As soon as Zhou Jiao stepped into the yard, she heard voices coming from the main room - it sounded like the voices of Shitou and Mai Sui, a brother and sister.
I wonder if Wuyi is at her house?
"Who is it?"
Zhou Jiao quickly stepped forward and saw the heavy cotton curtain at the door of the front yard being pushed open. She quickly lifted it and said, "Don't pull it. I'm coming in."
The poor cotton curtain was almost torn when it was pulled inside and out.
The main hall is quite large.
It had been lent to the Women's Federation for office use before. They connected the living room and the west room, making the space appear quite spacious.
Later, when they moved out and took back the courtyard, Zhou Jiao thought the modified layout was good, so she didn't waste any money and started to partition it again.
There is a mahogany octagonal table with four mahogany double benches, and a simple coal stove not far from the east room.
At this moment, her little son Wuyi was leaning on a rattan lounge chair with his eyes closed. When he heard the noise, he immediately raised his head and jumped up in surprise.
"Mom, it's almost time to go to work. Why are you here?"
"I heard you guys are doing quite a big business?"
Wuyi walked quickly to greet her and took the things from her hand. "Haha, it's just a little fight. Mom, you're here. Are you cold? Come in and warm yourself by the fire."
It was definitely cold, so Zhou Jiao didn't take off her coat. She was not as hot-tempered as these three young men.
"Aunt."
Zhou Jiao smiled and nodded at the Shitou siblings standing beside her. "Why don't you add a stove? I remember there's a kang in the east room. It's warm inside."
Shitou explained, "During the day, there are a lot of people coming and going, and some of them like to smoke, so it's not convenient for outsiders to go to the east room."
Zhou Jiao smiled, knowing that they didn't want outsiders on the kang, thinking it was dirty and difficult to rest. "Will my sudden arrival disturb your conversation?"
"How could that be? We're so happy you're here. Besides, we don't have much to do. We were just checking how much goods we shipped out this morning. It's not enough, and we have to hurry up and get the printing factory to finish the work."
Mai Sui, who was standing by, quickly picked up the kettle on the stove and poured her a cup of boiling water. "Auntie, warm your hands quickly."
"Thanks." Zhou Jiao looked around. "Is business good?"
"Yeah, I'm busy as hell."
Zhou Jiao smiled at Mai Sui who was speaking and looked at Wuyi.
Wuyi explained knowingly, "It's not far from the end of the year, and there are a lot more markets in the suburbs. Many people heard the news from their friends and rushed over to buy wholesale."
Zhou Jiao nodded in understanding. "Making money is one thing, but three meals a day must be eaten on time."
"Okay." Wuyi helped her sit on the recliner. "Aunt Yuan brings lunch every day at noon. Sometimes in the evening, if you're hungry, my second sister will cook noodles."
Zhou Jiao glanced at the account book on the table not far away and laughed, "You also wholesale firecrackers and New Year pictures? You're planning to diversify."
Wuyi followed her gaze to the list and chuckled, "By the way. Some dangerous goods are kept in the compartment. I pay attention to safety."
Zhou Jiao was not worried about the safety of flammable materials. Her three sons knew more about these matters than she did, so she only gave a cautious reminder.
"That's good. Let's finish it early before the New Year and keep things quiet."
Wuyi nodded, "I understand. We're just taking advantage of the factory's current supply to ship goods back to our hometown in Northeast China while also selling them wholesale to the outskirts of Beijing. We'll be done by the 26th day of the lunar year."
Mai Sui looked at him, hesitated for a moment, and asked, "So early?"
"Second sister, it's getting late. The wholesale will be almost done after the Little New Year. There's no end to making money. Second Aunt has to go back home for the New Year, and Grandma Zuo has to be busy with housework. It's not convenient for my sister-in-law to take care of the children alone at home."
"Okay, I'll follow your instructions."
"I still have one thing to say. How's your boyfriend going? Shouldn't you take him out for a walk while my Second Aunt is here?"
Being teased by Wuyi, the hot-tempered Mai Sui blushed immediately and shook her head in denial, "Who is the partner? We haven't even started dating yet."
Zhou Jiao looked at her with a smile, "It's winter vacation, and he didn't go back?"
Mai Sui stomped his feet and said, "Auntie~"
Zhou Jiao patted her with a smile, "Men should get married when they are old enough, and women should get married when they are old enough. There's nothing to be shy about. If you really like her, I have a suggestion. You should let your mother see her in person. There's no need to expose their relationship. Wouldn't a chance encounter or something like that be enough?"
Mai Sui bit her lip and immediately lowered her blushing face, "I want to wait until graduation."
"That's fine. It won't go wrong to be cautious about your lifelong affairs."
Zhou Jiao winked at Wuyi and Shitou who were about to speak.
No matter how bold and daring a girl is, she would feel uncomfortable talking about her marriage, let alone bringing it up in front of her brothers.
"Mom, I'm going to take you to see the wintersweets in the backyard. They've been blooming so sweetly these past few days. I was thinking of picking a few and bringing them back to you to put in your bedroom tonight."
"Okay, I haven't been here for a while." Zhou Jiao said, pointing to the sugar-roasted chestnuts on the table towards the Shitou siblings, "Eat them while they're hot."
"Thank you, Auntie."
Wuyi hugged his mother's shoulders as he walked out, smiling, "Don't be so polite. Brother Shitou, I'll leave this to you. I won't be coming over this afternoon."
"No problem, you don't have to come so early tomorrow, come later."
Wuyi waved goodbye and said he had to come early tomorrow morning. In two days, his two brothers would go home for vacation and he would not have time to stay here.
The wintersweets transplanted in the backyard are really in full bloom this year.
"Mom, it smells good, doesn't it? How does it compare to the August osmanthus scent you like?"
"It's hard to compare. Why don't you come over this afternoon? Doesn't Shitou have to go back?"
"It's my turn to rest." Wuyi smiled and reached out to pick a wintersweet. "I'll take you to work on my motorcycle later. It's very fast."
"So what's next?"
Wuyi handed her the winter plum, then reached out again but was pulled by Zhou Jiao, "Keep it."
"Haha..." Wuyi didn't move after hearing that. "Then? Then of course I'll go out for a walk. When you get off work, we can go home together."
"be safe."
"Okay." Wuyi nodded obediently. "Mom, you won't have to exchange meat tickets with anyone at the end of this year. I've asked a few wholesalers to find pork for me."
Zhou Jiao jokingly asked, "How much did you earn this time?"
"It's not bad." Wuyi looked around and lowered his voice. "Mom, it looks insignificant, but the profit is huge. Only half a month has passed. Guess how much you've made in total?"
Zhou Jiao blinked and raised her hand, "Five thousand?"
Wuyi rested his head on her shoulder and laughed, thinking how could he, a tall man of over 1.80 meters, act like a child?
"Ten thousand?"
"Hey, with five versions, I made almost 10,000 yuan just on the gold-powder couplets. Now, the entire northeastern province and the surrounding areas of Beijing are our wholesale areas."
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