"We'll be on holiday starting tomorrow." Wenqin stood in the office and said to her subordinates, "Everyone, be safe during the holiday. Drink slowly during dinner parties, and be careful on the way back home."
Then he called out Zhan Xi, Yuan Sichen and Qian Yun by name, "You three should also be careful about what you eat. Don't eat too much meat and fish and get fat. You still have to go on stage when you come back. Go home and practice dancing more. What a mess you danced last time! It wasn't in sync at all."
Yuan Sichen frowned: "Sister Wen, we are not professionals! Isn't this just for fun?"
Wenqin said with a smile: "Even if we are happy, we can't dance like three people, especially Zhanxi. You are the center! You stand at the front. You have to practice well, okay?"
Zhan Xi hung his head: "I know..."
Wenqin clapped her hands: "Okay, off work, see you all after the Spring Festival!"
Yuan Sichen cheered: "See you after the Spring Festival! Thank you Sister Wen for the hairy crabs!"
Zhan Xi packed up and left the company. It was the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month, and the long Spring Festival holiday had begun, but she was not looking forward to it at all.
She was also holding a gift box of hairy crabs, three males and three females, which was a department benefit given by Wenqin privately. It was said that her husband was a distributor. Hairy crabs are easy to die, and Zhanxi couldn't finish them all by herself, so she called Zhanjie and asked him to bring the crabs to his house for dinner in the evening.
Originally, it could be given to Xiaoyu...
Zhan Xi took the subway to Zhan Jie's house and found that the atmosphere was not right as soon as he entered the door.
Zhan Jie sat on the sofa angrily. Weiwei wanted to watch cartoons, but he yelled at her. Qin Fei was cooking in the kitchen with a stern face. Zhan Xi took the hairy crabs in and asked quietly, "Sister-in-law, what happened between you and my brother?"
Qin Fei glanced at her and said, "Zhan Xi, let me ask you, did I go to your house to celebrate the New Year last year, the year before last, and the year before last?"
Zhan Xi recalled and replied, "Yes."
Qin Fei said loudly, "Before your brother and I got married, we agreed that I would spend New Year's Eve at your house for two years, and I would go back to my parents' house for one year. We should have gone back to my parents' house last year, but your mother said that grandma was not in good health and was afraid that she would not survive, so she tricked us back. Grandma is doing very well now! This year, we should go back to my parents' house for the New Year no matter what! Your mother won't let me, tell me, does it make sense?!"
Zhan Xi turned his head to look at the living room and found that Zhan Jie had come over. He said in a loud voice: "Qin Fei, don't complain to Huan Huan. It doesn't matter where you celebrate the New Year. It's not like I won't go back to your house. Which year will I not go back? What's the difference between going back on New Year's Eve and going back on the third day of the New Year?"
Qin Fei glared at him: "Yeah, it doesn't matter where you celebrate the New Year. Then why don't you go back to my house on New Year's Eve and then go to your house on the third day of the New Year?!"
Zhan Jie wanted to say something, but Qin Fei spoke before him: "You two are still siblings. I am the only daughter of my parents! I haven't been back home for New Year's Eve for three years! I have been married to you for eight years, and I have only been back twice! The time from Qiantang to your home and to my mother's home is obviously almost the same! My parents asked me three months ago, and I promised them! I have also confirmed it with you! At this critical moment, you tell me that you are not going, are you sick?!"
Zhan Jie frowned: "Our custom is that after getting married, you go to the man's house to celebrate the New Year, and you can go back to the woman's house during the first month of the year!"
"Oh!" Qin Fei sneered, "Then what you promised when you got married was bullshit? We don't have this custom in my home! Your sister!" She pointed at Zhan Xi, "After she gets married, will she not go back to her parents' home for New Year's Eve? Will your mother agree? Are you kidding me!"
Zhan Jie glanced at Zhan Xi and was unable to answer.
Zhan Xi quickly tried to smooth things over: "Brother, you have already promised sister-in-law, so just accompany her home for the New Year. It will be the same if you come back on the third or fourth day of the New Year."
Zhan Jie sighed: "Our mother calls me every day, asking when we will go back, and I promised her."
