Chapter 2 Chapter 2 Zoo and Department Store

Today is the weekend and Xia Qinqin woke up early in the morning.

I still remember that my uncle said yesterday that he would take me to the zoo. Xia Qinqin hummed nursery rhymes excitedly since she woke up, and stood on the bed and let her mother dress her obediently.

Seeing that the temperature was quite warm today, Meng Yufei took out a bright red woolen hooded coat from her daughter's closet and put it on her. She wore a soft and warm white cashmere sweater underneath and a pair of black leather shoes on her feet.

Qinqin turned around happily in front of the dressing mirror, ran out of the room quickly, looked up at Father Meng who was standing in front of the living room cabinet fiddling with the radio, and said, "Grandpa, is my uncle up yet?"

As a medical student with a heavy workload, Meng Zhongyan always sleeps until noon every weekend when he goes home. Qinqin is worried that he has overslept today as well.

Father Meng looked at his granddaughter with a smile and said, "Our Qinqin looks so radiant today. Your uncle is in the study."

As soon as he finished speaking, Meng Zhongyan came out of the study with an old-fashioned camera in his hand, "Dad, can I borrow this antique from you today?"

Father Meng nodded and said, "Take a few more photos of Qinqin, and then ask your uncle Zhang to develop them. His development is very beautiful."

Mother Meng took out a military satchel and handed it to her son, saying, "This bag contains boiled water, biscuits, and handkerchiefs. Remember to give Qinqin water to drink, don't just play. Also, when Qinqin is tired from playing, wipe her sweat, otherwise she will catch a cold..."

"Yes, yes, I got it." Meng Zhongyan nodded, took the bag and put it on his back, picked up Qinqin and went out, "Let's go."

Seeing him leaving the house, Meng Mu hurriedly asked, "Are you not going to have breakfast?"

"I'm taking Qinqin to eat Xiaolongbao." After saying this, he left a message and disappeared through the door.

Coming out of the alley, crossing a street and turning a corner is a time-honored restaurant. Meng Zhongyan ordered a layer of steamed buns and a bowl of wontons, and asked the waiter for an extra bowl.

Nowadays, all stores are state-owned, and the attitude of the store staff is extremely arrogant. It is common for people who come to eat to be frequently confronted.

Who says food is so expensive these days? For the sake of stuttering, I have no choice but to swallow my anger and look at the waiter's expression.

If people see this decades later, they will probably say four words: Reverse the Tiangang.

However, the waiter saw today that the young man had a handsome face and the little girl was very cute. Both the big and the small were well dressed, and they actually smiled at her, which was a rare occasion.

A bowl of wontons cost 15 cents, a small steamed bun cost 35 cents, and a breakfast for two people cost 50 cents.

Meng Zhongyan used a spoon to scoop out four or five small wontons and placed them in an empty bowl to cool. The little girl had a small stomach and could not eat much.

He put another small steamed bun on the small plate in front of Qinqin, and reminded her, "Be careful not to burn it."

The little girl nodded, puffed out her chest and said confidently: "Grandma taught me how to eat it when she brought me here last time. Qinqin is now an 'expert' in eating soup dumplings."

She sat on a high chair, lowered her head to the plate, took a small bite from the small cage that was as thin as a cicada's wing, and slowly sucked the soup inside. The sweet and delicious taste spread in her mouth.

The little girl squinted her eyes happily, and Meng Zhongyan looked at the little glutton with amusement.

After breakfast, the adults and children took the tram to the zoo.

Giraffes, chimpanzees, elephants, lions... these animals that Xia Qinqin had seen in picture books really appeared before her eyes. She was so surprised that she couldn't close her mouth. She wanted to touch the neck of a giraffe, and then she was scared and screamed by the chimpanzee.

These vivid and interesting pictures were recorded one by one by the camera and saved in Xia Qinqin's growth album, treasured together with her precious childhood memories.

…

The uncle and nephew were having a great time in the zoo. Meanwhile, Meng Yufei and her daughter went out to buy things after breakfast.

