Chapter 106: The main text ends. A happy family. ...
Ever since Zhenzhen was born, the couple has become more eager to make money.
It seems that he wants to give his daughter the best of everything and wants to do more for her.
Because she was a girl, the two of them thought more deeply about it. They were afraid that she would meet the wrong man when she grew up, so they decided early on to find a son-in-law if that didn't work out.
But one needs capital to find a son-in-law, and their two small shops are really nothing. The two of them discussed it and decided to find another way out after the New Year.
As winter approaches, the weather gradually gets colder.
Qiu Xuan wrapped Zhenzhen in a small quilt and put her on the small bed.
The small wooden bed was made by Zong Xiao a few days ago. Qiu Xuan drew a rough outline on paper, and he bought some wood according to the outline and made it at home.
Every part from top to bottom is polished very smoothly, and there will be no sawdust to prick people.
Qiu Xuan surrounded the bed with a circle of cushions to block the wind and protect Zhenzhen from getting bumped.
The little girl is already four months old, and the time she keeps her eyes open is obviously longer than before.
Less than an hour after Qiu Xuan put her in the crib, she heard her humming again.
"I'll do it." Zong Xiao just came into the room with hot water. He washed his hands and walked to the crib, carefully picking up Zhenzhen.
The little girl was hungry and kept sucking on her fingers in her mouth.
"The little girl gets hungry so quickly. Mom even said she's grown a lot bigger." Qiu Xuan lay on her side on the bed, supporting her chin with one hand and looking at the father and daughter.
Zong Xiao rocked the little one in his arms and coaxed, "Be good, Daddy'll heat up some food for you right away."
Zong Xiao put Zhenzhen, who had stopped crying, on the bed. He gently rubbed her face and said to Qiu Xuan with a smile, "She seems to have gained some weight. There's a little flesh on her face."
"The little girl can eat and drink. It's okay if she gets a little fat. As long as she's healthy, that's fine." Qiu Xuan held the little girl's hand and continued to tease her.
Zong Xiao quickly went to the small kitchen to heat up goat milk. This stuff heats up quickly, but it's too hot and needs to be cooled down.
Otherwise the little girl will get burned.
While Zong Xiao was waiting, Zong Anji came in from the backyard carrying a rabbit.
"Second brother." he shouted.
Zong Xiao: "Will you cook rabbit meat this afternoon?"
Zong Anji scratched his head a little embarrassedly and said honestly, "I'll take this rabbit to my father-in-law's house later."
Zong Xiao laughed when he heard this. He remembered that Liu the Butcher liked to eat rabbit meat.
"We still have plenty at home. Don't be so stingy. Bring a couple more."
Zong Anji saw that his second brother didn't mention him, so he grinned and said, "Okay, then I'll go catch two more."
The income from the rabbits in the house does not go to the public, but goes into Zong Xiao's pocket.
Zong Anji could take any he wanted, but he felt bad about it, so he only took one at most.
Now that he had heard the news, he happily went to the backyard and caught two more gray rabbits.
Zong Xiao ignored him and took the goat milk back to the house as soon as it was ready.
Zhenzhen started humming again on the bed, and Qiu Xuan could hardly comfort her.
Fortunately, the goat milk entered his mouth on time, and the little guy opened his eyes and drank all the milk in the spoon in one breath.
After eating and drinking her fill, she finally stopped making noise. Qiu Xuan held her little hand and didn't put her back on the crib.
"Do you think we should find a wet nurse to look after the child?"
Qiu Xuan didn't want to stay at home to take care of the child all the time. Besides, Zhenzhen only needed goat milk, so she didn't really need him.
Qiu Xuan wants to do what she wants to do. Even if she goes to a bun shop to sell buns, she feels it is more comfortable than taking care of children at home.
"Aunt Yuan has never seen a child, and the mother is old." Zong Xiao agreed with her words. He said, "I'll go ask around in the next few days to see if there's anyone suitable."
People usually look for a wet nurse because they are worried that the child will go hungry. Their requirements are not that high; they just want someone to look after the child and keep an eye on him.
However, they are not confident in handing this job over to outsiders, as there must be someone to look after the family at that time.
At noon, Zong Xiao mentioned it at the dinner table.
This time, the grandmother did not say that she would take care of the child herself. She knew that as she was getting older, she did not have the energy to look after the child all day long.
