Because Xu Hongxia and her two sisters went on a blind date, Shen Anning was a little curious and worried at home, waiting for their news.
Finally, at three o'clock in the afternoon, Xu Hongxia walked into the courtyard with a smile on her face.
Looking at her expression, Shen Anning teased: "This is a good thing, is it for the sisters or you, or all three of you?"
"Hey, Sister Wanli is probably engaged, did you know? An Ning, that guy is a soldier named Liu Zhiguo. He's from Luotai Village, the village closest to the farm. He should be 25 years old this year. I heard he just didn't have time to come back for blind dates before."
Xu Hongxia touched her chin with her fingers and thought seriously for a moment. "He looks okay, just a little dark. But he's a soldier, so dark skin is just from training, so it's normal. He's not particularly tall, about 1.75 meters."
After hearing this, Shen Anning felt that this condition was not bad. Although he was from the countryside, as long as he was down-to-earth and hardworking in the army, even if he could not be promoted in the future and stayed there, he could still have a good job after demobilization and return to the region. He would not have to worry about food and clothing for the rest of his life, which was also solid.
"What about home, what's going on?"
"Well, his family is fine. Aunt Dashuan said they are well off. His parents are still young and can work in the fields to support themselves. This guy is the eldest, and he has a younger brother and a younger sister. But they don't seem to be very old, probably around ten years old."
"He hasn't been promoted yet, and even if he gets married, he can't join the army. Sister Wanli has to live with his parents and siblings in Luotai Village. An Ning, do you think this is reliable?" The more Xu Hongxia spoke, the less confident she felt. After thinking about it carefully, it seemed that Sister Wanli had just moved from the educated youth site to another village.
Shen Anning had never met the man or his family members, so she had no way to make an accurate evaluation. "It all depends on what Sister Wanli thinks. If the man's family conditions are good and his family members are reasonable, then Sister Wanli will not suffer if she marries him, and may even live better than at the educated youth camp. But if the man's parents are not easy to get along with, then it's a bit early to get married."
She had no way of pointing fingers at other people's lives, she could only talk about her own suggestions and ideas, but Shen Anning believed that with Sister Wanli's temperament and what she had experienced before, she didn't need to worry about her.
"Hey, you're always talking about Sister Wanli. How are you and Sister Qian Hui doing? You don't see anyone you like."
"I'm not planning on finding a partner right now. I just went there to fill in the gaps, and there were only two men. I don't know what Sister Qian Hui thinks, she didn't say anything."
Shen Anning didn't ask in detail. Everyone has their own ideas, and she doesn't need to interfere too much.
Early November, the 3rd.
Shen Anning received an invitation. Qi Wanli, the eldest sister from the educated youth point, was getting married. She was a little surprised. After all, it was less than a week since their last blind date. It was too fast.
When she had some free time, Shen An Ning found Xu Hongxia and asked about the situation. After learning that it was Sister Wanli's own decision, she didn't say much. She estimated that the man's family was also a good family.
"Well, Hongxia, did the people at our educated youth site tell us how to give gifts?"
"We have agreed that each person will give 68 cents as a gift. These two numbers sound auspicious when strung together. Then, the small gifts that I prepare can be given to my sister separately." Xu Hongxia has been taken care of a lot by Qi Wanli during her time at the educated youth site, so she plans to prepare a nice gift.
"Okay, I understand. Then we'll go to the man's house in Luotai Village for a feast."
According to the custom in Northeast China, both the man's and the woman's families would hold banquets, but Qi Wanli was an educated youth, and the educated youth site was her parents' home, so everyone just got together for a meal. She would bring gifts and presents to the man's side to support him.
Shen Anning also planned to prepare a gift. When she first arrived, she and Xu Hongxia helped her take care of her younger siblings whenever there was something going on at home. For this reason and the revolutionary friendship between the educated youth, she also wanted to prepare a big gift.
I thought about the gifts for the newlyweds: a pair of pillowcases, two bars of soap, and two handkerchiefs, exactly six items, and paired numbers are also auspicious.
Wrap the chosen items in red paper so that they will look better when given as gifts.
November 5th, sunny day.
Because they were walking with the people from the educated youth site, Shen Anning did not ride a bicycle, but held her little niece and went to the banquet with everyone.
Along the way, Shen Zixi was very well-behaved, only occasionally asking questions when she saw something new. With so many people around teasing her and taking turns holding her, Shen Anning didn't feel tired at all.
Arriving at the Liu family, Shen Anning saw that the family conditions were good. Although the courtyard wall was made of adobe, the house inside was half brick and tile, and the windows were also glass windows. She first went into the new house to give Qi Wanli a gift, and happened to meet her future mother-in-law, Aunt Liu.
Shen Anning and a group of female educated youth greeted politely.
"Hey, hello everyone, this little girl is really cute. Can you roll out a new bed for us later?"
Shen Anning was stunned for a moment, a little surprised. It was not that she thought too much, but people in this era would more or less favor boys over girls. Shen Zixi's dress was that of a real girl.
She smiled and said, "Okay, no problem, auntie."
Shen Zixi, who was just one year old, didn't expect that he would be assigned a big task before he even had the ceremony of grabbing the week and starting to eat meat.
The process of rolling on the bed was really funny. In addition to Shen Zixi, there was also a boy of the same age as her, who was the grandson of Aunt Liu's eldest brother. The two children lay on the bed, dazed, not knowing what to do.
"Xixi, turn over and roll over."
As soon as the order came, Shen Zixi had a strong execution ability. In order to prove that he was very good, he flipped several times in a row, making the people watching on the side laugh.
"Oh my God, An Ning, I want to steal Xixi home, she's so cute." Xu Hongxia took the little guy from Shen An Ning, grabbed her little hand, and kissed her several times.
Aunt Liu was so happy that she couldn't stop smiling. She grabbed a handful of fruit candies and stuffed them into the little girl's pocket. Shen Zixi protected the candies with both hands and kept saying "OK".
"You little greedy cat." After poking the little guy's face, Shen An Ning held him in his arms. After everyone had a lively time in the house for a while, they went out to eat.
At the dinner table, when the newlyweds came out to toast, Shen Anning saw the groom. He looked very handsome and was a good match for Sister Wanli.
Of course, words of blessing should be spoken as if they were free.
The table was filled with educated youth and acquaintances. They were not fighting or competing with each other and were enjoying their meal. After the meal, no one stayed to disturb others. After saying goodbye to Qi Wanli, everyone prepared to go out.
"An Ning, wait, come here, these dishes are specially reserved by my mother-in-law, you can all take some back."
In a corner that Shen An Ning didn't notice, Cao Jingheng was looking at the girl who was talking and laughing.
It turned out that she was Shen Anning.
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