Chapter 5, the fifth chapter, the stakeout.
For Luo Yan, eating out was a rather significant event, considering she rarely ate out more than a few times a year.
Therefore, she got up early and specially wore a new sweater.
Liu Yinfeng noticed that her daughter's coat was unbuttoned and exclaimed, "Why are you wearing your New Year's clothes today?"
She knitted it for over a month and kept it in the closet in her child's room.
Luo Yan said happily, "My brother is going to treat me to hot pot."
Seeing how happy she was, Luo Xinmin thought it would be a double celebration and said, "Let's go eat together as a family during the New Year."
The New Year is a time when any expense is worthwhile, so Liu Yinfeng didn't raise any objections. She just looked her up and down and said, "It's still too narrow, it's all constricting."
There weren't enough tickets this year, so she only managed to buy this little bit of red yarn, and there wasn't a single bit left over.
Luo Yan looked down and said optimistically, "Just hang in there."
As she spoke, she braided her hair, making sure the two sides were evenly spaced compared to the mirror.
Since the resumption of the college entrance examination, Luo Hong has rarely seen his younger sister dress up.
He was gnawing on a sesame seed cake that his mother had bought from who-knows-where, his cheeks clenched so hard he had to strain to get the words out: "It really does look good, like a horse with a saddle."
He ignored the first part about how clothes make the man, and Luo Yan pretended to only hear the second part, "You look pretty good," and straightened her hair, saying, "I'm in a good mood, I won't argue with you."
Oh dear, that little tail is sticking up so high.
Luo Hong: "Go to the store by yourself after school. Don't rush. If you don't see anyone when you get there, just wait a while."
Luo Yan: "Weren't you resting? Why are you still coming so late?"
Luo Hong: "Adults have their own things to do, children shouldn't ask too many questions."
I don't know how important it was, but after saying that, he hurriedly left.
The remaining family of three were clearly confused and exchanged glances.
Luo Yan shrugged: "Never mind him, I'm going to school."
Liu Yinfeng instructed, "Okay, ride slowly."
Then she turned her head and said, "The children won't be coming home for dinner tonight, and you'll be eating at the factory too. Xiujuan and I are going to Gejiazhuang this afternoon, so we won't be back so early."
Whether there's food or not doesn't matter, Luo Xinmin said: "Why go there? It's too far."
Liu Yinfeng: "I'll buy two chickens to raise and eat during the New Year."
Once New Year's Day is over, she can't stop talking about the New Year, as if the holiday is just around the corner.
But Luo Xinmin dared not say something like "There are still half a month left, no need to rush," and instead, he struggled to fasten his coat with one hand: "Okay, be careful yourself."
Liu Yinfeng straightened his collar: "By the way, why haven't you given out New Year's gifts yet this year?"
Luo Xinmin works in the factory's logistics department, so he's always the first to know about such good news.
He shook his head: "I submitted a request, but the boss didn't approve it. I don't know if I'll get the payment this year."
"That's strange," Liu Yinfeng said. "Doesn't the factory make money?"
Luo Xinmin smiled wryly: "It's all about making money. That's why the city gives us such heavy tasks. They say we have to solve at least three hundred jobs after the New Year."
We already hired a lot of people last year, and the finance department is constantly complaining that income doesn't cover expenses. We don't know what to do with any more people we hire.
Liu Yinfeng: "Three hundred here and five hundred there is not enough to make up the difference. In recent years, hundreds of thousands of people from Beijing have been sent to the countryside. No matter what, it is just a drop in the ocean."
Luo Xinmin joked, "This is already a drop in the ocean, but it's progress."
Because of his physical limitations, he felt that if he couldn't do martial arts, he should do literature. He attended the literacy classes in his unit the most diligently. His level of education was not to say that he was on par with anyone, but he was far superior to those rough and uncultured comrades. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to manage the logistics department's warehouse.
Liu Yinfeng was not good at studying.
She also attended a literacy class for a few days, but she just couldn't feel any affection for those words. She gently nudged her husband and said, "Go to your class, stop talking so much."
They were an older man and a younger woman, with a ten-year age gap.
Luo Xinmin felt that it wasn't easy for him to have a family, and he was known in the alley as a family man who doted on his wife: "Fine, here's some hard-earned money for you two."
Liu Yinfeng: "Slow down, the ground is slippery."
Luo Xinmin could still joke about himself: "Even if I wanted to go fast, I couldn't."
He's in his fifties now, and he cherishes his life more than he did when he was younger, no longer forcing himself to keep up with others.
The road from No. 13 courtyard to the factory is only one kilometer long. Most of the residents in the vicinity are employees of the No. 8 State-owned Cotton Mill. At this time of day, when many people are going to work, a newly hired young man passed by and greeted his supervisor: "Good morning, Section Chief Luo."
The child was observant, and his steps gradually lagged behind.
Luo Xinmin turned around and said, "If we don't run now, we'll be late. You don't have an excuse like I do."
They weren't stupid; they could tell the difference between good and bad advice. Embarrassed, they smiled and trotted away.
"What great legs!" Luo Xinmin looked down at his own, touched the empty sleeve dangling from his hand, and had no other thoughts in his mind.
But it looks different to others.
He Jing originally wanted to strike up a conversation with this old colleague, but hesitated for a long time before stepping forward and saying, "Old Luo."
Luo Xinmin, who wasn't exactly familiar with him, tried to make conversation: "Old He, you work too?"
He Jing replied, "No, I'm here to steal."
