"Teacher Zhou, please sit down."
Liu Meiyu poured someone a cup of hot water and greeted them with a smile.
Zhou Qiuhe was a teacher who had just been transferred from the island to teach mathematics to grades one to three. One day after Liu Bowen came back from school, he excitedly told her about all the teachers and classmates.
The boy had a good memory. After just one day of school, he could remember most of the names of his classmates. Moreover, when it came to homework assigned by the teacher, other children would go home scratching their heads, but Liu Bowen could finish it in just a few minutes and still feel unsatisfied.
Before he got hurt, Liu Yongnian would write his own math problem books every now and then and send them to the post office on the island for the kids to do for fun.
"Comrade Liu, I think your son Bowen is not suitable to stay in my class in this situation."
"What's wrong?" Liu Meiyu was very calm.
Liu Bowen's school documents and household registration were all in order, so she didn't feel uneasy at all.
"Don't get me wrong," Zhou Qiuhe pushed her glasses and only then realized that she was a little excited.
"I mean, Bowen is so smart that he can do fourth-grade math problems really fast. There's no point in him continuing to the next grade."
After only half a day of class, Zhou Qiuhe discovered that Liu Bowen was a student who refused to listen in class. However, he did not make a fuss like other children. Instead, he stared at the blackboard for a while, or wrote and drew on his notebook.
At first Zhou Qiuhe thought that this was another naughty kid who didn't like to study, but when she walked over and flipped through the exercise book, she found that not only was the boy's answers wrong, but even the calculation process was written neatly on the side.
With a try-it attitude, she took the time to give Liu Bowen a few questions alone, and found that this child was really smart. He even knew the knowledge of a fourth-grade student. Why did he still need to go to the first grade?
"Teacher Zhou, thank you for your concern for Bowen." Liu Meiyu looked at Zhou Qiuhe and was not surprised that she would say that.
"It's just that I sent Bowen to school, not just to let him learn knowledge. I know that child is smart, but he is still young now. No matter how smart he is, he is still a child. He just needs to live happily every day. There is no need to skip grades for the time being. He is still so young, and he goes to school just to be with the children on the island."
When teachers see smart students, they will definitely pay attention.
Liu Meiyu is Liu Bowen's biological sister. Of course she knows that the child is smart, but she just doesn't pay too much attention to it.
No matter how smart one is, one needs a happy childhood. If one is willing to sit on the bench in school every day, learning arithmetic problems that he already knew, and willing to play around with Song Jinbao at school with his arm around his shoulders, can she still stand it?
It was the first time Zhou Qiuhe heard parents look at their children’s schooling in this way, and she found it quite novel.
And after listening to Liu Meiyu's words, she also felt a little regretful for making this impulsive trip.
She has taught for more than ten years, from high school to elementary school. It was a rare opportunity to see such a smart child, so she was a little excited, but she did not consider the actual situation.
Even if Liu Bowen was smart enough to skip a grade and finish high school, what could such a young child do?
"I'm so sorry. I was rude and disturbed you today." Zhou Qiuhe blushed, sat up and was about to leave.
I feel that I have been a teacher for so many years, but I still can't think things through as well as other teachers, and I act impulsively when encountering problems.
"Of course not. I was at home taking care of my kids all day, and I was happy when Teacher Zhou came to talk to me."
Liu Meiyu spoke in a relaxed tone. Seeing Zhou Qiuhe was about to leave, she grabbed two handfuls of fruits soaking in the basin beside her and said, "Teacher Zhou, these are wild fruits from the mountains. The children in the village gave them to me. Take them home and try them."
The wild fruits were sent to the village by Heiwa, the grandson of the village chief.
Since they had two more rooms in their house, they went to the village to buy some furniture from Grandpa Zhang one after another. The children in the village also became familiar with them. When Liu Meiyu and Lu Changzheng went there, they brought candies with them, and the children would bring them wild fruits they picked from far away.
"I don't need this. You can save it for the child." Zhou Qiuhuo looked uncomfortable.
"It's a bit sour. Just take it home as a snack to whet your appetite. Don't eat too much. Bowen is just starting to grow teeth, and my family doesn't like sour food. It would be a waste if we can't finish a whole pot of it."
Zhou Qiuhe couldn't refuse, so she had to leave with the fruit.
On the way, she couldn't help but take a sip and her expression froze.
