Chapter 3: The Marriage of Mengyan's Brother Ziyou
When Mengyan was five months old, her father Zhanyu quit his job at the clinic and went to the production team to earn work points. The team leader's sister was divorced by Zhanfeng and remarried, so she held a grudge. Therefore, the team leader arranged Zhanyu to do all the dirty and tiring work in the production team. He earned half of the work points of others every day, but the team leader still said to Zhanyu disdainfully: "You are a doctor. Returning to the production team to farm is a form of re-education by poor and lower-middle peasants, and it is also a half-way career. You don't know anything about farming, and you can't do anything. It's good to give you half of the work points of other laborers. If you change to other production teams, they won't want you..." In order to get rations to feed the children, Zhanyu silently endured the unfair treatment, but no matter how hard Zhanyu worked, he couldn't get back the rations. He had no choice but to let Mengyan's eldest brother Ziyou, who was about to graduate from high school, return to the production team to earn work points. Ziyou was a man of imposing appearance, with a sturdy build, thick eyebrows and big eyes. He was eloquent and capable. He had once been a Red Guard representative and had been received by the Chairman. Therefore, as soon as he joined the production team, he was followed by the team members and was soon promoted to team leader...
One day, Ziyou, as a youth representative, welcomed a group of educated youth who went to the countryside to work. The commune also assigned several young people to the production team. Ziyou wanted to use the best house in the team as a youth center for the educated youth. But the members of the team disagreed. Ziyou had to go home to discuss with his uncle Zhan Yi, his third uncle Zhan Feng, and his father Zhan Yu. Finally, Ziyou asked for everyone's consent and redistributed the houses. The family of his uncle Zhan Yi and the family of Zhan Yu still had six main rooms, the four rooms in the west side were for the family of his third uncle Zhan Feng, and the original kitchen in the east side was cleaned up to be used as a youth center. When the production team built the youth center, the east side room would be used as a kitchen again...
The youth center was set up in the Zhan Family Courtyard, which added to the liveliness of the courtyard, but also added a lot of troubles.......
"Is this the Zhan family compound?" The gate was not closed, and a tall and pretty girl in her twenties walked into the compound. "Yes, may I ask who you are..." Yunqing held the little Mengyan who had just learned to walk in her hand, and looked up and down at the girl in front of her, with a puzzled look on her face. "You are Aunt Yunqing, right? I am Guihua, the second child of your eldest cousin Wang Feng! This is my little sister Mengyan, right? She is so beautiful, like a doll..." The girl said, touching the chubby little face of Mengyan.
Yunqing led Xiao Mengyan and enthusiastically invited Guihua into the house, poured her a glass of water, and asked her the purpose of her visit.
Guihua was originally in the team of educated youth going to the countryside, but the place where she went was a remote mountainous area in the northwest, where living conditions were poor. The house she lived in was leaky everywhere and could not keep out the cold in winter. In summer, when it rained, it would rain heavily outside but lightly inside. Even if it didn't rain outside, it would rain inside. She had to get up early and go to the mountains late to break stones, move stones, and carry stones... Her hands were covered with blisters, and she was often hit by stones. She still didn't have enough to eat... Many young women couldn't stand it and found a commune member in the plains to marry, so that they could escape from the reform life in the northwest mountainous areas.
Guihua told Yunqing about her life in the northwest mountainous area and showed her the scars and wounds on her arms and back. They were really shocking...
"Guihua, don't say anything. Auntie will definitely help you find a good family to marry in our Liaoxi Plain..." Yunqing said while crying.
"Mom, mom..." When Xiao Mengyan saw her mother crying, she also started crying.
"Mom, I'm back. I have to go to the commune for a meeting to receive the task of repairing the Honggou campaign. Do you have any corn cakes at home? I'll take two to eat on the way to the commune meeting." Ziyou said as he walked into the house, "What's wrong? Are you crying? This girl is..." Ziyou said as he picked up Xiao Mengyan with his strong big hands.
Yunqing stopped feeling sad and hurriedly wiped the tears from Guihua and Xiao Mengyan.
Yunqing introduced Guihua's situation to Ziyou, who smiled at her gently and said, "Don't worry, sister. Stay for a few days, have a good rest, and take a look at our youth center. Any difficulties will be solved..."
Ziyou took a tortilla and hurried to the commune for a meeting.
Yunqing coaxed Xiao Mengyan to sleep, and then asked Guihua what kind of partner she wanted to find, and what her requirements and standards were. Guihua said shyly: "Just follow Brother Ziyou's example..."
"Brother Ziyou is looking for it this way..." Yunqing pondered for a moment and smiled knowingly...
Yunqing brought a basket of eggs and Xiao Mengyan to find Guihua's parents to propose marriage to Ziyou.
Guihua's parents said they would never agree to this marriage at first, mainly because they thought the Zhan family was too poor and had too many children, and they felt like they were asking their daughter to go through a mountain of knives and into a pit of fire! Guihua's father said to Yunqing: It is unbecoming and outrageous for a stepmother who is only a dozen years older than her stepson to matchmake for her stepson...
Yunqing imitated Liu Bei in the Three Kingdoms who "visited the thatched cottage three times", explained the reason, moved the emotions, weighed the pros and cons, and finally got Guihua's parents to agree to the marriage...