Jiang Erni came out of the house after changing into a bra. Her skin color had finally improved a little after staying in the capital for a few months. Although it was not white, it was much fairer than the little black girl before. Wearing this red and white plaid dress, she looked elegant and graceful, and had a kind of girlish charm.
"You can still tighten your waist a little bit." Jiang Dani looked at the dress on her sister and said, "Take it off and I'll help you adjust it."
The sisters were all about the same height, about 160cm tall, with Si Ni being a little shorter. Except for Da Ni who had given birth to a daughter, who became a little plump, the other three sisters were all about the same slim figure. When Jiang Da Ni was making clothes, Er Ni and the others were not around, so she made them according to a size that was a size smaller than her own, so if they didn't fit, it would be easy to make some changes.
"No need, I think it's just right this way. Maybe I'll gain weight when I go back." Erni was vain and refused to take it off, and said coquettishly to her elder sister.
Jiang Dani thought about it and felt that what her second sister said made sense. Nowadays, people like to make clothes and shoes bigger so that they can be worn for several years. The materials used in the clothes made by Dani and her sisters are the best. If Erni gets fat and can't wear them in the future, it will be much more difficult to make them bigger than to make them smaller.
After packing up the things at home, Jiang Yilu and a few others walked towards Aunt Jiang's house.
There was an empty space in the Meng family's living room, with a large mat laid out like a tatami. Niu Niu and Xiang Bing, who was almost six years old, sat together, with a bunch of toys scattered around them.
The weather is too hot, so the two kids are wearing cool clothes at home, short-sleeved shirts and shorts, showing their chubby limbs. Xiang Bing is playing with a set of building blocks that Jiang Yilu gave him. He is building his own base, and Niuniu is handing him the blocks in tacit cooperation. But when he sees his mother coming back, he stands up shakily with his soft hands, and his two soft, white, fat legs push open the base built by Meng Xiangbing, waving his chubby little hands that look like lotus roots, and calling out to Jiang Dani affectionately.
"You little rascal." Meng Xiangbing cried out in anger when he saw his hard work being destroyed by his little niece.
"Ninety-nine, ninety-nine."
The little girl didn't feel guilty at all. She nestled in her mother's arms, but was reluctant to leave her uncle who appeared behind her mother. Her black eyes as big as grapes rolled around, and her little eyebrows were wrinkled together. Her tangled little expression made people laugh.
"Come if you want to, bring whatever you want with you." Qu Ying said politely as she looked at the two baskets of things in Jiang Yilu's hands.
The two baskets contained special products from the capital, such as donkey rolls and tuckahoe cakes, which they bought when they came back from school. The other basket was brought from home, including local eggs, a few strings of smoked sausages, and some pickled vegetables made by Old Lady Miao. Erni, who was standing behind Jiang Yiliu, was also holding two large watermelons, which she also brought from home.
"My grandma asked me to bring these here." Jiang Yilu pointed to the basket of country eggs and the two watermelons. "As for this, my cousin and his friends are in closed training and can't come out. He said that you and grandpa like to eat sweet and soft things, and he said that he can't come back, but I must buy this for him."
Meng Xiangxue, Guangpiao and Tiezhu were not on holiday. The freshmen of their class left the capital two months ago for field training and have not returned yet. Meng Xiangxue was a carefree person, so he would never pay attention to those details. Jiang Yiliu said this just to improve his impression.
There are two children in the family and one of them is away from home all year round, which can easily lead to emotional imbalance.
Qu Ying was indeed very happy after hearing what Jiang Yilu said. Looking at the basket of special products of the capital, she felt happy: "Xiangxue is a very filial child. He went so far to study but he still remembered what his grandfather and I like to eat. Compared to him..." Qu Ying was about to talk about the granddaughter who had never appeared since she was admitted to the university, but she felt it was boring and did not say anything else.
Anyway, both parties have already had a quarrel over the daughter-in-law's almost miscarriage, so let's just pretend that the granddaughter doesn't exist.
When it was time for lunch, Jiang Dazhen and others came back one after another.
"Mom, look, this is the tank my cousin bought for me." Meng Xiangbing rushed into Jiang Dazhen's words like a small cannonball, showing off the tank model made of shells in his hand. The palm-sized model was bought by Jiang Yi in the department store in the capital. The price was quite expensive, costing him 50 yuan, which was a month's salary for an average worker.
"What are you buying for him, kid?" Jiang Dani rolled her eyes at her nephew. "No matter how good the item is, it will break in less than three days if it's in the hands of that little devil. What a waste of money."
Jiang Dani knew that her brother's family gave living expenses to the children, and she was afraid that her nephew would save money and treat her badly in order to buy gifts for them.
