When Lu Changzheng came back from the troops, he walked to the gate of the courtyard and saw Mother Wu pacing back and forth in the yard with her second child on her back and her first child in her arms.
He didn't see Liu Meiyun and Xiaobao, and Dabao was still crying restlessly in Wu's mother's arms. He hurried over and wanted to take Dabao away, "Wu's mother, where is Meiyun?"
Mother Wu leaned aside to stop Lu Changzheng from holding the child, and said anxiously, "Oh, Xiaobao hit his head. I see Meiyun doesn't look well. I'm taking Xiaobao to the hospital to see Wanjun. Changzheng, go to the hospital and see Meiyun and Xiaobao."
Lu Changzheng frowned and rushed to the hospital without hesitation, not even paying attention to Dabao who was waving his arms towards him from behind.
He hurried to the hospital and went straight to Lu Wanjun's office.
"Aunt" Lu Changzheng pushed the door open and saw Liu Meiyun sitting on a chair. He hurried over and asked with a worried look on his face: "Meiyun, are you okay?"
"I'm fine." Liu Meiyu shook her head, her voice sounding a little tired.
Lu Wanjun was holding Xiaobao and coaxing him lovingly. Seeing that Lu Changzheng was looking for a wife, she seemed to have lost his soul. She coughed twice and deliberately said, "Lu Changzheng, you just barged in without knocking, calling me sister-in-law, but you only have your wife in your eyes, right?"
"Aunt, is Xiaobao's head okay?" Lu Changzheng changed the subject and looked at Xiaobao again with a guilty conscience.
The medicine had just been disinfected, and when the crying little baby saw his father reaching out his hand, he turned around and hugged Lu Wanjun, refusing to let go.
"Good boy, grandma is holding you." Lu Wanjun held Xiaobao and winked at the people, "Xiaobao is fine, just a few scratches. I'll take care of Xiaobao, you take Meiyun out for some fresh air."
When Liu Meiyun rushed into the hospital with her little baby, whose cry had stopped, and her face was pale, Lu Wanjun was also shocked.
She heaved a sigh of relief after carefully examining and treating Xiao Bao's wounds. When she turned around, she saw that Liu Meiyun was still in a state of panic.
Being a parent for the first time, and having to take care of three children at once, Lu Wanjun could understand the tension in Liu Meiyun's heart.
"Meiyu, why are your hands so cold?" When Lu Changzheng heard his aunt say that Xiaobao was fine, he took Liu Meiyu out of the hospital to get some fresh air.
"My aunt said that Xiaobao is fine. You should relax and don't be so nervous." Lu Changzheng rubbed Liu Meiyun's hands. Seeing that her face had not yet regained any color, he said distressedly: "Dabao at home is still looking for you. Don't think too much. It's normal for children to have bumps and bruises. It will be fine as long as they are tough."
"Are Dabao and Erbao okay?" Liu Meiyu finally came back to her senses when she heard Dabao crying.
"It's okay, Aunt Wu is watching."
"That's good." Liu Meiyu closed her eyes and said in a tired voice, "I just slapped Zhao Lanlan twice."
"It's okay." Lu Changzheng was stunned. He couldn't imagine what Liu Meiyu looked like when she was angry and hit someone.
He had just come here in a hurry and didn't know what happened at home. He just thought that Xiaobao had fallen down by himself. He was a child who had just learned to walk, and it was not the first time he fell, but this time it was a little more serious and he hit his head.
But when he heard Liu Meiyu say that Zhao Lanlan came to his house, his expression became serious and his brows furrowed.
"Is there something wrong with Comrade Zhao's brain? Don't worry about it. I'll handle it."
"Hmm." Liu Meiyu rubbed her temples and said in a light tone: "Don't let me run into her again in the future."
If she saw someone losing control of his temper, she would like to slap him twice.
"Okay, okay, I promise not to let anyone wander around you."
Liu Meiyu, who was suffering from chest tightness and shortness of breath, had to be comforted by Lu Changzheng for a while before she felt a little better. After sitting outside for a while, she took the baby home, fed him and the baby fell asleep.
In the following months, just as Lu Changzheng had said, Zhao Lanlan became much quieter.
Liu Meiyu didn't know how Lu Changzheng handled it, but from then on, Zhao Lanlan would hide whenever she saw her.
