Under the afterglow of the setting sun, in the small farmyard at the end of the village, several farm side dishes were already placed on a square wooden dining table.
Mrs. Sun, who was busy preparing the food, even bought three large bowls of lamb soup from the village, as well as four or five thick, round and delicious large sesame cakes after cooking.
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"I guess you came here in a hurry, so you must have never tasted our Pingquan's mutton soup and sesame cakes."
Old Mrs. Sun introduced with a smile, "This is good food. I have been married my whole life and I still haven't had enough!"
"I also heard about it on the way here."
Wei Ran took a big bite of sesame seed cakes and drank a big mouthful of mutton soup with enough pepper. After he swallowed it all, he asked curiously, "Master, grandma, are you two here usually? They don't
Come back to see you?"
"Come back, why don't you come back!"
Zhao Shengli picked up a piece of haggis and stuffed it into his mouth, and said happily, "The boss is very close. The couple comes back once a week. My eldest grandson comes more frequently and only left at this time yesterday.
The second child is married far away, so he can only come back during the holidays. The father and son of the third child are both busy in the army, so they may not be able to come back once a year. The daughter-in-law of the third child, on the other hand, must come back once a month. Miss Biao,
Even if it snows heavily, it won't stop her from coming back to see her. She's being filial!
Except for their generation, during the summer vacation, those great-grandchildren are all here, just like the little devils raided them in the past. Hawthorn, walnuts, pickled eggs, duck eggs, whatever.
What can be created is pure."
"Can't"
Old Mrs. Sun then said, "When those kids are young, the noodle vat at home will be bottoming out every three days!"
"That's great," Wei Ran couldn't help but sigh.
"We never have any free time in this yard."
Old Mrs. Sun said with some pride, "If any family in this village has a conflict, whose daughter-in-law is bullied, or whose family has difficulties, they are all willing to come to this old man to comment and help. All year round
Wow, it’s more lively than the big market.”
Before the old lady finished speaking, the middle-aged man who beat his wife also walked in with his wife in the afternoon with an awkward look on her face.
"The third child is here?"
Zhao Shengli waved to the couple warmly, "Just in time, come over and have something to eat together."
"no, I'm fine"
Liu Laosan waved his hand repeatedly, handed over the letter paper in his hand and said, "Uncle, I have finished writing my review. It is 500 words, not a single word is missing."
"Let me see"
Zhao Shengli took out his reading glasses from his pocket and put them on. He first turned to the last page and looked at the signature on it. Then he handed it to the other party and said, "Third brother, please read it again. Your broken words are like an old sow."
It looked like he had sprained his feet when he fell to the ground, and I couldn’t even recognize him.”
"Ah? Still reading it?"
Liu Laosan looked at his wife behind him, who was holding back a smile, with a troubled expression, and then at Wei Ran, who was also holding back a smile. His rough face was already red from holding back a smile.
"How about I read it for you through a loudspeaker?"
Zhao Shengli asked with a smile, "What's going on? When I beat my wife, I was so capable that I wanted to turn the sky upside down. Why are you so timid now?"
"No...I don't..."
"Then recite it!" Zhao Shengli said without refusal, "When you finish reciting it, you can go back."
Liu Laosan grinned, stood up straight with a sad face, cleared his throat, and began to read his confession in a voice that was quieter than the sound of a mosquito.
"Louder!" Mr. Zhao Shengli shouted angrily, "Use my voice!"
Not to mention Liu Laosan, even Wei Ran shivered subconsciously, but Mrs. Sun rolled her eyes at Zhao Shengli and said angrily, "What are you shouting for? Don't scare the child!"
"What...what are you shouting about?" Zhao Shengli's tone immediately softened a lot.
Wei Ran was laughing happily beside him, but Liu Laosan didn't dare, so he quickly stood up straight and started reading at the top of his lungs.
However, the self-reflection letter, which could be described as a running list, and the occasional words that he could not even recognize clearly made the smile on Wei Ran's face grow stronger.
Before finishing reading the self-reflection letter, Liu Laosan’s wife couldn’t bear the embarrassment and said, “Uncle, otherwise... or forget it? I see that Lao San also knows that he is wrong, so don’t use this self-reflection letter.
Have you read it? It's strange...it's so shabby."
"Look at it, look at it, third child, it's your wife who really loves you, how can you do it?"
Zhao Shengli's tone also softened a lot, "I'll leave your confession here. If your wife comes to me crying one day for comment, I'll just ask you to go to the brigade and read it through a loudspeaker."
"I promise! I promise not to beat my wife!" Liu Laosan promised hurriedly.
"Okay, come and eat."
Zhao Shengli waved his hand carelessly, "Don't drink that wine from now on. Let me catch you once. I really went to your house to lift the table. We have only been out of poverty for a few days? How can we enjoy it? You
When you have time to drink, take care of your walnut forest."
"I won't drink anymore, I definitely won't drink anymore."
Liu Laosan promised again, "What about that, uncle, we won't eat the rice. We have already prepared it at home, including the steamed buns stuffed with wild vegetables that my wife has steamed."
"I also brought a few for you two." As the beaten wife spoke, she had already opened the thermos bucket she had brought.
"Take it, take it"
Zhao Shengli waved his hand without thinking, "Why are you such a fool? When have I ever accepted other people's things in my life?"
"These are just a few buns," the woman said aggrievedly.
"Don't talk about buns, not even a single thread!"
As Zhao Shengli spoke, he stood up and urged, "Go back quickly, go back, third brother, you don't want to hit your wife again."
"If I don't fight, I definitely won't fight."
