It's time to eat.
Two square tables were pushed together, and nearly 20 people sat around eating dinner.
Xu Xiuwen's eldest uncle was called Ning Zhuo.
The four sisters had the same first two characters in their names, with the last character being Chun, Lan, Qiu, or Ju.
Ning Wanqiu was the third sister, so she was called Ning Wanqiu.
As they were eating, the eldest aunt, Ning Wanchun, suddenly said, "Third sister, Xu Xiuwen is going to university this year, right?"
Ning Wanqiu responded with a hum.
The eldest aunt continued, "Then why didn't you invite us to the graduation banquet? You're not doing things right."
Ning Wanqiu explained, "We didn't hold a graduation banquet."
The eldest aunt asked knowingly, "Why didn't you hold a graduation banquet?"
The eldest aunt and Xu Xiuwen's mother never got along, so while her questions seemed innocent, everyone knew she had bad intentions.
When Xu Xiuwen's college entrance exam results came out, Ning Wanqiu had informed her parents, so the family knew Xu Xiuwen didn't score well.
Even though everyone knew the eldest aunt was being malicious, no one spoke up.
Xu Xiuwen's grandparents were always mild-mannered and couldn't get a word in.
Ning Wanqiu remained calm and patiently explained, "Xiuwen only got into a third-tier college, so there's no need for a graduation banquet."
Upon hearing this, the eldest aunt immediately exclaimed, "Third-tier is still a university! How can you not hold a graduation banquet? Don't city folks observe these customs? When our Li Lei got into a first-tier university, even though we live in the countryside, we sold everything we could to hold a graduation banquet for him. Otherwise, wouldn't we be looked down upon?"
Ning Wanqiu said nothing.
The eldest aunt finally showed her true colors.
Seeing that Ning Wanqiu didn't respond, she turned to Xu Xiuwen and said, "Xiuwen, don't blame your mom. She might think it's shameful that you got into a third-tier college, so she's embarrassed to hold a banquet. It's okay."
Then she turned back to Ning Wanqiu and scolded, "As a mother, your vanity is too strong. Even though a third-tier college isn't as good as our Li Lei's first-tier, it's still a university."
Li Lei suddenly interjected, "Mom, a third-tier college isn't really a university, it's just an institute."
The eldest aunt didn't understand and asked, "What's the difference?"
Li Lei cleared his throat and explained, "Universities have names like 'such-and-such university', but third-tier colleges are called 'such-and-such institute'. They're completely different! And their tuition is very expensive, over 10,000 yuan a year."
The second aunt suddenly added, "So, it sounds like a third-tier college is similar to our Wu Qiang's technical school. His school is called 'XX Technical Institute.'"
Li Lei nodded, "There's not much difference, just slightly higher scores."
The second aunt, hearing this, immediately said, "So, it's the same as our Wu Qiang's school. I think it's even worse than our Wu Qiang's technical school. At least he can learn a skill there, making it easier to find a job after graduation. In a third-tier college, you don't get much knowledge or skills. How will you find a job after graduation?"
The second aunt, Ning Wanlan, sincerely reminded, "Third sister, you need to pay attention. Otherwise, if he can't find a job after graduation, those four years of college will be wasted."
The eldest aunt said, "Xiuwen, don't be discouraged. Even though you didn't score well, as long as you work hard and aim to get a national scholarship like our Li Lei, you can help ease your mom's burden."
Every year at the dinner table, the eldest and second aunts would mock and ridicule Ning Wanqiu. This had become more severe since last year.
This was because the eldest aunt's son, Li Lei, got into a first-tier university last year.
In 2005, there were very few college students in the village, so Li Lei's achievement brought a lot of pride to Ning Wanchun. She would boast about her son to everyone at every opportunity.
Ning Wanqiu wasn't angry when she heard her eldest sister's words. Instead, she asked in surprise, "Li Lei received a national scholarship?"
The eldest aunt raised her head proudly.
"Yes, even though our family isn't short on money, the 4,000 yuan is a reward from the state for outstanding students. We couldn't refuse it. Li Lei even used this money to buy me clothes. Mom, Dad, the wine I brought today was bought by Li Lei. It's his way of showing appreciation."
Upon hearing this, the grandparents immediately smiled and said, "What a filial grandson!"
Second Aunt was very jealous and didn't want all the glory to be taken by just one person.
She immediately said, "Mom and Dad, although Wu Qiang doesn't do well in school, he is hardworking. During the holidays, he worked part-time to earn money and bought you cigarettes."
Second Aunt's family had brought a carton of cigarettes when they came.
Grandpa and Grandma then turned to praise Wu Qiang.
At this moment, Big Uncle didn't say anything, but Aunt was thinking about the wine Big Aunt mentioned and planned to take it home that night. After all, the old couple didn't drink. As for the cigarettes, they could leave one pack for Grandpa, and the rest would go to Big Uncle, saving money on buying them.
Youngest Aunt Ning Wanju felt helpless seeing her two older sisters stealing the spotlight. Her daughter was still young, and her son had just started middle school with poor grades. Their family's conditions were average, so they only brought several big bags of soft candy.
Big Aunt and Second Aunt noticed Ning Wanqiu wasn't speaking, so they asked, "Third Sister, what did you bring home? You're from the city; surely you didn't come back empty-handed just for a meal, right?"
Grandma quickly said, "Qiu'er brought a lot of things back; I put them in the room."
Big Aunt pursed her lips and continued, "It can't be just some snacks and fruits for your parents, right?"
Grandma hurriedly waved her hand and said, "No, Qiu'er bought two cases of wine, two cases of milk, two cartons of cigarettes, clothes for us, and clothes for He Suo and Lili."
Big Aunt and Second Aunt were somewhat surprised to hear this.
Big Aunt then snorted, "She just loves to show off every year."
Aunt and Youngest Aunt, upon hearing Grandma's words, immediately asked, "She bought clothes for He Suo (Lili) too? Where are the clothes?"
Grandma replied, "They're in the room."
Aunt immediately said to Ning Jiali, "Lili, go inside and bring the clothes out."
Ning Jiali was quite fed up with her mother but couldn't resist, otherwise, she would be scolded at home. So she reluctantly put down her chopsticks and went inside to get the clothes.
He Suo, under Youngest Aunt's direction, also put down his chopsticks and went inside.
The clothes were easy to find, placed on the bed.
There were quite a few clothes on the bed. Grandpa and Grandma's clothes were easily distinguishable, and the rest were the ones Ning Wanqiu bought for her and He Suo.
Ning Jiali and He Suo each took the clothes Ning Wanqiu bought for them and returned to the main room.
Ning Jiali had three pieces of clothing: a white Bosideng down jacket, a black wool sweater, and a pair of dark jeans.
All three pieces looked very fashionable and stylish.
Ning Jiali fell in love with them at first sight.
He Suo had only two pieces: a top and a pair of pants, but also a pair of Red Star sneakers.
He Suo was also very pleased with the outfit and shoes, smiling from ear to ear.