Sometimes when I went to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy daily necessities, although this man didn't say a word, his arrogance was no longer as high as before, and he no longer dared to glare at me.
"What did you tell people?"
Liu Meiyu took her three brothers to play in the yard. The eldest and second brothers were sitting on the ground playing with building blocks, which were also made by Liu Meiyu who went to the village to ask Grandpa Zhang to make. In order to prevent the splinters from pricking their hands, Grandpa Zhang specially smoothed the blocks before sending them to them.
Although Xiaobao was frightened by what happened before, after enjoying several days of "special attention" in his mother's arms, the little guy became full of energy again and started snatching wood blocks with his brother.
"She has a mental problem. What can I say to others?" Lu Changzheng said with disgust.
Liu Meiyu curled her lips and guessed that Captain Zhao really wanted to send Zhao Lanlan to the countryside this time, which made her finally settle down.
But I couldn't stay still for long.
In just two or three months, news about Zhao Lanlan's boyfriend spread around the island again.
I heard that he was also the son of a worker in Huludao city and worked in a steel mill. He was also a handsome man and seemed to care about Zhao Lanlan very much. Not long after the two confirmed their relationship, he came to the island to visit Zhao Lanlan's aunt and uncle with noodles and sugar.
Zhao Chunmei and her husband were exhausted by their niece. They had originally planned to send her back to her hometown, but she ended up finding a partner within a few days.
"Aunt, I've discussed it with him. We're going to get engaged at the end of the month." Zhao Lanlan took Zhao Chunmei's arm and acted coquettishly. Her voice had never been so sweet.
Zhao Chunmei frowned. After all, she was her niece, so she was a little worried: "Have you taken a good look at her? Is she as good as you said?"
He was educated, had a formal job, lived in the city and had an allocated house. Apart from not having any factory manager relatives, Zhao Lanlan felt that this man was good in every way.
"Oh, I've been looking at it for several months. Aunt, please help me prepare it quickly. We are going to get engaged on the island." Zhao Lanlan pulled her braid, feeling very happy.
"It's not the time to hold a banquet now!" Zhao Chunmei frowned and tapped Zhao Lanlan on the head, "Do you still have your uncle in your eyes?"
"It's not a banquet, it's just a formal meal for my family." Zhao Lanlan rubbed her forehead with an impatient look on her face.
Seeing her like this, Zhao Chunmei was too lazy to say anything, because after all, he was the one she liked.
Two months ago, his uncle made up his mind to send her back to her hometown, but the girl was so stubborn that she made a lot of promises, so the couple softened their hearts.
I thought I'd wait and see after two months, and if her personality could really change, I'd find her a husband to marry her off.
Who would have thought that it had only been such a short time and he had already found a partner and was getting engaged.
"I won't get involved in this matter. Anyway, you can just telegraph to your parents. Your uncle and I can't do anything for you anymore."
Zhao Chunmei sent her niece away with a few words. Looking at the bags of food on the table that were sent by Zhao Lanlan's boyfriend, she was in a bad mood. She simply locked all the bags in the drawer and didn't even bother to take a look at them.
Zhao Lanlan, a troublemaker on the island, was getting engaged, but the news reached Liu Meiyu's ears within a few days.
But now she is so busy every day that she wishes she could grow three pairs of eyes, or even better, have an extra pair on the back of her head so that she can keep an eye on the three brothers who have just learned to walk.
"You said that Zhao Lanlan is overambitious but lacks the skills to achieve her goals. This really makes her lucky enough to have one good condition!" After lunch, Wu Guifang had nothing to do at home, so she came to help Liu Meiyu look after the baby.
When the three brothers were just over one year old and had formally learned to walk, it was a real pity for the adults.
If Lu Wanjun and Chang Zheng were not around, Liu Meiyun and Wu Ma would basically not dare to let anyone into the yard. Otherwise, after you brought one back, the other would run away again, which would make them exhausted.
"Who is so blind?" Mother Wu was holding Xiaobao and was very annoyed with Zhao Lanlan.
"I don't know. Anyway, he has been going to the island frequently recently. I heard that he is the publicity officer of the steel mill. He came back with a camera hanging around his neck. He looked so fashionable!"
Wu Guifang had never seen many foreign things, so when she saw someone carrying a camera, she thought he must be a great person, otherwise Zhao Lanlan would not look down on him.
