Chapter 42

As the Chinese New Year approached, Cheng Zheng's biological mother, Aunt Wang, finally arrived in H City on a green train.

Early in the morning, Cheng Zheng and Jian Lu had breakfast, packed up and prepared to go to the county town to pick someone up.

According to the arrival time of this train, the two took the ferry for more than an hour to leave the island and waited for someone to pick them up at the platform of the county train station.

The train was also delayed at this time, and the time it was supposed to arrive had already passed. Jian Lu kept looking forward, but she never saw the green train.

"I guess we'll have to wait for a while. Do you want to sit down and wait? I'll just wait here." Cheng Zheng raised his chin, motioning his wife to sit down and rest.

Jian Lu shook her head. "We've been sitting on the boat for quite a while. I'd better stand up to stretch my muscles."

There were many people around waiting at the platform to pick up people, and everyone was anxiously awaiting the arrival of their relatives and friends.

Arriving at the train station again, Jian Lu recalled the painful five-day train ride. "I feel my back and waist ache just standing here and watching the train. You know? Sitting in a hard seat for five days is really torture."

Cheng Zheng listened to his wife mumbling and complaining quietly, as if she was venting her resentment from a year ago. Her nose wrinkled, and her eyes were bright when she complained, showing that she had really suffered a lot.

"It's really uncomfortable to take this ride. I'm sorry for you."

"Of course not!" Jian Lu climbed up the ladder, "But someone actually wanted to buy a train ticket to send me back immediately!!!"

When saying this, Jian Lu deliberately raised the volume, but the soft and tender voice did not sound too dissatisfied, but rather a little coquettish, which made Captain Cheng's ears itchy.

Team leader Cheng has already developed the ability to admit his mistakes immediately in front of his wife, "It's my fault."

"Hmph~" Jian Lu made up her mind that she would remember this incident for the rest of her life. If Cheng Zheng quarreled with her in the future, she would bring it up!

She turned her head and raised her little face proudly, her porcelain-white cheeks flushed red by the breeze. Compared with the north, H City in January was not that cold, but it was still a little chilly.

Wuwuwu～

A whistle suddenly sounded, and everyone on the platform looked in the direction of the whistle. With sudden movement, a green train slowly approached and appeared in everyone's sight.

The train number, the departure point and the destination were written on the front. Jian Lu had sharp eyes and saw at a glance that it said "City C to City H"!

"Brother Cheng, we're here!" Jian Lu was excited. She reached out and grabbed Cheng Zheng's arm, shaking it as a reminder.

It took me a few seconds to realize that they were outside and everyone was behaving properly. Although they were a couple, they shouldn't have any intimate behavior.

"Yes, this is the bus."

Cheng Zheng hadn't seen his mother for many years, and there was a subtle excitement in his voice.

The crowd on the platform moved. Inside the train, passengers poked their heads out of the windows and grinned at the bustling scene outside.

After a long train ride, everyone wanted to get off the train and breathe some fresh air.

Some people could not hold back and when the train finally arrived at the station, they jumped out of the window and landed heavily on the platform.

"Lulu, follow me. Don't get separated." Cheng Zheng took Jian Lu to the back carriage. He remembered that his mother's carriage was carriage No. 7. There were many people getting on and off the train at this moment, and the scene was temporarily chaotic.

Jian Lu stuck closely to Cheng Zheng, following him closely, and was determined not to separate from him. When there was a surge of people coming and going, she would reach out and pull at the hem of his military uniform, looking around, trying to find her mother-in-law in the crowd.

The two of them went against the crowd all the way to Carriage No. 7. They were separated by the passing passengers several times, but then walked closely together again. As they were about to reach the entrance of Carriage No. 7, Jian Lu was the first to see a familiar figure!

Jian Lu touched Cheng Zheng's arm vigorously and said excitedly, "Brother Cheng, there! Your mother is there!"

Aunt Wang got off the car in high spirits, carrying a bag half a person's height and holding two small bags in her hands. As soon as her feet stepped on the solid ground, she heard a shout.

"Mom!"

This familiar voice? Aunt Wang turned around and saw who else could it be but her son!

I haven't seen my eldest son for a few years. He has regained his appearance. He is tall and more majestic than before. The youthfulness of his youth has faded away. The man walking in front of me has become a man of great stature!

