Chapter 63
Xia Qinghai said at the time: "I am dating Secretary Wu, and the child is mine."
"So what are you going to do now? How are you going to explain this to her parents?" Director Huang was extremely anxious.
After all, it was an era in which most people were still very conservative. Although such incidents did occur, they caused an uproar throughout the factory and were a big problem. Director Huang, as the direct superior, was even called in by Director Qi for a lecture.
Besides, Wu Jinfeng is a well-connected person. If her parents come to the factory to cause trouble, they might blame Director Huang, the leader, for not taking good care of the new employee.
Xia Qinghai said, "I have already called Secretary Wu's parents and they said they would come over and asked me to take good care of Secretary Wu's health first. When they come back, they will decide whether we can get married. When Xiao Wu recovers, we will have to ask Director Huang to issue us a certificate."
Director Huang let out a sigh: "Her parents know about this?"
"I see. I also support our marriage."
"That's good, that's good. You don't know that when you young people make such a big fuss, I am the one who gets criticized! I understand the feelings of young people, but look at it, it's such a big fuss. You are too careless."
"We were too young and didn't pay attention, which made Director Huang worried. But she and I are both older and we are dating each other. Even though she is pregnant before marriage, it is not a big deal. We just need to register our marriage and set up a few tables in the cafeteria. There is no big deal. There are many people like this in the factory." Xia Qinghai said.
This is indeed the case. Pregnancy before marriage is a big deal, but as long as the marriage is successfully registered, it is no longer a problem.
At most, people will just laugh about it after dinner, but after a few years, when the children are all over the place, who will remember such things?
Director Huang nodded: "Indeed, as long as you get married before your belly gets bigger, it won't be a big deal. By the way, what did the doctor say? How is Xiao Wu's health?"
"She said she wanted to protect the fetus. She's a little weak, so she needs to rest well. Now that she's been discharged from the hospital, we dare not let her come to work rashly. If something goes wrong again, it will be difficult to explain." Xia Qinghai's tone was quite sincere, as if he was really worried about Wu Jinfeng's health.
"A female employee's pregnancy is a big deal. You should ask the hospital to issue a certificate to protect the fetus first. The child is more important. It doesn't matter how long she rests, as long as Xiao Wu and the child are healthy." Director Huang said quickly.
Anyway, Wu Jinfeng doesn't do any work in the office. She just drinks tea and reads newspapers every day to kill time. It is safer to let her lie at home. If something happens at home, Director Huang, as the leader, will not be held responsible.
Xia Qinghai smiled and said, "Thank you for your understanding and concern. I also told Xiao Wu that health is the most important thing. I will take her to the hospital for a follow-up visit in two days. When the time comes, I will ask the doctor to issue a certificate and I will apply for leave for her at the factory office."
"Then who is taking care of her now? You are at work, can she do it alone? Is your mother taking care of her?" Director Huang asked curiously.
Generally speaking, when a mother-in-law retires, she will definitely take care of her daughter-in-law, but Zhao Meizhen is a vulgar and poor person. Director Huang feels that a young lady like Wu Jinfeng would probably not get along with such a mother-in-law.
Sure enough, Xia Qinghai said, "My mother's health is not very good, so it is definitely not appropriate for her to take care of others. Xiao Wu is taken care of by a hired aunt. She lived alone before, and her aunt cooked and cleaned for her when she got home from get off work at night. Now her aunt is also taking care of her, which is more convenient. I will go to accompany her after work. Director Huang, don't worry, she will be healthy."
"That's good, that's good. I feel relieved now that you have made all the arrangements." Director Huang added, "When her parents come, I will also go to meet them and issue you a marriage certificate in front of them."
Xia Qinghai smiled brightly: "Yes, I will listen to Director Huang. I will go back to work first."
Director Huang waved his hand with ease: "Go ahead, go ahead, and work hard."
After Xia Qinghai acknowledged the child, the matter spread even more wildly.
After everyone knew that he and Wu Jinfeng were about to get married, everyone in the factory rushed to the Xia family to congratulate them. Xia Daming was also praised by his co-workers in the warehouse for his son's success.