"It didn't cost much." Jiang Yilu smiled. He still cherished this little cousin who had no chance to be born in his previous life.
"Don't do this next time." Jiang Dazhen repeatedly warned, "Be careful not to spoil this kid like this."
"No, my little cousin said he would bring me a plane next time he comes. That's a deal." Xiang Bing said to his mother angrily, like a little frog, making people want to poke his cheek.
"Besides, be careful your dad will beat you up."
Jiang Dazhen threatened her son, who was taking the risk. Meng Pingchuan doted on this old son, but he was still very strict on some principled issues, for fear of raising another child like Meng Xiangwen. Now when he heard his mother talking about his father, Meng Xiangbing shrank his neck and dared not speak anymore. He only dared to wink at Jiang Yilu when Jiang Dazhen could not see him, which made Jiang Yilu laugh.
Jiang Yilu felt that he had no resistance to children in his life. If he had a child in the future, the child must have a strict mother, otherwise the child would definitely be spoiled by him.
If Jiang Yilu was a woman in his previous life, how could he accept the fate of becoming a man in this life and having a wife and children? This may be related to his rationality. Although she herself has no prejudice, homosexuality is not accepted by the public in China even in later generations. Jiang Yilu knows clearly that if she insists on being with a man, it will cause an uproar in the Jiang family. Perhaps the stable and happy life that she has worked so hard to get in this life will be ruined because of herself.
What's more, Jiang Yilu really couldn't say which one was easier to accept, emotional homosexuality or physical homosexuality. He could only choose a relatively easier path.
After a dozen years, he will find a girl he likes and live with her for the rest of his life. He may not be able to fall in love with her, but he will respect her, take care of her, love her, and fulfill the responsibilities of a husband. They will have one or two children and live the rest of their lives in a plain but happy way.
This is Jiang Yilu's plan for his life.
"Xiaobao, it's time to eat."
Jiang Erni helped Old Lady Qu set the table and called out to her brother who was in a daze for some reason.
Jiang Yilu came back to his senses, responded, and walked towards the dining table.
******
This afternoon, Xiang Qianjin and Jiang Dani took a special leave, hoping to find a house as soon as possible. Jiang Yilu followed them as a little tail, under the pretext of learning from them.
Jiang Dani and her husband are currently struggling with two houses. One is next to Yuchuan Primary School. It is an old building that has been built for 30 or 40 years. When they buy it, they have to renovate it. However, if they consider the convenience of their children's education when they grow up, they will definitely buy that one. Another house is next to their machinery factory. It is a small bungalow with an area of about 70 square meters. The house was renovated a few years ago. When they move in, they only need to paint the walls. It is much more convenient than the other house. But the size is so small that it may be a bit crowded if there are more children in the family.
Jiang Yiliu followed her elder sister and her husband to see the first house next to the primary school. To be honest, it was really run-down, with mottled and peeling walls, revealing the bricks inside. Jiang Yiliu was worried that the house would not last many years. But the location of the house was really good, with a primary school next to it. When private transactions were allowed in a year or two, the first-floor room would bring in a lot of income, whether it was used to run a restaurant business or rent it out.
And because the house was dilapidated, the other party's asking price was quite cheap, only twelve hundred yuan. The two-story house plus a small attic had a total area of more than 180 square meters.
"If you like it, you just need to pay someone to add a few pillars to the house and paint the walls before you can live in it. To be honest, you won't find another place in the whole county that offers this price."
The homeowner said to Xiang Qianjin that in his opinion, Xiang Qianjin was the one who was in charge of the house.
"Let's wait and see." Xiang Qianjin said to the landlord.
Of course they couldn't make a decision right away, so they walked up and down the stairs and then headed towards another store.
"That person?"
Just as they were about to walk through the alley to the second house, Jiang Dani frowned at the person who came out of the house, showing only the side of his face and left with his back to them.
"Isn't that Mr. Rong? He and Sister Xiang Hong are also here to see the house?"
Jiang Dani was sure that what she saw was correct. She naturally thought that the woman who was walking beside Rong Jing and whose face she could not see was Mo Xianghong.
Jiang Yiliu listened to his elder sister's words and looked at the two people who had already walked away curiously. He heard from Xiang Fang that Xiang Hongjie gave birth to a boy. She had been married for only seven months, but she gave birth to a healthy boy. It was said to be premature. Everyone knew what happened. There was a lot of gossip in the village, which made Mo Dashuan, who always cared about his reputation, really depressed for a long time.
