"I..." Chen Feng had never seen Shen Honggang speak so fluently before. The usually eloquent Chen Feng was speechless for a moment.
Shen Honggang frowned and glared at Shen Yuqin: "You're not allowed to see Zhou Zhengqing again! A young lady like you has no self-respect at all!"
Shen Yuqin was quite afraid of Shen Honggang's anger, so she pursed her lips and didn't say anything.
But he had a different plan in mind.
She considered herself superior to others, unlike the plain-faced, mud-covered rural girls in the village.
She believed herself to be superior to them and that she deserved to marry a city man and live a life of luxury.
She had finally managed to hook up with a young man from the city who had been sent to the countryside during the Cultural Revolution, and his parents had stable jobs. How could she give up so easily?
Forget about self-respect; what Shen Yuqin wants most is to marry into a good family and be envied by all the girls in the village!
Chen Feng didn't think there was anything wrong with her daughter's behavior at all, and was very dissatisfied with Shen Honggang's attempt to stop the two from seeing each other.
"I'm telling you, you're only thinking about Jingya, you don't care about our daughter at all!"
Chen Feng rolled her eyes at Shen Honggang a few times. "Yuqin is of marriageable age. I think we should find a matchmaker to talk to Zhou Zhengqing. As long as both of them agree, we can finalize the marriage. Then Zhou Zhengqing can take Yuqin back to the city. His parents will definitely be very satisfied when they see Yuqin!"
Upon hearing Chen Feng's words, Shen Yuqin quickly echoed them.
Shen Honggang was so angry at the mother and daughter's unrealistic ideas that he couldn't speak. He glared at them and breathed heavily.
"What are you talking about? Everyone in the village knows Zhou Zhengqing is a scoundrel. All the other girls avoid him, but Yuqin is still foolishly going up to him!"
"Yes, they all say behind your back that you're shameless!"
Before Shen Honggang could finish speaking, An Zi interrupted Shen Yuqin.
The "they" he referred to were the girls from Dalin Village.
"What do you mean shameless? Your sister is really capable!"
Chen Feng pinched Anzi's cheek. "It's better for your sister to be openly dating Zhou Zhengqing than for Jingya to be having an affair behind your back!"
"Who's been sleeping with other men?"
Chen Feng was so startled by the sudden sound that she almost jumped off the kang (a heated brick bed).
The Shen family of four looked towards the door and discovered that Shen Jingyan was standing there at some point, carrying a basket that was overflowing with things.
"Sister Jingya, you're back!"
Anzi exclaimed with delight, scrambled up, and pounced on Shen Jingyan, giving her a big bear hug.
This morning, Sister Jingya promised to bring him some delicious food from town, and he's been thinking about it all day.
"Jingya, why are you so late coming back?"
Shen Honggang asked with concern, "You look so cold. Have you eaten?"
"She must have gone to deliver a military overcoat to some random guy!"
Shen Yuqin was eager to label Shen Jingyan.
Are you referring to this military overcoat?
Calmly and unhurriedly, Chen Jingyan took the brand-new military overcoat out of the basket.
Chen Feng and Shen Yuqin exchanged a puzzled look.
With a gentle smile, Chen Jingyan handed the general's overcoat to Shen Honggang and said warmly:
"Uncle, try these on and see if they fit. If they don't, I'll go to the supply and marketing cooperative to exchange them tomorrow."
Shen Honggang was so moved by the sight of a thick, brand-new military overcoat that he was at a loss for words.
"This...is for me?"
"Yes, Uncle, how many years has it been since you wore new clothes?"
Shen Honggang carefully stroked the smooth fabric of his military overcoat, his rough hands trembling slightly.
He complained, but he was secretly overjoyed.
"You know, really... new clothes are so expensive..."
"It's not expensive, only seven or eight yuan. I see that all the men in town are wearing military overcoats, they're warm. Uncle, you should wear it."
Shen Jingyan urged Shen Honggang to give it a try quickly.
Shen Honggang is tall and has a straight posture. When he puts on his military overcoat, he instantly loses some of his rustic appearance and looks quite like a soldier.
"It looks great, Dad, it looks so good!" Anzi kept praising.
Shen Honggang finally showed a long-lost smile.
Shen Yuqin and Chen Feng, standing to the side, looked extremely disheveled.
The mother and daughter insisted that Shen Jingyan had a lover outside, and that the military coat was bought for him.
Unexpectedly, the "wild man" they were talking about was actually Shen Honggang.
Shen Hong had only worn it for a short while when he quickly took it off, folded it neatly, and put it in the wardrobe.
These days, people are reluctant to wear new clothes on ordinary days. They only wear them for a few days during the Spring Festival when visiting relatives.
After delivering the military overcoat, Anzi couldn't sit still any longer.
"Sister Jingya, did you buy me anything?"
He had been looking forward to it all day!
"I bought it, how could I forget about you?"
Shen Jingyan patted his head and took a paper package out of the basket.
Anzi couldn't wait to open the paper package, and the sweet aroma instantly filled the room.
"Roasted chestnuts!" Anzi shouted happily.
The paper package contained a full three pounds of roasted chestnuts. The chestnuts were large and plump, with a thick layer of sugar syrup on their skin. Just the smell alone was enough to make one's mouth water.
Anzi held the roasted chestnuts in her arms like treasures, sniffing them incessantly with her little nose inside the paper package, unwilling to eat a single one.
"Eat up, and I'll buy you more after you finish."
Shen Yuqin has always had a sweet tooth, and the smell of that sweet aroma made her stomach rumble with cravings.
She gave Anzi a fawning smile and leaned closer to her, asking, "Anzi, can we have some?"
Anzi rolled her eyes at her, tucked the chestnuts into her bosom, put on her cotton shoes, and was about to run outside.
"Don't rush, there's something else I haven't given you yet!"
Shen Jingyan grabbed him by the back of the collar and pulled the little monkey back.
"What else?" Anzi didn't expect there to be another surprise waiting for him.
Shen Jingyan took a military cap and a pair of cotton gloves out of the basket.
"Here you go. You're out there all day and don't even know it's cold. Wear these when you go out, or your ears will freeze off!"
While joking, Shen Jingyan put the hat on Anzi's head.
Anzi quickly adjusted his hat and turned to ask Shen Honggang, "Dad, does it look good?"
Shen Honggang smiled from the bottom of his heart: "Looks good! My son looks like a little soldier with that hat on!"
In this day and age, praising a child for being like a soldier is the highest compliment.
Anzi was happier than during the New Year after receiving three gifts, and gave Shen Jingyan a big bear hug.
"Sister, you're so kind!"
Shen Jingyan smiled indulgently: "Alright, go have fun!"
Anzi hugged the chestnuts and ran out cheering.
With four adults remaining in the room, Shen Honggang, seeing Shen Jingyan's generosity, asked with some concern:
"Jingya, it wasn't easy for you to save up this money, so don't let Anzi and me spend it recklessly."
"It's not much money, Uncle. I met someone in town, and we're going to do some business together."
Shen Honggang always felt that Shen Jingyan was very different from before. She had grown up, become more stubborn, and had her own ideas. Her intelligence and wit were exactly the same as her younger sister, Shen Qiuye.
Thinking of his younger sister, Shen Qiuye, who had vanished without a trace, his gaze dimmed.
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