People in the alley: A woman dressed as a man shouldn't be foolishly filial, Zhuang Chaoying

Finally, I boarded the train for my return journey.

Upon arrival in Suzhou.

Chao Ying glanced at her watch; it was already past 8 p.m. on the second day.

I picked up two heavy bags, both of which were packed full. One of them was a new one I bought later, because I bought so many things in Kyoto that my original bag couldn't hold them all.

Huang Ling was also carrying a bag, though she was struggling a bit.

Finally, we arrived at the gate of our own yard.

Huang Ling knocked on the courtyard gate impatiently: "Tu Nan, Xiao Ting! Mom and Dad are back!"

Tu Nan, who was reading a book inside, heard a familiar voice outside. He immediately put down his book, and without even putting on his coat, rushed out to open the door.

As soon as the door opened, I saw my parents standing in the doorway. "Mom and Dad!"

Immediately afterwards, Xiaoting ran out of the house and threw herself into her parents' arms: "Mom and Dad, you're finally back! I missed you so much!"

Tu Nan quickly took the luggage bag from her mother's hands: "Mom and Dad, you must be tired from your journey. Please come inside."

At this moment, Song Ying and her family also came out after hearing the commotion.

Song Ying greeted her with a smile: "Sister Ling, you're finally back! I've missed you so much these past few days."

Lin Wufeng quickly made way for them, saying, "Let Sister Ling and Teacher Zhuang come inside. They must be exhausted after such a long train ride."

Huang Ling smiled and nodded, taking Song Ying's hand: "I brought you some delicious food, I'll bring it to you in a bit."

Using the light coming from inside the room, Song Ying finally saw clearly what Huang Ling was wearing: "Sister Ling, isn't this the outfit the mountaineering team wore on TV? Dong Zhe, what's his name again?"

Lin Dongzhe replied from the side, "Mom, let Aunt Huang come inside. It's quite cold outside."

"Yes, yes, Sister Ling, you should go in and rest."

As soon as Huang Ling entered the house, she took off her coat, hung it in the wardrobe, and then changed into a cotton-padded jacket that she had made herself.

Then, she began to take out the snacks and local specialties she had brought for her family and neighbors from her bag.

She brought out a bottle of Liubiju pickles and a box of Daoxiangcun pastries.

Huang Ling knocked on Song Ying's door. "Song Ying, it's me, Huang Ling!"

"Sister Ling, come in quickly!"

Huang Ling walked into the house and placed the snacks and pickles on the table: "These are all specialties from Kyoto. I brought them for you. Try them."

Song Ying looked at the pastries and said, "Thank you, Sister Ling. You're so thoughtful. Where did you go in Kyoto this time?"

Huang Ling smiled and said, "We went to the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace, and many other places. When the photos are developed, come to my place and I'll tell you all about them in detail."

Song Ying nodded and said with concern, "Sister Ling, it's getting late, you should go and get some rest. You must be exhausted from the journey."

Huang Ling gently pushed open the door and saw Chao Ying and the children sitting in the living room, sorting out the local specialties they had brought back from Kyoto.

On the day they left, she and Chaoying went to Wangfujing Department Store to pick out down jackets for their two children.

Since Tu Nan and Xiao Ting are at the age where they are growing, they each bought a size larger. Xiao Ting's is red, while Tu Nan's is a calm dark blue.

Xiaoting, wearing a down jacket, twirled around in front of her father: "Dad, this down jacket must be very expensive. I saw it on TV at Aunt Song's house."

Zhuang Chaoying nodded with a loving smile, saying, "My two little darlings look so good in their down jackets. This is what they call a mountaineering suit. Your mother picked out both of these."

Xiaoting immediately hugged Zhuang Chaoying's face and gave her a loud kiss: "Thank you, Dad and Mom."

After kissing Zhuang Chaoying, he ran over and hugged Huang Ling, who had just entered the room, tightly: "Mom, you have such good taste! I like her very much. Thank you, Mom!"

