Chapter 60
In the blink of an eye, it was the middle of the twelfth lunar month. The wind was biting cold and the weather was so cold that even the water in the hot pot had frozen into ice. In this kind of weather, there was usually not much farm work to do. After the holiday, Fengzhen and Tiezhu came back and were roasting sweet potatoes by the kang. The kiln was warm and the air was filled with the sweet aroma of roasted sweet potatoes.
"Sister, this is for you." Tiezhu dug out a sweet potato from the remaining ashes and handed it to her.
Fengzhen peeled the hot sweet potatoes and shared half with him. After the sweet potato harvest this year, in addition to drying and grinding them into powder, there were still two large baskets left. The fresh sweet potatoes can be used to cook porridge or steamed, both of which are especially sweet. Of course, the best ones are roasted sweet potatoes.
The roasted sweet potato has a crispy shell, and the flesh inside is soft, sticky, and sweet. It is roasted until it oozes sugar juice and is warm.
The firewood was crackling as it burned. After going to college, Tiezhu had grown a lot taller. Fengzhen finished the roasted sweet potato in her hand, found a coat and put it on before leaving the house.
The cold wind blowing in her face made her shiver. Fengzhen pulled up her collar, put her hands in her pockets, and walked quickly towards the village primary school.
In such cold weather, there were quite a few people sitting at the entrance of the village, including old men and women, with melon seed shells and saliva all over the floor. When they saw Fengzhen coming over, they called her daughter affectionately and asked her what she was going to do.
Feng Zhen greeted a group of old men and women with a smile, "Grandpa and grandma, I'm going to the village primary school."
"There is snow on the road, so be careful when walking." said a kind old lady.
Fengzhen agreed with a smile.
There was a small bridge made of two pieces of wood over the trickling stream. Fengzhen walked across the bridge and reached the road. At this time of year, there was basically no one working in the fields. The bare land, without the cover of crops, revealed its barren yellow color. The mountains and fields looked desolate and lonely in the cold winter.
Fengzhen vaguely heard the sound of someone hoeing the ground.
The hoe plowed the soil, again and again.
Feng Zhen was startled when she saw the middle-aged man working hard in the fields.
"Uncle Fugui, why are you here?"
Zhou Fugui looked much older, with a hunched back and a lot of white hair on his temples. Fengzhen heard that Zhou Yinhua had married a rich man from the next village two years ago who was in the brick and tile business. The man had a child from his previous wife. After Zhou Yinhua got married, she disliked the child in every way and would beat and abuse her stepson at every turn, even whipping him with a thorny thorn. Every time the man went out to discuss business, Zhou Yinhua would drive the stepson out of the house, let him sleep in the yard, and feed him the same food as the dog.
Moreover, Zhou Yinhua had a bad temper and had quarreled with many people in the village, and they often got into fights.
I heard that when the man came back from outside and saw his eldest son beaten all over his body, he was so angry that he immediately wanted to take Zhou Yinhua to the Civil Affairs Bureau to get a divorce.
As for Zhou Jinbao, Fengzhen hadn't seen him for several years. She heard that he was doing business outside. She heard her uncle mention him once or twice, but it didn't seem to be a legitimate business. He was even arrested and imprisoned for a period of time at the beginning of the year.
With his two children in such a state, and his wife throwing tantrums at home every day, the family is in unrest. It's no wonder that he has become so haggard.
"It's Fengzhen. I'm going to ho the two plots of land while I have time to kill time... Where are you going?" Zhou Fugui straightened up and looked at the person who came, forcing out a pale smile.
"I'm going to the village primary school." Feng Zhen glanced at his thin winter clothes. "Didn't Jiang Jiang make a coat for you? Why don't you wear it?"
"It's not cold working in the fields." Besides, the clothes Jiang Jiang made for him were obviously made of the best fabric, with perfect tailoring and neat stitching. He had never worn such good clothes in his life. How could he bear to wear them to work in the fields?
Zhou Fugui thought of Jiang Jiang, and his cold heart felt a little comforted. It was amazing that this child still remembered him.
Seeing this, Fengzhen didn't ask any more questions. She said something to Zhou Fugui and went to the village primary school.
The village primary school had been on holiday for a long time, but there were still people in the school. Several young people who had returned home for the New Year were playing basketball. Fengzhen went to the primary school's mailroom to find her letter before leaving the village primary school.
The stream was not frozen. When a breeze blew, I could still hear the sound of flowing water. A few fallen leaves were floating on the water, swaying slowly towards the distance.
After puberty, she started to grow taller and thinner. She no longer looked as dark, short and fat as she did when she was a child. In addition, after entering college, she began to dress up consciously, and she looked much prettier. So when boys chose a romantic partner, they naturally included her in their options.
But Fengzhen had no interest in them at all, she thought they were very childish.
She grew up in a family that favors boys over girls. Her father was a male chauvinist who did nothing, and her mother was a petty rural woman. She was often treated as an insignificant person, and she seldom received the love and care that parents give to their children. From the age of four or five when she became sensible, she rushed to do housework, such as feeding pigs, collecting firewood, cleaning, and washing clothes, hoping to gain the attention of adults by being a sensible child. Such a growth experience naturally made her much more mature than many of her peers.
Fengzhen originally thought that she would not have feelings for any boy, at least before graduating from college.
