On the twenty-seventh day of the twelfth lunar month in the provincial capital, there was a light north wind and it was very cold. The sky was overcast and it looked like it was going to snow.
Lao Tan went to the street to buy New Year's goods, and by the way he bought couplets and the word "Fu". When he was buying New Year's goods, he thought of Yingzi and thought that the two of them would not necessarily buy anything for the New Year, so he bought two copies of the same thing, plus sugar and fruit.
I went to Wang Haijuan's river fish stall and saw that she and Yingzi were busy, so I put down my things, said something to Yingzi, and turned around to leave without disturbing her.
Yingzi looked at Lao Tan who disappeared around the corner of the market, her heart was warm and her eyes were moist.
Lao Tan returned home and made his son's favorite pot-roasted pork and dried tofu with hot pepper for lunch, along with two side dishes. The two of them ate very well. After dinner, his son asked him to go downstairs and take a look around, as he was always in the house.
If you feel uncomfortable, go out and get some fresh air.
The father and son came downstairs and walked out of the community towards the small park.
"Dad, why don't you open your own restaurant?" the son asked.
"Dad really wants to open a restaurant by himself, but that's not possible now. What will Aqiao do if I leave?" Lao Tan said.
"Dad, it's actually good for you to open your own restaurant. It's located in Santaizi. It's close to home. You don't have to go to other places. You can go home every day and I have a place to eat."
"Son, let me ask you, do you think about it when dad is not at home?"
"Why don't you want to?" said the son, "Don't you have to make money outside? I know that."
His son's words comforted Lao Tan. He said, "Dad earns money so that you can study hard. I don't object to playing basketball, but you can't miss cultural classes. Otherwise, how can you get into college?"
The son said: "I know this, don't worry, I will definitely not fall behind. I am now the best player among the normal students, and the best cultural class among the basketball team."
"Don't blow it."
"If you believe it, you can ask my mother, our coach, or the head teacher."
"Dad." Lao Tan looked at his son who was already taller than him and felt happy.
"Dad, I must be a sports student. I am fourteen this year, 1.79 meters tall, and only 1.9 meters taller. I will definitely not be able to join the national team in basketball, and I don't want to develop in basketball."
"Then you still play basketball?" Lao Tan asked.
"I just like it. I'm going to take the exam for No. 2 or No. 5 high school. The No. 2 high school majors in basketball, but it costs a lot and costs 200,000. The No. 5 high school majors in handball, which is just right for my height. The other No. 5 high school is cheaper, 60,000."
"Can you handle it if you have never played handball?" Lao Tan asked.
The son said: "There is not much difference between handball and basketball. The coach said it is easier to practice. I went to No. 5 Middle School and played handball for three years and was able to obtain a national first-class athlete certificate. This will make it easier to enter university."
"Which university are you planning to take?"
"Beijing Physical Education and Upper Physical Education are all good, but I really can't take the Provincial Physical Education test. I like coaching and refereeing."
"Okay, brat, I've arranged everything for myself." Old Tan said happily.
The son laughed and said, "You and my mother just prepare the money, and I will pay you back when I graduate from college and earn money."
"Then it's the Year of the Monkey and the Horse and the Moon, so why don't you take the postgraduate entrance examination?" Lao Tan asked.
"We'll talk about it when I take the postgraduate entrance exams. Maybe I'll join a professional team when I'm in high school. There are not many handball players and it's very popular."
"You don't have to join a professional team, you should go to college. After college, you can continue to take postgraduate entrance exams. You don't have to be in a hurry to make money, you know." Lao Tan said seriously.
"Um."
The father and son entered the small park.
Because of the cold weather, there were not many people in the park. The poplar trees had bare gray branches, which made it look cool. There was no one on the basketball court that used to be noisy, the basket was lonely, and the backboard was silent.
There were more than a dozen walkers walking on the surrounding gravel road. They were all in their sixties and above, wearing thick down jackets and hats. Their arms were swinging back and forth, and there was a rustling sound between the sleeves and the body.
Lao Tan and his son wandered to the back of the park and saw the dog hugging an old man at the back entrance, holding a cane in his hand and walking slowly and hard.
Next to the old man is a wheelchair. The person pushing the wheelchair is a woman in her fifties, following behind the old man.
It was obviously a matter of father and daughter, and the daughter pushed her father out to exercise.
Looking at the father and daughter, Lao Tan felt emotional and asked his son beside him: "Son, can you push dad out when he gets old?"
"Of course you can." The son said without hesitation, and then said: "But if your body is not suitable for a wheelchair, if you can walk by yourself, I will stay by your side."
This answer was very useful to Lao Tan.
We walked around the small park and walked back. When we passed Ah Qiao Dumpling House on Chishan Road, Lao Tan went in and took a look. It was already afternoon, and there was only one table eating in the hall. The waiter on duty saw that it was Lao Tan.
Went up and said hello.
Lao Tan simply looked at it, walked around in a circle and came out, and continued walking forward with his son.
When we reached the intersection, the light turned red, and my father and I stood there waiting.
"Stop, stop, grab the bag——"
A woman's shrieking screams came from across the road, and a man ran as fast as he could, without even looking, he ran through a red light, dodged a taxi in panic, and rushed towards her.
This scene looks like a movie, and passersby were so shocked that they opened their eyes and opened their mouths.
"Dad-" The son shouted in fear and a little excitement, staring at the man rushing over, and subconsciously stretched out his uninjured arm.
Out of instinct, Lao Tan took a small step forward and stood sideways in front of his son. At the same time, he did not forget to stretch out his right foot just right.
"Hey——" This is the exclamation made by the man when he tripped.
"Pa—" This was the sound of the man staggering and landing on the ground.
"Oh my God - Ouch -" This is the man's wailing sound of pain from falling.
Lao Tan turned around. The man was quite clever. He got up and ran forward regardless of the pain. Lao Tan didn't chase because there was a woman's satchel thrown on the ground. He didn't pick it up either because the woman who had been robbed had already run over.
The woman picked up the bag and panted first to see if anything was missing from the bag. When she saw that nothing was missing, she realized she wanted to thank Lao Tan.
It took more than a minute from the time the woman ran over in a panic to the time she picked up the bag and checked it. During this time, except for a few passers-by who were watching the excitement, Lao Tan had already led his son across the road.
If more than a minute is not long, you may not be able to do anything; if more than a minute is not long, you may have enough time to cross the street.
To be honest, in the panic, the woman didn't see who tripped the bag snatcher, but she thought that she might have fallen because someone must have helped her. When she turned around to look for her, she looked around blankly.
Who to look for.
"Don't look for it, everyone is gone, just don't miss anything." Passerby A said.
"Looks like he's bald------" Passerby B said.
"I didn't see it clearly, it was just a matter of blinking-" Passerby C said.
"------"
The traffic lights changed again, leaving behind the woman's gratitude and gratitude to whom she didn't know who to express.
"Dad, you are so awesome." The son said to Lao Tan.
"What's so great about it? I was protecting you, are you trying to stop me with your arms?" Lao Tan asked worriedly.
The son said a little uneasily: "A little bit --- but quite scared. Dad, why did you let him run away?"
Old Tan laughed and said, "Silly boy, it's not that I let him run away, it's that my father can't catch him. A good dog can't be chased by a scared dog, not to mention that my father is so fat."
"That's right." After the son finished speaking, he glanced at Lao Tan's big belly and said, "Dad, you need to lose weight."
"Lose weight, start losing weight after the Chinese New Year."