But he was originally a man of few words. After the affair between Xia Qinghai and Wu Jinfeng spread, Xia Daming became even more silent. No matter how much others praised him, he just kept his head down and said nothing.
Some people even went to the trade union to congratulate Xia Qingtang, but Xia Qingtang would just smile and say nothing.
Li Yue said, "So it turns out that the baby in Wu Jinfeng's belly is your brother's! You didn't say a word before, what was the reason? We are all colleagues, why do you treat us as outsiders?"
Xia Qingtang said: "I really don't know anything about them. I don't have any contact with my mother's family, you know that."
"You've been married for so long, why don't you keep in touch with your parents?" Li Yue said, "You're young and have a bad temper. Listen to my advice. Your brother has married into a wealthy family, and your parents' family will be very successful in the future. Don't be stupid. Go back to your parents' family and apologize to them. When the time comes, your brother and sister-in-law will help you and your life will be much better."
"Thank you for your concern, Director Li. However, it is Xia Qinghai's business whether he lives a good life. When I left home, I agreed to sever the mother-daughter relationship. No matter what happens in the future, I will not go back." Xia Qingtang said with a smile: "I am living a good life now. I have a salary and food coupons. I am not worse off than anyone else."
"How can it be the same? Your future sister-in-law is the daughter of a cadre family, and she is also the only daughter. All her parents' property will belong to your brother. Why are you so stupid? You are a sister. If you give in to your brother and say a few nice words, he will definitely give you some benefits. With your salary, can it be compared to a corner of Wu Jinfeng's house?"
"I don't need this, I'm fine now."
Li Yue sneered: "What a fool! I advised you kindly but you didn't listen. Now you will regret it when you see your brother living a good life!"
Xia Qingtang smiled and said nothing, but continued working.
There were a lot of troubles in the third workshop. After hearing the rumors, Ji Fangfang ignored Director Ji's obstruction and questioned Xia Qinghai in front of so many people in the workshop whether he was really together with Wu Jinfeng.
Xia Qinghai nodded and said, "I have told Director Huang that Xiao Wu and I are indeed dating. Her parents also know about this. They will come to visit her in a few days and ask us to register for marriage."
Ji Fangfang couldn't bear such a great shock and broke down crying: "How could you find her? How could you be with her?"
Xia Qinghai said: "Comrade Ji, you were the one who insisted on breaking up with me. It was your father who didn't allow us to be together. We broke up a long time ago. It's impossible for me to stay single for the rest of my life, right?"
Ji Fangfang burst into tears: "But why is it her? Everyone hates her, why is it her!"
Seeing that her emotions were out of control, Xia Qinghai directly called Director Ji to come and take care of his daughter.
Director Ji grabbed Ji Fangfang and started scolding her. Ji Fangfang had been enduring for so long that she finally exploded. She had a big fight with her father in the workshop and even got into a fight. Director Ji was not polite and slapped her in the face. In the end, the father and daughter started fighting each other and it was so messed up that the deputy director and Chairman Qin had to go over to resolve the situation.
This incident seriously affected normal work. Director Ji and Ji Fangfang were criticized and their names were posted on the bulletin board.
Speaking of the propaganda column, Chairman Qin became even angrier. She said during the meeting: "We worked so hard to make the big-character posters, and the content was so good, but no one wanted to discuss it. They were all talking about unmarried pregnancy! Is this acceptable? Now that the propaganda column has been criticized, they have noticed our "Voice of the Workers" posters. This is really outrageous!"
Feng Xinhui said: "At least everyone has seen it now. I think the content of the first episode is quite good. As long as people watch it, they will definitely be impressed. This week, everyone will pay attention to the gossip, but in a few days, no one will be interested."
"I originally planned to publish a new issue of Workers' Voice every week, but seeing this, I still have to post the first issue for a while longer so that everyone can have a good look and have a deeper impression. After that, I will publish one issue every two weeks." Chairman Qin said, "Xiao Xia, you have worked hard."
Xia Qingtang quickly said: "This is what I should do."
Zhang Ning said, "Chairman, regarding Ji Fangfang's case, she has now been criticized and posted on the bulletin board, but next to it is a workers' voice with her name on it. Will this content make the workers unhappy?"
