Chapter 1540 The Best Relative
The Zhou family is a courtyard-like house with two upper and lower buildings, and a wing is built between the two floors. Therefore, 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 the visitor when he came out of the kitchen, especially since the group of people were all wearing coats and scarves, and the two in front were wearing hats, all wrapped up tightly.
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?"
Zhou Xialong saw that she didn't call her "aunt" and even asked who she was looking for. Zhou Shirley was a little embarrassed, but she quickly put aside her discomfort and shouted warmly: "Niece, I am your third aunt, San Wu. If you don't see me for years, you won't remember your 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 gave birth to his father?
The boy's father's third sister's family thought his family was poor and they had stopped interacting with her for a long time. Why would he come to her house now?
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, so hurry up and show them the way." , Why are you talking so much nonsense? It's not a waste of other 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 felt as if he had been slapped, and his face burned. , it’s not that the Zhou family’s mother and son really don’t know them, they’re just pretending not to know them!
The Zhou family's mother and son were probably still resentful of their family's failure to return to Meicun to see Zhou Fu off, so the Zhou family no longer wanted to be related to them.
Feeling terribly embarrassed, Song Pengcheng forced a smile and said, "Sister, it's us. Xia Long, my third aunt, and I have brought the children to pay you New Year greetings." The Song brothers were also very clever and immediately shouted: "Happy New Year, aunt! Happy New Year, nephew!
" I would like to send you New Year greetings, wishing you good health all year round and happiness every day."
After saying auspicious words to my aunt, I quickly acknowledged my cousin: "Happy New Year, cousin, and wish you great fortune in the New Year."
The two grandsons of the Song family immediately followed suit and said New Year greetings to their elders: "Happy New Year to my uncle and grandma. I wish you good health and all the best in the new year." Then they said hello to their cousin:
" Happy New Year to my cousin. I wish you a fortune in the new year and pick up gold on your way."
Grandma Zhou in the house said: "..." Brother
Zhou didn't want to pay attention to it, but it was the first month of the year and he couldn't drive people out, so he said lightly "Yeah" He said: "Let's get rich together, please come and sit in the kitchen first."
Zhou Xialong didn't call him "aunt" or "uncle", just because he didn't want to acknowledge his relatives. Zhou Shirley and Song Pengcheng felt extremely uncomfortable, so they forced themselves to follow Zhou Xialong into the kitchen.
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 lower house was built after 2010, but the layout of the upper house and the kitchen has not changed.
Zhou Xueli entered the Zhou family's kitchen. The interior of the room remained largely unchanged, except that new furniture had been replaced, and the wooden bench she sat on was still the same.
Seeing her brother's wife 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 sister-in-law, and affectionately hold her sister-in-law's hand. Hand: "Sister, how has your health been over the years..."
She only said one sentence. Grandma Zhou took her hand back from her aunt on the pretext of holding the tongs to hold the fire, picked up the tongs and clamped the firewood, her tone was also light. "His aunt, are you back too early? It's still early in April. Going to the mountains on the first day of the first lunar month is a bit..., it's okay if you don't care about that. Xia Long, give your cousin some fruit first.
" They eat, you take out the lunch food first, I will cook it later, you change a set of clothes, wait for the children to warm their hands, seize the time to accompany your aunt and the others to the mountain to clean up your grandma's memorial ceremony, they are in a hurry, We have to go back in the afternoon, but don't waste their time."
"Okay." Zhou Xialong agreed, taking the tea cup and pouring tea first.
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, and his face turned red at that time.
His aunt obviously didn't 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 no embarrassment.
Zhou Shirley's face also changed color, and she continued to explain: "My wife, 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's okay 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're worried that if you go straight up the mountain, someone will say you are passing by your mother's brother's house. " It's not a good idea if you don't even come in, so I just come in and sit down. I'm a person who covers my neck in dirt, so I have nothing to hide. You don't have to worry about me being unhappy." Grandma Zhou had one idea: I don't care about him
because What's the reason for coming back? It won'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 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. The third aunt would not come back to show up even after the death of her own brother. 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 hanging out with Mrs. Wang, Mrs. Chao and Mrs. Wu for some time, Grandma Zhou also gained experience. Now her mind works very quickly. She can also guess some clues from the behavior of certain people, not only by drawing inferences from one instance.
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. Ginger is very spicy for old age. My mother has been close to Zhu Zhechi after staying with old ladies who have seen the world for a long time. Compared to his old mother, he is a bit 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 it like this 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 towards his children: "About that, most families have fire pits for burning firewood. Some families are away from home all year round and usually use electrical appliances. It's hot in summer, and sometimes people in the village also Use electrical appliances or stoves to cook."
