The Zhou family is a courtyard-like house with two upper and lower buildings, and a wing is built between the two floors, so the light in the alley leading into the house from the gate is slightly dark.
Due to the lighting problem, Brother Zhou did not immediately recognize who the visitor was when he came out of the kitchen, especially since a group of people were all wearing coats and scarves, and the two in front were also wearing hats, all wrapped up tightly.<
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When the leading old lady came closer, Brother Zhou saw her face clearly and was extremely surprised. However, he pretended not to recognize it and looked the visitor up and down: "Whose relatives are you? Did you go to the wrong door? Who are you looking for?"
Huh?"
Seeing that Zhou Xialong didn't call him "aunt" and even asked who he was looking for, Zhou Shirley was a little embarrassed, but he quickly put aside the discomfort and called warmly: "Niece, I am your third aunt. I'll be here if you haven't seen me for three to five years."
I don’t remember my aunt."
A visitor came, and Grandma Zhou was waiting. When she heard her son talking to someone, her face changed. Isn't Xia Long's third aunt the third sister who had his father?
The boy’s father and third sister’s family thought his family was poor and they stopped interacting with her a long time ago. What are you doing now when you come to her house?
Listening to the defense, Grandma Zhou knew who was coming, and she also pretended to be dumbfounded: "Xia Long, who are you talking to? You are so nervous, someone has gone to the wrong door, please hurry up and show them the way."
, why are you talking so much nonsense? It’s not wasting people’s time.”
Grandma Zhou's words spread from the kitchen to the alley, and the young and old of the Song family listened. Song Pengcheng's face felt as if he had been slapped, and his face burned. The Zhou family's mother and son did not really know them, but pretended not to know them!
The Zhou family's mother and son must still be resentful of their family's failure to return to Meicun to see Zhou Fu off, so the Zhou family no longer wants to be related to them.
Feeling terribly embarrassed, Song Pengcheng forced out a smile and said, "Sister, it's us. Xia Long, my third aunt, and I brought the children to pay you New Year greetings."
The Song brothers were also very smart and immediately shouted: "Happy New Year, aunt! My nephew, I wish you good health and happiness every day."
I said auspicious words to my aunt, and quickly acknowledged my cousin: "Happy New Year, cousin, and wish you a prosperous New Year."
The two grandsons of the Song family immediately followed suit and paid New Year greetings to their elders: "Happy New Year to my aunt and grandson. I wish you good health and all the best in the new year."
Then he said hello to his cousin: "Happy New Year, cousin. I wish you a fortune in the New Year and may you pick up gold while walking."
Grandma Zhou in the house: "..."
Brother Zhou didn't want to pay attention to it, but it was the first month of the year, so he couldn't kick people out. He said lightly: "We will make a fortune together, please come to the kitchen and sit down first."
Zhou Xialong didn't call her "aunt" or "uncle" because he didn't want to acknowledge his relatives. Zhou Shirley and Song Pengcheng felt extremely uncomfortable and forced themselves to enter the kitchen with Zhou Xialong.
The upper house of the Zhou family was built in the 1980s, and is familiar to everyone except the two grandsons of the Song family. The new building in the lower house was built after 2010, but the layout of the upper house and the kitchen has not changed.
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Zhou Shirley entered the Zhou family's kitchen. The interior of the house remained largely unchanged, but new furniture was replaced, and the wooden bench she sat on was still the same.
Seeing her brother's daughter-in-law sitting by the fire pit, and seeing that she didn't stand up to greet her, Zhou Shirley was at a loss for a moment, but she mustered up the courage to step forward quickly, sit down next to her brother-in-law, and hold her sister-in-law's hand affectionately.
Hand: "Sister, how has your health been these past few years..."
She only said one thing. Grandma Zhou took her hand away from her aunt on the pretext of holding the tongs to hold the fire, picked up the tongs and clamped the firewood, and her tone was also light: "His aunt, are you coming back too soon?"
It's a bit early, it's still early in April, and going up to the mountains on the first day of the first lunar month is a bit..., it's okay if you don't avoid that.
Xia Long, first bring some fruit for your cousin and the others to eat. Then you can take out the lunch dishes first. I will cook them later. You change your clothes and wait for the children to warm their hands. Take the time to accompany your aunt and the others to the mountains.
Your grandma and grandpa are in a hurry. They have to go back in the afternoon, so don’t waste their time."
"Okay." Zhou Xialong responded, taking the teacup and pouring tea.
Song Pengcheng took his son and grandson into the house and walked to the fire pit. As soon as he and the children sat down, he heard his sister-in-law directly describe him and his wife as coming back to worship his mother-in-law and father-in-law. At that time, his face turned red.<
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His aunt obviously did not welcome her home, and Song Deyang and Song Dexu were too embarrassed to say anything. Song Haoyu came to the countryside for the first time, and it was very strange to see a fire pit. He was studying the fire pit, so there was nothing embarrassing.
