??186 Chapter 186
◎ Extra 3 ◎
"Dad, how many candies can we buy?" Shanshan really wanted to buy more, but her mother told her to eat candy in moderation, otherwise her teeth would be damaged in the future.
Few children nowadays can eat sweets, which is why the Xu family has such worries because they are well off now.
"Ask your mother and see how much she will approve."
"Ah? Dad, why can't you be the one in charge?" Shanshan knew that if she asked her mother, she would only be able to buy a little, as her mother would not agree to buy more.
Who is better to talk to, Dad or Mom? Dad, of course! She decided to start with Dad.
"You still know how to be the master of the house?" Xu Shengjie smiled. This girl wouldn't learn anything messy in school, would she? He pinched the little girl's face and held her on his lap. "What do you learn every day?"
"That's right. Since Shanshan listens to her mother, then her mother should listen to her father, and then her father should listen to Shanshan."
Xu Shengjie: "..."
So it's a cycle?
"So you are the one who makes the final decision in our family?" Don't think he can't hear what this little girl is planning, which has been heard from Beijing to Shanghai.
"Yeah!" Shanshan's eyebrows curved like a crescent moon, playful and smart, "Dad, can you buy a little more?"
Liang Baozhen came out of the restroom and just happened to hear the father and daughter talking in whispers.
"What?"
"Nothing." Shanshan answered loudly, as if she was trying to cover up her crime. "We didn't mention buying candy."
Liang Baozhen: Oh?
Xu Shengjie didn't promise the child verbally, but when they actually arrived at the department store in Shanghai, he softened his heart and spoke up on behalf of his child and wife.
"Let's buy some more White Rabbit candies so we can bring some back to the others. They are a local specialty and perfect for taking back."
Shanshan listened at the side, her lips pursed, her eyes moving back and forth between her father and mother, and she rubbed her hands nervously as she waited for her mother's answer.
"I've already thought about it. I'll buy more and share it with everyone when I get back. There's more than just White Rabbit candy. I heard there's a lot of other good food here. Let's buy some together."
"Okay, buy more."
Xu Shengjie held Shanshan and Liang Baozhen in his arms and walked side by side until they reached the queue to buy White Rabbit milk candy. The three of them lined up obediently. Shanshan tugged at her father's clothes and stretched out her little hand.
Xu Shengjie reached out his hand and high-fived the lady, then he smiled as he saw her smiling triumphantly.
As a result, Liang Baozhen glanced over and the two of them immediately became quiet and tried hard to suppress the upturned corners of their lips.
After waiting in line for a long time, it was finally her turn. Liang Baozhen generously bought five kilograms of White Rabbit milk candy and four kilograms of other candies and pastries to take away.
Shanshan couldn't wait to eat on the train. She stared at the paper bag of White Rabbit milk candy like a wronged little rabbit.
"Look, you're really greedy." Liang Baozhen took out three candies, one for each of them, and asked the girl, "Do you want to peel them yourself?"
"I'll peel it myself!"
Shanshan took the chubby, long strip of White Rabbit candy and smelled it. It really had a milky aroma. She carefully peeled off the candy wrapper, put the milky white candy to her mouth and sucked on it. Wow, it smelled so good!
The milk candy has a strong milky aroma and is filled with sweet fragrance, making people feel as if they are eating soft and fluffy candy in the clouds. It is fragrant and sweet, so sweet that it makes people dizzy.
"Mom, I've made up my mind." Shanshan told her mother happily while holding a candy in her mouth.
"What have you decided?" Liang Baozhen heard this and felt that the young lady was quite cautious.
"I've decided that White Rabbit Milk Candy will be my favorite snack from now on!" Shanshan said seriously, raising her right hand to make a 1, "It's number one."
"Will there be a second and a third?" Xu Shengjie felt that the young lady had a lot of thoughts in her little head.
"Of course there are." Shanshan continued to gesture, "Originally, my first choice was egg cake, second was Beibingyang soda, and third was fruit candy. Now White Rabbit milk candy has suddenly become the first."
Listening to the ladies solemnly introducing their favorites and even making a ranking, Liang Baozhen and Xu Shengjie:?
Pretty good at playing.
Xu Shengjie teased the lady, "What's the most disgusting food?"
Shanshan was instantly excited when she heard this, and even her voice became much louder, thinking that her father had hit the nail on the head, "Of course there is!"
