Chapter 152 Buying Shoes
He found some soft strips of cloth, and Yao Yao followed him, clutching a small piece of cloth.
Huo Zheng instructed her to gently guide the vines onto the bamboo pole and then loosely tie them with strips of cloth: "Don't tie them too tightly, or you'll damage the vines."
Yao Yao studied diligently, carefully holding the vines with her little hands, and even leaving a little gap when tying the cloth strips, for fear of hurting them.
Lu Mingyue helped by handing out strips of cloth, occasionally stopping to touch the downy hairs on the vines, her heart filled with joy.
"Mommy, Daddy, look!" Suddenly, Yao Yao's voice rose with surprise as she pointed to the top of a vine, her little finger waving excitedly.
Lu Mingyue and Huo Zheng looked in the direction she pointed and saw a small purple flower blooming at the top of the vine.
The petals are pale purple, with tender yellow stamens hidden in the center, making them look especially delicate against the backdrop of green leaves.
"The green beans have blossomed." Huo Zheng walked over, took a closer look, and said with a smile, "They've blossomed, and soon they'll bear green beans."
Yao Yao leaned closer, brought her nose close to the flower, and smelled it. She tilted her head up and said, "It smells so good, Mommy! Will the little purple flower turn into a string bean?"
"Yes, I do." Lu Mingyue squatted down and helped her tidy up the stray hairs on her forehead.
"After this flower withers, small green beans will grow, and they will slowly grow into the long green beans that we eat."
Yao Yao nodded, then ran to look at the other vines, hoping to find another flower: "I want to find more little purple flowers so that I can grow lots and lots of beans."
Huo Zheng watched his daughter skipping around, then looked at Lu Mingyue beside him with a beaming smile, and put his arm around her shoulder: "When the green beans are ripe, I'll make you your favorite stir-fried green beans with pork."
Within a few days, tiny tender pods sprouted on the vines.
Light green, like a crescent moon, hidden among the green leaves, it's hard to spot unless you look closely.
When Yao Yao went to the vegetable garden early in the morning, she spotted it at a glance and ran and jumped, shouting, "Mommy, the green beans have grown out, and there are so many little crescent moons!"
Lu Mingyue followed to see, and sure enough, there were more than a dozen tender pods hanging on the vegetable shelf, the longest of which was only the length of a finger, and they felt soft to the touch.
"It's not fully grown yet. We'll be able to pick it and eat it in a few more days," she said with a smile.
But Yao Yao kept thinking about it and would count the vegetables under the shelf every day.
That evening, Leilei came home from school and, before even putting down his schoolbag, shouted, "Dad, Mom, the teacher said there's a parent-teacher conference tomorrow, and one of you needs to go."
Lu Mingyue was picking vegetables she had just borrowed from Sister Wang's house when she heard this and looked up: "Parent-teacher meeting? How were you doing at school? Were you naughty?"
Leilei immediately straightened his back: "I wasn't naughty. The teacher even praised my handwriting."
Huo Zheng returned from outside and overheard this conversation. He smiled and said, "Okay, I'll go to the parent-teacher conference tomorrow. Let your mother rest at home; she's pregnant."
Lu Mingyue was a little worried: "Don't you have training tomorrow? Why don't I go instead? It's just a meeting, it's not tiring."
“You can ask for leave for training, but you can’t miss the parent-teacher meeting.” Huo Zheng put down his hoe. “I want to hear how the teacher praises our son. Besides, you’re pregnant, so it’s not convenient for you to walk back and forth.”
The next morning, Huo Zheng specially changed into his freshly washed military uniform and combed his hair neatly.
Before leaving, Leilei held his hand and instructed him, "Dad, when the teacher asks you questions, you must answer them properly. Don't be like last time when I asked you a math question and you couldn't say anything for a long time."
Huo Zheng patted his head: "Don't worry, your dad isn't nervous when I speak to soldiers in the army, so what's a parent-teacher meeting?"
While Huo Zheng was attending a parent-teacher meeting, Lu Mingyue took Yao Yao to look at the green beans under the vegetable rack.
The pods have grown longer, their color has deepened, and they feel firmer to the touch.
Yao Yao stood on tiptoe and pointed to the longest tender pod, saying, "Mommy, when Daddy and Brother come back, shall we pick this one to eat?"
Lu Mingyue nodded: "Okay, when they come back, we'll pick some of the tenderest ones and stir-fry them for everyone."
Around noon, Huo Zheng and Lei Lei returned. Huo Zheng smiled as soon as he entered the door.
“Our son wasn’t bragging. His teacher praised him for being attentive in class and helping to take care of the younger students, saying he’s a sensible little man.”
Leilei stood to the side, his face flushed, but he couldn't help but grin.
Yao Yao immediately pulled Lei Lei to the vegetable garden: "Brother, look how long the green beans have grown, let's pick some to eat."
The two children picked the green beans, and when Lu Mingyue opened them, she could see the tiny, tender beans inside.
She went back to the kitchen, chopped the green beans into small cubes, and cracked four eggs.
The oil sizzled as it hit the pan, and the eggs quickly scrambled into golden-brown ribbons. Then, the green beans were added and stir-fried, sprinkled with salt, and a fresh aroma filled the house.
There were two sausages left under the eaves, so Lu Mingyue made another pot of claypot rice.
"It smells so good!" The two children peered eagerly from the kitchen doorway.
After Lu Mingyue finished cooking, Huo Zheng brought the food to the table. The children sat down eagerly, each holding their bowl obediently and waiting for their mother.
Huo Zheng picked up his chopsticks, took a bite of stir-fried green beans and eggs, and put it in his mouth. The crisp green beans were coated with the aroma of eggs, and he couldn't help but nod: "Delicious. The first batch of green beans that have just come down really tastes different."
The two children were so engrossed in eating their claypot rice that they didn't even look up, and Lu Mingyue also had a good appetite today.
Luckily, we cooked enough food at home, otherwise there wouldn't have been enough for the whole family.
During the meal, Huo Zheng mentioned that there was another important matter at the upcoming parent-teacher conference.
"The school is holding a parent-teacher meeting, and children can attend if they are interested."
Leilei, with rice still in his mouth and his cheeks bulging, said, "I want to participate in the running race, Xiaoman too, and Niu Niu too, we'll all go together."
"A running race?"
This was the child's first time participating in a sports meet, and Lu Mingyue thought it should look good, but she remembered that Lei Lei's sports shoes seemed to have a small hole in them, and it was time to buy a new pair.
Leilei shook his head, "No need, Mom, those shoes can still be worn if you sew them up a little."
Many of his classmates wore shoes that were covered in patches, but those shoes only had a small hole, so Leilei didn't think it was a big problem.
He was confident that he could win first place even if he went barefoot.
Lu Mingyue's heart softened. This child had been sensible since he was little and knew that it wasn't easy for adults to earn money.
She patted Leilei's head and said, "You don't need to worry about money. You're growing right now, and if your shoes are too small, they'll be uncomfortable when you run in the sports meet. Even if you get these shoes repaired, you won't be able to wear them again in a while. It's good to buy a new pair."
Huo Zheng nodded in agreement. "Your mother is right. Let's go to the supply and marketing cooperative together tomorrow and pick out a suitable one for you so you can run faster at the sports meet."
Leilei was still a little hesitant, "But won't the new shoes be very expensive?"
"No, let's go to the supply and marketing cooperative and pick out a pair that's cheap and suitable."
Lu Mingyue said with a smile, but in her heart she was thinking that it didn't matter if it was a little expensive, comfort was the most important thing.
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