Chapter 83 New Year Greetings
The next morning, there was a knock on Jiang Zhao's door.
Jiang Zhao chatted with Luo Yan until very late yesterday and has not yet come to his senses.
But the knocking was so loud that it was disturbing. She struggled to get out of bed, walked to the door with sleepy eyes, and asked, "Who is it?"
Someone outside called out, "Excuse me, is this the Jiang family?"
Jiang Zhao opened the door.
Standing outside the door was a strange middle-aged man, followed by a slightly younger man, who was carrying large and small bags of things. Jiang Zhao saw cigarettes and alcohol among them at a glance.
The man was dressed in a suit and tie. Seeing Jiang Zhao, he smiled and said, "Oh, this is Miss Jiang, you are so beautiful."
Jiang Zhao glanced down at his stuffed dinosaur pajamas and didn't move. "Who are you?"
"Oh, I'm your Uncle Li. I'm looking for Mr. Jiang. Is your father here?"
Jiang Zhao understood.
To build relationships.
She was about to say he was not in when Jiang Wei came back with the breakfast he had just bought.
When the man saw Jiang Wei, he immediately stepped forward eagerly, wanting to shake his hand: "Mr. Jiang, Happy New Year!"
Jiang Wei glanced at the newcomer, his face irritated: "It's New Year's Day, there's nothing to talk about. Let's talk about it when we get back to work."
The visitor showed no embarrassment at being rejected: "Mr. Jiang, since we are all from the same hometown, giving me a chance is also for the development of our county."
The man began to wave the flag.
Jiang Zhao loosened the door and signaled to Jiang Wei: It's your problem, you solve it.
When she went to wash up, she heard the knock on the door again.
When she changed her clothes and came out, the visitor in the living room had changed.
Jiang Zhao had no interest in these social interactions. She put on her bag and put on her headphones: "Dad, I'm going out for a while."
"Oh, okay." Jiang Wei replied, "Have you had breakfast?"
"I'll go out to eat by myself."
Jiang Zhao left the community and wandered around the street.
There are a lot fewer vendors today than yesterday.
I walked down a street before I came across a breakfast shop that was open.
It's a bun shop.
It’s a very small shop, and apart from the steamer and chopping board, it can only accommodate one person.
Tables and chairs were set up outside on the sidewalk.
On the nearby sidewalks, only the snow in front of the store was cleared.
The owner of the shop is an old lady with white hair and wearing a dark red apron. In front of the shop, a girl who looks about eight or nine years old, probably her granddaughter, is wearing a cotton jacket and sitting on a mat doing homework.
Jiang Zhao ordered two buns, one meat and one vegetable, and a bowl of soy milk, which the old lady brought to her quickly.
The buns have thin skin and large fillings, are white and plump, look very festive, and are very cheap.
Jiang Zhao could taste it after taking a bite. She had the impression that Li Xiuying seemed to often buy her buns from this shop.
Winters in Tong'an County are often dark and cold.
Children don’t get enough sleep, so Jiang Zhao is often pulled out of bed by Li Xiuying while he is half asleep. Li Xiuying puts on his clothes, washes up, and sits at the dining table while he is still dating Zhou Gong.
He didn't come to his senses until he ate a hot bun.
Jiang Zhao asked, "Grandma, why are you still open during the New Year?"
The old lady moved a small stool and sat next to her granddaughter, smiling: "There's nothing to do at home."
Perhaps she felt that this was too sad, so she added, "If I don't set up a stall, where will you eat?"
Jiang Zhao smiled and said, "It's very delicious."
"Look at me, this old woman's craftsmanship is pretty good." The old lady said, "Girl, I see you're not from this place, you're tall and fair-skinned, you look like you're from a big city."
"Yes, I am. I came back to celebrate the New Year."
The old lady understood: "Go to school in a big city. It's better to go to school outside."
She said, touching the little girl's head: "We will also go to school in a big city in the future."
The girl was concentrating on doing her homework. Her face was black and red, and her nose was running from the cold. Even with fingerless gloves on, her hands were still red from the cold.
Grandma looked at the girl with loving eyes. Jiang Zhao did not ask her why she didn't let the little girl do her homework at home.
After finishing her breakfast, she stood up and asked, "Grandma, how much is it?"
"Four dollars, four dollars."
Jiang Zhao looked at the wall of the shop and saw no QR code.
She took out a hundred-dollar bill from her pocket.
The old woman was in a dilemma: "I can't find it. Oh, forget it, I'll treat you as my grandmother."
"Okay, thank you grandma, happy new year." Jiang Zhao said, passing by the little girl and stuffing the money into her arms: "Happy New Year, lucky money."
Jiang Zhao put the money down and ran away.
The old man and the young boy couldn't catch up with her at all.
Jiang Zhao ran for a distance and came to the intersection where there were several stalls selling fireworks or paper money still operating.
She stopped in front of a paper money stall.
After a while, she carried two bags of paper money and walked towards the cemetery.
There is no crematorium in Tong'an County, and most people still believe that the dead should be buried in peace.
Therefore, the nearby mountains became a cemetery.
People in the county town usually didn't choose a cemetery too far away. They would just enclose a piece of land and bury the dead. They didn't have to worry about running out of space. After a decade or two, when the person buried in the mound had been forgotten, wind and rain had worn away the mound, and the grass had covered it, it might be dug up again to place the next coffin.
Jiang Zhao followed his memory and walked towards the cemetery.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, she met several groups of people on the dirt road, all of whom were holding paper money and were silent.
Not long after walking, Jiang Zhao saw a very conspicuous concrete wall.
It's their family's cemetery.
She walked over quickly.
There are five tombs inside.
The one on the outside belongs to her mother.
Behind them are Jiang Zhao’s grandma and grandpa.
Jiang Zhao didn't recognize the names after that.
Those are Jiang Wei’s grandparents.
There are tributes and flowers in front of each grave mound. They look very fresh and must have been placed there just in the past two days.
In the iron basin in front, the ashes from the burning paper money had not yet accumulated snow.
Jiang Zhao knelt down, kowtowed several times, lit the paper money he brought, and threw it in one by one.
More than half an hour later, she got up and walked out.
As soon as we walked out of the mountains, a car stopped.
The back window rolled down, and a strange little girl called out, "Sister Jiang."
Jiang Zhao was wondering who it was when the woman in the driver's seat said, "Zhao Zhao."
It’s Zhou Lihua.
"Auntie Zhou, Happy New Year."
Zhou Lihua said, "Zhao Zhao, are you alone?"
Jiang Zhao nodded: "My dad has something to do."
Zhou Lihua: "Get in the car, I'll take you home."
Jiang Zhao didn't refuse and she sat in the back seat.
The little girl in the back row looked at her curiously. Jiang Zhao smiled and said, "This is Niuniu, right?"
Zhou Lihua said, "She named her Zhou Lingyi herself."
The girl looked at Zhou Lihua angrily.
Jiang Zhao said: "Niuniu and Zhou Lingyi are both very nice."
Niuniu, no, Zhou Lingyi just started laughing.
Zhou Lihua: "Zhao Zhao, can I take you home? I just wanted to go to your house to wish you a happy new year today."
Jiang Zhao said helplessly: "Aunt Zhou, my house is quite lively today."
Zhou Lihua understood, and she said, "Okay, then I won't bother you today. I'll come back to wish you a happy new year when I get home in a few days."
As she said that, she stepped on the accelerator.
Beside them, Zhou Lingyi finally asked, "Sister Jiang, is Mingyuan No. 1 Middle School good?"
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