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

Huang Ling hummed a little tune and went to find Song Ying with her yarn.

She was thinking about what she had discussed with Song Ying, hoping to get a refrigerator for the house so that meat could be stored for several months without spoiling, and she could also buy popsicles to put in the refrigerator.

Zhuang Chaoying sat down, picked up her pen, and her thoughts were instantly drawn back to her youth in the Great Northern Wilderness.

His writing began to depict scenes of educated youth going to the Great Northern Wilderness to cultivate the land: on the vast black soil, a group of passionate young people, carrying hoes, walked towards the fields in the morning light, their clothes soaked with sweat, but unable to extinguish the hope and enthusiasm in their hearts.

Suddenly, inspiration flowed like a spring, and he wrote incessantly with his pen, pouring his heart out onto the paper.

Before long, the ink in the fountain pen was running low. Unperturbed, he sipped the ink and continued to immerse himself in the world of creation.

Zhuang Chaoying was engrossed in writing when her stomach started rumbling unnecessarily.

He raised his hand, looked at his watch, and saw that the hour hand was already past twelve.

The creaking door was pushed open.

Tu Nan brought Xiao Ting back. As soon as Tu Nan entered the door, he shouted, "Dad, is there anything to eat? I'm hungry!"

Zhuang Chaoying stood up and stretched: "There's a box of sponge cake and some sesame cakes in the cupboard. Take them out and make four cups of milk. Your mother is at Aunt Song's house and hasn't had lunch yet."

Xiaoting was very well-behaved. She immediately ran to the kitchen, grabbed a thermos, took out milk powder from the cabinet, took four cups, skillfully made four cups of milk, and then gently stirred them with a spoon.

Zhuang Chaoying gave the order. "Xiaoting, go and call your mother back!"

Xiaoting put down her spoon, pushed open the door, and skipped over to the next room. "Mom, Dad's calling you home."

At that moment, Song Ying and Huang Ling were sitting there knitting, their eyes occasionally glancing at the television. "Sister Ling, hurry home, Teacher Zhuang wants you to go home!"

Huang Ling smiled, put the knitting needles in the basket, picked up the basket and stood up. "Song Ying, then I'll leave the refrigerator to Engineer Lin. I'll have Chao Ying buy some braised dishes tonight, and we'll eat together."

Song Ying quickly stood up as well: "Don't worry, Sister Ling, let's not stand on ceremony. I'll tell Wu Feng when he gets back."

Huang Ling reached out and gently patted Song Ying's arm. "Then I'm going home. I'll buy some meat later. You want to eat my crispy pork? I'll make some for you."

Song Ying affectionately hugged Huang Ling's arm. "Sister Ling, I knew you were good to me. Thank you, Sister Ling."

Dongzhe was engrossed in reading street literature when he heard about crispy pork. His eyes lit up: "Aunt Huang, I love crispy pork too!"

Huang Ling walked to the door: "Okay, Auntie will make more so you can eat your fill!"

Huang Ling hummed a song happily: "The light on the golden mountain shines in all directions, each dot is a golden sun, so warm, so kind, illuminating the hearts of us serfs!"

Tu Nan sat at the table eating sesame cakes and drinking milk: "Mom, what's making you so happy?"

Huang Ling put the knitting box on the table, unable to hide her excitement: "We're going to buy a refrigerator. Your Aunt Song has already agreed to help us get one without needing a ration coupon."

Xiaoting had just heard her mother mention something about a refrigerator and thank Uncle Lin, so she now confirmed that it was their family that wanted to buy a refrigerator.

"Mom, can we buy more popsicles and store them in the future so we can eat them whenever we want?"

Seeing Xiaoting's greedy look, Huang Ling smiled and pinched her cheek. "All you ever do is eat popsicles. Girls shouldn't eat too many cold things."

Xiaoting pouted in dissatisfaction upon hearing this.

Zhuang Chaoying sat to one side, took a sponge cake and handed it to Huang Ling: "Xiaoting, your mother is right, sit down and eat. Ling, come and sit down."

Huang Ling went out to wash her hands, then returned to the table, where she comfortably ate a sponge cake and drank milk powder.

After eating two, he stood up. "I'm going to buy some meat and braised dishes. Song Ying promised to help, and it's been a long time since we've gotten together. Chao Ying, you and Engineer Lin can have a drink later. Now that we have a refrigerator, we can drink ice-cold beer!"

Zhuang Chaoying quickly stood up: "I'll ride my bicycle with you, that way I can help you carry your things."

The two of them went out together.

Along the way, Huang Ling sat on the back of the bicycle with her arm around Zhuang Chaoying's waist. The two chatted and laughed, discussing what to buy.

,,,,,,,,,

In the afternoon, Huang Ling and Song Ying were cooking in the kitchen.

