116. Father and Son
"I bought a washing machine for my third sister's family, so the two elderly people can do their laundry." When people get old, they need to wash and change clothes frequently if they want to stay clean. My third sister is busy in the fields every day, so she doesn't have time to wash a pile of clothes every day. Afraid that my third sister and brother-in-law would have objections, he bought a washing machine from the south and brought it over, specifying that it was for my parents' laundry. Of course, if the adults and children don't mind, they can use it as they please.
"My parents don't call you Xiao Ning anymore, they practically wish you were surnamed Su, since their daughter's status is lower than their son-in-law's," Su Yu teased him.
"Of course, of course." Ning Jin felt it was a small matter. Just based on the fact that his father-in-law had worried that his daughter might have an affair and had advised him to quit his job to reunite with his wife and children before taking the old man to see the doctor, it was only right that he consider his father-in-law's feelings.
He glanced at Su Yu and thought things were fine as they were. If his third sister and her husband got impatient with the old couple, then he and Su Yu would also be in trouble. Now she was settled in the Northwest, her two sons were in big cities, and he himself was wandering all over the place. How could he take care of his over-eighty-year-old father-in-law and mother-in-law? It was better to spend money to keep things peaceful.
“The washing machine isn’t expensive. If it weren’t for the water shortage where you are, I would have sent one to you too. You won’t have to wash by hand, which will make things easier. I’ll bring one home next time I come over. Ping’an can bring back any dirty clothes or sheets to wash. It’s just that Xiao Yuan is at a disadvantage. He lives at school in the capital, and we don’t have a house in the capital either, so we won’t have a place to put the washing machine.”
“Then let’s buy a house in the capital.” Su Yu immediately said, “I had forgotten about it until you mentioned it. I had planned to buy a house in the capital before, but other things always came up and I got stuck with the idea. Next time I go out of the desert, let’s go directly to the capital to buy a house.”
The man stared straight at her. Was this a spur-of-the-moment decision? "Are you serious?" he asked.
"Really, where do you think would be a good place for us to live after we retire? I think the capital is great. It's the political, economic, and cultural center. It's bound to be good there. Whether it's transportation or hospital facilities, they're definitely top-notch. Besides, property prices are bound to rise in the future. If we don't want to live there anymore, we can just resell it when prices are high. We won't lose money anyway." She knew how much property prices in the capital would skyrocket in the coming decades. Now that she had money, she figured she might as well take advantage of the cheap prices and buy a few more properties, then sit back and wait for the demolition compensation to travel around after retirement.
"Then let's buy it." Ning Jin felt that Su Yu was a college student and a public servant in a government department, so her analysis and intuition were based on accurate market trends. Most importantly, the money was all in her savings account, and whether to save it for interest or buy a house was entirely up to her.
Since he was going to the capital next month, he didn't linger after Su Yu left. He drove south to deliver the washing machine to the house in the Northeast before they met again next month, freeing his son from washing clothes.
“I’ll do the installation. I’m the one who deals with machines.” Ping An stopped his father, bent down and squatted on the ground to connect the water pipes and straighten the wires at the electrical outlet.
"Dad, how many days are you staying this time?"
"Two or three days, I think. You're coming back to stay these few days. I haven't seen you for months." Ning Jin squatted on the steps, looking at his tall and muscular son, and asked, "What have you been busy with for the past six months? I've never seen you when I come to visit."
"I'm busy with my studies." Ping An plugged in the washing machine, and when the machine lit up, he turned to his father and said, "Dad, I want to be a soldier. My future job should be one that directly addresses the country's needs."
"Join the army?"
“No, I enlisted through technical means, so my household registration will be transferred to military status. From now on, I will go wherever the country needs me.” Ping An looked at his face, worried that he might disagree.
What did your mother say?
“My mom doesn’t know yet. The letter was only sent two days ago, and she probably hasn’t received it yet.” Ping An looked at the man with wrinkles at the corners of his eyes and said, “I really want to become a soldier.”
"Then go for it. Your mom will definitely support you. She's the kind of person who gets bored if she stays in one place for too long. She definitely won't care if your work location isn't fixed." Ning Jin looked at the young man in front of him with pride. Such an outstanding man was actually his son. Twenty-two years ago, when he first became a father, he never dared to imagine that his son would be so successful.
