Chapter 35
While she was distracted, she saw Xia Qinghai following Wen Xiaoli. He was wearing a brand new blue work uniform and a blue hat. He looked decent because he was tall and had delicate features. He stood at the door of the store and looked inside: "There are still several empty tables. It seems that it is right to come early."
Xia Qingtang quickly lowered his head, but Wen Xiaoli smiled brightly: "Yes, luckily we all came after get off work early, then let's go in and sit down."
"Qingtang?" Xia Qinghai was familiar with his own sister. Even though Xia Qingtang lowered her head, he saw her at a glance and immediately showed a hypocritical smile.
Wen Xiaoli also noticed Xia Qingtang, and she ran over happily: "Qingtang, are you eating here too? What a coincidence?"
"Yeah, it's quite a coincidence." Xia Qingtang whispered, "Why did you come out to eat with him?"
"Oh, it was Brother Xia who came to me and said he wanted to treat me to a meal." Wen Xiaoli blushed slightly, and her expression looked like a young girl who had just fallen in love.
Xia Qingtang said quickly: "He invited you to dinner? Why? When did you two become so familiar with each other? Didn't he just start working in the factory?"
Why would Xia Qinghai invite Wen Xiaoli to dinner? They were both single, so weren't they afraid of being misunderstood? Xia Qinghai was determined to find a partner with a better family background, so there was no way he would fall for Wen Xiaoli.
"I'm also quite embarrassed. You said there was no reason for this. It's such a waste of money to let Brother Xia treat me to a meal for no reason..." Wen Xiaoli pinched the corner of her clothes shyly.
When Xia Qingtang saw this reaction, she felt even more that something was wrong. She wanted to say a few more words, but Xia Qinghai had already strode over and asked her if they could sit together.
"There's an empty table over there. Wouldn't it be better if you sit alone?" Xia Qingtang's heart sank, and he deliberately said, "Since you've invited a young lesbian to dinner alone, you definitely don't want to share a table with others, right? Sharing a table will affect your conversation with the lesbian."
Wen Xiaoli's face turned even redder, but Xia Qinghai immediately said, "You are wrong. I invited Xiao Wen to dinner to thank her for helping me yesterday. Also, she is your good friend, and you are my sister, so Xiao Wen is also my sister. How can a sister be a young lesbian? You must not talk nonsense. It will embarrass Xiao Wen and cause others to misunderstand you, which will delay Xiao Wen's search for a partner."
Wen Xiaoli's whole body trembled, and her face, which had been red just now, turned pale in an instant. It was obvious that she had been hit.
It seems that Xia Qingtang's guess was correct. Wen Xiaoli is really interested in this bad guy Xia Qinghai.
Fortunately, Xia Qinghai's target was the daughter of a good family, and he also pointed it out to her in person. Although it was a big blow to Wen Xiaoli, when facing such a man, it is better for a girl to see the truth as soon as possible.
Xie Jinxuan happened to come back with the mutton soup and pastries he bought. When he saw Xia Qinghai and Wen Xiaoli, he put down the two large bowls of hot soup in his hand first, and then greeted them politely: "Hello, what a coincidence."
"Ah, brother-in-law, hello, it's really a coincidence. I didn't expect to meet you guys when I came here for dinner. I went to look for Qingtang on my first day at work, but everyone said she was traveling on her wedding leave, so are you back already?"
Xie Jinxuan said: "Yes, we all have to go to work tomorrow, so of course we have to come back."
After saying that, he walked to the other end, brought four shortbreads and placed them on the table.
This is usually the configuration when people come here to drink mutton soup, with hot soup paired with fragrant crispy cakes, which is not only delicious but also very filling.
Xia Qinghai continued, "I wanted to share a table with you guys, but Qingtang doesn't seem to like sitting with us, so forget it. Xiao Wen and I will eat alone. By the way, Xiao Wen is also an employee of the factory and a good friend of Qingtang."
