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“You don’t know anything, daughter. How could you have your own ideas? You should listen to the adults.” Gao Fusheng knew that many young girls had thoughts about their marriage. In the end, they would realize that family conditions were the most important after living. When they could not eat a full meal, those thoughts were useless.
Gao Xiulan said, “Qingmiao’er, you should leave these things to your uncle. Your uncle has seen and knows a lot. If he said there would be no problems, it would be fine.”
Su Aiguo said, “Mom, I think we should listen to younger sister. It’s alright as long as she’s happy. Anyway, our younger sister is still young. We can take our time to look. With three brothers in her family, we don’t have to worry about no one wanting to take care of her.”
Su Aihua and Su Aidang nodded, “Mom, what eldest brother said makes a lot of sense. It’s alright to marry late.”
“Go away! What good life can you give Qingmiao’er? Will you let her eat coarse grains and drink water? Talk big when you can give delicious food. Leave.” Gao Xiulan waved her hand away.
The three Su brothers: “…”
“Mom, this is an important event in my life! How could I have no opinion? I want to marry a soldier!” Su Qinghe said firmly.
This is a matter of life and death. The main point is that she did not want to find someone yet. Her life was very comfortable right now, ah. If she could live two more years like this, then she would do so. She would have a headache if she encountered a mother-in-law that was difficult to handle.
Both Gao Xiulan and Gao Fusheng froze. They did not expect Su Qinghe to have this idea.
“Qingmiao’er, why do you want to marry a soldier?” Gao Fusheng asked with a smile.
Su Qinghe immediately talked nonsense, “Isn’t my father a martyr? I have always admired soldiers since I was a child. I think soldiers are very honorable. That’s why I thought that if I looked for a partner in the future, I would have to find a soldier. Uncle, this is an important event, so you must consider my opinion.”
Gao Xiulan sighed, “Our Qingmiao’er is so filial. She even thought about her father’s affairs. However, Qingmiao’er, it’s hard to find a soldier.”
Gao Fusheng said, “Admiring soldiers is alright. The army and the civilians are united.”
Su Qinghe looked at Gao Fusheng and smiled, “Uncle, let’s look again next time. Let’s look slowly and look for a soldier.”
Gao Fusheng frowned and recalled, “They seemed to have said that this person went to the army.”
Su Qinghe: “…” Just incredible!
When she saw that her daughter had nothing to say, Gao Xiulan asked, “Brother, regardless of whether he is a soldier or not, how is his family’s condition? It’s not good if they are too poor. Don’t think I’m not aware. Some people in the city do not even live better than us country people. A whole family living in a single room… Just the thought of it is shameful.”
“They said he’s the youngest son of a family of cadres. How could his conditions be bad? Secretary Hao just coincidentally bumped into his sister-in-law while running errands at the county. She asked this question in passing. A lot of people in the commune are staring at this opportunity. After all, this was a family of cadres whose family members were either cadres or workers. There is no shortage of food. They just want a good-tempered daughter-in-law.”
“Aiyo, our Qingmiao’er has the best temperament!” Gao Xiulan slapped her palm happily, “Brother, you have to pay more attention to this matter and keep an eye for our Qingmiao’er. If you need anything, tell me. Brother, this is an important life event for your niece.”
Gao Fusheng felt pressured. He was casually talking about it since the competition was big. He thought that there was no chance. If they were looking for a daughter-in-law in the countryside, it’s apparent they want someone who could work and serve their family. Their Qingmiao’er… It’s hard to say, ah.
Su Qinghe said, “Uncle, we’re not in a hurry. Let’s take our time.”
Gao Xiulan immediately nodded, “Yes, yes, yes. We’re not in a hurry. Let’s look for a few more. You can help us keep an eye on this one. If we look at a few more, we can choose among them. Why do we have to look at just one?”
Su Qinghe: “…” Mom, don’t be so confident, okay?
Gao Fusheng felt even more pressure, “Then, Xiulan, what if this doesn’t work?”
“Why wouldn’t it work out? Qingmiao’er fits their conditions. Why wouldn’t we succeed? It must mean that you don’t care if it doesn’t work out.” Gao Xiulan said as if it was natural.
