Wang family small peasant girl

Chapter 115

Taking advantage of the free time during the Chinese New Year, Zhang Youqing went to Lizheng as Zhou said, and asked if there were any idle fields in the village. When the Chinese New Year came into spring, he had to prepare the field and compost, and the rice seedlings could not be planted until April. If you raise fish and shrimp, you can only buy idle land if you don’t have mature land. Time waits for no one.

Zhang Youqing stayed at Lizheng's house for half a day, and when he came back, he brought good news, "His mother, Lizheng said, there is a piece of land by the Qingling River, about three acres, which can be used as a paddy field. If our family wants it, He will be allocated to our family." Zhang Youqing rushed home excitedly, and shouted after running into the house.

The Zhang family stayed in the house to enjoy the fire, and when they heard the good news from Zhang Youqing, they all smiled happily. Zhang Yun hurriedly gave up the seat next to his mother so that they could have a good discussion.

As soon as Zhang Youqing sat down, he said again: "The price of the land over there is not expensive. You can buy the whole land for eight taels of silver. If you add it up, it is less than three taels per mu." The land had to be reclaimed by itself, so the price It's a little lower, but it's close to the Qingling River, and the land is quite fertile, so the price can be considered affordable.

"That's good, the paddy fields are close to home, and it's convenient to catch fish and shrimp by the Qingling River." Mrs. Zhou laughed quickly when she heard the price, and felt that it was very satisfactory, and the land over there was also good. At worst, it is worth spending more effort on reclamation.

Zhang Youqing nodded, put his hand on the brazier to warm the fire, and said, "It's just that this place is a little far away from our home, so I'm afraid I won't be able to take care of both ends."

"Father, it's okay. At worst, let's get up earlier in the morning and come back later in the evening. We have grandpa, you and me in our family, and we can always find someone from Gu Shuitian's side." Zhang Zhang also interjected at this time. It is a good thing to buy a paddy field, at most it will be a little harder, he is not afraid.

"That's right, his father, don't you still have me? If I help a little more on weekdays, I should be able to take care of it." Zhou also agreed with his son.

Seeing that his family members supported the purchase of the land here, Zhang Youqing had no hesitation, and immediately said with a smile, "All right, then I will reply to Li Zheng tomorrow, saying that we want that piece of land."

Zhang's family made an agreement on the same day. Zhang Youqing went to Lizheng's house early the next morning and told him the result of the discussion. title deed.

The matter of buying the land was settled, and everything went smoothly. The Zhang family was very happy about it. Taking advantage of everyone's joy and energy, Zhang Youqing and the Zhou family closed their doors to discuss it that night.

"His mother, do you think we should tidy up the yard before we buy the land, and build the tile-roofed house behind the West House first?" Zhang Youqing dragged Mrs. Zhou into the house, and thought about today for a while. The whole day has been said.

Mrs. Zhou got excited when she heard it, and hurriedly sat down beside him, and said happily: "It's good to be able to build the tile-roofed house early, but we have to spend a lot of effort to cultivate it after we finish building it." Wafang has to be busy at the other end, won't it be too tiring?"

"It's a little tired, but this will be the most idle time of the year. After the spring plowing, we have both fields and fields. I'm afraid we won't be free all year. I thought about it, it's better to just bite Grit your teeth, and it will be fine after you have been busy for a while." Zhang Youqing told Mrs. Zhou what she was thinking, and Mrs. Zhou also felt that it made sense. Down, ready to start preparations to start the next day.

"Building a tile-roofed house?" Zhang Youqing and Zhou's couple got up early the next morning and went to Zhang Liangen to tell the story.

Zhang Youqing nodded and said: "Father, our family has a little savings now, it's time to build a new house, I discussed it with his mother last night, taking advantage of the free time in the first month, before the land is bought, we will build the new house .”

After hearing this, Zhang Liangen wrinkled his face with a smile, and said straightly: "Okay, okay, okay, our family finally has this day, okay, then I will go to choose a date, and see if there will be a day in these few days." When it’s time to break ground, pick a day and it’s easy to do it.”

Zhang Youqing and Zhou were naturally happy to see their father agreeing so readily, and the three of them discussed for a while, then Zhang Liangen excitedly rushed out of the yard to find someone to choose a date for, and Zhang Youqing also went out afterward, running from house to house Going to the people who have good friends with you in the past and asking them to come over to help, it takes a lot of people to build a house.

Naturally, Mrs. Zhou didn't have time, so she went to call Zhang Zhang, Zhang Yun and the others. They worked together to clean up an open space on the side of Zhang Yun's house, where the new house was going to be built.

