Chapter 38
“How many photos?”
"One family photo, one photo for each child, and one group photo for the children."
"...Okay. There are seven tickets in total. Pay here."
Where did this family come from? Are there such elegant people in this remote place? After being glared at by Li Zhongxia, the male photographer slowly started to talk about business.
"Two more." Li Zhongxia took out the money and looked at the receipt, calculating how much to give.
"Okay. The largest one we have here is five inches. Who are you taking these two photos for? How big do they want?"
"My wife, two inches is enough."
"Okay." I have to take two more photos of such a beautiful daughter-in-law.
The couple sat in the front, with Gu Yan holding the youngest daughter, Niu Niu. Dahua and Xiaohua led their younger brothers and sisters to stand at the back, which was the most common posture for family photos in that era.
As soon as the photographer made the arrangements, Gu Yanlei looked around and insisted on running to the front to stand in front of Li Zhongxia.
"Why?" The photographer was a little angry. Those who come to take photos are all very obedient, how come a troublemaker like you appears? "Why are you standing in front of your father?"
In fact, Li Zhongxia had already spread his legs and let the child stand in front of him. But he thought it didn't look good, and it would be better if the four children stood neatly at the back. The man looks dignified when he is alone, and his wife is holding a baby, with four children following behind her. How beautiful it is.
"I am a boy and I must follow my father."
As soon as these words were spoken, Li Zhongxia laughed first. He tilted his head back to signal the photographer to take the photo. Gu Yan, who was standing next to him, glanced at his son and in his heart applauded himself for remarrying. Boys long for their fathers more. He needs someone to guide him on his journey of growth and he needs role models to learn from.
The family portrait was full of joy, and then the children took photos one by one. When it was Niu Niu's turn, the little girl insisted on pulling her mother. Gu Yan really couldn't coax her, so he had to squat aside, and the mother and daughter stared at each other.
"You know what, it looks really good in this shot." This mother looks so young, and the mother and daughter look at each other with such love. Good looks, good clothes, and even better temperament. This photo is so natural.
The children took a photo together. The little one also wanted his mother. It took a long time of persuasion before he agreed to let his sister take him. When it was Gu Yan's turn to shoot, she insisted on joining in.
"Come on, all the kids." No one can be left out. Girls all love taking pictures, so let's go together. She was right to think so. All her daughters came running over, but her son stayed beside Li Zhongxia without moving.
After taking the photos, we agreed to pick them up a week later. Gu Yan started to negotiate with the photographer: "Comrade, can you come to our brigade to take a family photo for us?" Before he could ask, she continued to explain: "My mother-in-law can't walk and can't go out."
"Sure. Our photo studio has an activity every month going to the countryside to serve the people. Which brigade are you from? I can arrange to go to your brigade first."
"Heye Brigade of Dongling Commune."
"Okay, I've made a note of that. I'll arrange it as soon as possible."
After leaving the photo studio, the children were chattering excitedly in the front. Li Zhongxia tilted his head and whispered something to his wife.
"Next time, don't bring the kids. I'll take the photo with you."
"Why?"
“We didn’t take any pictures together.”
"Haha...Okay! Do you want to take it with you?"
"Yeah." Seeing that the children were not paying attention to them, he whispered, "Put it in your wallet."
Gu Yan smiled and said nothing. I didn't expect that a man as strict as an old cadre would have such a big change after getting married, and would have such lovely little thoughts. It's to narrow the distance between them!
"Mom, mom, hurry up..." Dahua led Xiaoya to the door of the supply and marketing cooperative and turned back to urge her.
"Okay, right away."
The supply and marketing cooperative in the county town was much larger than the commune one, and there were two bicycles at the very back. What children like most is floral fabrics. The things here can be shown to others, and they can be made into beautiful new clothes.
Everyone can pick a piece they like, and the children are chattering as they stand in front of the fabric counter and choose. Seeing that the family had good temperament, the salesperson showed a rare bit of patience and placed all the patterns on the counter for the children to see.
“I want this”
“I want the yellow one.”
"Yellow ones attract bugs, don't want this, sister."
The children were discussing enthusiastically. Li Zhongxia glanced at Gu Yan and asked her quietly, "Pick two that you like!"
"Can I have both?"
This was obviously a joke, but the man actually nodded.
“Is this true or false?”
"Really. It's okay to be extravagant for once. And you can get new pillowcases, towels and sheets."
Gu Yan smiled, and finally tore six feet of the cloth chosen by each of the children to make a top. She chose a white one with blue flowers for herself. The navy blue pants were torn to more than three meters long, giving each person a pair of pants. More than ten feet of white cloth was used to make shirts for the two men in the family.
Even though I bought so much at once, the salesperson still issued the invoice promptly. He didn't even ask about the cloth coupons. All this is thanks to Li Zhongxia's clothes and his temperament.
