Siheyuan: There are three little cats at home

Chapter 289 Brother-in-law’s engagement drink

In the afternoon, when Xu Qing got off work from the factory, Ma Jiefang was outside the factory gate, pushing the cart, and said with joy on his face:

"Brother-in-law, Yuemei and I are getting engaged tomorrow. Please remember to come with me and my fifth sister."

Xu Qing was riding his Phoenix bicycle with Patriot on the back seat. When he heard Ma Jiefang's words, he gently held the brakes with both hands, parked the car next to Ma Jiefang, nodded and said:

"Don't worry, Jinghong and I will be there tomorrow."

Ma Jiefang hummed with a smile, stepped across the beam, and left the factory gate happily.

Xu Qing exhaled, turned his head to let the second brother behind him sit firmly, stepped on the pedal with his right foot, and held the handlebars with both hands, walked along the street and hurried back towards his own compound.

At this moment in the evening, the weather is so cold that people can freeze to death. Although I wear cotton-padded jackets, cotton trousers, cotton shoes, scarves, and hats, the cold and cold are tormenting people in this cold winter. It's really terrible.

Especially the northwest wind rushing towards the face, whizzing past, not to mention shortness of breath, and pain in the frozen cheeks.

There was a lot of noise at the factory gate. At this point, all the workers in the factory were rushing out. When there were more people, the scene became chaotic.

Sha Zhu, Qin Huairu and Yi Zhonghai, the three of them walked out of the factory together, all shrunk up and hid themselves in their cotton jackets.

The rest of the people who came out of the factory were almost the same as the three of them. Er Mazi put his hands in the sleeves of his padded jacket, hurried out of the factory together with Chen Xiaojuan, turned around and turned to go home.

There were not many people setting up stalls on the street at this time. Although it had not snowed in the past few days, it was like seeing a ghost in the past two days. The temperature dropped sharply, and people who were cold could not stay outside for more than one minute.

Xu Qing pedaled his bicycle, braved the bitter cold wind, and galloped all the way back to the compound quickly.

It was very quiet in the compound today, Xu Qing did not meet a single person from the front yard to the back yard.

Everyone is staying in their own house. There is a fire in the house, and it is warm. There is nothing to do. Who wants to hang out in the yard in winter.

The third uncle in the front yard usually likes to wipe his bicycle when he has nothing to do, but these days, it has been so cold that the cat has not come out at home.

Xu Qing returned to the backyard, parked his bicycle at the door of his house, and immediately opened the door and got into the house.

The little girl and Jinghong made dinner early. Xu Qing took off his scarf and stood in front of the stove to warm himself up. He turned to his wife Jinghong and said:

"Aren't Jiefang and Yuemei getting engaged tomorrow? They asked us to go there early tomorrow."

Ma Jinghong puffed out her stomach, hummed, and placed the bowls and chopsticks on the kang, walked to the door of the house, opened the curtain, and shouted to Xu Aiguo who lived in the old lady's hut:
"Patriot, it's time to eat."

Xu Aiguo had just returned to his own room when he heard his sister-in-law calling him to eat and hurriedly walked over.

Xu Qing scooped up hot water and was washing his hands. When he saw his second brother coming, he asked him to wash his hands together.

The little girl came out of the kitchen carrying the newly made fried noodles. She saw her elder brother and second brother washing their hands and said with a grin:
"Brother, second brother, my sister-in-law and I made noodles with meat today. Wash your hands and eat them while they are hot."

Xu Qing wiped his hands with a towel and looked at the delicious fried noodles, his appetite suddenly whetted.

Fried sauce noodles, people in Sijiu City like this one.

However, in the past few years, the situation in the house was not good, and Xu Qing and his younger brothers and sisters rarely ate.

But since he married Jinghong, the second and third younger brothers both graduated from high school, and the number of times they ate fried noodles in the house increased.

