Chapter 34 Extra: The Fruit of Love 1985, Green Water...
In 1985, in Green Water Bay, several aunts were sitting under a big tree at the entrance of the village, cracking melon seeds and chatting. From a distance, they saw a shiny black car driving towards them and slowly stopped at the entrance of their village.
After a while, the driver's door opened, and a handsome man with broad shoulders and a narrow waist got out. After getting out, he walked around to the passenger seat and opened the door for the person sitting there. An extremely beautiful woman came out. She had fair and transparent skin, long hair draped over her shoulders, and a gentle smile. She looked like a well-educated college student with a hint of bookish air about her. But when you looked closely, you saw that the woman was holding a baby in her arms.
As soon as the woman came out, the man next to her took the child from her arms and used his free hand to hold hers.
At this time, the two people in the back seat also got out, one was Shen's mother, and the other was naturally Shen Anan.
"Guifen? Are you Guifen?"
An aunt sitting at the entrance of the village recognized Shen's mother and blurted out and asked.
Until Mother Shen smiled and nodded, Aunt Miao was still a little hesitant to recognize her.
Shen Guifen was wearing clothes made of excellent material and a cashmere shawl, looking elegant and luxurious.
Perhaps because she had been having a good time these years, and Qiao Yin and An An liked to tinker with skin care products and health-preserving soups, her face was rosy at the moment, and she looked at least 10 years younger than before.
When Mother Shen started to speak, the aunts sitting at the entrance of the village gathered around and talked in unison.
"Guifen, you haven't been back for a long time. What are you doing here?"
"I haven't been back for a long time. This time I came back to worship my ancestors." Mother Shen replied with a smile.
"Is this An An? An An has grown into a big girl now. Do you still remember me?"
Shen Anan smiled shyly and whispered, "I recognize her, Aunt Miao."
After Shen Anan recovered, he still had some memories of his past, but he hadn't seen the villagers for a long time and felt a little unfamiliar.
Everyone looked at her curiously, marveling in their hearts. The girl who used to look like a little child has now grown into a graceful young lady and speaks coherently. It seems that she has had a good life in recent years, and she looks a bit like the former Qiao Zhiqing.
Looking at Qiao Zhiqing again, she seemed to have not changed at all. She was as beautiful and charming as when she first came to Green Water Bay, except that she had a touch of feminine charm and gentleness.
At this moment, someone noticed Shen Zhiqiao in Shen Xiannian's arms, widened their eyes and exclaimed:
"This is your child, right? He's growing up really well. How old is he?"
Three-year-old Shen Zhiqiao was sitting on her father's arm. When she heard someone mention her, she turned her head and answered loudly in a baby voice without any shyness:
"Grandma, I'm 3 years old!"
The clever big eyes just blinked at people, the cheeks were chubby, and the arms like lotus root nodes were also chubby, which made people feel very lovable.
"Oh, you're three years old already? You're so cute, little darling. Grandma likes you. Come home with grandma, won't you?"
As a result, when the little girl heard that she was going to be taken home, she shook her head like a rattle, twisted her body and hugged her father's neck tightly, with resistance written all over her body, and kept saying: "No, no, no... Qiao Qiao, don't go, don't take Qiao Qiao away..."
The aunts laughed and exchanged greetings for a long time before the family walked back, meeting many familiar people on the way.
The villagers were very curious about them and would stop to chat with anyone they met. After a while, Qiao Yin knew almost all the big and small things that had happened in the village over the years.
What she didn't expect was that Nie Hongxia actually stole the family's money and ran away three years ago, leaving behind Grandma Ge who cursed at home all day long, the silent and resentful Ge Erqiang, and their five-year-old son.
There were five educated youth from Lushuiwan who were admitted to universities that year. Among them, except Qiao Yin, Zhou Zhijun and Jiang Yan were all admitted. However, Nie Hongxia was indeed locked up at home by her husband and mother-in-law and was unable to take the college entrance examination. In the third year, Nie Hongxia, full of resentment, found an opportunity to secretly take the money from home and ran away. There was no news of her afterwards.
