He Tingjun was a battalion-level officer, entitled to twenty days of vacation each year. However, he hadn't taken any vacation the entire year before, so over the two years, he had applied for a total of forty days of vacation.
So after entering the twelfth lunar month, He Tingjun put the matter of southwest Dong on the agenda.
Call ahead to buy plane tickets, pack your luggage, and prepare gifts for your family in advance.
In addition, because Harbin and Chuncheng are too far apart, one is in the northernmost part of the motherland and the other is in the southernmost part of the motherland, there is currently no direct flight. Yun Qiao and her friends have to fly to Beijing first, and then transfer to Chuncheng after landing in Beijing.
So, since I am passing by the capital, I must take some time to meet Qin Lin.
The last time Yun Qiao and Qin Lin met was when she got married. From 1970 to the end of 1972, the father and daughter had not seen each other for more than two years.
More than two years have passed, and although I haven't completely forgotten what the other person looks like, my memory has definitely started to become unclear.
Moreover, Qin Lin had only seen Yanyan's photo and had never seen his granddaughter in person. Every time they corresponded, he always expressed his hope that one day he could meet her, so no matter what, he had to see her.
Fortunately, there was a five-hour layover between the two flights, which was plenty of time to meet. If there was enough time, there might even be time to have a meal together. He Tingjun contacted Qin Lin a few days in advance and arranged to meet at the Beijing airport.
After the Laba Festival, the couple and their children officially embarked on their journey south.
First, we set off from Dongfanghong Station on the morning of the 9th, took the rural railway to Mishan, and then transferred from Mishan to Harbin.
He Tingjun bought soft sleeper tickets, and the family of three slept on the train for one night. The train arrived at the station early the next morning, and they had breakfast outside the train station, and then took a bus to the airport.
In his two lifetimes, Yun Qiao had never been on a plane.
After arriving at the airport, she looked around and found everything new.
Harbin's airport is located in the suburbs, surrounded by farmland. In winter, there is nothing special about the scenery except the thick snow.
The airport itself is quite basic. The office building is a two-story building with a mottled exterior that looks old, at least a dozen or twenty years old. The waiting room is located inside this two-story building. There is a new building next to it, but it has not yet been completed and put into use.
There was a half-new plane parked on the apron not far away. Yun Qiao didn’t know what model it was, but he just thought it looked good.
In short, Yun Qiao, who was flying on a plane for the first time, found everything new and exciting.
Because the airport had a limit on the level of people who could purchase tickets, the airport had very few passengers in the 1970s. There were only two flights a week from Harbin to Beijing, each carrying about 20 passengers. Even so, the airport was often empty most of the time.
That is to say, now that it is near the end of the year, more people are traveling on business or visiting relatives in their hometowns, so the passenger flow has increased a little compared with the past, at least the planes are full.
After getting on the plane and finding a seat, He Tingjun put his luggage away first, then took Yanyan from Yun Qiao's arms, hugged her, and sat next to her.
While waiting for the plane to take off, Yun Qiao looked out the window and asked He Tingjun nervously, "Have you ever been on a plane before?"
He Tingjun nodded: "I sat on it a few times with my elders when I was a child, but I haven't sat on it again since I grew up."
"Ah? Why is this?" Yun Qiao asked.
"What else could it be? My rank isn't high enough." He Tingjun smiled. "I was only promoted to battalion rank in 1969. Before that, I wasn't high enough to buy a plane ticket."
Yun Qiao nodded and asked, "Do you remember what it was like to fly on a plane? Was it scary?"
He Tingjun saw the fear in Yun Qiao's eyes, gently held her hand, and comforted her, "Don't be afraid. The pilots who fly these planes are all retired military personnel. They're very skilled. Once they're in the air, they fly very steadily. It's not scary at all. At most, they're going a little fast. You might not be used to it the first time and get dizzy."
"That's good." After hearing what He Tingjun said, Yun Qiao felt relieved and was not as nervous as before.
But she soon realized that she had relaxed too early.
He Tingjun only said that the plane flew very steadily after it reached the sky, but he didn't say how scary it was when it just took off.
The moment the plane took off, Yun Qiao felt an overwhelming pressure and a push on his back. He felt dizzy and had tinnitus, and felt like his heart was about to jump out of his chest.
Yanyan, who was standing next to him, also started crying because she was not feeling well. He Tingjun held her and comforted her softly. Yun Qiao felt distressed when she heard this, thinking that she was too nervous and could not take care of herself. She really could not spare any extra energy to take care of the child.
Fortunately, the plane quickly rose to the predetermined altitude and began to fly steadily. Yun Qiao finally breathed a sigh of relief, and Yanyan gradually stopped crying under He Tingjun's patient coaxing.
But there were still tears on her fair little face, and her big, round eyes, like black grapes, were moist and watery, misty, and blinked pitifully. The look on her face was so heartbreaking.
Yun Qiao quickly took out the White Rabbit candy he had prepared in advance to coax her. After she took a piece of candy into her mouth, the poor little girl finally stopped crying and laughed.
After a while, a female flight attendant with short braids came over to hand out cigarettes and candies. It was free stuff, so Yun Qiao and He Tingjun naturally took them.
The cigarettes are a five-pack of Huaxia brand cigarettes in a hard package. They look very high-end and can be given to others even if you don’t smoke them yourself.
Fruit candies are placed on a tray for passengers to grab as they please.
He Yan already had a White Rabbit milk candy stuffed in her mouth. Yun Qiao didn't want to give her too much, so at her strong request of "ah ah ah", he pinched out two of them and stuffed them into her hand for her to play with.
The old passenger plane was quite noisy, and one had to gather together to hear clearly when talking. In addition, the flight was a bit bumpy, which made people feel dizzy. Therefore, Yun Qiao had no intention of sharing his first experience of flying with He Tingjun. He leaned against the window and looked out at the scenery in the sky for a while. He felt very dizzy, so he closed his eyes and rested.
Good boy Yanyan is an angelic baby. She didn't cry or make a fuss in He Tingjun's arms and was very well behaved throughout the journey.
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