Although people in the countryside are not well off during the New Year, it is very fun.
Members of the same clan would line up and visit every household to wish each other a happy new year. They didn't need to bring anything. They would just stand at the door and say "Happy New Year" in a lively and noisy manner. Each person would grab a handful of melon seeds and stand and chat for a while. No matter what had happened in the past year, it would now be considered over.
The children would go together to pick up some unexploded firecrackers and light them for fun.
Older children would play with rocking handles. All the children in the village would gather together, holding their homemade rocking handles in their hands and shaking them quickly to make a bright and brilliant circle.
Very beautiful, comparable to the acrobatic performances in later scenic spots!
But these days everyone likes to go to Yujiamenkou to play.
Every child who goes there, as long as he is polite and sweet-talks, will get a handful of candy, and his pockets will be filled with candy.
Chen Ailan even gave out New Year's Eve money to the children. Although it was only 5 cents or 10 cents, it was a huge sum of money for the children and they were all very happy.
Everyone likes the Yu family and they all smile when they see them.
Whoever went to pay New Year's greetings after the Lunar New Year would receive gifts several times more, which was a disguised form of subsidy.
Yu Li and Lu Guanshan planned to go back to Beijing at the beginning of the year.
That day was the wedding day of Chen Ailan's nephew from her mother's side.
Since Chen Ailan was her aunt, she naturally had to go.
When the first child of the Yu family got married, the uncle of the Chen family came to help, and they had no choice but to go.
The Chen family was also looking forward to Chen Ailan and her whole family coming over.
After all, the Yu family is now the richest family in the area. Not only did Yu Li go to college, but she also married a military officer. It would make people envious if they told others about it!
Well, Yu Li also wants to meet her cousin Chen Dawei again.
Everyone in the Yu family wants to see what kind of person Chen Dawei is now!
The Chen family was very happy. Although Chen Dawei was getting married, he couldn't wait to show off to others: "My cousin has been beautiful since she was a child. No wonder she can marry a leader. She can be the first college student in our town!"
The people in Chenjia Village were very envious after hearing this and wanted to see what Yu Li looked like!
When Yu Li went to her grandmother's house before, some people noticed her, but they only remembered that she was beautiful, and had no other impression.
The entire Chen family and all the guests were waiting for the Yu family.
Finally, with the sound of firecrackers, Mrs. Chen came out happily to greet them.
Chen Ailan and Yu Jiefang walked in front. Although they were very low-key, when a person lives a comfortable life, his whole state will change, and he will be more at ease and calm. In addition, the clothes he wore were no longer fixed. The worst clothes would be considered luxury goods in the eyes of the neighbors in the countryside.
Mrs. Chen stepped forward and held Chen Ailan's hand: "Hey, sister! Brother-in-law! You are finally here!"
Then she looked at Yu Li with a smile on her face: "Niece, your aunt misses you so much. You got married in a hurry and didn't have time to say a few more words to your lover. Come on, Xiaolu, come in and sit down!"
Chen Dawei's eyes were fixed on Yu Li, full of amazement!
He knew that his cousin was pretty, and he couldn't help staring at her when he was a child.
But after being beaten by Yu Tuanjie once, he no longer dared to do it.
But now Yu Li is more beautiful than before, with a clean, refined and pure tenderness all over her body, as if she is a rose just picked from a greenhouse, you can tell she is fragrant and delicious at first sight!
Chen Dawei even rolled in the back street twice and swallowed his saliva.
But when he noticed Lu Guanshan, who had a cold and tall look on his face, he quickly retracted his neck in fear.
After all, it was Chen Dawei who was getting married, so everyone's attention was on the Yu family, but they couldn't steal the limelight from the Chen family.
Many people around were staring at Yu Li, pointing and talking about which college student she was!
Yu Li felt a little irritated, so she took her child and went to hide in her second uncle's house next door for a while, using the excuse that the child wanted to sleep.
