When Xiao Shiyi heard his mother say this, he immediately changed his tone: "I don't mind, I don't mind. No matter what gift Mom gives me, I like it and I will treat it as a treasure."
Lin Yiyi was not moved at all: "You are so sweet at such a young age, who did you learn this from?"
Xiao-Woo ate his meal in silence.
Little Eleven's eyes turned around and around, and then he turned to his father, and then pointed at his father: "I learned it from him."
Xiao Yu felt a little wronged. He usually wouldn't say such things, such as "I like all the gifts you give me". He felt his teeth ache when he heard them. But...
Lin Yiyi chuckled: "Your father's ability to speak is not as good as yours."
Xiao Yu: "..." Does that mean he was rejected? Xiao Yu, who had a strong desire to survive, immediately said, "No, I like any gift I give."
Lin Yiyi: “…”
Lin Wujun: "Eleven, which hand do you want to choose?"
Xiao Shiyi: "Hmm...right hand, I'll choose the right hand."
After he said right hand, Lin Yiyi opened her right hand and saw a square badge with a leader's head inside. Xiao Shiyi: "Wow..." Xiao Shiyi knew how great it was to have such a badge since he was already in the first grade, so his eyes widened.
Lin Wujun: "Sister, please show me the gift in your left hand."
Lin Yiyi spread out her left hand, inside which was a round badge with a leader's head.
The uncle and nephew immediately picked up the badge and looked at it. They loved it so much that they were reluctant to put it on. However, they still put it on. As soon as they put it on, Lin Wujun took Xiao Shiyi away and they were going to school.
Lin Yiyi smiled and shook her head. What a child she is. However, childhood is so beautiful, so innocent and carefree.
After Lin Wujun and Xiao Shiyi left, Lin Yiyi continued to eat.
Xiao Yu looked at her for a while, and seeing that she had no intention of taking out other gifts, he had to speak: "Where's mine?"
Lin Yiyi: "Wait until you finish your meal."
Xiao Yu: "You've already taken out two." The implication is that it would be convenient to take out another one.
Lin Yiyi: "I can't give you the other one for now, so I can only let you know."
Xiao Yu raised his eyebrows. What kind of gift is that?
Lin Yiyi: “Eat.”
With great curiosity, Xiao Yu continued to eat. However, this time, he moved faster than before. When he finished, Lin Yiyi also finished. Seeing Xiao Yu staring at her, she walked in front of Xiao Yu. When she stood up, Xiao Yu also stood up. Lin Yiyi said, "Don't you want a gift? Sit still."
Xiao Yu sat down obediently after hearing this. However, when he saw Lin Yiyi approaching, he began to have wild thoughts. Lin Yiyi said that gifts cannot be taken out, so... is she going to kiss him? His heart was pounding. It was still daytime, would it be a bit bad?
While Xiao Yu was daydreaming, Lin Yiyi grabbed his hand and placed it on her belly: "Your gift is here. It's almost 2 months old."
Xiao Yu: "..." What about a kiss? It was like a bolt from the blue. To him, his wife's pregnancy meant a year of seclusion, so a kiss was better. He wanted to return this gift.
Lin Yiyi looked at his unhappy face and asked, "You don't like it?"
Xiao Yu: "I like it." He gritted his teeth, unable to express his pain.
Lin Yiyi couldn't help laughing. She patted his head and said, "Be good. This gift is the result of our joint efforts. You have to accept it."
Although Xiao Yu wanted to kiss her more, he was still happy that his wife was pregnant with her second child. After all, it was his child, and no man would not like to have many children and grandchildren: "I hope it's a girl, so that her brother can protect her in the future."
In this era, it makes a big difference whether a woman has a brother to support her or not. Of course, given their family conditions, they are not afraid even if they don’t have a brother to support them.
Lin Yiyi: "They say a daughter is her father's lover from his previous life."
Xiao Yu: "Where did you hear that? Why haven't I heard of it before?"
Lin Yiyi: “…”
肖宇：“如果按照這樣說的話，那兒子豈不是媽媽上輩子的情人了？難怪那個臭小子我看了很不順眼，每天都忍着想揍他。”
Lin Yiyi: “…”Son, I’m sorry, mom has caused you trouble.
