“Yes, that very familiar Wensong. Do you live nearby?”
“Sure, I’ve seen that kid grow up. Wensong is a good boy, sensible and polite. It’s just that the Su Family children were born at an unfortunate time, but that’s all in the past. Look at the bun shop business he’s running with his partner, how good is it? The good days will always come.”
“His… his partner?” Qin Han’s neck went stiff, and he nearly choked on a bun.
“Ah? Isn’t Lin his partner? I think they are quite a match, both talented and beautiful,” the old man said with a smile, taking a bite of Qin Han’s cold dish.
Qin Han pushed the cold dishes towards the old man, thought for a moment, then got a bottle of liquor and two cups from the counter, and poured the old man a cup.
The old man took a sip with a smile.
Qin Han also poured himself a cup and clinked glasses with the old man before continuing the conversation. “Old man, you seem like a wise person, but I must disagree with what you just said.”
“Hmm?” The old man took a sip of liquor and a bite of the dish.
“You see, Lin… the Lin you mentioned, doesn’t she look radiant? She looks to be in her twenties, but that Mr. Su, his face is all wrinkled, even more so than mine, how can they be a perfect match? Besides, look at the shop sign, it says ’Qin’s Buns Shop,’ not ’Su’s Dumpling Shop.’”
The old man was taken aback, “Really? Is Lin’s surname Qin?”
Qin Han filled the old man’s cup, “Lin’s surname is Lin, her man is surnamed Qin.”
The old man blinked, thought for a while, then seriously asked, “Oh, when did Wensong change his surname to Qin?”
Qin Han: “…”
……
Lin Chuxia saw Qin Han somehow started drinking with an old man and felt that their cold dishes were getting scarce, so she served two more plates and brought them over.
When Qin Han saw Lin Chuxia coming over, he stood up to greet her, “Sister-in-law, tell the old man, are we family?”
Lin Chuxia didn’t understand what Qin Han was getting at but smiled and nodded, “Yes,” seeing that the old man was a regular customer, she smiled and explained, “This is my brother.”
“Not right, I’m your older uncle, your husband’s older brother,” Qin Han corrected.
Lin Chuxia didn’t see any difference but followed his lead, “Yes, older uncle.”
“Ah, that’s more like it. Old man, you see, I didn’t lie to you, did I? Chuxia, who you called Lin, she’s my brother’s wife. My brother is very capable, one of the first university students after the restoration of the college entrance exam. For how many years in Qin Family Village, there was only one university graduate, and he’s a bridge designer…”
Watching Qin Han chatting away with the old man, Lin Chuxia shook her head with a smile.
The temperaments of the Qin brothers, Qin Han, and Qin Yang, sometimes really are…
Their appearances are so upright, but they both have a childlike aspect to them.
Qin Han and the old man drank from the time when there were few customers in the shop till there were many, then few again. The old man was a bit drunk, and his family members, seeing he hadn’t returned for a long time, came to look for him in the shop.
Seeing that he was drinking with a stranger, they complained about his love for alcohol while helping him home.
Qin Han held his liquor well, his face slightly flushed but not drunk. After finishing his meal, he wanted to have a bowl of porridge. Carrying his empty bowl, he went to get some.
Su Wensong saw him and quickly came over to help, “Big brother, let me serve you.”
Qin Han moved the bowl to one side, “No need, when I’m eating at my brother and sister-in-law’s shop, I don’t need help from others.”
Su Wensong saw the wariness in his eyes and laughed, “All right, big brother, please feel free.”
There was nothing much to do in the shop, and he still had to go house hunting.
…………
Qin Han got home and Zhang Gui Lan was about to go work in the fields. Seeing him, she asked, “Why are you back so late? Were there many people delivering vegetables at the station? And why do I smell alcohol on you? Have you been drinking?”
“After delivering the vegetables, I stopped by my sister-in-law’s bun shop.”
Qin Han started stripping off his clothes in the courtyard, got a towel, and began to wipe his body with water.