Zhang Yun and Zhang Cheng were overjoyed when they heard Mrs. Zhou talk about building a tile-roofed house, and they were all full of energy. Even Zhang Xing was very happy when he heard it, and shouted loudly: "Oh, our family will We’re building a new house, our family is going to build a new house....” The boy jumped three feet high excitedly, and repeated the same sentence with a smile, which made the family members laugh even more happily.

At noon that day, when Zhang Liangen came back, the auspicious day for starting the house had been chosen, and it went smoothly. Three days later, the [-]th day of the first lunar month was the auspicious day, and Zhang's house was set to start construction on that day.

The time is relatively tight, and the whole family has been busy in these two days. They each divide the work and prepare for the various matters of starting the house, so as to ensure that the house can be successfully ground-breaking on the auspicious day.

Zhang Youqing was busy looking for people from various houses, and the news that Zhang's family was going to build a new house quickly spread. Since Zhang's family had done a lot of good things for the village, many people in the village came to find them, saying yes Willing to help.

If there are brothers and sisters, the house can get up quickly. The Zhang family is naturally happy to hear this, but there is a little bit of difficulty. Everyone in the village volunteered that they don’t need the Zhang family to pay for the help.

When Zhang Youqing came back and talked about this, Zhou said: "What can I do if I don't pay wages, I can't let people do white work."

"That's what I mean too, but all the villagers refused to accept it, and said that if we pay wages, they won't come." Even Chang Silang and Wang Damao, the best friends on weekdays, said the same, and Zhang Youqing felt that this was the case. It's a little difficult.

The whole family was sitting around having dinner. After listening to what Zhang Youqing and Mrs. Zhou had said, everyone stopped their hands. Zhang Liangen put down his chopsticks and said, "Let me talk about it tomorrow. They are too embarrassed not to follow my advice." Old man, he should take his wages."

Seeing that Zhang Liangen was about to go out, Zhang Youqing and Zhou Shi all nodded in agreement, but Zhang Yun thought about it and said: "Father and mother, the people in the village want to repay our favors. If they really don't want to accept wages, then we can do it in other ways." It’s okay to start, such as cooking more delicious dishes every day to comfort them, or making more snacks for them to take home, in this way, people feel that they have repaid the favor, and we have entertained them, not both sides are good.”

What Zhang Yun said made sense, and Zhang Zhang nodded repeatedly after listening. The two of them were about the same age, and their ideas could always get closer, so they immediately joined in and said, "I think what Yun'er said is quite right."

"It's right to entertain the villagers. Even if they receive their wages, we have to do the same. It can't just offset their wages. Let me talk about it tomorrow, and we can't let the villagers work for nothing." Zhang Liangen still insisted on his own opinion. , Zhang Youqing and Zhou naturally followed the old man's wishes and didn't say anything more, and the matter was settled like this.

On the second day, Zhang Liangen went out early in the morning and came back before noon. He went to the families who wanted to help. Unexpectedly, the old man also kicked the iron board and ran around, but the family still insisted on not charging wages.

In this way, there is nothing to do, and the Zhang family can only do as Zhang Yun said. Since they don't charge wages, they have to pay more attention to hospitality.

With this plan in mind, on the tenth day of the Lunar New Year, Zhang Youqing, Zhou Shi, and Zhang Cheng went to the town to do some shopping early in the morning. They spent a lot of money on chicken, duck, fish, and other various meat dishes. They also bought glutinous rice and sacrificial supplies. If you use the dishes you have at home, you can wait for several days to eat.

In the early morning of the [-]th, before dawn, Zhang’s family all got up on the kang, and they were all busy in this cold weather, preparing for the sacrifice before the groundbreaking.

For the countryside, building a house is a big event, so it is natural to pay more attention to auspiciousness. All kinds of sacrifices are indispensable, and they must be done according to the customs, so there is no sloppy, so every link is carefully prepared .

The old and the young were preparing outside, while Zhang Yun and Zhou were busy in the kitchen. Chang Man and Chang Juan came over just after the family got up.

As soon as Zhang Yun heard their voices from the yard, he put down his work and ran out. "Why are you so early? You haven't eaten breakfast yet. You're already cooking on the stove. Let's do it after you finish eating." Zhang Yun ran to them and said with a smile.

"It's okay, I'll go help first, and my parents will come over later." Chang Man shook his head and said, Zhang Yun saw him saying this, and didn't stop him, so he nodded.

Chang Man didn't immediately run over to help, but reached into his bosom, took out something from his clothes, grabbed Zhang Yun's hand, and stuffed the things in his hand to her.

Zhang Yun opened his palm and saw that what was stuffed into her hand was a triangular talisman with a red thread on it.