Wen Xiaoli shook hands with Xie Jinxuan with a pale face: "Hello, Comrade Xie, Qingtang and I are from the same workshop. Qingtang said before that he would let me meet you after the wedding leave is over. I didn't expect it to be such a coincidence that we meet here."
Xie Jinxuan smiled and said, "I often hear Qingtang mention you. She said that Comrade Wen is enthusiastic, kind, and serious about his work. He helps her a lot. Thank you so much for taking care of us Qingtang. We brought back some local specialties from other places this time. Let Qingtang bring some for you to try tomorrow."
Wen Xiaoli forced a smile and said, "You're too polite. Qingtang and I grew up in the same family compound when we were young, and later we worked in the same workshop. We are just helping each other, and it's our duty. Hey, your food is here, eat it quickly, otherwise it won't taste good if it gets cold."
"Yes, brother-in-law, you guys should eat quickly. But after you finish eating, can I say a few words to you? My father asked me to help pass on a message." Xia Qinghai said, "No matter what, my father is not Qingtang's enemy, right? Brother-in-law, you are also a decent person, and a few words will not affect you. If you are not free today, I will go to your unit to find you during the morning shift."
Xia Qinghai's attitude towards Xie Jinxuan was not bad, because Xie Jinxuan worked in the provincial party committee after all. As long as nothing went wrong, she would be promoted one or two levels in the future. Even if he could not become a close relative with such a person, at least he would not offend her.
Xia Qinghai has always paid the most attention to these aspects, so his reputation has always been good. Outsiders also think that he is polite, good at speaking, warm-hearted and generous. Only his sister Xia Qingtang knows what kind of person he is inside.
Xie Jinxuan looked at Xia Qingtang and saw that she was staring at Wen Xiaoli worriedly and her attention was not on Xia Qinghai, so she said, "Okay, let's talk outside after dinner."
"Then it's settled." Xia Qinghai was obviously very happy. He quickly called Wen Xiaoli, "Xiao Wen, let's not disturb Qingtang and the others from eating. Let's go sit at the empty table over there. Take a look at what you want to eat and I'll go buy it."
Wen Xiaoli's pale face had returned to normal a little. She lowered her head and responded, but did not want to walk over there.
Xia Qingtang gently held her hand, and then whispered: "Wen Xiaoli, go eat first, I will find you after eating, you can go with us. If you don't even want to eat with him, then come with us, I will treat you to a meal."
Her current financial situation is definitely much better than Wen Xiaoli's. This co-worker has been very nice to her recently, so it is only right that she treats him to a meal.
Wen Xiaoli then forced a smile and whispered, "No, it's rare for you newlyweds to go out to eat at a state-owned restaurant, so I won't get involved. I... I'm fine, I'll go have dinner with Brother Xia, and after dinner, I'll come find you and go back with you, okay?"
"Okay, go ahead. Call me if you have any problems." Xia Qingtang squeezed her hand vigorously and nodded at her.
Wen Xiaoli took a deep breath and walked over there as if she was going to sacrifice herself heroically.
Xie Jinxuan whispered, "What's going on?"
"Wen Xiaoli said Xia Qinghai invited her to dinner, but Xia Qinghai is a man who only seeks profit. He would not invite someone who has no connections and cannot be used to dinner in a place like this for no reason. Even if the mutton soup is cheap, it is still much more expensive than eating at home, and Xia Qinghai is not a rich man... I always feel that he has bad intentions. Wen Xiaoli seems to have some feelings for Xia Qinghai, so I guided her just now and let Xia Qinghai speak out himself. His words have already shown that he does not have that kind of intention towards Wen Xiaoli... Of course, although I did this for Wen Xiaoli's good, she was really sad."
"You are right to do this. Female comrades are always the ones who suffer in such matters. Comrade Wen seems to be a very honest and reliable person. I believe that she will not be deceived at least if you remind her like this. She is still so young and kind-hearted. She will definitely find a suitable partner."
