Chapter 194
On the ninth day of the first lunar month in 1976, it was Tuantuan Yuanyuan’s first birthday.
On January 6th last year, when Nuannuan turned 3 years old, Xu Di specially made a simple birthday cake with three candles.
The birthday gift was a new set of clothes, a small military uniform that Nuannuan had requested for herself.
Xu Di modified it using Zhang Chaoyang's old military uniform. The size is perfect and it also comes with a military cap with a five-pointed star on it.
Xu Di was impartial to the three children and tried his best to treat them equally.
So, on the two little ones’ birthdays, Xu Di also made cakes and put candles on them.
The birthday gift was also a new set of clothes, made of red striped cloth.
What followed was the most heartbreaking event in history: our most beloved person left us forever.
Xu Di didn't feel anything yet, but her grandmother fell ill.
After she came back from seeing someone off on Chang Street, she had a high fever and was sick for several days.
Xu Di was terrified, grandma was 72 years old.
I had been in good health before, but I didn't expect to become so ill suddenly. Xu Di took a leave of absence from work and took care of his grandmother in the hospital.
Father Zhang also came over. He felt helpless and stood in the ward, not knowing what to do.
Xu Di didn't care about him either, she was very busy.
My grandmother needs to be taken care of, and I have three young children at home. Although Aunt Wu is at home, she is still worried.
Xiaojun came again. School had not started yet, so he stayed at home directly.
Grandma Qian’s illness came quickly and went away quickly as well.
The main problem is just a burst of anger, there are no other major problems. After staying in the hospital for a few days, I was discharged and went home.
However, during that period, grandma was in a bad mood.
It wasn't until after the Chinese New Year that grandma recovered.
After the New Year, Zhang Chaoyang became busy and it was often difficult to reach him when you called him.
Xu Di vaguely knew something. It seemed that the Digital Gang was destroyed this year.
She couldn't remember exactly when it happened. She had learned it in history books, but she had already learned it.
After April, the weather became warmer and the peak of spring colds had passed, so Nuannuan went to the nursery again.
Tuantuan and Yuanyuan are already fourteen months old, and the two girls are already walking very steadily.
Xu Di now spends all his free time reading.
When she goes to work, she also brings a high school textbook with her and reads it when she has nothing to do.
Because of this, her colleagues in the office kept praising her for her love of learning.
Sister Tang and the team leader are older, one in her thirties and the other in her early forties. But Meng Jiao is only three years older than Xu Di and also graduated from high school.
However, she recently found out that she was pregnant and her reaction was quite strong.
This is Meng Jiao’s second child. Her first child is a daughter who is not even two years old.
Wang Wei is in his early thirties and his family has three children. The younger one is only a few months old.
Xu Di sometimes feels very emotional. The birth rate in this era is really high.
On average, a couple has two or more children.
It seems like nowadays, couples do nothing else after marriage except having kids.
"Xu Di, why did you think of reading high school textbooks?"
Meng Jiao had just vomited and felt exhausted. It felt like all the strength in her body had been drained away.
"There aren't many books to read right now. My eldest daughter is already three years old and will be going to primary school in a few years. I am making preparations in advance so that I won't be unable to supervise her homework when the time comes."
What else could Xu Di say? He could only find a reason that was not really a reason.
She couldn't tell the truth, that was impossible, she wasn't tired of living yet.
I don’t know if it’s the darkness before dawn, but there’s been a lot of panic outside recently, with people being criticized and their homes being searched on the streets.
Xu Di specifically found Xu Qiang and asked him to be quiet recently, concentrate on learning how to repair cars, and not do anything else.
Xu Qiang also felt that something was not right and planned to stop.
"Your eldest child is already three years old? Time flies so fast. In a blink of an eye, the children have grown up."
After finishing her work, Sister Tang joined the chat.
"Sister Tang's child will graduate from high school soon, right?"
"Yes, I graduated in July this year. It seems that it is no longer mandatory to go to the countryside, so I feel relieved.
However, after graduation, it is not easy to find a job, and I don’t know if there are many job openings? ”
Sister Tang has three children, and she is also worried.
"Alas, some of my relatives have gone to the countryside. The oldest one has been there for ten years. He got married and had children there. I don't know if he will have the chance to come back."
Meng Jiao thought about the cousin she saw when she came back from the countryside to visit during the Chinese New Year. She was completely different from before and looked very unfamiliar.
"The country will give an explanation, but I don't know what the final decision will be."
The team leader's son also went to the countryside and has been there for almost two years.
This was a heavy topic, and after a few words, it was time to get off work.
In early July, Lin Wei gave birth to a daughter in the hospital, and both mother and daughter are safe.
Xu Di picked out some of Tuantuan and Yuanyuan's clothes and diapers and gave them to Lin Wei. This was her own request.
She felt that Xu Di's three children were well-raised and strong, and were blessed children.
When Zhang's mother knew that Lin Wei had given birth to a daughter, she was not very enthusiastic. She now focused most of her energy on Chao Heng's two sons and Zhang Chaoru, who was pregnant again.
Lin Wei and Xu Di have similar ideas. They like their own children, and if their grandmother doesn’t like them, then they don’t like them. There’s really no need to care.
Lin Wei had not yet finished her confinement when another big thing happened.
In the early morning of that day, Xu Di also felt the vibration, and then remembered this incident in July of that year.
Beijing is more than 200 kilometers away from there. Although it was affected to some extent, the urban buildings used for daily life were not damaged.
When one side is in trouble, all sides will come to its aid.
Xu Di and her colleagues in the unit also organized an activity to donate money and goods.
Xu Di donated money and also took things that were not used at home to his workplace and donated them.
She didn’t know whether Zhang Chaoyang would come to help with the disaster relief. She hadn’t been able to contact him for two months.
There have been a lot of things going on this year, and the army is not a peaceful place either. All Xu Di can do is to take good care of the children and grandmother at home so that Zhang Chaoyang has no worries.
In the following time, Xu Di spent his time working, taking care of the children, and reading.
Xiaojun graduated from high school. Xu Di had a talk with him. He didn’t talk about the college entrance examination, but just analyzed his current situation.
There was no need to go to the countryside, as the factories were not hiring many workers and it was not time for conscription. Moreover, the recruitment requirements are not low and the competition is fierce.
At this stage, Xiaojun is in a confused stage, so he continues to read books and do exercises.
No matter which factory is recruiting, they need to take an exam, and those with good grades still have an advantage.
Xiaojun had good grades in high school, and with Xu Di's persuasion, he was not in a hurry and did not hang out. Instead, he stayed at home reading books or helping his second sister take care of the children.
The main reason is that there have been too many major events this year and the situation outside is not peaceful.
Zhang Chaoyang also contacted Xu Jun specifically, asking him not to be anxious and to stay calm.
Xu's parents were not in a hurry either. Xu Jun was only sixteen years old, and there was no problem for him to stay at home for two years.
In this way, Xu Jun, who graduated from high school, became the freest person. He would go wherever he was needed.
I spend most of my time taking care of the two children from Brother Xu's family. Because Sister-in-law Xu was pregnant again and her reaction was quite strong, she couldn't take care of the two little ones, so they were sent to their grandparents' house.
As for Xu Di, he read his junior high and high school textbooks carefully over and over again and did the exercises.
In September and October, there were two major events, both of which had far-reaching impact.
Grandma cried this time, but she didn’t fall ill. Maybe too many things happened in this year.
When winter comes, Xu Di and her friends basically stay at home. It's a mess outside, and they don't want to be affected.
So many things happened this year that it was overwhelming.
However, life still has to go on, just in a much more low-key manner.
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