However, Jiang Yiliu heard from Xiang Fang that Rong Jing treated her elder sister very well, and the Mo family could only do their best to help Rong Jing, their son-in-law, for the sake of their eldest daughter and their newly born grandson, hoping that they could live a better life. Although Rong Jing was not admitted to the university, his college entrance examination scores were there, and although he was still teaching at Hongqi Primary School, his salary had increased a lot.
“Are they here to see the house, too?”
Jiang Dani saw that they were just coming out of the house they wanted to see, and suddenly felt embarrassed to go in.
"It's okay, just in case someone doesn't like it."
Xiang Qianjin was not familiar with Rong Jing, but he knew that the man was the ex-boyfriend of Meng Xiangwen who had hurt his wife, so naturally he did not have a good impression of him.
Jiang Dani thought about it and decided to follow her husband's brother into the house.
To be fair, this bungalow is much better than that shabby little building. When it was renovated a few years ago, the most solid blue bricks and gray tiles were used. Except for the white walls that are a little damp and look yellow, the kitchen, bathroom, and everything else are available. The owner also said that the total price is 1,100 yuan, and all the furniture and other things will be left behind.
Although the house is good, this 70-square-meter house costs 1,000 yuan, which is much more expensive than the previous one. This is also the reason why Jiang Dani and her husband are a little hesitant.
"Did the couple who just looked at the house say anything?"
Jiang Dani thought that she and Sister Xiang Hong had a good relationship when they were young. If she liked this house, she couldn't compete with the other party for it. She would just buy the house next to the elementary school and live there temporarily. When she saved enough money, she would renovate the house.
"Did you meet?" The homeowner curled his lips. Thinking of the woman's aggressive and cunning attitude just now, he didn't want to sell the house to her. "The couple thought it was too expensive and said they didn't want it."
Jiang Dani breathed a sigh of relief, but her heart suddenly became even more conflicted.
No matter which one, the location is good. One is next to the primary school, and the other is next to the machinery factory. In two years, it will be a natural prosperous shop. The lower floor is for business and the upper floor is for self-use. In the future, it will be a commercial and residential building. Although the house next to the machinery factory is a bungalow now, it will become a fashionable small building as long as one more floor is added. In a few years, the approval for the addition of a house will be quite simple. According to Jiang Yilu, it is best to buy both houses.
"Sister, how much money do you have now?" Jiang Yilu pulled his elder sister and brother-in-law into a corner and asked.
Jiang Dani didn't think her brother's question was out of line. She thought about the savings she had counted a few days ago and said, "There are still more than 1,500 yuan."
It was already great that the young couple had saved this money over the years, and Jiang Yilu didn't think it was too little: "Sister, I think both houses are good, why don't you buy them both, and I'll lend you the rest of the money." Jiang Yilu didn't have much money on hand, but he could still scrape together a few hundred yuan.
"No, no."
Jiang Dani refused without thinking. That money was given by her grandmother to her brother to buy a house in the capital. She didn't even want the two hundred yuan. Now there was still a gap of seven or eight hundred yuan, so she couldn't take it even more. Moreover, in her opinion, one house was enough, why did she need so much?
Xiang Qianjin didn't know the whole story and was puzzled by his wife's reaction. Shouldn't he ask his brother where he got so much money?
"Sister, brother-in-law, you see, the housing market in the city is so tight right now. You should buy two houses now, one for yourself and one for Niuniu as a dowry. Things are getting more expensive every year. Twenty years from now, houses won't be as expensive as they are now."
Jiang Yilu patiently advised: "Besides, you and your brother-in-law will not return the money I lent you to buy a house."
"How is that possible?" Jiang Dani immediately retorted.
"Then there's nothing to worry about."
"No means no." Jiang Dani still didn't want to lend her brother money to buy a house, and flatly rejected her brother's proposal.
Jiang Yiliu talked until his mouth was dry, but he still couldn't persuade his elder sister. He looked at his brother-in-law beside him. He didn't even understand the situation. He was just a yes-man for his elder sister. He listened to whatever his elder sister said. For the first time, Jiang Yiliu felt that it was not a good thing for her brother-in-law to be too obedient.
Finally, Jiang Dani and Xiang Qianjin discussed and decided to buy the house next to the machinery factory. Not only could they live there immediately, but the furniture was also there. They only needed to change the bedsheets, quilt covers, pots and pans before they could move in. Niuniu was still young after all, so they would wait a few years until they had saved enough money and then they would see what happened.
Both parties paid the money and transferred the ownership very quickly. Jiang Yiliu looked at his elder sister, who was smiling and calculating the family expenses with his brother-in-law. It seemed that he had to help his elder sister sell her clothes quickly so that she could save more money and buy another house.
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