Chapter 67 Chapter 67 Rainy Day

It was the weekend, a rare day off, and it was drizzling outside.

Xia Junshan did not go to exercise this morning. After waking up, he got up and went to the next room to check on Qinqin. Seeing that she was sleeping soundly, he quietly went back into the room.

Meng Yufei asked dazedly, "What time is it?"

"Six o'clock." Xia Junshan said softly.

"Isn't today the weekend? Get some more sleep."

"Okay, sleep a little longer."

Accompanied by the sound of rain, the family of three slept soundly.

Bang bang bang!

Meng Yufei and Xia Junshan were awakened by a knock on the door, and then they heard their daughter's clear voice.

"Dad, Mom, why haven't you gotten up yet?"

Xia Junshan got up and opened the door. He looked down and saw his daughter standing at the door in pajamas with messy hair, looking up at him with a smile.

"Dad, you slept too long today."

Xia Junshan smiled and touched his daughter's hair. "Yes, Dad accidentally overslept."

Xia Qinqin looked into the room and saw Meng Yufei lying on the bed. She slid into the room in her slippers, "Mom, I miss you so much!"

Looking at her daughter who was lying on her side, Meng Yufei said with a smile, "I miss you after just one night of not seeing you. Did you sleep well last night?"

Xia Qinqin nodded: "Okay~ I'm the first one to get up in the family today."

Meng Yufei praised: "Great, our Qinqin is really a big kid now."

The mother and daughter rested for a while before getting up to wash up. Xia Junshan went to the kitchen to boil some water. "Have some noodles in the morning. I'll fry an egg for you guys."

"Okay, it's raining so hard, it's not convenient to go to the cafeteria."

After dinner, the family of three went to the small room, which is now their study.

Xia Qinqin was sitting at the desk drawing. She was preparing to draw her own kindergarten.

The picture she drew last time of their new home has already been sent to Haishi. This time she wants to draw her own kindergarten and send it to her grandmother and others, and also add her new friends.

Meng Yufei and Xia Junshan, each holding a book, sat next to each other, reading while watching their daughter draw.

Listening to the sound of rain outside the window, the family of three enjoyed their rare holiday.

Xia Qinqin was halfway through painting when she suddenly asked, "Mom, will Brother Yannan come over to have lunch with us today?"

Meng Yufei glanced at the rain still falling outside the window and said, "He should be at home. It's raining today, so it's inconvenient for him to come over."

"Oh, okay." After asking, Xia Qinqin lowered her head and started painting again.

“A-choo!”

On the other side, Lu Yannan, who was at home, sneezed.

I wore wet shoes and pants for the whole morning yesterday. When I went back home with Xia Qinqin to have lunch at noon, he dried them up and Meng Yufei didn't notice.

When he came back in the evening, he felt something was wrong and started to have a runny nose and sneeze.

When Dr. Huang came home from get off work, he heard him sneezing and took a thermometer to measure his temperature, which was 37.8°C, a low fever.

There was no rush to give him antipyretic medicine. He just drank a glass of boiled water and then covered himself with a quilt all night. The fever was gone the next morning.

The fever had gone away, but the cold was not healed yet. Before going to work, Dr. Huang specifically told him to have a good rest at home.

It happened that Teacher Li did not go out today, so he stayed at home to play chess with Lu Yannan. However, Lu Yannan could not help sneezing and having a runny nose while playing. After the game, Teacher Li poured him a cup of wine and asked him to go back to his room to rest.

It drizzled all day and didn't stop until the evening.

Han Jianhong trotted into the house. Team leader Han, who was sitting on the sofa in the living room, asked, "Why did you come back so early today?"

"It rained all day and we didn't go out for training today. In the morning, we listened to a lecture in the conference room for half a day. In the afternoon, the instructor led us in singing military songs for a while and then let us go back." Han Jianhong said while changing his shoes.

The militia training started two days ago. Normally, this batch of militia should be in closed training, but the girls’ dormitory was not ready yet, so they were temporarily allowed to go home at night.

Han Jianhong went to training early in the morning these days and came back after dinner at night. He hardly saw his family all day long.

Although the training was hard, I chatted and laughed with people of my age. I felt tired but happy. After a few days, I felt much more cheerful.

Captain Han nodded and said, "Then go change your clothes first. Is it still raining outside?"

"It's not raining anymore. The rain has stopped." Han Jianhong walked towards the room.

"Then change your clothes and come with me to Captain Xia's house."

