Chapter 26
The food was set on the table, and the entire Liu family was present except for their married daughter.
The meal was plentiful, with fish and meat, showing that the Liu family was happy to entertain them.
Every time they came, the Liu family would prepare a delicious meal to entertain them, so Chen Jingbai and Chen Jingyi were very grateful.
The Liu family is generally kind, but there are exceptions, such as the youngest son, Liu Jianjun.
Just as Chen Jingbai was about to pick up a piece of bamboo shoot, Liu Jianjun, who was sitting opposite him, immediately reached out with his chopsticks and snatched it away, looking at Chen Jingbai provocatively.
Chen Jingbai didn't care about such petty tricks. Every time he came to the Liu family, Liu Jianjun would do the same thing, even after Liu Shanhua and Wang Fengshu had tried to teach him.
Seeing Liu Jianjun acting this way again, Liu Shanhua immediately frowned and angrily scolded Liu Jianjun: "Liu Jianjun, what do you want to do? There are so many dishes, aren't they enough for you? Didn't you see Jing Bai picking them up? Why are you grabbing them? You have no manners."
Liu Shanhua's biggest headache is this son. He's like a hooligan, and he doesn't know where he picked up these bad habits from. With Liu Jianjun causing trouble for him everywhere, his prestige in the team has dropped considerably.
Liu Jianjun retorted, "It's my family's food, why can't I eat it?"
His father only knows how to be nice to outsiders, I don't know what kind of bewitching potion he's given them. He usually just tells them not to associate with bad people, but he himself is doing the opposite, bringing that stinking intellectual home with him.
Liu Jianjun glared angrily at Chen Jingbai: "He insisted on taking it from me."
So what if she has a pretty face? How dare she try to steal his food?
If it weren't for his good looks, how could Xiaofen have possibly fallen for him? Thinking back to that afternoon when Xiaofen told him to get lost and stop bothering her, he got angry. She even said she liked Chen Jingbai, the educated youth, who was cultured and refined, far better than him.
Liu Jianjun clenched his fist. So what if he looks like a pretty boy? His family is already considered lowly, how could Xiao Fen possibly be interested in him?
Chen Jingbai was no match for him. His father was the brigade leader, who was the most powerful and influential person in the brigade. His mother was also the brigade doctor, and everyone would turn to her when they were sick.
Xiao Fen just doesn't understand. What's the use of being good-looking if you can't eat your fill? If you can eat your fill, you won't have to come to his house every few days to freeload.
"What did you say, you brat? Say it again if you dare!" Liu Shanhua suddenly stood up and took away Liu Jianjun's bowl. "Don't eat tonight. What kind of behavior is this, always acting so irresponsibly?"
Ya Ya and Le Le, who were sitting obediently eating, were startled by their grandfather's sudden outburst of anger and froze in place, even forgetting to chew the meat in their mouths.
The bowls had all been taken away. Liu Jianjun was furious that his father only knew how to protect outsiders. He stood up abruptly, kicked the chair away, and said, "Fine, I won't eat then."
Wang Fengshu was also troubled by her youngest son's behavior. He was the most unsteady in the family, even less so than Lele and Yaya, who were only a few years old.
"Alright, Shanhua, sit down and eat first. Let's ignore him." Wang Fengshu smoothed things over. "Xiaobai and Xiaoyi, you two should eat too. Don't mind him. Jianjun is just like that. I'm sorry you had to see him like this today."
Chen Jingyi's furrowed brows relaxed again. "It's alright."
She knew that Liu Jianjun looked down on them, but this was the first time she had ever seen them act so undignifiedly.
She took a deep breath and decided to visit the Liu family less often in the future.
Liu Shanhua had completely lost face because of Liu Jianjun. He looked at Chen Jingbai and Chen Jingyi apologetically and said, "Listen to your aunt. Don't worry about Jianjun. If you run into Jianjun in the brigade and he bullies you, just come to your uncle. I will definitely teach him a lesson."
Chen Jingbai didn't say anything, though he was unhappy inside, he still put on a friendly smile.
Chen Jingyi: "We didn't know we'd met Jianjun. Jianjun has never bullied us, so you can rest assured, Uncle."
Chen Jingbai nodded in agreement, indicating that he did not.