"So what do you think? I definitely won't be home much in the future; there will be many times when you won't see me for months at a time."
“The one who will be with me in my old age is mainly your mother. If your mother is the clothes I wear, then you and Xiaoyuan are like the two pockets on those clothes. Having them is good, not having them is a little inconvenient, but it won't have a big impact.” Ning Jin was unusually poetic for once. He felt that the atmosphere at this moment was rare. Suppressing the urge to raise his eyebrows, he continued in a deep voice, “I remember when you were young, you told your mother that you wanted to be a policeman. I always thought I would have a policeman son. However, you didn't get into a police academy after the college entrance examination. Now you have the idea of becoming a soldier. I feel that my family is destined to have a child with military status. I am especially happy to have a son who serves the country. Dad supports you. Don't worry about the problem of taking care of us in our old age. Your mother and I are not old and are in good health. We don't need our son to take care of us.”
He remembered that a few years ago, when Su Yu was about to go to the Northwest, she had said that once her two sons got married, she would send them out to start their own families. He smiled and said, "If you and Xiao Yuan stop being attached to your mother and stop being homesick, your mother will definitely be so happy she'll jump for joy."
“I knew she meant that.” Ping An couldn’t handle his father’s sudden emotional outburst and pretended to be angry, saying, “My mom’s trip to the Northwest definitely means she doesn’t want to have much contact with me and Xiao Yuan.”
"No, that's not it." Ning Jin realized she had misspoke and quickly explained that if she meant that, she wouldn't need to travel between Harbin and the capital every month. "If she didn't want to see you two, she could just say that she has a lot of things to do in the Northwest and can't leave you alone. Even if she took the train to the Northwest, you still wouldn't be able to find her."
Ping An stared at him suspiciously, but seeing his calm expression, she silently muttered "old fox, shameless" and changed the subject, asking, "Are you sleeping in Xiao Yuan's room tonight or with me?"
Ning Jin was deeply attached to his eldest son and said without thinking, "Let's sleep together, you and I. I haven't slept with you for many years."
In the evening, after taking a bath, Ping An soaked her clothes in a basin for a while before putting them in the washing machine and fiddling with them. Ning Jin went inside first, lay on the bed feeling a bit bored, and noticed a magazine with an old cover among the books on the bedside table. He casually picked it up, opened it, and then hurriedly closed it again. He climbed to the end of the kang (a heated brick bed) and saw that his son was still in the yard. He leaned against the headboard and secretly continued reading.
"Oh, Dad, you're interested in reading and studying now?" Ping An walked in and saw his dad engrossed in a book, so he couldn't help but tease him. But when he saw his dad throw the book on the ground in surprise and panic, he instinctively felt that something was wrong.
Their eyes met, then they hurriedly looked away, the pages of the book that had been laid out on the ground being moved away as if they had been burned.
The two refused to look at each other, leaving the naked beauty lying pitifully on the ground, biting her lip.
The atmosphere in the room gradually became tense. Ping An coughed and said casually, "Well, this is what my classmate brought when he came to stay. He forgot to take it. I'll bring it to him tomorrow." He stiffly stood on tiptoe, looking around, and hurriedly picked up the magazine. His hand touched the picture of a glamorous woman, and he pinched a corner to lift it up. When Ning Jin looked over and saw the new posture on the new page, she immediately blushed, especially since she was in the same room as her son.
"This thing should be kept at the bottom of the cabinet, not just left lying around. We're not just a house for one person; if Er Ya and her siblings come and see this eyesore, things will get messy," he scolded sternly.
"I already said it belongs to my classmate, not mine," Ping An stubbornly refused to admit.
Ping An became increasingly nervous and embarrassed, while Ning Jin, the experienced driver, had calmed down. He looked at his son, who was fidgeting with his hands and feet, and suddenly sighed with relief: "My son has grown up."
Ping An glared at him, still stubbornly insisting, "It's not mine."
"What's there to be ashamed of? I was already married to your mother when I was your age." He forced himself to pull the magazine over, and when Ping An refused, he rolled his eyes at her. "Go ahead and look, it's quite eye-opening. I was curious about this stuff when I was young, but I could never find it anywhere. Now I'm here to feast my eyes on it."
"How can you be so shameless? It's so annoying." Ping An sighed helplessly, pulled up a chair and sat by the door to get some fresh air, refusing to look at the person leaning against the kang (heated brick bed).
