Chapter 191. Getting tall, Getting cramps
Mother Zhou was aware that she was partial to the Fourth branch. But among the four sons, she didn't go overboard on the bias. Otherwise, how could the others stay put?
Seeing how great the relationship between the brothers was now, it proved that she wasn't too biased.
Second Brother-in-law responded with a wry smile. He left after dropping the money.
Two days later, Zhou Qing Bai went up to buy pesticides and fertilizers on behalf of the team. Then he delivered a cart of bricks and tiles to Second Brother-in-law.
With this cart of bricks and tiles, Second Brother-in-law can set his mind at ease. Even at night, he headed over to the new house to camp on the floor. It was for the fear of sneaky people coming over stealing bricks and tiles.
It was the truth. Bricks and tiles weren't so easy to get at this time. If Zhou Qing Bai didn't have a connection in the bureau that can get an approval letter, how can they obtain this cart of bricks and tiles like this?
It was that scarce. One may not be able to buy it even if they had money.
And even if one buys it, one can't bring back in such a cart.
If it weren't like this, how could there be a housing shortage now?
Second Brother-in-law was able to move out like this was thanks to a ridge. This was borrowed from a clan's uncle for emergency use.
Speaking of this, he had good social skills. If it were his eldest brother who borrows, don't think about it.
Of course, Second Sister also contributed to this.
Who doesn't know that Second Sister's fourth brother was a capable person?
Even when he had retired from the force, he was still a prominent figure in the village. Whether it was reporting harvest or buying fertilizer and pesticide on behalf of the production team, he was always present.
So more or less, they were willing to connect.
For example, seeing Zhou Qing Bai delivering so many bricks and tiles this time, everyone's eyes slightly shone.
Don't talk about other people. Just Second Brother-in-law's biased parents also grumbled.
No matter what, Second Brother-in-law and Second Sister's brick house was completed in half a month due to this cart of brick.
A family of seven didn't bother to choose a special day and just moved in without any second thought.
After moving, there were still a lot of missing items. It didn't matter if they lacked them. Even if they have to cook things in a crock pot once they moved out, it was way better than receiving anger at that side
With this separation, it had the usually honest Second Sister hold a rare hatred.
This included the old grudges. Mistreatment during post-natal confinement and the likes were pulled out to counted.
However, Second Sister won't say it, not even a word. But from now on, she will only have her maternal family. There's no in-law family!
Some women in the village envied her very much, but they didn't say anything sour. They all gave her well-wishing, that her hardships were over and happiness was coming in the future.
Some old people in the village watched Second Sister's family move out and the elderly parents chose the eldest son. They shook their head.
They don't protect the filial second son and second daughter-in-law but instead stood with the eldest son and eldest daughter-in-law, who were selfish.
There was no problem since they could still move. But once, they can't work in the future, do they really think that couple would wait upon them?
They can only sweep the snow in front of the door, so they couldn't bother to say too much.
Second Sister was very polite. She borrowed a basket of eggs from the village and brought it over. As a symbol of gratitude to her maternal family's siblings, each family got two jins.
The maternal brothers didn't matter. However, she must express it toward the sisters-in-law.
There was affection from growing up with the brothers, so they won't mind so much. But the sisters-in-law were different. There was a barrier, so naturally, she had to show courtesy.
As for the money owed, she'll pay it back slowly. She'll somehow be able to pay it off.
Even Second Sister-in-law was all smiles and said that Second Sister was too polite.
Lin Qing He didn't say have much to say. She just grabbed half a jin of pork scrap for Second Sister.
Second Sister couldn't refuse and was resigned to taking it back.
She had a mixture of emotions on the way back. Fourth's wife didn't really place any importance on her before. But now that old Fourth was back, she was more and more like a wife. This New Year she got to bring her children to meet them.
Lin Qing He didn't think so much. It was Zhou Qing Bai's sister, she had to display some politeness.
She was in the middle of making the dough. Today, they were eating pancakes. The soup was bone soup. She had simmered the bones for a long time now. The stewed soup was milky and creamy. Really too fragrant. Sprinkle it a handful of green onions and it'll taste perfect.
This pancake was just right with this soup.
She went to the county city yesterday to buy three more baskets of eggs. Today, Second Sister brought approximately two jins as well. So she fried sunny-side-up for everybody.
A crispy, yellow, and savory sunny-side-up. Even little Su Cheng was satisfied with it.
Not to mention her family's three, who was used to good stuff.
"Mother, I have a little cramp in my legs when sleeping recently." Da Wa mentioned while eating.
Lin Qing He was shocked: "Is can't be calcium deficiency, right?"
"What?"
Father Zhou and Mother Zhou were clueless.
Zhou Qing Bai looked at his wife. Some of the words came from decades later, which were never heard of now.
For example, this leg cramp, what does it have to do with this calcium deficiency?
"It means, you have entered the peak period of height development. The bones are lengthening. However, your body doesn't have enough nourishment, so cramps will appear at night." Lin Qing He explained, then added: "This is what I saw in the book. ."
When Father Zhou and Mother Zhou heard it from the book, they became serious.
"What can be done?" Father Zhou asked.
He was very concerned about his eldest grandson.What's more, this elder was eagerly looking forward to his grandson being able to enter a university and bring glory to his ancestor.
"Our family eats so well. Why don't they have enough nutrition?" Mother Zhou said.
"The food at home is very good. But just this alone isn't enough for the kids' development. Starting tomorrow, I will order two more bottles of milk. Da Wa, you drink more." Lin Qing He decided.
"Will it be too much?" Mother Zhou hesitated.
"Mother, the kids only have these few years in his life to grow. After these few years, he won't be able to grow taller even if you want to replenish it in the future." Lin Qing He said.
In fact, a child of this age didn't need too much supplementation. On top of the daily meals, just drink a little more milk. This was the most basic in modern times.
It's not really supplementing.
"Listen to Fourth's wife." Father Zhou nodded.
Lin Qing He smiled and looked at Da Wa and said, "You have to do well and bring back a college admittance. You two younger ones as well. When the time comes, pay back all the money Mother splashed on you."
Speaking of this, Mother Zhou laughed and said: "That's an exaggeration! It's great that a community can produce one college student."
"Mother, I will enter the first year of junior high school next semester. I heard that there is a competition in the first year of junior high school. Would there be scholarships?" Da Wa asked.
Currently, he was in the second semester of the fifth grade. At the moment, there was no such thing as the sixth grade. He'll enter first year the next semester.
Prev ChapterNext ChapterReport chapterChapter 192. Raining
"You can forget about scholarships. It's more like rewarding you with a pen or an enamel cup," Lin Qing He said.
Although there were already signs of attention to education, it had not yet reached that level.
There was no such thing as a scholarship.
Lin Qing He wasn't shooting her mouth about Da Wa's cramps. She had started to increase her milk supply.
In addition to milk, she also cooked egg or something for him to take to school to eat when hungry every day.
After eating this way for only half a month, this kid said he didn't have leg cramps at night.
Father Zhou thought it was great.
Mother Zhou pondered. Fourth's wife was really willing to spend money.
Zhou Qing Bai, the father, had this experience as well. When he was in puberty, he met with this phenomenon.
But at that time, the conditions were terrible. To be able to fill his stomach was already good enough. As for drinking milk and eating eggs? Even if his parents favored him, don't think about it.
"It was difficult for you to be so tall at that time." Lin Qing He talked about this with Zhou Qing Bai when she was free.
"I didn't stay at home long before I enter the army." Zhou Qing Bai said.
Speaking of it, he really started to grow after he went to the army.
At his fastest growth, he grew almost 13 cm tall in a year.
Every time he came home, I piled up a lot of height. Of course, this was what his mother said.
Lin Qing He grinned and said, "If you want to eat anything, I'll make it up for you. Although it's a bit late, you should also get some nourishment."
Zhou Qing Bai knew that his wife was teasing him. The corners of his mouth raised slightly and said nothing.
Now Lin Qing He mostly stewed soup.
Rib soup, bone soup, fish soup, shrimp skin soup, and seaweed soup were Lin Qing He's frequent choice.
However, even with this kind of nourishment, Da Wa didn't get fat at all. Not only did he not appear fat, but he also looked thin. Of course, he inherited Zhou Qing Bai's physique.
