Chapter 59 Go back.

As for clothes, Cheng Shi usually rotated two sets of underwear all year round. Wearing a sweater and a military coat was enough.

He Susu's winter clothes are also simple. She packs her underwear. She has cotton-padded jackets and other things at home, so she doesn't need to bring so many clothes.

However, thinking that I will have to go to Shanghai after the New Year, I can't wear the clothes from my hometown, take them to Shanghai, and then bring them back to the army. If I do this, I will have nothing to wear next time I go back to my hometown. I still have to bring clothes with me from the army.

She planned to bring two sets of underwear, a sweater and a cotton jacket. Without these clothes, the clothes for both of them would be much lighter.

As for the specialties brought to her parents' side, He Susu asked about the process.

Cheng Shi was also very distressed about this. He thought about it carefully and said, "It seems that there is nothing special here. This is my first time to your mother's house. It is inconvenient to bring things on the way. I also want to go to the department store there to buy tea, cigarettes and alcohol."

He Susu smiled and said, "Tea is fine, but forget about cigarettes and alcohol. My father and brothers don't smoke, and they rarely drink."

Cheng Shi thought for a moment and said, "Instead of buying cigarettes, I'd rather buy some good wine. Dad and brother don't usually drink, but they might want to drink during the New Year. Besides, it's good to keep it for entertaining guests when there's a chance."

He was thinking about local specialties, and suddenly thought of something. "Isn't our neighboring county near the sea? I remember hearing the political commissar say that at the end of the year there will be a chance to see dried seafood from there shipped here for sale. There are a lot of good stuff. You can ask when you go to the county town later."

"Dried seafood sounds good. I'll check it out next time I go to the county town." He Susu nodded.

The dried shrimps she had exchanged from the shopping system before could be considered dried seafood. If she didn’t come across them when she went to the county town, she could still go to the shopping system to see if there were any better dried seafood.

Cheng Shi said, "By the way, Susu, if you go to the county town, go to the bank and withdraw some more money. We can carry it with us and maybe we can use it someday."

Although I can withdraw money by taking the passbook to Susu's parents' home, it will take time. It is better to withdraw some money here and carry it with me so that it will be convenient when I want to buy something.

He Susu thought it was a good idea.

Before the next trip to the county town on December 18, there was another important day. Cheng Shi’s birthday was on December 18. He Susu had remembered it the last time she celebrated his birthday, fearing that she would forget it and let Cheng Shi down.

She was thinking about what to give Cheng Shi as a birthday gift, but she couldn't think of anything suitable.

The wood carving of her appearance when they first met, which she had personally carved on the way back last time, was still carefully placed on the desk in her room so that she could see it whenever she looked up.

He Susu even felt that no matter what she bought for Cheng Shi, it could not match the amount of effort Cheng Shi put into carving her image piece by piece.

He Susu had no choice but to ask her sister-in-law for help.

Su Yu thought for a moment and suggested, "Little sister, it's cold now, why don't you knit a sweater for Cheng Shi? This way, your thoughts will be reflected in the sweater, and Cheng Shi can wear it often, which is both suitable and practical."

He Susu thought this was a good idea, but she was embarrassed: "But sister-in-law, I don't know how to knit a sweater."

She has never been good at this kind of handicraft. Not to mention knitting sweaters, she is not even good at mending clothes.

Su Yu smiled and said, "If you don't know how, just learn. You might as well buy some sweater yarn and come over to my place. I'll teach you how to knit a sweater."

In order to give Cheng Shi a suitable gift, He Susu was willing to learn. It happened that she had just sent her latest 5,000-word manuscript to the magazine yesterday, so she could learn to knit sweaters in her spare time.

He Susu nodded: "Okay, then I'll trouble you, sister-in-law. I remember that Sister Wu in our family quarters bought some wool to knit a sweater a while ago. I'll go ask her if she has any extra wool to give me, and borrow her knitting tools."

There was no chance to go to the county town before Cheng Shi’s birthday, so she planned to exchange the yarn and tools directly from the shopping system. Anyway, her sister-in-law didn’t know Wu’s sister-in-law, so she couldn’t verify the matter, so it wouldn’t be exposed.

After returning home, He Susu opened the shopping system screen to find the wool, wondering what color of wool she wanted to exchange.