"Yeah, I think so too. She will need some time to get over it." Xia Qingtang came back to her senses and looked at the two steaming bowls of soup on the table. Her stomach began to growl. "I ate so much at noon, and now seeing such delicious mutton soup, I still can't help but feel hungry."
"We played all afternoon and must have digested it all. By the way, do you want to eat mutton or mutton offal? Both taste good, but some people can't stand the smell of mutton offal." Xie Jinxuan let her choose first.
"I can eat it all. How about this, we share it between the two of us and each eat a little." Xia Qingtang said as he picked up a bowl and placed it in front of him.
The milky white soup is sprinkled with chopped coriander and chives. The aroma is stimulated by the hot soup, which increases the appetite.
"This bowl is for mutton." As she said that, she scooped the mutton in the bowl into the bowl of mutton offal soup, and then scooped out some mutton offal from the mutton offal soup.
This way, both people can have mutton and mutton offal.
"Okay, eat quickly." Xia Qingtang picked up the spoon and tasted the hot soup, immediately revealing a happy smile, "It's delicious."
"Are two pastries enough? If not, I'll buy two more." Xie Jinxuan looked at her gently, with a happy smile in her eyes.
Xia Qingtang said, "Eat it first, and buy more if it's not enough. Anyway, you don't have to wait for the shortbread. Oh, I'll go get some chili oil."
With the addition of chili oil, the flavor of the mutton soup became even richer. Both of them started eating. They first ate most of the soup, then broke the pastry into pieces and continued eating them while soaking in the hot soup.
The pastries were very big. Xia Qingtang finished eating two of them and drank the rest of the mutton soup, feeling very satisfied.
"Would you like more shortbread?" Xie Jinxuan asked.
"No, no, I'm full. It's so delicious. When the weather gets cold, let's come over once every two weeks. How about it?" Xia Qingtang made this suggestion based on her and Xie Jinxuan's current income situation.
Since you are not short of money, it is not a luxury to improve your food occasionally.
Although state-owned restaurants are not cheap, everything they cook is made with real ingredients. Every big pot of mutton soup is slow-cooked, and it is difficult to make something of this quality at home.
"Okay, eating this is really nourishing when the weather is cold. We'll come here once every two weeks." Xie Jinxuan glanced over there and saw that Xia Qinghai and the others were almost done eating, so she whispered, "Just now your brother said he wanted to talk to me for a while. He said it was your father who asked him to bring it. After he finishes eating, I'll talk to him at the door of the store. Can you wait for me?"
"Go talk to him and see if the Xia family has anything else to say." Xia Qingtang said, "If they ask you anything, don't agree to it. Tell them to ask me whatever they ask."
"I understand." Xie Jinxuan smiled, and after Xia Qinghai finished eating, he walked out of the store with him.
They arrived early, and it was still light when they finished eating and walked out.
It was the peak dinner time at night, and as soon as Xia Qingtang stood up, someone else sat down at the table where they had sat.
She walked over to Wen Xiaoli's table and saw that she was still breaking shortbread without interest. She sat down on the stool next to her and whispered, "Are you okay?"
Wen Xiaoli glanced at her and shook her head: "It's okay, don't worry about me, I misunderstood."
"What happened? Can you explain the whole story? What did you do for him that he wanted to treat you to a meal? Just tell me about our factory. He must have helped him to earn back a month's salary, so he would treat you to such delicious mutton soup."
"I didn't help him in any way. He and I are not from the same workshop. He took over your mother's shift and worked in Workshop 3. We didn't run into each other often in the factory. I met him for the first time yesterday. Hehua and I had lunch in the cafeteria. Just as we were about to leave, I saw him walk in with a few co-workers. He said he forgot to bring his lunch box and could only buy some steamed buns to eat. We have known each other since childhood. Anyway, I had finished eating, so I lent him my lunch box and spoon. When he got off work yesterday, he washed the lunch box and returned it to me. It was originally a small matter, but he said that in order to thank me for my help, he wanted to invite me to drink mutton soup here. This is a meal at a state-owned restaurant. I have never had a male comrade invite me to eat here since I was a child... I thought, is he... is he not saying that... I... Anyway, I misunderstood. I even tied a red headband and wore new cloth shoes today. You can tell me how embarrassed I am..." Wen Xiaoli's eyes became red as she spoke.
