The day after receiving the ice skating photos, He's father finally got a day off, and Cheng Xiaoman also specially switched shifts with someone else. After breakfast in the morning, the whole family dressed up and went to the photo studio.

As expected, there weren't many customers in the photo studio in the compound. They didn't arrive early, but there was only one family in front of them taking a family photo, and it was already finishing up.

The other party also lived in the military compound. My father and He's father were colleagues, my mother knew He's mother Aunt Wang, and my son was familiar with He Dongchuan, so after taking the photos, the two families got together and talked while the staff were preparing.

After greeting He's father, the other son walked over to He Dongchuan, gave him a cigarette and asked, "Brother Chuan, when did you come back? Is this your young lady? What's her name?" He then called Su Ting sister-in-law.

The He family is small, and the only young daughter-in-law is Su Ting, who is easy to recognize.

"She's my daughter. Her full name is He Miao, Sanshui Miao, and her nickname is Man Man," He Dongchuan waved his hand to refuse the cigarette and replied, "We've been back for almost a week. How about you? When did you come back?"

"I just arrived last night, and as soon as I woke up in the morning, my parents asked me to take photos with them."

He Dongchuan nodded and asked, "Your elder brother hasn't come back yet?"

"No, he took a leave last year and can't come back this year. It's the military, you understand." The other party said helplessly, "When it comes to the New Year's holiday, we are more convenient than you."

When the movement just started, he was only in the second year of high school. After the classes were suspended, his family wanted him to join the army, but he was not very happy at the time, so he packed his bags and followed a few classmates to join the army.

After two years, when the linkage was over, the higher-ups made arrangements for these educated young people, sending them to the countryside in batches to support construction.

At that time, his father mentioned the idea of ​​arranging him to join the army, but he was full of energy and wanted to go to Xinjiang to help, so he did not agree.

When he first arrived at the border, he really wanted to make a career, but ideals are high and reality is low. Once he arrived at the border, not only could he not shine, he even had trouble growing crops to support himself.

He survived the first two years at the border with financial support from his family. In the third year, he was finally able to be self-sufficient, but his spirit had been worn away.

Not only him, but few of those who went to the border did not regret it.

After 1972, the country relaxed its policy on returning to the city. Those who met the policy requirements and had connections at home basically all returned, and the rest basically came from families with poor financial conditions.

His family was well-off and his father held a high position, so it was easy to arrange a job for him or get him a place in the army.

But the army was not completely peaceful in recent years. Many of his father's comrades-in-arms had accidents, some were transferred to other positions, and some were demoted. His father had seen so much that he was a little afraid of trouble. At the same time, he also blamed him for not listening to advice when he was young and for not asking for help from others.

So he stayed in the countryside for seven or eight years.

In the early years, he was still thinking about returning to the city, but in the past two years, he had accepted his fate and found a partner in the countryside, who was also an educated youth who went to the countryside with him.

His main purpose of returning to the capital this time was to talk to his parents about this matter and seek their permission to get married.

However, he felt that this was not an easy matter. It was easy to convince his mother, but his father had been unhappy with him in recent years, so in the past few years, he seldom went back to the capital to avoid offending his father.

But marriage is definitely not possible without the consent of his parents, otherwise the girl would feel so wronged if she married him, so he came back reluctantly.

Thinking of this, he asked, "Brother Chuan, do you have time these two days?"

"What?"

"Come to my house sometime. My dad likes you so much, he will be happy to see you," he said, glancing at Su Ting, "It would be best if you can bring your sister-in-law and children with you."

If He Dongchuan were here, maybe his father's attitude would be better. If he let his mother see He Miao, maybe his mother's desire for grandchildren would be aroused, and she would be willing to help him persuade his father more.

He Dongchuan did not agree immediately, but just said, "Let's see if I'm free in the next two days."

As soon as he finished speaking, the staff of the photo studio came out and asked them to go in to take pictures. Then the two families separated, one went in and the other went out.

When they entered the photo studio, Cheng Xiaoman, who had fallen behind, asked, "What did Wenjun say to you just now?"

"Nothing, just let me go to his house to play." He Dongchuan said.

Cheng Xiaoman asked in confusion: "You two have an average relationship, right? Why did he invite you to his home?"

In fact, in terms of age, He Dongchuan is not much older than Li Wenjun, only half a year or one year older. However, he has been mature in character since he was young, and the people who play with him are basically the older kids in the courtyard.

Among the three brothers and sisters in the Li family, the eldest one has the best relationship with He Dongchuan. If it was the eldest brother who invited Cheng Xiaoman, Cheng Xiaoman might not find it strange.