Qin Fei was almost mad: "Okay! Then you go back, your mother doesn't like me anyway, let's go back to our own homes and find our own mothers! I tell you, Zhan Jie, this year, I will go back to my mother's house to celebrate the New Year!"
Zhan Jie raised his eyebrows and asked, "It's easy for you to say that, but what about your son?"
Qin Fei replied: "Of course my son follows me!"
"No!" Zhan Jie said, "My mother only saw Weiwei for a while when she went home on New Year's Day, and we left early the next morning. She can't see her grandson more during the New Year!"
Qin Fei was shocked: "Oh! Your mother wants to see her grandson, but my mother doesn't want to see her grandson? What kind of logic is this?"
Zhan Jie yelled, "No, it's not okay! I promised you that I would go to your house on the third day of the Chinese New Year, or the second day will be fine! Staying at your house for four nights, is that okay?"
Qin Fei looked at him coldly for a while, then suddenly laughed, shook her head and said, "Forget it, you take my son with you, and take your sister with you. You can drive the car back to your dear mother's house. I will take the bus back to my parents' house. You don't have to come to my house during the first month of the year. Let's meet here on the sixth day of the first month. No one has to run around. You can go wherever you want! Do whatever you want! I won't serve you anymore!"
As she said that, she took off her apron and threw it on Zhan Jie, then walked out of the kitchen without caring about the food cooking in the pot.
"Sister-in-law!" Zhan Xi wanted to chase after her to persuade her, but Qin Fei ignored her. She entered the study and slammed the door, blocking Zhan Xi outside.
Weiwei was so scared that he dared not say a word in the living room. Zhan Xi went back to persuade Zhan Jie: "Brother! What are you doing? You promised your sister-in-law, why don't you keep your word?"
Zhan Jie was no longer angry at this time, and was only helpless: "You know our mother, she asked us to go back every day, and I agreed on the spur of the moment that day, thinking that I would tell your sister-in-law and she would understand. Isn't it just a matter of switching back and forth? It doesn't matter which day we go back?"
"Of course it's different!" Zhan Xi said, "Sister-in-law's home is not far away, she just wants to have a New Year's Eve dinner with her parents. The key is that you promised her and then went back on your word. I would be angry too!"
Zhan Jie put his hands on his hips and said nothing.
Zhan Xi picked up the apron on the ground and put it on, saying, "I'll cook and leave when I'm done. You're such a jerk. Apologize to your sister-in-law tonight and go home with her for the New Year. I can take the bus back by myself. I'll persuade Mom."
"I won't!" Zhan Jie glared, "Tomorrow afternoon at 6 o'clock, I will pick you up with Weiwei after get off work, you pack your things and wait. You spoil her! If you don't want to go back, forget it!"
Zhan Xi: “…”
She really wanted to say, Brother, you are courting death!
There were six plump hairy crabs, but Zhan Xi didn't get to eat any of them in the end. After helping Zhan Jie finish cooking the meal and steaming the crabs, she had no appetite at all and left immediately.
When returning to Qingque Jiayuan, Zhan Xi passed by the pet hospital at the entrance of the community. Thinking of the gift, he went in for consultation.
The gift was too small to stay at home alone for so long, and Zhan Xi didn't dare to take it home. Chi Guilan still believed that her daughter was allergic to all furry things, and if the gift fell into her mother's hands, her life would be in danger. The best way was to take the pet to a pet store for foster care.
This pet hospital is open during the Spring Festival and has foster care services. Zhan Xi applied for a stored-value card, prepaid 500 yuan, and agreed to send the kitten to her the next day. She calculated that it would cost nearly 1,000 yuan to foster the kitten during the entire Spring Festival holiday. Sigh... Raising a daughter is really expensive.
—
On the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month, Zhan Xi delivered the gifts to the pet hospital and called Zhan Jie, persuading him to accompany Qin Fei home while she would take the bus back by herself.
But at this time, Zhan Jie was like a stinky and hard stone. He wouldn't listen to anything he said and yelled at his little sister not to meddle in other people's business and just wait for him to pick her up in the afternoon.
