Chapter 109

After this farce, life became peaceful again.

After the disturbance caused by Mrs. Zheng at home, Zheng Youde, as the head of a regiment, could not do anything to his mother in the army. At most, he could talk to her about the reason. But his mother had to listen to his reason. There was nothing she could do if she didn't listen.

What could he do? Could he scold his mother? Or hit her? That was impossible. It was really frustrating.

Just after the Chinese New Year, he had another mission. When he came back, Lin Tao and Chen Shuifen had already performed such a drama. When Mrs. Zheng went to ask him, he simply pretended to be stupid and said that Chen Shuifen's health was indeed not good and she needed to take medicine.

It was precisely because Zheng Youde also said so that Mrs. Zheng had no choice but to grit her teeth and go back empty-handed.

Zheng Youde also felt sorry for Chen Shuifen and her two children. It was a good year, but his mother made such a mess. After Mrs. Zheng went back, Zheng Youde said that night that in order to compensate Chen Shuifen, he would cook dinner for the next half month.

Chen Shuifen had just finished sewing her clothes and pants. Zheng Hongxing, this little bastard, was good at nothing but was quite good at tearing clothes. A pair of good pants turned into open-crotch pants after just two days of wearing them.

She bit the thread of her pants with her mouth, glanced at Zheng Youde, and said incoherently: "Are you sure?"

Zheng Youde patted his chest and said, "Of course. We Shandong men are people who stick to our words!"

So, the matter was settled, but it was agreed to last half a month. However, Zheng Xiangyang and Zheng Hongxing could not stand it after only two days, because the food his father cooked was so unpalatable! He had never eaten such unpalatable food in his life!

Zheng Hongxing protested: "Dad, am I still your son? Grandma finally passed away, and you started to harm me again. If you don't want me as your son anymore, just say it directly, don't always make such unpalatable meals to embarrass me..."

When Zheng Hongxing started packing his luggage and threatened to run away to be the son of Lin Tao next door, Zheng Youde had to give up the matter.

Not long after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, school started again. The first graders that Lin Tao taught would be promoted to the second grade in the next semester, and the junior high school department would welcome the second junior high class.

Xie Cong is indeed an excellent teacher who graduated from Peking University. He has his own ideas when it comes to educating children. With his teachings, students can accept new knowledge more easily and their learning abilities have improved a lot.

The island officially bids farewell to the cotton-padded jacket and enters spring around the Qingming Festival.

After entering spring, Xiao Qingming turned two years old.

Xu Yuting drew a picture for Xiao Qingming on his second birthday as a souvenir. She also said that she would draw a picture for the two children every year on their birthdays, so that when they grow up, they can see it as a reminder.

Taking advantage of the spring holiday and the leisure time at home, Xu Yuting decided to paint a portrait of Lin Tao.

The children are taken care of by two grown men, Li Chengxi and Wang Yuanliang, while Lin Tao and Xu Yuting just need to take care of their own things.

"Wear this skirt, it looks good." When Xu Yuting was choosing clothes for Lin Tao, she picked out an apricot-colored long skirt.

This skirt was made when Lin Tao was a girl. The fabric was brought back specially for her by her father when he was on a long-distance trip.

"Your temperament is particularly suitable for wearing such simple and elegant colors. It especially suits you, so wear this one." Xu Yuting put the skirt on Lin Tao, nodding as she spoke, her face full of recognition of her own words.

Since the sports started, the most popular colors on the market are darker colors like gray-blue and military green. The bright and beautiful colors in the past are no longer suitable for wearing. Lin Tao's clothes are not as light as when she was a little girl. Although they look good on her, in Xu Yuting's opinion, they are not as beautiful as this apricot skirt.

Lin Tao looked at the skirt. She had brought it from Xiangcheng after she married Li Chengxi, and she had only worn it a few times.

I originally thought that since she had given birth, this skirt might not fit her anymore, so I just tried it out, but it turned out to be quite nice after she put it on. It was just that when she wore it before, the waist was relatively loose, but now it has become a skirt that pinches the waist.

It shows off her waistline, making her look better than before.

Xu Yuting's eyes lit up and she said with emotion: "A Tao, you are really pretty. You are suitable for wearing such light-colored clothes."

"I have to work every day, and it's inconvenient to wear light-colored clothes," said Lin Tao.

Xu Yuting looked at Lin Tao's hairstyle and said, "Let your hair down."

After becoming a teacher, Lin Tao braided her hair into a braid and tied it behind her head. This made her look more mature. Otherwise, she looked too young and was afraid that she would not be able to control her students.

Since she wanted to paint now, Lin Tao listened to Xu Yuting, took down her hair, and braided it into two braids, letting it hang in front of her chest.

"It's really beautiful." Xu Yuting said, "Let's go out and paint it."

