Chen Lie was talking about asking Ning Tang to ride a bicycle for him? Look, in Ning Tang's ears, it became asking her to ride on him? On the road.
"I can't even ride you." Ning Tang waved his hand. "Eat first."
The crabs are quite fat this month. When you peel off their shells, they are full of crab roe and crab paste. Peel out the white crab meat and pile it on the rice together with the crab roe. Pour a little vinegar and a little soy sauce on it and mix it. It is so fresh and sweet that you can't help but swallow it.
But no matter how delicious the meal was, it couldn't stop Da Wa from eagerly trying to ride his bike. He finished the entire bowl of rice in just a few bites, then pulled Chen Lie and urged him, "Dad, teach me how to ride a bike."
Chen Lie said, "Why rush? You'll have plenty of time to ride later. Let your mother ride first." He smiled and looked at Ning Tang, "Come on, ride me and see."
He hadn't meant to do that originally, but after Ning Tang mentioned it, he became interested and deliberately provoked, "It's been a long time since you last rode a bicycle. Do you know how to ride it? Do you know how to pedal?"
Ning Tang glanced at him sideways, "You're looking down on me."
She took a long step and stepped onto the bicycle, her feet firmly planted on the ground.
She made the movements of getting on a bicycle look like she was getting on a horse, so cool.
Lu's move shocked the three little ones.
Erniu clapped her hands repeatedly, "Wow, Mom, you're so awesome." She looked up and said, "I want to learn too."
Ning Tang pinched her little face and said, "Well, wait, mom will take you on a tour around the island later." After saying that, she gave Chen Lie a proud look.
Upon hearing this, the eldest and third children couldn't sit still anymore and raised their hands, "I want one too."
"Okay, okay, I'll take you all." Ning Tang said, "But before I take you, I have to take your dad first."
She patted the back of the bicycle and said, "Come on, Captain Shen, do you still need me to treat you?"
Chen Lie was delighted and jumped into the back seat of the car. "Well? I'll trouble you, Xiao Ning, driver, please take me to the supply and marketing cooperative."
Just now when he was cooking, he discovered that there was not much soy sauce and vinegar left at home, so he had to go to the supply and marketing cooperative to replenish the stock.
Shen Lie came up too hastily and was too heavy. Ning Tang tightly grasped the handlebars and leaned over. "Captain Shen, you should lose some weight."
"Nonsense, my body shape is just right for me." Chen Lie stretched out a foot to help her steady the car.
He patted Ning Tang's shoulder and said, "Driver, drive quickly."
Ning Tang tried to pedal, but couldn't move forward a few times. "I told you that you should lose weight."
Chen Lie said stubbornly, "Why don't you say you should gain weight? It's your technique that's not good enough, not your personality. Why don't you blame the uneven road?"
Having said that, he still jumped off the bicycle and said, "Come on, I'll ride you."
The two of them switched seats, with Chen Lie sitting in the front and Ning Tang sitting in the back seat, finally feeling comfortable.
"Let's go to the supply and marketing cooperative." Chen Lie shouted, and soon disappeared with Ning Tang in his car.
The eldest boy looked stunned. No, I promised to buy him a bicycle, so why did he play with it?
The distance from the military family compound to the supply and marketing cooperative is neither long nor short. Although it is noon, there are still many pedestrians on the road.
Regimental Commander Li and Deputy Battalion Commander Ai had just finished get off work and were returning from the army together. Halfway through their journey, they saw Chen Lie riding a bicycle with Ning Tang whizzing past them.
Deputy Battalion Commander Ai was dumbfounded: "When did the regimental commander's family buy a bicycle?"
Captain Li thought, is this the point? The point is that the couple, one riding a bicycle and the other sitting, are showing their affection on the main road, which makes his teeth ache.
He patted Deputy Battalion Commander Ai's shoulder in a pretentious manner and said, "Xiao Ai, you'll understand when you get married."
"What does buying a bicycle have to do with starting a family?" Deputy Battalion Commander Ai didn't understand at all. He scratched the back of his head and muttered, "Captain Li, you're riddling me again."
Captain Li said, "I'm not telling you a riddle. Really, you'll understand once you get married."
Deputy Battalion Commander Ai was still completely bewildered. "You mean, I can buy a bicycle once I get married?"
Upon hearing this, Captain Li was almost furious. "You are so stubborn and have no idea what's going on."
What he meant was that once you get married, you can ride a bicycle with your wife and show your love on the street!