Zhan Xi did a thorough cleaning at home, sorted out the things in the refrigerator, and finally sat down on the sofa and stared blankly.
Since Xiaoyu's birthday, she hasn't seen him or sent him any WeChat messages.
That night, she sent those messages while crying, but Xiaoyu didn't reply. It has been several days.
Although Zhan Xi said that they were still good friends, she felt that Xiaoyu would probably never pay attention to her again.
In the afternoon, Zhan Jie brought Weiwei to pick up Zhan Xi, and Qin Fei was indeed not in the car.
Weiwei sat in the back seat with red eyes. Zhan Xi knew that his nephew must have cried, so he could only persuade him: "In two days, your father will take you to find your mother, don't be sad."
Weiwei yelled, "Dad is such a bad guy! I don't want to go to grandma's house! I want mom!"
Zhan Jie had a headache: "Didn't your aunt tell you that we will go to find your mother in two days!"
Weiwei cried out "Wow" and started to cry again, shaking his legs: "I want my mommy now! I want my mommy! I want my mommy..."
Zhan Xi held him in his arms and coaxed him constantly. The two adults and one child were very upset. There was no joy in the car at all for the upcoming New Year.
It was already late when Chi Guilan returned to Fuchun Town. She waited at the door again and found that her daughter-in-law had not come. She asked Zhan Jie, "Where is Qin Fei?"
Zhan Jie said patiently, "She has gone back to her parents' home. I will go find her on the second day of the Chinese New Year."
Chi Guilan's face immediately darkened, "This is getting more and more outrageous! You go back to your parents' home alone on New Year's Day, and you don't even want your son anymore? What are we going to say when relatives come and ask about it? They'll think we did something to her! And you, why are you going on the second day of the New Year? Didn't you go on the fourth day in previous years?"
Zhan Jie said: "In previous years, we always went there on the third day of the Chinese New Year!"
"What's the difference between the third and fourth days of the Chinese New Year?" Chi Guilan walked home in annoyance, and turned back to look at Zhan Xi, "What are you doing? The little girl has no energy at all! Don't hunch your back! I'm talking to you about Huan Huan..."
Chi Guilan took her daughter's arm and said, "Your aunt told me about a young man the other day. He's from Tong County, 27 years old, works in Qiantang, and works in the court! I've asked her to arrange a meeting for you on the third day of the Chinese New Year. You should dress up well by then."
Zhan Xi said, "I won't go."
Chi Guilan was stunned: "Why not go?"
Zhan Xi looked at his mother and said, "No reason, I'm not going anyway."
"You must go!" Chi Guilan's tone was irrefutable.
Zhan Xi whispered, "I won't speak even if I go, Mom, you can do whatever you want."
Chi Guilan was really angry this time. She scolded Qin Fei, Zhan Jie, her husband, and her daughter. Weiwei started crying like a loud speaker. Zhan Xi just felt a headache. He went upstairs with his bag and said, "I won't eat anymore. I'll just take a shower and go to bed."
"Rebellion!" Chi Guilan stood at the stairs and looked up at her. Finally, she snorted and went to make dinner for her son and grandson.
—
On New Year's Eve, Luo Jingyu did not go home early, and stayed at home alone to work on the cherry tree.
He gave Zhong Peng and Mo Yang five days off, and the two children came back to work on the fifth day of the New Year. He offered a generous daily salary for the Spring Festival, and after a month of classes, the two children didn't have to worry about pocket money for the next semester, so they were very motivated.
At 3 pm, Luo Jingyu went out to have the New Year's Eve dinner. When he took the elevator downstairs, he was very nervous, fearing that the elevator would stop on the eighth floor and he was afraid of seeing that girl.
Then I thought, it was already the afternoon of New Year's Eve, she must have gone home long ago.
Walking out of the unit door, Luo Jingyu pulled down the brim of his hood, put on a mask, put his hands in his pockets, and strode out of the community. When passing by the pet hospital, he suddenly stopped and looked into the hospital through the glass.
The pet hospital seemed busier than usual, with many cages, each containing cats and dogs. In a cage not far from the glass window, there was a familiar white figure.
It is very small, smaller than other cats, like a kindergarten kid among kittens.
