1980: I have a spiritual spring

Chapter 75 Is it possible that Brother Qiao will become my brother-in-law?
noon.

Su family.

After several rounds of drinks and several dishes...

Qiao Erhe then spoke up, "Uncle Su, Aunt Su, I'd like to ask you something."

Su Jianguo and his wife exchanged a glance and said, "What do you want to know? Tell me."

Qiao Erhe said, "It's like this, the second batch of laying hens I raise will start laying eggs soon, and the other batches of laying hens will also start laying eggs one after another. At that time, the number of eggs harvested every day will be as high as 6000, and we don't want to sell them cheaply to the supply and marketing cooperative."

So, I'm thinking of renting a storefront in Shashi to open a shop specializing in selling agricultural products. I wonder if Uncle Su and Aunt Su know where there are any storefronts available for rent?

Upon hearing this, Su Jianguo couldn't help but praise, "Comrade Qiao, your idea is excellent. Opening a store specializing in agricultural products in Shashi is indeed a promising venture. As for renting out storefronts, I haven't paid much attention to that before."

Su's mother asked, "Comrade Qiao, do you have any requirements for this storefront?"

Qiao Erhe said, "The requirements are very simple: a larger area, preferably with places for people to live, and of course, a location with high foot traffic is preferred."

Mother Su smiled and said, "If that's the requirement, then I really do have a suitable place."

Upon hearing this, Qiao Erhe's eyes lit up, and he quickly asked, "Aunt Su, where is this suitable place you mentioned?"

Mrs. Su said with a smile, "Our Su family has an old house in a very good location with a high flow of customers. The size also meets your requirements. It has three rooms with a backyard. If you think it's suitable, Comrade Qiao, you can just take it and open a shop to sell your family's eggs."

Su Jinxiu suddenly realized, "My mom's mind works faster. I never thought our old house could be used as a storefront."

The Su family father and son also remembered that since they moved to the Industrial and Commercial Bureau's residential compound, they had rarely returned to the old Su family house. After all, in terms of living conditions, the dilapidated old house was definitely not as good as the Industrial and Commercial Bureau's residential compound.

Qiao Erhe exclaimed with delight, "Thank you so much, Aunt Su! You've really helped me a lot. If I had to search on my own, I don't know how much time it would have taken to find a suitable storefront!"

With a smile on her face, Su's mother said, "I'm glad you don't mind."

Qiao Erhe smiled and said, "Of course I don't mind. I will definitely pay the market price for the rent."

Su's mother quickly declined, saying, "Comrade Qiao, you're being too polite. That old house is useless just sitting there. You can take it and use it directly. Why would you ask for rent?"

Qiao Erhe said, "How could I possibly accept this!"

Su Jianguo said, "Comrade Qiao, please don't stand on ceremony with us. Compared to the sweet rice wine you gave us, what is that little bit of rent?"

Qiao Erhe couldn't help but look at Su Jinxiu.

Su Jinxiu glanced at him and said, "Since my parents have said so, Brother Qiao, you shouldn't refuse."

Qiao Erhe nodded and said, "Alright, then I'll thank Uncle Su and Aunt Su in advance."

"You are welcome."

Su's mother looked at her daughter and said, "Jinxiu, when you go to work later, take Comrade Qiao to the old house to familiarize yourself with it."

Su Jinxiu replied, "I understand, Mom."

……

Today is the ninth day of the first lunar month. Apart from Su Shanhe, a college student, everyone else in the Su family has to go to work.

Therefore, Qiao Erhe did not stay at the Su family's house for too long when he came to pay his New Year's visit today. After having lunch and drinking tea for a while, he got up to say goodbye and said, "Uncle Su and Aunt Su, it's getting late, so I'll be leaving now."

Upon hearing this, the Su family members also stood up, and the two sides exchanged a few polite words.

Su's mother went back to her room, took out the key to the old house, and handed it to Qiao Erhe, saying, "Comrade Qiao, this is the key to our Su family's old house. Please keep it safe. Come to our house for dinner again when you have time."

