Several women quickly finished cooking and called the mother-in-law and Uncle De's family to eat.
After dinner, the boys went to their rooms to play, while the adults mingled in the living room.
Chen Lan saw that everyone had pretty much finished asking each other the questions they wanted to ask.
Then she opened her mouth to ask her mother-in-law about the family's class status classification.
"Mother-in-law, has our family's class status been classified? Have you obtained the classification certificate?" Chen Lan asked.
The mother-in-law replied, "It has been classified. We've been classified as lower-middle peasants. This finally lifted a stone from my heart!"
"Just the other day, Erhu just went to the county town and brought the classification certificate home. Your Uncle Fu then came to visit. We spent two days tidying up the house. The remaining food, the vegetables in the yard, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, old quilts, old mattresses, old cotton-padded clothes – whatever couldn't be taken along was given away to others."
Chen Lan felt relieved when her mother-in-law said their class status had been classified as lower-middle peasants.
Suddenly, the mother-in-law leaned closer to Chen Lan and whispered, "Xiao Lan, didn't your father-in-law say that old objects are valuable? I had Uncle De dismantle my carved bed and put it in our large cellar."
When Chen Lan heard her mother-in-law say, "dismantle it!" she immediately felt uneasy! She froze for a moment, then suddenly remembered that ancient furniture was of mortise and tenon construction, which could be disassembled and reassembled.
Chen Lan gave her mother-in-law a thumbs-up. The mother-in-law laughed happily.
Chen Lan turned to look at Uncle Fu. "Uncle Fu, where is Lin Mao? Didn't Lin Mao come home with you?"
Uncle Fu replied, "He did, he came back with us. That honest boy ran off after helping to move the items into the house. We couldn't even call him back."
Although Uncle Fu's words sounded like a complaint, his eyes were full of smiles. It seemed they had gotten along very well these past few days, and Uncle Fu was even more pleased with Lin Mao.
Chen Lan continued to ask, "Uncle Fu, why hasn't our family's class status been classified yet?"
"Why don't you take some time in the next couple of days to ask the government comrades and see if they can hurry it up? If that doesn't work, we can bring all the donation receipts. That should prove we are the proletariat, right?"
"Oh! Right, Mother, are the receipts for the three shops our family donated to the government with you?"
Wenrou Niang replied, "Yes, they are with me."
Chen Lan then asked, "Mother, is there any proof that my brother and father sold their property to join the revolution?"
"Well, there's really nothing to prove it, but everyone knows about it!"
Chen Lan, not giving up, asked again, "Then do you have any purchase receipts or anything like that?"
Wenrou Niang replied, "They sold their property, took the money, and left with the team. Where would they have gotten any receipts? They left and never returned!" Wenrou Niang's mood instantly became low.
The mother-in-law quickly interjected, "Your father-in-law and Mingxuan also sold their property and left with the team!"
"Even that time when Mingxuan came home to raise money, it was to collect funds to buy anti-inflammatory and hemostatic drugs. He didn't leave any receipts or proof that time either."
"Fortunately, heaven has eyes. That time he came home, he left me with two good grandchildren, Jiayao and Jiahui!"
The mother-in-law continued, "The father and son almost used up all their family property without leaving any receipts for proof, right?"
"We only have the receipts for donating two shops and over a hundred mu of land to the government this time."
Chen Lan was at a loss for words for a moment!
She then changed the subject, "Uncle Fu, you mentioned last time about letting Xiao Shan's mother and son move in with us. Why didn't they come?"
Uncle Fu replied, "I told Xiao Shan and his mother that they should come to live with us so it would be convenient to take care of his mother. Xiao Shan and his mother were afraid of causing trouble for our family and refused to come."
"His mother also said that she was familiar with the house, and even if she couldn't see, it wouldn't hinder her from doing things. She could take care of herself and wouldn't come to trouble us!"
"Did you find a doctor for her?"