Luo Jingyu pushed the door open, walked to the cage on the ground, and squatted down. In the cage was a litter box, two bowls, a small cat climbing frame, and a cat bed... Luo Jingyu put his finger on the edge of the cage, and the kitten in the cage seemed to recognize him. It put its little paws on the cage, opened its mouth, and looked very lively.
—Are you calling me? Gift.
Luo Jingyu thought: Why are you here? Your mother has gone home, right? She didn't even take you home, how many days are you going to stay here? Can you only stay in a cage? It's so pitiful, such a small place.
"Sir?" The clerk came over, stood behind him and called him, but Luo Jingyu did not respond.
The clerk called him twice and then patted him on the shoulder: "Sir?"
Luo Jingyu then turned around.
He stood up, took off his mask, pointed at the gift, took out his mobile phone and typed to the clerk: The owner of this cat is my friend, can I take the cat home
The clerk said awkwardly: "I'm afraid that won't work..."
Luo Jingyu opened the photo album on her phone and showed it to her. There were many photos and videos of gifts in it.
“…” The clerk thought for a moment and said, “Of course, I can, but I need to confirm with its owner.”
Luo Jingyu typed: You call her and tell her, my last name is Luo, I am deaf and cannot make phone calls.
The clerk looked at him with regret, found Zhan Xi's phone number and called him.
At this time, Zhan Xi was eating peanuts and watching TV in the living room on the first floor of his home, surrounded by relatives.
The Spring Festival Gala program on CCTV-1 started in the afternoon, with various details of the preparations for the Gala being discussed both on and off the stage. My dad turned the volume up very loud, and the whole living room was filled with joyful music.
The phone rang several times before she noticed it. After answering it, she found out it was from the pet hospital. Zhan Xi was shocked, thinking something had happened to the gift. But when the staff told her what had happened, she was stunned.
"Miss Zhan, Miss Zhan?" the staff member asked hurriedly when they heard her suddenly fall silent.
Zhan Xi came back to his senses: "Ah, I'm listening, I'm listening, so... I agree, you let him take the cat away, uh... please tell him to send the cat back to your place on the seventh day of the New Year, I will pick it up when I return."
The staff member said, "Is it so troublesome? You can just go to his place and pick up the kitten."
"No, no, no, no, no..." Zhan Xi's heart started beating faster when he thought of the person on the other end of the phone, Xiaoyu, who was right next to the staff. "On the seventh day of the lunar new year, ask him to send the cat to you. Please speak to him slowly, as he can understand lip reading. If that doesn't work, just type to him on your phone."
The staff member agreed and was about to hang up when Zhan Xi called out, "Wait, wait, please tell him 'thank you' for me. I really want to thank him!"
"Okay." After hanging up the phone, the staff member glanced at Luo Jingyu and thought that these two people were really weird. Why didn't they just send WeChat messages themselves
Ex? Gee, maybe.
She was afraid that the message was not conveyed properly, so she typed Zhan Xi's words on her mobile phone and showed them to Luo Jingyu. After reading them, Luo Jingyu nodded and made an "ok" gesture to indicate that she understood.
The staff took care of the formalities for him, and Luo Jingyu bought a cat bag and took the gift out and put it in. The gift seemed to know that it didn't have to stay in this cramped cage anymore, and behaved very well.
Luo Jingyu returned to 1504 with the gifts, turned on the air conditioner, and prepared cat litter, cat food, and water for the kitten. These things were all new, and he prepared a copy of all of them considering that it was troublesome for Zhanxi to bring large and small bags every time he delivered the gifts.
I thought I would never use it again, but I didn't expect it to be useful.
After the gift came out of the cat bag, it happily climbed to the second level of the cat climbing frame. Luo Jingyu squatted down and looked at it, reached out to rub its head, and started sign language: I'm going to eat the New Year's Eve dinner first, and will come back to play with you in the evening. We'll spend New Year's Eve together. You have to be good at home, okay
There was no reaction to the gift. Although the cat climbing frame was still a strange thing, Luo Jingyu's home was spacious and warm, and it was already very familiar to it.
It was already 4:30 when Luo Jingyu went out again, and Luo Xiaomei sent him a WeChat message.
