After touring the house, the three returned to the living room.
Kiyono Rin lost interest in the game and sat in the fireplace reading a book.
Toru Watanabe plugged "Contra" into the Famicom and went through the levels with Miki Kujo.
"We walk in the water."
"Meiji, do you want this S bullet?"
"There's an invincible here, do you want to eat him? Ah, he ran away."
After finishing "Contra", she also played "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2" and "Hot Blood Fighting". Miki Kujo felt sleepy and fell asleep on her side.
Toru Watanabe playing Metal Max alone.
About two hours later, red clouds began to appear in the sky and Watanabe's mother came back.
Mizawa Village is far away from the nearest town.
"Xiao Che, come and help mommy shell peas!"
"good!"
"I'll help." Qingye Rin prepared to get up.
"No, no, Xiaolin, sit down."
"Come here quickly." Watanabe's mother instructed Watanabe Toru and went to the kitchen.
After a while, Watanabe Toru was nowhere to be seen , so Watanabe's mother called out again.
"Xiao Che——?"
“Here it comes!”
After a while, Watanabe's mother rushed over from the kitchen.
"Xiao Che, what are you doing?" Mom scolded.
The two beautiful girls also looked at Watanabe Toru.
"Almost there." Watanabe Toru manipulated the handle with a focused look, "I'm almost there with the Red Wolf tank!"
“…”
Watanabe's mother walked over and turned off the TV.
"Ah - my tank! My lifelong dream! Mom, what are you doing?"
"There are guests at home, why don't you be more diligent! Come and help!"
Toru Watanabe put down the handle and stood up from the quilt with a helpless look on his face.
He followed Watanabe out of the living room and headed towards the kitchen.
"Didn't Qingye tell her to do it? Just let her do it."
"Let the guests do it? Just lie there and play the game? How did I teach you?"
"But we can't let them eat and live for free, right?"
"What are you thinking about all day, kid? Are you going to charge them money? Oh, by the way, after shelling the peas, go to the field and pull some radishes."
"Red carrot or white carrot?"
"What do Xiaolin and Meiji like to eat..."
The two people in the living room could hear the conversation between the mother and son.
When dinner was almost ready, Watanabe Toru's father came back.
A man named Watanabe Tsuneo who is taciturn but likes to brag loudly after drinking with the men in the village and always wears a pair of old rubber shoes.
"Dad, have you delivered the goods?"
"Yeah." Watanabe Tsuneo nodded.
He took off his rubber shoes by himself and had no reaction to his son who had been in Tokyo for more than half a year.
“I brought my girlfriend back this time.”
"Um."
"There is another classmate."
Watanabe Tsuneo didn't even say a word, but nodded, "I understand."
"You two, come and help serve the dishes!" Watanabe's mother's voice came from the kitchen.
"Got it!" Watanabe Toru responded.
Watanabe Tsuneo said nothing, but walked towards the kitchen with Watanabe Toru.
Watanabe's father is such a taciturn person.
But even so, he would raise rice paddy ducks for his son and send them to Tokyo.
During dinner, Toru Watanabe introduced the two beautiful girls to him, but he didn't react much.
Compared to Kiyono Rin, he said one more thing to Kujo Miki:
"Archer is causing you trouble."
Toru Watanabe really wanted to tell his father that Kujo Miki had caused him much more trouble than he had caused her.
"Okay, okay," Mother Watanabe greeted with a smile, "Let's eat."
At the long wooden table, Watanabe's father sat at the head, Watanabe's mother and Kiyono Rin sat on one side, and Watanabe Toru and Kujo Miki sat on the other side.
Two beautiful girls face each other.
Before saying "I'm starting to eat," Miki Kujo looked at the dishes and chopsticks in front of her.
"Is this new?" she asked.
Watanabe's mother looked at her in confusion and answered subconsciously, "No."
Miki Kujo turned her gaze to Toru Watanabe.
"I was just about to give you mine." Watanabe Toru exchanged their bowls, chopsticks, and dishes. "This is mine exclusively for me. No one else has used it."
Miki Kujo glanced at the bowls and chopsticks in Watanabe's parents' hands and saw that the patterns were indeed different, so she nodded with satisfaction.
Watanabe Eda watched this scene and looked at Watanabe's father with a hidden look.
Watanabe's father pretended not to see it.
"I'm starting."
