Chapter 93

Lu Yu looked at Jiang Nian with a soothing look in his eyes, and said to Aunt Zhao: "Aunt Zhao, tomorrow you and your family come to our house for dinner. Jiang Nian and I have something to tell you."

Aunt Zhao teased the child and was a little curious: "What is it? You can tell me now if you have something to say."

Zhao Gang was also very curious: "Lu Laoer, what do you want to say?"

"Don't worry about what others say. We will know when we go there tomorrow night, right?"

Zhao Gang's wife said.

Aunt Zhao hugged her grandson and bounced around for a while, saying, "Okay, our whole family will go there tomorrow night."

After sitting in Aunt Zhao's house for a while, Jiang Nian and Lu Yu went back. Lu Yu opened the door and walked into the yard. The yard was still the same as before, but there were many dead leaves on the ground. Jiang Nian stepped on the dead leaves, raised his little face and asked, "Do you want to tell Aunt Zhao about our marriage?"

Lu Yu said, "Well, we should tell Aunt Zhao and the others."

As long as he didn't tell Aunt Zhao, it would be equivalent to telling the whole village about his marriage to Jiang Nian. The gossip of the villagers was often more hurtful. He didn't want Jiang Nian to bear this. She thought that after telling Aunt Zhao tomorrow night, she would leave with Jiang Nian the day after tomorrow.

The matter of his marriage to Jiang Nian would fade away with time.

When they came back after a year, there would be less talk.

Lu Yu said, "I will sweep the yard first, and then go to the brick factory with Zhao Gang to get some bricks, and then go get some boards to repair the roof."

Jiang Nian nodded, and went to the room where her father-in-law slept first, looked at the roof, and then looked at the kang, which was covered with a layer of soil. Fortunately, she and Lu Yu rolled up the mattress on the kang when they left.

She walked out and went to Xu Cheng's house. Just as she was about to push the door open, she saw a padlock on the door. She was stunned for a moment, then turned to look at Lu Yu who was sweeping the yard: "Did you lock it?"

Lu Yu didn't turn around: "Yes."

Jiang Nian: ...

Is there any treasure inside that you are afraid of being stolen? Why

lock it up?

She still asked: "Why did you lock it?"

Lu Yu swept the fallen leaves on the corner of the west wall, glanced at Jiang Nian who was following closely behind him, and seemed to be determined not to stop until he found out the reason, so he turned to look at Jiang Nian: "I don't want you to enter my big brother's house."

He said it bluntly, Jiang Nian pursed her lips, and didn't know how to respond for a while.

After a while, she joked, "Are you jealous?"

She moved closer to him with a smile on her lips. Lu Yu reached out and hugged Jiang Nian, lowered his head and bit her lips. The man's dark eyes stared at her bright eyes, and his deep voice had a bit of an indescribable hoarseness: "Yes, I'm jealous."

Jiang Nian was held in Lu Yu's arms, her hands against the man's hard chest, and under her palms was the other's strong heartbeat. There were occasional footsteps outside the courtyard gate. She and Lu Yu were obviously husband and wife, but Jiang Nian always had a feeling that they were having an affair. She pushed Lu Yu hard, her cheeks red: "There's someone outside."

Lu Yu looked at the blushing person in his arms, his curled eyelashes fluttering a few times, and when he saw that he didn't let go, he raised his head and glared at him in shame and anger. To Lu Yu, there was no trace of ferocity, but rather a bit of naivety that wanted to be bullied.

He lowered his head and kissed Jiang Nian's lips. He gradually tightened his arms around her. Jiang Nian was forced to raise her head high. The air in her mouth gradually became thinner. Lu Yu didn't let her go until she was almost out of breath. Jiang Nian's body was a little soft. She leaned in Lu Yu's arms and took a deep breath of the air that rushed into her lungs.

"Nian Nian"

Lu Yu kissed the top of Jiang Nian's head and rubbed his chin on her head: "Tomorrow is the anniversary of my brother's death."

Jiang Nian was stunned and blinked in surprise. She felt the rubbing of her head and didn't know what to say for a while.