Chairman Qin said: "Workers' Voice was posted first. Besides, Ji Fangfang's name was reported by her father. It is clearly stated on the poster. If the workers have any opinions to give feedback, let them ask Director Ji how he selected the candidates."
"Yes." Zhang Ning nodded and said nothing more.
Chairman Qin assigned them some other tasks, ended the small meeting and left the big office.
Xia Qingtang was lying on the table, writing the meeting minutes carefully, but he still felt a little regretful.
The first issue of Workers' Voice was prepared for a long time. She spent time and energy categorizing the speeches of the employee representatives, picking out the best ones to occupy the best positions, and placing those like Ji Fangfang, whose speeches were not very good, in inconspicuous positions.
Afterwards, she asked Feng Xinhui to help make adjustments. After revising it several times, she finally finalized it. After giving it to Chairman Qin for review, she copied it down word for word carefully.
But as soon as the big-character poster was posted, the matter between Xia Qinghai and Wu Jinfeng spread throughout the factory. Everyone was only thinking about the gossip, and few people were looking at the propaganda board anymore.
If Ji Fangfang and Director Ji had not been criticized this time, even fewer people would have seen the big-character poster.
But there is nothing we can do about it. When doing work, we will encounter various problems. Let's see if more people will start discussing the voice of workers next week.
The week passed quickly. On Saturday afternoon, Xia Qingtang packed his backpack and checked the doors and windows with Feng Xinhui. The two of them locked the door and went downstairs together.
Secretary Wang just happened to come out, and when he saw them he ran over and shouted, "Xiao Xia, Xiao Xia, do you know how Wu Jinfeng is doing now? Is the child still in danger?"
Xia Qingtang said: "I don't know."
"You don't know? Isn't your brother her boyfriend?"
"I am not familiar with my brother and I don't have any contact with him."
Secretary Wang laughed and said, "You guys are really weird."
Xia Qingtang smiled, got on his bike and went out.
When they reached the road in front of the factory gate, Xia Qingtang got off the bike and pushed the bike on foot as required. Before she reached the factory gate, she saw Xia Daming standing there holding a cloth bag and looking around, as if he was waiting for her.
"Dad? Are you looking for me?" Xia Qingtang pushed the cart over.
Xia Daming nodded: "I passed by a place and saw these Chinese toon buds on the Chinese toon tree. No one picked them, so I picked them. I remember you like to eat them, so I brought them to you. You can take them home and eat them."
Spring is here, and everything is reviving. All kinds of wild vegetables and weeds are growing. Recently, Aunt Liu has been going out with others to dig wild vegetables, and she says that eating wild vegetables is good for the body.
As he spoke, Xia Daming handed the patched cloth bag in his hand to Xia Qingtang.
Xia Qingtang opened the cloth bag and took a look. He saw that there were indeed quite a few Chinese toon sprouts in it, enough to make two dishes. He said, "Thank you, Dad. I'll take it back and eat it. I'll send the bag to you on Monday."
"Okay." Xia Daming hesitated for a moment, then said, "Are you doing okay now? Xiao Xie hasn't changed his attitude towards you, right?"
"Nothing has changed. He treats me very well."
"That's fine." Xia Daming paused and said, "Your brother is getting married..."
"I know, everyone in the factory knows about it." Xia Qingtang said, "Xia Qinghai said before that he would set up a few tables in the cafeteria and let me attend the wedding."
"Will you go?" Xia Daming stared at her with an expectant look.
"I will go alone. After all, they are colleagues."
Xia Daming breathed a sigh of relief and said, "That's good, that's good. I went to see Secretary Wu with your brother today... We went to the place where she lives. It's a good place, with enough space for one person to live... You tell me, she comes from a cadre family. If your brother stays with her, can he hold his head up high in the future?"
Xia Qingtang said: "Don't worry about him, he is so smart, he will think of what you can think of, and he will also think of what you can't think of."
In his previous life, Xia Qinghai was able to keep Ji Fangfang and his father-in-law stable. In this life, Xia Qinghai seems to have become smarter. Besides, Wu Jinfeng is not as smart as Ji Fangfang. After marriage, won’t she be fooled by Xia Qinghai?