Captain Li patted Deputy Battalion Commander Ai on the shoulder and sighed, "Alas, this child is incorrigible." You are still far from being single.
Shen Lie and Ning Tang went to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy soy sauce, vinegar, and a bag of sugar.
When I got home, I saw Da Wa and the other two sitting in a row under the eaves. Da Wa rested his hands on his knees, holding up his face, and said sadly, "You guys are finally back."
"What do you mean by 'finally back'? It only took us less than twenty minutes. It was quick, okay?" Chen Lie tossed the candy to him, "Take this and sweeten your mouth."
Including the round-trip time, it took less than twenty minutes to get home. Before, it took at least half an hour to walk from home to the supply and marketing cooperative.
Ning Tang couldn't help but sigh, "Having a bicycle is so much more convenient."
"That? Yes." Shen Lie was still very proud of his decision to buy a bicycle.
The eldest boy took the candy and shared it with the second and third boys.
The eldest child threw the candy into his mouth and chewed it, making a crisp crunching sound. "It's time to ride me."
"Okay, I'll ride you now." Ning Tang took a step forward, straddled the bicycle, and motioned Da Wa to get on.
It was the first time for the eldest child to ride a bicycle, and he was very nervous. “How am I supposed to get on?”
Chen Lie taught him, "Just like your mother, just step over it."
The eldest child did as he was told, and indeed sat steadily on the back seat of the bicycle, exclaiming in surprise, "Wow, I'm sitting on a bicycle!"
"You can ride a bicycle by yourself in the future." Shen Lie said.
He planned to set aside some time every day with Ning Tang to teach the eldest child. The eldest child was smart and would probably learn it in half a month or at most a month.
Ning Tang asked, "Are you seated properly? If you are, I will start riding."
Da Wa tightly grasped Ning Tang's clothes around her waist and said nervously, "Sit tight, Mommy, you ride."
"Hold on tight." Falling off the bike is not fun. Ning Tang reminded him again and started riding.
She swung the kickstand, stepped on the pedals, turned her head sharply, and the bike flew out.
"Ahhhhh!" Big Baby exclaimed, "Mom, you're so awesome!"
The wind from the bicycle blew across Chen Lie's face. He wasn't paying attention when Ning Tang disappeared. He muttered, "This is too fast."
She drove the bicycle like a car, and the tires were about to fly off.
After riding for a while, Da Wa gradually became less nervous and his grip on Ning Tang's clothes became less tight. Instead, he asked curiously, "Mom, where are we going? Are we going to the supply and marketing cooperative too?"
"Let's not go to the supply and marketing cooperative. There's nothing to buy." Ning Tang said, "I'll take you around the island."
The eldest child was definitely happier to be able to ride the bike for a while longer. While feeling the breeze on his face as the bike sped past, he pestered Ning Tang with questions, "Mom, is it difficult to learn to ride a bike? After I learn, can I also carry people like you?"
"It's not difficult. As long as you study hard, you'll be able to learn it quickly." Ning Tang said, "Once you've mastered it and become proficient in it, you can carry people like me."
The eldest child nodded and clenched his fist, saying, "Then I must work hard to learn how to ride a bicycle."
Ning Tang rode with Da Wa to the beach, then to the vegetable market... and circled the island for almost half a circle before returning.
Cycling is also a physical activity. Ning Tang wiped the sweat from his forehead and said, "Looks like I can't brag to you about Haikou anymore. I haven't even completed a circle around the island yet."
The eldest child was not disappointed at all. Instead, he was very happy. "It's okay. Let's ride again next time."
The bicycle quickly rode to Zeng Xinlan's house. Zeng Xinlan was weeding in the yard. Da Wa sat on the bicycle, waved at Zeng Xinlan, and shouted, "Sister-in-law Xinlan!"
Zeng Xinlan was startled and hurriedly looked outside the yard.
Ning Tang was riding a bicycle, and Da Wa was sitting on the back seat, waving at her.
Ning Tang stopped the bicycle, turned on the kickstand, and Da Wa jumped off the bike.
"Xiao Ning, Da Wa," Zeng Xinlan said, "Where are you two from? Ah." She glanced at the bicycle and praised, "This bicycle is really beautiful."
Ning Tang said, "I'll ride Big Baby around the island for a spin."
Da Wa put his hands on his hips proudly and said, "Beautiful, isn't it?" He patted his chest and said, "By the way, where's Da Hu? When I learn how to ride a bike, I'll ride him to school."