Cheng Shi had a black sweater before, and she exchanged it for a navy blue sweater for him before winter. Thinking that the New Year was approaching and red would be more festive, and it was also a birthday gift, she simply exchanged it for red wool.

She even exchanged some more wool for fear that her craftsmanship would be bad and she would waste it. Then she exchanged for tools for crocheting sweaters.

Starting from the next day, He Susu went to her sister-in-law's house after breakfast every morning to learn how to crochet sweaters.

Su Yu was also very careful when teaching her aunt. In addition to verbal instruction, she also demonstrated by hand.

Before winter, she also bought some wool to crochet sweaters for her two children. She had some wool left over, which she took out to demonstrate crocheting, just enough to crochet a pair of socks for the two children.

He Susu has a good learning ability. She listened carefully and was a little clumsy at first when she started to work, but she soon caught up with the pace and crocheted a small piece of cloth with wool.

She crocheted quite well after getting started, and Su Yu looked at her with satisfaction: "Little sister, your craftsmanship is quite good. If you can crochet like this when you just started, crocheting a sweater will definitely not be a problem."

"Thank you for your teaching, sister-in-law." He Susu smiled. She didn't have high requirements, as long as the sweater she knitted was wearable, Cheng Shi wouldn't dislike it anyway.

Even after she got the hang of it, He Susu would still come to her sister-in-law's house to knit sweaters whenever she had time. If she came across something she didn't know how to do, she could always ask her sister-in-law, and she wasn't afraid of making mistakes.

Cheng Shi knew that Susu had been going to He Lianzhou's house frequently these days. He didn't think much of it, just thinking that Susu was bored at home and went there to chat with her sister-in-law.

On December 18, Cheng Shi just got up to wash up, and He Susu also woke up. She calmed down a little, overcame the surging sleepiness, and got up resolutely.

She went to the desk, opened the drawer, took out the red sweater she had spent several days knitting, and walked out of the room to find Cheng Shi.

After brushing his teeth and washing his face, Cheng Shi went to the kitchen to steam buns. As soon as he came out, he received a surprise.

Su Su, who was supposed to be still asleep, walked out of the room, holding a red sweater and smiling: "Cheng Shi, happy birthday. This is a sweater I knitted myself, for you."

Cheng Shicai suddenly remembered that today was his birthday. If Susu hadn't mentioned it, he would have forgotten it. He never had the habit of celebrating his birthday.

A warm current seemed to spread quietly in his heart. He looked at the red sweater. The style was not good-looking but it looked presentable.

In fact, he has never owned red clothes, always feeling that they are too flashy, but now looking at this red sweater, he finds it pleasing to the eye.

Cheng Shi took the red sweater with a smile: "Thank you Susu, I like this sweater you knitted very much."

He Susu was also happy to see that Cheng Shi liked the sweater she knitted.

She walked forward, hugged Cheng Shi's waist, and buried her head in his chest. Her voice in the early morning was soft and tender, as if she had not yet fully awakened: "I hope you will be happy and safe in the new year."

Cheng Shi felt the warmth of Susu in his arms, as if it was overlapping with the warm current flowing from his heart to his chest.

He reached out and hugged her back: "Susu, I promise you. Let's be happy and safe together."

He Susu's eyes were soft and she responded with a smile.

Cheng Shi liked this red sweater very much. He didn't like this high-profile and conspicuous color, so he immediately went back to the room and changed into a red sweater. Red is brighter than the skin color, which makes Cheng Shi's handsome features stand out more, and his tough outline is inexplicably softened.

He straightened the hem of his sweater and praised, "Susu, this sweater fits me perfectly. It fits me very well."

He Susu looked at the effect of him putting it on and was very proud: "It seems that the size I estimated is just right, not a single mistake. This is the first sweater I knitted."

Cheng Shi was touched: "Thank you for your hard work. You went to your sister-in-law's house to knit sweaters the other day, right?"

He just figured this out when he went back to his room to change his sweater.

He Susu nodded in acknowledgment.

Cheng Shi went up to her and hugged her: "I like this sweater very much. It is the best gift I have ever received."

"As long as you like it." He Susu said with a smile.

After breakfast, Cheng Shi put on the sweater knitted by his wife, put on his military coat reluctantly, buttoned it up, and went to the army for training again with high spirits. He was in a very good mood today.

