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Chapter 151: Going to the Movies
Chapter 151: Going to the Movies
That afternoon.
Deng Yuntao returned from the brick factory, pulled his wife into the room, and handed her a stack of money with a cheerful smile. "Pinge, today the factory paid out. Take this and put it away safely."
Zhang Xiuping happily took the money and asked with a smile, "Aige, how much did you get this month?"
Deng Yuntao said proudly, "232 yuan."
Zhang Xiuping leaned in and kissed him, praising, "Aige, you're amazing!"
Deng Yuntao chuckled and then hugged his wife, kissing her for a while before saying contentedly, "I'll go out now. You put the money away and come out for dinner."
Zhang Xiuping nodded. After her husband left, she took out the key to her dowry box, lifted a corner of the cloth inside, and saw a pile of large bills and various loose change. This was the money her father-in-law had given her and the wages her husband had handed over.
The total was nearly 1,000 yuan. With the addition of the 232 yuan, her savings now exceeded 1,200 yuan.
Having been married for only four months, she already had 1,200 yuan in savings. If this news got out, it would likely cause a huge stir in the village.
The trust her father-in-law and husband had in her was truly undeniable.
After putting the money away and locking the box, Zhang Xiuping went out with a smile to have dinner.
For dinner, there was stir-fried pork, a few vegetable dishes, and a clay pot of yellow bean and pig trotter soup specially prepared for her.
Since Zhang Xiuping became pregnant, her father-in-law had insisted on having a fresh soup every day. True to his word, the family had a different soup every day: old hen soup, duck soup, mutton soup, peanut and pork bone soup, yellow bean and pig trotter soup, and more. Each one was delicious, and Zhang Xiuping felt a deep sense of happiness.
She wasn’t sure if city women with good conditions received such treatment, but in the countryside, she had never heard of any pregnant woman being treated this well.
Initially, while enjoying such high treatment, she was worried that if the baby wasn’t a boy but a girl, her father-in-law and husband might be disappointed. However, after learning about Zhang Qi, her worries vanished.
After all, her father-in-law had made it clear: a woman is just a field, and the man sows the seed. Therefore, the gender of the baby is determined by the man, not the woman.
With such an enlightened father-in-law, Zhang Xiuping felt incredibly lucky!
...
The next day.
At noon, Deng Yunhua came running back from school, panting heavily and shouting excitedly, "The brigade is showing a movie tonight!"
Deng Yunzhen's eyes lit up, and she quickly asked, "Xiaohua, who told you this? Is it true?"
Deng Yunhua, still catching his breath, said, "A lot of people were talking about it at the brigade when I came back from school. It’s definitely true."
Deng Yunzhen exclaimed joyfully, "Sister-in-law, we can go see the movie tonight!"
Zhang Xiuping couldn’t help but get excited as well.
In this era, from the elderly to the young, almost no one could resist the allure of a movie.
However, before Zhang Xiuping could respond, Deng Shirong immediately interjected, "Yunzhen, your sister-in-law is pregnant and can’t go to the movie. It’s too dangerous with all the people crowding around at night.
Deng Yunzhen finally realized her mistake and said apologetically, "Sister-in-law, I’m sorry, I completely forgot you’re pregnant."
Zhang Xiuping couldn’t help but laugh. "Don’t worry about it. Even I forgot when I heard the news about the movie."
For Deng Shirong, who had experienced the movies and short videos of a later era, the films of this time held little interest. However, he understood how much watching a movie meant to people in this era.
To avoid disappointing his eldest daughter-in-law, Deng Shirong promised, "Sister Ping, since you're pregnant, it wouldn't be good for you to squeeze with others. When the baby is born and we celebrate the full moon, I'll hire someone to show movies at home for three nights straight. I'll make sure you enjoy it to the fullest."
Zhang Xiuping was both surprised and delighted by her father-in-law’s words, but she still shook her head. "Dad, that would cost a lot of money. It’s not necessary."
Deng Shirong smiled. "How can it not be necessary? This is my first grandchild, and we definitely need to celebrate properly."
Zhang Xiuping placed a hand on her still-flat belly, and the smile on her face couldn’t be hidden.
As they spoke, Deng Yunzhu, Deng Yunsong, and Deng Yunheng returned. They had clearly heard about the movie being shown tonight and were all very excited.
Similar scenes were playing out in different households around the village.
In just a few hours, the news of the movie being shown at the commune spread throughout the entire Bangjie commune.
In this era, when entertainment was extremely scarce, watching a movie was almost as exciting as celebrating the New Year.
Thus, on this day, families planning to watch the movie didn’t have congee for dinner but cooked a full meal instead.
Drinking congee led to frequent urination, and in an era where watching a movie meant squeezing together with a crowd, it was difficult to slip out to use the restroom. Experienced villagers knew that to enjoy a movie, they needed to have a proper dinner beforehand.
Tonight, every household ate very early.
Although the movie wouldn’t start until evening, people had already started bringing stools to secure their spots.
The Deng family also ate very early this evening.
After dinner, as his children prepared to take their stools to secure spots, Deng Shirong asked his fourth son, "Xiaohua, do you have money for the ticket?"
In this era, watching a movie wasn’t free even in the village. You had to pay, whether at a cinema or in the village.
The only time you could watch a movie for free was when someone had a special occasion, like a wedding, a full moon celebration, or a birthday, and they paid for a movie to be shown. Alternatively, if a production team paid for a movie to be shown in the village, people from other villages could watch for free.
Since today’s movie wasn’t funded by any production team, tickets would be sold.
The tickets were inexpensive, just a few cents, and most families could afford them, but it was a matter of whether they were willing to spend the money.
Deng Yunhua’s academic performance was poor, and he had never received any rewards from his father. However, he had received many red envelopes during the New Year and occasionally found ways to swindle a bit of money from his wealthy fifth brother. He nodded and said, "Dad, I have money for the ticket."
Deng Shirong grunted in acknowledgment and then instructed his eldest daughter, "Yunzhen, keep an eye on them."
"Got it, Dad!"
(End of Chapter)
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