Pei Zhuo overcooked the dumplings on the morning of the first day of the new year.
They played too much yesterday, and they slept until ten o'clock the next day and were not sober.
Amao was fattened up a lot last year, and once he got skinny while walking, he couldn't pull it off. He simply handed over the matter of walking the dog to Lu Lin, and he didn't bother to move.
However, when he was cooking dumplings, he stared at the refrigerator and dozed off. When he heard the sound of water rushing out, he suddenly woke up. In a panic, he turned off the fire and wiped the water.
Several of the dumplings were pushed out by the air bubbles, and they were lying on the side of the stove, and they looked limp.
Lu Lin just came back with the dog. Hearing the sound, he hurried over to cover the water with a rag, grabbed his hand and asked if it was burnt.
Pei Zhuo still cared about the dumplings, frowned and said, "Why was I so careless..."
"It's because I didn't sleep well, so I can't blame you." Lu Lin coaxed him while tidying up the kitchen: "I'll cook another bowl, you wash it in cold water, and take good care of your hands."
Pei Zhuo didn't have much appetite at the moment, he leaned against the refrigerator and didn't speak for a long time.
Lu Lin thought he was angry, so he put the pot in a safe place, and coaxed him: "It's rare to be confused, this is a good sign, Teacher Pei smiled."
Pei Zhuo sighed, and let him hold him comfortably.
"I want to tell you about New Year's greetings when I'm having breakfast."
Now that the dumplings were ruined, the atmosphere turned a little bad, and he didn't know what to say.
Lu Lin hugged him and paused for a moment, understanding whose door he was talking about.
Both Uncle Pei and Huo Lu are friendly and kind, and there is no need to discuss about going to New Year's greetings.
Pei Zhuo was referring to the Lu family.
"Don't go." He thought to himself, "I'm afraid you won't feel well for the New Year's Eve."
It's okay for the father to say, but the mother probably... If she refuses to forgive others, she may not give her a good face.
Pei Zhuo put his face on his shoulder and didn't move for a long time.
Lu Lin stretched out his hands to wrap his broken hair, and said softly, "You're still angry."
"No." Pei Zhuo refused to look into his eyes: "I just feel sad."
"On the first day of the new year, what are you sad about?"
"Every time I celebrate Chinese New Year... I miss my mother the most." Pei Zhuo held on to his clothes, and said softly, "Lu Lin, you want it too, don't you?"
Lu Lin sighed, cupped his face and kissed him lightly, as if to comfort and to answer.
Pei Zhuo knew that it was difficult for him to make a decision, so he decided to take a risk.
"Let's go, let's go to New Year's greetings."
Anyway, the dumplings are all mushy, which is not a bad omen, what do superstitious people do.
He made up his mind and acted quickly, but his posture was full of vigor.
First, quickly take care of the clothes and hairstyle, and the suit and leather shoes in the winter, and turn into a personable senior lecturer in a second.
Then silently stretched out his hand without hitting the smiling person, and picked up all the good wine and cigarettes.
Lu Lin stood beside him silently, his voice dry.
"Pei Zhuo."
"She might hurt you again."
"Let's not go."
Pei Zhuo stopped his movements and looked at him calmly.
"Today is a special day, and the elderly are superstitious, so I am embarrassed to get angry."
"Furthermore, Teacher Lu."
"They are old and confused, but we are not."
"What should be done cannot wait. Whether they accept it or not, whether they are happy or angry, is their business."
He will not take anything else to heart if he is polite enough.
Lu Lin was stunned, and hurried over to hug him, not letting go for a long time.
Pei Zhuo reached out to hug him back with a gentle voice.
"You accompany me to see my mother every month, and you stood with me for so long in the wind and snow yesterday morning."
"Mr. Lu, I want to treat you like this too."
His mother is gone, but Lu Lin's family members are still alive.
At least fight for some more before the farewell.
They drove to the community again.
Before going upstairs, Lu Lin lit a cigarette after a long absence, finished it in front of the door without saying a word, and collected himself.
He hadn't touched this for a long time, and before it was over, he suddenly choked and coughed several times.
Pei Zhuo comforted him, and handed him mineral water to rinse his mouth.
He smiled and kissed him before going upstairs.
The doorbell rang three times, and the old man inside the door was hesitant to talk.
Mother Lu came over quickly to open the door, with a still hesitant look on her face.
When she saw that it was the two of them who came to visit, she was so stunned that she didn't speak for several seconds.
Father Lu tremblingly supported the sofa and walked over, seeing that it was Lu Lin who came home, his eyes immediately turned red.
When Lu Lin went upstairs, he thought about a lot of excuses, and even thought about how he would comfort Pei Zhuo if his mother copied the broom to coax people.
When I really saw my old and bewildered parents, I couldn't say anything.
"Happy New Year, Uncle and Aunt." Pei Zhuo put two boxes of gifts beside the door with a smile: "Lu Lin and I come to celebrate the New Year."
Mother Lu's first reaction was to rub her eyes, thinking that she had fallen asleep.
She went through an extremely long cooling-off period after seeing her son.
These six months seem to be longer than the previous ten years, forcing her to think about everything in the past over and over again.
Before she could figure it out, the New Year came.
As deserted and lonely as before, it was uncomfortable.
Father Lu coughed, "It's cold outside, come in and sit down."
Mother Lu came back to her senses, quickly wiped her hands on the apron twice, opened the door a lot, and spoke in an unnatural voice: "Have you eaten yet?"
"No." Pei Zhuo shook his head: "He's still hungry."
