NOVEL NEXT Chapter 263: 263 go home
Su Yuanyuan went inside to sit for a while and played with Xiao Ling before driving the carriage back.
By the time she got home, it was almost dark. She stoked the fire till it was blazing before heading to the Li Family with the gifts.
"Sister, I went to your house, but it was locked." Li Liyun smiled as she took the items handed to her by Su Yuanyuan.
"I went to my sister's place to bring back the livestock."
"Sister, dried fruit again? That's wonderful. I've been wanting to have some for a long time."
Li Hongxiang smiled from the side, "Girl, how was the trip this time?"
"It was the same, still as tense as ever."
Li Hongxiang nodded. He felt the same whenever he went to the city.
Su Yuanyuan sat for a bit, accepted the twenty yuan handed to her by Li Hongxiang, and then left.
The next day, she visited the homes of both Feng Baoshan and Ma Changshun, delivering dried fruits to both families.
"Xiao Su, there's just not enough fertilizer this year."
"Director Feng, aren't the leaders above issuing permits?"
"We can get permits, but there's no stock at the fertilizer factory."
"Well, we're actually doing okay, managing to get twenty tons."
Feng Baoshan sighed. In truth, he wanted to ask why she hadn't received permits despite her donations over the past two years. But there was no good way to articulate this.
In the days that followed, Su Yuanyuan mostly stayed at home, sometimes with Zhao Yanli and her sisters coming over to play for a day, or with occasional visits from Li Liyun.
She just led a leisurely life at home. One day, while making dumplings, she realized there wasn't much left in storage; once farming season started, there wouldn't be time to cook. So in her free time, she made extra for the convenience when the time came.
"Xiao Su, Xiao Su."
Hearing Feng Baoshan's voice, Su Yuanyuan hurriedly went out.
"Director Feng."
"I brought this back for you from the post office. Is it grain?"
Su Yuanyuan was stunned for a moment, moving down two burlap bags. After checking the address, she realized it was sent from her hometown, likely from Hu Chunhua and the others.
"Thank you, Director Feng."
"You're welcome."
After seeing Feng Baoshan off, she carried the bags inside. Without hurrying to open them, she knew they contained wheat—two bags of it.
Goodness, the postal fee could have bought this much wheat, but the thoughtfulness behind it was invaluable.
After putting the dumplings away, she finally opened the two bags.
Inside was a letter from Hu Chunhua, asking if last year's grain had been received and noting that they were doing well, having finally recovered over the past two years.
Su Yuanyuan was at a loss for words; they hadn't received anything last year. But to avoid upsetting them, she decided not to mention it.
Determined to write them back, she planned to assure them that things were well here, and they shouldn't worry.
Feeling warm inside, Su Yuanyuan reflected on how Hu Chunhua had always shown her kindness. Whether or not she had saved her, Hu Chunhua had always taken good care of her future life.
She decided to send them dried fruit and two bolts of cloth, hoping they wouldn't get lost this time.
A couple of days later was Zhao Xiaojing's wedding. Su Yuanyuan went there by carriage; she had met Xu Hongbing before—a handsome young man. It turned out Zhao Xiaojing had a thing for looks.
The wedding was rather simple since the groom's family didn't have relatives around, so they agreed to just have a meal at the Zhao Family's place.
A few days prior, Su Yuanyuan had given them a slaughtered chicken, ensuring that she wouldn't feel awkward about eating with them.
Zhao Yanping and her husband also came, and seeing the heavily pregnant Zhao Yanping, Su Yuanyuan smiled and congratulated her.
"Only a few more months before the baby arrives; it's no problem."
"Big sister, you don't need to push yourself so hard."
"I know my limits."
Women these days truly had it tough, sometimes having to return to work in the fields just two or three days after giving birth.
The thought alone made Su Yuanyuan shiver—how much suffering did childbirth bring? Not to mention not getting any rest.
Indeed, women had hardships, with responsibilities spanning the home, the fields, dealing with men, children, and the elderly, fulfilling all expectations.
Today's meal was held at Zhao Qingxiang's place, and everyone sat around enjoying a good atmosphere.
Sun Yun wasn't a stingy sister-in-law. So on the table were stews and quite a few dishes, which was considered pretty good at the time.
Though the staple was corn pancakes, they were made from pure cornmeal.
After lunch, Shao Hongbing drove his wife and her things back, leaving only Zhao Yanli as the single person at the Zhao Family. But Zhao Yanli, already seventeen, was already a grown woman. Several families had come to propose marriage, but she hadn't favored anyone yet.
After lunch, Su Yuanyuan also drove back home, wondering if she should check out the riverbank. But there were still plenty of fish in storage, enough for feeding the pigs for the year, so she opted to stay put.
Once the New Year had passed, Su Yuanyuan drove to the city. Primarily, she wanted to send things to Hu Chunhua, but she also wanted to stop by the supply and marketing cooperative.
The two girls were dressed warmly, although they still walked a lot.
Zhao Yanli also went to the post office to write a letter to her family but didn't send anything, only thinking to remit twenty yuan.
"Yuanyuan, didn't you say the postage could buy those things?"
"Yeah, but the things I send back aren't available where we are."
"I'm so envious that you can go anywhere."
"I'm not planning on going anywhere this year."
"Why not?"
"I just want to spend the New Year at home. I haven't been home for several years."
"Aren't you going to see Tan Shaoting?"
"No, he's too busy with work. Even if we met, it would only be for a day or two. I don't want to ride a train for two months just for that."
When they reached the city, they headed directly to the inn, but after much persuasion, it was late at night and the innkeeper still wasn't keen to open the door.
Neither of the girls undressed, as the inn was not cold but certainly not warm.
"Let's head home right after finishing tomorrow. It's not only expensive here, but also not as comfortable as being at home."
Su Yuanyuan listened to her friend's grumbling, realizing the girl was indeed watchful of their expenses.
The next day, the two went to the post office, where Su Yuanyuan went in first to deal with the parcels that needed to be checked. Watching as the staff opened her package, she didn't feel particularly happy.
Nevertheless, it was the way things went, and fortunately, she had told both families not to send her things. Otherwise, she would've felt a little uneasy.
It took her half an hour to get it all sorted, and Zhao Yanli waiting outside was getting restless.
Once they finished there, the two girls headed straight to the supply and marketing cooperative, buying necessities like salt, matches, and lamp oil.
Su Yuanyuan bought these items too, except lamp oil; instead, she bought candles. The lamp oil smoked so much that she couldn't keep her eyes open, so she'd rather spend more on candles.