Not talking while eating or sleeping is not common in ordinary families, especially in Yuchuan County. Everyone is used to chatting while eating. For the elders who have been busy all day, only at this time do they have time to chat with the younger ones.
Qu Ying proudly told everyone about her achievements today. Today, the farm below sent two sheep to the supply and marketing cooperative. With the hand strength and eyesight she had trained in the past few years since retirement, she managed to snatch a leg of lamb from a group of ferocious old ladies. Qu Ying cut off the meat of the lamb leg, pickled part of it with salt, and sliced two plates of lamb. The remaining lamb bones and the meat that was not scraped clean were used to make a pot of lamb soup. The base of the pot was what she had been cooking since this morning, and it was full of fragrance.
Today's hot pot dishes were also very rich. In addition to the two piles of mutton, there were also cabbage, potatoes, various wild mushrooms, winter bamboo shoots, tofu, and Qu Ying also grabbed a pair of lamb intestines today, which she washed clean, cut into strips, and placed on a plate. The dipping sauce for the hot pot was prepared by Qu Ying herself, with minced garlic, chopped green onions, and sesame oil.
"Rong Jing, eat more. You may not be able to eat these good things in the countryside on weekdays." As soon as the soup was boiling, Meng Xiangwen unceremoniously picked up a large chopstick of mutton and put it into the pot to boil. She greeted Rong Jing very enthusiastically. Not only that, she also ate it unceremoniously. Meat dishes are rare in the city now, and Meng Xiangwen is also craving for meat.
Qu Ying frowned, she had never seen a girl so eager to throw herself at a man.
"Grandpa, grandma, you should eat more too." Meng Xiangxue saw his eldest sister sweep up most of the mutton on the plate without any hesitation, so he immediately grabbed another plate, boiled it and shared it with grandpa, grandma, father and mother. Of course, he also took care of his somewhat polite cousins.
One only cares about his granddaughter, and the other cares about his grandson. Comparing the two, even a fool would know who he should side with. Meng Dachang and Qu Ying looked at their little grandson with warmth in their eyes, and when they looked at their granddaughter, their smiles suddenly stopped.
"Eat more, or she will snatch it all away." Meng Xiangxue leaned close to Jiang Yilu's ear and reminded him in a low voice: "Lamb intestines hotpot is also delicious. It's a pity that there is no pig brain today. You don't know what it tastes like, tub tut." Meng Xiangxue smacked his lips, took a bite of the mutton cooked in the spicy hotpot, and closed his eyes in satisfaction.
Jiang Yilu likes to eat hot pot, especially all kinds of offal, but the appearance of pig brain makes him a little afraid to eat it, so he has always declined it.
Qu Ying’s technique for preparing the soup base is average, and she only adds standard spices. However, the mutton bone soup is too fragrant, and the vegetables blanched in the thick white clear soup have absorbed the delicious broth, making it impossible to stop eating it.
Meng Xiangwen has always been a person who doesn't care about other people's faces, or rather, he doesn't care about the faces of the Meng family. He showed no sign of restraint. After seeing that the mutton was all picked up, he set his eyes on the plate of plump and tender mushrooms.
"These wild mushrooms are quite fragrant. Rong Jing, you should eat more too." Meng Xiangwen not only eats very quickly himself, but also helps Rong Jing grab more food in his spare time.
Rong Jing hadn't eaten such delicious food for a long time, and he couldn't help but whet his appetite. Although he knew it was wrong, he still accepted all the dishes that Meng Xiangwen brought to him.
Don’t be fooled by Rong Jing’s bright and glamorous appearance, only he himself knows the hardships he goes through inside.
Rong Jing was from Haicheng. His family was once local tycoons during the Republic of China period. However, their ancestors were not ambitious and their family fell into decline during his grandfather’s generation. All the family property was squandered, leaving only a small, run-down house in an old alley where the whole family lived together. However, because of this, when the Cultural Revolution came, the family was not affected.
