Chapter 35 Chapter 35 Playing with Fancy
When they arrived at Teacher Meng's house, Wei Xiuhua was making vermicelli dumplings. Seeing Lu Qinghe coming over, she asked her to put on an apron and help.
"I've added plenty of flour noodles here, along with radish greens and a few eggs. The flour is cornmeal mixed with gluten. It's a good idea for you to come and help me. Take some with you when you leave."
Lu Qinghe took the apron and started working on it, then glanced at the three eagerly waiting children behind her. "Sister, your Meng Bin has been getting along really well with the three of us lately. They've been so worried about him since we last saw him. Sister, is it because of that incident last time that Meng Bin got punished? It's also my Lu Yao's fault for being so naughty. She should have come and apologized to you guys a long time ago."
Wei Xiuhua: "Why are you saying that? Children playing is their own thing. Besides, didn't I accidentally give Meng Bin a certificate?"
"But this is also dangerous. It's just luck that we got this result."
"No one else has this kind of luck. Besides, my Meng Bin usually has no one to play with, so this is good. I think it's a good thing for children to be a little naughty. Look at your daughter Lu Yao, she looks like she's full of energy and joy!"
Lu Qinghe breathed a sigh of relief, but when he looked around the room, he couldn't find Meng Bin.
Wei Xiuhua smiled and pointed to the inner room at the children. "Go ahead, go ahead. Meng Bin has been really worried these days, but my husband won't let us go. Who knows how happy he would be if you could come and see him."
"Thank you, Auntie. We're in!"
Lu Yang thanked his brother and sister-in-law, and ran to the inner room on the first floor where Meng Bin lived. In the room, Meng Bin, who had heard the noise a long time ago, quietly opened the door a crack, saw his friend coming, quickly opened the door to let the person in, and then quickly closed it.
The two adults outside laughed for a while while watching, and the children in the house were also very excited when they saw each other.
"Meng Bin, you weren't scolded, were you?" Lu Yao asked anxiously.
Meng Bin's handsome face was no longer depressed at this moment. He looked at them happily: "You are finally here. I was afraid you would forget me!"
Lu Yao frowned. "How could I possibly forget you? We're not goldfish. Mom said a goldfish's memory is only seven seconds. I can remember you for seven years!"
"Seven years is not enough. We have to remember each other for... seventy years!" Meng Bin counted on his fingers and said seriously.
Zhao Zirui looked around Meng Bin's room.
The Meng family has many children and many rooms, so he lives in an entire room by himself. However, there are not many toys in it, mostly books.
Zhao Zirui: "Wow, Brother Meng Bin really loves studying. He even fell asleep among his books!"
Meng Bin: "...I don't really love them that much. My dad bought them for me, and some were left by my older brothers and sisters."
“Ouch.”
Lu Yao looked at the darts behind Meng Bin's door curiously, "Can I play with this?"
"Of course." Meng Bin nodded vigorously: "You all can play in the room, but..."
"What's wrong?" Lu Yang suddenly remembered something. "I asked you just now, but you haven't told me yet. Were you punished?"
Meng Bin lowered his head and hummed, "My dad put me in solitary confinement as punishment and told me to reflect on my actions at home for half a month."
"Half a month?"
Lu Yao's head trembled. "Oh my god, this is worse than asking me to wash dishes for a year. I would rather wash dishes than be locked up at home. If this really happens, I will climb over the wall and go out every day."
"Lu Yao, you have forgotten what your mother said again and are still thinking about climbing over the wall?" Lu Yang reminded quickly.
Lu Yao chuckled, turned around and picked up the darts to play with. Meng Bin: "Are you guys punished too?"
"Yeah." After Zhao Zirui told Meng Bin what punishment his mother had given him, Meng Bin nodded in agreement.
Meng Bin: "Aunt Qinghe is right. After my father punished me, I reflected on it in my room. I am the oldest among us, and I should have stopped you at that time. This matter was really dangerous."
"Alright, alright, it's all in the past. I've already been punished, so just remember it next time."
Lu Yao said this nonchalantly, stretched out her hand, exerted some strength, and threw the dart at the target hanging behind the door.
It was a toy dart, but it was quite heavy, and it hit the door with a 'bang', completely missing the target.
“Is there a trick to this?”
Lu Yang and Zhao Zirui both picked it up and tried it out, and Meng Bin taught them how to play.
After trying a few times, Zhao Zirui was still too short to reach the target, and Lu Yang was able to hit it, but it only hit the edge.
Only after Lu Yao tried a few times, she was able to hit the fifth ring with such accuracy that even Meng Bin praised her talent.
The time for fun is always short.
An hour passed and the buns outside were out of the steamer. Lu Qinghe called out and the children said goodbye to each other sadly.