From this perspective, she wasn't really in love with Xia Qinghai. The main reason was that it was the first time for a young girl to be asked out for dinner alone by a single young man, so she had a lot of special fantasies. But she didn't expect the other man to directly say he didn't have such an idea, and she had dressed herself up in advance, so she felt disappointed and embarrassed.
Xia Qingtang was slightly relieved and said, "How can I blame you for this? He invited you to a state-owned restaurant for such a small matter. Who wouldn't misunderstand you? Besides, you are both single. He didn't make it clear before inviting you to dinner. This is his problem! He did this on purpose to make you misunderstand. I think he has other intentions."
"What's the intention?" Wen Xiaoli asked curiously.
"Then I don't know. He has so many plans. How can I guess what he is planning? What did he talk to you about when you were having dinner? Think about it. Maybe his plan was in the conversation."
Wen Xiaoli recalled for a moment and said, "He didn't say anything special. He just asked me if I was tired at work, how my relationship with my coworkers was, and if there were any activities in the factory. Anyway, these were things that everyone in the factory knew about, so there was nothing surprising."
"Then don't worry about what he thinks, and don't be too sad. Xia Qinghai is not a good man. He is a smiling tiger, and he is very sinister. Think about it, I am his biological sister, and he can be so bad to me, can you still expect him to take care of a female comrade who is not related to you by blood and treat her well for the rest of his life? So fortunately you misunderstood, this kind of person is not worthy of you. Anyway, you didn't suffer any loss, he said that he came to the state-owned restaurant to eat because he was grateful for your help, so you can eat this meal with peace of mind, and go to work as usual after you go back. This mutton soup is nourishing to the body, how good."
Wen Xiaoli was originally a little worried, but after hearing what Xia Qingtang said, her wrinkled face suddenly relaxed.
"Yes, you are right. I am so confused. How could I forget that he was so mean to you, his own sister? He is not a good person. I thought he was tall and handsome before. I was really blind."
"You are not blind. Judging from his appearance alone, he is indeed not bad. Just wait and see. He is quite ambitious and will use his appearance to find a partner with a good family."
Wen Xiaoli said: "You mean, he will find a daughter of a leader? So he asked the workers in my workshop, is he asking if there is a daughter of a leader among them?"
"You're really smart, that's what I mean."
"I'm not smart..." Wen Xiaoli whispered, "But I'm smart in this respect. Although I misunderstood before, I didn't tell anyone that he invited me out for dinner. My family didn't know either, and my co-workers didn't know either. And I met you today. If...if he said something in the factory, can you help me say that I had dinner with you guys?"
"Of course you can. If he says something wrong in the factory, I will prove that you had dinner with me. Look, you haven't finished eating yet. Eat quickly. Didn't we have dinner together?" Xia Qingtang smiled gently.
Wen Xiaoli also started laughing, and it seemed that there was no problem at all.
"But don't worry. Xia Qinghai is going to find a female comrade with good conditions in the factory. He will definitely not tell anyone that he had dinner with you alone today." Xia Qingtang whispered.
Wen Xiaoli finished the last bit of mutton soup and pastry, and whispered, "That's great. I don't want to gossip with him."
After she finished eating, the two girls walked out of the restaurant one after the other because there were still customers looking for empty tables.
Xie Jinxuan and Xia Qinghai were standing in a corner outside the store, whispering something. It was impossible to tell what they were talking about from their expressions, but they both looked quite peaceful.
Xia Qingtang waved at Xie Jinxuan from afar. He nodded, said a few words to Xia Qinghai, and walked over here.
"We can go back now. Comrade Wen, how are you going to leave? Do you want us to take you to the bus stop?" Xie Jinxuan asked.