Liu Laosan made his promise again with an embarrassed look on his face, and left the small courtyard at the end of the village with his wife and a thermos of steamed buns stuffed with wild vegetables.
"Old man, your consciousness is quite high." Wei Ran said with a grin.
Zhao Shengli responded matter-of-factly, "I have abided by the three major disciplines and eight points of attention throughout my life. How can I let a few vegetable dumplings corrupt me? In addition, when you leave, take away the things you brought."
"
"That was given by Mr. Chen Qi."
Wei Ran pretended to be innocent and said, "If you think he wants to corrupt your ideological consciousness, just give him a class. I think that old man has a low ideological consciousness!"
"Hey! You're so toothy, you still want to imitate me?"
Zhao Shengli was amused by Wei Ran, but then he sighed again, "You kid, you are telling lies as if you are telling the truth. Even though Chen Qi and I haven't seen each other for decades, I understand him.
, he will never give me these things."
"Old man, why don't you give Mr. Chen Qi lessons?" Wei Ran said again, "I think... he misses you very much."
Before the other party could agree, Wei Ran had already taken out his cell phone and said, "I have his son's phone number. I'll call him now. How about you guys chat?"
"Let's talk, we should have met a long time ago." Mrs. Sun comforted her at the side.
"Then let's talk!" Zhao Shengli didn't hesitate for a few seconds and made a decision happily.
Upon hearing this, Wei Ran immediately took out his mobile phone and dialed Chen Qi's son's number. After briefly explaining the situation, he immediately added the other party's WeChat account and then started a video call.
Turning the volume on his cell phone to the maximum, Wei Ran leaned against his rice bowl and asked in a low voice next to Grandma Sun's ear. When the other party nodded kindly, he quietly entered the room and picked up the gift he had brought.
He took out a bottle of good wine, opened it, took another cup, poured a full glass of wine, and brought it to Zhao Shengli.
At this moment, the upright shadow of Chen Qi appeared on the screen of the mobile phone. The moment he saw the other person, Zhao Shengli, who was missing a foot, also stood up straight.
Seeing this, Wei Ran silently placed the cigarette case and lighter on the dining table, smiled at Grandma Sun, and walked out of the small farmyard shrouded in the sunset alone.
In the cool evening breeze, Chen Qi on the other end of the phone seemed to be radiant. Every word he spoke was full of vitality. He was completely different from when Wei Ran first met him.
The two of them were no different from when they first met in that trench.
Outside the door of the small courtyard, Liu Yanghe, the driver of the black truck, was sitting in the cab, watching videos and looking at two large crispy sesame pancakes. On the passenger seat next to him, there was a bowl of scalding mutton soup and a can of hawthorn.
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"Brother, are you leaving now?" Liu Yanghe saw Wei Ran coming out and immediately put away the sesame seed cakes in his hand and asked.
"There's no rush, just eat slowly."
Wei Ran pointed behind him, "I guess we'll have to wait. If it's later, I'll give you more money, so please bear with me."
"What's this?"
Liu Yanghe waved his hands nonchalantly, "Even if nothing happens until tomorrow morning, you don't need to pay me more. Even if you think I'm a shady guy, I'll definitely give you a thumbs up!"
Wei Ran smiled, opened the car door and got in, "You eat your food slowly, I'll sit by myself for a while."
"Do you want mutton soup? I'll treat you."
Liu Yanghe said in a particularly generous manner, "It's strange to say that the stalls selling mutton soup in this village were all closed when I went there in the afternoon, but they opened their doors again just now."
Hearing this, Wei Ran raised his eyebrows, and finally just smiled and waved his hands, but in his heart he felt more and more grateful to the warm-hearted old couple in the yard.
After waiting patiently for more than half an hour, Grandma Sun called Wei Ran back to the courtyard. After learning that Liu Yanghe was the driver hired by Wei Ran, she invited him in and sat at the dinner table.
"You two eat slowly, and I will prepare two more dishes for you." Grandma Sun pointed to the room, "I guess they will chat for a while. If it's too late, you can stay here today."
"Stop working so hard," Wei Ran said quickly, "This is enough to eat."
"Why are you being so polite? If you don't have a full meal, it won't matter." Grandma Sun waved her hand nonchalantly and walked into the wing slowly.
Under Grandma Sun's warm reception, Wei Ran and Liu Yanghe, who were already half full, were allowed to leave the table by the old lady until their stomachs were full. Zhao Shengli, who was in the room, also hung up the phone.
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"Young man, Chen Qi said you want to go to Dandong to see Squad Leader Lin and the others? Is that true?" Zhao Shengli limped out of the room and asked.
"I have already bought the air tickets." Wei Ran gave an affirmative reply and changed the subject before the other party could say anything else, "Old man, where is Mr. Chen Qi..."
"Don't worry about that old guy"
Zhao Shengli invited Wei Ran to sit down at the dining table, "I'll call my son tomorrow and ask him to take me to find that old guy. I have to have a good talk with him. How can he be lost now?"
Hun'er, he's stunned. What age are we in now, and he still wants to go back to the mountain to fight! What's the point of that? Isn't he an invader?"
Wei Ran grinned, hesitated for a moment and said, "Old man, since you plan to visit Mr. Chen, I'm going to leave now. I have to rush back to the capital overnight today, and I have to fly to Dandong early tomorrow morning.
"
"So urgent?"
Zhao Shengli was quite at a loss, "You kid, why are you leaving now? I haven't figured out how to thank you properly! Why are you leaving right now? No, no, no!"
"Old man, how about you give me some hawthorn leaf tea?"
Wei Ran smiled and said, "I quite like drinking it. How about you give me some leaf tea as a thank you?"