Wearing a floral apron, Huang Ling skillfully sliced ​​the meat, cutting it into even slices with each stroke of the knife.

Song Ying carefully washed the vegetables and placed them on the cutting board.

The two exchanged a few words from time to time, their laughter echoing in the kitchen.

Zhuang Chaoying was washing clothes in the yard with her two children.

Zhuang Chaoying looked at Tu Nan and Xiao Ting, as if they were little children who liked her to kiss and hug them just yesterday, and now they have grown so tall in the blink of an eye.

He wanted to kiss Xiaoting, but his daughter was too big for him to kiss. He wanted to hug Tunan, but he was too embarrassed to refuse.

Sigh, Chao Ying is really suffering. Kids are definitely cuter when they're little, you can just do whatever you want with them!

Lin Dongzhe, who was standing next to him, was squatting on the ground, carefully brushing his shoes.

After Xiaoting finished washing the clothes, she shook her hands vigorously and accidentally splashed water into her eyes.

"Xiaoting, you've gotten water in your eyes."

Lin Dongzhe subconsciously wiped the water splashed on his face and called out anxiously, "Xiaoting!"

Xiaoting was startled by his sudden loud voice: "Lin Dongzhe, why are you shouting so loudly? Do you need me to wipe your face for you?"

Lin Dongzhe looked at Xiaoting and felt a little embarrassed, so he quickly waved his hand and said, "No need, no need, Xiaoting, you go and do the laundry!"

Just then, Lin Wufeng returned pushing his bicycle. "Teacher Zhuang is doing laundry!"

Zhuang Chaoying straightened up: "Engineer Lin is back."

She wiped the foam off her hands on her apron, stood up, and walked over to Lin Wufeng. "Mr. Lin, my family wants to buy a refrigerator. Could you help us get one? My wife, Ah Ling, mentioned it to Song Ying earlier, and it's perfect that you're back."

Lin Wufeng smiled. He thought Teacher Zhuang wanted to talk to him about something, and that Lin Dongzhe had gotten into trouble again. Oh, that's all.

“I work at the compressor factory, refrigerators are nothing to me. One of my colleagues bought one for 1,200 yuan. If you want to buy one, I'll help you get in touch with someone tomorrow.”

Zhuang Chaoying nodded repeatedly: "Yes, I'll have Ah Ling get you the money!"

Lin Wufeng quickly waved his hand: "Teacher Zhuang, don't worry!"

night.

The two families sat together in the courtyard.

Crispy fried pork; stir-fried edamame with pickled mustard greens; steamed egg custard; and stir-fried greens.

Lin Dongzhe picked up a piece of crispy pork for Xiaoting, then eagerly stuffed one into his own mouth, praising indistinctly as he chewed, "Aunt Huang, your crispy pork is so delicious!"

Tu Nan was a thoughtful person. With September approaching and him about to start his second year of high school, he noticed Lin Dongzhe's enthusiasm and felt that the boy had some ill intentions. He was somewhat worried.

He quickly picked up a small piece of crispy pork and put it in Xiaoting's bowl: "Xiaoting, eat more, look how thin you are."

Xiaoting obediently replied, "Thank you, brother."

Huang Ling smiled and said, "If it's delicious, eat more. Aunt Huang made a lot."

Zhuang Chaoying got up, opened three bottles of beer, handed one to Engineer Lin, poured him a glass, and then handed the other to Ah Ling. "Ah Ling, you're happy today, you and Xiao Song have a bottle too, and Engineer Lin, have a toast!"

Everyone raised their glasses, and the four glasses clinked together. "Cheers!"

Huang Ling tilted her head back, drank it all in one gulp, then picked up a small piece of crispy pork and put it in her mouth, chewing happily.

The thought of soon having a refrigerator at home, and Chaoying going to buy a washing machine ticket tonight, filled her with immense joy.

In her view, having a refrigerator and a washing machine meant that her family had taken a big step towards the moderately prosperous life proposed by Deng Xiaoping in 1979.

She couldn't stop smiling, her eyes inadvertently falling on Chao Ying, thinking to herself, "This guy has gotten more and more handsome these past few years, I don't know why."

Sometimes when she takes a shower, she can feel the changes in herself. Her skin seems to be firmer, the wrinkles on her face are fewer, and she is getting younger and younger.

Life is getting better and better. Even if someone offered her an apartment in exchange for Chao Ying, she wouldn't agree. But she might consider a villa, haha.

"Ah Ling, what are you thinking about? Why are you laughing so happily?"

Huang Ling came to her senses: "No, I'm just happy that we'll have a refrigerator at home."

She dared not say that she was going to buy Chaoying a Western-style house, because if she did, Chaoying would have to work overtime every night.

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