"Okay, then I'll tell Brother Xia and ask you to take me to the bus stop." Wen Xiaoli immediately said to Xia Qinghai, "Brother Xia, Qingtang wants to take me to the bus stop, so that's it for today. Thank you for treating me to dinner, bye."
Of course Xia Qinghai would not invite her to go back to the family area with him. He nodded naturally: "Okay, see you at the factory later."
So, Xie Jinxuan pushed the bicycle and went with Xia Qingtang to send Wen Xiaoli to the bus stop. After she got on the bus, the two turned around and went back.
"What did he say to you?" Xia Qingtang asked immediately. She was worried that Xia Qinghai was going to do something bad.
Xie Jinxuan said, "Your father wants to meet me and have a good chat with me. He wants to know about my work and my family situation, and whether we can live a good life after marriage. Xia Qinghai means that no matter what, he is your biological father and still cares about you. He hopes that I can persuade you to let me meet your father, at least to reassure him. By the way, he also told me about your mother's condition. The last time she had serious food poisoning and her lung disease, she had to rest at home for a long time. Now she has no energy to plot against you, so you can rest assured that your mother will not even have the energy to go back to her parents' home for at least a month."
In her previous life, Zhao Meizhen had never experienced this kind of illness. It seemed that everything had really changed.
"Is it really that serious?" Xia Qingtang said, "Zhao Meizhen deserves it. It's a good thing that she doesn't have the energy to make trouble now."
"Yes, the illness cannot be concealed from others. You work in the factory. You can ask any neighbor and find out the exact condition of Zhao Meizhen. So I believe he will not lie about this. The main thing is that your father wants to meet you. What do you think?"
"Me? I'm still hesitant...why don't you tell me what you think? Do you want to talk to him?"
Xie Jinxuan said, "I want to meet your father once and have a face-to-face chat. According to my previous understanding, the worst person in your family should not be your father. If this is the case, it is a good thing to have one less enemy. Moreover, if the chat goes well, maybe your father will stand on your side. If Zhao Meizhen really wants to harm you in the future, your father can tip her off."
"You're really smart. I haven't thought about this. It's not that I haven't thought about it, but it's because I hate them so much that I don't want to have anything to do with them..." Xia Qingtang sighed slightly, "But you're right. Anyway, I don't need to contact him. You can go talk to him and see what else he can say."
"Okay, then when you go to the factory tomorrow, can you bring a message for me? I'll meet him at the gate of Taohua Park at nine o'clock this Sunday morning." Xie Jinxuan said.
"Okay, I'll bring it to him."
That night, they washed up and went to bed early. Xia Qingtang slept well and woke up the next morning full of energy. After having breakfast, Xie Jinxuan took her bag and a cloth bag to the cotton mill to work.
The co-workers were very happy to see her. Seeing that she was wearing a new coat and new cloth shoes, and her hair tie was tied with matching yellow wool, they all gathered around her and asked her all kinds of questions.
"Did you have fun out there?"
"Did you buy this new dress out of town or in the city?"
Xia Qingtang answered their questions one by one, and then took out the local specialties bought by her aunt and shared them with everyone.
There were quite a few co-workers who had a pretty good relationship with her, so each of them only got one or two pieces. But she also brought some wedding candy, so each of them could get several pieces, which wasn't too shabby.
During lunch break, Xia Qingtang and Wen Xiaoli took their lunch boxes to the cafeteria, ordered a dish of stir-fried green peppers with dried tofu and two mixed flour steamed buns. After eating, they went to the warehouse to see if Xia Daming was there.
Xia Daming happened to be on the middle shift and was working at the moment. Xia Qingtang waited for him for a few minutes, walked over while he was carrying things, and said, "Xie Jinxuan said that he would like to meet you at the gate of Taohua Park at nine o'clock this Sunday morning. You can just go directly there, and he will talk to you alone."