Until I met Liang Xu.
He was different from all the boys of the same age she had met in the past. He was dark and tall, humorous, mature and steady, and he kept a suitable distance from all the girls.
Fengzhen and Liang Xu first met on the school playground.
That night, she was going to the library to study as usual. When she passed the court, she was hit hard on the head by a flying basketball. Fengzhen was so upset that her nose and tears came out. Just as she was about to curse, a boy ran over and apologized to her repeatedly. She had to hold back her anger.
Although Fengzhen repeatedly stated that she was fine, the boy still insisted on sending her to the infirmary. After making sure that she was not injured by the ball, he apologized to her again before leaving.
Unexpectedly, Fengzhen ran into him again in the public class classroom the next day.
The boy said he wanted to treat her to a meal to make amends, so Fengzhen naturally didn't hesitate and blackmailed him severely in the school cafeteria.
From that day on, Fengzhen would always run into him on campus, sometimes in the library, sometimes in the cafeteria. They would occasionally exchange a few words and then chat for a long time. As a result, the two became familiar with each other, and Fengzhen couldn't help but develop a strong liking for this boy.
It was nearly winter vacation. After the exams that day, all the students packed their bags and prepared to go home. Fengzhen was collecting clothes when a girl came over and said that someone was looking for her outside.
Fengzhen went out and found that it was Liang Xu, who gave her a copy of "Border Town".
He spoke seriously in a rare serious tone, "Actually... that day on the court wasn't the first time I saw you. I've known you for a long time, but I really didn't mean to hit you with the ball. I wanted to say, classmate Lin Fengzhen, I've liked you for a long time. Can you promise to be my girlfriend?"
Fengzhen was probably shocked and excited at the time. At that moment, she thought it was not a bad idea to have a romance on a university campus, so the two of them naturally became boyfriend and girlfriend.
However, she did not tell her family about her relationship. If she and Liang Xu could really be together for a long time, it would not be too late to tell them then.
Fengzhen opened the letter and found two large pages filled with writing, as well as a small card made of fallen leaves and a silver necklace.
"Just think of it as a New Year's gift. Don't refuse it. Please, please."
Fengzhen couldn't help but smile. It was a necklace with a ginkgo pendant, which was thin and very beautiful. It was the first time she received such a precious gift. Fengzhen put the necklace away, and it was like drinking a sip of sweet honey water. The feeling of happiness was overflowing from the bottom of her heart.
New Year's Eve is the busiest day of the year. Every household is brightly lit, the sound of firecrackers never stops, the streets are full of people, vendors carrying loads on their shoulders walk through the streets, and children climb up and down, chasing and playing, having fun.
After the Jiang Jiang family finished their sumptuous New Year's Eve dinner, they put tea and snacks on the coffee table, turned on the color TV in the living room, and watched the Spring Festival Gala while drinking tea and chatting. This has become a must-do activity for the three of them on New Year's Eve, just like staying up all night.
The wind and snow outside have stopped, and the family of three are sitting together. There are not many such warm and quiet moments.
Jiang Jiang picked up a piece of egg yolk pastry and took a bite, then looked down and found Lin Youqing's hand on Lin Youqing's shoulder, their bodies leaning against each other, naturally and intimately.
She couldn't help but laugh, and sat down next to He Guijuan, resting her head on her shoulder, and asked Lin Youqing next to her, "Dad, how did you and Mom meet?"
Speaking of this, Lin Youqing's expression suddenly became uncomfortable.
But He Guijuan couldn't help laughing when she saw him like this. She laughed for a long time. She explained while holding back her laughter, "Your father and I met at a cadre training meeting. At that time, I was in the audience and your father went up to give a speech. I thought he was a good-looking man with a handsome appearance, and he spoke and acted with great momentum. As a result, I saw that while he was speaking, he took out a sock from his pocket and wiped his forehead. It turned out that he used the sock as a handkerchief. I laughed to death..."
When Jiang Jiang heard this, he couldn't help laughing.
"What about Dad? Did you also start paying attention to Mom at that time?"
Lin Youqing looked at his daughter tenderly, "I started to notice your mother when she had a stomachache and went to the hospital to get medicine. It happened to be her number that was scheduled. At that time, I saw your mother working hard and I couldn't help but be attracted to her."
"I didn't see your mother the second time I went to the hospital for treatment. After asking, I learned that she had been transferred to another place. I felt very sorry at the time. Who would have thought that about half a year later, I would run into her again at a cadre training meeting. At that time, I couldn't help but ask for her name and contact address. We corresponded for more than a year and then confirmed our relationship."
"Your mother is a gentle, virtuous and kind-hearted woman. Marrying her is the luckiest thing in my life."
He Guijuan didn't expect that there would be such a past.
"Being able to marry you is the happiest thing in my life."
The two looked at each other and smiled.
It was almost dawn and the Spring Festival Gala was coming to an end. Fireworks were suddenly set off outside, and there were bursts of cheers from adults and children.
He Guijuan and Lin Youqing went to the kitchen to make dumplings.
Jiang Jiang couldn't help but push the door open and walked out of the house. The brilliant fireworks lit up the night as if it were day.
Spring is gradually coming, a new year is starting, and fireworks light up the night.
Next year will definitely be a good year.
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