The family business was ruined, but Rong Jing's father was always immersed in the past glory and wanted to revive the Rong family. The rules of the family were all based on ancient rituals, which was why Rong Jing always acted like a noble son. Rong Jing had three brothers, and he was the middle one. He was not as respected as the eldest son, nor as loved as the youngest son. Although Rong Jing always thought that he was the best among the three brothers, his parents never paid attention to him.
Since the country issued the rule that educated youth should go to the countryside, at least two of the three brothers of the Rong family had to be sent down. Father Rong couldn't bear to send his eldest son, and Mother Rong couldn't bear to send her youngest son, so Rong Jing naturally became the first victim. The remaining quota was wiped out by his father. Rong Jing hated it very much. Why could his elder and younger brothers, who were inferior to him in every way, continue to stay in Haicheng as city dwellers, while he had to come to this poor countryside to teach a group of country people.
Although Rong Jing seemed kind on the surface, he actually looked down on the mud-legged people in Hongqi Village, hated the dirty, old-fashioned, snotty kids in the school, and hated the rustic and rural girls who secretly liked him. In this respect, he and Meng Xiangwen had exactly the same ideas.
When Rong Jing thought of this, his eyes darkened and the mutton in his mouth no longer tasted as delicious.
"Grandma, why is there only this little mutton and wild mushrooms? Go get another plate." Meng Xiangwen saw that there were only some cabbage and potatoes that were usually seen on the table. He put down his chopsticks in dissatisfaction and said to Qu Ying.
"It's good to have these. You can eat them every day in the Wen family." Qu Ying retorted dissatisfiedly. She was becoming more and more impatient with this tactless granddaughter.
How can they be the same? The Wen family doesn't have such good conditions, but the Meng family has plenty of money. So what if she wants to eat more meat?
Meng Xiangwen was about to speak but was stopped by Rong Jing: "This cabbage is also delicious, Wenwen, eat more." He blanched a piece of cabbage for Meng Xiangwen, dipped it in sauce, blew it carefully until it was not so hot, and put it in her bowl.
Meng Xiangwen was immediately charmed by this thoughtful gesture. He ate the cabbage sweetly and forgot to speak.
"Grandma Qu is such a great cook. The soup base tastes amazing." Rong Jing's appearance was really deceptive. He was fair and handsome, and with a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, no one would dislike such a bookish man.
Qu Ying had just been angry with Rong Jing because her granddaughter had brought a man back for no reason. Now, seeing that he had been polite to their neglect from beginning to end, she had a little more favorable impression of this future grandson-in-law who had suddenly appeared.
"Where is Mr. Rong from? Judging from his accent, he doesn't sound like a native of Chongqing." The first person to speak to Rong Jing was Meng Pingchuan. He was the one who had the most say in his daughter's marriage.
"I'm from Haicheng, and I'm an educated youth assigned to Hongqi Village. I'm currently teaching at Hongqi Primary School, and I'm also a teacher there." Rong Jing put down his chopsticks and answered Meng Pingchuan's question very politely.
"Oh——" Meng Pingchuan looked at Jiang Yilu curiously.
"Teacher Rong is very popular in our school. Senior students like him very much." Not only male students, but also female students. Although Jiang Yilu does not like Meng Xiangwen, he does not want her to marry a man with unclear motives. He does not think that Meng Xiangwen has the charm to charm this unpredictable man in front of him.
Meng Pingchuan heard the implication behind Jiang Yi's message and his feelings towards Rong Jing faded. Being too popular with girls is not a good thing.
"Dad, Rong Jing is so talented. It's a waste of his talent to teach that group of country people. Aren't you familiar with the principal of Yuchuan Primary School? Ask him to transfer Rong Jing to the county." Meng Xiangwen naively thought that Jiang Yiliu was praising Rong Jing, and he rarely gave him a good look, looking at Meng Pingchuan with expectation.