"That makes sense, but I'm just worried. They all came to congratulate me, but I can't be happy at all. It would be better if a girl married into that kind of family, but now a boy is marrying that kind... I don't know if your brother will still remember our family in the future."
"If he really does this, you can't stop him, so you might as well let it go. If Xia Qinghai has a conscience, he will know that you two have done a lot for him, and he will respect you in the future. If he really becomes someone else's son-in-law, I won't care about you. I've also said that I will give you the money required by the law."
Xia Daming looked at his daughter's calm expression and finally said nothing more. He just asked her to go home and rest early.
Xia Qingtang rode her bike back with the Chinese toon sprouts. When she got to the compound, many people were staring at her. Some familiar people took the initiative to shout, "Xiao Xia, Du Cheng and the others have been released."
Xia Qingtang was slightly stunned: "Did it take so long to release it?"
"Yes, he just came back this afternoon. They said he was carried back from the hospital."
"Have you seen Du Cheng? He was carried back from the hospital. Is he sick?"
"I saw it, and I don't know what happened. It seems that Du Cheng can't walk, so his family pushed him back home on a cart. He wrapped his head and face with a scarf, so I couldn't see what he looked like. But if I were him, I wouldn't be able to see anyone."
"Yes, he still has the nerve to come back."
"If he doesn't come back, he has nowhere to live, so he has to live here. It's so annoying. My house is very close to the Du family. Don't let him hang around in front of me in the future. He might teach my children bad things. We have told our children that Du Cheng and Zhang Li are bad people. If they see them, run away."
By this time, no one in the compound was gossiping about Xia Qingtang anymore, but everyone would remind the children not to learn bad things. For a while, some children would be slapped on the palm of their hands if they came home too late from school.
Xia Qingtang said goodbye to his acquaintances and continued riding his bike back home. Xie Jinxuan had already washed and cut the vegetables for dinner.
He wasn't very good at knife skills, but no matter how the potatoes and carrots were cut, it wouldn't affect the stewing, so Xia Qingtang was happy to save himself the trouble.
Besides, what’s important is not whether Xie Jinxuan can improve her cooking skills, which she is not good at. What’s important is that even if he doesn’t like it or is not good at it, he will still take the initiative to do what he can. Only in this way can the two of them work hard together to live a good life.
After parking the car, Xie Jinxuan came out of the house with a smile. He was holding a book in his hand, probably reading while waiting for her to come back.
"I heard that Du Cheng is back." Xia Qingtang walked in carrying a cloth bag.
"Yes, he's back, but I haven't seen him yet. I heard from Grandma Yu over there that Du Cheng was pushed back in a cart, so he definitely can't walk." Xie Jinxuan said.
Xia Qingtang pulled him into the house and asked, "Is the injury serious?"
"The police took him to the hospital for a checkup and they said there was nothing wrong with his body. As for where the injuries were, I don't know. He didn't tell me and I guess they didn't check there. Don't worry about the injuries elsewhere. There's nothing wrong with them."
"It must be unpleasant to be subjected to that." Xia Qingtang said with a sigh, "It's a pity that we can't see what he looked like at that time."
"Then don't look at him. It hurts your eyes." Xie Jinxuan said, "But he has to go back to work on Monday. No matter how he hides, he will have to come out to see people the day after tomorrow. Then we can see what he looks like now."
As he was talking, he heard a familiar sound of footsteps coming from outside, followed by Luo Xiangqian's loud voice: "Jinxuan, Jinxuan!"
"Come in and talk!"
Luo Xiangqian pushed open the courtyard door and ran into the house, then closed the door and said, "That bastard Du Cheng is back. When are we going to teach him a lesson?"
"Maybe after a while. I've been very busy lately." Xie Jinxuan said.
"What are you busy with? Is there anything more important than revenge?"
"I'm busy reading and studying for the college entrance examination." Xie Jinxuan said confidently.
Luo Xiangqian was stunned for a moment, but had no way to refute.
"Don't tell me you're going to wait until after the college entrance exam to teach him a lesson!"