But there's nothing wrong with letting her stay at home and watch over some outsiders.
Seeing that his family had no objection, Zong Xiao went to the town to inquire in the afternoon.
It is easy to find a wet nurse, as there are many women in the town who have given birth to children. However, he has special requirements. If he does not need to breastfeed, he naturally cannot bring his own child to live in his house.
This condition instantly eliminated everyone!
The dentist silently complained in his heart, how could he find such a wet nurse.
However, in order to make the deal happen, the broker gave Zong Xiao a suggestion, asking him to buy another servant, someone who could take care of the child.
Once you bring them home, they become your own family. You know them well and they will not harm your child.
Zong Xiao thought it made some sense, but he didn't make a decision on the spot. The selection had to be approved by Qiu Yun personally.
The next day, the couple left Zhenzhen to the care of Yueyang and Zongmu.
They came together to the Yaman and continued to provoke people.
After all, they wanted to take care of the children, so they couldn't accept someone who was too young or too old. In the end, the two of them chose a woman in her early thirties.
The woman's family suffered from the plague last year, and now she is the only one left.
She worked efficiently and didn't talk much. Qiu Xuan thought she was suitable, so she bought her.
Maybe it was fate, Zhenzhen didn't cry when a stranger came to her house and hugged her.
With Qingniang taking care of the child, Qiuxuan's life finally returned to normal.
She went to the bun shop as usual and sold buns with Yuan Gu every day.
The business of the small bun shop was still so prosperous that many people saw that she hadn't been there for several months and thought she would never come again.
I didn't expect to see her again.
Qiu Xuan was in a good mood and gave a penny to all the old customers who came to buy buns.
The next day she launched a new type of bun - diced eggplant and meat.
This is the only one of its kind in town, and everyone who loves fresh fillings is eyeing her bun shop.
Naturally, other bun stalls would come to her to buy a few to try and study, but even if they figured it out, the sales would not be as good as Bao Haoyun's.
This busy period lasted until the end of the year. Year after year, the Zong family remained the same.
At the end of the year, Qiu Xuan closed both shops and gave New Year gifts to everyone.
In fact, only Sanshui was employed by the two shops, and all the others were bought by Qiu Yun.
But Qiu Xuan still prepared everything. Sanshui gave rice, flour, meat and a red envelope. The others ate and drank at the Zong family, so she only gave them cloth and a red envelope.
But the amount is the same, unbiased.
Although Sanshui lives in the town, he actually has no relatives at home. This year he is going to the provincial capital to find his original owner's family.
Of course, this was all decided at the beginning. The Tian family sold their shop and moved to the provincial capital. Before leaving, they left some money for Sanshui and asked him to come there during the New Year.
"Don't worry on the way. Say hello to Mrs. Tian for me." Qiu Xuan stood in front of the shop and said goodbye to Sanshui.
"Don't worry, boss. I'm leaving now." Sanshui waved to everyone and didn't lower the curtain until they left the alley.
He sniffed with some reluctance.
Most of the people in the same industry were envious. They all worked for the master, and it was the first time for them to see the master give so many things during the New Year.
The companions started talking at once, and Sanshui responded with a laugh, but an indescribable sadness welled up in his heart.
The two masters he met in his life were both very good, but one person could not work two jobs.
He had to make a choice. This time he went to the provincial capital, he was also helping the Tian family manage the shop in the provincial capital. If he was needed there, he might not come back.
But he didn't say anything about this, he didn't know how to tell Qiu Yun and the others.
Let's take it one step at a time, he thought.
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On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Qiu Xuan dressed Zhenzhen, who was almost six months old, in a red dress, a tiger-head hat, and tiger-head shoes.
The little girl is pink and tender, with a pair of black almond eyes that look especially like Qiu Xuan. If there is any resemblance between her and Zong Xiao, it is only in her mouth and eyebrows.
Anyway, once they take the child out, others will be able to recognize it as their child at a glance.
Zong Xiao held Zhenzhen in his arms, and pulled down the brim of his hat for fear that the wind outside would blow on her.
The little girl couldn't see the road ahead clearly and hummed a few times in displeasure.
Qiu Xuan followed beside her and couldn't help laughing out loud.
I don’t know who this child takes after, but he has such a bad temper.
She and Zong Xiao were both calm and composed, but this child would whine at the slightest displeasure. The day before yesterday, Qingniang washed her favorite stuffed doll, and the little girl howled all afternoon.
