◎Third update◎
An hour ago, Zhou Qingdang came out of the towel factory and waited for the bus at the bus stop with his fellow workers going in the same direction.
Waiting for the bus in summer is much better than in winter. Although it is hot, your hands and feet won’t be frozen.
After waiting for a long time, they finally saw the No. 5 bus approaching slowly.
"It's finally here! Hurry, hurry, get on!" The workers called out to each other and rushed forward to get on the bus. If they didn't get on this one, they didn't know when they would have to wait for the next one.
Zhou Qingdang also moved his feet and looked forward through the glass window. The inside was full of people, and the heads were moving, but he didn't see the conductor...
Suddenly, a female comrade came over from one end and shouted, asking everyone to go inside. Zhou Qingdang looked and found that it was not Liu Nianhua.
"Hurry up, Zhou Qingdang, what are you standing there for?"
"I suddenly remembered that I forgot to take something. You can go first." Zhou Qingdang said to several workers.
"Okay, let's go first."
The bus was packed with people and drove away with grayish-white smoke coming out of the back of the bus.
Zhou Qingdang continued to wait at the bus stop, eagerly looking forward to the next No. 5 bus.
Fifteen minutes later, it finally arrived!
He went forward and searched as usual, and saw a familiar figure in the crowded crowd. Zhou Qingdang pursed his lips, with a smile on his face, and squeezed onto the bus with great effort.
Liu Nianhua saw Zhou Qingdang getting on the bus at first sight, but she quickly looked away and collected money from every new passenger as usual.
When it was almost Zhou Qingdang's turn, she did not squeeze over, but just shouted, "Comrades behind, pass the money over."
The money that Zhou Qingdang had prepared was passed to the passenger in front of him, and finally passed back to him in the form of the torn ticket by Liu Nianhua.
There were thirteen stops to Yueya Hutong. Zhou Qingdang didn't say a word to Liu Nianhua until he got off the bus. The bus door closed again and the bus left with all the passengers on board.
Liu Nianhua was on the early shift today, and this was her last trip with the bus. After she arrived at the terminal and collected the bus fare, she hurried back to the alley.
She was busy making dinner for her two sons, and on the way home, she was already thinking about what to eat in the evening.
There were also a few cabbages, more than ten pounds of potatoes, four eggs, and seven pounds of tomatoes at home.
Most of the tomatoes that Liang Baozhen and his wife bought last time were made into tomato sauce, and only a few were left for fresh eating.
"Let's make some egg custard and some tomato noodle soup." Liu Nianhua talked to himself while walking on the road.
However, a person standing in front of her stopped her in her tracks.
Zhou Qingdang was standing at the entrance of the alley in front of the alley, which was the only way for Liu Nianhua to go home.
"Sister Hua."
"Comrade Zhou Qingdang...hello." Liu Nianhua greeted him calmly, but he didn't look at him, but only stared at the wall behind him. "I'm busy cooking for Xiaolong and Xiaohu, so I'll go back first."
Liu Nianhua was about to walk past Zhou Qingdang quickly, but was stopped by his shout.
"Sister Hua, I was serious about what I said last time."
Ever since Zhou Qingdang expressed his feelings to Liu Nianhua last time, he has been avoided by her. In the past, he would say hello to her every time they met in the yard, and it was common for him to play with Xiaolong and Xiaohu.
But after that time, whenever Liu Nianhua saw Xiaolong and Xiaohu playing with Zhou Qingdang, he would immediately call the two children away and repeatedly warn them not to play with Uncle Zhou again.
No matter how much Zhou Long and Zhou Hu like Uncle Zhou, they can't help it. After all, it is most important to listen to their mother.
Zhou Qingdang knew that he might have scared Liu Nianhua, so he originally wanted to wait and see. Liu Nianhua might not want to get married again soon after her divorce, and it would be rude of him to express his feelings so abruptly.
However, Zhou Qingdang was unable to keep calm when Luo Hongmei wanted to introduce her to a date last time.
"Comrade Zhou Qingdang!" Liu Nianhua felt that she had avoided this man and asked her son to avoid him as well. If she had not been worried about Aunt Zhang becoming suspicious, she would have wanted Xiaohu to stay with Xu Shengjie's grandmother during the day and would have given him some money and food. However, Zhou Qingdang still did not stop.
Liu Nianhua looked at Zhou Qingdang with a serious face. He had thick eyebrows and big eyes, and regular features. He looked quite haggard when he just returned to the city, but now he has become much more handsome.
She knew that some people had inquired about Zhou Qing's party relationship and wanted to find a partner. Aunt Zhang treated her as a confidant and said these things. She also said that her son was disobedient and was unwilling to find a partner.
Who knew he had this in mind!
"I'm a divorced woman with two kids, which is a little better than a widow. You haven't even been married yet, so why do you want to get involved with me?"
Divorce is the bravest decision Liu Nianhua has ever made in his life, although this step is difficult.
Even now, some aunts and uncles still say behind her back that she is incapable of controlling men, but these rumors are not circulated in her own courtyard. They are like gossips about other people's families that appear at other people's dinner tables, and are casually mentioned when everyone is fanning themselves with palm-leaf fans to cool off after dinner.
But so what? She managed to get through it. Now she didn't want to be talked about by everyone anymore.
A divorced woman and an unmarried educated youth who returned to the city were destined to be arranged.
"Sister Hua." Zhou Qingdang knew her concerns, and it was for this reason that he had not dared to take any action. "What's wrong with a divorced woman? This is not your fault. Don't worry about what others say. You are making money with your own hands and working hard to raise Xiaolong and Xiaohu. Aren't you better than those gossiping women?"
