Chapter 16
"Mom, where did this letter come from?"
The letter was brought back by Li Decheng after he went to the town to help. Upon hearing that there was a letter from home, Meng Daguo and Meng Eryong both ran back to see what it was.
When my father was still alive, every time we received a letter, it was a big deal. My mother would open the letter, read it quickly, and then throw it to them. Meng Daguo would pick up the letter and read it to his two younger brothers.
After my father passed away, there were no more letters.
Zhen Zhen opened the letter and took a look. The letter said that Daguo's father's problem had been investigated clearly long ago, but it had not been verified yet. However, the leaders had urged the higher-ups to implement the compensation as soon as possible, and the money would be paid before April at the latest.
Five hundred and fifty yuan is not a lot of money, but it is something that people are paying attention to. Zhen Zhen closed the letter and said, "It's a letter from your father's army. He may have heard about Eryong's marriage and sent the gift money."
Zhen Zhen did not lie. Daguo's father was popular. When the army heard that Meng Eryong was getting married, ten comrades each chipped in five yuan, totaling fifty yuan, and sent the money along with the letter.
Meng Eryong's eyes lit up when he saw the money, "Mom, Dad's comrade-in-arms is quite generous, he gave me fifty right away!"
"How can you be so generous? Life is difficult for every household these days. I must have saved this money through gritted teeth. I just wanted to help because your father died early!"
Although there is contact, when the other person's child gets married, there is a high probability that they will not write a letter to inform Zhen Zhen, so the money is not returned.
Zhen Zhen didn't think too much about it and locked the money in the safe.
When the 550 yuan subsidy from Daguo's father comes in, she will have 700 yuan in her hands. She is uncomfortable living in this house and has long wanted to build a few tiled houses.
Building a house these days is not an easy task. Bricks and tiles must be prepared a year in advance. For a mud and thatched house like the one Zhen Zhen lives in now, it costs about 150 yuan to build three rooms, and the cost of a tiled house would be three times that.
Seven hundred yuan was enough to build a five-room house, and that was with the help of villagers on a voluntary basis, and the wood for building the house was cut down in the mountains.
However, it was one thing to live in an uncomfortable house. Meng Hua's house was occupied by Meng Eryong. This time he came back without a house to live in. He couldn't let his cheap son sleep on the street, could he? Building a house was imminent.
The Meng family has a large population, a large residential plot, and a spacious yard. They estimate that they can build six rooms horizontally. She will live in one room, the eldest and second sons will have two rooms, and the third son will have one room for now, and they will expand it in a few years.
This is what Zhen Zhen planned, but this plan also has its shortcomings. For example, if there are too many children in the family, the house can accommodate them now, but in a few years, when the children grow up and need to sleep in separate rooms, the house will not be enough.
But the residential land is limited, so we can’t build a house on it, right?
It would be too eye-catching! Besides, after a few years of reform and opening up, she wanted to encourage her children to go out and have fun. By then, there would be no one at home, and it would not be very meaningful to keep such a nice house.
As soon as Meng Eryong came out of Zhen Zhen's room, Tao Aihong pulled him into the room.
"Whose letter is this? Did the army receive money?"
Meng Eryong frowned, "No, Tao Aihong, why are you always thinking about our family's money? Not to mention that my father's death benefit hasn't come, even if it has, it's not your turn to worry about it!"
Tao Aihong was so angry that she whimpered, "Why should I worry about it? Your mother has three sons, and we from the second branch should get one third, not to mention that the baby I'm pregnant with is the eldest grandson of your Meng family! We from the second branch should get more!"
Meng Eryong had a dark face and said nothing.
He also loved money, but that was the subsidy his father received after he died for his country. It was earned with his father's life, and the total amount was only 550 yuan. Each family would only get 100 or 200 yuan. He didn't want to be criticized for taking this little money.
"You're thinking about our family's money as soon as you come in. What else do you want? Let me tell you, my mother is still alive, and we haven't split up the family. I don't need you to have any evil thoughts about my father's subsidy!"
Tao Aihong curled her lips and thought to herself, the person is dead, why shouldn't I worry about him?
"Don't think I don't know. It was all your mother who instigated this. I'm telling you, Tao Aihong, even if we get the money, you are not allowed to use it to subsidize your crippled brother!"
Tao Aihong is not stupid. She is not willing to subsidize Tao Jiang. She is just afraid that her mother will favor the first and third wives.
At dinner, as soon as Zhen Zhen sat down, Tao Aihong brought him the bowl and chopsticks. Her attentiveness was beyond words.
Zhen Zhen looked outside, "Wow! There's a wonder today, why didn't anyone invite me to go see it?"
Meng Eryong asked innocently, "Mom, what's this wonder?"
"What? Didn't the sun rise from the west today? You were holding the bowls and chopsticks, and carrying the stools and rice. I thought the sun rose from the west!"
Tao Aihong blushed with embarrassment, "Mom, didn't I just want to perform well? Look at what you said!"