And then there's Ye Zhicheng. Because he'd been in the countryside for so long, he'd forgotten almost everything he'd learned. He didn't get into university the first year, but he didn't give up. He got in the second year, and I heard he even went to City B and married Jiang Yan...
The educated youth of those years had each taken different paths, and Qiao Yin was filled with emotion as she listened. It wasn't just the educated youth; the village itself had changed dramatically, too. Someone's family had made money, someone's family had passed away. Only when they reached the Shen family's old house did they finally hear the news.
As soon as Shen Zhiqiao entered the yard, she struggled to get down. Shen Xiannian put her on the ground, and she began to run around the house, looking at this and that.
"Qiao Qiao, stop running around and come over here to drink some water."
When Qiao Yin called her, she came running back. Shen Xiannian cooperated by taking out her special small water bottle from his bag and putting it to her mouth for her to drink. After she drank it all, she climbed onto Shen Xiannian's legs again, wanting her father to take her out to play.
Shen Xiannian picked her up and put her on his neck. Qiao Qiao patted her father's head and shouted excitedly: "Run! Dad, run! Go!"
"Go ahead, see how fast Daddy can run!"
Shen Xiannian quickened his pace and trotted out the door, running around in the open space at the doorstep with little Qiaoqiao on his back. Little Qiaoqiao giggled, and Shen's mother watched with fear:
"Now! You bastard, put Qiao Qiao down now! He might fall down! Stop running!"
Dads are just so unreliable when it comes to taking care of kids.
Shen Anan was also worried, and followed Shen's mother to persuade:
"Qiao Qiao, auntie will take you to the fields to pick little red strawberries to eat, okay? Come down quickly, or auntie will leave."
“No, no!”
"An An, how about coming down to play today?"
Seeing that Shen's mother was anxious, Shen Xiannian coaxed the little ancestor above her head, but the little ancestor was loved and spoiled by the whole family and refused:
"No, no! Qiao Qiao, don't come down, Daddy! Qiao Qiao wants to play more, let's go!"
If Shen Xiannian didn't leave, she would pout and cry. As long as her little face, which was almost carved out of the same mold as Qiao Yin, wrinkled and tears welled up in her eyes, Shen Xiannian, the daughter slave, would not be able to bear it and would do whatever she wanted.
"Don't cry, don't cry, daddy will take you flying, fly!"
Shen Xiannian started taking her "flying" again, and the clever Qiao Qiao immediately started giggling again, not looking like she was about to cry at all.
Shen Anan had no choice but to go into the inner room and call out Qiao Yin who was cleaning the bedroom. Qiao Yin stood at the door and looked at the two, one big and one small, with a half-smile.
When Qiao Qiao was having fun, he caught sight of his mother standing at the door. He immediately pulled his father's hair, put his two small hands on Shen Xiannian's ears, and whispered in his ear:
"Daddy, Mommy is here, Qiao Qiao is going to be spanked!"
Qiao Yin, who heard every word, said: "......"
"Shen Zhiqiao."
As soon as Qiao Qiao heard her mother calling her full name, she knew she was doomed. She immediately ran to Qiao Yin's side and hugged her mother's thighs, looking up at her mother with her little face adorably:
"Mom, you've worked hard. Qiao Qiao loves you, muah——"
Mother Shen burst out laughing, and Shen Anan also bent her lips and couldn't help laughing.
It's strange to say, the one with the mildest temper in the family is Qiao Yin, besides Shen Anan, and Qiao Yin has never hit Shen Zhiqiao. For some reason, Shen Zhiqiao, who is spoiled and lawless, is only afraid of her and listens to her the most.
Qiao Yin twitched her lips, and with the composure of an adult, she withstood the enemy's sugar-coated bullets. She tried to keep a straight face and said in a fake serious tone:
"Qiao Qiao, didn't Mommy tell you not to ask Daddy to play this kind of game with you again? Didn't you promise Mommy? You're making Mommy sad."
