Chapter 240: Full Moon Ceremony
As soon as the soy milk came, Zhang Hongying scooped out two bowls first, and then poured the soy milk in.
A little sugar was added and the bowl was divided into two halves. Lu Chun'e took half of the bowl to Wen Wan, gave the remaining half to Chuyi, and asked Shengxia to take the other half back to Lu Dongcheng.
The breakfast was a porridge made from tofu soup, a little broken rice and corn grits, fried pickles, and chili peppers. Each person had a bowl in their hands and ate it.
At Wen Wan's place, Zhang Hongying made some white noodle soup with egg and dumplings. Although she was a month old, she was still breastfeeding and thin, so she was worried that if she ate the wrong food, her milk would stop flowing, which would be troublesome.
Today, Wen Wan can go out.
I took a shower yesterday and changed everything from head to toe this morning.
She wore a plaid shirt with a doll collar, navy blue pants, and a long braid. Having not left the house for a month, her face was so white and tender you could pinch water out of it. Although she looked thin, her complexion was rosy and fair, showing no signs of malnutrition.
Dandan also officially wore his little clothes today. In addition to the long-sleeved shirt and long pants for rolling in bed, he also wore an orange-red coat and pants on the outside. On his feet he wore the little shoes that Wenwan crocheted for him with wool, and on his head he wore a hat. He was red from head to toe, looking very festive.
After breakfast, Wen Wan went out of the house, and Dandan was also carried out by Lu Chun'e.
After a while, sisters Lu Chunyan and Lu Chunmei came back with their child. People from the team like Zhou Meiying, Wang Caiying, and Wang Mingfang who had visited Wenwan during her confinement period also came. Not only did they come themselves, they also brought their daughters-in-law who seldom visited the house often.
For example, Zhou Meiying's daughter-in-law Hu Xiujuan, and Wang Mingfang's sixth sister, all came with their children to join in the fun.
The older generation has their own circle, and the younger generation has their own circle.
Wen Wan didn't stay outside for long before returning to the house. Dandan had been hugging too many people today, so she basically didn't have to do anything except for feeding.
She entertained Hu Xiujuan and other young wives in the house. Shengxia stayed with her so that they could get to know each other. In the future, whether Lu Dongcheng was in the commune or the county, it would be close to home, and she would inevitably have to deal with neighbors.
Sixth Sister had been to Wen Wan's room more than once. She loved learning to read, and when she didn't know how to do something, she'd come to ask Wen Wan, so she was pretty familiar with her. Hu Xiujuan, on the other hand, wasn't like that. She and Wen Wan were both educated youth, and they were in the same production team, but they hadn't interacted much. This was her first time at the Lu family, and even more so, her first time in Wen Wan's room.
Looking at the furnishings in the room, she couldn't help feeling sour.
Before Wen Wan came, she was the best-married and most comfortable person among the educated youth, and she was also the first in the entire Lujiazui.
She was well-educated and good-looking. Liu Daquan liked her and was devoted to her. He even found her a job in the team looking after farm tools in the warehouse. She didn't have to work in the fields under the wind and sun like other women. I don't know how many people envied her.
But since Wen Wan came, the person who was envied changed from her to Wen Wan.
She married Lu Dongping, a man she didn't like, and from then on he was really treated like a treasure.
Nothing in this house is not new. Other families live in crowded houses, but she lives in two large tiled houses with her husband. Although they have not separated, once the door is closed, it is no different from living in a single-family house. It is very neat and simple.
Looking at her after her confinement, her complexion seemed to be a little better than before. Although the celebration of the full month was not a big one, it was a unique event in the production team in recent years.
Although she knew that everyone has their own life, Hu Xiujuan still couldn't help feeling jealous.
"Teacher Wen, you need to feed your child. What will you do when school starts? Do you need to bring your child with you? Will that affect your teaching?"
Wen Wan glanced at her, a faint smile on her face. "How could that be? It's not often that female teacher brings children to class. Besides, it's uncertain now. When she's not busy, she'll definitely leave her at home with her mother. I'll feed her in the morning and try to come back at noon. There's still about a month before school starts, so we'll talk about it then. After all, I have to be worthy of the salary I get."
Shengxia took over the conversation: "That's right, there will always be a way out when you get to the mountain. Why think so much before you even get there? It's so tiring."
Hu Xiujuan nodded, "That's true." Then she asked Shengxia, "I heard that the army is very busy. Did you take leave to come back to visit your family?"
Shengxia said: "Yes, I haven't been back for a few years, so I came back to take a look."
She didn't like the Liu family's daughter-in-law. She seemed to be speaking normally, but upon closer inspection, she could tell there were hidden ulterior motives. There was nothing to hide about Lu Dongcheng's injury, and his transfer was almost certain; it would be known sooner or later. But right now, she just didn't want to talk about it, not to this woman. If she did, who knew what would happen to her mind.
Hu Xiujuan smiled and said, "That's really not easy. We should take this opportunity to have a good rest at home." It would be best if we could rest for a lifetime.
Everyone in the team knew that Lu Dongcheng was injured and dying, and that the troops had sent him back, but he was still pretending. What was he pretending for?
Wen Wan felt particularly tired and mentally exhausted when she saw the fake smile on her face.