"Ah? What's the matter with going to Captain Xia's house?" Han Jianhong stopped and asked.

Captain Han said, "I'm going to play a game of chess with Captain Xia. Don't you have a good relationship with his family? Let's go together."

Han Jianhong didn't know why he suddenly wanted to go to Xia's house today. He clearly felt that his relationship with Captain Xia was just average, but he didn't ask much. He just nodded and said, "I know."

Before leaving, Captain Han pointed to two small iron boxes on the tea table and said, "I still have two boxes of tea that my comrades in Hangzhou sent me some time ago. Take them and bring them to Captain Xia to taste."

"Oh, okay." Han Jianhong took the tea and followed Captain Han out of the door and walked towards the Xia family.

Xia Junshan and Meng Yufei were a little surprised at the arrival of the father and daughter. Xia Qinqin was very happy and ran over with a smile and held Han Jianhong's hand.

Captain Han said, "Old Xia, I've always heard that you are a good chess player. Even your teachers have praised you. I'm here to play chess with you today. Are you free?"

Xia Junshan smiled and said, "Of course I am free, please come in."

Han Jianhong handed the tea in his hand to Meng Yufei, who said, "Why are you so polite when you come to my house to play?"

Captain Han smiled and said, "This is the tea my comrade sent me. It tastes pretty good. I'll give it to you to try. Don't reject it."

Meng Yufei said: "What are you talking about? I'll make it for you now, and we can all taste it together."

As he spoke, he took the tea leaves, brought them to the dining table, and went to the cupboard to get two new cups. He opened the iron box containing the tea leaves and saw the words "Longjing" on it. He raised his eyebrows slightly, thinking that the tea leaves were indeed good.

Xia Junshan led Captain Han to sit on the sofa and said to Xia Qinqin who was following behind Meng Yufei: "Qinqin, can you help Dad get the chess set from the study?"

"Okay!" Xia Qinqin trotted into the study, holding the chess box in both hands, and took out the chessboard paper as well.

"Dad, this is for you."

Xia Junshan smiled and touched his daughter's head, "Thank you, Qinqin."

"You're welcome." Xia Qinqin said happily.

Meng Yufei brewed the tea and placed two cups on the tea table. "Captain Han, the tea you brought is really good. It has a refreshing fragrance when brewed with water."

Captain Han took the teacup and said with a smile: "If you like it, I will send you some next time my comrades send it to me."

Xia Junshan said with a smile: "How can that be so? These two boxes are enough for us to drink for a long time."

Captain Han smiled and said, "My comrade's unit is near the tea plantation. Every year when the new tea is on the market, he will send me a bunch of it. I can't finish it all."

The two started playing chess while talking.

Meng Yufei took out chocolates and candies and gave them to Han Jianhong, "You kids don't like to drink tea, let's have candies instead."

Xia Qinqin came over and said, "Yes, we kids don't like drinking tea, we like eating candy."

Meng Yufei smiled and tucked her little nose, handed her a piece of chocolate, and said, "I've already eaten candy this morning, so now I can only eat chocolate."

Xia Qinqin took the chocolate and nodded, "Yeah, okay."

After eating the chocolate, Xia Qinqin took Han Jianhong to the small room to look at her paintings. Meng Yufei also followed and sat beside them to read a book.

Xia Qinqin's painting has already included the entire kindergarten. Now she is drawing the children in the kindergarten class. Pointing to the little person in the middle, she said, "This is me. On the left is my good friend Sister Fangfang. On the right is Brother Yannan. Next to him is classmate Xiaoming..."

"There are still many children who haven't finished drawing. I also want to draw Teacher Zhou and Teacher Tang, and I also want to draw the slide..."

Han Jianhong smiled and said, "Don't worry, just take your time. This is a big project."

"Yeah, mom also told me to take my time."

Meng Yufei asked Han Jianhong, "Jianhong, why did your father come here suddenly today?"

Han Jianhong shook his head and said, "I don't know. As soon as I got home, he said he wanted to come over to play chess with Uncle Xia."

Meng Yufei asked, "Does Wei Shufang know you're coming?"

Han Jianhong said: "She is not at home. I didn't see her when I got home. I don't know where she went."

Meng Yufei said, "It just so happens that I have a book I want to show you, but I just can't find you recently."

As he spoke, he took down a book from the bookshelf. It was a comic book - "The Female Generals of Yang's Family".

"I hope you like this book. You are usually busy with training, and this book is mostly drawings. You can read it when you have time without feeling tired."