She is actually not very picky about food. She especially loves rice and vegetables, except for some things she doesn't like.
"The most hated food is carrots, the second is bitter melon, and the third is celery!"
"Why are you so picky about food?" It was a rare opportunity for Xu Shengjie to 'criticize' the lady. After all, when he was a soldier, he had suffered in the mountains and in various impoverished places. How could he have the qualifications to be picky about food at that time? If he was very hungry, he would even eat leaves and soil.
"But they really don't taste good." Shanshan firmly believed that she was right. She couldn't blame herself. "They don't taste good so I don't like them. They should try to make themselves taste good. So it's not my fault. It's not that I'm picky about food. It's their fault. They don't taste good and they don't try to make themselves taste good."
Xu Shengjie: "...quite talkative."
"Baozhen, look at your daughter." Xu Shengjie began to look for allies, "What's so bad about carrots, bitter melon, and celery?"
My wife will definitely stand on my side.
Liang Baozhen: "...I actually think what the lady said makes sense."
When I was young, my family was poor, so it was good to have something to eat, so naturally everything was good. Now that life has improved, there are more dishes to eat. Liang Baozhen feels that although they are all vegetables, there are differences in taste. For example, she doesn’t like carrots that much. But she is not picky about food. She just eats more of other dishes when they are available, and ignores carrots a little, only picking them up with chopsticks occasionally.
"Mom doesn't like carrots either, I know!" Shanshan discovered that her mother also liked to pick up other vegetables, but not carrots. She ran to her mother and held her hand, "Mom, we are on the same side!"
Xu Shengjie: "...? Am I excluded now?"
I am not picky about food, but I am still rejected?! There is really no way to deal with it.
That's what she said, but how could she be picky about food? Liang Baozhen took her daughter to tell her how delicious it was to eat all kinds of vegetables. Shanshan was confused and just answered her mother perfunctorily.
As a result, Shanshan encountered targeting on the train from Shanghai to Beijing. She looked at her aunt pushing a cart to sell food and seriously suspected that she had eavesdropped on her conversation.
There are four dishes for dinner on the train today, three of which are stir-fried carrots with meat, stir-fried celery with meat, and stir-fried bitter melon with eggs...
Shanshan's little face also looked miserable. Her life was so miserable.
"Mom, Auntie, do you know what I hate to eat, so she made these?"
Liang Baozhen felt that the girl thought too much, but it was indeed a bit too coincidental.
The three of them ordered four dishes, and the remaining bamboo shoots and pork slices became Shanshan's life-saving straw. However, Xu Shengjie did not let it go and gave the child some carrots, celery and bitter gourd.
"Don't be picky about food. Only by eating can you grow taller."
Shanshan said weakly, "That's what you said when you asked me to drink milk."
Oh, adults are so boring. If it’s something they want their children to eat, they will list ten thousand benefits. If it’s something they don’t want their children to eat, they will list ten thousand disadvantages.
"Then eat only a little." Shanshan tried to bargain with her father. She pinched the food with her two little hands, leaving only a little space.
Xu Shengjie didn't know what was so bad about these three dishes, but the chef on the train today just agreed with him.
"A little bit is too little. It should be at least two bits."
How much is two dots? Shanshan thought it sounded like a lot, but it was okay, at least it didn't start with three.
Liang Baozhen listened to the father and daughter bargaining and gave Shanshan a piece of bitter melon with her chopsticks. "What is grandma's favorite saying?"
Of course Shanshan remembered it, and she recited it again, shaking her head, "Only those who endure the most hardships can become the best."
"So you don't eat bitter melon?"
"I am already a superior person, I don't need to eat."
Oh, Xu Shengjie was a little surprised when he heard the arrogant tone of the little girl. She is such a grown-up girl, yet she can say that she is a superior person.
"How did you become such a superior person?" Liang Baozhen was also surprised.
Shanshan looked at her parents, chewing bitter melon, her face wrinkled with bitterness. "I often sit on my father's shoulders. Isn't that a superior person?"
Xu Shengjie & Liang Baozhen: "..."
What a superior person!
The happiest person to return to Beijing was Yu Shanshan. She finally no longer had to go through the pain of eating three out of four dishes she didn't like.
The potatoes and cabbage at home are much more delicious!
