Starting in the morning, it took a whole day on the road to reach the provincial capital.
In addition, there was an unexpected thing; that is, Zhang Qiaoer had very serious car sickness. She vomited all the way until it was dark. Jiahui couldn’t bear to see it. She felt guilty for letting an old woman throw herself around.
On the way, Meixiang took care of Zhang Qiaoer and Jiahui took care of Fang Fang. Donglin and Donglai were responsible for watching Yingbao and Heidan and caring for things. The whole family was a little dizzy. When the car arrived at the destination, everyone was relieved.
“Aigoo, my ass, here we are here at last.”
When Zhang Qiaoer got off the bus, her legs were unsteady and she was shivering, so Meixang helped her.
Jiahui took Fang Fang in her arms and asked, “Mom, how are you? I’m sorry for letting you suffer behind us. “
In all conscience, it is not easy for her mother-in-law to follow them into the city. Not to mention this era, there are still many old people in the 21st century who are not willing to leave their hometown to live in the city.
Of course, Jiahui also knew that her mother-in-law was willing to suffer this hardship not for herself but for the sake of her children, and because she knew this, she focused on Heidan’s schooling when she first persuaded her.
The relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law was naturally difficult. It can be said that it’s easy to say that it’s easy to give her mother-in-law enough respect. No matter what you say, you should put your husband and children first. As a daughter-in-law, you should understand that a daughter-in-law is a daughter-in-law and you’re an outsider in your mother-in-law’s family. While being self-reliant, don’t think too much about yourself. In this way, the relationship between the two parties will be easier to get along with.
Zhang Qiao’er was physically and mentally unhappy, but when her daughter-in-law said this, she was embarrassed to say anything. She waved her hand and said, “It’s not much. Just let me take a break.”
Jiahui smiled and turned to ask Zhao Donglin, “Is the place we’re going to live in still far from here? It’s really inconvenient for us to carry so many things. Why don’t we find a place to eat first and take a break? “
Zhao Donglin raised his wrist and looked at the time. He shook his head and said, “It’s getting late. We can’t get on the bus. We’d better endure harder and settle down first. “
Since Zhao Donglin said so, Jiahui naturally had no opinion. After all, Zhao Donglin has been here before, he knows the way. It was the first time for them to go to the provincial capital, and they didn’t have much experience.
On the other hand, she was only taking care of the children, not comparable to her two brothers, who carried the luggage and picked up the baskets all the way.
Several people took their children’s luggage to the bus stop and waited for about 20 minutes before the bus passing through Wudong University arrived at the station. When they got on the bus, they were “looked at differently” by other passengers because they were carrying baskets. Meixiang was still a little girl. She was a little embarrassed to receive such “attention” for the first time. She grabbed her clothes and turned red. Jiahui was much more comfortable. She turned a blind eye to those strange eyes.
If it was before she had transmigrated, she may have felt that this was a shameful thing. Jiahui’s mentality naturally changed after experiencing transmigrating in this era and living her day-to-day life in the countryside.
Poverty does not mean inferiority. Although they seem to be full of local flavour and look incompatible with the city, they are using their own efforts to change their destiny. She believed that in the near future, they could get rid of poverty and no longer be ridiculed because of their clothes, their accent, and so on.
There were several seats on the bus, so Jiahui asked Zhang Qiaoer to sit down first, and Meixiang and her children also sat down.
When Zhang Qiao’er started to get dizzy and nauseous again, Zhao Donglin opened the window for her to breathe in the air outside the window.
A middle-aged woman sitting next to Zhang Qiaoer rolled her eyes in disgust and said something in her mouth. Because of the distance, Jiahui did not hear it. She only noticed that Zhao Donglin turned her head after looking at the woman.
After the bus drove for about a quarter of an hour, they got off at the “Wudong University” station.
Wu Dong University was the highest institution of learning in Wu Dong Province and had a history of hundreds of years. Even in the twenty-first century, even if Wu Dong University was not as good as Peking University and Tsinghua University, it was still one of the top ten universities in China.
The lofty and simple school gate was more than ten meters wide. Two huge lion statues looked intimidating. They looked through the iron gate and looked into the school. They can’t see the end at a glance. Zhang Qiaoer’s heart was in awe. Zhao Donglin was the same as Meixiang. One reason was that she regretted that she didn’t get admitted to Wu Dong, and the other was that she was envious that her eldest brother and sister-in-law could study in such a cultural school.
Zhao Donghe had 3 siblings. The eldest brother and younger sister were promising. The eldest sister need not be mentioned since she was already old. As a younger brother, he doesn’t even have the courage to try. So now, he could only watch with envy and could not obtain such an honor.
For the first time, thinking of Shitou’s words before coming here, Zhao Donghe gave birth to feelings of guilt.
Shitou said, “Dad, why did all my brothers and sisters go to the city and I have to stay in the countryside alone?”
