Chapter 44

The next day was the third day of the Lunar New Year. Early in the morning, Zhao Caixia, together with her husband Li Wangping, took her daughter Daya and her son Er Pang back to her mother’s house.

“Er Pang, come, let grandma see you. Have you gained weight? “

As soon as she entered the courtyard, Zhang Qiaoer hugged her little grandson and gave him a mouthful of kisses on his chubby face.

How can he not be chubby? Look at this face, bulging like a steamed bun. He now eats a lot; every meal was full of rice. Isn’t there meat at home during the recent Chinese New Year? Ouch, he ate a few pieces of fat meat and he eats better than me without blinking. “

Older people like the little doll with a tiger head and a tiger brain best, because it looks so festive.

“Able to eat is a blessing, children eat more to grow strong, they will have good health, and not easy to get sick.”

Zhang Qiaoer hugged the Er Pang for a long time. Her arm was a little sore. She smiled and patted the Er Pang’s little butt, and laughed, “You’re really getting fat. Holding you was like holding Shitou.”

Zhao Caixia smiled back, “That’s not true. Mom quickly put him down. Don’t break your waist for the new year. “

Zhao Donglin and Zhao Donghe accompanied their brother-in-law Li Wangping to talk. Several children played in the yard, and Zheng Yuefen sat under the windowsill with a handful of melon seeds.

No one noticed that Jiahui was not in the courtyard. Not long after, Jiahui took a school bag out of the house. She used an army green fabric, crossbody strap also hanging a rustic yellow puppy doll, Jia Hui’s own hand-sewn bag.

“Daya, see if you like this bag, you can use it when you start to go to school. Okay?”

Daya was eight years old. She was already in the second grade, and Jiahui used the extra cloth from making clothes to make a school bag for her.

The reason why she thought of making a schoolbag for Daya was mainly to please Zhao Caixia, her eldest sister-in-law.

Daya’s eyes lit up when she saw the schoolbag. After taking it, she couldn’t put it down, especially the ginger dog doll, which was looked real and lovely.

“It’s so beautiful.”

It looks better than any schoolbag she has ever seen.

Zhao Caixia also came over and complimented Jiahui, saying, “You’re really good at your craft. How did you make this puppy?”

Jiahui smiled and said, “I drew it, sewed it with needle and thread, and stuffed some cotton inside.”

She studied sketching as a child and had some drawing skills, so drawing a cartoon or something was a piece of cake for her.

“This puppy is quite interesting; I really do not know how your head thinks. We’re obviously the same people. Why am I so stupid and can’t do anything? “

“I am also a fool. It’s good that Daya likes it.”

” I like it. Thank you, eldest aunt.”

Zhao Caixia married Li Wangping when the Zhao family had not yet become rich. Zhao Donglin in the army was also moving up step by step, from the squad leader to the company commander position, so at that time, Zhao Caixia married the right door. Later, Li Wangping, the Zhao family’s days were good, and the Li family’s conditions could not compare.

Because of a useful brother, Zhao Caixia’s life with the in-laws was very good. Even if the firstborn was a daughter, she did not suffer from her mother-in-law’s rubbing. As a matter of fact, her mother-in-law was very patriarchal.

At more than nine o’clock, they began to prepare lunch. Today’s chef was Jiahui, and her assistant chef was Meixiang. Zhao Caixia and Zhang Qiaoer sat at the kitchen door and chatted.

“There is a nice young man in our village. He is the youngest member of the family. He is energetic and has a good temperament. His mother said to find him a partner during the new year. I think he is very suitable for Meixiang. Do you want to see each other? “

“How are his parents? Are they good to get along with? “

The character of the parents was the primary consideration for Zhang Qiaoer in finding a match for her daughter. In fact, the daughter’s personality is too gentle. If she meets a fierce mother-in-law, there will be no bones left for her to eat.

“How many sons does his family have? Are they married and separated? “

“Four sons, the oldest and the second, were separated. The third just got married. He is the fourth.”

Hearing this condition, Zhang Qiaoer could not help but shake her head.

“That can’t be. The oldest are separated out.  In case the old couple follows the young one in the future, the life of your sister will be unbearable. “

Zhao Caixia has always listened to her mother, and since her mother said it is not good, it is not good, the topic is over.

“I have already found a matchmaker. There are suitable candidates to see. Anyway, your sister is still young, and it is still quite suitable for her to stay at home for two more years.”

“En, Meixiang is indeed still young. You have to choose well. “

Like when she married Li Wangping, Li’s family conditions were not much better, but Li Wangping was a considerate man, especially after the promotion of the eldest brother in the army, the Li family all supported themselves, and her in-laws’ life is still quite good.

