Xiang Qianjin's mother's name is Yin Hong. She is only in her early 50s, but she looks as old as a woman in her 70s. At this moment, she is wearing an old factory uniform of Xiang Qianjin. The dark blue fabric has been washed white, and it is worn loosely on the thin old lady. Yin Hong tightly tied the cuffs and waist with strips of cloth to prevent the cold wind from coming in. Even so, the old lady, who has been outside for who knows how long, has already turned pale from the cold.
Xiang Qianjin picked up the thermos next to the desk and poured a cup of still warm water for Yin Hong from his own cup. Yin Hong put her frozen hands on the cup, drank a few sips of warm water, and breathed a sigh of relief.
Looking at Xiang Qianjin, he said hesitantly, "Qianjin, I went with your sister-in-law to see the girl she introduced to you today. She's really nice, sensible, polite, and pretty. I think you shouldn't reject her right away. Meet her once, maybe you'll fall in love with her."
Yin Hong's eyes were evasive, and she didn't dare to look her son in the eye.
Xiang Qianjin ignored his mother's words and frowned: "Yin Xiuli is here too, and she just left you here and went back!" Xiang Qianjin was really fed up with that sister-in-law who was said to be from the same ancestor as his mother. She was a complete troublemaker. He didn't believe that Yin Xiuli would introduce him to a good match, and looking at his mother's expression, there must be something wrong here.
Xiang Qianjin felt a little tired for a moment. He thought that among his brothers, he was the most filial. He knew how much of the money and food coupons he sent home every month went to his parents and how much went to his brothers and sisters. But he had already given so much, but those people were always unsatisfied.
"Go ahead, that girl is really a good one, and mom won't harm you. She's the only daughter in the family, and her family has a house in the county town. The girl took over her mother's job, and now she's also an earner of government income. She's a perfect match for you." Seeing that the third brother had an ugly expression, Yin Hong spoke despite the pressure.
"If someone likes me with such good conditions, I'm afraid he doesn't want my family, but a live-in son-in-law." Xiang Qianjin felt something was wrong when he heard his mother's words. With such good conditions, how could he not find a partner?
Yin Hong's face froze, and under Xiang Qianjin's increasingly indifferent expression, she timidly said, "My family has connections, and they can help your little brother go to the county junior high school. You know your little brother is the smartest. If he studies hard, he will definitely be able to get into a technical secondary school, and then he can become a worker and have a stable job."
"Go forward. You can't lose your conscience just because your life is getting better." Yin Hong paused, opened her mouth and said.
Xiang Qian exhaled so much that he started laughing: "What do you mean by being conscientious? I am being conscientious by being someone's son-in-law. Mom, this is not the way to be partial."
Xiang Qianjin looked at his mother, who in his impression was timid and honest, and felt extremely disappointed.
In the past, when his mother asked him for money and food, he could still use the fact that his mother was soft-hearted and was instigated by his elder and younger sisters-in-law to comfort her. But now it seems that perhaps his mother does not have him as a son at all in her heart. Otherwise, what mother would let her son become a son-in-law with no status? Have they ever thought about his face?
"No, no..." Yin Hong looked at her son's red eyes and waved her hands in fear: "Mom didn't want you to be someone's son-in-law. Isn't this just to ask some family to solve your brother's schooling problem first?"
Yin Hong felt wronged. The third child earned so much every month, while his brothers and sisters at home had a hard time. So what if she asked him to help weigh some? She was a responsible person. The third child had become a city dweller, while the other children in the family were still struggling to make a living. How could she, as a mother, bear it?
Now that her son cannot understand her thoughts, Yin Hong feels that her third son was corrupted by her mother-in-law, becoming selfish and lacking brotherhood.
However, thinking of her daughter-in-law's instructions, Yin Hong felt that she still had to analyze their plan carefully to her son. She believed that the third son would understand.
