we give it to someone at home, it will be difficult to give it to anyone. With my aunt's temper, she will definitely take it all.
Oh, and there’s also one my second uncle and second aunt gave us. They said they didn’t have any children, so they just gave it to us.”
Gu Qingbei took out a box from a cabinet on the side and opened it. Inside was a roll of money and a pair of emerald green bracelets.
Jiang Mengxue was silent for a few seconds: "It should be more than that, right?"
Gu Qingbei was a little confused. He didn't know what Jiang Mengxue meant. What else did she mean?
Jiang Mengxue hesitated for a moment, but after thinking about it, she decided to ask: "Did Second Uncle and Second Mother only give you this much, or did all your cousins give it to you as well? I saw Second Uncle gave you ten yuan on the gift list, but he gave you so much privately. Maybe he didn't want to let First Uncle's family know?"
Gu Qingbei didn't expect that his wife was so smart and could see so much just from this.
"Yes, when I was little, my parents were busy and didn't feel comfortable leaving me with them, so they sent me back to be raised by my grandmother. But at that time, I spent most of my time at my second uncle's house."
Gu Qingbei felt a little heavy-hearted: "My second uncle's family used to have an older sister who was a few years older than me, but she died when she was a little over one year old. Since then, my second mother has never had any children. Although they saw many doctors and took many medicines when they were young, there was no effect.
At first, no one expected this result. At that time, my grandmother wanted my eldest uncle's family to adopt a child to my second uncle's family. At that time, my fifth and sixth sisters were still young. Even if it was a girl, as long as there was a child, it was fine. In fact, it didn't matter whether it was a girl or not. But at that time, my second mother still wanted to give birth to a child herself. She didn't expect that she would not be able to get pregnant. When she wanted to adopt a child again, my cousin was old and could already remember things.
In addition, my aunt was not willing when my grandmother brought up this matter, so she was always on guard against my second uncle and his wife in those years, afraid that they would bring up this matter. Because if my second uncle really brought it up, my eldest uncle would definitely agree, and he would not bear to see my second uncle's lineage cut off like this.
But my second uncle and his family saw that my eldest aunt was quite resistant, so they gave up the idea. It happened that I was sent back to my hometown at that time. My second aunt had no children, so she liked to take me with her wherever she went. At that time, I still remember that my eldest aunt even mocked my second aunt in front of her, saying that the third uncle and his wife only had this one child, and they were reluctant to give it to you. No matter how much you love him now, it’s useless because he will still go back to his parents when he grows up.
I just remember that day when I got home, my second mother sat by the table and cried. She held my hand and asked me if I was willing to raise them when I grew up. I said that when I grew up and got married, I would bring them to live with my parents and I would be filial to them together.
Gu Qingbei sighed: "In fact, it was my aunt who regretted it at that time. In those years, my second uncle and second aunt's work was getting better and better, and they treated me better than my cousins. Maybe she was a little unwilling to accept it.
I guess my second mother must have been ridiculed by my eldest mother a lot since I went to the army. Although she never tells me when I ask her, I can guess it more or less. So I send things and write letters home every now and then, and even if I don’t have time, I will ask my parents to write back.
Wife, I haven't told you this before, but now I want to hear your opinion. Back then, I was young and said whatever I thought. Now I realize how difficult it is. I can hardly get a vacation in the army in a year, let alone come back home.
Li Cuiying was just about to knock on the door and tell them that the water on the stove was ready and to get some water for the two of them to wash up, but when she walked to the door she heard these words and she instantly became nervous.
Although I knew I shouldn't do that, I couldn't move my feet. I really wanted to know what Jiang Mengxue would say.
In fact, the couple have come to terms with it over the years. If they don't have children, then they don't have children. Xiaobei lives so far away and can't come back often due to his special job. They have a lot of savings. When they retire, they will go back to the countryside to farm their own land. With the pension, they can still take care of themselves. When they are old and can't move, Xiaobei will get half of the savings, and the rest will be divided among their other nephews. In the end, it's enough to have someone to take care of their funeral. They want to be with their daughter.
Jiang Mengxue didn't know what to say: "Well..."
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