Chapter 37
Lin Youqing and He Guijuan did not go to work today. They prepared fried peanuts, melon seeds, tea, candies and biscuits early in the morning. The couple were busy cooking in the kitchen.
Today is our daughter Jiang Jiang’s birthday. This is Jiang Jiang’s first birthday after Lin Youqing and He Guijuan adopted her, so both of them take it very seriously.
Lin Youqing was mixing the cold dishes, while He Guijuan was cutting the vegetables that would be put into the pot later. After Jiang Jiang and Feng Zhen helped in the kitchen for a while, He Guijuan sent them out. The two children could not help much, so it was better to let them go and play.
The first two young people to enter were Zhong Xing and Yu Hangyuan. They also offered to help in the kitchen, but He Guijuan refused them with a smile, "Just sit outside and drink tea and eat snacks."
"Jiang Jiang, make tea for the brothers."
“Here I come.”
Jiang Jiang just found some tea leaves and wanted to pour some water, but Zhong Xing had already taken the kettle before her, "Let me do it."
Jiang Jiang smiled at him and said, "Okay."
Zhong Xing put the scattered tea leaves into the teapot and poured in steaming water. His fingers were long and slender, with distinct knuckles. It was a simple step, but in his hands it became smooth and pleasing to the eye.
The tea should be newly produced, and it tastes natural and refreshing. Jiang Jiang hasn't seen Yu Hangyuan for a while. Compared to the first time she saw him, he seemed to have lost a lot of weight and become much darker.
"Happy birthday, little birthday boy."
Yu Hangyuan handed her a very delicate notebook. Jiang Jiang was stunned for a moment before she took it with both hands, "Thank you, Brother Hangyuan."
Jiang Jiang opened the cover and saw a line of handwritten regular script on the title page.
[To sister Jiang Jiang: I wish you a happy birthday and may you grow healthily.] 】
Yu Hangyuan chuckled, "You're welcome. I haven't thought of anything to give you yet, so I bought you a notebook. I don't know if you can use it at this stage, so just keep it for now."
"I will definitely take good care of this notebook."
After a while, Xie Xiuming's family also came over. Their home was in the county party committee compound, just a few steps away from their home.
"Uncle Xie, Aunt Huang, Brother Jinyan."
Xie Jinyan was also wearing a white sports shirt and grey pants. The boy had delicate eyebrows and a pair of bright eyes under his thick eyebrows.
"Happy birthday, Jiang Jiang."
"Thank you, Brother Jinyan."
Huang Shuhua was holding a few ingredients in her hands and asked with a smile, "Jiang Jiang, is your mother in the kitchen?"
"Here I am."
Huang Shuhua put her arm around Jiang Jiang's shoulders and handed her a box with a smile, "Jinyan said she wanted a watch some time ago, so I asked your Uncle Xie to buy you an extra one when he was on a business trip to the province. Consider it a birthday present from you and me. Do you like it?"
Jiang Jiang opened the box and found a children's watch inside. This watch was different from the adult one. The strap was made of leather and there was a Donald Duck pattern printed on the dial, which was very cute.
"Do you like it?"
"I like it." Jiang Jiang nodded excitedly.
Hearing her say that she liked it, Huang Shuhua and Xie Xiuming both smiled and said, "You take your brother to play. I'll go to the kitchen to help your mother."
Jiang Jiang and Xie Jinyan entered the cave that was usually used for dining and entertaining guests.
About two or three minutes later, Lin Youqing and Xie Xiuming also came out and went to another cave to talk.
There was a constant flow of delicious food coming from the kitchen. After an unknown amount of time, He Guijuan said that it was time for dinner. Zhong Xing and Yu Hangyuan went to the kitchen to help. Together, they brought the food to the table, filling it up.
It was the first time for Zhong Xing and Yu Hangyuan to come into contact with a person like Xie Xiuming, so they were inevitably a little restrained. Although Lin Youqing was also a secretary in the county party committee, they had stayed at the Lin family when they were sent to Dongxi Village to work in the countryside. In addition, Zhong Xing had saved Lin Youqing, so they felt a sense of familiarity and were not as restrained as they were in front of Xie Xiuming.
Xie Xiuming smiled at them and extended his right hand, "Hello."
Xie Xiuming actually wanted to shake hands with them, so the two of them quickly stretched out their hands and took turns shaking hands with Xie Xiuming.
"Let's eat quickly, everyone is hungry." Lin Youqing greeted everyone.
"Xiao Zhong, Xiao Yu, eat your food." He Guijuan gave them some braised pork and said with a smile, "Just treat it as your own home. Don't be polite."
"Jiang Jiang, try the brown sugar glutinous rice made by Auntie."
Huang Shuhua scooped a spoonful of brown sugar glutinous rice for her.
"Yes, try it quickly. Your Aunt Huang started preparing it as soon as she got home from get off work yesterday. The glutinous rice was soaked overnight, and there are candied dates, raisins and red dates in it." Xie Xiuming said with a smile.
Jiang Jiang took a bite, the aroma of glutinous rice and various dried fruits mixed together, full of sweetness in his mouth, "Delicious."
"And this fried pork with peppers is also Auntie's specialty."
"Thank you, Auntie."
There was a fish head and tofu soup on the table. The fish soup was milky white and the fish meat was delicious. Zhong Xing saw that the soup bowl in front of Jiang Jiang was empty, so he served her a bowl.
"Thank you, Brother Zhong Xing."
"Be careful, it's hot." Zhong Xing reminded.
"Today is my daughter Jiang Jiang's birthday. Thank you all for coming. You have all worked hard. Let's have a drink!" Lin Youqing stood up with a glass of wine.
Everyone stood up when they heard this. The adults drank wine and the children drank soda. They raised their glasses together, clinked them, and drank them all in one gulp.
The meal was a great pleasure for both the host and the guests.
On the second day of his birthday, Jiang Jiang's family went to visit Zhong Xing's home as agreed in advance.
Unlike Lin Youqing's family who focused more on practicality, the Zhong family's home was beautifully and elegantly decorated. There was a spacious courtyard planted with various flowers, and there were tables and chairs for drinking tea under the grape trellis.
Zhong Xing's father works in the region, and usually only his mother and grandfather are at home. Because Lin Youqing and his family came to visit, Zhong's father took a special leave and rushed back.
Lin Youqing's family expressed their sincere gratitude to Zhong Xing and his family.
"I have prepared a few small gifts. They are not my respect, but I hope you will not despise them."
"It's all his duty. You're so polite." Father Zhong invited them to go inside. "I heard from Zhong Xing that he joined the production team in Dongxi Village and received a lot of care from you. He hasn't had time to thank you yet."
"Xiao Zhong has also helped us a lot. This child has a good heart and is very sincere. He will definitely have a great future."
Zhong Xing couldn't help but cough twice, feeling uncomfortable with the praise.
Mr. and Mrs. Zhong led them inside to sit down. Tea and snacks had already been prepared in the cave. The elders hit it off immediately and talked about everything from work to family relationships. They even suggested that Zhong Xing and Jiang Jiang become siblings.
Zhong Xing refused with a smile on his face, "I already treat Jiang Jiang as my sister, why bother making things so complicated?"
"Too."
The two elders then gave up the idea.
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