Chapter 51 The heroine’s cannon fodder sister (3)
The current situation has gone beyond his expectations. He wanted to get rid of Jiang Lai as soon as possible, but he didn't expect that he would let her take one of his books.
The book was brought back by his grandfather when he was studying abroad. Later, he wrapped it in an ugly cover and threw it in a corner where no one would notice. It has experienced ups and downs. As expected, no one has ever discovered it.
But now, this book is in Jiang Lai's hands, and he can only endure it for the time being in order to avoid unnecessary pulling.
"He Wazi, where is your grandma? The new daughter-in-law has come to visit the house, why doesn't the old lady come out to greet her?"
"My grandma is sick in the house. You can go in and take a look."
After saying that, he opened the door and led Jiang Lai and the matchmaker into the small, cramped room. There was only one window left on the wall, making the room dark and depressing. The old lady lying on the bed struggled to get up. He Xing He stepped forward to support her.
"Grandma, don't move, I'll help you stand up."
Seeing the obviously sick and inhuman old lady on the bed, the matchmaker immediately changed his expression, pointed at He Xing and kept questioning her.
"What's wrong with your grandma? Didn't you say she was just a little sick?"
He Xing lowered his head and said nothing. This silence represented a guilty conscience, obviously acknowledging that his grandma was indeed seriously ill.
"What the hell is going on with you?! This nice girl will soon be part of your family. You can't cheat her."
"I didn't intend to trick her. Anyway, the situation is what you see. My grandma will probably have to lie in bed in the future. I am her only grandson. I will definitely take care of the elderly. My wife will also help me in the future. Take care of grandma and take care of the land at home, otherwise our family will starve to death.”
When the matchmaker heard this, his tone rose.
"What about your 70 yuan a month retirement pay? It's enough for the whole family even if you don't farm!"
"Retirement fee? Several of my comrades have sacrificed their lives, and the money has been given to their parents and children. I don't have to rely on the retirement fee to live. I am young and can support my family if I work harder. The girl who marries me needs to eat more. A little more suffering, a little more suffering.”
"Suffering hardships? Whose good girl comes to suffer hardships and sufferings with you! Come on, come on, you've seen enough, let's go... Come on, what are you doing?"
While the two were chatting, they didn't notice what Jiang Lai was doing.
Seeing that she had been looking around just now, He Xing thought that Jiang Lai was looking at his room. He felt no burden or embarrassment and just showed his truest side calmly.
He believed that Jiang Lai would soon run away and would never consider this marriage again. After all, which girl from such a poor family would be willing to marry?
Except of course that silly girl.
The matchmaker's shout made He Xing startled. He turned around and saw the scene in front of him that almost made him doubt his eyes.
Beside the hospital bed, Jiang Laizheng was holding a bowl of water and feeding it little by little to the mouth of the old man sitting on the bed. His movements were patient and gentle, and there was no trace of disgust or impatience in his eyes.
Seeing this, the matchmaker quickly went up and gave Jiang Lai a hand.
"What are you doing? My grandson is here and wants to drink water. He doesn't need you!"
Jiang Lai seemed a little at a loss, but he still took care of the old man and took the last sip. Then he quickly put down the bowl, clutched the corner of his clothes and looked at He Xing nervously.
"I just saw that the old man was thirsty and didn't say anything. I just... I just brought a bowl of water. I didn't mean anything else."
The matchmaker gave Jiang Lai a helpless look, then took Jiang Lai's arm and walked out.
"Okay, okay, let's go after we've seen enough. He Xing, please take good care of your grandma. Let's go back first."
He Xing looked at Jiang Lai with a hint of surprise in his eyes.
He never expected that Jiang Lai would not only not be deterred by the poverty at home, but would actually take a bowl of water and feed it to his grandma.
After the two left, the old man slowly stood up from the bed and sighed.
"Jiang Lai is a good girl, A Xing, why do you push such a good girl away?"
He Xing came back to his senses and frowned, full of doubts and confusion. The silence made grandma sigh.
"The eyes don't deceive. That child has a simple mind, which is just right for someone with a serious mind like you."
"Grandma, I have my own plan."
"I know what you are thinking. Grandma just hopes that you can find a good girl who knows both cold and hot. You still have to make your own decision next."
"I know."
——
On the way back, the matchmaker kept scolding Jiang Lai.
"Why do you think you are meddling in that business? How poor are you before you get to his house? Even if a mouse gets in, you have to escape. What's more, you are such a big girl. I have never seen him in all these years as a matchmaker. Such a poor family! The old lady is still a paralytic, with squinty eyes and crooked nose, and she doesn’t know how long she can live. If you get married, she will be a pit of fire and you will suffer all your life!”
Jiang Lai lowered her head and walked forward, still holding a piece of seedling grass randomly picked up by the roadside in her hand. Her fingers flexibly turned the straw stalk. By the time the matchmaker finished nagging along the way, the straw stalk in her hand had turned into I picked up a delicate and small butterfly, lifted it up and blew it, and the butterfly's wings would flutter up and down.
Seeing this, the matchmaker frowned and sighed.
"Xiao Lai, don't you have a crush on that boy He Xing?"
Jiang Lai neither nodded nor shook his head.
"He Xing is very filial."
"Filial piety doesn't matter. How can you be filial when you don't have food to eat? Didn't you see that his family can barely afford water to wash the pot?"
Jiang Lai said nothing, looked at the matchmaker silently, and then pointed to the rice that was about to mature in the countryside.
"I don't want to get married now, and I don't want to farm in the future. I want to study and do well in college!"
"It's over, it's over...this kid is a little crazy."
The matchmaker told Jiang Shansheng the truth about the situation in He Xing's family. While talking, he slapped his thighs, wishing he could get everything he saw out of his mind.
"Too poor, really too poor! There is not a single grain of rice in the rice vat, not a single piece of meat can be seen on the roof beams, the three acres of land are wasteland, the only old man is a paralytic, and he is retired from the army with a little ability. All the money was used by that idiot He Xing to subsidize the families of his comrades. If you can’t marry, you definitely can’t marry!”
If you marry Jiang Lai, wouldn't that completely destroy your own reputation?
Jiang Shansheng frowned and kept smoking cigarettes. Jiang Lai beside him didn't say anything from beginning to end until Jiang Shansheng sighed.
"I think that kid He Xing is down-to-earth and capable, and I thought he was a sober and good young man."
"How stupid! Give the money away! I don't think he can even get ten yuan out of his pocket! Captain, you have to think carefully, no matter what, you can't push your daughter into the fire pit!"
At this moment, Jiang Lai, who had been silent all this time, suddenly said something.
"Dad, it seems that school has started, right?" (End of Chapter)