Chapter 233 Is it too tight?
Sumi listened to our conversation and got a little anxious. Suddenly she asked, "Oh dear, so what's going on? You two are driving me crazy with all this back and forth."
Man Cang said firmly, "I want to go to the Eagle Base. I will work hard and strive to become stronger."
"Then go! Aunt Cheng supports you!"
Sumi only showed her happiness after I spoke up: "Really? That's great, welcome, welcome."
I can't quite describe how I feel; I feel a little empty, but I think this decision is good for Mancang.
"After he leaves, you must take good care of him, Sumi."
Sumi grabbed my hand in the darkness: "I definitely will. He was taken from you, and I will take responsibility for him."
The three of them, each with their own thoughts, drifted off to sleep.
After breakfast on the second day, Mancang decided to go with Sumi directly, saving me the trouble of seeing him off again.
But now that Mancang is leaving, I have a lot more to prepare.
First, I packed up Mancang's clothes.
From cotton-padded clothes and trousers to underwear, hats, scarves, shoes, and socks, everything was packed into a large box.
Sumi, standing to the side, said, "Oh dear, there are plenty of children's clothes at the base, so you don't need to prepare too many."
But I was worried that he might get cold again, and besides, his things wouldn't be of any use to me, so I carefully packed them all up.
Looking at the box in front of me, filled with his clothes, and nothing else belonging to Mancang that I could take, I suddenly felt a pang of guilt towards him.
It turns out that in this house, apart from his clothes, I didn't buy anything for Mancang.
I stared blankly at the box when Mancang came over carrying a stack of books.
He looked up at me and asked, "Can I bring these comic books with me?"
Oh, right, and those comic books also belong to him.
Feeling less guilty, I smiled and stuffed the books into the box as well.
Then he turned and went to the kitchen to prepare some snacks.
"I'll make some nut brittle for you two. Let Mancang have some, and Sumi, you can try my snacks too."
Sumi watched me from the doorway: "Alright, alright, you can do it. Oh, this mother's heart..."
As expected of my best friend of many years, Sumi still understands me.
I was busy making several jars of nut brittle, and it was already getting late.
It's time for them to get going.
I went to the small west room and got two bottles of baijiu and four bottles of sweet wine for Sumi to take back and drink slowly.
"Alright, it's time to go!"
Sumi jumped into the car and sat in the driver's seat first.
I dressed Mancang up warmly, with a hand-knitted sweater underneath and the best-fitting, warmest down jacket on top.
I crouched down and pressed down on the pile of cotton shoes, asking, "Are they too tight?"
Mancang shook his head and didn't say anything.
"That's good, let's go."
I touched Mancang's hair that was sticking out of his hat, then patted his shoulder, signaling him to get in the car and leave.
Tears welled up in Mancang's eyes as he turned and walked toward the car.
His back view looked small, just like when I found him years ago.
He walked slowly towards the car door, looking rather pitiful.
Alone, weak, and lost.
I don't know why, even though he would have a better future at the Eagle Base, my heart still aches.
I couldn't help but shout, "Full stock!"
Mancang turned around, a few small tears clinging to his face.
I forced a smile and said, "It's okay, Aunt Cheng will come to see you in a while."
He said, "Aunt Cheng, when I become strong, I will come back to protect you."
turn out to be……
It turns out he wanted to become stronger so he could protect me.
"Okay! Let's go!"
I smiled and waved.
Sumi's car went down the small hill, turned, and disappeared from my sight.
I closed the gate and turned to go home.
The house is empty and feels rather deserted.
The coal in the stove was almost gone, so I bent down, picked up the small bucket of coal, and poured it back into the stove.
My movements were a bit rusty, and I realized that I hadn't added coal to the stove for over a year.
This work has always been done by Mancang.
I took a deep breath and then shook my head.
It's just withdrawal symptoms; it will get better in a while.
I was getting a little hungry, so I ladled out a bowl of buckwheat noodles, added water, and kneaded it into a dough.
Pour oil into a pot, stir-fry the frozen tomatoes until they are soft, add some sliced meat and stir-fry together, then add water.
Once the water in the pot boils, tear the dough into irregular pieces and cook them into the pot.
Once the noodle soup boils again, add the seasonings, a handful of chopped green onions and cilantro, and a couple of drops of sesame oil.
He placed a large bowl of noodles on the coffee table and sat down on the sofa to eat.
It seems like it's been a long time since I've eaten a meal sitting on the sofa.
Before, when I was with Mancang, we would eat together on the kang table, facing each other, and we enjoyed it very much.
I remember a long time ago when I was alone, I used to put my meals on the coffee table, which was convenient for eating and cleaning up.
Sipping the thick noodle soup in the bowl, it tasted even better than what Aunt Liu made.
But for some reason, I just don't have much of an appetite.
Feeling empty inside, I finished a bowl of noodle soup and rinsed it in the kitchen sink.
It seems like it's been ages since I washed the dishes...
The rest of the afternoon was very quiet, and I didn't know what to do.
Normally at this time of year, Mancang would probably take me to the mountains to chop firewood, and maybe gather some hay to feed the rabbits.
Now I can finally lie down and relax, but I also feel quite bored being idle.
I could only find one TV series to watch while I knitted a sweater.
I knitted a sweater all afternoon, and by the time I felt tired, it was already dark.
I steamed a big pot of egg custard for dinner and served it with white rice. There was still a lot left after we finished eating.
I mixed rice and egg custard together and fed it to the cats and dogs; they ate it with great relish.
After eating, Xiaodi nestled against my legs.
It seemed to sense that something was wrong with me, and stared at me with its round little eyes, making soft whimpering noises through its nose.
I picked up the little dog and placed it on my lap, gently stroking the fur on its head.
I asked softly, "Xiao Di, you won't leave me, will you?"
Xiao Di slowly stuck out its tongue and gently licked my palm. The warmth of its tongue gave me great psychological comfort.
I fell asleep on the sofa while holding my baby.
When I woke up again, it was already daylight.
I habitually feel that the stove should be lit, and Mancang should be in the kitchen helping me heat the kang (a traditional heated brick bed) right now.
But the truth is that the room was a bit cold, and there was nothing in the stove.
"It's okay, it's okay, you'll get used to it."
I silently cheered myself up, put on my cotton-padded coat, and stood up.
I went to the kitchen to light the kang (a heated brick bed).
It's been a long time since I've done the work of heating a kang (a traditional heated brick bed), so my movements are a bit rusty, and I can't even add firewood smoothly.
Too lazy to make breakfast, I just threw two eggs into a hot water pot.
I'll just grab some eggs for breakfast.
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