Chapter 74

The Shi family is different from the Shen family.

When their family was renovating their house, Cancan was probably still young, and they didn't expect the child to run upstairs, so they did not renovate the railing on the rooftop.

The railings used are the most common white-painted iron railings installed by the developer.

The iron railing was only about 1.2 meters high, and some parts had rusted after being exposed to wind and rain for a long time.

At this moment, looking at two children of five or six years old running around on it, Chen Cong felt his heart was tied into a knot.

It's so scary.

She didn't have time to ask too many questions, so she could only loudly warn them, "You two stand here and don't move. Wait for us to come over!"

Then he pulled Gu Kai, and the two of them quickly went downstairs.

As soon as they walked to the door, they found that the door of the elevator was opened. At this time, Zhou Ying was holding the door and gasping for breath.

A torn sheet was tied around her back, and inside the sheet was a large bucket.

That bucket should be the big mineral water bucket that Shi Chen had used before, 18.9 liters.

Most people would find it a bit difficult to lift this bucket from the ground to replace the water dispenser, and I don’t know how she, a thin and weak woman, carried it up to the 19th floor.

Not only that, there were two 5L oil drums on the ground next to her, and the drums were also filled with water.

Seeing her like this, Shencong felt distressed.

She and Gu Kai walked over quickly and reached out to help her take the bucket off her back.

Zhou Ying didn't expect to meet the two of them here. She was startled at first, and then surprised.

He happily grabbed Shen Cong's hand and shouted, "Xiao Shen, you're back!"

She was still panting as she spoke, and her lips turned a little pale from the effort.

But even so, Chen Cong could feel that Zhou Ying was a little different from the last time they met. She seemed to be more energetic.

"Come into the house quickly, we can talk inside if we have anything to say."

Chen Cong and Gu Kai took the bucket off Zhou Ying's back.

Gu Kai carried the bucket, Chen Cong picked up the two oil bottles on the ground, and the three of them walked into the Shi family together.

Zhou Ying wanted to help, but was stopped by two people.

When they entered the Shi family again this time, they felt something different again.

Compared to the last time they came here, there seems to be a lot more worldly atmosphere.

And it was just like my own home, very clean, without a trace of dust on the table or the floor.

There is no need to think about it now. No matter whether it is my own family or the Shi family, the hygiene definitely has nothing to do with those two guys. It must be maintained by Zhou Ying.

Think about how Zhou Ying carried water upstairs just now, and then think about how she has to water the vegetables and clean the house every day to keep the house as clean as it is now...

Chen Cong didn't know what to say.

Before she opened her mouth, Zhou Ying spoke first.

She said: "Xiao Shen, I haven't had time to thank you yet, it's really great to meet you.

Oh, I don’t know what to say. If I hadn’t known you, Xiaoyu and I wouldn’t have survived.

If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have met Jiashu and wouldn't have moved to Xiaochen's home.

My husband Lao Liu and I have been saying that we must find an opportunity to thank you and your family, but in this world, we don’t know what we can do for you.”

"Let's talk about it later. Call Xiaoyu and Cancan down first." Shen Cong interrupted her.

She rushed over because she was worried that the two children were not safe.

"You two go ahead and talk, I'll go up and take a look." Gu Kai said.

After that, he looked at Zhou Ying and said, "Can I go up?"

"Yes." Zhou Ying nodded quickly.

Then she looked at Chen Cong again: "How about we go up together?"

After saying that, he did not forget to explain: "It's okay, they are both very sensible and will not go to the side."

But how could Chen Cong believe it?

That’s the top of the 20th floor!

Even if the child is obedient and doesn't move to the side, a gust of wind is not a small matter.

She didn't want to argue with Zhou Ying, she just wanted to quickly go up and get those two little guys down.

Zhou Ying was about to pick up the buckets again, but Gu Kai didn't wait for her to do anything. He walked ahead with a large bucket in one hand and two oil bottles in the other.

After going upstairs, the couple found that the two kids did not stay behind the burglar-proof net as they said.