"Hey, stone!"

Aunt Wang was so emotional that her eyes almost turned red. She took a breath to hold back her tears, grabbed her son's arm with both hands, and looked at him carefully.

Everything is fine!

Her eldest son had a tough look, much like his father. After serving in the army and fighting in wars for many years, he had a different aura. If she met such a soldier on the street, she would definitely think that he was stern and difficult to approach. But this was her own son, so it was different. No matter how she looked at him, he was good.

"Let mom see, you've grown taller. Look at your body, it's so strong! Strong is good!"

Cheng Zheng looked at his mother whom he hadn't seen for a long time. He rarely put away his serious and cold expression. In front of his mother, his voice was slightly choked, "Mom, how are you?"

"I'm fine!"

Jian Lu watched silently from the side, not wanting to disturb the reunion of mother and son. When Aunt Wang finally turned her eyes away from her son, she called out, "Mom."

In the past, she only heard Jian Lu call her "Mom" on the phone, but now she was calling her so right in front of her, and Aunt Wang was even happier!

"Hey, Lulu! Look at you. You look more beautiful than last year. You have gained some weight on your face. I have always told Shitou that you were too thin before. You need to eat more and take care of your body."

Her mother-in-law was so warm and welcoming. Even though she hadn't seen her for a year, she treated her like a mother and daughter. Jian Lu nodded and said, "Mom, we have a good life and eat well."

"That's good."

Cheng Zheng picked up the large package his mother brought and held it in his right hand. He also held two small packages in his left hand. The warm atmosphere of mother-son reunion just now gradually dissipated. "Mom, didn't I tell you not to bring anything? We have everything at home. We don't need anything."

"I didn't bring anything, but these are all needed." Aunt Wang and her daughter-in-law walked hand in hand affectionately. "Besides, I brought these for Lulu, so don't bother me."

Cheng Zheng said helplessly, "I'm worried that you're tired from the journey."

"That's not tiring. I've been on the train for a few days with my things on the ground. It doesn't tire me out. Now, I'm giving you everything to hold."

Cheng Zheng: "..."

It sounds okay indeed.

Jian Lu found that the relationship between the mother and son was not what she had expected. Comrade Cheng Zheng was quite talkative in front of his mother-in-law, but he could not defeat her.

The three of them walked out, and after walking a few meters, they suddenly heard a woman shouting loudly.

"My son! My son has been kidnapped!"

After hearing this, everyone on the platform looked in the direction of the woman's voice, and saw a female comrade in a dark gray cotton jacket shouting a few meters ahead.

There were three packages at the lesbian's feet. She must have just come from the north by train and had not had time to change out of her thick cotton jacket. Her face was flushed with sweat due to anxiety, and her slightly dry hair was wet with sweat and stuck to the sides of her face.

"My baby is missing. He was holding my hand just now! It must be that man. He said my son was good-looking on the train and was talking to me when he got off the train just now. My son! He was kidnapped!!"

There was a huge crowd and the lesbians spoke Mandarin with a heavy accent, which was difficult for everyone to understand.

Many enthusiastic people gave her advice, telling her to look for it as soon as possible or to contact the police.

Some were even more enthusiastic and immediately went to ask the train station staff for help.

Cheng Zheng put the package down and said hurriedly, "Wait here for me. I'll go take a look."

Aunt Wang and Jian Lu couldn't bear to see the woman who lost her child and was so anxious that she was heartbroken. They picked up their bags and walked over, watching Cheng Zheng and a few enthusiastic male comrades ask about the situation, and then followed the direction pointed by the mother to look for someone.

People always have some subconscious intuitions. The lesbian walked around the platform a few times, thinking that the man in the black gown on the train ahead was always talking to her son, and maybe he had set his eyes on him at that time!

The staff at the train station came over to understand the situation and went out to look for help, allowing the mother, who was almost mad with anger, to stay where she was to rest.

"Comrade, don't worry, take it easy. Many people have gone there to look for it, maybe it will be found."

"This damn kidnapper deserves to be stabbed with a knife!"

"How hateful! If I catch him, I'll spit all over him!"

Aunt Wang was also a sentimental person, especially since she had three children of her own. How could she tolerate such a thing? She cursed and grumbled, and even wished that the beggar appeared in front of her so that she could kick him a few times.

