Chapter 235: The interesting things that happened really impressed me.
With only a few days left until the Spring Festival, the air is filled with a busyness and anticipation unlike any other day, and the Feiyan Textile Factory exudes an atmosphere of abundance both inside and out.
The canteen was steaming, and the chefs were busy making rice cakes, frying meatballs, and frying fish cakes. The pork produced in the factory was the absolute star, minced into bowls of meat paste and fried in oil into golden meatballs, the aroma of which wafted for miles.
Workers lined up to buy New Year's goods, holding the welfare coupons newly issued by the factory's union. In addition to the usual sunflower seeds, peanuts, and candies, the most sought-after items were the factory's own "meat floss," "roasted seaweed," "shrimp chips," and "crispy rice crusts," all of which were rare items that could not be bought outside.
"This is the perfect gift for visiting relatives and friends; it'll definitely impress them!"
All workshops at Feiyan Textile Factory are undergoing a thorough year-end cleaning. The machines are gleaming, workers are repainting the slogans on the walls with buckets of paint, children are running and playing in the factory area, and the occasional sound of firecrackers exploding can be heard.
Qin Xiangxiang felt heavier, but she loved the atmosphere around the Lunar New Year. Everyone's face was beaming with joy, everyone was buying new clothes for the New Year, and everyone went out with a smile. Wherever she went, she was always greeted with a plate of peanuts and melon seeds.
In the factory's open space, dried ribbonfish and eel were being dried... Every household was making dried fish, and the same was true in the open space of the naval family compound, where dried fish were hanging everywhere. The salty sea breeze mixed with the smell of dried fish was a unique New Year's flavor on the island.
"Xiao Qin, come on, try this, it's our homemade fried dough sticks."
"Xiao Qin, we made some sausages this year. Would you like to try my handiwork?" Zhong Li said to Qin Xiangxiang with a smile. The two families shared a corridor. Zhong Li and her husband, Lao Yang, made a lot of sausages this year, which were all hung by the window.
"Okay, I'll try your cooking, sister-in-law!"
Old Yang opened the window and stuck his head out: "Then you'd better be careful, Zhong Li is putting a ton of chili powder into the sausage!"
Zhong Li: "Sweet sausages aren't good, they have to be spicy!"
Without hesitation, Qin Xiangxiang said, "I'll let our whole family try Sister-in-law Zhong Li's cooking!"
Anyway, they still have Little Fatty the Trash Can at home. If the food isn't good, they can have Li Jianzhi take Little Fatty and his son to collect the trash together, so there won't be any waste.
Li Jianzhi was cleaning at home. He had just returned from a meeting and was still in his military uniform, standing ramrod straight. After wiping the windows, he took a broom to sweep away the cobwebs on the ceiling.
Li Xiaopang, with his chubby face and energetic personality, swept and worked, turning himself into a spinning top, rushing around the house like a cannonball. His mind was entirely on the firecrackers in his pocket, and he just wanted to finish his work quickly so he could run out to the yard and have some fun.
Sui Sui sat on a small stool, holding an apple and eating it in small bites. "Mom, my brother is like a big spinning top."
Qin Xiangxiang said, "Later, Suisui and Mom will cut paper snowflakes together, and then we'll paste them up with Spring Festival couplets. After that, we'll supervise Dad and my brother as they make dumplings."
Sui Sui: "I want stewed meat!"
"Good girl!" Qin Xiangxiang patted her daughter's head, "Mom will make you some stew!"
On the evening of New Year's Eve, horns sounded outside, along with loud cannon fire. The soon-to-expire ammunition was transformed into New Year's firecrackers, bidding farewell to the old year and welcoming the new, celebrating the Spring Festival together.
Qin Xiangxiang and her family sat around the table, enjoying an incredibly lavish meal: braised pork knuckle, braised pork belly, shrimp in tomato sauce, braised ribbonfish, steamed eel, a platter of braised dishes, dumplings with cabbage and pork filling... as well as cream cake and a specially made fruit and vegetable salad.
Wu Xueyan: "This is truly a feast!"
