Chapter 35 Chapter 35 The small persimmon is yellow and astringent
The sky gradually turned into a warm orange.
The fruit trees in the blue brick courtyard swayed gently in the breeze, and the small flower buds bloomed like stars.
It's dinner time in the countryside, smoke curls up from the kitchen, and the air is filled with the faint aroma of food.
The workers drove the collective cattle and sheep back to the pen leisurely, and occasionally the voices calling children could be heard.
The gray-tailed magpie seemed to know that something happy was happening here, and it flapped its wings and chirped. Qingmei planned to entertain the messenger of good news well.
"I won't feed it!" Zhao Xiaoxing put the half bowl of corn bran that Qingmei gave her back on the stove, and quickly closed the window in front of the stove before the magpie flew nearby.
Qingmei was heating up the leftover food in the pot from lunch. Since there was no refrigerator at this time, it was absolutely forbidden to eat leftover food.
"Why not?" Qingmei raised her chin and said, "Then you heat up the food and I'll go feed you."
Qingmei picked up the bowl and was about to leave when Zhao Xiaoxing stopped her: "You're in cahoots with me, go out and get yourself killed."
Qingmei said in confusion: "I just feed the magpies."
Zhao Xiaoxing tugged at Qingmei's arm with a mournful look on her face and said, "What kind of magpie is that? It's a fighting chicken, a giant fighting pheasant at that!"
Seeing the humiliated look on her face, Qingmei asked tentatively, "Is there a grudge?"
Zhao Xiaoxing said: "I made a fortune during the holidays. I dug out and demolished all their nests."
Qingmei suddenly understood that Zhao Xiaoxing used to like to dig holes in trees when she was hungry. After digging out people's winter food, she wanted to dig out bird eggs. This was no big deal, just for the holidays.
However, when Zhao Xiaoxing saw the gray-tailed magpie coming, she was so scared that she shrank her neck. This was indeed a bit exaggerated.
Qingmei is doubtful.
Seeing that she was still holding her bowl, Zhao Xiaoxing said angrily, "You don't believe it, right? I'm going out now to show you how vengeful that pheasant is."
Zhao Xiaoxing walked to the door, lifted her clothes from behind to cover her head, then opened the door and ran out quickly.
Qingmei was lying on the window watching. At first, the gray-tailed magpie didn't see Zhao Xiaoxing come out, and was still asking Qingmei for corn bran.
After hearing the sound, it flapped its wings and took off with a snap, chasing after Zhao Xiaoxing.
Qingmei didn't know why Zhao Xiaoxing hugged the back of her head. Later, when she saw a gray-tailed magpie chasing Zhao Xiaoxing and pecking at the back of her head, pecking it to death, she finally understood why Zhao Xiaoxing had a bald spot on the back of her head...it turned out that the magpie had taken away all the hair.
Zhao Xiaoxing ran a few steps, screamed twice, and ran back.
Gu Qingzhou, who was talking to his grandmother in the room, came out and saw Zhao Xiaoxing being chased and pestered by a big magpie. He opened the door and walked out quickly, reached out and grabbed the gray-tailed magpie in mid-air and pressed it to the ground.
Zhao Xiaoxing was so scared that her eyeballs almost popped out. The blood feud between generations of gray-tailed magpies made it flap its wings and squawk desperately even when being held down by Gu Qingzhou.
"Watch your hands."
Qingmei wanted to laugh but didn't dare to. Just as she was about to go out to help, she looked up and saw countless gray-tailed magpies flying in the air. They were hovering in groups above Gu Qingzhou's head, ready to attack at any time.
Qingmei completely taught Zhao Xiaoxing what it means to put love before friendship.
Seeing that Gu Qingzhou was about to be attacked, she no longer stood by the window trying to hold back her laughter, but grabbed the fire poker and rushed out, swinging the stick with such momentum that it was like a dragon emerging from the sea.
However, the magpies were unable to attack, so they started smashing the shit.
Qingmei was stunned and almost got hit.
Gu Qingzhou didn't want to fight any longer, and quickly returned to the house with Qingmei in one hand.
Zhao Xiaoxing had no one to take care of her, so she covered her head and ran into the house in a panic.
At this time, Xiaoyan ran out and greeted her with an umbrella. She was so moved that she was about to cry.
Back in the house, the gray-tailed magpie that Gu Qingzhou had just caught took the opportunity to fly away.
Everyone sat on the kang, looking at each other. Only Zhao Xiaoxing was hit by bird droppings. She went to change her clothes with a sad face, and everyone burst into laughter.
Zhao Xiaoxing was actually a little embarrassed because she was so hungry at that time.
Later, she became so aggressive that the gray-tailed magpies remembered her. Whenever they came to Donghe Village, they would attack her collectively. If they didn't peck anywhere else, they would peck at the back of her head.
"Pot!" Qingmei ran out in her slippers, luckily nothing happened.
Qingmei heated up the dishes and there was still a lot left. The few of them ate all the meat dishes and felt full.
It was getting dark, and after washing the pots and dishes, there was still some time before going to bed.
After dinner, Mrs. Fang came over with her little jar. She had forgotten to ask during the day, so when she came over, she sat on the sofa across from the kang and asked, "Have you set a date for your wedding?"
Qingmei held the red-skinned quotations of great men in her hand and said happily, "We both think National Day is a good day. But he has military activities on National Day, so we'll set the wedding date on October 2nd."
Mrs. Fang said, "October 2nd is a good date. It's cooler in October, and it's a perfect and auspicious date. Two also represents pairs. I think there's no better date than October 2nd."
Qingmei smiled with joy. You see, people who really want to congratulate you will say nice and heartwarming words no matter what.
Zhao Wuhe drank too much at noon and was snoring at the end of the kang.
In the evening, when everyone had eaten, she slowly sat up amid the sound of people talking.
Gu Qingzhou poured her some tea. Zhao Wuhe rubbed her face and sighed, "I'm getting old after all. Today I'm drinking like this with my own people. On the wedding day, when the leaders of the army come, I won't dare to drink a single sip."
Gu Qingzhou meant that a wedding should have a master of ceremonies and witnesses. He planned to invite Commander Wang and Political Commissar Chen...if Political Commissar Chen was willing, they could help officiate the ceremony.
There were also his comrades and a group of his subordinates, all of whom drank like water. There were also close friends from Beijing and Shanghai, and other comrades from local professions. It was a rare gathering, so naturally, there would be wine.
Having said this, Zhao Wuhe's face darkened.
She had a troubled relationship with Gu Qingzhou's father, who had been stationed abroad as a commander for many years. He had returned to the Beijing compound two years ago. For years, the two had been estranged, each pretending the other didn't exist. It had gotten to the point where even their children wouldn't tell the other about their relationship.
The two elders never told the younger generation the specific reason.
If Gu Qingzhou’s father doesn’t come, then forget it.
When he was young, Gu Qingzhou's father was like this. He would never be able to return when something happened at home, and he would always be busy with work.