Liu Shanhua breathed a sigh of relief. Jianjun was so targeting Chen Jingbai, and his biggest worry was that he might bully him in private. If his own child bullied them in a place he didn't know about, he would have no face to face the Chen couple.
A perfectly good meal was ruined by Liu Jianjun.
When Chen Jingbai and Chen Jingyi left, Wang Fengshu packed them some dried sweet potatoes and bamboo shoots that her family had dried at home.
They couldn't refuse, so they had to accept it. After they left, the Liu family erupted in the crackling sound of bamboo strips being used to stir-fry meat.
Liu Shanhua held a thin bamboo stick, which was originally used by the eldest brother to beat up the disobedient Lele.
He hadn't used a bamboo stick to beat his child in years, but this time Liu Jianjun really angered him, and his family couldn't stop him.
As Liu Shanhua beat you, he said, "Does your family lack food? Why do you have to steal the food that Jing Bai is offering? I haven't beaten you in so long, are you itching for a beating now?"
"Tell me now, why are you targeting Jing Bai? You've raised such a reckless son, are you trying to drive your father crazy?"
Liu Shanhua was used to farm work and had served in the army carrying guns and cannons. Even though he was old, he was still very strong. Liu Jianjun couldn't dodge him, and even if he did, he would be beaten down by him without any chance to fight back.
The thin bamboo sticks hurt the most when used to beat someone. Liu Jianjun's body was covered with deep and shallow marks, and he could only cry and admit his mistake: "Father, I was wrong, I was really wrong. I shouldn't have taken Chen Jingbai's food. I just don't like him."
“His family are bad elements. Father, how can you keep inviting them to our house for meals? What will the people in the village say about us? They will say that we are standing with bad elements.”
Liu Shanhua's eyes widened, and he paused, stopping his hand from swinging the bamboo stick: "You... how did you know?"
Liu Jianjun covered his mouth, realizing he had let something slip, and refused to say anything more.
Liu Shanhua was not easily fooled; he was coerced into revealing his true identity with just a few words.
Liu Jianjun: "I peeked at it. I saw it at the brigade headquarters. You didn't lock the drawer properly, so I saw their files."
Liu Shanhua: "Did you tell anyone?"
Liu Jianjun shook his head vigorously. If his father found out that he had told the educated youth, he would be finished.
He dared not make a fuss in the brigade, for fear that someone would find out that his family was in contact with bad elements. But the educated youth were all from the city, and who knew which family might have bad elements.
Besides, the educated youth were all in the same boat, so they certainly wouldn't talk about it outside. Even if they were unhappy with Chen Jingbai and the others being bad elements, they would only target them internally.
So that day he met a female educated youth who was quite pretty and charming. He heard that her family was very wealthy and she was dressed better than the other educated youth.
He casually walked up to the female educated youth and then inadvertently revealed that Chen Jingbai's family had a bad class background and that his grandparents had been sent down to the Northwest.
Liu Jianjun was terrified and dared not look at Liu Shanhua.
Liu Shanhua looked at Liu Jianjun suspiciously: "Really not?"
Liu Jianjun said no, he believed it, and he hadn't heard any rumors in the brigade saying that Chen Jingbai and Chen Jingyi were bad elements.
"I'm telling you, you're not that stupid. You have to keep this to yourself. Don't say a word. If I hear even a whisper of it in the brigade, I'll break your legs."
He didn't tell the younger generation in the Chen family about the matter; he only told Wang Fengshu.
Liu Shanhua pondered and felt that he could no longer keep this matter from the younger generation in his family. He had to tell them clearly that the Chen family had been kind to his family, so that no one would do anything foolish in the future.
Liu Jianjun said repeatedly, feeling wronged, "I didn't say that. I will never bully Chen Jingbai again. Father, I was wrong."
Liu Shanhua put down the bamboo stick and looked at her good-for-nothing son. "Your mother has heated up your food. Come out and eat in a bit."
Liu Jianjun was clutching his buttocks, thinking he would have to go to bed hungry and in pain, feeling wronged, when suddenly his mother left him some food.
Liu Shanhua: "Hurry up and finish eating, I have something to tell you."
Liu Jianjun didn't dare to delay. He limped and hopped to the woodshed and wolfed down his meal.
Apart from the youngest daughters, Ya Ya and Le Le, and the second daughter who had married out of the family, they all sat upright, waiting for the serious Liu Shanhua to speak.