"yes."
"You! Don't you want to avenge Xiao Xia? Why are you like this? You weren't such a coward before. If you don't dare and are afraid of delaying your college studies, then I will go alone! Xiao Xia is also my junior, it is my duty to help her teach that bastard a lesson!" Luo Xiangqian said, rubbing his hands.
Xia Qingtang said quickly: "Lao Luo, first of all, I am very grateful that you are willing to help me get revenge. Secondly, I think you should calm down. How could Jin Xuan be a coward? If you teach him a lesson now, even a fool will know that it was us who did it. After a while, he will make some other enemies, and then we won't be able to find out who did it."
Luo Xiangqian then laughed out loud: "If that's the case, why didn't you say so earlier, Jinxuan?"
"I haven't even had time to say anything, and you're already getting angry." Xie Jinxuan patted his shoulder, "How about it? Have dinner at our house tonight?"
"Yes, let's have dinner here tonight." Xia Qingtang said, "I'll make something delicious today."
"What delicious food are you going to make?" Luo went to the kitchen to take a look.
"Today I'm going to make carrot, potato and bacon stewed rice, a fried egg with Chinese toon, and a cold Chinese toon dish. These two are good side dishes for drinking." Xia Qingtang said.
"Make two Chinese toon trees? Did you go to pick Chinese toon trees today?"
"My dad picked them and gave them to me when he got off work. How about it, do you want to eat here?" Xia Qingtang asked with a smile.
"Then let's eat... and have two more cups." Luo Xiangqian chuckled and said, "I'll go home and tell them first. I won't be back for dinner tonight."
After saying that, he ran out.
Xia Qingtang first made the stewed rice, and then cooked it on a small earthen stove next to the sink.
Arbor Day has passed, and I planted three small trees in the yard. Although they are not very tall now, they look thriving and full of hope.
Xie Jinxuan also found time to dig up the area near the wall where vegetables were originally grown, and now planted them with leek and green pepper seedlings, which will be available for eating soon.
Xia Qingtang also planted onions and garlic in the corner at the other end, so he could just pick one when cooking.
The earthen stove was also built by Xie Jinxuan herself. It is very suitable for use now. As long as it doesn’t rain, it is very convenient to cook rice or soup here.
On rainy days, they could only use the coal stove in the kitchen. Anyway, there were only two of them eating, so Xia Qingtang could just make something simple for dinner, which was also very convenient.
When she finished making the cold-mixed Chinese toon, Luo Xiangqian came over with a bottle of white wine and an oil-paper bag in his hand. As soon as he entered the door, he said, "I'll serve wine and fried peanuts today."
Xie Jinxuan pulled the eight-immortal table out from the corner, and Xia Qingtang walked out with the cold-mixed Chinese toon, saying, "You guys drink first."
"Xiao Xia, Jinxuan can't drink alcohol recently, come over and have a drink with me." Luo Xiangqian opened the white wine directly.
"I don't drink, you can ask Jinxuan to drink tea with you, it's just a gesture." Xia Qingtang said: "I will continue cooking."
She still likes to spend her time in the kitchen cooking a few dishes she wants to eat. Although food is scarce now, staying in the kitchen and dealing with food still makes her feel happy.
She herself concluded that it was probably a psychological problem caused by not having enough to eat when she was a child and young.
When the stewed rice was ready, the whole yard was filled with fragrance. Sister Chen asked loudly across the yard: "Xiao Xia, what did you cook that tastes so good?"
"It's stewed rice. I added a little bit of lard, so it's fragrant." Xia Qingtang answered across the yard.
"Eat lard. You're making me hungry, too."
Xia Qingtang said: "Then just mix the lard with the rice."
At this time, every household would make their own lard, put it in clean jars, and eat it with great care. Xia Qingtang's jar of lard was made after she moved in. The fatty pork was bought for her by her Sixth Aunt, and the amount was not small. The lard could last for a while.
Sister Chen said, "It's not a festival, it's such a waste to eat lard, I won't eat it."
Xia Qingtang smiled, picked up the stewed rice and went back into the house.
