Volume 4: Beginning of Spring Chapter 7 New Year Greetings
The morning light fell in through the window.
Tang Butian opened her eyes and saw the familiar window, small sofa and round table. She sat up and pulled back the quilt.
She was wearing the same clothes she had worn yesterday.
The coat and wooden sword were placed at the foot of the bed.
After getting out of bed and washing up in the bathroom, she went downstairs.
There were some snacks and drinks scattered around on the long table.
The screen of the iPad on the stand was dark.
She looked outside the store. Fine dust was floating in the sunlight. Jiang You was watering the flowers and plants in the flower bed with a watering can.
Jiang You turned around and asked, "Are you awake?"
She walked out.
She saw Jiang Mo wearing a red cotton jacket and sitting on the swing.
Zhaocai jumped down from the wall, chose a comfortable place, and lay down to bask in the sun.
Jiang Mo glanced at her and turned his head away.
"You fell asleep halfway through the movie yesterday . I was afraid you would catch a cold if you slept on your stomach, so I moved you upstairs," Jiang You said.
"Didn't you sleep?" Tang Butian asked.
"It must be afternoon when I wake up after sleeping," Jiang You yawned, and asked while sprinkling water: "Are you going back?"
Tang Butian nodded slightly.
Jiang You walked to the camphor tree and poured the remaining water in the pot into the soil beside the camphor tree.
Tang Butian looked at the camphor tree's branches and leaves, which had obviously become sparse. She asked, "Can it absorb the liquid I brought last time?"
"Keep it for yourself," Jiang You bent down and put the kettle on the ground, then he walked to Tang Butian, "When spring comes, it will grow back."
"good."
"Let's take a taxi together. I just want to take Jiang Mo to visit them for the New Year. They are also in Ning'an District. I'll drop you off first, and then we'll go get the red envelopes." Jiang You turned around and said to Jiang Mo, "Let's go. Be a little sweet today, okay?"
※
The alarm rang.
Dai Qi turned over, reached out to the pillow for his phone, and pressed the side button.
His body twisted a few times in the quilt.
Ten minutes later, the alarm rang again.
This time, she sat up, picked up her phone and turned off the alarm. There were many WeChat messages on her phone, all wishing her a happy new year. She read them one by one, then copied one of them, edited it and replied.
After doing all this, she sighed, stood up, put on her clothes, and walked out of the room.
There was a half-eaten plate of fried rice on the living room table.
Walk into the bathroom.
After walking out again, she took down her down jacket and bag from the hanger, put on her coat, made sure she had her keys, and walked out.
But the subway station was empty on New Year's Day.
When I got on the subway, there were only two people in the carriage.
Dai Qi kept his head down and looked at his phone.
The subway stopped for a while between stations. Dai Qi looked up and saw the man sitting opposite her looking at her. He had a strange face and big black eyes that seemed to take up three quarters of his eye sockets.
He smiled at Dai Qi, and she lowered her head again in fear.
The subway started running.
Dai Qi listened to the announcement of the station, and when she heard that Xietang Road Station had arrived, she tightly grasped her bag. When the subway stopped and the door opened, she rushed out. When she rushed to the elevator entrance, she subconsciously looked behind her, and no one followed her out of the train.
The carriage door closed.
She breathed a sigh of relief, walked into the elevator, and walked out of the subway station, the sunlight falling on her.
After buying a cup of hot soy milk and a meat bun at the convenience store, she walked towards the company.
As she was walking across a lawn, she heard a cat's meow, and then she saw a black cat standing in the bushes looking at her.
She walked up to the black cat and squatted down.
She found that the cat's two eyes were different colors, one was blue and the other was golden.
"are you hungry?"
The black cat looked at the bun in her hand.
"Is it because you can't find anything to eat during the Chinese New Year holiday?" She took the meat bun out of the plastic bag, broke it into small pieces and placed them in front of the black cat. "Don't eat too much. There is salt and oil in it..."
The cell phone rang.
Dai Qi took out her cell phone from her bag, and after the call was connected, she stood up and said, "Brother, what's the matter?"
"Why didn't you come back?"
"I told my mom that I went back when I was eleven..."
"I got home at two o'clock last night. If your sister-in-law hadn't stopped me and said you should go to bed, I would have called you at that time."