Gao Fusheng: “…”
“Brother, think about how you treated me in the past. You always followed behind eldest sister to bully us younger siblings, yet who gave you face? I tried so hard to give birth to sons. Who do you think I did it for? Wasn’t it so that you and mom could stand straight? Our Qingmiao’er knew she was a girl, so she did not dare come out. She waited until the end before coming out, which made her end up not meeting her dad. She recognizes you, her uncle. If you don’t care about this matter, don’t you feel guilty, ah?”
It does sound quite heartless. Gao Fusheng nodded with red eyes. He was very bad to Xiulan when he was young. Xiuhong ate all his delicious food, but Xiuhong didn’t even give him face.
“Okay, okay, okay. I’ll take care of this. Let’s look for more prospects. If our Qingmiao’er likes someone, no one would be able to snatch it from us.” Gao Fusheng patted his chest and said.
Su Qinghe was worried, “Uncle, what if we don’t fall in love?” Even if he was a soldier, what if he didn’t match her aesthetic preferences and values? They were going to live together for a lifetime, ah.
Naturally, Gao Fusheng said, “Then we can take it slow. However, you’re almost 17 years old, we have to hurry and look quickly, or else other people will pick out the good ones.” The main thing was to arrange Qingmiao’er’s marriage well, or else he would not be able to face his sister.
When she heard Gao Fusheng’s words, Su Qinghe breathed a sigh of relief. She just had to go on a blind date. It’s possible that they would not like her, anyway.
After sitting for a while, Gao Fusheng had to go to work at the commune. Su Qinghe said, “Uncle, wait a minute. My mother prepared something for you.”
She then pulled a dazed Gao Xiulan back to her room.
“Qingmiao’er, when did I prepare something for your uncle? He doesn’t lack good things. Why should we give him something?”
“Mom, my uncle has to put in a lot of effort for us this time. How would he do his best if we don’t give him something? Besides, we won’t lose out on this. He will give this to grandma so we can take it back the next time we go there.”
Gao Xiulan thought that her daughter was brilliant. This would return to her hands. The important point was to let her older brother take care of Qingmiao’er’s affairs.
Very good. This reasoning was too powerful.
Gao Xiulan immediately rummaged through her urn. After searching through the urn, she could only find a few eggs. Thus, she took two eggs and some white flour and placed it in a cloth bag. She took this bag out and gave it to Gao Fusheng.
“Brother, you worked so hard to come here, but our situation at home is quite bad. Don’t dislike our gift.”
Gao Fusheng immediately spoke, “Why are you being so polite? Our sibling relationship is so good, ah. We don’t have to care about this. Leave it for the children.”
“It’s alright. This is our Qingmiao’er’s filial piety to her uncle. Brother, take it. If you don’t take it, I’ll feel uneasy.” What if you don’t do your best for Qingmiao’er?
“Xiulan…” Gao Fusheng took the stuff, very touched. “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of Qingmiao’er’s matter and make sure that she goes to the best family.”
Gao Xiulan was extremely satisfied. Gifts definitely blind the eyes. Qingmiao’er is thoughtful.
After Gao Fusheng left the Su family, he looked at what his sister gave him. It turned out to be white flour and eggs… His eyes immediately reddened.
These things were so expensive, ah. He did not know how long his sister had saved all these. Maybe even Qingmiao’er didn’t get to eat some, and she directly gave it to him.
At the old Su family.
After Gao Xiulan drove her sons and daughters-in-law, she said happily to her daughter, “Qingmiao’er, your uncle will definitely give his best this time.”
Su Qinghe said, “Mom, I’m still so young. I’m not even allowed to get a marriage certificate yet.”
“What are you so afraid of? How many people in our team have obtained a certificate? Besides, we have to spread the net early. Catch a lot of big fish and look for the fattest one….”
“Grandma, fat fish has more meat!” San Ya yelled.
Gao Xiulan’s face turned black, “…Silly little girl, what do you think you’re doing? Your sisters and everyone else are all working. Why are you just standing there? Go, go. Wipe the table legs and go.” She threw a rag to San Ya.
San Ya caught the rag and left them alone happily. Grandma wanted to catch fat fish for them to eat.
Su Qinghe looked at her mom, dumbfounded. Her mom’s aspirations are so big, ah. So big…
If a person from this era married a person from the city, they would be so happy that they couldn’t find north. However, her mom could even think of riding a donkey while looking for a horse [1].
[1] ride a donkey while looking for a horse – settle for what one has while looking for something better.
In her opinion, the city people might not even be appreciative of the environment they live in. Since they asked the secretary, they might be looking for people living in a small town.
