Shocking! My Rugged Husband is the Hidden Tycoon in the 70s Novel-Chapter 140: Engagement

On the day of the engagement, the weather was clear. The wind blowing from between Yita Mountain and Yima Mountain carried a slight chill, alleviating the summer heat.

The engagement banquet was held at Jiang Baohua’s home. A few earth stoves were set up at the entrance, with Zhou Guizhi leading some women from the family to prepare the feast, sorting and washing vegetables, and cooking sorghum rice in large pots.

Jiang Xingbing and his brothers went to borrow tables and chairs, while Hu Hai, Dong Youfu, and several cousins from the Jiang Family began slaughtering pigs, cutting deers, skinning rabbits, and cleaning pheasants.

By the time it was nearly noon, the aroma of meat filled the air, and the wind carried the scent throughout the village.

Children ran joyfully, weaving between tables and chairs, circling the earth stoves, waiting for the feast to start.

Once most people had arrived, Jiang Baohua arranged the seating, deciding who would sit at the head table and the order of precedence—these things were important.

Even though the old practices had been broken, in the countryside, the elders’ dignity should not be lost.

If arranged poorly, a good celebration could become unpleasant due to quarrels over such matters.

Moreover, Xu Qinghuan, though a youth sent to the countryside, had her family here today. Li Shouzhi and his wife, representing Xu Qinghuan’s family, had arrived early, giving her a big red envelope containing two hundred yuan.

Before the banquet began, Li Shouzhi visited the old man of the Jiang Family, and was now engaged in conversation with the family’s elders.

Jiang Xingye wore a grass-green military uniform today, a gift from Li Shouzhi. Tall and with broad shoulders and long legs, the well-fitting clothes made him look even more commanding and upright.

Upon seeing Xu Qinghuan, the first thing he did was hand her the newly acquired seven hundred yuan, still warm, saying, "Last time’s pork money."

A thick wad, Xu Qinghuan was shocked, "You don’t keep any for yourself?"

He shook his head, "It’s all for you!"

He held the money in both hands before Xu Qinghuan, looking at her expectantly.

Xu Qinghuan paused before accepting the money, "I’ll save it for you!"

"It’s for you to spend, no need to save. Buy whatever you want to eat," Jiang Xingye said earnestly.

He wanted her to eat white rice, white flour buns, and have meat whenever she wanted, even in this barren land, she could be pampered.

All he felt was that she should have the finest, different from any other girl in the world, she should be supported with open hands.

Xu Qinghuan stood on tiptoe and kissed Jiang Xingye on the corner of his lips.

Her lips were colored with lipstick, leaving a mark on his face, which Xu Qinghuan wiped away with her pale fingers, only for Jiang Xingye to catch her hand and notice the print on her finger, his eyes deepened.

Dong Aimei hid between stacks of firewood, watching Jiang Xingye take Xu Qinghuan out. The handsome couple walked together, although not speaking, their intimate expressions were unhidden, making her heart fill with bitterness.

"Welfare money!" Dong Aimei cursed quietly, intending to say "vixen", but missing her front teeth made speaking leaks, so it wasn’t clear.

Dong Aimei furiously pulled at the dried grass on the stack, suddenly clutching a thorn branch that pierced her fingers, making her cry out in pain, "Ah!"

Jiang Xingye reflexively held Xu Qinghuan in his arms, following the sound over, seeing Dong Aimei watching them, his brows darkened, eyes sharp and fierce like a beast locking on Dong Aimei.

Dong Aimei frantically pulled out the thorn branch, blood flowing from her hand, and hurriedly ran away, yet Jiang Xingye felt a disgust equivalent to stepping on dog poop before eating.

Xu Qinghuan didn’t mind; after Dong Aimei’s scoring work ended, several young comrades from the production team were vying for the job.

Harvesting starts tomorrow, Dong Aimei injured her hand today, is she not planning to work tomorrow?

"Ah Ye, do you want to be a scorer?" Xu Qinghuan sensed Jiang Xingye’s agitation and held his hand briefly, calming his emotions effectively.

