blogombal Chapter 653 Writing a Gift Certificate
Chapter 653 Writing a Gift Certificate
Hao Limin walked in with a smile, followed by several entourage members.
He walked up to Jiang Guizhi and took her hand:
"Congratulations, Xiao Lu's mom!"
As he spoke, he asked the driver to bring out his congratulatory gift.
It is a couplet written by Hao Limin himself.
First line: Capturing a culprit bare-handed on a snowy night—truly a tiger's courage.
The second line reads: "On this spring night, the nuptial cup is joined, red stars and brocade words bear witness to their united hearts."
Horizontal scroll: Heroes and Perfect Couple
Jiang Guizhi opened her mouth, but it took her a long time to speak:
"Welcome... County Chief Hao, you're such an important figure, we ordinary folks can't possibly accept that!"
The courtyard was completely silent.
Ordinary people rarely even get to see commune leaders, and county magistrates are figures they only see in newspapers.
The county magistrate is standing right in front of me, attending the wedding of an ordinary commune member.
"This is a bit strange. I have a feeling something's going to happen..."
Someone outside the courtyard swallowed hard, unsure of what to say.
He was nudged by someone on the side:
"Don't jinx it on such a joyous day, or a country bumpkin will kick your ass raw if he hears it."
Hao Limin said with a smile, "Comrade Lu Yao is a hero of Jiangzhou. Not only am I here, but the editor-in-chief and reporters of Jiangzhou Weekly are also here to continue reporting on his story!"
Sure enough, among the people who came after them was Yang Lina, a female reporter whom Jiang Guizhi knew, who was holding a camera.
Jiang Guizhi stood in the middle of the courtyard, looking at the guests filling the yard, unsure of what to do with her hands.
She had never seen anything like this in all her years of life.
Second Aunt Zhang Shulan leaned over and whispered:
"Sister-in-law, your country bumpkin is really going to make it big!"
Jiang Guizhi didn't speak, she just looked at the entrance to the courtyard.
Lu Yao's wedding procession hasn't returned yet, and she's eagerly awaiting her son's return.
Because she no longer knew how to serve these distinguished guests.
Old Uncle Ba is more composed.
Quickly ask the women to help move stools so we can sit down in the courtyard.
It's a beautiful day; the sun is shining brightly, and it's not cold at all.
With melon seeds and tea served, everyone chatted and ate and drank, which made things less awkward.
A square table was placed against the east wall of the courtyard, covered with a red cloth, on which were placed an inkstone, a writing brush, and an account book.
The ledger was a hardcover notebook bought by the supply and marketing cooperative, with a red paper pasted on the cover and the words "gift account" written in black.
Uncle Ba sat behind the table, his reading glasses perched on his nose, dipped his brush in ink, and waited.
Second Uncle Lu Ming stood by the table, clutching a wad of small bills and coins in his hand. Beside him was an enamel basin, which was already half-filled with eggs and two packets of pastries.
"Xu Zhaotian, accountant of Jiapigou Brigade, five yuan as a gift."
Uncle Ba muttered to himself as he wrote it down in the ledger.
When Xu Zhaotian visited someone's home, he would give at most two yuan as a gift.
But Lu Yao's situation is different; it's not as simple as just a battalion commander and a militia company commander.
With Lu Yao's connections, how could you possibly offer two dollars?
So I gritted my teeth and paid five yuan.
Mei Ping came over and gave him 10 yuan.
She also contributed to the collective donation, but she felt she had to express her gratitude separately to her savior.
Such a grand gift is something most people have never seen before.
In the countryside nowadays, two yuan is considered a great gift.
There's also a 50-cent gift.
Potatoes and cabbage are both acceptable as congratulatory gifts.
Some commune members were too embarrassed to give a small gift with just one yuan in their hand, so they waited for someone to start the conversation so they could follow suit.
To avoid being criticized for being unseemly when Lu Yao looks at the gift list.
Aunt Yufen put the fifty cents on the table and added:
"Add a few more eggs."
As he spoke, he took out five eggs from his pocket and carefully placed them into an enamel basin.
