Since 1981 Health School

 West of Yuezhong City, Shengli Township

There was a motor boat sailing on the river in early spring. On both sides of the river, there was a Jiangnan water town style, and the farmland was full of farmers busy with spring plowing.

 In 1990, there was still a huge difference between urban and rural areas in Vietnam and China. Unlike in later generations, it was no longer clear which was urban and which was rural.

On the boat, Comrade Lao Guo, Mrs. Guo, Chen Qi, Lan Lijuan, Chen Shu and Chen Hua were teasing the silly elder sister:

“Sister, this is your first time as a new daughter-in-law. She asked you to wear the clothes that my elder brother bought from Xiangjiang. Why don’t you listen? You look so old-fashioned in this Bragi.”

Chen Hua was sitting on the side, voicing his dissatisfaction.

 The silly elder sister chuckled:

"You kid, my eldest sister is the working people. Why do working people dress so colorfully? How can they work? Besides, the conditions of the Li family are not good. If we go in dressed like overseas Chinese, others will misunderstand us. Look down on them.”

Lao Guo was happy when he heard this:

"Yes, Ah Qin sees things far. This is our first time to visit the groom's house. We have to save face for the groom's family. Besides, Ah Qin is a real person. There is no need to make it too fancy. You are still afraid that others will not see it. Are you going to **** your eldest sister?"

 Chen Qi nodded repeatedly: "My godfather is right!"

 Lao Guo said proudly: "That's right, I want to support you today, I must be right!"

Hehehe~~~Everyone on the boat chuckled softly.

Today is the day when the Chen family goes to Li Dahai's home for an inspection. This inspection is very formal. If the inspection is passed, they will directly discuss the engagement and marriage.

In the 1990s, everyone's conditions improved, and all kinds of rules began to appear again. Betrothal gifts, money for stomachaches, banquets, and money for getting on the bus all had to be agreed in advance.

 If it had been ten or twenty years earlier, the bride price would usually be meaningful. If it had been 1959, 50 kilograms of rice would have taken away the eldest girl.

Li Dahai’s home is located in Weishan Village, Shengli Township. Transportation is quite inconvenient. Cars are inaccessible and the only way to get around is by boat.

The Chen family has no elders in charge, and Xia Ze's second uncle is not qualified to be an elder, so Chen Qi specially invited Lao Guo and his wife to support the scene. Anyway, both parties half-truthed and half-falsely claimed to be relatives.

 It took us 2 hours to drive from the city to Weishan Village. From a distance, we saw Li Dahai waving from the shore.

The people on the boat also waved to him. Whether it was Lan Lijuan or Chen Shu and Chen Hua, they were all very satisfied with Li Dahai. Everyone's unified impression was:

 This is an honest man.

The silly older sister and the silly older man are a perfect match.

The engine boat was prepared by the People's Hospital. After the driver arrived at the shore skillfully, he quickly set up a springboard and everyone went ashore.

Li Dahai's face was full of excitement: "Dean Chen, you are here, hello Dr. Lan, hello Chen Shu and Chen Hua, this old gentleman is..."

Chen Qi quickly introduced: "These two are our godfathers and godmothers. Our godfather is also the old secretary of our People's Hospital. Today he is our elder who is here to inspect you. Haha~~~"

Li Dahai was so frightened that he quickly bowed: "Guo, hello Guo Shuji, hello Mrs. Guo~~~"

 “Comrade Li, hello to you, haha.”

Who is Lao Guo? He is a thousand-year-old fox. He knows how to spot people right away. Even if it is just a face-to-face encounter, Lao Guo can tell the other person very well by looking at the other person's movements, demeanor, language, and eyes.

　　When Li Dahai went to say hello to Sister Silly.

Lao Guo said softly to Chen Qi next to him: "He is an honest man and has no tricks. He is a good match for Aqin."

Mrs. Guo also nodded and said, "Look, his eyes sparkled when he looked at Aqin, which shows that he really likes Aqin and is not a fan of the Chen family. This man can do it."

Li Dahai did not expect that he had just passed the first level and won unanimous praise from the two judges and teachers.

If the judges and teachers fail to give a passing score, then Chen Qi will definitely think twice about the marriage.

By this time, the conditions in the countryside had improved. As we walked towards the village, we could see that there were already new two-story buildings on the roadside. There were even many houses with three rooms and three floors in good conditions.

 There is no harm without comparison. When everyone walked to Li's house, they still felt a little disappointed.

The Li family is located in the center of the village. It consists of four bungalows and a courtyard. The courtyard wall is made of stones and is only half a person high. In the yard, some vegetables are planted and some chickens and ducks are raised.

From the perspective of later generations, this is a pretty pastoral scene.

 But standing here, smelling the faint smell of chicken manure in the air, no one thinks this scene is beautiful, especially as we are the female representatives.

 This is 1990. If this were 2023, 10 girls would turn around and leave when they see 10 of them, and they would be unable to hold them back.

 Chen Qi and the others just kept their fear in their hearts and did not show it. The silly elder sister did not show any disgust after seeing the Li family's conditions. Instead, her face turned red with embarrassment.

Li Dahai opened the courtyard door and shouted: "Mother, Guo Shuji, Dean Chen and Aqin are here~~~"

At this time, an old woman hurriedly walked out of the house. I can't describe her as an old lady, because she doesn't look that old, but I can't describe her as a middle-aged woman, because she already has white hair. Behind him were several excited boys and girls.

