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On the night of New Year’s Eve, heavy snow fell from the sky.
Xiao Li stood at the cafeteria entrance, looking up at the falling snow, his thoughts drifting. After today, it would have been exactly five years since he came to this world. Human memory is limited, and five years had slowly accustomed him to this backward world, and also made him slowly forget his old one. When he thought about it in his spare time, he always felt like he had just had a dream.
"Do you think human memory is limited?" Xiao Li asked softly as he heard footsteps behind him.
Dong Shiyi stood beside him, looking into the distance. "Human memory is infinite. Some things will always be engraved in our minds and can never be forgotten."
"Then why are some things so vague in my memory?" It was so vague that I thought I was just dreaming.
"The law of human memory is that if you don't recall something after a while, your memory of it will gradually become blurred. Some of it will be completely forgotten deep in our memory, covered by other new memories, and eventually you will forget it." Dong Shiyi stroked his eyes on the bridge of his nose and said seriously: "You forgot it, which only means that the thing is no longer important to you now."
"Is it not important anymore?" Xiao Li stretched out his palm, trying to catch the falling snowflakes. The snowflakes fell on his warm palm and melted into water, slowly disappearing. He smiled and said, "Yes, it doesn't matter anymore."
He is no longer the poor little guy in his memory who had no relatives or friends and could only complain about himself. Now he has a group of good brothers around him, a family and wife who loves him, and a child who is about to be born. There is no need to remember the past.
This kind of life was a luxury he had only dreamed of, but now it has all come true.
"I'm doing well... I'm content now."
It was time for dinner. In the simple military canteen, apart from those on duty or those returning home to visit their families, there were more than 3,000 soldiers sitting in an orderly manner waiting for the meal.
Xiao Li and several other military leaders dispersed and sat with the soldiers.
The regiment commander, Liu Shijun, stood up from the middle table and said loudly, "Happy New Year, comrades!"
"Captain, Happy New Year!" Everyone shouted in unison as if they had rehearsed it in advance.
"Today is a day for families to reunite, but everyone is still sticking to their posts. Thank you for your hard work, comrades!" Liu Shijun raised the ceramic jar in his hand. "Here! I'll toast you all with water instead of wine. May everyone be safe and sound in the new year!"
"It's not hard! It's not hard! It's not hard!" Xiao Li sat in the crowd and saw that many soldiers, although they said it was not hard, had tears in their eyes.
"Dry!"
Liu Shijun spoke briefly, and everyone picked up their chopsticks. Thanks to Liu Tutu and the others, this New Year's Eve dinner was quite sumptuous. Each table was simply placed with a small plate of a few pieces of braised pork, cabbage and tofu, stewed potatoes, vermicelli-skinned Chinese cabbage, stir-fried shredded radish, a few plates of pickled mustard greens, and dumplings stuffed with pork and scallions.
It’s a very good New Year’s Eve dinner!
"Why...this braised pork is different from the one I had back home!" There was a new recruit at Xiao Li's table who had just joined the army and was assigned to their regiment. He looked at the small plate of braised pork as if he was from the kitchen, hiding the meat.
Wang Dahai happened to be at the table as well. He slammed the table with a stern look on his face. "Why is it different? What's with that expression on your face?"
The soldier's face was filled with fear, but he still stiffened his neck and said, "It's...it's just different!"
Seeing that he didn't seem to be acting strangely, Xiao Li picked up a piece of meat and put it in his bowl. "This is wild boar meat, which is somewhat different from domestic pork. Why don't you try it?"
The soldier looked at the meat in the bowl and felt a sense of disbelief. "Can I... can I eat it?"
Xiao Li nodded: "Of course, I give it to you so that you can eat it."
The soldier's name is Zheng Aidang. He is only 16 years old after the Chinese New Year. In his memory, his family only eats meat during the Chinese New Year when he can get some oil and share a piece of meat with his brothers and sisters. This is the first time someone gave him a whole piece of meat.
A very precious piece of braised pork!
