Chapter 363: A Family of Sharp Tongues

Song Jiujiu patted Gu Gu Qingzhou's arm and said with feigned dissatisfaction, "You child, you're too blunt. Who likes washing clothes by hand in the dead of winter? If it weren't for tight finances, who wouldn't want to add a washing machine to their home? People, you know, they envy those who have things and mock those who don't; it's quite normal. Don't be too direct in your speech, it's easy to offend petty people."

These words didn't leave a shred of face for the person who had made the sour remark.

She remembered very clearly that after her old Song had his accident, this person had been the most active in jumping around! Her words had been like daggers aimed straight at her heart and the hearts of Song Yuncheng and Song Yunjin!

Song Jiujiu had held a grudge for quite a long time!

Fortunately, that person had seen the formidable Song Gong return, and even witnessed several factory leaders visiting him frequently, so she hadn't dared to show her face again. For the past few months, whenever she saw the Song family, she would lower her head and run away.

The person who had spoken had a face like a palette, and upon catching sight of Song Gong pushing the cart over, a flash of guilt crossed her eyes, and she buried her head and slipped away.

The Song family's neighbor muttered a "serves her right" under their breath.

They said to Song Jiujiu, "Don't pay her any mind. She's sour about anyone who eats a bit of meat."

Actually, it wasn't just sourness; she was also a beggar, sending her children to knock on doors to ask for food, acting as slovenly as could be.

"Today is a good day, let's not talk about her anymore." Song Jiujiu didn't want to bring her up again.

"Not talk about whom?" Song Jiujiu parked the cart and asked, having heard his wife's words.

"Nothing, let's lift the washing machine; let's get it to Zhao Zhao's early." Song Jiujiu thought of Zhao Zhao pouting while scrubbing clothes, and crow's feet appeared at the corners of her eyes. "She must be very busy these days."

"You're definitely helping, I can't lift it alone." Song Jiujiu said. He looked at his apprentice, "Gu Qingzhou, you too."

It had been agreed that once the washing machine arrived, Gu Gu Qingzhou would finish his studies for the year and resume after the New Year. The men in the family housing area who could lend a hand did so, lifting the washing machine onto the flatbed cart.

"You're definitely helping, I'd be exhausted alone." Song Jiujiu said.

He turned to his apprentice, "Gu Qingzhou, you too."

"Yes." Gu Gu Qingzhou replied, "Master, I'll go back and pack my things. Shall I meet you at the entrance of the supply and marketing cooperative later?"

"Go ahead."

Gu Gu Qingzhou ran off, arrived at Lin Zhao's house in the county, went into the guest room, packed his luggage, cleaned the room until it was spotless, covered the firewood in the courtyard with oilcloth, locked the gate, and left.

The three of them set off on the road to Fengshou Brigade.

Song Jiujiu had been to Fengshou Brigade before, but this time, he found the village looked quite different from his memory.

"There's been quite a change here."

Hearing this, Gu Gu Qingzhou said, "It's all thanks to Third Sister-in-law."

"You're talking about her giving the mushroom cultivation book to the brigade, right?" Before he could answer, Song Jiujiu's expression softened, and he said with pride, "Zhao Zhao has always been like this. She cannot bear to see human suffering; her heart is as soft as can be. When she was just a few years old, she told me she wanted a world where no one went hungry, where everyone had their own house, where everyone had meat to eat... She is the best girl."

So even during those years when Lin Zhao's personality had shifted, his heart had never held a shred of doubt toward her.

Since they were talking about his Third Sister-in-law, Gu Gu Qingzhou didn't know what to say, so he just listened intently, nodding from time to time.

In his heart, Third Sister-in-law was very good.

Song Song Yunjin smiled brightly, "I didn't know my sister had such grand wishes when she was little! I thought she only cared about whether the hair ties Dad bought were prettier than the ones Uncle bought, or which clothes to wear today...?"

Song Jiujiu's gaze faltered.

Hair ties and clothes were indeed more common topics.

He straightened his face and gave a light huff, "... Your sister is different from other girls."

Anyway, in his heart, his niece was very, very good.

Song Song Yunjin felt a bit helpless.

He hadn't said anything bad about his sister, so why was he bristling?

Two strangers had arrived in the village, and they were pushing a flatbed cart with a large object on it; no one knew what it was.

"Gu Qingzhou is back, and this is...?" Hearing Changsheng's mother asked.

The Brigade Leader's wife tucked her hands into her sleeves and leaned in, "Why are you pushing a flatbed cart back? What is this big thing? It looks huge."

Gu Gu Qingzhou looked at his master, and seeing Song Jiujiu nod at him, he explained with a smile, "This is my master, Third Sister-in-law's uncle."

He patted Song Yunjin on the shoulder, "And this is Third Sister-in-law's cousin."

"As for why we're here?" His smile grew even brighter, "My master got a washing machine and is delivering it to Third Sister-in-law."

The villagers were dumbfounded.

Song Jiujiu was wearing the cashmere sweater Zhao Zhao had given him, topped with a Zhongshan suit, a black mid-length cotton coat, dark blue trousers, and brown high-top cotton shoes. Standing there, he looked like a towering mountain, making people afraid to get too close.