But before He Dongchuan joined the army, their relationship was average, and they haven't met in recent years. After all, one was in the army and the other went to the countryside, and they rarely came back. It's no wonder that Cheng Xiaoman felt confused by Li Wenjun's sudden invitation.

"Maybe he has grown up and matured." He Dongchuan guessed casually.

Among the three siblings of the Li family, Li Wenjun is the least obedient to advice. Now, compared with others, he is also the one who is having the worst life.

The eldest son joined the army and was promoted to deputy battalion commander last year. The youngest son followed the family's arrangement and went to the Workers, Peasants and Soldiers University. After graduation, he got a job in a government agency. Only Li Wenjun has been in the countryside for seven or eight years and still has no future.

As parents, no matter how much they rely on their children to achieve success, in the end, the one they worry about the most is definitely the one who is the least promising.

Thinking of her friend's graying hair, Cheng Xiaoman sighed: "It would be great if he could grow up, so his mother wouldn't have to worry about him."

After all, it was someone else's business, and since they had to take pictures, Cheng Xiaoman didn't say much. She followed the staff's instructions and sat on the stool side by side with her husband.

He Dongchuan held his baby and slowly stood behind his parents. Aunt Wang stood on his left, Su Ting stood on his right, and behind Su Ting stood He Yan.

After the family stood still, the photographer also bent over and stood in front of the camera, looking at them through the lens and shouting, "One, two, three, smile!"

“Crack—”

After taking the family portrait, Su Ting and the others walked out of the camera, leaving He's father and mother sitting on the stool to take a photo of the two of them.

Afterwards, the young couple took their two children to take a family photo. This time, Su Ting and He Dongchuan sat on stools, facing each other sideways, Su Ting holding Manman in their arms, with He Yan standing behind them.

Then he was slowly carried away from the back, and He Yan also walked out of the camera. The young couple took the first photo together in their lives.

Then there were various individual and group photos. Aunt Wang, He Yan, and Su Ting each took a solo photo, and Su Ting took group photos with He Yan and Man Man...

…

In the new year, Su Ting woke up again to the sound of firecrackers.

She opened her eyes and looked outside. It was still dark outside, so she closed her eyes again, wanting to sleep a little longer.

But after the first firecracker sounded, the sound never stopped. Even if there was a pause in the middle, it would always sound again soon, making it impossible for people to sleep.

Su Ting became more and more anxious as she lay there. She couldn't help but turn over. As soon as she moved, she heard He Dongchuan's voice in her ears: "Are you awake?"

"You woke up too?" Su Ting asked, then she remembered that He Dongchuan was a lighter sleeper than her. How could he fall asleep with so much noise outside? So she changed the topic and asked, "How long have you been awake?"

"A while."

He Dongchuan raised his hand to turn on the light, fished out his watch from under his pillow, and squinted his eyes: "Four forty-five."

"Why are they setting off firecrackers so early?"

Although she was also woken up very early during the Chinese New Year last year, it was at least after 5 o'clock. She thought she could have a good sleep this year, but she was woken up earlier than last year.

"Maybe we had the New Year's Eve dinner early." He Dongchuan rubbed his brows and asked, "Can you still sleep?"

"What do you think?" Su Ting said, giving him a look that said "you already know the answer but still ask."

He Dongchuan turned over, pressed down Su Ting and said, "Then let's do some exercise?"

As soon as she saw his expression, Su Ting knew what he meant by "exercise" and glared at him and said, "It's morning now!"

"I can't sleep anyway," He Dongchuan said, lowering his head to kiss Su Ting's face, "and it's the first time in the new year, isn't it very memorable?"

Su Ting chuckled: "I don't think so."

But He Dongchuan was a very opinionated man. In order to make this New Year more meaningful, he quickly took off Su Ting's clothes and kissed her from her lips.

Su Ting was moved by him and had to go along with him reluctantly.

Finally, with He Dongchuan's efforts, Su Ting successfully fell asleep after more than an hour.

When she woke up again, it was already noon outside. From time to time, she could hear He Yan humming and laughing from downstairs. Su Ting listened carefully for a long time, but couldn't make out what was going on downstairs.

Out of curiosity and because the room was warm enough to prevent her from staying in bed too long, Su Ting got up after lying down for a while.

When Su Ting got out of bed, her legs felt a little weak, but she felt fresh. It was estimated that He Dongchuan had washed her with water after she fell asleep. So Su Ting did not take a shower, but went downstairs after brushing her teeth and washing her face.