Qiao Erhe took the keys and smiled, "Okay, thank you, Aunt Su. I'll come see you again next time. Goodbye."

"Goodbye."

Su Jinxiu also greeted them, "Dad, Mom, I'm going to work now."

"Go!"

After watching his sister and Brother Qiao walk away, Su Shanhe finally spoke up: "Dad, Mom, Brother Qiao is a nice guy. He doesn't look like an uneducated farmer at all. Talking to him, he seems like someone who has seen a lot in the world."

Su's mother smiled and said, "This Comrade Qiao is very knowledgeable; even your father and sister admire him!"

Su Shanhe blinked and said, "Dad, Mom, I think my sister's attitude towards Brother Qiao is a bit unusual. Is there any possibility that Brother Qiao will become my brother-in-law?"

Upon hearing this, Mr. and Mrs. Su exchanged a glance: "We don't know either, let's just let nature take its course!"

……

Standing in front of an old, tiled house, Su Jinxiu said, "This is my family's old house. What do you think? Does it meet your requirements?"

Qiao Erhe looked around and found that, just as Su's mother had said, this was a place with a high flow of customers. The street in front of the entrance was lined with shops of all kinds of businesses. If his family set up a store here to sell agricultural products, the business would definitely be good.

"Great, this location is really good. Why didn't you rent it out before?"

Su Jinxiu shook her head and said, "I don't know either. Maybe my parents forgot, or maybe this old house can't be rented out for much money, so they keep it."

Qiao Erhe took out his key and opened the doors to the rooms one by one. He found that the rooms were covered with cobwebs and the few pieces of furniture were covered with a thick layer of dust. Moreover, as he pushed open the door, a lot of dust was kicked up. He covered his mouth and nose and said, "It seems that I need to take some time to clean it properly."

Su Jinxiu also covered her mouth and nose and said, "It really needs to be cleaned properly. When are you going to clean it? I'll come and help you."

Qiao Erhe initially wanted to say no, but then he thought that this was a rare opportunity for the two of them to spend time together, so he changed his mind and said, "Okay, the day after tomorrow is Sunday, you don't have to go to work, right?"

Su Jinxiu shook her head and said, "Unless something unexpected happens, I don't need to go to work."

Qiao Erhe said, "Okay, let's come and clean together on Sunday."

Su Jinxiu said, "No problem, I'll bring a broom and a rag with me."

Qiao Erhe said, "You don't need to bring anything, just come with me, I'll prepare everything else."

Su Jinxiu nodded and said, "Okay, what time can you come over this morning?"

Qiao Erhe calculated the time and said, "I guarantee we'll arrive before 10 a.m.

Su Jinxiu said, "Then let's meet at 10 a.m. the day after tomorrow. I have to go to work now. Do you want to come with me?" It's about halfway to Shashi First People's Hospital from here, so the two of them can go together.

Qiao Erhe laughed and said, "Then let's go together. Wait for me a moment, I'll lock the door first."

……

At 3 p.m., Qiao Erhe returned to Qiaojiawan.

Thinking that his family was going to build a new house ahead of schedule, Qiao Erhe went home to get a pack of cigarettes and went to the home of team leader Qiao Tiejun.

Anyone who has experienced it knows that the weather in the 1980s was much colder than in later years. In addition, rural people in that era did not have thermal underwear or down jackets to wear, so in winter, unless there was something urgent, everyone was used to staying indoors and warming themselves by the fire.

At this moment, Captain Qiao Tiejun and his family were warming themselves by the fire in their own house.

When Qiao Erhe arrived, he greeted them and offered cigarettes to the captain and his son.

Qiao Tiejun took the cigarette, gestured for Qiao Erhe to sit down, and then asked, "Erhe, did you come to see me for something?"

Qiao Erhe said, "Captain, it's like this, my family plans to build our new house ahead of schedule, so I came to discuss with you that we will harvest the wheat in the field at the entrance of your village ahead of schedule, and then compensate you according to the highest yield per mu standard. Do you think that's acceptable?"

Qiao Tiejun picked up a burning piece of firewood, lit a cigarette, and laughed, "Of course, that's no problem. You don't need to compensate our family based on the highest yield per mu; just compensate us according to the normal standard."