"Your sister-in-law and I have thought about it. That girl's family just wants a child with their surname. Then you can get married and have a child with her. That girl's family is rich. You can give your salary to mom and she will save it for you. When your younger brother finishes school and becomes a worker, if you don't want to be a live-in son-in-law, you can divorce that girl and remarry her. You can have a bunch of grandchildren with our Xiang family's surname. By then, your younger brother will never forget your kindness."
Yin Hong thought the eldest daughter-in-law's idea was great. The girl would give birth to a family, and the youngest son would become a worker. Although the third son would sacrifice a few years, he would not be 30 years old at that time and would still be a worker, so naturally someone would be willing to marry him. Besides, the third son would not suffer any loss, and the youngest son would be grateful to him for the rest of his life.
As for the money, whether Yin Hong will return it to Xiang Qianjin at that time is already obvious. Yin Hong's dream is to distribute the wealth equally to each child. She will be satisfied if all the children live the same good life. Isn't it the responsibility of brothers and sisters to help each other? The third brother will suffer some losses first, and his brothers will definitely repay him in the future.
After listening to his mother's well-reasoned plan, Xiang Qianjin felt so disappointed that he couldn't describe it. He looked at his mother with an extremely unfamiliar look, as if he was looking at someone he had never met.
This is the good person praised by everyone in Xiaoqiu Village. The old lady who has been kind to others all her life and praised by everyone actually came up with such a vicious plan. Xiang Qianjin couldn't believe what he heard.
Yin Hong touched her face, feeling a little embarrassed by the expression on her son's face.
"Mom, do you think this was the idea of my eldest sister-in-law? Could that woman be more vicious? Have you ever thought about what that girl was thinking? She used her from the beginning to the end, and kicked her away in the end. If my eldest sister, second sister, and youngest sister were treated like this, would you still be able to tolerate it?"
Xiang Qianjin pointed at Yin Hong and despised their whimsical and extremely selfish idea. If the person in front of him wasn't his mother, he would have wanted to kick her out.
"What nonsense are you talking about? You sisters are living a good life." When Yin Hong heard her son cursing his three daughters, she was angry at first, but when she thought about what she had asked her son to do, she was speechless.
"I, I, your son has taken that girl's surname, what else is she dissatisfied with? Apart from you, where can their family find another worker as a son-in-law?" Yin Hong said with a little weakness. Even she couldn't convince herself that what she did was right.
"And look at Fan Xiaojuan from our village. She even sued her lame husband, but now she is married to a city man in a dignified manner and is living a comfortable life. That girl is not worse off than Fan Xiaojuan. She has a son with her last name, and her parents won't force her. Maybe she can marry a man she likes in the future."
Yin Hong said confidently that these were what her daughter-in-law said in her ears. Although Yin Hong felt that women who remarried were sluts, her current goal was to persuade her third son. As long as the youngest son could live a good life, the living conditions of the other sons could also be improved. She had no choice but to let other girls suffer.
"Mom, I'm tired. You sleep in the bed tonight. I'll stay next door with my friends for the night. I'll take you home early tomorrow morning."
Xiang Qianjin scratched his head, turned around and walked out the door: "I will pretend I didn't hear what you said today. You ask Yin Xiuli to behave herself. From now on, I will send ten yuan back to you every month, no more. You and sister-in-law should not think of these crooked ways. I will find my own partner, so don't try to force me to drink water."
The dormitory door slammed shut, and the old lady standing in the room was startled. She patted her chest and took a deep breath, unable to believe that her filial and sensible son would one day disobey her.
"This child has really changed. Ten yuan, what can ten yuan do? In the past, he sent thirty yuan home every month, and some food coupons and cloth coupons. Xiu Li is right. It must be that vixen that Qianjin fell in love with. Before she even got married, she was trying to sow discord among the brothers and sisters at home and stop Qianjin from helping the family. This kind of person must not be allowed to enter the Xiang family."
Yin Hong thought that even if Xiang Qianjin refused to be a son-in-law, he must marry a virtuous woman in the future, give the money he earned to his family, and help all the brothers who were having a hard time.
