1980: I have a spiritual spring

Chapter 69 The Xu Family Shocked by the New Year's Gift
January 20, 1981, the fifteenth day of the twelfth lunar month.

On this day, the Cenhe area welcomed its first snowfall of the winter.

Snowfall is a common occurrence in the far north, nothing strange about it. But in many cities in southern my country, locals have lived for decades without ever seeing snow.

Although Hubei is in the south, it snows almost every year, just not often.

Although Qiao Erhe was used to seeing snow, he always found the sight of snowflakes falling from the sky particularly beautiful.

The youngest children, Qiao Liuduo and Qiao Qitan, couldn't resist running out to catch the snowflakes falling from the sky. The siblings chased and played around, adding a touch of childlike fun to the snowy scene.

Inside the house, Qiao Erhe and the others warmed themselves by the fire while watching.

Qiao Erhe poked at the fire with a stick and asked, "Brother, today is the fifteenth of the month. When are you planning to go to your sister-in-law's house to deliver New Year's gifts?"

According to the customs of Cenhe area, the New Year's gifts (farewell gifts) are usually given between the fifteenth day of the twelfth lunar month and New Year's Eve. For couples like Qiao Dajiang, who are engaged and whose wedding is approaching, the groom must send New Year's gifts to the bride's family before the New Year.

Qiao Dajiang had been looking forward to this day for a long time. He said with a smile, "Let's see how the weather is tomorrow. If the weather is good, then we'll go deliver the New Year's gifts tomorrow."

Qiao Erhe asked, "What are you planning to give as a New Year's gift?"

Qiao Dajiang said, "Change the wine to your homemade sweet glutinous rice wine, and follow the normal standards for the rest."

In those days, the standard New Year's gift from the groom to the bride's family was a bottle of wine, two packs of cigarettes, and two kinds of pastries, worth about 10 yuan.

Qiao Erhe shook his head and said, "Brother, our family's situation has improved now. Since we're going to give New Year's gifts, let's be generous."

Qiao Dajiang asked, somewhat intrigued, "Then what do you think I should give as a gift?"

Qiao Erhe pondered for a moment and said, "A jar of sweet glutinous rice wine, two packs of cigarettes from Jinxiu, a net bag of preserved vegetables, a net bag of eggs, and two kinds of pastries. If you send them over like this, you will be very proud of your future mother-in-law."

Qiao Dajiang's eyes widened as he asked, "Giving away so much?"

Qiao Erhe laughed and said, "As the saying goes, 'If you look up, you marry a daughter; if you look down, you marry a wife.' You can't go wrong with me. Anyway, apart from the snacks, we have everything else at home."

"Okay, then I'll listen to you."

Qiao Dajiang nodded, then asked, "Second brother, do you want to send New Year's gifts to the Su family?"

Hearing this, Qiao Sanduo, who had been listening in, perked up and asked with a gossipy look, "Yeah, Second Brother, are you going to send New Year's gifts to Sister Su's family?"

Qiao Erhe thought for a moment and said, "We should definitely give it to her. We're building a new house next year, and we'll need her dad to help with the steel and cement!"

Qiao Sihai couldn't help but ask, "Second Brother, how are things going between you and Sister Su?"

Qiao Erhe glared at him: "This is not something you should be asking."

Qiao Sihai shrank his neck and said, "Sister Su is so beautiful, you'd better make your move soon, or someone else will get there first."

"I know what I'm doing."

At this point, Qiao Erhe looked at Lao Wu and asked, "The final exams are coming up soon. How are your preparations going? Are you confident you can get into the top five in the class?"

Qiao Wuhu said confidently, "Of course I'm confident, Second Brother, just wait for my good news!"

Qiao Erhe laughed and said, "It seems that you have indeed made a lot of progress in your studies during this period. I told Lao Liu and Lao Qi before that as long as they can get into the top ten in the class in the final exam, they will be rewarded with a bowl of sweet glutinous rice wine. In addition, for each place they move up, they will be rewarded with an extra bowl of sweet glutinous rice wine. The reward I gave you is the same as theirs. How much sweet glutinous rice wine you can drink this Spring Festival depends on your own efforts."

Remembering the effects of the sweet glutinous rice wine, Qiao Wuhu said with great enthusiasm, "Second Brother, I will definitely work hard."

……

The next day.

The weather is lovely.

After breakfast, Qiao Dajiang changed into a brand-new leather jacket and shoes. He first rode his bicycle to the brigade's supply and marketing department to buy two packs of pastries. Then he returned with a jar of glutinous rice wine, two packs of cigarettes, a net bag of preserved vegetables, and a net bag of eggs to deliver New Year's gifts to his future mother-in-law's family in Xujia Tai, Dingxiang Brigade.

These eggs and wine jars are fragile items, so they can't be tied directly to the bicycle.

So Qiao Dajiang carried the basket on his back and put the jar of sweet glutinous rice wine, preserved vegetables and pastries inside. As for the net bag of eggs, he could only carry it by hand.

