pdf-ebookys Chapter 206 Wang 2 Gou's Engagement
Chapter 206 Wang 2 Gou's Engagement
After finishing their shopping, the group carried their bags home.
As she passed a small restaurant, a delicious aroma wafted out, and Li Xiaohua swallowed hard.
"Are you hungry?" Li Xiangyang asked.
Li Xiaohua nodded shyly.
"Let's go inside and get something to eat," Li Xiangyang said, turning to Li Xiaoyun. "Are you hungry too?"
Just as Li Xiaoyun was about to decline, Li Xiaohua had already pulled her hand and was walking into the restaurant: "Sister Xiaoyun, let's go, I know this place has really delicious stewed fish."
The restaurant wasn't big, but it was very clean.
The proprietress, a woman in her forties, greeted them with a smile as they entered: "Oh, have you finished shopping?"
"Okay," Li Xiangyang replied. "I'll have a stewed fish, some greens, and a stir-fried potato dish."
"Okay." The proprietress replied and turned to go to the kitchen.
The food arrived quickly, steaming hot.
Li Xiaohua eagerly picked up a piece of fish with her chopsticks, her eyes lighting up: "It smells so good!"
Looking at Li Xiaohua's expression, Li Xiaoyun couldn't help but laugh.
She gently placed a piece of the tenderest fish on Li Xiaohua's plate: "Eat slowly, don't choke."
After we finished eating, it was already quite late.
The three of them carried their things and walked home.
When Li's mother returned home, she was tidying up the clothes that had been drying in the yard.
Seeing them return, she quickly took the packages from them: "Buying so much stuff, you must be exhausted!"
"I'm not tired," Li Xiaoyun said as she went to help her mother tidy up.
Li Xiangyang put the rest of the things into the house, and when he turned around, he saw Li Xiaoyun and Li's mother talking in the yard, while Li Xiaohua made jokes and made the two of them laugh.
As night fell, Li's mother busied herself preparing dinner.
Li Xiaoyun volunteered to go into the kitchen to help, and soon the aroma wafted out of the kitchen.
Dinner was simple, but exceptionally warm and cozy.
Li's mother served food to Li Xiaoyun, while Li Xiaohua chattered on about what she had seen and heard that day. Li Xiangyang watched all this with an indescribable sense of satisfaction.
"It's so late, it's dangerous to ride your bikes home. Don't go anywhere tonight."
After dinner, Li's mother glanced at the sky outside and said...
“Yes, stay here tonight, I’ll take you home tomorrow,” Li Xiangyang advised.
"Oh well."
Li Xiaoyun said, her face flushed.
Seeing that she agreed, Li's mother busied herself boiling water for everyone to wash up.
Li Xiaoyun volunteered to help clear the dishes, while Li Xiaohua excitedly made the bed and folded the blankets.
As night deepened, the courtyard gradually quieted down.
The next morning, Li Xiaoyun woke up very early.
She tiptoed off the kang (a heated brick bed) to go to the kitchen to help Li's mother make breakfast, only to find that Li's mother was already busy at the stove.
"Up so early?" Li's mother said with a smile when she saw her come in. "I'm steaming some buns right now."
Li Xiaoyun quickly went to help: "Let me do it, Auntie."
"Still calling me auntie?" Li's mother said, feigning anger.
“Mother…” Li Xiaoyun blushed and called out softly.
Li's mother happily agreed and taught her how to roll out the dough: "Come on, I'll teach you how to make steamed buns. You can make them for Xiangyang from now on."
The two were busy when Li Xiaohua came in, rubbing her eyes: "It smells so good!"
"You're sleeping soundly," Li's mother said with a smile. "Go and wake your brother."
Li Xiaohua skipped and hopped out, and a little while later, Li Xiangyang also came to the kitchen.
Seeing Li Xiaoyun making steamed buns, Li Xiangyang went over to take a look: "Not bad, better than mine."
"Go away, go away," Li's mother waved him away, "Don't get in the way so early in the morning."
After breakfast, Li Xiangyang and Li Xiaoyun prepared to return to the village.
Li's mother packed up all the buns for them to take, and then reminded them, "Ride slowly on the road, don't rush."