Lu Guanshan is a man and cannot hide like her. He has to go out.
He helped Yu Li carry both children over, and then went to the wedding banquet held by his uncle next door to accompany his father-in-law and his parents-in-law.
Compared to the pointing and curious looks of the people outside, Yu Li prefers the cleanliness of this room.
At this moment, my second aunt's family has gone to my eldest aunt's house to help, so the house is quiet.
When Chao Chao Mu Mu just arrived, she was tired from dealing with the elder relatives for a long time, and the two children fell asleep on the bed.
In fact, Yu Li also came to her second aunt's house when she was a child. When she was very young, she couldn't go back because of the rain, and she slept in her second aunt's room.
My second aunt has a daughter, and my eldest aunt has two sons.
Over the years, my eldest aunt's family has built a new house, but my second aunt's family is still living in the old mud house with mottled walls, which makes people sad.
But Yu Li suddenly remembered that she had sat at her aunt's house for a while today and saw her second uncle and his wife who came to help, but did not see her cousin Xiao Mai.
When she was a child, she remembered that her cousin was very gentle and beautiful.
At that time, everyone praised her. Every time she came to her grandmother's house, people would laugh and say that they looked like a pair of sisters, both equally beautiful!
Yu Li thought of Chen Dawei, and then thought of her own childhood, and suddenly her heart turned cold.
Just then, my second aunt came over with a bowl of sugar water and said carefully, "Lizi, are you cold looking after the child here? I made some brown sugar water for you. Drink some first. I'll help you look after the child later. Go and have your meal!"
Yu Li looked at her old and humble face, and recalled the time when she and her cousin Xiao Mai sat on a bench together as children, while her second aunt combed their hair with a smile.
"Aunt, where's my cousin? I don't think I heard that she got married. Why don't you see her?"
Mrs. Chen was stunned, her eyes reddened: "She, she went out to play."
Yu Li realized the seriousness of the matter, stood up and asked solemnly: "Aunt, where is my cousin?"
The second aunt couldn't help but shed tears, raised her hand to wipe them away: "She's crazy...
She walked to the door of the west room, took out her key and opened it.
Xiao Mai sat on the bed inside, with empty eyes and said nothing.
That face is still as delicate as it was when she was a child, with clear eyes, skin as white as cream, and black hair simply tied up, yet as beautiful as a lotus emerging from water!
Yu Li took a breath: "Cousin...
Xiao Mai said nothing and did not respond at all.
She immediately asked: "Aunt, why did my cousin become like this?"
My second aunt didn't say anything.
Yu Li asked again: "Is it... related to Chen Dawei?"
The second aunt was stunned and looked at her in shock: "Lizi, how did you know... But let's forget about it! Otherwise, Xiaomai will have no way to survive, and how will the villagers look at her! It seems that she has gone crazy."
When Xiao Mai heard Chen Dawei's name, he suddenly stepped back tremblingly: "No, no, no! Please, let me go!"
Yu Li felt a pain in her heart!
The second aunt burst into tears: "At first I thought Dawei was joking with Xiaomai. I asked him, but he denied it and said that as a brother he was just caring about his sister and Xiaomai was overthinking it.
Later I caught him bullying Xiaomai, so I found your eldest uncle, and he beat up your second uncle, saying that Xiaomai looked... coquettish and seductive.
If we make trouble again, they will ruin Xiaomai's reputation and we won't be able to stay in the village. Your grandmother said that if we don't keep this to ourselves, she will divide the family and send us away! She won't give us any house or land!"
Rural people have no houses or money, where do they live? How do they survive?
Second aunt Pu Tong knelt in front of Yu Li and said, "Niece, I heard that you are the smartest person. Please, save Xiao Mai! She can't live like this all her life! I have been bullied to death because I only gave birth to a daughter, but how can my daughter have such a miserable life!
Do I have to suffer injustice as a woman? "