He Susu went back to her room and lay down on the bed for a nap. She had gotten up in the morning purely out of the desire to wish Cheng Shidao a happy birthday, but now she had to continue sleeping.

Because it was Cheng Shi's birthday, He Susu prepared a richer meal for lunch. She even cooked some meat dishes that took a long time to prepare, and then simply fried them when Cheng Shi came back, and lunch was ready.

There are braised pork ribs with winter vegetables, steamed pork patties with preserved vegetables, stir-fried pickled spicy cabbage, and seaweed, egg and shrimp soup.

He Susu first filled a bowl of soup for the two of them, then raised the bowl and used the soup instead of wine and said with a smile: "Cheng Shi, I want to say happy birthday to you again."

Cheng Shi also smiled and raised his bowl to clink with hers: "Thank you Susu, I'm very happy."

The seaweed, egg and shrimp soup was delicious. After finishing a bowl of soup, the two of them had white rice and ate the meat and vegetables.

He Susu had cooked the braised pork ribs with winter vegetables in advance. The braised pork ribs were very tasty, the preserved vegetables and the meat filling were perfectly blended together, and they tasted salty and sweet after steaming. The spicy cabbage was very fragrant after being fried, and the spiciness was just right.

The couple enjoyed their meal very much.

As for dinner, although it was not as sumptuous as lunch, it was better than usual dinner.

The couple spent the night together, and after making love, Cheng Shi hugged Su Su, who was already asleep, and thought that he would remember this day forever.

Soon it was the day for the bus to go to the county town, and He Susu went shopping with her sister-in-law. When they arrived at the grocery store, they picked up meat and vegetables as usual, because they would return to their hometown on the 27th day of the lunar year, so they counted the days and bought less than usual.

Afterwards, I went to the slaughterhouse to buy pork, and also bought about 30% less than usual.

Su Yu was going to the department store to buy things. He Susu was worried about the dried seafood, so she separated from her sister-in-law again and went to the supply and marketing cooperative alone. She asked Sister Shao and found out that if there was dried seafood sent from the neighboring county, it would usually be sold in the supply and marketing cooperative.

This time He Susu didn't have to go to the library. In addition to buying meat and vegetables for the next few days, she came here just for the dried seafood.

After entering the supply and marketing cooperative, He Susu looked at every counter and did not see any dried seafood.

She thought about it and found a counter that usually sold mountain products and asked the salesperson: "Hello, comrade, do you have dried seafood for sale recently?"

The salesperson looked her over for a few seconds before saying, "You have good taste. We just supplied a batch of them a few days ago."

She turned around and found some things in the cabinet behind her. They were all packaged dry goods, and she could tell what was inside without opening them.

He Susu had read relevant introductions to seafood when she was in school, and they were accompanied by black-and-white photos, so she could recognize the seafood in front of her now.

There were a lot of dried big fish, two-finger-thick prawns, large abalone, scallop meat...

Abalone is a good thing, and it is rare to come across it. He Susu immediately said, "Comrade, I want four packages of abalone, two packages of prawns, and one package of scallop meat."

She didn't want any dried big fish because they didn't look as good as abalone.

Dried seafood is hard to come by, so the price is naturally not cheap. The salesperson was happy to see that she wanted so much, and immediately counted out the items she wanted and quoted the price.

It was a rare opportunity to come across rare dried seafood, so He Susu didn't mind spending the money. She counted out the money from her pocket and handed it to the salesperson. As a result, she put packages of abalone, prawns and scallop meat into her backpack.

Only then did he leave the supply and marketing cooperative with great satisfaction and wait for the gathering nearby.

After Su Yu came back from shopping, she saw her aunt was already waiting for her. She asked curiously, "Little sister, why are you so fast today?"

He Susu smiled and said, "Sister-in-law, after I separated from you, I came to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy some dried seafood, so it was a little faster than usual."

She told Su Yu what seafood she had bought, "This is Cheng Shi's first visit to my parents, so I thought of bringing them some local specialties, and I bought some dried seafood when I saw them."

Su Yu nodded: "We don't really sell dried seafood over there, my parents will definitely like it if they see it."