In the end, it was Qiu Xuan who came back and hugged her that stopped her tears.
She is only six months old, and Qiu Xuan doesn't dare to imagine how noisy she will be if she grows up.
But after all, she is her own daughter, and she loves her no matter what.
Several people walked quickly into the house, opened the curtain and a gust of hot air hit them in the face.
The stove in the house was much warmer than outside.
As soon as she came in, Qiu Xuan pulled down Zhen Zhen's thick coat.
"Let grandma hold you." Zong's mother rubbed her hands and took the little girl from Zong Xiao's arms.
"Here, give our Zhenzhen a big red envelope." The grandmother took out the red envelope she had prepared early in the morning and waved it in front of Zhenzhen.
The little girl grinned and grabbed a corner of the red envelope with her little hand, refusing to let go.
This caused everyone in the room to burst into laughter.
"You're quite a money-grubber." Qiu Yu scratched her nose and took the red envelope when she wasn't paying attention.
There are copper coins stuffed in here. I don’t know how many the clan mother put in. It’s quite heavy.
There are three children in the family, so Qiu Xuan naturally prepared red envelopes for the others as well.
Huaixue and Shuyun, one big and one small, had just finished their congratulatory speeches when a red envelope fell into their hands.
"Thank you, Auntie."
"Thank you, Auntie."
Qiu Xuan: "Take it. You can spend it as you please when we go to town on the fifth day of the New Year."
Since the two of them went to private school, their family gave them pocket money every month, not much, only twenty copper coins a month.
They can buy whatever they want, and if it’s not enough, the housekeeper can ask for it.
Huaixue is very thrifty and careful, and she can save money every month. However, Shuyun cannot do that, and his wallet is empty before the end of every month.
In order to make the children happy, Qiu Xuan put a penny of silver in each red envelope. The two children were very happy.
The reunion dinner on the first day of the new year was still dumplings, but both groups started making them early in the morning, and they both made too much.
One day's supply was forcibly increased to three days' supply.
Fortunately, it’s cold now, so the dumplings won’t go bad.
The Zong family didn’t finish eating all the dumplings until the third day of the Lunar New Year.
Qingniang, who had been used to a hard life, never imagined that one day she would eat dumplings so much that she didn't want to see them anymore.
On the fifteenth day of the lunar year, there is a Lantern Festival in the town.
In previous years, they rarely went out shopping because of their business. This year, after saving some money and having a child, Qiu Xuan wanted to go out and take a look.
The little girl was not sleeping, so the two of them took her with them.
The town was very lively during the Lantern Festival, with lanterns of all kinds. Zhenzhen was dazzled and pointed at a rabbit lantern and hummed twice.
"Want a little rabbit?" Qiu Xuan bought a rabbit lantern.
The little guy's hands are small, but he insists on holding the lantern by himself.
"Then hold it. Don't cry if it falls." Qiu Xuan put the bamboo handle in her palm, wanting to see if it would fall off.
Unexpectedly, Zong Xiao directly held Zhenzhen's hand, holding the bamboo handle in his palm.
The big hands wrapped around the small hands, so Zhenzhen's hands would not get cold and the lantern would not fall off.
"You're quite smart." Qiu Xuan joked with a smile. As soon as she finished speaking, Zong Xiao's other free hand grasped her wrist.
The rough fingertips gently twisted it, and Qiu Xuan's wrist turned red.
"Outside!" Qiu Xuan glared at him.
"It's my fault. My hands are too rough." Zong Xiao slowly loosened his grip and changed his fingers back to a clenched position. He asked sincerely, "How about this?"
Qiu Xuan's palms were warm, and her heart was also warm.
Her earlobes were red, and her neck was also red.
She was too lazy to talk and didn't want to reply to him.
The family of three walked on the street decorated with lanterns. It was bustling all around them, but Qiu Xuan's heart and eyes were only focused on the people around her.
That's her family, her loved ones.
"Zong Xiao." She called softly.
"Hmm?" Zong Xiao turned his head and looked down at her, his eyes full of smiles.
Qiu Xuan smiled and continued to call out, "Zhenzhen."
The little girl heard the sound and turned to look over.
At this moment, they looked at each other, their eyes full of each other.
【End of the article】
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The author has something to say: This is the end of the main text, and the rest is about life a few years later.
Simple happiness.
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