He looked thin, but if he took off his clothes, he wasn't thin at all.
Er Wa and San Wa were okay. As for the brothers, little Su Cheng and little Su Xun, because they were still young, it was easier to get chubbier. Both of them were plumper.
Who wouldn't compliment how well Teacher Lin, the aunt, treat her nephews?
Lin Qing He didn't have to teach that day. She cycled to the county city early in the morning.
She came here to buy fish. This time she planned to buy more to store up in the space, especially for crucian carp soup. The crucian carp at this time was truly wild crucian carp.
Lin Qing He's personal favorite was a soup made with tofu.
As for the crucian carp, there were too many bones. She didn't like it at all. It was all fed to Zhou Qing Bai.
There were fish on the black market. Lin Qing He bought a net full of it. There were even freshwater fish such as tilapia and crucian. Bass too.
Lin Qing He had no reservation. She took them all and immediately put them in the space when no one was around.
Then she bought a pack of goji berries and a pack of red dates. A pack of candy as well. There was nothing else to buy.
She took these things back home.
Lin Qing He killed a crucian carp as soon as she got home. Then she simmered it with tofu. When it's about time, she sprinkled some goji berry in. The result was really delicious.
At noon, everyone ate to their heart's content.
"Don't know which afternoon I can go to the mountains to pick some mushrooms," Lin Qing He said.
"Old man, when do you estimate the rain will come?" Mother Zhou asked Father Zhou.
Father Zhou's experience had sharpened him: "Soon. It's been stuffy these days."
The past few days have indeed been sultry and stuffy. Lin Qing He had Zhou Qing Bai fanning her to fall asleep at night, otherwise, she wouldn't be able to sleep.
Sure enough, it was five days later when the sky began to be clouded. It started to fall in the evening. Once it dropped, it was an instant rainfall. Then it turned to heavy rain.
It just entered May. By this time, the crops had grown a lot. Rain at this time saved a lot of manpower. This had everyone breathing out in relief.
Lin Qing He stuck to her old rules. She burned mugwort inside and outside the house. She had always maintained this habit. When it rains and also when the rain leaves, she always smoked mugwort throughout the house.
"Mother, I can't solve this question." Said Er Wa, who had already skipped to third grade.
Lin Qing He glanced at it and replied, "Change your line of thought. It is similar to the question you did yesterday."
Er Wa continued to ponder about it. On one question, he thought for half an hour. In the end, he was able to figure it out.
After working it out, he found it wasn't difficult when he reread this question again.
"Mother, you set too many traps." Er Wa couldn't help but admire.
The questions from school were all clear at a glance. While the questions his mother gave them were all twists and turns. If one didn't pay attention, then one will fall into a trap.
What's more, this was a Mathematical Olympiad problem, not an ordinary third-grade math problem.
"How is your one difficult? You didn't have the question Mother gave to me. Even my teacher didn't know how to do it after seeing it." There was another one in Da Wa's hand as he interjected.
He knew how to do Er Wa's question at a glance. While his question was actually difficult.
He worked on it from school until now and still hadn't solved it yet.
When he was working on it at school, his teacher caught sight of it. Afterward... he too couldn't solve it.
When asked, he found out this question was given by his mother. The teacher held deep admiration.
Teacher Lin was worthy of being a role model from Zhoujia Village who self-studied and overwhelm a group of educated youths. Really makes one respect.
Lin Qing He smiled. She also gave Da Wa some hints for solving the problem.
Da Wa had already worked on this for a long time, so Lin Qing He gave him some hints. He was like he had seen the dawn after pulling the clouds away.
With this solved, he solved this four-star difficulty problem.
Lin Qing He gave it a quick scan. Then she gave him a five-star difficult one and let him slowly ponder on it.
As for San Wa, Lin Qing He got him to obediently write numbers.
He was six years old this year. Lin Qing He intended to send him to elementary school when the first grade of elementary school starts this year.
At this point, the three brothers will all go to school.
Zhou Qing Bai came back from the outside carrying a hoe and in a raincoat. Although he didn't need to work when it rained, he still had to check whether the water flows out of the openings in the ground. There might be crop submersion because of the water flow problem.
It wasn't easy for common people who rely on the weather to eat.
It won't do if there was no rain. Too heavy rain won't do either. Same with too small. In one phrase, it wasn't easy.
"Everything alright?" Lin Qing He asked.
"It's fine." Zhou Qing Bai affirmed.
Although the rain wasn't great, it wasn't in the red zone.
Lin Qing He threw it to the back of her mind as soon as she heard all was well and started to knead the dough and steam the mantou.
Since the rain was too heavy, she placed Father Zhou and Mother Zhou's share in the basket and got Zhou Qing Bai to send it over. When he returned from delivery, the family would start their meal.
Prev ChapterNext ChapterReport chapterChapter 193. Rat poop
"Have more soup." Lin Qing He poured what was left in the pot into Zhou Qing Bai's bowl and urged.
"Mother, what about me?" Da Wa said.
"You already had two bowls. You won't starve." Lin Qing He dismissed.
Er Wa and San Wa had an 'I'm used to this' expression.
Yes, even San Wa gotten used to it now. He was used to their mother's favoring their father.
Although Zhou Qing Bai's face showed no expression, he could be seen drinking the rest of the soup with relaxed eyebrows.
"Go and rest. Er Wa, it's your turn to wash the dishes today." Lin Qing He ordered her son.
Er Wa went to clean up the dishes and then wash them.
Since last year, he had started to share the dishes chores with his eldest brother.
San Wa will join the dishwashing army starting next year.
Lin Qing He left the outside to the boys, while she went back to the room with Zhou Qing Bai to rest.
It took this rain seven or eight days to finish. The roadside outside wasn't easy to travel on. Lin Qing He had officially started her lessons by then.
Coming back from school that day, Lin Qing He ran into Third Sister-in-law. On the way, she gave Third Sister-in-law a lift.
As soon as the two sisters-in-law entered the village, they noticed the atmosphere in the village was a bit solemn.
"What's going on?" Third Sister-in-law, who just came back from outside, whispered in confusion.
"I don't know. Anyway, it has nothing to do with our family." Lin Qing He didn't care.
It really had no connection to old Zhou family. It was old Ma Family's matter.
Last time, it was Fourth Ma. Old Ma Family was able to suppress both men as it happened within the family.
They were able to forcibly cleanse Wang Ling's name. Due to the rural's strong desire for a son, people just gossiped about Wang. They didn't go overboard.
But this time Wang Ling got into a tangle with a hooligan in the village named Zhou He and was encountered by someone.
It had happened in the small ruined house on the hillside behind the production team.
It was said that the scene between the two was quite intense.
What's more, the woman who saw it had a terrible relationship with Wang Ling.
This time, a hornet's nest was stabbed. She instantly called the leader to come over and caught them in the act.
Last time Wang Ling was able to dodge it. However, this time she can't avoid it. Also, old Ma family had no thoughts of protecting Wang Ling.
So, the city's red soldiers came in.
The existence of the Red Soldier was similar to the foreign invaders in the past. No one wanted to get in contact with them.
To lure them over for such a matter really life-threatening.
Wang Lin and Zhou He were tied up at once. Their heads were shaved to yin and yang heads and were dragged around the street with a board saying 'having an affair' hung on them.
This matter was told by Third Sister-in-law to Lin Qing He after some investigation.
"She hasn't changed her spots. Acting like no one can do anything to her." Lin Qing He spurned.
"She was actually able to dodge the incident from last time and still didn't learn her lesson. Fortunately, Second Sister-in-law broke off ties with her long ago." remarked Third Sister-in-law.
Lin Qing He said, "That hooligan fought with Third Ma before, right?"
"He did. That time, the two families nearly clashed head," replied Third-in-law.
Lin Qing He shook her head. Wang Ling will definitely be unable to stay in the village in the future. Third Ma wasn't one to tolerate. He was suppressed into defeat by his parents the last time it happened. He won't endure it this time round.
Wang Ling and Zhou He were released three days later. When they came back, everyone almost didn't recognize them.
Their whole bodies stank. They probably got thrown with feces. Their faces were full of red marks. Most likely, someone held a shoe and slapped them.
But was this the end?
Don't underestimate the harshness of this era toward people with bad conduct.
Less than five days after they were released, the two were pulled out to be paraded again.