After taking a leave to go to Shanghai, Liang Baozhen returned to Taiwan to work, and Song Wenjing took over two shifts for her. She also prepared gifts for everyone, a paper bag filled with half a pound of White Rabbit milk candy and cakes, and also distributed candies to other colleagues.
"How about going to Shanghai?" Song Wenjing ate the candy and felt the sweetness in her mouth. "I went there once a few years ago. It's quite an interesting place."
"It's pretty good. Many of the buildings are different from here, and the scenery is nice."
"It's nice to have the opportunity to go out for a walk. I will try to go again."
"By the way, Sister Jing, where is the manuscript from this afternoon?"
"Yes, get ready and record in the afternoon."
Liang Baozhen went back to her job as a news anchor on her first day back at work. Although she had been away for a few days, the memories of the past were still there. She was all smiles the moment she stood in front of the camera, and the image of a dignified and generous news anchor reappeared.
Shanshan was not so lucky. After going out for a few days, she suddenly returned to school. Her heart was still outside.
Having been reporting on TV news for about half a year, many locals already know Liang Baozhen.
On that Sunday, Liang Baozhen went to pick up her daughter who was practicing calligraphy at the Children's Palace. As she walked on the road, she was stared at by an older sister.
Liang Baozhen was a little confused. She also glanced at her elder sister to make sure she didn't know her.
"Sister, is there something wrong?" Someone had been staring at her, which seemed strange, so she took the initiative to speak.
"Oh, I feel it's you when I hear that voice. Are you... the one who broadcasts news on TV?" The elder sister was a little excited. She thought this person looked like him! Like the host of the noon news, the younger one, but she was not sure until she heard Liang Baozhen speak. Her voice was similar!
Liang Baozhen never thought that she would be recognized, but seeing how excited her elder sister was, she was afraid that if she continued talking, it would attract other people.
"You mean the host of the Midday News?"
"Yes, yes, yes! That's it!"
"A lot of people say we look alike, but I didn't expect you to be wrong too."
"Ah? Isn't it?" The elder sister looked at it carefully again. They did look alike, but the way they looked on TV and in real life were probably different. She thought the person in front of her was more handsome.
"Yes, many people mistake us for each other. We do look a bit alike."
"Oh, so that's how it is. You two really look alike, not only in appearance but also in voice." Since it wasn't her, the elder sister simply said what was in her mind, "But you're prettier than her! You look so handsome, luckily you didn't go to the TV station, otherwise you might have squeezed out that host Liang."
Liang Baozhen smiled awkwardly and said, "I'm stealing my own job?"
"Mom." Shanshan's calligraphy class was over. After waiting for two minutes, her mother finally came. "Look at what I wrote. Isn't it beautiful?"
Liang Baozhen has enrolled her child in a calligraphy class. She is not in a hurry to join other classes. She will go if she is interested. However, calligraphy still needs to be practiced. As the saying goes, seeing the words is like seeing the person.
"Well written, you have made progress."
Shanshan's handwriting is still in the final stage. Now she is learning how to write each radical from the teacher and she is pretty good at it.
As the mother and daughter walked out, Liang Baozhen asked Shanshan if there was anything else she wanted to learn. After all, summer vacation was almost here and the summer interest classes were about to begin. Unexpectedly, Shanshan nodded frantically.
"Yes, Mom, I want to sign up for a class!"
"What class?" The child still has to be interested in learning, she is not going to force the child.
"Piano class." Shanshan had recently heard about playing the piano. She also saw other children in the Children's Palace learning the piano. They sat in front of the huge piano, playing gracefully, and looked great.
Shanshan was a little yearning and curious. It must be fun.
"Do you want to learn piano?" Liang Baozhen actually likes piano very much. Nowadays, many far-sighted parents have enrolled their children in piano classes, or the most popular saxophone class. "If you want to learn, let's sign up for a summer class to try it out."
"good."
When Xu Shengjie came back and learned that his daughter wanted to learn the piano, he praised her enthusiastically. People outside say that the piano is good, what an elegant musical instrument. It’s not bad to think about his daughter sitting there and playing the piano!
"How about buying Shanshan a piano and putting it at home?" Xu Shengjie could already imagine the beautiful sight of his daughter practicing the piano in the yard every day. It was truly a treat to the eyes.
"You're thinking too far ahead. She can't even play a single note right now. Just let her get started first."
