Siheyuan: It’s so nice to be Lao Liu

Yan Jiefang had just left Lijia Village when he suddenly remembered that according to the plot, Qin Huairu would bring Qin Jingru to trick He Yuzhu. He put the two bags of grain and seeds on the back seat into the space and turned the car around to head towards Qinjia Village.

After riding for more than an hour, Yan Jiefang was lucky enough to ask Village Chief Li how to get to Qinjia Village, otherwise he would have to ask on his own and don't know when he would get there.

Yan Jiefang rode his bike into the village and met a middle-aged man. He took the initiative to greet him and said, "Uncle, do you know how to get to Qin Guoqing's house?"

When Yan Jiefang was in the courtyard, he heard Qin Huairu and Jia Zhangshi talking about Qin Huairu's third uncle Qin Guoqing, so he asked about it.

"I am Qin Guoqing. What do you want from me?" the middle-aged man replied.

"Forehead!"

Yan Jiefang was stunned. He didn't expect to meet his "father-in-law" in this way. A little embarrassment appeared on his face, but he quickly concealed it.

Yan Jiefang parked his bicycle, walked quickly to Qin Guoqing, and said calmly, "Hello, Uncle Qin, my name is Yan Jiefang. I went to Lijia Village today and heard from Village Chief Li that Qinjia Village has planted many fruit trees. My home is in the city, and I live in the same courtyard as Qin Huairu. I once heard her say that she has a third uncle named Qin Guoqing, so I came to see you."

Hearing Yan Jiefang say that he and Qin Huairu lived in the same courtyard, Qin Guoqing relaxed his vigilance and said, "Since you know my niece's name, you shouldn't be a bad person. Let's go to my house. I have a lot of fruit seedlings in my field."

Hearing that Qin Guoqing wanted to go home with him, Yan Jiefang was delighted and felt that God was helping him. He had just been thinking of a way to go to his house to see what Qin Jingru looked like, but he didn't expect that it would be useless now.

As Yan Jiefang followed Qin Guoqing into the house, they saw three people sitting in the room, two women and one man. One of the two women looked to be about 40 years old, her face full of the erosion of time, while the girl next to her had a sweet smile on her delicate face.

As soon as Yan Jiefang entered the room, his attention was drawn to the beautiful girl in front of him.

Yan Jiefang also guessed the identities of the three people, namely Qin's mother, Qin Jingru and Qin Jingru's younger brother.

"Dad, you're back?" Seeing Qin's father coming back, Qin Jingru and her brother quickly got up to greet him.

But when they saw Yan Jiefang following Qin's father, the two excited people became restrained. They both knew that they had to behave dignified and serious in front of outsiders and not be too unreasonable.

Seeing this, Yan Jiefang looked at Qin's father and said, "Uncle Qin, who are these two?"

Qin Guoqing smiled and said, "Come, let me introduce them to you. These two are my son and daughter, Qin Dawei and Qin Jingru, and that one is your aunt."

After Qin Guoqing introduced his wife and children, he pointed at Yan Jiefang and said, "This is Yan Jiefang, Qin Huairu's neighbor, who also lives in the Red Star Courtyard."

After Qin Guoqing finished introducing him, Yan Jiefang quickly said to Qin Guoqing's wife, "Hello, auntie. I'm here to buy some things today. Sorry to bother you."

At the same time, he said to Qin Jingru and Qin Dawei: "Hello Jingru, hello Dawei, please forgive me if I have any trouble for you."

Seeing Yan Jiefang being so polite, everyone waved their hands, indicating that there was no need to do so.

Seeing this, Qin Guoqing finished his introduction and got to the point, saying, "Comrade Yan Jiefang, my family has five kinds of fruit seedlings: persimmon, apple, pear, grape, and peach."

Yan Jiefang was also very happy after hearing this. This time was different from the modern times. At that time, the main focus was on collective planting of grain, and fruit planting was relatively rare. However, it was already very good to have five kinds of fruit seedlings in Qinjia Village.

"Uncle Qin, I want to buy some fruit seedlings, all five kinds. How many trees of each kind do you have? Do you have fifty?" Yan Jiefang did not expect Qin Guoqing to provide him with more seedlings, so he asked directly.

At fifty yuan for each, there are only two hundred and fifty saplings in total, and not much land will be needed. However, the flow of time can be controlled in his space, and the fruits produced are enough for his own consumption or for selling in the pigeon market.

