Translated by Serena Love

LF: editor~

Zhao Lanxiang made several kilograms of candied fruits. If they ate them slowly at the rate of one string a day, they could eat them for half a month.

She picked up the dried and brittle sugared fruits, wrapped them tightly in moisture-proof greased paper, and put them in the cupboard where food is stored.

"I will let mother keep them in the future. If you do your homework on time every day and study hard, mother will reward you with a bunch."

Little Huzi hasn't eaten enough yet, and silently wants to take some out of the cupboard to eat. But the cupboard was too high and out of reach. His short five-years-old body could not reach the candies at all. He stared at it silently for a long time.

Zhao Lanxiang said with a smile, "Today, you are allowed to eat three more. But if you eat too much, your tooth will decay. Can you brush your teeth later?"

Little Tiger nodded vigorously.

Zhao Lanxiang took out three candied hawthorns for him to eat. The red hawthorn was wrapped in transparent thin, crispy, and clear sugar. Sweet on the outside then sour on the inside. As soon as the teeth bit, the thin layer of sugar cracked like a spider silk web, and little Huzi enjoyed the pleasure carefully.

After he finished eating, Zhao Lanxiang took the child to wash his hands and brush his teeth.

She squeezed toothpaste for him, and the mirror of the sink reflected the child's childish face, which was filled with a sense of happiness. He looked stupid and cute. Zhao Lanxiang hadn't seen little Huzi, who had not yet grown-up for a long time. When he grew up, he had a serious face, and he was as straight as a rough man. How could he be so cute now?

She rubbed his head, "Go do your homework."

In the afternoon, Feng Lian returned first.

She took off her hat and said with a sigh, "Niuniu, you will be back in the country tomorrow. Have you packed up?"

Zhao Lanxiang looked at the clock. It's four o'clock, and she was surprised that her mother returned so early.

She nodded, "I have packed."

Feng Lian thought for a while and said, "That fellow from your village who came here that day, will he go back tomorrow as well?"

"If you want, get your dad to buy more tickets. So you two will have a companion and can go back together."

Zhao Lanxiang almost dropped the pot handle in her hand. If her mother knew that she was talking to this so-called "fellow," she would probably regret what she said Today.

Feng Lian said, "Tonight, make more food. Your dad probably will go to the black market to buy meat."

Little Huzi, who was writing his homework, stretched his head from the sea of ​​books and cheered happily, "Add food, add food!"

Zhao Lanxiang heard him, quickly cleaned the pot, and wiped her hands with a towel.

"Does my dad know how to buy? Let me go to the black market to meet him."

He Songbai said he would buy some food, and her father also bought food. Zhao Lanxiang worried that the food tonight would be too much. After all, her family had a small population, and her parents didn't like to waste food. They could eat a plate of meat for a long time.

She quickly went to the black market, but she did not find Zhao Yongqing after a long time, but she saw He Songbai's figure shuttled in the alley.

He bitterly frowned deeply and looked like he was in trouble. Sometimes he was looking at fish and shrimp in a daze, and sometimes watching the pork stand when standing still.

Zhao Lanxiang walked up to him, and He Songbai, who was making a difficult choice, lit up and asked her, "What do your parents like to eat?"

"They are not picky. They love everything."

Zhao Lanxiang followed He Songbai all the way through the lanes in the black market. She bought a piece of ribs, a slice of fatty meat, and a slice of lean meat, which are very luxurious. Along the way, she saw white-flowered tofu and bought a few pieces. Finally, she bought a cabbage and put it into the basket.

It was the first time He Songbai met her parents, and he felt that there was something wrong with just buying these.

He told Zhao Lanxiang, "Go back first, and I will come later."

Zhao Lanxiang was still thinking about finding her father. She nodded, carried these ingredients, and disappeared from the black market.

After He Songbai sent her away, he ran to the countryside outside the city to buy an old hen. A chicken farmer also gave him a sack, and he carried the old sack like a migrant worker on the construction site.

...

Zhao Lanxiang went home and put the ingredients away, then went out to find Zhao Yongqing. She asked people in his unit but didn't meet him.

Instead, his colleague said, "Was your coal used so fast?"

"Your dad exchanged a lot of coal tickets with me today."

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Zhao Lanxiang said vaguely, "My mother doesn't like cold. She loves to use the stove at home during the Spring Festival..."

She couldn't help but feel a bit shameful. During this time, she cooked a lot of stuff, either steamed rice cakes or stewed meat or boiled soup. She made a lot of delicious food, so they finished coal at home quickly. In addition, Feng Lian also liked the fire, so the family ended up running out of coal in the middle of the month.

She suspected that her father might be buying coal, so she quickly walked to the supply and marketing cooperative, but she didn't find him either. When Zhao Lanxiang walked home quickly, her pupils shrank when she saw this scene,

He Songbai, who was wearing gray and old clothes, carried a pole on his shoulders, carrying a giant sack of black coal on both ends. Her father tied another sack to the front of his bike and slowly pushed the bike forward.

Zhao Lanxiang's heart could not help but bounce.

He Songbai was really capable, and he was so lucky so that he could find her dear father, who she could not found anywhere. Seeing their appearance, they met for the first time and had got along well.

