Chen Shuning rushed home and glanced at her watch; it was already 5:40. She leaned against the wall at the alley entrance, catching her breath. Just as she looked up, she saw her father riding a bicycle toward the alley entrance.
While secretly rejoicing that she had returned in time, Chen Shuning's eyes reddened once again as she looked at the person bathed in the afterglow of the setting sun approaching her.
That was her father's face when he was young. Chen Shuning once again thanked God for giving her this chance to live again, so that she could make up for the regret of not being able to take care of her parents in her previous life.
The large courtyard where the Chen family now lives was converted from a three-courtyard house. It is said that it was once the residence of a Manchu official. After liberation, the government allocated the houses to more than a dozen families.
The Chen family lived in a three-courtyard house, so the main gate of the Chen family's house was converted from the original back gate of the house, and the main gate was located at the very end of the alley.
As soon as Chen Tiedong left the hospital, he saw his daughter standing against the wall. Thinking of the injury on her head, Chen Tiedong's heart tightened. He quickly rode his bike to his daughter and saw that she was covered in cold sweat and had red eyes. He asked anxiously, "What's wrong, Xiaoning? Does the wound on your head hurt again? Hurry up and get on the bike, Dad will take you to the hospital."
Seeing that her father had misunderstood, Chen Shuning quickly waved her hand and explained, "No, no, Dad, I'm fine. I was just worried that you and Mom would be anxious because I came back late, so I walked a little fast and was a little out of breath."
Chen Tiedong, who hadn't been home for several days, was immediately sent out by his wife to pick up their daughter as soon as he entered the house today, without even having a sip of water. He was worried when he learned that his daughter hadn't come home yet.
Others may not know, but he knows very well that he has been busy at the police station recently with a series of robberies and murders, in which three people have already died. So he was worried when he learned that his daughter had not come home.
She was relieved to see her daughter Chen Tiedong. But then she worried about her daughter going to the countryside tomorrow and being all alone. So she said in a somewhat stern tone, "You silly child, you're leaving tomorrow and you're still out so late. Don't wander around so late when you're in the countryside by yourself. Alright, hurry home. Your mom made your favorite braised pork ribs and is waiting for you."
As Chen Tiedong spoke, he turned his bicycle around and stopped riding. He then walked slowly home alongside Chen Shuning.
The station has been quite busy lately, and Chen Tiedong hasn't been home for several days in a row. Today, the station chief only granted him a half-day off because he knew his daughter was going to the countryside tomorrow, so he could go home to be with her and take her to the train station tomorrow.
At this moment, Chen Shuning was immersed in the joy of having her parents again, so she naturally didn't care about her father's attitude. From the original owner's memories, she knew that her father was just like her father in the previous life, cold on the outside but warm on the inside. So she smiled and stepped forward to take her father's arm and said coquettishly, "Dad, are you going to pick me up? Have you missed me a lot these past few days?"
He then shook his head and muttered to himself, "Sigh, being too likable is a problem. Dad, you've missed me so much after just a few days. How can I go to the countryside with peace of mind if you're like this?"
Chen's father, whose arm was being held by his daughter, coughed lightly, feeling a little awkward. He reached out as if to flick his daughter's forehead as usual, but upon seeing the gauze on Chen Shuning's head, he quickly changed his mind and gently stroked his daughter's head, saying irritably, "You little devil, you're teasing your dad now. I'm just here to pick you up, and you're leaving tomorrow. You don't even know how to spend more time at home with your mom."
The father and daughter chatted as they returned to their small courtyard. Chen's mother had been waiting anxiously. These days, it was rare to have meat, so as soon as Chen's mother's braised pork ribs came out of the pot, the whole courtyard was filled with the aroma of pork ribs.
In just a short while, several neighbors, some with good intentions and others with ulterior motives, came over to ask. This is the inconvenience of living in a large courtyard; several families live in one courtyard, and there is practically no privacy.
When the father and son returned, Chen Ma was standing in front of their house waiting. As soon as they turned into the yard, they heard Chen Ma's loud voice shouting, "You little brat! I told you to go buy something, but you said you were sleepy and wanted to go to bed. Then you disappeared. I thought you were going to the countryside tomorrow, so I finally managed to buy a few ribs. The whole family is waiting for you to eat. Hurry up and wash your hands and eat!"
Chen Ma's outburst silenced the father and son who were talking. You see, Chen Ma is an authoritative figure at home, like an empress dowager, and no challenge is allowed. After sticking her tongue out at Chen Dad, Chen Shuning hurriedly ran to fetch water and, in a fawning manner, asked Chen Dad to wash his hands with her.
Chen Jiandang, who was doing his homework inside the house, heard the noise in the yard and quickly dropped his pen and ran outside. Before he could even see Chen Jiandang, the noise came from inside the house.
"Sister, you're finally back! Mom made your favorite sweet and sour pork ribs, just waiting for you to come back."
Having been an only child in her past life, she always envied those who had siblings.
So when Chen Shuning first saw his younger brother, who looked seven-tenths like his father, he took a liking to him from the bottom of his heart. He reached out and ruffled his brother's hair, laughing, "You little glutton, come here and let me see if you're drooling?"
Chen Jiandang unconsciously wiped his mouth after being scolded by his sister, then immediately retorted, "Sis, you're bullying me again. If you keep this up, I'll have to seriously reconsider whether I should still give you a gift."
"Oh, someone as stingy as you can actually prepare a gift for me? Tell me, is it a little stone you finally managed to find, or a piece of fruit candy you ate halfway through but couldn't bear to finish?"
Hearing his sister mention the gifts he had given her in the past, Chen Jiandang blushed slightly, a rare occurrence for him, and muttered in a low voice, "No, you'll find out tomorrow."
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