Chapter 113: Fellow Villagers Yan Jiuru secretly whispered to Chen Yin: "This...
Chapter 113: Fellow Villagers
"Yes, yes, the 28th is the 5th... Yes, there's no 30th this year... But the next day is New Year's Day."
"Hahahaha, the kids miss home too... Yeah, they don't forget their roots, they all rush back to visit their relatives.
Hmm, it's okay to take the sleeper. Isn't it tiring? . . . Oh, my eldest grandson spent all his earnings on the train ticket. It's a rare trip back home.
What?
Oh, medicine. Let me let the kids listen to it later. I don’t understand that stuff, so I bought a lot of it for nothing. Like a mountain, like a mountain…”
Ever since they got the train tickets, Grandpa Yan and Dad Yan started calling everywhere to show off.
At first, he only told the village party secretary's relatives, and then he told Uncle Yan Er and Ruchun to clean up the house and yard, and to light the kangs in the rooms that had not been occupied for a long time as soon as possible to get rid of the cold.
This is fine. After all, it is normal for a large family to go back and make some preparations in advance.
I just don't know where this comes from. There's no need to mention Third Uncle, Second Uncle, and others who have nothing to do with the village, right?
As you can imagine, after showing off, both of them took on several tasks of "carrying" things.
Grandma Yan was so angry that she scolded the two of them.
The old lady usually gives the old man face and rarely gets angry. Once she gets angry, the old man will keep quiet, especially when he is not in the right.
The two old men didn't dare to tell the children what to do. They had to do what they promised themselves and use their own private money to pay for it.
***
Yan Jiuru and Chen Yin were also busy.
They will be staying for about half a month this time, so they have to bring a lot of things from their own home and also prepare gifts for their relatives.
Especially since the two little ones are less than six months old, I have to prepare a whole bag just for diapers.
In addition, a large suitcase was filled with bottles, pacifiers, milk powder, small water bottles, clothes, shoes, socks, hats, swaddling clothes, quilts, toys, and all kinds of things.
This box was bought by Yan Jiuru when he went abroad.
At this moment, he secretly thanked God that he did not save money and just bought two large sizes. Otherwise, he would have a headache just thinking about all the bags.
Chen Yin also instructed him to carry two small basins commonly used by the children in a net bag, one for washing diapers and the other for washing buttocks.
Yan Jiuru didn't want to bother and muttered, "How many diapers can be wasted in just one day and one night? Just throw them away."
Chen Yin glared at him, "Just do whatever I tell you to do! I didn't find it troublesome to give birth to you, but you're complaining about it!"
Ruyue winked at her mother: Look, another obedient one...
Zhuangzhuang also had a lot of things with him. He also wanted to bring toys, picture books, and various snacks, and he packed a small suitcase.
***
Another major category is gifts for visiting relatives and friends.
The older generation had two levels of elders watching over the purchase, so Yan Jiuru gave them 500 yuan directly, and also gave each elder 200 yuan privately. Whether it was for New Year's red envelopes or something else, he didn't lack this little bit, and he wouldn't let the elders be stretched.
As for your younger brothers and sisters, give ten yuan to the older ones and five yuan to the younger ones. If it’s still not enough, go ask your parents.
He and Chen Yin only bought things for the young couple to use when visiting relatives.
The two of them went shopping from Yanjing No. 1 Department Store, Wangfu Department Store, No. 1 Grocery Store, People's Supply and Marketing Cooperative, Xinhua Bookstore to Dongfeng Market and other places, and their legs were almost worn out.
The Chinese New Year is coming soon, and especially after the policies were relaxed, the streets of Beijing are packed with people buying New Year's goods. It is very lively and bustling. You have to squeeze to walk, and you have to push hard to get to the counter. To buy things, you have to shout loudly. Whoever has the longest arms and hands over the money first gets the deal, otherwise you can just watch and sigh.
Yan Jiuru secretly felt fortunate. If he hadn't been with her, his wife would definitely not be able to buy anything.