It'll be like this from now on until a few years later. Zhou He was said to be beaten into an inhumane state.
Not surprisingly, Third Ma divorced Wang Ling straightaway.
After producing such a daughter, no one from old Wang family came to claim Wang Ling. Wang Ling's temperament was a little distorted. She just stayed in the village and didn't leave.
She simply occupied the small broken house on the back hillside.
It was very shabby, but still, it provided shelter.
Lin Qing He heard the gossip. It seemed that Wang Ling was still opening the door to do business there, but quietly. She would accompany anyone as long as they brought food.
"Really, there are really a lot of unscrupulous people in the village. They sneaked over after midnight," said Eldest Sister-in-law informed.
"Old He Family quarreled today. Apparently, Second He hid a little money and gave it to Wang Ling." Third Sister-in-law said with disgust.
"Shameless, really shameless!" Second Sister-in-law regretted to death after hearing this.
Why did she interact with people like this before? Now some people, who have a bad relationship with her, would still snub her when she went out: why didn't she wash clothes with Wang Ling?
Really lose face.
It can be said that Wang Ling broke the already broken jar. The whole village was repulsed by her and wanted her to go. But she refused to go.
She didn't enter the field anymore. She was able to fill her stomach by relying on some men who came over at night, so what need were there to enter the field?
It was just that every few days she would be dragged out to be criticized. When she recalled it, she was frightened. Those people were simply not humans. They would kick them directly in the stomach with one foot. No mercy at all.
This woman Wang Ling was completely rotten. This was the consensus in the village.
But it just happened that some married men liked the way Wang Ling was and stole some rice and money to send to her. Wasn't this contemptible?
A good few women in the village stood out and scold cause of this.
Lin Qing He ran into Wang Ling once, when she finished her class. She was completely different from before.
Not only were there new clothes to wear, but her diet also appeared to improve.
Wang Ling didn't seem to have any good thoughts of Lin Qing He at all. But it didn't count as hate. When it came to hatred, she hated He Family's daughter-in-law, who encountered the affair, the most.
Now she got criticized again. This was caused by old He Family's second daughter-in-law.
That's why Wang Ling hooked up with Second He. She intended to hook up with Eldest He and Third He, but those two were more decent and she couldn't tempt them.
Still, she pulled in Second He. He gave her quite a lot of money and things, which was a kind of like revenge against He Family's second daughter-in-law.
In the whole village, only Wang Ling was the odd one. And such a odd person made Zhoujia Village's reputation bad.
When people talk about it, they'll say Zhoujia Village had this kind of person.
Everyone said it was rat poop spoiling a pot of porridge. But what can be done? Out of sight, out of mind.
Lin Qing He didn't have much interest in these things. It drizzled a bit these days.
So she collected mushrooms from some young teens in the village.
After the rain stops, one can pick mushrooms and fungus, which can be dried in the sun and consumed slowly.
In just two days, Lin Qing He harvested seven or eight jins of mushrooms. Then she stopped taking them in. The well-preserved mushrooms were dried in a sieve. The crushed ones were fried with meat or made into mushroom soup. They were both very delicious.
Prev ChapterNext ChapterReport chapterChapter 194. Future housing price
Soon it was already June.
Zhou Qing Bai bought fertilizer from outside. Along with that, he brought back a basket of cherries.
Lin Qing He was surprised: "We don't have cherries here."
"From other places." Zhou Qing Bai said.
The cherries were quite sweet. Without any reservation, she washed a bowl of it to eat.
"Thanks for your hard work today." Lin Qing He beckoned him to eat together as she said.
Zhou Qing Bai replied, "Wasn't tiring."
He pulled a ring out of his pocket.
A jade ring, not a gold ring.
Lin Qing He's eyes shone brightly. At this time, nine out of ten times, these things were real.
"Where did it come from?" Lin Qing He looked at him.
"I picked it up on the road." Zhou Qing Bai responded.
The corner of Lin Qing He's mouth twitched. Must admit, nobody wanted the gold, jade, and the likes outside when they were tossed out on the street at this period.
Even if they were valuable, it goes without saying that no one dares to take it out. They were all things from the past. Currently, the restriction was still very high outside. Even if they owned one, who would dare to take it out?
Speaking of this, Lin Qing He had obtained a little bit from the black market in the city. She didn't dare to make any big movements. Just gather a few gold necklaces. It was estimated that it will cost tens of thousands in later generations. It wasn't those small necklaces. It all got some weight to it.
"Will be very valuable in the future?" Zhou Qing Bai looked at her and said.
"It's very valuable. But in the future, the most valuable is the house. When we go to the capital in the future to buy one or two courtyards, we'll have no worry in this life." Lin Qing He uttered as she daydreamed about getting rich.
Zhou Qing Bai smiled: "This life is still long."
Lin Qing He raised her eyebrows: "What? Don't you believe it? Do you know how much money it's worth in future generations?"
"Tell me." Zhou Qing Bai wanted to know how the country will develop in the future.
Lin Qing He explained: "A random set of houses with over a hundred square meters in a slightly better city, cost basically a minimum of one million. Even if it's in the ordinary county city, it is estimated to be several hundred thousand. The house price in the capital is said to be 100,000 yuan per square meter."
Zhou Qing Bai knew the future will be much better, but still, he was dumbfounded by this.
Such an expression was rarely seen on his face. This goes to show how shocked he was by the housing prices of later generations.
"Although housing is tight now, the housing prices aren't bad." Zhou Qing Bai said.
"Isn't there a distribution now? As long as one isn't in a hurry, they'll be allocated one. Then naturally, the house price isn't worth much. The concept of later generations is different from now. Everyone wants to have a set, so it went up." Lin Qing He explained.
Houses weren't as valuable as electrical appliances.
How much does an electrical appliance cost now?
For example, televisions, telephones, etc. are very common in later generations, but the current prices of them were over hundreds.
She used to hear her colleagues complain that her dad had gone south to the seaside a long time ago and bought a stereo for more than 10,000. If that 10,000 was used to buy a store in a first-tier city, it would be really worth it. How many years less would one have to struggle?
Zhou Qing Bai frowned and said, "We have three sons."
"Yeah. Only families with mines would dare to birth so many in the future." Lin Qing He sighed. Which family didn't have many children during this time of population boom?
"Then the last time you went to the capital was for?" Zhou Qing Bai looked at his wife.
"You come in." Lin Qing He took him back to the room.
Then she took out the gold bars, gold bracelets, jade hairpins and antique vases from the capital.
These things were worth a lot of money in the future/ Also, the stamps she collected were very valuable.
However, Zhou Qing Bai had no hint of happiness. He stared at these things with a pinched frown. His gaze fell on Lin Qing He.
Lin Qing He later realized that she was too prideful.
It can't be helped. She got a space as a cheat. She had taken advantage of this time to gather so many things but be unable to share the delight with anyone. She held back with much difficulty. So she pridefully displayed it to him when he brought it up.
She went way over her head.
"I promise you that I will never take any risks in the future. We will not go to that side of the capital in the future. I had forgotten what she looks like. She probably also forgot about me." Lin Qing He tactfully vowed.
Only then Zhou Qing Bai didn't keep on going and uttered: "It's valuable in the future. At the moment you can't touch it. What's more, with these, it's enough."
He maintained his gaze on her as he stated.
Lin Qing He immediately nodded obediently: "I'll listen to you!"
With this, Zhou Qing Bai patted her bottom. Lin Qing He blushed and said, "Rogue."
With mirth between his eyebrows, Zhou Qing Bai said in a hushed voice, "Is it gone?"
Lin Qing He flushed in embarrassment but still nodded.
Zhou Qing Bai nodded and went to chop the firewood. He can have meat tonight.
Lin Qing He sent him to feed the pigs after he chopped the firewood. She was sewing the soles of the shoes. She didn't have classes this afternoon, so she didn't need to go to school. It was quite idle.
Soon, Zhou Qing Bai made the pig food and went to feed the pigs. Lin Qing He put the soles of the shoes aside, began to clean the pot, and slaughtered the nurtured eel.
This rice field eel weighed about 250-300g. The weight of the eel in July and August was about 350-400g.
Even so, this rice eel was quite plump.
