That evening, Meng Xintang called Shen Shiyan to ask if his shoulder had fully recovered. When the phone was connected, the setting sun just fell on the window.
There was a lot of noise in Shen Shiyan, and there was more than one person talking. Meng Xintang brought the phone closer and asked, "What are you doing?"
"Changing flowers with Lao Gu, oh, the old man who sang opera when we first met."
As soon as he finished speaking, Meng Xintang heard him shout.
"Hey, don't move, don't move, Lao Gu, you put it down! How many times have I said that this flower is so delicate, even I can't take care of it well, and then I'll mess you up if it's not well raised."
There was a rare trace of anger in Shen Shiyan's voice, a little anxious, and a little helpless. Meng Xintang vaguely heard someone reply a few times. Then, Shen Shiyan said to him "wait a moment", and then said to the man, "Why do you have so many reasons now?"
Meng Xintang simply stood against the wall and listened to the arguments over there as a joke to relieve boredom. After shouting for a while, the other end of the phone finally quieted down for a while.
"This old man is greedy for the flowers in my yard, so he insists on raising them. I said he didn't want to give him two pots. He came to pick flowers and picked up expensive and hard-to-raise flowers," Shen Shiyan said for this trivial matter I complained to him twice, and finally muttered, "Old child."
Meng Xintang laughed and said with relief: "It's actually quite fun for the elderly to be like this."
Shen Shiyan let out a "hmm", which counted as approval. Meng Xintang thought about it and asked, "Do you have a lot of flowers in your yard?"
"A lot," Shen Shiyan said with a smile this time, "I have a courtyard full of four seasons."
In a word, Meng Xintang's eyelashes trembled.
He cast his eyes out of the window to entangle the midsummer sunset.
"If you are free, you can come and see the flowers here."
Meng Xintang laughed and said "OK".
"But my flowers are more beautiful than the ones outside, and I don't easily show them to others," Shen Shiyan said with teasing, "If you want to come, you have to bring something as a reward."
Meng Xintang raised his eyebrows: "Reward money?"
"Well, think about what to bring."
Meng Xintang listened and laughed lowly: "Okay, I will think about it."
He raised his hand and tapped twice on the front glass window, just right on the crimson cloud.
"Is the shoulder completely healed?"
"It's been all right, and it wasn't a big deal."
Shen Shiyan said it easily, Meng Xintang thought to himself, maybe he already felt that he was instigating and mother-in-law. But the concern in my heart is hard to hold back.
"There's no more trouble in the hospital, right?"
"No, everything is fine."
The two chatted for a while at will, and when they hung up, Meng Xintang's phone had already risen a few degrees. He fiddled with his phone and stood by the window for a moment, when he received two messages.
When I opened WeChat, there were two pictures sent by Shen Shiyan, which took pictures of the flowers in the courtyard.
Meng Xintang looked at the two photos back and forth with amazement, unable to believe that this was Shen Shiyan's yard. Hearing him talk about it just now, he thought that "Four Seasons in One Courtyard" was just a romantic metaphor in Shen Shi's cornice, but now that he has seen it and recognized it, he realizes that this statement is no exaggeration.
The light and flowers in a yard seem to be blooming all summer.
He thought for a while and replied with a message.
"I think I need something precious enough to pay for the reward and give me some time."
Shen Shiyan's response was calm and long - "Waiting for good news."
Meng Xintang put down the phone and was about to cook when the door of the living room was opened. At first, he thought it was Meng Xinchu, but after a second glance, he saw that it was his mother.
"Mom?" Meng Xintang was a little surprised, "Why did you come back suddenly?"
Qiao Wei is more than 50 years old, never looks old, and never dresses inappropriately for her age. She always wears a meticulous shirt and professional attire, with her temples neatly combed behind her ears, clean and simple, and with dignity. She stood at the door and responded with a smile, Meng Xintang hurriedly stepped forward and took the bag in her hand.
"Won't Xinchu come today?"
"She didn't say that, but if you come back, she will definitely come."
"Then give her a call. Next week is the wedding. We will discuss the things that need to be discussed tonight." After that, Qiao Wei went into the bathroom to wash his hands.