He’s a child without a mother. He already owes him a lot, and now, because of his own lack of motivation, his own children do not even have the opportunity to study in the city, and he feels he is not worthy of being a father.
“This school is so big that you can’t see the end at a glance.”
His own son and daughter-in-law will be studying at this school in the future. Just thinking of it made her feel how glorious it is!
Zhao Donglin sensed his mother’s relief and pointed to the distance and said, “Mom, the house we rented was right behind the school.”
Shen Nianru looked at Yingbao in Zhao Donglin’s arms; she looked good and lovely, and then she glanced at Fang Fang in Jiahui’s arms; he looked like a good-fortune child, as white and fat, his eyes were round as if it could speak. Her heart suddenly softened.
When she was young and busy with her career, she neglected to take care of her daughter, and when her daughter grew up, she had that incident, and all her life, she owed it to her daughter. When she saw such a small doll, she thought of her daughter’s young age, and her eyes began to sour.
Shen Nianru didn’t show any surprise in her eyes when she saw them coming with loads of pots and pans. In the years of decentralization, she lived in a cowshed, ate rotten rice, and suffered all kinds of hardships. In those days, the most terrible thing was the bad people who took the opportunity to make trouble, split and vent their anger, while the simple villagers sometimes looked at them pitifully and helped them under pressure from time to time. Therefore, seeing the Zhao family, Shen Nianru felt kind in her heart.
“Hello, I’m Zhao Donglin’s wife. My name is Dong Jiahui. “
“Oh, good, this wife looks really beautiful.”
Isn’t it? Although she married and gave birth to a baby, she still looks very young, just in her early twenties. She has a twisted braid, a smile on her face, a faint lying cicada, and a small pear vortex at the corner of her mouth.
“This is my mother-in-law, Zhang Qiaoer. She was seasick all day today. She is feeling comfortable right now.”
“I have packed out the house. These three rooms in the front are for you to live in. The two pieces at the back are for our old couple. I also had a small door opened on the side, so you will not be disturbed normally.”
“Auntie, you’re being too harsh. We’re the ones who should be bothering you. After Donglin went back and told me you, I told him that we had met a noble person, how could we have lived in such a good house?”
Shen Nianru’s face had been wearing a smile. The more she looked at Jiahui, the more she liked her. This girl was beautiful, with a sweet mouth, and when she went to school, she also did not forget to take her children. It means that she’s a good mother, she was responsible for the children, and their mother-in-law and daughter-in-law’s relationship was quite harmonious, which shows that her attitude was not bad.
People’s eyes are sometimes so simple. They are good if they’re pleasing to the eye, and bad if they’re not pleasing to the eye.
After exchanging pleasantries, Shen Nianru left to go back to the backyard, leaving time for them to sort things out.
“By the way, have you eaten? If not, I have rice, noodles, and vegetables. I’ll take it to you and cook it first. “
They really didn’t have the time to eat, so when they heard Shen Nianru’s offer, they felt grateful for her consideration.
“Thank you so much, we really didn’t have time to eat.”
Shen Nianru took a small bag of flour from the backyard along with potatoes, carrots, and cabbage, and Jiahui made noodle soup and sent a pot over to them.
“This noodle slice soup has the taste of what I ate when I was a child. I didn’t expect your wife’s skill to be so good.
“She is indeed quite good at cooking; she’s meticulous at work.”
“Well, I can see that the children are clean.”
She has been to the countryside. The children in the countryside are like mud monkeys, and their clothes are not exquisite. The three children of the Zhao family were different. It was clean and tidy, and the children were sensible.
“These three are yours?”
“How old is Jiahui? I think your big boy is not young. “
She looks six or seven years old, but Jiahui looks like she’s only in her early twenties. It’s hard not to get married and have children in your twenties.
“Heidan and Yingbao were born of my ex-wife.”
“Huh?”
Shen Nianru really did not think there was any hidden information here.
You’ve been divorced? Aren’t you a soldier? “
A military marriage was protected by law. Maybe they’ve lost their sight? Was Zhao Donglin a person who was never satisfied with what he had?
“My ex-wife was an educated young woman who went to the countryside. I didn’t know what happened three years ago. She wanted to divorce me and wanted to go back to the city. At that time, I was still in the army. Maybe I had high self-esteem. I agreed when I saw her insist. After the divorce, I was afraid that no one would take care of my children at home, so I retired from the army and returned home. Our division commander thought it was a pity for me to leave the army like this, and gave me a job transfer. “
Zhao Donglin lightly said the matter of divorce. Shen Nianru and Zhong Daomin have life experience and know that things are not so simple.
“That is when you found your wife, Jiahui.”
“Yes, Originally, I didn’t want to get married and delay others, but I didn’t think I could find a wife. I chose Jiahui myself. She was also a poor girl. When I returned to my hometown, she had just been driven back to her mother’s house by her ex-husband’s house.