Crisp and sweet, neither sour nor astringent...
"I heard that Teacher Zhou came home?" In the evening, Lu Changzheng and his wife sat on the kang, with the triplets brothers next to them who were not yet sleepy.
"Yeah, I'm here to praise Bowen." Liu Meiyu was helping Dabao walk and answered casually.
The three brothers are now almost one year old. They can crawl out very smoothly, whether on the ground or on the kang. If the adults are not paying attention, they will disappear somewhere unknown.
Especially Dabao, who has been dissatisfied with crawling on the ground for some time and always wants to stand up by himself with the help of others.
"It would be great if these three kids in our family could be as smart as their uncle in the future." Lu Changzheng picked up Erbao and wanted to teach him the same way Liu Meiyu did. However, Erbao was not happy and shrank back onto the kang. He unhappily punched his father on the head.
“Tick, tick!”
Lu Changzheng listened to the baby voice coming out of the little boy's mouth and showed off to his wife with great joy: "Meiyun, Erbao called me!"
Liu Meiyu rolled her eyes at him and asked, "Are you sure they don't want to hit you?"
"How can I ..." Before Lu Changzheng could finish his words, Erbao suddenly slapped him directly on the face, saying in a baby voice: "Tsk! Tsk!"
Lu Changzheng's face darkened. He grabbed Erbao's fidgeting hands and taught him a lesson with a stern face: "Why are you hitting me? I'm your father!"
Erbao's little arms couldn't move, and he was about to cry when his mouth pouted. Lu Changzheng was so scared that he quickly put him back and let the little guy crawl around by himself.
Seeing Lu Changzheng's expression, Liu Meiyun just wanted to laugh and couldn't help but sneer: "Captain Lu, your ability to lead troops is not good enough. You can't even deal with these three brats."
Lu Changzheng defended himself with a frustrated look on his face: "They are still too young. When they grow up, they will realize how amazing I am."
"Oh~" Liu Meiyun dragged out the last word. Seeing that Dabao was getting impatient, she put him back and picked up Xiaobao again, deliberately saying, "Then I'm looking forward to it, to see how powerful Captain Lu can be!"
"Don't worry, from now on you will play the good cop and I will play the bad cop. I will play the bad guy and I guarantee that I will make sure they are completely obedient." Lu Changzheng promised, patting his chest.
Liu Meiyu glanced at the man and said, "You said that."
"Hmm, hmm!" The little baby was lying in his mother's arms. He seemed a little angry because his mother was talking to his father and ignored him. His little head was nudging in front of Liu Meiyu's belly. Liu Meiyu was sitting cross-legged and almost fell down because of the nudging of the little guy.
Thanks to Captain Lu's quick hands at the critical moment, he bent over and supported the mother and child in time.
"It's obvious that the eldest baby drinks the most breast milk, so why is the youngest baby so strong?" Lu Changzheng patted the naughty youngest baby's butt, and his face turned even darker.
A hand full of urine
"Change the diaper quickly!"
So, the couple was busy changing the baby's diaper, making the milk powder, and finally lying on the bed. It was another exhausting day.
With the improvement of infrastructure such as schools, hospitals, and post offices, more and more military families are accompanying the island, and the island has begun preparations to build a second batch of family buildings.
The farms on the island were just beginning to be reclaimed and constructed, and every day a large number of educated youth came to the island by boat.
However, the farm was still some distance away from the troops and the family compound. It was only when Liu Meiyu and her companions were leaving the island by boat that they could meet groups of educated youth humming the main melody and full of passion.
This day was also the day when the triplets turned one year old. Liu Meiyu and her family went out to a photo studio in the city to take some photos of the triplets and send them to their grandfather in Beijing and to Liu Yongnian and his wife who were working on the farm.
The whole family goes out to take the triplets out, and the scene is both spectacular and tiring.
Especially when the triplets were just one year old and could crawl on the ground, I couldn't hold them in my arms. They were used to crawling on the kang at home, but when I carried them out, they were so excited that they had to crawl on the curb. Their tempers became worse and worse. They used to cry only when they were hungry or peed, but now they would cry, hit and tug when they were dissatisfied and unhappy.
When they were on the boat, the triplets were restless and insisted on crawling on the ground.
In order to take pictures, Liu Meiyu specially changed their clothes. How could she let them ruin them? She just held them by her side and refused to let them go no matter what she said, and gave each of them a cookie to coax them.