Han Jianhong's eyes lit up, but he said a little embarrassedly: "At my age, reading this comic strip would be too..."

Meng Yufei said: "What's the big deal? I like to read comic books even at my age. This book is on my dad's bookshelf and he likes to read it too."

Han Jianhong took it and said with a smile: "Well... I have a low level of education, so I can only understand these things when I read books. Before, my father gave me those thick books to read, saying that they were all famous works and reading them would broaden my horizons. But... I just couldn't get into them."

Meng Yufei said: "A great man once said: The way to study is to be broad first and then be narrow, to be Chinese first and then be Western, to be general first and then be specialized. Studying is a gradual process. You are still young, so take your time. There is no rush."

Han Jianhong smiled and nodded, "Well, I'll return the book to you when I finish it."

"I'll recommend other books to you next time you come."

"good."

After Xia Qinqin painted for a while, she rubbed her palms. Meng Yufei noticed her daughter's movements out of the corner of her eye, put down the book and said, "Qinqin, let's stop painting here today. We'll paint next time."

Xia Qinqin nodded and said, "Okay."

She put away the painting, took the paintbrush and put them in the drawer of her room, then ran into the study, approached Han Jianhong and said, "Sister Jianhong, shall we go watch my dad and your dad play chess?"

Han Jianhong smiled and nodded: "Okay."

Xia Qinqin pulled Xia Qinqin to the living room and sat aside to watch Xia Junshan and Captain Han play chess.

"Sister Jianhong, can you play chess?" Xia Qinqin leaned over and whispered.

Han Jianhong shook his head and said, "No."

Xia Qinqin said, "I know a little bit. Let me teach you." She saw Xia Junshan doing a horse move and said, "Look, my dad is doing a horse move. The horse moves in the shape of a sun. Isn't that right, dad?"

Xia Junshan smiled and said, "Yes, Qinqin has a really good memory."

Captain Han looked at Xia Junshan in surprise. When adults were playing chess and a child interrupted them, most people would just scold the child back and send him away.

But Xia Junshan was not angry. He even praised the child with a smile.

Captain Han thought that Captain Xia was just as spoiled as the rumors said.

After the two of them played two games, Team Leader Han looked out the window at the sky and said with a smile, "It's time for dinner. We'll go home first and play again next time."

Xia Junshan said, "Order two more plates, and you can eat at my house tonight."

Meng Yufei also said: "Yes, I will go to the cafeteria to get food now."

Captain Han waved his hands and said, "No, no. I don't want to lose again. I'll try again next time."

He turned to Han Jianhong who was playing with Xia Qinqin and said, "Jianhong, let's go home."

"Oh, okay." Han Jianhong nodded, stood up and walked to Captain Han.

Before leaving, Captain Han asked, "Old Xia, does your regiment have a Captain Yan?"

Xia Junshan thought for a moment and said, "Yes, Captain Zhao does have a company commander named Yan under him. What's wrong with that?"

Captain Han coughed and said, "I heard that he has been serving as an instructor for the militia on the island recently. Jianhong, this girl, insisted on forming a female militia team with several other girls on the island to train with the militia on the island. Well, she is just a little girl after all, so Captain Xia, please go and say hello to Captain Yan."

"I don't mean to give her special care! Just train her the way she needs to be trained. Girls are different from boys after all..."

Han Jianhong said dissatisfiedly: "Dad! We don't want special treatment. What boys can do, we girls can do too."

Captain Han pointed at her with his finger, turned to Xia Junshan and said with a smile: "Young people are very arrogant. Okay, just treat me as nosy. Captain Xia, Director Meng, we will go back first."

Xia Junshan said with a smile: "You guys go slowly, I also want to go over to see their militia training tomorrow."

Captain Han smiled and took Han Jianhong home.

Meng Yufei looked at the backs of the father and daughter and said softly, "Captain Han is acting a bit like a father now."

Xia Junshan said: "The child has grown up and is obviously going to be a promising person. If we don't show some ability now, the child will become alienated."

Meng Yufei nodded and said, "That's right, but no matter what, Jianhong's life has improved."

On the way home, Han Jianhong said angrily, "Dad, why did you say that to Uncle Xia? I don't need any special treatment. It's just militia training."

Leader Han said, "I didn't say I would give you special treatment. I just gave you some advice so that others wouldn't give you any trouble. You are still young and don't know that it is more important to avoid giving you any trouble than to let the leaders take care of you."