The First Department Store in Hai City is located in the most prosperous area of ​​Hai City. It is not only the largest department store in Hai City, but also the first state-owned department store retail enterprise after the founding of the People's Republic of China. Decades ago, this mall was equipped with elevators and air-conditioning and heating equipment.

As a native of Haishi, Meng Yufei has come here countless times since she was a child, and many of the sales clerks in the shops are old acquaintances of her.

"I heard that it's summer all year round in Qiongzhou, so you should bring some short-sleeved shirts with you." Meng's mother picked out two white dacron shirts, two plaid shirts, and a sailor shirt.

The colors of the clothes she chose were relatively plain, and the pants were basically black. She said to her daughter: "After all, it's the military over there, so it's better to be low-key when it comes to clothes."

After thinking about it, she decided to pick up two pairs of braids. "But it's okay to wear a skirt occasionally."

Meng Yufei said, "Mom, there's no need to buy so much. I have enough clothes to wear. If you really need more, you can just go buy more there."

But Meng Mu said, "You are going to an island. Even if there is a place selling clothes, the styles and materials can't be as good as here."

After that, she dragged her daughter to the children's clothing area and bought several sets for Qinqin. Meng Yufei, who was carrying a lot of bags, stopped them in time and said, "Mom, that's enough, that's enough. You are going to spend all the cloth coupons of the whole family."

Mother Meng said nonchalantly, "I am a retired old lady. Who should I wear new clothes for? Your father and your brother are two grown men. Two sets of clothes per season are enough. The cloth coupons at home are for you and Qinqin. Now that you are going so far away, I don't know how long you will stay."

Meng Yufei held her mother's arm and said, "Oh, I will bring Qinqin back to see you often."

Mother Meng sighed and said, "It's such a long journey, and we have to take both a train and a car. You have been weak since childhood, and Qinqin is so young, how can we bear such hardships. Dad and Mom just hope that you are safe and sound. It doesn't matter whether you come back to see us or not."

At this point, Meng's mother lowered her voice and asked her daughter, "Fei Fei, when you go to Junshan this time, do you plan to have another child?"

The daughter and son-in-law have been married for so many years, but they only have one child, Qinqin. This is because the couple has only met a few times. Now that they are finally together, they should have another child. However, when she thinks of the medical conditions on the island and the fact that her daughter has no relatives or elders around her, Meng Mu's heart shudders.

Meng Yufei touched the fabric of the children's clothing in her hand and said softly, "I don't plan to have another child."

In this era when there is no family planning, it is a bit shocking to say such a thing, but Meng's mother did not think it was strange. She knew her own daughter well. Although Feifei looks quiet, gentle and weak on the outside, she is actually a bit "deviant" inside.

Meng Mu did not even bother to persuade her to have a baby. She just asked, "Then, will Junshan have any objections?"

Meng Yufei curled her lips and said calmly, "I told him before we got married that I might not be able to have children due to my poor health. He said at first that he didn't care about us before we got married. Later, when Qinqin was born, he felt that it was a blessing in his life, so he didn't have any other thoughts."

Mother Meng added, "Who knows, after a few years, his mind may change. Look at his colleagues and friends, all of whom have several children, and he only has one daughter. It's inevitable that he will have other ideas."

Meng Yufei smiled and said, "I don't care what he thinks. If he wants to have another child, I will divorce him and he can find someone else to give birth to the child."

Normally, a mother would scold her daughter for talking nonsense when hearing this, but Meng's mother thought about it and nodded, saying, "Then you must bring Qinqin back when the time comes."

Meng Yufei held up the bag of children's clothes in her hand and said, "Don't worry, Qinqin would never be willing to spoil her grandmother like that. We've bought everything, let's go back."

But Meng's mother raised her eyebrows and said, "There are still shoes to buy. Children's feet grow fast. The shoes now will be too small in a few months. No, we have to buy two more pairs of bigger shoes for Qinqin." As she spoke, she walked towards the shoe counter. Meng Yufei followed helplessly with her bags.

…

Zoo entrance.

Xia Qinqin and Meng Zhongyan were staring at each other in front of the soda stand, standing there with her hands on her hips, unwilling to leave.