Qiao Erhe wasn't short of wheat, so he waved his hand and said, "Captain, don't refuse, just do as I say."

Seeing that he couldn't refuse, Qiao Tiejun nodded and agreed: "Alright, then I'll take advantage of you."

The two sides quickly settled their business in just a few words.

Qiao Erhe sat for a while, then stood up and said, "Captain, it's settled then. I'll go talk to the other two families first, then I'll be leaving."

Qiao Tiejun exhaled a puff of smoke and said, "Okay, go ahead!"

After leaving the team leader's house, Qiao Erhe went to two other families to discuss the matter. Everything went very smoothly, as this was a great deal for them. Not only did they not have to spend time harvesting, but they also received the highest standard of compensation per mu. Unless they were out of their minds, they would all agree readily.

After dealing with this matter, Qiao Erhe returned home.

The siblings were also warming themselves by the fire inside the house. Qiao Erhe recounted what had just happened, and then looked at his eldest brother and said, "Big brother, after the Lantern Festival, I plan to harvest the wheat in the four fields at the entrance of the village, dry it, and use it as firewood."

After the wheat harvest, we plan to hire someone to help build a new house.

So, you can have Fat Old Man Ba ​​inform the matchmaker, who can then go to your sister-in-law's house to get her birth date and time, and then have someone determine an auspicious date and time.

Qiao Dajiang, who is 25 years old this year, is eagerly waiting to get married. Upon hearing this, his eyes lit up and he said happily, "Then after dinner, I will ask Fatty to tell the matchmaker to ask for your sister-in-law's birth date and time tomorrow."

Qiao Sanduo said excitedly, "Great! We'll have a sister-in-law soon!" Qiao Sihai said in a mature tone, "It's time for our family to have a new addition and make a fortune."

Qiao Erhe smiled and said, "Once the new house is built, we'll hold a wedding for my elder brother and sister-in-law. That will be a double celebration."

Upon hearing this, Qiao Dajiang was already imagining that day would come sooner.

So, when Fatty returned from his visit, Qiao Dajiang immediately told her about it.

Huang Hongmei naturally had no objection and nodded, saying, "Okay, then after dinner I'll go and tell Aunt Xu to go to Xujiatai tomorrow to get the birth date and time of the Xu family's daughter."

……

The next day.

Aunt Xu, the matchmaker, then went to Xujiatai and retrieved Xu Cuihua's birth date and time.

Then, Huang Hongmei, as the mother, took Qiao Dajiang and Xu Cuihua's birth dates and times to someone to calculate an auspicious date.

In the afternoon, Huang Hongmei brought back the auspicious date selection list and said to Qiao Dajiang, "Your auspicious dates have been calculated. The nearest auspicious date is the sixth day of the fourth lunar month, and the other auspicious date is the twenty-fifth day of the fifth lunar month. Choose whichever auspicious date you think is suitable."

Qiao Dajiang looked at his second brother and said, "Second brother, if it's the sixth day of the fourth month, the new house shouldn't be finished yet, right?"

Qiao Erhe nodded and said, "The new house can only be started at the end of this month or the beginning of next month at the earliest. It is indeed a bit rushed to build the house and do some simple decoration in about two months."

Qiao Dajiang said, "Then let's set the auspicious date for May 25th!"

Huang Hongmei said, "Alright, since you've chosen an auspicious day, I'll ask Aunt Xu to inform the bride's family of the date and see what kind of gift list they'll prepare."

In the Cenhe area, after the wedding date is set, the matchmaker will be sent to the bride's family to announce the date. Then, the bride's family will provide a gift list, including how many sets of clothes, how many mooncakes, how many kilograms of wine and meat, etc.

Among this series of gifts, mooncakes are a very important gift. In many places, mooncakes are basically eaten during the Mid-Autumn Festival. However, in Cenhe area, mooncakes are not exclusive to the Mid-Autumn Festival. They are used for almost every occasion, whether it is the Spring Festival or a happy event.