"I'm sorry, mom. Qiao Qiao will never do that again. Don't be sad."
Qiao Yin squatted down and said seriously, "It's very dangerous for Dad to run with you on his back like this. If Dad falls, both of you will get hurt. Besides, running like this is very tiring. Look, Dad's forehead is sweating."
Qiao Qiao looked at her mother, then at her father, and for the first time realized her mistake. Without being told, she ran to Shen Xiannian, motioned him to squat down, and then wiped the sweat off his face with her little hands, saying guiltily:
"I'm sorry, Dad. You've worked so hard."
Shen Xiannian was so moved that he wanted to carry his good daughter and run a hundred or eighty laps without feeling tired. However, when he met his wife's gaze, he could only touch his nose guiltily and never dared to have such an idea again.
Although Qiao Qiao looks like Qiao Yin, her personality is like Chen Xiannian. She is smart and clever, and can make people lose their way when she is sweet-talking. She is also optimistic by nature and can forget unhappy things completely after a while.
At this moment, she happily followed her aunt to the field next to her home to pick strawberries. Mother Shen followed her because she was worried. Only Shen Xiannian and Qiao Yin were left in the room.
Qiao Yin sat on the edge of the bed and folded the clothes that Qiao Qiao was going to wear and put them in the closet, then looked at Shen Xiannian who was cleaning on the side.
Shen Xiannian was facing away from her when he suddenly felt someone pinching the flesh on his lower back. It didn't hurt, but it felt numb and tingling, like an electric current.
"Hiss—what are you doing, wife? You can't touch a man's waist casually, do you know?"
Qiao Yin laughed twice, stretched out two white and tender fingertips to pinch his cheeks, and pouted his thin lips, just like he always liked to do to her in the past, which looked a bit funny.
Qiao Yin came closer to him and said unhappily:
"Look at how much you've spoiled Qiao Qiao. She even dares to ride on your head and act wild. Now no one can control her. It's all your fault. I think she just follows your temper!"
Shen Xiannian's cheeks were pinched by her, and his words were a little unclear. He had no choice but to take her hand and wrap it in his palm, then said with a smile:
"Yes, yes, it's all my fault. Qiao Qiao inherited my bad habits."
This is true, and it's really Shen Xiannian's fault. Qiao Yin was very obedient and well-behaved when she was a child, but Shen Xiannian was the one who did everything from climbing trees to catching birds.
He thought for a moment and then said, "But don't worry too much, wife. You know our Qiao Qiao. Although she is naughty like me, she is smart and clever like you. Our Qiao Qiao is very well behaved!"
Qiao Qiao is just more energetic. Even though the whole family pampers her, her temperament remains normal. Although she is a little naughty and willful sometimes, most of the time she is a caring and sensible child. She is also sunny, cheerful and very likable.
Qiao Yin also knew this, so she didn't say much, but the family's behavior of spoiling their children without any bottom line also needed to be controlled, especially the "old father" Shen Xiannian who was helpless when faced with his daughter's coquettish behavior.
Every time Qiao Yin accused him of doting on the child too much, he would look at her with an innocent face, saying that it was because Qiao Qiao looked like her and he couldn't help but feel soft-hearted when he saw her...
Then Qiao Yin was speechless, because over the years, Chen Xiannian really did what he said at the beginning, that he would treat her well for the rest of his life, and he held her in the palm of his hand. Even if he loved his daughter so much, she would still come after him.
Later, even Qiao Qiao discovered that the tall and mighty father was also afraid of his mother. With just a look from his mother, his father would happily admit his mistake. Therefore, his mother was the most powerful person in the family, and he began to admire her more and more...
It was not until many years later when Shen Zhiqiao grew up that he realized that unconditional love is the real source of strength.
It can transform weak strength into armor to withstand wind and frost, and it can also make ferocious beasts bow their heads meekly and sniff the roses.
…
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