Gu Laoliu squatted at the back door of his house, looking at the harvested cornfield outside the door, with green leaves still hanging on it. He took a puff of his pipe and exhaled with a sad face.
In previous years, his wife accompanied him to reclaim the house. There are two children in the family. One is a soldier and is away from home all year round, and the other was driven out by himself for speculation a few years ago and has no news since then. Now the house is getting better and better, but there are fewer and fewer people around him.
A few years ago, everyone knew that Gu Laoliu was the captain of the Xingwang Brigade. Even the county secretary had to give him some face. Now even his relatives can't see him all year round. His wife recently sprained her waist and has been lying in bed for a month.
Gu Laoliu took another long puff of his cigarette!
He is lonely!
Mr. Li's house next door has grandchildren crawling all over the floor. His house is so cold and deserted that even the hissing sounds in the sky refuse to stop.
Suddenly I thought of my eldest child and wanted to ask him to come back to visit me. I’m almost five years old, and I don’t even know where my home is.
Forget it, let’s not talk about the past. As long as the children can live a stable life, that’s more important than anything else. I still have some money in my hand, and I don’t know if I can buy an apartment for my eldest brother in the provincial capital.
Comrade Jin Chunfen was yelling in the room again. Gu Laoliu knocked his cigarette butt on the ground twice and walked slowly into the room.
As soon as he entered the door, he hid his cigarette behind his back.
Ms. Jin, who was lying on the bed, glared at him immediately. Having lived for most of her life, she knew everyone knew each other, and she knew the character of this stubborn old man better than anyone else.
She said nothing and turned a blind eye.
Gu Laoliu sat cross-legged on the kang, with one hand behind his back and his buttocks resting on the edge. He bent over and slowly moved onto the kang. He rolled the pipe in his hand under the small wooden cabinet at the head of the bed. His two almost dim little eyes stared at Jin Chunfen who had her eyes closed. He carefully stuffed the pipe into his mouth before straightening his back and coughing a few times.
Jin Chunfen opened her eyes.
Gu Laoliu's eyes were flickering and his expression was very conflicted. He grabbed the newly turned cotton quilt with his hands, looking like he wanted to say something but didn't dare to open his mouth.
Jin Chunfen was worried for him, "Um, has something happened to our chickens recently?"
Gu Laoliu straightened up suddenly and stuttered, "No."
Jin Chunfen asked again, "Murakami Lao Niu's wife is making trouble for Lao Niu again, and wants you to handle it?"
Gu Laoliu's face turned red, he waved his hand and wiped the sweat off his forehead, "Nothing."
Jin Chunfen looked at her husband for a long time without saying anything. Her good temper was wiped out. "What! You must have someone else outside!"
Gu Laoliu's eyes were as big as copper bells. "What are you thinking about all day? I'm old, who would like me?"
Jin Chunfen lifted the quilt and said, "Then why don't you say something?"
Gu Laoliu reluctantly covered his wife with the quilt again, what would he do if she caught a cold again in such a cold weather? He even patted his wife's chest to help her calm down. "Well, baby's mother, I want to bring our grandson back home."
Upon hearing this, Jin Chunfen took a few deep breaths, her face showing anger, and she shouted in a loud voice, "How come you have a grandson?"
This old man is hooking up with an old woman outside again, and he wants to bring her grandson back home. When he was young, he was hooking up with the wives and girls in the village. Now he is still so frivolous even when he is old.
Gu Laoliu wiped the cold sweat off his forehead and said that he couldn't tell the old woman. He was still thinking about how to make up his mind when he heard Comrade Jin continue to say -
"Whose grandson?"
Gu Laoliu was a little confused. "Our eldest brother's."
The quilt that had just been covered was pushed down again, and the expression of joy was "Nianmei is pregnant?"
Gu Laoliu tucked the corner of the quilt in and said, "No, it's not Nianmei's baby."
The words were on the tip of Gu Laoliu's tongue, but he just couldn't open them. How could he have the nerve to say that his eldest son had a child of more than five years old before getting married? Gu Laoliu was still a conservative person in nature. Even to his close partner, he couldn't bring himself to speak. Before marrying Nianmei, the eldest brother told him about this, but he was too embarrassed to show his respect and suppressed the matter.
Comrade Jin Chunfen felt anxious watching her husband hesitating, as if there was a thorn stuck in her throat that couldn't be taken out. "What the hell is going on?"
Gu Laoliu sighed, then closed his eyes, and said with a red face and thick neck, "The eldest brother already had a baby, but he was not married and had it. We don't even know who the mother of the baby is. I didn't have the courage to say it out loud all these years."