Huang Ling gently stroked Xiao Ting's hair: "Your dad and I bought them. If we hadn't bought them for you two, I would have felt a little uncomfortable, so I went and bought them."

Zhuang Chaoying looked at Tu Nan, who was standing to the side and was rather reserved, and smiled as she opened her arms and called out, "Tu Nan, your mother and I have been away for several days. Don't you miss us? Come here and let Daddy give you a hug."

Tu Nan pouted slightly and walked over with a look of disgust on her face. She gave him a perfunctory hug and muttered, "Dad, it's fine if you and Mom are being mushy. It's fine to hug me at home, but don't do this when we're out."

Zhuang Chaoying laughed heartily, then suddenly exerted his strength and picked Tu Nan up in his arms: "It's only natural for a father to carry his son, so carry him!"

Tu Nan sighed helplessly. His dad was the type who wouldn't respond to force but to gentle persuasion, so he could only coax him: "Dad, my good dad, you've hugged me enough, let go now. I'll go get some water for you and Mom to soak your feet and get some rest."

Xiaoting folded the down jacket into a neat square shape and put it in the closet, thinking that she would wear it to school tomorrow.

After washing up, Zhuang Chaoying lay on the bed, gently hugging Huang Ling, and sighed deeply, "Home is the best!"

、、、、、、、、

In the factory, Zhuang Ganmei was reading the newspaper with a bored expression, as usual.

He used to always read the Suzhou Daily, but today his eyes happened to glance at the Quanmin Daily in his colleague's hand, and that casual glance made him freeze instantly.

"show me!"

At the very edge of the newspaper was a small, square page that read, "The first award ceremony of the Mao Dun Literature Prize was held in Kyoto, the grandest award event in the literary world."

At the very bottom of the article, a list of names was displayed: "Mo Mou, Mou Mou, Zhuang Anhe, Mou Mou..."

Zhuang Ganmei looked at the name and couldn't help but wonder, why does the person in the photo look so much like his older brother?

And they also share the surname Zhuang.

Unable to contain his doubts, he nudged his colleague Lao Wang beside him: "Lao Wang, do all these writers use their real names?" Lao Wang replied without looking up: "They usually use pen names, I don't know. I haven't finished reading about these writers yet."

After saying that, he took the newspaper back from Zhuang Ganmei's hand.

Zhuang Ganmei, however, became increasingly convinced that it was 80% his brother, with photographic evidence to prove it.

On his way home from get off work, he made a detour to a newsstand and bought a copy of the Quanmin Daily.

He stared at the photo in the newspaper, becoming even more convinced that it was his brother.

My older brother won an award, so he'll definitely get a prize. My parents have been talking about buying a TV for a while now, and since he's from the same farming family, why shouldn't he contribute some money?

Thinking of this, he pedaled his bicycle faster and faster, until it was almost taking off. He was only thinking about getting home quickly to tell his parents about it and ask them to ask his older brother for money.

Before long, Zhuang Ganmei rushed home.

Before she even stepped inside, her voice rang out: "Mom and Dad! Something big has happened, something really big!"

When Mrs. Zhuang, who was cooking in the kitchen, heard her son shout, her heart skipped a beat, and her hand trembled involuntarily. She thought to herself, "This must be something big."

Could it be that something happened to him again, and he's asking for money again?

Mrs. Zhuang quickly scooped the stir-fried potato shreds into a bowl, added some water to the pot, casually wiped her hands with her apron, and hurried into the house.

"Ganmei, what's wrong? What happened? Tell your mother quickly!"

Seeing that he had called the elderly couple over, Ganmei eagerly took out the newspaper, which he had already crumpled a bit, from his briefcase: "Mom and Dad, take a look, who does the last one look like?"

Both elderly people had poor eyesight. Mr. Zhuang took the newspaper, stretched out his arm, held it a little further away, squinted at it for a long time, and then shook his head: "I don't know."