The whole Gu family sat together for dinner. This was a table of food that Qin Ying ordered from a state-owned restaurant and had it delivered to their home. The dishes were rich and delicious, and with a few homemade meatballs and egg dumplings, the family had a lively meal.
Gu Ze'an and Qin Ying were in a particularly good mood. Their faces were rosy and they were in high spirits. Their tone was full of enthusiasm and they kept asking about their future son-in-law, Zhan Mingzhao, about his well-being.
"Ming Zhao, come, try this."
"This is delicious, Lao Gu, give him this."
Zhan Mingzhao was flattered by the warm hospitality of the Gu couple, which was something he had never expected.
Gu Xiangyi, who was standing aside, was holding a meatball, feeling quite unhappy. Why were her parents so warm and considerate to a man whose surname was not Gu? Were they afraid that she would not be able to get married
Obviously, she was her parents' only precious daughter.
It was she who was eager to get married and wanted to find a partner before... Gu Xiangyi was also thinking of bringing a partner back to feel proud, but how come now - she is not the one feeling proud
Zhan Mingzhao smiled and said, "Thank you, Uncle Gu and Aunt Gu, for your hospitality."
Qin Ying said enthusiastically: "Why call us uncle? Just call us mom and dad like your real sister."
"Okay." Comrade Zhan Mingzhao was also unceremonious, "Dad, Mom, I'll toast you a glass of wine."
"Mom, if you don't drink, I'll pour you a cup of tea."
Gu Ze'an smiled more gently: "Okay, okay, let's drink a few more glasses."
Zhan Mingzhao sat next to Gu Ze'an and his wife, and the three of them were talking to each other, as if they were a happy family of three.
Gu Xiangyi picked up a piece of shredded pork with chopsticks without any taste. The brothers next to her did not say anything. They all acted like a loving father and a filial son. She thought this was too much.
Gu Xiangyi said, "Dad! Mom! Do you really want me to get married? Why don't you make things difficult for him?"
"Who wouldn't have to go through many trials and tribulations to become a new son-in-law?"
"Big brother? Third brother! Fourth brother?! And the fifth... Forget it, you brothers, say something!"
The eldest brother Gu took a sip of tea and said nothing. The third brother Gu took a sip of wine and said calmly, "I don't have any opinion."
When the third brother Gu walked in, he took a look at his younger sister and Zhan Mingzhao. After careful consideration, this marriage was still reliable. The younger brother of the Zhan family had a good family background. He was the son of a martyr and had a clean background. He was handsome and had even acted in movies. Even if his family did not want this son-in-law, there were many other families who wanted this son-in-law.
Zhan Aiping is Zhan Mingzhao's biological sister. With Zhan Aiping and Gu Sheng as her sister and brother-in-law, there is no need to worry about Gu Xiangyi being bullied after marriage.
As a brother, he had to say in all conscience that if he missed this one, who knows how bad the next one would be.
“Fourth brother!”
Fourth Brother Gu shook his head: "I don't have any objection. I'll give you a big red envelope when you get married."
Before, the three brothers felt that Gu Xiangyi's marriage was inappropriate, but now after meeting Gu Sheng and his wife and Gu Xiangyi, they felt it was not bad. Especially when Gu Ze'an and his wife and the third brother came back, many people came to inquire about Zhan Mingzhao.
The attitude was like - your family doesn't want this son-in-law, so give him to our family instead!
In this situation, wouldn't it be stupid to push a good son-in-law away
The Gu family would never do such a loss-making business.
Brother Gu made the decision and said, "Since you have made up your mind, you should live a good life from now on."
Gu Xiangyi: “…”
"I am the only little sister in the family! You should at least make things difficult for him!"
"People think that if they marry me, they will have to accept the troubles from five brothers-in-law."
Third Brother Gu said, "If we continue to make things difficult for you, what will you do if you can't find a partner?"
Brother Gu said, "You like him and he's reliable, what else do our family have to say?"
Gu Xiangyi: “…”
Zhan Mingzhao advised her: "We are all good comrades, why do you want to break up?"
Obviously he was about to pass, but this grasshopper, who was on the same boat with him, changed his mind first.
Gu Xiangyi was angry: "You are too reasonable!"
"I shouldn't have chosen someone I know as a date."
Qin Ying said, "Don't be so ungrateful after getting an advantage."
"Many girls in our courtyard have brought their lovers home, but Ming Zhao is the prettiest."
Zhan Aiping looked at the scene in front of her and silently took a sip of soup. The reactions of the Gu family were like a punch hitting cotton. It was a pity that they had made so many preparations.
Come to think of it, since Zhan Aiping, their biological sister, is sitting here, it is difficult for the brothers to make trouble.
Gu Sheng smiled and said to Zhan Aiping: "My wife, you have the most face."
Zhan Aiping: “… ?”
Gu Sheng said: "With you here, who dares to make things difficult for your brother?"
When the elder brother Gu on the opposite side heard what Gu Sheng said, he glanced at Gu Sheng and said, "It's okay for my younger sister to get married, but you two, the fifth brother, have the biggest problem."
Brother Gu said, "I am most against you two getting married."