After getting the invoice and going to pay, Gu Yan took out the cloth coupons given by Aunt Li from her bag and handed them to the man. In this era, there was no money and all kinds of tickets were rare. His mother gave her the things, so how could she, as a wife, put her husband in a difficult position?
"No, I have some here."
Seeing him pay the bill so quickly, Gu Yan was really surprised this time. She had a lot of tickets given by her mother-in-law, and these must have come from him. How come this guy is still here? Could it be that the answer he gave her just now could be a real promise, not just to make her happy?
I bought a few feet of red glass silk for the girls. There is only this kind of hair accessories, and I wanted to buy hairpins but they were out of stock. Gu Yan simply bought several handkerchiefs in various colors that could be tied into hair as decoration.
While choosing a handkerchief, Li Zhongxia bought two pounds of pork from the counter at the door. We have vegetables and flour at home. Let’s make dumplings today to celebrate.
"Buy some biscuits for them to eat on the way."
The man's proposal was once again cheered by the children. Although my mother has all kinds of good things, she has to do them secretly. This open and aboveboard luxury obviously made them even more excited.
After leaving the supply and marketing cooperative, I entered the cafeteria. When asked, they only had the simplest three-grain noodles and the pumpkin stew without meat. They had no choice and ordered six bowls, one for each person. Niu Niu didn't eat much, and the twins didn't finish their meals, so in the end Li Zhongxia had to clean up the mess.
After waiting for a while, I got on the truck that had been arranged to go back to the commune. The co-pilot seat was still given to Gu Yan. She smiled, thanked him, and sat in the front seat holding the sleeping Niuniu. Tell Li Zhongxia to keep an eye on these kids.
When we arrived at the commune, we were lucky enough to come across a mule cart returning to the team, so we didn't have to walk anymore. The children rubbed their buttocks and really wanted to walk back. This dirt road is so bumpy that everyone is about to fall apart. Do we have to continue to be bumpy on the way back? But when they saw that the mother had already carried the little sister into the car, they had no choice but to follow silently.
"I'll hold her to sleep."
"No need. She'll wake up if we move her back and forth. Please pay attention to the twins, don't let them fall."
The man turned around and held the twins, one on each side, on his legs, and let Dahua and Xiaohua hold his arms. Try to take care of all four children and don't neglect any of them.
The car squeaked and bumped along the way until it stopped in front of the Li family's gate. Workers had not yet left work and the streets were quiet. Everyone hurriedly carried their things home to avoid being seen and envied by others.
Holding her son's marriage certificate, the old lady was so happy that she didn't want to put it down. "Clean up the side room and make it into a new home. We can live together tonight."
Since this wasn't their first marriage, they felt embarrassed. Gu Yan put away the marriage certificate and put it in the box. "Why are you in such a hurry? You already have grandchildren."
"I've let go of the idea of whether I have grandchildren or not. I just want to see you happy and fulfilled while I'm still alive. I'm already that old..."
"Mom, why are you saying that again?" Gu Yan omitted the word "fuck" and just called her mom. "Live well and live a long life."
"Yes, mother, please don't keep saying such depressing things. Your son just came back and hasn't shown you his filial piety yet. You should be happy to have such a big family around you."
"Haha... I'm happy. How can I not be happy? This is the happiest day for me in all these years. I never thought I would have a house full of children and grandchildren, and a son and daughter-in-law by my side."
Gu Yan handed the handkerchief to the old lady, sat next to her and patted her back to comfort her. "Just shed a few tears of joy, that's all. You play with the kids, I'll go cook. We'll make dumplings tonight."
"well……"
Gu Yan led the children to pick vegetables while Li Zhongxia chopped meat at home. When they came back, they heard the rhythmic sound of horseshoe knives in the yard.
"Hey, you still have this trick?"
"That's right. I know a lot more. You will know later."
After sending the children to play, the two of them worked together to make dumplings. Chop the meat and put it in a bowl. Chop the green onions, leeks, and cabbage and put them together with the meat. While Gu Yan sent the man to scoop the noodles, he quickly added various seasonings and cooking oil to the stuffing.
"Really? I'll have to be a thief at home from now on."
"What are you mumbling about?"
"How much should we pack to feed the eight of us?"
"Anyway, I've packed all of this up, so you can eat it right away."
"What about you?"
"I'm a grown man, so what I eat is different."
"Ha ha……"
"What did I say?" You smiled.
"It's all right, it's all right. Hurry up and knead the dough, it's getting dark."
The two sisters Dahua also know how to make dumplings, and after the dough has risen, the two children also help. Finally, the dumplings were wrapped when everyone was off work and it was time for lunch, and the whole family sat down at the dinner table.
