"I don't know. I haven't seen my uncle in several years. The elders don't talk to us about work very much."
Wang Zhen continued, "But you must have seen the stars and bars on your uncle's military uniform, right?"
Since the beginning of school, Wang Zhen has learned about the family background of everyone in the dormitory through both overt and covert inquiries. Before Uncle Xu appeared, Xu Manman was just an outsider whose parents both worked and whose family was doing well in the dormitory.
In Wang Zhen's mind, she and the fourth child Li Xiaochun, who is also a local and has a military officer fiancé, rank first in family background, Xu Manman and Yang Yang rank second, and the eldest and second child have the worst family background.
Wang Zhen's daily interactions with everyone in the dormitory also follow this order. Although she is not in the same class as the fourth child, she will always be very close to her whenever they are in the dormitory. She will also be the first to share anything she has. In short, as long as the fourth child is around, the fifth child will retreat to the ground.
Because Xu Manman is always with Chen Ming, and Wang Zhen knows that Yang Yang's father is the director of the factory, so even though they are in the same class, she will be more friendly to Yang Yang.
He wasn't cold to the eldest and second oldest sons, whose family conditions were obviously not that good. On the contrary, he had a vague feeling of superiority over inferiority because of the table business.
Although she knew that Wang Zhen's questioning now meant a re-evaluation of herself, Xu Manman didn't like this kind of behavior of treating people differently based on their status.
So Xu Manman leaned over and looked at her with a smile, "I really don't know. How about I ask for you later?"
Wang Zhen was stunned for a moment after hearing this, and finally said awkwardly, "Haha, no need, I'm just curious."
Yang Yang was caught in the middle, not realizing the strange atmosphere. "I think the youngest's uncle must be quite high-ranking. He looks just as scary as the leaders at my parents' factory."
Xu Manman replied calmly, "Really? I don't feel that way."
After that, Wang Zhen didn't say much. It was Xu Manman and Yang Yang who were chatting intermittently.
After the uncle brought Chen Ming down, the car became quiet again.
After Chen Ming sat down, Xu Lei stuck his head out and said, "Manman, you have classes later, so why not eat near your school? You're familiar with this place, so you can show me the way."
"Why don't we stop messing around and go to the cafeteria to eat?"
Xu Lei smiled and said, "It's rare for uncle to come here, so I have to treat you to a good meal. Besides, there are classmates here."
Xu Manman thought for a while and said, "Okay, there is a state-owned restaurant outside. The food is pretty good and my cousin knows it." She meant to ask Chen Ming in the front seat to show her the way.
The location of the state-owned hotel is very good. You don’t need any directions, you can see it as soon as you leave the school gate.
There were no private rooms here, so we could only find a round table in the corner of the lobby. It was like letting the children have a good meal. Xu Lei ordered a large table of meat dishes:
Braised pork, scallion-fried fish, braised lion's head, moo shu pork, and stir-fried kidney. Finally, at Xu Manman's suggestion, I reluctantly ordered a vegetarian dish: shredded potatoes with vinegar.
When Yang Yang saw the table full of meat dishes, he instantly forgot his restraint and ate the meat happily. However, Wang Zhen had no appetite.
In addition to inviting everyone to eat, Xu Lei asked about the children's performance in school.
The meal lasted half an hour, after which Xu Lei sent the third and fifth children back to the teaching building, and Chen Ming back to the dormitory. Xu Manman said she had something to get for her uncle, so she also asked her uncle to send her back to the dormitory first.
Xu Manman went upstairs and took something from the bag hanging on the wall of the upper bunk. It contained things she had prepared in advance to take back for her uncle. She also packed the books she would need for class in the evening and then went downstairs.
She got in the car and handed the bag to her uncle, "The two sailor shirts in here are for my eldest and second cousins, the braid and the small box are for my aunt, and the remaining two vests are for you, uncle.
There were also a few bottles of ointment inside, which I bought at the pharmacy. They said it was a century-old brand and was used to treat lumbar injuries, trauma, and rheumatism. I'd written down the instructions on a piece of paper. "My uncle's military region is close to the sea, and he's been there all year round, so he's more or less prone to rheumatism."
Xu Lei listened and sighed again at his daughter's thoughtfulness, "Those two brats have uniforms. Don't buy them clothes in the future. Keep the money for yourself."
"Several of my brothers have bought some, and my cousins usually send me a lot of things. Oh, by the way, there are a few bags of preserved fruits underneath. I'll give some to my two brothers when the time comes."
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