"Cousin, it takes a lot of wood to burn fire every day. Doesn't it mean that you often have to go to the mountains 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. What's the matter? What to ask.
"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. "Firewood."
"Cousin, should you cut firewood everywhere, or should each family chop it in their own mountain..."
Song Haoyu had to ask if there were a hundred thousand reasons, and he broke the casserole and asked to the end.
The little grandson of the Song family asked questions one after another, and Brother Zhou patiently answered them for him. Over and over again, he successfully deflected 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 change my clothes and find a hatchet, and then I can go to the mountains." His grandson changed the subject, Song
Pengcheng They and Zhou Xueli took the opportunity to chatter about how busy they have been over the years, how often they hurt, and how they sought medical advice. The underlying meaning was to explain why they did not come back when Zhou Fu passed away, saying that they had not forgotten their siblings. The affection was really inseparable at that time.
I originally thought that the matter was over, but when I heard Zhou Xialong mentioned going to the mountains again, the Song family and the elders 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 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.” “You are not paying homage to your parents,” said Grandma Zhou
. Without waiting for his son to answer, he took the lead and said, "Xia Long, your aunt is actually here to visit us, so there's no need to go to the mountains. You hurry up and make lunch. They are going back in the afternoon. They have eaten early for lunch. Let's go, it's safer on the road."
"I..." Zhou Xueli wanted to say, "We're not in a hurry. We'll stay for a few nights before going back." But as soon as he opened his mouth, Zhou Xialong answered quickly and loudly: "Okay. From Jiudao The road to Changshi is difficult to walk, and it is slippery to drive at night on a snowy day. It is indeed safer to drive during the day. I will 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 people away. The old couple of the Song
family They were so embarrassed that they wanted to find a place to dig into, but where could they dig into it?
Song Deyang didn't know what to do. 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 your nephew at home? I thought my nephew, niece and cousins went back to my grandma's house." Then the whole family of the shameless third aunt was shocked
. Without slamming the door and leaving, Brother Zhou determined that the third aunt had a very important purpose in coming back to recognize her relatives. He was even less enthusiastic. He did not throw away his old cousin, and walked out calmly: "On the eighth day of the Chunmei lunar month, I have to go to work, and my mother took the girl back to her grandmother's house to pay New Year greetings. She was at home at dawn and went to play." "
Were you visiting somewhere? In fact, there is no need to call him. We are not outsiders and don't need anyone to accompany us." Song Dexupan Touch your cousin's shoulder to express your closeness.
"You are guests and city dwellers, all of whom are rich and wealthy. There is a lot of smoke from burning firewood in the countryside. 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 up the fire for you." Brother Zhou didn't panic
. He stepped out of the threshold without haste, walked towards the door, and arrived there in a few steps. Then he stepped out, stood on the doorstep and shouted diagonally across: "Tianming, Tianming, there is something at home, please come back."
Zhou Tianming was watching Leshan learn to write 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?"
My old cousin said that he was going to call Tianming back. Song Dexu also guessed that Zhou Tianming must have gone to Qiufeng's house. He originally thought that Zhou Xialong would go to Le's house to call for someone, but he didn't know that Zhou Xialong would go to Le's house to call for someone. He didn't go, he stood at the door and shouted.
Song Dexu was a little disappointed that his old 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 old cousin's 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 looks, but also in terms of temperament, she had the air of a small family. Zhou Tianming felt like a genius to Zhou Chunmei. One place.
Surprised in his heart, he smiled and said hello without waiting for Zhou Xialong's introduction: "Tianming, I am your cousin Dexu from your third aunt's grandma's house. Do you remember?"
When an old cousin abducted his son, Brother Zhou immediately rushed to speak in front of his son. : "At dawn, your third aunt and her family came to our house to sit down. They ate and rushed back to Changshi at noon. Stop playing now and go to the lower room to turn on the electric stove and invite the guests to the lower room to warm up." "Oh
, It turns out he is the third aunt's grandma's cousin. I haven't seen him for more than ten years and can't recognize him." Zhou Tianming smiled at his cousin and then talked to his father: "Dad, my aunt heard that my sister and my mother went back to my grandma's house. "Yes, 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 right away." He said, turned around and
ran, rushing between the two houses in one breath. He walked along the village road, rushed into the eaves of the Le family, trotted to the main room of the Le family, winked at his aunt who was sitting by the fire, and whispered in a low voice: "Aunt, the third aunt and grandma's family are here to pay New Year greetings, so my grandma and I won't come over for dinner. My dad You probably want 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. When the guests leave, you can come over whenever you want." "Well, aunt, I'm going back."
Zhou Tianming smiled shyly and ran out of the main room without stopping, and then ran faster.
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 went back to the house, he followed him back to the kitchen.
(End of chapter)