If it is Meixiang, she can certainly find a better family. After all, now that their family conditions were not bad, they belonged to the top family in the village, and another thing was, their eldest brother was also the village branch secretary.

Jiahui, who was in the kitchen, vaguely heard some of their conversations. Mei Xiang’s face was also red. Jiahui smiled and asked, “Meixiang,” “Meixiang, when do you want to find someone else?”

Meixiang was a very simple little girl who was well protected by her family. Except for the boys in school, she has hardly seen any sex opposite to herself, but the girl will have some feelings when she enters puberty. She used to like a male classmate in school. She is handsome, studies well, writes very well, laughs with two dimples, and her eyes are as bright as stars.

But this kind of like was carefully hidden in her heart. For her, the other party was too dazzling; she is ordinary and simple. She is not worthy of such a good boy.

After graduation, she never saw him again. She heard that he joined the post office, which is the county post office. Mei Xiang rarely went to the county, so after graduation, they never met again.

Looking back on all this, Meixiang’s eyes also carry a touch of frustration. Who is Jiahui? She was baptized by various romance dramas. This obvious look of “liking a person” can’t be mistaken.

“Meixiang, do you have someone you like?”

“No, sister-in-law, you’re thinking too much.”

“I’m not thinking about anything, if you don’t have someone you like, why are you blushing when I mentioned this?”

“Which guy? Do I know him? Is he from our village? “

“No, it’s from the county.”

“Oh, so it’s a boy from the county.”

In terms of talking, Meixiang was no match for Jiahui, and she got the information with just a few words.

Meixiang accidentally let her mouth slip. She looked nervously at the door, afraid that her mother and her sister would hear her.

“Sister-in-law, you cannot say it out loud. I am the only one who likes him. Maybe he may not even know me. “

“It’s your former classmate.”

“En, he is popular in school and good at studying. He had organized a lot of campus activities. His writing was particularly good. He was on the bulletin board in the school.

The moment Meixiang said so, Jia Hui knew that boy was estimated to be the last remaining boy-like existence on campus. As a girl, it is very normal to like excellent and dazzling male classmates.

“What’s wrong? Why are you upset? “

“No, I just think I might find someone random to marry in the future.”

With that kind of excellent boy, one can never be with her.

“No, actually, life can be grasped by yourself. Have you ever heard the saying, “My life is up to me, not up to fate”? Would you choose it if there was an opportunity for you to change your fate in the future, would you choose it?”

Meixiang was confused as she looked at Jiahui. These words can be understood if they were separated, but why can’t she understand them when they are combined? What is the chance to change your destiny that her sister-in-law said? Will there really be such a chance?

“Where can this opportunity come from? I think my whole life would be to marry people, have children, and farm in the field. There will be no great success. “

“Not true at all. Didn’t you learn to make clothes with me? You also learned to cook. As long as you learn these skills, you will have more than half of what most people have. In the future, with these skills, you can always find a way out. “

Since the gang of four has not been disbanded and the notice of resumption of college entrance exams has not yet been available, Jiahui cannot reveal too much to Mei Xiang. She can only guide her little by little. First, she cannot give in to ordinary life.

“En, sister-in-law, it’s great to meet you.”

This sister-in-law did teach her a lot. She’s good-looking, good-natured, and generous and courteous to people. Her goal was to be like her sister-in-law one day.

She also understood the truth, that is, she couldn’t believe people’s words. Before meeting her sister-in-law, many people said that her sister-in-law was divorced. How cowardly, how few sticks can’t make a word, she’s unworthy of her brother. After seeing the real person, she found that she was so good. Except for being divorced, there were no shortcomings at all. Now that she can see the love between her sister-in-law and her brother, Meixiang is happy for her sister-in-law. Such a good woman should deserve a good man like her brother.

“I see that Heidan is more cheerful than before. It seems that his sister-in-law is not bad with him.”

To be honest, a real mother is just like that. She should take all aspects into account for her children. A while ago, she began to teach Heidan to read and recite a paragraph of the Three Character Classic every day. Let alone, Heidan was a very smart kid. He will be able to understand it as soon as he studies. He is also patient. Jiahui said that as long as Heidan studies hard, his grades will not be bad in the future, and he will certainly be admitted to a good university.

“It’s good for Heidan to study when he was a child. Heidan has followed his father. “

It is a pity that the big brother will only have Heidan and Yingbao as his children.