After the groom delivers the cakes to the bride's family, the large wedding cake is for the bride's parents to enjoy, while the smaller cakes are distributed by the bride's family to their relatives.

After the relatives eat the pancakes, they will send eggs to the bride when she gets married, so that the bride can take them to the groom's house as a token of their morning tea money.

The dowry list provided by the bride's family is essentially the bride price. The amount of the bride price is determined by the bride's parents. Some bride's parents are kind and provide a very ordinary dowry list that a normal family can easily afford without any burden.

Some bride's parents are quite greedy and set out frighteningly high gift lists, which the groom's family has to pay a huge price to fulfill.

Of course, as long as both parties still want to get married, there is room for negotiation on the gift list.

Qiao Erhe said, "Don't worry, the Xu family is a kind family, and this gift list will definitely not be excessive."

Qiao Dajiang had visited the Xu family before and after the New Year and had a very good impression of them. He nodded in agreement, saying, "Second brother is right. The Xu family is indeed very kind. This gift list is definitely just an ordinary one. Our family can easily handle it."

Seeing that her eldest brother's wedding was over, Qiao Sanduo said, "Eldest brother, second brother, we have too many eggs stored up this Spring Festival. Shouldn't we take them to Shashi to sell?"

Qiao Erhe said, "I've already prepared the storefront in Shashi. Tomorrow I'll clean it up and do some simple tidying up, and then we can open for business."

Qiao Sanduo asked in surprise, "Second Brother, didn't you go to Sister Su's house to wish her a Happy New Year yesterday? How did you find time to look for a storefront?"

Qiao Erhe laughed and said, "This storefront was originally your sister Su's old house. When I mentioned this to them yesterday, Aunt Su took it upon herself to use their old house to open a storefront for our family."

Qiao Sanduo suddenly realized, "I see. Then we should thank Sister Su properly."

Qiao Dajiang said, "Second brother, since you're going to Shashi tomorrow, why don't you come with us to pick up some eggs to sell?"

Qiao Erhe nodded and said, "Okay, it would be good to pick some to sell in Shashi first, which can reduce the pressure of inventory."

Qiao Sanduo said, "Second Brother, I'll go with you tomorrow too, and I'll help with the cleaning."

Qiao Erhe laughed and said, "No need, your Sister Su doesn't have to go to work tomorrow, she will come over to help with the cleaning."

Upon hearing this, Qiao Sanduo smiled broadly and said, "Oh, I see. Then I won't disturb you and Sister Su any longer."

Qiao Sihai asked, "Second Brother, how many rooms are there in Sister Su's old house?"

Qiao Erhe said, "There are three rooms in total, and a backyard. When selling eggs, you will only need one room. The other two rooms can be used for living. Then the people selling eggs will not have to run home every day."

Qiao Sihai said, "That is indeed very convenient."

……

This Spring Festival, the Qiao family's meals were exceptionally good.

First, there's the braised dishes. We had the owner of the noodle shop make the head, tail, trotters, and all the internal organs from the big fat pig we slaughtered before into delicious braised dishes. Whenever we wanted to eat them, we would just cut off a little bit of each, mix it simply with chili oil and vinegar, and it would be a delicious dish.

Now that the weather is cold in winter, it's like a natural refrigerator. Compared to other dishes, braised food is not easy to spoil, and it can be stored for even longer in this cold weather. So it's perfectly fine to eat it for more than ten days in a row.

There are also a lot of preserved vegetables prepared before the New Year.

In addition to the chickens and ducks bought from the village, and the endless fish, the variety of dishes was truly the envy of others.

In short, the Qiao siblings really enjoyed themselves. During the New Year, the average weight of the family members increased by at least seven or eight pounds, which shows how comfortable they were living.

Tonight's dinner was another very lavish meal.

After Qiao Wuhu finished eating and drinking, he couldn't help but sigh, "Sigh, we eat so well at home every day. What will we do when school starts?"

Qiao Erhe expressed his understanding, saying, "Fifth brother, you don't need to worry about that. You just need to study hard at school. I will give you two yuan a week for living expenses after school starts. You can buy whatever you want to eat on the street."