Tomorrow is the anniversary of Xu Cheng's death. Calculating the time, she has been here for three years.

Jiang Nian said, "Tomorrow we will go see Xu Cheng and father-in-law."

Lu Yu said, "Okay."

He kissed Jiang Nian's forehead again and said, "I will clean up my brother's room, and you go clean up my room."

He still remembers the strange reaction when Jiang Nian entered Xu Cheng's room during the Chinese New Year. He was afraid that if Jiang Nian entered Xu Cheng's room again, the same thing would happen again.

He didn't dare to think about what he would do if the Jiang Nian in front of him disappeared.

Where would he find her?

Jiang Nian said, "Then I'll go clean up your room and clean up the stove."

Lu Yu: "Okay."

Jiang Nian stepped out of Lu Yu's arms and ran into the room. She first took out the quilts in the room and hung them on the rope in the yard. Seeing this, Lu Yu went over to help her hang the quilts. He opened the door of Xu Cheng's room, took out the quilts and hung them out, and then locked the door again.

Jiang Nian: ...

This jealousy is really strong.

Lu Yu swept the yard clean and put the dead grass leaves into a basket to use as kindling. Jiang Nian cleaned the pots and bowls in the kitchen. In the afternoon, Zhao Gang came over and went to the brigade with Lu Yu. They used the brigade's donkey cart to go to the brick factory to get some bricks, and also brought back some wooden boards and tiles. Lu Yu could do the repairs on the house by himself, and Zhao Gang helped him.

There was no noodles or vegetables at home, so Jiang Nian went to the brigade to buy some noodles, vegetables, and meat, and also bought a can of maltose and peach cakes. After returning home, he went into the kitchen, chopped the meat, washed and cut the vegetables, and lit the fire with the dry leaves that Lu Yu brought in today. The dry leaves were very dry and lit immediately. When the fire got bigger, Jiang Nian added dry firewood. It

was too late to make cakes now, so Jiang Nian made meat dumplings and two cold dishes. After the meal was ready, he put a plate of dumplings and cold vegetables on it, covered it with a cloth, and went to see the old professor with Lu Yu in the evening.

Lu Yu and Zhao Gang worked for a whole afternoon, repairing the roof of Xu Cheng and his house, and used bricks to reinforce the weak walls. Bricks were very expensive in that era, so everyone made bricks out of mud and dried them in the sun. Lu Yu felt that there was not enough time, so he had to use the bricks quickly. The only things

left were the father-in-law's house and the stove room, which could be finished in the morning tomorrow.

Lu Yu stayed with Zhao Gang for dinner. Zhao Gang looked at the big plate of dumplings and felt embarrassed. He ate a dumpling and took a bite of the meat filling. It was sweet and delicious. From childhood to adulthood, he had never eaten such a delicious dumpling.

Not to mention that, I've never even eaten dumplings with plenty of meat filling. During the Chinese New Year, the dumplings we make at home are all filled with cabbage and radish filling.

Zhao Gang ate very well and even burped after finishing. He felt a little embarrassed: "Sister-in-law, the dumplings you made are so delicious."

Jiang Nian smiled and said, "There are more. I'll serve you some more."

Zhao Gang said, "It's a whole plate. I'm full." He paused and said hesitantly, "Sister-in-law, I want to discuss something with you."

Jiang Nian said, "You tell me."

Zhao Gang glanced at Lu Yu who was sitting at the table, and said to Jiang Nian, "That year my wife was craving for the cakes you made. She told me about it before she went to bed last night. Do you think it would be convenient for you to teach her how to make it? She wants If it's ready, just cook it at home."

Jiang Nian nodded readily: "I'm going to make cakes tomorrow, you can ask her to come over and I'll teach her myself."

Zhao Gang was prepared to be rejected, but he didn't expect Jiang Nian to agree so readily, so he said happily: "Thank you, sister-in-law, I'll ask my wife to come over tomorrow."

After Zhao Gang left, Lu Yu washed the pots and bowls. He was busy all afternoon and his clothes were covered with dust. He went outside the yard to pat the dust off his body, and saw Jiang Nian coming out with a basket: "Are you going to see Professor Ling?"