Stewed cabbage with meatballs, sour radish bone soup, scrambled eggs with garlic, radish seedlings, peanuts, stewed pumpkin, and braised fish are full.

“Come on, try your aunt’s cooking.”

Daya was happy to receive a school bag today. She boasted sweetly, “Uncle’s cooking is the best. It’s better than my mother’s cooking. “

Jiahui smiled and pinched her face, she said. “Aigoo, this little mouth is really good at talking. If you like to eat, eat more.”

“This is the one who forgot her mother after having candy. Don’t expect her to be filial in the future. “

“Who said that? Our Daya is honest and speaks from the heart, right? “

Daya nodded her head heavily and smiled smugly at her mother.

Yingbao looked at Jiahui talking to Daya. As she was looking at Jiahui, she flattened her mouth and was almost close to tears.

“What’s wrong? You can already hang oil bottles in this little mouth. Who made you angry? “

“Mom, hug.”

Jiahui put down her chopsticks and held Yingbao in her arms.

“OK, hug. Why do you want to be hugged suddenly?”

Meixiang smiled and said, “I guess she’s jealous. Seeing that you’re talking to Daya, she’s not happy in her heart. “

Is that so? Are you jealous? “

Yingbao buried her head in Jiahui’s arms and refused to look up. It was probably because she knew people were laughing at her and she was shy.

After dinner, Zhao Caixia volunteered to do the dishes. Jiahui and Meixiang said no, and Zheng Yuefen did not say anything.

“I will wash it. I’ve been idle all morning. “

“It’s rare for you to have a good rest when you go back to your mother’s house.

“Jiahui said that well. It’s hard for women. You can’t be idle at home for a moment. I’ve been idle for a long time and with your blessing today. “

“I hadn’t seen her so ignorant before. “Jiahui was able to show it (Zheng Yuefen’s attitude) as soon as she entered the door.”

She doesn’t do anything at all. She doesn’t help with cooking. Although she can wash the dishes herself, she (Zheng Yuefen) didn’t even make a statement. You are really polite. Do you really want her to wash?

” Just do not let people worry about her. The more you live, the more you go backwards ^[1]have no improvements.”

“The good thing is that Jiahui is impressive; you don’t have to worry about her. If you marry someone who always makes a scene, the days will certainly be bustling with noise and excitement.”

“Who says otherwise?”

Zhang Qiao’er was satisfied with Jiahui as her daughter-in-law, and it would be a great success if she could give Donglin a son and a daughter as soon as possible.

---

Half a month later, Daya carried her new school bag to school, and her school bag attracted the attention of her classmates.

“Li Jiaying, where did you buy this school bag?”

Daya’s first name was Li Jiaying, a name given to her by Zhao Donglin after she went to school, which meant smart and excellent.

Before Daya could answer, the female student who asked the question reached out and tried to touch the puppy hanging on Daya’s school bag, which was slapped away by Daya.

“Don’t touch it, don’t get it dirty for me.”

If it weren’t because she wanted to show it to her classmates, she wouldn’t be willing to hang up the puppy. That day, her aunt saw that she liked the dog and made her a bigger doll that she could hold to sleep. It was a little cat with a long beard. Daya held it every night when she slept. Even if Er Pang wanted to touch it, she wouldn’t let him.

“Li Jiaying, this schoolbag, where did you buy it? How come I did not see it in the supply agency? Is this puppy for sale there? I also went to the county on vacation and did not see this in the county.

This girl’s family is good. Her uncle works in the county, and her uncle also settled in the city. She went to the city to visit her relatives years ago. The little girl thought she was knowledgeable. She wanted to show off at the beginning of school today. Who knows that when she met Daya, she had a new bookbag she had never seen before?

Daya raised her chin and proudly said, “This is not bought, my aunt made it for me. She not only makes school bags but also makes cute little animals and pretty clothes.”

In less than half a day, the news that Daya had a beautiful schoolbag and that Daya’s aunt could make schoolbags spread across the campus.

“Mom, I want that puppy schoolbag that Li Jiaying is carrying too!”

When they come back from school on their first day, they want things. Parents with a good temper were patient when listening to their children. Those with bad tempers will beat them directly.

“Want! Want! Want! Who asked you to ask for things? You went to study, but you did not learn well! You just know how to ask for something! You need to spend money to buy things! Do you think money comes from the wind? The money for your schooling was saved by frugality at home. Do you have the nerve to ask for a puppy bag? Watch me beat you into a puppy. “

Who would have thought that the peak of Jiahui’s sewing career would be due to an army green satchel with a doll hanging on it?

Notlucia: Thank you for reading! 💛