Anyway, the Cenhe area is a plain with no steep slopes, so it's not difficult for Qiao Dajiang to ride a bike with one hand.

Looking at the map, Qiaojiawan is basically located in the central area of ​​Cenhe District, while the Orienteering Brigade is located on the edge of Cenhe District, and its direction is opposite to that of going to the commune.

Because he was riding with one hand and the muddy road was uneven, Qiao Dajiang's speed was not fast. It took him more than half an hour to reach Xujiatai.

The Bagua center of Xujiatai is also located at the entrance of the village.

At this time, the villagers who had nothing to do gathered at the village entrance and chatted idly.

Qiao Dajiang stopped his bicycle in front of the villagers and politely asked, "Fellow villagers, is this Xujia Tai?"

Immediately, a middle-aged woman replied, "This is Xujia Tai. Comrade, which family are you related to?"

Qiao Dajiang smiled and said, "My girlfriend is Xu Cuihua. Do you know how to get to her house?"

The middle-aged woman who answered smiled and said, "Oh, it's you! I'm Cuihua's second aunt. Let me show you the way!"

Qiao Dajiang greeted her with a smile, "Hello, Second Aunt, thank you for your help!"

Aunt Xu smiled and said, "No trouble at all, come with me!"

Qiao Dajiang nodded and said, "Okay."

Once Qiao Dajiang was out of sight, the gossip center exploded instantly.

"So this is Cuihua's fiancé!"

"He looks quite energetic, and he's very generous; he's given quite a few New Year's gifts!"

"If I'm not mistaken, that bicycle should be a Forever brand, and that leather jacket and shoes must be worth a lot of money too. Cuihua's boyfriend is really rich!"

"Don't you know? Cuihua's fiancé is the Qiao family in Qiaojiawan, the family that raises thousands of laying hens. They're very well-off!"

"Is that so? I've never heard you mention it before."

"I thought you knew!"

"..."

After walking about two hundred meters from the village entrance, Xu Erma called out to the tiled house in front of her, "Cuihua, come out quickly, your boyfriend has come to deliver New Year's gifts to your family."

Soon, the Xu family members came out of the house upon hearing the noise. Xu's father and mother were walking in front, while Xu Cuihua and her younger siblings followed behind.

After exchanging greetings, Qiao Dajiang handed over the gifts he had brought one by one.

The Xu family was very satisfied with the gifts, which far exceeded the normal standard for a New Year's Eve.

When receiving the gifts, Xu's mother said with a big smile, "Dajiang, why did you bring so many gifts?" Qiao Dajiang smiled and said, "It's not much. This glutinous rice wine was brewed by my second son. These eggs were laid by our chickens. These preserved vegetables are also homemade."

Mr. Xu smiled warmly and said, "It's cold outside, come inside and warm yourself by the fire!"

Xu Erma smiled and said, "Brother and sister-in-law, please take good care of Dajiang. I'll head back now."

Xu's mother said, "Second Aunt, go back and tell Xu Ying and the others to come over for lunch together. You can also help me with the cooking."

Aunt Xu replied, "Okay, I'll come over and help in a bit."

Soon, Qiao Dajiang went inside with the Xu family to warm themselves by the fire.

Sitting by the fire, Xu's mother asked, "Dajiang, I heard that you now have several thousand laying hens. Is that true?"

Qiao Dajiang nodded and smiled, "It's true. We currently have 6000 laying hens at home."

Upon hearing this, even the Xu family members, who were mentally prepared, couldn't help but gasp.

It's no wonder they were so shocked. Just a few months ago, they had to hide their six chickens and ducks, fearing that some people would find out and try to cut off their capitalist tail. Now, the Qiao family has as many as 6000 laying hens, which has completely shattered their worldview.

Mr. Xu asked, "With so many laying hens, has anyone come to cause you any trouble?"

Qiao Dajiang smiled and shook his head, saying, "Of course not. There are no restrictions on the number of chickens and ducks we farmers can raise. This was said by Deng Xiaoping himself. Who would dare to cause trouble for us!"

Xu's mother said, "I heard from the villagers that they saw you and your brother selling eggs at the commune. Are those the first 1000 laying hens laying eggs?"

Qiao Dajiang said, "Yes, those 1000 laying hens have already started laying eggs."

Xu's mother said, "These 1000 laying hens must lay several hundred eggs a day, right?"

Qiao Dajiang laughed and said, "Our laying hens are probably well-fed. From the time they started laying eggs until now, they have consistently laid 1000 eggs a day without fail."

Upon hearing this, Mr. and Mrs. Xu, who had many years of experience raising chickens, couldn't help but widen their eyes. How could it be possible that the chickens were laying 1000 eggs a day right from the start?
Xu's mother said with a look of excitement, "Dajiang, our family also plans to raise laying hens next year. If there's anything we need to pay attention to, you should tell us in detail."

"Of course that's no problem."