Meng Xintang picked up the phone again and wandered for two steps, not dialing out the phone when Qiao Wei came out.
Qiao Wei took a sip of water, turned around and asked, "Aren't you going to fight?"
"It's better for you to call," Meng Xintang sighed. "She will be happier if you call her."
Obviously, Qiao Wei's hand paused for a while, then she put down the water glass and pulled out the phone from her bag.
While cooking, Meng Xintang kept thinking that during the whole process of preparing for the wedding, without the help of his parents, he didn't even ask, whether Xinchu would feel a little wronged or sad.
Since childhood, to their siblings, their parents seem to be just two elders who work away from home all the year round and sometimes can't get in touch for a few months.
"Xinchu said it's coming soon," Qiao Wei appeared in the kitchen at some point, "I bought shrimp, and you'll be done with it later. I'll make her a big oily prawn."
When Meng Xintang started to put away the last dish for him, Qiao Wei stood by and started picking shrimp lines.
"I heard that you and Lao Zhong choked?" Qiao Wei lowered his head and asked casually.
"Well, how long ago it was."
When Meng Xintang said this, it was a bit like Shen Shiyan's tone, light and casual.
Qiao Wei didn't mean to teach a lesson or be held accountable, but just shook his head gently and said, "So impulsive and reckless, it doesn't look like you."
Meng Xintang lowered his head and grabbed the dishes in the pot, and asked, "How did the investigation go?"
"What else can I do," Qiao Wei's tone was not surprising, and he continued, "Go back to work when it's almost there, don't be impatient. You must know that this matter has cost the entire two teams of years of research. Liu, it's one thing for you to believe him, it's another thing to take insurance. Don't be over 30, and you're still hot like a child."
To sum up, it's love to love, reason to reason, and no head-scratching.
Meng Xintang poured the dishes on a plate and turned off the smoking machine. His voice was clearer without the humming.
"I can understand, but I won't agree." He looked at Qiao Wei's eyes, stubborn and firm, "If you let me go back, I will naturally go back. It was really impulsive that time, there will be no next time, you can rest assured."
Meng Xinchu came back very quickly. When he entered the door, he was sweating profusely. He stood at the door without changing his shoes and called out "Mom". Both Qiao Wei and Meng Xintang came out to greet him, and Meng Xinchu threw himself on Qiao Wei with open arms.
"Why are you back, mom?"
"I'll be back when I'm free," Qiao Wei wiped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand with a smile, "What are you doing in such a hurry, look at this sweaty head, go get a paper to wipe it, turn on the air conditioner, don't catch a cold."
"I miss you," Meng Xinchu slapped two pieces of paper on his forehead carelessly, and followed Qiao Wei like a small tail, "Mom, I went to try on the wedding dress for the last time today, and I think I chose this set. It's so beautiful, come and come, let me show it to you."
Saying that, she took out her mobile phone and put it in front of Qiao Wei, and gave Qiao Wei a picture of him looking at it.
"Well, it's not bad, especially the design at the back, it's really unique."
"Yeah, right?" Meng Xinchu was excited when he heard it. "My mother still appreciates it. When I showed it to my brother, he also said that the back is a bit ugly."
"How can this be ugly, don't listen to him."
Because of Meng Xinchu, the kitchen immediately became a lot more lively, and the fumes were mixed with laughter and laughter, as if describing the appearance of "home".
Before eating, Qiao Wei went to Meng Xintang's wine cabinet to pick a bottle of wine. Qiao Wei is a strong woman, and even the wine she picks is high-level spirits. She took out two small cups and raised her hand towards Meng Xintang: "Would you like a cup?"
"Okay." Meng Xintang replied.
Unexpectedly, Meng Xinchu also joined in the fun, raising his hand and shouting, "I want me too."
"Where can you drink?" Qiao Wei smiled.
"I want to drink. I'm happy to be married. I plan to have a few drinks on the wedding day."
Qiao Wei had no choice but to follow her will and took another cup. When Meng Xinchu and the two of them went out, she stared at the wine in her hand for a while, then put it down and replaced it with a lower alcohol bottle.