"My mother knew that your family was going to break ground, so she took me to the Earth Temple on a special trip yesterday, and prayed for the blessing of the Earth. I stopped by Anbao Temple and asked for a peace talisman for you. You must wear it carefully so that it can protect you. It's safe." Chang Man said softly, Zhang Yun looked at the peace talisman in his hand, although he didn't believe it very much, he could feel his heart, and without saying anything, he put the peace talisman in front of him worn around the neck.

Chang Juan, who was originally pacing and breathing in the cold, hurriedly came up to them when she saw them like this, and said with a smile: "Okay, I know you two are in love, so you are not afraid to provoke me like this."

As soon as Chang Juan made fun of him, Zhang Yun stopped talking, lowered his head and put the talisman on his neck into his collar, while Chang Juan stretched out her hand to push Chang Man, and said with a low smile, "I didn't see Uncle, Brother Cheng Zi and the others. Everyone looked this way, brother Manzi, go quickly."

Naturally, Chang Man didn't want to stay for a long time. After Chang Juan pushed and shoved him, he walked towards the altar in the courtyard so that he could help.

After Zhang Yun put the talisman away, he pulled Chang Juan up with a smile, and said, "Look at you, you are cold, come into the kitchen with me, and warm up by the stove door." Naturally, Chang Juan couldn't wait, so she hurriedly followed Zhang Yun into the room. out of the kitchen.

After a short while, the breakfast was ready, Mrs. Zhou called the people in the yard to come in for breakfast, and after the breakfast was finished, the villagers who helped came over one after another, and the yard soon became lively.

Zhang's family greeted them to sit down in the main room, and several members of the family performed various worship ceremonies respectfully, praying for the safety and smoothness of the construction of the house.

After the sacrifice, the men began to break ground, and the daughters-in-law rushed to the kitchen to help.The Zhang family is going to do a lot of work on the hospitality this time, so the dishes must be plentiful, and the ostentation will not be small. Naturally, more helpers are needed in the kitchen, so the Zhang family also invited many daughters-in-law to come over to help, and the kitchen was immediately full. fully.

Seeing that there were a lot of people, Mrs. Zhou brought out a bench and arranged for the daughters-in-law to sit outside the kitchen and wash vegetables. Only those who cut vegetables and kneaded noodles stayed in the kitchen. For a while, the kitchen was full of laughter and laughter.

Zhang Yun and Chang Juan were also busy in the kitchen, helping everyone with some manual work. When there were more daughters-in-law, there were more topics. Talking about it, it was all trivial and trivial matters, and there were also anecdotes and joys in the village, which the two of them listened to with great interest.

A lot of people means easy work. The daughters-in-law have been busy for half a day. At noon, the kitchen smelled fragrant. Zhou and Zhang Yun went out with two pots full of vegetables and pancakes, calling the working men to rest and have a snack.

Everyone is from the village, and they are not polite when it comes to eating. As soon as Mrs. Zhou greeted them, the men who were shoveling the soil and digging the foundation stopped one after another. Chang Juan and Shao's came out with buckets and wooden basins for the men to wash. Clean your hands covered with dirt so that you can eat snacks.

The men smiled and squeezed the snacks, squatted or stood up to eat, and took a break along the way, eating pancakes in their mouths, and everyone laughed and talked about it, the excitement was not much worse than that of the daughter-in-laws.

The men over there rested their hands to eat snacks, and the daughter-in-laws here naturally couldn't miss their portions. Mrs. Zhou hurriedly invited them to have snacks, and the daughter-in-laws stopped what they were doing, washed their hands one by one, and came to pick up the dishes Pancakes to eat.

Mrs. Zhou saw that the daughters-in-law had all taken some snacks, and each sat back on the bench to eat. She took a few casual glances and found that quite a few people had no benches to sit on.

"It's from Damao's house. We don't seem to have enough benches. Can I bring some from your house and borrow them first?" Mrs. Zhou went straight to Mrs. Feng, Wang Damao's daughter-in-law, and asked softly beside her.

Mrs. Feng responded immediately, and said with a smile: "What's the matter, you just come over with me to get it." After saying a few mouthfuls, he stuffed the vegetable pancakes in his mouth, waved to Mrs. Zhou, and quickly Step towards the courtyard door.

Mrs. Zhou called Zhang Yun, and the two followed together. Wang Damao's house was relatively close, and he only needed to walk a short distance to get there without burning a stick of incense.

Not long after Mrs. Feng left the yard, she swallowed the pancakes in her mouth, opened her mouth and said with a smile: "Youqing's family, your family has done well this year, and you have built new tile-roofed houses."

"Yes, this year is much better than the old one." Zhou Shi answered the conversation with a smile without being shy.

"This new tile-roofed house was built for Cheng Zi to marry a wife." Feng Shi asked again, and Zhou Shi hurriedly laughed: "I think so, we have to wait for the daughter-in-law to come in."