Jiang Nian nodded.

Lu Yu said, "Wait a little longer. We'll go over when there's no one on the road."

A kerosene lamp was lit in the yard. Jiang Nian saw Lu Yu walk to the well to fetch water to wash his face. He rolled up his sleeves, revealing his strong and powerful arms. The veins on his arms were clearly visible. When he bent his waist and arched his back, his thin abdominal muscles were vaguely visible under the hem of his clothes.

Jiang Nian sat on the bench in front of the table in the yard, staring at Lu Yu with her hands on her chin. The man washed his face, took off his shirt, rinsed it with cold water, and changed into a clean shirt. When the clothes hung down, they blocked Jiang Nian's admiring gaze. Before she could come to her senses, the scene in front of her eyes suddenly darkened, followed by her waist tightening, and the next moment she was picked up by Lu Yu with one hand and sat on his lap.

The man was tall and had long legs. Jiang Nian dangled her legs in the air and looked at Lu Yu's angular jaw. She smiled and said, "Are you done washing?"

Lu Yu's voice was a little hoarse, "Not yet, I only washed my upper body."

Although there was nothing wrong, Jiang Nian felt something else. Her breath was a little warm. Jiang Nian's eyelashes trembled. Looking at Lu Yu approaching, her lips felt warm, and their breaths gradually blended.

Jiang Nian pressed her palms against Lu Yu's hard chest. She collapsed in Lu Yu's arms, and was finally carried back to the house by him.

Jiang Nian was still dazed when she lay on the kang.

She turned her head to look at the moonlight outside the window, her fingers tightly grasping the quilt under her.

This battle was very long, Jiang Nian almost cried and begged for mercy before Lu Yu let her go. The man looked at the thin sweat on her temples and kissed her earlobe.

"Niannian,"

he hugged Jiang Nian, his voice getting deeper and deeper.

Jiang Nian's eyes were wet, and the corners of her eyes were a little red. She moved her fingers, feeling a little tired, her voice was soft and a little hoarse: "We still have to go to the old professor." "

I know."

Lu Yu hugged Jiang Nian tightly, kissed her neck again, then let go of Jiang Nian, boiled hot water for her to help her clean up, it was already very late when the two left home, the road was empty and there were few people.

Lu Yu's identity is special, so he can't let too many people know that he is close to the old professor. If someone with ulterior motives reports him to the army, once he is investigated, Lu Yu will definitely be implicated.

The two passed by the educated youth center. Jiang Nian glanced at the educated youth center. The kerosene lamps were turned off. At this time, almost everyone was asleep.

When they arrived outside the cowshed, Lu Yu gently knocked on the wooden door of the cowshed and whispered, "Professor Ling, are you asleep?"

"No."

Professor Ling's voice came out quickly, followed by a faint light in the dark room, and the sound of shoes shuffling near the wooden door. Professor Ling opened the door and saw Lu Yu and Jiang Nian standing outside with the help of the kerosene lamp. He was stunned for a moment before reacting: "When did you come back?"

Lu Yu said: "Just came back today."

Jiang Nian smiled and said: "Old professor, look what I brought you."

She lifted the cloth on the basket, and the aroma of dumplings came out. Professor Ling's heart was warmed and he quickly turned aside: "Come in quickly."

Although the room was shabby, it was clean and tidy. Jiang Nian had heated up the dumplings when she came. She put the dumplings and cold dishes on the table and said to Professor Ling: "Eat them while they're hot."

She and Lu Yu sat opposite Professor Ling. Professor Ling sighed and smiled: "If you hadn't come back, I really wouldn't have been able to eat this dumpling."

Jiang Nian smiled and chatted with the old professor about the past six months.

Finally, she talked about Xiu Zhuang and briefly mentioned her and Sun Ying's affairs. When she mentioned Secretary Zhu, Professor Ling's hand holding the chopsticks paused, then he raised his head and looked at Jiang Nian: "The former mayor's secretary?"

Jiang Nian nodded: "Yes."

