Xiao Yuheng had never known that his uncle had this side to him, and he was speechless.
"It smells delicious, and it not only brings good taste into the house, but we can also eat meat."
Wang Dashan sniffed hard like a dog and sure enough, he smelled the aroma of food.
Seeing the father and son staring at him like that, Xiao Yuheng had a black line on his forehead and helplessly called out, "Uncle, cousin."
Wang Dashan pulled Xiao Yuheng close and said, “What are you shy about? I was even more diligent than you when I was pursuing your sister-in-law. I would get up early and work in the dark to finish my own work, and then go and do your sister-in-law’s work. I wouldn’t come back until it was dark. You can’t get a wife without being diligent, especially a girl as outstanding as Gu Zhiqing. Cousin, you have to be even more diligent.”
The village chief chimed in, "Yes, I put a lot of thought into marrying your aunt back then, otherwise we wouldn't have the good life we have now."
The father and son talked on and on with Xiao Yuheng until Xiao Yuheng felt dizzy.
"I know, I know."
Early in the morning, Xiao Yuheng rode his bicycle back to the commune. His mother had just gotten up when she saw him open the door and come in. She thought something had happened.
"What happened? Did that girl send you back?"
Xiao Yuheng knew his mother's temper; the more timid you were, the more she would tease you. So he changed his mind and said, "Yeah, they didn't like me and sent me back. I thought that instead of wasting time here, I should go back to the army to do missions."
Seeing his disheartened look, Xiao's mother was immediately taken aback. "Son, are you serious? Gu Zhiqing didn't like you?"
Although she had only met him once, she knew that Gu An'an was not the kind of girl who was easy to pursue, but she did not expect it to be this difficult. It was not that she was bragging about her son, but her son's conditions were already quite good, yet he could not even last two days.
Not only that, but he was so discouraged that he immediately wanted to return to his unit. That shouldn't be the case.
"Yeah, they don't like me."
Without even washing her face, Xiao's mother plopped down on the sofa, her voice anxious, "Son, tell me what happened. Let me analyze it for you. Gu Zhiqing seems like a really good kid. It would be a shame to miss out on him."
“If you’ve done something wrong, we’ll go back and apologize. If there’s really no hope… Mom won’t force you. But I’ll give you a year. You must bring your daughter-in-law back to me within a year.”
Xiao Yuheng: ...Bring a wife back within a year, as if finding a partner is like picking out cabbages.
"No, Mom, finding a partner can't be rushed."
Xiao's mother wouldn't listen to her son's excuses at all. "Can't you rush it? How come other people's sons can bring their girlfriends home whenever they want, but you can't? Are you lacking something compared to them?"
"I don't care anyway. Either you try your best to bring Gu Zhiqing back to be my daughter-in-law, or if that doesn't work, I'll introduce you to someone. It has to be settled before you return to the team, or I'll never forgive you."
Having said all that, Xiao Yuheng had no choice but to honestly recount what had happened in the past few days. Upon hearing this, Xiao's mother immediately revealed a sly smile, "I knew you little rascal were trying to fool me. You're still too green to act in front of me."
"Alright, don't worry about the stuff, I'll go get it for you right away."
A little while later, Xiao's mother returned. "I'll take you to buy it later. I've already reserved it. But is Gu Zhiqing's cooking really that delicious?"
Xiao Yuheng nodded readily, recalling the dishes he had eaten the day before, "The Sichuan cuisine was very authentic."
Xiao's mother pursed her lips. "Why don't you shamelessly get a bowl for me and your dad?"
Xiao Yuheng: "...Mom, do you want a daughter-in-law or some delicious food?"
"I want both. You better hurry up, or you'll be crying your eyes out if someone snatches such a good girl away."
When Xiao Yuheng returned to Xiaowang Village with a basket full of good stuff, Gu An'an followed the village chief's wife and Wang Dashan to Houshan'ao Village. Just as the village chief had said, this village was closer to the mountains, surrounded by several large mountains. Neither the size of the village nor the area of arable land could compare to Xiaowang Village.
The conditions in this village are certainly not as good as those in Xiaowang Village, but they rely on the mountains for their livelihood. Since the land produces little, they look for things in the mountains and have more opportunities to interact with wild animals, so they have accumulated quite a few good things.
The village chief's wife's older brother is the head of the village committee of Houshan'ao Village. When he heard that they had come to purchase supplies, he was overjoyed.
"Hey girl, you're not lying to me?"
The village chief's wife handed the teacup to Gu An'an, saying, "Brother, how idle do you think I am that I would come here just to lie to you?"
Wang Qingsong grinned foolishly, "I'm just so excited! Ladies, tell me what you want and how much you want, and I'll take care of it for you."
The village chief's wife recounted what Factory Director Li wanted, then, remembering something, turned to Gu An'an and asked, "My family has some good things here, Gu Zhiqing, would you like to take a look?"
Their area is remote, so even if they have good products, they can't sell them, and if they're not stored properly, they'll be wasted.
Judging from Gu Zhiqing's qualifications, they are quite good. If she takes a liking to someone, it would be a good thing.
As soon as she spoke, Gu An'an thought of ginseng, lingzhi and other things, and immediately nodded and said, "We can take a look. If they are really good things, we can buy some. Even if Uncle Li doesn't want them, there are other people who need them."
The village chief's wife was delighted to hear this and quickly said to her sister-in-law, "Sister-in-law, didn't we hear that a ginseng was dug up in the family a while ago? Quickly take a look at it for Gu Zhiqing."
Seeing that her sister-in-law was very polite to Gu An'an, anyone with a brain could guess that Gu An'an was from a wealthy family. Wang Qingsong's wife warmly invited, "Yes, yes, I'll go get it."
A short while later, she came in with a package. She opened the outermost layer of lichen to reveal a large ginseng root with soil still attached. It was of excellent quality, and the person who dug it was very careful, as the ginseng roots were not broken.
“My son dug it up. All the old experts in the village have come to see it. After digging it out, it should weigh a little over two ounces. It’s a real wild ginseng.”
After the introduction, she looked at Gu An'an with anticipation, hoping that Gu An'an would like to take her away.
Everyone knows this stuff is valuable, but for the mountain people, it's neither food nor drink. It's more practical to exchange it for cash. If they were to actually eat this good stuff themselves, they definitely wouldn't be able to stomach it.
Gu An'an took a look and realized that this item would be a rare find even in later generations. She was immediately tempted, since she wasn't short of money anyway.
"We can take it. Shall we discuss the price, or wait for Uncle to return?"
When Wang Qingsong's wife heard that Gu An'an really wanted it, she was overjoyed as if the deal had already been made. "Wait for my husband to come."
After saying that, he went back into the house to get something, "These pine nuts are from our own farm, you should try them."
Gu An'an fell in love with the pine nuts as soon as she tasted them. They were so fragrant and delicious that she wanted to eat one after another. It's true that there are so many good things in Northeast China.
"Auntie, do you have any extra pine nuts at home? I'd like to buy some too."
Wang Qingsong's wife knew Gu An'an was wealthy, but she didn't expect her to be this extravagant. She wanted everything she saw, asking, "How many do you want?"
Gu An'an held up one finger, and Wang Qingsong's wife laughed, "Why buy a pound? Auntie will pack a few pounds for you later."
"No, I want 100 jin (50 kg)."
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