Liang Baozhen is always trying to stop this man from spending money in advance.
"Okay, I'll go look for a piano for Shanshan first. I know nothing about this, but we have a regular customer in our store whose wife is a teacher at an art school. I'll ask him about it and see what kind of piano is suitable for Shanshan."
When Shanshan heard that her father was going to buy her a piano, she was a little excited and patted her chest, saying that she would definitely study hard.
However, if you want to learn piano during the summer vacation, you have to pass the final exam first.
Ever since Shanshan brought White Rabbit milk candies to her good friends, her status in everyone's hearts has risen a little.
Pangpang has already decided that Shanshan is a generous classmate who is sometimes active in school and sometimes passive, unlike himself, who is always consistent.
The final exam is approaching, and group leader Jia Jia is leading the group to recite poems again.
There are three girls and one boy in the group of four. Pangpang, as the only boy, is quite proud.
"You recite it, and I will listen to you."
"No, you carry it first." Jia Jia felt that he was the most dishonest one.
Every time we recited poems or texts, everyone took turns, but Pangpang was always the last one to recite. Sometimes, when there was not enough time, he would just give up and just put on his backpack and run home.
Jia Jia was selfless and adjusted his order to the cheapest.
"Yes!" Shanshan also jumped out to agree, "Pangpang is first, Nian Nian is second, Jiajia is third, and I'll be last."
Everyone agreed, except Pangpang, but Pangpang's disagreement was invalid.
He could only start reciting poems honestly, and he recited "Quiet Night Thoughts" haltingly. In the end, he succeeded in delaying for a long time. After school, Shanshan still hadn't recited it.
"Shanshan you..."
"I'll go home and carry it."
"Well, you certainly will."
Everyone trusts Shanshan, which makes Pangpang very sad. What makes him even sadder is that he will always be the first one from now on, and it’s fixed!
After returning home, Shanshan happily had dinner and was taken by her uncle to play table tennis. Xu Shengwei was in the middle of the team, but he was the undisputed number one in Chunri Hutong.
For the sake of his niece's health, he started taking her to play table tennis when Shanshan was six years old. It doesn't matter how good she is, at least she can exercise her body.
Shanshan also learned a few moves from her uncle and was able to beat down a kid in the alley who was three years older than her.
"One more round."
Just as Xu Shengwei was about to give his niece some more advice, he saw his good friend Fang Zhibin coming.
"You came here after work?"
The two of them get together with Zhou Long and Zhou Hu from time to time. Except for Biaozi who is serving in the army and has not returned, they keep in touch with everyone else. The friendship that grows up together in childhood is always precious.
"Come and see you." As soon as Fang Zhibin arrived, Shanshan took the initiative to call him uncle. She knew the friends of the family members.
She also has memories of Fang Zhibin, a young handsome uncle.
After a few pleasantries, Fang Zhibin finally explained his purpose, "My cousin is not going to take the junior high school entrance exam, so I want to ask if there is a chance for her to go to Red Star Middle School."
Red Star Middle School, the middle school where Xu Shengya taught.
Xu Shengwei understood. It seemed that everyone now attached great importance to study, unlike when he was studying. He pointed to the house and said, "My sister is at home. Go ask her."
"OK."
Fang Zhibin went to the Xu family courtyard with familiarity and saw Xu's grandmother Zhou Yun talking with Xu Shengya in the yard.
The girl sat on the swing, swinging gently with her grandmother. I don't know what they were talking about, but they both had smiles on their faces.
Zhou Yun was the first to notice Fang Zhibin who was facing her. She was familiar with the boy from the Fang family. Even though her eyesight was not good, she recognized him when the other person approached.
"Binzi is here?"
"Hello, grandma." Fang Zhibin behaved politely in front of Zhou Yun.
When Xu Shengya heard her grandmother's words, she turned around and looked at the door, and saw Fang Zhibin smiling and nodding.
When she was a child, she and Fang Zhibin did not get along well. Although he had a good relationship with her second brother, he was always bullying others. But now she is in her twenties, and the things from her childhood are just trivial things when she thinks back on them.
Plus, last time he was very eager to beat up the bully for him, it seems that the friendship between those who grew up in the same yard still exists.
"Binzi is here to see Xiaowei? He took Shanshan out to play."