At this time, Cheng Xiaoman and Aunt Wang were preparing ingredients for the New Year's Eve dinner in the kitchen. When they heard the voices, they came out and asked, "Are you up? There's porridge on the stove. Can I serve you a bowl?"

Su Ting quickly said, "No, I can serve it myself."

"It's okay, sit down," Cheng Xiaoman pushed Su Ting out of the kitchen, turned around and scooped a bowl of porridge and brought it to the restaurant. She then brought two buns to Su Ting and asked with a smile, "It was very noisy this morning, right? Dongchuan said you were woken up very early and didn't sleep well, so you slept a little longer."

Su Ting heaved a sigh of relief when she learned that He Dongchuan had found an excuse for her, but her cheeks were still a little hot, and she said sheepishly, "It was a little busy this morning."

"It's been like this for the past few days. It will be fine after the New Year."

"It was the same when we were in Pingchuan Island. There were firecrackers going off non-stop during the New Year." Su Ting ate a piece of the bun and praised, "This bun is really good. It seems that the filling was prepared by Aunt Wang?"

"Yes, she got up early and worked."

After saying that, Cheng Xiaoman went back to the kitchen to continue working. However, Su Ting did not sit at the table and drink porridge obediently, but walked out with the buns.

Outside is a square yard, with shrubs planted on three sides, half a person high, which can be considered a wall. In the middle of the yard is a sidewalk, with tiles paved from the front door to the driveway outside.

Inside the yard, flowers and plants are planted on three sides along with shrubs. On the left is an open space paved with goose-warm stones. On the right are a stone table and four stone benches. The stone table is also surrounded by goose-warm stones. Further in is a jujube tree, but at this time of year the leaves of the tree have all fallen off, leaving only dry branches.

After Su Ting went out and glanced to the left, she saw He Dongchuan, who was not wearing a coat and only a black sweater, boxing with He Yan, who was wrapped up like a ball.

He Dongchuan's moves were powerful and his punches were powerful, while He Yan... well, he was wearing too many clothes and had difficulty moving, so it was good enough that he could fight like this.

When Su Ting was thinking, He Dongchuan also saw her, stopped and asked: "When did you get up?"

Both father and son were standing facing the stone table, He Dongchuan was outside and He Yan was inside. Because he wanted to watch his father's movements, He Yan leaned slightly to the outside and did not notice Su Ting coming out.

Only when he heard his father's voice did He Yan turn around, jump up and shout, "Mom!"

Su Ting nodded at He Yan and replied to He Dongchuan, "I just got up. You guys continue and don't worry about me." Then she walked to the stone table, sat down facing the father and son, and acted as if she was watching the fun.

"I just started learning, and I'm not very good at it yet." He Yan said a little embarrassedly, touching his head.

"You just learned it? You can't do it?" Su Ting was surprised. "I thought you played it very well just now."

He Yan was flattered: "Really?"

Su Ting said seriously: "Of course it's true, why would mom lie to you?"

He Yan's confidence suddenly increased, and his desire to perform increased. He turned his head and looked at his father expectantly. He didn't know how to box, so he could only watch his father's movements and learn.

But He Dongchuan didn't move. He just looked at Su Ting and asked, "Do you want to come with us?"

Su Ting shook her head decisively: "No!"

He Dongchuan urged, "Come on, let's move."

"I haven't finished my breakfast yet!" Su Ting said while holding up the steamed bun. Boxing is not as comfortable as sitting and watching boxing.

He Dongchuan said: "Then come back after you finish breakfast."

He Yan also thought his father's suggestion was good: "Yes, yes, boxing is very good for the body and can make you very strong!"

"I'm a girl, I don't need to be very strong." Su Ting saw that He Dongchuan still had something to say, glared at him, and said with a fake smile, "Comrade He, I'm very tired now, I really don't have the strength to fight, okay?"

He Dongchuan understood, touched his nose and changed the subject, asking: "What kind of boxing do you want to see me do?"

He Yan suddenly became anxious: "Can't we do the same thing as before?" He hasn't learned any other types of boxing yet.

"Just do what you did just now." Su Ting followed He Yan's words and said that the child had just learned boxing, so it would be better not to make it too difficult for him, so as not to undermine his self-confidence in learning.

After his wife spoke, He Dongchuan said nothing else. He returned to his original position and posed. He Yan breathed a sigh of relief and quickly posed as well.

The father and son have two completely different styles of boxing. One is silent but aggressive and always looking for trouble, while the other one hums and groans constantly but waves his hands softly.

But overall it was still very interesting to watch. It was a pity that she didn't have a mobile phone at that time, otherwise she would definitely take a photo of them as a souvenir.