Li Jianzhi offered tea instead of wine to thank his wife, Xiangxiang, for her hard work in managing the household. Qin Xiangxiang was exasperated, saying, "You've had too many social engagements during the New Year, and you're still saying these things at home."
Li Jianzhi: "It's never wrong to be polite. You should say thank you to everyone you need to."
Let's all thank our mothers for everything they've done!
Little Sui Sui also raised her glass like her father to thank her mother, saying, "Thank you for your hard work, Mom."
Qin Xiangxiang cupped her face in her hands, listening to her little girl's sweet, childlike voice, and felt a surge of sweetness and comfort.
Qin Xiangxiang: "I also want to thank your father for working so hard, like an old ox."
Li Jianzhi: "..."
Li Xiaopang: "I'm the hard-working little yellow ox, little sister, you should thank me!"
Sui Sui: "Then I'm just a little ox working hard!"
"I'm so tired and exhausted!"
Li Jianzhi chuckled: "Thanks also to our little yellow ox and little yellow ox."
Qin Xiangxiang: "?!"
She absolutely refuses to admit that she gave birth to a family of oxen.
Spring Festival has passed, and March has brought spring. It's the season for animals to court. Spring is a season of romance and flowers. In autumn and winter, the trees are bare and bare, but before they sprout green buds, they bloom with delicate pink peach blossoms.
A week later, the peach blossoms faded in the spring rain, and tender green buds grew among the withered flowers. However, after a few days, there was more green than pink, and the peach blossoms on the tree disappeared.
In the misty, humid spring, all sorts of emotions arise, and as all things grow, unusual feelings are quietly born.
At Feiyan Textile Factory, Assistant He and Yang Zhixia started dating, much to the surprise of everyone in the factory.
Qin Xiangxiang: "I still remember when you came over and told me, 'Factory Director, this is a little spy!' Now you're with the spy, what a coincidence..."
"Factory manager, this is what they call 'no fight, no friendship.' I never expected to have this kind of twisted fate, and that's how we ended up together."
Yang Zhixia: "What? He even called me a spy back then?"
Assistant He: "Weren't you a spy for your uncle back then?"
Yang Zhixia: "...So you knew all along?"
"What a joke! I knew you were here the moment you arrived at our factory. I even suggested that the factory manager fire you."
Qin Xiangxiang: "...If you two could become husband and wife, I would really be impressed."
This couple is practically fighting each other. Besides them, Zhou Zhenbang also came to Qin Xiangxiang, saying that he had fallen for Yin Pingping and wanted Qin Xiangxiang to act as a matchmaker.
Zhou Zhenbang: "Sister-in-law, my happiness in life depends on you."
"Your happiness depends on yourself."
Qin Xiangxiang yawned. In this spring season filled with the sour smell of spring, everyone was in pairs.
Qin Xiangxiang asked Zhong Li, "Have those four talented young men from last year found partners?"
"Not yet, except for Xu Guangming."
"Zhou Zhenbang likes Pingping from our factory, and there's also Zhao Rui and Dr. Bai... but haven't they made any moves yet?"
Zhong Li: "Maybe some people are just born to be single, or maybe they have problems in that area?"
Qin thought for a moment: "Could it be that you can get rheumatism 'down there'?"
Zhong Li: "????!!"
"Xiao Qin, what are you thinking about?"
As the two chatted, they saw Lin Xiuqin and He Xiuxiu go upstairs. He Xiuxiu introduced Lin Xiuqin to a potential partner. Although he was a regimental-level cadre, he had been married once and had three children. His ex-wife had died unexpectedly... Moreover, his ex-wife's family was full of awful relatives, and her accident was also due to these bloodsuckers in her family.
This man is reasonably good-looking, but he has three children. If Lin Xiuqin marries him, she will become a stepmother to three children.
Lin Xiuqin was hesitant and anxious at this moment.
Being a stepmother to three children? Who would want that? What normal person would want that?
Lin Xiuqin instinctively wanted to refuse, but then she thought of the character of this regimental-level cadre, who was very much like the male protagonist in some period novels. If she married him, she would become the female protagonist of a period novel about a stepmother... Several stepchildren would become positive and motivated under her guidance, and she would also have to fight against her ex-wife's awful relatives. These are all settings of period novels.