Meng Xinchu couldn't remember the last time she ate Qiao Wei's dishes. She ate more than half of a plate of prawns by herself. Qiao Wei asked about the wedding from time to time, and Meng Xinchu answered meticulously and thoughtfully. When several people were half full, Qiao Weicai said to Meng Xinchu: "Your father contacted me a few days ago and said that he really couldn't get away, and he might not be able to attend your wedding."
At that time, Meng Xinchu had already drank two small glasses of wine, his cheeks were slightly red, and even the corners of his eyes were a little red. She was stunned for a moment, then blinked: "No, didn't you say you can come?"
"It seems that there is a part that needs technical adjustment, temporary control." When not speaking, Qiao Wei's lips were tightly pressed together, and when he met Meng Xinchu's eyes, there was a little loosening, "He said he would give you Call up."
Meng Xintang, who was sitting and listening, didn't know how to describe his mood at the moment. When he looked at Meng Xinchu, he felt that his heart throbbed. There is distress and disappointment, but when I look back, it seems that I am used to the general calm. He looked at the chandelier reflected on the plate, and suddenly felt that the light was a little dazzling.
Meng Xintang could see that Meng Xinchu was pretending to be happy, and of course Qiao Wei could see that she suppressed Meng Xinchu's hand that was still pouring wine and winked at Meng Xintang. Meng Xintang got up and whispered to Meng Xinchu that he wanted to take her to rest.
Meng Xinchu was already drunk, but now she was holding Qiao Wei firmly, she murmured something vaguely. Qiao Wei leaned closer and listened.
"Will mom go?"
No mother would not feel distressed when her daughter said such words. Qiao Wei has always been busy with her work, and she knows that she takes very little care of her son and daughter, so facing Meng Xinchu like this, she not only feels distressed, but also feels guilty. She stretched out her hand and touched Meng Xinchu's face: "Of course I want to go when you get married, and your father also wants to come back."
I don't know if Meng Xinchu heard it or not, but after this sentence, she let go of Qiao Wei's hand.
Meng Xintang carried her into the bedroom, turned on the air conditioner, and carefully covered her with a thin quilt. Meng Xinchu was not stable when she lay down, and kept talking nonsense in a daze. He patted her on the back and coaxed her for a while before the person on the bed fell asleep. When he came out again, he saw that Qiao Wei was still sitting at the table, holding the wine glass in a trance.
The sound of Meng Xintang picking up the chopsticks disturbed Qiao Wei. She regained her senses and asked, "Are you asleep?"
"Um."
Meng Xintang took a mouthful of food and put it in his mouth. After swallowing it, he heard Qiao Wei say, "I have something I haven't told you yet.
The sound of a collision was the tip of the chopsticks slicing across the blue and white porcelain bowl.
Meng Xintang raised his glass, looked at Qiao Wei sincerely and said, "Congratulations."
It is not easy to achieve this step, he is very aware of Qiao Wei's efforts and hard work.
Qiao Wei smiled and clinked a glass with him. Qiao Wei always drank all his drinks, and never sipped a glass of wine twice. Meng Xintang looked at her raised neck, and then he really understood how strong he was as a mother.
"I always feel that as much ability as a person is, he should shoulder as much responsibility, so I always want to do a lot of things, to undertake, to achieve." Qiao Wei turned the wine glass in his hand and said slowly, " When I was young, I wanted to be the best in everything. Later, when I married your father, it became the two of us to be the best in our respective fields of study. The more I delved, the more I found a person The ability is limited. Even if you have learned a lot and mastered a lot, when you communicate with others, you will still find that what you know is only the tip of the iceberg of this profession. But the more I do, the more I want to go learn more."
Meng Xintang listened in silence, with some empathy.
"I asked myself that I did a good job at work, but there are some responsibilities that I couldn't take up." Qiao Wei poured himself another glass of wine, and when he put down the glass, his eyes were always down, "To you, to Xinchu , I didn't fulfill my responsibility as a mother, and I believe your father thinks the same way."
Meng Xintang can fully understand their feelings, because perhaps, this is the situation he will face. He sat beside Qiao Wei and took her shoulders.
"Mom, no one can really do everything, and there is never a right or a wrong choice in this kind of thing."
It's just that you choose an ideal, and you have to give up some warmth, which is also part of the greatness of ideals.