She didn't go to them, but silently took a short cut to go back home, leaving them to walk all the way while talking.

Zhao Yongqing said while walking, "Young man, are you tired? Or put the coal in the bike and push it away."

He Songbai shook his head and said with ease, "This bit of coal is light and fluttering. I can pick up two more loads! I often do this kind of rough work. It's just that you people in the city are not used to it."

Zhao Yongqing was really embarrassed to make him work in vain. He can't help but ask, "Is it far away from where you are going? Put down the coal when you get there and let me push it away with my bike."

'There are still many kind people this year.' Zhao Yongqing couldn't help but feel warm.

He smiled and talked while walking, "You like reading?"

At the moment, he didn't recognize the book in his basket was the book he gave to his daughter many years ago.

He Songbai is thick-skinned, but his face felt hot.

He said concisely, "I just take a look when I'm free."

Zhao Yongqing couldn't help but look at this young man. The way he dressed could reflect his economic conditions. He wore a worn coat on this cold day, but he was enthusiastic and motivated. Zhao Yongqing couldn't help but encourage him, "Read more. Reading makes people better."

"What does the chairman say, study hard and make progress every day."

He Songbai switched shoulder to carry the pole. As they got closer and closer, almost turning into the street leading to the Zhao family's house, Zhao Yongqing couldn't help saying, "Hey--"

"Boy, you really don't have to take so much trouble."

He Songbai paused, wiped his sweat, and said, "No, I am going here too. The family I'm visiting also lives here."

Zhao Yongqing quickly said, "Such a coincidence?"

"I know all the people in this area. They are all old neighbors who have lived for decades."

He Songbai's dark eyebrows bent in a faint smile, and he said, "Even if it's not here, it's not a big deal to help you bring it back."

"But... it's a fate to be able to take this path together."

His casual tone revealed a hint of meaning that only he understood.

Zhao Yongqing couldn't help but glance at the coal carried on the young man's shoulder. It was heavy and stretched on the young man's shoulder.

His upright body is as strong as a rural person, and his steps were steady and solid. The weight of the pole on his shoulders can't crush him at all. Zhao Yongqing couldn't do it anymore. He was no longer as strong and powerful as he was in his youth. If the old bones carried these coals all the way back, it would definitely be overwhelming.

Although the weather was very cold, He Songbai was carrying coal all the way and soon sweat. The sweat dripped from his forehead and wet his flowing hair. He stopped and took out his towel to wipe his face.

Zhao Yongqing clapped his hands and said, "Stay for a bit of hot tea at my house. My family's rice cakes and buns are delicious. You have to try it."

He Songbai responded with a smile, "Okay, then drink some tea."

After walking a few meters, Zhao Yongqing rang the bell on his bike. The bell rang sharply, and he pointed to the building in front of him, "It's here."

Feng Lian heard the sound of her husband's bike bell from upstairs and quickly went downstairs.

She opened the door and said in surprise, "Xiaobai, why are you here?"

After hearing his wife's words, Zhao Yongqing realized that fate was really dramatic. He looked at the book in the basket. 'No wonder it looks familiar.'

'This... isn't the Marx series I bought for Niuniu when she first went to middle school?'

He was a little speechless, silently untied the sack attached to the front of the bike, and then asked calmly, "Are you my wife's student?"

Feng Lian glanced at Zhao Yongqing, watching him push the bike to park. Both of his hands were not free, so she quickly took over the sack.

"How can it be? This is Niuniu's fellow villager in the Hezi village. Xiaobai, you came just at the right time. Will you go back to the countryside tomorrow?"

He Songbai nodded.

Feng Lian was carrying a sack, and the chicken inside shouted suddenly.

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He Songbai explained, "This is the old hen I bought in the countryside. Thank you, Aunt, for the sausage. It's delicious."

Feng Lian sent more than three pounds of sausages to He Songbai, and he returned more than three pounds of chicken. The value was about the same. Feng Lian took it and thought that he was someone else who refused to take advantage of people and deliberately returned the favor.

She shouted, "You, child, is too polite. I said that the sausage is given to you, but you deliberately bought a chicken."

It is said that people of this age were very particular about human relations, and precious things would not be accepted in vain. The Zhang family gave the Li family a pound of meat, and the Li family will have to pay back this favor on another occasion.

Food was precious, and no one's money came from the sky.

Feng Lian carried the chicken and thought that the young man was very polite. But after looking at the worn jacket he was wearing, she felt that the chicken in her hand was too expensive. For him, it would probably be costly.

Feng Lian said, "Don't just stand here. Go into the house!"

Zhao Lanxiang watched this scene on the window sill with both hands in her cheeks and couldn't help but smile.

She quickly went to clean up the fresh clams. It was too late to make bone stock today, so she used clams to make fresh soup. Before He Songbai came, she had already chopped up the pork to make meatballs, carefully and patiently. All the muscles were separated, leaving only the soft meat. Although it was convenient just to chop the meat, it would affect the taste.

---

Author's Note:

Author: Brother Bai, you already have three badges. You are ready to summon the dragon.

Brother Bai: Badge?

Author: The goodwill badge from the father-in-law, the care badge of the mother-in-law, and the friendly badge of the brother-in-law.

This is just showing off, ah...

By the way, take another badge from the author. 

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