The old couple looked at each other, not expecting that Jiahui was also a divorcee.
“Why? I think Jiahui is a good daughter.
“They were married for three years without a child. They said she could not have a child. There are three ways to be unfilial; having no sons is the worst. “
Shen Nianru shook her head and sighed. There are just these foolish people.
“The combination of you two is just right.”
They are all excellent young people who have suffered the hardships of life and have a good temperament. On the contrary, they are more suitable than in the previous marriage.
This also reflects the saying that couples who can live well together still need to be like-minded to do so.
“I think this family is okay. When they come, our days will also be a lot more lively.”
“It’s good that you’re happy.”
Seeing his wife in a better mood, Zhong Daomin also felt good about the idea that suddenly flashed through his mind at the time.
“This noodle soup is really quite delicious, but you should not eat more. If you eat too much at night again, you might accumulate food. “
For a long time, they were often hungry. The old man was afraid that she could not eat enough. He always hid his share for her to eat. He was hungry and broke his stomach. Now he is hungry and full. He is six cents short for each meal.
Simple food is also a blessing. Since their daughter is gone, they will hand over the rest of their days to school and society to cultivate more useful talents.
After crossing over, Jiahui finally used a bathroom, which had a simple washing table, a squatting pit that could flush, and a lattice that could shower and pull the shower curtain. She took a bath happily, as if she had washed away all the maladjustment and inner haze after the transmigration, and was full of hope for her future life.
Yingbao ran around the house happily, this place was too new for her, no dirt, a few pots of moonflowers in the corner, no creek, but dad said that there is a small park nearby, so he can take her to play tomorrow during the day.
“The city is good, but I’m not used to it.”
Their old home’s cooking fire is fine, what gas stove should be used for cooking in the city? Moreover, they said that the gas stove would explode if it was not used well. She was so scared that she didn’t even dare to cook.
There’s also the toilet. It’s too tiring to squat and the water is rushing. It is said that using tap water also needs to be paid for. Eating and drinking still need to spend money.
Of course, Zhang Qiaoer didn’t say this to her daughter-in-law, but to her own daughter.
“Mom, you can live in a down-to-earth way first. People can’t enjoy happiness when they think of the city. My sister-in-law was also considering what was good for my nephew and niece. She said that she would go to Heidan’s school tomorrow. Studying in the city is not better than in the countryside. When he makes money, he will go to a good university and buy food and drink for you as a grandmother. You will be envied by other people. “
Zhang Qiaoer laughed and sighed after laughing. If it weren’t for her grandson, she wouldn’t have suffered the crime. In the beginning, she also complained about her daughter-in-law. Why wouldn’t she leave her children at home? Was she afraid that they wouldn’t take care of them well?
But her daughter-in-law said that leaving children behind was not good and will affect the child’s mental health.
What is meant by “mental health”? She does not understand. Anyway, her son and daughter-in-law can do whatever they want. She’s not afraid of suffering. As long as this will be useful for the children and with it, they can live a good life, these hardships are not in vain.
On that day, Jiahui didn’t sleep until midnight. There were three rooms in the front yard. She lived with Zhao Donglin and Fang Fang. Today, Zhao Donghe was also there. He took Heidan and Zhang Qiaoer, and they lived with Meixiang and Yingbao. When Donghe went back, it would be Zhang Qiaoer who would stay with Heidan and Meixiang who would be with Yingbao.
The next day, just after dawn Zhang Qiaoer got up, she wanted to make breakfast but did not know how to get a gas stove, so she had to light a briquette to make a stove.
There was no rice at home, and she also did not know where to buy it, so she made cakes with the rest of the flour.
Zhao Donglin was the second to get up, seeing his mother had already made the stove.
“There’s no rice at home. I do not know how to use that stove, so let’s just make do with what we have.”
“There is a market in the east. I’ll go see if there is breakfast for sale.”
Zhang Qiaoer hurriedly stopped him. Why do I have to spend money? Just eat what we have. Do you have to eat something good? Hey, we have to spend money on everything in this city. I really can’t live a day. “
If I had known, I would have carried a bag of rice from home.
“Mom, it’s okay. When we start school, we can get food from the school. School food is usually cheaper.”
Zhang Qiaoer also just complained and did not really blame anyone, but she had something in her heart, she did want to say that she felt uncomfortable.
Jiahui slept a little longer today, and when she got up, her mother-in-law had already made the meal.
“Eat. There is no rice at home, so no porridge. Drink some plain water.”
After eating breakfast, Zhao Donglin went out with Jiahui, taking the children with him to buy back the things that the family needed.
Notlucia: Since I’m done translating this novel, New Schedule! 3 times a week update! Every Monday! Advance Happy Chinese New year Everyone!