"Look, how frustrating it is." Putting away their anger, Aunt Wang and Jian Lu said, "We just hope Shitou and the others can find the person back."

Jian Lu nodded. She wondered if the several people who had just gone there could find the kidnapper and the child. There was no surveillance in this day and age, and everyone's clothes and appearance were very similar, so it was extremely difficult to find someone.

The child was lost. The woman felt a sudden pain in her chest and felt dizzy. She almost fell to the ground. Tears were streaming down her face. She said in a hoarse voice, "My child is lost. I don't want to live anymore. This is my only child. What should I do?"

"Sister, please sit down and have a rest!" Jian Lu and several enthusiastic female comrades around her helped the person to sit down in the corner of the platform and helped her to calm down.

The man was anxious and probably not in good health. He was about to faint and had difficulty speaking.

"Maybe we can find your son soon. Don't worry."

Everyone felt sorry for the woman who had lost her child, but they were helpless and could only hope for good news.

A few minutes later, an old lady suddenly came running over. She was about fifty years old, with a round face, slanted eyes and thin lips. She ran over and shouted, "Hurry up, sister, your son has been found!"

Hearing this, the lesbian, who was originally feeling uncomfortable, suddenly perked up and looked over, "Did you really find it?"

"Yes! Is your son wearing a thin black cotton shirt, black cotton pants, and a pair of black cloth shoes? He is thin and small, with a mole on the right side of his face."

"Yes, yes, yes!" The female comrade struggled to stand up, as if a dying fish suddenly came back to life, "It's my son! Where is he now?"

The old lady took the woman's hand, her wrinkled hands straining, "In the alley outside the station, the kidnapper just kidnapped your son and was caught by a kind-hearted person outside. I came here to inform you. Hurry up, I'll take you to find your son!"

"Great!" The female comrade cried with joy. She was so happy to hear that her son had been found that she kept repeating, "May our ancestors bless us! May our ancestors bless us!"

The onlookers heaved a sigh of relief when they saw this; it was a great thing that it was found!

"Go quickly, luckily you found it!"

“It’s really not easy!”

The old lady with droopy eyes dragged the female comrade away, and the two of them walked out in a hurry.

Aunt Wang was relieved when she saw this. Fortunately, fortunately, "This is a blessing. We were able to find the child. In the past, there were children in our county who were abducted and never found. It was so pitiful."

Only Jian Lu didn't look relaxed at all. Instead, she stared in a daze at the backs of the old lady and the female comrade as they left.

She always felt something was wrong.

"Wait a minute!"

Jian Lu shouted, stopping the two people who had just walked two meters away. The female comrade recognized her and was just kind enough to help her get some water to drink. "Comrade, what's the matter? I'm in a hurry to pick up my son. Let's talk later."

"Let's go!" The old lady seemed even more anxious, and she used some strength to pull the female comrade to go out.

Jian Lu walked quickly up to the two of them, blocking their way. She looked the old lady up and down and noticed that her eyes were wandering. She looked at her for blocking her way and a fierce look flashed across her for a moment before disappearing in an instant.

"Comrade, please don't delay the process of picking up your son. Otherwise, if he dies, will you be responsible?"

"Auntie, where is this lady's son outside the station?"

"Uh." The old lady didn't care about Jian Lu's sudden question. She stuttered and said hurriedly, "It's just outside the station. There is... there is an alley."

"Okay, let's go together." Jian Lu called her mother-in-law and the two enthusiastic young men next to her, "Let's go together. It's a good opportunity for us to help out. If the child gets hurt, we can also help. Comrades, are you free?"

The two young men were suddenly called, and naturally they had no choice but to say, "Okay, let's go together."

Lesbians naturally don't mind, they just want to thank the kind people.

However, the old lady's expression suddenly changed, and she said fiercely, "Why are so many people here? Her son is fine, there is no problem at all, and he doesn't need your help. Now you are wasting time here, which is causing trouble for others!"

As she was talking, her expression changed and she said fiercely, "Are you going to pick up your son or not? I am here to tell you out of kindness, why are you still hesitating?!"

At this point, Jian Lu was 100% certain that there was something wrong with this old lady, and she was most likely in cahoots with the kidnappers.

