If he could dote on his wife like his cousin, marrying him would be quite good.
Realizing what she was thinking, Liu Sanniu quickly withdrew her flushed face, “We’ll talk about it after you learn to drive. For now, teach me how to ride a bicycle.”
After speaking, Liu Sanniu walked to the women’s bicycle and stroked it with affection, immensely fond of it.
However, if she hadn’t seen incorrectly, there was another women’s bicycle in the back. That one should have been bought by her cousin for his wife to ride.
Her cousin was truly good to his wife. If she could have such a man who thought for his wife, it would be worth dying for.
With this thought, Liu Sanniu cast her gaze towards Du Ziteng, who, not understanding, touched his nose, “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Nothing, hurry up and teach me!”
“Coming.”
On the other side, Zhang Liunian drove into the residential area, immediately causing a stir. Everyone vied to watch him get out of the car, constantly sizing him up.
Jiang Qingqing, who was getting some air in the stairwell, heard the commotion below and walked down from the staircase to peek. In an instant, she saw Zhang Liunian, standing out from the crowd.
No matter what expression graced his handsome face, it made her heart race uncontrollably.
“Comrade, did you buy this car? It must have cost a lot of money!”
“Comrade, do you have a partner? Shall we help you find one?”
“Comrade, you haven’t been in our neighborhood for long, have you? Did you find your wife the last time you came to my house? If not, why don’t you get another one?”
“…”
The aunties and uncles of the neighborhood surrounded Zhang Liunian, chattering incessantly. Most of them wanted to introduce their daughters or relatives to him, hoping to forge a connection.
Jiang Qingqing, hearing this from the stairwell, tensed her little face, her big eyes fixed on Zhang Liunian, as if wanting to see how he would answer these questions.
Zhang Liunian didn’t keep her waiting. He took the women’s bicycle off the car himself and said with a smile, “Thank you everyone for your concern about my personal life, but I already have a wife, as well as a daughter and a son, so I won’t trouble you all.”
After speaking, he carried the bicycle and walked towards the stairwell. Within a couple of steps, he met Jiang Qingqing’s gaze in the stairwell.
Zhang Liunian paused his movements, then quickened his pace, put down the bicycle, and put his arm around her shoulder, saying, “Why did you come out? It’s only been half a month, you’re still far from being out of confinement!”
Jiang Qingqing sniffled and leaned softly into his embrace, murmuring, “If I hadn’t come out, I wouldn’t have known you were so popular.”
Zhang Liunian heard the hint of jealousy in her voice. He stroked her head and said with a smile, “No matter how popular I am, it’s all yours alone. No one can snatch it away.
“Take a look at this bicycle. I bought it for you. You can ride it after you’re out of confinement. Do you like it?”
When Jiang Qingqing heard that the bicycle was a gift her husband had bought specifically for her, she immediately straightened up and examined it from top to bottom. The more she looked, the more she liked it, “I like it! I can’t wait to be out of confinement.”
Hearing this, Zhang Liunian smiled, “What’s the rush? Once you’ve recovered your health, I won’t stop you from doing anything. But you can’t go out now.”
Jiang Qingqing understood that her husband was concerned for her. She smiled without speaking, gazing at him. Then, with Zhang Liunian half-carrying and half-hugging her, they returned home.
As soon as they entered the room, Jiang Qingqing immediately clung to Zhang Liunian, rubbing her face against his chest, “Liunian…”
Zhang Liunian reached out and held her, responding softly, “What is it?”
Jiang Qingqing fell silent again, just holding onto him and not letting go. Zhang Liunian didn’t push her away. He lifted her with one arm and placed her on the bed.
But Jiang Qingqing held onto Zhang Liunian, preventing him from getting up. He could only lean down to gaze at the exquisitely beautiful face so close to him.
As their eyes met, it was as if bubbles were rising around them, their breaths drawing closer, their lips about to touch at zero distance.
But just then, Zhang Guihua pushed open the door, “Qingqing, time to eat… you continue.” Then, with a “bang,” she closed the door.
Hearing the sound, Jiang Qingqing’s face instantly flushed as red as a peach. She then covered her eyes with her hands, afraid to look.
Zhang Liunian pressed down, holding his wife, and chuckled softly in her ear, “Hehe…”
Jiang Qingqing felt extremely embarrassed by his laughter. Her small hands dared not let go, continuing to cover her eyes.
After a moment, Zhang Liunian got up, leaned down, and kissed the back of her hand, saying, “Let’s go, it’s time to eat.”
Seeing him get up, Jiang Qingqing rolled over to the side and hid under the small quilt, her voice muffled, “I’m not hungry yet, you go eat first!”
“If you want to eat, come out, and I’ll call Uncle Zhao over.” Zhang Liunian didn’t try to persuade her when he heard this. After all, the food was kept warm in the kitchen every day, and she could eat whenever she wanted.
At the dinner table, Zhang Liunian discussed the need for more equipment for his factory with Uncle Zhao.
“I’ll have people deliver it tomorrow. As for the money, it can be deducted from your crayfish,” Zhao Zhijie immediately agreed to send the equipment first and pay later upon hearing that Zhang Liunian needed a production line.
“Alright, before the Chinese New Year holiday, I’ll send some small bottles of preserved vegetables to you all as New Year gift boxes. May everyone have abundance,” Zhang Liunian accepted the favor but also indicated that he would reciprocate.
“No need. Your preserved vegetables are too expensive. If everyone receives a bottle, you’ll lose tens of thousands of yuan. You mustn’t do that,” Zhao Zhijie was surprised by his godson’s generosity, giving away tens of thousands of yuan at a time. This gift was too heavy for him to accept.
“You’ve helped me greatly. I can afford this small gesture, and they’re not big bottles, just small ones, so it won’t cost much,” Zhang Liunian didn’t care about the cost and was determined to do it.
Zhao Zhijie intended to persuade him a few more words, but Zhang Liunian was a man of firm conviction, not someone who could be swayed by a few words. In the end, the matter was settled.
The next day, Zhang Liunian drove back to Zhangjia Village early in the morning. He then took Zhang Laoshi, Du Ziteng, Xiao Si, and Xiao Wu with him to collect grain from the neighboring team.
“Comrade Zhang Liunian is here with money and a truck to collect grain. Fellow villagers who wish to sell grain, please bring all your grain to the drying ground.”
This production team was Jiuxiang Brigade. The person holding the loudspeaker was their former captain, Wan Xianjin. He rode his bicycle while announcing to everyone through the loudspeaker.
The members of Jiuxiang Brigade, who had already paid their public grain the day before, heard the announcement and began loading grain onto flatbed carts, heading towards the drying ground.
Those without flatbed carts carried it themselves.
In this era, households didn’t have much grain. After paying the public grain and reserving their own rations, the most any household had was one or two thousand jin.
Therefore, they transported grain in various ways, which didn’t surprise Zhang Liunian and his companions. They took out scales and money and began weighing the grain and handing over the payment. However, before that, they had to check if it was new grain and if it was dried.
During the inspection, Zhang Liunian only needed to insert a small tube into the sack and pour the grain into his hand to check the quality of the grain.