Countryside people don't have much entertainment, so they basically go to bed early.
The Liu family is not rich either. Not to mention a television, they don't even have a radio.
In order to prepare for the birthday banquet tomorrow morning, the whole family went to bed early.
Liu Na and Chu Tianyao lived in a side room. Although it was a little small, it was still a bedroom and could barely accommodate an old wooden bed.
Chu Tianyao was not picky about this, but he frowned after actually entering the room.
I don't know how long the house has been empty. There is a damp and moldy smell in the air, especially since the mud house is not closed. There is a pigsty next door, and the smell can be smelled through a wall.
Anyone who has lived in the countryside knows that dry toilets in rural areas are almost always close to pig pens, which naturally makes the feeling so sour.
"Your eldest sister and others live in a new house, why should we live in an old house?"
Occasionally, I could still hear pigs braying across the wall. Chu Tianyao stood in the room and suddenly said a little unhappy.
The Liu family renovated a new house last year, but it was used by Lucy Liu and her husband. Chu Tianyao and Liu Na naturally had to live in the old house.
"Forget it, we're only going to stay for a few days anyway, so just bear with it."
Knowing that Chu Tianyao was unhappy, Liu Na persuaded her while tidying up the bed.
Seeing that Liu Na didn't mind at all, Chu Tianyao felt a little distressed.
Turning his eyes, Chu Tianyao suddenly saw a photo placed on the table.
This is a black and white photo, which shows that it is quite old.
In the photo, Liu Jianjun and Zhong Dafen are standing in the middle, with a child standing in front of each of them. The older one is naturally Lucy Liu, and the younger one is only seven or eight years old. At first glance, it is Liu Xiaojiang.
It seemed that just for taking pictures, both children wore new clothes and smiled very happily.
Chu Tianyao took a closer look and found Liu Na standing in the corner.
If it weren't for his exquisite facial features, Chu Tianyao wouldn't even be able to believe it.
Liu Na in the photo is only about ten years old. She is wearing patched old clothes and has short short hair. She looks like a tomboy.
Different from the happy smiles of the two siblings beside her, Liu Na lowered her head slightly, and her hands were covered by the clothes that were one size too big, but Chu Tianyao could still see that her hands were tightly holding the corners of her clothes.
A look of shyness.
It can be seen that this dress is not Liu Na's own, but the remnants of her eldest sister Lucy Liu's old clothes.
It’s okay if the Liu family prefers Liu Xiaojiang.
But she is also a daughter, so why does Liu Na feel wronged everywhere at home?
When he thought that his wife had lived in this home for twenty years, it was not difficult for Chu Tianyao to imagine what Liu Na's life was like back then.
Silently putting down the photo, if Chu Tianyao guessed correctly, the old mud room in front of him should be the bedroom where Liu Na lived for nearly twenty years.
"It's been tidied up. The beds and quilts have just been taken out. They don't have any smell."
Liu Na made the bed and was talking when suddenly a pair of big hands behind her took her into his arms.
"Thanks for your hard work!"
Chu Tianyao buried his head in Liu Na's hair and whispered.
Suddenly, she was hugged by Chu Tianyao and felt the heavy breath of the man behind her. Liu Na couldn't help but blush.
"What are you talking about..."
She snorted, and before she could turn around, she was hugged by Chu Tianyao and put on the bed.
A lovely night.
Coupled with the fatigue of traveling during the day, and the sound of pigs squealing from next door from time to time, the young couple fell into a deep sleep.
…
Five o'clock in the morning.
It was still dark, and there was a sense of moisture in the air. Chu Tianyao and Liu Na were already woken up by Zhong Dafen outside the door.
"Don't sleep anymore, your Uncle Yuqiang is here, come out quickly and help set up the stove."
Although Chu Tianyao was extremely reluctant to get up, seeing that Liu Na was already dressed, he got up too.
"How about you sleep a little longer."
Liu Na looked at Chu Tianyao who was still a little sleepy and felt a little distressed.
"Forget it, if I don't get up, I'll probably have to be scolded by your mother for a while."
He asked Liu Na to get clothes. After Chu Tianyao finished washing, he also left the bedroom.
In the yard.
Through the light, Chu Tianyao saw three middle-aged men busy. The leader looked to be in his early fifties and had a round figure. He should be the chef Sun Yuqiang mentioned by Zhong Dafen.
"This is your second uncle, I heard. I heard he is from the city, and he is indeed very talented."
Sun Yuqiang looked at Chu Tianyao beside Liu Na, smashed the cigarette in his mouth, and grinned.
"What's the use of being good-looking? He's just a beer seller, but he's far behind Qian Zhigang."
Zhong Dafen glanced at Chu Tianyao, who had just woken up, "Don't be stunned, hurry up and help your Uncle Yuqiang set up the stove."
Chu Tianyao responded and walked over to help.
Liu Na and Zhong Dafen went to the kitchen and started washing and chopping vegetables.
As for Pan Zhigang and Liu Yuling, Chu Tianyao never saw them from beginning to end. They were probably still asleep in the room.
…
The tables have to be opened at noon.
Although it is a banquet in rural areas, one still has to pay attention to nine large bowls.
So there is a lot of preparation before the banquet.
But the good thing is that rural people are very enthusiastic, and everyone will spontaneously come to help whenever there is a wedding or wedding.
After a while, a dozen women who were friends with the Liu family came to the village, and they all started to get busy.
Ten o'clock in the morning.
The stove has been set up, Sun Yuqiang is in charge of the chef, and the other two people are responsible for making cold dishes.
One after another, the Liu family also began to have guests.
Zhong Dafen specially asked the old branch secretary of the team to be responsible for registering people's signatures, and set up a table filled with loose cigarettes and melon seeds and peanuts.
Those who arrived first were basically people from the same village.
Everyone went to the old party secretary one by one to give gifts to relatives, mostly ten or twenty yuan.
Zhong Dafen looked on with a smile on his face.
After this banquet, the Liu family would receive at least about a thousand yuan as part of their contribution. As for the money for the banquet, Pan Zhigang didn't ask, so she naturally didn't care.
"Oh, it's so lively!"
In the yard of Liu's house, as soon as a middle-aged woman who was fairly well-dressed appeared, Zhong Dafen rushed to greet her with a smile.
"Sister-in-law, why are you here alone?"
Seeing the person coming, Zhong Dafen asked quickly.
The person in front of him is Liu Jianjun's eldest brother and Liu Jianguo's wife Wang Guiqin.
The two families used to live in the same village, but later Liu Jianguo's family made a little fortune from the fruit business and moved to the town a few years ago.
"Hey... father and son Jianguo are busy doing business, so I'm here alone."
Wang Guiqin waved his hand, and as he spoke, he took out a fifty yuan bill and handed it to the old branch secretary who was responsible for collecting money from members.
"Dafen, it's just a small thing."
He casually gave him fifty yuan. Wang Guiqin's generous gesture also made Zhong Dafen keep his eyes open and he quickly served a cup of hot tea himself.