"Can't we arrange a few people to line up? Maintain order?!" Yan Jiuru became annoyed after catching the wrist of the thief who touched his pocket for the third time, and questioned the manager of the department store rudely.
The people in the department store were so arrogant that their eyes almost popped up in surprise. It was not until Yan Jiuru took a photo of his work ID that they timidly and carefully escorted him out of the office.
After running around for two consecutive days, I bought almost everything.
After checking for any deficiencies, Chen Yin said, "Go to the pharmacy later and buy some common medicines for adults and children. The medical facilities there are not good, so don't go looking for them during the New Year."
The two of them weighed the options and bought medicines for digestion, diarrhea, colds, headaches and fevers, children's coughs, anti-inflammatory and hemostatic medicines, etc., especially the common children's medicine box that Yan Jiuru had bought for her children in the past two years. It is now easy to buy in Beijing, so she directly ordered five boxes to take back.
***
On the day of departure, the elders got up early to cook dumplings.
People in northern Taiwan pay attention to eating dumplings when getting on the bus and noodles when getting off.
This is the good thing about cold weather. Ever since it started freezing outside, I have been making a lot of dumplings, buns, etc. at home. When I want to eat them, I just pick them up and cook them. It’s very convenient.
Grandma Yan asked me to cook more food so that we could eat it in the morning and also take it to the train, so there was no need to prepare a lot of food for the journey.
Rushan and Rushong were also ordered to queue up to buy cooked food early in the morning even though they were freezing.
Yan Jiuru ordered a few roast ducks from Jufude early on, and brought them back last night and froze them in a large vat outside.
***
At around 9:30 in the morning, Xiao Zhang and Xiao Gao came to pick them up to go to the train station.
The neighbors had heard that the family was going back to their hometown to celebrate the New Year, and when they saw two jeeps coming, they were extremely envious.
Grandpa Yan and Dad Yan felt very proud sitting in the car and couldn't stop smiling.
Uncle Zhang across the street greeted the old man: "Leaving now? When will you be back?"
"The bus is at 10:30, so we're leaving now. The kids will be back after the Mid-Autumn Festival. I have to stay in my hometown and look after the farmland until it's free..."
The neighbors watched the jeep go away, their sleeves tucked in. "We all raise children the same way, why are other people's children so successful?"
"Look at those two old men showing off."
"If one of your children could let you ride in a jeep, you could show off too."
"Okay, let's all go back. It's not too cold to keep your mouths cold..."
***
The bus they were taking started from the capital, so there was plenty of time to get on the bus. Xiao Zhang and Xiao Gao directly helped to get people on the bus.
"Okay, let's go back. Thank you!" Yan Jiuru waved goodbye to his two colleagues.
Originally, the institute planned to let Xiao Zhang go back with him. This was his treatment.
However, Yan Jiuru did not agree. Who doesn't want to celebrate the New Year at home? It would be enough if there is someone to pick them up and drop them off.
Although there is no Spring Festival travel rush at this time, there are still a lot of people going home for the New Year carrying large and small bags.
Fortunately, it was only two days away from the Chinese New Year, and the large number of people rushing home had already passed. The trains leaving Beijing were actually much quieter at this time.
"Oh, hard sleeper is fine, soft sleeper is such a waste!"
Although the elders kept nagging, they did not slow down at all.
This train is a new train. There are only four berths in a soft sleeper compartment. It is much more spacious than the hard sleeper compartment. The beds are also a little wider. In addition, each soft sleeper compartment has a separate washroom, making it more convenient to use water.
This kind of soft sleeper cannot be bought just by having money. This is also a special treatment given to Yan Jiuru by the 107th Institute. Otherwise, even with a cadre work permit, he could only buy one or two berths.
Of course, several people in their family had student ID cards, and with their student ID cards, they got a 50% discount on the hard seat ticket, and the sleeper fare was not reduced by a cent.
The three children got free tickets, and only four elderly people paid full price for tickets.
The old men and women sighed and kept saying that reading is the best way to go.
***
Once everyone settled in, we felt that the money was well spent.
The hard sleeper is a few dollars cheaper, but it is open and there are always people coming and going, unlike the soft sleeper where you can close the door and feel like you are in your own room.