Instead, each of them took a small plastic cup and poured water from the mineral water bucket in an official manner, then watered the vegetables.

Just as Zhou Ying said, they all consciously stayed away from the edge of the building, as if they had been trained.

The Shi family also grows a lot of vegetables.

Compared with the Shen family, the crops here are much more rugged.

The containers used included plastic basins with broken edges, boxes made of old wooden boards, aluminum basins, broken cans, and even a row of old sacks filled with soil placed against the wall.

Although the containers are of various types and are obviously pieced together, the vegetables inside are growing well.

If you look closely, you can see that the vegetables here and there are planted in batches.

That is to say, their maturity times are separate, so you won't be able to harvest a lot at once, nor will there be no vegetables to harvest for a long time.

Looking at the lush greenery on the balcony, the couple couldn't help but exclaim: "The vegetables are so well grown!"

"Yeah, I think so too." Chen Cong's words clearly touched Zhou Ying's heart. She was rarely modest, and her tone was full of pride.

"Actually, the feng shui here is better." As she spoke, she skillfully opened the oil bottle and took a small shallow bowl to water the plants with the two children.

Seeing Chen Cong and Gu Kai coming over to help, she quickly stopped them: "No, you and Xiao Gu, don't get involved, we can water quickly."

Hearing his mother say this, Xiaoyu next to him also said: "Uncle and aunt, don't move, Cancan and I can do it."

After that, he looked at Zhou Ying and said, "Mom, leave it alone. We'll do it. Go get some water."

"Okay." Zhou Ying agreed, picked up the largest bucket, walked to a corner of the rooftop, and poured the water into a large bucket.

Then she came back and said to the two people apologetically: "You two can play here for a while and let them talk to you. I will go downstairs. Otherwise, the water truck will leave soon."

After hearing Zhou Ying say that she would go down once more, Gu Kai took the bucket without hesitation and said, "I'll go."

After saying that, he took the initiative to pour the water from the other two oil bottles into the big barrel.

"How can this be possible?" Zhou Ying became anxious and came over to stop them.

But Chen Cong stopped him: "Let him go, let's have a good talk, we haven't seen each other for a long time."

Zhou Ying saw that she couldn't stop him, and her expression showed even more apology.

Helplessly, she handed over a small wooden sign tied to her wrist: "This is the water sign for our two families. You don't need to bring other buckets. You can only get half a bucket today."

As she spoke, she took the other two oil bottles.

Gu Kai didn't say anything else and went downstairs carrying the largest bucket.

Chen Cong took out two candies from his pocket and stuffed them into Cancan and Xiaoyu's hands, then took their small water cups and started pouring water beside Zhou Ying.

This time Zhou Ying did not stop him.

"Why did you move here?" Chen Cong asked.

“Our house in the antique city collapsed, and we all moved into government relief housing.

Later, the area was to be rebuilt and the relief housing had to be relocated. We didn’t want to live in the suburbs, so we had to find a house ourselves. Then my son Lao Liu met Jiashu. ”

Shen Cong nodded.

She had seen the government's relief housing before. They were called relief housing, but in fact they were the kind of temporary housing that was often used on construction sites in the past.

Easy to build and even easier to dismantle.

The Antique City is located in a commercial district with convenient transportation.

Not to mention that the government can't take care of it, once they start transforming the urban area, that place will inevitably have to be rebuilt.

"Do your Lao Liu and Jia Shu know each other?" Chen Cong asked.

"We met when I was selling things." Zhou Ying said it a little shyly.

"My husband Liu was injured in the earthquake, and he can't do heavy work, so he can only try his hand at small business.

He used to have many friends and was also very smart. Later, his friends helped each other to trade goods and earn a living.

Jiashu once came to my cousin Lao Liu to sell vegetables, and they got to know each other after a few visits.

Knowing that we wanted to rent a house, Jiashu introduced Shichen's family to him, saying that there were only two children living in the family, and the population was simple.