Lin Qing He picked up the knife and killed seven. Then she pulled out another pickled veg. Eel stewed with pickled veg was another delectable dish.
There was also a cowpea, a cabbage, and an egg tomato soup. Served with mantou and dinner menu was completed.
In fact, the nutritional content wasn't bad at all, even if the oil content were a bit lacking.
What's more, there was a pressure of raising three sons. It started to become apparent when Da Wa turned ten years old.
This kid had a large appetite now. His father can eat five mantou in a meal, while he can eat four. And there was no shortage of soup either.
Half of this kind of mantou was enough for Lin Qing He.
Even Er Wa ate more than her now. Er Wa ate two and a half.
Lin Qing He's intake was similar to San Wa. This was under the circumstance that San Wa had a lot of eels. If not, he might be able to eat two. She was tearful when it came to this.
It was necessary for her to smuggle pork and grain as well as requiring her to receive a stable income and Zhou Qing Bai's ten work points. On top of that, the kids can also help out and they got pigs. If it weren't for these, it won't be easy...
It was no wonder that Mother Zhou urged her to live a little more prudently in the past. Now she thought about it, it made sense. After all, she(Mother Zhou) had raised four sons...
Lin Qing He taught until the end of June. Then school started half-day class because the summer harvest was about to begin.
The sky was beautiful these days.
There was still some rain in the middle of June. By the end of this month, the sky was unlimitedly clear when the summer harvest was about to begin. The elderly people in the village said it was God rewarding them their meal.
At the end of the month, the horn of the summer harvest sounded.
Prev ChapterNext ChapterReport chapterChapter 195. Family Saving
There were summer harvests every year. Still, everyone's enthusiasm remains unabated every time.
Lin Qing He gave lessons in the morning and got a half-day off in the afternoon. Even though her salary and work points were halved, she will still receive a few jins of coarse grains when the summer harvest is over.
Last year, they received corn. Not sure about this year. Most likely will be similar to corn.
She didn't worry about this. Lin Qing He was responsible for preparing the food every day.
In the past few years, Zhou Qing Bai hadn't aged much since he retired due to his diet. As for Eldest Brother, Second Brother, and Third Brother, one can see the difference when standing beside Zhou Qing Bai.
Zhou Qing Bai was two years younger than Third Brother. However, Third Brother appeared to be more than five years older than Zhou Qing Bai. Obviously aged quicker.
From the beginning, doing this farm work was energy-consuming and drained them to their weary bones. On top of that, their lifestyle was frugal.
Of course, compared with others in the village, Third Brother fared much better. There were some women in the village who were an extreme miser. They were examples of exaggeration. They can cause their men to collapse from starvation in the field.
Lin Qing He couldn't figure out how they could think like this.
Let alone the countryside, even in the city, if the head of the family collapse, it was the equivalent to the matter of the sky falling down. To actually make her man starve to this point, it wasn't living frugally. Rather, she held hatred for her man in disguise.
Lin Qing He's meals were always great.
Father Zhou, Zhou Qing Bai, and the boys, who also came to participate in the summer harvest, ate spring pancakes.
Even when it was summer now, it was still okay to eat spring pancakes.
The spring pancakes were filled with cucumber, eggs, chives, beans, and pork.
These were all cut into small pieces and then fried and were wrapped within the spring pancakes when brought over. There was also a bone soup, which was placed in the space when cycling over and then moved from the space to the basket on arrival.
Compared with this delicious spring pancake, what other people ate was really so-so.
The better-off families had two flour (not wheat flour of course) in one pancake or mantou mixed with a little bit of white flour. These were eaten with pickled veg.
Slightly worst were pancakes and water.
It was always been this way. From the time when they started working again at noon until they got off work in the afternoon, their belly was about to stick to their back.
Despite how they ate, Zhou Qing Bai, Father Zhou, and the boys, who filled their stomachs to the brim, were hungry too.
Fortunately, they all knew that as soon as they get home, there will be fragrant soup, soft steamed mantou, and delicious dishes waiting for them.
Three days into the summer harvest, Zhou Qing Bai came back with a rabbit in tow.
It was a common occurrence for Zhou Qing Bai to catch rabbits during the summer and autumn harvest to add a dish. In the past few years, which year did he not catch them?
Since it was just one, Lin Qing He would naturally not share it. She got Zhou Qing Bai to tidy it and then she simply braised it.
Again, many people came over to squat around the corner with their bowls. If they can take a sniff, it felt like they can eat more.
"Teacher Lin's culinary really has no-fault."
People passing by the door couldn't help but take a deep breath and then emotionally remarked.
If some women were given meat, they can't even make anything delicious with it. Completely lacking in skill. While Lin Qing He's cooking skills were well-known in the village.
After eating the really delicious meal, San Wa opened the door with little Su Cheng in tow and went out to play.
To eat such wonderful dishes, closing the door was a must. Otherwise, it would attract hate.
San Wa and little Su Cheng came out to play. Zhou Xia was at the entrance. When he saw him coming out, his eyes lit up, and he hurriedly said, "San Wa, are there still rabbit meat?"
"Of course, there's none. It's all finished. You didn't go home to eat?" San Wa asked.
"I have eaten, but there is no meat." Zhou Xia sighed when he heard that it was all eaten.
"It can't be helped. If you were born by my parents, then you would definitely have a share." San Wa said.
Zhou Xia looked down. He also wished he was birthed by his fourth aunt and uncle. Sadly, he wasn't!
Now that he was a little older, he held no illusions. He was birthed by his father and mother and cannot be changed to his fourth aunt and fourth uncle.
"But Su Cheng wasn't birthed by Fourth Aunt and Fourth Uncle either." Zhou Xia looked at Su Cheng.
Su Cheng froze. He was unable to answer. He turned to his brother San Wa.
"Little Cheng Cheng's parents bring food and eggs every month. They also bring milk candy. It's not freeloading. Also, he's only that big. He can't finish one mantou. Your appetite is larger than mine." San Wa explained.
He still defended his cousin.
"If I don't eat a lot, I will get hungry often," Zhou Xia responded.
"Do you want to play marble?" San Wa sent out an invitation.
"Play for a while." Zhou Xia nodded.
So they brought little Su Cheng to the entrance, drew a circle, and played with marbles. Soon the other children came over and played together.
From home, Fei Ying watched them play at the entrance while chewing on the rabbit bones.
To be honest, Fei Ying's food was better than many families in the village.
Fei Ying was part of the family. Although he had a low presence, he was definitely a good hand at house watching. With him here, Lin Qing He can go out with an ease of mind.
"San Wa, Cheng Cheng, it's time to take a bath." After playing for a while, Er Wa came out and called.
San Wa collected the marble and led little Su Cheng home. The other children continued to play but soon were called to return home.
The pace of life in the countryside was relatively slow. But still, the days of summer harvest passed very fast every day.
When all the grain was collected, the public ration was handed, and grain distribution was held, Lin Qing He continued to sell in the county city. After making a hundred yuan, she bought a few bottles of peanut oil and several baskets of eggs to store in the space for later use.
Lin Qing He spent a lot of money. Every time she came over to the county city to buy so many supplies, she actually didn't touch her capital.
What she earned from selling pork was enough. And there was still a lot of leftover for savings.
Last time, she counted, the money saved at home so far had gone from over 3,000 (when Zhou Qing Bai first came back) to more than 4,000 now. Almost four thousand and five hundred.
In this era, this was definitely a huge sum of money.
It was only this much because the family's expenses were large. If not, it might exceed 6,000 or even reach 7,000.
However, Lin Qing He felt it was unnecessary to mistreat her family just for that 2000 yuan.
So what should be spent was still spent. As for her plan to go to Beijing to buy a courtyard house in the future, there will naturally be some way at that time. No need to worry about missing out, right?
Just when the restriction drops was a good opportunity to take action. Taking advantage of that time to make a fortune could not be any easier for her.
But for now, those matters were still a bit far into the future.
The summer harvest was over, Lin Qing He welcomed the summer vacation. Summer vacation meant no need to give classes. Of course, there will be no salary and work points.
During this food distribution, the school subsidized their teachers 30 jins of corn. This benefit was pretty good.
Prev ChapterNext ChapterReport chapterChapter 196. Want one more
Lin Qing He felt it was great to be a teacher, even when she had to manage work and home life.