"Comrade, I won't keep you any longer. I'll go pick up my son first!" After being yelled at by the old lady, the female comrade no longer cared about anything else and trotted away with everyone else.

This time, Jian Lu did not hold back, but expressed her guess to her mother-in-law and the people around her who had not left yet, "I suspect that man is also a kidnapper, not only kidnapping children, but also women."

"What?" Everyone was shocked. How could that person, who came with good intentions to report the news, be a kidnapper?

"That old lady suddenly showed up, and was eager to take the eldest sister out to pick up her son. She was very anxious. I suggested that we go with them, but she was adamantly opposed and had a lot of opinions, as if there was a problem." Jian Lu cut to the chase, "Let's go and see. If there is really a problem, we can save the person. Even if I guessed wrong, at most it would just delay us a little."

After listening to her analysis, the others thought it made sense. Since they had nothing else to do, they agreed. “Okay! Let’s go and take a look!”

Jian Lu asked a young female lesbian to immediately go find the staff at the train station to report the incident, while she went with her mother-in-law, two enthusiastic male lesbians and an enthusiastic older sister.

Fortunately, the female comrade who lost her child was so anxious that she staggered all the way and ran slowly. The five people behind her followed them into an alley opposite the train station.

The female comrade was taken into a secluded alley by the old lady, anxiously looking for the whereabouts of her son. The surroundings were quiet, with only the sound of two people's footsteps.

"Auntie, where is my son?"

"Don't worry, he's right in front! He's just been rescued, his eyes are full of tears, and he's waiting for you!"

Thinking of the great suffering her four-year-old son had endured, the mother felt even more distressed. Her heart felt as if it had been tugged at tightly, making her feel sour and tender. She wished she could fly to her son's side immediately.

The old lady thought of what the beautiful woman had said just now, and she couldn't help but wonder in her heart. She looked back several times, worried that someone would follow her. Only when she saw that there was nothing behind her did she feel relieved.

"Mom!"

After walking another seven or eight meters, the two turned a corner at the entrance of the alley and finally saw their four-year-old son Dongdong.

"Dong Dong!"

"Mom!"

When her son appeared in front of her in good health, the woman burst into tears and hugged the child tightly, not wanting to let go.

Standing next to his son was a man in his forties, who must have been the one who rescued his son.

"Brother, Auntie, thank you!" The female comrade was still frightened and her hands and feet were still weak. "Leave me your address. When I meet my man, I will send you something as a thank you gift."

The old lady smiled at the man and looked very kind. "No need to leave your address. Our hometown is very remote. Do you want to thank us? Why not just come with us and thank us now."

As soon as the man finished speaking, he suddenly took out a handkerchief and covered the woman's nose and mouth, while the old lady held Xiao Dongdong tightly.

The two men suddenly attacked. The female comrade did not expect that the kind-hearted person she met turned out to be a bad person. She struggled with all her might and shouted loudly.

But with a handkerchief covering her mouth, she couldn't breathe. Even though her face turned red, she could only stammer. Her strength was getting weaker and weaker, and a tear oozed from the corner of her eye...

Beside me, I heard the son struggling and yelling in the arms of his grandmother, which was heartbreaking...

Thinking of her son, she didn't know where she got the huge strength from, and she pushed the man behind her hard, and used her body to push the old lady away. The sudden change made the two of them stunned for a moment. Seeing that the woman was staggering with the child and wanted to run away, the middle-aged man and the old lady rushed forward and were about to stop them.

The lesbian was particularly sober at this moment. Feeling the resistance on her body, she let go of her son's hand, turned around and grabbed the two of them, and shouted to her son, "Dongdong, run!"

As if she had infinite strength, the lithe woman actually pulled the man and woman to the spot.

Dongdong was terribly frightened. He was stunned for a few seconds after hearing his mother's heart-wrenching voice. He watched the uncle and the mother-in-law pulling his mother's hair and beating her. He puffed up his cheeks, clenched his fists and ran back, "Mom! Don't hit my mom!"

"Hurry up, you can't even handle a crazy woman, right? If the police are here soon, no one will be able to escape!"

The lesbian's instant outburst was subdued by the two men's great strength, especially when she saw her son actually running back, throwing himself on the man's legs, opening his mouth to bite him, but being kicked away instead. The woman felt even more disheartened.