“I haven’t told you before, but I often invite Jing Bai and Jing Yi to my house for meals because their family has been kind to me. Without their family, where would I be, and where would you be?”
Liu Shanhua began to recount the past in a rambling manner. After he finished speaking, apart from Wang Fengshu, who already knew the inside story, the other three members of the Liu family were all stunned on the spot.
Liu Shanhua: "I will repay this kindness myself. I don't need your help. Just remember that the Chen family has given us a second life."
Liu Jianjun was dumbfounded. His father had never told them about the past. In his mind, his father had always been an omnipotent and great figure.
Only now did he realize that his father had been so poor, and that his life had been saved by Chen Jingbai's grandparents.
Wang Fengshu: "You should listen to your father, especially Jianjun. Get along well with Xiaobai."
Liu Jianjun nodded blankly, and inadvertently blurted out what was on his mind: "As long as he doesn't try to take Xiaofen from me."
Wang Fengshu rubbed her forehead. So that's what Jianjun wanted to talk about. "You say such awful things, do you think you're a hooligan? Xiaobai and she don't even know each other. If you keep acting recklessly, not only Xiaofen, but Xiaohua and Xiaofang won't like you either."
Xiao Fen is a pretty good girl, hardworking and capable, and also quite pretty. If Jianjun can really win her over, he'll be incredibly lucky.
"If you like someone, be more reliable and stop being lazy. With your lazy and undisciplined attitude, no one will want you."
When the eldest son of the Liu family heard that his younger brother was pursuing Xiaofen, he couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Liu Jianjun was unconvinced, and when he heard the eldest brother laughing, he turned his anger towards him, saying, "What are you laughing at?"
The eldest son of the Liu family said, "I wasn't laughing at anything. Mom said a lot. Just focus on yourself and don't keep targeting Jing Bai because of this."
Liu Jianjun: "Xiao Fen said he likes Chen Jingbai, so I didn't make any wrong moves."
Wang Fengshu: "Really? Did Xiaofen tell you that herself?"
Liu Jianjun, looking disheveled, said, "It's true, she told me herself this afternoon."
Liu Shanhua didn't want to hear about these private matters between the children, so he interrupted, "Alright, I won't interfere if you want to talk about these things. You two talk, I'm going out first. Jianjun, you're not allowed to bully Xiaobai. If I find out, you're not eating at home anymore."
Liu Jianjun was unwilling, but he couldn't withstand Liu Shanhua's authority and stubbornly agreed in a low voice: "I won't bully him."
After Liu Shanhua left, the others stayed behind, wanting to hear about the love-hate relationship between the younger brother and the girl.
Wang Fengshu looked at her useless son and said, "She told you that she didn't like Xiao Bai at all."
Liu Jianjun: "He didn't say."
This is the first time Wang Fengshu has met her son who he likes. He never went on blind dates she used to arrange, but this time he has someone he likes, so she has to make arrangements.
“Xiao Fen’s father will definitely not agree to Xiao Fen marrying an educated youth from another place. If you really like him, then behave well and let him know that you are a person who can live a good life.”
"Really?" Liu Jianjun's hope flickered. That's right, how come he hadn't thought of that? No family in the brigade wanted their daughters to marry educated youth.
Wang Fengshu shared her experience with her son, and even Liu Jianjun's eldest son and daughter-in-law took turns giving him advice.
Time flies. Wang Fengshu's advice to Liu Jianjun proved useful, and Liu Jianjun's sweetheart, Xiaofen, grew closer to him.
As September drew to a close, the educated youth, after a month of rest, looked much more radiant.
It was the height of the afternoon sun when Uncle Liu pulled his oxcart, which was carrying two people, and stopped in front of the educated youth settlement.
Uncle Liu shouted loudly, "New educated youth have arrived! Come out and make arrangements!"
Half a month ago, the brigade leader told them that new educated youth would come before the autumn harvest. No one expected them to come so soon, as there were still at least two weeks until the harvest.
Zhao Dechuan came out first after hearing the noise.
Among the educated youth who came, one was a man and the other was a woman. The man was handsome and the woman was beautiful.
Others gradually came out, greeting each other, and the boys offered to help them with their luggage.
He He stood beside Chen Jingbai and paused when she heard the man introduce him as Gu Yuanzhou, who was from the capital.
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