Xu Qing handed the towel to the second younger brother, walked to the edge of the Kang, picked up the noodle bowl, mixed the fried sauce and noodles with chopsticks, and ate the pickled radish strips in big mouthfuls.

Ma Jinghong and the little girl sat on the kang, they picked up their rice bowls and started to eat.

Xu Aiguo and his eldest brother Xu Qing went to the kang without taking off their shoes, sat on the edge of the kang, peeled a clove of garlic, put it in a noodle bowl, and ate it.

The food in the room is fragrant and warm.

The cold wind was raging outside, and it was terrifyingly cold.

Xu Qing and Aiguo each ate two large bowls of fried noodles, and each drank a bowl of thick noodle soup.

A young and strong guy in his 20s naturally eats a lot.

It's just that Xu Fengming is not here, otherwise, his appetite is estimated to be at least three bowls.

After eating and drinking, Xu Qing gathered all the dishes and chopsticks and took them to the kitchen to clean them directly.

He is the eldest brother, and now that he is married to Jinghong, it is not a problem for his sister to do this alone every day.

Xu Aiguo took the fire tongs, picked up the briquettes from the stove, and went to the next door house to help the little girl light the fire. Of course, there was also the house where he lived.

The little girl wanted to help in the kitchen, but Xu Qing pushed her out, so she had to sit in front of the sewing machine with her sister-in-law to make clothes for her future nephew or niece.

Ma Jinghong is going to give birth in a few months, and these things have to be prepared in advance.

There is a sewing machine at home, which makes needlework much faster. The last time Xu Qing went to the state-owned store to sell food, the little girl and Jinghong had used up very little cloth.

Originally, Xu Qing planned to make a new dress for his second brother or the little girl.

As a result, Xu Aiguo and Xu Xiaoya said they would not use it for the time being, so they turned to making children's clothes.

But it's okay, Xu Qing still has a lot of cloth tickets in his hand, after a while, he will go to the state-owned store to buy some cloth and come back.

Now both the little girl and Jinghong are proficient in using the sewing machine in the house, and the clothes don't need to be made by others as before.

Xu Qing has not been to Shopkeeper Zheng’s tailor shop in the past two years.

As for the silly pillar in the middle courtyard, Xu Qing's light was on him, and his and Yushui's clothes were also torn. Yushui took Xu Qing's house and borrowed a sewing machine to do it by himself.

He Yuyu's needlework is also quite good. It seems that girls are very talented in this area. They can learn it immediately after just a little look.

Xu Qing and Silly Zhu didn't understand at all. Firstly, they were not as delicate as girls, and secondly, they couldn't bear their temper.

Needlework is slow and meticulous work. Xu Qing has never tried it before, but the clothes he sewed for his third brother Feng Ming were very ugly with the stitches twisted and crooked.

In fact, Xu Qing first joined the factory as a fitter, which was supposed to be slow and meticulous work, but for some unknown reason, he just couldn't do this needlework.

It's still the little girl who learns quickly and does well. She only learned it a few times from her grandma and the deaf old lady, and then she will master it.

A few years ago, before Xu Qing married Jinghong, the family relied on the little girl alone for all the work in this area.

Xu Qing finished washing the dishes in the kitchen and returned to the front room. He saw the little girl sitting in front of the sewing machine, her feet lightly stepping on the pedal underneath, and her hands working quickly on it. Jinghong stood aside and whispered: she said.

Looking at this scene, Xu Qing secretly felt that his sister was really virtuous, just like his own wife. If she got married in the future, she would definitely not be rejected by her husband's family like Qin Jingru from Xu Damao's family.

Speaking of Qin Jingru, Xu Qing was speechless.

Qin Jingru was born in a rural area, and like her cousin Qin Huairu, she was pretty good at needlework.

But Xu Damao’s clothes were torn, so she sewed them by hand without using a sewing machine.
But the problem is that Xu Damao bought a sewing machine and left it unused, just like a decoration.