Zhen Zhen was about to laugh or not, "Are you trying to show off, or are you thinking about the money in my pocket? Can you really hide your tricks from me?"
Tao Aihong laughed dryly twice.
"Mom, I didn't mean that."
Jiao Huilan still had some problems. She heard that there was a letter from the army and her father's comrade-in-arms also sent her fifty yuan. However, the family had never allowed its daughter-in-law to touch the money, so she didn't think about it.
Zhen Zhen thought about it and said bluntly: "Your father's subsidy has not come down yet. If it comes down one day, I want to use this money to build a few tiled houses for you brothers."
"Mom!" Meng Daguo was the first to object. "That was what Dad paid for with his life. How can we, as his son, have the nerve to use this money?"
"Yes, mother, big brother is right. If you really use it, you will be criticized."
Zhen Zhen said, "The person is dead, but the living still have to go on with their lives. I believe your father in heaven would agree with mother's approach. Besides, there will be two more people in the family in the spring, and Meng Hua will also be back. If we don't build a house, where will our family live?"
Jiao Huilan didn't react. Her mother was the head of the family, and whatever her mother said was the final word.
Tao Aihong was secretly happy because every family would have a share in building the house, so she would not suffer any loss.
After dinner, Zhen Zhen wanted to wash the dishes, but Jiao Huilan snatched them away, "Mom, Aihong didn't mean anything else, don't take it to heart, keep Dad's money for yourself!"
Her mother-in-law is kind to her, so Jiao Huilan feels particularly sorry for her.
She didn't want the mother-in-law to be controlled by her daughter-in-law. Neither she nor Tao Aihong could do that.
My father-in-law sacrificed his life for his country and only got a few hundred dollars. What is there for a daughter-in-law to fight for?
If you need money, just earn it yourself. There's no reason to worry about this kind of money and make others look down on you.
Zhen Zhen rarely chatted with her daughter-in-law. In fact, she didn't feel anything. In the original novel, the three brothers had three different minds and their own ulterior motives, and none of them would give in to the other.
However, after Zhen Zhen came, the relationship between Meng Daguo and Meng Eryong eased a lot, but the son's elbows were always outward, otherwise why would people say "marry a wife and forget the mother"? She didn't want to waste her time to bring her sons together. If they could get along well, they would live together, and if they didn't, they would separate.
This kind of money cannot be hidden, and spending it will easily lead to criticism, so it is better to build a house and save trouble.
"Aihong, your belly is getting bigger. From now on, I'll do the rough work. You just need to take care of the baby!" Zhen Zhen rolled up his sleeves and was about to wash the dishes with alkaline flour.
"Oh my god!"
Jiao Huilan felt pain in her heart. What a wasteful mother-in-law! Using alkaline flour to wash dishes is such a luxury!
She didn't know why, but if she asked her mother-in-law to wash the dishes, she was afraid that she would break all the dishes. If she asked her mother-in-law to sweep the floor, she was afraid that she would tear down the house. If she asked her mother-in-law to cook, she thought that she was wasting oil. In short, she was not at ease with her mother-in-law no matter what she did. It would be better for her to do it herself so that she would have less worries.
She was asked to take care of all the housework, and Zhen Zhen returned the favor by taking out two 12-pound quilts from the space on New Year's Day.
"Mom, where did you get such a nice quilt?" Jiao Huilan touched the slippery quilt cover lovingly.
"My mother asked someone to buy it from the black market. She saw that you were about to give birth and was worried that you and the children would be frozen, so she made a big quilt so that the whole family could sleep together and keep warm."
The quilt in Jiao Huilan's room was like it was filled with water. It wouldn't get soft even if it was exposed to the sun. She was often woken up by the cold at night. Every morning when she woke up, the quilt was cold. Wearing socks and cotton pants was of no use.
Farmers are used to a hard life and can endure anything, but who doesn’t want to sleep under a big, soft quilt and have a sound sleep every night until dawn?
Jiao Huilan burst into tears, "Mom, you still sleep on the quilt you used when you got married, but you gave us such a good quilt!"
Zhen Zhen sighed, "Huilan, all mothers in the world are like this! They keep the good things for their children and the bad things for themselves. It's okay for mother to be cold, as long as you and the baby in your belly are comfortable, mother will be satisfied!"
Jiao Huilan kept her mother-in-law's kindness in her heart, but when Tao Aihong saw the new quilt, she happily took it and left.
The sun was shining brightly and there was not much wind. Jiao Huilan put the quilt outside to dry in the sun while Daya was crawling around in the quilt.
According to the custom of Batou Village, one cannot post Spring Festival couplets, set off firecrackers or fireworks in the first three years after a direct relative dies. In the past few years, the Meng family has not been in the mood to post couplets. Now it has been three years, and Zhen Zhen thinks that the new year brings new atmosphere, so the New Year should still have some sense of ceremony.
She asked the village teacher to write some couplets and posted them, and then took out the firecrackers she had bought to set off during the New Year's Eve.
