Chapter 1234: Doing Housework
After the three of them were full, they went straight to Jiang Xinyu’s house.
Pushing the door open, they saw that the courtyard looked a bit deserted, but it seemed like it would be used for growing vegetables in the summer.
"Let’s tidy up the house first and light the fire. It won’t get warm in this house for a few days."
Guodong went directly to the woodshed; there was firewood and coal.
The large stove and the heater were both lit, and fires were going in both rooms.
"Aunt Wang must have cleaned up a bit; it’s not too dirty." The cobwebs on the ceiling were Guodong’s task. The two girls just swept the bed and wiped it with a damp cloth.
They took the bed mat into the courtyard, gave it a good beating, then laid it back and wiped it twice more. Only then did they start cleaning the windows.
Guodong was responsible for cleaning the furniture. "Brother, you need to wipe everything inside and out."
"I know."
The three of them had hot water to use, so they didn’t feel uncomfortable.
The two bedrooms and living room were all cleaned. The stove, large pot, and bowl rack were also wiped clean.
Lastly, the side room, kitchen, and bathroom.
"Aunt Wang must clean often; that’s why we find it easy."
"Yeah, it does look pretty clean."
Next was the courtyard. It was even easier here; the courtyard had no trees, just a few leaves blown in by the wind.
Everything was cleaned, and the coal was refilled; the large stove wasn’t lit anymore.
After finishing work and taking a bath, Wang Ailing came over and saw the house was already clean.
Looking at Jing Chu, she smiled with admiration, "Such a grown-up, so beautiful."
"Aunt Wang, you haven’t changed either, still looking much the same as when we left."
Wang Ailing shook her head with a smile. Looking at Li Xue, she asked, "Is this Guodong’s wife?"
Li Xue smiled and greeted Aunt Wang.
"What a good kid, she looks pleasant. Guodong is lucky."
"Aunt Wang, let’s go inside and sit."
"Okay, you three worked fast." It wasn’t even ten o’clock yet, so they indeed worked quickly.
Looking at the bright windows, it reminded her of when Xinyu lived at home.
"When will Aunt Jiang return?"
"We can’t say for sure. When we arrived, Aunt Jiang had already gone to the hospital with Master Shang, but she still needs to see a Chinese doctor, which will take a few more days. As for the exact time, we’re not sure yet.
Aunt Jiang will decide when to return after getting Master Shang’s test results."
"Okay, I understand. Is she doing well?"
In the end, she couldn’t help feeling worried. That little girl always shared the good news and not the bad. No matter how great she wrote in letters, until she saw her in person, Wang Ailing couldn’t feel at ease.
"Yes, Aunt Jiang can live well anywhere."
Wang Ailing nodded with a smile, "Yes, she lives well anywhere.
Are you three done cleaning up?"
"Yes, we’re just getting ready to head home."
"Alright, let’s all go. Jing Chu, in the future, make sure to come by often and help keep the fire going. Don’t just stop."
The four parted ways at the door. Guodong and Li Xue went to the supply and marketing cooperative, as they still had meat to pick up.
Jing Chu went back alone, also needing to start a fire at home, or it would be cold, right?
Besides, it’s time to prepare lunch; it should be cooked at home directly.
Guodong took Li Xue to the supply and marketing cooperative. The young girls there sneaked glances at the handsome young man.
"Comrade, I’m here to see Secretary She." Guodong politely asked an aunt with a smile.
"Wait a moment, I’ll go call for you." None of them knew Guodong, although Lv Beiguang could go directly to the back to find She Xiaoyun, strangers were not allowed.
She Xiaoyun, upon hearing someone was looking for her, guessed it was Guodong coming.
Sure enough, it was.
"Aunt She."
"Guodong, growing into a young man. Come in for some water.
This is your wife?"
"Yes, this is Li Xue. Aunt She, she’s my father’s friend."
Li Xue sweetly greeted Aunt She, looking particularly charming.
"Good, such a wonderful girl, Guodong is truly blessed."
Having liked Lv Beiguang before, she had once wondered about the future of these two kids.
Now everything had changed; she already had one son and one daughter, and her husband treated her very well, so she was happy. Seeing these two kids, she felt different.
"Sister Liang, measure me two pounds of rice candy."
"Go ahead, I’ll bring it in for you."
Inside the office, She Xiaoyun brewed sugar water for both of them.
"Aunt She, it’s not necessary to trouble yourself so much."
She Xiaoyun just smiled, "It’s fine if it’s just you, but this is your wife’s first time here, how can a good aunt not show a bit of hospitality?"
Li Xue thanked She Xiaoyun with a smile.
At this time, the rice candy was also brought in. She Xiaoyun placed it on Li Xue’s table, "Li Xue, eat up; this rice candy was delivered yesterday, it’s especially fragrant and crisp."
"Thank you, Aunt She."
"No need to be so polite. Coming all this way here, we can’t have you feeling uncomfortable."
Guodong was quite happy; treating Li Xue well made him happier than treating himself well.
"Have you adapted to being here?"
"Aunt She, it’s warmer here than where our home is, so I have no trouble adapting."
"That’s good. Let Guodong take you around. In a few days, there will be sesame candy and peanut brittle, Guodong, come over and I’ll set some aside for you. We don’t have a lot of specialties here."
"Great, I love sesame candy, it’s been years since I had any."
"I’ll set aside two pounds for you. Eating too much isn’t good either."
"Alright, Aunt She, can we take some sesame candy with us when we leave?"
"Sure, just let me know in advance and I’ll arrange it with them."
She Xiaoyun could certainly handle this sort of thing.
"Aunt She, we won’t disturb you anymore; Jing Chu is at home alone."
"Alright, I’ll take you to get the meat. Guodong, take the rice candy with you for Li Xue and Jing Chu to enjoy."
Guodong carried the meat and rice candy as the two walked home.
"Does this Aunt She get along well with Dad?"
"Yes, at the time, Aunt Jiang was still a secretary. The secretaries of the few factories in our county had a very good relationship.
Jing Chu and I often went along to have meals with them."
When they got home, Jing Chu was already starting to prepare rice.
Dad had prepared all fine grains, wanting to give the three of them the best.
"Jing Chu, should I take lunch to Dad?"
"Brother, the distillery isn’t close; by the time you get there, it might be cold, plus Dad might have already eaten. Let’s wait until tonight to cook something good for Dad."
For lunch, the three of them made cabbage stir-fried with pork slices and steamed egg custard.
Jing Chu had quite a decent culinary skill now. She often watched Jiang Xinyu cook and learned a lot from it.
After finishing the meal, "Brother, I’m going to Aunt Jiang’s house to look after the stove and air the bedding. We might need more cotton quilts. I’ll check today and see how much we need, and then find Aunt She to think of a way."
Comments