Year 1979: Eating meat with my wife and children

After collecting the crickets, the money was settled.

Li Xiangdong stretched his body, took the gourd ladle that A Zhe handed him, and drank several mouthfuls before letting out a long breath.

He handed the water ladle in his hand to Hou San, who was standing aside waiting to drink water, and then looked at Wang Er Kui and asked, "Why isn't my Uncle Wang home?"

Upon hearing his question, Wang Erkui, a man from Shandong Province who could knock someone unconscious with a single slap, suddenly became hesitant.

He explained, his face flushed, "I'm getting married in a few days, and things at home aren't ready yet. My dad went to the county town before dawn."

"You're getting married? That's great news!"

When Li Xiangdong heard that Wang Erkui was about to experience one of the four great joys of life, he was quite happy for Wang Erkui.

He hoped that Wang Erkui could marry a good wife, as the role of a wife is extremely important in a family.

Otherwise, there wouldn't be two completely different sayings: "A virtuous wife brings fewer misfortunes to her husband" and "Marrying an unvirtuous wife ruins three generations."

"Good news, Er Kui! Congratulations!"

"Congratulations, Er Kui."

Hou San and A Zhe congratulated Wang Er Kui, as they were both extremely envious upon hearing the news.

Especially Hou San, who is obsessed with getting married. Although he is not yet of marriageable age, he has already been married many times in his dreams.

He considered himself an experienced person, so he pulled Wang Erkui outside and quietly gave him a few words of advice.

Li Xiangdong looked at Wang Erkui, who was following Hou San back into the house, and asked him about the specific date of the wedding.

"It's a pity that the three of us can't come to your wedding."

Wang Erkui chuckled and said, "It's alright, Brother Dong. I'll save a bottle of wedding wine for you. We can drink it next time you come."

"Er Kui, we made a promise, you have to save a bottle of wedding wine for us."

Hou San's eyes lit up when he heard about the wedding banquet. He had been working hard lately to outdrink Kong Zhaoyao, who could drink two jin of liquor.

He often secretly practiced on his own, and now he has successfully trained his alcohol tolerance to the point where he can drink five qian (approximately 15 grams) of baijiu (Chinese liquor) without getting drunk.

Looking eastward with longing, the day when victory is within our grasp is not far off!

Just as the three of them were teasing Wang Erkui, Aunt Wang came into the house carrying a winnowing basket.

She placed the winnowing basket on the kang (a heated brick bed), sat down on the edge of the kang, and called out, "Stop talking, come and have some peanuts and melon seeds. These are all prepared in advance for my son's wedding."

Li Xiangdong smiled and said to Hou San and A Zhe, "Let's listen to Aunt Wang and have some."

Despite their words, the three of them didn't eat much; they just tasted the food and added a bit of festive cheer.

Peanuts and melon seeds are considered good things these days. Although the three of them have urban household registration and are entitled to government-supplied grain, they still only receive a few coupons throughout the year.

If you want to eat these things, you have to do some preparation.

Given their condition, the half-basket of peanuts and melon seeds on the kang (heated brick bed) must have cost Wang Erkui's family a considerable amount of money.

Li Xiangdong and his two companions were aware of this, and each of them only grabbed a small handful.

After chatting for a few minutes, it was time to head back. The things were loaded onto the donkey cart, and Aunt Wang followed with a winnowing basket.

"Take some more to eat on your way back, don't be shy with us."

After helping Hou San put the sacks on the donkey cart, Wang Erkui patted the dirt off his hands and laughed, "Brother Dong, listen to my mother."

"Well... alright, we'll listen to Aunt Wang."

Li Xiangdong and the other two stepped forward and grabbed a small handful from the winnowing basket.

After they put them in their pockets, Aunt Wang carried a winnowing basket to Uncle Zheng and said, "My son is getting married in a few days, so please have some peanuts and melon seeds."

Uncle Zheng clasped his hands in a fist and said a few words of congratulations, then reached out and grabbed a handful of food, putting it into the satchel on his shoulder.

"Aunt Wang, Er Kui, you can go back now, we're leaving."

Uncle Zheng flicked his whip, and the donkey cart slowly started moving. Li Xiangdong and the other two got on the cart and waved goodbye to Wang Erkui and his mother.

"Take care, Dong-ge. I'll be waiting for you to come to my wedding next time."

The donkey cart slowly swayed onto the main road, and Li Xiangdong said to Uncle Zheng, who was sitting in front driving the cart, "Uncle Zheng, stop the cart."

"Ouch~"

The donkey cart stopped, and Li Xiangdong stood up, took out peanuts and melon seeds from his pocket, and stuffed them into Uncle Zheng's satchel.

"You don't need to give it to me, you take it out and eat it. This is for a wedding, you can share in the joy."

As Uncle Zheng was speaking, he was about to take the satchel off his shoulder, but Li Xiangdong stopped his hand.

"I've already eaten. There aren't many peanuts and melon seeds left. Please don't refuse. Take them back for your children."

"Yes, Uncle Zheng, take some home for your kids to enjoy."

"Uncle Zheng, we can eat it when we get home."

As Hou San and A Zhe were talking, they took out peanuts and melon seeds from their pockets and, ignoring Uncle Zheng's objections, put them all into his satchel.

Uncle Zheng looked at them gratefully, "I don't know what to say to you all."

Li Xiangdong sat back in his previous seat, waved his hand and said, "Then let's not talk about it anymore, Uncle Zheng, let's hurry back."

"Uh-huh!"

After Uncle Zheng and Hou San and A Zhe were seated, he cracked the leather whip in his hand again.

A Zhe plucked a straw from the straw mat on the donkey cart, put it in his mouth, and said, "Wang Erkui isn't even older than me, and I didn't expect him to be getting married so soon."

Li Xiangdong laughed and said, "Envious?"

Hou San imitated A Zhe, holding a straw in his mouth, saying, "I'm not old enough yet, but I already envy Wang Er Kui. A Zhe must be envious."

Li Xiangdong patted A Zhe on the shoulder without saying a word. A Zhe's father hadn't arranged a marriage for him because he was waiting for A Zhe's mother to reply.

It's no use saying anything now. Once the father and son have completely given up on going abroad, this matter will definitely be arranged.

"Brother Dong, next time we come over, shouldn't we bring something for Er Kui?"

Li Xiangdong was surprised that Hou San could think of this. It seems that his more than a month of training has had some effect. At least Hou San has learned something.

"Yes, we should bring some things. Next time we come, we'll bring two washbasins and two thermos flasks. Ah Zhe, I'll leave this to you. All expenses will be covered by our company account."

Ah Zhe nodded, "Okay, leave this to me."

The journey back was even more agonizing than the journey there; the blazing sun overhead made one feel uneasy.

Li Xiangdong and the other two chatted for a while, but then none of them had the desire to talk anymore. They all sat dejectedly on the donkey cart and dozed off.

The donkey cart went directly to the vicinity of the train station, where Uncle Zheng specifically found a shady spot to park.

"Oh my god, we've finally arrived!"

Hou San wiped the sweat from his forehead, grabbed the frame, and jumped off.

However, when his feet touched the ground, his legs buckled and he fell to his knees with a thud.

Just as A-Zhe was about to get up and get off the cart, he saw Hou San kneeling in front of the donkey cart and almost laughed himself silly.

"Hou San, get up quickly. What a mess this is. How about I give you your New Year's money a few months in advance?"

Hou San, unusually, did not argue with A Zhe. He looked at Li Xiangdong, who was getting off the donkey cart, with a mournful face.

"Brother Dong, come and help me up! A pebble on the ground has hit my nerves and made them go numb."