There was no way, he couldn't stand this little girl, so Meng Zhongyan shook his head, took out two dimes and bought a bottle of orange soda.

"Don't tell your grandma that you drank soda today when you go back, otherwise your grandma won't forgive me." Meng Zhongyan put the straw into the soda bottle, bent down and handed it to Xia Qinqin and reminded her.

"Yeah." Xia Qinqin nodded happily, staring at the soda in her uncle's hand without blinking. When she saw him handing it to her, she quickly hugged it with both hands, took a sip, and opened her mouth to wrap around the straw.

The cool and sweet soda went into her mouth through the straw. After taking a long sip, the little girl let go of the straw and opened her mouth. "Ah~ It tastes so good." She breathed a sigh of relief happily.

Meng Zhongyan watched her drink half a bottle, then quickly took the remaining half bottle, touched her belly and said, "Okay, don't drink any more. If you drink too much, you'll have a stomachache at night."

The little girl frowned unhappily. Meng Zhongyan was afraid that she would make trouble, so he tilted his head back and drank the rest of the soda. He returned the bottle to the vendor and shrugged, saying, "No more."

"Humph," Xia Qinqin snorted angrily, and said dissatisfiedly: "Uncle, you are such an adult, why are you still snatching things from a child like me?"

Meng Zhongyan gently pulled her braid and said angrily and amusedly, "You little girl, have you forgotten who bought you this soda?"

Xia Qinqin pouted and turned her head away, obviously still angry.

Meng Zhongyan sighed helplessly, "It's getting late, let's go home quickly, or your grandma will punish me." Then he squatted down to hug her, "Qinqin, our daughter must be tired after playing all day, uncle will carry you home, okay?"

After thinking about it, Xia Qinqin put her arm around her uncle's neck and said, "Okay then."

Meng Zhongyan smiled and picked up the little girl and went home.

When they came back, they happened to run into Meng's mother and Meng Yufei downstairs. Seeing her carrying a lot of bags, Meng Zhongyan smiled and said, "Mom, are you going to move the department store back?"

Mother Meng said angrily: "You have no sense at all. Why don't you come and help?"

"Coming, coming." Meng Zhongyan hurried forward and took the bags from the two people.

Xia Qinqin volunteered: "Grandma, I want to help too."

Meng Mu took out a paper bag, which contained a large iron box. The box contained imported chocolates bought at the Friendship Store with foreign exchange coupons. She handed it to her and said, "Qinqin, please help hold it. It's chocolate."

"Wow~" Xia Qinqin cheered after taking the paper bag, and tilted her head and said, "Grandma, can I bring some chocolates to kindergarten tomorrow? I want to give them to my good friends."

Mother Meng smiled and said, "Of course you can. This is a gift from your grandmother. You can do whatever you want with it."

Xia Qinqin happily skipped up the stairs carrying the bag. After arriving home, she ran to the end of the living room corridor, where there was a staircase. Climbing up was a half-person-high attic.

Xia Qinqin, who was only five years old, didn't need to bend down after going up to the attic.

The north side of the attic is where the Meng family stores miscellaneous items, and a small window on the south side is specially set aside for Xia Qinqin to play. Meng's mother laid a thick carpet on the wooden floor, on which she placed Xia Qinqin's toys and a few picture books.

There is a small wooden box next to it, which was custom-made by Meng's father. The lock on it is an exquisite combination lock. It is Xia Qinqin's treasure box, and her "treasures" are placed in it.

Colorful glass beads, favorite picture books, favorite toys, favorite snacks...

Chocolate is Xia Qinqin's new favorite snack, so of course she has to hide it well.

After going downstairs, Meng's mother and Meng Yufei were packing up the things they bought today. Seeing Xia Qinqin, Meng Yufei reminded her, "Qinqin, remember what mom said, you are not allowed to eat more than three chocolates a day, otherwise you will get cavities."

Thinking of Sister Lily's leaky front teeth downstairs, Xia Qinqin was so scared that she covered her mouth with her hands and nodded repeatedly.

She doesn't want her teeth to fall out!