I thought that since we were bringing Xiaoyu with us, it would be appropriate to find a simple family like this to live with, so I said I would come and take a look.

I didn’t expect that when I gave the address, it turned out to be next door to your house!”

At this point, Zhou Ying started laughing.

She looked at Chen Cong and said, "Xiao Shen, do you think this is fate?"

"It's true." Chen Cong also laughed.

Jiashu and Lao Liu from Zhou Ying's family had never met each other before, so when he introduced them, he definitely didn't know that they knew him.

Although Zhou Ying had met Jiashu before, they never had any dealings with each other afterwards.

If they can get together again under such circumstances, what other explanation can there be if it isn't fate?

Chen Cong looked at the two children squatting on the side and weeding the vegetables in the flowerpots, and sighed: "You two should get along very well. Shichen and Cancan are both good children. Xiaoyu is also good. It's really good that you can keep each other company."

"Yes." Zhou Ying agreed deeply.

"It's really great. These two kids are really good, Jiashu is also good. And after we came here, thanks to them, we were able to build up our business..."

At this point, Zhou Ying's voice choked up noticeably.

She raised her eyes and looked at Chen Cong: "We are so lucky to meet your family."

Chen Cong waved his hands, not wanting to hear her say these words again. She had said these words many times.

"You said you're starting a small business now," Chen Cong looked around, "Are you selling vegetables?"

"Yes!" Zhou Ying became happy when talking about this.

She told Chen Cong about what happened after she moved in.

When they moved in, the roof of the Shi family's house was not used.

At that time, both Shichen and Jiashu had to go out to work, and Cancan was at home, so even if they wanted to grow vegetables, they could only do so in the morning and evening when they were not at work.

Even with the blessing of the formation, in Zhou Ying's words, "the quality is very ordinary."

Zhou Ying and her husband Liu Xiaofeng both came from poor backgrounds. Although they later saved some money by selling jade articles, both families were from rural areas before.

Both of them had to work in the fields since they were young.

Growing vegetables and crops is no big deal for them.

With their help, Chen Cong's rooftop vegetable garden gradually grew in size.

At this time, Lao Liu suggested that they sell the vegetables to him.

He bought the vegetables at the government purchase price, and they didn't get a penny from many of them. But he had the final say on how much to sell them for.

Jiashu and Shichen had originally planned to sell the vegetables they had grown to a purchasing point, but they had to work and take care of the children, so they simply didn't have the energy to run around selling vegetables.

Since Lao Liu brought it up, they had no objection.

After running the business like this for a while, Zhou Ying and Lao Liu tasted the sweetness.

The most important thing is that they found that at least Lao Liu didn’t have to go out to work anymore.

Ever since he lost one of his arms, Lao Liu couldn’t find a suitable job even if he went out to look for one. He was exhausted every day and sometimes couldn’t even bring home a single steamed bun.

But selling vegetables is different.

He was originally a businessman and had connections, so it was not difficult for him to sell some of the most in-demand vegetables at a good price.

Even when the market is good, you don't have to run around at all, as there will be people waiting to buy you.

So after discussing it, the couple proposed to Shi Chen to help him make use of the rooftop.

Shi Chen refused.

After Zhou Ying and Lao Liu's family moved in, they took the initiative to take care of Cancan's job.

After all, they also have a child, so there must always be someone at home to take care of Xiaoyu, and they will definitely take the child with them even when they go out.

It doesn't matter whether you take one or two, and the two children are about the same age, so they can keep each other company.

With their help, Shi Chen no longer had to rush back, so he went to find the master he had mentioned before and started learning electricianship from him.

Shi Chen now goes out early and comes back late. When he has time, he has to take care of the Shen family's vegetable garden, so he can't take care of his own home.

After learning about this situation, Lao Liu proposed to rent the top floor for ten kilograms of grain a month. The couple would grow and sell the crops themselves, and would not share the proceeds with Shi Chen.

But in addition to the ten kilograms of food, they also provided three meals a day for the brother and sister. They simply lived together.