For the eldest brother Gu, who is still unmarried at such an old age, his younger brother Gu Sheng is really no different from his own son. He has always loved to worry about his younger brother Gu Sheng's affairs since they were young.
Whenever Gu Sheng made trouble, Gu Ze'an got anxious. He was more anxious than Gu Ze'an and wanted to discipline his younger brother more.
As the eldest child, the second and third children are twins. As an older brother, he cannot interfere in the relationship between the twins. The second and third children have a good relationship. The fourth child rarely makes trouble and is closer to his mother than to his brother. Only the youngest brother, Gu Sheng, has devoted most of the eldest brother's efforts to the youngest brother. The eldest brother feels that he is worried about his younger brother.
But his younger brother's rebellion hurt him.
When he was in school, he was far away from his elder brother. Later, when he was assigned a job, the elder brother tried to bring the younger brother to his side, but Gu Sheng disagreed. He insisted on staying far away and going to the border.
The eldest brother of the Gu family saw that Gu Sheng had a headache, and Gu Sheng also felt scared when he saw him.
The eldest brother always had an inexplicable fatherly love for him. He always wanted to take care of him, care about him, and want to keep him under his wings.
He always wanted to transfer his job and move Gu Sheng to his side.
Such obvious favoritism made the young Gu Sheng feel awkward and uncomfortable. It would be fine if he had no opinion of his own and only wanted to rely on his brother, but he had his own ideas and did not want to accept his brother's care and protection.
Big Brother Gu had no place to vent his fatherly love. As the eldest brother, he was already very capable in the local area and could take care of his younger siblings, but there was not a single younger sibling who needed his care and attention.
A person works and participates in politics in a foreign place, free from all worries and far away from his family... When he was young, Brother Gu was full of passion and enthusiasm, and wanted to marry the girl he liked, but he failed. The girl passed away unexpectedly, which was a big blow to him.
It’s not that their feelings are so deep, but that he feels that he is too weak, which is why his parents interfere with him and he doesn’t have the courage to fight back.
After that, Brother Gu devoted himself to work. His career success made him happy. As a man, who doesn't have such ambition? He didn't care much about finding a partner for marriage. He felt that he was still young and there was no rush at 30, so he continued to work.
Now at this age, after all the ups and downs and seeing too many things, Brother Gu has even less desire to get married. He is different from when he was young and can no longer find a suitable woman.
Many of the women who appeared around him approached him purposefully to please him. They were younger than him, young and beautiful, and he could tell at a glance what they were thinking.
Brother Gu doesn't want to find himself a young wife because he can't get over his own hurdle. And women of his age and who are wise are too clear-headed. They are only suitable to be friends or comrades, not lovers.
Brother Gu has now given up the idea of getting married, guessing that he will have no offspring. However, the older he gets, the more he looks forward to festive occasions and family reunions, and a sense of loneliness is gradually rising in his heart.
"We've been married for several years, and you two haven't come to see me." Brother Gu looked at Gu Sheng, still feeling quite resentful.
He only has this one brother whom he raises like a son, but he never takes the initiative to visit him even after he gets married.
Zhan Aiping said: "Transportation is inconvenient right now, and Gu Sheng has few holidays."
Transportation was so underdeveloped in the 1960s and 1970s that even walking from the village to the county was a "long journey" for ordinary villagers, especially in the mountainous areas in the south. Although the straight-line distance on the map was short, in fact one had to "climb over mountains and cross ridges."
Serving in the army means even fewer holidays, and the opportunity to visit relatives during the New Year is very competitive, usually taking turns. In addition, Zhan Aiping was pregnant and had just given birth to a child, so it was not convenient for the two of them to travel long distances with the child.
Brother Gu said, "I didn't want him to join the army at first."
Brother Gu hopes that his younger brother will be like him, as there are already enough people in his family who have joined the army.
"Old Five, if you want to change your career, come to me."
Gu Sheng: "I don't want to change my career."
Zhan Aiping: “…”
Brother Gu has a strong desire for control.
Although Gu Sheng often wrote letters to his elder brother, he really didn't want to talk to his brother, let alone meet him.
“Now that you two are married and have children, Pingping, you have to be more virtuous and help him take care of the family…” Brother Gu was very dissatisfied with Zhan Aiping, his sister-in-law (daughter-in-law). He hoped that his younger brother could find a virtuous wife to take care of the family, preferably a female teacher who is gentle and able to discipline children.
"I introduced you to a female teacher, but you didn't want her."
Zhan Aiping no longer had any good feelings towards Brother Gu. This brother was more like a father-in-law than Gu Ze'an, and a combination of the old-fashioned father-in-law and mother-in-law.
Zhan Aiping said, "I also want to find a male teacher to marry. If he can't teach the children well, I can scold him and despise him. You are a teacher, and you can't even teach your own children well?"
"You can't even teach your own child? And you want to teach other people's children?"
Brother Gu stared at her, thinking that this woman was too rebellious and simply lawless.
"Gu Sheng, take care of your wife."
Brother Gu couldn't imagine how the couple lived at home. His younger brother was a grown man, so his wife had to take good care of him. And he could let his wife bully him.
Do you dare to challenge his big brother
If his younger brother doesn't know how to do it, he, as the older brother, must teach him personally.
(End of this chapter)