Zhang Hongyan sorted through the things Xia Qingqing had bought, one by one: rice, flour, oil, meat, vegetables, candy, snacks, peanuts, melon seeds, and so on.
Gou Dan exclaimed in surprise when he saw the candy on the table: "Wow, so much candy! Sis, why did you buy so much candy?"
There were several kinds of candies on the table, weighing at least seven or eight pounds in total. There were White Rabbit milk candies, fruit hard candies, fruit soft candies, and preserved plum candies. Most importantly, there was also a bag of chocolates.
"Buy it to eat, we should buy more candy for the New Year," Xia Qingqing said with a smile.
“There’s no need to buy so much. There are only four people in our family. Two or three pounds would be enough to last a long time,” Zhang Hongyan said, looking at the candy on the table with a headache.
Xia Qingqing smiled ingratiatingly at Zhang Hongyan: "Oh dear, I just wanted to buy a little of each to try them out, but I ended up buying too many."
Actually, she just took it out of the system warehouse at random. Who knew she would accidentally take so much? But compared to what's left in the system warehouse, this is indeed less.
The happiest one was Gou Dan. He immediately fell in love with the bag of chocolates after tasting one, and didn't want to let go of it.
With a fawning expression, she pleaded with Xia Qingqing, "Sister, can I take this bag of chocolates back to my room to eat?"
Compared to White Rabbit candies and fruit candies, which he's already tired of, he now clearly prefers the taste of chocolate.
Actually, Xia Qingqing had given him chocolate once or twice before, but at that time he couldn't quite accept this kind of slightly bitter candy. He thought it wasn't as good as White Rabbit milk candy, so he told Xia Qingqing that he didn't like it.
The origin of the chocolate was also difficult to explain, so Xia Qingqing rarely took out chocolate after that.
Now, perhaps because he's grown up, Gou Dan has come to like the taste of chocolate.
"Sure, you can leave some for your parents, and take the rest back to your room to eat," Xia Qingqing readily agreed to Gou Dan's request.
Dog Egg immediately grabbed two large handfuls and put them on the table: "Mom, these are for you and Dad to eat."
Zhang Hongyan waved her hand: "Your dad and I don't like to eat these, you can keep them for yourself."
"This is really delicious, you'll know once you try one," Gou Dan said quickly, peeling a piece and stuffing it into Zhang Hongyan's mouth.
Now that she had already put it in her mouth, Zhang Hongyan stopped being coy. She savored the taste of the chocolate. It was slightly bitter at first, but after a while, a sweet taste immediately followed. It had a unique aroma and a texture that was different from other candies, very smooth and delicate.
Zhang Hongyan nodded as she ate: "This chocolate does taste pretty good."
"See? I told you you'd love it. These are for you and Dad, and the rest are mine." When Gou Dan heard his mother praise the chocolate, he immediately grabbed two more handfuls, and almost half of the bag of chocolate was gone.
Zhang Hongyan didn't object this time. Anyway, she didn't lack money to buy candy. She could just buy more when she finished eating them. There was no need to suppress her own preference just to save that extra bite for the child.
After finishing the chocolate, Zhang Hongyan continued to check the things her daughter had bought and immediately found two bottles of face cream in the canvas bag.
She carefully placed the face cream aside before asking, "Qingqing, the face cream you bought for me before is still not finished, why did you buy two more bottles?"
Xia Qingqing raised an eyebrow and smiled: "I just happened to see it and bought it. Mom, use more of it. Don't be so stingy with every little bit you use. At your rate, you won't even finish it before it expires."
“That can’t be. I’ve only used this bottle for about half a year. It can’t be expired,” Zhang Hongyan said firmly.
"Whatever, there are two new bottles here anyway. They'll just expire before they're used up and then go to waste," Xia Qingqing said threateningly.
Zhang Hongyan felt heartbroken whenever she thought about how much money she spent on this bottle of product was being wasted. She made up her mind to apply more next time, since she had already bought it and there was no point in not using it.
"Don't buy it again next time. I'll buy it myself when I run out," Zhang Hongyan instructed worriedly. Her daughter was very generous with her money, and who knew when she would buy a few more bottles for herself.
Xia Qingqing gave a half-hearted reply, agreeing for now and deciding whether to actually buy it later.
Looking at the piece of pork in the basket, which she estimated to weigh at least 20 pounds, Zhang Hongyan couldn't help but sigh, "I wonder if the pigs in the brigade are doing well this year. How many pounds of meat will each team member get?"
Everything is good in Beijing, and I don't have to work hard in the fields. The only downside is that it's not as lively as it was in Shihe Brigade. I wonder if Taohua and the others miss me.
Xia Qingqing knew her mother was probably homesick, so she whispered to comfort her, "Mom, if you want to go back, we can go back and stay for a while next summer vacation. It's a little more convenient to go back in the summer than in the winter."
"We'll see," Zhang Hongyan said calmly.
......
When they went to bed that night, Zhang Hongyan couldn't help but talk to Xia Heping about her hometown. After all, it was the hometown she had lived in for over forty years, and it was not something she could just stop thinking about.
Zhang Hongyan nudged the man's arm: "Heping, Qingqing asked me today if I want to come home next summer vacation. What do you think?"
"Oh, are you going back for summer vacation?" Xia Heping asked in surprise.
“Yes, Qingqing said it would be more convenient to go back in the summer. Actually, I think so too. It’s freezing cold in the winter, and we don’t even have enough firewood for the winter,” Zhang Hongyan said quietly, sharing her thoughts.
Xia Heping also thought it made sense: "Then let's go back during the summer vacation."
"That's settled then. I'll bring some gifts for Tao Hua and the others..." Zhang Hongyan rambled on about her plans.
Xia Heping's thoughts drifted away. He suddenly thought of his parents back in his hometown. He wondered if his older brother and younger brother were taking good care of them. His younger brother had told him that the two elders were still in good health and could work in the fields.
Since arriving in Beijing, Xia Heping's only communication with his parents has been sending them money back for their retirement. Occasionally, Xia Heping will write back to inquire about the elderly couple's health.
In the past, Xia Heping had to give his parents a fixed amount of pension food every year back in his hometown, so the monthly pension payment was less. After moving to Beijing, he could no longer give his parents pension food, so he sent 5 yuan back home every month.
The mere 5 yuan for their retirement allowance made many people in Shihe Brigade envious of Grandma Xia and Grandpa Xia.
Perhaps it was because distance made things better, or perhaps it was because she felt her second son was too far away to reach out to, but in any case, ever since Xia Heping's family left Shihe Brigade, Old Lady Xia never said a bad word about her second son again.
People in the team would occasionally see the old lady standing in a daze at the gate of Xia Heping's yard.
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