Liu Meiyu concentrated on taking care of the children and didn't care much about Zhao Lanlan's partner. However, she was very happy for Zhao Lanlan to get married early so that she wouldn't have to spend every day on the island away from her. This made her feel unlucky every time she went to the supply and marketing cooperative.
"sister!"
Liu Bowen, who didn't have to go to school on the weekend, played with Song Jinbao and ran home sweating.
The triplets were so happy to see their uncle coming back that they all rushed over. The eldest and the second oldest ran faster and each held onto one of his legs. The youngest reacted slowly and when there was no room left, he rubbed his little butt to the sides and pushed the second oldest to the side, causing him to stumble.
"Why are these three in your family so close to Bowen?" Wu Guifang was puzzled when she saw it.
Liu Meiyu glanced at Xiao Hei who came back with Bo Wen and said with a smile: "The three brothers are trying to please their uncle and want to play with Xiao Hei."
"What?" Wu Guifang turned her head and glanced, and found that Xiao Hei was hiding from the triplets and going straight into the house.
Liu Meiyu said helplessly: "The three brothers love to pull the hair of Xiao Hei now, and they are very rough with it. Xiao Hei is hiding from them now."
Unless Liu Bowen is there, no one would dare to get close to these three brothers.
Not to mention Xiao Hei, even Liu Meiyu herself had her hair pulled, and she didn't know what was wrong.
"At this age, even dogs would dislike him." Wu Guifang concluded with a smile.
"Of course."
Liu Meiyu nodded, and when she saw Liu Bowen finally sent the three brothers to Mother Wu's place, she ran over and stretched out her hand in front of her, with half a piece of dark chocolate in her palm.
"Where did you come from?" Liu Meiyu was surprised.
Liu Bowen: “My uncle gave it to me!”
Song Jinbao nodded beside him, and shyly took out the remaining half of the chocolate and handed it to Wu Guifang, smiling: "Mom, you eat it."
When she smiled, a black mass stuck on her front teeth was exposed, making her look like a little old lady.
"Mom doesn't want to eat it. What is this black thing? Look at your teeth!"
Wu Guifang slapped him away in disgust and was just about to take out a handkerchief to wipe the food for him, but when Song Jinbao heard that his mother didn't want to eat it, he couldn't wait to stuff the last half into his mouth, licking his teeth with his little tongue and squinting his eyes in satisfaction.
"Which uncle gave this to you?" Liu Meiyu thought it was someone from the island. She took it and symbolically took a small bite. The taste was a little beyond her expectation.
It's not pure bitter, but has a special milky aroma. It's delicious. It tastes completely different from the ones sold in department stores in Shanghai, and it also has an inexplicable sense of familiarity.
"Aunt Zhao's object!" Liu Bowen took a bite and pursed his lips gently, afraid that it would stick to his front teeth.
"Who?" Liu Meiyu almost choked.
"Aunt Meiyun, I know!" Song Jinbao couldn't wait to add, "It was Aunt Zhao's boyfriend at the supply and marketing cooperative, the uncle with a camera hanging around his neck. The candy he gave us was delicious, and he even said he would take a picture of us!"
"I'm kidding you!" Wu Guifang was full of disbelief. It would be a waste of film to take pictures for a few naughty kids!
"Really!" Liu Bowen nodded his head and said seriously, "But I didn't agree, so I took Brother Jinbao away."
"Oh, why are you reluctant?" Wu Guifang felt that the two kids were talking nonsense and even putting on airs for taking a photo.
"He insisted on taking pictures of us in the school playground, but the school was closed and we couldn't get in!"
"Yes, yes, yes!" Song Jinbao finished eating his own chocolate, but still felt unsatisfied. He turned his head and stared at the remaining chocolate in Liu Bowen's hand, swallowing quietly.
"That's right, you're right! I'm always pissing you off!" Wu Guifang slapped Song Jinbao on the back of his head. She thought the child was embarrassing, so she dragged him home to cook. "Meiyun, I'm going home first."
"Okay, sister-in-law, take care."
Liu Meiyu came back to her senses, her tongue touching her lips and teeth, still savoring the special taste of the chocolate. She didn't know why, but she always felt it was so familiar.