Liu Nianhua didn't expect Zhou Qingdang to say such a thing. Her thick eyelashes trembled and she looked up at him. "That's my business, Comrade Zhou Qingdang. You should listen to Aunt Zhang and go on blind dates and find a like-minded person to live with."
Aunt Zhang is a good person, but if he asks her to accept that her son marries a divorced woman with two children, Liu Nianhua feels that his friendship with Aunt Zhang will be ruined.
"Like-minded?" Zhou Qingdang stood up straight, looking at Liu Nianhua and talking slowly, "I went through too much when I was an educated youth in the countryside. I suffered all the hardships of my life at that time. Later, I finally returned to the city. My family emptied their savings to buy me a job and even owed foreign debts. I left home for a few years and felt that the city had changed too much. Everything was different from when I left. I couldn't say it in front of my parents, but when it was late at night, I always felt like an outsider when I came back. Everything I was familiar with became unfamiliar.
But, Sister Hua, I saw you. You are stronger and more capable than me. You can endure no matter how hard it is. Every time I saw you busy at the stove, doing so many things by yourself, and taking care of Xiaolong and Xiaohu, I wanted to help you, but you didn't seem to need help. No matter how many things you did, you did them one by one. Later, I also slowly integrated into the current life like you. Others in the big compound lived in an orderly manner, but only the two of us were adapting to the new life.
At that time, every morning before I went out, I would see you smiling at me and asking if I had eaten. I would be satisfied for the day and have more energy to work!
Comrade Liu Nianhua, I think you are the person who shares my ideals and is the one I want to marry. "
Liu Nianhua was stunned by Zhou Qingdang's words. No one had ever said such words to him, not even Zhou Guoping in the past.
For a moment, Liu Nianhua felt a little sour in her nose. She pursed her lips, suppressed her inner emotions, and smiled bitterly, "Comrade Zhou Qingdang, I'm divorced and have two children. Don't be confused! It's impossible for us to be together!"
After that, I dared not look him in the eye again and ran away in a hurry. As I ran, the wind whistled in my ears. Liu Nianhua felt confused and didn't know what to think.
After running about a hundred meters, when I was almost at the entrance of the alley, I saw Liang Baozhen and his wife riding their bicycles on the side of the road.
Liu Nianhua suppressed his inner emotions and forced a smile, "Baozhen, Xiao Xu, you just got home from get off work?"
"Hey, Sister Hua, you just got off work too?"
Liang Baozhen looked at Zhou Qingdang who was not far behind her. The man was standing there without moving.
Fearing misunderstanding, Liu Nianhua took the lead in explaining and disassociating himself from Zhou Qingdang. "I just came back and ran into Comrade Zhou Qingdang. I asked him if his factory had any disposal for defective towels. Unfortunately, they didn't."
"Oh, let's go back then."
Liang Baozhen and Xu Shengjie both got off their bicycles, looked at each other, and realized something was wrong at the same time.
Why are you suddenly calling Zhou Qingdang Comrade? This is very wrong!
However, after the three returned to the big compound, the Xu family's second bicycle quickly attracted everyone's attention. When many families did not even have a bicycle, the Xu family actually had two.
Some people were envious. Qian Jingjing looked at the Phoenix and Feiduo bicycles for a long time and whispered to her man Xu Hai, "Let's save money and buy one too!"
"Okay, I'll work hard to save money and buy a bicycle as soon as possible!"
Of course, some people were jealous. Luo Hongmei came over in small steps and saw the two big guys of the Xu family. She was jealous and said, "Baozhen, why did your family buy another bicycle? Is it because you have no place to spend your money? I have to say, you are young and don't know how to live. How many things have you bought in more than a year since you got married?"
Luo Hongmei always thought that Liang Baozhen was a spendthrift woman, but Zhou Yun didn't care! Xu Shengjie was like a man who was bewitched by a vixen, letting his woman spendthrift!
"Auntie Luo, we can spend our own money however we want." Xu Shengjie directly retorted, almost making Luo Hongmei quarrel with him.
"Yes, it's all your money, we definitely can't ask about it. But isn't it a bit too bourgeois for this family to have only two bicycles? It's not simple and frugal at all! We all walk on our own two legs, and we walk with honor!"
No matter what, just put a label on them first. Luo Hongmei is well aware of the importance of occupying the moral or public opinion high ground.
Especially hedonism and petty-bourgeois behavior are to be criticized.
Liang Baozhen wiped her precious bicycle with a handkerchief, then threw it back into the sink for washing, and replied, "Auntie Luo, it is the socialist way for us to buy bicycles. With bicycles, it is more convenient to go to and from work, and the time is shortened. We shine in the factory, and we have more time and energy to contribute. How can this be the petty bourgeoisie? This must be the glorious power of the proletariat!
A bicycle is to help us fight better and build better! "
"Baozhen is right." Cheng Caili helped while holding the child. Her voice was loud and everyone in the yard could hear her clearly. "Auntie Luo, your family should also buy one quickly. Otherwise, how can you fight for your own survival? Production and construction are just missing you. If you go too late, you will miss the opportunity!"
"You!" Luo Hongmei was not willing to spend the money. Besides, her family didn't have a bicycle ticket. "Humph, I'll walk. I'm proud of it!"
Liang Baozhen looked at her with tears in her eyes. She was too lazy to pay attention to her. She patted the two bicycles one by one, feeling very satisfied. These were her own treasures.
Three days later, she rode her new Feiduo bicycle to estimate her college entrance examination scores and fill out her application form!
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