Han Jianhong pursed her lips and said nothing.

When the two returned home, Wei Shufang asked unhappily, "Where did you go?" It was strange that the father and daughter would go out together?

Captain Han said, "I went to Captain Xia's house to play chess with him."

Seeing Wei Shufang's sullen face, he asked her, "Where did you go this afternoon?"

Wei Shufang turned away in anger without saying anything. Han Jianbao, who was playing marbles on the sofa, said, "Mom had a quarrel with someone this afternoon."

"What nonsense are you talking about!" Wei Shufang said angrily.

Captain Han frowned and said in a deep voice, "Didn't I tell you to reflect on yourself at home and not go out and cause trouble?"

Wei Shufang said angrily, "Who went out to cause trouble? If I don't go out to buy groceries, will I be left alone at home? Those gossipers in the family compound gossip about others all day long. I just couldn't help but say a few words in reply."

She originally wanted to go to Captain Cao's house to inquire about Tong Caifeng, but she found out that the entire family compound knew that she had been caught taking bribes through the back door and had lost her job.

They even knew about the report. Wei Shufang suppressed her anger and asked a few questions, and it turned out that it was Tong Caifeng who spread the news.

Well, now she is completely sure that the person who wrote the report letter is Tong Caifeng!

Finally, she couldn't help but had a quarrel with those people who were gloating over other's misfortune.

Listening to her explanation, Captain Han was too lazy to argue with her and said, "Then go cook first. It's already so late."

Wei Shufang said to Han Jianhong: "The vegetables are in the kitchen. Go and fry them. Remember to cook the rice as well."

Before Han Jianhong could say anything, Team Leader Han said, "Jianhong has been training all day, and you have nothing to do at home, so why are you asking the child to cook?"

Then he turned to Han Jianhong and said, "Go back and read. Director Meng lent you a book. In the future, the army will not only require military capabilities, but also cultural qualities."

Han Jianhong nodded: "Okay, I got it." He turned back to the room and closed the door.

Wei Shufang rolled her eyes in anger, but finally turned around and went to the kitchen.

During the meal, Wei Shufang put the only dish of braised pork with pickled mustard greens and beans to Han Jianbao and Han Jianping. Han Jianhong was already used to it and just focused on eating.

Captain Han couldn't bear to see this and gave Han Jianhong a piece of meat.

Han Jianhong suddenly said, "I just saw a gecko in the house."

Captain Han said, "When it rains, these things come out and move. Your house faces north and doesn't get much sunlight. Tomorrow I'll get you half a bag of lime and come back to spread it to remove moisture."

Han Jianhong said: "Yes, when it rains, these snakes, insects, rats and ants will come out. You should be careful. It will be bad if you get bitten."

Han Jianping snorted disdainfully: "Our rooms are facing south, but unlike your room, which is dark and gloomy without sunlight."

When Captain Han heard her words, his face suddenly fell and he felt upset. His own daughter lived in the worst room, while other people's daughters lived in good rooms.

If it were in the past, Wei Shufang would definitely come out to smooth things over for her daughter, but now, she was too lazy to say anything. Looking at Captain Han's unhappy expression, she felt happy in her heart.

Han Jianbao lowered his head while eating and looked up and said, "Ah, I hate bugs the most! Mom, I hope they won't bite me when I sleep at night."

Wei Shufang comforted him: "No."

Thinking of what Han Jianhong had just said, she muttered to herself: Yes, this weather is the time when snakes, insects, rats and ants are rampant. If someone gets bitten by accident, they can only blame themselves.

…

The next day, the sky finally cleared up.

Meng Yufei took Xia Qinqin to the kindergarten. When they opened the gate, Xia Qinqin pointed to the rising sun in the east and shouted, "Hello, Grandpa Sun. We meet again."

She turned to Meng Yufei and said, "Mom, it's a sunny day today."

Meng Yufei smiled and nodded: "Yes, the sun is in a good mood today, so it came out again."

Xia Qinqin said: "I am in a good mood today. I am going to the kindergarten to see my friends again."

"Really? It feels like a long time since we last met." Meng Yufei led her forward.

Xia Qinqin asked: "Mom, what does this sentence mean?"

Meng Yufei said softly, "It means that even though you haven't seen each other for only one day, it feels like three years have passed. It's been a long, long time, and you miss each other very much."

Xia Qinqin nodded and said, "Yes, I really want to see them."

The mother and daughter went to the cafeteria to have breakfast first, and then walked slowly towards the kindergarten after breakfast.

