Chen Lan never expected Xu Mingxuan, this straight-arrow man, to say something so cheesy. While feeling awkward and unsure how to respond, she looked up and saw Xu Mingxuan gazing at her. This made her feel even more flustered and at a loss, so she awkwardly averted her eyes, unable to look at him.
As Chen Lan’s eyes darted around, unsure where to focus, she spotted two men, referred to as Elder Chang, hurrying towards them from not far away, followed by a madam.
Chen Lan’s senses were incredibly sharp, giving her excellent hearing and vision. She clearly saw the madam wearing a dark blue padded cotton jacket, the same color and style as the one she had bought for Aunt Chang Sanmei. The headscarf the madam wore was also dark red. The madam appeared to be around fifty years old, tall, with thick eyebrows, large eyes, a high and prominent nose, and fair skin. Chen Lan mused that this madam must have been a great beauty in her youth, with fair skin, alluring eyes, a sharp nose, and a slender waist.
Chen Lan guessed this madam was indeed Aunt Chang Sanmei.
The two Elder Changs were truly a timely arrival! Coming at the perfect moment! Chen Lan immediately waved her hands excitedly and called out loudly, "Elder Chang, Elder Chang Er, you're here!"
Hearing the shout, the two Elder Changs and Aunt Chang Sanmei looked up, their faces filled with confusion, as they saw Chen Lan and Xu Mingxuan standing on the back of the old Jiefang truck. It was evident that neither of the Elder Changs recognized the couple in their altered appearances.
Xu Mingxuan also called out, "Elder Chang, it's us, your couple. I'm Xiao Xu!"
At this, Elder Chang Er said with great excitement, "Big brother, that’s Xiao Xu’s voice, no doubt."
Thus, Elder Chang and Elder Chang Er quickened their pace, with Aunt Sanmei following closely behind the two brothers.
By then, Chen Lan and Xu Mingxuan had already alighted from the truck. The couple hurried forward to greet the Elder Chang brothers.
After exchanging greetings, Chen Lan looked at the madam and asked, "Are you Aunt Sanmei?"
Chang Sanmei asked with surprise, "Girl, how did you know?"
Chen Lan replied with a smile, "Because just looking at your face, you're a great beauty from Northeast China."
After hearing Chen Lan's words, Aunt Sanmei burst into hearty laughter and then said frankly, "That's right, I am your Aunt Sanmei. By the way, girl, I also want to thank you. Thank you for gifting me the padded jacket, shawl, and boots under my sister-in-law's name. They really gave me a lot of face in front of my husband's family. Although I, Chang Sanmei, haven't visited my maternal home for years, now they know for sure that I, Chang Sanmei, have family who care about and protect me! It'll drive them mad with envy!"
Aunt Sanmei’s words brought a pang of sadness to Chen Lan's heart. Women in this era already had a difficult life, let alone women who married far away to a foreign land with no one to rely on? Their lives must have been even more arduous.
In her past life, there was a girl in her apartment complex who married far away for what she called love. It was said that to visit her maternal home, she had to take three train transfers, not to mention long-distance buses. So, after getting married, she didn't visit her parents for several years. One year, she had a falling out with her in-laws and suffered a lot of grievances. She took her children and angrily returned to her maternal home. Upon seeing her mother, she hugged her and sobbed uncontrollably. The mother and daughter cried for a long time! When the neighbors who came to comfort her heard about the girl's plight, they also shed tears.
The ultimate conclusion was: girls should never marry far away, because women who marry into distant lands, no matter how much they sacrifice, will never be understood. What’s more heartbreaking is that no matter how much they suffer, they can't speak of it, enduring it all in silence.
With this thought, Chen Lan quickly said, "Aunt Sanmei, it doesn't matter who sent it, it's from your family! We can't back down in front of outsiders. Just consider it a gift from your nephew and niece. You have me, your niece, to back you up!"
Aunt Sanmei laughed even more heartily, "That's right, we can't back down and lose the reputation of Northeast women. However, girl, speaking of one thing at a time, I still want to thank you."
Seeing Aunt Sanmei’s insistence on thanking her, Chen Lan decided not to be overly polite anymore! She immediately changed the subject, "Auntie, my given name is Chen Lan, my Russian name is Mila. Just call me Xiao Lan!"
Aunt Sanmei took Chen Lan's hand and praised her repeatedly, "Good! Xiao Lan, that's a nice name. Mila, that name is also nice! Both sound good! Just like you, you're good in every way!"
Chen Lan felt a little embarrassed by the aunt’s praise and humbly replied, "No, no, it's just ordinary, ordinary."
At this moment, Xu Mingxuan and the two Elder Changs walked over together. Xu Mingxuan said, "Lan'er, it's getting late, and we still need to go to Madam's farm. Let's hurry!"
So, Xu Mingxuan drove in the front, with Aunt Sanmei and Elder Chang in the front passenger seat. After Chen Lan and Elder Chang Er climbed into the back of the truck, the vehicle set off. It wasn't too far from Aunt Sanmei's home, and it only took about ten minutes to drive there.
Aunt Sanmei's house was four traditional Russian log cabins, surrounded by a wooden fence enclosing a small courtyard. Straight birch trees were planted in front of and behind the house.
As soon as Xu Mingxuan stopped the truck, he went to the back to help Elder Chang Er alight. It was Elder Chang Er's first time on a vehicle, and he wasn't quite used to it, feeling a bit carsick. He was still a little dizzy after getting off. Elder Chang and Aunt Sanmei quickly helped support him.
Xu Mingxuan was about to offer his hand to help Chen Lan down when Chen Lan waved him off, signaling him to get back in the truck. While this was happening, Chen Lan quickly asked, "Brother Mingxuan, do you know how many people are in Aunt Sanmei's family now?"
Xu Mingxuan asked in surprise, "Lan'er, what's wrong? I just asked. She has quite a large family. Besides her husband back home, she has two sons, two daughters, three grandsons, and two granddaughters."
Chen Lan replied in a low voice, "Brother Mingxuan, when visiting someone's home, we should bring gifts! Moreover, we need to represent her family and give Aunt Sanmei face! The gifts definitely can't be too small."
With that said, she picked up two large woven baskets and rummaged through them in the truck bed for quite some time. Only when Aunt Chang Sanmei and the two Elder Changs called out from below did Chen Lan stop and look. Good heavens! The baskets were filled to the brim. Chen Lan then pressed them down with her hands.
She also deliberately used her mind to order several bags of brightly colored fruit candies, each weighing one kilogram, from the system. There were also bags of small pastries and biscuits, which were specifically gifts for Aunt Sanmei's grandchildren. Additionally, there were six bottles of Russian wine and six bottles of pure grain vodka, gifts for the adults.