After expressing gratitude for the food, dinner begins.
Watanabe Toru took a bite of rice, ate two bites of vegetables, and asked the two, "Are you used to eating this?"
"It's okay." said Miki Kujo.
Qingye Rin drank a small sip of the carrot stew and ate the fried mushrooms, and said with satisfaction:
“Fresh vegetables, tender and delicious, I like them very much.”
"If you like it, eat more. There's more in the kitchen." Watanabe's mother said happily.
"Thank you, Auntie. Maybe I really need more rice." After saying that, she looked a little distressed again, "But I'll gain weight, so forget it."
"You are so thin. I think you need to gain at least ten pounds to be considered a normal weight," said Toru Watanabe.
"Watanabe-san, you don't understand how girls feel about their weight... It stinks!" Qingno Rin's snow-white face wrinkled and she covered her nose.
Watanabe's father, who was stirring natto, stood there in a daze.
Watanabe's mother slammed the table and laughed out loud, with all the boldness of a country woman.
"This..." Watanabe's father didn't know what to do, and said without thinking carefully, "I made it at home. It's delicious. Do you want some?"
Qing Ye Lin shook her head vigorously: "Sorry, I can't stand natto."
"Then..." Watanabe's father hesitated, ready to give up the natto that he had had with every meal for forty years.
"Please don't mind it, uncle." Qing Ye Lin pinched his nose and said with a distorted voice, "I'll just get used to it."
Watanabe's father hesitated for three seconds, continued to stir the natto, and then poured it into the rice bowl.
"Ahahaha!" Watanabe's mother couldn't stop laughing, "Rin-chan is so cute!"
"Auntie, I'm not pretending to be cute, but I am indeed very cute."
"I understand, I understand. After all these years with his father, I can't stand natto either! It stinks!"
When she said the vegetables were fresh and delicious, Qingno Rin was not trying to please others; and when she said natto smelled bad, she was not trying to cause trouble on purpose; she was just telling the truth.
However, according to her etiquette, she shouldn't have said "it stinks" directly, but the Watanabe family's homemade natto was indeed too stinky.
Kujo Miki also frowned and warned Watanabe Toru: "You are not allowed to eat that."
"Why?" Toru Watanabe doesn't eat natto, but is curious about the reason.
"Why are you asking so many questions? This is an order."
"Okay, I'll listen to you."
Watanabe's father ate his natto rice bowl silently. No matter what the three women said, he ate it with relish.
The only pity is that his son did not inherit this tradition.
The Watanabe family's technique for making natto will be lost from his generation.
"By the way," Watanabe's father remembered something, "are you still going to do the job of a postman?"
"Let's do it." Watanabe Toru drank up the soup and said to his mother, "Add another bowl." Qingye Rin hesitated and asked for a bowl as well, "I have nothing to do in the morning anyway."
"Yeah." Watanabe's father stopped talking.
After dinner, the two beautiful girls took a bath in the bathroom upstairs.
That was because Toru Watanabe was not used to the whole family taking a bath in one bathtub, so he asked his parents to help build it.
Although it is a little small, thanks to it, the bathing problem of the two young ladies was solved.
"We are very tired today. You should go to bed early and sleep in tomorrow. I will take you around the village."
"Well, good night."
Toru Watanabe went downstairs, wanting to chat with his parents for a while before going to bed.
For fear of disturbing the two people upstairs, he walked lightly and when he reached the living room, he heard his parents' conversation.
"His father, what do you think of Meiji's child?"
Toru Watanabe did not go in and hid outside the living room.
"What's going on?" asked Watanabe's father.
"That child seems to dislike us," said Watanabe's mother.
"Where do you look down on me?"
"Can't you see? She never touches anything we use, like towels and chopsticks. Today, I helped Xiao Che clean up the room, and when I came back, I saw that the quilt on the stove had been replaced with a new one."
"Why do you care if she dislikes it or not? She lives with Archer, as long as she doesn't dislike Archer."
"But we are Xiaoche's parents."
"Will Archer live with us in this countryside in the future?" asked Watanabe's father.
"Of course not. How is that possible? Che can't learn from Reiko."
Lingzi is an older young woman in the village.
After graduating from university, I didn't find a job and ran back from Osaka to farm.
Later, when the school teacher retired, she took over and got a formal job. She lived a lazy life every day and did not get married.
You can't blame her for getting married.