"Fifty trees? That's so many! I don't have enough. I'll go to other houses to share some. How much can you offer?" Qin Guoqing was shocked. He didn't expect Yan Jiefang to want so many. He was a little surprised for a moment. After being surprised, he asked his question.

Yan Jiefang did not quote a price, but asked, "Uncle Qin, how much would your fruit seedlings cost if you sold them to other people?"

"We have never sold fruit seedlings here. We cultivate and grow them ourselves. Every household plants some and eats the fruits themselves, or the supply and marketing cooperatives buy them. I don't know the price," said Qin Guoqing.

Yan Jiefang nodded and said, "Uncle Qin, how do you think this will work? I want fifty of each fruit seedling, and I'll buy them at 20 cents apiece. If you don't have enough, you can go buy some from your neighbors. I don't care how much you charge for each."

Two cents per tree is a very high price, and Qin Guoqing can also make a small profit here.

"Okay, have lunch at my house today, and I'll go get you some saplings."

Qin Guoqing is also a down-to-earth person, and he went straight to help get the saplings.

Seeing Qin Guoqing pulling him out, Yan Jiefang looked helpless. His main mission here was to see Qin Jingru, and buying saplings was just a side task. He had just sat down and hadn't even said a few words to Qin Jingru when he was dragged out.

Walking on the road with Qin Guoqing, Yan Jiefang pretended to ask casually: "Uncle Qin, how old is your daughter? Does she have a boyfriend?"

Qin Guoqing didn't think much about it and said, "Jingru is seventeen years old and still single. She is looking for a matchmaker to introduce her to someone. She wants to marry in the city like her sister Huairu."

Yan Jiefang thought to himself that she was only seventeen years old, which was just right. He was nineteen this year, and next year they would be old enough to get their marriage certificate.

So Yan Jiefang continued to ask: "Uncle Qin, does Jingru have any other requirements for finding a partner?"

Qin Guoqing also came to his senses. This kid has ideas! He then slowed down his pace, looked at Yan Jiefang and said, "It would be best if he could be a worker. This way, he would get a salary every month and would not lack food or clothing."

After hearing Qin Guoqing's description of Qin Jingru's conditions for finding a partner, Yan Jiefang had a clear idea in his mind. He smiled and said to Qin Guoqing, "Uncle Qin, what do you think of me?"

"I am a city dweller. I graduated from high school this year. I am 19 years old. I am a good cook. I can work in a factory as a worker or a chef. I will definitely have a stable income after graduation."

At this time, Qin Guoqing also stopped and looked at Yan Jiefang seriously. After a moment's hesitation, he said, "You are so well-off, why do you want to marry a country girl?"

Yan Jiefang didn't know how to answer. He couldn't just say, "I saw your daughter is pretty, so I covet her beauty!" After thinking for a while, he made up a story, "The person I'm looking for must be filial and family-oriented. I think country girls are good. Not only are they willing to work hard, but they also know how to take care of others. They are much better than city girls."

After hearing Yan Jiefang's reasons, Qin Guoqing nodded subconsciously. He felt that Yan Jiefang's words touched his heart and that these reasons seemed to be directed at his daughter.

Seeing Qin Guoqing's expression, Yan Jiefang was also happy. It seemed that the reason he made up had fooled his future father-in-law.

"Uncle Qin, it's not enough for me to say it myself. You can ask Sister Huairu about my situation and see if what she says is different from what I said. By then, I will definitely buy all the three turns and one ring. We can't be less of a betrothal gift, at least fifty yuan."

Sure enough, when Yan Jiefang said at least fifty yuan for the betrothal gift, Qin Guoqing, who was still hesitating, immediately made up his mind. Today, he asked someone to send a letter to his niece Qin Huairu to inquire about Yan Jiefang's situation. If it was similar to what he said, then such a good son-in-law should not be let go.

Nowadays, the bride price in the countryside is generally two or three yuan, and even in the city, the bride price is at most twenty yuan. Yan Jiefang's bride price of fifty yuan is very high.

"I'll ask Huairu about your situation. If it's similar to what you said, I'll agree." Qin Guoqing said, "Let's not talk about this for now. Let's go get the fruit seedlings for you first."

With the concerted efforts of the two, the two quickly loaded the 250 trees onto the bike. After lunch, Yan Jiefang rode his bike to the city.