Inside the courtyard, when Father Liu and his companions heard a knock on the door, they told Feifei to go wash her hands and open the door. While Feifei was washing her hands by the well, she heard shouting outside the courtyard and shouted back, "Wait a minute, they're coming!"
Feifei opened the gate and saw a strange young man. He scratched his head and asked, "Are you here to see my brother-in-law?"
Zhang Wanlin nodded and said, "Yes, can I go in and talk?"
Feifei thought for a moment and said, "Come in!"
After Zhang Wanlin came in, Father Liu also came over, squinted his eyes at Zhang Wanlin, and asked, "Young man, are you Zhang Wanlin from Yangshu Village?"
"Yes, Village Chief Liu!" Zhang Wanlin answered with his head held high and chest puffed out, standing up straight.
"What do you want from my son-in-law? My son-in-law and my daughter have gone back to Beijing to visit relatives and haven't come back yet. If it's not convenient for you to tell me, you can come back to see him in seven or eight days, or wait until he comes back and I'll tell him and let him come to see you?" said Liu's father.
Zhang Wanlin quickly explained, "No, Village Chief Liu, I actually came to see you for something!"
When Father Liu heard this, he signaled Feifei to close the courtyard door, and then said to Zhang Wanlin, "Go to the main hall and wait for me. I'll wash my hands and come in."
Zhang Wanlin nodded, then carried the basket on his back and walked into the main hall to wait for Liu's father. When Liu's father came, Zhang Wanlin was pacing nervously.
Father Liu said, "Young man, put down your backpack and sit down to talk."
Zhang Wanlin put down the backpack, his palms sweaty. He wiped them on his pants, scratched the seams of his pants, and finally mustered up the courage to turn around and say to Liu's father, "Village Chief Liu, I heard that Comrade Liu Shengnan doesn't have a partner yet. I'd like to ask her if she would consider me again!"
Father Liu stared at the young man in front of him, whose voice was trembling with nervousness, for a few seconds and asked, "You like my Shengnan, right? My Shengnan is still looking for a son-in-law, you should know that, right?"
"I know. As long as Comrade Liu Shengnan likes me, I am willing. My family also agrees!" Zhang Wanlin replied.
Zhang Wanlin thought that Li Xiaomei and Zhang Wen were eager for me to become their son-in-law, as long as they paid enough money. However, Zhang Wanlin already had a way to deal with this, so he didn't say it out loud for the time being.
Father Liu thought for a moment and then asked, "Then why are you asking us now? You didn't come before!"
Zhang Wanlin looked at Liu's father, lowered his head in embarrassment and said, "My previous attempt to date Comrade Liu Shengnan failed. I thought she wasn't interested in me, so I didn't force it. But I've always been interested in Comrade Liu Shengnan. A few days ago, I heard from our villager Yang Cai that Comrade Liu Shengnan was still single. I've been thinking about it for a few days and decided to give it another try. I don't want to have any regrets!"
Father Liu felt that Zhang Wanlin was quite sincere. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Wait here for a moment. I'll call Shengnan over. You can tell her what you want to say right now!"
Zhang Wanlin stammered, "Now ask her—her to come over?"
Father Liu raised his eyebrows and asked, "Why shouldn't the person involved be present? This is a matter between you and her!"
"Yes...yes!" Zhang Wanlin answered stupidly.
Father Liu smiled at Zhang Wanlin's silly look. Last year, when he and Liu Guanghui were looking for potential sons-in-law for Shengnan, the two brothers had initially favored this young man, but unfortunately, he didn't end up with Shengnan. He heard that the other three men Liu Xiu had dated last year were all married, either becoming live-in sons-in-law or having wives.
Only Zhang Wanlin has not made any move. Now that Liu's father knows about it, it seems that this silly boy is still thinking about his own Shengnan.
Father Liu walked to the yard and shouted to Ruirui, "Ruirui, go next door and ask your sister Shengnan to come over. Remember to ask your sister Yanan to go to the tofu shop to take over your aunt's shift. Ask your aunt to come back to our house!"
After Father Liu finished speaking to Ruirui, he whispered to Feifei, "You and your second sister will finish cleaning up the mud later. If we haven't finished talking yet, you will go to the kitchen to prepare lunch. Cook according to the number of people. Got it?"
Feifei nodded. Father Liu went to the main hall and saw Zhang Wanlin, the silly roe deer, starting to walk around again. Father Liu shook his head, walked to the table, poured a glass of water, handed it to Zhang Wanlin, and said, "Don't worry, drink some water and calm down!"
Zhang Wanlin took the bamboo cup and said, "Thank you, village chief!" Then he found a chair to sit down, holding the cup tightly in both hands, his heart still uneasy.
Zhang Wanlin was rejected by Shengnan the last time he met her last year, and he was afraid that Shengnan would reject him today as well. He went on a blind date because he was old enough and thought that if the right person came along, he could be a live-in son-in-law. After all, he wasn't valued in the Zhang family, so he followed Li Xiaomei's arrangement.
After arriving at the Liu family, he recognized Shengnan the first time he saw her. She was the little girl he met when he was a child. Her appearance had not changed since she was a child, except that she was much darker.
However, working every day in the village, how could he not be tarnished? After chatting with Shengnan for an hour, he felt that she was very much to his liking, and that she was still as kind, motivated and independent as she was when she was a child.
Zhang Wanlin first met Shengnan when he was thirteen years old. At that time, his family did not allow him to go to school, so he secretly ran to the primary school in Orange Village to pay the tuition. Before he had attended two days of classes, Li Xiaomei found out about it from other children in the village who were attending primary school there. Li Xiaomei and Yang Wen went to the Orange Village Primary School to ask for his tuition back, and did not allow him to go to school anymore, saying that they would break his legs if he continued to go to school.
At that time, Zhang Wanlin was so eager for knowledge that he would secretly run to the outside of the commune primary school classroom to listen to the teacher's lectures when he went to the mountains. While listening, he would use a wooden stick to write and do math on the mud ground.
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