Afterwards, Lin Li took out the food she had prepared in her spatial storage. The mother and son wolfed it down, tidied up, and went back to their respective rooms to rest.
Lin Li slept soundly through the night without any dreams, until dawn.
After meditating and practicing a set of boxing techniques in the space, I took a shower, changed my clothes, and went to the kitchen. Just as I was about to make breakfast, I saw Lin Laosan standing blankly next to the gas stove with eggs and noodles in his hand, lost in thought!
"What's wrong?"
Lin Li opened the refrigerator, took out the milk, took a sip, and then asked Lin Laosan, who was staring blankly at the stove.
"Mom, I don't know how to use this."
Lin Laosan awkwardly pointed to the gas stove, his ear tips flushed red.
"Come on, Mom will teach you!"
After finishing her milk in one gulp, Lin Li smiled and took the egg and noodles from his hand. "Want some noodles?"
"Hmm, I'm going to make two bowls of noodles for breakfast!"
Lin Li quickly turned on the gas stove. When she saw the flame rise instantly and could be manually adjusted, Lin Laosan walked up to her.
"Mom, I got it. Let me do it. You go and rest!"
Upon hearing this, Lin Li handed him the chopsticks in her hand, saying, "Okay, then Mom will just wait to eat what's ready."
"OK!"
Lin Laosan excitedly took the chopsticks and noodles from Lin Li's hand and continued cooking.
Watching him cook noodles with such skill, Lin Li took out two bowls and started mixing the seasonings for the noodles.
"Mom, I'll prepare the seasoning for you in a bit, I know you want it extra spicy!"
Seeing Lin Li's actions, Lin Laosan immediately spoke.
"Okay!" Lin Li put down what she was doing and went straight back to the living room to wait for the noodles her son had made.
A dozen minutes later, two steaming bowls of noodles were served. Looking at the bowl of noodles with red chili oil, Lin Li picked up a noodle and slurped it up.
Spicy and flavorful, it stimulates your taste buds!
After quickly finishing a bowl of noodles, Lin Li wiped the sweat from her forehead and let out a comfortable sigh.
"Third brother, your seasoning is excellent, it's perfectly acceptable!"
Lin Laosan was also sweating profusely as he ate. After drinking the last mouthful of broth, he smiled and said, "I love eating this kind of noodle at home. The spicy flavor is really delicious!"
As soon as they finished eating, Lin Laosan quickly cleared away the dishes and sat down next to Lin Li, looking at her.
"Mom, when are we going out?"
"Go change your clothes, let's go out now!"
"Alright!"
Twenty minutes later, the two walked out of the house, with Lin Li introducing Lin Laosan to him as they walked.
In the 1980s, Shekou District was like a gear embedded on the coast of the South China Sea, slowly turning amidst the roar of reform and opening up.
The industrial park is filled with factories, with huge banners hanging on the red brick walls that read "Time is money, efficiency is life." Liberation brand trucks loaded with building materials run on the cement roads, and the dust they kick up, mixed with the salty sea breeze, condenses into hazy gold particles in the sunlight.
Descending along the mountain road is the Bitaoyuan residential area, where beige row houses are covered with bougainvillea, and polyester shirts drying on balconies sway in the wind. Occasionally, you can see young people in bell-bottoms leaning against door frames listening to Hong Kong radio, with Teresa Teng's songs escaping through the cracks in the door from a double cassette player.
The counters at Xinhua Bookstore display "Self-Study Series on Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry" and "College Entrance Examination Review Outline" with its edges worn from repeated readings. People often gather in front of the glass, tracing the book titles with their fingers, their eyes reflecting their fervent hopes for the future.
"Mom, I want to go inside and take a look!"
After the two arrived at Xinhua Bookstore, Lin Laosan was dazzled by the books inside.
Lin Li fully supports her child's love of browsing bookstores.
Pushing open the glass door of Xinhua Bookstore, the scent of ink mixed with the aroma of wooden counters wafts out.
The yellowed "High School Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry Review" was displayed prominently in the glass counter, with a plastic film pressing down on the crooked handwritten price tags. Lin Laosan stood on tiptoe, peering at the counter, his eyes eagerly scanning each book title.
Lin Li was drawn to the design area in the corner.
On the tin bookshelf sat a crumpled copy of "Introduction to Industrial Design," its illustrations resembling simple line drawings of machine tool parts; a yellowed "Interior Decoration Reference Atlas" was bundled together with leather straps. She carefully pulled one out; the paper was so brittle it seemed about to crumble, but inside was a hand-drawn spiral staircase design with surprisingly smooth lines.
The two of them sat on the floor of the bookstore with their books in their arms and started flipping through them, losing track of time.
Only when their stomachs started rumbling did the two put down their books, look at each other, and laugh.
Lin Laosan carried "College Entrance Examination English Vocabulary Handbook" and "High School Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry Review", while Lin Li carried a design book with curled edges. The mother and son went to the cashier together.
"We want to buy these books."
Lin Li took out the receipts and money together, and the sales clerk began to count the receipts, the abacus beads clicking incessantly.
"Here's your change, please keep it!"
After the sales clerk calculated the bill, she handed the change to Lin Li.
After putting away the money, the mother and son left Xinhua Bookstore, carrying the books and chatting and laughing.
"Mom, we don't have any of these books in our town!"
"Well, while you're in Shenzhen, buy as many books as possible that aren't available back home. Go back and study hard so you can get into a good university this year!"
"Mom, I know!"
For a period of time afterward, Lin Laosan treated Xinhua Bookstore as his home, spending every day there until two days before he was about to return home.
"Mom, I'm going back the day after tomorrow!"
After dinner, the mother and son sat on chairs on the balcony, eating fruit and chatting.
"When you get back, you must work hard and study diligently, okay?"
"Um"
Lin Laosan lowered his head and remained silent.
"What's wrong?"
"Mom, what do you think about me getting into university and then venturing out into the world after graduation?"
Having broadened his horizons, Lin Laosan was no longer content with returning to his hometown to live a simple, ordinary life.
Lin Li turned to look at him after hearing his words.
"Third brother, I won't give you any advice. You're 22 years old now, an adult. You're in charge of your own life, and once you make a choice, you have to be brave enough to bear the consequences."
After hearing Lin Li's answer, Lin Laosan's face showed a hint of confusion and uncertainty about the future.
"The only thing Mom can do is be your last resort. If you fail, you'll still have a place to go back to, at least you won't end up homeless."
After hearing Lin Li's words, Lin Laosan's eyes reddened, and he felt a mix of emotions.
His mother's love for him was always so profound. She didn't demand that he become a certain kind of person, but only hoped that he would have no regrets about his life, while also taking care of his worries when he went out to make his way in the world.
This is the deepest form of maternal love!
Lin Li: ...
Actually, she didn't think that much about it!
"Thank you, Mom! I know what to do now! Mom, you're so good to me!"
After listening to Lin Li's words, Lin Laosan rested his head on her shoulder, tears slowly sliding down his face, soaking Lin Li's clothes.
"I feel so happy right now!"
After listening to Lin Laosan's words, Lin Li reached out and gently stroked his hair.
Family bonds spread!
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