There are no young men in the village. If she wants to get married, the only option left is to marry an old man, Toru Watanabe, who is a dozen years younger than her.
Watanabe's mother did not look down on Reiko, they even had a very good relationship. She just didn't want Watanabe Toru to be like her.
With the declining birthrate today, perhaps starting with Toru Watanabe's generation, no young people will live in Misawa Village.
Since they were leaving anyway, she hoped that Watanabe Toru could go to Tokyo and find a comfortable and high-paying job.
"Isn't that enough?" Watanabe's father said in a steady voice, "City people look down on country people, and it's not just Meiji, but she can accept Archer, doesn't that mean she likes him very much? Isn't it enough for two people to like each other?"
"But I saw that kid ordering Xiao Che around."
Watanabe's father did not deny it and said, "It's good to have someone to look after Archer."
"But isn't that too much? Didn't you hear the tone of her voice? It was like she was giving orders to a servant."
"Archer is handsome and excellent in every aspect. If your wife is not strong, I don't know what kind of trouble she will cause in the future."
"How could my son do something like that!"
"I'm sorry, Mom." Watanabe Toru, who was eavesdropping outside the living room, apologized silently in his heart.
He didn't want to do that kind of thing at first and wanted to be a loyal person. He rejected Asuka Mai several times for this, but in the end, he had no choice.
"He doesn't do anything, but women do it. He can reject one, reject two, but can he guarantee to reject all women?" said Watanabe Tsuneo.
"That's true." Watanabe agreed unwillingly.
The living room was silent for a while.
Toru Watanabe was about to pretend to have just arrived and walk in.
"His father, what do you think of Xiao Lin's child?"
The mother's low voice made Watanabe Toru stop again.
"What a cute child." Watanabe's father replied perfunctorily.
Watanabe's mother was very interested and said with a slightly excited tone:
"I think the child is very nice, polite, cute, and quiet, and he can get along well with Xiao Che."
"Um."
"And I think she can control Xiao Che as well."
"You still blame Miki for being mean to Archer, but I think this is what we should do," said Watanabe's father.
"You think Xiaolin is not good?" Watanabe lowered his voice, "I would rather have her as my daughter-in-law."
After saying this, Watanabe laughed with joy, as if she had already seen Kiyono Rin calling her mother.
"Archer's own business, the future is his own." This is what Watanabe's father thinks about the matter.
"I'll find a chance to ask Xiaotetsu what he thinks of Xiaolin."
That’s the end of the conversation between the two beautiful girls.
Watanabe Eda asked about her husband's delivery of goods during the day, and then talked about preparations and discussed buying some more expensive ingredients to entertain Kujo Miki and Kiyono Rin.
Until Watanabe Toru returned to Tokyo, Watanabe Eda did not ask him about Kiyono Rin.
Perhaps her husband's previous words made her unsure of what kind of answer she wanted to hear from Watanabe Toru.
December 26th was Toru Watanabe's first day back in Iwate Prefecture.
He got up early and took a part-time job as a postman.
He started this job after he entered junior high school in order to buy expensive tutoring books.
Before he did this, and after he stopped doing this, Misawamura's postman had always been his father.
Now he continues to work just to let his parents know that he is a hard-working child and they don't need to worry too much about him.
Besides, he was used to getting up early and finding something to do.
It's not daybreak yet.
Honda Cub walked through the path in the field, crossed the small bridge over the stream, and walked along the mountain road with towering trees on both sides. The cold wind blew on Watanabe Toru's face.
"Ah, my love has gone with the south wind——"
◇
After changing the pillow, Qingye Rin fell asleep very late and woke up very early in the morning.
After opening my eyes, I didn't hear any sounds from Tokyo. I could hear birds singing outside the window and the steady breathing of Kujo Miki beside me.
She got up quietly, changed her clothes, and went downstairs.
Watanabe's mother is making breakfast in the kitchen.
"Xiao Lin?" Hearing the footsteps, Watanabe's mother raised her head, "You got up so early, why don't you sleep a little longer?"
"Good morning, Auntie." After saying hello, Qing Ye Lin explained, "I can't get used to sleeping after changing the pillow."
"What should we do then?" Watanabe's mother was very worried and stopped what she was doing.
"It's okay, it only takes one night and it will be ready the next day." This is the experience gained from the wind orchestra's summer training.
