Chapter 334: We are generations apart

“I think that Miss Yuzheng is quite good,” Grandma Liu commented.

Liu Yusheng immediately winked at her grandmother, “Grandma, good vision!”

The old woman smiled till her eyes narrowed and pursed her lips.

“Zhixia has taken a fancy to a lady. Wife, why don’t you find an opportunity to explore the girl’s tone? If we just rely on Zhixia’s slow nature, I really can’t say when he’ll get married and how long we’ll have to wait!” Grandpa Liu was still worried.

Fancying someone was one thing, but it was a huge question whether it would work out and when it would.

If it was dragged for three or five years, the two old them would probably look forward to it till their hair turns gray. 

Grandma Liu immediately shook her head. “Things are still unclear at present. Wait for some time. That girl is so thin-skinned. I’m really dying to ask, but I’m afraid she’d be embarrassed to spend the New Year at home.”

“Then, ask after the New Year?”

“After the New Year, I’ll find the opportunity to try again then.”

Liu Yusheng did not interrupt and left the two elders talking enthusiastically.

Her elder brother’s business has been settled, so the family could rest assured a lot.

Yuzheng wasn’t totally impervious to her brother. Otherwise, she would not have accepted his lantern and would not have come with her to Xinghua Village for the New Year. Moreover, she would not have accompanied him out alone earlier.

If Yuzheng did not have any interest in her brother, she would not have gotten involved in this lively matchmaking.

It was most important for two people in a relationship to love each other.

If they were interested in each other, she hoped that there would be a joyous outcome for her brother and Yu Zheng.

A girl rarely moved her brother, and Yuzheng has suffered enough upheaval since she was a child. She hoped that all the people around her could all be happy.

The subjects of the conversation were already on their way to the Lis’ house.

“Are all the wine jars used in the winery produced in the village?”

It was quite awkward when both of them were walking diligently, so Fu Yuzheng sought a topic. She was genuinely curious about everything in Xinghua Village, too.

“Yes, they’re all produced by Uncle Li’s family. Their family is now already the second richest household in the village. You probably can’t imagine. Thirteen years ago, their family was so broke that they almost closed the kiln.”

“Close the kiln? Was the business bad?”

“Business was not good. Back then, there were three or four shops in the town producing porcelain. The place is vast, but producing bowls and dishes sold throughout the year was not enough to make ends meet. At that time, their eldest son’s marriage was even ruined because of this. They were given the cold-shoulder due to the family’s poverty. Every family in Xinghua Village was poor.”

“It was only with the winery that the village slowly got better and better?”

“Yeah. At that time, no one could have imagined that the Xinghua Village Winery would have such a bright future as now.” Speaking of the happenings of those years, Liu Zhixia’s eyes showed nostalgia and amusement. “Can you imagine a three-year-old baby talking business with a nine-year-old kid in a serious manner?”

“…” She really could not imagine. Three years old? When she was three years old, she couldn’t even speak intelligibly.

“Can you imagine how the fruit wine that is now popular throughout Nanling came about? When Nannan was two years old, she played with Grandpa’s wine jar and casually threw some grapes down, and the next year it became grape fruit wine. Since then, the Xinghua Village winery has been built.”

“……”

In the midst of their casual conversation, they arrived at the entrance of the Li house.

The so-called other end of the village didn’t take long to cover as Xinghua Village wasn’t too big. 

The Li house has already been renovated into a tiled house with gray walls and black tiles. The courtyard gate was wide open.

Lively voices could be heard inside.

“Uncle, Aunt, are you all home?” Liu Zhixia shouted and walked in the door.

Immediately, someone came out of the kitchen with a rice bowl. It was Li Da, “Yo, how come you’re here, Zhixia? Have you eaten? Come in and have some!”

“Nevermind, Uncle. I came to fetch some earthen pots. You still have some at home, right? We’ll be making rice cakes for tomorrow, but my grandparents are afraid that there are not enough pots, so they asked me to come take some to make up for it.”

Li Da’s wife, Yang, also came out.  “Yes, we’ve just stored some in the corner there. Take a few more. Our family is having an early dinner today, and we’ll head to your house together after eating to make cakes!”

Women were more prone to gossip. When speaking, her eyes swished and landed on the pretty girl following Liu Zhixia.

“This is Fu Yuzheng. She came home to celebrate the New Year,” Liu Zhixia smiled.

Fu Yuzheng quickly greeted the two elders, “Uncle, Aunt.”

She didn’t know how to address them, so she followed Liu Zhixia’s example.

“Ai, good, what a nice girl!” Yang’s eyes narrowed as she smiled. Her eyes shone brighter. She looked at Fu Yuzheng from beginning to end and kept nodding.

She appeared picking a daughter-in-law…For some reason, this idea popped in Fu Yuzheng’s head, and her face instantly burned.

Four more heads peeked out of the door to the kitchen, and two five or six-year-old kids appeared below the feet of the adults to join in the fun. Both had ram-horn braids on their heads, wearing newly sewed cotton jackets, and were as round as dumplings. They were very cute.

“Come on, call him Zhixia-gege.” Li Ping patted the two children’s heads and came out from inside. “Zhixia, my children can already roll all over the floor, ah. When are you going to get married? You’re only a few years younger than me.”

In the corner of the courtyard wall, Liu Zhixia stacked a few earthen pots and carried them down. He curled his lips and replied, “Uncle Ping, you are only a few years younger than my father. My father’s children have reached the age to marry, but your children have just learned how to roll all over the ground. You still have the nerve to say that? Don’t take me and you as an analogy. We are not in the same generation.”

“…”

Laughter burst at the door of the kitchen, and Yang teared up with laughter. 

Since Ping got married and had children, her son’s temperament has changed a lot and he was more able to talk than before.

She didn’t expect that just when he opened his mouth to speak today, Zhixia shut him up with his own rejoinder. Yang looked down at the two confused little dumplings with a smile. “In the future, you two have to go to school and study hard. Be like your Zhixia-gege, so that your father can’t talk back.”

Fu Yuzheng stood aside and blushed once more.

Sometimes first impressions could really be deceiving. How could Liu Zhixia be serious? Or pedantic? He was quite dark inside despite his appearance.

“Uncle, Aunt, we’ll head home ahead. Come over when you’ve finished eating. Everything is ready at home, but you can bring rice flour and make cakes.”

“Okay, we’ll be there later.”

“Zhixia, Anzi and I will also come to see you later. We haven’t met for a long time, so let’s get together and have a chat.”

“I’ll be waiting for you at home. Bring the two children too, the little ones love to have fun.”

After leaving the Li family’s door, Fu Yuzheng reached out and tried to carry two earthen pots from the man’s arms to lighten his burden.

He carried six at a time, but the earthen pots the size of a basin was heavy. 

The man turned a bit and dodged her hand.

“I can carry them. Just follow,” the man said gently.

Fu Yuzheng’s cheeks were inexplicably hot again.

She always had this feeling that when he spoke in a tone, it seemed to carry doting.

“You don’t need my help, yet you still asked me out?” She wanted to say something, but all that came out sounded petulant.

The man did not answer. He just lowered his eyes to look at her, with a shallow smile deep in his eyes.