Chen had no objection to this.

Of course, Jiashu will come over when he is around.

But Jiashu has always been self-conscious. In Zhou Ying's words, he is "too polite. He always brings a lot of things every time he comes..."

But no matter what, now the three families are together, they get along very well.

This is why Xiaoyu can so proudly say that the vegetables upstairs are all from his family, grown by him and his parents.

This is absolutely true.

In addition to this place, when Shi Chen couldn't take care of Chen Cong and the others, Zhou Ying and her husband would go over to clean up together.

After listening to Zhou Ying's story, Chen Cong had to admit that she had never expected such a turn of events.

But it sounds pretty good.

At least this way, I don’t have to worry about Cancan being left alone at home without anyone to take care of her, nor do I have to worry about Jiashu and Shichen not knowing how to grow vegetables and wasting the vegetable garden upstairs.

Gu Kai came up with Lao Liu.

This was the first time that Chen Cong met Lao Liu. He had only seen him once on the rooftop before.

After seeing this, she realized that although Zhou Ying kept calling him Old Liu, this man was actually very young. He looked about the same age as them and could not be over 30 years old.

Upon asking, it turned out to be true. Old Liu is 27 years old this year, and Zhou Ying is the same age as him.

"People in our place get married early and have children right after marriage," Old Liu explained with a smile.

"You are one year younger than me." said Gu Kai.

"Only one year older than me." Chen Cong agreed.

After that, she laughed and looked at Zhou Ying in reproach: "It's a pity that I followed you and called him Old Liu for so long that I thought he was so old. Do you have any misunderstanding about the word 'old'?"

These words made Zhou Ying laugh continuously.

"Let me introduce myself to you again. My name is Liu Xiaofeng. You can just call me by my name from now on." Liu Xiaofeng smiled heartily.

"The same goes for you. We are so familiar with each other now, so let's call each other by our names from now on. It will be more convenient this way." Chen Cong replied.

The arrival of the couple made Zhou Ying and his wife very happy.

They insisted on keeping the two of them for lunch.

Although Liu Xiaofeng has lost his right arm, he is obviously still the chef at home.

After Zhou Ying cut and prepared the vegetables, she came out of the kitchen to chat with the two of them, leaving the entire kitchen to her husband.

And judging from her expression, she really believes in her husband's cooking skills and keeps asking them to try it.

That being said, Chen Cong and the others did not mention going to help.

The main reason is that they have the chef Cheng Ru at home, and their cooking skills are not that good.

I won't embarrass myself.

Garlic spinach, bitter gourd fried with chili, tomatoes with sugar, and loofah soup.

Although they are all homely dishes, they are rarely seen in this apocalyptic world.

It was because they had a vegetable garden on the roof that they dared to be so extravagant.

After Liu Xiaofeng came out of the kitchen, Shen Cong went in to take a look and then asked, "Did the city say when natural gas will be available?"

"No," Zhou Ying replied, "I don't think so. Not to mention whether the pipeline can still be used, energy is under such tight control now that gasoline and diesel are no longer available for sale. I don't think natural gas will be allowed for civilian use."

As she spoke, she quickly opened the kitchen window.

He said apologetically, "Are you burned? I said the other day that I would find a way to buy some coal. It's not easy to burn wood alone, and the fire is not strong enough.

It is extremely difficult to buy coal now. Not only is the supply limited, but you won’t be able to buy it if you go a little later.

The neighbor downstairs said that if you go to line up at 8-9 o'clock the night before, you may not be able to get a ticket in the morning.

But you still have to try it.”

"There is a stove on my balcony. I'll ask Gu Kai to move it down for you later. It burns biofuel. We bought a lot of it because we wanted to improve the heating system, but we didn't use it later. You can move it here and use it." Chen Cong said.

"How can that be possible? This won't do..."

Shen Cong waved his hand: "Don't be polite to me, you even helped our family clean up, how do you count this?"