…

Su Ting had her first meal of the New Year during a military boxing performance by the He family father and son.

After eating and drinking, the young couple took He Yan to paste Spring Festival couplets.

Of course, the main force of the work is He Dongchuan. Su Ting can only help to apply the paste, and He Yan only needs to move his mouth to tell He Dongchuan whether it is too high or too low, left or right.

This year He Yan was more reliable than last year and stopped telling his father off. He Dongchuan successfully put up the curtains on the front door, and the three of them went to the back door.

The backyard is small, closer to the driveway outside, and the bushes are shorter than the front yard. People passing by can see what they are doing, and greet them with a smile and ask, "Are you putting up Spring Festival couplets?"

"Yes." Su Ting answered and asked with a smile, "Have you eaten?"

"I've already eaten."

While He Dongchuan was putting up the Spring Festival couplets, seven or eight people came to their backyard.

People in the capital can all chat. Although those living in the military compound are not old people from the capital, those who can strike up a conversation with others while walking, and even turn into someone else's backyard while chatting, can definitely chat.

Fortunately, Su Ting is not a socially anxious person, He Yan is also able to speak, and with the addition of He Dongchuan, he can also say a few words when they are busy. Otherwise, Su Ting alone would not be able to cope with it.

After putting up the Spring Festival couplets, the group did not disperse. They stood in the backyard and chatted for about ten minutes, until Su Ting suggested sitting in the front yard. Then some people remembered that they had gone out to buy things at the supply and marketing cooperative, and hurriedly said goodbye to everyone.

Then, one by one, everyone remembered that they had things to do and the crowd quickly dispersed.

Su Ting: “…” She also admired these people very much.

Having settled in the capital for many years, He's parents were accustomed to having New Year's Eve dinner in the evening, so after putting up the Spring Festival couplets, they had nothing to do and went out for a walk as a family.

The compound is quite lively during the New Year.

Because the capital is cold in winter and every household in the compound has heating, people are reluctant to go out even if they are at home.

But today is Chinese New Year, and the weather is nice, the sun is out, and even though the temperature is a little low, everyone is willing to go out and walk around, so after they went out, Su Ting met a lot of unfamiliar faces.

However, He Dongchuan basically knew these people and could introduce them to them.

After walking and stopping along the way for about ten minutes, the family arrived at the stadium.

The stadium is not big, with a basketball court in the middle. There is an open space behind the stadium with three ping-pong tables, and there are three levels of stands on the other side of the basketball court.

There were a lot of people on the court. There was a group of young people playing basketball under each of the two basketball hoops. The ping-pong table was mostly occupied by middle-aged and elderly people and children. There were also two half-grown children playing badminton in the open space from the stands to the basketball court.

There were dozens of people sitting scattered in the stands. Some were holding their children and looking for someone to talk, while others were just there to bask in the sun, but most were there to watch the game.

He Dongchuan was quite famous in the compound. When he appeared, the people playing basketball under the basketball hoop near the door stopped. A young man came over, punched He Dongchuan lightly and asked, "I heard that you were back a long time ago, but I never saw you. You finally came out today."

"Just came back, busy." He Dongchuan said.

The other party didn't believe him: "You are back from vacation, what do you have to do?"

He Dongchuan said confidently, "My wife is not from the capital. She has been living with me in Fujian since we got married. It's rare for her to come back to the capital during the Chinese New Year. Shouldn't I take her to visit more tourist attractions?"

There are so many places to visit in the capital. They left early and returned late every day, but they only visited the attractions in the main city. They didn't have time to visit the faraway places like the Great Wall and the Old Summer Palace.

The other party was flattered and said helplessly: "Yes, you are right. This is my sister-in-law, right? My name is Zhu Jianming, his childhood friend. Oh, He Yan, you have grown up so much? This is your daughter-in-law? What's her name?"

Su Ting nodded and said, "Hello, my name is Su Ting."

He Yan also shouted, "Hello, Uncle Zhu."

He Dongchuan finally introduced: "He Miao."

"You all look good..." Zhu Jianming said with a sigh, "You all look good."

He Dongchuan said without any humility: "That's right."

Although he said it himself, Zhu Jianming couldn't help but roll his eyes at this unmodest person: "Stop showing off. Come on, let's play a couple of games?"

He Dongchuan said: "I haven't played for a long time, so my skills may not be very good."

There is a basketball court in the military camp on Pingchuan Island. Before he married Su Ting, He Dongchuan would play basketball with the people in the camp to kill time on weekends. But after getting married, he felt that the vacation time was not enough, so he would not waste time on such things as playing basketball.