Zheng Aidang's eyes were a little red. Under the gaze of everyone at the table, he put the meat in his mouth and chewed it slowly. The taste of the meat filled his entire mouth.
"Boy, how does it taste like meat?" Wang Dahai looked like he was going to have a fight with him if he didn't tell the truth.
Zheng Ai Dang shook his head in confusion, "No...it's different."
When Wang Dahai stood up and was about to roll up his sleeves to say something, he saw Xiaotuan looking at him coldly. He shuddered and sat down again, pretending to eat.
That was close, I almost forgot Xiaotuan was still there!
Xiao Li scooped a spoonful of cabbage and tofu for Zheng Aidang and said, "Don't pay attention to him. Eat quickly. Otherwise, you won't be able to eat later."
Xiao Li was not joking. People in the army eat very fast. As for himself, he also eats voraciously without any sense of aesthetics.
"This... this is the taste of the braised pork I have ever eaten." Zheng Aidang looked incredible and picked up a piece of tofu.
"Hahahaha, this is tofu!" The funny expression made the veterans laugh.
After living for nearly 16 years, Zheng Aidang learned for the first time that tofu is not braised pork. She pouted and lowered her head, her face flushed with shame.
Although everyone laughed out loud at his amusement, seeing his expression, they all turned around to comfort him: "When I was a kid, I was just like you. I always ate tofu as meat."
The current situation is uncertain and we are in a period where people may starve to death. Not having enough food to eat and not having warm clothes to wear is the norm for people nowadays.
Whenever the Chinese New Year is approaching, it is actually not as festive as people imagine. With little money and a shortage of supplies, adults in every household worry about how to have a good New Year.
Only ignorant children look forward to the Chinese New Year, because they know that during the Chinese New Year, they can wear better clothes, eat better and fuller food, and even those from well-off families can eat fish and meat. Being able to eat meat at this time is something that children can show off for the whole year.
Children look forward to eating meat during the Chinese New Year. Even if adults are under great pressure, they have to grit their teeth and help them fulfill their wish. So someone came up with the idea of using tofu instead of meat.
When adults cook, they cut the tofu into pieces and put it in the pot, then add sugar-colored soy sauce and cook it together. After a few minutes, a bowl of "meat" that looks like braised pork from a distance is ready.
Zheng Aidang recalls that every year when they ate meat, his father would tell him, "As long as he behaves and takes good care of his younger brothers and sisters, I'll make them a braised pork dinner next Chinese New Year."
Every time he said happily: "Okay!"
Thinking about eating real meat today, Zheng Aidang burst into tears. "I...I didn't know. Every time Chinese New Year comes, I take my brothers and sisters to ask my mother for braised pork and new clothes. I didn't know they had it so hard!"
Xiao Li patted his shoulder and said, "It's not too late to know now. Knowing their hardships, we should be filial to them in the future."
"Um!"
Time quietly passed into the year 55. On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the army gave everyone a simple holiday. Xiao Li rarely stayed in the dormitory and did not go out.
Although the stove was lit in the dormitory, it was still very cold. Xiao Li rubbed his hands and took out a piece of letter paper from the drawer, preparing to write a letter home.
"Ah~" Xiao Li was terribly anxious, thinking Wang Xuemei was still over five months away from her due date. Pregnancy was incredibly difficult, and without her husband by her side, Xiao Li wasn't sure she could take care of herself. He would write home periodically, clearly instructing her to telegraph anything so he could request leave.
"I'm writing another letter home." The door was opened from the outside, and Dong Shiyi walked to the stove to warm himself with a cold body.
"Yeah, I'm worried." Xiao Li always felt a little regretful that he couldn't see Wang Xuemei's current condition with his own eyes. "Were you with my sister-in-law when she gave birth?"
"No." Dong Shiyi shook his head. "I only found out about it when she gave birth and sent a telegram to the army. The army was newly built and I couldn't leave. When I returned, my wife had already left the confinement period."
