He Lian'er raised her head and smiled at him.
"After the banquet is held at my house on the 16th, we will have a day off on the 17th and leave for your house on the 18th."
"good."
He Lian'er responded habitually, and suddenly she raised her head and looked at Xiao An in disbelief.
"Brother Xiao An, what are you talking about? I, I didn't seem to listen carefully just now..."
Did she hear it wrong? Brother Xiaoan said that he would have a banquet at her house during the twelfth lunar month of the year?
Xiao An smiled and said patiently: "I said, strike while the iron is hot. This time I finally came back from a month's holiday with my boss. We will have a banquet at my house on the 16th. On the 26th I’ve made arrangements with your parents in advance to hold a banquet at your house.”
He Lian'er heard it clearly this time. Suddenly, joy was like a tide, pouring in from all directions, covering her from head to toe. "However, there is one more thing that I didn't tell your parents. Originally, I wanted to hide it from you too." Xiao An said again, a flash of narrow-mindedness flashed in his eyes.
"What's the matter? Brother Xiao An, just tell me!" He Lian'er pouted and begged.
This look immediately aroused Xiao An's memory. In the past, when He Qingsong was alive, he went to He's house. At that time, Lian'er was still a little girl with pigtails, often pouting and acting coquettishly with He Qingsong.
It wasn't clear at the time, but looking back now, maybe he had wanted a girl who acted like a spoiled child like him since then.
And only act coquettishly to yourself, the kind that only relies on yourself.
Now, I got what I wanted.
"We will host a banquet at your house on the 26th. We will not come back then and will stay at your house to celebrate the New Year."
"In the first month of the new year, we will come to my house to pay New Year's greetings to my relatives. After the New Year's greetings, we will go back to our new house in Qing'an County together. I will go to the Ministry of War as an errand, and you will stay at home to wash and cook for me."
"If you feel that staying at home doing laundry and cooking is a bit boring, you can go back to the restaurant and continue making your noodles."
"But you have to remember, I asked you to go out and make noodles to kill your boredom. The money I earn is enough to support us and our future children. I never expected to rely on you to earn money from making noodles. Household use…”
…
Xiao An left for a while, but He Lian'er was still sitting at the table, feeling dizzy, as if she was drunk after drinking a pot of old wine.
Really drunk.
She has actually lived a happy life since she was a child. She was loved by her parents and protected by her father and brother. Although her family is not a wealthy family, she has a small business in Qing'an County, and her brother is a government official. A wealthy family is a happy family.
The death of his brother brought about earth-shaking changes in the family.
In those six months, she went from heaven to hell, and saw what it meant to be a cold world and indifferent people.
Even her family was tortured by the village bully, and she almost fell into hell.
When the family was in the most difficult situation and almost couldn't hold on any longer, it was brother Xiao An who came to the world like a god and never left the family, guarding the precarious family, helping the family tide over the difficulties and helping his father get back on his feet.
She not only admires brother Xiaoan, but is also grateful.
Even if she spent her whole life as a rough girl serving him tea and water, she would not complain. What's more, he still praised her so much, married her to a matchmaker, and took care of her and her parents' feelings.
The smile overflowed from the bottom of my heart. I have never been so happy and sweet as now since I was a child.
When he came back to his senses, his face was already filled with tears.
It turns out that a person can be so happy that he sheds tears.
It's just a pity that his brother is gone. Otherwise, he would be so happy. This is the only imperfection in this happy marriage.
But nine times out of ten things in life are not perfect. Perhaps sometimes, regret and incompleteness are also a kind of beauty.
It is precisely because of regrets and incompleteness that perfection becomes even more precious.
Number 16, Number 26, she remembered. These are the two most important days in her life. Brother Xiao An, I am here to marry you.
On the ninth day of the twelfth lunar month, a sunny day appeared after the snow, and every household in the village was busy washing and drying.
In the morning, the yard of Yang Huazhong's house smelled of steam and upwards.
He Lian'er was busy cooking breakfast for the family in the kitchen, while Xiao An poured the water from the well in the backyard into the large water tank in the kitchen.
The sleeves of his hands were rolled up to the crooks of his elbows, revealing strong and strong arms. He walked as fast as he could with a bucket of water in each hand.
Every time I bring water to the kitchen, I have to chat with He Lian'er.
"Kneading dough? What are you planning to cook?"
"Make minced meat noodles."
"Okay, put some chopped shiitake mushrooms in it, I like it."
"Well, would you like a handful more coriander leaves?"
"That's best. The sauce should be spicy."
After a while, Xiao An came in again carrying water and poured it into the large water tank. He turned around and saw He Lian'er coming over with a big bowl.
"Brother Xiao An, I've cooked the sauce for the noodles. Please help me taste it for saltiness."
"Okay, let me check it for you!" Xiao Anyu put down the bucket in his hand and came over to get the chopsticks, but He Lian'er had already picked one with the chopsticks and fed it to his mouth.
Xiao An was stunned for a moment, then he opened his mouth and accepted it.
"How is it? Is it salty?" He Lian'er opened her bright eyes wide, waiting for the result he gave.
Xiao An shook his head: "Not salty."
"What's that like? Isn't it faded again?"
"Not salty, not bland, sweet!"
"sweet?"
He Lian'er thought she had heard wrong, her face was full of astonishment, and she murmured: "I didn't put any sugar..."
Facing Xiao An's narrow and smiling eyes, He Lian'er suddenly understood.
His face was suddenly stained with a layer of rouge, his eyes were angry, and his spring-like eyes were full of affection and laughter.
Xiao An accidentally kissed her on the face.
After the kiss, both of them were dumbfounded.
"I-I'll go get some water!"
Xiao An put down these words, picked up the bucket and ran out of the kitchen in a panic.
He Lian'er stood by the water tank, touching the place where he had just kissed her. Her heart was beating fast, and the bowl in her hand was almost unsteady.
After breakfast, He Lian'er stayed in the kitchen to clean up the dishes, while Xiao An helped Sun move the bedding and clothes cabinets from every room in the house to the yard.
There are things that should be put up on the wall, things that should be hung on the bamboo poles, and things that should be opened on the lids of the boxes and cages. There are even long rows of shoes of all sizes in the corridor and beside the flower beds.
Especially in Daan and Xiaohua's house, the windows are opened for ventilation.
As for Yang Huazhong, he was not idle either. He was counting and sorting out the rice, flour, grains and oils in the warehouse alone.
Before the Chinese New Year, these things should be sorted out and dried when necessary.
During the twelfth lunar month, when the sun is good and the light is sufficient, the crops can be properly dried and hydrated before being reloaded into warehouses, where they can be stored until the new rice is harvested next autumn.
That's right, I will weigh a hundred catties of rice and noodles each and bring them to the Xiang family later.