"Don't hit my son!" The woman's hands were tied behind her back, and she kept negotiating with the others, "Do you want money? My husband is a soldier on a nearby island. If you let me and my mother go, I will go back and get the money for you! Please let us go!"

When they heard that the man was a soldier, the two kidnappers stiffened a little, but things had come to this point and there was no turning back.

"Knock him out quickly, take him away and hide him so that you can leave the city after dark."

The female comrade felt as if a huge stone had fallen from her heart when she heard this. She and her son came to join the army, but they met kidnappers. Now...

"Please let my son go! He is still young." She wanted to negotiate with others, so as to save as many people as possible.

Who knew that the man said angrily, "Let your son go? Dream on. Your son can be sold for a higher price than you!"

He raised his hand to knock the man unconscious...

Suddenly, in the quiet alley, there was the sound of footsteps, and a group of people poured in from the front entrance of the alley.

"Let him go! You two are kidnappers who deserve to die!"

Jian Lu, Aunt Wang, three enthusiastic comrades and the security guards from the train station who had rushed over after receiving the news blocked their way. Among them were two retired soldiers.

"You, don't come over here!"

When the two merchants saw so many people suddenly appear, their voices trembled and their hands and feet shook.

The man even pulled out a knife from his pocket, waved it in the air, and threatened, "If you come any closer, I'll stab this woman!"

Jian Lu saw a shadow of a white military uniform flashing behind the kidnapper and immediately said, "If you stab someone, it's murder! Are you really not afraid of being shot?"

"What am I afraid of? If I am caught by you, will I still be alive?"

"Of course there is!" Jian Lu paid attention to the movements behind the man, constantly distracting the man, "If you let him go now, you won't be caught and shot. But if you use a knife and hurt someone, the situation will be completely different!"

"Don't listen to her! She's just trying to scare you! Ergou, we'll be dead if we get caught!" The old lady started yelling, and her shout woke Ergou up!

"Yes! I'm going to die, but I'm going to pull two people to support me!"

The man, with a face full of flesh due to rage, held the knife tightly, raised it high and prepared to stab the lesbian, "If you don't let us go, then we will die together...Ah!!!"

The man wailed with a sharp pain in his wrist. Suddenly, a man appeared at the right corner of the alley. The figure in white military uniform quickly and decisively broke the man's wrist, then bent it with his backhand, and the knife fell to the ground with a crisp clang.

Upon seeing this, many people rushed forward and subdued the two kidnappers.

The abducted lesbian sat paralyzed on the ground, holding her son, stroking the child's back with her hands, in silence.

Aunt Wang Jianlu and another female comrade comforted the mother and daughter. The security guards at the railway station took the two traffickers to the police station. Cheng Zheng, who had just subdued Erzhu, stood in front of his wife.

"Are you all right?"

"Nothing!" Jian Lu didn't expect Cheng Zheng to suddenly appear. "How did you get here?"

"I and two comrades caught the kidnapper on the train. He said that the child was not in his hands and was given to another man. When I came back, I found that you and your mother were not there. I asked around and found that the old lady was most likely an accomplice. I heard about the approximate location and rushed here."

"Luckily you arrived in time."

Aunt Wang saw that the couple on this train had suffered so much and was eager to send them back. "Sister, where are your family members? See how to notify them."

"My husband is a soldier on Crescent Island, but he is away on a mission and not at home. My son and I were originally planning to go there by ourselves."

Crescent Island?

Aunt Wang was immediately delighted when she heard the familiar place name. She raised her hand and pointed, "This is my son. He is also a soldier on Crescent Island! Then you two can go to the island with us!"

The lesbian had just been cheated, and she shuddered reflexively when she heard these words. However, she felt relieved when she saw that the man who had just snatched the knife and saved her and her son was wearing a white military uniform, which was exactly the same as her man's.

She thanked everyone around her, and was questioned by the police who rushed over. Only then did she calm down a little.

Cheng Zheng was also familiar with the police officers in the county police station, including his old comrades. He inquired about the situation and came back to see his own mother comforting the mother and son who had suffered a great crime. When his daughter-in-law saw him coming back, she came to greet him.