"Nonsense!" Meng Pingchuan glared at her. "Xiao Rong is an outstanding young man who was sent to the countryside to receive organizational training. Can your father transfer him with just a few words? And Xiao Bao said that the children in the village like him very much. If Xiao Rong is lost, won't those children be very sad?"
"Let a bunch of country bumpkins be sad!" Meng Xiangwen muttered a few words.
"I like Hongqi Primary School very much, and I have developed feelings for the students there. I will not leave." Rong Jing said seriously. When his affectionate eyes passed through Jiang Yilu, Jiang Yilu got goose bumps all over his body.
Unexpectedly, Meng Xiangwen's father actually knew the principal of Yuchuan Primary School. This was a pleasant surprise. Rong Jing's originally indifferent mood suddenly changed.
After hearing Rong Jing's sincere answer, Meng Pingchuan's expression improved a lot and he began to examine the man in front of him again.
"Dad, Rong Jing and I came here today to talk about the important things between us." Meng Xiangwen saw that her father's face seemed to have improved, and asked tentatively.
Rong Jing, constrained by some unspeakable thoughts, did not stop Meng Xiangwen from speaking.
"Rong Jing and I are planning to get married, but you know Rong Jing's situation. He is still living in the educated youth housing in Hongqi Village. There are five people living in one room. I can't live in the countryside. Don't we have an empty house in our family? I want that house."
As soon as Meng Xiangwen finished speaking, everyone stopped using their chopsticks and stared at her motionlessly.
Now, except for a number of existing houses that have been registered as private property, all other houses in the city are allocated by work units. Such welfare housing is collective property and cannot be sold privately. In addition, during the Cultural Revolution, the government also confiscated a number of privately owned houses and allocated them to workers. Most of them were beautiful Western-style houses, and the luxurious decoration inside was reorganized and divided into single rooms. Often, a Western-style building could accommodate more than a dozen families, or even more. Such allocated houses cannot be resold or rented.
When allocating housing at a workplace, one takes into consideration rank, length of service, age, and the number of people in the family. The machinery factory where Meng Dachang and Meng Pingchuan work has the best economic benefits in the county, so their welfare benefits are naturally the best as well. Moreover, both of them are senior workers and experienced masters, so it is natural that they will be included in the housing allocation.
In addition to the house they live in now, the Meng family has two other houses.
One is the old house of the Meng family, a small bungalow, but the area is quite large, about 60 or 70 square meters. Although it is a bit old, it can be lived in after a paint job. Another one is the house allocated by the machinery factory to Meng Pingchuan and Wenqin. It has only two rooms, a living room and a bedroom. It is also the house where the Meng family lived before moving to the small second floor. It is only more than 30 square meters. The Wen family lives opposite. The current one is a welfare house for senior employees and cadres after the machinery factory became bigger and bigger. It is large and spacious.
The house that belonged to Meng Pingchuan and Wen Qin is now occupied by the Wen family, because Wen Qin also owns half of the house. After they were divided up the current building, they thought the factory would take it back, but nothing happened. Later, the Wen family came up and said they wanted to borrow the house because they had a large family and it was really crowded. At that time, the relationship between the Wen and Meng families was not as tense as it is now, so Meng Dachang took the initiative to lend it out.
Naturally, this loan could not be returned. Fortunately, Meng Dachang and Cui Ying also planned to leave the house to Meng Xiangwen as a dowry, and did not care about the attitude of the Wen family at this time. He also wanted to take this opportunity to let his granddaughter take a good look at the family members closest to her in her heart and see what choice they would make in front of the house.
Jiang Dazhen also knew about this matter and she did not object.
However, what Meng Xiangwen mentioned at this time was obviously not the house occupied by the Wen family, but another old bungalow. Jiang Dazhen could not accept that a married daughter took away two houses at once.
Not only her, Meng Dachang and Meng Pingchuan were also obviously angered by their granddaughter's self-righteous tone.
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