"Our profession means we can't go home often. I'm so glad I chose a soldier like me. If I had listened to my mom and found a simple girl from a good family, I would have hurt her. After all, being a military wife is so hard!"
Yes, it’s too bitter!
“Ahhh~~~”
Just as Xiao Li and Dong Shiyi were lamenting their wives' hardship, cheers were heard outside. They looked at each other and said, "Let's go see what these people are doing. They're so happy."
"Captain Xiao, I want to tell you, a girl came to see Captain Liu." Before Xiao Li could ask, the dog-legged Wang Tiezhu came online, "I heard that the girl was met in the back mountain on the day they went hunting. At that time, the girl fell in love with Captain Liu. Unfortunately, the captain is a tough guy and doesn't understand the girl's heart."
Is there a girl who is in love with Liu Tutu?
Liu Tutu is a very good young man. Xiao Li believes that it is normal for a girl to fall in love with him after coming into contact with him, but he thinks it is unlikely that she would fall in love with him at first sight.
It’s not that Liu Tutu is bad, but the burn on his face looks really scary. Most girls’ first reaction when seeing him should be fear.
This girl has a rather strong taste.
Xiao Li and the others followed the main force to the army gate. In order to avoid being discovered and embarrassed by the girl, everyone consciously stopped not far away and pretended to be training.
Xiao Li: ...It's a bit too obvious.
At the door.
When Liu Tutu came over, he saw Sang Xiaofang, who was wearing a red scarf and a floral cotton-padded jacket and trousers. He walked over and asked in a stiff tone, "Comrade, what can I do for you?"
He was very sure that he had no connection with this female comrade and was full of doubts about her coming to the army to find him.
Sang Xiaofang lowered her head somewhat embarrassedly, holding a pair of cotton gloves in her hand. She timidly handed them to him, "I...I'm here to apologize. I was wrong last time. When I got home and told my mom, she got mad at me, saying I was wrong and that I shouldn't be afraid of the PLA comrades who protected us. So...so I'm here today."
"I'm sorry, comrade. These are cotton gloves I made by myself. You must accept them." Sang Xiaofang was not ugly. Her skin was a healthy wheat color. There was shyness on her face. She looked at Liu Tutu with her big eyes, as if to say, "You must accept them."
Unfortunately, the person opposite her was someone who didn't understand romance. Liu Tutu said very seriously, "Comrade, it's normal for you to be afraid. You don't need to apologize like me! You're a little girl giving something to a gay man like me. If it gets out, it won't be good for both you and me. You'd better go back quickly. By the way, it just snowed, and the roads are slippery. Remember to walk slowly when you go home, and don't fall."
"You..." Sang Xiaofang stomped her feet in anger and ran away after hearing Liu Tutu's righteous words.
I heard Liu Tutu's voice behind me, reminding me not to walk too fast.
"Tsk~" As soon as the girl left, all the pretentious people ran out, craning their necks to look at the place where the girl had left. "Battalion Commander, you angered the girl away, you deserve to be single for the rest of your life!"
They all saw it. The girl had already given the gifts, but was driven away by their battalion commander with a stern face. Who wouldn't be angry if this happened to them?
How could such a good girl be so blind as to fall in love with Liu Tutu!
After making inquiries from many sources, Xiao Li finally found out that the female comrade came to apologize and was not in love with Liu Tutu at first sight.
Dong Shiyi said to the group of excited men, "Be careful and don't say anything that will ruin the girl's reputation."
A girl's reputation is very important nowadays. If these people in the army ruin Sang Xiaofang's reputation and make her unable to get married, Liu Tutu will have to marry her even if he doesn't want to!
"Yes!" a group of people answered in unison.
It was too cold, Xiao Li and Dong Shiyi prepared to go back to the dormitory.
On the way, Xiao Li hummed a song, "There is a girl named Xiaofang in the village. She is pretty and kind. She has a pair of beautiful big eyes and a thick and long braid..."
Dong Shiyi: ... "You should also shut up!"
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