"Will you come tomorrow?" Meng Bin asked.
Wei Xiuhua heard it at the door and cleared her throat: "Meng Bin, have you forgotten what your father said?"
Meng Bin lowered his head in grievance: "But Dad only said that I should be put in solitary confinement, he didn't stop the other kids from coming to play with me."
"There should be a limit. Let them come every other day at most. If they come every day, your father will definitely punish you if he finds out. Don't forget what he said: 'Reflect on your mistakes.'"
"It's okay, we'll come back the day after tomorrow." Lu Yao comforted Meng Bin in return.
Meng Bin thought about his father's stern look and nodded.
Before leaving, Wei Xiuhua packed six or seven vermicelli buns for Lu Qinghe. "Next time you come, come. What are you bringing? Let the children try these buns when you go back. If they are delicious, we can make them together next time."
Vegetarian buns are a rare commodity in winter, and Lu Qinghe couldn't refuse, so he took it.
At dinner that night, the buns were all gone. Lu Qinghe looked at the clean plates and laughed, "Zhao Zhanming, do you have time tomorrow? We have to go out and buy some food. The coal in our kitchen is running low, and we have to borrow a car from the army."
"I was just about to tell you this. Shall we go back to our hometown for the New Year?"
Don't want to go back.
The Lu family still had some ideas, but she didn't want to see the Zhao family at all, especially her own parents-in-law. What did they teach Zhao Zirui that made the child suffer for so long?
Lu Qinghe expressed his thoughts truthfully, without hiding his disgust at all.
Not only had they just gotten married a while ago, but now her relationship with Zhao Zhanming had also progressed by leaps and bounds. She knew in her heart that this man was not that close to his adoptive parents, so he spoke without reservation.
After listening to this, Zhao Zhanming looked at Lu Qinghe with great appreciation, "That's it, Qinghe, if you have anything to say, just tell me directly, especially if you are unhappy, don't suffer any grievances."
After hearing this, Lu Qinghe felt a little embarrassed, but after thinking about it, he was still justified, "That's because they themselves have problems. What do you think?"
"I was wondering if you'd miss your parents and brothers back home. If you agree, we can spend the New Year at the military family compound. Many people here don't go back to their hometowns, and we'll set off fireworks near the border."
"Fireworks?!" Lu Qinghe perked up. "Fireworks would be even better. That's settled then."
"Well, it's just that I can't take tomorrow off, and I want to rush to the city the day after tomorrow, Friday."
"It depends on your time."
Lu Qinghe yawned and was about to go into the bedroom when he suddenly remembered that he had brought back two letters during the day.
"Yes, you take a look too."
Lu Qinghe finished reading one letter and handed one to Zhao Zhanming.
The letter from the Zhao family is nothing but about money.
Zhao Chengshi's chest aches when the weather gets cold, and he wants to buy a thicker coat but can't afford the cotton coupons.
Zhao Laoer's wife is about to give birth, and as the eldest uncle, he should contribute some money. Since the Chinese New Year is approaching, it would be better to give her a red envelope as well.
Zhao Laosan is about to go on a blind date, but he is not satisfied with any of the girls from nearby villages. He is also tired of working in the fields, so he wants to ask if he can come to Zhao Zhanming for help. If that doesn't work out, he can ask Zhao Zhanming to introduce him to a wife from the city.
Lu Qinghe: "This isn't a letter to you, this is like making a wish on you like a shooting star. I can only give a small red envelope to save face, but I'm even asking you to introduce a city girl to the third brother. Who would give up their good life to marry a lazy guy?"
After Zhao Zhanming took the letter and read it, he flipped it over and found that there were more words at the end to save paper.
"The third one said he wanted to come over."
"How can he come here? Can the team give him a letter of introduction?"
"He said he was here to visit relatives and asked for a note." Zhao Zhanming put the letter aside. "I'll write back later and tell him that we've been conducting strict inspections here lately."
"Um."
The young couple looked at each other tacitly, and then Lu Qinghe continued to read the letter from the Lu family.
The Lu family routinely reported to Lu Qinghe that they were safe, talked about some family matters, and also mentioned Lu Qinghe's elder sister Lu Qingmiao.
Zhao Zhanming looked at Lu Qinghe without saying anything for a long time, and then he looked at the letter paper and asked, "What happened?"
"Um."
Lu Qinghe sighed: "Do you still remember my elder sister Lu Qingmiao? The one who patched up several pieces of clothes on my wedding day and gave me a new mattress?"
"Remember."
"Her family suffered a flood two years ago, and her husband's family wasn't well off to begin with. Last month, her eldest son fell ill and the treatment wasn't timely. He died within a few days. On the wedding day, the two children called me 'Auntie' several times..."