Qiao Dajiang then explained to his future parents-in-law one by one the details that needed to be paid attention to when raising chickens on a large scale.

Mr. and Mrs. Xu listened very attentively. Although every household in the countryside had raised chickens before, and raising chickens was easy for them, raising a few chickens and raising thousands of chickens were completely different things. What their prospective son-in-law was saying was valuable breeding experience, and of course they would keep it in mind.

Xu Cuihua sat next to Qiao Dajiang, listening to him chat with her parents. Thinking that this man would be her future husband, she felt a warm glow in her heart.

……

noon.

The Xu family prepared a large table of delicious dishes to entertain Qiao Dajiang, their prospective son-in-law.

When it was time to eat, Xu's father asked, "Dajiang, would you like to drink rice wine, or the sweet glutinous rice wine you brought?"

Qiao Dajiang smiled and said, "I'll just drink rice wine. This sweet glutinous rice wine is a good thing. It's good for your health. You can save it and drink it slowly!"

Xu's father didn't take it seriously and laughed, "It's nothing. I'm just happy today. Old man, go and get the jar of glutinous rice wine that Dajiang brought."

Xu's mother didn't think the glutinous rice wine was anything special. Since she was in a good mood today, she figured she might as well drink it. So she agreed and went to get the glutinous rice wine.

Seeing this, Qiao Dajiang didn't say much. After all, Xu Erdie's family was there, and it would be inappropriate for him to stop them.

Soon, Xu's mother brought over the jar of sweet glutinous rice wine. As she opened it, she asked, "Who wants to drink sweet glutinous rice wine?"

Aunt Xu smiled and said, "I'll drink sweet glutinous rice wine."

Xu Cuihua said, "Mom, I'd like to drink sweet glutinous rice wine too."

My cousin Xu Ying also spoke up, "Auntie, I want to drink sweet glutinous rice wine too."

Those who spoke up were all women; sweet rice wine is indeed quite popular among women. As for those who were younger, they weren't interested in drinking, so they didn't speak up.

As soon as Xu's mother opened the wine bottle, a rich aroma of wine filled the air, instantly invigorating everyone.

Mr. Xu said with some surprise, "This sweet glutinous rice wine smells so good!"

Now that the wine had been opened, Qiao Dajiang said, "This glutinous rice wine brewed by my second son is no ordinary glutinous rice wine. Uncle Xu, you must try it."

Mr. Xu nodded and said, "Okay, I'll try some too."

Even Xu Erdie couldn't resist the tempting aroma of the wine and said, "I'll also try this sweet glutinous rice wine."

As Xu's mother scooped up some wine with a spoon, she looked at her prospective son-in-law and asked, "Dajiang, do you also want some sweet glutinous rice wine?"

Qiao Dajiang shook his head and said, "I'll just have rice wine, you guys drink!"

We already have plenty of sweet glutinous rice wine in stock, so there's no need to fight with my future father-in-law for this little bit.

The wine was quickly divided up.

"Don't be shy, let's eat!"

While greeting them, Xu's father picked up the bowl of sweet glutinous rice wine in front of him and took a sip.

After taking a sip of the sweet glutinous rice wine, Xu's father's eyes widened instantly, becoming even bigger than a bull's eyes. At the same time, he regretted his words and slapped his thigh repeatedly. It turned out that his future son-in-law hadn't been exaggerating; the sweet glutinous rice wine he had sent was indeed a good thing.

It's a pity that such good wine was opened and drunk like this.

"What a drink!"

After tasting a sip of the sweet glutinous rice wine, Xu Erdie was also shocked and exclaimed in admiration.

Aunt Xu exclaimed, "My goodness, this glutinous rice wine is so delicious! And after just one sip, my whole body feels warm."

At this moment, Xu's mother also felt the effects of the glutinous rice wine. Like Xu's father, she was filled with regret. This good thing should have been saved for the New Year for the whole family to drink, instead of drinking it directly now.

Xu Cuihua asked in surprise, "Brother Dajiang, did your second brother really brew this wine?"

Qiao Dajiang laughed and said, "It was indeed brewed by my second son, but there wasn't much of it. Otherwise, I would have brought a few more jars with me."

Mother Xu praised him highly, saying, "Dajiang, your second brother's winemaking skills are truly amazing! This glutinous rice wine is a hundred times better than the glutinous rice wine I used to drink."

Aunt Xu also exclaimed in admiration, "Yes, this winemaking technique is absolutely amazing. I've never tasted such delicious glutinous rice wine in my entire life."

Everyone else also raved about it, saying that the taste and effects of this glutinous rice wine were truly amazing.

Everyone ate the meal with great satisfaction, and the five-pound jar of sweet glutinous rice wine was completely consumed.

Mr. and Mrs. Xu were experiencing a bittersweet mix of emotions. They were heartbroken that such delicious glutinous rice wine had been wasted, but happy because their prospective son-in-law, Qiao Dajiang, had brought them so much honor.

(End of this chapter)