The adults are fine, but the main concern is the safety of the kids. While we were settling their luggage, I heard several stories about children being lost while riding the bus during the New Year.
Ruyue was so scared that she called her two brothers wherever she went, and even asked her father or grandfather to follow her when she went to the toilet. She was worried about her two brothers and was afraid that the younger brother would be abducted by human traffickers.
***
Yan Jiuru and Chen Yin placed the two little ones on the lower bunk, and saw that their diapers were still dry.
"Zhuangzhuang, do you want to sleep with grandma or aunt?"
Zhuangzhuang wants to sleep on the other lower bunk.
"No, that won't work. Dad has to help Mom look after the younger brothers and sisters downstairs, and he also has to watch the door for everyone. You can play here, but you have to go upstairs when it's time to sleep."
Zhuangzhuang nodded and said, "I sleep with my grandma. My aunt will hit people when she sleeps."
Ruyue put her hands on her hips and said, "How did I hit anyone? I just bumped into you when I turned over. You still hold a grudge."
Zhuangzhuang: Is that a collision? It's clearly arms and legs being thrown around.
Yan Niang said happily: "Okay, okay, Zhuangzhuang will sleep with grandma, and grandma will hug my eldest grandson."
Ruyue rolled her eyes and said, "Mom, you are just like my grandparents now. Now that you have a grandson, you don't care about girls anymore."
"Why don't you want it? Who wouldn't want it, an old lady like me?" Yan Niang took out two candies and gave one to each of them. Finally, both of them were taken care of.
Yan Jiuru and Chen Yin smiled and did not get involved.
***
It wasn’t Zhuangzhuang’s first time taking a train, but he was too young last time and didn’t remember anything.
After the train started moving, he and his aunt leaned against the window and looked outside.
Sometimes he looked at the window inside, sometimes he looked at the other side of the runway corridor.
Outside the window, there kept flashing by low, dilapidated houses, snow-covered farmland, and children in tattered cotton-padded jackets carrying baskets picking up coal slag and rummaging through garbage...
Zhuangzhuang has lived in the most prosperous area of Beijing since he could remember. His neighbors were not living in a bad situation either. He was extremely surprised and pointed outside and shouted, "Dad, look, they are rummaging through the garbage~"
Yan Jiuru touched his son's head and said, "Our family used to live worse than them. When you were just born, Dad's shoes were all open-toed, and his clothes and pants were all patched up.
Your uncle and aunt don’t have shoes to wear. In the summer they either go barefoot or wear straw sandals.”
Ruyue still remembers it, it feels like it was yesterday.
She sighed and said, "I still remember that after the rain, the mud on the ground was very difficult to walk on. I often got my straw sandals stuck in it, and when I pulled them out, they were broken."
Zhuangzhuang couldn't believe it for a moment.
Yan Jiuru smiled: "What's the big deal?
It is because you were born that Daddy made up his mind to work hard to make your life better no matter what.
When I return to my hometown, I'll show you some of my old clothes from a few years ago that I haven't thrown away yet. You can try on the clothes and shoes that your aunt and uncle wore when they were young."
Zhuangzhuang: I’m quite looking forward to it…
Yan Jiuru: A child who has never suffered hardship...
Ruyue: You are such a little fool, it’s time for you to cry!
***
After a busy day, it was noon and everyone opened the lunch boxes of dumplings they brought from home and ate them for lunch.
"Boxed lunch! Boxed lunch! Anyone want a boxed lunch? 1.5 each, with both meat and vegetables!"
"Niupi candy, go home and bring some local specialties to your relatives and friends, Dong Province sorghum candy~"
. . . . . .
The conductor's lazy hawking voice and the smell of other passengers' meals were particularly attractive, tickling people's hearts like a kitten.
Ruyue and Zhuangzhuang swallowed their saliva, eager to try the lunch boxes sold by the conductor.
It always looks delicious.
As it turned out, the lunch box was not as delicious as they had imagined. The two of them had to finish it awkwardly, and they thought they would never think about it again.
