"That shouldn't be the case. Didn't the boatman tell you this is Hailang Island?" Bai Xiaofen looked around. "But it's definitely changed a lot compared to before."
Hailang Island was not like it is now in the past. Coconut trees and fruit trees were only planted on a large scale in recent years.
Looking at the coconuts on the coconut trees, the bright yellow mangoes on the mango trees, and the green and yellow oranges on the orange trees, Bai Xiaofen's eyes flashed with greed, and she couldn't help but say, "Let's pick some of these fruits and take them with us when we go back."
Liang Dong said solemnly, "Of course you can, but don't forget why we're here. Don't lose the big picture for the sake of the small."
Bai Xiaofen curled her lips indifferently. "It's just money. If we can ask for it once, we can ask for it again." She asked, "Do you think Chen Lie would agree to 500 yuan this time? He scolded us both in the letter."
"This? You don't understand, if Chen Lie didn't care about our relatives, he wouldn't even reply to the letter, but he could scold us. Does that mean there is still room for us to continue the relationship? No matter what, we are his children's uncles and aunts, or even grandparents. We are related by blood, and it is impossible for him to deny us, unless he wants his children to be stabbed in the back." Liang Dong said.
He smiled cunningly, "Do you know why I want five hundred yuan instead of two hundred like last time?"
Bai Xiaofen shook her head, "I don't know."
"Stupid." Liang Dong gave her a sidelong glance. "Chen Lie, as a battalion commander, must have earned a lot these past few years, but with three children to support, 500 yuan is definitely not something he can come up with. I asked for 500 yuan just to give him room to bargain."
"If I ask for 500 yuan, he'll definitely say he doesn't have it and will only give me 200 yuan, just like the last funeral. I'll say no, it has to be 500 yuan. Then he'll say we'll compromise and give 300 yuan, no more." Liang Dong chuckled twice, "That way I get 300 yuan for free, 100 yuan more than last time."
"Boss, you're so smart." Bai Xiaofen gave Liang Dong a thumbs-up and flattered him, "With you here, our family will prosper."
"What's the point of prosperity?" Liang Dong sighed. "If it weren't for Ruijie's disappointment, why would we give up this? We're both asking for money."
Bai Xiaofen didn't think so. "Ruijie is a late bloomer. Sooner or later, we'll have our day to enjoy happiness together."
Liang Dong's expectations for his only son were no less than Bai Xiaofen's. He hummed, "That fat aunt in our yard's house has a son who goes to night school. I heard he can get a high school diploma after graduation and go straight to the factory to work in an office. Working in an office is much easier than being a porter. Once we get the money, we'll send Ruijie to night school too."
Bai Xiaofen nodded repeatedly. "I'll listen to you and let Ruijie go to night school. Our Ruijie is the type of person who can be a high school student and work in an office."
The couple has already begun to imagine the wonderful life after getting the money.
After walking for a while, the two found something wrong.
Bai Xiaofen asked, "Boss, have we seen this coconut tree before?"
A subtle embarrassment flashed across Liang Dong's face. "Nonsense, don't all coconut trees look the same?"
Bai Xiaofen nodded, "You're right."
After walking for about another hour, we returned to the same place.
Bai Xiaofen wondered, "That's not right. I've really seen this coconut tree. Look, other coconut trees grow vertically, but this one is curved, just like, just like..." She didn't have much knowledge, so it took her a while to come up with an adjective, "Just like the handle of an enamel pot."
After Bai Xiaofen's reminder, Liang Dong also realized that something was wrong and frowned, "How should I know? It was you who led the way."
Bai Xiaofen was dumbfounded: "I thought you were the one who led the way."
It turned out that neither of the couple knew the way, so they just walked around aimlessly.
Liang Dong chuckled, "I thought you knew the way. Didn't we go there together last time?"
"Yes, I've been here before, but I forgot about it. It's been several years." Bai Xiaofen said awkwardly, "Besides, the roads here are all the same, and so are the coconut trees. Aside from the crooked one just now, I didn't notice any difference in the others, so I got the wrong way."
"Forget it." Liang Dong said, "We have mouths, so why don't we just ask someone for directions?"