The salary was 13 yuan. There were also a few cloth coupons and food coupons issued at the end of the year. Even if one didn't need them, many people would be rushing to exchange for them. This too was another kind of subsidy.
During the summer vacation, Lin Qing He was idle, while Zhou Qing Bai wasn't. The work in the field that should be done were needed to be done. This was because the seeds of this season were connected to the result of the autumn harvest. Can't be careless at all.
"Mother, I'm going swimming with my eldest brother and the rest." San Wa said.
"Tie this piece of foam to your arm." Lin Qing He went to grab a piece of foam.
This was the foam box that she used to pack the buns in. After the buns were finished, the box was left. After taken apart, it was bundled together. It was very buoyant.
San Wa took the foam block and headed over.
Lin Qing He also went over to take a look. Seeing that he was really tied to his arm, she didn't say anything.
The boys in the country must learn to swim. Da Wa knew how to. Er Wa too. San Wa hadn't grasped it yet. He was still learning.
This was fun for children in summer. Also, swimming was an excellent way to exercise.
"Keep an eye on your brother." Lin Qing He reminded Da Wa and Er Wa.
"Teacher Lin, don't worry. I will watch the three of them for you," said a thirteen or fourteen-year-old boy.
"OK. Thank you very much." Lin Qing He smiled at him.
The last time she collected mushrooms, this boy picked a lot. When she collected eel, he also captured a lot. Lin Qing He had always been fair when doing trade. She never shorted them a penny. That's why the youth's impression of Teacher Lin couldn't be any better.
And children, they got natural awe toward teachers.
Little Su Cheng was also present, but he didn't get into the water. He was digging for mud loach with a few other kids around his age at one side. Lin Qing He let him be.
It was almost evening when these brothers came back together.
"Fourth Aunt, what are we eating today?" Little Su Cheng asked as soon as he came back.
Although Su Da Lin stutters, it wasn't inherited. Especially since little Su Cheng grew up at old Zhou house and been in contact with articulate children. He was also very fluent in speaking.
"We'll eat braised little Su Cheng today." Lin Qing He replied.
Little Su Cheng froze. While San Wa laughed and then chirped 'braised little Su Cheng'.
Little Su Cheng grinned too. Don't judge him by his age as he was clever. He knew it was a joke.
Today they ate fried tomatoes with eggs, fried pork with cucumbers, loach tofu soup, and a shrimp skin soup.
At the beginning of this year, Da Wa still had cramps. But now, it basically didn't happen. Da Wa piled up a lot of height this year. Before, Lin Qing He thought he would grow to 1.55 meters at most this year. But he was already 1.55m in the first half of the year. By the end of the year, afraid he's going to be 1.6m.
Lin Qing He reserved a large portion of the daily two bottles of milk for him. The two small ones hadn't reached the time yet, so there was no need to order so many.
However, when this year's cloth coupon is issued, it will be necessary to make new clothes for Da Wa. Even if she left some extra room in last year's clothes, it wasn't big enough for this year. She'll leave it for Er Wa.
Still, Lin Qing He had a sense of accomplishment when looking at this young man. He was quite like his father. She felt content.
In mid-August, Su Da Lin and Zhou Xiao Mei came to the countryside for vacation.
Little Su Cheng developed well. Little SuChengXun can already swiftly crawl. Little Xun was mostly looked after by Mother Zhou.
Lin Qing He wasn't free. She had to give classes.
Still, he was nurtured well.
When the couple came over, Su Da Lin went to find his beloved two sons, while Zhou Xiao Mei had girls talk with Lin Qing He.
The main thing was that Su Da Lin wants a daughter.
Lin Qing He was speechless. Why discuss this matter with her?
"You have to discuss with brother-in-law yourself." Lin Qing He replied.
"I don't want to give birth, but he really wants it." Zhou Xiao Mei sighed.
Lin Qing He thought for a while, then looked at her and said, "Do you want to hear me tell the truth?"
"Fourth Sister-in-law, please tell me." Zhou Xiao Mei nodded.
The only one who can discuss this with her was her fourth sister-in-law. The others would just let her give birth as soon as they hear it. Why won't she? She only got two.
It was really rare to only give birth to two at this age.
"In fact, objectively speaking, if you have that intention, you can indeed worker harder to birth one more." Lin Qing He stated truthfully.
Since Zhou Xiao Mei came to her for advice, she'll give it.
For women, delivering a child was actually painful. However, the most difficult thing wasn't delivering a child. The biggest hardship was raising a child in the future.
There was Mother Zhou, who will help with the children. So to be honest, this wasn't really a big problem.
Su Da Lin had a stable job and owned a home. Zhou Xiao Mei's income was also acceptable. There was no need to be afraid of being unable to raise children with a dual income.
It was indeed a bit tough now, but life only had so many decades to fly past. Currently, they were all small carrot heads. In the next 20 years, all of them will be young men and big girls. After teaching them well, won't it feel comfortable to see, right?
Don't be afraid if life was tough at the beginning. What one should be afraid of was that the first part was sweet and the second part was bitter. That would be hard to endure.
So Lin Qing He didn't conceal it and dare not to speak out. She frankly expressed that it was indeed possible to have a baby. Of course, it mainly depended on Zhou Xiao Mei herself.
After all, she was just flapping her lips. Those who standing and talking can't hurt their back.
But in fact, if it were Lin Qing He herself, she would be willing to birth one or two more if there was someone to help her raise them even if she knew that it hurts to birth a child.
Zhou Qing Bai deeply longed for a daughter too. If she could give birth, she really wanted to give him one.
Unfortunately, the original owner gave no compromise. She simply ligated herself. What was there to gave birth to.
Zhou Xiao Mei understood after listening.
"I don't know if Mother can handle it?" Zhou Xiao Mei hesitated.
"Go and ask Mother." Lin Qing He said. She wasn't the one bringing up the kid and she couldn't help Mother Zhou decide.
"I'll birth this last one for him. After the birth, I'll get him to ligate!" Zhou Xiao Mei gritted her teeth.
Lin Qing He smiled, but didn't say anything. Birthing three wasn't little. Didn't her family have three sons?
Zhou Xiao Mei went to find Mother Zhou.
"Give birth then. Raising one or two is still raising. You and Da Lin just need to remember to bring back the food and eggs. Cheng Cheng and Xun Xun got strong mouths. They can eat a lot." Mother Zhou responded.
"I don't need Mother to remind me." Zhou Xiao Mei grinned.
Her eldest son and second son were so plump. She knew without asking that her fourth sister-in-law must have fed them a lot of delicious food.
She and Su Da Lin were not stingy either. This time they came back with ten jins of white flour and a basket of eggs. All of them were left on this side.
The other three branches were given a handful of candies. Just a thought.
Prev ChapterNext ChapterReport chapter
Chapter 197. Don't plan on relying son for care
Once Zhou Xiao Mei and Su Da Lin went back, Lin Qing He remarked to Mother Zhou: "The two of them have a really good relationship."
"Although Da Lin stuttered a bit, his treatment toward Xiao Mei is excellent." Mother Zhou nodded.
Mother Zhou had now accepted the fact that this youngest son-in-law stuttered.
A man, who can raise a family, won't go out to spend a lot of time on alcohol, and can take care of his wife and children was a good man.
So there was no need to mind about some little shortcomings.
At least for now, the youngest of the three daughters married the best.
"Speaking of which, this happened because of you." Mother Zhou said with a smile.
She had heard from her youngest daughter about those criteria for choosing a husband; parentless, with car and house.
The words were blunt, but now she thought about it, wasn't this way it should be?
It was difficult for the sole household to argue with others. However, as long as they went on with their life, won't it be fine?
Like Cai Ba Mei who married Zhou Dong.
Her days were similar to her family's Xiao Mei. Once she entered the door, she was in charge. There was no mother-in-law on top breathing on her shoulder. How great was that?
Lin Qing He didn't take the credit: "What does it have to do with me? The two of them found each other right. Sometimes fate is like that."
Mother Zhou grinned.
Lin Qing He asked: "Mother, have you ever went to check on Second Sister's side? I don't think her in-law family is easy to get along with. If it's overboard, there is a maternal family who won't stay silent."
This was said with confidence and domineeringly.
Mother Zhou found Fourth's wife was more and more perfect now. She was really more magnificent and more powerful than the other daughters-in-law.