"It's really not easy to come out this time." Lu Wanjun sighed sincerely while holding her second baby in her arms.
It's been nearly ten minutes, and the kid hasn't given up the idea of falling to the ground. When she loosens her grip a little, he arches his butt and moves downward. He's almost finished licking the biscuit, and there's no telling how long he can stay quiet.
"It's not easy." Liu Meiyu hugged Dabao, the clingiest of the three brothers and nodded.
The boat hasn't even set sail yet and she's already starting to have second thoughts. Luckily, Lu Wanjun and Wu's mother are still with them. If it were just her and Lu Changzheng, they probably wouldn't be able to go anywhere except the island.
On the contrary, the child's father, Captain Lu, was quite happy as it was his first time taking his son on a long trip to the city.
He put Xiaobao on his knees and teased him all the way. The little guy was giggling, right... He couldn't stop and had to take a break for a while. The little guy started kicking and kicking people. All the way to the city, Lu Changzheng's face was frozen from laughing.
After getting off the boat and arriving in the city, the triplets were probably a little shy as it was their first time going out on the street and seeing so many people. This time, they finally lay down obediently in the adults' arms and stopped making a fuss about rolling on the ground. Their eyes were wide open, and they looked around, very curious.
Liu Meiyu was very keen on taking photos as souvenirs, thinking that when she got old she would look through the photo albums full of happy memories. She was also well-funded, so she spent almost an hour to finish taking photos of one roll of her master's film.
Fortunately, there were not many people at the spot they went to, and no one was rushing them, so the old master was very patient.
The main reason was that getting the triplets to look at the camera obediently was a bit tiring and time-consuming, so Liu Meiyun and Lu Changzheng tried almost every trick in the book. Even their uncle Liu Bowen couldn't stand it anymore and helped in various ways. Finally, they got the three kids to stare at the camera and take a few photos. The whole family was exhausted and sweating.
The old teacher who works in the photo studio took photos of triplets for the first time in many years. Not to mention the parents, even he himself was sweating profusely, feeling more tired than he was after a day's work. However, his mood was involuntarily infected by the others.
It's rare to see such a generous and harmonious family. The key is that this family is also good-looking. Although the three babies are difficult to control and will crawl all over the house once put on the ground, and they need a strong child to pull their own machines, they are still adorable.
It's just that taking so many photos at once is quite expensive.
The old teacher was counting on the abacus, looking at the price, and was about to say something when he heard the young and beautiful mother's clear voice: "Comrade, please wash three servings for me."
"You want so much?" The old teacher was shocked. The expense was already quite high, and the girl wanted to wash three servings at once!
Looking at the girl's husband and family, none of them even said anything reluctant, as if they didn't hear it and they were just playing with the child.
"Yes," Liu Meiyu nodded with a smile, "We should also send a copy to the elderly on both sides of the family."
The old teacher nodded. Seeing that this family really had no shortage of money, he filled out a form and asked them to sign it. "Come and pick it up in a week."
"Okay, thank you."
Liu Meiyu put away the list, and the family walked out of the photo studio in a majestic manner, preparing to go to the state-owned hotel to fill their stomachs first.
Taking the triplets out for dinner is also a challenge.
Normally at home, Liu Meiyun would put the triplets on the dining chairs, give each of them a small bowl, and teach them to eat with a spoon.
But when they were outside, the three brothers' dining chairs were no longer there, and their small bowls and spoons were gone. The situation returned to the previous one where each person held one child in his arms and fed him. The three brothers were not happy about it, and they kept crying and scratching, insisting on grabbing the bowls themselves.
Moreover, the triplets brothers, who can already speak a few words, are no longer just babbling like they were when they were a few months old. If their needs are not met, they will shout "Mommy" one by one. If you don't let them climb on the table, they will hold you. If you don't let them clink chopsticks, they will knock on your head!
Lu Changzheng himself didn't eat a single bite. He and Meiyun worked together, one holding the babies in the arms while the other was responsible for feeding them, from the eldest to the youngest. After they finally finished a meal, he had no appetite at all.
Seeing the couple struggling so much, Lu Wanjun couldn't help but laugh: "It's still better to be on the island. The dining chair that Meiyun asked me to make is really a big help."
