It turned out that Zhang Xiuying's character of taking her anger out on others was very familiar to her grandmother's family.
Jiang Jun pricked up his ears, waiting to see who could do something to Zhang Xiuying.
Zhang Defei tried to smooth things over: "Grandma, it's so hard for Dani to come see you, let's talk about happy things!"
Hong Guizhen wiped the corners of her eyes and forced a smile: "Dani'er is so tall now, um, Xiaojun is so tall now, a grown-up girl, it's time for her to find a partner, why am I still talking about the past?"
Jiang Lan asked, "Grandma, what is a partner? How do I find one?"
Everyone at the table burst into laughter again.
Jiang Jun covered his mouth and laughed. Food, sex, and love are always the most talked-about topics.
Hong Guizhen looked at Jiang Yun's smile and explained to Jiang Lan, "Looking for a partner means your sister is looking for a good guy to marry in the future. Just like your mother married your father, and then had a few children!"
"So you're just looking for a lover!" Jiang Lan hunched her shoulders and trembled, protesting loudly: "Are you going to quarrel with your partner all day long? And after the quarrel, are you going to beat the children?"
Hong Guizhen's smile disappeared. She held Jiang Yun's hand, tears welling up in her eyes again: "Daniel, you didn't break your hand at all. Your mother beat you, right?" Even a tiger won't eat its own cubs. Of all the children, Zhang Xiuying was the most foolish: "Xiuyun, your aunt is well-known here for her ability and good temper. I don't know how your mother could be so cruel and do that to you."
As soon as Zhang Xiuying is mentioned, the atmosphere in the room becomes frozen.
Zhang Jinbao comforted his mother: "Mom, I'm going to my sister's place tomorrow. She'll listen to me."
Hong Guizhen sighed: "With your sister's temper, what can you say to her? She's like a firecracker, she'll catch fire if touched."
Jiang Lan answered innocently again: "My mom is just afraid that my dad will be angry."
Zhang Jinbao laughed: "You kid, if your mother was really afraid of your father, you two sisters wouldn't be around."
Zhang Jinxi picked up the wine bowl and said, "Dad, second brother, let's drink. The children are here. Let's talk about something else."
Several boys were staring with wide eyes, listening with as much gusto as Jiang Yun.
Zhang Jinbao also picked up the wine bowl: "Yes, yes, Dani'er, tell us about your school life. Liu'er said that you speak very nicely. Let your brothers learn from you. Then you can have a bright future and go to the city to work and get a city hukou. Don't be trapped in this mountain!"
Jiang Lan said proudly: "My mother never went to school, but she still went to work."
My second aunt envied me: "Your mother is with the army, so she has a household registration!"
Only with an urban hukou can one work as a formal employee. People with a rural hukou can only work as temporary workers and cannot enjoy equal benefits in terms of education, employment, or even daily necessities.
Jiang Jun took over the conversation: "Boys must study, get good grades, and be in good health. Joining the army is the best option. As long as you join the Party and make contributions, you can get a good job in a good unit after demobilization."
Jiang Lan interrupted without missing a beat: "My sister's grades are really good. She reads so well, it's like listening to a storytelling session!"
Because of this sentence, Jiang Jun's daily reading and storytelling time to Jiang Lan became a regular program in the Zhang family.
Everyone, including several little cousins, were particularly nice to Jiang Yun. At first, Jiang Yun thought that everyone loved her because they were filial to their grandmother. Later, she found out that among the grandchildren of the Zhang family, only she and her sisters were girls, and the rest of their peers were boys, making them the little princesses who were the center of attention.
As for Wang Hailiu, Jiang Jun finally figured out the special relationship between them.
Wang Hailiu's grandmother, Hong Guifang, and Jiang Yun's grandmother, Hong Guizhen, were sisters. Hong Guifang was the older daughter, twenty years younger than Hong Guizhen and only three years older than Zhang Xiuying. When Zhang Xiuying gave birth to Jiang Yun, Hong Guifang had just given birth to Wang Hailiu.
Jiang Yun was born half a month premature and had no milk to drink, so Hong Guifang took Jiang Yun to be fed by Hong Guifang, who had just given birth to her first son. She continued to feed Jiang Yun until she was weaned at one year old.
Jiang Jun was extremely disappointed. It turned out that she was Zhang Xiuying's biological daughter!
This is unscientific!
Wang Hailiu confidently said, "Xiaojun, since we are so close, I will protect you from now on. No one can bully you!"
Originally, the elders teased him about snatching food from Jiang Jun when he was a child, which made him feel embarrassed to see Jiang Jun. He originally wanted to meet Jiang Yonghua, fulfill his fantasy of joining the army, and then go home. After the New Year, he would go to work in Qingcheng Oilfield with his uncle.
Unexpectedly, he felt a strong affinity with Jiang Jun at first sight. This cousin knew so many things that she became his new idol in the blink of an eye.
"Xiaojun, if you can run and climb trees, you can be a female general!" Wang Hailiu was determined to seize the opportunity to teach Jiang Jun all the tricks he had accumulated: "Being smart is not enough, you have to be able to beat others. If you can't beat them, you have to run faster than them!"
Wang Hailiu was the undisputed leader of the children. He took Jiang Yun, Jiang Lan, Dongzi and Qiangzi to the mountain to set up nets and catch birds.
Jiang Yun was most interested in setting traps to catch small animals that would dig for food.
There had been a light snowfall earlier, and the weather was getting colder. The ground was frozen harder than stone, and a pickaxe could only leave a mark as big as the tip of a needle. The only way to hunt was to rearrange the traps we had dug before.
Wang Hailiu was incredibly familiar with the large pits that hunters dug in the mountains to catch bears and wild boars. He could name them like the back of his hand: "My eldest cousin saw it. That blind bear was so clever. He dug a pit three times before falling into it. If you don't believe me, I'll take you to see it!"
Jiang Jun waved his hand and refused to go with them: "No, I can't stand it."
If they really encounter any wild animals and are starving in the middle of winter, she will be like food delivered to their doorstep.
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!
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