Still, she responded: "She's already a married person. As long as it doesn't reach that point, we don't need to intervene. What's more, she never came to mention it."
Though the daughter was married, her root was still her maternal family. If she was bullied at her in-laws' family, her family won't let her be freely bullied as long as the maternal family had her in mind.
It happened once, it'll happen twice.
Last year, when second daughter was beaten so fierce, she never came back to tell. Second Son-in-law didn't mention a word either. How can the maternal family intervene?
If she came back and filed a complaint, only then can her family vent her anger. She didn't tell them and her family intervened in her in-law's side, what would people think?
So Mother Zhou didn't plan to get involved.
Still, she found some time to go over and take a look.
She brought little Su Xun along. As for items, there wasn't much. Just two jins of peanuts as a thought.
Coming over to Second Sister's side, she saw Second Sister's brick and tiled house. It built pretty well.
Second Sister and Second Brother-in-law weren't at home. The youngest daughter and son were at home.
Although the two were young, they both recognized Mother Zhou as their grandma.
They welcomed to their grandma. Second Sister's youngest son rushed off to call Second Sister.
Second Sister was in the middle of cutting pigweed when she heard that her mother was her. She dropped everything and headed back.
"Nothing happened. Just came to check on you." Mother Zhou smilingly explained: "This house is nicely built."
Second Sister went in to pour water for her: "It's thanks to my maternal brothers' support and willingness to lend me this money. If not, the house won't be built."
"What did that side say?" Between mother and daughter, there was no need to hid, so Mother Zhou asked her daughter.
"Seeing that Fourth Brother brought me so many bricks and tiles, the two old shameless people wanted to get a share of some of them so that they could add more to the roof. I didn't give it." Second Sister sneered.
This honest person had been forced into a corner now.
No one in the village would say she was in the wrong.
Do you know that she and her man got when they moved out with their five children?
Working like a cow and a horse for so many years, they were allocated 50 yuan. As for the other furniture and so on, it was also casually given to dismiss them.
The villagers often made a jab at the old couple. No parents would act like this.
"It's only right to not give. Qing Bai finally got it for you after many difficulties, so why should you give it to them?" Mother Zhou coldly snorted.
"Let's not talk about them and their annoying matter. Mother, I'm afraid I can't pay back the money I owe to my maternal brothers that soon," said Second Sister.
"You can settle down here before we discuss it again. It's not so urgent over there. Take your time paying it back later." Mother Zhou assured.
Second Sister nodded.
There were a few chickens at home. Second Sister wanted to grab a chicken for Mother Zhou when she planned to head back with little Su Xun.
Mother Zhou told her: "Don't make your face swollen to pose as a plump. Life at home isn't easy, so why do you still catch a chicken?"
Then she didn't bother with Second Sister and went home with her grandson.
When she returned, she informed Lin Qing He: "Although their lifestyle is a little poorer, the house is still spacious. It will be a problem when the children get married in the future. However, it will be five or six years later, so there is no need to worry."
Lin Qing He said: "Take it slowly. The days will get better and better."
It was currently '74. In a blink of an eye, it was only a few years away from restriction drop. For those who were diligent, the days will only get better and better.
Because it was still in the summer vacation, Lin Qing He decided to make more money. She got Sister Mei to increase the supply of pork. Basically, she would go to the county city once in a few days.
On returning from the county city that day, Lin Qin He brought a watermelon and some school supplies.
This year, she used a piece of cloth and made a schoolbag for San Wa, the stinky boy. One for each, which was really extravagant.
"Mother, you spend so much money. Did you spend all your salary?" To be able to ask this, out of the three brothers, it could only be Er Wa.
Da Wa and San Wa didn't have the temperament to care about these.
"Yes. It's easy to feed you, but it's not easy to raise your brothers well." Lin Qing He said as she chilled the watermelon in well water.
Er Wa split into a grin: "When we grow up and be successful, we will definitely be filial to you, Mother."
"When you grow up, it's time for you to marry a wife. Then you will be someone else's. I dare not count on you." Lin Qing He replied.
What was that phrase in her modern times?
Birthing children is a task, raising children is a responsibility, and relying on children is a mistake.
This was very sensible. Of course, Lin Qing He also agreed with this concept.
The older generation raised children to guard against old age. But each generation had its own pressure. As parents, to be able to not drag their children down was doting their children.
And from another point of view, when one gets old and one has enough money to provide for the retirement, would they fear the daughter-in-law being filial or not?
If one has money, they can hire someone to take care of them.
That way the relationship between each other is neat.
Although the three children taught by her and were quite different from the original, some concepts that had been established will not change easily.
Still, Lin Qing He had already planned it a long time ago.
In the future, she and Zhou Qing Bai will save money for their old-age pension. They don't plan to rely on their sons to support them. Otherwise, they will get kicked out by the future daughters-in-law. Just the thought of it was pitiful.
Prev ChapterNext ChapterReport chapter
Chapter 198. New academic year
Of course, this was Lin Qing He's personal concept of life.
She wouldn't say it out loud. If Mother Zhou caught a wisp of it, she would definitely overthink
The big watermelon was bought back and shared between the family. Each person only got one piece. Any more wasn't possible. Still, it was a great treat.
After all, there were really only two or three of family within the village that can buy watermelons.
But when she saw Zhou Xia nibbling on the watermelon skin that had been eaten by San Wa, Lin Qing He felt quite uncomfortable.
If this was to be seen by Second Sister-in-law, she will be angry.
"Xia Xia, throw the watermelon rind away." Lin Qing He went in and grabbed two candies for him to get him to throw away the watermelon rind.
"Thanks, Fourth Aunt." Zhou Xia was delighted. He threw away the tasteless watermelon rind and then accepted the milk candies.
"How is your study recently?" Lin Qing He asked.
"I listened seriously." Zhou Xia could only answer like that.
Er Wa was now in the second semester of the third grade, while Zhou Xia was still in the second grade. The reason why he can successfully pass the exam was thanks to Er Wa's continuous help. If not, he'll definitely repeat a grade.
There were many repeaters in the village.
However, Zhou Xia's results were indeed sloppy.
"If you don't understand, just come over and ask your fourth aunt." What else can Lin Qing He say?
"Okay." Zhou Xia nodded and went home with the candies.
He didn't gobble up the two candies on his own. He gave one to his youngest sister.
"Why don't I get one?" Zhou Liu Ni asked him.
"Fourth Aunt only gave me two. How can you get any?" Zhou Xia replied.
Zhou Liu was displeased: "Her life is so good over there, why didn't she give more? Just these two! Uncle(Su Da Lin) give more than her!"
Zhou San Ni frowned: "What are you saying?"
"Mind own your business!" Zhou Liu Ni pouted.
Second Sister-in-law picked up a stick to teach her a lesson. Zhou Liu Ni ran out quickly, and then came over to this side to wander.
Lin Qing He saw her when she came out to pour water.
"Fourth Aunt, you gave my brother two candies?" Zhou Liu Ni smilingly asked.
"En." Lin Qing He just gave her a glance, then turned around and went back in.
She didn't have a good impression of Second Sister-in-law's second daughter. She had a two-faced personality. Her temper was obviously like her mother.
Even when Second Sister-in-law distanced herself from Wang Ling, there were some nature that was hard to change even when she displayed improvements.
Seeing that she didn't bother with her, Zhou Liu Ni stomped her feet: "What a black-hearted woman!"
Uttering this, she turned to go back. But when she turned around, she saw San Wa standing behind her with a dark face.
Zhou Liu Ni was startled: "San Wa, what are you doing? People scaring people can scare people to death!"
"Don't come to my house in the future. Daring to call my mother a black-hearted woman, I think your heart is the blackest!" San Wa threw at her, then turned around and entered the house.
Zhou Liu Ni quickly demanded: "Don't tell on me!"
San Wa ignored her. He went in and told his mother at once that Zhou Liu Ni bad mouth her behind her back.
Lin Qing He snorted after hearing this. She responded, "Don't worry about her. From the look of it, this girl don't have good root."
"Who doesn't have a good root?" At this time, Mother Zhou returned with Little Su Xun from outside.
"Nothing." Lin Qing He didn't want to say more.
San Wa had no reservation: "Zhou Liu Ni! She called my mother black-hearted woman behind my mother's back!"
