When Wen's mother heard someone greeting her from ahead, she quickly perked up, put on a smile, and said, "My Ruan Ruan is back. She hasn't had a meal cooked by me in a long time. I need to go to the market to buy some good food to help her recover."
The person who just spoke is Aunt Zheng from the compound. Her husband and two children all work at the steel factory. She used to work in the steel factory canteen, but after her eldest son got married and had a child, there was really no one at home to take care of the child, so she sold her job and stayed at home to take care of the child.
In addition, she had another well-known skill in the compound, known as the compound's "zero-zero expert".
Nothing that happens in anyone's home can escape her keen eyes; this skill has always been a source of curiosity for everyone, and no one knows how Aunt Zheng knows it all.
Whenever news broke, it would spread like wildfire throughout the compound, and after a while, everyone would know that it was all thanks to Aunt Zheng.
As a result, arguments frequently broke out in the compound, and the parties involved would often come to her house to argue with her. Wen's mother would also often be called to her house to mediate various relationships. Although Aunt Zheng repeatedly promised that she would never spread other people's affairs again, she would never change her ways and a new cycle would begin. Wen's mother found it extremely annoying.
But when she went out, she suddenly ran into Aunt Zheng, and Wen's mother took the initiative to go up and talk to her.
"Oh, your Ruan Ruan is back! Oh my, she's truly the pride of our compound. Not only was she the first person from our compound to get into Tsinghua University, but she was also the top scorer in the national college entrance examination!"
"I graduated from university in less than two years and was even sent abroad by the school to study!"
"Oh my, it's a completely different story when they come back. They're truly people who have studied abroad and returned..." Aunt Zheng said, her voice brimming with enthusiasm.
Listening from the side, Wen's mother didn't seem impatient at all; on the contrary, she wholeheartedly agreed, nodding repeatedly and thinking to herself, "That's the absolute truth. My daughter is just that outstanding..."
It wasn't too late yet. Wen's mother glanced at her watch and realized it was getting late. Afraid that Wen Ruan would get hungry, she invited Aunt Zheng to go grocery shopping together. So she turned around, went home to get a basket, and went to the market with Wen's mother, chatting as they walked.
As she passed the post office, she suddenly remembered that she hadn't had a chance to tell Wen Ruan's father that he was back. So she quickly went in and called Wen's father's office, telling him to come home early after get off work, otherwise he would be home late at night again, just like always.
......
Wen Ruan was catching up on sleep in her room. She felt like she had slept for a long time and was sleeping very soundly. She checked the time and it was already past 7 p.m. Her mother and father had not woken her up during that time, so she slept until now.
Wen Ruan was awakened by the aroma of food wafting from the living room; her stomach had started rumbling...
Wen Ruan curled up in the warm blankets, reluctant to get out of bed, but the aroma outside kept tempting her.
She hadn't experienced this feeling in a long time, and when she first woke up, she even thought she was dreaming, and couldn't help but laugh.
"Ruan Ruan is back." Wen Ruan stretched and walked out of her room, just in time to see her father sitting on the sofa in the living room reading the newspaper, and her mother sitting next to her knitting.
The dining table was already full of food. Perhaps worried that the food would get cold, Wen's mother specially found plates and covered each dish with them to keep it warm.
“Yes, Dad, I’m back,” Wen Ruan replied.
"It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back. Now that you're back, you won't leave again, right?" Father Wen's eyes were full of anticipation.
Wen Ruan didn't know how to answer. She had already made plans for her future development. It seemed unlikely that she would stay with her parents, stay in Beijing, or stay in China forever.
He hesitated, unsure how to answer, and stood there silently without saying a word.
At that very moment, Wen Ruan witnessed the light in her mother's and father's eyes seem to dim instantly, and a sense of loss washed over them. Wen Ruan felt a pang of guilt.
Wen's mother stepped forward and nudged Wen's father, saying, "The child just got back. Why are you saying all this? Do you need to cause trouble to feel comfortable? If you don't want to come back, go back to work. Don't come back looking for trouble." Wen's mother grumbled irritably, trying to break the awkward atmosphere.
"Yes, yes, let's not talk about that. It's good for the child to be busy. Ruan Ruan is now one of the top young people around here. Your mother and I are here, so you don't need to worry about us. Focus on your career."
“You just need to do what you want to do,” Wen’s father encouraged.
"Come on, let's not talk about that anymore, let's eat. It's been so long since you've tasted your mom's and my cooking, hasn't it? Did you miss it when you were abroad?" Mr. Wen quickly changed the subject.
Wen Ruan followed up on her father's words, saying, "Of course I want to, but I really can't get used to the food abroad, and I don't have much time to cook for myself."
“Those ‘white food’ are just so-so. I really can’t understand how they can grow up eating that kind of food. It’s definitely a regret for them not to have experienced our Chinese cuisine.” Wen Ruan’s exaggerated expression made her parents laugh repeatedly.
The three of them ate for a long time. Wen's father and mother were afraid that Wen Ruan hadn't eaten enough, so they kept putting food on her plate. It seemed like Wen Ruan's bowl was never empty. As soon as she took a bite, someone would immediately put another one on her plate.
Wen Ruan thought, "This is probably the trouble of happiness..."
After the meal, Wen Ruan accompanied her parents for a walk around the family compound to digest their food.
The people in the family compound were quite shocked to see Wen Ruan. They all came forward to greet Wen's parents and Wen Ruan warmly, speaking very politely.
What made Wen Ruan laugh the most was that a little boy, who seemed to be the youngest son of the head of the technical department of the steel plant, ran up to her and asked if he could touch his head.
This left Wen Ruan somewhat confused, not understanding what was going on. But the little boy, seeing that Wen Ruan wasn't making a move, became anxious and kept whining to her, even bringing up Wen Ruan's mother: "Aunt Ruan, please let Sister Wen Ruan touch me..."
Wen's mother urged her with her eyes, leaving Wen Ruan no time to ask anything.
Just after touching the little boy's head, he jumped high and loudly boasted to his friends who were a little too shy to approach him, "My dad said that Sister Wenruan is the smartest young person in the compound. Now that she touched my head, I'm the smartest person now, and you all have to listen to me!" Then he looked smug.
Upon hearing this, Wen Ruan was momentarily speechless, which elicited good-natured laughter from the adults around her...
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