Little Eleven, who knows nothing, is showing off his badge in school.
In the blink of an eye, the first month of 1971 arrived.
Because Lin Yiyi was pregnant, they did not return to the village for the New Year this year. However, on the 29th of the lunar year, Xiao Daqiang and Qin Xiangju came and brought vegetables and fish to Lin Yiyi and the others. It was their first time to come to the army. When they came, Xiao Bin used the pig farm's phone to call the army, so when Qin Xiangju and Xiao Daqiang got off the boat, they saw Xiao Yu who came to pick them up.
Xiao Yu: "There are fish here too. Sometimes the villagers on the island will catch fish to trade. It's so troublesome for you to go back and forth." Men don't understand how much parents miss their children, especially straight men.
Qin Xiangju: "The fish this year are particularly big, so I thought of bringing them to you. The sea fish caught by the villagers are different from the freshwater fish in our pond, so it's good to change the taste."
Xiao Yu just said casually that he knew his parents were coming, so he drove here, picked up the old couple, and went back to the army. When the car arrived at the army, Xiao Shiyi and Lin Wujun were waiting at the door. When they saw them coming, Xiao Shiyi ran up to them enthusiastically: "Grandma..."
Qin Xiangju: "Oh, my dear grandson."
As soon as the car stopped, Qin Xiangju went to hug Xiao Shiyi, more enthusiastic than when she saw her son.
Xiao Shiyi hugged Qin Xiangju's hand and asked, "Grandma, did you and Grandpa come to see me specially?"
Qin Xiangju: "Yes, grandma gave you and your mother some fish and made soup for you. Do you like fish soup?"
Little Eleven: "I like it. Grandma, my mom is having a baby. I will have a sweet little sister."
The sweet-smelling sister...
Qin Xiangju: "Yes, your mother has a baby. Do you like your sister more than your brother?"
Xiao Shiyi: "I don't like my younger brother. He has a runny nose every day and is so dirty." There are many little boys in the family compound. Xiao Shiyi sees them all dirty and runny nose every day. After seeing the daughters of his first and second uncles, he still likes his younger sister. He wants a younger sister of his own.
Qin Xiangju: "Then when your mother gives birth to a sister, you must protect her well."
Xiao Shiyi: "Well, I'm grown up now. I will protect my mother and my sister."
Qin Xiangju: "What about your father? You won't protect him anymore?"
Xiao Shiyi thought for a moment and said, "I will protect Dad when he is old."
Xiao Yu, who followed them and listened to the whole process, said: "..." Thank you for your protection. Wait until he is old, he will not need his protection when he is old.
Lin Yiyi had already prepared the milk powder and was waiting for the two elders to arrive. She calculated the time and when Qin Xiangju and Xiao Daqiang arrived, the temperature of the milk powder was just right.
Lin Yiyi: "Dad, Mom, now that you're here, have a cup of tea to warm yourself up." It was a very cold day. New Year's Day is the coldest time of the year.
Qin Xiangju: "I'm really thirsty." Seeing her son making milk powder for them, Qin Xiangju was very satisfied. Among her three daughters-in-law, the second one's family was the most generous, and of course, the conditions were also better.
Xiao Daqiang never speaks much in front of his daughter-in-law.
Xiao Yu brought the fish, vegetables and food collected from the county town to the kitchen. Qin Xiangju and Xiao Daqiang took six fish, each weighing more than 2 kilograms. They specially picked them and bought them at the brigade with their own money.
Qin Xiangju: "Your belly is a little big, are you carrying twins?"
Lin Yiyi: "It's not twins. I checked and it's one." It can be checked in the army's medical room.
Qin Xiangju: "When you give birth, will you go to the county hospital or here?"
Lin Yiyi: "Giving birth is a minor operation, and there are doctors in the infirmary who can perform minor operations, so I plan to give birth here."
Qin Xiangju: "Is there a gynecologist here?"