Lu Yu added: "He is an old acquaintance of Gu Shizhou. His name is Zhu Li."

"I guessed it was him." Professor Ling smiled and said: "Only this old guy still remembers me. If he hadn't taken the risk to send me here, I might have gone to a more difficult place. It's much better to live here."

Not only Lu Yu knew this, but Jiang Nian also knew it.

For people like Professor Ling, the more serious cases might be sent to the mountains and valleys, and some might be sent to the islands to do hard labor, earning work points through physical strength. People with weak constitutions can't survive for a few years. It's better here. Although the people in the brigade are assigned to cowsheds, at least they are sheltered from the wind and can keep out the cold in winter.

Moreover, the brigade leader also saw that he was old and didn't let him do hard labor. He only did light work like sitting there weaving frames.

Professor Ling said, "If you have any problems in the future, just look for Zhu Li. He will help you in any way he can for my sake."

Lu Yu said, "I saw your daughter."

Professor Ling had just put a dumpling in his mouth, and paused for a moment after hearing this. He chewed the dumpling slowly and swallowed it before asking, "How is she now?"

Lu Yu said, "She is now a primary school teacher and keeps in touch with Gu Shizhou. She is not affected. "Bitter."

He emphasized the last four words. Professor Ling's eyes suddenly turned red. He lowered his head and held back the tears. He picked up another dumpling and stuffed it into his mouth. Then he picked up another one. He finished the plate of dumplings and cold dishes in silence. At the end, he wiped his mouth, put the chopsticks on the plate, and said only one sentence: "It's good that you didn't suffer."

Jiang Nian said: "She is very beautiful."

Seeing Professor Ling looking at her, Jiang Nian smiled and continued, "I saw her outside the army that day. She had long hair tied with a silk scarf. Her eyes and eyebrows are very similar to yours."

Professor Ling smiled and said, "This girl has loved beauty since she was a child and likes to have long hair."

Speaking of his daughter, Professor Ling talked a lot and told Lu Yu and Jiang Nian many things about Ling Mengxiang's childhood. Jiang Nian also learned that Gu Shizhou met Professor Ling after serving in the army, and always regarded him as a teacher. Because of this relationship, he gradually got to know Ling Mengxiang.

Later, Professor Ling was taken away by the Red Guards. It was Secretary Zhu and Gu Shizhou who took Ling Mengxiang away and let her hide outside. They brought Ling Mengxiang back after the situation here was settled. Gu Shizhou did not dare to mention Ling Mengxiang in the letter he wrote to Professor Ling, fearing that someone would find out. Therefore, Professor Ling did not know what happened to his daughter in these years.

It was already very late when they left Professor Ling's house. Jiang Nian was afraid of the dark night road in the countryside, so she kept leaning towards Lu Yu. Lu Yu stretched out his hand to hold Jiang Nian's thin shoulders and pinched her shoulders with his fingers: "I'm next to you, it's okay."

Jiang Nian nodded, and returned home with Lu Yu. After washing up, the two lay on the kang.

The window was open, and the wind blowing in the yard could be heard. Jiang Nian lay next to the window, and turned over and lay in Lu Yu's arms. She raised her little face, looked at Lu Yu's drooping eyes, pursed her lips and smiled, and told him the little secret of that night three years ago.

She coughed lightly and said, "Do you still remember that night three years ago when you came back and took a bath in the yard?"

Lu Yu hugged Jiang Nian and kissed her neck: "Remember."

Jiang Nian felt a little itchy, and shrank back, holding Lu Yu's face with both hands, facing the man's dark eyes, and whispered: "That night I accidentally saw you taking a bath in the yard."

Lu Yu raised his eyebrows, and after a flash of surprise in his eyes, he immediately showed understanding.

"I guessed it."

Jiang Nian: ???

She turned over and sat up, leaning against the window and looking at Lu Yu: "You knew it that night?"

Seeing the shame and discomfort on Jiang Nian's face, Lu Yu stood up and hugged her to lie down, laughing softly: "I just knew it."

Jiang Nian: ...

