Picking mulberries

"Brother, grandpa, who are you waiting for?" Qiu Shangzhi came back from the county, saw Qiu Jingdong looking around at the intersection of Tan Road, and poked his head out of the car to ask.

"What... A Yang's boss recognized him as his godson, and said he wanted to hold a ceremony. Today, he specially asked someone to bring some 'nine dan gifts' over. I'm afraid the driver won't recognize him at the intersection of the village, so I'm waiting here. .”

"'Nine Dans of Gifts'?" Qiu Shangzhi laughed, "It's so old, it's still doing this. Besides, isn't the 'Nine Dans of Gifts' a gift for marrying a daughter."

"Who says it's not, there's no way, the boss insists on such a ceremony, saying that recognizing a son is similar to marrying a daughter, adding an extra parent." Qiu Jingdong said with a sneer.

"Yes, that makes sense. Want me to help?"

"No, no, go get busy," Qiu Jingdong hastily waved his hand, "Today the driver will bring 'nine dan gifts' over, and there are no guests. When you invite A Yang's godfather to visit you, you have to find time to come anyway." Stay with me."

"That's for sure," Qiu Shangzhi nodded and smiled, "Cui is always our distinguished guest here, and I may not be qualified to accompany him."

"It doesn't matter whether you are a VIP or not. He is A Yang's godfather, so we are brothers with him."

"That's right, that's our big brother." Qiu Shangzhi smiled.Seeing that he didn't need to help himself, Qiu Shangzhi didn't get out of the car and went directly to the township government.

Qiu Jingping's house suddenly became lively, and the aunts and aunts next door seemed to have made an appointment, and they all gathered at his house to chat about the daily routine.Zhuang Huaying came out of the hospital every two to three minutes to visit, as if he was afraid that he might go to the wrong house.

"Angang, are the firecrackers ready?" Qiu Jingping came out from the house and asked Zhuang Angang who was running up and down in the yard.

"It's already ready. I'll light the fire as soon as the burden comes." Zhuang Angang made an OK gesture.

"Don't spread it on the main road outside the courtyard."

"Don't worry, I circled the courtyard wall three times."

"Sister, although there are no guests, don't neglect the master who delivered the burden. Everything is ready for snacks and tea." Qiu Jingping said to Zhuang Dongying who came out of the kitchen.

"Okay, okay, everything is ready, as soon as people come, the noodles will be put into the pot." Zhuang Dongying smiled.

"Brother-in-law Jingping, what will Ayang's godfather bring over, it will make your house look like marrying a daughter." Zhuang Haixia, who came to see the popularity, joked.

"Well, whoever said no, I said don't engage in these nonsensical things, but people should pay attention to some rituals." Qiu Jingping smiled all over his face, and he couldn't tell the pain in his heart.

"I haven't seen the etiquette of giving 'nine dan gifts' for many years. Thanks to Ayang, there are also times when I look at the old tradition." The grandmother next door smiled at Qiu Jingping from a long distance away.

"They just make a formality, who knows what unreliable things will be sent." Qiu Jingping shook his head and said.

"Jingping, your brother called and said that they are here. Nine trucks are here," Wang Qiuxia who came in from outside the courtyard finished speaking to Qiu Jingping, then turned to Zhuang Angang, "His uncle, you are afraid that if you come in Command from outside so that the drivers can park their cars."

"Sister-in-law, nine trucks? What kind of trucks?" Qiu Jingping panicked when he heard how many trucks had arrived.

"The kind of truck driven by Song Baohua, the former Hulu Song family."

"My mother, uh, such a big truck." Qiu Jingping got angry a little anxiously, "Didn't the Cui family say to send 'nine dan gifts' here? Why are there nine trucks here?"

"There are nine loads on one car." Wang Qiuxia could only smile wryly.

"81 loads?" Qiu Jingping was dumbfounded.

"Well, that's what your brother said on the phone."

"Is the Cui family here to recognize his godson or come to the West to learn Buddhist scriptures? Where can I find someone to relieve the burden?" Qiu Jingping's head grew big.

"You don't need to find someone, the Cui family hired someone to unload the burden, you just need to prepare a place to put the burden."

"This is not here to recognize your son, it's obviously to show off your wealth," Qiu Jingping said helplessly, "To show off your wealth is definitely to show off your wealth."

When those aunts and aunts heard Wang Qiuxia say that it was 81 loads, the whole courtyard was immediately excited, chattering, and eagerly looking forward to the arrival of the gift truck.

"Here we come, the car is here." Zhuang Huaying, who was guarding the gate of the courtyard, shouted.Hearing his sister's greeting, Zhuang Angang quickly lit the firecrackers.

Amidst the sound of firecrackers, Qiu Jingdong led a tall man in his 60s and [-]s in with a smile on his face, and introduced loudly to Qiu Jingping who came forward: "This is the general manager of Cui's head office."

"Manager Chang, hello, hello, welcome." Qiu Jingping hurried forward to shake hands.

"Hello, Mr. Qiu, I didn't expect the father of our chairman to be so young." Chang Huanming smiled.