Mother Zhou was taken aback, then looked at Lin Qing He: "What's happened?"
"I saw Xia Xia was chewing on San Wa's leftover watermelon skin. I couldn't watch, so I gave him two candies and told him to throw it away. Liu Ni probably didn't get any and came over. I didn't give her any attention, so she was mad." Lin Qing He spoke as she selected the ingredient.
She didn't put it on her mind. What does Zhou Liu Ni's mood have to do with her?
But at the end of the day, she was still young. It was better to tell Mother Zhou and let her pass it to Second Sister-in-law. See if it can salvage her and not let old Zhou Family produce a hate-provoking daughter.
Ever since Zhoujia Village had Wang Ling as an example, every family had been more strict with their daughters.
It went without saying Mother Zhou went over to talk about it. She left little Su Xun behind and headed over to tattle to Second Sister.
Second Sister-in-law never thought her second daughter would dare to be so presumptuous. Let alone saying it in secret, she was actually caught by San Wa.
Therefore, a serving of bamboo frying meat won't be shorted.
After Second Brother knew the reason for it, he didn't stop her.
He also criticized Second Sister-in-law: "This girl's personality was completely like the past you. But she's not as sensible as you are now. If you don't pay attention to the teaching, we will have no face if anything happens in the future."
Although Second Sister-in-law was angry from embarrassment, she still sternly swept her sight to Zhou Liu Ni: "If I ever hear you ridicule your elders again, see if I'll snap your dog legs!"
Zhou Liu Ni had poor relationships within old Zhou Family. First branch's girls and Third Branch only played with Zhou San Ni, not with Zhou Liu Ni.
This one had a sharp mouth. She won't let it drop if anything happened. What's more, who knows where she learned the bad habit, she loved to find people's shortcomings.
But this time she was beaten so severely and people were clueless to why.
Zhou Da Ni was already a big girl. She also came to dissuade it. Next year Zhou Da Ni will get married. This year, Eldest Sister-in-law didn't Zhou Da Ni help out in the field. She remained home to help out. Mostly with the intent of nurturing her a bit.
Speaking of it, these days passed really fast. In a blink of an eye, Zhou Da Ni was preparing to get married.
Lin Qing He kept it in mind. She had a good relationship with Eldest Sister-in-law. Also, her impression of Zhou Da Ni was pretty good. She was a sensible girl.
So she intended to add some dowry. As for good stuff, she didn't have any. She planned to prepare a new set of clothes for Zhou Da Ni.
This was an excellent gift.
Some girls, who were poor, might not get new clothes when they get married off.
Lin Qing He notified Eldest Sister-in-law in advance, lest that Eldest Sister-in-law had to prepare another set.
Zhou Liu Ni's lesson didn't stir any. It passed in a switch of a day.
It was September 1st. San Wa started first grade. Lin Qing He didn't plan to let this kid skip grades. He can take his time.
Who told him that his foundation wasn't as good as the two older ones. Da Wa and Er Wa were very motivated then. When it was San Wa's turn, he couldn't sit still for a moment.
When he was younger, he could sit still. But now he was more and more mischievous as he grew up.
He even often led little Su Cheng to climb up the tree to steal from the bird's nest and to dig the sweet potatoes in the field!
What Lin Qing He could do? Naturally, she gave him a round of hit and then apologized to the production team.
It wasn't just her family, so it wasn't a big deal. But compared to the two big ones, this one was the most naughty.
However, he was very happy when he went to school on September 1st. He had been looking forward to it for a long time!
He attended the same primary school as his second brother.
As for Da Wa, he had already sat on Lin Qing He's bike and started his new academic year in the first year of junior high.
Prev ChapterNext ChapterReport chapterChapter 199. School isn't fun
Lin Qing He taught a few classes of first year mathematics.
From the first semester of last year to second semester of this year, Lin Qing He taught her first batch of students. Lin Qing He wasn't clear on Chinese, but in mathematics, the passing rate of several classes she taught was very high.
Among them, nearly ten students participated in a competition. And two of them won the third prize.
Although they were only rewarded an enamel cup each, the result was pretty good.
After all until now, within the community's junior high, only the students taught by Lin Qing He had won a prize from this competition.
Even if it was only the third prize.
Therefore, no one questioned the quality of Lin Qing He's teaching in the school.
Even the educated youth who had been suppressed by her before. They hadn't given up so easily as they were still keeping an eye on her teaching skill.
Obviously, Lin Qing He didn't give them slightest chance from beginning to end.
Da Wa was also present in class. This was the first time he saw his mother as a teacher. He couldn't take his eyes off.
His mother's bearing was so dazzling. One can't take their eyes off her.
Until the end of class, Da Wa still hadn't snapped out of it.
This side of Mother was totally different from Mother at home.
Naturally, someone in the class knew that Teacher Lin was Zhou Kai's mother.
Da Wa's proper name was Zhou Kai. A nickname like Da Wa could only be called at home. Outside, everyone called him Zhou Kai, especially at school.
"Zhou Kai, is Teacher Lin your mother?" a female classmate asked.
"En." There was no reason to not admit it. Junior High school wasn't that far away from home. It would be too fake to deliberately deny it.
Sure enough, the students around were not surprised, just a little envious.
Look at Zhou Kai's mother. Simply too astounding. Of course, their own mother wasn't bad, just... just not as good as Teacher Lin.
Zhou Kai, that is, Da Wa did not say anything. After ten minutes of class break, another teacher soon entered the class.
Junior high school was different from elementary school.
In the current junior high school, there were already several subjects. It wasn't just literary and mathematics.
Zhou Kai had excellent adaptability. He quickly made new friends in the class and adapted to life in the new academic year.
He returned home with Lin Qing He after school.
"Although the length of junior high school is only two years, these two years are also an important period for laying the foundation. High school year 1 and 2 will follow behind." Lin Qing He told him.
This period's high school was the same as the junior high school, there was no third year.
Da Wa was currently in the first year of junior high school. At this pace, he will enter year 2 of high school on the year '77, when the college entrance examination resume.
He can catch up with the second year of the college entrance examination. However if he can't make it in time for the first year of the college entrance examination, the competition will be even greater in the future.
Because the continuation of the college entrance examination in the first year caught everyone by surprise, there was basically not much time to prepare. It wasn't easy for the educated youth to pick up things that have been dropped for so long?
But the second year was different.
In the second year, it was really crowded. They were too eager and desperate to return to the city. So ah, Da Wa must catch the first bus and go with her.
Because when the college entrance examination resumed in the second year, English was mandatory and added English as a subject. Lin Qing He won't have any time to stay at home to teach.
"Mother, you seem to be in a rush?" Da Wa asked.
Lin Qing He smiled: "Mother is in a little rush. So starting from today, your courses will be stepped up. Maybe once this semester is over, I'll get you to skip one level and enter the second semester of the second year."
Da Wa was taken aback: "Mother, you had this plan?"
"Can you do it?" Lin Qing He asked.
"I don't know. I will try my best." Da Wa hesitated and stated.
Lin Qing He nodded: "You have to try your best. If you really can't do it, Mother won't blame you."
The mother and son chatted and soon arrived at home. The topic ended here.
Lin Qing He went to cook, while Da Wa went to study. He didn't even have time to tell his family how impressive his mother was at school.
Seeing him so diligent, Mother Zhou was really satisfied.
He was exactly like his mother. Zhou Xia and Zhou Yang went to school too. However they all went to play when they came back. Then look at this grandson of hers. He was really hardworking. He studied as soon as he came back. .
"Eldest Brother, when you went to school, did you see our mother teaching?" Soon Er Wa and San Wa arrived home. Er Wa couldn't wait to ask.
He also wanted to enter the first year of junior high school. But sadly, he was only in the fourth grade this semester. It was still early for first year of junior high school.
"When teaching, Mother is different from the mother at home." Hearing this, Da Wa grinned.
"Different? Isn't the mother strict when teaching?" Er Wa said.
"Mother must be very strict. Our teacher is so stern. My desk-mate was so scared into tears. So noisy." San Wa frowned.
He was already in the first grade this semester. He found that studying wasn't that fun.
They stayed in school for half a day. Although he could go to the teacher's office to ask for water when thirsty, it was still boring.
