Year 1979: Eating meat with my wife and children

"I'll make your grandpa fall down!"

Enraged by Li Xiangdong's teasing, Grandpa Hou picked up a teacup and threw it at the window.

Li Xiangdong quickly closed the window, then opened it again, jokingly saying, "You're really not very polite, old man. How can you invite someone for tea like that?"

Grandpa Hou said angrily, "Dongzi, come in here if you dare!"

Li Xiangdong wasn't stupid; he wouldn't just walk right into someone's arms. He shook his head and said, "I'm not going in."

"You're not coming in, huh? Fine, I'm leaving. You just wait!"

Grandpa Hou stormed over to open the door, and Li Xiangdong quickly walked to the door and grabbed the doorknob.

Grandpa Hou couldn't open the door, so he shouted through it, "You little brat, let go of me!"

Li Xiangdong said, "If you want me to let go, we can put this matter behind us. As long as you nod, I'll open the door for you right away."

Grandpa Hou didn't speak, and Li Xiangdong didn't open the door.

After a while, Hou San went to the window, poked his head in, and said to Grandpa Hou with a grin, "Second Grandpa, do you need me to open the door for you?"

Grandpa Hou asked in surprise, "San'er, how did you end up with him?"

Hou San rubbed his nose. "My dad asked me to show Dong Ge around and familiarize him with the situation in our section. He even arranged for the two of us to be on the same train."

"You two are really getting along well. You even call him Brother Dong?"

Grandpa Hou was so angry he laughed. He stopped arguing with the door, walked to the window, and slapped Hou San on the head. "Get out of the way."

Hou San exclaimed "Ah!", pulled his head back, took two steps back, and stood there rubbing the back of his head.

"You idiot, be more careful when you're with Dongzi in the future, or he might trick you."

Grandpa Hou poked his head out of the window, looked at his silly grandnephew, and then pointed to Li Xiangdong, who was standing at the door, still gripping the doorknob tightly with a wicked grin on his face.

Hearing Grandpa Hou say that, Li Xiangdong was displeased. "How could I betray my own people? Grandpa Hou, don't slander me!"

Grandpa Hou said, "If you're a good person, then open the door for me!"

"Open it then."

As soon as Li Xiangdong let go of the doorknob, he saw Grandpa Hou shrink back, turn around, and walk quickly toward the door. He then ran away.

He ran more than twenty meters in one breath, and when he turned around, he saw Grandpa Hou standing at the door with his hands on his hips, scolding him. He laughed heartily.

He stopped running and squatted by the roadside to wait for Hou San and A Zhe. He casually picked a foxtail grass from the ground and started picking his teeth.

"Hello, Uncle Hou, do you remember that we met this morning?"

Ah Zhe greeted Grandpa Hou with a smile.

"Um"

Grandpa Hou pushed up his reading glasses and gave a perfunctory reply.

He had a good memory. Seeing A Zhe's face reminded him of what happened that morning. After the work bell rang, he was about to close the main gate when A Zhe ran over, looking bewildered, and tried to barge in, but he managed to stop him.

Grandpa Hou waved his hand and started to shoo them away, "Don't waste your time here, get out of here, seeing you makes me feel uneasy."

Hou San smiled and said, "Then Second Grandfather, you can sleep a little longer. We'll be going now."

"Um"

Grandpa Hou returned to the mailroom with his hands behind his back.

When Li Xiangdong saw A Zhe and Hou San walking quickly toward him, he threw away the foxtail grass in his hand and stood up.

"You two didn't take the blame for me, did you?"

Ah Zhe shrugged. "No, I can't talk to Hou San's second grandfather."

Hou San said, "My second grandfather has a very strange personality. He only likes people who get along with him. I never smile in front of him."

Li Xiangdong stood aside listening to their conversation and couldn't help but smile.

Ah Zhe is muddle-headed, and Hou San is both stupid and clueless, so of course Grandpa Hou doesn't like them.

When he was chatting with Grandpa Hou in the morning, Grandpa Hou said that he didn't like talking to people who weren't quick-witted.

I worry that if I talk to people too much, I'll become senile.

......

It wasn't far from the passenger transport section compound to the Beijing Railway Station building; the three of them walked for less than 10 minutes before stepping into the station square.

Just as the clock struck the hour, the tower clocks on both sides of the building chimed "The East Is Red"!

What's gratifying is that this unique chime has been preserved for posterity, remaining unchanged from the year the Beijing Railway Station was built until decades later.

Li Xiangdong's home is not far from the train station, and every time the hour is struck, he can faintly hear the sound of the "Dongfanghong" bell.

But the last time I could hear it so clearly and up close was a long time ago.

Beijing Railway Station was built as a gift to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and is a special-class station under the jurisdiction of the Beijing Railway Bureau.

When it was first built, there were only 12 tracks.

The daily passenger volume is expected to reach a maximum of 20, with 1.4 people waiting at the same time.

Twenty years have passed, and with the continuous increase in lines, the current passenger flow is even greater!

The area around the train station was full of passengers rushing to their destinations, carrying luggage rolls and bundles in their hands or on their shoulders, or holding a child in one hand and carrying a large cloth bag in the other.

The crowds coming and going around me were all dressed in four colors: blue, green, yellow, and gray. Everywhere I looked, there were people.

Before Li Xiangdong could react, the short Hou San had vanished from his sight.

"Ah Zhe, where's Hou San?"

"He was just in front of us a moment ago, where is he now?"

Ah Zhe stood on tiptoe and called out, "Hou San~ Hou San, where are you!?"

Li Xiangdong used his height advantage to look around for Hou San's figure.

"Here! I'm here!"

The sound came from about seven or eight meters away. They couldn't see anyone, only a hand waving at them.

Li Xiangdong couldn't help but laugh and said, "Hou San has been overwhelmed by the vast ocean of the people!"

Hou San nimbly dodged the passing passengers, walked up to them and said with a smile, "We just happened to be there at this time. There are a lot of people around. You two stick close to me."

Ah Zhe raised his arm to wipe the sweat from his forehead and complained, "But there are just too many people!"

Hou San was already used to it. He laughed and said, "This is nothing! We're going in from the side. If you go in through the main entrance, there are even more people there!"

Li Xiangdong nodded without saying anything.

From the moment he stepped into the station square, he had only one feeling: a lot of people, an overwhelming amount of people!

There were so many people that he felt suffocated just looking at the crowds coming and going!