Chapter 45: Getting ready for a new life

Just go back to the base, why are we suddenly talking about going back to my mother's home?

Su Taotao had thought before that Fu Zhengtu might go to meet her "family" one day in the future, but she didn't expect it to happen so soon, and she was not mentally prepared at all.

"Isn't it across provinces? Is it on the way?"

Fu Zhengtu: "We'll leave at five tomorrow morning. It takes four hours from here to the city, and four hours from the city to City G. We'll arrive before one in the afternoon. After lunch, we can catch the 10 pm train."

If you take a car to go back and forth by yourself, it will take you a whole day, but you can get there in half a day by driving.

But just as he finished speaking, Su Taotao rejected it immediately: "No, time is too tight. You will have to drive more than ten hours a day. It's too dangerous. Let's wait until the next opportunity. When I get to the base, I will write a letter to them to explain the situation in detail. They will understand. So many years have passed. This little time is not a big deal."

The speaker may not mean it, but the listener may take it seriously.

Fu Zhengtu knew that he failed as a son, husband, and father. No matter what the reason was for marrying a daughter, he should not go several years without visiting her.

To be honest, he had no such plan before he came back, it was just a sudden thought.

It is true that his arrangements were not thoughtful enough. He has not been back for several years. When he came back, he just had a meal and left. It might be better for him not to go back.

Fu Zhengtu was thinking about his work schedule for the next six months. He thought he would be able to take a few days off during the Chinese New Year, but he didn't mention the uncertainty. He just said, "I didn't think it through enough and was a little hasty."

Zhou Linglan said: "Then Taotao will send some dried goods back home. I don't know when she will be able to send again next time."

"OK."

Su Taotao heaved a sigh of relief for some reason. During this time, she had tried her best to mend her relationship with her "family". She later sent back a copy of the photo she took with Chenchen last time, and also wrote a letter trying her best to imitate the tone of "Su Taotao".

The family did reply, but it was just a few words, and they did not forgive "Su Taotao" for marrying in the countryside despite her family's opposition. However, it could be seen between the lines that they liked Chenchen very much.

In fact, after not seeing each other for a few years, it was understandable that "Su Taotao" had become what she wanted, and she was not worried about exposing her true colors.

I'm just not mentally prepared to meet these "family members".

Fu Yuanhang had already said goodbye to his teachers and classmates in the morning and did not go to class in the afternoon. Zhou Linglan also did not go to work. They both stayed at home and packed up with Su Taotao.

A mother worries whenever her son goes a thousand miles away. Although Zhou Linglan knows that her son and daughter-in-law are independent-minded and she doesn't need to worry, she still pays attention to every detail and can't help but give them all kinds of instructions.

There is something Su Taotao has wanted to say for a long time:

"Mom, you don't have to go to work after we leave. The fine grains we have at home are enough for you to eat for a long time. The coarse grains and vegetables in the private plots are more than you can eat. We don't lack those work points, so there's no need to work so hard."

Zhou Linglan smiled as she folded clothes and said, "Rural life is like this. I've gotten used to it after so many years. It's not tiring."

Su Taotao: "Mom, if you don't agree, then come with us. The purpose of you staying here is to experience a more relaxed life instead of working as hard as before. That's meaningless. It's better for you to come with us. You can take care of Chenchen while I find a job."

Zhou Linglan didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"Taotao, how can there be someone as young as me in the village who doesn't work in the fields? That doesn't make sense. People will laugh at me to death."

Su Taotao insisted: "Mom, our lives are our own. What does it have to do with others? There is no reason for the whole family in the village to leave and leave an old lady here. If you say so, we are also afraid of being criticized by others, so you have to come with us."

Zhou Linglan couldn't argue with Su Taotao, so she could only say, "It's going to be a double rush in less than two months. We don't have enough manpower to begin with. Let's wait until the double rush is over before we talk about it."

Su Taotao: "You can go and help when the two sides are fighting. Whoever wants to cultivate the broken land at Dalingtou can do it."

"Fu Zhengtu!" Su Taotao shouted towards the door.

Fu Zhengtu was repairing the chicken coop at home. It was the first time he heard Su Taotao calling his name. He was stunned for a long time before he reacted.

"What is it?"

"Go find your uncle and tell him that Mom is not feeling well and needs to rest. She will not work anymore. You can help out when there is a rush, but she won't do any heavy work."

Fu Zhengtu looked at her sparkling eyes and said without any doubt: "Okay, I'll go and tell her."

Zhou Linglan was really afraid of them, so she came out and pulled her son to her side, "Don't mess around with Taotao. You don't need to say anything about such a small matter. What will happen if it gets out? I will handle it myself. Taotao, Mom knows you are doing this for my own good. I am not that weak, and I know what to do."

Su Taotao said: "I have spies in the village. If I find out that you are lying to me, I will come back and take you away at any time."