Lin Tao asked: "Where are we going?"

"Go somewhere nice."

The place Xu Yuting was looking for was the place where Lin Tao and Li Chengxi used to take a walk together. The scenery here was very nice, with the sea behind it.

Lin Tao sat on a stool, and Xu Yuting began to draw for her. The sea breeze blew over, messing up her hair. She reached out to tuck her hair behind her ears. The wind gently lifted her skirt. Lin Tao faced Xu Yuting and smiled.

Painting takes a lot longer than taking photos. It took Xu Yuting more than an hour to finish this painting.

In order to cooperate with Xu Yuting, Lin Tao kept this posture without moving much, and her waist was a little sore from sitting. But when she saw the painting, she felt that it was all worth it.

The person in the painting is her, but it seems not to be her.

In the painting, she has a smile on her face, a serene expression, a raised mouth, and sparkling eyes, as if filled with the brightest star in the sky.

Lin Tao was a little embarrassed to say that this was her: "This is really beautiful, Yuting, you draw it so well."

Xu Yuting was not embarrassed at all when being praised. A smile crept up her eyebrows, and a little pride was revealed on her face. She said, "Of course, I used to major in painting. But it's also because you are beautiful that my paintings are beautiful."

To thank Xu Yuting, Lin Tao made her a portion of her favorite wide noodles.

As Xu Yuting ate, she said, "I still remember the first time I came to your house, I ate the wide noodles you made. I thought it was really delicious at the time. It was the best noodles I've had since I came to the island. In fact, I wanted to eat more after I finished, but I didn't have the nerve to say it because I was afraid you would think I was a big eater. I'm serious, don't laugh."

Lin Tao was amused by Xu Yuting's words, and put a few more chopsticks of noodles into her bowl, saying, "Then eat more. If you're not full, just tell me. I don't think so."

"I don't feel that way now. But we had only known each other for a short time at that time. I still had to be reserved." Xu Yuting pouted.

Lin Tao pursed her lips and teased: "You are still reserved? Do you know what I was thinking at that time? You are the most enthusiastic person I have ever met. But it is also your enthusiasm that made us quickly become good friends who can talk about anything. Yuting, I am really happy to have a good friend like you."

"Oh, you're so annoying. Why are you saying this for no reason? Look, my eyes are red. It's all your fault." Xu Yuting snorted.

Lin Tao knew that she was good at talking but actually she was softer than anyone else.

The two good friends ate wide noodles while chatting and laughing, talking about the past, the present, and the future. Although they don't know what their future will be like, it is very likely that they will continue to be an ordinary teacher on the island and continue teaching.

But think about it, this kind of life is pretty good. Because of the people around them, they feel that even if the life on this island is dull, they are willing to live on.

At this moment, Chen Shuifen also came over from next door.

After I opened the gate, Chen Shuifen's voice came in: "It smells so good, what delicious food did you two eat without telling me?"

Lin Tao said, "Big sister, we are eating wide noodles, and there is still a lot left. How about I go get you another bowl?"

Chen Shuifen came into the room, sat down beside them, and waved her hands, saying, "Stop busying yourself. I've already eaten at home, and I heard something was going on here, so I came to see you. What's going on? You're smiling so happily."

"I'm saying bad things about you." Xu Yuting joked.

Chen Shuifen was puzzled and asked with a smile: "Say bad things about me? What bad things can I say?"

Lin Tao said, "You are listening to Yuting's nonsense. We are talking about what happened when we first entered the island."

"At that time...don't mention it, Teacher Lin, Teacher Xu, at that time I didn't think that I would have such a good relationship with you. A cultured person like you could be so sincere in making friends with me." Chen Shuifen said.

There were three of them: one was a coffin holder who was considered unlucky by everyone in the village; one was a daughter of a capitalist family; and one was a rural woman who had not even graduated from elementary school and could barely read.

But it is a miracle that these three people have such a good relationship.

At night, Li Chengxi brought Yueyue back. Yueyue had been playing outside for so long and was tired. When she came back, she lay on Li Chengxi's shoulder and fell asleep.

Li Chengxi put Yueyue on the crib and went to look at the painting Xu Yuting drew for Lin Tao. When he saw it, Lin Tao noticed that his eyes lit up. After a while, he said, "This painting reminds me of the first time I met you."

At that time, Lin Tao was wearing this skirt, and her long, smooth black hair was tied into two big braids like in the painting, hanging in front of her chest.

The little girl's face was cold and stubborn. When her black and white eyes looked at him, his heartbeat accelerated almost at the same time. At that time, he didn't understand why he had such a strange reaction.

It's really hard to explain. This is the first time in his life that this has happened.

As a soldier, he did not believe in superstition, but sometimes he would think that maybe he and Lin Tao were really destined by God.