"Grandma, I saw him. I came to look for Xiaoya."
"Looking for me?" Xu Shengya helped her grandmother up, and only understood the purpose of Fang Zhibin's explanation after hearing it.
"Then you guys chat, I'll go inside to watch TV."
After Zhou Yun was pregnant, Fang Zhibin told Xu Shengya about his cousin's situation and waited for her to speak.
"This score may not be very stable. Our school requires a high score. Do you know her grades in each subject? See if she can improve her weak subjects."
"Oh, okay! I'll make a note of it and tell her when the time comes."
Fang Zhibin and Xu Shengya talked for a while and then talked about their childhood. The two had not seen each other much since the Xu family moved away. They only met occasionally when Fang Zhibin came to the Xu family to look for Xu Shengwei, or when Xu Shengwei went back to Yueya Hutong to look for Qin Xiaoyue.
As I was talking, a familiar feeling came back to me.
"I still remember that time when you didn't let Xiaohu hold the rope for us, we were so mad at you."
"Then I went over there and held it myself." Fang Zhibin shook his head a little embarrassedly, "I was naughty when I was a kid."
As he was talking, he didn't know what to say anymore. He looked at Xu Shengya standing opposite him and opened his mouth.
At this time, Xu Shengwei's voice was heard at the gate of the courtyard.
"Binzi, are you done chatting? Come out and play ball."
"Second brother is looking for you, go quickly."
"Oh, OK, I'm leaving now." Fang Zhibin nodded at her, turned around and ran away. After running a few meters, he turned back and said, "Thank you."
Xu Shengya watched him turn around and smile at her to thank her. She felt that this man had changed a lot and became so polite now.
Fang Zhibin and Xu Shengwei reminisced about the past. Now one works in a steel rolling mill and the other is on the table tennis team. They are both considered to have achieved success.
But people have troubles when they grow up.
Xu Shengwei was just urged by his grandmother to find a partner today. If he hadn't used the excuse of taking Shanshan out to play table tennis, he would have been unable to get away.
"Have your parents arranged a blind date for you?" Xu Shengwei is not interested in finding a partner or getting married at the moment. He is still focused on playing table tennis.
"Even if they urge me, I don't want to listen to their arrangements. What era is this? Why, are you also urged by your family? Are you arranged to go on a blind date?"
"Yes!" Xu Shengwei was a little depressed. His grandmother said that she had arranged a blind date for him next month and he had to go.
"Ah? You're going next month? So soon? You should talk to your grandmother again. What era is this now? Arranged marriages are no longer popular. Free love is popular."
Fang Zhibin felt sympathy for his buddy, and recalled the way Grandma Zhou and Xu Shengya had just talked. Xu Shengya was smiling sweetly. Could it be that she was also arranged to go on a blind date and was quite satisfied with it?
He spoke casually, "Grandma wants to see you get married when she's old enough. You and Xiaoya are definitely not going to escape."
"No, Xiaoya made me so angry! She betrayed me at the critical moment."
"What's wrong?" Fang Zhibin's eyes lit up, it sounded like something was wrong.
"She said my second brother hasn't found a partner, so I won't either. Anyway, my second brother is older, so he must go first!" Xu Shengwei imitated his sister's speech, and he was quite good at it. "Do you think this is human language? She actually used me as a shield. What do you mean I am older? We were born on the same day, I was only one minute older than her, and she used me as a shield at this time."
Fang Zhibin shook his head, then nodded, thought for a moment, and asked his brother, "Do you have someone you like?"
"Definitely not!" Xu Shengwei didn't even think about it.
"Otherwise, you should go on the blind date and don't delay your sister's lifelong event." Fang Zhibin slapped his buddy on the shoulder and said earnestly.
"You!" Xu Shengwei almost got kicked by his buddy, and he actually added fuel to the fire!
Fang Zhibin looked at Xu Shengwei who was in great pain and said silently in his heart, you don’t want to delay your buddy’s life event, do you?
The author has something to say:
Shanshan: Instead of wasting time on yourself, it’s better to waste time on vegetables!
Carrots, bitter melon, celery, you guys need to roll up! Improve yourself!
See you tomorrow~
Thanks to the little angel who cast the mine: 1 piece of Fuji frosted glass;
Thanks to the cutie who irrigated the nutrient solution: 1 bottle of Qianmo Hongchen;
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