He then handed over the appointment certificate stamped with a large red official seal.
The brigade leader and the party secretary next to him came over, looking at the bright red certificate with envy. They saw that Gu Zhiyuan hadn't moved and wished they could go up and take it for him.
Gu Zhiyuan paused for a moment, glanced at the appointment certificate, and then took it: "Thank you!"
Zheng Weiguo, along with the brigade leader and the branch secretary, clapped enthusiastically and congratulated them.
The three of them managed to project the presence of thirty people.
Seeing that Gu Zhiyuan still had the same expression, Xu Ningyan quickly smoothed things over: "Thank you both for coming all the way from the county town to deliver the documents and appointment letters in such hot weather! It's almost noon, would you two like to come to our house for a simple meal before you leave?"
Zheng Weiguo and Xiao Lei exchanged a glance and said with a smile, "Normally, this is not allowed according to the rules, but we'll make an exception for this joyous occasion and share in the happiness!"
The brigade leader and the village secretary quickly replied, "You're right! Come to our house!"
Zheng Weiguo waved his hand: "What's the point of going to your house? We'll just have a simple meal at Comrade Gu's house."
Xiao Lei naturally shared the same idea.
The brigade leader and the party secretary dared not disagree, so they had to compromise: "In that case, how can Siya manage all by herself? We'll have your aunt come over to help you later."
Xu Ningyan couldn't refuse; since the person was so eager to help, she decided to accept.
Back in the courtyard, Zheng Weiguo and Xiao Lei were led to lounge chairs under the camphor tree. A gentle mountain breeze carried the refreshing scent of camphor, instantly clearing their minds.
Xu Ningyan went to the kitchen and busied herself for a while, then brought out a bowl of sliced ​​watermelon.
The watermelon had been chilled for a while, and it was refreshingly cool. The rind was emerald green, and the flesh was deep pink, perfectly ripe.
Its sweet and refreshing taste instantly dispels the summer heat.
After taking a few bites of watermelon, Zheng Weiguo and Xiao Lei were extremely satisfied and couldn't help but exclaim, "Stealing half a day of leisure from a busy life is truly a wonderful time!"
The Party Secretary and the Brigade Leader who followed in didn't quite understand the meaning of these formal words, but they could roughly tell that it was a compliment.
The two of them ate two slices of watermelon; the juice was sweet, and after racking their brains, they could only manage to squeeze out two words: "So sweet!"
The Party Secretary asked where the watermelon seeds came from, noting that they were thin-skinned, sweet, and early-maturing.
You should know that some families in the brigade also grow watermelons, but at this time they are only the size of a fist. It will take at least another half a month for them to ripen.
Even when fully ripe, it won't taste this good.
Xu Ningyan dared not say that these were just a few seeds she had found in some corner of her space and planted randomly.
It tastes like the Kirin melon and the 8848 variety from later generations.
This is a variety improved in later generations, and it is definitely not comparable to the watermelons of this time. I can only pretend to be stupid: "I forgot too. Anyway, when I was scattering the seeds, I saw two seeds in the middle, so I just scattered them to the side. I didn't expect that they would actually grow into watermelons."
"I heard from Aunt Xie that the first batch of watermelons grown in this sandy soil, which has never grown watermelons before, is sweet and delicious. I guess that's why. Also, Brother Gu takes such good care of them at home, never neglecting to fertilize and water them, which is why they grow so well!"
When the Party Secretary realized he couldn't get any answers, he stopped asking and collected all the watermelon seeds, planning to keep them for breeding next year.
Xu Ningyan really wanted to tell him not to think about it anymore, because the watermelons grown from the seeds of these improved hybrid seeds were not as good as those from the first year.
But that's fine too. If the quality of what they grow next year is average, it won't arouse suspicion. At most, people will just think they were lucky this year.
It did remind her that she should be more cautious about bringing out these things that are from different eras in the future.
He told Gu Zhiyuan to talk to Zheng Weiguo and the others while he went to the kitchen to busy himself.