She also took apart some small whips to play with Daya. Daya was wearing new clothes, the new clothes made by Zhen Zhen, and looked like a beautiful porcelain doll.
Jiao Huilan watched her mother-in-law busying herself and inexplicably felt that this year was different from previous years.
She turned and went into the kitchen to busy herself. In previous years, it was good enough to have a plate of meat and a plate of dumplings during the Chinese New Year, but this year their family had a whole table full of food.
There were cabbage stewed with pork, meatballs, braised fish, stewed pig's trotters, sautéed intestines, dumplings, and even mutton hotpot.
Such a hot table of food makes people feel that there is hope for the coming year!
Everyone ate very well, and Daya went into Zhen Zhen's room after dinner.
"Grandma, is there any candy in the hole? Daya wants to eat candy!"
Zhen Zhen looked at the hole in silence.
She opened the cupboard and took out a box of peach cakes, which she bought when she went to the county town last time. Children love to eat this. She also grabbed a handful of roasted chestnuts and melon seeds and put them in Daya's pocket, a handful of White Rabbit milk candies, and also gave her two yuan as a New Year's gift.
"Remember to give the money to your mother. Don't lose it!"
Daya nodded obediently, patted her bulging pockets, and ran away with a smile.
After eating and drinking to her heart's content, Tao Aihong felt that marrying here was a very wise decision. Although the Meng family didn't have much money, they were really willing to spend money on food! There was no New Year's Eve dinner as sumptuous as this in the surrounding area, and she really learned something new.
After returning to her room, she touched the quilt lovingly. The more she touched it, the more she felt strange. This cotton quilt didn't look as thick as her sister-in-law's! To confirm, she went out and touched Jiao Huilan's quilt. Sure enough, it was much heavier than hers.
"Your mother is so biased! She gave my sister-in-law a thick bed, but the eight kilograms of cotton she gave us is not even as thick as it used to be!"
Meng Eryong thought this quilt was good enough. Who in the village had two new cotton quilts? Besides, Tao Aihong slept on straw at her parents' home, and she treated herself like a princess after getting married.
"What's wrong with this quilt? Even if it's not good, it's better than you marrying empty-handed."
Tao Aihong stood up angrily, "Meng Eryong! What nonsense are you talking about! My mother won't give me a dowry, what can I do?"
"What can I do? It's your family's business that your mother didn't give you a dowry. You are quite tolerant of your own mother, but you are so picky about my mother! I made two cotton quilts for you, how could I be sorry for you? My mother herself sleeps on straw, and you are still not satisfied!"
Tao Aihong curled her lips. She was not ungrateful. "I just think this quilt is not as good as my sister-in-law's bed."
"How much gift money did my sister-in-law give for her wedding? How much do you give? My sister-in-law doesn't even have a new quilt in her room, but mother prepared two for you! If you are not satisfied, you can exchange the two quilts for my sister-in-law's one?"
Tao Aihong is not stupid, of course she is unhappy!
Meng Eryong had a bad temper and was not used to her, so she did not dare to make a fuss. She just closed the door and muttered a few words.
Meng Eryong was so angry that he rolled up the quilt and slept in the bed, not even touching her.
In the evening, there were bursts of firecrackers in the village. Zhen Zhen filled the thermos, took out the unfinished wool, and curled up on the bed to knit to pass the time. While she was knitting, Daya ran in.
"Grandma, my mother peed her pants."
"What?"
"I really peed! My pants are all wet!" Daya said in a baby voice. She gestured to Zhen Zhen in case he didn't believe her. "Just like when I wet the bed, it got wet all of a sudden."
Zhen Zhen reacted quickly. This was clearly the amniotic fluid breaking! She got up and called Meng Eryong to help.
"Mom, what's wrong?" Meng Eryong put on his clothes.
"Your sister-in-law is about to give birth."
"What?" Meng Eryong was more nervous than his biological father Meng Daguo. After all, he had never experienced such a thing.
Although it was not the first time that Meng Daguo became a father, he was not helpful at the critical moment and was in a panic. It was Zhen Zhen who directed two people to lift Jiao Huilan onto the flatbed truck.
"Eryong, go and harness the car. Aihong, make the bed. I'll go and prepare the place for the hospital."
Tao Aihong agreed repeatedly. She was also a grown girl and it was the first time she encountered such a thing. She had no idea how to deal with it. Fortunately, her mother-in-law was able to calm the situation.
Zhen Zhen simply packed up her hospital supplies, picked up a kettle of hot water, and went to the county hospital.
Jiao Huilan's pregnancy was very rapid and she was due two months earlier than expected. Zhen Zhen was a little anxious.
Although Jiao Huilan gave birth to a daughter safely in the original novel, the butterfly flapped its wings, and who knows if there will be any accidents? Besides, in the original novel, Jiao Huilan had a difficult birth.
Before the flatbed truck reached the county town, Jiao Huilan complained of stomachache.
When Zhen Zhen hurriedly covered her with the quilt, he reached out his hand and touched something warm. When he looked again, the baby was out.
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