"The three kidnappers were taken away by the police. They were said to be habitual criminals roaming the city." Cheng Zheng and Jian Lu stood face to face and talked about the news they had just heard. "They specialize in kidnapping women and children, and they often use such means. After kidnapping the children, they use the children as bait to deceive their mothers. They sell the children to families that cannot give birth to sons, and sell the lesbians to old bachelors as wives..."

Cheng Zheng spoke of these vicious deeds in a cold voice. Human kidnappers are hated by everyone.

"It's too abominable!" Jian Lu hated to see a good family torn apart by human traffickers. These people were so vicious that they could even think of using the kidnapped child to deceive the mother. "I just asked about the situation of that elder sister. Her name is Zheng Shuyun. She came with her child to follow the army. The man in the family is the deputy battalion commander of the Sixth Regiment. His name is Cao Jianshe. He was supposed to pick her up, but Cao Jianshe was on a temporary mission and said he asked his comrades to help. However, the child was kidnapped before the two sides met."

Cheng Zheng had an impression of Cao Jianshe. They were in the same unit and had always met each other in various trainings. "I'll go see if there are any comrades outside to pick them up. Then I'll take them and their mother back to the island together."

"good."

After the public security comrades learned about the situation, they went to question Jian Lu and several others who had just participated in the rescue. When they learned that they had helped rescue women and children who were almost abducted, they praised them highly.

"Comrade, you are very vigilant, otherwise, something big would have happened today."

The two young men almost blushed after being praised by the dignified police. They puffed out their proud chests and said modestly, "In fact, it was mainly because this female comrade discovered that the old lady was a kidnapper, so we followed her to help."

When the police heard this, they looked at the most eye-catching female comrade in the crowd and said, "Comrade, you did a great job and saved a family."

Jian Lu suddenly became suspicious and felt something was wrong. Unexpectedly, the old lady was actually deceived.

Cheng Zheng walked around outside the train station and went to the duty room to ask. As expected, he heard that there were soldiers ahead who came to inquire about the situation of a mother and son. It was said that they were out looking for someone.

After many twists and turns, Cheng Zheng finally met Xiao Liu, a soldier who was asked by Cao Jianshe to pick up his wife and son on the way to the police station from the train station.

The group returned to the island together. Xiao Liu heard the whole story on the boat and almost broke out in a cold sweat. He never thought that his deputy battalion commander's wife and son had experienced such a dangerous situation.

"Sister-in-law, it's all my fault. I came a little late and couldn't find you for a while."

The main reason was that the two had never met before, and Zheng Shuyun was here for the first time. Originally, Cao Jianshe wanted the two to meet at the entrance of the train station. Zheng Shuyun was obviously waiting for someone with a four-year-old child and three bags, but who would have thought that she would encounter such a thing before leaving the train station.

"How can you be blamed? It was my carelessness, alas." It was Zheng Shuyun's first time to come to the city. It was her first time to take a train for two days and two nights to follow the army. Something bad almost happened. She is still holding her son tightly, unwilling to let go for a moment.

"It's okay. You two should go home and have a good rest. Be careful next time and don't think too much about it." Aunt Wang comforts you with a smile. She speaks cheerfully and firmly, as if her words were golden.

Who could have thought that I would encounter such a big thing as soon as I arrived here.

Zheng Shuyun was very grateful to the family of her benefactor who saved her and her son, but she had been quite frightened today and planned to wait for the man to come back before going to thank them.

The family housing that Cao Jianshe had just been allocated this year was in a building next to Cheng Zheng and Jian Lu's house. Xiao Wang handed over the key that Cao Jianshe had asked him to give to his wife, helped move all the things into the house, and even brought back two meals from the cafeteria before leaving.

"Sister-in-law, the deputy battalion commander will be back tomorrow. I told you. You guys should have a good rest. I'll be leaving first."

The soldier was simple and warm-hearted. Zheng Shuyun thanked him repeatedly. She first checked the house carefully and tidied it up before taking her son to bed.

——

This was the first time that Aunt Wang came back to her eldest son’s home on the island. When Cheng Zheng was transferred to the island, he wanted to take her over, but she refused and still wanted to stay in her hometown, which was her root.

Things are different now. The eldest son is married and has a wife, so it's just the right time for her to come and visit him.