"Of course," Wu said admiringly as she ate the rice in her bowl, "Meiyun is so smart. That dining chair is so convenient. Dabao and his kids also like to sit on it and eat by themselves. When Mrs. Zhu saw it last time, she went home and made one for her little one, Xiaocao."
Liu Bowen, who was eating and drinking and coaxing his little nephew, nodded repeatedly and praised his sister to Aunt Lu: "Aunt Lu, my sister is amazing. I really like the desk she made for me."
The desk and dining chairs were both modified by Liu Meiyun based on the classic styles of later generations, namely the bamboo baby chairs and wooden desks of this era. At first glance, they are nothing special, except for some extra small details that make them more convenient to use.
It's not that she's smart, it's simply because she has lived one more lifetime.
Liu Meiyun felt guilty and changed the subject: "Aunt, Aunt Wu, it's still early. Let's take Bowen and Dabao to the park for a walk after dinner before going back. Bowen does well in school, so let his brother-in-law take him to the park to play boating."
"Sister! Is it true?" Liu Bowen was surprised and his voice instantly rose.
Liu Bowen, who came out today thinking he was just taking pictures, didn't expect to be able to go boating in the park. He narrowed his eyes in joy and immediately rubbed against his brother-in-law, asking again uncertainly: "Brother-in-law, are you really taking me to go boating?"
Lu Changzheng was free at this moment, so he lifted Liu Bowen up by the arm and said deliberately, "It's fake. I will consider it only if you can make me happy."
Unexpectedly, the little guy covered his mouth and giggled, saying without hesitation: "It must be true! My sister has said it, you dare not disobey my sister!"
Lu Changzheng: “…”
Lu Wanjun and Wu's mother laughed out loud, and even Liu Meiyun couldn't help but slap Lu Changzheng in the face, not intending to save face for the man at all: "Comrade Xiao Lu, hurry up, pick up the bag and hold the baby, let's go to the next destination."
Lu Changzheng: “…”
The entrance fee to the Huludao City Park is 5 cents. As the chief financial officer of the family, Liu Meiyun bought the ticket and went in.
As soon as we entered the park, the happiest person was none other than Liu Bowen. It was just some flowers and plants, but he was amazed at everything he saw. He asked questions one after another, and he wanted to know where all the flowers and plants in the park came from.
The triplets were also excited, especially when they saw their little uncle jumping around freely. They were all jealous and envious. They kept struggling in the adults' arms and even had to roll on the ground.
Among the three brothers, Xiaobao, who is the strongest, is in Lu Changzheng's arms, and he is the most powerful. He is not afraid of anyone who slaps him on the buttocks, and he rolls on the ground.
"Give Xiaobao to me, we'll go to the pavilion over there and put them down to play for a while, and you take Bowen to row the boat." Liu Meiyu saw that there were not many people in the park today, and there were not many people at the pavilion. Besides, the boat had to go a long way forward. She estimated that with the triplets being so excited now, they probably wouldn't be able to walk to the front smoothly.
"Okay, then you guys be careful." Lu Changzheng nodded, stuffed Xiaobao into his mother's arms, said hello to Lu Wanjun and Wu's mother, and without paying any attention to Dabao and Erbao making any more noise, he took Liu Bowen towards the rowing boat.
As for Liu Meiyun and Lu Wanjun, each of them was holding a baby in their arms. They finally walked to the pavilion and put the triplets on the ground. Immediately, like wild horses, the three brothers each chose a direction, stretched out their short legs and started crawling out. When they caught the people again, they giggled and changed direction to continue crawling, just waiting for you to catch them.
After two rounds of playing, Cyndi Lau couldn't stand it anymore. Looking at the other side, Wu's mother and Lu Wan-chun were not much better. In the end, they still had to use Cyndi Lau's homemade "anti-lost elastic rope" for strolling the baby.
Tie one of the three brothers on your back, loosen their heads and hold their hands, and let them crawl by themselves. When they can't crawl anymore, they will naturally return to their original place.
Finally, their waist felt better, and Lu Wanjun and Wu's mother had time to sit in the pavilion and rest.
Lu Wanjun pounded her legs and looked at the triplets on the ground, who were being studied curiously by their mother, who was tied up with elastic ropes. She couldn't help but sigh: "Taking care of children is really a physical job, especially these three boys. Why do I feel more and more energetic? I haven't felt sleepy since I got up in the morning."