But what he said hit the mark of Zhu Jianming: "It just so happens that before you joined the army, I never beat you in basketball. Now I finally have the chance. Sister-in-law, do you mind if Brother Chuan plays with us for a while?"

"I don't mind." Su Ting said with a smile.

Although she didn't quite understand the rules, who hadn't watched a few basketball games when they were in school? Who hadn't cheered for the boys in their class? In other words, there was no basketball court in the family compound on the island. If there was, she would have persuaded He Dongchuan to play for her.

Seeing the expectation on his daughter-in-law's face, He Dongchuan asked without hesitation: "Then why don't you take the children to sit on the stage for a while?"

"Okay."

He Dongchuan said to Zhu Jianming: "I will take them to see the stage."

Although the stadium's stands only have three levels, they are very long and can accommodate two or three hundred people sitting side by side. So after the family walked through the stadium, they easily found an empty seat in the third row.

He slowly handed it to Su Ting, then took off his coat and handed it to He Yan. He Dongchuan rolled up his sleeves and walked to the stands.

Zhu Jianming had already agreed with the people playing around the basketball hoop on the other side to have ten people from each side play a formal basketball game.

But most of the people who came to play basketball today were young people in their early twenties. Although many of them had heard of He Dongchuan's name and knew he was very promising, they had not grown up yet because He Dongchuan had gone to the army and only came back once every few years. They had never played basketball with him and had no idea how good he was.

What's more, he just said that he hadn't played basketball for a long time, and Zhu Jianming is one of the better basketball players among the young people in the compound, so it is hard to say how to divide the strength more evenly.

But this is just a game, and there is no prize for winning, so no one took it too seriously. After a few minutes of communication, the teams were decided and the referees were selected.

Oh yeah, even the whistle and the scoreboard were included.

After confirming, the referee stood in the middle, whistling and holding the basketball.

The whistle blew, he threw the basketball and quickly retreated to the sidelines. The other ten players jumped up and raised their right hands to grab the basketball.

It could be a second, or it could be even shorter, the basketball was hooked by a big hand and slapped hard to the ground, and the owner of the hand followed closely and quickly ran out of the encirclement.

“It’s Dad!”

He Yan cried out in surprise and jumped up.

Su Ting hugged her daughter and smiled: "I saw it."

He Dongchuan dribbled the ball all the way to the opposite basket, but the opponent returned to defense quickly. They have all been playing basketball for many years, so their reaction ability is certainly not bad.

However, no matter how fast they are, they can't catch up with He Dongchuan. Although he hasn't played basketball in the past two years, he has not neglected his daily training and his physical fitness is very good.

The leader Zhu Jianming couldn't catch up with him, and he went under the basket and shot.

Two points!

Cheers rang out from the stands, and He Yan's voice was the loudest among them. He jumped up and down while holding He Dongchuan's clothes: "Dad is so awesome! Come on, Dad! Mom, Dad made the shot! The first one to make a shot was my dad!" The last sentence was said to his young daughter-in-law who was also holding her child on the other side.

After He Dongchuan made the shot, he immediately looked towards them, and after seeing He Yan's cheers and the smile on Su Ting's face, he waved in response.

Thinking of his wife and children watching on the sidelines, He Dongchuan played even harder.

Led by him, everyone else also tried their best. The two teams chased each other and the score on the field was always very close.

He Dongchuan's performance was also very impressive. Within less than ten minutes of the start of the game, he had scored five goals, including a three-pointer. Their team scored a total of 21 points, and he alone scored 11 points.

During the halftime break, Zhu Jianming gritted his teeth and asked, "You haven't played basketball for a long time?"

He Dongchuan said frankly: "Two years should be considered a long time."

Zhu Jianming: "...So you say your skills are not good enough?" If he calls this poor skills, then what are these people? Are they just blindly fighting?

"...The estimate was wrong." He Dongchuan casually gave a halfhearted explanation, then walked up to Su Ting from the stands and asked, "How did I perform just now?"

Before Su Ting could even speak, He Yan praised her, "Great! Dad, you're awesome!"

He Dongchuan gave his son an admiring look and continued to look at Su Ting.

He almost had the words "come and compliment me" written on his face. Of course, Su Ting couldn't help but express her feelings. She smiled and said, "Very handsome, very amazing."

He Dongchuan said modestly: "I haven't played for two years. I was worried that I would lose my touch, but I didn't expect that the feeling is still there. The opponent's strength is also average, and it seems that I played well."

Zhu Jianming and his teammates who were shot by Versailles: "..."