Chapter 12 I'll pick her up at noon.
The next morning.
Cheng Cheng leisurely went out to buy groceries, taking her time. When she arrived at the market, she went straight to her older sister's mother-in-law's braised food stall.
"Good morning, Aunt Xiulian!"
Do you still have braised pig ears?
Cheng Cheng has a bright smile, and her friendliness radiates from within. Her sweet smile makes her easy to like.
The braised food stalls usually sell offal, such as braised pig ears and pig face, which are particularly popular because they don't require ration coupons and are sold out immediately every time the market opens.
You have to arrive early and have certain connections, and Cheng Cheng happens to have both!
Liu Xiulian lowered her voice, "Yes, we have pig's face too. Do you want pig's face?"
Upon hearing this, Cheng Cheng immediately replied, her eyes flashing with intense excitement, and lowered her voice: "Yes, yes, yes!"
"Please weigh out two ounces of pig's ears and three ounces of pig's face for me."
Summer is just around the corner, and the weather is getting colder. If you don't have a refrigerator at home, meat is hard to store, and even braised meat is prone to spoilage.
Therefore, Cheng Cheng would come to the market to buy groceries almost every morning. She and Xiao Lingxiao couldn't eat too much, so half a pound was enough, and they would come back to buy more next time.
Liu Xiulian responded, bent over slightly, reached under the wooden board to fidget, and then stepped onto the scale.
Upon seeing this, Cheng Cheng gently raised the corners of her lips, her smile growing even brighter. She lowered her voice, but could not hide her excitement!
"Thank you, Aunt Xiulian!"
"Auntie, please tell my older sister to come to my house when she has time."
"Okay, I'll tell on her when Xiaoping comes back at noon!"
After buying groceries, Cheng Cheng made a detour to the state-run restaurant on her way back and bought two servings of fresh meat wontons.
When I got home, I put my things on the kitchen table, washed my hands, and went to the bedroom.
Before Xiao Lingxiao woke up, Cheng Cheng took a white dress with a small collar from the closet for the little guy.
"Xiaoxiao, wake up!"
Cheng Cheng sat on the edge of the bed, gently waking the little one while pinching a strand of hair and tickling her upturned nose.
Little Lingxiao opened his eyes sleepily, sniffed, and scratched himself with his little fists.
A tiny, childlike voice, still carrying a sleepy, unsteady quality, called out, "Mama~"
Cheng Cheng showed no sign of guilt at being caught, and instead smiled, "Good morning, my darling!"
"Time to get up!"
Little Lingxiao clenched his little fists, rubbed his eyes, rolled over, and crawled up on his stomach.
She stood up, staggered, and stumbled into Cheng Cheng's arms, hugging her neck.
Cheng Cheng patted the little one's back with practiced ease, then took off the little one's pajamas and changed her into a little dress.
Xiao Lingxiao didn't have pajamas before, so Cheng Cheng bought him a light long-sleeved shirt and pants at a state-run department store so he could wear them to bed at night.
Cheng Cheng knows herself well; she sleeps very well and never sleeps without a sound sleep at night. But when taking care of a child, one must sleep lightly, otherwise she won't even know if the child kicks off the blanket.
She was worried that the little one would kick off the covers and catch a cold at night, and since she couldn't wake up in the middle of the night, she had no choice but to resort to this drastic measure.
After tidying up the hair, Cheng Cheng braided two short braids on the side of the little guy's hair, making him look energetic and cute!
He held up a mirror to look at her and asked, "Do I look good?"
"Oh my, whose little girl is so cute and pretty?"
Suddenly, Cheng Cheng picked up the little guy, held him in her arms, and walked outside.
As she walked, she buried her face in the little one's belly, tickling her while saying, "Whose is this? Tell me! If you don't tell me, I'll eat you up in one bite!"
Little Lingxiao hugged his mother's neck while trying to hide behind her, giggling softly. His little voice was crisp and clear, like a string of delicate and melodious silver bells.