“Not sleepy,” Wu’s mother nodded, also rubbing her waist.
Liu Meiyun pulled the slackline and said, "So let them use up their energy in the park. When we get back to the island by boat, we should be able to have some peace and quiet."
"You are still smart!" Lu Wanjun nodded repeatedly.
Look at the brain of this niece's wife. She can come up with so many ideas even for a visit to the park. It's really hard not to admire her.
While the mother was being praised, the triplets, who were tied up by the tight ropes on the ground and unable to move, were not happy. They were scratching, biting and groaning.
Among the three brothers, Dabao was the most courageous and impatient. After climbing two or three times, he was about to get off the stairs and escape from his mother's control, but a force on his back pulled him back. He was so angry that he kicked his legs and groaned, and was about to cry. However, Liu Meiyu and the others were used to it and ignored them.
Seeing that crying was useless, Dabao tugged at the elastic rope for a while, and finally stood up by himself. He ran to Liu Meiyu with his short legs along the elastic rope, and started to act coquettishly with a wronged look on his face: "Mom! Bad boy!"
"Oh! Dabao can walk!" Liu Meiyu picked up her eldest son and gave him a kiss.
This was the first time that Dabao learned to walk independently. Normally, he had to hold on to the wall at home and sit down after taking a few steps. But in just a few minutes, this little guy could walk such a long distance by himself.
"Yes! This Dabao is really amazing. We haven't taught him much at home, but he can stand up and walk by himself." Lu Wanjun was also happy and amazed.
Before I could be happy for a while, Erbao next to me suddenly started howling.
It seemed that seeing Dabao being kissed by his mother without paying any attention to him, he quickly crawled over, hugged Liu Meiyun's thighs and hummed coquettishly, "Mommy! Hug, hug!"
Liu Meiyu put the eldest baby on the ground, then picked up the second baby to coax him, and even took the time to look at the youngest baby who was not far away.
Fortunately, Xiaobao has a quick reaction time and is still struggling with the elastic rope.
"Comrade Liu Meiyun?"
Liu Meiyun had just calmed down Dabao and Erbao. The two brothers were jealous of each other and had a fight for a while. Liu Meiyun finally coaxed them with a cookie. She put them on the ground and went to play with Xiaobao. When she heard someone calling her, she turned around and saw a young couple standing outside the pavilion. She frowned in surprise.
The surprise came from the fact that Liu Meiyu had some impression of the young man who called her.
Although more than two years had passed, Liu Meiyu had a good memory and recognized the man at a glance as the careless purchaser who had lost his ticket on the train when she first came here after being discharged from the army.
His brows furrowed because the girl standing next to him, what a coincidence, was the unpopular Zhao Lanlan on the island, and she was wearing Bai Ting's aqua blue sweater.
"Comrade Liu Meiyu, do you still remember me? We met on the train. I'm Wang Xuebing. I went to Shanghai to do some shopping and lost my sleeper ticket. You helped me!"
Wang Xuebing had never expected to meet here today the girl whom he had only met once but who had impressed him so much that he still couldn't forget her. He walked over excitedly to say hello, completely forgetting about Comrade Zhao who was sitting next to him and was going on a blind date with him today.
After letting Lu Wanjun and Wu Ma pull the elastic rope in her hand, Liu Meiyun stood up and replied with a smile: "Remember, Comrade Wang Xuebing, I didn't expect that we would meet again."
Isn't it a coincidence? Liu Meiyu even found it magical. They met each other only once on the train, and it had been two years since they met again after traveling across half of China. But the key person was accompanied by an "old acquaintance!" The probability of this happening was really impossible.
"Liu Meiyu, how did you get to know the cadets?" When Zhao Lanlan, an old acquaintance, saw Liu Meiyu, her good mood for the day disappeared.
I feel that Liu Meiyu is an unlucky person, and nothing good will happen if you run into her.
Especially since I came here for a blind date today, and I am very satisfied with the person I’m dating. He is a buyer at the No. 3 National Cotton Mill, and his family has been allocated a house in the city. And most importantly, Sister Bai Ting said that the director of the factory is Wang Xuebing’s uncle. If I get together with Wang Xuebing, I can move directly from the island to the city. Even if I lose my job at the supply and marketing cooperative, Wang Xuebing’s family will definitely arrange a job for me at the National Cotton Mill.
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