In Qingshan Village, along with the letter, there was also a large package of items.
Among them, books are the most numerous.
Andelai came back from town on his bicycle, sweating profusely. He went to Old Lady An's house without even entering the house.
"Sister-in-law, sister-in-law, there's another letter from Hongdou..."
Old lady An came out in a hurry, followed a little later by Zhou Qingcao who was pregnant with a big belly.
Mrs. An hurriedly opened the letter. There were several pieces of paper inside. She couldn't tell them apart. She quickly handed them back to An Delai and urged him, "Quick, read to me, what's written on them?"
An Delai took it, took out An Changyue's letter and handed it to Old Lady An, then started reading the other one.
"Hongdou said that there's a phone at home, and asked you to call her when you have time to go to town. She also asked about your health, and also sent something to your home..."
There was a big bag on the back seat of Andelai's bicycle, which contained clothes for the children at home, food for his wife, and the heaviest thing was the study materials sent back to An Maixiang.
Mrs. An didn't care much about food and clothing, but when she thought that her daughter could send these things back, she knew that her own life must be good, and she felt very happy.
What made Andelai happiest was that he and Miao Hong also got a new set of clothes. The workmanship did not look like they were hand-sewn at all, but more like factory goods, which made them very eager to get them.
An Hongdou's bicycle was originally left to Ergouzi. After Ergouzi left, he gave the bicycle to An Sige. Because old lady An lived with An Sige, it was most appropriate to leave the daughter's things to her mother.
However, Mrs. An is old and doesn't know how to ride a bicycle, so the bicycle is still ridden by whoever in the family needs it when necessary. Only An Delai rides it more often when he goes to town for meetings.
After pushing the bicycles into the yard for them, he took his own belongings and left.
When An Maixiang got the set of study materials, she was happier than any of them.
She also thought that when Shen Xiangzhi said that the college entrance examination might be resumed and asked her to study hard, it was just to prevent her from going to Jiangcheng to cause trouble for them. However, when she saw this set of study materials, she vaguely felt that perhaps the college entrance examination would really be resumed in the near future.
An Hongdou received a call from Old Lady An the next day. As soon as the call was connected, he heard Old Lady An's loud voice, which hurt his ears.
The next thing that came out was a stranger, probably the owner of the place she was calling, asking her to speak less loudly and more quietly so that the other party could hear her.
An Hongdou also spoke quickly to let her know that he could really hear her.
Mrs. An asked her about her life here. Although they usually exchanged letters, she couldn't feel the reality by hearing her voice.
An Hongdou also asked about Mrs. An's health and family matters.
Mrs. An said everything was fine, but An Hongdou didn't completely believe it.
Not to mention anything else, because of Ergouzi's coming, the other people in the family must have some worries and it's impossible for them to be completely calm.
It’s just that she, like me, is afraid that the other party will worry, so she chooses to report good news instead of bad news.
An Changyue was also lying on the side, looking at her eagerly. An Hongdou didn't want to continue chatting, so she handed the phone to her.
She just said a few brief words to Brother An and then returned the phone to An Hongdou.
The mother and daughter said some heartwarming words, and Old Lady An's voice was slightly choked with sobs.
An Hongdou was also upset. She thought for a long time and blurted out, "Mom, I'll take you to Jiangcheng. There's a place to live at home. You can help me take care of the children. I'll take care of you in your old age, okay?"
On the phone, Mrs. An laughed, and her laughter was slightly like crying. "You are talking nonsense again. Mom has four sons. How can I let my daughter take care of me in my old age? If you tell others about this, people will laugh at your brothers for being unfilial!"
At that time, although people shouted about gender equality, the family property, no matter how much it was, was still inherited by the sons, so naturally there was no room for daughters to provide for old-age care.
In addition, the elderly in rural areas will not stop working until they are really old and can no longer move, at which time they are basically useless.
No matter whether you are in your seventies, eighties, eighties or nineties, as long as you are alive and can walk and move, you will never be idle.
If you can't do heavy work, just do light work, such as picking up firewood and pulling weeds. When you are paralyzed in bed and die, then you can really have some free time.
No matter how much she loves her daughter, Mrs. An still has this in her heart. "My daughter, your fourth sister-in-law is pregnant. This is her first child. Your fourth brother has a temper like a stick. How can I go to your place at this time? If I really go, I probably won't have the face to come back in the future..."
Even if she wanted to go, she would have to wait until the fourth brother's family was settled before she could stay with her daughter for a while. There was no reason for her to stay there for a long time.
An Hongdou also knew Zhou Qingcao's situation, otherwise, she would have wanted to bring Old Lady An with her when she first came.
Although Aunt Wang is quite dedicated in taking care of the child, it is not as reassuring to have someone else take care of the child as it is to have one's own mother helping out.
This is the only solution.
After talking a few more words, Mrs. An said the phone bill was too expensive and hung up in a hurry.
When it came time to pay the phone bill, she still felt heartbroken.
It's only been a short time, and she didn't even say a few words, but she only spent 70 cents. It's really terrible.
Brother An wanted to pay, but she stopped him and gave him the money first.
Brother An was still angry and said, "Mom, what are you doing? You weren't the only one who made the call. What's wrong with me paying for it?" Old Mrs. An sighed, "Mom knows that you are all good and filial children. Isn't it because I have money myself? You all have children to raise, and the burden is heavy. I am still able to move now, so I won't drag you down. If you really want to be filial, just wait until I, your mom, can't move and be more filial to you."
If the distinction between mother and son is too clear, that would be called estrangement. I should give more to you when you are in trouble, and you should be more considerate and filial to me when I am old. This is what a family is.
Brother An really didn't have much money, so he could only accept this and asked her, "Mom, what did you say to my little sister?"
The speaker on the phone was quite loud, so he could vaguely hear some of it, but not everything.
"Oh, I almost forgot." Mrs. An was startled and said, "Your younger sister said she sent me money and asked me to go to the post office. Look, I said I don't want any money, I have my own money, and she said she had already sent it..."
There is also the matter of her brothers at home. An Hongdou doesn't want to have to worry about food and drink by herself while her brothers suffer in their hometown.
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