"Do you have a girlfriend?" Ning Jin asked, closing the book.
"No."
"Really not?"
"If there isn't one, then there isn't one. Don't ask any more questions. If I find a suitable one, I'll bring it home." Ping pretended to be very principled, and deliberately spoke loudly.
His pretentious manner only strengthened Ning Jin's control of the situation. "Does Xiao Yuan have this book? You two can exchange it, right?"
"No, it was brought by my classmate."
“Then your classmate should have forgotten some books in Xiaoyuan’s room. I’ll go take a look. The content should be different. I’ll study them more.” He sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) and prepared to put on his shoes and go out.
"Oh dear—" Ping An drew out her voice, her face flushed as she stared at him. "What do you want to do? Okay, I admit it, I bought it."
“That’s right. You’re a grown man, it’s not like you’re doing anything shameful. If you’re not curious about this kind of thing, then you’re doomed.” Ning Jin sat back on the kang and warned, “You have to be responsible for what you do. You’re not allowed to mess around with this kind of thing. If you get a girl pregnant before you’re married, don’t call me Dad. I’ll break your legs and kick you out of the house.”
"You're really open-minded." Ping An gave him a thumbs up without saying a word, then shook his head and said, "We college students don't know how to have fun like you middle-aged people."
"I believe you don't have a girlfriend," Ning Jin said mysteriously.
"Get out, don't sleep on the same kang as me." Ping An grabbed him and pulled him out the door, throwing his shoes out the window. "Shameless." He spat at the outside, closed the window, and then covered himself with the blankets and kicked his legs.
He could exchange new resources amicably with Xiao Yuan, but he felt ashamed and embarrassed in front of his elders. Ugh, so embarrassing!!
Ning Jin breathed a sigh of relief when he came out. He was embarrassed to have been caught by his son peeking at his erotic novel. Luckily, the young man was shameless and got the first chance.
“Ping An, come on, I’ll take you shopping.” The next morning, he spoke to his son, whose eyes were wandering.
"What do you need? I don't need anything. If I do need something, I'll know to buy it myself."
“No, you definitely need it, and you don’t know where the best place to buy it is,” Ning Jin said with certainty.
Ping An followed him into the Overseas Chinese Store, blushing as he looked at the English packaging in front of him. It was indeed something he didn't know or understand.
"You choose, buy all sizes—small, medium, and large—and try them on. Pick the one that fits you best." Ning Jin calmly instructed, "Buy two sets, and send one to Xiao Yuan as well."
"I don't need this." Ping An glanced at the salesperson sizing him up, then angrily strode out the door.
Ning Jin didn't mind. He brought his son over mainly to show him the way, so that he wouldn't make a big mistake if he couldn't find the place when he needed it.
"I want ten large ones, and four large and four medium ones as well, to be packaged in two separate sets." Ning Jin instructed skillfully, taking out overseas Chinese coupons from his shirt pocket, then putting the ten large sets into his inner pocket and the other eight into his trouser pocket.
"When are you leaving?" Ping An asked.
"What's wrong? Are you trying to kick me out? I don't need you to kick me out, I'm in a hurry to leave myself." He had been reading a magazine late into the night, and he was feeling really agitated.
Ning Jin went back to pack his things, threw four condoms on Ping An's table, and stuffed the other four into an envelope to send to Xiao Yuan. Inside was a letter instructing him not to get his girlfriend pregnant.
He was the one who urged the man to leave, but Ping An felt bad about it when he actually left. "Where are you going? How about I take you to play for a few more days?"
“My son doesn’t welcome me, so I’m going to the desert to find my wife.” Ning Jin set off to buy a train ticket to the Northwest. As he left, he patted his head and said, “Son, remember to come back inside. I’ve left you something good on the table.”
Seeing his expression, Ping An knew what it was without even guessing. "You should leave now," he urged him again.
After watching his father leave, Ping An originally planned to go back to school immediately, but after taking two steps, he stomped his foot, turned around and went back into the house. After closing the door, he peeked through the crack in the door and saw that his father had not returned. He went back to his bedroom like a thief and carefully read the small bag full of English writing.
"What's so great about learning this? The steps are all written out so clearly." He muttered to himself, "Who does he think he is, buying all sizes to try it out?"
But hands are honest; they tear open the two bags and carefully compare them.
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