"That's good." Watanabe's mother nodded reassuringly and continued to prepare the food.
Qingye Rin walked over, rolled up her sleeves, revealing her snow-white wrists, and helped wash the vegetables.
After a while, she asked, "Where's Watanabe?"
For some reason, Watanabe's mother seemed happy that she asked.
"The boy went to deliver the letter."
"Sending a letter?"
"Yes, I work as a postman. All the reference books that Xiao Che used in junior high school were bought with the money he saved from this job."
Qingye Rin nodded.
"Auntie Eda, what kind of child was Watanabe-san when he was young?"
“He…”
◇
A melodious flute sound came from afar.
On a high ridge in the field, a girl with a bob haircut was practicing facing the rising sun.
"So hardworking?" Toru Watanabe parked the Honda Syaoran in front of the girl.
Ayako Honma put down her flute and looked at him suspiciously: "Watanabe?"
"It's me." Toru Watanabe took off his helmet and rested his elbows on the handlebars.
"When did you come back!" Ayako Homma patted Toru Watanabe's shoulder hard.
If this had happened a year ago, Toru Watanabe would have been holding his shoulders and crying in pain.
"Yesterday." Watanabe Toru looked at the silver flute in her hand, "What's going on?"
"What else could it be? Next year I will be a senior in high school, and it will be my last semester. I must make it to the national competition and leave no regrets in my youth."
"Ah." Watanabe Toru looked at the blue sky in boredom, "I'm the best in the country in my first year, what should I do next?"
"You want to die, don't you?!"
"Isn't this Archer?" A middle-aged man carrying a hoe came from the direction of Ayako Homma's house.
"Uncle Honma," Toru Watanabe turned around and took out a letter from his bag, "There's a letter for you."
Uncle Honma took the letter, muttered "another water and electricity bill", raised his head and said to Watanabe Toru:
"Archer, I heard that you won first place in some trumpet competition?"
"It's not first place, just the gold medal," Ayako Homma corrected.
"The gold medal means first place!" Uncle Honma retorted in a tone of 'daughter, stop talking nonsense.'
"Yes, I am the first." Watanabe Toru said with a smile.
Ayako Honma curled her lips.
Uncle Honma put the letter in his pocket, patted Watanabe Toru on the shoulder, and praised:
"Really smart people are different. Even if you go to Tokyo, you can still stand out. I have long seen that you are a genius."
“There, there.”
"Come to my house later. The persimmon cakes your aunt made this year are very sweet."
"I will definitely go." Watanabe Toru put on his helmet, "Uncle Honma, I'm going to deliver the letter."
"good!"
"Ayako, come on, don't leave any regrets in your youth~"
Ayako Honma kicked the rear wheel of Honda Syaoran.
After delivering the letter, Toru Watanabe returned home and smelled the aroma of breakfast.
"Mom, I'm so hungry. Are you not feeling well yet?" Toru Watanabe took off his helmet while shouting that he was hungry.
"It's almost done." Watanabe replied without even looking up, "Are you cold from riding a bike?"
"It's okay, just my feet are a little cold."
Toru Watanabe put on his indoor shoes and walked into the kitchen.
Kiyono Rin rolled up her sleeves and was helping to stir the stew.
She wore a light pink loose sweater and a beige ankle-length skirt, and her hair was tied up in a loose bun, sticking to her back.
She looks gentle and leisurely, very beautiful.
"Get up so early? Oh, by the way," Toru Watanabe remembered something, "Mom, Kiyono only eats half-boiled eggs, don't fry them all."
After saying that, he looked at Qingye Rin, ready to ask her why she got up so early.
As a result, Qingye Rin was looking at him with a smile, a smile as gentle as a spring breeze.
"What's wrong?" Watanabe Toru asked her curiously, "My hair is messy?"
"It's a bit messy." Qingye Rin said with a smile.
"Then I have to tidy up."
Watanabe Toru left the kitchen, and Watanabe Ei smiled softly and asked Kiyono Rin:
"How did Xiao Che know that you only eat soft-boiled eggs?"
"We found out when we had breakfast together during the school trip." Qing Ye Lin couldn't help laughing when thinking of the scene at that time, "We even had a fight over whether it should be well-done or medium-rare."
"quarrel?"
"Um."
Watanabe looked at the smile on Kiyono Rin's face and didn't ask any more questions, but just smiled too.