Chapter 51 Grandma's Earrings
After Grandma Guo finally put on the earrings, she looked at herself in the bronze mirror in her room dozens of times.
Although he kept muttering, "This must be so expensive," and "Wenzai, you're really wasting money," he couldn't bear to take the earrings off his ears at all.
He stared intently at his own ear in the mirror, refusing to blink.
Grandma Guo looks a bit like Guo Xiaohua.
Guo Baiwen couldn't help but laugh as he ate his meal while watching her continue to admire herself in the mirror.
"Beautiful, so beautiful." Grandma Guo was almost reluctant to take them off. She stared at them in the mirror for a long time, her hand lingering on them as if to take them off, looking quite heartbroken. "These earrings must be very expensive, right?"
"Grandma, I've already bought it, so don't worry about the price anymore." Guo Baiwen slapped the table, pretending to be angry. "But you, if you don't eat soon, the food in this bowl will get cold."
"I know, I know."
Grandma Guo hesitated for a long time before finally removing her ear.
Even the simple act of sitting down to eat became much smaller without my noticing.
It was as if she was afraid that a big movement would cause these beautiful earrings to fall off her ears.
Guo Baiwen had no choice but to add some hot tea to his grandmother's bowl, as he couldn't bear to urge her.
Hot tea-soaked rice, paired with the dishes on the table, has a unique flavor, which is much better than eating cold rice.
After finishing the meal, seeing Grandma Guo's condition, Guo Baiwen volunteered to wash the dishes and pots.
When Guo Xiaohua returned from Lin Niangzi's house, although she looked at her grandmother's earrings with great envy, she still praised them loudly, "Grandma, these earrings really suit you!"
Of course, Grandma's hair was already quite gray, making her look rather old.
However, when paired with these white mother-of-pearl earrings, the hair color actually looks much more refined.
Grandma Guo beamed with joy, "Your brother picked this out for me, oh my—I told you, it's not my birthday today, but he insisted on giving it to me! I figured since I'd already bought it, I'd definitely wear it!"
Seeing that Guo Xiaohua also looked envious, she took out another pair of earrings that Guo Baiwen had bought.
"Not only does Grandma have some, your brother also picked out a pair for you, take them!"
"Great!" Guo Xiaohua touched her new earrings, beaming with joy.
The two men were laughing face to face, while he sat alone to the side, occasionally glancing at the one on his left and then turning to look at the one on his right.
I always felt that the two of them were silly and clumsy, like they were copied and pasted together.
and--
When did he suddenly insist on giving it to me?
Guo Baiwen wanted to defend himself, but seeing his grandmother's uncontrollable joy, his lips moved but then turned into a genuine smile.
Grandma is showing off her filial piety towards her.
never mind.
Let her be.
It's rare to see Grandma so happy.
He still thought that way for a while, but when he actually went out to buy groceries for dinner, Grandma would show off the earrings that her son Wen had given her to everyone she met.
When faced with praise from butchers, fishmongers, tofu shop owners, and others, even Guo Baiwen, who considered himself to be a calm and composed person, couldn't help but blush.
Seeing that Grandma Guo was about to praise his taste to the skies, Guo Baiwen couldn't hold back any longer. He took a few steps forward and grabbed her, saying, "Grandma, let's go home. I'm hungry."
"Oh? Hungry?" Grandma Guo hadn't finished showing off her stomach yet, so she could only wave her hand, looking somewhat unsatisfied. "Alright, alright, let's go home and cook now."
I can finally go home.
Guo Baiwen couldn't help but wiggle his toes inside his shoe. In just the short time he had been grocery shopping, he felt so embarrassed that he was about to scratch the sole of his shoe.
What he fears most now is running into acquaintances on the street.
For tomorrow's food delivery, maybe we should send Yang Qiaomai.
He plans to stay home for the next couple of days to avoid the limelight.
Finally, carrying the groceries he bought, Guo Baiwen arrived home. Before he could even breathe a sigh of relief, he saw his grandmother angrily rolling up her sleeves.
Xiao Hua also unusually took the initiative to come to the stove, and the two of them were preparing to show off their culinary skills tonight.
There was no place where Guo Baiwen could interfere.
He pulled up a stool and sat down to the side, watching the two of them busy in the kitchen, occasionally exchanging a few words.
But they all remembered his tastes very well.
Guo Baiwen doesn't need to say what he likes to eat or what he doesn't like to eat.
As he looked at himself, he subconsciously touched the corner of his mouth and found that it was actually turned up.
It has to be said that in just over three months since he arrived in this place, he has laughed more times than he did in several years in his previous life.
I couldn't help but feel a little emotional.
But before he could immerse himself in this inexplicable emotion, Guo Xiaohua secretly brought over a plate of steamed cured meat. Seeing that Grandma wasn't looking, she took the opportunity to stuff a piece into his mouth.