Mother Lu couldn't even continue the conversation, and rushed to the kitchen in a panic and haste.
Lu's father stood there watching them, and suddenly showed an old and relieved smile.
"It's cold outside, come in and sit." He repeated and waved.
This is the old house where Lu Lin grew up.
Sixty to seventy square meters, not too big or too small, with a strong bookish atmosphere.
The photo of him when he was a child is placed on the shoe cabinet at the entrance, and the location is exactly the same as the group photo of Lu Lin's old house.
In fact, Pei Zhuo is also reserved. It is the businessman's family who have taught him a little mellowness for a long time, which allows him to remain natural and friendly on most occasions.
Sitting on the sofa, Lu Lin looked like a guest of this family, but also like a wanderer who had finally returned.
He slowly looked at everything familiar and unfamiliar, and his tense shoulders suddenly relaxed a lot.
Lu's mother cooked the dumplings quickly, standing in front of the dining table and said anxiously: "It's hot, come and taste it."
Lu Lin got up, while Pei Zhuo stayed by the sofa to sit with the old man.
Mother Lu took out two sets of bowls and chopsticks, and forced herself to speak with difficulty: "Xiao Pei hasn't eaten yet, has he?"
Pei Zhuo smiled and said, "Then thank you, Auntie."
They sat side by side, eating dumplings made by Mother Lu.
Lu Lin stopped when he took the first bite, and pursed his lips to look at the stuffing inside.
Pei Zhuo took a bite, his expression became surprised.
This is the first time he has eaten this kind of dumpling.
Shrimp is mixed with pork and beaten into a puree with egg yolk, and large petals of Sophora japonica are also placed.
Sophora japonica is clear of bitterness and relieves greasy, and it has a sweet taste when chewed carefully, which makes the dumplings taste extra special.
Pei Zhuo looked at Lu Lin subconsciously. The latter ate the whole thing with his head down, and only after swallowing did he open his mouth to explain.
"When I was a child, I liked eating Sophora japonica dumplings the most."
In the past, there was a big pagoda tree in the yard, and in April and May, it was so fragrant that it could be smelled at the gate of the community.
My mother was still very young at that time, and she would yell at my father to set up a ladder to hunt Sophora japonica, and put all the fine petals that fell one after another in a gauze net, and preserve it so that it can be eaten for a whole year.
Later, when he was 12 or 13 years old, the road in the yard was reconstructed, and the tree was cut down and transported away. It was very difficult to eat again afterwards.
Lu's mother stood by and stared at him blankly, as if she suddenly recognized that this was her own son.
Subconsciously, she wiped her hands repeatedly with her apron, as if she knew she had done something wrong.
Lu Lin lowered his head and continued to eat dumplings, Pei Zhuo glanced at her, and then tasted another one.
One bite is all about spring and it tastes good.
Mother Lu opened her mouth to speak, but she opened her mouth for a long time and then closed it. She rushed to the kitchen to wash the dishes without saying a word, and kept wiping her eyes with her back to them.
Father Lu sat not far away, watched them and said slowly, "Eat more."
"After you left, your mother made Sophora japonica dumplings every year."
He is old, and he has to pause for a long time to say a word, like an old record player with a bad contact.
"I have diabetes, so I can't touch this. After I'm done, I put it in the cold and then throw it away."
"I don't even know where she found the Sophora japonica."
The sound of deliberately amplified water came from the kitchen.
Lu Lin and Pei Zhuo didn't stay any longer, they helped put the bowls and chopsticks back into the kitchen after eating the dumplings, and said goodbye to Father Lu as usual.
Father Lu looked at them reluctantly: "Remember to come to Yuanxiao."
Mother Lu had already finished washing the dishes, she was hiding in the kitchen wiping the stove and range hood, and came quickly when she heard the door knocking.
Lu Lin bowed to the two old people: "Happy New Year."
Just before Lu's father closed the door, Lu's mother suddenly said quickly: "It's going to change outside, it's windy and snowy, you should wear more."
Lu's father waited for her to finish before continuing to close the door, but she stretched out her hand to block the door frame, looked at Lu Lin in the crack and continued: "Usually, after class, you have to drink more Pang Dahai to take care of your throat, and you have to eat at night, so you have to eat, and avoid those fried food. baked."
"Do you want to wear long johns? It's too cold outside now, so you must wear long johns."
"Don't work overtime too late, just let the students quarrel, and don't worry about everything."
"You live outside alone," she said hoarsely, "don't get sick."
"Don't get sick..."
Lu Lin nodded slowly: "I heard it."
Pei Zhuo waved his hands and said, "Uncle and aunt, thank you, we are going back."
After getting in the car again, Lu Lin drove the car to the gate of the community, and went out to smoke a cigarette.
He didn't want to shed tears in front of him, and wanted to resolve everything silently and clean it up by himself.
Pei Zhuo didn't go out to accompany him, and pretended to be playing with his mobile phone in the co-pilot, not looking at his back, nor trying to figure out his expression at this time.
Lu Lin gradually recovered from his emotions, took a deep breath of cold air and returned to the car, started the car again and drove towards home.
Today is the first day of the Lunar New Year, both sides of the street are full of joyful old songs, and red lanterns are hung everywhere.
When they went back, they both breathed a sigh of relief.
"They love you." Pei Zhuo looked at the road ahead and said.
"I love you too."
extremely love.
The man was also looking at the road ahead, let go of the steering wheel with his right hand, and shook hands with him silently.
Then clasp your fingers.