The couple squatted on the roadside for a while under the scorching sun before they waited for a young soldier in a blue and white navy uniform.
Liang Dong said with a smile, "Comrade, is there a battalion commander named Chen Lie on your island? Where does he live?"
"Chen Lie? Battalion Commander?" The young soldier frowned. "We don't have a battalion commander named Chen Lie here, only a regimental commander named Chen Lie."
"Captain?!" Bai Xiaofen covered her mouth in surprise and exchanged glances with Liang Dong, both of them seeing surprise in each other's eyes. "Chen Lie has been promoted to captain?"
A trace of greed flashed across Liang Dong's eyes. He leaned closer to Bai Xiaofen and whispered, "Let's ask for more this time. Three hundred is not enough. We need at least four hundred, no, five hundred!"
The young soldier frowned and looked Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen up and down. Liang Dong was thin and tall, with a mustache. Bai Xiaofen was fat, with thin lips and a pair of triangular eyes. She looked difficult to get along with.
And he always felt that these two people were despicable and didn't seem like good people.
Remembering the red-headed document issued by the army earlier warning against spies on the other side, the young soldier's face suddenly became serious. He crossed his arms over his chest and took a defensive stance. "What are your names, where are you from, and what do you want from Battalion Commander Shen, or Regimental Commander Shen?"
Bai Xiaofen gave a wry laugh and said, "Comrade, we're looking for Captain Shen, whom you mentioned, for something very important." She nudged Liang Dong with her elbow and said, "Boss, what do you think?"
"Yes, yes." Liang Dong said repeatedly, "We are Chen Lie's relatives."
"Relatives?" The young soldier became even more suspicious. "Are you relatives of Captain Shen?" he muttered. "If they were relatives, how could they not know he was the regimental commander and thought he was the battalion commander? Could they be impersonating him?"
"Little comrade, you misunderstood. We are indeed Chen Lie's relatives." Bai Xiaofen said anxiously, "We, we are his child's grandparents."
Liang Dong stepped forward and added, "They are his father-in-law and mother-in-law."
"Father-in-law and mother-in-law?" The young soldier was stunned and asked curiously, "You said you are Captain Shen's father-in-law and mother-in-law?"
However, Captain Shen's father-in-law and mother-in-law came at the end of July. Captain Shen, his wife, and their three children took the old couple around the island every day.
The young soldier had seen the old couple several times, and the two people in front of him definitely did not have the same face or similar body shape.
He was now almost certain that Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen were two liars. They must have heard from somewhere that Captain Shen's father-in-law and mother-in-law were coming to the island to visit relatives, so they wanted to take advantage of the time difference and come here to deceive people.
So he stepped forward and drove them away, "Captain Shen's father-in-law and mother-in-law are staying at Captain Shen's house right now. Are you two liars going to leave? If you don't, I'll call for someone to arrest you."
Bai Xiaofen was anxious. "We are really not liars. We are Shen Lie's father-in-law and mother-in-law. They are the liars. Comrade, you should understand clearly that you are the ones who have been deceived."
Seeing that her expression didn't seem fake, the young soldier hesitated and said, "You said you are Captain Shen's father-in-law and mother-in-law. What evidence do you have?"
Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen were dumbfounded. They hadn't been in touch for several years, so where was the evidence?
Bai Xiaofen suddenly had an idea. "Oh, right, I have a letter. It's the letter Chen Lie sent to us."
As she spoke, she took out the small shoulder bag she carried with her, ready to show the young soldier the letter in which Chen Lie scolded them both, to prove that they really knew Chen Lie.
Liang Dong quickly stopped her and whispered, "You're so silly! If he sees the letter, will he still let us find Chen Lie?"
After thinking about it, Bai Xiaofen withdrew her hand awkwardly, "Then, comrade, how do we prove that we know Chen Lie?"
The young soldier scratched his head and thought of an idea. "How about this? What are the names of Captain Shen's three children?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the young soldier gave himself a thumbs up. His idea was good. The two "liars" in front of him definitely didn't know about it, and now he could expose them.
As expected, Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen were stunned and winked at each other.