Lin Yiyi: "Yes, there are military wives here, so there are obstetricians and gynecologists." In fact, the army's medical room is not small, much larger than the town's clinic, and there are several doctors. After all, the military doctors who go out on missions are all here, so the scale of the medical room is not small. Like some land-based troops, doctors who go out on missions can be selected from military hospitals, but there is no military hospital on the island, so the doctors are all on standby in the medical room. Relatively speaking, the military doctors here have a very easy job.
There are quite a few doctors who came here a few years ago and were transferred into the army through connections. They are probably worried about being implicated by outside forces.
Qin Xiangju: "Then when you are about to give birth, I will come over to take care of you. Don't refuse. When the first and third wives gave birth, your grandmother and I also took care of them."
Lin Yiyi: "Okay, thank you, mom. It took a lot of effort for mom and dad to come to the army this time, and Eleven also misses grandpa and grandma, so why not stay a few more days?"
Qin Xiangju: "Tomorrow is New Year's Eve, we have to go back and come back after the New Year." This time they came here mainly to deliver food. They brought the welfare of Lin Yiyi's town residents, thinking that they should not have enough food on the island, so they brought the food to them. At the same time, they also missed their grandson.
Lin Yiyi didn't force them, mainly because tomorrow was New Year's Eve. The elderly always liked to stay at home on New Year's Eve and have a reunion dinner.
At noon, Lin Yiyi prepared a delicious meal for them. During the meal, Xiao Daqiang said, "I have worked in the commune for ten years. If it weren't for the second daughter-in-law, I wouldn't have such a good job. In the past ten years, we have lived a wealthy life. After the second daughter-in-law came into the family, two workers came out. Everyone in the brigade envied our family. Second daughter-in-law, I am here to say thank you."
As the father-in-law and the head of the Xiao family, Xiao Daqiang's words were indeed very important. In the past ten years, the Xiao family has produced two workers, and they are very grateful to Lin Yiyi.
Lin Yiyi: "Dad, you are too polite. Since I am married to the Xiao family, I will naturally consider the Xiao family."
Xiao Daqiang sighed: "This time, I came mainly to bring you food, and secondly, there is one more thing I want to discuss with you."
Lin Yiyi was a little confused.
Xiao Yu asked directly: "What's the matter?"
Xiao Daqiang: "I have been working as a gatekeeper in the commune for 10 years, and my family has about 2,000 yuan in savings. This money is enough for us to support ourselves in our old age..." Xiao Daqiang paused. 2,000 yuan is more than enough for us to support ourselves in our old age. Xiao Daqiang can be said to be the richest man in the village, thanks to the early separation of the family. In fact, rural people can really save money as workers, but people in the county town can't save more than 2,000 yuan after working as workers for 10 years, because everything costs money. The Xiao family eats from the land, so they don't need money, so they can save money. "So, so what I mean is that your eldest brother will be 35 after the Chinese New Year, Xiaozhu will be 15 after the Chinese New Year and will get married, and Xiaorui will be 14 after the Chinese New Year. He has been working in the fields for the first half of his life, and there is no money at home. I plan to... plan to give him this job in the commune."
Xiao Daqiang sighed and continued, "I am most proud of your family in my life. You married Yi Yi, and not only I became a worker, but also the third son became a worker, and your sister, but... your eldest brother... I know that the eldest son's wife has many shortcomings, but the family conditions have improved, and they can't be left behind. Two years ago, the third son built a house and moved out. His house was sold to the eldest son for 50 yuan. The eldest son... ah..." As a father, he loves his children, but seeing that his two sons are getting better, but the eldest son is getting worse, he feels frustrated. He didn't propose to give the job to the eldest son two years ago because the third son was not a formal worker yet, and he wanted to save some more money. Now the third brother has been a formal worker for a few years, and his family has built a house of the same style as the second brother's. The couple also has more than 2,000 in savings, so Xiao Daqiang proposed this.
Xiao Yu said: "This job is given to you Yi Yi, what do you think?" If it was a job given by himself, he would naturally have no opinion, but he would not make the decision on the job given by his wife.
The whole family looked at Lin Yiyi, especially Xiao Daqiang, who was a little nervous. Over the years, although the second wife sent milk powder when the eldest wife gave birth to children, she had never spoken to anyone else, so Xiao Daqiang was worried that the second wife would not agree.