Zhou Shirley's face also changed color, and she continued to explain: "Daughter-in-law, your third brother-in-law and I are retired. We are not busy during the Qingming Festival. I am not coming back this time to pay homage to my mother and I. I am determined to bring my children back to pay you New Year greetings."
”
"His aunt, you don't have to be embarrassed. You are a married girl. It doesn't matter if you don't have time to come back to visit your parents' graves. It's normal to come back in the first month of the year. But you are worried that if you go straight up the mountain, someone will say that you are passing by your mother's brother's house.
It’s not good if you don’t even join, so I just come in and sit down. I’m a person who covers my neck in dirt, so there’s nothing to hide, so you don’t have to worry about me being unhappy.”
Grandma Zhou had only one idea: No matter what the reason was for him to come back, it wouldn’t be a good thing.
The third aunt's family used to look down on the Zhou family because the Song family was from the working class and was relatively wealthy, while the Zhou family was poor and had little money. The Zhou family was also regarded as poor relatives by the Song family.
When Zhou Fu was still alive, they were biological siblings after all, so they would move around from time to time. Zhou Fu had just passed away, and they were afraid that the Zhou family would be obsessed with him, so the third aunt would not come back to show up even after her brother died.
Get rid of this poor relative.
After so many years, the Song family came back with their whole family, which must be related to Zhou Qiufeng's marriage to Yueqing. There is a good girl in Yueqing. I heard from the younger generation of the Chao family that Le Yun is already well-known abroad.
The Song family may have heard some rumors and came back to get married.
The Song family came to a poor relative's house to marry, of course, not because they were interested in the Zhou family, but because they wanted to take advantage of the east wind and establish contact with the Le family.
After following Mrs. Wang, Mrs. Chao and Mrs. Wu for some time, Grandma Zhou also gained experience. Now her mind is turning very quickly. She can also guess some clues from the behavior of certain people, not only by drawing inferences from one instance.<
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Brother Zhou poured the tea, and when he heard the words spoken by his old mother, Bala Bala, he fell to the ground in admiration. Jiang is very old, and my mother has been close to Zhu Zhechi after staying with old ladies who have seen the world for a long time.
Compared with his old mother, he is a little younger.
With his mother in the way, Brother Zhou didn't interrupt and served tea to the young and old of the Song family.
Song Haoyu was the youngest and most curious, and he was also a foreign minister. He took the tea and asked enthusiastically: "Cousin, this... is where the fire is made. Do they also burn wood like this in summer? Is this the case in every household?"
The young man from the Song family is about the same age as his own son, and Brother Zhou is quite tolerant of his children: "Absolutely, most families have fire pits for burning firewood. Some families are away from home all year round and usually use electrical appliances. When it is hot in summer, the villagers sometimes
Use an appliance or stove to cook."
"Cousin, burning fires every day requires a lot of wood. Don't you often have to go up the mountain to chop firewood? You often have to chop firewood, so how can you have time to work and farm?" Song Haoyu is very curious about knowledge, so he can ask whatever he wants.
"You don't need to cut firewood often. Three or two months of firewood every autumn and winter is enough for burning. When the corn stalks and sorghum poles in the field dry up, they can be used as firewood. If the family doesn't raise pigs, it won't cost much.
Chai."
"Cousin, do you chop wood everywhere, or do each family chop it in their own mountain..."
Song Haoyu, in line with the book "If you have a hundred thousand whys, you have to ask, break the casserole and get to the bottom of it."
The little grandson of the Song family asked questions one after another, and Brother Zhou patiently answered him, going back and forth and successfully diverging from the previous words of the elders.
Brother Zhou served the guests hot tea and Sixi dried fruits before saying, "You guys sit down first. I'll go change my clothes and find a hatchet. Then I can go back to the mountains."
Their grandson changed the subject. Song Pengcheng and Zhou Xueli took the opportunity to talk about how busy they were these years, how often they hurt, and how they sought medical advice. The subtext was to explain why they did not come back when Zhou Fu passed away.
, saying that they hadn’t forgotten the relationship between siblings, but they really couldn’t get away from it at that time.
I originally thought that the matter was over, but when I heard Zhou Xialong mentioning going to the mountains again, the Song family and the old family were stunned: "?"
The Song brothers were also shocked. Their aunt and cousin still didn't want to rebuild their old relationship?
Song Dexu reacted, stood up, walked a few steps quickly to catch up with Zhou Xialong, and put his arms around his shoulders: "Cousin, we haven't been able to come back these years. Please tell me if there was something wrong in the past. My mother and father also feel sorry for me.
I remember my aunt and my cousin’s family. Today we are really here to pay aunt’s New Year greetings. During the Qingming Festival, my brother and I will accompany my mother and I to come back to pay homage to my grandparents and uncle.”
"Aren't you paying homage to your parents?" Grandma Zhou didn't wait for her son to answer, but took the lead and said, "Xia Long, your aunt is actually here to visit, so there's no need to go to the mountains. You can make lunch quickly.
They are going back in the afternoon, so if they have an early lunch and set off early, the road will be safer."
