Siheyuan: A Cook in the 60s

Qin Huairu had lunch at home and then went out.

Knocked on Qin Jingru's house.

"Huai Ru? Why are you here?" As soon as Qin Da walked out of the house, he saw Qin Huai Ru holding Xiao Huai Hua, with Xiao Dang beside her.

"I came back with Jingru and the others. I wanted to ask them when they are leaving. Please call me at the east end of the village and I will go there to take a look." Qin Huairu lifted her hair from her forehead and said softly.

"Oh oh oh, okay." Qin Da nodded.

"Okay, then, please help me."

"Do not worry."

Qin Da entered the house.

Qin Daqiong asked: "Who is it?"

"Qin Huairu."

"Sister, why are you here so early in the afternoon? Didn't we agree to go home together later?" Qin Jingru came out with the dishes. Today's lunch was relatively rich, so she ate a little late.

"You guys came back with Huairu? She hasn't been back for a few years."

"Oh, she has a hard life. Her husband left her alone, and her mother-in-law is so mean."

Speaking of Qin Huairu, there was one more topic of conversation in the room.

My father-in-law spent a lot of money on lunch.

He took out a pheasant directly, which is a delicacy that cannot be eaten in later generations. Cao Wei was itching to cook it himself. To be honest, it was not his turn to cook. But since they were a family, he didn't care so much.

"The chicken soup is here." Cao Wei brought out the chicken stewed with mushrooms.

I heard everyone talking about Qin Huairu.

Curiously asked: "What happened to Qin Huairu?"

"She told you to find her at the east end of the village when you are leaving. She's going there for a walk." Qin answered while staring at the big pot in Cao Wei's hand.

"The east end of the village?" Cao Wei didn't quite understand.

"Oh, there is a piece of land in front of the east end of the village. There is an old tree there. For many years, when we had nothing to do, we always liked to rest there."

Cao Wei seemed to be thinking about something.

Qin Jingru glanced at him and said, "Let's eat, let's eat. Brother Wei, go see me later. I don't know what happened in the middle of the day. Why are you running to the east instead of staying at home?"

"Okay, I'll go check it out after we finish eating."

Qin Daqiong and the others didn't think there was anything wrong. After all, they came back together, so it wasn't too much to show some concern. They were all relatives.

Cao Wei just arrived next to Qin Jingru.

Qin Jingru stepped on the back of his foot with her little feet and stomped hard twice.

Cao Wei: ...

Who did you learn these habits from?

Looking at his wife gritted her teeth while eating the chicken leg in the bowl as if nothing had happened, he suddenly thought of a woman named Lou.

Okay, okay, Lou Xiao'e, you really teach me everything.

Qin Daqiong gnawed the chicken neck happily. As he ate, he sighed: "This chef is a real chef. His cooking skills are really good."

"Of course not." Qin Da ate without even turning his head. Today's meal finally opened the door to a new world for him.

There was a lively atmosphere at the dinner table.

Qin Daqiong also took out the loose basket that he had treasured for some time and poured a little out to each person.

I finished the meal comfortably.

Cao Wei patted his stomach and went out.

"Brother-in-law, would you like me to take you there?"

"No need, it's just at the east end of the village. I can walk there in no time."

"Okay, go ahead."

In the countryside of this era, there was nothing but mud and snow on the road. It was hard to see a pile of feces on the ridge. Most of them were picked up and used as fertilizer. The road was considered quite clean.

The road at the east end of the village is easy to recognize.

That old tree can be regarded as a symbol of Qinjia Village.

This is the tallest and largest one.

At this moment, Xiaodang was running and jumping in the open space in front of the big tree. Qin Huairu was holding locust flowers, sitting under the big tree, staring at the river in front of the village in a daze.

I don’t know what I’m thinking.

Cao Wei did not walk over directly, but waved at Xiaodang.

It was noon and everyone was eating. And since people rarely go out during the New Year, there were only a few of them here.

When Xiaodang saw Cao Wei coming, he immediately ran over excitedly.

After running over, Cao Wei first gave her a fried meatball, which he had just taken out of his pocket.

After feeding, the environment of you asking and answering begins: "What happened to your mother?"

"I don't know?" Xiao Dang said while chewing, and gave Cao Wei a thumbs up: "The meatballs are delicious."

Cao Wei was delighted by her cute appearance and patted her head: "Okay, go play."

Cao Wei walked over and hugged her from behind.

She was startled and just as she was about to struggle, she heard a familiar voice and a familiar breath, saying unhappily: "Can you not be so bold? You just hug me when I say so. And put your hands down!"

"Hey, it's a habit." Cao Wei put down his hand that was pressing on his conscience and sat next to her: "What's wrong? You were very happy this morning."

"I don't know either." Qin Huairu sighed slowly, while the little locust flower in her arms was sleeping soundly.

"Did your family ask you to do something?"

"No." Qin Huairu shook her head: "They separated."

"Separate?"

"Yes. My eldest brother, second brother and fourth brother all separated. Fourth brother moved to the neighboring village. My parents lived with my eldest brother, and my second brother built a house of his own outside."

Splitting up a family is a very common thing in rural areas.

Most families will divide up the family property. The share of the family property is limited, and parents will inevitably be partial to one another, to varying degrees. Generally speaking, when the third generation is born, the family will most likely choose to divide up the property. There are also some who delay this process, probably because the parents feel that their sons are not yet able to stand on their own feet, and will keep them around for a while.

This period of time will not be delayed too long. By the time the third generation can run and jump, the division is basically determined.

Cao Wei did not understand the impact of "separation of the family" on Qin Huairu.

"This time when I went home, I felt that I didn't have the same feeling as before." Qin Huairu lowered her head and looked at the rushing river below the slope: "My parents always favor boys. I know that it was like that in the past, but no matter how partial they are, I always feel at ease when I'm at home."

At this point, she paused, her tone a little lost: "This time when I came back, I didn't have that feeling anymore. You know, I felt like an outsider, and they were very polite to me."

Polite is not a good word for family members.

Cao Wei did not say anything. He stretched out his hand, embraced Qin Huairu, and let her lean on his shoulder. At this time, all he had to do was listen quietly.

Things in this world are like the river in front of them, flowing forward without turning back. Some things are over, and that's it. That's all.