Chapter 109

Tang Yunling and Zhao Yongsen’s situation had already been detailed to Tang Jinghai in a letter from Tang Jinghe.

The news had left Tang Jinghai fuming.

“I was planning to find a match for Yunling in the county, but it seems I won’t need to now,” Tang Jinghai remarked with a sigh of resignation. Then, he added, “That young man isn’t bad—he’s got the same spirit as our Tang family.”

He looked at He Ting, who could only respond with silence.

Tang Jinghe had already acknowledged Zhou Yanfeng as a potential son-in-law. Tang Yuanliang and his brothers tacitly approved of their sister’s relationship with Zhou Yanfeng.

Even their third aunt, Ye Hongying, had nothing but praise for Zhou Yanfeng.

And now, their uncle Tang Jinghai had joined the chorus, declaring Zhou Yanfeng to be “one of us.”

The only problem? Zhou Yanfeng himself. His sharp tongue and untimely blunders always caused trouble at critical moments, earning him scoldings, punches, and kicks from Tang Yunling. To this day, they still pretended their relationship was just for show.

The Tang family was large, and Tang Jinghai had brought gifts for each member.

A canvas bag even larger than the one delivered to Lu WeiWei’s home was unloaded from the tractor by Tang Yunling and Zhou Yanfeng working together.

In Xiangyang Brigade, everyone knew that Tang Jinghe had a younger brother, Tang Jinghai, who worked as a procurement manager at a garment factory in the county. At thirty years old, still unmarried, he was known for his generosity, frequently sending gifts to the Tang family.

As Tang Yunling and Zhou Yanfeng heaved the heavy bag off the tractor, a curious crowd of fellow brigade members gathered to watch.

“Yunling, I saw your second uncle’s back. What goodies did he bring back this time?”

Tang Yunling was already used to her second uncle’s flashy, showy ways.

Luckily, his wealth came from honest work as a procurement manager in the county’s garment factory. Otherwise, his ostentatious behavior would’ve led to countless envious reports by now.

Carrying the heavy canvas bag with Zhou Yanfeng, Tang Yunling mustered a perfunctory smile.

“Nothing much. It’s almost New Year, so my second uncle brought back some fabric with minor defects to make clothes for the family.”

In those days, fabric was the hardest thing to come by.

Supplies at the cooperative were rationed and required fabric coupons.

Hearing that Tang Jinghai had managed to get defective fabric, the women helping their husbands carry grain at the brigade surrounded Tang Yunling.

“Yunling, does this defective fabric come with extras?”

“Could you share some with us to make clothes for the kids? We’ll pay the cooperative price—and even a little more.”

“Do you have any thicker fabric, the kind that can be used to make padded jackets?”

Swarmed and overwhelmed, Tang Yunling could barely handle the crowd.

Surrounded on all sides, Tang Yunling couldn’t handle the pressure.

Zhou Yanfeng stepped in to help: “Aunties, you heard what Yunling’s second uncle said—this fabric is just for the family to make clothes. The Tang family is large, and there’s not enough of this defective fabric to go around.”

“Here’s the thing: I’ll go back with Yunling and ask her second uncle if he can get more defective fabric in the future. He’s a kind-hearted man, and if he has any, he’ll definitely keep you all in mind.”

Zhou Yanfeng was always friendly and outgoing.

Together with He Ting, he had already become familiar with the members of the Xiangyang Brigade.

With his silver tongue, Zhou Yanfeng was very popular among the women in the brigade.

Although he was telling them not to hold out hope for the defective fabric that Tang Jinghai had brought back, he painted a perfect picture, promising that if there was more, Tang Jinghai would certainly think of them. This made the women feel reassured.

Calling him “second uncle” in every sentence, Zhou Yanfeng sparked teasing from the crowd.

“Oh my, Zhou, you’re even calling him ‘second uncle’ now. Is something good going on with you and Yunling?”

“When can we get an invite to your and Yunling’s wedding?”

“Yeah, Zhou, if you marry Yunling, I’ll definitely give you a big red envelope.”

The aunts and elder women were too enthusiastic to handle.