"I..." Zhou Xueli wanted to say, "We are not in a hurry. We will stay for a few nights before going back." But as soon as he opened his mouth, Zhou Xialong had already answered quickly and loudly: "Okay. The road from Jiudao to Changshi is relatively
It’s difficult to walk, and it’s slippery to drive at night when it’s snowing. It’s really safer to drive during the day. I’ll ask Tianming to come back to accompany the guests first, and then cook.”
The mother and son of the Zhou family repeatedly expressed their intention to drive them away. The old couple of the Song family were so embarrassed that they wanted to find a place to dig into, but where could they dig out?
Song Deyang had no choice. His aunt and cousin treated his family as strangers, what else could they do?
Song Dexu felt embarrassed, still holding his arms around his old cousin's shoulders, and changed the subject: "My nephew, is my nephew at home? I thought my nephew, niece and cousins went back to my grandma's house."
After the shameless third aunt and her family left without even slamming the door, Brother Zhou determined that the third aunt had a very important purpose in coming back to recognize her family. He was even less enthusiastic and did not leave his cousin behind. He took his time and said nothing.
Walking out: "Chunmei has to go to work on the eighth day of the lunar month. The mother takes the girl back to her grandmother's house to pay New Year greetings. Those who are home at dawn go to play."
"Did you go to visit somewhere? In fact, there is no need to call him. We are not outsiders and we don't need anyone to accompany us." Song Dexu hugged his cousin's shoulder to show his closeness.
"You are guests and city dwellers, all of whom are wealthy. Burning firewood in the countryside is very smokey. It will be a big problem if the sparks ruin your clothes. I will ask you to come back in the morning and turn on the electric stove in the down hall to warm you up."
Brother Zhou calmly stepped out of the threshold and walked towards the door. He arrived in a few steps. Then he stepped out, stood on the doorstep and shouted diagonally across the door: "Tianming, Tianming, there is something at home, please come back."<
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Zhou Tianming was watching Le Shan learn calligraphy at his aunt's house. When he heard his father calling him, he immediately trotted out of Le's house and then quickly ran to the village road. When he saw his father calling him at the door of the house, he answered and ran home.
.
He ran fast, and the road was not very wide. He rushed across the village road and arrived in front of his house. He also saw a person standing behind his father. He looked familiar. He smiled first and then asked: "Dad
,What’s the matter with calling me back?”
The old cousin said he was going to call Tianming back. Song Dexu also guessed that Zhou Tianming must have gone to Qiufeng's old cousin's house. He originally thought that Zhou Xialong would go to Le's house to call for someone, but unexpectedly, the old cousin didn't go at all. He stood at the door and shouted away.
.
Song Dexu was a little disappointed that his cousin didn't go to Le's house. He stood on the threshold and looked outside. When he saw the young man running back from the opposite side, he was surprised. His son looked really upright!
He had met the Zhou siblings when they were young, and he had met Zhou Chunmei a few months ago. To be honest, Zhou Chunmei was really not that good. Not only in terms of appearance, but also in terms of temperament, she had the air of a small family. Zhou Tianming gave people the impression that she was a genius with Zhou Chunmei.
One place.
He was surprised, and without waiting for Zhou Xialong's introduction, he greeted with a smile: "Tianming, I am your cousin Dexu from your third aunt's grandma's family. Do you still remember?"
When an old cousin abducted his son, Brother Zhou immediately rushed in front of his son and said: "At dawn, your third aunt and her family came to our house to sit down. They ate at noon and rushed back to Changshi. Stop playing now."
Go to the lower room and turn on the electric stove to invite the guests to the lower room and the main room to warm themselves up."
"Oh, it turns out he is my third aunt's grandma's cousin. I haven't seen him for more than ten years and I can't recognize him." Zhou Tianming smiled at his cousin and then talked to his father: "Dad, my uncle heard that my sister and my mother
I went back to my grandma’s house. I originally wanted us to go there for lunch at noon, but we have guests at home and we can’t go. I’ll go tell my aunt and I’ll be back soon.”
He said something, turned around and ran, rushing across the village road between the two houses, rushing into the roof of the Le family, trotting to the main room of the Le family, winking at his aunt who was sitting by the fire, and whispered in a low voice: "Aunt, third aunt, grandma
My family is here to pay New Year greetings, so my grandma and I won’t come over for dinner. My dad probably wants to see off the guests in the afternoon as much as possible, so you and your uncle must not go over to say hello.”
Zhou Qiufeng was shocked at first, then laughed: "You are such a clever little kid, I know, you go back to help, and when the guests leave, you can come over whenever you want."
"Well, aunt, I'm going back." Zhou Tianming smiled shyly, without stopping, trotted out of the main room, and ran again.
When Zhou Tianming didn't give anyone a chance to speak, he turned around and ran to Le's house. Song Dexu was helpless. When Zhou Xialong turned around and returned to the house, he followed him back to the kitchen.
This chapter has been completed!