At the old Gu family in the county town.
After eating, Elder Sister-in-law Gu and Second Sister-in-law Gu both sat around their mother-in-law.
Mother Gu looked at them, feeling annoyed. She pulled a long face, “Yesterday, you told me that you were looking for Chang’an’s partner. How was it?”
“Mom, how could we find one so fast? Don’t worry about it. We are looking for his wife carefully. When Chang’an marries a wife, our father will definitely let Chang’an return. You’ll be able to hold your grandson soon!”
“Granddaughter!” Mother Gu insisted.
“…Yes, your eldest granddaughter. So, mom, we’re looking for her. We must look at a few more and show mom the best one.” Elder Sister-in-law Gu coaxed carefully.
When she heard this, Mother Gu felt that it was pretty reasonable. Her son must be able to choose from many people and select the best family.
“Our Chang’an has high vision, so as his sisters-in-law, you have to look carefully. She must be better than you two.”
Elder Sister-in-law Gu and Second Sister-in-law Gu: “…”
Mother Gu left the two of them and returned to her room, where she continued to look at her youngest son’s photos. The two sisters-in-law sighed and left.
Second Sister-in-law Gu said, “I met a commune secretary yesterday and said this matter in passing. I don’t know if he could find a good one. Seeing mom like this, I don’t think anyone would pass in her eyes.”
“You’re so quick to say that. What if it really doesn’t work out?” Eldest Sister-in-law Gu worried.
“What are you so afraid of? How could he not find a wife? We just have to introduce people and let them decide. Let’s hurry up since the Third Brother will return during the Chinese New Year. This time, Dad was so cruel to Third Brother, but when Third Brother went to the army, he did not even go home to eat dinner. I’m sure he’ll be allowed to return during Chinese New Year. That’s why we need to look for candidates early. This way, before Third Brother comes back, things would already be settled. So, when he returns to the army, we’ll try to make his wife listen to us.”
“Will Third Brother like the wife we chose?” Elder Sister-in-law Gu’s head ached when she thought of her brother-in-law who was even pickier than women.
Second Sister-in-law Gu said, “Let’s find several girls and let him decide. I heard Third Brother used to say that he wants to find someone that can support him… Which girl from a normal family would be willing? We need to find a family that would be willing to support Third Brother. Families like this are hard to find, so we have to look and cast the net early! This way, we can catch more fish!”
“What about Dad? I’m worried that Dad won’t like girls from the countryside. Yesterday, when we talked to Mom and Dad about finding a wife for Chang’an, he did not give his opinion.”
“Let’s not look just for country girls, but also people from the city! After combining the two, let’s show our in-laws the advantages of country girls and the shortcomings of city girls. Besides, doesn’t dad always say that workers are one family? Workers and farmers are also one family.”
Elder Sister-in-law cheered up, “You still have a point.”
Second Sister-in-law sighed, “Isn’t this because I still want to live in the future? I really don’t want to invite an ancestor back home….”
……….
Su Qinghe was lying on the bed, chatting with the system, “System, since I’m looking for soldiers… I can’t just find them, ah. What if I find a bad one?”
“Host, be at ease. The system can provide a physical examination service for the host. This will detect the target’s physical fitness and their performance in the army for the host’s reference.”
Su Qinghe was slightly relieved. If the other party had good physical fitness, that would mean he was skilled. If his performance in the army was also good, then he had the motivation and a sense of responsibility.
This way, her partner wouldn’t be that bad. She looked at herself again. If all the aspects were up to standard, then there wouldn’t be anything unacceptable for her. If she looked for a partner in the future, she would at most look at their appearance. Who knew what their personality was?
“System, you have to find someone with good looks, ah. He must also be motivated and capable.”
………
Inside the commune, Gao Fusheng sent several chi of cloth to Secretary Hao’s wife and asked Secretary Hao’s wife to help say that Su Qinghe was someone that was available in heaven and unavailable on earth [2].
[2] available in heaven and unavailable on earth – too good to be true.
“Although my niece is from the countryside, her three brothers love her, and her sisters-in-law are also partial to her. She does not look shabby at all. Other people are yellow and thin, but my niece is white and fat.”
Secretary Hao’s wife asked, “What can she do, ah?”
Gao Fusheng found that his niece does not seem to have any characteristics aside from being able to eat good food and being lazy… “She can do anything!” If she doesn’t, then she can learn.