The fried eggs with Chinese toon were also served on the table. Xia Qingtang stirred the stewed rice evenly and filled a large bowl for Luo Xiangqian first. He took it and had no time to say thank you. He hurriedly put the rice into his mouth without caring how hot it was.
"Whoa! Whoa! It's so hot!"
Xie Jinxuan handed him a glass of cold water: "Eat slowly, no one is going to snatch it from you."
"I was just impatient. Xiao Xia's braised rice is the best!" Luo Xiangqian took a sip of cold water and continued to eat the rice.
Xia Qingtang and Xie Jinxuan also filled their bowls with stewed rice and started eating. The three of them chatted while slowly finishing all the food on the table and drinking a little bit of white wine.
Luo Xiangqian was lying on the table, looking a little drunk.
"You lie down for a while, and I'll take you back after I clean up the kitchen," said Xie Jinxuan.
Luo Xiangqian lay on the table, waved his hands, and fell asleep without saying a word.
Xia Qingtang didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "Why does Lao Luo fall asleep as soon as he drinks?"
"He can't drink much. Among the three of us, Xiang Qian can't drink the most, but he likes to drink the most. Leng Feng can drink the best, and he can drink a pound of alcohol without moving at all. But he, the one who can drink the most, doesn't drink much. He says that drinking makes the brain dull." Xie Jinxuan said.
"This is true. I heard there is a scientific basis for it. But you don't drink much, not many times a year, so it shouldn't have any effect." Xia Qingtang followed Xie Jinxuan to the kitchen and watched him wash the dishes and pots skillfully. "When will Leng Feng be back?"
Relying on her grandfather's relationship, Xie Jinxuan asked about Leng Feng's specific condition. His injuries were not serious, but he still had to stay in the hospital for treatment for a period of time. After he recovered, he would be given a vacation to go home and rest for a while. What Xia Qingtang asked was when Leng Feng would come back for vacation.
"I sent him a telegram to ask him, but he didn't answer. This is how he is. He won't tell me what he doesn't want to say no matter how you ask. But it's okay. Since he has a vacation, he should be able to come back in April or May. The weather will be good then, and Xiang Qian and I can accompany him around." Xie Jinxuan said, "I haven't seen him for several years, and I don't know how he is doing now."
"He must be dark and thin, what else can that be?" Xia Qingtang said.
Xie Jinxuan laughed and was about to speak when Xie Chengye's voice came from outside the courtyard door: "Jinxuan, Xiaoxia, you are at home."
"At home, why is Dad here?" Xia Qingtang pushed the door open and let Xie Chengye into the room.
As soon as he came in, he saw Luo Xiangqian snoring on the eight-immortal table. Xie Chengye was stunned for a moment, then said, "Did Xiangqian ask you to drink today?"
"Yes, Qingtang made two side dishes, and Xiang Qian came over and had two drinks."
"This kid still goes to sleep after two glasses of wine." Xie Chengye smiled and said, "I came here because your grandfather asked me to ask Qingtang. Du Cheng has returned home from the hospital. The hospital said he is fine. So do you want him to apologize to you in public tomorrow, and then have his family go door to door to clarify next week?"
In fact, the entire compound now knows what is going on, but the steps agreed upon before must be completed. This is to make an example of someone and not let a bad guy like Du Cheng go easily.
Xia Qingtang said, "Okay, then let's do it at nine o'clock tomorrow morning. I have to come back to cook after I apologize, so don't waste my time."
"Okay, I'll ask someone to go to the Du family and tell them." Seeing that Xie Jinxuan had already washed the dishes, Xie Chengye said, "You two should come to our house more often. Your grandma keeps talking about it."
"Aren't you going to come over to our place for lunch tomorrow at noon? Don't go tonight. I have to take Xiang Qian home later." Xie Jinxuan washed her hands and walked out.
Xie Chengye said: "While I'm here, I'll go with you to send him back."
The two of them helped the drowsy Luo Xiangqian up and sent him home.
Xia Qingtang hurried to boil some water, then took out his books, paper and pen and began to complete his English homework seriously.