Liang Dong asked, "Do you remember your name?"
Bai Xiaofen said, "How could I remember? I even forgot what they looked like."
She scratched her head and thought for a long time before finally remembering it. She clapped her hands and said, "Oh, I remember their nicknames. Their nicknames are... Big Baby, Second Baby, and Third Baby!"
Nicknames are easy to remember. Bai Xiaofen thought about it for a while and then remembered it.
When she first heard that Chen Lie gave his three children these nicknames, she complained that he was casual and uncultured.
The eldest and the third are facing each other. These two naughty boys are always running wild on the island. I wonder how many of them there are.
The young soldier frowned and said, "Captain Shen? The second child in the family is a girl."
Liang Dong also had a flash of inspiration, "Call...Call Erniu!"
He remembered that Chen Lie and Liang Ying had three children, two sons and a daughter, named Da Wa, Er Niu and San Wa respectively!
Hey, that’s right.
Now the young soldier is not sure. Could it be that the 'father-in-law and mother-in-law' who are now at Captain Shen's house are liars?
But if you think about it carefully, it doesn't make sense. If it was fake, Captain Shen's lover would not be able to fail to recognize it.
The young soldier had been assigned to Hailang Island for less than a year and had no idea that Chen Lie had a deceased wife.
Looking at how intimate the eldest, second and third children are with Ning Tang, they don't seem to be his biological children.
This completely confused the young soldier. He gritted his teeth and stamped his feet, "You two, follow me."
Whether it is true or not, just let Captain Shen find out.
The young soldier took Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen to the military family compound and explained the situation to the guard at the gate. The guard then let the young soldier take them in.
Shen family
Sun Aiju was listening to Erniu singing to her.
Erniu said in a crisp voice, "Grandma, I'll sing you a song I just learned, 'A Small Town Story.'"
Sun Aiju said with a smile, "Okay, if you sing well, grandma will knit you a small flower hat."
"What is a little flower hat?" Erniu asked with her head tilted.
"It's a woolen hat with a small flower on it. I'll knit you a hat with yellow yarn and sew a small pink flower on it, okay?" Sun Aiju said, nodding to herself. "It will definitely look good on our second daughter."
Erniu jumped up with joy, "I want a little flower hat, I want a little flower hat."
Sun Aiju smiled and said, "Then sing the song 'A Small Town Story' that you just learned to me, and I'll knit you a little flower hat."
Erniu cleared her throat and began to sing. Her clear childish voice was like a lark, "The small town has many stories, full of joy—"
Before the word "le" was sung, it was interrupted by a sudden visitor.
The Shen family never locked up during the day, so the young soldier led Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen straight into the house. Seeing Erniu, he asked, "Erniu, is Captain Shen home?"
Before Erniu could reply, Bai Xiaofen, who was standing behind the young soldier, covered her mouth in shock and said, "Is this Erniu?!"
Is this still the Erniu she remembers?
Bai Xiaofen narrowed her eyes slightly, and her gaze was like a knife, scanning Erniu's body inch by inch.
She was not completely without impression of the three children of the Shen family.
Even if she couldn't remember it at first, the journey she had taken was enough for her to recall many memories.
The 'Erniu' in her memory was still a short, skinny little girl with a pale face. Whenever someone looked at her, she would shrink behind Da Wa vigilantly like a wounded little animal, revealing only a pair of big black eyes hidden in her withered yellow hair.
The second girl in front of her, although her skin was not very white, had a healthy rosy complexion, chubby cheeks, and her black and smooth hair was tied into a beautiful little braid that she couldn't name. She was also wearing a beautiful little skirt. Except for the pair of big black eyes that were exactly the same as in her memory, they were almost two different people.
The current Erniu, in Shanghai dialect, is very smart.
Liang Dong just glanced at Erniu and then focused his attention on the home appliances in the room.
——After all, she is just a girl.
He greedily glanced at the oscillating electric fan in the corner and the stylish dark green washing machine.
He has very sharp eyes and can even spot a women's bicycle parked in the yard.
Liang Dong secretly sighed in his heart, this thing is not cheap, the price is almost the same as that of a 28-inch truck.