"No!" Jiang Xingye hadn’t expected his partner would consider him for the scorer role; if he’d wanted it, someone else wouldn’t have gotten the role initially.

"Why? It’s worth seven work points a day, and it’s not heavy work," Xu Qinghuan asked, puzzled.

Jiang Xingye replied, "As long as members are at work, you must stay in the fields without leaving. I’ve other matters to attend to."

Xu Qinghuan remembered, the main production site was in the mountains, and the team’s work was only secondary.

"Take care of yourself," Xu Qinghuan advised.

"Will do!" Jiang Xingye agreed, his expression warm, melting like ice, his face more dazzling, "I will."

The sent-down youth from the youth spot accompanied Xu Qinghuan at the head table, other guests following Jiang Baohua’s arrangements one by one, with Zhou Guizhi arranging for dishes to be served, including drink today. Although it was grain alcohol from the supply agency, it was considered rare.

Five main dishes, plus two vegetable dishes and a mushroom soup, totaling eight dishes—a feast of unprecedented abundance.

Jiang Xingye’s engagement banquet was the highest-specification celebration held by the production team in recent years.

The men who drank were slightly better off, but at tables with only women, chopsticks flew quickly, leaving the dishes depleted as soon as they were served, everyone took some home for their children.

Qiao Xinyu and others were astonished to see, glad they sat separately; otherwise, seated with women, she likely would only have had a bite.

Still, at their table, they also ate rapidly.

In these times, who doesn’t lack food, who isn’t craving meat!

Lu Nianying didn’t sit with Xu Qinghuan but with Qiu Linghua and others.

At first, Qiu Linghua introduced her son, Sun Laizi, then, once the dishes were served, focused less on Lu Nianying, giving her a rare break. Seeing three dishes served, she only managed a bite.

A large bowl of braised pork, with more than twenty pieces, left her without a single piece, even the gravy was poured into Qiu Linghua’s brought bowl.

"Hehe, since you all don’t care about the gravy, I’ll take it!" Qiu Linghua finished pouring, licking the bowl clean with her tongue.

Lu Nianying almost threw up.

Rabbit stew with potatoes was served, and as Lu Nianying was about to reach for it, Qiu Linghua darted up, elbowing her chest, nearly knocking her down.

Grasping at the table edge, another bowl’s worth vanished.

In the end, she only ate half a bowl of sorghum rice and two bites of vegetable dishes.

The last two vegetables were less contested; even after one person took a bite, little remained, totaling four bites, lucking out eating a piece of meat from the final mushroom soup.

The main point was she wanted to show off in front of Xu Qinghuan, proclaiming her life was better, gifted more than the other youths, they contributing 20 cents, she giving one yuan.

A single yuan, even without a meat ticket, could buy half a pound of meat, yet at the feast, she only had two pieces, infuriating Lu Nianying.

These villagers had the audacity to greed meat as if they’d never seen it, destined to remain poor.

Xu Qinghuan was a fool to be pursuing marriage with a villager, someone destined for insignificance, deserved to be abandoned by her mother.

Song Wanlin drove into the village, seeing no one along the way, eventually encountering a child. The driver stepped out to inquire, with Jiang Xiaocao curiously asking, "Why are you looking for Xu Qinghuan?"

The driver answered that Xu Qinghuan’s mother came looking for her; she glanced at Song Wanlin and suggested a detour, "You should go around this way, cars can’t go through other places."

Then, she dashed off to Jiang Baohua’s entrance, spotting Jiang Er’ya and beckoning her, "Someone came looking for your aunt, saying your aunt’s mother is here; quickly tell her, that person looks fierce!"

Though young, she’d heard gossip, aware the youths didn’t wish to wed production team members, fearing Xu Qinghuan’s mother would disrupt things.

Jiang Er’ya urgently told Xu Qinghuan, "Auntie, someone said your mother arrived!"

As they spoke, the car had arrived, Song Wanlin spotted Xu Qinghuan at the head table in a red dress, as radiant as jade, smiling, listening to a child talk.

Xu Qinghuan sensed it, looking up to meet Song Wanlin’s gaze.