Chapter 84 Returning to Beijing City to Study
This time when he returned to Beijing, Lu Tingxiao had to ask for favors from many people and use various connections to finally reserve four sleeper tickets, two lower berths and two middle berths.
After getting on the train, Lu Tingxiao led Jiang Ruoxi and the others to find their own carriage. In that era when supplies were not yet abundant, sleeper tickets could not be bought with just money; connections played a key role.
They walked into the carriage, and for a moment, there were only four adults and three children inside, and it seemed particularly quiet. Lu Tingxiao settled Jiang Ruoxi, Aunt Chen, and Aunt Lan down and asked them to look after the three babies while he quickly and skillfully made the beds.
It was the first time for the three babies to take a train. They were so excited that their little faces were pressed against the edge of the lower bunk, staring at the scenery outside the window without blinking, and chattering non-stop. Their excitement was as if a wonderful adventure was about to begin.
The train started slowly, and the friction between the wheels and the rails made a rhythmic sound. At first, the children were attracted by the ever-changing scenery along the way, but after a while, they gradually lost interest in the scenery outside the car.
Then the little ones started to complain of hunger. When Aunt Chen heard this, she hurriedly took out the scallion pancakes and tea eggs she had prepared in advance from her bag.
She carefully tore the scallion pancake into small pieces and handed them to the children one by one. Every young face was filled with anticipation. After the children finished eating the scallion pancakes, Aunt Lan skillfully peeled the tea eggs and gave half of one to each child. After the children were full, Aunt Lan patiently fed them some water.
The journey was smooth and no one else entered the carriage. This small space was like their warm mobile home.
Before we knew it, night fell and the train sped through the darkness. By the time we arrived in the capital, it was already midnight. The three children were all asleep, their little bodies wrapped in blankets, sleeping soundly.
Lu Tingxiao carried all the luggage, leaving red marks on his shoulders, but he did not complain at all. Jiang Ruoxi, Aunt Chen and Aunt Lan held the child carefully and gently, for fear of waking the sleeping baby.
Fortunately, Lu Tingxiao had called home in advance, and his father had already sent a driver to wait at the train station. The driver saw Lu Tingxiao and his friends leaving the station from a distance, and immediately stepped forward to help with the luggage. After everyone put their luggage into the car, they carried their children into the car and drove towards the family compound.
The car drove slowly on the streets of the capital, and the street lights emitted a dim light, illuminating the road ahead. Jiang Ruoxi looked out the car window at the familiar yet unfamiliar night view of Beijing, feeling mixed emotions.
Lu Tingxiao, who was standing by, seemed to sense her emotions and gently held her hand, offering silent comfort. Aunt Chen and Aunt Lan also sat quietly. The only sound in the carriage was the children's even breathing.
Soon, the car arrived at the family compound. Father Lu had not yet gone to bed and had been waiting at the door. When he saw them come back, his eyes were full of joy. He walked quickly forward and looked at his sleeping grandchildren with a kind smile on his face.
"You must be tired from the journey, come in quickly!" said Father Lu. Led by Father Lu, everyone walked into the familiar courtyard.
"Your mother and your grandparents were waiting for you to come back with me, but you came back too late and they couldn't hold on any longer. I let them go to bed first!" said Father Jiang.
"Dad, actually you don't have to wait for us. It's good enough that you sent the driver to pick us up. It's not like Tingxiao doesn't know where to go home and can't come back. You're all old and it's not good for you to stay up late all the time!" Jiang Ruoxi said embarrassedly.
Father Lu was full of concern. He waved his hand and said, "That's nothing. You came all the way here, how could there be no one to pick you up? Are you hungry? If you are, I'll go to the kitchen and make you some noodles. You can make do with it for now, and I'll make you something delicious tomorrow!"
Lu Tingxiao hurried forward, gently pulled Father Lu's arm, and said in a gentle voice, "Dad, you don't have to do anything. You've been working hard all day. Go back to your room and rest. We can do it ourselves!"