Qianjin is still young and doesn't understand the importance of brothers and sisters. As a mother, she must teach him well and not let her son become an ungrateful person who forgets his brothers and sisters once he becomes successful.
*******
That night, his co-worker who shared a bed with him snored loudly. Xiang Qianjin kept his eyes open and stared at the wooden board above his head the whole night. The next day, before dawn, he knocked on his dormitory door, woke up Yin Hong who was still half asleep, and sent her back to the village.
"Qianjin, you didn't sleep well last night." Yin Hong said distressedly as she looked at her son's bloodshot eyes and dark eye circles.
Xiang Qianjin snorted and was about to leave with the old lady.
"QinJin, you kid, it turns out you've quietly fallen for Boss Meng's niece." The man who smiled at Xiang QianJin and fawned on his master's wife last night just came out of the state-owned restaurant on his bicycle after buying some fried dough sticks. When he saw Xiang QianJin walking in front of him, he stopped his bicycle and said with a smile.
He went back home with other workers last night and only discovered Xiang Qianjin's thoughts after hearing others talk about it. When he saw the real culprit this morning, he naturally made fun of him.
Xiang Qianjin greeted him but didn't plan to talk much about Dani. The conversation with Yin Hong last night made him realize that his family's problems couldn't be solved in a few words. Dani was too gentle, and now their family was in such a mess, he hadn't decided whether to involve Dani.
The man looked at Qianjin with a strange expression on his face. He didn't say much. After a few pleasantries, he took his breakfast and rode away on his bicycle.
"Qianjin, I'm hungry. Please buy me some steamed buns. I'll wait for you here." Yin Hong pointed at the sign of the state-owned restaurant and said to Xiang Qianjin. Although Xiang Qianjin had some complaints about Yin Hong, he would not watch her starve. He responded and turned to enter the state-owned restaurant.
As soon as Yin Hong saw Xiang Qianjin's figure disappear, she chased in the direction of the man who had just left on a bicycle.
"Brother, wait a minute—"
When the man heard the shouting from behind, he stopped his bicycle in some confusion and looked back. Yin Hong was running behind him, panting.
"Comrade, I am Qianjin's mother. I would like to ask, who is the niece of Boss Meng that you just mentioned?" Yin Hong asked cautiously.
"So, old lady, you are Qianjin's mother." The man was just curious about the person standing behind Xiang Qianjin, but since Xiang Qianjin didn't introduce herself, he didn't feel comfortable asking.
"You may not know this, but Qianjin has fallen in love with the niece of a senior worker in our factory. Dani is diligent and sensible, and she cooks very well. If Qianjin can really be with that girl, you will be blessed, Auntie."
Yin Hong fooled him with a smile, and then focused on asking who Meng Pingchuan was, as well as some other questions. The man thought that the old lady just wanted to know the conditions of her son's favorite person, so he told her everything he knew without any precautions.
"Thank you, comrade."
Yin Hong asked all the questions she wanted to ask, thanked the other party gratefully, and returned to her original seat before Xiang Qianjin came out of the state-owned hotel.
When Xiang Qianjin came out with two steaming buns, everything was the same as when he first went in. Xiang Qianjin also did not notice Yin Hong's momentary stiffness.
"The ingredients used in the steamed buns in the city are too good. This is white flour, right? Tsk tsk tsk, how much cornmeal is added? The steamed buns look so soft. No, no, keep these two steamed buns. It's rare for your younger brother and nephews to eat these good things."
Yin Hong untied the cloth wrapped around her waist and stuffed two hot steamed buns that had just been taken out of the steamer into her cotton-padded jacket. Then she wrapped the jacket tightly and said to Xiang Qianjin, "Let's go back quickly. We still have sweet potatoes at home. We can still satisfy our hunger."
This time it was Yin Hong's turn to walk in front. She was in a hurry to go back and discuss with her eldest daughter-in-law, who was the smartest and most sensible, how to deal with the issue of Xiang Qianjin reducing the household allowance.
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