Upon hearing this, Qiao Wuhu's eyes widened in disbelief. "Second brother, you're not lying to me, are you? Giving me two yuan a week for living expenses?"

Upon hearing this number, both Qiao Liuduo and Qiao Qitan were shocked.

Keep in mind that in those days, even relatively well-paid regular workers earned less than two yuan a day. To put it simply, those two yuan would be equivalent to at least two or three hundred yuan in later years. For a junior high school student, two or three hundred yuan a week for living expenses would definitely be considered a small-time tycoon.

Qiao Erhe laughed and said, "It's just two yuan. Why would I lie to you? If you can get into a vocational school this year, I can give you 50 yuan a month for living expenses. Whether you can get that money or not depends on your ability."

Qiao Wuhu was thrilled to hear this, his eyes widening like saucers. With only 50 yuan a month for living expenses, that much money would be enough to eat out every day.

He patted his chest forcefully and said, "Second brother, I will do my best to get into a vocational school."

Qiao Erhe thought for a moment and said, "Actually, if you are confident, you can choose to go to high school and then try to get into university. The treatment after graduating from university is much better than that of a vocational school graduate. However, it is more difficult to get into university than to get into vocational school. You should weigh the options yourself."

Qiao Wuhu nodded and said, "I understand, Second Brother. I will think about it carefully."

Qiao Liuduo couldn't help but ask, "Second brother, what about me? Will I get a reward if I do well on the test?"

Qiao Erhe smiled and said, "You'll be taking the entrance exam this year too. If you can get into the top class at Cenhe Middle School, I'll give you five yuan a week for living expenses."

Upon hearing this, Qiao Liuduo gasped. Her fifth brother only received two yuan a week for living expenses, while she could receive five yuan a week if she got into the top class. That was more than double the amount. What reason did she have not to work hard?

Thinking of this, Qiao Liuduo immediately made a pledge: "Second brother, don't worry, I guarantee I'll get into the top class."

Qiao Qitan blinked and asked, "Second Brother, what about me?"

Qiao Erhe smiled and said, "You should also study hard. As long as you get good grades in the midterm and final exams, your second brother will reward you."

Qiao Qitan felt very motivated after hearing this. He didn't know if he could keep up the effort, but at least at this moment, he wanted to study hard.

Seeing their second brother offer such generous rewards to his younger siblings, Qiao Sanduo and Qiao Sihai were filled with envy. If someone had given them such incentives when they were in school, perhaps their grades wouldn't have been so poor.

……

The next day.

The three brothers, Qiao Dajiang, Qiao Erhe, and Qiao Sihai, each carried a load of eggs toward the commune.

Originally, the five, six, and seven little ones also wanted to go, but they wouldn't be of much help anyway, and there was even the worry that they would be kidnapped by cunning human traffickers, so they simply stayed home to study.

During this Spring Festival, Qiao Dajiang and Qiao Sihai drank a lot of sweet glutinous rice wine and egg wine, which improved their physical condition. As a result, they picked out a lot more eggs than before.

Among them, Qiao Dajiang's load, including the bamboo basket, weighed at least 260 or 270 jin, while Qiao Sihai's load weighed at least 170 or 180 jin. Compared with their peers, they were already considered very impressive.

As for Qiao Erhe, although he could carry heavier loads, even doubling the weight, he maintained the previous weight and did not increase it further.

On the one hand, the bamboo basket is only so big and can only hold a limited number of eggs. If we change to a larger bamboo basket, it will take up too much space and be inconvenient when taking the bus.

On the other hand, Qiao Erhe didn't want to be seen as a monster. Being able to carry nearly 400 jin (200-200 kg) was considered top-notch strength in the entire Cenhe region. If he were to carry 600-700 jin (300-350 kg), it would be too frightening, and there was no need for that.

After the three brothers arrived at their previous stall location, Qiao Erhe put down his load and said, "Alright, eldest brother, Sihai, the rest is up to you. I'll go clean up the storefront first, and then find someone to make two beds and some necessary furniture."

Qiao Dajiang nodded and said, "Go ahead, leave this to us."

(End of this chapter)