The 28-inch bicycle is the dream of many workers.
Looking again, a radio worth tens or hundreds of dollars was just casually placed on the table, without any fear that it would be taken away by passers-by.
Liang Dong's pupils shrank slightly. It seemed that Chen Lie had made a lot of money in the past few years and was living a very comfortable life!
Erniu looked at the strangers who had broken into their home in surprise, tilting her head and asking the young soldier, "Uncle Lin, who are they?"
The young soldier didn't know how to explain it either. He touched the back of his head awkwardly. "He, they said they were Captain Shen's father-in-law and mother-in-law." He quickly glanced at Sun Aiju and added, "They said they were real father-in-law and mother-in-law."
Da Hu ran downstairs, "What's real or fake? Are you telling me a story about the real and fake Monkey King? I want to hear it, I want to hear it."
At the beginning of June, Ning Tang went to the Xinhua Bookstore in Jiang City and bought some storybooks. Big Boy pestered Ning Tang and Shen Lie every day to tell him stories. After they finished, he would recite them to his group of friends. As a result, his group of friends would gather around Big Boy every day, just wanting to hear his stories.
Da Hu came to see Da Wa today, also to listen to stories.
Liang Dong saw Dahu running down from upstairs, and judging from his height, he seemed to be older than Erniu. He thought, this must be Da Wa, and quickly winked at Bai Xiaofen.
Bai Xiaofen immediately understood, forced a kind smile on her face, and stepped forward and said, "Big Boy, long time no see. I missed grandma so much."
She wanted to go up and hug Dahu, but Dahu turned around and quickly dodged, asking vigilantly, "Who are you?" Could you be a human trafficker?
Bai Xiaofen grumbled and pointed at herself, "Who am I? I'm your grandma." Then she pointed at Liang Dong and said, "This is your grandpa. Remember how much you loved us when you were little?"
Liang Dong came up and continued with a smile, "Yes, when you were little, you kept pestering me to hold you and buy you candy."
Da Hu was stunned. "You are my grandparents? But my grandparents are in Xiaofeng Village." He raised his eyebrows and said with a pursed mouth, "Also, I'm not Da Wa, I'm Da Hu."
What's with the Da Wa and Da Hu? Bai Xiaofen frowned. Could it be that he changed his name again?
She stepped forward and tried to pull Dahu, "Okay, okay, you call me Dahu, we are your grandparents, remember, I am your real grandma." She pointed at Liang Dong and said, "This is your real grandpa."
"Tsk." A chuckle suddenly came from the door.
Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen looked back in surprise and saw a chubby little boy standing at the door. The laughter came from him.
Bai Xiaofen glared at him and said, "Whose child are you from? Why are you so rude? We're talking to adults, why are you laughing?"
Da Wa's smile didn't reach his eyes. "I'm laughing at you for not being able to tell the difference between me and Da Hu. Actually, I'm Da Wa, my dear grandpa and grandma." He emphasized the last six words.
"Are you the eldest child?" Liang Dong asked in surprise.
He was startled and looked at Da Wa's features carefully. The more he looked, the more familiar he felt. He repeated again, "You are Da Wa!" This time it was an affirmative statement.
Bai Xiaofen was also startled and pointed at Dahu, "Then who are you?"
Da Hu curled his lips and said, "I've said it several times, I'm Da Hu."
He put his arm around Da Wa's shoulders and chuckled, "Da Wa's good buddy."
The eldest boy put his arm around his shoulders, and they both raised their fists and bumped fists, laughing at the same time.
Ning Tang patted the two children who were blocking the door and said, "Alright, go play somewhere else and don't block the door."
The eldest child puffed up his cheeks and said, "I know, Mom."
"Mom?" Bai Xiaofen pointed her index finger at Ning Tang, her fingertips trembling slightly. "You call this woman mom?"
Big Wa is weird. If he doesn’t call Ning Tang “Mom”, what does he call her?
Chen Lie stepped in last and saw Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen standing in the room. He almost fainted and his face dropped.
Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen didn't know Ning Tang, but they knew Chen Lie!
Liang Dong pulled a chair over and sat down, crossing his legs. "Chen Lie, explain to us why Da Wa calls this woman "Mom."