She exclaimed repeatedly, "It's Mommy!"
The baby's voice is so soft and cute, the more Cheng Cheng listens, the more she wants to cuddle the little one!
I personally brushed the little one's teeth, washed his face and hands, and then we went to eat wontons.
It was already eight o'clock when they set off for work. The mother and daughter walked slowly hand in hand.
When they arrived at the library, Cheng Cheng was the first to arrive. As usual, she first led Xiao Xiao to review the characters they had learned before, and then taught her the content to be learned today according to the learning plan.
Knowing that Xiaoxiao had a photographic memory, Cheng Cheng pondered for a long time how to educate the little guy so that he wouldn't be forced to grow too fast and become a wasted talent, nor would he waste the little guy's talent.
So how to teach became a tricky issue. I was troubled for a long time and complained about why my husband hadn't come back yet.
Zhou Yue was hailed as a child prodigy scientist. In his previous life, the country only lifted the ban on his life's achievements when he passed away. He had made numerous accomplishments, and Cheng Cheng guessed that Xiao Lingxiao must have inherited Zhou Yue's talent.
Zhou Yue should have more experience and authority in how to cultivate talent, since geniuses should have more in common, right?
Anyway, she's just an ordinary, normal person. Let Zhou Yue think about these headaches. He's the child's father, and he can't just ignore the child and leave her to bear the pressure alone.
Cheng Cheng's temporary study plan includes teaching Xiao Xiao to recognize characters and telling her stories every day. The library is full of books, so she selected some easy-to-understand books for children and read them to the little one.
In addition, Cheng Cheng also served as a painting teacher, teaching Xiao Xiao to paint.
She may lack experience in education, but drawing is her forte, and she is confident in it!
"That's right, very good! Xiaoxiao observed very carefully. Let's observe this big tree more closely. What's on its trunk?"
Cheng Cheng patiently guided the little guy to carefully observe the big camphor tree outside the window and take the initiative to discover it.
They were on the second floor, with the windows wide open, allowing them to observe the large camphor tree in great detail and see it very clearly.
Little Lingxiao looked up, his eyes serious, staring intently at the big camphor tree. Suddenly, he opened his mouth and said, "Mommy~ Sister Tree's clothes are all wrinkled!"
Her eyes sparkled as she looked at her mother, her dimples flashing, and her earnest little face was full of anticipation.
"Yes, Xiaoxiao is right! The tree is also wearing clothes, it's called bark, and there are many marks and patterns on it, shouldn't we draw them too?"
Little Lingxiao's gaze fell on the big tree by the window again. He nodded his little head and quickly looked away, looking down at the drawing paper with a focused and serious expression.
Holding a pencil, the little hands added patches of tree bark to the already drawn tree trunk.
Cheng Cheng glanced at the large camphor tree outside the window and thought to herself that the trunk of the camphor tree was so big that it was taller than their three-story building.
Perhaps it is several generations older than her. I wonder how it feels to hear this "tree sister"?
Suddenly, a gentle breeze seemed to blow by, causing the leaves to rustle.
A hint of surprise flashed in Cheng Cheng's eyes, and the corners of her mouth unconsciously curved into a smile. It seemed that Xiao Xiao's little tree sister had responded; she said she was very happy~
Although the little guy's lines are not very standard or beautiful, after all, he is a beginner, each stroke has a childlike innocence and naivety, which is natural and also quite interesting.
If only I had crayons, I could color the trees. I wonder if I can buy crayons at bookstores. I'll go check when I have time.
People started arriving one after another after 9:10.
The library has only five people in total. The librarian, Zhu Kangnian, is old and often spends his days drinking tea, reading newspapers, and books.
Judging from his appearance, Deputy Director Wang Zhengming is not much older than Director Zhu Kangnian. He is a kind and gentle old man who usually likes to grow flowers, plants, and vegetables.