“Guo Shuji, Mrs. Guo, Dean Chen, Doctor Lan, Chen Shu, Chen Hua, Aqin, this is my mother, this is my eldest brother, eldest sister, second brother, third brother and little sister.”

Chen Qi counted, oh, good guys, Aunt Li gave birth to 5 babies in one go.

But fortunately, although the five younger brothers and sisters have a bit of a dull complexion, they are all full of energy, and none of them are as arrogant as the young people in society.

When Wu Yueying saw the guests coming to her home, she quickly smiled with her: "Welcome, welcome, welcome to the leaders. You kids, please call people. Cough cough cough~~~"

“Hello uncle, hello aunt, hello brother, hello sister, hello younger brother, hello sister, and also, hello sister-in-law~~~”

The four children of the Li family called someone one by one. When Chen Qin was called, they all called her "sister-in-law" and then laughed together.

 The silly elder sister was so embarrassed that her whole face turned red as if she had drunk half a kilogram of soju.

A few people walked into the main room of the bungalow politely. Lao Guo and Chen Qi looked around. Of course, they were not looking at the conditions. The family's conditions were no longer promising.

 The two main hospital leaders looked at the environment at home and nodded with satisfaction.

Although the Li family is poor, the main room (living room and dining room) has almost no imaginable decorations, and the furniture was made decades ago, but the home is kept clean and almost spotless.

Moreover, although the clothes of the Li family are very old, they are definitely not in tatters, and there is no common dirt among rural people in the nails on their faces.

There are 9 plates of fruit cakes placed on the Eight Immortals table in the middle of the main room. This is the highest etiquette in Vietnam for entertaining guests. Moreover, the fruits and cakes on the plates look like high-end products bought in the city, not the kind of imitations that are not available in the manufacturer. goods.

Lao Guo and Chen Qi looked at each other, and both of them were very satisfied with the Li family's attitude.

Whether they are poor or not, at least they treat guests very warmly and thoughtfully. This is also the importance they pay to the woman who comes to visit them for the first time.

After a few people sat down, sugar water was immediately brought to them by the two little sisters. Before everyone drank the water, longan and candied jujube soup was also served.

Wu Yueying did not dare to sit down, but stood aside and said sheepishly:

“Guo Shuji, Dean Chen, and a few brothers and sisters, you guys have worked so hard. We rural people don’t have much to offer, so please forgive me, cough cough…”

Lao Guo sat at the front seat and said with a smile:

"Mei of the Li family, we are here as guests today. Don't call me Dean Shuji. You can just call me Lao Guo. This Chen Qi is the junior today. What kind of dean is not the dean? If this marriage is done, , your son is his brother-in-law, and the brother-in-law must also listen to the brother-in-law."

Chen Qi also smiled and said: "That's right, Aunt Wu, you're welcome to sit down too. I see you're always coughing. Is it a cold?"

Even though Wu Yueying was trying hard to hold it back, she still couldn't stop coughing. As a doctor, Chen Qi suffered from this occupational disease.

“I’m making you laugh, I, this is an old problem. I went to the People’s Hospital for a checkup before, and they said I had bronchiectasis. This disease cannot be cured, so I have to take medicine every year. Alas, my family is suffering.”

 Bronchiectasis is caused by chronic suppurative inflammation and fibrosis of the bronchus and surrounding lung tissue, which destroys the muscles and elastic tissues of the bronchial wall, leading to deformation and lasting expansion of the bronchus.

 Typical symptoms are chronic cough, coughing up large amounts of purulent sputum, and repeated hemoptysis.

Suffering from this disease almost means losing the labor force. Especially after the death of Li Dahai's father, the financial conditions of the family became even worse. As a result, Li Dahai was still single at the age of 31.

 If any other woman heard that the man’s mother had such a chronic disease, it would probably be a direct deduction.

 But Chen Qi was eating this bowl of rice, so he felt relieved.

Although bronchiectasis is troublesome, it can be cured. If it is lung cancer, stroke, incontinence of urine and feces, and you have to feed yourself for three meals, then it will be really hard for you as a daughter-in-law of this family.

"In this way, Aunt Wu, ask Brother Li to take you to the People's Hospital tomorrow and come to me. I will personally take you to check and evaluate your condition. Although bronchiectasis is troublesome, if it is mild, it can be treated with surgery. , My godfather and I are both experts in this area, so it’s not a big problem.”

When Wu Yueying heard that there was such a good thing, she was overjoyed:

“Then, how much trouble will it cause you, how much will it cost, this, this…”

"Aunt Wu, our whole family is in the hospital. There is no need to pay for the examination. Don't worry. Besides, even if you need surgery, it's me and our godfather. You, taking care of yourself is the most important thing. You Now that she is in good health, if my eldest sister becomes your wife, it will be easy for her, right?"

Wu Yueying was ashamed and worried:

“Chen, Chen Qi, don’t you dislike my family being poor? Don’t you dislike me as an old woman dragging down our children?”

Lao Guo laughed loudly after hearing this:

"Girls from the Li family, Aqin and Chen Qi are also poor children from rural areas. How can they dislike your family Dahai? For us, as long as the people in Dahai are good and your Li family treats Aqin well, everything else is secondary. We will Don’t take it seriously!”