Gu Yanxiao and Xia Liang waited a while before the car arrived at the station. Seeing the Xia family getting off the car excitedly, Xia Liang led Gu Yanxiao forward and said, "Second Grandpa and Second Grandma, you've arrived!" Xia Youshun and his wife smiled at Xia Liang, and seeing a tall, spirited young man standing beside her, they knew this was her boyfriend: "Yes! Liang girl, this must be your boyfriend? He's really handsome." Gu Yanxiao stepped forward to greet them, and Xia Liang greeted the rest of the Xia family before leading them home. Xia Liang's eldest cousin-in-law gave birth to a son in February. Wang Xiaocui was finally relieved. She had been worried that she would only have daughters like her mother and sister, but her womb cooperated and her first child was a son. Her father was overjoyed and often sent meat to her house to nourish her body. Although only a small portion of this meat ended up in her belly, she was still very happy. Xia Liang saw that she held the baby like a rare treasure and knew how much she loved the child.
After arriving home, Xia Dahe and Zhao Danxiang greeted them, while Xia Liang and Gu Yanxiao sat to the side. They had invited almost everyone they needed to, and prepared all the necessary groceries and food. Xia Liang didn't need to worry about drinks, snacks, or peanuts; her mother-in-law had already started preparing them. Gu Yanxiao whispered to her that he needed to go to the county government compound that evening; his parents seemed to have something to discuss with her. Xia Liang nodded and continued sitting beside him, eating sunflower seeds.
Two tables of food were prepared for dinner. After dinner, Xia Liang and Gu Yanxiao said goodbye to their elders. She wouldn't be staying at home that night; there wasn't enough room, and she was going to the county government compound. The two rode their bikes back to the county government compound. Gu Weiguo and Han Yulan were still waiting for them in the living room. Seeing them return, Han Yulan called Xia Liang to sit beside her and handed her something she had prepared beforehand, saying, "This is a wedding gift prepared by Yanxiao's grandparents. They are too old to attend your wedding, and we hope you don't mind." Only then did Xia Liang realize that Gu Yanxiao's grandparents were still alive. She had previously thought they were deceased, as he had never mentioned it. Xia Liang scolded Gu Yanxiao, "Why didn't you tell me before? It's really urgent that they can't attend the wedding. Oh, right! Mom,..." "Where are your grandparents now?" Han Yulan smiled and said, "It's alright, they're just too old to come. They're in Beijing now, and it takes two or three days by train, so they can't travel that far." Xia Liang asked curiously, "Then who's taking care of them in Beijing?" Gu Yanxiao chimed in, "Your grandparents had five children. Your father is the second oldest, with an older brother, a younger brother, and two younger sisters. Your maternal grandparents had four children. Your mother is the third oldest, with an older brother, an older sister, and a younger sister. Besides your parents, all the other uncles and aunts are in Beijing. They're taking care of the elders, so you don't need to worry." Xia Liang nodded knowingly. Seeing the gifts her mother-in-law handed her, Xia Liang knew from the boxes that they were probably gifts she couldn't use right now.
In the Xia family home, Old Mrs. Xia sat in front of the television, watching TV. She asked her son, "What does Xia Liang's husband do? Are both his parents employed? If they aren't, he's probably not good enough for Xia Liang. Your family has three workers now." She even slightly raised her chin, her standards rising. She immediately mentioned "both parents employed," something that used to make everyone incredibly jealous. Xia Dahe smiled and said, "Xia Liang's father-in-law is the county party secretary, her mother-in-law is the county women's director, and Xiao Gu is a soldier, currently serving in the army." Everyone gasped. Good heavens! This was incredible! A truly upright official! Xia Liang's aunt's jaw almost dropped. Her son had married a meat processing plant worker, and she was so proud of it, bragging in the village that they had more meat than they could eat, making everyone in the village envious. It's definitely not true that she couldn't finish all the meat, but it's true that she ate more meals than other families, since her daughter-in-law's father would often send meat over. But that didn't stop her from enjoying the envious glances.
After spending the night in the county government compound, the family of four headed to the Xia family home the next day. Gu Yanxiao and Han Yulan had both taken the day off from work and arrived at the Xia family home on two bicycles. Xia Liang opened the door and saw her mother, aunt, and other relatives already helping to wash vegetables in the yard. Gu Weiguo and Han Yulan followed them inside. Xia Dahe saw them and quickly came out to greet them, welcoming them into the main room, pouring tea, and offering them melon seeds and candy. Just then, there was another sound at the door. Xia Liang turned around and saw her aunt and mother-in-law. Xia Liang went forward to greet them, saying, "Aunt, Grandma, you've arrived." Xia's aunt nodded and said, "Congratulations, A Liang." Actually, Grandma Ma was initially reluctant to come, but thinking that she could get a free meal, she still came. It wouldn't be right to make her do chores at her age.
Inside, Xia Liang was eating sunflower seeds and watching TV. Outside, several women were chatting and laughing as they washed vegetables in the courtyard. Just as Xia Liang entered the kitchen, she heard someone calling her from outside. It was the person who ran the telephones in the alley, saying someone had called and arrived at the train station, asking her to come and pick them up. Xia Liang figured it was probably Zhao Weiting, so she got on her bicycle and headed to the train station. Upon arriving at the train station, Zhao Weiting stood in the waiting hall with her bag, presumably having departed the previous night and spent the night on the train. Xia Liang was deeply moved and went up to greet her, "Weiting, you've arrived." Zhao Weiting turned around when she heard someone call her name, saw Xia Liang, and smiled as she congratulated her, "Congratulations, Liang! I wish you and Comrade Gu a long and happy marriage." Xia Liang then helped her carry her luggage, placing it on the crossbar of her bicycle. Zhao Weiting sat on the back, and the two headed home. Once home, Xia Liang took Zhao Weiting directly to the kitchen and cooked her a bowl of noodles, along with some fried meatballs from the previous day. Xia Liang filled the bowl to the brim, but Zhao Weiting waved her hands repeatedly, saying, "It's too much, I can't finish it." Xia Liang said, "Eat quickly, you haven't eaten all night, you can finish it." She placed chopsticks in Zhao Weiting's hand, urging her to eat quickly. Having not eaten all night, she was indeed very hungry. Although it was a lot, in this day and age, waste was out of the question, so she finished it all. After finishing their noodles, Xia Liang took Zhao Weiting to her room to rest. After sitting on the train all night, she was bound to be exhausted, and with the current security situation, it was impossible for her to completely relax and fall asleep.
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