"Da Hu is upstairs." Zeng Xinlan said.
Da Wa ran upstairs, calling Da Hu's name as he ran.
Ning Tang saw Zeng Xinlan's eyes wandering around the women's bicycle, eyes full of admiration. He patted the handlebars and asked, "Do you want to try riding it?"
Upon hearing this, Zeng Xinlan waved her hands repeatedly, "Stop, stop, I don't dare to try."
It's okay to look at it, but it's not okay to let her ride it.
In her eyes, bicycles are similar to cars, both of which have the word "car" in their names. Things with wheels look dangerous.
Although Ning Tang looked very majestic and handsome when riding, she would never dare to try it, and she was even afraid to touch it.
Ning Tang chatted with Zeng Xinlan for a while, and Da Wa also came down from upstairs. His little face was full of joy, and it was obvious that he had a long chat with Da Hu.
Ning Tang scrambled onto his bicycle and waved to Zeng Xinlan, "Xinlan, I'm leaving now." He then asked Da Wa, "Are you on the bike? We've been out for too long. Your dad, Er Niu, and San Wa must be getting anxious. We need to get back quickly."
It is easy to get off the car but difficult to get on. Da Wa tried several times but failed to get on the back seat. The more anxious he was, the more likely he was to make mistakes. In front of Zeng Xinlan and Da Hu, he was too embarrassed to ask Ning Tang. After all, he had just made a boast and his little face was covered in sweat.
Ning Tang asked a few times, but got no response. Thinking that Da Wa had gotten in the car, he flipped up the tripod and waved to Zeng Xinlan and Da Hu, "I'm leaving now."
Having said that, he twisted the handlebars of his bicycle and rode away.
Ning Tang vaguely heard a sound behind her, but didn't think much of it, thinking it was Zeng Xinlan and Dahu saying goodbye to her.
After riding for a while, Ning Tang began to feel that something was wrong. "Big boy, you've become much lighter."
"Big Boy didn't say anything," Ning Tang said, "We're going out? It's been two hours. When we get home, your dad will definitely ask where we've been and why we took so long."
Still no response.
Ning Tang took advantage of the flat road ahead and turned his head slightly to look. Wow, the back seat was empty. Where did Da Wa go?
Her heart skipped a beat and she thought, Oh no, I might have dropped the eldest child on the way.
Hurry up, slam on the brakes, make a U-turn, and ride back in the direction you came from.
Fortunately, they didn't drive far. After riding back for five minutes, Ning Tang saw Da Wa squatting on the ground with his cheeks puffed up with anger at the gate of Zeng Xinlan's yard.
Ning Tang laughed awkwardly, "Hey, what are you doing squatting here?"
Da Wa raised his eyebrows and said in a muffled voice, "Mom, you still remember me."
"What nonsense are you talking about?" Ning Tang said righteously, "How could I not remember you?" You are my eldest son.
Zeng Xinlan also found it funny. Just now, Da Wa had tried so hard to climb into the car but failed. Then Ning Tang did a tailspin and rushed out. No one could stop him even if they shouted. The three of them stood at the gate of the yard, watching Ning Tang drive away, the wheels kicking up a cloud of dust.
She said angrily, "You too, a mother like you, actually forgot about Da Wa while riding your bike. If you leave Da Wa at my house again next time, I won't return him to you and will let Da Wa be my son."
Ning Tang was in the wrong about this matter, and chuckled twice, "Blame me, blame me."
Big Boy struggled with his legs and climbed onto the back seat with a grunt. Ning Tang confirmed twice this time that Big Boy was on the bike before he dared to ride back.
Along the way, the eldest child kept nagging, "Mom, you're so amazing! You actually forgot me at Sister Xinlan's house." "I was really worried that you wouldn't remember I went out with you until you got home." "Luckily it was me! If it was that little crybaby, the third child, you'd have left him at Sister Xinlan's house. He would have thought you didn't want him anymore."
Ning Tang's ears hurt from his scolding. "I know, I know. It's my fault. If you scold me again, I'll turn you into an old man."
When I got home, Chen Lie came out to greet me. "Where have you been? Why are you back so late?"
"We rode to the market and only toured half of the island," Ning Tang said. "I calculated that we don't have enough time to tour the entire island. It'll take at least an afternoon. I was afraid you wouldn't be able to wait, so I came back first."
Chen Lie muttered, "We've only toured half of the island? That? The timing is wrong."