The onlookers watched the backs of the Song family and Gu Gu Qingzhou, and it took a long while for them to find their voices.

"So that's Gu Chenghuai's wife's uncle, the one who's a leader in the city and has such great connections?! He looks so imposing!"

"Gu Chenghuai's wife's uncle is too doting on his niece! Coming all this way just to deliver something; who's the elder here?"

"Hey, did you see the clothes he's wearing inside? It looks like a Zhongshan suit; leaders wear those, he looks so spirited."

"He's different from the men in the village; he's so tall, though a bit thin. He probably couldn't carry a bag of grain."

"Get out of here, he's an intellectual. He can earn money just by holding a fountain pen and sitting in an office; why would he need to carry grain?"

The Brigade Leader's wife remembered the object on the cart, "What did they say they were delivering? A washing machine? What's that?! Shouldn't we follow them and watch the fun?!"

The crowd came to their senses.

"That makes sense."

And so, a group of them ran toward the Gu family's third house.

One particularly nosy person ran specifically to the Gu family's old house to tell the old couple the news.

Upon hearing the news, the Gu family all ran over.

Lin Zhao was lying in the room, telling stories to the cubs huddled around her, massaging her shoulders and pounding her legs.

Hearing the commotion outside, she raised an eyebrow, "Someone is visiting. We'll stop here for today and finish another time. Go see who it is?"

Xiang Yubao and Hengbao slid off the bed, put on their cotton shoes, and ran out.

At a glance, they saw their Uncle at the door, and they rubbed their eyes in unison.

"Uncle?!" Their voices were full of disbelief.

The brothers hadn't seen Song Jiujiu at their home before, so it wasn't strange that they were so surprised.

Xiang Yubao was the first to react, shouting toward the bedroom door, "Mom, Uncle is here!"

Hearing her son's bright, cheerful voice, Lin Zhao hurried to put tiger-head shoes on the twins and led them out.

Song Jiujiu stepped forward and picked up Xiang Yubao and Hengbao one by one.

"It's been a while, you've gotten heavier." He laughed.

"Because we eat a lot." Xiang Yubao smiled brightly.

"Uncle, put me down, I'm afraid I'll tire you out." He looked at Song Jiujiu's injured arm with concern, his brows furrowed tightly, "Uncle, does your arm still hurt?"

Song Jiujiu's heart warmed, and his smile deepened, "It doesn't hurt anymore, it's completely healed."

Xiang Yubao smiled.

"That's good."

Lin Zhao walked out of the room, called out "Uncle," and seeing Gu Gu Qingzhou directing the village men to lift something, her eyes lit up.

"Uncle, what is that?!"

She had a guess in her heart, and she was so excited she could barely speak.

It had been cold these past few days, and the curtains, bed sheets, and quilt covers hadn't been washed. Although the well water was warm, washing so many things was hard on her hands. Lin Zhao hadn't been able to make up her mind to do it, planning to wait until she couldn't put it off any longer.

She hadn't expected her uncle to show up at this moment.

Could it be a washing machine?!!

"The washing machine you've been wishing for." Song Jiujiu said dotingly.

Lin Zhao's eyes widened, she gasped, her face flushed with excitement.

She grabbed her uncle's arm and shook it, her voice full of excitement, "You got it so quickly, thank you, Uncle! You're the best uncle in the world! No more hand-washing curtains, bed sheets, and quilt covers!!!"

Hearing her joy, Song Jiujiu was happy too.

"Your aunt said you were waiting for a washing machine to wash those big items, and she was absolutely right; she really understands you."

Lin Zhao nodded, pulling her uncle toward the washing machine.

"Uncle, how do you use this? Teach me." She said in a coaxing tone.

A doting smile appeared on Song Jiujiu's upright face, he said "alright" twice, and instructed Song Yunjin to plug it in.

Song Yunjin immediately took action.

This courtyard had plenty of electrical outlets; it was one of the few houses in the village that even had lights in the courtyard. The washing machine was placed under the eaves on the left, close to the well and the washbasin, with an outlet right on the wall.

Lin Zhao looked smug, "I really am a Zhuge Liang of this world, leaving an outlet exactly where it was needed, otherwise I'd have to run wires."

Song Jiujiu laughed at the girl's self-praise, "Yes, you're the cleverest."

He looked at Lin Zhao with a smile, "I suppose when the village got electricity, you were already thinking about adding appliances, weren't you?"

Lin Zhao didn't show a hint of shame, her eyes curving into crescents, "Mm."

"Little clever ghost." Song Jiujiu's eyes were full of indulgence.

At this moment, the equally clever Xiang Yubao and Hengbao brought over the family's dirty laundry basket.

"Everything that needs washing is here!" Xiang Yubao grinned.

Just thinking about his mother not having to scrub clothes by hand anymore made him happy.

"Uncle, teach me how to use it, I'll wash the family's clothes from now on."

Song Jiujiu's face turned serious, "This thing is dangerous, children can't use it. Wait until you're in middle school."