Tang Yunling shot Zhou Yanfeng a reproachful look.

Zhou Yanfeng pretended not to see it.

“Aunties, I’m just listening to Yunling.”

“Soon, soon…”

Finally, Tang Yunling mentioned that the family was waiting for her to carry the items back, which allowed her to escape from the enthusiastic crowd of aunts.

The two of them carried the heavy bag, walking towards the Tang family’s house. As she thought about how Zhou Yanfeng had intentionally misled the aunts, Tang Yunling felt like kicking him again.

But the canvas bag they were carrying was so heavy, it was about the size of two large rice sacks.

“Zhou Yanfeng, you said that on purpose, didn’t you?”

“You really want to die, huh?”

Tang Yunling glared at him: “Be careful, I’ll blame you if I can’t get married!”

Zhou Yanfeng: “…”

Is there such a good thing?

He was definitely going to die—of happiness, that is…

The two of them managed to break through the crowd of aunts and, while joking and teasing, carried the heavy canvas bag away from the brigade office. Little did they know, this scene was witnessed by Lu Jianguo and Liu Chunhua, who were there to pick up their grain.

The two of them managed to break through the crowd of aunts, joking and playfully carrying the canvas bag as they left the brigade office, unaware that this scene had caught the attention of Lu Jianguo and Liu Chunhua, who had come to pick up their grain.

Ever since Lu WeiWei moved out of the Tang family’s house, every time Tang Jinghai came back from the county, he would bring her something. However, these items were often taken away by Liu Chunhua using various excuses. Very few of the things actually ended up being used by Lu WeiWei.

With an uncle, Tang Jinghai, who worked as the purchasing director in the county, Lu WeiWei never lacked defective fabric for making clothes. Even the Lu Jianguo family benefited from this, as they too got their share.

After Lu WeiWei and He Ting married and severed ties with her family, Lu Jianguo and Liu Chunhua, unable to get any fabric rations to buy cloth from the supply and marketing cooperative, were unable to make clothes for their son, Lu Wenhua. Without the defective fabric from Tang Jinghai, they had nothing for the new year.

Seeing a group of aunts gathered around Tang Yunling, who said that the fabric in the bag was for making clothes for the Tang family, Liu Chunhua became envious. She stopped helping Lu Jianguo with the grain and couldn’t take her eyes off the canvas bag that Tang Yunling and Zhou Yanfeng were carrying.

The two of them walked away, but Liu Chunhua stood on the stairs, watching them go.

“Come help with the grain,” Lu Jianguo called to Liu Chunhua. “Wenhua’s still waiting at home for us to cook.”

At Lu Jianguo’s call, Liu Chunhua reluctantly turned her attention away from the disappearing canvas bag and looked down the small path.

“Old Lu, I just saw Yunling from the Tang family unload a big bag of stuff from Liu Zaicheng’s tractor,” Liu Chunhua whispered to Lu Jianguo. “I heard those people surrounding Tang Jinghai’s daughter asking if there were any extra defective fabric.”

Little did they know, Tang Jinghai had already taken Lu WeiWei’s portion to the new house at the brigade clinic.

Liu Chunhua asked Lu Jianguo, “Do you think any of that fabric was for our WeiWei?”

As soon as Liu Chunhua mentioned Lu WeiWei, Lu Jianguo immediately understood.

He knew exactly what Liu Chunhua was after and responded, “Tang Jinghai cares about our WeiWei the most. If there’s anything good, he won’t forget her.”

The family had already suffered a huge blow when Lu Jianguo lost a hundred yuan from his shady dealings with Yin’s family and Shen Guixiang. The money they had saved up for Lu Wenhua’s wedding was gone, and then on the day of Lu Jiaojiao’s wedding, Lu Jianguo hurt his back and had to spend another ten-odd yuan on medical treatment.

Because of his injury, he hadn’t managed to finish his work quota during the busy farming season.

Without Lu WeiWei’s labor, his family would struggle to earn enough grain to feed the three of them.

Thinking of how He Ting and Lu WeiWei, now with their brigade salary and work points, could bring home several carts of grain, Lu Jianguo became jealous and began scheming in his heart.