"Today's overtime pay is tripled, brother, you and sister-in-law should stay at home and spend more time with our parents."
"Are you afraid of what your relatives will gossip about?"
"No." Dai Qi denied.
…
The black cat watched Dai Qi walk forward.
Its body became lighter and lighter until it disappeared.
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Jiang You carried Jiang Mo up the stairs.
The door with the word "Fu" on it was half open. After Jiang You knocked a few times, he opened the door.
His aunt Jiang Qin came out of the kitchen wearing an apron.
After seeing Jiang You, Jiang Qin was stunned for a moment.
Jiang You said: "Aunt, I'm Jiang You, Happy New Year. "
"It's really you! Why are you fat... Happy New Year." Jiang Qin saw Jiang Mo, she hesitated for a moment and asked: "Is this your child?"
"Yes, his name is Jiang Mo, Jiang Mo, call me aunt, and say Happy New Year."
Jiang Mo looked at Jiang Qin and said nothing.
Jiang Qin smiled awkwardly and said, "Your son is very good-looking, with a delicate and graceful figure, as if he walked out of a New Year picture."
As she spoke, Jiang Qin took out a red envelope from her bag and stuffed it into Jiang Mo's hand.
Jiang You laughed and asked, "Where are my grandparents?"
"They are in the room. I will take you in."
She took off her apron and put it on the table. She walked to the door of the master bedroom and opened it. "Dad, Mom, look who's here."
Jiang You walked in holding Jiang Mo.
The two old men who were sitting on rattan chairs watching TV looked at Jiang You.
"Grandpa and grandma, I'm Jiang You, and this is my son Jiang Mo."
"Oh, oh..." Jiang Yuanzhong and Wang Jie didn't react for a moment, and then the expressions on their faces became complicated, with excitement and guilt.
Jiang Qin arranged for Jiang You and Jiang Mo to sit down.
She took out the nut plate and put it on the table. She looked at Jiang You and asked, "Where have you been these years?"
"I've been in Tangjiang all the time." Jiang You touched a pistachio, peeled it, and stuffed the kernel into Jiang Mo's mouth.
"Are you still living in your original home?" Jiang Qin asked tentatively.
"No, I opened a shop and lived in it."
Jiang Yuanzhong took out two red envelopes from his pocket. He and Wang Jie stood up tremblingly, walked up to Jiang You, and said, "Tell me again, what is his name?"
“Minced ginger.”
"Jiang Mo, good, that's a good name ," he said as he handed the red envelope to Jiang Mo, "I am your great-grandfather."
Jiang You reached out to take the red envelope, and stuffed it into Jiang Mo's hand. He said, "Call me great grandfather, great grandmother, and say Happy New Year."
Jiang Mo still didn't speak.
Jiang Qin, Jiang Yuanzhong and Wang Jie looked at each other.
"He is rather introverted and shy," Jiang You explained.
"I hope we can see each other more often in the future." Jiang Qin took over the conversation, and then she asked, "Will you stay for dinner?"
"No, I'll bring him here to recognize someone today."
"Your uncle," Jiang Qin looked at Jiang You's expression, "He will be here soon."
"Then I'll leave. I didn't come so early because I didn't want to meet him." Jiang You stood up holding Jiang Mo and said, "Grandpa and grandma, I'm leaving."
"Let's have a meal together." Wang Jie said, "Your uncle, at that time he was doing..."
"Next time, next time." Jiang You walked out.
Jiang Qin called him, "Wait, leave me your phone number, or tell me where your store is, and then..."
"It's on Wenhua Street, No. 42 Wenfeng Road. No need to see me off. Goodbye."
Jiang You closed the door and walked downstairs.
After walking out of the doorway, he took the three red envelopes from Jiang Mo's hand, opened them, counted the amount, and then put the red envelopes back into his bag.
"Let's go to your great uncle's house again, and we'll have identified all the relatives. Then you can be sure that this person exists."
"Are you sleepy? Why aren't you sleepy when you're playing games?" Jiang You yawned.
Jiang Mo buried his head in Jiang You's shoulder.
"Tomorrow when we go to Chen Nan's parents' house, you must ask for help. Do you hear me?"