Having said that, he half-pushed Mr. Lu into the room. As Father Lu walked away, he kept muttering, "Okay, I won't care about it anymore. Just make some noodles to fill your stomachs first, and we'll talk about it tomorrow!"
"Okay, go back and get some rest!" Lu Tingxiao agreed with a smile. He watched his father enter the room before turning around and heading towards the kitchen.
Lu Tingxiao came to the kitchen and asked Aunt Chen to make some simple noodles for the four of them. Afterwards, he, Jiang Ruoxi and Aunt Lan carefully carried the three children to the room. The children were sleeping soundly, their little faces were rosy and their mouths were smacking from time to time, as if they were having a sweet dream.
They carefully covered the children with quilts, tucked in the corners, and then gently closed the door. Lu Tingxiao carried the luggage upstairs again and put it away properly.
After everything was done, he went downstairs to the restaurant. At this time, the noodles cooked by Aunt Chen had been served on the table, and several people started eating.
Under the warm yellow light, everyone looked a little tired, but also felt at ease to go home. After finishing the noodles, Lu Tingxiao took the initiative to clean up the dishes and went to the kitchen to wash them. Afterwards, after a quick wash, they dragged their slightly tired bodies upstairs to rest.
Although there are berths on the train that allow you to lie down or sit, they are not as comfortable as your bed at home. Lu Tingxiao returned to the room and lay down on the bed. Jiang Ruoxi also lay down beside him. He put his arm around Jiang Ruoxi and whispered, "We're finally home. Have a good sleep."
Jiang Ruoxi rubbed against his arms and responded softly. Outside the window, the night is dark, with the occasional chirping of insects. The whole room was immersed in silence, with only the sound of even breathing.
The next morning, sunlight filtered through the gaps in the curtains and poured into the room. Lu Tingxiao was the first to wake up. He got up quietly, not wanting to wake up Jiang Ruoxi who was still sleeping soundly. I went downstairs to the kitchen and found Aunt Chen was already preparing breakfast. After a while, an enticing aroma wafted from the kitchen.
The early morning sunlight gently shines through the thin curtains on the second floor, casting patches of mottled light and shadows on the ground. The children woke up slowly, and looked around at the unfamiliar environment with their confused eyes. Their little bodies tensed up instantly, and a feeling of uneasiness quietly spread in their hearts.
But when they caught a glimpse of the spacious big bed beside them and saw their mother still sleeping peacefully, their little brows instantly relaxed and a look of relief returned to their young faces.
The three little guys looked at each other, climbed down from their small beds on tiptoe, moving very slowly for fear of making any sound, and then climbed carefully onto the big bed, like three docile little animals, gently gathering around Jiang Ruoxi.
Sanbao blinked his big watery eyes and called out in a soft voice, "Mom, Mom!" His voice was gentle and a little coquettish.
Jiang Ruoxi was still immersed in a sweet dream, mumbling in a daze: "Jiaojiao, stop making trouble, let mommy sleep a little longer, mommy is too sleepy!"
Hearing this, Sanbao was not happy. He pouted his little mouth and retorted crisply: "Mom, you are a lazy bug. You are not good. Sanbao has to get up!" His serious and cute look made people laugh.
Jiang Ruoxi seemed to be completely awakened by these words and she wrapped Sanbao in a blanket and said maliciously, "Jiaojiao actually said that mom is a lazy bug. Now the lazy bug mom wants to eat Jiaojiao!"
Sanbao also cooperated with her mother's "performance" very well. She waved her little hands in the air and shouted loudly: "Wow, lazy mommy, don't eat Jiaojiao. Jiaojiao is the most obedient baby. If lazy mommy eats Jiaojiao, there will be no baby as good as Jiaojiao!" The mother and daughter were talking to each other on the bed, laughing and playing. The laughter was one after another, and it was very lively.