When she gave birth to Gu Qingzhou, she was struggling on the edge of life, and he was not there. Even if she knew that he had a mission, she could not help but feel a knot in her heart.
However, Gu Qingzhou's elder brother and sister-in-law did not come today, but just asked someone to remit 200 yuan, which made Zhao Wuhe feel depressed.
"What mission did your elder brother go on?" Zhao Wuhe would not normally ask this, but she asked today because she really couldn't stand it anymore.
Gu Qingzhou sat on the single sofa across from him and looked up and said, "It needs to be kept secret. But in half a month, when he... is transferred back, I can arrange for you to meet."
Zhao Wuhe rubbed her temples and said, "If he asks you to get married, will you go?"
Gu Qingzhou looked at Qingmei, and Qingmei interrupted him with a knowing look, "The wedding is still four months away, and my brother is a soldier, so how can he be sure?"
Zhao Wuhe said: "Your elder brother can't come, and your elder sister-in-law won't come either. Isn't this just like..." It's just like in her previous life when she was sick in bed and no one cared about her.
Qingmei smiled and said, "When it comes to engagements, the elders are always present to decide the date. How can my future uncles and sisters-in-law be there to dictate things? They're happy to talk, but I don't like to listen."
That’s a good point. It’s not that they don’t want to come, it’s that I don’t want them to come.
Qingmei hit the nail on the head with her words, and after she finished speaking, Zhao Wuhe's expression looked a little better than before.
"Okay, as long as you two are fine, I'll be at ease." Zhao Wuhe got up from the kang and planned to wash her face. She walked to the door and turned to ask Gu Qingzhou: "Hasn't the marriage report been approved yet?"
Gu Qingzhou realized that his mother was even more anxious than he was about getting Qingmei registered in the Gu family household. He smiled and said, "The military has a procedure for political review, which usually takes fifteen to thirty days."
Grandma said from the kang: "Once it's approved, take the certificate first."
Qingmei and Gu Qingzhou also meant the same thing. It didn't matter whether they took it early or late. But I was still curious about why Grandma said that: "Why are you so anxious?"
Grandma looked into the yard with a stern face. Seeing that no one was around, she lowered her voice and said, "It's because you're shameless. I was afraid that if you two didn't have a marriage certificate, people would mistake you for hooligans and arrest you."
It’s better not to ask about childhood sweethearts.
"Hahaha, you're not ashamed of being in a relationship!"
Zhao Xiaoxing had just been laughed at by Qingmei, and now Qingmei was so embarrassed that her thighs were almost blue from slapping her.
That's the end of the matter.
After a while, Xiaoyan finished her study and came over with a box of biscuits.
Mrs. Fang had been silent until now, but now she said cheerfully, "What are you going to do?"
Xiaoyan opened the biscuit box on the coffee table, and it was full of collected candy wrappers.
Mrs. Fang saw that there was a thin iron wire in addition to the candy wrappers, and knew that Xiaoyan wanted to hang it up as a rolling door curtain.
"The weather is going to get hot, and there will be mosquitoes. We've taken precautions in advance." Xiaoyan sat down next to Mrs. Fang and began to roll up the door curtain.
When Qingmei saw this, she also went down to help.
"You have saved up a lot of candy wrappers." Mrs. Fang sighed.
Some people use rolled-up newspapers, others use rolled-up plastic wrappers, but none of these are as beautiful as the colorful candy wrappers. Candy wrappers are the hardest to collect. What kind of family could possibly have so many candy wrappers? They'd eat up all the candy wrappers in the house.
Qingmei grabbed a handful of candy wrappers, which contained not only White Rabbit candies, but also shrimp candies, banana candies, red shrimp candies, etc.
Xiaoyan said softly, "It's not just me who saved it. Xiaogang also gave me a lot. The banana candies and red shrimp cakes here were all given by him."
Aside from his brain issues, Xiao Gang was good in every other way, especially in his popularity. Whenever there was a wedding, everyone would happily give him a handful of wedding candy. He would keep it and eat it slowly, even cherishing the candy wrappers like treasures.
Mrs. Fang said, "He loves you the most and treasures these candy wrappers like they're his own. If you don't have enough, just ask him for more. He's been saving them for two or three years and I've never seen him use them. Last time, he even refused to give me the door curtain when I asked for it."
Qingmei asked foolishly, "Hey, then he's really nice to Xiaoyan."
"Well, we are friends." Xiaoyan thought for a moment and said, "I didn't take his candy wrapper for nothing. I promised to make him a fake collar."
Mrs. Fang was so amused: "He still wants to wear a fake collar? His brother-in-law doesn't even have two fake collars. Don't listen to his nonsense, sometimes he can't even remember what he said."
Xiaoyan shook her head and said softly, "He remembers it."
Qingmei remained silent, her head lowered as she rolled up the door curtain. As she was grabbing the candy wrapper, she touched the hand extended by Gu Qingzhou, who was sitting next to her and wanted to scratch her palm.
Thinking of what her grandmother had just said, Qingmei felt obligated to take the lead.
Gu Qingzhou failed to touch the little hand and was hit. He didn't pretend to help roll up the door curtain, but got up and went outside to chop firewood.
He never used to feel like he had nowhere to vent his energy, but lately he didn't know what was going on. Sometimes he'd wake up in the middle of the night and just want to swim laps in the glacier.
In the evening, Gu Qingzhou and Zhao Wuhe returned to the Gu family compound to rest.
The mother and daughter spent most of the night discussing what to do on the wedding day.
Qingmei was the more lively. After washing up, she lay on the kang and fell asleep carefree.
Early morning.
It felt like a hundred chicks chirping in my ears.
In fact, there are indeed a hundred chicks crying for food.
Qingmei sat up with her hair disheveled, still dazed, her hair messy like a little madman.
She rubbed her eyes and brushed the hair stuck to her face aside. The edge of the bed was right under her feet. She saw Gu Qingzhou chopping firewood outside and was completely stunned.
"When did he come?" Qingmei was shocked. The windows and doors were closed tightly and she didn't hear any sound.
Grandma woke up early and had prepared a special meal for herself. She was eating eggs stewed in brown sugar water.
She said with a smile: "I came at daybreak. This young man wants to get married and can't stay any longer."
Qingmei blushed and said, "I'll go say hello."
She quickly washed her face and brushed her teeth, tied her hair around the back of her head, and casually pulled out a wooden chopstick and put it on.
Gu Qingzhou didn't know how long he had been doing it, and his neck was covered in sweat.
When he saw Qingmei coming out, he put the axe to the wood, raised his chin and said, "After breakfast, I'll take you to buy a skirt."
Qingmei laughed and said, "Why do you suddenly want to buy me a skirt?"
Gu Qingzhou said: "I saw a lot of people asked Xiaoyan yesterday how the clothes you are wearing were made. It seems that they also want her to make them. Well, we can't delay her from making money, so why not -"
"Why not let someone else earn this money?"