The sound of firecrackers was too loud, and it was difficult to talk to each other. Qiu Jingping signaled to Zhuang Huaying to ask her sister to prepare refreshments quickly.After a brief chat with Chang Huanming, the brothers hurriedly led him into the living room.

"Brother, you sit down with Manager Chang first. I'm going to invite the masters to come in for something to eat after such a long journey."

"Don't worry," Qiu Jingdong called to stop Qiu Jingping, "the road into the village is too narrow, there is no way for the trucks to turn around, there is only one car coming in, and then back down after unloading, only one car came in just now, and the others are at the entrance of the village waiting."

"Then I'll go talk to Angang and ask him to greet everyone." Qiu Jingping felt very guilty, and didn't know how to greet the "diplomatic ambassador" Chang Huanming sent by Cui Shicheng.

"I told them that they are all old drivers and know how to do it, so don't worry," Chang Huanming took out a big red envelope from his bag and handed it to Qiu Jingping, "This is the list of 'Jiu Dan Li' , so that it is convenient for Mr. Qiu to check."

"I'm really sorry to ask Manager Chang to come here." Qiu Jingping accepted the red envelope with a smile.

"I'm not a manager or not today, but a courier and commentator, responsible for introducing every burden." Chang Huanming joked.

"Manager Chang is polite."

"I heard from Mr. Cui that the loads brought over should be dried outside. 81 loads and 160 baskets. The yard is so big, so it should be able to put it down, but the things in the yard may have to be moved." Chang Huan Ming looked outside the courtyard and said.

"In the past, there was a custom of drying the burden." Qiu Jingdong also looked outside the courtyard, "Jing Ping, drink tea with Manager Chang first, and I'll clean up the courtyard."

The Cui family hired nine load bearers, and as soon as the sound of firecrackers stopped, they carried the load from the first car into the courtyard. The loads are lined up in order.

There is a section of road from the entrance of the village to Qiu Jingping's house, and it takes more than ten minutes for the car to get in and back. Taking advantage of this interval, every load of things can be clearly seen by those watching the excitement.

Not to mention anything else, it was the bamboo basket for holding things, which surprised everyone at once, all of which were made of Xingtun Liu's bamboo weaving.Liu’s Bamboo Weaving in Xingtun is a well-known gold-lettered signboard in Qingyuan. The artistic quality of its bamboo weaving is much higher than its practicality. An ordinary small basket can be sold for two or three hundred yuan, although Liu’s Bamboo Basket is slightly smaller than the common local baskets. Some, but both the materials and craftsmanship are incomparable to the local baskets.

"My God, how much will it cost to use all Liu's bamboo baskets?" Zhuang Huaying fell in love with the baskets as soon as she saw them, and she was more excited than those women who love bags when they saw brand-name bags.

"You want to buy bamboo baskets to return pearls. What are you looking at in the bamboo basket? Look at the things inside." Wang Qiuxia slapped Zhuang Huaying on the back and said.

Looking at the things inside, Zhuang Huaying couldn't understand.

The first load is full of square and rectangular brocade boxes, and I don't know what's inside.Chang Huanming took a small brocade box from inside, opened it for everyone to see, it turned out to be a Huzhou brush.Chang Huanming introduced to everyone that this load is full of stationery such as pens, inks, paper, inkstones and rulers.Seeing this, Qiu Jingping was secretly delighted.

The second load, the third load, and the fourth load are all in several large cardboard boxes.Chang Huanming introduced that inside are the most advanced high-end compact speakers, karaoke equipment and projection equipment.When Zhuang Huaying heard it, her artistic heart was ready to move, and her face was full of joy.

The fifth load, the sixth load, and the seventh load are still a basket and a cardboard box.Chang Huanming said that it is a cleaning robot that can automatically clean the floors when it is charged. There are six in total. Wang Qiuxia and Zhuang Huaying have three each, and one on the first floor of the building at home.As soon as Wang Qiuxia heard that it was automatically cleaned, she curiously wanted to take a look, but Qiu Jingdong slapped her hand back.

The eighth tan and the ninth tan are a bit retro, except for the disc, there is also a cardboard box.Chang Huanming said that the disc is a video of various genres of Yue opera, including famous actors from the older generation and the newer generation.Because discs are nearly eliminated in the market, and playback equipment is rare, a small player is installed in the cardboard box for easy viewing.Zhou Guimei thought to herself, I'm afraid I won't be able to finish watching these baskets of discs.

The burden of the first car, Qiu Jingping's family, was happy but others couldn't understand it. Although the burden of the second car seemed normal to everyone, it was astonishingly rich and high-end.

There are three loads of tea, not only the local Qingxi tea, but also some well-known teas from all over the country.There are four tans of wine, two tans of red wine, and two tans of white wine. They are all famous wines that everyone has never heard of.A load of supplements is nothing more than fish gelatin, ginseng, bird's nest, deer antler and donkey-hide gelatin.Although no one in the Qiu family smoked, there was still a load of famous cigarettes.

The burden of keeping up is much more practical. Clothes for all seasons, cotton, linen, silk, and yarn for the whole family, shoes for all seasons, winter and summer socks, hats, towels, scarves, gloves, pillow covers, quilt covers, bed sheets, The total amount of silk quilts is nearly forty tons.