Xia Daming wiped the sweat off his face with the old towel around his neck and smiled, "Okay, I will definitely go there on time. Um...are you still angry? I thought about what you said before. Your mother was wrong, and neither was I...I also told your mother that if she wants to harm you again, I will not live with her. You know she is most afraid of this. So don't worry, it won't happen again, never again. She is in poor health now. I don't know what the food poisoning is. How did she get so sick? I didn't understand what the doctor said. I just knew that she has changed beyond recognition."
"She insisted on eating the rotten rice given by her grandmother. Who can you blame? Instead of talking about this here, you might as well ask your son to go to your grandmother and ask them to pay you back."
"Your brother thought so, but I persuaded him not to do so. After all, they are family, so why bother? Anyway, your brother has returned to work now, and your mother also has a pension, so the family is not unable to make ends meet. It's just that now I have to learn to cook, as your mother can't even cook." When Xia Daming saw his daughter, he couldn't help but talk a lot.
Xia Qingtang narrowed his eyes and looked at Xia Daming. Only then did he realize that he had changed a lot. It seemed that he had suddenly aged a lot and started to become more talkative.
She said, "Anyway, I've already delivered the message, and my lunch break is over, so I have to go back to work. By the way, Xie Jinxuan asked me to bring you this package of snacks, so eat it by yourself, and don't give it to your son, because your son is in much better shape than you are."
As he spoke, Xia Qingtang put down a bag of specialties he brought from outside, turned around and left.
Xia Daming picked up the bag of snacks and was stunned for a long time. It was not until his co-workers urged him to work that he sighed and put the snacks away carefully.
Xia Qingtang worked diligently for a few days, and then it was Sunday's turn.
People go to bed early nowadays because there are not many entertainment activities at night. Even on their days off, they will get up normally in the morning. Only students may sleep for an extra hour, while adults will still get up as usual.
After Xia Qingtang finished washing up and went downstairs, she smelled a burst of fragrance coming from the kitchen.
There was no one in the living room, so she hurried to the kitchen and saw Aunt Liu making pancakes. There was already a thick stack of vegetable pancakes in the flat pan next to her, and the smell made her appetite grow.
"Sixth Aunt, do you need my help?" Xia Qingtang asked.
"Take the pot of porridge out, and help put the dishes in place. Your grandma is watering the flowers in the yard, and Jinxuan has gone to exercise with his grandfather, so they should be back soon." Sixth Aunt didn't look back.
On the table opposite was a deep tin pot. She opened the lid and saw steaming porridge inside. It was made of several kinds of beans and peanuts, and a lot of chopped cabbage. It was very nutritious.
Xia Qingtang brought the big pot to the dining table, and then arranged the bowls, chopsticks and spoons for everyone. Grandpa and Xie Jinxuan came back with smiles on their faces.
"Grandpa, you're back?" Xia Qingtang went over to greet him. "Are mom and dad up yet?"
"He should be up now. Jinxuan, go to the second floor and check. Xiaoyun must not be up yet. Go and wake him up. It's time for breakfast." Grandpa said, "I'll go wash my face first. I've worked up a sweat and it feels great."
Grandpa likes exercising very much. As long as time permits, he will go to the basketball court to exercise for a while every morning.
Now that Xia Qingtang is familiar with the Xie family, Xie Jinxuan no longer has to get up at the same time with her. He has resumed his habit of exercising with his grandfather, getting up earlier and running a few laps around the courtyard.
Xie Jinxuan went to the second floor and came down after a while: "Why aren't mom and dad here? Did they go out so early? Xiaoyun has woken up and will come down by herself in a while."
Aunt Six heard the noise and called out from the kitchen, "Your father and mother went to buy vegetables. They said they wanted to know what fruits they could buy today, so they went together."
"Should we wait for them for breakfast?" Xie Jinxuan asked.
"No need. We don't know when they will be back. Let's eat first and save some food for them." As she said that, Aunt Liu came out from the kitchen carrying a thick stack of pancakes.
Each person gets two delicious pancakes and a big bowl of porridge, so everyone can eat their fill.
After they finished breakfast, Xie Chengye and his mother came back carrying heavy cloth bags.