She had no interest in dried seafood. Since her younger sister's family had already bought some to take back for her parents-in-law, there was no need for her family to buy more. So Su Yu didn't even have the interest to go into the supply and marketing cooperative to take a look.

The other sisters-in-law came to gather one after another, and they carried less things than usual. Before the New Year, the cars would take the military wives to the city to buy New Year's goods, so everyone didn't buy much this time.

Soon the car came back, and He Susu and Su Yu got in and went home.

When she got home, He Susu went into the kitchen to clean up as usual. She took out the meat and vegetables from the backpack and put them away. She also put several packages of dried goods that were packaged directly in the wall cabinet, and then began to prepare the dishes.

While waiting for lunch, He Susu and Cheng Shi talked about what dried seafood they bought in the morning.

Cheng Shi nodded and said happily, "Then we are quite lucky. Dried prawns are rare, and abalone is even better. Scallop meat is also good. It's just right to bring it back for my parents to try."

He Susu replied with a smile, saying that she herself had never eaten abalone.

She had heard before that abalone braised pork was delicious and that her second sister-in-law was the best at making braised pork. She didn't even think about opening the package of abalone to eat, so she just waited to take it back for everyone to eat together.

The following days passed quickly. As agreed earlier, He Lianzhou went to the train station to buy a train ticket in advance. He also sent a telegram back home to tell his parents the news of his return, and asked his eldest and second brothers to ride bicycles to the train station to pick him up when the time came.

I have one bicycle at home, and I borrowed the other one from Su Yu's mother's house.

The day before departure, He Susu packed the clothes the couple were going to take back into a package, and took another package to pack the dried seafood.

Carry the passbook and banknotes with you when you go out tomorrow. You can also put the lunch you make later in the package of dried seafood.

Cheng Shi was busy until very late that day, handing over the work at hand, and did not even come back for dinner. When he came back, it was already nine o'clock in the evening.

He Susu felt distressed when she saw this: "This is the first time I see you working so hard and coming back so late."

Cheng Shi explained: "I have a long vacation this time, so I have to hand over all the affairs before I can rest assured."

He rested for a while and took a shower, then washed his clothes and hung them on bamboo poles in the yard.

Cheng Shi returned to the room and asked, "Susu, is there anything else you want to pack?"

He Susu smiled and said, "Don't worry, we have packed our clothes for both of us, put the dried seafood in a package, and make some lunch tomorrow to take with us on the road."

Cheng Shi thought for a moment and said, "We're going out very early tomorrow. We have to cook and clean up at home. We can just go to the canteen and get some buns to eat on the way."

Tomorrow is not the day when cars can enter the county town, so he asked Li Yang to help drive them to the train station to catch the bus.

He Susu also thought it would be more convenient to go directly to the canteen to pack some food to take on the road, so she agreed with a smile.

Going on a long journey is quite tiring, so the couple confirmed again and again that everything they needed for tomorrow had been packed and went to bed early.

The next morning, He Susu got up early, which was rare for her. Cheng Shi had already returned from the canteen with breakfast.

Cheng Shi: "Today, in addition to meat buns, there are also sauerkraut pork pancakes in the cafeteria. I bought some of them back. There is also soy milk for breakfast."

He Susu smiled and agreed.

They sat at the dining table and had breakfast. The meat buns had a fluffy and soft crust and the filling was salty and delicious. The sauerkraut pork pancakes were very crispy, and the sauerkraut and minced meat inside were surprisingly fragrant.

These are inevitably a bit dry, and the rich and mellow soy milk is just right.

After finishing the meal, Cheng Shi went to get an aluminum lunch box to put the remaining meat buns and sauerkraut pork pancakes in. It took two lunch boxes to finish.

Then he went to the bathroom and put the toothbrush and towel into the package. Susu's parents had these things, so she didn't need to bring them.

He Susu also put on a cotton jacket and put her passbook and banknotes into the inner pocket of the jacket. She checked that all the doors and windows in the house were locked before she started to put on her leather shoes.

Cheng Shi took all the clothes that had been hung out to dry overnight in the yard and folded them into the closet. He then went to the kitchen to fill their kettles with water and then carried all the things to the door. He put on his military boots, carried his things and went out.

He Susu locked the gate and put away the key. She wanted to help carry a package, but Cheng Shi refused: "It's okay, there are only two packages, they are not heavy, I can carry them."