"My mother isn't strict. When my mother give lesson, there isn't a single whisper. What's more, she teaches very well. Everyone is very enlightened after listening. They got so many old questions to ask," answered Da Wa.
Er Wa asked, "Have anyone been beaten?"
"No, they are all very well-behaved." Da Wa replied: "I also heard that there were second-year students who were taught by my mother before coming over to ask Mother questions."
"Does Mother understand the second year's stuff?" Er Wa asked in surprise.
"Mother understands." Da Wa nodded with confidence.
Er Wa had a look of admiration. His mother seems to understand it just by self-study!
San Wa wasn't interested in these and stopped chatting with his two brothers.
When he came out, little Su Cheng had just returned from playing outside. When he saw his third brother San Wa, he pounced on him: "Third brother, you went to school?"
"Yes, but school isn't fun." San Wa said in sadness.
"It's not fun, then why does both eldest brother and second brothers go?" little Su Cheng asked with blinking eyes.
"They all went to learn, not to play." San Wa replied. He didn't go for learning. He went for freshness, but was disappointed.
There were crying babies, runny-nosed kids, boys who bullied girls, and unreasonable ones in the class.
San Wa fought a battle with someone today. The other party lost. Although he squealed to the teacher, he didn't get punished by the teacher since the other bullied a girl and he acted out of righteousness. The teacher also asked him if he wanted to be the class monitor.
Though it sounded awe-inspiring, it was managing a bunch of little kids. A bit boring
"When I grow up, I will go with Third Brother. I get a schoolbag." Little Su Cheng stated.
He envied that his third brother had a schoolbag.
San Wa chuckled and thought 'a child is a child'. He gave him the schoolbag: "Lend it to you. Go and carry to your heart content."
This had little Su Cheng over the moon.
Prev ChapterNext ChapterReport chapter200. Targetting
Lin Qing He, who had calculated the time, begun to consciously increase the course pace for Da Wa. She guided him on key points to study. These textbooks were all read inside out by her. She knew exactly what was important and what was not.
In addition, Da Wa was really smart and had a good memory. He can learn it with less effort.
It's just he can't keep up with the chores at home.
"In the future, you two will go to gather pigweed. Your eldest brother is occupied lately and doesn't have that free time. Understand?" Lin Qing He assigned the pigweed work for earning work points to the Er Wa and San Wa.
Er Wa had no objection.
San Wa began to complain: "That Eldest Brother. Is he planning to be a useless scholar? Not doing any more work?"
"When your eldest brother was working, you played a lot." Lin Qing He pointed out and then patted the little guy's bottom: "Stop chattering. Your eldest brother is really busy with study."
San Wa was just talking about it. He still sensibly shouldered the big responsibility of raising the family.
Da Wa actually wanted to say that there was no need but his mother didn't agree. She had him study hard during this while. There were so many things to learn this semester.
His mother wanted him to complete everything in the first year of junior school. That way, once the winter vacation is here, he'll learn the content of the first semester of the second year. Then when school starts, it's very simple to get admitted into the second semester of the second year.
Even though it was hurried, his father had him to listen to his mother and don't question.
Mother Zhou didn't understand. She came to ask Lin Qing He, "Da Wa's mother, won't it be too rushed for Da Wa? He's not that old."
This year Da Wa was only ten years old. At this age, it can be said that he was the youngest in the class.
Children from other families may not necessarily be in first grade at the age of ten.
"He is young. However, he grew up pretty tall. Even if he gets into that year, others can't bully him. Mother, don't worry." Lin Qing He said.
"But it's too quick. I think Da Wa has become a little thin recently. Studying really drains the brain." Mother Zhou persisted.
Lin Qing He didn't feel that Da Wa became thin recently. However, it was true that studying was intense on the brain. So, she ordered five bottles of milk every day now.
It certainly cost a lot of money. In Lin Qing He's words, if Da Wa can skip a grade, he will save on tuition. It can also balance out the cost.
The autumn harvest will start at the end of this month. Lin Qing He had already started gathering rice field eels and loaches.
Zhou Qing Bai ate too much eel and tossed around her at night.
"It's nearly the autumn harvest. You got to save a bit of energy." Lin Qing He complained as she hammered on him.
But soon there was no time to talk. Zhou Qing Bai had now become an experienced driver. He always knew how to prompt her to only hold him and let him do as he likes.
Zhou Qing Bai was naturally contented. When he was done, he had her in his embrace and said, "Don't worry about Da Wa's matter. If he can make it in time, then take the exam. It's okay if he can't."
He also recalled that she mentioned the college entrance examination recontinues in 1977. It was currently 1974. There were still a few years left.
"If he can't make it, he might not be able to pass the second year. Let him try first. If it doesn't work, it can't be helped." Lin Qing He said sluggishly.
"Again." Zhou Qing Bai looked at her and said.
Lin Qing He refused. She urged him to sleep properly and stop tossing about it. After a day's work, he was still so energetic at night.
Early the next morning, Er Wa mentioned: "Yesterday Eldest Brother had a dream and talked in his sleep. He was still reciting the text."
"So noisy." San Wa also nodded.
Little Su Cheng had a blank face. Did it happen? Why didn't he knows?
"Eat. Go do what you should after eating." Lin Qing He dismissed them.
Da Wa drank two bottles of milk alone. His body was obviously well-nourished. His height increased a lot.
On normal days, Lin Qing He had got him to eat up most of the sesame paste soup and cooked peanuts.
This day, she brought back a few jins of scraps from Sister Mei. There was a bone within it. She simply stewed that with soybeans.
She usually only drank the soup with this kind of dish. The soybeans were shared among the father and sons.
Studying was really brain consuming, so Lin Qing He paid great attention to the management of his diet. She often gathered the bones to make soup to drink.
The villagers knew that about Da Wa's excellent academic performance.
They heard that he received a full score in junior high school. Before the horn of the autumn harvest sounded, the community's junior high school had its first monthly test. Grade-wise, Da Wa ranked first in his whole year and beat the second year by a three-point distance.
There were also two other children in the village who were studying in junior high. One was the grandson of the leader's family. The other was also surnamed Zhou. Although it was a bit distant, they were also somewhat related.
When school started, that child's mother came to say hello to Lin Qing He. She also brought over some eggs.
Lin Qing He didn't accept the eggs. She just told her to get that kid called Zhou Zhi to come over and ask her if he had any questions.
Her attitude was obviously very frank. However, he hadn't come to ask for so long.
The test papers weren't issued by Lin Qing He. The first year's first exam papers were made by the second year math teacher.
While the first monthly exam paper for the second grade was created by Lin Qing He. It was an exchange. It was the same as last year.
Therefore, the villagers knew of Da Wa's achievements. They also found out that Zhou Qing Bai and Lin Qing He's son can study.
The roots of the ancestors of the old Zhou family were known clearly. How can they not know if it's inherited?
Including Zhou Qing Bai, his performance was so-so. It wasn't as good as Da Wa, who gets first place in a good few classes. This was remarkable.
No need to say who it was inherited from?
It must be the self-taught Teacher Lin.
"Maybe Da Wa will really get admitted to the Workers, Peasants and Soldiers University in the future," some wise old people in the village remarked.
In their part, they hadn't produce a college student yet.
Such creatures like college students exist in legends.
And the gold value of college students nowadays can't be compared to that of later generations. It can be seen from the words 'exist in legend' how extraordinary it was.
How precious? It was almost like a panda.
Once these old people said so, the villagers couldn't help but observe Da Wa.
They used to think that Da Wa was excellent. Some people who have a girl of the same age in their families started targetting in their hearts despite the fact that Lin Qing He was the mother (T/N: before becoming a teacher).
This shows Da Wa's popularity in the village.
Later, Lin Qing He had silently endured hardship to clean herself white and the villagers 'discovered' that they had misunderstood Teacher Lin.
Not to mention Da Wa, many people were eyeing Er Wa.
Now it was said that Da Wa was very likely to get admitted into a university, it had everyone roused up.
So, Er Wa and San Wa came back with two boiled eggs when they returned from gathering pigweed that day.
They handed it to their mother.
"Where did the eggs come from?" Lin Qing He asked.
"Mrs. Wang asked us to bring it back for Da Wa to eat," Er Wa said.
Prev ChapterNext ChapterReport chapter