Last month, Qin Huairu wanted to borrow Xu Damao's sewing machine, but Qin Jingru refused, saying it was a waste of gas.

Qin Huairu became angrier and angrier at this cousin.

In the end, Qin Huairu ran to Xu Qing's house to finish the clothes.

The two sisters were so embarrassed that they would not speak to each other sometimes in the compound.

In fact, Xu Qing felt that Qin Huairu was still stronger than Qin Jingru. At least, Qin Huairu didn't have any bad intentions.

Although she was always looking for someone to borrow money and had a firm grasp on Fuzhu, her family was having a hard time at that time.

If not, there would be no need for Qin Huairu to beg for help everywhere.

Of course, the main reason is that Jia Dongxu is gone.

Qin Huairu was an orphan and a widowed mother. There was no supporter in the family, and Jia Zhang couldn't help much. If she didn't look for Fuzhu, how could she, a woman, support the family and raise the children?

Just with the pitiful salary she earned from the factory?
Obviously it can't be done, and she also wants someone to support her, and that person, she can only think of Shazhu.

Because Silhu was very good to her, and they lived in the middle courtyard, saw each other every day, and helped her every day. The main reason was that he was not married and he didn't have any evil thoughts towards her.

When people have no idea, they will think about changes and will find ways to grab the only thing they can grab.

Qin Huairu was able to catch Silly Pillar, and then she held on tightly, daring not to let go. She was like a drowning person with only one thought: to survive, try her best to survive.

And Qin Jingru, as Qin Huairu's cousin, seldom took the initiative to help Qin Huairu in the compound, and focused all her attention on Xu Damao, for fear that Xu Damao would kick her one day.

Xu Damao was in the compound, and as soon as he talked to Yu Li in the front yard, Qin Jingru immediately changed his face, wishing he could strangle Yu Li to death, he always felt that Yu Li was seducing her man.

But I don't know, Xu Damao is fluttering colorful flags outside, flirting everywhere, Qin Jingru, how can she control her.

Besides, Xu Damao didn't want to be restrained at all. When Lou Xiaoe lived with him before, Xu Damao was always messing around.

Now it was Qin Jingru, Xu Damao still had to do whatever he was supposed to do, Lou Xiao'e couldn't do anything, and Qin Jingru, no matter how thoughtful she was, was in vain.

After dark at night, Xu Qing was in his house when he heard Xu Damao and Qin Jingru, who lived in the backyard, quarrel for some reason.

The sound was very loud, and it was very disturbing in this cold winter night.

Xu Qing walked out of the house and stood at the door, smoking a cigarette and listening for a while. He originally planned to go over and persuade her, but when he understood, he immediately gave up the past idea.

The quarrel between Xu Damao and Qin Jingru was because Qin Jingru's stomach remained unchanged.

It was just like the quarrel between Xu Damao and Lou Xiao'e.

Xu Qing was ashamed, Xu Damao was anxious to have a child, but he didn't check it out himself. He had quarreled with Lou Xiao'e before, and now he was quarreling with Qin Jingru. It was like a pole in the pit - a manure.

Xu Qing had reminded Xu Damao a few years ago that Xu Damao didn't take it seriously, and now Xu Qing didn't bother to take care of it because of this kind of incident.

And Liu Haizhong, the second uncle who lived in the backyard, would not try to persuade a fight.

Xu Damao took away Liu Haizhong's position in the factory, and he still resented in his heart for more than a year, how could he take care of Xu Damao's family.

It was not until about ten o'clock in the evening that Xu Damao's family calmed down, and the courtyard finally returned to peace. It was silent under the dark night.

Early the next morning, Xu Qing took his daughter-in-law Jinghong to attend his brother-in-law's engagement, but as soon as he went out, he ran into Xu Damao whose face was scratched.

Xu Qing felt happy when he saw Xu Damao's disfigurement. This was naturally Qin Jingru's masterpiece last night.

