Country Love: Xie Dajiao, 37, is pregnant!

On the other side, Wang Musheng was sitting on the sofa, quietly eating sunflower seeds and joining in the fun.

The moment Ke Xiangxiu entered the room, he froze completely.

The melon seeds in his hand no longer smelled good; his eyes were fixed on Xiangxiu, his neck stiffened, and his gaze was glued to her, unable to look away.

I've always heard people say they fall in love at first sight, and today Wang Musheng truly experienced it for himself.

He stood there stunned for several seconds before quietly shuffling over to Lin Chen, grabbing his sleeve and pulling him to a secluded corner. He lowered his voice, his usual slurred speech becoming noticeably smoother with excitement:

"Bro! Bro! Tell me, who's this girl? She's gorgeous!"

Lin Chen, suppressing a laugh, replied to his pathetic, infatuated expression:

"This is Xiangxiu, Uncle Changgui's daughter. She works at the village clinic."

That one sentence gave Wang Musheng a real boost of energy.

His eyes instantly lit up, his pupils widened, and he subconsciously swallowed, immediately pressing for an answer:

"You told me last time that a girl wanted to introduce me to someone, but we missed our chance because she was already in a relationship. Was that her?"

Lin Chen instantly had an idea.

He knew that Xiangxiu and Li Daguo were dating and had a good relationship. He could use this opportunity to completely put an end to Wang Musheng's hopes and stop him from constantly nagging him to find a partner. So he casually nodded in response.

"Yes, it's her. She's been dating for a while now, and they're very much in love."

To completely solidify the matter and make Wang Musheng give up, Lin Chen simply stepped forward, smiled, and waved to Xiangxiu in the other room, saying:

"Xiangxiu, come here for a second!"

Xiangxiu brought over a bag of bacon:

"What's wrong, Brother Chen?"

"Xiangxiu, how are things going with you and Daguo? When are you two getting married? I'd love to share in your joy."

He meant it as a casual, polite remark, intending to completely extinguish Wang Musheng's hopes.

Unexpectedly, Xiangxiu sighed softly, her voice low and dejected:

"Don't even mention it, we broke up. He was so busy arranging the wedding, but we didn't even have a house."

As soon as he said that, the room fell silent for half a second.

Then a muffled "thud" was heard!

Lin Chen turned his head and saw Wang Musheng slide down the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) and land hard on his bottom.

He didn't seem to mind the pain, tilting his head back and staring intently at Lin Chen, one hand gripping Lin Chen's trouser leg tightly, his eyes filled with a mixture of surprise and fear, as if he had finally found a treasure and was afraid it would fly away in the next second.

Lin Chen's heart skipped a beat, and he knew he was in trouble.

He really had a sharp tongue. He originally wanted to pour cold water on Wang Musheng and make him give up completely, but he accidentally gave the kid an opportunity instead. He really shot himself in the foot.

The problem is, it wouldn't matter if it were anyone else. He knows Xiangxiu is no pushover. Would it work if he introduced her to Wang Musheng? Xiangxiu isn't exactly a peaceful person either.

But things had already come to this point, and the situation was completely frozen. Lin Chen had no way to salvage the situation and could only bite the bullet and continue the introduction.

He reached out and helped Wang Musheng up from the ground, then smiled and introduced him to Xiangxiu:

"Xiangxiu, let me introduce you. This is my brother, Wang Musheng. His father is Wang Dana, who owns a company and does business. Have you heard of the Wang Group? He's very capable."

After saying that, he turned around and patted Wang Musheng on the shoulder, saying in a paternalistic tone:

"Brother, this is Xiangxiu, the most beautiful girl in our village. You two should get to know each other."

Wang Musheng hurriedly got up from the ground, hurriedly brushed the dirt off his pants, and then haphazardly ran his fingers through his messy hair, trying his best to put on his most energetic and handsome smile.

He cautiously extended his hand and stammered a greeting:

"Hello! My name is Wang Musheng! Nice to meet you, and Happy New Year!"

Xiangxiu generously raised her hand and gently shook it. Her gaze swept over the tiger-headed horse outside the courtyard, then landed on the reserved and honest Wang Musheng. After hesitating for two seconds, a faint smile appeared on her lips, and she replied softly:

"Happy New Year. You're Brother Chen's older brother, so we're all family now."

Upon hearing that "not an outsider," Wang Musheng was extremely excited and quickly replied:

"Yes, yes, yes! We're all family! Let's keep in touch, we absolutely must!"

Xiangxiu frowned slightly at his clumsy appearance, but she concealed it well, smiled gently, and said softly:

"Let's exchange phone numbers, become friends, and keep in touch when we have time."

This sentence completely stunned Wang Musheng, who almost jumped up on the spot.

He hurriedly pulled out his phone from his pocket, his fingers trembling with nervousness. He entered the number incorrectly twice in a row, and the more anxious he became, the more confused and flustered he became.

After checking it several times, I finally saved Xiangxiu's number into my phone and breathed a long sigh of relief, clutching the phone like a precious treasure.

The two had just changed their phone numbers, and Chang Gui and Wang Dana had finished their casual chat.