Outsiders rarely come to the library, and even higher-ups rarely visit. So every now and then, Wang Zhengming would pick up some broken pots and baskets from who-knows-where and bring them to the library to grow vegetables and flowers.
I often saw him taking a small hoe to steal soil outside. Whenever he came to the library, he would bring a water bottle to take care of his "treasures".
Another woman, Sister Tang, is probably in her thirties. She doesn't talk much, but she's always "very busy."
According to Cheng Cheng's observation, Sister Tang's hands never stopped moving; she was either sewing shoe soles, mending clothes, or making clothes.
Besides Cheng Cheng, there is another relatively young woman named Deng Yi, but she is on maternity leave and hasn't come for a long time.
According to Sister Tang, this is her fourth pregnancy, and it seems she plans to have more children.
Cheng Cheng felt terrified just thinking about it!
Fortunately, next year should be the first year of the implementation of the family planning policy, which has saved many women from the suffering of childbirth.
Cheng Cheng was extremely satisfied with her current job. The library was like a low-paying job; the salary wasn't much, but it was enough to support her family, and most importantly, it was very relaxed!
That alone makes it surpass everything else!
Sometimes Cheng Cheng thought, "Zhou Yue shouldn't come back. It doesn't make much difference whether he's here or not!"
The key is that my husband is far away, but he sends money back every month on time. I also receive packages from my in-laws in Beijing from time to time. I don't have any financial pressure. I don't have to deal with many people. I can be in charge of my own household and live a very comfortable life!
Despite her thoughts, seven or eight days had passed since Zhou Yue's return date mentioned in his letter. No matter how far away he was, he should be home by now, unless something else happened along the way.
Cheng Cheng felt a little worried, but Zhou Yue was in a classified unit where communication was difficult, and she couldn't contact him now.
It would take ten days to half a month to send a letter, and if something really happened, it would be too late!
The best news is that there's no news right now. If something really happened, someone would definitely contact her.
Cheng Cheng got home from get off work at five o'clock and had just started steaming rice when her older sister arrived on her old bicycle.
Cheng Ping rushed over, thinking something terrible had happened to the girl, only to find a sack full of clothes thrown at her.
Cheng Cheng emptied all the clothes out of the bag and let her older sister choose!
"Sister, I don't know what kind of clothes Da Ni and Er Ni like. You choose, just leave a few for your sisters-in-law!"
Upon hearing this, Cheng Ping wanted to say a few words to her. It was good enough that she had clothes to wear, yet she was still being picky and choosy. She had been spoiled and had developed a bad temper!
She was also terrified!
Ding Manman actually borrowed so many clothes from her younger sister, and she even had to return them in sacks. I wonder if the number returned matches the number borrowed.
My little sister is really spoiled by her parents and the whole family!
She also bears some responsibility for this; anyone would scold her for being a spendthrift daughter!
But she didn't say anything. She kept her composure, squatted down to look at the clothes. Her younger sister and her own daughter were different. She could directly discipline her own daughter, but her younger sister was like tofu, she couldn't be hit, she would break at the slightest touch!
Jianhua is right. You have to take it slow with your little sister and not be stubborn, otherwise it will backfire. The more you want her to do something, the more she will oppose you!
While Cheng Ping was choosing clothes, she asked about money. Cheng Cheng picked out a few things to say, and it was clear from her that she hadn't told the whole story and was being secretive.
Cheng Ping immediately frowned and glared at her!
Cheng Cheng let her look at her openly and said with a smile, "Sister, don't ask now, I'll tell you later! Don't worry, I definitely won't let Ding Manman off the hook! I'll make sure she pays back with interest."
"Oh, right, sis, I'll take Xiaoxiao to your house tomorrow morning so she can play there for a while. I'll pick her up at noon."
A note from the author:
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See you tomorrow [doge head with rose in hand] Goodnight, my darlings~
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