He Susu had no choice but to let him go.

The two walked to the usual boarding point for family members. He Lianzhou and Su Yu were already waiting there with their two children and their bags on their backs. They had more luggage.

Not long after they greeted each other, Li Yang also drove over.

Cheng Shi patted his shoulder and said, "Thanks, brother. I'll treat you to a meal when I get back."

Li Yang smiled and said, "Brother Cheng, you are too polite. I am taking a break today, so it's no big deal for me to help with this little thing."

He looked at He Susu and greeted her with a smile, "Hello, sister-in-law."

He Susu smiled and nodded: "Hello, when you come back, please give us face and let us treat you to a meal. I haven't thanked you for borrowing your car to take me to the county town for fun before."

Li Yang smiled and scratched his head: "Okay, just wait for Brother Cheng and Sister-in-law to come back and treat me to a cup of tea."

He Lianzhou also knew Li Yang, and he and Su Yu thanked him together. Even Dabao and Erbao said sweetly, "Thank you, uncle."

Li Yang was very fond of the two children, smiled and praised them for being well behaved, then asked everyone to get on the bus and drove all the way to the county railway station. When they got off the bus, he even helped carry the packages down.

"Okay, Brother Cheng, Brother He, and your two sisters-in-law, I'll take you here. Have a safe trip."

He Susu and the others thanked Li Yang again and again, some carrying their packages, some holding their children, and walked into the train station.

It was almost the end of the year and the train station was busy. In addition to civilians, there were also many soldiers in olive green clothes returning home on leave.

Fortunately, they bought the tickets in advance and found a place to stand and wait for a while. They walked to the platform and waited until the broadcast announced that the train they were on was about to arrive.

Whoosh, whoosh! The train whizzed into the platform, the carriage doors opened, and they lined up to get on.

Because they bought the tickets together, their seats were connected. He Susu and Cheng Shi sat together, He Lianzhou and Su Yu sat across the aisle, and Dabao and Erbao squeezed in to sit together in the extra seat.

It’s not that I’m reluctant to buy an extra seat, but that way someone will have to sit in another row alone.

Cheng Shi stuffed the package of clothes under the seat and placed the package of dried seafood and lunch next to his legs so that he could get to it at any time.

There are also advantages to sitting together. People in the same row can take care of each other and chat.

He Lianzhou breathed a sigh of relief: "Fortunately, you asked Li Yang to help send us here today. It's not easy to go home."

But no matter how difficult it is, it cannot stop me from going home to visit my parents.

Cheng Shi said indifferently: "We need to find someone to help us. Li Yang and I have a good relationship, so it's more convenient to ask him for help. If we don't have a bus to the county town, it will be very troublesome to come to the train station."

He Susu smiled and said, "Fortunately we are leaving together today so that we can all look after each other. Last time my sister-in-law and I brought Dabao and Erbao here, each holding one in each hand, for fear that they would be lost in the crowded train station."

Su Yu smiled and replied: "I'm afraid to take two children out alone. It would be best if we could go back together."

The four of them were chatting casually. Dabao and Erbao were already feeling sleepy because they had gotten up early and had nothing to play with. They leaned back in their chairs and fell asleep in a daze.

Seeing this, the adults stopped chatting for fear of waking them up.

He Susu also started to feel sleepy. Cheng Shi noticed and said, "You should take a nap first. You can lean on my shoulder to feel more comfortable."

"OK."

He Susu adjusted herself to a comfortable position and leaned back on the chair, her head slightly tilted and resting on Cheng Shi's shoulder. This was more comfortable. She closed her eyes, sleepiness quickly came over her, and she fell asleep.

When they woke up again, it was time for lunch. Su Yu brought her own steamed dumplings, and He Susu brought her own meat buns and pickled cabbage pork pies, and everyone took turns eating.

After eating and taking a short rest, the train arrived at their destination around two o'clock.

Cheng Shi had already taken out the package and put it on his back. He Susu stood up as well. He Lianzhou and Su Yu, each holding a child, lined up to get off the bus.

There were a lot of people on the platform, some getting off the train to pick up others and some seeing others off. He Susu was sharp-eyed and immediately noticed the eldest and second brothers, each holding a bicycle and waiting, and immediately called everyone over.