The 1970s: Military Family Beauty

For Jiang Furong, these minor problems with bearings, chains and gears are easy to fix as long as she has the right tools.

It's a pity that she is a nanny now, and pushing the stroller out for a walk is equivalent to working hours.

"Captain Fu, you can't ride this bike anymore. Push it back," Jiang Furong said, making a professional judgment and offering advice: "Try not to overload in the future."

Squad Leader Fu stood up and waved his hands. "If I'd known it couldn't be fixed, I wouldn't have put so much effort into it. Hey, how did you know I was towing too much?"

Jiang Furong pointed at the broken part and said, "Do you see this gear? The wheels need to move forward because these gears are locked together to drive the chain. If the car is overloaded, even though the tire won't burst, this gear is too thin and can't withstand the force. If you apply force, it will break."

"Hey, good, you're talking about the same thing as Wei Heng." Squad Leader Fu gave a thumbs up. "Looks like I'll have to push my car these days. Where are you going?"

Jiang Furong patted the cart and said, "I wanted to take him to buy some food, but I couldn't find any, so I came here to play for a while."

Squad Leader Fu smiled and shook his head: "It's so cold, what do you want to buy to eat?"

Jiang Furong said, "His mother said he should eat half an apple every day. He hasn't eaten it today, so I came out to check."

Squad Leader Fu smiled and patted his chest. "You told me that, and that's exactly what I said. We have them in the kitchen. If you only want one or half, I can get them for you."

There is such a good thing? Jiang Furong felt that it was a pie in the sky: "One is enough!"

Squad Leader Fu scratched his face and said, "Then how can I give it to you later?"

Jiang Furong asked: "When can you give it to me?"

"I'll push the tricycle back and come out with an apple. It'll take about a quarter of an hour to go back and forth. If you're not afraid of the cold, just wait for me here for a while." Squad Leader Fu was a straightforward person.

Jiang Furong first asked the price: "How much should I give you?"

Squad leader Fu waved his hand and said, "It's just an apple, why should I pay for it? Even though I'm just a squad leader, I still have the right to take an apple."

Jiang Furong thought, no reward without merit. She had gotten a free ride last time, so why should she take an apple for free this time? "Captain Fu, I can repair bicycles. If you can find two more old bicycles, I can help you modify this tricycle so that it can haul half a ton of vegetables. I won't charge you for the repairs, just give me an apple."

When squad leader Fu heard this, she couldn't stop smiling: "Oh, I say, you are quite polite, little sister. It's settled then. I'll be waiting for you to help me get the tricycle!"

His tricycle is so important. It is indispensable to the kitchen team and he cannot go a day without it.

Jiang Furong raised her hand and assured: "I'm at home during the day, you can come to see me anytime."

To be honest, Jiang Furong really wanted to take the opportunity of repairing the tricycle to learn about the current level of mechanical repair tools. She really didn't want to miss such a good opportunity.

After pushing the cart around a few times, Squad Leader Fu really brought her an apple, two persimmons and two oranges.

Jiang Furong was flattered: "Too much!"

Wow, there are so many kinds of fruits in the kitchen!

Squad Leader Fu grinned widely. "This is fruit for the reception. We don't usually have it. There weren't many apples, so I only took one. If there were more of the other fruits, I'd get you two."

"Thank you. I won't be polite then!" Jiang Furong accepted it with a smile, put it in the small cart, and let Xiao Baoying play with it.

Squad Leader Fu was rather embarrassed. “Why are you always being so polite to me? When you have repaired my tricycle, if there is no fruit left, just tell me what you want to eat and I will make it for you.”

Jiang Furong was surprised: "Captain Fu, you can cook?"

Squad Leader Fu puffed out his chest with pride: "I'm good at everything, stir-frying, braising, stewing, and steaming. I've even won awards in military competitions!"

Jiang Furong gave a thumbs-up and praised: "Great, great! Then I can look forward to eating delicious food!"

Before she finished speaking, Jiang Furong caught sight of Xiao Baoying holding an apple and about to stuff it into his mouth, and she quickly said goodbye: "Team Leader Fu, Xiao Baoying wants to eat an apple. His mother said that apples should be scalded with boiling water before being eaten. I'm going home first."

Squad Leader Fu hadn't finished talking yet, so he just waved his hand and said, "How can I find you then? Which building is your house?"

Jiang Furong pointed to the family compound: "Building A, No. 4."

After telling the address and exchanging a few polite words, Jiang Furong pushed the cart home.

When no one was around on the road, Jiang Furong whispered to Xiao Baoying, "You are really my lucky star! You have apples to eat, and our sick family members also have fruits to eat!"

Little Baoying sang while holding a big apple: "Boundless orchard, lush orchard..."

His pronunciation was unclear and out of tune, and it was impossible to understand what he was singing.

Jiang Furong was surprised and amused: "You love apples so much? You can even happily sing a song while holding an apple."

When I got home, Jiang Chaohui was the only one at home.

Jiang Furong distributed the fruit to Jiang Zhaohui: "The oranges are for grandma. Put them in your schoolbag first so Qingqing won't see them. Put the persimmons away too. You and auntie each get one. This apple is so big. Cut it in half. Xiao Baoying and Qingqing each get half."

Jiang Zhaohui was very satisfied, but also a little uncertain: "Sister, what about you? Don't you want to eat?"

Jiang Furong explained to Jiang Zhaohui, "Grandma is sick. Apples and oranges are the best vitamin C supplements for patients. Xiao Baoying wants to eat apples, so leave the oranges for Grandma. You are the younger sister and still a little kid, so I'll give you a persimmon. Auntie is a guest, so I'll give her a persimmon. My parents and I will eat when there is more fruit."

When there is less fruit, there is a priority order of distribution.

Jiang Zhaohui nodded repeatedly: "Remember it."

It was a happy thing to enjoy the preferential treatment. Jiang Chaohui happily went to put away the oranges and persimmons.

Jiang Furong cut the apple in half, applied some salt on the cut surface of the half left for Jiang Guoqing to prevent oxidation, then peeled and sliced the other half, rinsed it with warm salt water, and gave it to Xiao Baoying.

She found that Xiao Baoying was very patient. He would wait when asked to, without making any noise or fuss. He did not act like a two-year-old child at all.

If Xiao Baoying's family had not deliberately trained him, the ability to delay gratification would be an advantage over ordinary people, and it is a necessary condition for people who can accomplish great things.

Jiang Furong supported her chin and watched Xiao Baoying eat the apple, but what she was thinking about was how to distinguish Xiao Baoying's left and right brain thinking.

Jiang Zhaohui watched for a while and asked, "Sister, I want to go eat some persimmons."

I’m so afraid that my mom will snatch it away when she comes back.