Lu Yu is not right, in fact, he noticed it that night, but he didn't think of her. Jiang Nian's words just now also verified that his feeling that night was correct.

Jiang Nian talked to Lu Yu for a while before falling asleep. She slept well in the first half of the night, but in the second half of the night, she dreamed that she was back to her home in the new century. When she opened the door, she saw the whole family sitting at the dining table to eat. She greeted them as usual, but they still couldn't hear her.

She paused, sitting next to her father and mother, listening to them chatting about family matters, looking at their familiar faces, feeling sad and uncomfortable, and finally she couldn't sit still anymore and got up to go back to her room. The 'Jiang Nian' of the new century was not there, so she walked to the bed and lay down. When she turned around, she suddenly found that her curtains had been changed. In addition to these, even the wallpaper in the room was changed to new ones.

Everything that belonged to her in this room seemed to have been erased.

She knew it was 'Jiang Nian' who did it.

But she had no right to condemn 'Jiang Nian'. In the new century, the real Jiang Nian had disappeared, and this 'Jiang Nian' was her parents' daughter.

Jiang Nian closed her eyes and lay there for a while, thinking about waking up and getting out of this dream. Suddenly, her cell phone rang in the quiet room. She opened her eyes and stood up to look. The cell phone was pressed under the pillow. Jiang Nian took the cell phone out from under the pillow. The caller ID had Xu Cheng's name on it.

Jiang Nian was shocked, especially when she saw Xu Cheng's name. Her brain also buzzed.

She held her pounding heart, not understanding why she had such a reaction, and this reaction was completely out of her control. She passively answered the phone and put it to her ear. A strange voice came from the receiver of the cell phone.

"Jiang Nian——"

The piercing buzzing sound stimulated Jiang Nian's ears and made her ears hurt. The palms holding the phone began to sweat. The door was suddenly pushed open from the outside. It was not until the sound of hurried footsteps came in that all the feelings that did not belong to Jiang Nian disappeared. Another 'Jiang Nian' snatched the phone and looked at Jiang Nian worriedly. He was relieved to see that she was fine. He hung up the phone immediately and typed a message on the phone for Jiang Nian to see.

'Don't talk to Xu Cheng.'

Jiang Nian's mind was a mess and her heart was full of doubts. She didn't understand why she dreamed of her home in the new century every once in a while, why 'Jiang Nian' appeared in the new century, and how Xu Cheng, who had died, would also be in the world of the new century?

It was as if she was covered by a fog in front of her eyes, and she couldn't dial the number no matter how hard she tried.

Jiang Nian snatched her phone and typed a line on it: "Tell me, what's going on?"

Her intuition told her that the 'Jiang Nian' in front of her knew everything.

'Jiang Nian' held the phone tightly without moving, and only started typing after a while. She simply stood up and stood beside 'Jiang Nian' and watched. She saw that as soon as 'Jiang Nian' typed four words, Xu Cheng's caller ID appeared on the screen, and she was also stimulated by a buzzing sound and opened her eyes. In her ears was Lu Yu's voice, calling her name.

The man's voice was full of urgency, a panic she had never heard before.

Her waist seemed to be strangled, and Jiang Nian groaned in pain. Her blurry vision gradually became clear. She looked at Lu Yu, who was close to her with wrinkled brows and a tense face. She was stunned for a moment and asked, "What's wrong with you?"

Lu Yu stared into her eyes seriously, and seeing that her eyes still had the same expression as before, he breathed a sigh of relief, hugged her tightly and asked, "Who did you dream about?"

Jiang Nian felt a little guilty, and hesitated for a moment before saying, "Maybe Today is the anniversary of Xu Cheng's death. I dreamed that he came to see me. "

Lu Yu didn't say anything, but hugged Jiang Nian tightly and hard, with such a force that he wanted to embed her into his bones, so that she would be compatible with his bones and blood, and no one could take her away. He regretted that he shouldn't have listened to Jiang Nian's words and took her back to her hometown. After Jiang Nian fell asleep, he didn't dare to close his eyes, for fear that she would do the same thing as last time, but he didn't expect that she would repeat the same mistake.