Xu Damao was a little embarrassed and didn't even say hello to Xu Qing. He turned around and hurried back into the house.

Xu Qing pushed the bicycle, without saying a word, took Jinghong out of the compound, carried it on the bicycle, and headed towards the old man's house.

Where is Wu Yuemei's house?Xu Qing didn't know, so he could only go to his father-in-law first, and then follow Ma Jiefang to Wu Yuemei's house.

In fact, Ma Jiefang initially planned to find a restaurant outside to get things done.

However, these days, all aspects are relatively strict, and Ma Jiefang and Wu Yuemei are both cadres. If this matter gets into the factory, it will not look good.

Therefore, the engagement was still left at Wu Yuemei's home.

After Xu Qing and Ma Jinghong arrived at their father-in-law's house, Ma Guohua saw that his daughter was heavier, frowned and said:

"Jinghong, you and Qi Ma should stay at home. Xu Qing, I, and your brother will go over there."

Ma Jiefang was wearing new clothes today, and he was very well-dressed. He was holding the prepared cigarettes and wine in his left hand, and grinned at Ma Jinghong:

"Fifth sister, I'm telling you, you still have to follow me even if I don't let you go. Our father has spoken, so you and our mother can wait at home for my good news."

Ma Jinghong stared at Ma Jiefang, hummed, thought for a moment, and then stayed at home.

Ma Jiefang rode a bicycle, took Ma Guohua, and Xu Qing to Wu Yuemei's house with the three of them.

Ma Jiefang was just going to get engaged, so it was fine.

After all, Wu Yuemei and Ma Jiefang were already planning to get married.

Engagement is just a formality.

What's more, Ma Jiefang and Wu Yuemei have already finalized their wedding date.

By the way, it's just a gift.

As mentioned before, Ma Jiefang’s gift is not heavy, only 60 yuan.

Of course, not too little.

Compared with the betrothal gifts given by ordinary workers, it was almost twice as much.

If it is in a rural area, this 60 yuan gift can startle the whole village.

But Ma Jiefang is a cadre, so it is normal for the bride price to be larger.

Moreover, Wu Yuemei is also a cadre, so there is nothing wrong with her asking for more points.

Xu Qing and Wu Yuemei are colleagues in the same office, and he can speak well when he comes over.

Wu Yuemei was very ladylike today, sitting next to her parents with her head lowered and barely opening her mouth.

Ma Guohua talked with Wu Yuemei's parents about the two children.

Xu Qing and Ma Jiefang sat aside to accompany them.

Wu Yuemei's parents still agree with this marriage. Ma Guohua is the deputy section chief in the factory, and both children are cadres. It can be said that they are well matched.

Therefore, the whole process was very relaxed and harmonious, without any disputes.

As for the bride price, Wu Yuemei's parents followed the 60 yuan they asked for before, and didn't change their minds temporarily.

When Er Mazi, who works in the same factory, got engaged to Chen Xiaojuan, they made a lot of noise because of the bride price.

However, there are not too many people like Chen Xiaojuan's parents in Sijiucheng, but they are not too many either.

At three o'clock in the afternoon, even if the marriage between Ma Jiefang and Wu Yuemei was confirmed, the specific date of the marriage was also negotiated.

They will get married before the end of the year, but it's not the day that Ma Jiefang and Wu Yuemei decided on their own.

But that's not a problem.

Xu Qing didn't drink less today, but he wasn't drunk either.

Instead, Wu Yuemei's father drank and lay down on the kang, sleeping soundly.

As soon as he came out of Wu Yuemei's house, the cold wind blew, and Ma Guohua, who was a little drunk, also sobered up.

Ma Jiefang didn't drink much, only two or three cups, and then he drove Ma Guohua back home by bicycle.

Xu Qing followed beside him to prevent his father-in-law from falling.

In any case, Ma Guohua had an important matter on his mind today, his son was engaged, so he didn't have to worry about it anymore in the future.

(End of this chapter)