**********************************

Hainan on the other side.

Li Mingcheng sat at the table writing a letter, but halfway through, he became very annoyed and crumpled up the letter into a ball and threw it on the ground. When he looked at the ground again, there were already several small balls of paper like this.

A comrade walked in, saw the paper balls on the ground, picked up one, opened it, and said in a teasing tone: "Comrade Lin Manman, I am sending you a letter. I..."

But just as he started reading, Li Mingcheng stood up, snatched the paper ball from his hand, and said, "Stop reading, stop reading. I'll get really angry if you keep reading. Do you still want to eat the delicious food my sister-in-law made?"

"Are you still worried about writing a letter? This is unlike you. You are usually so talkative. Didn't you give a speech in front of so many leaders on last year's Army Day? Why do you have such a hard time writing a letter to a lesbian? Isn't it just that you like a lesbian and want to date her? Why not just say it directly? Why are you so worried?"

Comrades really can't get used to seeing Li Mingcheng like this. Ever since he took sick leave, he has become like this. He would giggle from time to time, sometimes even when sitting alone, and he would always have White Rabbit candy in his pocket.

I really can't understand why he was such a good person before he left, but became so effeminate after he came back. He's really stupid.

Later I found out that Li Mingcheng actually had a girl he liked.

This time, I spent a week writing a letter to a female comrade and still haven't finished it. I was laughed at many times by my comrades.

Li Mingcheng said, "Okay, I get it. If you have nothing to do, just go out. I still have to continue writing letters." As he pushed his comrade to the door of the dormitory, he closed the door and bolted it.

The comrade stood at the door in surprise, then realized that he had come to the dormitory to rest, but this guy had just kicked him out! He kicked the dormitory door, helpless, and went to the next door to borrow a bed to rest.

But we were all good comrades, so we wouldn't really get angry about this. Li Mingcheng was a nice guy, and he had a good relationship with everyone in the dormitory.

After closing the door to ensure that he would not be disturbed again, Li Mingcheng picked up his pen and began to write his letter again.

This time he did not crumple up the letter after writing it like he did before. This time he finished writing the letter in one go. After finishing it, in order to avoid getting tangled up again, he packed the package and sent it directly to the post office.

It's just a letter, just write whatever you think, what are you afraid of.

Li Mingcheng thought so in his heart, but he regretted it the next day. He felt that the last letter he wrote yesterday was influenced by his comrades, and the content of the letter was too cheesy. Lin Manman probably wouldn't like it...

Li Mingcheng patted his forehead, feeling very upset.

I was careless, really careless. I really shouldn't have listened to my comrades' advice yesterday. How can you be so casual when writing a letter to express your feelings? This represents his sincerity. He should have written the letter more tactfully!

With this thought in mind, Li Mingcheng ran to the post office as soon as he got off the training ground and discussed with the staff about getting the letter he had sent yesterday back, but he was told that the package had already been sent out this morning.

Li Mingcheng was really helpless. Usually, when he wanted to send a package early, the post office would delay it for two days. But this time, when he wanted to get it back, his work efficiency improved and he sent it out in the morning.

But now it's too late to regret.

How about this, Li Mingcheng thought, even though his letter was very cheesy and...

But at least he expressed his feelings. If he didn't write it clearly, Lin Manman might not understand what he wanted to say. It's good to be more direct.

Li Mingcheng could only comfort himself in this way.

*********************************

Half a month later, Lin Manman received a package from Hainan. It was sent by Li Mingcheng, and in addition to some Hainan specialties, there was also a letter and a small paper package.

After opening the letter, there were greetings from Li Mingcheng. Although Li Mingcheng sometimes seemed to be a bit slick in his words, his handwriting was very beautifully written in regular script.

Comrade Lin Manman, I am glad to receive your letter. It must be spring in Shengshan Island now. I have been communicating with you for nearly half a year. Every time I receive your letter, I will read it many times until I receive your new letter. Your handwriting is very beautiful, just like you. When my comrades knew about it, they couldn't help but tease me, saying that I had lost my soul. I think so too. Maybe I really forgot to bring something when I returned to Hainan this time.

I promised to give you the sun of Hainan, and I have already sent it to you. It is in a small paper package. After you open it, you can plant it first. You are a very good girl, but sometimes you may lack a little courage and confidence. I hope you can be like a sunflower and always face the sun.

Comrade Lin Manman, although it may sound cliché, I want to say that my heart may be with you. Would you like to send your heart to me as well?

I know you must be confused when you receive this letter, but you don't have to make a decision quickly. I can wait for you. When the flowers bloom, you can write to me again. No matter what the result is, I will accept it. Don't feel any psychological pressure.

The signature is Li Mingcheng.

In fact, Li Mingcheng wanted to sign his name as "your sincerity", but just as he was about to put pen to paper, goose bumps appeared on his hands.

