The train stopped before the sun set; we had arrived at the station!
Yu Yin didn't care whether the train was delayed today; she just wanted to get off the train as soon as possible and put her feet on the ground.
"Pingping, An'an, when we get off the bus, don't take your hats off. It's much colder here than where we are at home. Be careful not to freeze your ears off."
"Okay, Mom."
"I remember, don't pick them, they'll look nice."
The vain little girl really loves her red hat.
When Brother Yu heard that they were going to Shanghai for the Chinese New Year this year, he bought sweaters, woolen pants, woolen hats and gloves for the two little ones who had never left Yunnan Province before, worried that they would get cold.
I must say, the sweaters and long johns I bought in Kyoto are really thick and warm; I don't feel cold at all wearing them comfortably.
The group of people got off the car with their bags and looked around to see if Lu Erjie's husband had arrived.
I wrote to my second sister Lu before, telling her that we were going back to Shanghai for the Spring Festival and asking her husband to help us book a room at a guesthouse.
Before boarding the train, Lu Shurui sent a telegram to her second brother-in-law, telling him the train number and time, and that he should be able to pick her up at the station.
"Shu Rui, Shu Qi, over here."
"Second sister, second brother-in-law."
Lu Shurui was holding Pingping, Yu Yin was holding An'an, and Lu Shuqi was carrying a basket on his back and bags in his hands. The group looked like refugees fleeing famine.
"Why are you carrying so much stuff? You must be exhausted. Yu Yin, I'm your second sister."
Lu Erjie was pretty much as I had imagined, a little over 1.6 meters tall, and looked somewhat like Lu Shurui. She had a smiling face and looked very pleasant.
"Second sister, second brother-in-law."
"Welcome, welcome!"
My second brother-in-law is very talkative and greeted me naturally and warmly.
"Second Aunt, I am Lu Xiangwan, my nickname is An'an."
An'an is really not shy at all. As soon as she heard that this was her mother's second aunt, who had sent her and her brother a lot of food, drinks and nice clothes, she quickly greeted her.
"Oh, An'an, your second aunt misses you so much. Pingping, your second aunt misses you too."
"Hello, Second Aunt. Hello, Second Aunt's husband."
Compared to the exuberant An'an, she is much more normal, a little shy, and a little reserved around strangers.
"Hurry up, I borrowed a small truck from the company."
Let's go home first.
The second sister's husband took the basket from Yu Yin and led the way outside.
"Here, put the things in the truck. Yu Yin, you and your second sister take the children to sit in the front, and let the two of them sit in the back of the truck."
Yu Yin put An'an on the car seat, then climbed in herself. Pingping was also let in. Her second sister sat in the front, while her brother-in-law talked to Lu Shurui in the back.
"You must be exhausted after traveling for so many days!"
"Yeah, it's not easy. The main problem is that I don't dare to sleep soundly, for fear that someone might steal the child. Lu Shurui and I take turns sleeping, leaving one of us awake. During the day, Shuqi helps watch over the child, and we take turns catching up on sleep."
Looking back now, Yu Yin still feels lingering fear; it was too much of a hassle.
This is still the case with sleeper berths. If you were to sit in a hard seat, not only would there be more people, but the risk factor would also increase significantly.
"It wasn't easy, but thankfully we arrived safely. I'll take these few days to explore the area. I'll be on vacation soon and can spend time with you."
"Okay, when Second Sister has her vacation, she can take us sightseeing more. This is my first time here."
The two had barely exchanged a few words when the second brother-in-law got into the car.
"Let's go. Shurui said we'll go to the guesthouse first, put our things down, and then go to Mom and Dad's."
"Okay, let's do as Shurui says."
Sister Lu knew that this was something the two of them had discussed, so there was no need to try to persuade them further. The house really wasn't spacious enough; there was no need to cram in.
The car started, and Yu Yin looked out the window. Shanghai in the 1970s was neither as bustling as the old Bund nor as indifferent as the high-rise buildings of later times. At that time, Shanghai was full of life and vitality.
The road was filled with the jingling of bicycle bells, the shuttling of trams, and the faint sound of ship horns in the distance—I wondered if I was imagining things.
On the street, most pedestrians wore solid colors such as black, gray, blue, and white, with very few wearing bright colors like red, pink, or purple. The entire city of Shanghai seemed shrouded in a gray veil.
"Mom, there are so many big trucks."
"Mom, the clothes are pretty."
Yu Yin looked in the direction An An was pointing and saw a red shadow, which should be a cashmere coat, but from a distance it looked like a skirt. It was winter now, and the weather was cold. If it were summer, you would see all kinds of dresses, but cheongsams were out of the question, as they had all been burned.
"We've arrived. Get off the bus."
After her brother-in-law parked the car, Yu Yin and her sister took the child out of the car.
The group of people carried their belongings and entered the guesthouse.
This guesthouse belongs to the department store and mainly caters to its employees. They got in because of their second brother-in-law's connections; otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to stay there.
The three-story building had a dusty exterior, but the interior was clean.
"Brother Cheng, you're here. Here's the key. Second floor, room 213."
"Thanks. Let's have dinner together sometime. We're really close relatives, so please look out for us."
"no problem."
After exchanging pleasantries, I carried my things upstairs to the second floor, opened the door to room 213, and wow, not bad, quite spacious.
The room had two beds, a table, a thermos, and a cabinet, much like a standard room in later times, except it lacked a TV and a bathroom.
"This is one of the better rooms. It's just that we had to take advantage of the Chinese New Year to get a room. Otherwise, we wouldn't have been able to find one."
"Thank you for your trouble, brother-in-law."
Lu Shurui was very grateful. He had come all this way back, and it would be a shame if he didn't provide Yu Yin with proper food and lodging.
"Don't be so polite with me. Just put your things down. I still need to go to my parents' place. It'll be late, and it'll be hard to walk there soon."
"Okay, we still need to go visit Grandpa and Grandma. We really need to hurry."
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