Qingmei went into the house with a smile, took the towel, rinsed the water and handed it to Gu Qingzhou, whispering, "If you just want to go on a date with me, just say it."
Gu Qingzhou smiled and said, "Just say it? Okay, then I'll say it straight away. I want to kiss you."
Zhao Wuhe, who was helping to chop chicken food at the foot of the wall, almost chopped off her fingers as chicken food. She stood up and pointed at Gu Qingzhou and said, "You little bastard, I told you to date, not to act like a hooligan."
Qingmei stood aside, blocking Gu Qingzhou and said, "Auntie Gu, how can you say that? He is not a gangster."
"Wow!" Zhao Wuhe's eyes went dark. He took a few steps back and pointed at Qingmei, saying, "You, you——"
Qingmei immediately smiled and said, "Be nice to your son-in-law."
Zhao Wuhe's expression suddenly changed. "That's a good point. I'm happy to hear it. My son-in-law is really amazing. Look at our blue brick courtyard. He built it himself."
Qingmei continued, "Just build it yourself and marry me, hahaha."
Zhao Wuhe also laughed.
Gu Qingzhou reached out his hand sinisterly, grabbed her bun and said, "So you were waiting for me here? Do you like to take advantage of me?"
Qingmei is not afraid of him. She is the one she is least afraid of in the whole world.
At least that's what I think now.
She proudly took Zhao Wuhe's arm and ordered Gu Qingzhou, "Go, serve the breakfast. We'll each have a bowl. As a live-in son-in-law, you can only have half a bowl. Do you understand?"
Gu Qingzhou sneered a few times, then walked into the house with his long legs to get some food.
Zhao Wuhe gave Qingmei a thumbs-up and whispered in her ear, "You have to get the hang of a gay man from the beginning. Otherwise, he'll be like his dead father, ignoring you."
Qingmei used to really think that Gu Qingzhou's father had died, but she didn't expect that he was still alive... She didn't know what her future father-in-law would be like, so she kept her mouth tightly shut.
Zhao Wuhe didn't mind and continued, "Once we get the marriage certificate, I'll tell you, you can take his salary and all the bonuses from these years. He has nowhere to spend them, so you can put them all in your own passbook. You can eat whatever you want, wear whatever you want, and spend it however you like. I'll applaud you and cheer you on."
Qingmei laughed so hard that her stomach hurt, and she had to say, "Fortunately, you will be my mother-in-law in the future. If you were really my mother, you would bully your son-in-law to death."
"Just treat me as your real mother." Zhao Wuhe said, "Silly girl, I'm doing this for your own good. Marry a man and you'll have clothes to wear and food to eat."
Speaking of her mother, Qingmei hadn't opened the box of relics she had taken from Hao Fan last time. After she got it back, she had asked her grandmother to put it away, and she didn't look at it to avoid adding to her sadness.
Zhao Wuhe didn't know that Qingmei was distracted, so she went into the house with Qingmei to have breakfast.
After breakfast, Gu Qingzhou wanted to take Qingmei for a walk in the city.
As someone who was about to get married, no matter what the betrothal gift was, he still wanted to buy something for his childhood sweetheart. It was a thoughtful gesture, both emotionally and logically.
They persuaded Zhao Wuhe to agree to go with them.
Along the way, Zhao Wuhe's face was longer than the old donkey's.
Xinghai City is surrounded by the sea on three sides and has many national-level ports.
Qingmei knew that after it opened, this currently inconspicuous small seaside city would become one of the best commercial ports in the country, with every inch of land worth a lot of money.
At present, Xinghai City still relies on the railways built during the war years to transport civilian supplies. Most of the time, the supplies are not as abundant as those in the mainland and are still scarce.
In the past two years, on the eve of reform, policies have been relaxed, and occasionally high-quality and low-priced goods have flowed into the market.
Today, Xinghai Commercial City is crowded with people, and everyone is queuing up in advance to buy subsidized commercial grain.
This is the national storage rice from last year or the year before, and it's considered aged rice. In two months, rice will be harvested across Xinghai, and the old rice will need to be replaced with new rice.
Therefore, at this time of year, commercial grain that is cheaper than the market price becomes a target of competition. Of course, the prerequisite is that you have a lot of grain coupons.
Gu Qingzhou drove them here, but he didn't expect to encounter such a big scene. The jeep was so blocked that it simply stopped two stations outside the commercial city.
The army chiefs could not attend his engagement ceremony. The new recruits were assigned to their companies at the end of May and the beginning of June, the mid-year report, the army's policy for the second half of the year, and various instructions issued by the Beijing compound kept the chiefs very busy.
In order to prevent Gu Qingzhou from bothering him after getting engaged, Commander Wang approved the jeep for him and told him to deal with it himself.
Gu Qingzhou thus got a rare mid-year break in many years, although it could only last for two days, and he had to return to the army to work tomorrow.
Zhao Wuhe counted on her fingers and said, "I've thought about it all for you: a watch, two pairs of leather shoes, and a beautiful white dress, made of Dacron."
Qingmei's face fell, and she tried to resist: "I don't want Dacron, it's not breathable!"
Zhao Wuhe slapped the back of Gu Qingzhou's head and said, "Whether she wears it or not is one thing, whether she buys it or not is another!"
Gu Qingzhou laughed and said, "She doesn't like you hitting me?"
Zhao Wuhe also laughed: "I just can't bear to hit her."
Good guy, that one sentence convinced Qingmei, and she said sweetly: "Well, then, you won't go in with us? You have good taste, won't you help me choose?"
Zhao Wuhe was eager to get away from them and lied, "I took a nap in the car. I was a little uncomfortable sleeping at home last night, so I didn't sleep well."
Qingmei said worriedly, "Okay, then you go to sleep. Be careful if someone pulls the car door and shouts."
Gu Qingzhou pointed at the license plate: "No one would normally commit a crime against the law."
Qingmei thought for a moment and said, "Don't we often commit crimes together?"
Gu Qingzhou said: "The word lust is like a knife hanging over your head..."
Zhao Wuhe couldn't stand it anymore and shouted, "Are you done yet? Get out of the car!"
Qingmei pouted and got out of the car. The moment she closed the door, she said, "My mother-in-law is so hard to please."
Zhao Wuhe opened the car door to hit her, but Qingmei dodged and nimbly entered the crowd.
Food is sold on the first floor of the commercial city, and grains are sold on the east side. People queuing up to buy subsidized grains are at this window.
The north side sells cakes and fruits. There are two long counters facing each other, but the business is not as good as the east side, and there are not many customers coming and going.
At the end of May, the cherries in Xinghai City are ripe.
At this time, a variety of cherries were displayed on the counter, including the bright red Mei Zao, the dark red Russian Eight, the red and yellow Crystal, and so on. There were more than ten varieties, and the cherries were beautiful and the prices were attractive. Newly released, a pound of cherries could buy half a pound of flesh.
