Zhou Jiao knew her mother couldn't stay in the village with her temper. "Okay, those bills are in the drawer next to the bed, and the remittance vouchers are in the innermost. Take them all. If you don't have enough money, I have some here. It's just that it's inconvenient to go to the provincial capital. Even if you go to the provincial capital with grandpa tomorrow, it will still take you five hours to get back alone, and you have to carry things with you. Are you sure you want to go? I think I'm not going to bother. Why don't you wait until my dad comes back? You see, you brought so much stuff, there's really nothing you need to buy."
Lin Lishan thought to herself, "Forget it, I'll go ask your grandfather if he can keep the car with me for a few days. He'll drive one away. When Xiaowu comes back, he can just drop me off at the train station and return the car."
Zhou Jiao gave a thumbs up, laughed heartily in admiration and said, "Oh my god, that's amazing. Don't ask, it's not easy for the six of them to take a car. If Xizi and the others were like this, it would be fine."
Xizi looked at the mother and daughter after hearing this, and didn't pay attention to his younger brother and sister. "Aunt, you forgot about my uncle's car. When he's not driving, he sometimes parks it at home."
Lin Lishan laughed heartily. "You're not as good as Xizi. I can drive a truck, too. How many tons is it? I can just pull your mother-in-law up there. It'll be just big enough for her."
If Xizi hadn't said it, Zhou Jiao really couldn't remember it for a moment, she had really forgotten, "Okay, the textile factory does have large and small trucks. We need to find Xiaowu. Xizi, help your aunt find your uncle. Be quiet and don't shout. Ask him to come over."
Xizi nodded and ran out. He heard a burst of delicious food coming from the kitchen outside, so he ran straight into the main room. Seeing everyone chatting, he went up and pulled Zhang Guoqing's clothes.
Zhang Guoqing looked at him suspiciously. Seeing him pointing his finger at the opposite side, he stood up and followed him out. "What's the matter? Is there something you want? Tell me, and I'll help you find it."
Xizi rolled his eyes and said, "I'm grown up now. I'm not a baby who doesn't know anything and always asks you for things. It was my aunt who asked me to come to you. You'll see when you go there that grandma is there too." He muttered to himself that his uncle also has his moments of stupidity. He stopped asking adults for things a few years ago.
Seeing the boy's arrogant look, Zhang Guoqing ruffled his hair vigorously, and then took his little hand and went back to the bedroom in the west wing with a smile. Seeing the bedroom, the mother and daughter did not seem to have anything important to do. The children also surrounded their son, "Mom, Jiaojiao, what's the matter?"
Zhou Jiao smiled and waved him forward. "Nothing. I just want to go to the Friendship Mall in the provincial capital. Isn't it inconvenient to take a car by myself? I can drive myself, but now that you're gone, I don't have a car anymore. I thought you could ask Uncle Xizi to borrow one."
Zhang Guoqing laughed and looked at Zhou Jiao and said, "Oh, silly wife, you don't need to borrow a car. Mom also has a car, and there's no need to borrow it. You don't even need to find anyone to help you. Think about it."
Zhou Jiao looked at him and her mother in confusion. Where did she get the car? She only had two. If she drove away, they would be gone.
"Don't think about it, it's a waste of brainpower. Mom will come with us tomorrow and stay at the military area for one night. We can just drive the car away the day after tomorrow. We're worried about not having a car in the military area, so leaving one for Grandpa is enough. Mom is a serving soldier, so no one would mind if she drove away and said she had a mission."
"You silly girl, you said you didn't need to tell your grandpa, look, it's solved, haha, my little five is still smart."
"She's just blinded by the light. Wait until Mom brings the car back. If I don't need it anymore, I'll just drive over and return it. You and Mom can wait and rest. The mutton soup outside will be ready in a while. You can drink this. I'll use less salt and make some noodles for you to eat and sleep. The outside is filled with the aroma of mutton now."