Looking around the house, it was decorated neatly. There was even a coconut shell with flowers on it. There was also a fishing net hanging on the wall with colorful shells hanging on it.

This is what home is!

Aunt Wang was very satisfied and couldn't stop smiling.

"Mom, please sit down. We were supposed to eat at home tonight, but now we are delayed and there is no time to cook. Brother Cheng will go to the cafeteria to get food and will be back soon."

Just now, Cheng Zheng put the bag his mother brought back into the house and hurried out.

"Don't worry, I'm not that hungry." Aunt Wang looked at Jian Lu differently now than she did a year ago.

While Cheng Zheng was still here, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law opened the packages they had brought. This time, Aunt Wang left with a lot of things she had saved, including a dress she made for her daughter-in-law, made of blue plaid cloth that she had specially snatched, and some pickled vegetables she had made in a small jar. In addition, there were ten pounds of bacon and wild vegetables from her hometown. Her son liked the wild vegetables she mixed when he was young, so she remembered to bring them all back.

There were so many things, and Jian Lu helped her mother-in-law to bring them home and put them in order. I really admire her. It was incredible that her mother-in-law could sit on the train for such a long time alone and carry so many things.

"Mom, are you tired from taking the train this time? It took so long and was really uncomfortable." Jian Lu was chatting with her mother-in-law at the dinner table.

"It's okay. I have thick skin and it's not a big deal."

"I'll take you to the bathhouse to take a bath later. Take a good rest tonight and get some sleep. You will definitely be refreshed tomorrow."

Cheng Zheng packed three meals, stacked the three aluminum lunch boxes, and hurried home. It was the first time for the family of three to sit together and eat.

Cheng Zheng listened silently to his mother and daughter-in-law talking to each other. The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were chatting so much that he could hardly get a word in. Captain Cheng could only eat in silence. While eating the delicious meal and listening to the two of them chatting about everything from their hometown to the discomfort of taking the train, he felt warm in his heart.

In the past few years, he lived alone in a single dormitory during the Chinese New Year, and at most he would hang out with other soldiers who also did not go home. But this year, with the two most important people in his life here, this place truly felt like home.

After the meal, the Liang couple also came over. They and Aunt Wang were old acquaintances, and they chatted warmly before leaving. Before leaving, Aunt Wang gave them a handful of pickles so that they could taste the flavor of home.

Liang Haisheng wanted this very much, so he didn't hesitate.

"Auntie Wang, you must be tired after just arriving today. You should have a good rest." Feng Xiuhui and her family left, only agreeing to take people around the island for a stroll tomorrow.

After seeing off the guests, Jian Lu took the bath tickets, and the whole family carried enamel basins to the bathhouse in the family compound to take a bath. Everyone was sweating from the noisy day, and after taking a bath, they finally felt refreshed.

After returning home, Cheng Zheng asked people to have a good rest, "Mom, go to bed early. I've taken a day off tomorrow and will take you to have a good look."

Aunt Wang nodded and agreed, "Okay, you've been busy today, go and rest early. Lulu, come quickly, we haven't finished talking yet."

Cheng Zheng, who had just opened his bedroom door and was about to go back to his room to rest, felt something was wrong: "..."

I saw my daughter-in-law go around me, pick up the pillow, and go to my mother's room. When she reached the door, she turned around and said, "I will sleep with my mother tonight. She wants to tell me about the family."

Cheng Zheng saw the door closed and heard his wife's voice faintly coming from the poorly soundproofed room, "Mom, is my family really a joke now? Is the fifth son of the He family enjoying the good life at home after he took over?"

Jian Lu was too curious, so she only mentioned the stories casually in the letters her third sister sent her. None of them were as interesting as the stories Aunt Wang told her in person.

"Of course not! Your father is so kind to his adopted son!" Aunt Wang, who loves to talk, became excited. "But I'll tell you about this later... First, tell me, how did you and Shitou get together? Tell me now!"

Jian Lu: “…”

The mother-in-law seems to be very interested in the love history of her son and daughter-in-law.

......

It was late at night and Cheng Zheng was lying alone in bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep. It had only been a few months and he was already not used to being without someone in his arms.

I reached out to touch the place next to me, but the pillow was gone!

I really don't have any thoughts left!

Turning over again, Cheng Zheng decided to get his wife back tomorrow.