Gu Yan took out a bottle and poured a glass of wine for Li Zhongxia. In the man's surprised look, he smiled and said, "I just got some from the supply and marketing cooperative. This is just one glass, no more." I originally wanted to change it to Maotai, but I was afraid that you would be able to taste it, so I had to stick with this sweet potato wine.
"You drink too! We'll each have a glass."
"Okay then!" Gu Yan smiled and took out another wine glass. Li Zhongxia took the bottle and raised her hand to fill it up for her.
"Today is our wedding day, this is the wedding wine."
There were so many dumplings and the children were chowing down on them. Li Zhongxia picked up the wine glass and clinked it lightly with his wife. Gu Yan picked it up and took a sip, and immediately inhaled with a hissing sound because of the spiciness.
"Eat some vegetables to relax you." Li Zhongxia picked up a piece of cucumber for her, with a smile on his handsome face.
"It's so spicy. Why would anyone want to drink something so unpalatable?"
She was a drinker in her previous life. She had tried all kinds of liquor, including white wine, beer, domestic and imported. But I've never drunk anything so choking. It does not have the fragrance, mellowness, sweetness and purity that liquor should have. Some feel like a knife cutting across the throat, burning like fire.
The woman stuck out her tongue and fanned herself vigorously with her right hand. As cute as a little rabbit. This is in stark contrast to her usual dashing and agile demeanor. Li Zhongxia was so amused that she laughed out loud, and the children also laughed happily when they saw their mother's expression.
"Mom, is it really that unpalatable?" Dahua poked her head out, as if wanting to try it.
"Well, it's awful." Gu Yan quickly pulled the wine glass back. "You're not allowed to taste it. You're underage, and drinking this will damage your brain."
"I don't drink it, I just watch it out of curiosity."
"Mom, eat." Niu Niu held the bowl and gave her dumplings to Gu Yan. The little girl next to her was also holding a bowl of dumplings for her mother. "Mom, please eat the dumplings quickly. The spiciness won't be gone after you eat them."
"Oh, thank you, girl."
Each of the two children ate one from their bowl, and they were very happy. The family is having a great time, with laughter all the time. Without having to sit still to eat and being bound by the rule of not talking while eating, children can unleash their nature and the dining table becomes the best place for the family to gather, communicate and promote relationships.
After dinner, Xiaohua went to wash the dishes, and Gu Yan mixed the pig food and went to feed the pigs. A stick was inserted in the middle, and the mother and daughter prepared to carry it away. Li Zhongxia stood aside, and it was self-evident that he was going to do this job.
Didn’t you tell me to do more work before? Why did Xiaohua push me to do the dishes? You mean you have to feed the pigs yourself? Were the things I said before just jokes? Are you planning to leave me out like Han Lao Er? If that's the case, why do you still get married? Can't you just live a good life on your own?
"Can you lift it yourself? Or do you want me to help you?"
Li Zhongxia smiled, amazed at how quickly this woman changed her mind. I was clearly planning to go by myself just now, but when I raised my head, the words I said were completely contrary to what I wanted to say.
"I'll go by myself. I'll do this job from now on." You underestimate me. No matter how big this pig food bucket is, it doesn't require more arm strength than my sniping practice.
"Mom, what should we do from now on?" Dahua looked at her new father and felt embarrassed for the first time. I thought having a dad was all about benefits, but now how can I keep this secret? The child's brows were furrowed with worry, and Gu Yan pulled her into the house.
"It's okay, mommy will feed it when she has time."
"Well, tell me to go with you." Then he reminded her again, "I'll go with you, otherwise it's not safe."
Gu Yan nodded and touched the child's head with love. In one year at most, raising pigs and chickens will be considered capitalism. By then, you won’t have to worry about this. At most, you can leave two chickens at home, and you won’t be able to feed them even if you want to. So if we work harder for a while, we will have visible accumulations, and then our lives will be easier in the future.
As soon as I entered the main room, the old lady urged me to decorate the new house. Gu Yan smiled, took out new pillowcases and sheets from the cabinet, and went to the ear room carrying his quilt.
The house is not big and the furnishings are simple. The roses in the vase were replaced with wild ginger flowers, whose white petals looked like fluttering butterflies, lively and full of vitality.
Put on new sheets and put the two pillows neatly. Put your floral quilt on top of his. These pairs of items finally make it feel like a new house.
I turned around and looked around, there was nothing to pack. This man has very good living habits. His house is clean and tidy, and his belongings are in good order.
When I turned around, he had come in from outside. His hair was wet and his clothes were changed, so it looked like he had just taken a shower.
The two of them looked at each other, and Gu Yan felt a little nervous for a moment. But after all, she is not a virgin anymore, so she doesn’t have that shy, expectant, fearful feeling. She has experienced a lot of things that are rare. After a moment of embarrassment, he raised his hand and pointed at the kang.
"You make the bed, and I'll go check on the kids."
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