When Feng heard this, her eyes narrowed into slits with a smile, she quickly leaned over a few steps, approached Zhou and said, "Sister-in-law Youqing, I have watched your family grow up, and you will marry a wife in a blink of an eye. It's really fast." Mrs. Zhou hurriedly nodded and said that the time passed quickly.

"Sister-in-law, don't blame me for speaking directly. I always think that your Cheng Zi is an excellent child, and I like it very much. I wanted to ask you this morning, and see if our two families can get married?" Mrs. Feng Seeing that he had already entered his own yard, he no longer hesitated, took Zhou's hand, and whispered.

Zhou Shi and Zhang Yun heard these words clearly. When the incident happened suddenly, both of them were stunned for a moment, and then they realized that Feng Shi was trying to sniff out, and wanted to give Zhang Zhang the second daughter of the family, Xiuhua. .

Zhang's family built a tile-roofed house mainly to marry Zhang Zhang. Someone would want to get married, and Zhou was naturally happy. He immediately followed Feng into the main room, and the two sat down to talk.

It's not easy for a girl like Zhang Yun to keep listening to this kind of thing, so she hurriedly whispered: "Mom, then I'll go back with the bench first."

"Hey, you go back first, I'll go back later." Mrs. Zhou hurriedly responded after hearing this, Mrs. Feng stood up and pointed to Zhang Yun, asking her to take the two long benches in the main room, and the other benches. The two of them will take it later.

Zhang Yun nodded in agreement, went over and carried a long bench in one hand, half-tucked and half-dragged out the door, and walked towards his yard.

As Zhang Yun walked, he wondered in his heart whether his mother would agree to this marriage. No matter what, she didn't agree with her parents' orders, not only her own marriage, but even the eldest brother's marriage. , she also hoped that the elder brother could choose by himself.

With this thought in her heart, Zhang Yun was unavoidably anxious, and after quickly dragging the bench back to the yard, she ran over to look for Zhang Zhang.

"Brother, come here, I have something to see you." Seeing Zhang Cheng sitting on the threshold of the main room, Zhang Yun rushed up and called out.

Zhang Zhang didn't doubt that he was there, so he stood up, walked behind Zhang Yun, and asked, "Yun'er, what's the matter?"

"You just come with me." In front of so many people, it was naturally inconvenient for Zhang Yun to speak clearly, so he could only say this, and then he quickened his pace and walked around the kitchen to the backyard.

Zhang Zhang thought she was asking him to pick up something heavy, so he didn't ask any more questions, and followed her to the backyard. Once in the backyard, Zhang Yun stopped, turned his head and looked around, and only pulled it after making sure there was no one around. Picking up Zhang Zhang's hand, he walked towards the thatched cottage.

It was only after the two of them entered the thatched cottage that Zhang Yun dared to tell the story. Zhang Zhang didn't expect her to talk about it at all, so he couldn't help being stunned after hearing it.

After Zhang Yun finished speaking in one breath, she looked straight at Zhang Cheng, waiting for him to speak, but he was silent for a long time, so she could only speak first, "Brother, this is a matter of your life, why don't you?" Don't make a statement."

Hearing Zhang Yun's opening, Zhang Zhang finally came to his senses, lowered his eyes slightly, and said in a low voice, "What do I want to express?"

"Of course it's what you think in your heart. Do you like this marriage?" Seeing him like this, Zhang Yun became a little anxious, so he asked directly.

Zhang Cheng pursed his lips, and said after a while: "The marriage of children has always been the order of the parents, and there is nothing they like or dislike."

"Why are you so brainless? Do you want to marry a girl you don't like at all and live with her for the rest of your life? You don't feel bad, but I feel bad for that girl." Zhang Yun thought of two people who had no feelings for each other. I feel sad in my heart.

"So what if you like it, so what if you don't like it, life is still the same." Zhang Zhang's voice was slightly lowered, obviously not the tone of joy in his heart.

Just looking at his expression, Zhang Yun was sure that he was not happy about this marriage. In this case, she couldn't let him be like this, and immediately said: "I won't talk about this with you, I just want you to tell me the truth , do you have a girl you like in your heart?"

Zhang Cheng lowered his head, and didn't say anything for a long time. Zhang Yun was about to press him again, but he suddenly turned around, strode out, and said, "Don't worry about it, go out quickly, we are still waiting for us to work outside. .” Before the words fell, the person had already left the thatched hut and walked away without looking back.

Looking at his back, Zhang Yun felt a little depressed, and after a while, he chased after him, but he made up his mind that he must find out what the elder brother wanted, so that he could make a marriage that he liked.

(End of this chapter)