Chang Gui smiled, cupped his hands in farewell, and took his leave.

"Well, we won't bother you any longer. We still have to visit other people's homes to offer New Year's greetings. We can chat in more detail after the New Year!"

Wang Dana politely saw them off, and the group walked out of the courtyard in a lively atmosphere.

After everyone left, the courtyard instantly became quiet.

Wang Musheng stood alone at the gate of the courtyard, looking down at the two words "Xiangxiu" on his phone screen. His eyes were full of smiles, and he couldn't suppress the smiles on his lips. He was overjoyed.

The next second, he turned and rushed towards Lin Chen. Before Lin Chen could react, he leaned in and gave Lin Chen a solid kiss on the cheek.

Lin Chen was stunned on the spot, quickly raised his hand to wipe his face, and exclaimed with a mixture of laughter and tears:

"Hey! What are you doing, bro?! Why are you kissing me, a grown man? Are you crazy?"

Wang Musheng didn't care about any of that, completely letting loose, jumping and skipping around the yard, extremely excited, his voice even getting louder:

"Little brother! From now on, you're like a brother to me! You're such a good friend! You've always kept my marriage in mind, and you've really helped me out whenever I needed it!"

He pounded his chest vigorously and solemnly guaranteed:

"If anyone dares to bully you from now on, I'll be the first to stand up for you! Once things are settled between me and Xiangxiu, I'll definitely give you a huge red envelope. Hey? Aren't you proud of your gold watch?"

Wang Dana, standing on the steps, looked at his son's clueless expression, as if he'd never tasted good pork before. He was both angry and amused, and shook his head helplessly, scolding:

"Look at you, so pathetic! All you did was get a girl's phone number, is that all the fuss about?"

He cursed mercilessly, but he didn't seem angry at all.

His son is getting on in years, thirty-six and still single, which has been a real worry for him. It's wonderful that he's finally found a decent girl.

Lin Chen felt increasingly troubled. It wasn't that he had any feelings for Xiangxiu; she was, after all, from Macau New Lisboa Casino, and she could marry whomever she wanted. But Wang Dana was his uncle, and he couldn't let the Wang family down.

There's no way to resolve this now; we can only wait and see what Xiangxiu's attitude is. Wang Musheng is now single-mindedly focused on dating her, so what can I say? That Xiangxiu isn't as simple as she seems on the surface? I can't say that.

Sigh, let's just take it one step at a time. I doubt it'll work out anyway, let them talk it out.

After lunch, Wang Dana and Wang Musheng drove to Shenyang. When they were about to leave, Wang Musheng was reluctant to let go of Lin Chen's hand, as if he were a second parent, and was particularly reluctant to part with him.

……

After the second year of junior high, Wang Xiaomeng came back to live with them. The four of them spent their days eating, drinking, playing, and having fun. Xie Dajiao's belly was visibly getting bigger, and the fetal movements were becoming more and more obvious. Sometimes she would kick her belly, which was quite amusing. Lin Chen liked to listen to her belly by pressing his ear to it.

There's an old saying in Northeast China: the New Year isn't over until the first month of the lunar calendar has passed.

At midday, the sun was shining so brightly that everyone felt lazy and relaxed. The sound of firecrackers in the village had long since ceased, and everything was quiet.

It's not so cold outside anymore, and it's even more comfortable inside. A few people gather together, leisurely while away the peaceful days after the New Year.

Xie Dajiao leaned against the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), with a thick quilt under her lower back. She held a needle and thread in her hand, sewing a new quilt. Every now and then, she would raise her hand to straighten the knotted cotton thread. Her eyes were gentle, and she looked calm and virtuous.

Wang Xiaomeng and Xie Xiaomei sat squeezed together on the sofa, their legs touching, holding a handful of sunflower seeds in their hands. They casually tossed the shells into the wastebasket and chatted about village gossip.

Lin Chen sat in front of the computer, looking down at the construction drawings on the screen. The mouse clicked lightly, the sound particularly clear in the quiet room.

The commotion piqued the curiosity of several women, who craned their necks to peek at the computer screen.

Wang Xiaomeng was the first to be unable to hold back. She patted the crumbs off her hands and quickly came over. Xie Xiaomei followed suit, and finally Xie Dajiao put down her needlework, smoothed out the wrinkles on the quilt, and slowly approached the table.

The three of them huddled around the computer, their eyes fixed on the drawings on the screen.

As soon as people gathered around, Lin Chen casually reached out and gently pulled Xie Xiaomei into his arms, letting her sit on his lap. The action was natural and practiced.

With his other hand, he grasped Wang Xiaomeng's hand, his eyes fixed on the villa's rendering, preparing to tell the group about his plans.

Wang Xiaomeng squinted at the blueprints for a long time, finding them increasingly fascinating, and jokingly said with a smile:

"Brother Chen, what kind of huge house did you draw? It looks more impressive than the apartment buildings in the county town. You're always so secretive about these blueprints, what good thing are you up to now?"

(Four chapters finished. I'm so happy to be released from the "black room" (a term used to describe a period of confinement in China). Please help by clicking the button to urge for more updates and writing comments to help restore the data. Thank you!)