Eating melons and raising children in the period literature

Yang Qingqing and her second sister-in-law Ma Liyue came to Uncle Ma's house.

Uncle Ma's house is not a brick and tile house like my second sister-in-law's. It is a three-room mud house. The area is not very large, and it is even lower than other mud houses in the village. The windows are not made of glass, but of straw paper. The house is not very bright.

Several children were already playing in the yard. Yang Qingqing had been here before, but not here.

"Qingqing hasn't been here yet. My dad and his family came here after they split up. This used to be our old house. My grandpa used to live here. Then he passed away, and no one lived here anymore. We split up two years ago, so my parents moved here. My mom said my eldest brother's family has grown too. They're going to be grandparents soon, too. Everyone in the family has started their own family, so they divided up the house."

"That lady and her family are quite open-minded. Nowadays, many people don't want to separate their families! But I think it's better to separate. There will be fewer conflicts and the family will be more united."

"Yes, it's good. There are fewer conflicts at home now. My parents are much happier too."

"Qingqing, sit down. The meal will be ready soon. The place is small now, please don't mind."

"Look at what you said, Auntie. Why should I dislike it? This is the cloth I brought for Uncle and you. Do you like it? I don't know what you like, so I brought you a piece of cloth. Please don't dislike it."

"Hey, what gifts did you bring to my house? You are just a child. What does it matter? Don't bring any in the future. I love you coming. Just come and visit us more often when you have nothing to do."

"Okay. I will come here often in the future. Please don't dislike me."

"Dad, Mom, I just came home and didn't see anyone, so I knew he must have come to your place. So I came over. Look. I brought you some wine."

"Haha, Qinghe, you're back. I love this. Ha! Ha! You're back just in time. Let's eat."

Aunt Ma served the last dish of chicken stewed with mushrooms

"We don't have anything good at home. Let's just make do with what we have! Welcome Qingqing, Wenjing, Wenxuan, Wenyuan and Wenqian to our great Northeast."

In addition to a large pot of chicken stewed with mushrooms, there was also a plate of smashed cucumbers, a plate of scrambled eggs, and a plate of shredded potatoes on the table. The staple food was steamed buns made of two-grain flour, each one as big as an adult man's palm, very solid. There was also a pot of corn paste. It was really luxurious and substantial for that era.

The children rarely get to eat eggs on normal days, let alone meat today. They ate so much that they didn’t even have time to raise their heads.

After dinner, everyone went to the yard to enjoy the cool air.

"Qinghe, your family probably doesn't have enough room to live in, right? Why don't you let Qingqing and Wenjing come live with me? I can clean up my west room and make it habitable."

"Dad, I really don't have enough rooms. I plan to live in the military dormitory first. Let Liyue and Yang Qingqing stay at home with the kids. While everyone is free now, I plan to build two more east rooms and two west rooms. This should be enough for us to live in. I also hope Dad can help find some villagers to help."

"It's not a problem to find someone to help. But it takes time! Let Qingqing and the others stay here today, and you can go over there when you're done. It's not a good idea for you to live in the military area all the time!"

Yang Qinghe's house only has three rooms, a main room and two bedrooms. Yang Qinghe, Ma Liyue and Wenjie live in one room, and Wendan and Wenran live in the other.

"It's okay. Liyue and I will live with the kids. Qingqing will live with Wenjing, Wenxuan and the others. I'm afraid they won't be able to adapt if they are separated right after arriving. They can just squeeze in with me."

"That's fine. I'll find someone to help you tomorrow."

"Uncle, second brother, I have an idea. Do you think it's feasible? I want to buy the house next to second brother's from the brigade. This way, we can move in after cleaning it up. It should be quick. I will live there with my children, and we will not be far from second brother and his wife. If there is anything, we can just shout and they will know."

"Qingqing, this is a good idea. It will save a lot of trouble. But that house is not cheap! You can't get it without 300 yuan. I can ask your eldest brother to find out what the team means now. If it can be cheaper, it will be better."

"No, since my second brother has brought you here, there is no reason for you to live on your own. Don't worry, I can support you."

"Brother, this is not a question of whether to raise the children or not. First, I can settle down with my children, and second, it really saves trouble. The children will definitely have their own families in the future. It doesn't matter if there is one more house."

Yang Qingqing thought to herself, "I don't want to live with a bunch of people. It's not a good thing for the sister-in-law and the sister-in-law to live together! Besides, how can I cheat in the space if they live together? The original owner and the sister-in-law have been friends since childhood, and I, who joined the family halfway, can't be disliked. The upper lips are fighting with the lower lips! There will definitely be a lot of conflicts if we live together for a long time."

"Second brother, it's not easy for you to make money. I thought of buying it with the pension my parents left me. My eldest brother gave me my parents' pension when I graduated from high school. I think it will be enough to buy a house. This way I won't need my eldest brother and his family's pension. I can keep it for Wenxuan and the others."

