Siheyuan: Sizhu starts blindly and takes a new path

Chapter 287 Zhou Family Proposes Marriage

Zhou Qisheng stood at the entrance of the courtyard, holding a gold ring in his hand, his knuckles white. The ring was not bright in color and was an old item, probably given to him by his elders. His and Yu Shui's names were engraved on the inside of the ring.

He took a deep breath and strode into the middle courtyard. In the courtyard, He Yushui was sitting under the eaves knitting a sweater. The afterglow of the setting sun shone through the gaps in the leaves, casting mottled light and shadows on her body.

"Rainwater..." Zhou Qisheng's throat was tight and his palms were full of sweat.

Yu Shui looked up and saw his appearance. She couldn't help laughing: "What's wrong? You look like a thief."

Zhou Qisheng walked in front of her and suddenly knelt on one knee. The ball of yarn in Yu Shui's hand fell to the ground with a "click" and rolled away.

"Comrade Yushui," Zhou Qisheng said with a trembling voice, "I want to be your revolutionary partner..."

He took out the gold ring from his pocket. In the sunlight, the elegant gold ring shone with a warm light.

Yu Shui's eyes instantly turned red. She looked at the gentle young man in front of her - she remembered the first time they met, he was wearing a neatly washed Zhongshan suit, and when she was on her way home from get off work, they bumped into each other while riding bicycles, and he hurriedly helped her up, so nervous that he couldn't even speak clearly; she remembered that every time he sent her home, he would hesitate for a long time at the entrance of the alley before he dared to say goodbye; she remembered that in order to buy her a good book, he ran all over the second-hand bookstores in Beijing...

"You..." Yu Shui's voice choked, "Why did you suddenly..."

"It's not sudden," Zhou Qisheng said seriously, "From the first time I saw you, I wanted to spend my whole life with you."

Suddenly there was a rustling sound outside the courtyard wall, followed by a cry of "Ouch" - it was obvious that someone had fallen down while eavesdropping.

"Silly Zhu! You stepped on my foot!" Yu Li's complaining voice was heard.

"Shh! Keep your voice down!" Sha Zhu lowered his voice, "Don't disturb my sister's lifelong event!"

Yu Shui burst into laughter and reached out to pull Zhou Qisheng up: "Silly boy, get up quickly, the ground is cold."

Zhou Qisheng was in a hurry to put the ring on her, and because he was too nervous, he almost put it on the wrong finger. Yu Shui looked at his clumsy appearance, suddenly stood on tiptoe, and kissed him lightly on the face.

With a loud bang, Zhou Qisheng's ears turned red all the way to his neck. From under the wall came Shazhu's weird cry: "Ouch my eyes!"

That night, Sha Zhu personally cooked a table of delicious dishes. Yu Li took out all her Maotai collection, and little Mudan ran around the table, insisting on sitting on "Uncle Zhou's" lap.

"Boy," Sha Zhu poured a full cup for Zhou Qisheng, "if you dare to bully my sister in the future..."

After finishing the wine in the glass, Sha Zhu put the glass on the table and squinted at Zhou Qisheng: "Qisheng, your proposal is successful, but we must follow the old Beijing rules."

Zhou Qisheng was serving food to Yu Shui, and when he heard this, he paused and said, "Brother Zhuzi, you go ahead."

"You have to ask your elders to propose marriage," Sha Zhu counted on his fingers, "Three letters and six ceremonies are necessary. Engagement letter, gift letter, welcoming letter, acceptance letter, asking for marriage proposal, asking for name, acceptance letter..."

Yu Li laughed at the side: "Hey, when did Zhuzi know so much?"

"That's right!" Sha Zhu raised his head proudly, "Back then, I learned the rules from our matchmaker in order to marry you!"

Yu Shui blushed and tugged at Zhou Qisheng's sleeve: "Don't listen to my brother's nonsense, the new society doesn't care about these things..."

"It has to be elegant!" Sha Zhu slammed the table, shaking the wine glass, "I, He Yuzhu, must marry my sister in a grand manner!"

Zhou Qisheng pushed his glasses and nodded seriously: "Brother Zhuzi is right, I didn't think it through. I will write a letter to my family and ask my father to propose marriage."

A week later, a black car slowly stopped at the entrance of the courtyard, attracting neighbors to look in. A middle-aged man in a simple Zhongshan suit got out of the car. His features were similar to Zhou Qisheng, but his demeanor was more stable.

"Dad!" Zhou Qisheng walked up to him quickly.

Zhou's father nodded, and the driver took out various gifts from the trunk.

When he first entered the courtyard, the third uncle Yan Bugui happened to be out of the house. He was surprised to see Zhou's father's demeanor. Then he saw Zhou Qisheng behind him and asked loudly: "Is this Yu Shui's boyfriend? Is he here to propose marriage?"

Zhou Qisheng smiled and replied, "Yes, Third Uncle, my father brought me here to propose marriage. Dad, this is the Third Uncle who manages this courtyard, Uncle Yan."

"Hello, Brother Yan." Father Zhou also greeted the third uncle in a friendly manner.

When Sha Zhu heard the noise and came out, he saw the car with the special license plate. His pupils suddenly shrank - this was not a car that an ordinary cadre could ride in!

"Director He, right?" Zhou's father took the initiative to extend his hand. "It is a blessing for our Zhou family that your sister has taken a liking to my son."

Sha Zhu quickly wiped his hands on his apron: "Uncle Zhou, you are too polite..."

In the main room, the driver placed various gifts on the table. There were cigarettes, alcohol, tea, snacks, and silk fabrics for Yu Shui and Yu Li. In a small box was a neatly arranged hardcover edition of the Complete Works of Marx and Engels.

"I heard that Comrade Yushui loves reading," Zhou's father said kindly, "so I specially prepared these."

Yu Shui's eyes lit up, and just as she was about to reach out to touch it, she was stopped by Sha Zhu: "Uncle Zhou, this is too valuable..."

"It's my duty." Father Zhou took a sip of tea. "The two children are in love with each other, and as elders, we should naturally support them."

He put down his teacup and suddenly changed the subject: "But there is one thing I must say first - Qisheng is a stubborn child who insists on making a living on his own. So I'm afraid the wedding will have to be simple and not a grand affair."

Sha Zhu slapped his thigh and said, "What a coincidence, isn't it? We working class people like simplicity!"

Xu Damao, who was hiding outside the door and eavesdropping, curled his lips and muttered softly: "Why are you pretending? As if no one knows..." Before he could finish his words, Qin Jingru twisted his ears and dragged him away.

That night, the two families had a happy dinner together. Zhou's father and Sha Zhu toasted each other and chatted happily.

"Master He," the slightly tipsy Zhou's father patted Sha Zhu's shoulder, "You are a sincere person. I feel relieved to leave the rainwater to your Qisheng!"

Sha Zhu said with a big tongue: "Uncle Zhou, don't look at me as a cook, our He family..."

"I know, I know," Zhou's father interrupted him with a smile, his eyes were particularly clear, "You are a person who makes a living by real ability, much better than those who are just good at talking!"

Sha Zhu was stunned and sobered up a bit. He vaguely felt that Zhou's father's words were meaningful, but before he could figure it out, Zhou's father turned to Yu Li and said, "Comrade Xiao Yu, I heard that you work in the street office? Recently we are focusing on the work style of cadres. If you have any situation, you can report it at any time."

Yu Li dropped the chopsticks in her hand onto the table. She finally understood why Zhou's father looked so familiar to her - he was the one who sat on the rostrum at the district meeting last month!

Zhou Qisheng saw this and quickly tried to smooth things over: "Dad, let's just talk about family matters today..."