Although they are a middle-aged couple, they have always had a good relationship. On days off like this, they always find opportunities to go out alone and do something, such as buying groceries, visiting the park, going to the library, watching model operas, etc.
The two brothers Xie Jinxuan and Xie Jinyun grew up in such a family environment, and they naturally knew what kind of marriage is normal and happy.
Xia Qingtang hurried over to help lift the cloth bag: "It's so heavy, what is this?"
"This bag is of pears. We bought 20 kilograms. They are all fresh pears. They must be delicious." Mother Xie said with a smile: "Qingtang, you like to eat fruits. Come on, cut one and eat it."
Aunt Six came running over and said, "So many pears, that's really great. Did you buy the vegetables too?"
Xie Chengye handed her the cloth bag he was carrying: "I've bought them all. Take a look at these radishes."
"That's great. I can pickle radish skins again." Aunt Liu was very happy and quickly took a bag of vegetables to the kitchen.
Xia Qingtang put the pears away and went to the dining room to serve them porridge. She also poured hot water into their cups: "Dad, Mom, let's have breakfast first. It will be cold soon."
"Okay, thank you." Xie Chengye washed his hands and drank some hot water first, then said: "The girl is very considerate. When she saw us coming back from outside, she knew to quickly pour us some water."
"Yes, Qingtang is very thoughtful. We are blessed." Xie's mother also drank some water and then went to have breakfast with Xie Chengye.
Xia Qingtang waited for Xie Jinxuan to come out of the kitchen, and the two of them went back to the third floor hand in hand.
Today Xie Jinxuan is going to the park to meet Xia Daming. She plans to take advantage of this day off to write articles at home.
"Then I'll go out." Xie Jinxuan put on her coat and looked at Xia Qingtang with a smile.
Xia Qingtang held his hand and shook it: "Just be polite to him, no need to be too polite. He is a soft-hearted person, and now that Xia Qinghai is by his side, who knows what he will say."
"I know what to do, don't worry." Xie Jinxuan said with a smile: "Don't worry about me, no one can do anything to me."
After Xie Jinxuan left, Xia Qingtang started writing at the desk.
The Workers' Newspaper is the newspaper she studies the most these days. It has a section that likes to publish trivial matters of various factories, including which factory hosted a basketball game, which factory organized everyone to watch a progressive movie, and it also accepts submissions from workers. The section is not large and is a column with a bit of entertainment nature.
Her target this time is this section. She intends to write about the study and life of young female textile workers. Anyway, the workers will not know what is entertaining or not. Everyone just knows that it is published in the newspaper, which is a big deal.
As long as she can climb up, everyone sitting in the office in the factory will see her, and she will carry the name of the cotton mill, which is also a kind of honor for the factory. When the time comes, it will be posted on the bulletin board so that everyone in the factory will know.
Xia Qingtang wrote seriously for two hours and finished an article of about 800 words. She checked it from beginning to end and felt that the sentences were fluent and the main idea was clear, so she put down her pencil and planned to go downstairs to drink some water and rest for a while.
It was not yet half past ten, the whole house was quiet, and everyone seemed to be away.
Xia Qingtang walked into the living room, refilled his cup with hot water, then turned on the radio while drinking the water. After drinking the water, he felt a little hungry, so he opened a bag of snacks and ate a few pieces.
"It's great..." Xia Qingtang let out a long sigh and whispered to himself.
She had never imagined that she could spend her day off so leisurely.
She can do her own things, and no one will urge her to cook, wash clothes or do housework; she can also eat these not-so-cheap snacks at will, and no one will scold her for eating more than a pig...
Xia Qingtang leaned back on the sofa, his heart filled with gratitude towards Xie Jinxuan.
"Xie Jinyun! Are you home?" A young man's voice suddenly sounded outside the yard.
Xia Qingtang didn't know whether Xiao Yun was at home. When she was about to ask someone on the second floor, she saw Xiao Yun rushing downstairs like the wind: "Yes, yes!"