After the water boiled, Xie Jinxuan came back. Xia Qingtang took out a large cloth bag, took out a bag of wrapped Chinese medicinal materials from it, shook them out and put them in a clean wooden barrel, then poured half of the boiling water on it and waited for the herbs to brew out their flavor.
This is the package of medicinal herbs prescribed by a Chinese medicine doctor that Xie Jinxuan found. They are all cheap things and not very expensive, but they are time-consuming and laborious. She has to take a bath with the herbs every two nights. For this purpose, Xie Chengye even asked someone to buy a half-new bathtub from the countryside, which was cleaned and disinfected inside and out before being sent over.
The bathtub was very large and took up quite a bit of space in the bathroom, but the doctor said that it could help cure the root cause of his illness, so Xia Qingtang carefully marked the time on the calendar and watched him take a bath every time.
In addition to taking a bath, Xie Jinxuan would go there twice a week to ask the Chinese doctor to give him acupuncture. It was said that after following his prescription for half a year, Xie Jinxuan's old ailments could be cured, and he would no longer feel pain whether it was windy or rainy.
Xia Qingtang boiled several more pots of water, and when the herbs were almost soaked, he mixed them with hot water to make a medicinal bath for Xie Jinxuan to take a bath.
The whole room was filled with the smell of medicinal herbs. It wasn't pleasant, but it wasn't unpleasant either. However, Xia Qingtang still opened the windows in front and back to let the smell out.
Xie Jinxuan soaked for twenty minutes and was sweating all over. After getting up, she quickly dried her body with a dry towel and quickly put on her clothes.
According to the doctor, you must avoid catching a cold after taking a bath, and you must not do anything intimate on the day of taking a bath. This is good for your health.
"Have you finished soaking? How do you feel today?" Xia Qingtang asked hurriedly when she saw him coming out dressed warmly.
"I'm still sweating, it's really refreshing." Xie Jinxuan said: "I'll sit for a while, then I'll get you some water."
"Okay." Xia Qingtang couldn't move the big bathtub, so Xie Jinxuan had to calm down and clean it up herself.
She continued to finish her homework. Xie Jinxuan sat on the sofa and listened to her reading words softly. She fell asleep without realizing it.
When he woke up, Xia Qingtang was walking out of the bathroom smelling of soap.
He stood up quickly: "Why did I fall asleep?"
A blanket slipped from his legs to the ground, and he quickly picked it up: "You still covered me with a blanket? I didn't know anything."
"It's easy to fall asleep after taking a bath, and this will give your body a good rest." Xia Qingtang said with a smile: "The more you want to sleep after taking a bath, the easier it will be to recover."
"But how did you get that tub?"
"I'll scoop them out one by one with a basin, and then move them to a corner so they're not in the way." Xia Qingtang said, "You can go and clean them later. I can't do it."
"Okay." Xie Jinxuan walked to her side, stretched out her hands and hugged her into her arms, "Ever since I started taking the medicinal bath, I've had to trouble you to take care of me and help me with everything. I feel embarrassed. We clearly agreed that I would take good care of you."
"We are husband and wife, we should take care of each other. Besides, this kind of opportunity is so rare. When your treatment is over, I won't take care of you like this anymore. Why don't you take advantage of it now? Opportunities are rare and will never come back again." Xia Qingtang smiled playfully and kissed him again, "Go brush your teeth, I'll pack my bag and go to bed."
Although it was Saturday that night, there was nothing they could do, so the two of them held hands and chatted for a while, then fell asleep in a very innocent way.
Xia Qingtang was very satisfied with their relationship. She enjoyed communicating with him in various ways, both physically and spiritually. Even when they were just holding hands like this, she felt very happy.
Because they have experienced different eras, Xia Qingtang would bring up some views and opinions that were inconsistent with the present when chatting. Xie Jinxuan never thought that there was something wrong with what she said. Instead, she would think carefully about it every time and then praise her for her profound thoughts and unique ideas.
It seemed that no matter what she did, as long as it was done by her, even if it was just pouring a glass of boiled water, Xie Jinxuan would think that it was the best and most amazing boiled water in the world.
Xia Qingtang doesn’t know whether there is everlasting love and marriage in this world, but she hopes that she and Xie Jinxuan can stay together for the rest of their lives.
