Chapter 317 The Two Brothers Go Home

Tao's words made Zhou Xing and his brother uncomfortable: "You talk as if you have a girlfriend."

The two brothers glared at Tao Zui with a sense of shared hatred, even showing their utter disdain for his lack of appreciation for his many brothers and sisters.

Although it wasn't explicitly stated, their expressions seemed to say it all.

Cui Mei and the others clearly saw the little scuffle here, and while shaking their heads with smiles, they didn't forget to complain to Zhao Lingli.

"Look at godmother, those few of them are bickering together, isn't the atmosphere great?"

"Ugh, what a headache! These kids are all like they've never grown up. They even have to compete with each other when buying gifts. It's so frustrating!"

After speaking, he didn't forget to observe people's expressions.

"I wonder when you'll be able to bring your boyfriend back to me. I wish you could go from goddaughter to daughter-in-law."

Tang Cuihua and the others paused in their dumpling-making, then quickly reacted.

“Godmother, not only do I treat them like my younger brothers, but they also treat me like their older sisters. That’s what all the sisters feel the same way.”

Tang Cuiju and the others nodded vigorously in agreement.

"That's right, they're all promising college students. They should find suitable partners in the future, so you don't need to rush."

Just kidding, no matter how good the relationship is, you can't live together as a family. Being a daughter is easy, but being a daughter-in-law is not easy.

No matter how intimate they are now, once she becomes a daughter-in-law, there are many things she won't dare to say. Wouldn't she feel incredibly stifled?

Furthermore, the three sisters owe a debt of gratitude to the Tao family for taking them in, so there's no problem with how they serve their parents and repay the Tao family.

She absolutely cannot marry into the Tao family; once that precedent is set, things will change.

For now, being single is actually quite good.

Zhao Lingli wasn't angry at Cuihua and the others' statements. It was a good thing to add to the good fortune, and if they weren't willing, she would still treat them like her daughters.

Meanwhile, Xiao Jiu was already directing her brothers to build her a super big snowman.

While Zhou Yue and Xiao Jiu were rolling a snowball together, Zhou Yue asked, "When are you going back to school?"

"You'll have to come back in a couple of days, because I might be heading back to the city."

I'm going back with my second sister tomorrow afternoon. She'll be back at work on the sixth day of the Lunar New Year.

Oh, by the way, when are you and Brother Zhou Xing leaving?

"We spent Lunar New Year's Eve in the military this year, and started our return journey on the eighth or ninth day of the Lunar New Year."

When I return to Harbin, if my brother can wait for his comrade to arrive, he will go directly back to Chongqing.

If he doesn't get one, he'll have to go to the provincial capital.

Waiting for comrades?

Xiao Jiu's eyes lit up: "Could it be that Niu Feng is coming?"

Zhou Yue couldn't help but laugh when he saw her eyes sparkling.

"Yes, I never expected that Comrade Niu Feng and your fourth sister would hit it off."

The little man shook his head, looking like a little adult.

"My fourth sister is completely clueless; she just thinks he's not bad and that Comrade Niu Feng is a good person."

I also asked Xing Ge, and he even went out of his way to inquire about it.

You know my fourth sister's situation; it's not easy for her to find someone who truly treats her well.

Niu Feng is doing quite well in all aspects now, so let them get to know each other first. If they get along well, then we can settle things.

In this day and age, dating is very casual, and it's not uncommon for couples to decide on marriage after only a few meetings.

There are even couples who meet only once and then spend their whole lives together. Whether it's good or bad, they are bound by worldly views and suffer until their life is over.

It's sad to think about.

"You say your fourth sister is clueless? How old are you, and you're already worrying about her marriage?"

Actually, your fourth sister is no slouch either. She's incredibly strong, and no one will dare bully her if she finds a partner in the future.

Xiao Jiu chuckled awkwardly and shook her head, "I'm just worried that my sister will suffer a loss."

She can't hear, so she has no idea how others are plotting against her.

I'm not afraid of being alone, but what if we team up? It's not that I'm being petty, but there are some outwardly kind but inwardly wicked people out there.

Niu Feng lives alone; he doesn't have many unnecessary relatives. The thought of not having to worry about this or that is quite nice.

I find it funny whenever I think of my eldest sister remarking that my fourth sister looks like the old lady from the Tang family.

Her fourth sister is the most naive; how much insight can you expect from a fish?

There's no end to learning about interpersonal relationships and social etiquette in a lifetime.

So, if you're simple-minded, you need to find someone who doesn't hang around much and doesn't have a lot of messy relatives.

Ideally, after getting married, she could still live at her parents' home year-round, with so many sisters to help her, so she wouldn't feel overwhelmed.

So, putting everything else aside, it seems that all of her sisters are quite suitable to marry soldiers.

Being a soldier is great; you're never home.

They set up their own businesses and didn't need anyone to interfere with them.

Even after getting married, you can still go back to your parents' home. You probably can't find another family like this in the whole county.

If it weren't for societal norms and the abundance of gossipy, talkative people, the women's desire to remain unmarried would likely only grow stronger.

Zhou Yue listened attentively from the side, occasionally tilting his head to look at the little man who was talking eloquently and logically, like a little adult.

I'm increasingly convinced that the mature aura I've felt from this child since he was little is not an illusion.

Look at the way he talks, his calm and collected attitude. Where is the maturity that a teenager should have?

Now, it's not just him who feels this way; even his brother has praised this girl more than once, saying she'll be extraordinary when she grows up!

The more I come into contact with it these days, the stronger my feelings become.

He even subconsciously treated her as someone his own age.

When Zhao Lingli called everyone to eat, Zhou Yue finally snapped out of his daze, and he never expected that he would stare at the girl for several minutes.

Xiao Jiu patiently found two sweet potatoes for the snowman's eyes and a carrot for its nose.

They also dressed it in a straw raincoat that Grandpa had collected.

There was also a bamboo pole standing next to it. With a straw hat covering his forehead, wouldn't that create the atmosphere of "a lone figure on a cold river"?

"Hey, stop fiddling around and hurry up and wash your hands and eat. Your brothers are starving!"

Due to time constraints, I didn't have time to make mackerel dumplings. Instead, I made sauerkraut dumplings using pork cracklings and sauerkraut.

Although there was no fresh pork for the filling, the pork cracklings were still very fragrant. After mixing them with the filling, a large spoonful of hot oil was poured over them.

One bite, and it was so fragrant and juicy that it moved the two brothers deeply.

"This tastes just like it did when I was a kid. In Northeast China, we used to eat sauerkraut dumplings in the winter. This taste is absolutely amazing."

"Don't just eat dumplings, try this aspic and this stew. Actually, many of the dishes here are not much different from those in Northeast China."

In winter, when it's cold, everyone likes to eat hot stews. But what can you put in a stew? Isn't it just tofu, glass noodles, cabbage, meatballs, and stuff like that?

As soon as Zhao Lingli finished speaking, the old man nodded in agreement.

"During the famine of 1942, quite a few people from our area fled to the Northeast."

Tao Changyi: "It's not just in 1942; in recent years, I've heard that many young women have gone to live with relatives in Northeast China and look for husbands there."

Although they only grow one crop a year, their land is vast and rich in resources, with a small population and plenty of food, so everyone flocks there.

Many people from our neighboring Shandong province went there during the "Crossing the Guandong" migration. When we have time, let's go see what the black soil is like.