At this moment, Lu Tingxiao gently pushed open the door, and this warm and interesting scene instantly came into his eyes. The corners of his mouth kept rising, and that smile was full of tenderness and doting, as if the whole world had become so beautiful because of the scene before him. He stood quietly at the door, not wanting to disturb this beautiful moment, just admiring it quietly.
After a long while, he walked into the room with brisk steps, deliberately put on a stern face, and said in a serious manner: "You two are so naughty. You are so noisy so early in the morning. Are you planning to blow the roof off?"
As soon as San Bao saw his father, his eyes lit up instantly. He broke free from the quilt and threw himself into Lu Tingxiao's arms like a happy little deer, muttering, "Dad, my lazy mom is going to eat me!"
Lu Tingxiao picked up Sanbao and kissed her on her pink face. He smiled and said, "Daddy is here to protect you. See how your lazy mommy will eat you!" Jiang Ruoxi watched the interaction between the father and daughter and pretended to be angry and said, "Okay, you two are teaming up to bully me. I don't care!" As she said that, she covered her head with the quilt.
The three children immediately surrounded her, huddled together, and coaxed her: "Mom, Sanbao was wrong, please don't be angry, okay?"
"Mom, come out, let's play together!"
Lu Tingxiao also came to the bedside, gently pulled back the quilt, scratched Jiang Ruoxi's nose, and said gently, "Okay, stop pretending to be angry. Let's take the kids out to play together today, okay? You take the kids to wash up first, then go downstairs to eat, and then we'll go out to play after dinner!"
Jiang Ruoxi looked at the three cute little faces in front of her and Lu Tingxiao's loving eyes. She couldn't hold back any longer and burst out laughing. She nodded and agreed, "Okay, let's go out and play together!"
The family's laughter and joy echoed in the room, warm and sweet. A beautiful day began in this way, filled with deep love.
Lu Tingxiao's family of five packed up and walked briskly downstairs to have breakfast. Grandpa Lu, Grandma Lu, as well as Father Lu and Mother Lu had already had breakfast and were now sitting in the living room, waiting for them with great anticipation.
It was the first time for the three children to see their father, mother, grandfather and grandmother since they were born. Although Lu's mother and Jiang's mother took care of them during the confinement period, the children were still young at that time and had no memory of who took care of them.
Sanbao opened his big round eyes and looked at everything in front of him with curiosity. Suddenly, she saw Grandpa Lu and Grandma Lu sitting on the sofa. A hint of surprise flashed across her little face, and then she ran over happily with her chubby little legs. Running closer, she tilted her head and asked softly, "Are you Jiaojiao's great grandfather and great grandmother?"
Looking at Sanbao's adorable appearance, Grandpa Lu and Grandma Lu's hearts were instantly melted, and the smiles on their faces became even more kind. Grandpa Lu quickly stretched out his hand and said, "Your name is Jiaojiao. Come here, let me hug you!"
When Sanbao heard this, she immediately ran to Grandpa Lu. Grandpa Lu gently lifted her up and put her on his lap. Holding this soft and sweet little granddaughter in his arms, Grandpa Lu loves her so much. Who can not like such a well-behaved and lovely little girl?
When Dabao and Erbao saw Sanbao running to Grandpa Lu and Grandma Lu, they followed with their short legs. After they stopped, they said crisply, "Hello, Grandpa and Grandma, I am Dabao Qianqian!"
"Hello, Grandpa and Grandma, I'm our second child, Yiyi!" Grandpa Lu and Grandma Lu looked at the three sensible children in front of them, their eyes full of satisfaction, and they nodded continuously.
At this time, Father Lu was all smiles, and waved at the three little ones: "Qianqian, Yiyi, Jiaojiao, come to Grandpa!" Just as the three children were about to step over, they heard Grandpa Lu say: "Qianqian, Yiyi, Jiaojiao, play with Grandpa and Grandma, not Grandpa!"
Hearing what the old man said, Father Lu pretended to be angry, frowned, and said helplessly: "Dad, you are trying to steal my child!" Seeing this, everyone couldn't help laughing, and the living room was filled with a warm and joyful atmosphere.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