The burden that came up again touched everyone’s taste buds, the common ones, the uncommon ones, the unseen ones, all eaten, salted duck, ham, fragrant rice, vermicelli, tea oil, olive oil, red beans, peanuts, red dates, pastries, chocolate , toffee, biscuits, coffee, etc., dried mountain delicacies such as mushrooms, dried seafood such as sea shells, abalone and sea cucumbers, there are nearly [-] tons of them.

What made those young daughters-in-law envious was that there were still three loads of hair ornaments, various artistic combs, cosmetics, skin care products, and washing products.

The last three loads are more eye-catching, red-naked-naked RMB, a load of red and red, all of which are 50 yuan per turn, and a load of green and green, all of which are [-] yuan per turn Yes, a load of purple ones, all of which cost five yuan a piece.

There was one exclamation after another in the Qiu family's courtyard, and all the young and old women said that today was an eye-opener, and it was the first time in the world to see such a big battle.

After sending off Chang Huanming and his group, with the help of Zhuang Angang and Zhuang Dongying, the 160 two baskets finally moved into the inner house, and the family was exhausted.Zhuang Angang and Zhuang Dongying hurried back after dinner, presumably in a hurry to spread the word about what he saw today in his circle of friends.

"Live such a big life, I have never been stimulated like this before." Zhou Guimei said with emotion.

"I have lived for more than 100 years, and I have never seen such a battle," Qiu Zaiyun said with a smile. "In the tenth year of the Republic of China, the son of the rich man Zhou in our township married the daughter of Marshal Lu in the city. Although his 'nine dan ceremony' High, but there are only 63 dans, and there are three or four dans of silver dollars, but they are still not as bold as the Cui family."

"Your old man has a good memory, you can remember things from such a long time ago." Qiu Jingping said.

"I happened to be 20 years old that year. My parents held a birthday party for me, and others held a wedding banquet. I remember it very well. The days passed so quickly. I remember it like yesterday. In a blink of an eye, 90 years have passed." Qiu Zaiyun Thinking of the past, I couldn't help but sigh.

"The bigger the battle, the more I feel like I'm selling my son." Zhuang Huaying smiled wryly.

"Hey, just your skinless son, is it worth the price?" Qiu Jingping sniffed after staying in the bank for half an afternoon on the street, "The red one has 180 million yuan per load, which is more expensive than what we gave him." 18 is ten times higher."

"According to this calculation, the green ones are worth 90 yuan, and the purple ones are worth [-] yuan. If nothing else, the cash alone is scary." Wang Qiuxia sighed.

"A Yang, our family, is really worth so much?" Qiu Jingdong couldn't help muttering.

Qiu Zaiyun raised his hand and slapped Qiu Jingdong on the head: "Where are you going, do you think people really came to buy your nephew? The Cui family is just rich and powerful, and in this way they put pressure on your brother to admit that A Yang and The relationship between Xiao Cui's family."

"It can't be said that they put pressure on them. After all, it was Jingping who took the initiative to give them a gift of 18 yuan, which made them misunderstand." Qiu Jingdong retorted.

"There are so many things and such a complete range of things, how can they be ready in ten days and half a month? Cui Jia'an's heart is not in a day or two, and he has already dug a trap for me to drill." Qiu Jing said with a flat face. .

"Now it's meaningless to worry about whether he dug the hole a long time ago or the one he dug recently. Let it take its course and let's live happily with Tu Ayang, right?" Wang Qiuxia persuaded.

"There is no need to advertise this. Within two days, Quan Qingyuan will know that my son Qiu Jingping has adopted a rich godfather. Even if I want to regret it, I will be powerless."

"That's good, that's good, if you can get over this hurdle, everything will go smoothly." Qiu Zaiyun praised authentically.

"Huaying, I need some of those bamboo baskets." Wang Qiuxia said to Zhuang Huaying.

"Sister-in-law, just take as much as you want, I'm still worried that there is no place to put it at home." Qiu Jingping said.

"Don't be ignorant of Jingshan jade, if you pick out Liu's bamboo basket, you won't feel tired doing any work." Wang Qiuxia laughed.

"Try pretending to be scrap iron, you'll be exhausted." Qiu Jingdong snorted.

"Brother and sister-in-law will come over early tomorrow, and according to the instructions on the gift list, let's share the spoils." Qiu Jingping had a dumbfounding expression.

"I feel that we can live comfortably for the rest of our lives without doing anything. Hey, let's not talk about it, it's really thanks to Ayang's blessing." Qiu Jingdong smiled, "I just checked the gift list a little bit, and even Qiu Rong and Qiu Hong have it." , the Cui family is really considerate."

"It's the Cui family who are thoughtful, but your precious nephew is shrewd." Zhou Guimei laughed.

"Since the 'nine dan gifts' have been accepted, we have to set a date to formally invite Cui's family to sit down. He came according to the traditional etiquette, so we have to return according to the traditional way." Qiu Zaiyun reminded.

"Hmph, traditional etiquette, but what you do is so novel and unprecedented." Qiu Jingping stroked his forehead.