"Five hundred dollars, not a cent less."
"Three hundred yuan, not a cent more. Also, when I leave, Miao Qing must go with me."
"Then your family won't host a banquet."
"Does your Miao Qing have a dowry? If not, what kind of banquet will you invite?"
Dung ball: “…”
"Give me the money."
"No hurry, wait until you return the military coat to me. Besides, this military coat is military supplies. If you dare to rob it privately, don't blame me for asking the police to arrest you."
Fenqiu was stunned for a moment. It turned out that he had just stolen the military coat in vain. Although he was unwilling, he couldn't help but feel timid when he thought about being caught by the police.
"Fenqiu, you are becoming more and more lawless. You even dare to rob military supplies. Why don't you take back the military coats?"
Chen Weidang finally found an opportunity to speak. He glared and scolded Fenqiu. Fenqiu could only kick Ergang. Ergang ran home aggrieved.
It would be better to return it. Anyway, there is no share for me, so I don’t have to envy them. Ergang ran while muttering to himself and his pace became faster.
"Li Bing, I didn't expect that you would be given a surprise as soon as you came back. No, a shock. Come on, let's go. We are going to kill the New Year pig today. Let's go and have the pig-killing dinner."
Chen Weidang put his arm around Li Bing's shoulders and ran to the threshing ground. Li Huan and Li Le took Li Bing's luggage and returned home with gloomy faces.
"Qiao, how are you? Is your stomach okay?"
Cheng Qiao supported Li's mother as she walked home. Li's mother was very depressed, but she still asked Chen Qiao with concern.
"Mom, I'm fine. You don't have to worry too much. I think my eldest brother is confident and probably has a good solution."
Li's mother nodded. She never thought that Miao Qing would dare to touch her son Li Bing's brain. This girl's heart was already broken. She just hoped that her son could handle the matter well.
"Le Le, give me the things and go to the threshing ground to accompany your elder brother. He hasn't been back for so many years. I don't know what kind of problems he will encounter. You can stay by his side and take care of him."
Mother Li was still worried and asked Li Le to follow. Li Le nodded and left. Li Huan picked up all his things and walked quickly towards home. He was very angry but didn't know how to vent.
When Cheng Qiao and Li's mother returned home, Li Huan was already sitting in the yard chopping firewood. Looking at his ferocious look, it seemed that he mistook the firewood for seedlings and dung balls.
Not long after, Li Bing came back with a military coat in his hand, holding Li Le's hand. He knelt down when he saw Li's mother. He felt really unfilial that he had not seen his mother for so many years. But it was difficult to be both loyal and filial. For the sake of the motherland, he could only leave his mother to his younger brother.
Li's mother quickly pulled Li Bing up. If her husband had not passed away early and the family was not in such a difficult situation, she would have agreed to let her son join the army.
"Mom, this is the radio I bought for you so you can listen to the radio during the winter."
"Radio, kid, this thing is so precious, how can you be so wasteful?"
"Mom, now that you have money, you have to be filial to your parents. And these are batteries. When you run out of them, ask your brother to go to the county town and buy some."
Li Huan nodded quickly. Of course, he would be the one to do this kind of errands.
"Brother, sister-in-law, I bought this by exchanging tickets with someone. I'm giving it to you."
Li Bing took out a small box from a large package and opened it. There were two Plum watches inside, one big and one small. They looked very beautiful when put together.
"Thank you, brother. I like this gift very much."
"Thank you, brother." Cheng Qiao also quickly expressed his gratitude.
Li Huan took it with both hands. You know, these two watches are not cheap. It is unknown how many years his elder brother had saved up to be able to afford these two watches.
"Brother, where's mine?"
"You are the youngest, so you have to wait until the end, understand?"
Li Bing scratched Li Le's nose. The little girl had grown up and now lived in her own home. It seemed that she would have to get married in a few years.
"Here are the schoolbag, pen, and notebook I bought for you. You have to go to school."
Li Le pouted: "Second sister-in-law has already bought it for me. I will go to the third grade after the New Year."
Li Bing was stunned for a moment, and looked at Cheng Qiao with gratitude. Although he was not at home, he was well aware of his family's situation.
The younger brother never went to the fields and was considered a second-rate person in the village, but he knew that his younger brother must have the ability to make a living, otherwise his mother and sister would not have been able to support themselves solely by farming.
Also, his mother didn't use a penny of the money he sent home every month, saying that it was for him to use to get married in the future. So, my brother is not a second-rate person, but he is making money under the guise of a second-rate person.
When I returned home this time, I found that not only had the house been built, but there was also another one. Needless to say, it must have been built with money from my younger brother, and perhaps there was some dowry money from my younger brother and his wife in it.
I didn't expect Li Huan to be so blessed. Not only are his younger brother and sister-in-law good-looking, but they can also take care of the family so well and are so attentive to Lele.
"Thank you, sister-in-law. If my brother lets you down in the future, I will punish him."
Li Huan: “…”
"Thank you, big brother. Let's eat. Lele, follow me to serve the dishes."
Cheng Qiao felt Li Bing's sincerity and felt a little embarrassed, so she pulled Li Le to the kitchen.
Li Huan quickly stuffed the watch into the big pocket of Cheng Qiao's cotton-padded jacket and went to help.
The three of them came out carrying bowl after bowl of food. Li Bing looked at the dishes on the table, which included braised pork, chicken stewed with mushrooms, sweet and sour pork, three fresh vegetables, today's pig-killing dish, and a large basket of big white steamed buns.
"Mom, these dishes..."
"Eat. Ever since Qiao'er came into the family, she has been doing her best to support the family. Of course, your brother has also worked hard. By the way, you will soon be an uncle."
Li Bing's eyes lit up, the family was going to have a new baby, this was a good thing, he took out a wallet made of newspaper from his pocket, Cheng Qiao's eyes flashed, this must have been made by a woman.
"Mom, here are 400 yuan. I originally wanted to give all this money to you, but now it seems that it is not possible. I will give 100 yuan to my future nephew or niece, and the remaining 300 yuan will be given to Miao Qing."
"Son, you really have to marry Miao Qing."
Mother Li asked in disbelief.
"Mom, my hand touched a place she shouldn't have touched. Although it was not my intention, I still have to take responsibility for it."
"Brother, you are too serious. She is an unclean woman. Shouhou saw a little beggar in the county town who looked like Miao Qing. If things go wrong..."
"Shut up… "
Li Bing glanced at Li Huan. He knew that his brother was doing this for his own good. As long as he could slander Miao Qing, he wouldn't have to marry her. But a woman's reputation was as important as the sky, and he didn't want to involve a life.
Besides, making a person's life worse than death is the greatest punishment for that person. As long as Miao Qing can get through this, he will naturally treat her well in the future.