Big Baby complained, "Of course not. Mom took me to Sister Xinlan's house and delayed me for more than half an hour."
Shen Lie raised an eyebrow, "Why the delay?"
The eldest child was so angry that his face turned into a frog's. He crossed his arms over his chest and said, "Ask Mom."
Ning Tang coughed and cleared his throat. "Well, when I arrived at Xinlan's house, I stopped to chat with her. When I got in the car, I accidentally left Da Wa at her house."
Chen Lie couldn't help but burst out laughing, "Oh my god, you are really good."
Ever since Ning Tang came back, San Wa has been pestering Ning Tang to ride on him. Da Wa threatened San Wa, "Did you hear me? Mom left me on the road. Do you dare to let her ride on you?"
Sanwa rolled his eyes cleverly, "Brother, did you walk back?"
"Of course not," Ning Tang said. "I realized he wasn't in the back seat of the bike, and it was only five minutes later that I turned around and went back to pick him up. If I had really remembered him only after I got home, this old man would have scolded me to death."
Chen Lie looked at Da Wa's depressed face and nodded. "Don't even mention that he would scold you to death. I scold you to death too. How could I leave the child on the street?"
Apart from Ning Tang, no one else can do this?
The story of Ning Tang's "baby loss" spread on the island for a month, to the point where even Zhou Caiwei came to laugh at her. At that time, the military family compound started distributing jackfruits again.
There is a bumper harvest of jackfruit this year, and the amount of jackfruit available is much more than in previous years.
On the afternoon of July 15th, Ning Tang went home carrying the jackfruit he had just received.
I removed the core of the jackfruit and soaked it in salt water for a while, then called the three little ones over to eat.
Big Boy picked up a piece of jackfruit and took a bite. It was sweet and refreshing, just like drinking a bag of honey.
Erniu saw Ning Tang still peeling the jackfruit and quickly said, "Mom, there's no need to peel it anymore. These are enough for us to eat. We won't be able to eat any more."
Ning Tang's hands kept moving. "These? I'm not peeling them for you to eat. I'm peeling them and drying them into dried jackfruits to send back to your grandparents."
Ning Tang had promised Sun Aiju that he would send dried fruits to the old couple, so he sent back a lot of dried peaches, mangoes, pineapples, and bananas. However, the production and quality of jackfruits were not very good in the past two years, and it took five kilograms of jackfruit to dry one kilogram of dried jackfruits, so Ning Tang did not send any.
After waiting for a long time, this year, the yield of jackfruit is high and the quality is good. She plans to send some dried jackfruit back to Sun Aiju and Ning Weiguo so that the old couple can taste the freshness and satisfy their taste.
When they heard that the jackfruits were to be sent back to Shangang Village, Da Wa, Er Niu and San Wa stopped eating them and washed their hands, saying, "Mom, let us peel them for you."
"Okay." Ning Tang responded.
As we were talking, we suddenly heard the sound of a bicycle bell at the door. The postman had arrived.
Ning Tang joked with the three little ones, "What do you call this? Speak of the devil and he'll appear." He directed San Wa, "San Wa, go get the letter."
Sanwa hurriedly washed his hands and ran out to receive the letter.
After a while, he walked into the house, holding two letters in his hands, and asked with a puzzled look on his face, "Did grandma and grandpa send us two letters?"
He pinched the thickness of the letter paper and wondered, "There's just letter paper inside. There shouldn't be any need to separate it into two envelopes."
As the eldest child peeled a jackfruit, he instructed him, "There should be one letter that's not from grandma and grandpa. Just check the postmark."
Sanwa smiled innocently, "Yes."
He turned the envelope over and looked at the postmark, becoming even more puzzled. "It's from Shangang Village." Without waiting for anyone to respond, he added, "It must have been from my grandparents."
There was another one... Sanwa scratched his head, "Mom, do we have any relatives in Shanghai?"
"Shanghai?" Ning Tang was surprised. "You mean it was sent from Shanghai?"
She shook her head, "Anyway, I don't have any here. I'll have to ask your dad."
"What do you want to ask me?" Chen Lie returned home and saw the jackfruit on the table. While Ning Tang was not paying attention, he forked a piece of jackfruit and threw it into his mouth.
"I'm asking you if we have any relatives in Shanghai." Ning Tang said as he spread the peeled jackfruit flesh on a winnowing basket.
"Shanghai?" Chen Lie frowned, as if recalling some unpleasant memories. "Why do you ask?"