Lin Lishan was also quite interested. "Okay, let's chat. After she eats, let her sleep. Mutton soup is good and can dispel cold. It would be even better if we add angelica to this mutton soup for Jiaojiao."
Zhang Guoqing turned around and looked for red dates. "Mom, we don't have any angelica. How about red dates? Red dates are good for blood. Jiaojiao, where are our red dates? I remember they were in that box. Oh, now I remember, they're in the outer cabinet with the brown sugar."
"Xiaowu, just add red dates. You don't need too many, just five or six for your big bowl. If other people like red dates, add more. And don't add noodles to Jiaojiao's soup. Just boil two eggs, peel them, and add them to the mutton soup for her. Noodles won't make it easy to sleep, so add more mutton. We have to buy a stove tomorrow anyway."
Zhang Guoqing nodded and gave her a thumbs-up. "Okay, you're the expert, Mom. Jiaojiao eats little, so she needs to eat small meals frequently. A small stove will keep her warm. Small stoves are hard to find. The big ones that every household in the county town has are not good. They smoke too much, and the child is too young and it's not good for his trachea. Mom, can you go to the Friendship Mall and see if they have an alcohol stove like that? At the very least, a small coal stove is recommended, which can be placed in the outer room. I'll also look for one in the provincial capital."
"Okay, if you find it and buy it, there's no need to worry about having too much. We can stew the sweet and salty ones separately together." Lin Lishan made the decision directly because of her wealth.
"Mom, I'll do as you say. Bring all the remittance vouchers and bills over tomorrow. Jiaojiao has the money, so if you see something suitable, buy it. I have a car anyway. Also, if you see any raincoats, buy one for me. Jiaojiao's old one can be thrown away. Jiaojiao, take a look at what else I can bring over. Winter is coming and you'll be afraid of the cold, so think carefully about what hand warmers you might need."
"She doesn't need to worry about it. She said she wants to keep a low profile. Even if she thinks about it for a year, she won't be able to come up with it. Xiaowu, don't worry. Your mother is a top-notch shopper. No one will dislike what I buy."
"Okay, Mom will find something suitable for her and give it to her. It's especially cold here in the winter. Her small body needs to be well nourished during the confinement period and made plump and white."
Zhou Jiao watched with amusement as the two of them chatted increasingly animatedly. If they continued, the car would likely overflow. "Come on, I'll do as you say. Mom needs to drive carefully tomorrow. We'll stay the night after dark. I'll have my mother-in-law come over to take care of her tomorrow night. Brother, you should also keep an eye on Mom tomorrow. Don't let her drive back alone in the dark."
Zhang Guoqing loaded the red dates and said, "Don't worry, if it's after 5 pm, I won't let you move the car even if I tow it. I'm going out to put the red dates." After saying that, he touched the heads of a few little ones who were listening with great interest and walked out.
Xizi rolled his eyes and said to Lin Lishan and her daughter, "Grandma, Auntie, let's go find my uncle. Ping'an needs to be fed. He's even moving his mouth."
Xizi secretly planned to take his younger brother and sister to chase his uncle. There would be food if he followed his uncle, and if he agreed, they could go shopping in the provincial capital tomorrow.
Zhou Jiao looked at the time and saw that it had been quite a while since the last time she had milk. "Mom, it's been more than three hours. Should I feed her? She usually cries after four hours."
Lin Lishan looked at her watch. Time passed really quickly. It was already past nine o'clock. "I'll make a hot towel for you to wipe the baby before feeding him. I also want to go see your grandpa. He usually goes to bed early."
Zhou Jiao took the hot towel and wiped it, then picked up Xiao Ping'an. "Mom, you don't need to come over when you go see my grandpa. Check if the quilt is thick enough in the room where my grandpa sleeps, and who will take care of him at night. Go and settle my grandpa down. I can't go out. Drink the mutton soup and go to bed early. It's getting late now. Wait until I feed him and then go to bed."
Lin Lishan touched Zhou Jiao's head and said, "Okay, then Mom won't come over. Don't worry about your grandpa, Mom is taking care of him. Go to bed early."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