She actually really enjoyed making friends. She had a good relationship with Shengxia, Hu Qingqing, and her sisters-in-law. Even with Liu Liumei, she got along easily. But when it came to Hu Xiujuan, she felt a good rapport the first time she met her in Lujiazui. But after that, she wasn't very fond of her. She always felt that she couldn't speak normally to others, and every word she said had a different meaning.
Fortunately, we live quite close to each other, so we don’t have to deal with each other every now and then. This is the first time in all these years!
Fortunately, we didn't sit together for long because we had a child with us. The child needed to poop or pee and was making a fuss, so we had to go outside.
Wen Wan finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Lu Chun'e came in holding Dandan: "Sister-in-law, Brother Qingming is here."
Wen Wan took the child and said, "Then I'll go and say hello. Your brother hasn't come back yet. The yard is full of lesbians, and I think he'd feel uncomfortable being alone." Then she walked out.
Lu Chun'e followed her and said, "That's not the case. Brother Dongcheng and Brother Dongcai are here!"
Xu Qingming came over and greeted Zhang Hongying and the others. There were indeed women in the yard, but Lu Dongcheng was there and directly asked him to go to Lu Minghai's house.
Wen Wan carried Dandan over and called him, "Seventh Brother!"
Then he called Lu Dongcheng and Lu Dongcai.
Lu Dongcai brought a bench and placed it under the eaves for her to sit on. Wen Wan didn't argue with him and sat down to ask Lu Dongcheng, "I haven't been able to go out. Is Big Brother feeling better now?"
Lu Dongcheng said, "I'm much better now. I don't dare to exert myself for the time being, but I can walk around now. Of course, I just wander around the yard for a bit, but even then, I still get nagged by my mother all day."
Wen Wan said, "You are quite normal, but this time it really is, uncle and auntie were really scared."
Lu Dongcheng touched his head: "Indeed."
Xu Qingming stretched out his hand: "Come, give me a hug."
Wen Wan was a little worried about him: "Do you know how to do it? Your hands are too soft to support him, and your waist doesn't have much strength."
"Are you looking down on me? I can learn if I don't know how." Well, actually he was still a little nervous. Even though the baby was a full month old, it was still so small, so tiny, and there was no blanket wrapped around it. It seemed like it would fall from his hands if he wasn't careful. He was completely stiff.
Wen Wan wanted to laugh when she saw it, but after thinking about it, she decided to hold it back.
Xu Qingming was different from Lu Dongping. Lu Dongping had taken care of younger siblings before, but Xu Qingming was the youngest in the Xu family. Only his cousin Wen Wan was a little younger than him. Who had he taken care of? When he took Wen Wan to play, Wen Wan could run around everywhere.
After holding the child for three or five minutes, he felt he couldn't hold on any longer and quickly stuffed the child into Wen Wan's arms.
Wen Wan took over and said, "The yard is full of young ladies and wives, and Dongping is not here. I'm afraid you will feel uncomfortable. But it would be fine if Big Brother and Dongcai were here. I won't care about you anymore. I'm afraid Dandan is going to sleep."
Xu Qingming nodded: "Don't worry about me, you can take the child back. You just came out of confinement today, and it's been a long time since you last saw the sun. It's the beginning of the dog days now, and the sun will be scorching hot when it comes out. Be careful not to get a headache."
Wen Wan didn't bother to be polite with him. She said goodbye to Lu Dongcheng and his brother, then left with the child.
He went outside the yard, squatted on the side of the road to help Dandan pee, and then went back to the house.
And closed the door at the same time.
It's time to feed the baby.
Lu Dongping didn't come back until after three o'clock. Two officers from the armed forces department came with him. Lin Chenghai didn't come, but he gave them a red envelope.
It was said to be a simple meal at home, but there were quite a few people, including relatives and close friends. Not only did they come alone, but there were five tables of people.
The meals were simple, made from the private plots. They had long-cooked bacon, simmered with dried vegetables and tofu, and a large pot for each table. They also had mixed flour pancakes, grits porridge, and stir-fried mushrooms that Lu Dongfu and Lu Donglin had picked early that morning in the mountains. They also had some salted vegetables, both rolled into pancakes, and ate a mouthful of grits porridge and a mouthful of pancake.
It’s called a banquet, but in fact it’s just a meal with a little more meat and wine than usual.
After dinner, the sun set and everyone except Lu Dongping's table went home.
The yard was finally much quieter.
At the table, only Lu Dongcheng didn't raise his glass. Even Lu Dongcai, who didn't drink much, got embarrassed.
Then there were the two brothers Lu Minghai and Lu Mingjiang, who drank a little too much and started talking more.
They first talked about Lu Dongcheng's injury, but then the conversation went off topic and talked about Lu Mingwang who was far away in the county town.
Lu Minghai started talking, pounding the table and slapping Lu Mingjiang. "Third brother, there were three of us brothers, three of us, and now there are only two of us left. They say a married woman is like spilled water. Lu Mingwang, a man, is even worse than a married woman."
"Early on, I thought he would be the most promising of the three of us. He was smart, kind, and his temperament was impeccable. Who knew that after going to the city, he would go astray, and keep going astray. I can't straighten him out. I don't even have a chance to straighten him out. Just wait for me, wait until I close my eyes and go down to see the old couple who died long ago. Will they blame me?"
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