He further clarified: "I'm not going to waste my breath on you; I have a serious question for you."
We're just casual acquaintances, yet this opening line sounds like I'm asking for money.
Luo Xinmin had even prepared a reason for his refusal, but he never expected that the other person would ask, "How old is your son again? Does he have a girlfriend?"
Upon hearing this, Luo Xinmin perked up: "Whose family are you asking for?"
He Jing: "It's my sister's family, the child is..."
The two started chatting, but Luo Hong, one of the parties involved, was completely unaware of the matter and was squatting by the roadside with his childhood friend Zhou Weifang, enjoying the cold wind.
When the wind blows, no matter how much sun shines, it's useless.
Luo Hong was dressed quite warmly when he went out today, but now he's sniffling from the cold.
Zhou Weifang was dressed even less than him, his face was so numb that he couldn't make many expressions, and he felt very guilty: "Luo Bu, actually I could have come by myself."
Luo Hong rubbed his face: "You always have times when you slip away to go to the bathroom, right? Having more people around means we have to keep an eye on you."
They sounded like thieves scouting the place beforehand. Zhou Weifang said, "If you speak any louder, the red armbands will hold us down."
I kept glancing at them as I passed by them.
Luo Hong knew that the word was not very good, but given his level of education, he would just use whichever word came to mind, and shrugged indifferently.
He lost his balance as soon as he moved, leaning forward and instinctively pressing his hand on the ground. He gasped, "My legs are numb, help me up."
Zhou Weifang tugged at him: "He's heavy enough."
Luo Hong used the momentum to steady himself, clapped his hands together, and exclaimed in surprise, "Oh no, what number was I counting to?"
Zhou Weifang: "Count to seven."
Yes, yes, seven.
The two of them had only been squatting by the roadside for half an hour when only a handful of people entered this only privately owned bicycle repair shop in the city. Luo Hong sighed, "It seems that the bicycle repair business is really good. No wonder you want to do it."
Zhou Weifang thought about it, but it wasn't that easy. He was worried: "They have difficulty walking, and the relevant departments gave them special permission to open a car repair shop. I went to the Industry and Commerce Bureau yesterday to ask about the license, and they dismissed me with just a few words."
There are very few individual business licenses in the city now; they are almost all handled on a case-by-case basis. After all, this is considered capitalist practice on a larger scale, and the policy hasn't been relaxed yet.
Luo Hong was optimistic: "I work at the bicycle factory, so you've solved the spare parts problem, right? You also learned how to repair bicycles in Xinjiang, so your skills aren't an issue either. Now everything is ready, we just need the final push."
Zhou Weifang was initially quite frustrated, but after hearing what he said, she felt like she was just one step away from success: "You're quite good at comforting people."
Men, stop talking about comforting each other.
Luo Hong: "Speak properly, you're giving me goosebumps."
Zhou Weifang: "I'm not saying anything more, dinner is on me."
All he thinks about is treating people to meals; anyone who doesn't know better would think he brought back a thousand or eight hundred yuan from Xinjiang.
Luo Hongcai remembered and said to him, "No, I brought one more person with me, so it should be my treat no matter how you look at it."
"Bring one?" Zhou Weifang knew he didn't have a girlfriend, and replied knowingly, "Your sister?"
It sounded a bit like an insult. Luo Hong thought it didn't quite make sense, but couldn't quite put his finger on it. He said, "Yes, she also wanted to eat hot pot."
And then, in hindsight, "Would it be alright to bring her along?"
Putting aside their childhood friendship, Zhou Weifang had no reason to refuse his loyalty in spending the whole day with him.
He said, "Of course."
This answer was expected, but Luo Hong still felt guilty for not saying it beforehand, so he added, "She's very quiet, she won't interrupt our conversation."
Zhou Weifang recalled: "I remember she was like this since she was a child, quiet and not talkative, and she looked like a good student."
Even though they were childhood friends, Luo Hong would never embarrass his sister in front of others.
He said, "He's really good at studying. Our Luo family will definitely produce a college student this year."
College students have it so good; they're guaranteed a job after graduation, unlike me who has to squat on this curb looking for an uncertain future.
Zhou Weifang: "People still need to read more books."
Luo Hongguang felt a headache just listening to the word "book": "Let's talk about something else."
Anything else? Let's just chat about anything to pass the time.
The two chatted idly all day until the repair shop closed.
They came by bicycle in the morning, but their legs are so stiff they can't lift them high, so they can only push their bikes slowly all the way.
Before I even arrived at Donglaishun, I could see someone standing at the entrance from afar.
Luo Hong approached and recognized his sister, exclaiming, "Have you been here long?"
Luo Yan was almost blown silly by the wind, her big eyes were filled with tears, and probably because there were outsiders present, she only said, "Just arrived."
He couldn't hide his pitiful, wronged look.
Zhou Weifang looked embarrassed and said, "I'm sorry, I asked Luo Bu to run some errands. Order whatever you want to eat tonight, it's on me."
Even if Luo Yan was angry, she wouldn't show it to outsiders, and tried to be as polite as possible: "It's nothing, I just arrived early."
The more this happened, the more apologetic Zhou Weifang felt.
He wanted to say something more polite, but Luo Hong interrupted him: "Alright, alright, we're all on the same side, no need for back and forth, let's go inside first."
As soon as the curtain was lifted, the aroma of food wafted out, instantly putting Luo Yan in a good mood. Her polite expression revealed a hint of genuine sincerity.
After all, these days, who would turn down food?
A note from the author:
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