A Journey Through the Worlds of Film and Television.

24

The weather is hot in the summer. In this era without air conditioning and fans, it does require a certain amount of concentration to calm down and read.

But when Xiulian came, everything was different.

Whenever Lu Cheng sat down to read, she would quietly stand by his side, gently waving the palm-leaf fan in her hand to drive away the summer heat for Lu Cheng.

There would be a basin of cold water on the side, and from time to time, a towel dipped in cold water would be used to wipe Lu Cheng's neck and back.

When Lu Cheng was tired from studying, she would massage his shoulders and back, and would always be the first to hand him tea.

"Xiu Lian, you treat me like a young master from a landlord's family, and I can't live without you any more. Let's make a deal that you have to serve me for the rest of my life, not even for a day less."

"Okay, okay, okay. One lifetime is not enough. I am willing to serve you for three lifetimes. It is said that women are men's homes and men are women's babies. I just want to raise you like a baby."

"That doll wants to eat..."

"Hey, in broad daylight, what are you doing..."

This is probably what the ancients meant by "red sleeves adding fragrance".

A home is not a home unless it has a woman.

Lu Cheng's courtyard also became more lively.

There is a chicken coop in the corner of the wall, with a dozen chicks in it. The land beside the wall outside the yard has also been utilized and vegetables are planted.

Bamboo was planted in the corners of the yard, and a grape trellis was built and grape trees were planted.

The washed clothes hung on the clothesline swayed gently in the wind, adding a bit of color to the clean and tidy loess yard.

The warm and sweet days passed one by one, the hot summer went away unnoticed, and the weather gradually became cooler.

On this day, the entire Shuangshui Village was exceptionally lively, with men, women, young and old all gathered in the jujube forest outside the village.

The village party secretary Tian Futang stood in the middle with all the members of the village committee. Tian Futang cleared his throat and said loudly: "All members, the annual jujube picking festival of Shuangshui Village is coming again. Now, on behalf of all the members of the village committee of Shuangshui Village, I declare that the garden is open, jujube picking and festival are about to begin."

"Great!" All men, women, young and old cheered at once, and the scene was extremely lively.

As the sound of firecrackers rang out, men, women, young and old from all over the village joined in. Some were hitting the dates with sticks, some were picking dates with baskets, and some were gathering together to clean up the dirt and leaves.

There were also many adults who carried their children on their backs and let the children hit the dates on high places with sticks.

"You can eat as many dates as you want today, but you are not allowed to take them home."

"Be careful, watch your step, don't step on the dates, pick them up."

"Speaking of which, why haven't Lu Cheng and Xiu Lian arrived yet?"

"Uncle Wan You, please sing a song. All the girls in our village like your songs. When you start singing, maybe Lu Cheng and Xiu Lian will come to listen to the song."

"Yeah, yeah, let's do something sour, the kind where we kiss and hold hands."

Tian Wanyou, who was lying on a tree picking dates, laughed: "No problem, if you want something sour, let's have something sour. Call my sister Zhang Guilan, Yoyahuhei..."

As they were talking, Lu Cheng and Xiu Lian really showed up.

"Everyone, look! Lu Cheng is here."

"We didn't have a good time during Lu Cheng's wedding night. Let's make it up to him today. What do you think?"

"Well, now that they're married, Lu Cheng's melons are worthless. Let's take a look at his melons."

"Look at the melons, look at the melons."

A group of people started to cheer, and several young men immediately surrounded Lu Cheng. Someone even tried to untie Lu Cheng's belt, which frightened Lu Cheng so much that he quickly grabbed the belt.

Xiulian was also surrounded by the women and pulled aside.

Xiulian was still a little worried, but the women all started talking at once: "Don't be afraid, they are just making a fuss, and it won't hurt your Lu Cheng in the slightest."

As he was speaking, Lu Cheng had already been lifted up by a group of young men.

It was the village party secretary's wife who spoke up to help: "Okay, okay, there are so many kids and girls watching, you can really do whatever you want."

The group of young men then let Lu Cheng go. Lu Cheng was not angry. The fact that everyone was willing to play with him proved that they had a good relationship with him.

However, Lu Cheng was not one to suffer a loss. He grabbed the person who started the commotion and started to make a fuss as well. Laughter and joy filled the date garden.

This jujube grove is also public property, and the harvested dates also belong to the collective, so it is not allowed to take them home privately.

Of course, if someone has some in their pocket, no one will say anything, as long as it's not too excessive.

Lu Cheng didn't need to take any, after all, he had a jujube tree at home, which was enough for his family to eat.

After a busy day of picking dates, the picked dates were packed into sacks and pulled to the commune by tractor.

It was already evening when I got home.

"Xiulian, is the date-picking festival in the village lively?"

“It’s lively and fun.”

As Xiulian spoke, she wiped the dust off Lu Cheng's body with a wet towel.

"Tomorrow we will pick the dates in the yard and pack them up. I will take you back to my mother's house and let our father taste the dates from our family."

"Okay, I'll listen to you."

"It's Mid-Autumn Festival now. In previous years, you were at home to accompany our father to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival, but this year he is the only one left at home. Let's go to the commune tomorrow and buy some more fruits and moon cakes to bring to our father."

"Well, my dad will definitely be happy to see us."

Lu Cheng didn't have many relatives in this world, and his father-in-law was his only relative, so naturally he had to visit him more often.

When the two of them took their gifts and drove across the Yellow River to Hejiawan, He Yaozong was naturally very happy.

Coincidentally, He Xiuying and her husband also brought their children to visit their old father. When the two sides got together, the scene suddenly became lively.

Sisters Xiuying and Xiulian were busy in the kitchen, their two children were playing in the yard, and He Yaozong and his two sons-in-law were sitting in the yard chatting.

"Lu Cheng, is your harvest good this year?"

"Fortunately, we have been given more land this year, and we have made use of the wasteland in the fields and every household can produce more food."

"That's good. Our situation is getting better every year. The vinegar we brew at home is sold out as soon as it is delivered to the town."

Chang Youlin then asked, "I heard that you can make money by treating patients?"

"That's only 30 or 50 cents a day, which is nothing."

"That means I can earn an extra dozen dollars a month, which is quite a lot. I can live a good life."

When farmers sit together, they talk either about land and food or national affairs.

In the kitchen, sisters He Xiuying and He Xiulian were also whispering, "Xiulian, is Lu Cheng good to you?"

"Brother Lu Cheng is very good to me. He helps me with washing and cooking, fearing that I will be tired. He likes to read and study, and I just watch him from the side. You don't know that Brother Lu Cheng's medical skills are very good now. People from the surrounding villages no longer go to the commune for treatment, but come to our house to see Brother Lu Cheng. We are very prestigious when we walk in the village..."

When it comes to Lu Cheng, Xiulian's little mouth starts talking non-stop.

He Xiuying was happy to hear that her sister was living a happy life. "No wonder I felt that you were whiter and a little fatter than before. It turns out that someone loves you."

"Don't you have a brother-in-law too?"

"That's right. Although your brother-in-law is a little honest, he is good to me and listens to me."

Both daughters are living happily, which is undoubtedly the greatest comfort to He Yaozong, and he always has a smile on his face...