Su Taotao really likes this gentle and kind mother, and sincerely hopes that she can live a more comfortable life.

Zhou Linglan touched her head and said, "Okay, okay, Mom knows."

Zhou Linglan had never given birth to a daughter, and unknowingly she and Su Taotao became closer and closer, and it was no different for a biological daughter.

"Su Zhiqing, there's your package!"

It's the voice of the postman.

Fu Zhengtu put down what he was doing and went to open the door to get the package.

"Who is it? Someone actually sent me a package?"

The package was not very big. Su Taotao looked at the address and realized that she couldn't tell anyone about it during the day. He would arrive as soon as she told him.

A package from my mother’s home in G City.

Su Taotao said as she unpacked the package: "This package arrived just in time. If it had been a day later, I wouldn't have received it."

Su Taotao searched for a long time, but all she found were Chenchen's things, and she had nothing.

Su Taotao waved to Chenchen who was packing his schoolbag and said, "Chenchen, come here. Grandma sent you some good things."

Chenchen put down his schoolbag, ran over with his short legs, tilted his head to look at Su Taotao: "Grandma~~"

Su Taotao took out two sets of short-sleeved shirts, a pair of small leather shoes and a cloth tiger and handed them to Chenchen: "Grandma is Dad's mother, right? Grandma is Mom's mother, so this is a gift from my mom, Grandma Chenchen, to Chenchen. This is a little tiger. Do you like it?"

Chen Chen's eyes widened and he hugged the little tiger tightly. He touched the little tiger's head, then narrowed his eyes and nodded: "I like it~~"

Su Taotao took out two more cans of milk powder and said, "This is milk powder, and it is also Chenchen's food. Grandma is so good to you, what do you want to say?"

Chen Chen: “Thank you~~”

Su Taotao touched his head and said, "Then Mom will write back to Grandma later, and Chenchen will thank Grandma in person, okay?"

Chen Chen nodded: "Okay~~"

The small clothes are made of soft cotton, very suitable for children to wear. You can tell they are hand-sewn, washed very clean, and smell of soap.

I guess I bought the leather shoes a little bigger on purpose, they should be just right for winter.

The cloth tiger is made of various scraps of cloth. It looks festive with its colorful colors, but the craftsmanship is average. It's just for show, so don't take a closer look.

As the saying goes, there is affection between generations. These things reflect the grandmother's love for her little grandson. As a concubine, she has nothing to do with it. She must be very angry.

Chenchen liked the cloth tiger very much. He couldn’t let it go and played with it for a long time before putting it into his little schoolbag.

Zhou Linglan looked at Chen Chen's things and kept sighing: "My mother-in-law is so thoughtful."

At the same time, I felt a lot more relieved. Blood is thicker than water. How could the in-laws really not care about their daughter-in-law?

The whole family worked for the whole afternoon to clean up the things.

Su Taotao was worried about the pile of stuff and asked Fu Zhengtu, "What should I do with so many things? I have tried my best to simplify them, but there are still so many."

Fu Zhengtu said, "Separate out the items that are not urgent and I will take them to the post office to mail them later. You can also mail some of the dried goods and salted vegetables that you like to eat."

Su Taotao slapped her forehead and said, "Why am I so stupid? Yes, let's take some clothes and necessities with us first, and send the rest by mail. It doesn't matter if they arrive later."

Su Taotao adjusted her "strategy" and acted accordingly, and in the end, she only packed up two large packages.

Fu Yuanhang's quilt was mailed over, since it couldn't be used now anyway.

Su Taotao asked him and Chenchen to pack their things and carry them on their backs, saying that they had to carry them themselves.

Chenchen has a lot of "treasures", such as small stones, a small slingshot, comic books, the military chess set given to him by Fu Zhengtu, and of course the little tiger given to him by his grandmother... The little guy wanted to take everything, and he only stopped when his schoolbag was full and could not fit any more.

In the end, the things she sent by mail were several times more than what she brought with her, including mushrooms, black fungus, dried bamboo shoots, dried day lilies, pickled cucumbers, pickled mustard greens, pickled bamboo shoots, pickled radishes... Su Taotao took them all, and of course some for her parents' home. In the end, the trunk of the SUV was full.

Fu Zhengtu felt helpless when looking at the full trunk. In fact, he thought that things like pickled vegetables might not be as expensive to buy there as the postage. However, he said nothing. He would send whatever Su Taotao asked for.

The package sent to her mother's home in City G also contained a letter from Su Taotao and Chenchen. Chenchen's "Thank you, grandma" was written by Su Taotao holding his little hand. The words were crooked and full of childishness.

We are always full of longing and expectation for a new life.

That night, except for the dust, the whole family was very excited and couldn't fall asleep for a long time, counting every minute and waiting for the arrival of a new life.