Xiao Jiu went home with her sisters last night. Zhou Yue and her older brother stayed in her room. Everyone got up and finished making dumplings, but she was still snuggled in bed and didn't want to get up.
Cuihua could tell at a glance that the child was in low spirits. Since last night, or rather, these past few days, she had been very quiet.
"Get up and eat! The sun's already high in the sky. Today is the first day of the Lunar New Year. We're going to visit Grandpa and Grandma to wish them a Happy New Year later."
"Big sister, I feel uncomfortable here," Xiao Jiu poked her head out, her wet eyes looking at Cuihua with a pitiful expression.
At that moment, Cuihua's heart ached. She smoothed Xiaojiu's messy hair and said, "I know, our Xiaojiu can't bear to part with her."
"Now, when I close my eyes, all I can think of is Grandma holding me as I sleep, fanning me in the summer, and warming my bed in the winter. Sister, it breaks my heart~~~"
Before she could finish a sentence, she broke down in tears, and Cuihua couldn't help but sob as well.
But birth, aging, sickness, and death are things that no one can control, especially when the person is still perfectly healthy.
"What good is studying medicine? Grandma is still getting older every day. Even yesterday, when Grandpa stood up, he needed to hold onto the table to walk. They're old, really old, sob sob."
Her cries quickly drew in the other sisters in the courtyard. Everyone looked distressed, and soon their eyes welled up with tears that flowed uncontrollably.
She didn't know how long she cried; her eyes were red, and her nose was red from blowing her nose. Finally, she calmed herself down and stopped crying.
Then he looked pitifully at Cuihua and the others: "I'm hungry... I want to eat."
Cuihua breathed a sigh of relief. "Of course I'm hungry. You barely ate anything last night."
"Everyone had no appetite yesterday. We didn't make much for the New Year's Eve dinner, so we didn't finish it all and there was a lot left over."
Cuiju helped Xiaojiu get dressed, and Cuihua urged Cuihong to make dumplings. The family finally regained some vitality.
Xiao Jiu originally wanted to take her bowl to the back to eat, but Cui Ju stopped her.
"Grandpa and Grandma get up early and eat earlier than us. It's already ten o'clock, time for lunch. You eat a few first, then come over at noon. Your eyes are still red!"
At Cuiju's prompting, Xiaojiu nodded silently, holding her bowl and eating, but what she was thinking was—
Was her decision to persist in reading all these years the right one?
Or perhaps we can postpone taking the college entrance exam this year?
If she takes the college entrance examination and is admitted, can she postpone her enrollment?
...
As countless questions formed in my mind, the scales in my heart unconsciously shifted towards spending time with my loved ones...
Unexpectedly, when she returned to the Tao family, her grandfather and father rejected her very directly after she had only just begun to speak.
“We understand how you feel, but this is undoubtedly putting pressure on us. It's unnecessary. Grandpa hopes you will get into military academy.”
Although your grandma doesn't worry about anything anymore, she and I both hope that her most beloved granddaughter will also get into university.
Jiu'er, taking the college entrance exam is more important than us. Grandpa made arrangements in advance so that you wouldn't be sad. After all, everyone will have this day eventually.
Compared to feeling sentimental, this planned approach to our affairs after death actually suggests we're in good health, and perhaps we'll even live longer?
One sentence left Xiao Jiu speechless, and she seemed unable to find a suitable reason to stay and keep him company.
As Grandpa said, her staying behind was like seeing them off on their final journey, but they are still very healthy.
For the next few days, Xiao Jiu quietly stayed in her grandparents' room and slept next to her grandmother.
"It seems she's come to her senses. She probably wants to spend more time with us before school starts. Let her stay with us, it's fine!"
When Zhao Lingli asked, the old man glanced at Xiao Jiu, who was sunbathing in the yard and in a great mood, braiding his grandmother's hair, and comforted his daughter-in-law with a smile.
Zhao Lingli was still a little worried, just as she saw Zhou Yue packing his luggage: "Have you bought the tickets?"
"Not yet, but our comrades in Tolo City have already bought it. What's wrong, godmother? Are you worried about Xiaojiu?"
"Why don't you take Jiu'er to Shijiazhuang for a trip? When you return to Xishi, take her to school to help her relax."
This child has a knot in his heart; how can things continue like this?
Zhou Yue sighed upon hearing this: "I told her, but she rejected me. She's really fixated on this."
Before Zhou Yue could go over and try to persuade her again, she actually came to him on her own.
"Mom, my grandpa gave us a task this year: to go to the martyrs' cemetery to pay our respects to our uncle."
The elderly couple actually wanted to go, but the journey was too long and they simply couldn't manage it.
When Zhao Lingli heard that it was this year's goal, she understood.
"Then let's go together this summer vacation when your aunts come."
My uncle and his family were buried in the Heilongjiang Provincial Martyrs' Cemetery, which is thousands of kilometers away from here. It's not just far away, but also extremely time-consuming.
"We'll ask Cuilian then if she can get a sleeper ticket, so she can suffer less."
After her attention was diverted, Xiao Jiu seemed to be in a much better mood, and Zhou Yue took the opportunity to ask her.
"Why don't you and Cuimei come with me to Shijiazhuang? She'll have to go back to school after a few days, so I'll have my brother take her."
I'll bring you back when I pass through Los Angeles on my way back to West City.
Without giving Xiaojiu a chance to refuse: "Let's go see Beidaihe and Zhaozhou Bridge. It's a pity it's not summer, otherwise we could go for a run on the grasslands."
Zhao Lingli chimed in, "Go ahead, relax, take some photos and bring them back, so your grandparents can broaden their horizons. They can't go out, so you can travel around on their behalf."
In the end, even Tao Changyi came over to persuade him, and Tao An looked on with envy.
"Yes, sis, go ahead. Look, I want to go but I can't. School starts in a few days."
You did so well on your exams last semester, taking a few days off won't be a problem. You can go back to school after the 15th and you'll still be able to keep up.
Unlike me, I'm afraid to skip school for days, lest I fall behind and everyone else fall behind.
Tang Cuimei never expected that she would be urged to go to Beijing so soon after returning home.
Xiao Jiu even put pressure on her.
"If my fifth sister goes, I'll go too."
When Zhou Yue came to find her, she was still somewhat reluctant: "I actually wanted to go to school after the fifteenth,"
Zhou Yue pretended not to understand, "That's perfect, we can play around that time."
You and Xiao Jiu study at school every day, you're getting stupid, you should go out and have some fun.
"There are more fun places in Hebei Province than just Beidaihe; you can also go to Cangzhou and Jinshi, which are close to the seaside."
Actually, Cui Mei wasn't really interested in any of this, but considering that they just wanted Xiao Jiu to go out and relax, she could only agree.
That afternoon, Zhou Yue went to the commune to call his comrades and buy tickets.
Xiao Jiu and Cui Mei went to the village secretary to get a letter of introduction.
It was clear that neither of the sisters wanted to go, but they were both kind people and couldn't refuse the other's kindness.
Moreover, this time he was going out with the two Zhou brothers. Zhou Yue said that Zhou Xing could borrow a car, which would make the journey less difficult. If it weren't for that, he probably would have thought about it more.
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