Second Uncle Lu Ming accepted the gifts while keeping an eye on Eighth Uncle's bookkeeping.
On the one hand, you also have to be polite to the person who gave you the gift:
"Thank you, thank you. Please come inside, have a smoke and some tea."
People came one after another. Wang Fugui's wife gave him a dollar, saying it was for her father-in-law, who couldn't come because of his bad legs.
Then I'll give myself another one.
Li Youtian's wife gave him a pair of pillowcases, red with mandarin ducks on the background, wrapped in paper. She was a little embarrassed when she handed them to Lu Ming, and kept muttering that she hadn't given him enough.
Uncle Guangyi gave me two yuan and ten eggs.
The ledger kept piling up entries: five-cent coins, one-dollar coins, eggs, snacks, pillowcases, thermos covers.
Uncle Ba wrote very carefully, muttering a word after each stroke.
Uncle Lu Ming's hands were accumulating more and more small bills, and the eggs in the enamel basin were almost overflowing.
He turned around and shouted at his busy wife:
"Shulan, bring another basin; this one is too big!"
Inside and outside the Lu family's house, and in and around the courtyard, there was a lively scene.
……
Ding Dahu's courtyard was also a scene of bustling activity.
Ding Mei was dragged out of bed by Xie Chunfang before dawn, boiled water to wash her hair and face, and changed into a red cotton-padded jacket and trousers with floral patterns.
The cotton-padded jacket was newly made, with a red background and pink flowers, and white fur trim on the collar and cuffs, which made her cheeks look rosy.
Xie Chunfang combed her hair, muttering to herself as she did so:
"One comb to the end, two combs and white hair to the eyebrows, three combs and a house full of children and grandchildren..."
Ding Mei looked in the mirror, her lips curving upwards involuntarily.
Yuan Shumei and Jing Youxiang also came and helped pack things.
The dowry had been prepared long ago: two new quilts, a pair of embroidered pillows, an enamel basin, and a pair of thermos flasks, all wrapped in red cloth and placed on the kang (heated brick bed).
"Little Meizi, you look so beautiful today."
Jing Youxiang looked at her and said sincerely.
Ding Mei blushed even more, lowered her head and smiled with her lips pursed.
Zuo Xiaoying had also slipped over at some point and was standing at the door looking inside.
Yuan Shumei saw her and waved:
"Come in, what are you doing standing outside?"
Zuo Xiaoying came in, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Ding Mei:
"Sister Ding Mei, you look so beautiful as a bride today."
Ding Mei took her hand:
"When you grow up, you'll be a bride someday too."
Xie Chunfang combed Ding Mei's hair, then took a red headscarf and covered it up for her.
The red headscarf was made of silk, which was translucent and allowed glimpses of the outside.
"Keep your head covered with a headscarf, and don't take it off before leaving the house," Xie Chunfang instructed. "You can lift it up a little after you get in the car, and then lift it all the way up when you arrive at your in-laws' house."
Ding Mei nodded, her palms sweaty.
Suddenly it became lively outside, and someone shouted:
"They're here! The wedding procession is here!"
Ding Mei's heart was pounding, and she gripped the hem of her clothes tightly, sitting there too afraid to move.
Xie Chunfang glanced outside, then turned back and said with a smile:
"Don't panic, let them wait outside for a while, and give them some space."
Ding Mei smiled, her lips pursed, feeling her face burning hot.
He picked up the tiger girl who was circling around him.
This thing is heavy.
Ding Mei even tied a red scarf around its neck.
It looked so festive.
Others used their younger brothers to carry sedan chairs, but Ding Mei had no brothers, so she used Hu Niu.
Ding Mei originally wanted to find a boy, which meant having a son after marriage.
But Lu Yao wouldn't allow it; he insisted on having a girl carry the sedan chair.
Finally, Ding Mei got angry and said she would use Hu Niu so that she could give him a tiger girl.
Lu Yao actually agreed, saying that it would be fine as long as it was a female.
Just then, a loudspeaker sounded outside, indicating that Lu Yao's jeep for picking up his bride had arrived at the Ding family's gate.