It’s a good thing he didn’t write that, otherwise he would have regretted it even more.

Lin Manman finished reading the letter and tightened her grip around it. She couldn't describe the feeling in her heart, she was surprised, but not as surprised as she had imagined.

Maybe it was because she was teased too much by her roommates, or maybe it was because she and Li Mingcheng had corresponded a lot in the past six months, and their relationship had changed a little. But Lin Manman had never thought that Li Mingcheng would suddenly write her such a letter at this time...

Although she had never been in a relationship, she could understand what Li Mingcheng meant in the letter.

She recalled the scene of Li Mingcheng putting his coat on her that night, the scene of the two of them walking side by side on the road, the scene of them having lunch together, and the scene of their first meeting...

She knew that if Li Mingcheng didn't say it, she might never mention it, let alone face her own heart. She had never asked herself whether she liked Li Mingcheng or not. Perhaps before this letter from Li Mingcheng came to her, she had always just regarded him as a good friend who was easy to talk to and interesting.

Her personality is actually very boring. She has been like this since she was a child. When she was in Taohua Village, she only had Sister Tao as her good friend. Even after she arrived on the island and made a few more friends, Sister Tao said that her personality became much more lively, but when facing people other than her friends, she is still as dull as before.

She felt that she was different from Li Mingcheng. Li Mingcheng was very powerful and interesting in his words. He loved to laugh and would make her laugh when he talked.

Lin Manman felt that Li Mingcheng was like the sunflower he sent her, passionate and brave, facing the sun. But she herself seemed to have never been like this...

However, this did not affect her liking for people with this kind of personality, and she had to admit that Li Mingcheng gave her a different feeling.

The funny things he wrote in the letter made her laugh even after reading it for several days. Li Mingcheng was different from her, an interesting person.

So when Lin Manman saw the letter, even though she was surprised, she didn't have much resistance in her heart.

But she also had her own concerns, because Li Mingcheng and her brother-in-law Li Chengxi were not born of the same mother. Although they were brothers, they were half-brothers. She had to face this problem.

If Li Mingcheng and her brother-in-law were brothers from the same mother, she might have felt a little excited when she saw the letter.

But that's not the case. Lin Manman was a little discouraged.

She has been a very thoughtful person since she was young. She always thinks twice before doing anything. She thinks of Sister Tao and her brother-in-law. She is afraid that something bad will happen if she is with Li Mingcheng.

Just when Lin Manman was feeling troubled, her roommates came back and saw the package on the table. Without asking, they immediately guessed that it was from Hainan again. In the past six months, Hainan had sent several packages.

Every time Lin Manman received a letter and read it, she couldn't help laughing. They had long considered Lin Manman and Li Mingcheng to be a couple. Even if they weren't now, they would be sooner or later.

"Hey, another letter came from Hainan? What funny things did it say this time? Let us take a look." Hu Xiaofeng joked with a smile.

In the past, Li Mingcheng wrote some interesting things, and it was no big deal for them to see it, but this time it was different. This time, Lin Manman put the letter away and did not show it to Hu Xiaofeng.

Hu Xiaofeng understood immediately and asked, "What's wrong? Did he express his feelings to you? I told you, it won't take more than half a year at most, he will definitely not be able to help himself, he just likes you. Manman, what do you think?"

"What else could you think? If Manman didn't like him, how could she be so happy every time she received a letter?"

Lin Manman looked at her friends, pursed her lips, and shook her head, "I don't know..."

"I don't know?" Hu Xiaofeng thought for a moment and said, "Then let me ask you, when you saw this letter, did you think of his good points or his bad points and subconsciously want to reject him? If you thought of his bad points and wanted to reject him, it means you don't like him. But if you think of his good points and don't want to reject him, then you like him. It's just that you have never liked anyone before, so you don't understand this feeling. Manman, it's not easy to meet someone you like each other, and according to our assessment, Comrade Li Mingcheng is still very good. At least he is very sincere to you, and he is your brother-in-law's younger brother. How great! We don't even have to spend time to understand his family background. With your brother-in-law around, how can his younger brother be bad? If you like him, don't hesitate, reply openly and say that you agree to date him."

"Yes, anyway, our entire dormitory agrees to this marriage."

Looking at her roommates making a fuss, Lin Manman couldn't say anything. It was precisely because Li Mingcheng was her brother-in-law's younger brother that she was hesitant.

But because of their words, Lin Manman actually mustered up some courage.

Maybe, she also likes Li Mingcheng, but she thinks that she should ask Sister Tao what she thinks about this matter. She has always regarded Sister Tao as her own sister. When she was young, she would ask Sister Tao for advice when she was unsure about something.

She couldn't make up her mind about this matter, so she asked Sister Tao for her opinion.