"No, that won't work. Your parents gave you that money as a dowry. How can you touch it? The money left by your eldest brother and sister-in-law is for the children to get married. You can't touch it. I don't agree. Even if you buy a house, it's your second sister-in-law and I who will pay for it."

"Brother, it's still a long time before I get married. Besides, I have to find a job. I can't really go to earn work points. I haven't even worked in the fields, how can I earn work points! I can earn money myself, so are you still worried about not having a dowry? Besides, you and sister-in-law have children to raise, so there are many places to spend money!"

"No, I still don't agree. You can't touch that money."

"Brother, why are you so stubborn? Why don't we buy the house first? We can rent one first. This way we won't spend much. This is my last concession. If you still don't agree, I will take the children back. I believe the military district will not ignore us."

"Well, let's rent it first. My second brother will pay for it, so you don't have to."

Yang Qingqing thought, "I will do it first and then ask you to do it. The most important thing is to get my second brother to agree to move out."

"Okay, once I find a job, I'll pay for it, okay?"

"Okay, let's talk about it after you find a job! Dad, can you help me ask if I can rent that house?"

"Okay, I'll go ask your eldest brother later. Your eldest brother should know about this. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Okay, Liyue and I have to go to work tomorrow. Can you come and tell me in the afternoon?"

"Brother and sister-in-law, you guys go to work tomorrow. I'll be here all day. I'll just come look for uncle tomorrow. That way, uncle won't run away."

"Okay then. We're all tired today. Let's go back first. Mom and Dad should also go to bed early."

"Okay, all of you go back. Be careful on the road. Don't fall. And keep an eye on the children."

We were sent to the doorstep and everyone waved goodbye.

"Qingqing, today you and Wenjing, Wenxuan and the others will live in the west room. Your second brother and I will take Wendan, Wenran and Wenjie to live in the east room. There is nothing in the room that cannot be moved, so you can do whatever you want. Don't be restrained, just treat it as your own home. We usually wash in the yard in summer, and there is a well in the yard. The main reason your second brother and I bought this yard was because of the well. Many families here have to go to the public well in the village to fetch water. It's not bad in the summer, but in the winter it's freezing and we have to queue up to fetch water. The problem is that the ground is slippery and it's easy to fall."

"You guys are better off, second sister-in-law. You don't have to fetch water. It's much easier in winter. Second sister-in-law, do you know if there's a well next door?"

"I don't know, it doesn't matter whether there is water or not. If there is water, that's even better. If not, ask your second brother to bring you water. You don't have to worry about it, little girl."

Yang Qingqing thought, "You see, the second sister-in-law doesn't insist on living together. She is much more enthusiastic towards us now than when she first came. Only the second brother, who is a straight man, would think that the second sister-in-law would be extremely happy to raise a few children and a sister-in-law."

"When you move over, just leave the physical work like collecting firewood and fetching water to your second brother. You don't have to do it. If you don't want to cook, come here to eat. Second sister-in-law welcomes you!"

"Okay, I will definitely have to trouble my second sister-in-law when the time comes."

"Whenever I'm home, you can come to eat at Second Sister-in-law's.

My sister-in-law has to work in shifts, sometimes at night. But before, my colleagues took care of me. I haven’t worked night shifts since I gave birth to Wenjie. But I guess I will start working night shifts this time when I go back. If you have any problems and your second brother and I are not here, go find my parents. I have told them, and they will definitely help if they can.”

"Yes, yes, yes, I know. Auntie also told me. Second sister-in-law, I'm thinking about when to invite Auntie, Uncle, Brother, and Sister-in-law to our house for a meal. We can get to know each other better. If the house can be rented tomorrow and cleaned up the day after tomorrow, how about inviting everyone to dinner? It can also warm our house, killing two birds with one stone."

"Okay, your second brother and I were supposed to invite my eldest brother and others to our house tomorrow to familiarize you with the place. But we have to go to work. If that's not possible, then we'll do as you say, and you don't have to worry about it. We'll just bring the things over."

"No, I still have the money my eldest brother left behind. You and second brother didn't ask for anything, so give it all to me. I just need to buy the things, and my second sister-in-law can come and help me when she has time."

"Okay, okay, there's nothing wrong with that. My second sister-in-law will definitely go to help. If I have to work that day, I'll switch with my colleague. I'll make time for it."

"Thank you, sister-in-law. And can you help me to hire someone? I am a little bit..."

"Okay, I'll go with you."

"What are you talking about? Why are you so happy?" The second brother came in and asked in confusion.

"Nothing to say, second brother, you should wash up. I'll go wash up." Yang Qingqing ran away

Yang Qingqing thought to herself, "If I tell you, you will definitely take the blame on yourself. I'd better wait until it's done before telling you."

"You finished washing so quickly. Have Wenxuan and Wenyuan finished washing too? Then I will take Wendan and the others with me."

"??? I can't know yet. I've already washed. You guys go ahead."