"No wonder there are so few people here, it turns out it's so expensive."
Qingmei's life is better now, but she can't bear such expenses. Having experienced poverty in her bones, she avoids buying things if she can, always fearing that she will be short of money when it matters most.
"Try it." Gu Qingzhou took the red cherry handed to him by the salesperson, wiped it with a handkerchief and handed it to Qingmei's lips. Qingmei bit it without thinking, and then realized that she was being watched by outsiders.
The salesperson at the fruit stand was a kind woman wearing a white chef's hat. She had brown skin and two red spots on her face from the highlands. She didn't look like a local. She was accompanied by a young male apprentice.
She looked at them with a smile and said, "You two have such a good relationship. Your partner was reluctant to eat a single cherry and let you have it."
The green plums are eaten early, and the lips are dyed bright red by the cherry juice. The taste of green plums is eight parts crisp sweetness and two parts light fruity sourness, which is very consistent with the taste of green plums.
Gu Qingzhou saw the little girl's expression and knew that she liked to eat cherries, so he signaled to the salesperson and gave her some crystal cherries.
Just as Qingmei was about to speak, another cherry came into her mouth. The fragrance of the cherry filled her mouth. Qingmei said excitedly, "This is so sweet, like cherry candy!"
Gu Qingzhou had never eaten cherry candy, and to him, nothing was sweeter than his little girl's lips.
The salesperson handed over a few other kinds of cherries for Qingmei to try. Her apprentice watched in amazement, wondering what would happen if the two people didn't buy them.
But the old man is still the wisest. His master knew that Gu Qingzhou would not deny his debt just by seeing him wearing the uniform of a senior military officer. When he saw the way he looked at the beautiful female comrade, he wanted to hold her in his hands.
As long as the lesbian agrees, I can definitely buy it, and I won’t buy less.
Facts proved that the master was indeed quite skilled. Gu Qingzhou took three pounds of Meizao and crystals, the same as the green plums he had tasted, and another pound of other kinds of cherries. It took him only five minutes to go through the whole process, and he had spent nearly ten yuan on the fruit alone.
"You bought too many." Qingmei and Gu Qingzhou first put the cherries in the car, then turned around and continued shopping.
"There are many people at home, and we can finish all of this."
When they walked back to the crowded area, Gu Qingzhou quietly grasped Qingmei's fingertips and said shamelessly, "I'm doing this because I'm afraid you'll get lost."
Qingmei said with a shameless face: "Then hold on tighter, I do get lost easily."
Gu Qingzhou later strictly followed Ms. Zhao Wuhe's instructions and bought Qingmei a watch, leather shoes and a dress.
Gu Qingzhou was still very satisfied with the leather shoes and dress. His girlfriend had the conditions, and he felt that she was more beautiful than ordinary people even if she wore a piece of rag.
As for the watch, he thought it was just average: "You can use it first. When the servants come back from Shanghai, I'll have them give you a good one."
Qingmei thinks that ordinary ones are fine. Besides, they are not cheap. A watch costs fifteen yuan, which is equivalent to half a month's salary for many people.
The two of them came out of the trade city with bags and bags. Just as Qingmei got in the car, Gu Qingzhou said, "Wait."
He got off the car and came back shortly afterwards with an oil-paper bag in his hand.
"Butterfly cakes, red bean cakes, and malt sugar." Gu Qingzhou handed them to Qingmei and said with a smile, "Eat them slowly on the way back."
Zhao Wuhe said quietly from behind: "What about the sweet-scented osmanthus cake that I love to eat?"
"It's true that you forget your mother after you have a wife." Gu Qingzhou pretended to be serious. Just when Zhao Wuhe was about to hit him, he took out an oil-paper bag from behind and said, "Freshly made osmanthus cake, still warm."
"This is more like it. Come, try it, my girl. I love this."
Zhao Wuhe handed a piece to Qingmei. Qingmei was sitting in the passenger seat and was about to open her mouth when someone suddenly spoke outside the window.
"Hey, officer, are you here to attend Qian Ying's daughter's wedding? Zhong Anhua, right?"
A female comrade wearing an old Zhongshan suit saw a military vehicle parked here from afar. She said to the other teachers who were traveling with her that the vehicle must have come to the wrong place and came over to greet them on its own.
Gu Qingzhou stood in front of the car and looked back at Qingmei.
Qingmei was still thinking that they were only three stops away and would not be seen, but she really couldn't be so complacent.
Gu Qingzhou knew that Zhong Anhua was Qingmei's stepsister, and called Qingmei several times to try to get her to attend her wedding. He seemed to be close to her, but his intention was to humiliate her.
Qingmei swallowed the osmanthus cake, rolled down the window and said, "We're not going."
Teacher Wang said in surprise, "Why don't you go when you're already at my doorstep? We're all comrades after all, and it's not easy to get out of the army."
She glanced at the military rank on Gu Qingzhou's shoulder, not understanding what rank it was. But she was honored to have the opportunity to speak to Four Pockets.
If I could establish some connections, it would be great to introduce an officer to her second daughter.
You know, Qian Ying is now walking sideways in the family compound, constantly talking about my military officer son-in-law. Several families with daughters want to use her connections to introduce single military officers to her. Qian Ying is very popular in the family compound.
Gu Qingzhou frowned and said, "Please move aside, we are leaving."
Teacher Wang didn't dare to argue with him. Gu Qingzhou's aura was much stronger than that of Jia Xianping.
Gu Qingzhou was about to get in the car when Hao Fan came jogging over from a distance. Hao Fan was entertaining guests and heard that an officer had driven to the wrong place, so he hurried over to greet him.
He didn't recognize Gu Qingzhou at first glance and stretched out his hand to shake hands with Gu Qingzhou.
Gu Qingzhou knew that he was his father-in-law, but he remembered that Hao Fan wanted to marry Qingmei to Zhou Wu, which almost cost her life, so he didn't treat him well at all, let alone shake hands with him.
Hao Fan awkwardly stretched his hand back, felt in his pocket, took out a handful of wedding candies and handed them to Gu Qingzhou, but Gu Qingzhou still refused to take them.
Hao Fan was embarrassed by the series of rejections. He looked up at Gu Qingzhou again and suddenly remembered where he had seen this face before. When Qingmei built the blue brick courtyard, he was the one who helped build the house.
"Hey, you, how come you're wearing a military uniform so openly!" Hao Fan's face turned pale with fear. He pushed Teacher Wang to the back, stepped forward and said, "Come to my house and change clothes."
Gu Qingzhou said with a wry smile: "You still have the right to stop me from wearing a military uniform? You are so bold."
Hao Fan was about to speak again when Qian Ying called out from behind him, "The feast is about to begin, come over quickly."
Qingmei, who was sitting in the car, got out. Qian Ying, who was jogging from a distance, looked Gu Qingzhou up and down.