"Okay, Mom," Li Xiangyang replied, getting on his bicycle.
Li Xiaoyun said goodbye to Li's mother and Li Xiaohua and got into the back seat.
Li Xiaohua chased after the car for quite a distance, waving and calling out, "Sister Xiaoyun, come again next time!"
Once outside the city, Li Xiaoyun was bolder this time, placing her hands on Li Xiangyang's waist.
"Did you sleep well last night?" Li Xiangyang asked as he rode his bike.
“Yes,” Li Xiaoyun said, “Xiaohua has been talking to me, telling me about your childhood.”
"That talkative girl," Li Xiangyang chuckled, "won't she say anything bad about me, will she?"
“No,” Li Xiaoyun smiled, “She said you’ve always doted on her since she was little…”
……
As they approached the village entrance, Li Xiangyang slowed down.
A commotion came from ahead, and several female educated youths were walking this way.
"You're finally back!" Zhang Li rushed forward to greet them as soon as she saw them. "Li Xiaoyun, Ma Hongxia has been looking for you several times."
Li Xiaoyun got off her bicycle: "What's wrong? What happened?"
"That's nothing serious," Zhang Li said. "It's just that she and Wang Ergou are practically engaged now, and she's grateful to you as the matchmaker. She'll probably want to learn from you."
Wang Ergou and Ma Hongxia's situation is at a crucial moment, and it's understandable that they would seek advice from others before getting married.
“Then I’ll go find Ma Hongxia first,” Li Xiaoyun said to Li Xiangyang.
Li Xiangyang nodded: "You go ahead, I'll take the things home."
Zhang Li glanced at the packages on the back of the bicycle and joked with a smile, "You're really going all out to get married. Looks like you bought quite a lot of things."
"Yes, that's right." Li Xiangyang responded with a smile, then quickly added, "Um, you guys chat first, I'll head back now."
After saying goodbye to Zhang Li, Li Xiangyang had just arrived at his doorstep when he saw Wang Ergou squatting against the wall smoking.
Seeing Li Xiangyang return, she quickly stood up: "Brother Xiangyang, you're finally back!"
"What, are you waiting for me to come up with something?" Li Xiangyang asked as he opened the door.
"Yes," Wang Ergou rubbed his hands together, "I want to get engaged to Ma Hongxia."
Li Xiangyang glanced at him: "Why don't you two discuss this? I can't help you with this."
"How can you say that? You know more than I do. You know I'm not very worldly, and I'm afraid of not handling things properly and making Ma Hongxia lose face. This is my plan: I'll go to her house in person, firstly to show my sincerity, and secondly to see how much money my father-in-law owes. If I can help, I will, but I'm afraid of hurting Hongxia's pride..."
Li Xiangyang nodded inwardly when he heard him say that.
The fact that Wang Ergou has this intention shows that he genuinely wants to live a life with Ma Hongxia.
“Okay,” Li Xiangyang put his things down, “then let’s have a good talk. Your situation is indeed different from Xiaoyun’s and mys. Xiaoyun wrote a letter, her parents came, and the matter was settled.”
Li Xiangyang carried the package into the house and turned around to close the door.
“Come in,” he gestured for Wang Ergou to sit down, “How much do you know about Ma Hongxia’s family situation?”
Wang Ergou sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) and sighed, "I know a little. Her father used to run a small shop in the county, but he ended up with too many uncollected debts, which is why he's so heavily in debt."
"And what about Ma Hongxia's attitude?" Li Xiangyang asked.
“She doesn’t want to go back to the city,” Wang Ergou said, “but she’s worried about causing me trouble. Actually, I’m thinking that as long as her father can pay back the loan, we can take care of the rest later.”
Li Xiangyang poured Wang Ergou a glass of water: "I'm not worried about whether you have the money. But you need to think carefully about whether you want to use it for marriage proposals or to help Ma Hongxia's family pay off their debts."
“My suggestion is,” Li Xiangyang said seriously, “that you first go to Ma Hongxia’s house and do everything exactly as you would when proposing marriage, making sure you don’t skip any of the proper courtesies.”
"Once the deal is done, you can subtly offer to help pay back the money, but make it clear that it was a loan, not a free gift."
"Remember, these are two different things."