Lin Yiyi: "That's good. Since mom and dad have made up their minds, let's do what you want." She had no objection. If Xiao Wu was not given the job, her parents-in-law would be worried. They all talked about their savings, and subconsciously they were saying that they had the ability to support themselves in their old age. They originally worked for the purpose of supporting themselves in their old age. Now that they can support themselves in their old age, they don't have to worry about it anymore, and they don't have to worry about their sons anymore, so they want to give the job to their eldest son.
In fact, Lin Yiyi also understood the thoughts of her parents-in-law. No matter how much she disagreed with Qi Bocai, the eldest son of the Xiao family was the biological son of her parents-in-law and her husband's biological elder brother. This blood relationship could not be severed. Therefore, she might as well be generous in dealing with these things, and not hurt her parents-in-law because of others. Once her parents-in-law were hurt, her husband would also have a hard time.
Therefore, if you want to make your whole family happy, then you might as well take a step back.
Hearing Lin Yiyi say this, Xiao Daqiang breathed a sigh of relief. Qin Xiangju also let go of her worries. As expected, the second son's wife was generous.
After talking about this, the family was quite happy the whole afternoon. Xiao Shiyi and Lin Wujun went to work, Xiao Yu took a nap, Lin Yiyi took Qin Xiangju to find out the way and introduce the troops. Xiao Daqiang had nothing to do, so he sat in the yard to bask in the sun, and then he couldn't help but take care of the small plot in the yard.
Lin Yiyi showed Qin Xiangju the way to the family compound, and then took her to the military school: "This is the military school, this is the primary school, and this is the nursery. There are limited children in the military, so the children of the villagers on the island can come here to study. This can be regarded as the military taking care of the people."
Qin Xiangju: "This is good. Ordinary people can't afford to go to school, build schools, or hire teachers. The army is in trouble." From Lin Yiyi, she knows the benefits of studying. It's not just her. It can be said that because of Lin Yiyi, basically all families with a little extra money in Datang Production Brigade and Shanglin Production Brigade are willing to send their daughters to school. Even if they can't afford to send their children to high school or junior high school, they will still send them to elementary school. Who says that daughters are not good? Look at the Lin family. The daughter raised several younger brothers by herself, sent them to high school, built blue brick houses for them, and found jobs for them. Who dares to say that daughters are not good? Their daughter is good to her parents' family and her husband's family.
Therefore, Lin Yiyi, through her own efforts, objectively changed some ideas that favored boys over girls.
After leaving the primary school, Lin Yiyi took Qin Xiangju to the village again and exchanged some things. Qin Xiangju bought a large bundle of sugar cane. There were more than ten sugar canes in a bundle, and the taste was really sweet, sweeter than sugar water. Lin Yiyi also bought two bundles, one for her family in the army, and the other bundle was sent to the Lin family by her parents-in-law. She never concealed the fact that she sent things to her parents' home, and her parents' home often sent her meat and eggs.
The next day, Qin Xiangju and Xiao Daqiang left. Xiao Yu sent them to the dock and watched them board the boat.
At half past six, Qin Xiangju and Xiao Daqiang got off the dock and rented a bullock cart from the Bainiwan Production Brigade. The cart first went to the Shanglin Production Brigade and stopped in front of Lin Dajun's house. The gate in front of Lin Dajun's house was open, and as soon as the cart stopped, the people at home noticed the movement.
Lin Zhen came out and saw that it was Qin Xiangju. She said warmly, "Auntie is here."
Qin Xiangju: "Hey, we went to the army yesterday and brought some food and vegetables to Yi Yi and the others. We just came back and here are the things she asked us to bring."
Lin Zhen: "Oh, the Fourth Army also went to the army this morning and sent pork and eggs to my elder sister and the others. I don't think you met them." It was just a pier, but we didn't meet them.
Qin Xiangju: "Maybe it was a little dark and I didn't notice it." It was indeed a little dark in the morning in the middle of winter.
After Lin Zhen finished moving the things, Qin Xiangju handed her another letter: "This is the letter Yi Yi asked me to bring."