Rushing to the living room on the first floor and seeing Xia Qingtang, Xie Jinyun said, "Hey, sister-in-law, why are you home? I thought I was the only one here!"
Xia Qingtang smiled and said, "I didn't go out at all. Only your brother went out."
As she said this, she walked out and prepared to open the door for the child.
There were two young boys about fourteen or fifteen years old standing outside the gate of the yard. Both were tall and thin. One was tanned and the other had fair skin. Both of them were carrying a cross-body bag. When they saw Xia Qingtang, they were obviously stunned.
"Come in." Xie Jinyun also followed out.
The two young boys looked at Xia Qingtang nervously and began to walk inside quietly.
After entering the room, Xia Qingtang said, "Are you here to do your homework? Can you do it in Xiaoyun's room?"
"Yes, yes, we are here to do our homework." The white-skinned one rushed to say, "We will do it in his room and won't disturb the adults."
"Then you guys go up first. I'll make you some malted milk and bring it up. Do you want any snacks? We have melon seeds, peanuts, peach cakes and so on." Xia Qingtang asked.
"No, no, we are doing our homework, so we can't eat any snacks. We don't want malted milk, nothing! Thank you, sister-in-law, we don't want anything." Xie Jinyun pulled the two young boys and ran to the second floor.
Xia Qingtang said: "It's so rude not to give guests water when they come."
"We don't drink anyway, sister-in-law, just take care of your own thing and don't bother us!" As she said that, she heard the sound of the bedroom door on the second floor being closed tightly.
Xia Qingtang smiled, shook his head and ignored them.
Seeing that it was almost half past ten, she turned off the radio and went to the kitchen to see if she should cook.
There are several kinds of vegetables in the kitchen. Xia Qingtang took out the leafy vegetables first. This kind of vegetables is not convenient to store, so it is best to eat them today.
Just as I was about to pick vegetables, I heard the door unlock and Aunt Six and Grandma came back from outside, talking and laughing.
She prepared lunch in the kitchen with Aunt Liu. A few minutes later, Xie's mother came back.
She said, "Did Xiao Yun go out?"
Xia Qingtang came out quickly and said, "He's in the bedroom upstairs. Two other classmates came to look for him. I offered to make them some malted milk, but they refused. They said they didn't want to drink or eat anything and wanted to do their homework well and not be disturbed."
Xie's mother's expression changed slightly. She immediately lightened her footsteps, tiptoed up to the second floor, and suddenly rushed into Xie Jinyun's room.
Hearing the screams of a young boy from inside, Xia Qingtang and her grandmother were worried and hurried upstairs.
"What's wrong?" asked grandma.
They stood at the door of Xie Jinyun's bedroom, and saw the three young boys inside standing there with their heads down, as if they had made a mistake. Xie's mother was holding a book in her hand and was flipping through it quickly.
"Very good, very good! You are really brave to read such a book in my house!" Mother Xie said coldly: "Xie Jinyun, are you afraid that something will happen to your family?"
Xie Jinyun burst into tears: "I didn't, I didn't! Everyone has read this book, and they all took turns to read it, so no one would find out..."
"Then why don't you go to someone else's house to read it, but choose to read it at our house? Do you know what your grandfather does for a living? You look at this, you... do you want to piss me off to death?" Xie's mother suddenly became furious, picked up the book in her hand and smashed it on Xie Jinyun's head several times.
"No, Auntie, don't damage the book!" the white-skinned boy shouted nervously.
Grandma said, "Don't beat the kid yet. What book is it? Let me see."
Mother Xie came over and handed the book to grandma.
Xia Qingtang stood nearby and saw that the cover of the book was long gone. He didn't know who had made a homemade cover on the outside with the words "Leading Xiu's Quotations" written on it. He was quite alert.
Grandma flipped through the book for a while, then closed it and asked, "Who brought this book?"
The three teenagers remained silent. After a long while, the white-skinned one whispered, "I brought it here... but this book is not mine..."
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