Erniu was unhappy, "Speak with more respect, don't keep calling each other 'woman' and 'woman'."
Liang Dong glared at Erniu and said, "What's the point of a little girl like you? Go play somewhere else."
Everyone in the Liang family favors boys over girls and looks down on girls. They treat their biological son Liang Ruijie as a treasure, while the adopted daughter of eldest brother Liang Dong, Liang Ying, who is also the biological mother of Da Wa and the other two, is treated as a nanny and maid.
Influenced by her surroundings, Liang Ying also looked down on girls and treated Erniu very harshly.
Liang Dong's ferocious appearance scared Erniu. In her vague memory, there was a woman like this who would yell at her or ignore her at any time.
She subconsciously hid behind Ning Tang. Ning Tang patted Erniu soothingly and glared back at Liang Dong, "If you glare at me again, I'll dig your eyes out."
Liang Dong was dumbfounded. How could there be such a woman? "You, a jerk, have no manners at all."
Upon hearing this, Sun Aiju immediately stood up and rolled up her sleeves, "Say it again if you have the guts."
Ning Tang curled her lips, "Only when you're with people do you need to be well-mannered." She glanced up and down at Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen, "With dogs, no need."
Bai Xiaofen suddenly looked at Chen Lie, "Chen Lie, just say one word, are you going to let your second-married wife and her family bully your late wife's parents?"
No matter how stupid she and Liang Dong were, they could tell that the young and beautiful woman in front of them was Chen Lie's second wife.
Then I thought about what the young soldier in navy uniform had said just now, 'Captain Shen's father-in-law and mother-in-law are staying well at Captain Shen's home now.'
The identity of the woman who had just made them feel like saying it again was about to be revealed.
Chen Lie sat down expressionlessly. "Speak, what do you want me to say? I don't want to say a single word to my late wife's parents who can't even tell the difference between her children."
He really didn't expect that even though he had cursed them so harshly in the letter, Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen would still have the nerve to come to his door.
——It seems that the scolding was not light enough.
Before he knew it, he had seen a huge scene. The young soldier who was leading the way was dumbfounded. He seemed to have gotten into big trouble!
He quickly saluted Chen Lie and said, "Captain Chen, I'm leaving first." He quickly added, "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone about what happened today."
Chen Lie didn't say a word before he ran away, running faster than a rabbit.
Seeing that she couldn't impress Chen Lie, Bai Xiaofen turned her attention to Da Wa. "Dawa, don't be fooled by that woman. Your grandfather and I are your blood relatives. We are the ones who truly care about you."
Da Wa said with a playful smile, "Hey, what did you call me? I'm not Da Wa, I'm Da Hu."
He winked at Da Hu, who immediately understood and pointed at himself, "I am the eldest child. I am the eldest child."
Seeing the eldest child's stubborn look, Bai Xiaofen almost fainted.
Ning Weiguo took Sanwa to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy candy. When the old man and the youngest came back, they saw two unfamiliar people in the house.
Sanwa raised his little face and asked Chen Lie, "Dad, are there any guests at home?"
What guests! They are his grandparents!
Liang Dong suppressed his temper and tried to put on a 'kind' smile, but he didn't realize that his half-smiley expression would only frighten the children. He waved at Sanwa and said, "You are Sanwa, right? Sanwa, we are your biological grandparents." He thought about it and added, "Your biological mother's parents."
Bai Xiaofen quickly asked, "You know you have a biological mother, right?" Before Sanwa could respond, she made a decisive statement, "You definitely didn't know. You were still young at the time." Pointing at Ning Tang, she said, "That woman lied to you. She lied to you that she was your biological mother, but in fact, she is your stepmother. You are not her biological child."
Sanwa raised his little face and blinked, "I know."
Of course he knew that Ning Tang had never stopped the three of them from knowing about their biological mother.
Every Qingming Festival, Chen Lie and Ning Tang would take the three children to the back mountain to visit the graves of Chen Lie's parents and Liang Ying.
Even Sanwa could write his biological mother's name "Liang Ying", and it was Ning Tang who taught him stroke by stroke.
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