After a day and a night, the train finally arrived at the station.
After leaving the station, the Ze County Armed Forces Department also sent two vehicles to take them back to Xinghua Village.
It was already three or four in the afternoon when I got home.
Thanks to Grandpa Yan and Dad Yan calling back to show off, the jeep was greeted with enthusiasm by a large group of villagers as soon as it entered the village.
There is no need to say much about Uncle Yan's family and Ruchun's family. They are all family members and they will definitely come out to greet us.
There is also the village party secretary's family, that is, Chen Yin's parents, who must be anxious to see their daughter and grandson first.
There were also neighbors, and even a few families at the village entrance came to watch the fun without caring about the distance or the cold.
"It's so cold, what are you all doing out here? Go back quickly. I'll talk to you after you're settled."
While saying this, the old man had a big smile on his face, especially when he heard people marveling at how they came back in a jeep, saying how grand it was.
Yan Jiuru whispered to Chen Yin, "Isn't this what they call 'If you don't return home when you're rich and powerful, it's like walking in brocade clothes at night?'"
The two looked at each other, both trying not to laugh, and said nothing.
***
The younger brothers and sisters did not feel tired and worked hard to unload the luggage. Yan Jiuru invited the driver to stay for dinner.
The drivers were all sensible people. They knew that the family had returned and needed to be busy settling in, so they declined.
Yan Jiuru didn't force them to stay. He took two boxes of snacks and candies from the things he brought back from the capital. "It's New Year's Day, thank you for making this trip. Don't be polite. It's just a small token of my appreciation."
Yan Niang had already taken out a few handfuls of bulk candies she had bought in Beijing from her prepared bag and distributed them to the adults and children who were watching the fun. "We just got home. Let's talk after you've cleaned up."
Everyone watched the fun, took some candies from Beijing to sweeten the children's mouths, and told them about it when they got home, and then everyone gradually dispersed.
After all, it was already minus thirty degrees Celsius outside, and it was impossible to stay there even if we tried to resist the cold.
***
Ruchun and his wife had already heated up the house. After a lively greeting, everyone went back to their rooms to put their luggage.
Yan Jiuru put Zhuangzhuang, who had fallen asleep on the road, on the kang and took off his cotton-padded clothes. There was already a pile of poop stuck on the diapers of the two little kids. . . . .
Yan Jiuru went to the kitchen calmly and brought two basins of warm water. He first wiped the children's faces, hands and feet, then changed the diapers of the two younger ones and washed their buttocks.
Chen Yin applied moisturizing oil on the children, changed them into soft pajamas, and tucked them into bed.
Yan Jiuru reached under the quilt and touched the kang, saying, "The temperature is just right, and the head of the kang is even warmer. When you're done washing up, you can lie down on the head of the kang and warm yourself."
Chen Yin took her three little kids on a long journey. Even with the help of her husband and mother-in-law, she was exhausted. Especially since the two kids were still breastfeeding, she was more tired than anyone else.
***
Ruchun and Aunt Yan cooked dinner together.
Home-cooked meals don’t require ten plates or eight bowls, but they are large in quantity and filling enough to fill you up.
Pork and blood sausage stewed with sauerkraut, fried cabbage slices with oil, chicken stewed with mushrooms, stewed glacier fish with sauce, sweet and sour shredded radish, braised pork with dried beans, steamed egg cake, and staple foods include noodles, steamed buns, and rice.
Thanks to the large main room of the house they built later, two tables were set up so that the adults and children could barely sit down.
"Come on, even though it's not Chinese New Year today, our family is reunited, so let's go get some food!"
Grandpa Yan glanced at the old lady as he spoke.
Grandma Yan didn't stop her, she just said, "It's just a token of my appreciation, maybe someone will come and talk to us later."
"Hey, of course. We're just a family and we'll just have a few drinks to relieve our fatigue. Besides, who would be so tactless as to come here right after arriving home..."
The slap in the face came too quickly. Not long after the family started eating, Da Huang started barking.
"Old Yantou~"
"Is his uncle Yan at home?"
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