When the car returned from the provincial capital to Zhangjia Village, it was already dark and there were still a few lights in the village.
Zhang Guoqing and his mother got out of the car, and Zhang Guoqing unloaded his belongings and went inside with his mother. His father was already extremely anxious, and when he saw them, he ran out, which was a rare opportunity. He asked them to move everything except the books and tapes into their room in the east wing of the main house and let them pack up themselves.
Zhang Guoqing didn't have time to say a few words to his parents. He carried a few piles of old books and tapes and put them in the small living room. Then he quickly ran back to move the things down, parked the car, and finally waited for his father to carry the last bag. Then he quickly brought back the last book and ran back to his room.
He didn't bother to tidy up the books and just piled them in the small living room. He took the bag of tapes into the room. As soon as he entered, he saw Zhou Jiao leaning there waiting for him to come in. When she saw him, her face immediately broke into a smile.
"Jiaojiao, what did you eat tonight? Are you impatient?"
"Brother, have you eaten? Did my mom buy a sleeper berth? Are we back in Beijing?"
The two of them said this in unison and laughed out loud.
Zhang Guoqing looked at his son, who was still awake. "Ping'an, why aren't you asleep yet? Baby, your dad is back. Honey, I bought a lot of tapes. You won't be bored in the future. There are songs, storytelling, and dramas. They are all in the bag. I'll put them aside for now. You can take a look later. Son, daddy will play some songs for you."
Zhang Guoqing put the tape away, turned down the volume, kissed Zhou Jiao, and hugged her. "What did you eat tonight? Were they impatient? Did they say anything sour? Did you feel wronged?"
Zhou Jiao twisted her body and leaned against him comfortably. "No, my sister-in-law brought it over. At noon, it was noodles with chicken soup and chicken legs from the stove. At night, my sister-in-law also brought rice with chicken legs and chicken soup from the stove. Smell it and see if it smells like chicken soup and stinks."
Zhang Guoqing rested his chin against her head and sniffed hard, "You don't smell bad, you smell good. The whole room smells like chicken soup, and it smells like meat. Jiaojiao, I want to eat meat." He said this with a double entendre and smacked his lips.
Zhou Jiao burst out laughing and shook in his arms. Zhang Guoqing found it funny and tickled her, deliberately playing tricks on her to make her laugh at him.
Finally stopping, Zhou Jiao stopped laughing, "There's a lot of meat at home these days, eat as much as you can. Haha, brother, go eat first, and come back early to talk to me after you finish eating."
"Okay, come back as soon as you're done eating. Nine horses can't pull you back. I'll make some white fungus and red date soup in the stove for you as a midnight snack. I'm afraid you're tired of the old hen soup every day these days. Tomorrow I'll change the taste for you and let's eat something else. We have a stove this time, so we don't have to avoid them. At most, we can cook some and leave a bowl for them."
Zhang Guoqing let her go, went to the box to find white fungus, red dates, and sugar cubes, washed them, put them in a small pot, placed them on the coal briquettes, closed the small gate of the coal briquettes stove, and stewed them slowly.
"How's your donkey-hide gelatin? If you can still tolerate it, then keep eating it. Your mother's stewed method didn't work. I think you should ask a doctor to make donkey-hide gelatin paste. Just like before, add some walnuts, red dates, and honey and boil it into a paste. That way, you can slowly eat it as a nutritional supplement after you're out of confinement."
"No need to find anyone. I learned it from my grandma. I can prepare it myself better than others. Find me some black sesame seeds. Look at my hair, it's so dry and yellow, it looks so ugly. I have all the other ingredients."
Zhang Guoqing looked at her in disbelief.
Zhou Jiao rolled her eyes at him. "What are you looking at me with? I really know medicine. I'm a descendant of the imperial physician, specializing in gynecology and pediatrics. You have to give me confidence. I'll stay up a little longer this time and show you how it goes."
"I don't believe you're ugly. In my eyes, you're the most beautiful, and your smile is so alluring. Honey, it's true. Look into my eyes, do you see my sincerity? How about asking Doctor Zhou to make you a bottle or two first, and then make it after you've finished your confinement."
Zhou Jiao shook her head, raised her chin, squinted her eyes, and said proudly: "Don't bother so much, I've been fine for 7-8 days and can get out of bed. I make it myself and add some rock sugar. I know the taste. It won't taste good if it's too sweet."
Zhang Guoqing loved her little trick so much that he hugged her and took a bite. "Okay, I'll listen to you. Wait for me to find some black sesame seeds, and you tell me to do it."
"Then go eat first. You have to clean up here." After saying that, Zhou Jiao waved her hand in disdain and told him to go eat first. If he continued, his mother would yell.
When Zhang Guoqing arrived at the main hall, his mother had just set the table. Dinner was actually sweet potato rice, leftover braised hairtail fish and stir-fried chicken with chili peppers, plus some pork head and cabbage soup from home.
Zhang Guoqing saw his father sitting next to him and said, "Oh, there are so many meat dishes. Dad, you should eat with us. If you are not hungry, have a drink of wine."
His father nodded immediately and said, "Okay, I'll have a drink with your mother. When I see good food, I want to drink."
Zhang's mother handed him the empty seat at the table and asked Xizi in the main hall to get a pair of chopsticks for his grandfather. Then she looked at Zhang's father with displeasure. This old man was just greedy for wine. He thought she didn't see him and was waiting for Xiaowu to invite him. Otherwise, he would have left the table and returned to the kang to smoke his pipe.