Until before going to bed at night, Lu Changzheng was dealing with three energetic boys who were holding their bottles and eating without looking sleepy at all. He turned his head to see Liu Meiyu with an absent-minded look on her face.
"What are you thinking about?" Lu Changzheng gently pinched the tip of her nose.
"I'm thinking about Zhao Lanlan's boyfriend!"
"What do you want them to do?" Lu Changzheng shook the bottle in his hand, looking unhappy.
He had met Zhao Lanlan's boyfriend twice. He was just an ordinary guy, nothing special, far inferior to himself. His wife would definitely look down on him.
Liu Meiyu ignored him, still thinking about the piece of chocolate that Liu Bowen brought back in the morning.
She just couldn't forget that smell, but she couldn't remember it either. Anyway, she always felt that there was something strange about it.
"Don't think about it. We are getting engaged next week, and Comrade Zhao will not be on the island in the future. You can go to the supply and marketing cooperative as many times a day as you want."
Captain Lu thought Liu Meiyun was entangled with Comrade Zhao Lanlan, so he comforted her: "Anyway, you will probably not see each other many times in the future, so don't waste your brain on irrelevant people. You should comfort Erbao. If he keeps making trouble, the other two will not be able to sleep."
The eldest and youngest babies were eating their meals obediently while holding their bottles, but the second baby stopped drinking halfway and even tried to grab the bottles of his older and younger brothers, refusing to let them drink and insisting on making a fuss to play with him.
Xiaobao was very strong. When he saw Erbao reaching out to grab the bottle, he pushed him away without any hesitation. Erbao sat down on the kang. Then this guy turned around and tried to grab Dabao's... it was endless.
"Second baby!" Liu Meiyu picked up the little guy and pretended to eat meat, biting the little guy's chubby arm, "If you don't drink milk and go to sleep obediently, mom will eat you!"
Erbao was laughing so hard that he was not afraid. He even raised his other arm to Liu Meiyun and said in a baby voice, "Mom, eat some meat!"
"Drink your milk quickly. Mom will feed you tomorrow when you get fat!" Liu Meiyu was a little helpless.
But the second baby was unhappy. He insisted on raising his chubby little arms and asked Liu Meiyu to bite him. He would not leave until he was full!
“…”
After playing with the baby for a while, Liu Meiyu chewed on him all over until her cheeks were sore. Then she coaxed the little guy to drink milk and go to sleep exhausted.
Lu Changzheng collected the milk bottles for the three brothers and washed them, and then washed and hung the diapers that had been changed at night before returning to the kang. Seeing that his wife was tired and had fallen asleep, he turned off the kerosene lamp, leaned over and kissed his wife quietly, then he felt satisfied and prepared to go to bed.
"Lu Changzheng!"
Liu Meiyu suddenly opened her eyes and grabbed the man.
"Meiyun...what's wrong?"
He kissed me once, so there's no need to react so strongly, right? He kissed me several times this morning, and it was all fine, right?
"Light up the kerosene lamp first!"
"good"
Lu Changzheng heard the serious tone in Liu Meiyu's voice, so he got out of bed without saying a word and turned on the light again.
Seeing that Liu Meiyun looked strange, he touched his forehead and asked worriedly, "What's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?"
"No." Liu Meiyu brushed the man's hand away, her face looking ugly and confused, not knowing how to tell the man.
She was half asleep just now, and suddenly she remembered why the taste of the chocolate was so familiar.
When she was a salesperson in her previous life, Liu Meiyun once sold an imported brand of chocolate. Because of its unique taste and the fact that it was an old brand, although the price was high, there was no problem with sales during holidays.
As a top salesperson, Cyndi Lau not only knew the brand history and ingredients of the product by heart, she also tried the chocolate for nearly a month.
The taste is indeed unique, completely different from other chocolates on the market. And most importantly, Liu Meiyu clearly remembers that the brand only began to enter the domestic market after the reform and opening up. Before that, especially at this time, it was impossible to circulate in the domestic market.
Zhao Lanlan's boyfriend, a junior employee at a steel smelting plant, didn't know through what channel she got the money and was able to carry it with her to distribute to the children on the island.
Most people on the island didn't even know what chocolate was, let alone be able to taste something wrong. Liu Meiyun didn't know how to explain it to Lu Changzheng.