"Also," she paused and smiled, "We may have to live here more often in the future. The two of us may have to join my dad, and then the three of us may have to come here often for meals."

"You guys are moving back? That's great. When? Do you want us to help?"

When Zhou Ying heard the news, she immediately became happy. Her expression was not fake at all and it was obvious that it came from the heart.

This made Chen Cong feel again that Jiashu had done a good thing.

Sometimes it is difficult to meet a neighbor with whom you can get along well. Chen Cong is very satisfied to continue being neighbors with Zhou Ying and others.

It was already dark when we returned from Zhou Ying's house after dinner.

Because they had left a note for the old man when they came out, they had no plans to go back to the regiment headquarters.

The two decided to stay at home for one night and talk about it tomorrow.

As a result, just after they finished washing up and had not yet laid down, there was a knock on the door.

"No need to ask, it must be Shi Chen." Chen Cong said with a smile.

"I'll go open the door." Gu Kai got off the bed.

Chen Cong also changed his clothes and followed him down.

Sure enough, as soon as she went downstairs, she saw Shi Chen sitting obediently in front of the coffee table.

Maybe because he was afraid that he would come too late and they would have gone to bed, the young man ran over without even changing his clothes.

At this moment, he seemed to be afraid of dirtying the house, and sat in a corner of the sofa, a little shyly.

"Why are you acting like a bullied young wife? Who bullied you?" Chen Cong joked.

Shi Chen's face suddenly turned red.

"Don't listen to your aunt, she's just teasing you." Gu Kai poured a glass of water in front of Shi Chen, then sat down next to him.

The casual attitude of the two people finally made Shi Chen relax. His body also stretched a little and a smile appeared on his face.

"Uncle and aunt, when did you come back? Are you leaving again this time? Have you seen Brother Jiashu? Did you know that he has returned to the community?"

The young man must have thought about all these questions when he was at the door, and he spoke them out in one breath without stuttering.

Gu Kai patiently answered them one by one, while Chen Cong sat aside and observed Shi Chen's situation.

After not seeing the boy for a few months, he seemed to have grown taller. Although he was still very thin, his cheeks finally had some flesh on them, and he didn't look so miserable anymore.

Such changes are really pleasing to watch.

The three of them chatted some more, mainly talking about their respective experiences after they separated.

Because Zhou Ying had already told the couple part of Shi Chen's situation during the day, they understood it, so they didn't say too much.

Finally, they told Shi Chen that he might not be able to stay here for too long this time, as he had to go out early tomorrow morning for something and it was hard to say when he would be back.

The young man obviously hesitated.

He pursed his lips for a long time without saying anything, but he looked like he wanted to say something but hesitated.

Chen Cong couldn't bear to see him like this, so he asked directly: "What's the matter? Just say it, don't hesitate."

Gu Kai also said: "Shi Chen, we don't treat you and Cancan as outsiders, just like our own children. I think you should not treat me and your aunt as outsiders either.

In that case, who else can you tell if you don’t tell us?

Just say what you want to say, don't think too much, we will definitely help if we can, so don't hesitate too much."

The child's character is trustworthy, and the two of them don't want him to get into trouble and have no one to turn to.

No matter how you put it, they are still children. Even if Shi Chen appears to be calm, he is still a minor.

After hearing what they said, Shi Chen finally raised his head.

He still looked hesitant, but he gritted his teeth and said to the two people, "Uncle and aunt, if possible, can you take me and Cancan back with you when you go back this time?

I heard from Brother Jiashu that Grandpa is a very good doctor and can cure many difficult and complicated diseases. I want to ask him to help me with the treatment. "

"Who is sick? You or Cancan?" Chen Cong asked anxiously.

The author has something to say:

It's so late, sorry. I'll try to post earlier tomorrow and there will be more updates tomorrow.

Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or irrigated nutrient solution during 2022-07-30 21:24:38~2022-07-31 01:29:21~

Thanks to the little angels who irrigated the nutrient solution: 30 bottles of Ningjing Zhiyuan; 1 bottle of Kaze;

Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!