Father Zhang asked Zhang Guoqing, "Why did you come back so late? Isn't the train at 10 o'clock? I saw it was dark when you came back, and I thought you and your mother were lost. I was just about to ask someone to look for you." After saying that, he laughed out loud.
Mother Zhang swallowed the food in her mouth, put down her chopsticks, and said to him, "We would lose it, what a joke. I really enjoyed Big City today. Xiaowu took me to the Friendship Shopping Mall that foreigners bought, to the department store, and to the park. We were supposed to be back later, but Xiaowu took me to the cinema. Oh my god, it was full of young men and women. I had to drag Xiaowu back with all my might, otherwise I would have died of excitement. How could an old woman go to the cinema to watch a movie. Later, Xiaowu took me to ask for directions and bought a lot of those tapes. Xiaowu, is that what they call it? Right? I'm smart enough to remember them all. His father, those tapes can be used to listen to dramas, storytelling, and songs. Xiaowu said that if you put them into the radio in his room, it sounds just like the real person singing. I'll let you listen to them later. It's amazing, isn't it? You haven't been there. That place is even more lively than the market."
"It's quite lively. If it weren't lively, you two wouldn't have come back until dark. They said they would wait for you to come back for dinner, but I told them I had eaten first. Maybe you two had already eaten in the city." Father Zhang nodded with a smile.
Mother Zhang quickly ate a few mouthfuls of rice and continued, "Xiaowu really wanted to come back after dinner, but I refused. We had lunch at a big restaurant. Look, these are the leftovers. He ordered too much, and we couldn't finish it, so we brought it back. I won't eat there again at night. I just want to go home quickly. No matter how good the big city is, it's still not as comfortable as my home."
Zhang's father agreed with her. A house of gold or silver was not as good as his own thatched cottage. Not to mention the courtyard of the three brothers, which his father had painstakingly renovated with the eldest brother's efforts. Even the people in the provincial capital might not be as comfortable as his family.
"Did you two personally see your in-laws off to the train and arrange for their luggage? And did you notify the Lin family to pick her up at the station? If not, your mother-in-law probably wouldn't be able to carry five large bags. And, mother, did you see the train? What was it like? It's just a bunch of cars connected together, nothing special."
Mother Zhang burst out laughing, quickly covered her mouth, swallowed her food, and said hurriedly: "What are so many cars connected together? That's a train. Unlike a truck, there are so many things inside. I specifically looked and there are many people who have no seats and have to sit on the ground. Dad, you said that being an official is good, you don't have to queue up, you can directly buy that berth, which is a small bed. I saw it, there are empty seats in the berth, but the people at the back can't get in, they can only sit on the ground at the back. What do you think of this?" After sighing, Mother Zhang hurried to eat.
"Being an official is good in every way. Otherwise, so many people would want to be officials. Your mother's father-in-law, the scholar, would have been thinking about it until his death. You haven't told me yet whether your in-laws have sent a car and notified the other side to pick them up?"
Zhang Guoqing quickly replied, "I sent a telegram, specifying that it's a man carrying 500 kilograms of stuff, and that I should pick him up at the station at 5:00 PM the day after tomorrow, the 23rd. I contacted the stationmaster, and he arranged for the conductor of this train, who is also the head train driver, to help him get on the train early. I also told the conductor to take good care of my mother-in-law, and I also gave the man two wild rabbits to eat on the way. It's all good, everything has been arranged. Don't worry."
"Okay, just make the arrangements. Mom, after you finish your meal, clean up the pile of things in the house as soon as possible. I'll go to bed early tonight. The foundation has been dug today. Do you have anything to do tomorrow, Xiaowu? If not, go over and help as soon as possible. Otherwise, it will be embarrassing if your uncle and younger uncle's families come to help you build the house and you don't see them."
Zhang Guoqing nodded at his father. "Get up early tomorrow morning and work for half a day. After lunch, I'll drive to the provincial capital to return the car. When I get back, I'll visit the principal of the county school, so I'll be back a little late. I won't be going out for now. I don't have anything else to do."
Father Zhang finished his drink and didn't pour any more. He put down his chopsticks and said, "Just take care of it yourself. Get busy with your business first. If you have time, even if you don't go over there to help, at least go and have a good talk with them. When Jiaojiao comes out of confinement, have your mother take her to talk to your aunt and the other women. Oh, and your eldest sister will warm the house the day after tomorrow. Mother, you can arrange it for her. It doesn't have to be too nice, as there will be a lot of people going there from the village, and they will have a lot of gossip."
"Dad, I know. When I have free time, I'll keep in touch with them and visit them more often. Mom, big sister, tell me if you need anything."
"No, I bought a lot today and have everything ready. Don't help me clean up. I got up at 4:00 this morning and didn't get any sleep at noon. I'll be busy again tomorrow morning. Go back to your room and get some sleep." After saying this, Zhang's mother quickly took the dishes and chopsticks. She didn't even call her daughter-in-law, but picked up the dishes and chopsticks and hurried to the kitchen.
Father Zhang waved his hand, telling him to go home early. He'd hunted two wild boars yesterday and worked until midnight. He'd also cleared the backyard early this morning and gone up the mountain to collect firewood. He was young, or else he'd have been laid down long ago.
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