"Yes, I did. He prescribed some herbal medicine that she takes daily. They said it helps to dissolve blockages, remove stasis, and open the senses and brighten the eyes. The doctor said to take ten doses first and see the effect. If it works, she'll continue with it. If not, we'll change the medicine."
"How about this? Uncle Fu, I'll talk to my father-in-law about this in a moment and see if he has any more effective medicine. If he does, I'll give it to you, and you can give it to her tomorrow, or have Brother Xiangdong take it to Xiao Shan. They are learning car repair together during this time anyway."
Uncle Fu nodded. He said he would arrange this and asked Chen Lan to quickly go ask her father-in-law.
Chen Lan looked at her mother-in-law and asked if she had anything to ask her father-in-law.
The mother-in-law thought for a moment and said, "You know, there is indeed something. Since the whole family is in the imperial capital now, it's convenient. We haven't gone all the way to Jilin yet. Ask your father-in-law if he needs anything. If he does, have him send me a dream, and I'll get it for him, so the family won't have to worry."
As the mother-in-law spoke, her nose turned red.
Chen Lan didn't know how to comfort her mother-in-law when suddenly she heard Wen Qi and Wen Kai shouting from outside, mixed with the cries of children. Chen Lan immediately got up from her chair, ready to go out. She saw Ming Zhe half-hugging a baby, his forehead covered in sweat, and rushing in, out of breath. The baby he was holding was about to fall to the ground, crying loudly.
"Chen Lan!" Wenrou Niang, and the mother-in-law all rushed forward with a cry. The mother-in-law, holding Xiao Shi Tou, exclaimed, "Oh my goodness!" The mother-in-law quickly put down Xiao Shi Tou, and then went to take the baby from Ming Zhe, but she was a step behind Wenrou Niang.
Chen Lan was sitting further from the door than Wenrou Niang and the mother-in-law, so she reached the door a few steps behind them. She was just about to run forward to catch the child. At this moment, another baby's cry and Wen Qi's shout came from outside: "Ming Zhe... slow down, don't run... Jiahui is about to fall to the ground, don't run..."
Chen Lan saw that Wenrou Niang had already scooped Jiahui into her arms and was gently patting her back to soothe her. She quickly ran out. As soon as she stepped outside, she saw Wen Kai and Wen Qi, one on each side, holding Jia Yao's shoulders with one hand and Jia Yao's thighs with the other, carrying him as if he were in a sedan chair. Jia Yao was still crying and struggling, while the two younger brothers' faces were red and they were panting with exertion.
Chen Lan quickly took Jia Yao and gently patted him to comfort him. After a long while, Jia Yao stopped crying and kept snuggling into Chen Lan's arms. The child had woken up from his nap, hadn't eaten, and had cried so hard. He must have been very hungry.
By this time, the mother-in-law had prepared the milk and brought it over. Jiahui was already feeding. Chen Lan quickly picked up the bottle and started feeding Jia Yao.
With both babies eating, the world finally became quiet!
Ming Zhe, Wen Kai, and Wen Qi had also recovered and were no longer panting. Chen Lan handed Jia Yao, who was feeding, to her mother-in-law. She then turned and stroked Wen Kai's head, holding Ming Zhe's hand in one and Wen Qi's in the other, and arranged for the three of them to sit down and rest. She went to the side room to get a large tray of snacks.
Upon seeing this, Ming Zhe immediately came back to life. He jumped up from his chair with a yell, wanting to take the tray from Chen Lan's hands. Chen Lan quickly stopped him. "Ming Zhe, don't move. Sit down. The tray is heavy, I'll put it on the low coffee table for you."
Ming Zhe looked at the colorful snacks on the tray, unsure how to start. He then saw Wen Qi pick up his favorite yogurt, skillfully open it, insert the straw, and gulp it down. Wen Kai also opened the chocolate wrapper and was putting a piece of dark chocolate into his mouth. Ming Zhe was suddenly dumbfounded.