After thinking for a while, she asked tentatively, "Do you know the background of Zhao Lanlan's boyfriend?"
Lu Changzheng raised his eyebrows and said, "I don't know. I just heard that he was an ordinary worker. What's wrong?"
"I don't think he's ordinary at all." Liu Meiyu said decisively.
"What do you mean?" Lu Changzheng frowned. Seeing his wife's serious expression, he couldn't help but become serious.
"He distributed chocolates to the children on the island today. Bowen and Jinbao brought back a piece and I tried it. It tasted completely different from the ones sold in department stores in Shanghai. It had a very strange and rich fruity flavor, which was very unique."
"Maybe it was bought somewhere else?" Lu Changzheng was confused.
"No," Liu Meiyun shook her head and said with certainty, "Shanghai and Beijing definitely don't sell this. I ate it once when I was a child. It was brought back from abroad by my uncle's friend. It's very hard to get now!"
Liu Meiyu just thought about it and remembered that the original owner had an uncle who was wandering overseas. She could use this relationship to explain to the man and she didn't have to make up any excuses.
"And Bowen and Jinbao said that he insisted on going to the school playground today to take pictures of the children. I thought, can't we see one of your sentry posts over there? He always has a camera hanging around his neck and has been walking around the island for several times. What do you think is there to take pictures of on our island?"
That sentry post was only built temporarily and was later withdrawn. The family area and the troops on Hulu Island were not in the same area. The family area was next to the educated youth farm and the village, but the troops were alone on the other side, especially the troops led by Lu Changzheng, who had to go deeper.
"Are you sure you remember that chocolate correctly?"
Lu Changzheng always believed in his wife's words, but since the matter was of great importance, he couldn't help but want to confirm it again.
"I can't be 100% sure," Liu Meiyu always wanted to give herself some leeway, so she said, "Anyway, when I ate that chocolate today, I thought of my uncle. And didn't you buy me chocolate last time we were in Shanghai? The most expensive and best kind, but it wasn't as delicious as this one today!"
The last time I went to Shanghai, I wanted to spend all my money on Liu Meiyun, and at that time I was only interested in seeing her, so I don’t even remember what I bought.
"Wife, you go to sleep first. I'm going back to the troops." Lu Changzheng put on his military uniform with a serious expression.
Liu Meiyu didn't stop him. She even stood up to help him put on his belt and straighten his collar. She also found the milk biscuits that the triplets usually eat from the cupboard and put them in his pockets. "If you come back hungry late, just soak them in hot water until they are soft. Don't let me get hungry."
"I know, wife." Captain Lu nodded gently.
To him, Liu Meiyu's words were like orders from his superiors and he dared not disobey them.
Lu Changzheng went out and worked all night that night, and the next day he trained normally as if nothing had happened.
Liu Meiyu never asked any questions and just took care of the children as usual every day.
After a few days of peace and tranquility, the news that Zhao Lanlan was suddenly taken away was like a bomb dropped on their small island, causing countless waves.
Not only Zhao Lanlan, but also her aunt and uncle were taken away for investigation. It is still unknown whether they can return to this place.
"Oh my God, the person Zhao Lanlan was dealing with turned out to be a spy. This is so scary!" Wu Guifang saw Zhao Lanlan being taken away with her own eyes. When she heard the reason, she was so scared that her legs went weak. She immediately ran to Liu Meiyu for comfort.
"Meiyun, our Jinbao has eaten the chocolate he gave us and even talked to someone about it. Will our Lao Song be affected by it?"
Wu Guifang's voice was trembling. Two days ago, she was envious of the person who had a camera hanging around his neck, thinking that the person was capable. This time, she almost hated the person to death.
"It's okay, sister-in-law, you have to trust the organization." Liu Meiyu smiled and comforted, "My son Bowen also ate it, what does a child know? Don't be so surprised, it will be embarrassing for others to see."
“Yes, yes, yes,” Wu Guifang nodded repeatedly like a chicken pecking at rice, pretending to be calm: “I won’t ‘explode’ and I can’t explode!”
Such a big thing happened on the island. Not to mention Wu Guifang, even those people who usually have close contact with Zhao Chunmei's family have been trembling with fear these days and rarely go out.
Only in Liu Meiyun's family, everyone has to take care of the triplets every day and they can't spare any spare energy.
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