This kind of wish-fulfillment storyline was clearly visible to Lin Xiuqin, but she was also particularly uneasy about it rationally. Going to be a stepmother? Wouldn't that be crazy? Let whoever wants to go through this wish-fulfillment storyline go.
Anyway, the college entrance examination will be reinstated next year, so Lin Xiuqin is preparing to take the exam. She wants to make a name for herself.
He Xiuxiu: "Are you really unwilling? They seem to think highly of your qualifications."
"Let's forget about it, being a stepmother isn't easy."
He Xiuxiu: "Okay, then I won't try to persuade you anymore. Actually, the Chen family next door, Chen Ruifeng's sister seems to be willing to marry into the family and become a stepmother, but they think she's a bit too young."
Lin Xiuqin was dumbfounded: "Chen Ruifeng's sister? His sister is willing?"
"Yes, I heard that Chen Xiaomei took the initiative."
"Wanting to become a stepmother?"
"He's the regimental commander, and his conditions are pretty good. If you're not willing, there are plenty of others who are. I'm just telling you this, so you won't regret it later, since you're the one who refused."
Lin Xiuqin was deeply shocked at this moment. Chen Ruifeng's sister was eager to become the wife of the regimental commander and the stepmother of three children.
This plot sounds familiar... Could it be that Chen Ruifeng's sister has been transmigrated into a book? Is she following the typical female lead route in a period drama about a stepmother?
Lin Xiuqin quickly asked, "Has Chen Xiaomei been behaving strangely lately? Like she's become a different person?"
"I can't tell."
Lin Xiuqin was filled with mixed feelings. She wondered if the world of the original book had been riddled with holes. The original male lead, Chen Ruifeng, had married Zhao Yangyang, a complete nobody; Qin Xiangxiang, the spoiled female supporting character, had become a "powerful and arrogant queen"... Just how many people had transmigrated into this world? Were there even "ancient to modern" transmigrators among them? Otherwise, none of them would match the "transmigrator" code.
Lin Xiuqin was completely bewildered. Everyone she saw seemed like a male protagonist from a period novel, and all these women seemed like they had time-traveled? Had they transmigrated into a book?
"Director Qin, your belly is so big, you must be about to give birth?" He Xiuxiu chatted with Lin Xiuqin as they went upstairs. She didn't have the same heavy thoughts as Lin Xiuqin. When she saw Qin Xiangxiang and Zhong Li upstairs, she greeted them.
"Soon."
After exchanging a few words, the two groups parted ways. Zhong Li pulled Qin Xiangxiang aside and whispered, "He Xiuxiu introduced Lin Xiuqin to Commander Ma, the one whose wife died and who has three children. She wants someone to be her stepmother. Commander Ma... his conditions are alright, but it's really unreasonable to make someone a stepmother to three children. Being a stepmother isn't easy."
Qin Xiangxiang: "?!" Another new male lead?
Zhong Li: "I heard that Chen Xiaomei upstairs, the one from your factory, seems to be willing to marry into the family and become a stepmother."
Qin Xiangxiang: "Wow!"
"So many new things have happened since the beginning of spring this year."
Zhong Li: "Something new is happening all the time in our compound, but the newest thing is in the city. Many educated youth have returned to the city, and it's causing quite a stir."
Qin Xiangxiang also knew that a large number of educated youth were beginning to return to the city. Of course, many of the educated youth who were married or who had entered local units while working in the countryside did not meet the requirements for returning to the city. As a result, many people began to "fake divorces," which caused quite a few accidents.
There were too many educated youth returning to Shanghai, and the educated youth office couldn't keep up with the demand, so they had to be crammed into production teams in Lilong... In addition to the shortage of job openings, housing became even more crowded and tight.
Qin Xiangxiang's family grew up in a workers' new village, a two-story building, just like the large courtyards in Beijing. Because there were too many educated youth returning to the city, it began to expand outwards or build sheds.
If they are going to expand, they should add two more rooms upstairs.
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