It was hot in summer, and working amongst the beans meant you’d be sweating through your clothes.
Zhang Gui Lan watched his casual manner and reminded with a frown, “Even when she’s not at home, you should still be mindful. It wouldn’t be good if your sister-in-law suddenly returned home and caught you like this, as you are the elder uncle.”
There’s a saying, ’Better to sit on the leg of a young uncle than to pass by in front of an elder uncle,’ as there’s supposed to be a proper distance between the elder uncle and the sister-in-law.
“Uh huh, I know, I’ll be more careful next time,” Qin Han replied nonchalantly.
Seeing his lack of enthusiasm, Zhang Gui Lan squatted down beside him and struck up a conversation, “How’s the sister-in-law’s bun shop doing? The business must be quite good, right?”
Qin Han sighed, “What else can I say, anything is better than farming. I spent lunchtime at my sister-in-law’s bun shop, watching people coming and going, each spending a dollar or eighty cents, and the money came so easily. Then look at us, scraping food out of the soil with our sweat, planting beans and eggplants, nurturing them from tiny sprouts, hoping for blossoms, hoping for fruit, only to end up with them rotting in the fields unwanted. Everyone said the market economy is good, but for us old farmers, it’s not necessarily the case.”
Zhang Gui Lan knew Qin Han had always wanted to do business, and if it weren’t for her holding him back, he would have joined his sister-in-law in the bun business a long time ago.
It was too late to say anything now, she could only comfort her husband, “You can’t say that, ’No sparrow starves to death under heaven.’ We are just unlucky this season with the eggplants and beans being worthless. Look at those who planted hot peppers, they made money, didn’t they? Next year, we’ll plan properly, there are still opportunities to make money.”
“Uh-huh,” Qin Han grunted in response and plunged his head into the cool water to wash his hair.
Suddenly, Zhang Gui Lan remembered something, “I heard from Mother that the sister-in-law hired two people to work in her shop.”
At this Qin Han got angry, “Not just two, there’s also a man, looking to be under thirty, quite cultured in appearance. I’ve heard he’s a returned ’Educated Youth’ from the city. Think about it, of all the places to go, why work for a private business? Who can’t do odd jobs in a restaurant? For an educated young man to do this, isn’t it just eating for the sake of eating?”
“Keep your voice down,” Zhang Gui Lan slapped her husband’s hand and glanced towards her mother-in-law’s room, “If the sister-in-law wants to hire him, she must see him as a good fit. Why are you reacting so strongly?”
Qin Han realized something too and whispered to his wife, “How could I not react strongly? Just look at sister-in-law’s face, then consider her capabilities.”
As a man, he knew just how attractive a woman like Lin Chuxia was to men.
Not to mention others, even his younger brother who had always aspired to be a monk, completely changed when he met Lin Chuxia. The effect on other men was even less to say.
“Our brother finally married such a good wife, and since he’s away from home all year round, shouldn’t I, as his older brother, keep an eye out for him? You didn’t see that guy, with his pretentious way of talking. I’ve heard women like that cultured type…”
“Isn’t that a bit much? Our second brother is not bad either. He has the looks and the stature, not to mention education—a college graduate has to be more cultured than him, doesn’t he?”
Zhang Gui Lan had confidence in her brother-in-law.
But Qin Han was not that optimistic, “Distant waters can’t quench immediate thirst. No matter how good our second brother is, he’s not around. That kid is always hovering around the sister-in-law. Even if she has no intentions, that kid might. As the saying goes, ’It’s not the theft but the thief that worries us.’ No, I have to remember to write to our second brother tonight to see if he can come back for the Mid-Autumn Festival. It can’t go on like before, not coming home all year round. He also needs to write letters more often, can’t just marry a wife and then forget about her. If someone else runs off with her, then there’ll be plenty of crying.”
Zhang Gui Lan also felt it made sense, “Then you go write now. Don’t work in the fields this afternoon. Once the letter is written, send it off straight away.”