Jin Chunfen leaned against the wall for a long time without uttering a word, not knowing whether she was surprised or happy. After a while, the pain in her waist, which had been sprained for a month, was gone. She got off the kang, put on her shoes and walked towards the brigade.
Gu Laoliu followed behind his wife, but he couldn't walk faster no matter how hard he tried. The illness he had suffered in previous years was still there. When he walked fast, his right leg hurt so much that he looked like he was limping.
Gu Xichao went to the switchboard room to answer the phone. As soon as he picked up the phone, he heard his mother scolding him. The strong accent of his hometown made him feel dazed for a while.
"Mom, what's wrong? Don't worry."
Captain Gu tried to calm Comrade Jin down, but to no avail.
Jin Chunfen is an expert at scolding people in the Xingwang Brigade. Villagers generally don't dare to provoke Ms. Jin.
Zheng Guiren, who was sitting in the village committee and eating melon seeds, secretly sighed for the person on the other end of the phone. He had been in Xingwang Village for more than ten years, and had never seen Ms. Jin swearing like that. He glanced at the former captain of the Xingwang Brigade who was huddled behind the table like a quail. His eyes were sparkling, and the fire of gossip was burning. Even the melon seeds in his mouth tasted more fragrant, accompanied by Ms. Jin's ups and downs in the swearing voice, which was very rhythmic.
"What! My dad hasn't told you yet!" Gu Xichao successfully found the connection point amid his mother's scolding. His father had concealed Xiaobao's affairs from his mother, but now that he suddenly found out for some reason, his mother exploded.
Captain Gu realized the truth in an instant.
When I first got married, I thought my wife knew that I had a baby. But when I got home, I found out that she didn't know. I always thought that my parents were hiding it, but who knew that it would be ruined by his father.
His father is really getting worse as he gets older.
Ms. Jin suddenly stopped talking and glared at Gu Laoliu, which made Zheng Guiren feel timid.
Jin Chunfen spoke in a gentle tone. This was her baby Dandan, who had been handsome and fair-skinned since childhood, just like the scholars described in operas. She had been raising him in the palm of her hand since childhood, but he had to go out to join the army a few years ago. She didn't know how much suffering he had endured.
"Who the hell is that kid?"
Gu Xichao paused and looked at Su Nianmei who was sitting on the bench outside, his eyes a little vague.
"It's my child. Don't worry, Mom. I haven't done anything to let her down."
He had no way of telling Gu Xiaobao's background. That man had entrusted the child to him, so he had to fulfill his responsibilities as a father.
Gu Xichao lowered his voice a little, his eyes met Su Nianmei's, and he smiled slowly.
Jin Chunfen wanted to say something, but after thinking about it, she suppressed it. Her son had just gotten married, and she couldn't cause trouble for him. She just needed to be nice to Nianmei. "How old is the baby? What's his name? Is it a boy or a girl?"
"A boy, more than five years old. His nickname is Xiaobao, and his real name is Gu Xun. Xun means inquiry."
Jin Chunfen laughed and patted the table, causing the wooden table to make a thumping sound. Just keep saying "OK".
Gu Laoliu waved at her and mouthed words.
Time is tight, so finish early.
"Then you and Nianmei should live a good life and have a baby soon, and then mom won't bother you anymore."
Gu Xichao nodded. The person on the other end of the phone hadn't hung up yet, and his hand was still holding the microphone.
After a few seconds, the person on the other end said that he would bring the baby back to see her when he had time. You should also take care of yourself and don't get hurt. Please take better care of Nianmei.
Zhao Guiren had never seen Ms. Jin speak so softly.
The two chatted for a while.
The operator next to him was also surprised to see Captain Gu being so gentle.
Gu Xichao hung up the phone, feeling upset.
He straightened his collar, saluted the operator and walked out.
With a serious look on her face, the operator patted her chest. This was the Captain Gu she knew.
Gu Xichao and Su Nianmei walked side by side without holding hands.
All kinds of curious glances came over him along the way, and some people even glared at him, and the whistle that had just been blown was held back.
Su Nianmei looked at him, quietly took Gu Xichao's hand, her eyebrows curved.
The person who had just whistled continued to whistle.
Gu Xichao raised his eyebrows. These bastards deserved to be punished.
Let’s talk about Comrade Jin Chunfen. She was very happy when she returned home after talking to her son on the phone.
I spent a long time tidying up this and that at home but I just couldn't calm down. Even looking at the chickens that used to be so noisy seemed a bit familiar.
Later, Ms. Jin slapped her thigh, packed up her things immediately and asked Gu Laoliu to book a ticket. She wanted to go and see her eldest grandson. She hadn't seen him for many years and didn't know how the boy was doing.
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