"Oh?" Xiang Yubao was disappointed; he had wanted to wash them himself.

"Alright." The child replied obediently.

"Good." Song Jiujiu patted his hair, his voice softening, "It's good that you want to help your mother, but your safety is the most important thing, do you know that?"

"I know, I listen to Mom." Xiang Yubao said earnestly.

Song Jiujiu's expression relaxed further, "Anything that uses electricity must be handled with care; you can't touch it when adults aren't around."

"Mm-hmm." Hengbao nodded along with his brother.

Beside them, Seeing Yaobao, wearing a red embroidered cotton jacket, puffed out her cheeks and nodded her little head, looking so cute it could melt a heart.

Song Jiujiu bent down and picked up Seeing Yaobao, his voice unconsciously turning sweet, "Seeing Yaobao's clothes are so pretty."

Seeing Yaobao's eyes curved, revealing her white teeth, and she said sweetly, "Daddy's!"

Song Jiujiu thought to himself that his niece's husband's taste was as good as ever.

How could it be anything but good? Finding a wife like Zhao Zhao, without a single worry, it was just too reassuring!

Song Yunjin and Gu Gu Qingzhou unpacked the washing machine and placed it under the eaves. Gu Qingzhou pressed down on one corner, shaking it gently, and when he found it wobbling, he readjusted it until it was steady.

The blue and white washing machine looked very striking there, becoming the only bright color in the courtyard.

Washing machines nowadays were still in their early stages and didn't have as many functions as later ones, but Lin Zhao wasn't greedy; as long as it could wash clothes clean, that was enough.

Song Yunjin studied the buttons on top and poured water into the drum.

Xiang Yubao held the dirty bed sheet and watched him with wide eyes.

How cute and sensible.

Song Yunjin pinched Xiang Yubao's cheek, took the bed sheet, threw it into the wash drum, and added some laundry powder.

This laundry powder had been bought in Haicheng by Lin Lin Heling and Song Song Xiwei; they had bought a lot and given half to Lin Zhao. Lin Zhao liked it very much because it cleaned clothes well and left a faint fragrance on them.

"I'm turning it on." Song Yunjin said, giving everyone a heads-up.

He closed the lid and turned the knob.

A rumbling sound filled the air.

There were quite a few people in the courtyard watching the fun, and they were all startled by the noise.

"Scared the life out of me, and you can't even see how it washes."

"Can it wash clean?"

"Gu Qingzhou, what is that white stuff you put inside?" The Brigade Leader's wife asked.

The Brigade Leader was there too, along with other brigade cadres, all full of curiosity.

There was no helping it; they had truly never seen one before.

Gu Gu Qingzhou said, "Laundry powder. For washing clothes. They only have it in Haicheng; they don't even have it in the provincial capital."

He had learned all this from Xiang Yubao.

"Oh, I see." The crowd nodded blankly.

Didn't people use soap locusts to wash clothes, or soap if they were a bit better off? What was this strange laundry powder? It looked like salt.

As expected of city folk! It sounded impressive even if they didn't understand it.

The old house family arrived late, and seeing so many people in the courtyard, including several brigade cadres, they were very confused.

"What's going on here?" Gu Mu asked.

Gu Gu Qingzhou stepped forward to explain.

The Gu family finally understood the situation.

"A machine for washing clothes?" Gu Mu stared at the machine under the eaves, finding it incredibly novel, "How can such a big machine be moved into the house? It's like an alien speaking a dialect, completely unbelievable. This thing... can it wash clean?"

She looked at her daughter-in-law.

Lin Zhao laughed at her mother-in-law's words, "Yes, it can. If it doesn't wash clean, it's a defective product, and defective products can't be sold."

"Daughter-in-law, bring the family's big items over to wash from now on, don't wash them by hand anymore. A washing machine costs several hundred yuan, we have to use it enough to make it worth it, don't you think?"

Several hundred?!!

Gu Mu's heart skipped a beat, and her liver ached.

She nodded in strong agreement, "Yes, yes, we must use it enough, otherwise it's such a waste! You should tell your mother too, let her bring hers over to wash; if we use it diligently, we should be able to make it worth it, right?"

"Yes." Lin Zhao replied with a smile.

"Will it fall apart if we use it too often?" Gu Mu worried about something else.

"No, my uncle knows how to fix it, and in a few years, Gu Qingzhou will know how to fix it too. But by then, our washing machine might need to be replaced with a new one, after all, these things update quite quickly." Lin Zhao said.

Gu Mu didn't quite understand what "updating" meant, but hearing that Song Jiujiu knew how to fix it, the feeling that the washing machine was too high-end for her to even touch eased a little.

At this moment, a young daughter-in-law who had married in less than half a year suddenly spoke up, "Zhao Zhao, if you want to make it worth it, that's easy. We neighbors can help you use it, I guarantee we'll make it worth it very quickly..."

Song Jiujiu frowned.

Gu Mu straightened her face and spoke first, "What are you doing? What are you doing? Taking advantage of my daughter-in-law right in front of me, do you think our family is made of wood? Such a nice young daughter-in-law, how can your skin be so thick!"