Luo Xiaomei: Xiaoyu, where are you? Why haven’t you arrived yet
What a big fish: Just went out.
Luo Xiaomei: You just left? What time will you arrive? Everyone is here, except you.
What a Big Fish: You guys eat first, no need to wait for me, I’m not going to the subway, I’m going to take a taxi.
On New Year’s Eve, families gather together and brilliant fireworks rise from time to time somewhere in the city.
Luo Jingyu stood on the high-rise balcony of her uncle's house, staring at the fleeting beautiful lights and shadows.
He recalled that when he was a child, during the Chinese New Year, people would set off firecrackers and fireworks in the dormitory area of the welfare factory. The children would gather around to watch, covering their ears, shouting and jumping, not daring to get close.
Only he foolishly tried to catch the fireworks with his hands, which scared his father so much that he hugged him back by the waist.
Is the sound of firecrackers scary
Luo Jingyu didn’t know, he only knew that they were very beautiful, like Easter eggs. He didn’t know what the next one would look like or what color it would be. They also looked like shooting stars, allowing him to make a wish quietly.
In the living room behind him, the New Year's Eve dinner was not over yet. He was gathering with his mother's brothers and sisters, their children and grandchildren, but after all these years, Luo Jingyu still couldn't fit in.
Both his grandparents were deaf. After they gave birth to his father, Luo Mingsong, and found out he was also deaf, they didn't dare to have any more children.
The deafness gene in their family should be inherited from their grandmother. It was too long ago and it is impossible to verify what the situation was like in the older generation. We only know that among her six brothers and sisters, there were both hearing and deaf people.
After these people got married and had children, by the time of Luo Mingsong's generation, there were more hearing people than deaf people. The next generation was Luo Jingyu's generation, and it was said that there were both hearing people and deaf people as well.
After graduating from high school, Luo Mingsong was assigned to a welfare factory. At that time, it was inconvenient for the deaf to communicate. He did not have much contact with his mother's relatives, and he had no idea how many deaf people were born among his cousins.
Anyway, his family had extremely bad luck; they had two children, both of whom were deaf.
After Luo Jingyu was born, her grandfather, who was still alive at the time, was said to be very angry. Since he couldn't scold her, he just beat her father, saying that it was not enough for him to harm his daughter, but he wanted to harm a son as well.
These were all told to him by his grandmother. She felt very guilty and was depressed until her death.
Yan Yajuan is different. She was deafened by drugs. Her brothers and sisters are healthy, as are their spouses and children. Except for Yan Yajuan's older brother and younger sister who can use simple sign language, the others don't know anything about sign language. Therefore, Luo Jingyu never interacts with her cousins on her mother's side, even though they are of similar age. Even if they eat at the same table, they are like strangers.
No one cared what he was doing recently, no one was interested in embossing, no one knew where he lived, but they would ask Gao Yuan, how much money Luo Jingyu made a year? Did Gao Yuan and Luo Xiaomei plan to have children? What about Luo Jingyu? Are they dating? Will they have children
The aunt advised Gao Yuan earnestly: "Xiao Gao, don't have a child! You are not mobile enough, and Xiaomei might inherit the disease. Why have a child? You two just need to live a good life. If you give birth to another child with bad hearing, it will be a burden!"
Gao Yuan smiled and passed it off. Luo Xiaomei had a dull expression. Luo Jingyu also understood her aunt's lip language and lowered her head to play with her phone, pursing her lips.
He thought, is he a burden
A burden on the family or a burden on society
Fortunately, Gao Yuan was loyal enough not to tell his relatives about his situation. He even helped Luo Jingyu pretend to be poor, saying that he only earned 50,000 or 60,000 yuan a year.
Everyone thinks it's natural that for a deaf young man who has never attended college, earning 50,000 or 60,000 yuan a year is already very good!
—
Zhan Xi's family had the New Year's Eve dinner with his father's brothers and sisters. There were eighteen people there, and they set up two tables on the first floor of Zhan Xi's house.