The next morning, the two got up very early, washed up simply, drank a sip of water, locked the door, and rode their bikes to their grandparents' house.
Aunt Six came out carrying two large bamboo baskets. She handed one to Xie Jinxuan and said softly, "Why are you here? Are you worried that Qingtang will be bullied for buying vegetables?"
"No, I'm here to help you carry your things." Xie Jinxuan said, "With Aunt Six here, who would bully Qingtang? Who would dare?"
Aunt Six nodded complacently: "Okay, stop flattering me, let's go."
Xia Qingtang and Aunt Liu had already made an appointment to go shopping for groceries together this morning.
This state-owned vegetable market in the city is the largest in the city, and its vegetable supply is relatively more complete.
Although the Xie family has special supplies, Aunt Liu still needs to go early to avoid the good ones being snatched away by others.
After riding two bicycles and working hard for a whole morning, the three of them returned with two full baskets of vegetables.
The cloth bag Xia Qingtang was carrying was also full and looked bulging.
They went to Xie's house first, and as soon as they entered the door, they saw Xie Jinyun sitting at the dining table, eating breakfast with a cup of hot milk in one hand and a big steamed bun in the other.
Aunt Six immediately said, "I made vegetable soup and rice in the kitchen. Why are you eating this?"
Xie Jinyun looked innocent: "I don't know. There was no one here when I came down, and grandma wasn't at home either. I was so hungry, and this steamed bun was given to me by the aunt next door."
Aunt Liu didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "Child, can't you just hold back for a moment? We are going to buy groceries, won't we be back soon?"
"I'm hungry."
"I'll go heat up the vegetable soup and rice. You can eat some more." Aunt Liu said, and quickly ran to the kitchen.
Xia Qingtang and Xie Jinxuan put the bamboo baskets and cloth bags they brought back on the ground, and then began to distribute the vegetables.
Xie Jinyun took the flower roll and went over to watch the fun: "Wow, brother, you bought so many vegetables?"
"These are bought, and these are dug, so I came back late." Xie Jinxuan pointed at the bamboo shoots and shepherd's purse on the ground and said, "Don't eat snacks in the morning. Try your sister-in-law's cooking at noon."
"What dish is sister-in-law going to cook?" Xie Jinyun couldn't help swallowing.
Xia Qingtang pretended to be mysterious: "I can't tell you in advance, you will know when you go and eat it, right?"
They divided the dishes, and Aunt Six came out with the soup and rice: "Okay, come and eat, but where is the old lady? Forget it, you guys eat first, I'll go out and look for her."
As they were talking, grandma came back with Xie's mother, both of them holding a basin filled with wild vegetables.
"Did you go digging weeds?"
"Yes, the neighbors asked us to go together. Many people went to dig. Fortunately, we were quick." Grandma smiled and said, "This can provide two more meals. Spring is really great."
Spring is indeed a happy season. After dinner, Aunt Liu helped Xia Qingtang pick vegetables and clean up.
Before they had even finished cleaning up, Xie Chengye rushed in: "It's almost time, let's go to the basketball court!"
At nine o'clock, Du Cheng was going to bring his parents to the basketball court to solemnly apologize to Xia Qingtang in front of everyone. No one would miss this kind of drama, so the whole family went out. Xie Jinyun also dropped her homework, took a bamboo stick and followed Xia Qingtang, saying that she wanted to be her little bodyguard.
Xia Qingtang couldn't help laughing, and went to the basketball court with everyone, only to find that there were so many people surrounding it.
They squeezed to the front of the crowd with great difficulty and saw Du Cheng, whom they hadn't seen for a long time.
Although she knew what he had been through in there, Xia Qingtang was still surprised by Du Cheng's change.
He was emaciated. He was originally thin and now looked like a skeleton. His face was sallow and bloodless, and his eyes were dull with huge sunken eyes and dark circles. It was unknown how long he had not slept. He looked as if his soul had floated away from his body.
Seeing Xia Qingtang and the Xie family coming over, Du Cheng's parents immediately showed ashamed expressions, but Du Cheng still stared blankly at the front, as if he couldn't recognize who was who.
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