Teacher Wang looked through the car window and saw the piles of cherries and packaging bags inside, and was amazed.
All of them were expensive goods. The trade city was where the wealthy people in the city went to buy things, so such a large sum of money was rare.
Qian Ying didn't see what was in the car, and ran over breathlessly, thinking someone had arrived. When he saw it was them, he said with a hint of sneer at the corner of his mouth, "You actually managed to get a jeep? Hurry up and drive over."
Qingmei didn't bother to talk nonsense with her and asked directly: "The driver is not here, can you drive?"
Qian Ying felt so regretful. It would be so great if she had parked the car downstairs from her home.
She looked out the window and saw a lot of good things inside. The old woman inside glared at her fiercely, which scared Qian Ying.
It might not be their car!
Qian Ying thought she had seen through the trick and sneered, "Can't open it? Forget it, go see your sister right away. It's a big day, and the school leaders are here."
Qingmei said, "We can have a meal, but we don't have any money prepared for gifts." Even if she did, she didn't want to give them a penny.
Qian Ying said, "I know you don't have any. If you had money, I would be hit by a car while walking." After saying that, she was about to cross the road.
Suddenly Hao Fan pulled her, and a minibus whizzed past Qian Ying. Qian Ying was sick, so she pinched her philtrum and took a deep breath.
Qingmei said to Zhao Wuhe in the car, "Auntie, please wait in the car. We will be back in half an hour at most."
Zhao Wuhe said, "Okay, it's okay to stay a little longer."
Qingmei didn't want to stay any longer, and she deliberately let Zhao Wuhe separate from them in the car.
Gu Qingzhou smiled lightly and let the little guy do whatever he wanted.
Qian Ying looked back and saw Qingmei following her, walking very fast in front.
Hao Fan looked at Gu Qingzhou, who was in military uniform, hesitantly, fearing that he would be implicated.
When they arrived at the family compound, the wedding banquet hadn't started yet. Jia Xianping, the platoon leader, hadn't arrived yet.
When they arrived at the family compound, Qian Ying ignored them. Qingmei, on the other hand, was at ease and followed the people who came to congratulate her upstairs to see the new house.
She thought Jia Xianping could act more realistically, at least put in some effort. Unexpectedly, he was so bold that he didn't even plan to live in the woman's house.
The small one-bedroom apartment is only about 30 square meters.
The layout of the house had changed because their daughter was getting married, so the only bedroom was given to the young couple. The two old people built a partition on the balcony and placed a small bed less than 1.5 meters high. They used an old three-fold screen as a cover.
Qian Ying's dressing table is in her daughter's bedroom. She puts a desk outside the screen, on which she places facial oil, a comb and a mirror.
The other furniture remained the same, having been repainted. The room was stuffy and there was a faint pungent smell of paint.
There was no new furniture, and no appliances at all.
Qingmei followed Gu Qingzhou around the room, wondering how Zhong Anhua was trying to humiliate her with such a simple wedding. Honestly, it wasn't as grand as her engagement yesterday.
Gu Qingzhou was stopped by several people upstairs and asked if he was Jia Xianping's comrade-in-arms.
The main reason is that Jia Xianping's marriage to Zhong Anhua was too simple and plain, and everyone who came to see it had doubts in their hearts.
There were rumors before that Zhong Anhua’s partner was a fake military officer.
Gu Qingzhou's spine was straight, and his whole body exuded the heroic demeanor of a soldier who had been tempered by countless battles. The national emblem on his military cap and the military rank on his shoulders made it impossible for anyone to doubt his authenticity.
Since there were real officers present, Jia Xianping couldn't be fake, right? This was the sentiment of many people.
Zhong Anhua was waiting for Jia Xianping's arrival in the bedroom at this time. She was not without complaints about this simple wedding.
Jia Xianping promised her solemnly that he would give her a grand wedding next year, and only then did she stop making a fuss.
The little sister who was accompanying her saw the imposing Gu Qingzhou through the crack in the door and gasped softly.
Zhong Anhua couldn't hide his excitement and said, "Xianping is here?"
The little sister blushed and stammered, "Platoon Leader Jia didn't come, but another officer did."
Zhong Anhua didn't go out to see, thinking it was Jia Xianping's comrade-in-arms. She said pretentiously: "This is nothing. In the future, there will be more and more officers visiting our house."
The little sister sat on the edge of the bed, helped her to straighten the hem of her skirt, and said flatteringly: "You promised to introduce me to one too."
Another young lady who was helping Zhong Anhua comb her hair also rushed to say, "Me too. I don't need to introduce the platoon leader. Just introduce me to the squad leader under your platoon leader Jia."
Zhong Anhua said proudly: "That's easy to say. But we have to wait."
The sisters got to know each other at first sight. They had heard some rumors before, but now the officer outside the door made them feel that they were overthinking.
After a while, the sound of firecrackers was heard downstairs.
Zhong Anhua didn't have a watch, so she assumed Jia Xianping had come in from outside to pick up his wife. After picking her up, he went out for another walk before returning for the wedding banquet.
Qingmei and Gu Qingzhou happened to go downstairs to see the groom, and thought it would be very lively.
Who would have thought that when Jia Xianping stood in front of everyone in a military uniform, everyone had a complicated expression on their faces.
If Gu Qingzhou hadn't come, or if he hadn't appeared in a crisp, high-end military uniform, it wouldn't matter that everyone didn't know the details of the military uniform.
At this moment, Gu Qingzhou and Qingmei were standing next to the apartment building, surrounded by people who were invited to the wedding banquet.
The curve and brim of Jia Xianping's military cap looked off. The badge on the cap was dull and lackluster. The cuffs, pilling from raising a hand to greet him, made the rank on his shoulder look like it had been hand-sewn.
Jia Xianping had rarely worn his uniform lately, and today, after Zhong Anhua had repeatedly told him to, he reluctantly put it on. Since no one in the family compound had military connections, he could just wear it for a while and then take it off when he had a drink, so he got away with it.
He never expected that there would be a real military officer present at such a family, and he would catch him red-handed.
Compared with Gu Qingzhou's authentic military uniform, it was like a fake meeting the real one.
The noisy crowd gradually quieted down and the scene became increasingly awkward.
Qian Ying was originally happy to welcome her military officer son-in-law, but when she walked up to Jia Xianping, her eyes almost popped out.
Something is visibly wrong.
How come she didn't notice before that Jia Xianping's military uniform was so shabby.
When she met Gu Qingzhou today, the guy who was a liar in her mind, she hadn't laughed at him in her heart yet, but an even bigger joke appeared in front of her.
When Jia Xianping saw Gu Qingzhou, the crowd slowly made way, kindly allowing the real and fake Li Kui to meet face to face.
Gu Qingzhou said expressionlessly, "Why is your military rank sewn upside down?"
"Rebellion?"
Jia Xianping was trembling all over. He was caught by soldiers the last time he tried to rob, and he had an innate fear of soldiers.