Seeing Lu Qinghe's low mood, Zhao Zhanming patted her shoulder soothingly and said, "Send the gift money back together tomorrow. Say hello to her for me as well. It's our little token of appreciation."
With a long sigh, Lu Qinghe responded and put away all the envelopes.
The next day, two envelopes containing two sets of gift money with similar addresses but different recipients were delivered to the post office by Lu Qinghe early in the morning.
After the postman received the letters from the military families' compound, he turned around and went to the factory families' compound on the outskirts of the city.
Wei Guoqiang helped Liu Yanru, who had just returned home from the hospital, to get home. Before they even sat down, they heard the postman's voice. Liu Yanru hurriedly urged Wei Guoqiang to deliver the letter.
"This is the last letter before the New Year. If your mother doesn't come, and the train stops in cold weather, we'll have to wait until March after the New Year. By then, I'll be eight or nine months old. Guoqiang, there's so much work to do at home. I even have to fetch water for drinking. I can't be born on the stove, can I?"
Wei Guoqiang lowered his head and rummaged through the drawers: "I urged her, but it's cold here and my mother can't handle it."
"Can I handle it? I thought I'd have a better life following you to the provincial capital, but who knew it would be hard to even get heating at home right now."
"Okay, okay, if you have time to nag me, why not go and tidy up the bedding at home? You've been in the hospital for so many days, and the bedding is so damp that you can't sleep. Hurry and take it out to air it."
Wei Guoqiang is the only child in the family and has never done any work since he was a child.
In the past, Wei's mother was there to help, but now there is only Liu Yanru.
Liu Yanru rolled her eyes and wanted to curse, but then she thought that she could only rely on her husband to make a living, and Wei Guoqiang was not a good-tempered person, so she held back and didn't say anything.
The postman took the letter and went to the steel plant's family compound two blocks away.
There was a man standing at the door, waiting for the postman with a happy face.
The postman took the man's letter and took a look at it. "Oh, why is it sent to Dagu Village again? What a coincidence today."
Wu Xingliang came over to take a look in surprise, "Really? Are you from the same place as me?"
"you do not say!"
The postman said this and showed him the letters from the same place.
"He's from our village."
Wu Xingliang looked at Liu Yanru's name on it, and instantly recalled the scene from many years ago.
At that time, he often strolled around Xicun, and when he met Liu Yanru, Lu Qinghe would usually be there too.
Although Liu Yanru's father is the team leader, Lu Qinghe is so beautiful that Wu Xingliang always has her in mind.
Then came kissing, and then—
Unable to bear the life in the village, he left and went to live with his aunt in the provincial capital, where he unexpectedly met Zheng Miaoran, the daughter of Deputy Director Zheng.
Now.
"What are you thinking about, comrade? Give me the money." The postman urged.
Wu Xingliang quickly took out money from his pocket and handed it over, still with a hint of joy on his face.
"Comrade, I see you have good news."
Wu Xingliang made no secret of his excitement, "Yes, I'm going to tell my family the good news. I'm getting married before the New Year."
The past cannot be recalled.
Although Zheng Miaoran's appearance is slightly inferior to Lu Qinghe's, she is the only daughter who came from a wealthy family. If he holds on to Zheng Miaoran, he is also holding on to his own bright future.
As for Lu Qinghe, there is nothing we can do about it.
Everyone has his own destiny. Lu Qinghe has a hard life, unlike him, who is destined to be rich and become a factory director in this life!
"Oh, congratulations then."
"You're welcome."
As he was speaking, he heard footsteps from behind.
Zheng Miaoran, wearing a woolen coat and yawning, walked up to Wu Xingliang. Without saying a word, she raised her eyebrows and grabbed the tip of Wu Xingliang's ear.
"You didn't even tell me you were coming out? You didn't even make breakfast, what do you want me to eat? I asked you to stay here in advance, and you didn't even show any courtesy."
The postman hadn't left yet. When he saw this scene, he lowered his head in embarrassment.
Wu Xingliang also felt humiliated, but he didn't want to get angry. He turned around and coaxed Zheng Miaoran in a good mood, reaching out to flick her fingers.
When Wu Xingliang raised his hand, two bright red bloodstains appeared on the wide sleeves of his cotton coat.
The postman thought he was seeing things out of the corner of his eye and was about to turn around to take another look, but Wu Xingliang had already quickly tightened his sleeves, turned around and obediently followed the woman away.
"This couple..."
The postman frowned and muttered, "Living together before the wedding, you're not afraid of being laughed at. But why are you still so bruised when you're getting married soon? City people are always playing with fancy tricks..."
The postman couldn't figure it out and was too lazy to think about it anymore, so he turned around and pedaled away.
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The author has something to say: Will the update be tomorrow morning or in the afternoon? !
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