It was not until Zhang Yunxiu and the others had dinner that Xu Changgen reluctantly ended the exchange.

Xu Dabao was also hungry, and mainly because he smelled the fragrance coming from the kitchen, he took the initiative to take his two sisters to get hot water to wash their clothes without being urged. They had just played with snowballs and frozen leaves, and their clothes had turned red from the freezing cold.

But no one felt cold. After arriving in the living room, Xu Dabao became curious about the radio on the table.

The kids in the brigade had no idea what a radio was. Although radios were becoming increasingly popular in the city, in the countryside, it was considered a great honor for a family to have a bicycle, and there were no requirements for girls to marry.

Tuan Tuan Yuan Yuan had seen this before. There were several families in the family compound buying things. Sometimes they could hear it, but more often they would close the door and not allow anyone to touch it.

Tuantuan asked, "Aunt, is this a radio? Why is it different from the ones used by the military?"

Lu Chenghuai bought a Red Light brand 711 radio in June last year. It looks like a large rectangular box with patterns printed on the top half, like blooming fireworks, and the bottom half is the operating area.

This type of radio is still very difficult to buy online, and the demand is basically in short supply. Xu Sui only learned about radios after hearing complaints from a teacher in the office who came from a well-off family.

Xu Sui smiled and taught them how to open it. She looked at her watch. It was half past twelve noon when a voice rang out from the radio: "We will never let go of the wealthy merchants. Our troops..."

Zhang Yunxiu, who was still serving rice, stopped, and Xu Hongjun couldn't move forward when he went to get the wine.

This big box can actually make a sound!

Now we're playing the storytelling "Qiao Long Biao" by Cao Can, which tells stories about the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression.

After a long while, Zhang Yunxiu said, "There are actually people telling stories inside. It's really interesting. I thought this radio was just for reading newspapers."

She used to hear people say that semiconductors were popular in the city, "three turns and one sound", and semiconductors meant that sound.

But she actually didn't know what semiconductors could do. She only heard from others that with semiconductors, she could know what was happening around the world while sitting at home.

Xu Sui said: "There will be news around 7pm, and then stories and nursery rhymes will be told to the children. Sometimes operas and storytelling will also be played. I will listen to them when I have nothing to do. It is always good to learn more about the outside world."

Zhang Yunxiu felt that what the daughters said made sense. She had never been out of the county, and had never been to the village. But looking at the two daughters, they had changed a lot after returning from the army. And what her grandfather said was right. We can't let the descendants stay in the village. It's hard for them to have a future!

The storytelling on the radio never stopped, and the meal was very rich. While eating, Xu Dabao secretly made a wish in his heart, hoping that every day in the future could be like today.

After dinner, Zhang Yunxiu quickly asked them to go back to their rooms to have a nap. It was obvious that sitting in a car for such a long time, whether it was a hard seat or a sleeper, was a very tiring thing.

However, she went to the room with her two daughters and asked Xu Mian first, "Xu Bing hasn't come back yet, when do you plan to go to Xu's house?"

Xu Bing's home was not far away.

Xu Mian had already made up her mind, "Mom, I will take Tuantuan and Yuanyuan to visit their grandmother tomorrow, but I will not live there and will spend the New Year at home."

Xu Bing is the eldest in the family, with three younger brothers. He went out to serve in the army at an early age and only returned home a few times in more than ten years. He is not very close to his two younger brothers.

When Xu Mian got married, she actually had a good relationship with Xu Bing's mother. They were both honest and divided their income among their children. Before marriage, Xu Bing gave all his salary to his family, but after marriage, he only paid 15 yuan a month.

However, five years after her marriage, she was still not pregnant, while her two younger sisters-in-law who came later gave birth to sons and daughters one after another. Xu Bing's mother became a little anxious, and without caring whether it was because Xu Bing only came back once a year, she started looking for some secret recipes for giving birth.

But apart from this, she was nice to Xu Mian.

Until Xu Bing was promoted to deputy battalion commander, she went to follow the army and occasionally corresponded with the Xu family. As the letters came over, their attitude changed. She no longer cried poorly but took it for granted that they would buy things for her nephew.

After she gave birth to a daughter, she never got pregnant again. The Xu family even wrote to Xu Bing, asking him to adopt a nephew. After Xu Bing refused, they often asked him to buy nutritional supplements, clothes and living expenses for the nephews.

Xu Mian knew their mentality. It was simply because Xu Bing had no sons, and they thought that if they were stubborn now, they would definitely have to rely on their younger brother to take care of them in the future. His assets had already been tacitly recognized as his nephew's, so they continued to write letters even after being rejected.

Before she came this time, she had discussed with Xu Bing that she wanted to celebrate the New Year at home, and Xu Bing agreed.

Xu Mian knew that Xu Bing was heartbroken. He had been away from home for too long, and his parents had tacitly agreed that their old age support would depend on their two children, so they always tried to get money from him to subsidize others.

For so many years, there was no care at all, and in Xu Mian's home, whenever Zhang Yunxiu made shoes for her daughter, she would also have a pair for him.

Zhang Yunxiu had heard about these things from her daughter in a letter.

She nodded, "Then let the Red Army accompany you tomorrow."

Xu Mian smiled and said, "I'll just go have lunch and come back soon. I remember the way, so why would I need him to send me there?"

Zhang Yunxiu sighed, "Xu Bing's youngest brother got a girl from our brigade pregnant and he wants 200 yuan as a betrothal gift, or else we'll sue him for being a hooligan."

The news only reached the Youth Brigade a few days ago. It is not known whether the Xu family has 200 yuan, but Xu Mian is leaving, so they will definitely let Xu Mian pay the money.

If you don't give it to me, you are unfilial and want to watch your younger brother squatting in the fence.

Xu Mian gritted her teeth and said, "My parents-in-law are really getting more biased as they get older. They definitely didn't use the money they received every month, nor did they save it. Instead, they spent it all on their children. After they spent it, they came to complain to me that I gave them too much money and they couldn't even afford meat."

They give 180 yuan a year and give more during festivals, but people are never satisfied.

After listening to this, Xu Sui also understood the situation, "Sister, let Big Brother and Cheng Huai go with you tomorrow, they will be able to calm them down."

If Xu Mian's family situation was average, or if her parents didn't take her seriously, the Xu family would definitely get involved.

But Xu Mian's parents were the captain and director, and they brought their brother-in-law who was the head of the group, so the Xu family would not dare to come.

Section Chief Xu Mian also agreed, but his good mood after returning home was slightly dampened.

Only Zhang Yunxiu was a little worried. "Will this cause too much trouble for Xiaolu? This is his first time here, and he should be more friendly to guests..."