Thinking of Jiang Nian's numb expression in her sleep just now, and calling Xu Cheng's name in her mouth, Lu Yu wanted to take Jiang Nian away from here overnight.

"I'm fine."

Jiang Nian lay in Lu Yu's arms, feeling the man's tense muscles and his pounding heartbeat. She reached out and hugged Lu Yu's thin waist, patting his tense back: "I just had a nightmare, it's okay."

"Jiang Nian"

Lu Yu kissed Jiang Nian on the head, his voice hoarse and difficult: "Promise me that you will come back alone in the future."

Jiang Nian said slowly: "Okay."

It was dawn now, and Jiang Nian was no longer sleepy. She wanted to get up, but Lu Yu held her tightly and refused to let go. He didn't let her go until a long time later and kissed her on the lips: "Don't sleep, stay with me in the yard."

He was afraid that Jiang Nian would behave strangely again after falling asleep.

Jiang Nian nodded: "I'm not sleepy anymore."

She and Lu Yu got up, put on their clothes and went to the yard. Jiang Nian washed up and went to the kitchen to cook. Lu Yu went to take care of his father-in-law's rooftop. She sat in front of the stove to light the fire, and then walked to the chopping board to cut vegetables. She thought of the four words that she saw "Jiang Nian" typed in her dream.

"We all want?"

What do we all want?

Jiang Nian thought for a long time but couldn't figure out what was behind it. It wasn't until Zhao Gang's voice rang out from outside the yard that Jiang Nian came back to her senses. She looked down and saw that the cabbage in her hand was cut into a mess.

Jiang Nian: ...

Fortunately, I didn't cut my hand.

Zhao Gang came to help Lu Yu. Today, the father-in-law's house and kitchen need to be renovated. When Jiang Nian was about to make pastries, he asked Zhao Gang to call his wife over. Zhao Gang's wife stared at Jiang Nian without blinking, watching what Jiang Nian was doing. When she saw how skillfully she made a ball of dough into flower-like pastries, she exclaimed: "Your hands are really skillful."

Jiang Nian smiled and said: "This It 's very simple, just keep doing it."

After the pastry was done, Zhao Gang's wife also learned some simple ones, and she couldn't do the more complicated ones. At lunch time, everyone in the village came back from the brigade's field, and there was no one on the road. Jiang Nian put some freshly made pastries in the basket and covered it with a cloth, and went to the cowshed alone with a small basket.

She was a widow in the village, and no one cared where she was.

Jiang Nian passed by the educated youth site and saw the female educated youth cooking and the male educated youth fetching water from the well, with a clear division of labor. The

educated youth also saw Jiang Nian, and several of them whispered, "Is this the woman from last year?"

"It seems so. She is the prettiest and best dressed in the whole village."

Another female educated youth said, "I know who she is."

"Who?"

The female educated youth said, "She is a young widow in our brigade. I heard from some old ladies today that she has been following her brother-in-law outside for many years and just came back yesterday. I heard that her brother-in-law is an official in the army."

Several people sighed. So

what if she is a widow? Not only is she beautiful, but her brother-in-law is also an official. She will definitely be able to marry into a good family in the future. Unlike them, they can only stay here, working hard every day, and they don’t know when it will end.

Jiang Nian went to the cowshed and just caught up with the old professor to make lunch.

She put the cakes on the old professor’s plate, chatted with him for a few words, and left. Jiang Nian hurried back to the brigade and bought some meat, preparing to cook a good meal to invite Aunt Zhao and her family to come over.

The team leader saw Jiang Nian coming out of the commune and smiled: "Did you come back with your brother-in-law?"

Jiang Nian nodded and smiled: "Yeah."

"Hey, Jiang Nian, you're back?"

The team leader's wife also ran over, and with her there were a few other women. They were holding sickles and looked like they had just come back from the fields. Their clothes were covered in dirt. Jiang Nian frowned and politely called everyone "Auntie".

The captain's wife said, "People who have been outside are different. Not only are they prettier, but they also talk more. They look much better than before. Jiang Nian, you are good now. Don't stay at home all day like before. It will make you depressed."