He pretended to be a soldier to overcome his fear and discredit the other party, but when they really met face to face, his calves almost started to tremble.
He suppressed his fear, forced a smile and said, "You, yours looks quite real."
Gu Qingzhou said: "As a soldier, do you know what level this is?"
He was the only colonel among the three regimental commanders of the Xinghai City Garrison Unit 014. He surpassed the other three lieutenant colonels and served as the highest commander of the regimental unit.
If Jia Xianping was a soldier in the army, he would be able to infer who the person in front of him was at the first glance at his military rank.
However, how could Jia Xianping recognize military ranks?
He didn't dare to speak, because he would be exposed as soon as he opened his mouth!
Qian Ying stood behind Jia Xianping, pushed him and said, "Aren't you from the army? Tell everyone that the rank on his shoulder is fake, yours is the real one."
A voice emerged from the crowd. It belonged to Teacher Wu, who had warned Qian Ying beforehand. She shouted, "Let your son-in-law recognize his military rank first! What soldier doesn't know his rank?"
This statement clearly resonated with everyone, and those present also realized something was going on. They all started talking at once, shouting, "Recognize your rank! Recognize your rank now!"
The color drained from Jia Xianping's face, and he no longer had the cheerful look he had just now when he came to pick up his wife.
He whispered quickly to Qian Ying, "Where did this guy come from? I'm on a secret mission, he doesn't know about it, let him go."
White sweat broke out on Qian Ying's back. She raised her trembling arm and put it on Jia Xianping's shoulder.
Jia Xianping was startled and thought she was going to slap him.
At this time, Teacher Wu shouted in the crowd: "Everyone says he is a liar, and your family still doesn't believe him. You deserve to have your daughter imprisoned!"
Qian Ying suddenly realized that Teacher Wu was not talking about Qingmei, but Zhong Anhua!
The blood in her body seemed to have frozen, and she breathed heavily but still felt short of oxygen.
What a stupid thing she did! She even planned to let Qingmei jump into the fire pit, and now she is letting Zhong Anhua jump into the fire pit!
Jia Xianping suddenly looked at the crowd. After Teacher Wu shouted this sentence, she quickly hid behind others and pretended that it was not her who said it.
This sentence completely exposed the speculations of everyone present.
This was a special era. Ordinary people respected soldiers, and wearing military uniforms and caps was acceptable. But no one considered themselves a soldier.
The moment Gu Qingzhou approached, Jia Xianping thought of a way to escape. He swallowed and said to Gu Qingzhou, "Comrade officer, I have longed for military life since I was a child, and I admire soldiers even more. I paid for this suit to be made by a tailor outside. I didn't pretend to be a soldier on purpose. It was them—"
Pointing at the group of people around him offering gifts, Jia Xianping said, "They spread rumors that I was a soldier. I didn't spread them myself at all."
"Why did we say that? You're so young and you're cheating, don't you have any shame?"
"Didn't you say you were a platoon leader? Who do we care who you are?"
"Qian Ying also said that you were the platoon leader. Could it be that she imagined that?"
......
The school leader where Hao Fan worked wasn't originally going to attend the wedding banquet, since she wasn't Hao Fan's biological daughter. He had come because she was a platoon leader, but who knew he'd see such a farce?
The leaders, self-respecting their status, avoided arguing with Jia Xianping. They exchanged glances, then five or six shook their heads and headed back to the school. After all this fuss, the gift wasted, and they had to go back to the cafeteria to eat.
“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh——you’ve made us suffer so much——”
As soon as he finished speaking, Qian Ying, who was already pale behind him, roared, his eyes rolled back, and his whole body stiffened and fell to the ground.
A few seconds later, she curled up on all fours and trembled violently. An old acquaintance shouted, "Oh no! She's having a seizure!"
"Mom!" Zhong Anhua, who had just run out of the apartment building from upstairs, saw the bad situation downstairs and saw Qian Ying lying on the ground. She quickly grabbed the rag on the table and stuffed it into Qian Ying's mouth to prevent her from biting off her tongue.
The others gathered around in a mess, some bending her fingers, some bending her feet, and forcibly straightened the curled up person.
Zhong Anhua didn't know what exactly happened. She thought Qingmei deliberately made Qian Ying so angry and ruined her wedding.
She turned around and pointed at Qingmei viciously and said, "Are you deliberately trying to ruin my wedding? I knew you were jealous of me marrying an officer. Look around you... around you..."
Zhong Anhua squatted on the ground and looked up at Gu Qingzhou, then quickly turned his head to look at Jia Xianping.
Not only was Jia Xianping's military uniform sloppy, but he also wore ordinary dark brown low-top leather shoes, unlike Gu Qingzhou's casual leather shoes that blended seamlessly with his uniform.
The guests around also had complicated expressions, as if they wanted to say something but hesitated.
Zhong Anhua stood up suddenly, and Hao Fan hurried over to stop her, saying, "Stop making a fuss, let's finish the wedding first. He must have a reason for this, right? He's going on a secret mission."
Zhong Anhua suddenly remembered that Qian Ying had jokingly mentioned Qingmei's finding a fake military officer in the countryside. She had repeatedly asked Qingmei to come over, even specifically asking her to bring her partner, primarily to humiliate her.
But the mother and daughter never expected that Qingmei and her boyfriend would actually show up, and they were the ones who were humiliated.
Zhong Anhua almost bit her back teeth off as she suddenly remembered the rumors from the past.
She walked up to Qingmei without caring, pointed at Gu Qingzhou and said, "Is he the officer who proposed marriage to you? His last name is Gu? Didn't you two not get along?"
Qingmei slapped her hand away, pretending to be amused to annoy Zhong Anhua. She said, "We already had our engagement ceremony yesterday, and now we're just waiting for the marriage report to come in and get the marriage certificate. Although I'm sorry to disappoint you, I'm still very grateful that you invited me here to watch such a good show."
Zhong Anhua couldn't believe what she saw. She murmured, "Your partner is fake, absolutely fake."
Teacher Wang, who was watching the excitement in the crowd, understood the whole story and really wanted to slap himself in the face.
She stood up and spoke for Qingmei and Gu Qingzhou: "How can they be fake? When I saw them, they were driving a military jeep around the trade city. There were piles of cherries and gift bags, all good things. It was much more impressive than your fake platoon leader. If this is fake, what is yours?"
Zhong Anhua clenched his red-nailed hands into fists, breaking off all the nails and digging them into his flesh.
She took a few deep breaths and Qingmei said, "Jia Xianping has a reason for saying this. If you don't know, I don't need to explain it to you. Since you're here, sit down and have a drink."
Qingmei really didn't expect Zhong Anhua to be so patient and tolerant. She glanced back and saw Gu Qingzhou's eyes moving away from Jia Xianping. He raised his chin and said, "Since you're here, sit down and have a drink before you leave."