Sanwa handed him two letters and said, "Just now the postman came to deliver two letters. One is from my grandparents in Shangang Village, and the other is from Shanghai."
Chen Lie nodded, took the two letters, opened them, and read ten lines at a glance.
Ning Tang put the dustpan in the yard to dry. "How is it? What did the letter say?"
"There's good news and bad news. Which one do you want to hear first?" Shen Lie said mysteriously.
"Don't play that with me." Ning Tang said, "Let's talk about it together."
Chen Lie waved the letter Ning Weiguo and Sun Aiju had sent him. "Dad told Mom he'd come to the island at the end of the month to see us and Da Wa, Er Niu, and San Wa."
Ning Tang's eyes lit up, "This is a good thing."
Then, there’s no need to send the dried jackfruit back. The old couple can eat it as soon as they come.
Chen Lie lowered his raised lips and waved another letter. "There's another bad thing." He frowned. "I can't say it's a bad thing, I can only say it's disgusting."
"This letter was sent by Da Wa's biological mother's uncle and aunt." Chen Lie glanced at Ning Tang's expression and continued, "They wrote to ask for money."
Ning Tang remembered that Da Wa's biological mother's parents died early, and she was adopted by her uncle and aunt. Strictly speaking, those uncles and aunts were not only her adoptive parents, but also the uncles and aunts of Da Wa and the other two.
But she remembered Chen Lie mentioned that the two were not very kind to Da Wa's mother. They favored their own son and treated Da Wa's mother like a maid.
Later, Da Wa's biological mother came to Hailang Island to join the army and gave birth to Da Wa, Er Niu and San Wa in succession. Her aunt never mentioned coming to take care of her during the confinement period, but just kept asking Da Wa's biological mother to send money back to fill the hole in their family.
Da Wa's biological mother also doesn't have a job. To put it bluntly, the money she sends back is Shen Lie's hard-earned money.
After Da Wa's mother died, the couple only came to the funeral once.
The person who came to ask for money said that Chen Lie killed Da Wa's biological mother.
He also said that they raised Da Wa's mother, and Da Wa's mother worked hard to give birth to three children for Chen Lie. Even if they had no credit, they had worked hard, so Chen Lie must compensate them with money.
Chen Lie didn't want to get involved with them, so he gave them some money and sent them away.
Over the years, the couple has never sent a letter, let alone come to see the eldest, second and third children.
No, he did send a letter. It was the only letter he had received in many years, and it was the one in Chen Lie's hand. It was sent to ask for money.
Thinking of this, Ning Tang couldn't help but frown and said, "Did I hear correctly? They dared to write to me and ask for money? Where do they get the nerve to do that?"
Chen Lie snorted coldly, "Not only is he so shameless, but he's also asking for 500 yuan in one go." He paused, then continued, "Does he really think money comes from the wind?"
Ning Tang said, "They don't treat money as if it were the wind blowing in, they treat your money as if it were the wind blowing in." She asked, "What should we do now? Write a letter to reject them?"
In front of the three little ones, Ning Tang was too embarrassed to speak too bluntly. Her original intention was to write a letter back and scold the couple.
Chen Lie nodded, "Let's do this for now."
Everyone ate absent-mindedly during dinner.
It was a good thing that Sun Aiju and Ning Weiguo were coming to the island to see them. Ning Tang was in a good mood, but his mood was ruined by the couple asking for money.
After dinner, Ning Tang and Chen Lie wrote back letters while the three little ones sat aside.
Erniu whispered to Da Wa, "Brother, do you still remember our mother's uncle and aunt?"
The eldest child said, "That's called uncle and aunt." He pursed his lips and said, "I have some impression, but I can't remember it clearly."
When their biological mother died, the eldest child was only about four or five years old, the second child was even younger, and the third child was still a little baby blowing bubbles.
The only thing Da Wa remembered was that during the funeral, those two people rushed in and only cared about asking Chen Lie for money, yelling and shouting, without even looking at them.
He thought about it carefully, and all that remained in his mind were the fierce expressions on those two faces; he couldn't even remember their facial features clearly.
Sanwa raised his little face and asked, "So? What are my uncles and aunts like? Ah, are they the same as my grandparents? Okay, will they send us some delicious snacks?"
He was so happy thinking that he would see his grandparents soon.
The eldest child shook his head and said, "Third child, you're overthinking it. There's no comparison at all."
Erniu also said, "Stupid! If they were good people, how could they not come to see us for so many years? And every time they send a letter, it means they are asking for money."
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