Jiang Nian smiled and said, "I know, auntie."

The captain's wife saw Jiang Nian like this and became suspicious. She was about to ask her if she wanted to remarry, but the captain stopped her and said to Jiang Nian, "What are you talking about?" It's time for lunch. Are you going to buy something to cook?"

Jiang Nian smiled and said, "Yes."

The captain asked her to go back and cook. After everyone left, he turned around and scolded his wife, "Don't even think about letting Jiang Nian marry your nephew. Look at your nephew and Jiang Nian. Besides, his brother-in-law is the head of the regiment now. Can he look down on your lazy nephew?"

The captain's wife: ...

She didn't say anything yet, but her husband pushed her back.

In the end, she snorted, "What does it have to do with her remarriage that her brother-in-law is the head of the regiment? They are not real uncles and sisters-in-law. How much control can he have?"

The captain said, "I'm too lazy to talk to you." He turned around and left.

The women who were with the captain's wife didn't say anything, and went home one after another with sickles.

The nephew of the captain's wife is famous for being lazy and greedy. He looks handsome, but what's the use of that? He can't be eaten, and only she, as an aunt, treats her nephew as a treasure.

When Jiang Nian returned, Zhao Gang had already left. Lu Yu was cleaning the yard. After cleaning the yard, he sprinkled some water on the ground and pressed the dust. After finishing, the two of them cleaned up the house. Today is Xu Cheng's death anniversary. Lu Yu didn't want Jiang Nian to get close to Xu Cheng again. He went to the grave to burn some paper money for Xu Cheng and his son, and talked to them for a while before coming back.

Jiang Nian went to the stove room to work at sunset.

There was not enough firewood, so Lu Yu chopped it in the yard and carried it to the stove to make a fire.

The brigade didn't have much, but there were fish and chicken. Jiang Nian stewed a chicken, made braised fish, fried a few side dishes, and steamed rice. When the rice was almost ready, Lu Yu went to Aunt Zhao's house to call them.

The table in the yard was not big, so Lu Yu moved Aunt Zhao's table over and put it together. Aunt Zhao could smell the rich aroma of rice in their house. Zhao Gang and his wife could smell it too. As soon as they entered the house, the three of them started eating. Aunt Zhao said, "Jiang Nian, we have been neighbors for so many years. This is the first time I know that your cooking is so delicious. I am drooling."

Zhao Gang also said, "The cakes made by my sister-in-law are so delicious!" "It smells better."

Jiang Nian smiled and said, "If you think it smells better, eat more."

She and Lu Yu brought the food to the table. Aunt Zhao's family looked at the rich fish and meat, and blinked their eyes. They were all a little spoiled. Even during the Chinese New Year, they couldn't eat a chicken. At most, they could eat some minced meat. They immediately thought that Lu Laoer must be a high-ranking official and earn a lot of money and tickets, otherwise how could he afford so much meat.

Aunt Zhao glanced at Jiang Nian with a smile on her face, and felt that she was destined to suffer first and then enjoy happiness. She

had a hard life in the first half of her life, but fortunately she had a brother-in-law to take care of her, so that she was getting better and better.

Several people sat at the dinner table, and Lu Yu asked, "Where is my uncle?"

Aunt Zhao said, "He went to the county with the brigade's tractor and will not be back until midnight. Let's ignore him."

Jiang Nian also cooked a bowl of soup. Lu Yu went to the stove to get the soup and brought it to the table. Zhao Gang's wife looked at the table full of food. She was almost crying.

Who in the village can eat so much meat in one meal?

Not even the brigade leader.

Zhao Gang brought a bottle of wine from home to drink with Lu Yu. Aunt Zhao ate a few bites of food before asking, "By the way, Lu Lao Er, what do you want to tell us?"

Jiang Nian paused while picking up the food and didn't say anything.

Lu Yu finished a sip of wine, reached out and held Jiang Nian's hand, and in the shocked eyes of Aunt Zhao's family, he said: "Aunt Zhao, Jiang Nian and I are married."