Zhong Anhua turned and walked over to the other people who had come to congratulate her. She forced a smile and said to everyone, "I don't know who said my husband was a soldier. Maybe he wore a military uniform all day, which caused some misunderstanding. I'm here to explain it all. Everyone, please sit down and get ready to eat."
As she finished speaking, the sun disappeared behind dark clouds, and electric currents kept shuttling between the clouds.
Qingmei sat at the dinner table, pretending nothing had happened.
Gu Qingzhou said: "It's okay, at worst we can use our life-saving secrets."
Qingmei said silently: "Every time I say this, my heart hurts."
Gu Qingzhou chuckled and said, "Rub it yourself."
Qingmei glared at him.
There were six banquet tables downstairs, all for people to present gifts.
The food was prepared by the school cafeteria chef, whose cooking skills were average, he was reluctant to use oil, and the portions were small. Just like serving food to students, my hands were shaking.
Twelve people were crammed into one table, with only four dishes and one soup in front of them. The only meat dish was also a soup: pork liver soup.
Jia Xianping didn't dare to act arrogantly when Gu Qingzhou was around, and was much more restrained than before.
Zhong Anhua would pour wine when he was asked to, and would toast when he was asked to. He no longer had the majesty of Platoon Leader Jia as before.
The others exchanged glances. No one was stupid; they knew Zhong Anhua was forcing herself to go through with the wedding for the sake of her reputation. How she would live her life from now on would depend on her ability.
When Zhong Anhua was toasting at the next table, it suddenly started to rain heavily.
Before Qingmei could react, Gu Qingzhou had already taken off his coat and covered her head with it.
Qingmei didn't eat a single bite of the food, waiting for Zhong Anhua to come over, soaking wet, to toast her, with the wine and rainwater mixed in the glass she raised.
Zhong Anhua no longer cared about her image, and her hair was messed up by the wind and rain.
Jia Xianping also wanted to imitate Gu Qingzhou and shield her from the rain, but she shook off his hand, raised her cup and said, "Sister Qingmei, I really made you happy today."
Seeing that she still refused to admit defeat, Qingmei didn't raise her glass. Instead, she stood up, took out two yuan from her pocket and threw it on the table: "I don't have the habit of eating for free. You should keep the money. You will need it a lot in the future."
Zhong Anhua said angrily, "What do you mean by this? What do you mean by having too many places to spend money? Who are you cursing?"
"I wish you great fortune," Qingmei said. "You've called me over so many times just to get my blessing. Now that I've given you my blessing, it's time to go."
Zhong Anhua blurted out: "You are just a widow!"
Gu Qingzhou glanced sideways: "She is a future military wife. You can try to insult her again."
Zhong Anhua gritted his teeth, breathing rapidly in the rain, and dared not speak anymore.
Gu Qingzhou accompanied Qingmei to leave the wedding banquet. Halfway through, he turned around and saw Jia Xianping withdrawing his fierce gaze from Zhong Anhua, and his hands hanging by his legs were clenched into fists, as if he had a deep hatred.
Just five minutes after Qingmei and Gu Qingzhou left, the sky cleared up again.
However, the open-air banquet had been ruined beyond recognition, with rainwater all over the dishes.
One guest joked, "This is really a case of oil not enough water, so rain water makes up for it."
When it rained heavily, they hid in the apartment building.
The person ran away and the food was not served in time. It's all a pity.
Logically speaking, the four dishes and one soup that Qian Ying prepared were not bad. For this wedding, the two elders even borrowed fifty yuan from outside.
When someone asked how much their son-in-law had given as a betrothal gift, they were met with evasive answers. Everyone knew the answer. Given their family's marriage situation, if Qian Ying had given a betrothal gift, she would have already announced it to the family compound. If she hadn't mentioned it, then it definitely wasn't given.
Zhong Anhua stood in the sun, watching the guests bid farewell to her one by one. She looked at them numbly, unable to force a smile on her face.
She would never forget the sarcastic looks from the two young ladies who had been so close to her just a moment ago as they left. She wanted to go over and explain, but what else could she explain? There was no room for negotiation.
One can imagine how long this joke will circulate in the family compound.
As they were leaving, someone said, "Jia Xianping still claims to be an officer, but one can tell at a glance from his shoulder title that he's a regimental commander. He's definitely not an ordinary person. How could he not recognize him? I think he's a fraud."
"I was wondering why he never returned to the army and spent all day wandering around the streets. How could a soldier be like that? If you said it was fake, I could understand."
"How is Zhong Anhua going to live now? Isn't this just like having a street urchin come to your house?"
......
When Jia Xianping saw Gu Qingzhou leave, he straightened his back again.
He chased up to the group of people gossiping ahead and shouted angrily, "Say what you just said again? Believe it or not, I'll kill your whole family!"
Zhong Anhua couldn't believe her ears behind her.
Is this still the polite Jia Xianping who was always courteous in front of her?
"Jia Xianping, come here!" Zhong Anhua finally couldn't help it and screamed from where she was, "Get over here!"
Jia Xianping walked over quickly, looked at her fiercely and said, "Who are you yelling at?"
Zhong Anhua said in shock: "How did you talk to me?"
Jia Xianping said, "How did I talk to you? I also want to ask you how you talked to me! I'm telling you, I'm on a special mission, I'm a platoon leader. Believe it or not, from now on I'm living in your house!"
Zhong Anhua yelled, "You liar, you have no shame! I'm going to sue you and I want to divorce you!"
Bang!
Zhong Anhua tilted his head to one side, covering his face in disbelief and said, "You hit me on the first day of our marriage?"
Jia Xianping said: "I'm telling you one thing, if you divorce me, I'm going to kill your whole family."
After leaving behind some harsh words, Jia Xianping went upstairs whistling.
He just realized that Qingmei and Gu Qingzhou would not help Zhong Anhua, so he felt relieved.
Hao Fan was in the room with Qian Ying, who had just come to. With dazed eyes, she saw Jia Xianping coming in from the doorway and said with a rapid breath, "Who the hell are you? Why did you lie to us?"
Jia Xianping curled his lips and said in a good mood: "I told you the reason on the first day I met you."
Qian Ying shook her head sadly and said, "You never told me the reason!"
Hao Fan said weakly, "Every wrong has its perpetrator, every debt has its creditor. You'd better explain the matter clearly."
Jia Xianping crossed his legs, lit a cigarette, and said, "My name is Jia Xianping. This name is in memory of my mother. If you still remember, you should remember that there was a woman named Feng Xianping who committed suicide by jumping into the river because you stole her husband."
"Feng Xianping? Are you the son of Feng Xianping from Laoxiang?"
Qian Ying began to tremble again, her scalp tingling as she said, "Didn't she jump into the river with you in her arms?"
Jia Xianping said, "Thanks to our fellow soldiers, they found me during the flood relief efforts. I was only eight years old, and my neck was stuck on a tree branch in the water. Otherwise, I would have been drowned, along with my poor, sorrowful mother, and nothing would have been left."
