It was already evening when we came down the mountain. The setting sun in the west was like blood, casting patches of red sunset glow on the sky. In the distance, the crops on the vast farmland were full of vitality, with yellow and green mixed together, and in the golden wheat fields, there were crowds of members still busy harvesting.
Standing halfway up the mountain and looking over, the view was so spectacular! Zhou Jiao couldn't help but take out her camera, adjust the focus, and take pictures of the scenery.
After the shoot, Zhou Jiao said regretfully, "It's a pity there's no color function."
Zhang Guoqing consoled her, "A camera can't capture the shock you feel right now. You can try using a paintbrush. When you're old, I'll hold an exhibition for you. Then I'll also include calligraphy and embroidery, and we'll have a talent show."
Zhou Jiao turned around and smiled, saying coquettishly: "What nonsense are you talking about? It's going to make people laugh."
Ping An unconditionally supported his father and quickly said, "Who dares? I'll beat him to death! My grandfather said that if my mother used all her skills, any talented woman would be ashamed."
Zhang Guoqing laughed heartily upon hearing this. This was truly something a father-in-law, obsessed with his daughter, could say. If it weren't for the current situation, he thought his father-in-law would have been eager to publish the news in the newspapers.
Zhou Jiao was so frightened that she quickly quickened her pace. Luckily, there was no one around here and no one could hear her, otherwise it would have been humiliating. How could someone boast about something they were selling?
At this moment, she didn't know it. In the old courtyard, Zhang's mother welcomed two distinguished guests - her eldest sister-in-law and her younger sister-in-law from her natal family, who came hand in hand with bamboo baskets.
Mother Zhang pulled them into the house with great surprise. "Sister-in-law and sister-in-law, how come you have time to come here? If you have something to say, please ask someone to tell me to come over."
Zhang Guoqing's aunt laughed and said, "Why? Are you disgusted with us coming here?"
"Oh, I can't even say welcome enough."
The second aunt smiled and said, "We heard this morning that Xiaowu and his wife brought their child back to the village, so we wanted to come and see the child and say thank you."
As soon as Zhang's mother heard the news, she knew they had received it and hurried over.
She complained, "He's your nephew, why are you being so polite? The day he came back, Xiaowu said he was going to visit his two uncles' homes in the next few days."
My aunt-in-law smiled from ear to ear, "How can this child be so thoughtful? Big girl, you raised three good sons and made our whole family benefit from them."
Second Aunt nodded repeatedly and looked around. "Sister, where are my brother-in-law and the children?"
Mother Zhang smiled bitterly and said, "Your brother-in-law is destined to be restless. Look, Xiaowu had just taken Jiaojiao and the children out this morning, and the next moment he ran over to help the team."
"Xiao Wu is also worried that his brother-in-law is tired. Please try to persuade him more."
"I mean, it's useless to say more. Just ignore him. Xiaowu and Jiaojiao have already told him that if his father gets tired in the future, he will drag him to the capital and never let him come back."
The two aunts burst into laughter when they heard this.
The eldest aunt stopped laughing and sighed, "Xiaowu made the right choice in marrying a daughter-in-law. Some people even felt sorry for Xiaowu, thinking that he had married a young wife who couldn't do the work."
The second aunt said calmly, "What good things can those old women say? Marrying a rough woman who can work is useless if Xiaowu doesn't like her. Marriage is about fate, and Jiaojiao has such a good temper."
Upon hearing this, Zhang's mother beamed and nodded repeatedly, "That's exactly what I mean. I've watched this child grow up, and she speaks softly and gently, like a gentle whisper. She's a perfect match for Xiaowu's bad temper."
They haven’t had a single quarrel since they got married. No matter how angry our Jiaojiao gets, she never gets angry with us.”
Aunt: "Aunt, you are blessed."
Seeing Zhang's mother's smiling face, the second aunt glanced at her clothes and jokingly said, "Big sister, are these clothes made by Jiaojiao again?"
Mother Zhang nodded cheerfully, "That's true. Ever since Jiaojiao got married, she's been the one preparing all the clothes for your brother-in-law and me year-round. I asked your brother-in-law to write to her and tell her not to make too many clothes; they're too conspicuous. And then this kid sends me clothes and then sews patches on them, which makes our whole family laugh."
After saying that, Zhang's mother quickly stood up and said, "Wait a minute..." She quickly ran into the bedroom, took out a few boxes of cakes, opened them and stuffed them into their hands like presenting treasures.
"This is what Jiaojiao brought back from her business trip. It's delicious. Try it."
The two aunts laughed happily when they saw this. Not knowing their elder sister-in-law's temper, they took a small bite and put it in their mouths without hesitation.
Mother Zhang said proudly, "Isn't it delicious?"
After hearing this, the aunt-in-law patted her on the back and laughed so hard that she fell forward and backward. Oh, how pleased she must be with this daughter-in-law, making her so proud, like a child.
Zhang Guoqing came in from the backyard carrying a sack on his back. He heard the laughter in the main room and smiled at Zhou Jiao. Who was his mother chatting with so happily?
He stood there and listened for a while, then said softly, "It seems to be my two aunts."
"Go ahead. Ping An is uncomfortable being tied up like this."
Zhang Guoqing slapped his forehead and quickly put his son down. "How about taking a few slow steps first?"
"No problem. I'll go find Grandma."
Zhang Guoqing watched his son running away, carrying his things and asking Zhou Jiao to catch up.
The couple entered the front yard. Zhang's mother and the other two came out from the safe entrance and looked at them with a smile.
Zhang Guoqing quickly greeted them, "Aunt, when did you get here? If I had known, I wouldn't have gone out today. I wanted to visit you tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. Come in and sit down."
Zhou Jiao followed closely behind and greeted them. When she saw the main hall, she knew she had to go and cook some noodles to entertain the guests first.
She didn't sit down either. Seeing that they were chatting happily, she secretly pointed to the kitchen towards Zhang's mother. When she saw her smile and nod, she quietly left.
Thinking of her mother-in-law's habit of locking good things in the cellar, Zhou Jiao didn't rush into the kitchen. She quickly returned to her own yard, took a look, and returned to the old yard with the wooden washbasin.
Unexpectedly, Zhang's mother was taking something out of the kitchen, so Zhou Jiao quickly went forward and lifted the towel. Inside was rolled noodles and a few eggs.
Zhang's mother thought Jiaojiao must have made some extra noodles because her son ate them last night. It would save her the trouble of just boiling them in water, but looking at the snow-white noodles without any grain mixed in, she hesitated.
Zhou Jiao knew her mother-in-law was reluctant to let her go. But weren't these her mother-in-law's family? She'd been married for so many years, and apart from socializing, her in-laws hadn't really come over much; they were rare guests.
She blinked her eyes and said, "Mom, my brother sent a roe deer to the canteen so that they can have a snack tonight."
Zhang's mother was so distressed. Forget it, her eldest son had so much meat at once, and she could save her family a bowl of noodles?
Seeing her nod decisively, Zhou Jiao thought to herself that she was really smart.
But she still needed to be more discerning, so she continued with a smile: "The sacks were full of wild boar meat just now, you can play with it however you want, mother."
Zhang's mother laughed and nodded at her, "You naughty girl, you're teasing your mother."
Zhou Jiao followed her with a silly smile. Seeing that she was about to finish cooking, she quickly pushed her out, "Mom, go and accompany my two aunts. You have to give me a chance to show off, right?"
Zhang's mother laughed out loud when she was pushed by her, "That's enough. Mom, go now."
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