After finishing her meal, grandma went into her room to sleep. The elders played cards or watched the Spring Festival Gala. My cousins bought a lot of firecrackers and fireworks and set them off one by one in the yard. The noise was very loud. Weiwei wanted to watch but was also afraid, so he pestered Zhanxi to accompany him, which Zhanxi was more than happy to do.
In the yard, the little guy hugged his aunt's waist, and after watching the fireworks for a while, his eyes became wet again. He tilted his head back and cried, "Aunt, I miss my mother."
"Be good, your father will take you to see your mother soon." Zhan Xi touched his little nephew's head.
It was very cold outside, but Zhan Xi didn't want to go in at all. During dinner, his mother said a lot of bad things about Qin Fei. Zhan Jie didn't say a word, but Wei Wei got angry and started crying, saying "Grandma is a bad guy!"
Chi Guilan felt embarrassed and turned the topic to Zhan Xi, praising her for being well-behaved and obedient, and saying that she was preparing for the provincial exam and had great hope.
Chi Guilan said: "I am not worried about Huanhuan's job at all. She has been able to study since she was young and will eventually pass the exam. But I am really worried about her marriage. She is too naive and is too shy to talk to boys when she meets them. What should I do?"
My cousin said, "Aunt, it's because you control Huanhuan too strictly. You need to let her go out and socialize more and participate in some social activities. For example, mountain climbing, book sharing sessions, board games, and those kinds of activities that young people like. It's easy to meet boys."
Chi Guilan was shocked: "How can I just go and meet someone randomly? Who knows what kind of people they are! No, no, it's better to get an introduction. I just asked my sister to introduce someone to her. She will be able to meet him in Tong County in a few days. He is a 27-year-old guy from the court..."
All of this made Zhan Xi disgusted, and he didn't want to hear a word.
After the relatives left, Zhan Xi went upstairs to take a shower and left her cell phone in the room. When she returned to the room after showering, she found that the cell phone had been touched.
Her password is very strange, a four-digit number that makes no sense. My mother should not be able to open it.
Zhan Xi was very calm. Her cell phone is now very clean and the photo albums are empty. She transferred all the photos to her computer before going home, and the same went for WeChat. She deleted all the photos, both those that should be deleted and those that shouldn't be deleted.
Even so, she was unwilling to show it to her mother.
At midnight, deafening firecrackers sounded outside.
Fireworks and firecrackers are banned in Qiantang and Tongxian urban areas, but people in the town don't care. Every household nearby has a yard and every family will set off firecrackers.
Zhan Xi knew that Zhan Jie was also setting off fireworks, and his brother hoped that the whole family would be prosperous and wealthy in the new year.
She hid in her bed and scrolled through her Moments. The noise was so loud that she wanted to plug her ears. As she was scrolling, she saw a message and couldn't move her fingers any further.
What a big fish: Happy New Year.
Image: gift.jpg
In the photo, the kitten is nestled in a left arm with a slightly frightened expression.
Was she frightened by the firecrackers? Were the firecrackers in Qiantang so scary? Zhan Xi didn't know, as she had never spent New Year's Eve there.
She looked at the left arm again. He should be sitting. The sleeves of the sweater were dark green. Was it new? She had never seen him wear it before.
He was wearing black sweatpants, holding a gift in his left hand, and ruffling the kitten's fur with his slender fingers. That hand was as white and beautiful as ever, and it seemed like it would never look ugly in the photo.
Zhan Xi stared at the photo for a long time, downloaded it, blocked all his family members, and posted a message on WeChat Moments.
Egg pudding: Happy New Year.
Image: gift.jpg
Soon, messages and likes came from colleagues and classmates.
Yuan Sichen: Who is this? ? Something is happening!
Lin Yan: Happy Chinese New Year, is this your cat
Of course, the gossip master Luo Xinran is indispensable.
Luo Xinran: Baby, the cat and the hand are both nice. Is the person handsome
Yao Ying and Zhao Qingqing followed quickly.
Yao Ying: Baby, the cat and the hands are both nice. Is the person handsome
Zhao Qingqing: Honey, the cat and the hand are both nice. Is the person handsome
Zhan Xi did not choose to reply one by one, but directly clicked "Comment", which means that anyone who can see this circle can see her next words -
Egg pudding: Very cool!