Lin Zhen: "Thank you, Auntie. Please come to our house when you are free."
Qin Xiangju: "You are so polite. Let's go back first."
Lin Zhen: "Hey." After watching them leave, Lin Zhen opened the letter. Lin Yiyi had told her about the distribution of some things in the letter. Lin Zhen hurriedly took these things to give to others. She first gave kelp, dried shrimps and dried fish to Mr. Ying, and then took two sugar canes, "Mr. Ying, Xiaoshuang..."
Ying Lao was drying herbs, and Ying Shuang was cleaning. In the past six months, the grandfather and grandson liked the village very much. The people in the village were very warm and enthusiastic. When Ying Lao treated them, he did not charge for the herbs, so they would send vegetables and eggs to Ying Lao. Eggs were expensive, so Ying Lao would not accept them, but he would occasionally accept vegetables.
Mr. Ying: “What is this?”
Lin Zhen: "My eldest sister's parents-in-law went to the army yesterday. They came back today. This is what my eldest sister asked them to bring. It's for you."
Mr. Ying: "Comrade Lin Yiyi is so polite. We will accept it."
Lin Zhen: "If so, New Year's Eve is the reunion night. Why don't you and Xiaoshuang come to our house for lunch at noon today?"
Elder Ying: “Okay, okay, okay…” He thought the Lin family was pretty good. The brothers were harmonious and they were all honest people. His sister-in-law Lin Zhen had a good personality. If his granddaughter could marry into such a family, he would be relieved even after his death. Besides, during the half year he had been here, he had also found out about the Lin family. For example, the parents of the Lin family died during the famine, Lin Yiyi discovered the stove for growing vegetables, and her pig-raising skills were very good. A half-grown girl raised four younger brothers and now took good care of her adopted brother. Of course, she did not take advantage of her husband’s family, and at the same time, she gave two jobs as workers to her husband’s family. Elder Ying was very relieved and admired such a woman. Therefore, he thought it would be good if his granddaughter could marry Lin Sanjun. She has no in-laws to worry about, and the sisters-in-law get along well with her. The only elder sister-in-law who is of the same level as her mother-in-law is also easy to get along with. If her granddaughter marries into the Lin family, her life will definitely be easy.
In addition, my granddaughter has medical skills and works as a doctor in the village clinic. She is respected by everyone. Life here is much better than in the city.
After Lin Zhen gave the things to Mr. Ying, she took another copy to the Lin family's old house. Zhang Xiaojun went to the Workers, Peasants and Soldiers University later, so he is still in the Lin family's old house.
Lin Zhen: "My eldest sister brought this from the army. Uncle Xiao and Auntie went to the army yesterday and just came back."
Zhang Xiaojun: "Thank you, sister-in-law, for bringing it to me...Are you guys going to visit my sister during the Chinese New Year?"
Lin Zhen was stunned: "Go to the army?"
Zhang Xiaojun: "Yes, I will go to Workers, Peasants and Soldiers University in the next year, and I want to have a meal with my eldest sister and her family before I leave."
Lin Zhen: "I don't know if there will be boat trips on the first day of the Chinese New Year, but there will definitely be boat trips on the third day. How about we go on the third day? I'll go discuss it with Da Jun."
Zhang Xiaojun: "Okay, once you've discussed it with my brother, let me know."
Lin Zhen: "Well, come to our house for lunch on the first day of the new year, and invite Fang Fang's eldest brother as well."
Zhang Xiaojun: "Okay, let's have dinner at our house on the first night of the New Year."
Lin Zhen nodded.
This is how courtesy works. Although Zhang Xiaojun has been adopted, as long as he still does his duty, the Lin family is willing to give him face in the Shanglin Production Brigade.
Xiao Family
Today is New Year's Eve. Qin Xiangju and Xiao Daqiang returned home from the army and saw Grandma Xiao, Qi Bocai and Liang preparing a reunion dinner. Seeing the old couple coming, Xiao Wu and Xiao Bin hurried over to help get the things.
During lunch, Xiao Daqiang talked about work: "Next year when you start working, come with me to the commune to handle the formalities. Starting next year, I will give you this job."