The vegetables are readily available from the family garden, and there's no shortage of eggs and salted duck eggs, as well as cured meat, salted fish from the sea, and seaweed.
Not long after, the Party Secretary's family brought over a slaughtered old hen, and the Village Chief's family brought over two large whitebait.
With the help of the two aunts, a large table of dishes was quickly prepared.
Stewed old hen with matsutake mushrooms, pan-fried whitebait, stewed kelp with cured pork, steamed salted fish, eggplant with minced garlic, fried eggs with chili peppers, served with a cold cucumber salad and a tomato salad with white sugar.
Zheng Weiguo has tasted quite a lot of delicious food, and he has to give a thumbs up to today's meal.
The chicken soup with matsutake mushrooms was so delicious it almost made your tongue tingle.
Pan-fried whitebait is both fresh and spicy.
Braised pork with kelp, the kelp is stewed until soft and tender, absorbing the aroma of the cured pork.
Steamed salted fish has a unique flavor; it smells pungent but tastes salty and goes well with rice.
Xiao Lei was so engrossed in eating that he didn't even have time to talk. The benefits at their machinery factory were among the best in the county, and his family was also quite well-off. They could afford to eat meat every week, so this kind of opportunity to eat meat so freely was probably rare.
The cooking skills are especially superb. The taste, although not as refined as that of the master chefs in state-run restaurants, has its own unique flavor.
Especially after eating all those meat dishes, the final cold cucumber and tomato salad with white sugar is refreshing and helps cut through the greasiness.
After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Xiao Lei originally wanted Gu Zhiyuan to come back to the machinery factory with him, but Gu Zhiyuan said it was too sudden and he needed to pack up and make some arrangements for his family.
He was obliged to help, so Xiao Lei readily agreed.
Before leaving, Xu Ningyan went to her private plot and found two more watermelons, giving one to each of them.
Zheng Weiguo was still a little embarrassed, but Xu Ningyan said that his family's property was not worth much, so Zheng Weiguo and Xiao Lei reluctantly accepted it.
After seeing Zheng Weiguo and Xiao Lei off at the village entrance, the two men changed their address for Gu Zhiyuan from "Comrade Gu Zhiyuan" to "Little Gu," calling him "Little Gu" affectionately.
Zheng Weiguo also extended a special invitation, telling Gu Zhiyuan that he must visit his home whenever he had free time in the county town.
Finally, he thanked Xu Ningyan for the watermelon, and then patted Gu Zhiyuan on the shoulder meaningfully: "Your little Xu is a good comrade too! Little Gu, cherish him!"
Gu Zhiyuan nodded, a rare smile appearing on his face: "Director Zheng is right, I will definitely cherish it!"
They had a very pleasant conversation.
Those who watched from afar, not daring to approach, felt a mix of emotions that were hard to describe as they witnessed this scene.
After a long pause, someone finally spoke up: "Siya's suffering has finally come to an end. She'll finally have some good days ahead! Her husband is going to work in the county town, so I'm afraid she'll go with him to enjoy life and become a city dweller."
After these words were spoken, the Xu family members standing nearby looked extremely displeased.
They could comfort themselves before, thinking that even if Xu Siya had a job, so what? Her husband's background was bad.
But who would have thought that Gu Zhiyuan would actually be exonerated and even go to work at the county machinery factory?
They're just as good as Pearl's boyfriend!
If they had known Gu Zhiyuan would be exonerated, they would never have spread those rumors and forced the two of them to be together.
If something good happens, shouldn't it be given to Er Ya and San Ya first? It's definitely better than giving it to Si Ya, isn't it?
The Xu family was filled with deep regret, but they couldn't express their bitterness. It was all their own doing.
Those who were at odds with the Xu family, seeing their unpleasant expressions, stabbed them in the back even more ruthlessly: "That's right! It's clear that Siya is a lucky girl. Who could have imagined this day when she was being schemed against! It's good to have some conscience!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