Grandma made this piece of cured pork because she intended it to be eaten with rice. So before curing, she not only rubbed a lot of chili powder on it, but also rubbed a lot of salt on both sides.
With just one bite, even if Guo Baiwen wasn't overwhelmed by the saltiness, he was still spicier, and his face involuntarily turned red.
There's no time for sentimentality or lamenting the passing of spring.
All I could think about was where I could find a glass of water.
The commotion was quite loud and quickly caught Grandma's attention.
Xiao Hua was scolded for stealing food. Grandma Guo originally wanted to say a few words to Guo Baiwen, but seeing his eyes red from the spiciness, she was moved.
He swallowed back the scolding that was about to come out, and only said, "Next time, if you can't eat this spicy food, just force yourself to eat it."
Guo Baiwen's eyes were watering from the spiciness. Everything here was great, except for this chili pepper. He had been eating it for so long, but he still hadn't gotten used to it.
I don't know if it's because his tongue is too weak.
Or maybe the people here eat too much spicy food.
That's absolutely terrifying.
By the time he had drunk two bowls of cold water and finally managed to recover from the shock of the spiciness, the dishes in the kitchen were all cooked.
Everyone helped carry it to the table in the main room.
Today's main dish is Grandma's special sour fish soup. She specifically asked the fish stall owner for a large one, which weighed about seven or eight pounds. Grandma Guo also added dried tofu and black bean curd to it, filling the whole bowl.
The soup bowls used to hold the soup couldn't hold all of it, so Grandma divided it into two bowls and brought them to the table, filling them to the brim.
The remaining dishes included a plate of stir-fried pork with chili peppers, a plate of stir-fried cabbage with salt, two plates of steamed cured pork and sausage prepared by Guo Xiaohua, and the two bowls of sour soup fish.
The table was laden with six dishes, and Guo Baiwen was just about to pick up his chopsticks.
Grandma stopped him, saying, "I almost forgot about this!"
As she spoke, she brought over a bowl of longevity noodles from the kitchen next door. In addition to a poached egg on top, the noodles also contained slices of mutton with chili sauce that Grandma had prepared in advance.
Seeing Guo Baiwen staring at the meat, Grandma Guo wiped her hands on her apron, a little embarrassed. "Grandma has never cooked mutton before. It's precious. I've only had it twice, once when I made hot pot at home and once on New Year's Eve. Today I bought some specifically and asked the butcher how to cook it, and then I tried it myself—"
—It might not taste that good.
The rest of what she was going to say was instantly swallowed up by Guo Baiwen's sudden embrace.
Grandma Guo was a little at a loss, but she still patiently patted Guo Baiwen's head and said, "Grandma knows, Baiwen, you've always been a good boy."
"Today is your birthday, and you still remember your grandma and Xiaohua at home." At her age, this is the first time in her life she has received such beautiful jewelry. "Although she has never said it, grandma really likes the earrings you gave her."
When she was young and had just gotten married, what she envied most about other brides was this pair of earrings.
It doesn't need to be big; two small, identical lilacs are just fine.
The same applies to families that are not very wealthy.
Even if there's no gold or silver, even a pair of copper or tin would be fine.
But for her family, even copper and tin were too expensive.
As I kept repeating it, the days went by, and I gradually forgot about it.
Today, after receiving these earrings, although her first reaction was that they were too expensive, she still couldn't bear to take them off.
I never imagined that the dream I couldn't fulfill when I was young would come true when I'm older.
It's a pity that she's not young anymore. Even with such beautiful earrings, she doesn't look that good when she looks in the mirror.
But those earrings are made of good material; they're silver.
After she passes away, it can be passed down to Wenzai's wife or Xiaohua.
I can't let those earrings be a waste of money.
Guo Baiwen lifted his head from his grandmother's arms and said, "I will definitely have lots and lots of money in the future. I will buy Grandma eighty or even a hundred pairs of earrings so that she can wear a different one every day!"
Upon hearing this, Guo Xiaohua, who was watching from the side, couldn't help but laugh.
Grandma Guo laughed too, pinched his nose, and her eyes were red. "You're a year older today, why are you still saying such childish things!"
"Look, even Xiaohua is laughing at you, the prince!"
Guo Baiwen pursed his lips and looked at Guo Xiaohua again.
Guo Xiaohua barely managed to cover her upturned mouth at this moment. In front of Guo Baiwen, she could only make a muffled, off-key sound from her palm. She was very anxious, "Brother, I didn't make fun of you!"
She actually wanted some too, and before she could even take her hand off her mouth, she continued, "I'm not like Grandma, who wants a hundred or eighty pairs of earrings. Brother, you only need to send me ten or eight pairs!"
What do you say, okay?
Before Guo Baiwen could even reply with a wry smile or a question, these words were spoken.
The first response she received was a few harsh pats on the back from Grandma Guo.
The sound of 'slapping' was constant.
"I'd like to ask your brother for another ten or eight pairs of earrings!"
"You're so beautiful!"
"Just eat your food!"
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