When Gu Yanxiao saw Xia Liang to the door, Xia Liang jumped out of the back seat of the car and said with a smile, "Comrade Gu, would you like to come in and sit for a while?" Gu Yanxiao declined, "It's too late, I won't bother Auntie." Xia Liang nodded, "Thank you for bringing me back. Take care on your way home." After saying that, she stood there watching Gu Yanxiao. After he left, she turned around and went home. She had worked all day and gone out for a while in the afternoon, so she was quite tired and needed to wash up and go to bed early. But the person who was supposed to leave just stood there without moving, staring intently at her. Xia Liang went up to him and waved, "Comrade Gu." Unexpectedly, her hand, which she hadn't taken back, was grabbed. Xia Liang was stunned.
Holding the hand of the girl he admired, Gu Yanxiao was incredibly excited, but maintained a calm demeanor. "Comrade Xia Liang, I like you. Would you like to be my girlfriend?" "Yes!" Xia Liang replied decisively. Gu Yanxiao exclaimed, "Really?" He couldn't help but pick Xia Liang up and spin her around a few times, laughing heartily, "That's wonderful! Xia Liang, I like you!" He then held Xia Liang tightly in his arms, speaking excitedly. In truth, Xia Liang didn't dislike him either. He was handsome, had a great physique, and liked her. She thought to herself that she hadn't had time to properly date in her past life, but unexpectedly, she had met such an outstanding man so soon after arriving here. He liked her, and she liked him too; it was a mutual attraction.
Xia Liang went home, washed up, and went to sleep. Gu Yanxiao, on the other hand, couldn't calm down the whole way. He recalled everything that had happened since he met Xia Liang. The first time he met her, he fell in love with her at first sight. When he took her home and saw Xia Rong, he thought he was her boyfriend and his heart sank. When he met her again at the social gathering, he couldn't help but wonder if it was a misunderstanding. Only when he took her home did he realize that Xia Rong was her brother. It was truly a dramatic scene. Back at the county committee's residential compound, the lights in the Gu family's house were still on. Gu Yanxiao opened the door and saw his parents sitting on the sofa watching TV. He smiled and sat down next to his mother, saying, "Mom, I have a girlfriend." "What?" Gu's mother was clearly shocked. She hadn't misheard. Her son, who would run away from any young girl he was dating, actually had a girlfriend. She and Old Gu had been prepared for their son to be over thirty before they could have grandchildren. Who knew their son would find a girlfriend so quickly? Unable to contain his curiosity, he asked, "Where is she from, and what does she do?" Having learned about Xia Liang's family situation during their recent interactions, Gu Yanxiao told his mother the truth: "Her family is from a small town, and she works in a garment factory." Gu's mother frowned. "From the countryside! Will her family be like the Zhang family, who are related to her in-laws?" It wasn't that Gu's mother looked down on rural people; she was mainly intimidated by the Zhang family in the compound. The Zhang family's son had also found a rural girl to date. The Zhang parents thought that as long as their son liked her, it didn't matter where the girl was from, and besides, the girl herself was very outstanding! After graduating from high school, she started working at a department store. The Zhang family elders thought that since their son liked her, they should get married as soon as possible so they could have a grandchild sooner. At the beginning of the marriage, nothing seemed amiss, and the in-laws were understanding. However, things changed after the girl became pregnant. She ran back to her parents' home, demanding that the Zhang family arrange a job for her younger brother. The Zhang family was completely bewildered. Liu Xiaoli, the Zhang family's daughter-in-law, had a brother who was utterly irresponsible. Despite being a rural lad, he never did any farm work. His parents had to cook for him after returning from the fields, and he would throw a tantrum if they came home even slightly late. He ate all the good food in the house. Who would dare arrange a job for someone like that? But Liu Xiaoli didn't care. She told her husband, who had come to pick her up from her parents' home, that she wouldn't go back unless her younger brother was given a job. Zhang's mother felt sorry for her unborn grandson and said to her husband, "Why don't you just agree to her request and give him any kind of hard job?" Zhang's father sternly refused, "Impossible. How can someone like that go to work and cause trouble for others? Wouldn't that be dragging the country down?" Although Zhang's mother felt sorry for her eldest grandson, she didn't dare to say anything more.
Seeing the Zhang family's firm stance, Liu Xiaoli came up with a new trick. Since her in-laws wouldn't help her brother find a job, she would give her own job to him. Zhang's mother, seeing her daughter-in-law return, assumed she had changed her mind. The next day, Zhang's mother got up to make breakfast and, seeing her daughter-in-law still sleeping, knocked on the door, "Xiaoli, get up and eat! You're going to be late for work!" After Liu Xiaoli got up and ate, she sat on the sofa watching TV. Zhang's mother looked puzzled: "Xiaoli, you're going to be late?" Liu Xiaoli replied impatiently: "What work?! You won't arrange a job for my brother, I'll arrange one myself. You said you'd treat me like a daughter, but you're unreliable when I need you. I've already given my job to my brother. Anyway, I'm staying at home now. Either Zhang Yuan supports me, or you arrange a job for me!" Liu Xiaoli had a shameless look on her face.
Furious, Zhang's mother stayed in bed for three days. Seeing that her mother-in-law wasn't cooking, Liu Xiaoli ate biscuits and malted milk powder from home. Eventually, she had no choice but to get up and cook, since her husband and son needed to eat even if she didn't. Liu Xiaoli continued to make a fuss about getting a job every few days. Zhang's mother, at her wits' end, discussed it with her husband: "Why don't we arrange a job for her? Her brother has a job now, so things shouldn't happen again." Zhang's father angrily retorted, "Let her make a scene! Let's see what she can do. You know what kind of person her brother is; he'll never last long. Liu Xiaoli gave up her job for her brother once; she can give it up again. Don't waste my favors on this." So, even now, with Liu Xiaoli more than seven months pregnant, the Zhang family still hasn't had a moment's peace, leaving an indelible shadow over the entire compound.
So that's why Han Yulan was somewhat resistant when Gu Yanxiao said his girlfriend was from the countryside. Gu Yanxiao smiled and said, "Mom, don't overthink it. Not everyone is like Zhang's daughter-in-law. My girlfriend is a reasonable person," and then he said with a smug look on his face. Han Yulan couldn't bear to look at him: "Alright, we'll bring her home for dinner sometime, and we'll give you our opinions." Gu Yanxiao nodded and said, "Okay! Trust me, you'll definitely like her." Then he went back to his bedroom.
The next day, Xia Liang received a notice as soon as he arrived at the factory: next week, they would be participating in a competition at a garment factory in the provincial capital. There were seven or eight garment factories of varying sizes throughout S province, and each factory had three slots. Each shift leader would select the fastest and best workers to participate. The factory leaders decided to hold a competition within the factory first, selecting the three best to compete. After all, their factory was among the top three in the province, and losing to smaller factories would be a huge loss of face. So, the factory organized its own small competition, which included shift leaders. Each person had to sew thirty garments, and only the fastest and best-quality sewer would participate.
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