At the door, I saw Lu Yannan, and next to him was the communicator Xiao Zhao.

Xia Qinqin asked curiously, "Brother Yannan, what is that white thing on your mouth?"

Meng Yufei said: "That's a mask."

She asked Lu Yannan, "Yannan, do you have a cold?"

Lu Yannan nodded and said in a muffled voice, "Good morning, Aunt Meng."

Xia Qinqin walked over and asked caringly, "Brother Yannan, you are sick. Do you have any bitter medicine to take? You will get better after taking it."

Lu Yannan quietly took a step back, turned his head away from Xia Qinqin's face, and whispered, "I've eaten."

Meng Yufei asked, "Did you sleep without a blanket? It rained a few days ago, and the temperature is still a bit cold."

Xiao Zhao touched his head and said, "This is all my fault. When I sent him to school the day before yesterday, I didn't notice that his shoes were wet."

Meng Yufei said, "Kid, why didn't you tell me earlier that your shoes were wet? Next time this happens, you must tell the teacher, okay? Otherwise, you will be the one who suffers if you get sick."

Lu Yannan nodded silently.

After sending the kids to school, Meng Yufei returned to the office. Xiao Zhang came late today, and she rushed over ten minutes into work.

"Sister Meng, I'm sorry, I overslept." Xiao Zhang said breathlessly.

Meng Yufei said, "It's okay, sit down and take a rest, you are sweating from running."

Xiao Zhang sat down and took a breath, "Hey, I ate too much last night and couldn't sleep in the middle of the night, so I got up late this morning."

Meng Yufei smiled and said, "The cafeteria didn't cook any new dishes yesterday. Why did you overeat?"

Xiao Zhang said: "I didn't go to the cafeteria to eat yesterday. I went to a small restaurant with my previous blind date."

"Oh, really?" Meng Yufei became interested, "Then it looks like you are enjoying the meal."

Xiao Zhang said: "It was a casual dinner, not very exciting, but it was quite relaxing."

Meng Yufei asked: "Isn't it appropriate?"

"Yeah," Xiao Zhang nodded. "He treated me to a meal last time, so I treated him back this time and told him my thoughts. I can't drag him down if it's not suitable. Fortunately, he also expressed his understanding."

Meng Yufei nodded and said, "Yes, if it's not suitable, it's best to end it as soon as possible so as not to waste each other's time."

Xiao Zhang sighed and said, "Well, I can't find anyone suitable on this island."

Meng Yufei smiled and said, "There is a division stationed on the island. There are so many single officers and soldiers. There will always be someone suitable."

Xiao Zhang stood up and poured himself a glass of water, then turned around and said, "Sister Meng, I don't really want to find a soldier. I've been in the army for so many years, um... I don't want to find another soldier."

Meng Yufei asked curiously: "What kind do you like?"

Xiao Zhang said, "Actually... I like gentle, educated men." After thinking for a moment, she added, "It would be best if he has fair skin."

"Oh, so you like pretty boys." Meng Yufei joked.

Xiao Zhang said with a smile: "Sister Meng, please don't make fun of me."

Meng Yufei said: "What's so funny about this? Everyone has different aesthetic tastes."

Xiao Zhang said, "Sister Meng, I'm only saying this in front of you. I'm too embarrassed to say it to other people. Everyone thinks that appearance is not the only thing to look for when choosing a partner, especially, uh, pretty boys are unreliable."

Meng Yufei said, "How can you not consider appearance? When you go to buy a hair tie, you have to look for a nice color that you like. How can you not be picky when it comes to finding a partner, such an important event in life? You should find someone good-looking, live together, and be happy looking at that face every day."

"That's right, that's right!" Xiao Zhang nodded as he listened, "Sister Meng, what you said makes so much sense!"

She smiled and joked, "Sister Meng, was it because of his good looks that you chose Captain Xia?"

Meng Yufei nodded and said, "Of course. If he's not good-looking, why would I marry him?"

Xiao Zhang said: "And Qinqin also looks a bit like his father. They say girls take after their fathers. If the father is good-looking, the daughter will be good-looking too."

Meng Yufei smiled and said, "Well, that makes sense."

The two of them laughed and joked for a while, and Meng Yufei said, "By the way, let's go to the city on a business trip tomorrow to coordinate with the cinema to show movies on May Day."

"Okay, it's so fun to go to the city on a business trip during the weekdays. It feels like I've got a day off for free." Xiao Zhang said happily.