Qian Ying rolled over on the ground, crawled to Jia Xianping's knees and begged, "I had no idea your father had a family. It's not easy for me, a woman, to raise a child. During those years of disaster, we had no food to eat. I almost made my daughter eat Guanyin dirt... Please forgive me, don't let my daughter suffer the consequences."
"You're lying! You clearly saw my dad taking my mom and me out. Don't you want retribution for someone like you?"
Jia Xianping threw his head back and laughed, saying cheerfully, "It's too late, she's already mine."
*** ***
Qingmei did not tell anyone what she had seen and heard when she returned.
For her, it was enough that the man who destroyed her parents' marriage got what he deserved.
She sat on the kang, watching Zhao Xiaoxing scratching her head while working on her homework. She herself was like a little ancestor, having to be served cherries and snacks by Gu Qingzhou. She would casually point fingers at Zhao Xiaoxing's answers.
Xiaoyan sat to the side, less of a worry than Zhao Xiaoxing. Lately, too many people had asked her to make clothes, leaving her feeling a bit lost about her future goals.
Xiaoyan asked: "Can learning really change your life?"
Qingmei said, "Everything you do now is to provide nourishment for your future self. Study hard, and you won't regret it."
Zhao Xiaoxing rubbed her face and said, "Well, we're both very busy now. We have a lot of orders for clothes, and each set costs two yuan. We can only manage one of them."
Xiaoyan said, "Then... I'll listen to Sister Xiaomei and choose to study. I won't do anything else after I finish what I have on hand."
Qingmei smiled and said, "Trust your own judgment, you are great."
As he was speaking, Gu Qingzhou received a call from the brigade headquarters.
He said to Qingmei regretfully, "There are some tasks that require me to go over and take charge."
Qingmei stood on the kang, patted his shoulder and said, "See you next weekend."
Gu Qingzhou said: "I have something to tell you, come here."
Qingmei followed him downstairs and walked towards the back door.
Almost as soon as he stepped out of the door, Gu Qingzhou's kiss landed on his lips. He seemed to be holding back, licking his lips and starting to attack.
Qingmei couldn't breathe and wanted to push him away, but his hard chest was as hard as iron and didn't move.
Qingmei clutched the clothes in front of him tightly. He pulled her hand over, spread her fingers apart, and interlocked their fingers and pressed them against her head.
The passionate kiss hit her like a hurricane, and Qingmei could still hear the voices in the house.
After the kiss, Qingmei felt Gu Qingzhou's big hands stroking her waist reluctantly, and even pinched it at the end.
"You're such a big ass."
Gu Qingzhou wiped her ravaged little mouth, helped her wipe away the wetness, and asked, "Why do you say that?"
Qingmei blushed and pointed at his hand, which he had finally let go of, and said, "It's so yellow and colorful."
Gu Qingzhou smiled and lowered his head to let her look at his abdomen: "Do you want to see what your hands are doing?"
Qingmei quickly withdrew her hands from under her clothes, put them behind her back, and her little face turned pale.
"It's too late. I really have to leave."
"See you this weekend?"
Gu Qingzhou lifted Qingmei's chin, pecked her quickly and said, "See you this weekend."
After sending Gu Qingzhou off, Qingmei returned to the house.
Zhao Xiaoxing and Xiaoyan both seemed to have sore throats and kept coughing.
Qingmei seemed to remember something, cried out, and ran to the kitchen, shouting, "Let's go to Uncle Guo's house."
Zhao Xiaoxing didn't like studying, so she came over and asked, "What are you doing?"
Qingmei said: "Grind flour!"
Zhao Xiaoxing was about to leave when Xiaoyan called her back, "Wait a minute! Take your English homework book! Xiaomei will check it tonight."
The class recently started an English class, but the teacher wasn't very good and could only start from the alphabet. Qingmei, on the other hand, always asked her to memorize some words at home.
When the Gaokao (National College Entrance Examination) begins, English is a major subject that can help you score higher. Ordinary people don't have access to it, and those who know English are considered high-end resources. Since Qingmei has this condition, I will teach them as soon as possible.
Qingmei and Zhao Xiaoxing arrived at Uncle Guo's house.
Uncle Guo was sitting on the doorstep smoking his pipe while the old donkey was eating hay.
"Are you here?"
"Here I come."
"You can do it with the old man yourself. I won't charge you any money."
"good."
Qingmei had a good relationship with the old donkey. When she gave the donkey a handful of broad beans she brought, the donkey would obediently lower its head and let the reins be put on it.
Uncle Guo narrowed his eyes, watched Qingmei finish her work, and asked, "Why are you grinding flour again?"
Qingmei rolled up her sleeves and grabbed some wheat from the millstone, saying without even looking up, "Knead the flowery steamed buns."
Uncle Guo nodded and said, "Making flower-shaped steamed buns. Flower-shaped steamed buns are delicious. It's rare for the villagers to eat them once a year. This is a technical job. Who among you wants to eat them?"
Qingmei said, "You eat it."
Uncle Guo put down his pipe and said, "Why should I eat flowery steamed buns?"
Qingmei said, "Today is your birthday, and you should eat flower buns for your birthday."
Uncle Guo suddenly stopped talking, and after a while he said, "I still have a birthday to celebrate."
Zhao Xiaoxing interrupted and said, "Oh, how old are you?"
Qingmei said, "I saw Captain Jin registering his household registration that day, and the date on it should be sixty-two."
Zhao Xiaoxing squinted at Grandpa Guo and said, "He looks quite old."
Uncle Guo was so angry that he laughed. He had been wandering around for half his life, and being alive was a blessing. He couldn't stand it and attacked Zhao Xiaoxing, saying, "Who can be as young as you? You only have the brains of a three-year-old."
Qingmei laughed heartily: "Stop arguing, sir, stay here and don't leave. Just wait inside the house."
Uncle Guo said, "Okay, okay, I'll wait."
Qingmei added, "I'll knead it more, so don't be reluctant to eat it."
Uncle Guo knocked his pipe on the ground and said impatiently, "Oh, I know. You're so nagging."
Zhao Xiaoxing, who was standing aside clutching her homework book, suddenly laughed and said, "Uncle, why are you drooling?"
Uncle Guo wiped his eyes and took out his pipe to hit her: "You greedy girl, how dare you criticize me? You only know how to hold the notebook and write, and you don't know how to help."
Zhao Xiaoxing said, "I'll go and help. Can you help me write?" As she said that, she handed the homework book to Uncle Guo, which was full of crooked English words.
Grandpa Guo grabbed the notebook, glanced at it, and said, "I shouldn't call you a greedy girl, I should call you a stupid girl. 'Good morning' turned out to be 'Good marning'. Oh, you might not be able to memorize phrases in the future. It's going to be hard for you."
Qingmei, who was working with the old donkey, turned around and looked at Uncle Guo, who was wearing patched clothes, and said, "What were you talking about?"
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