SFS Chapter 136 Gifts
Chapter 136 Gifts
Chapter 136 Gift
Qiu Huoming hasn't gone out in the past two days since the last class reunion. Firstly, it was too hot that day, and secondly, he also had to stay at home with his family.
Chen Suniang was very skillful. She sewed a backpack for Qiu Huoming based on the shape of the one he had drawn using coarse linen cloth. She also used floral fabric to patchwork the lining and a zipper pocket on the innermost part close to his body to store important documents such as his admission letter.
There is a buckled storage pocket sewn onto the outside of the bag.
Qiu Huoming stuffed the enamel teacup, which was used for drinking water and washing, and a towel into it.
The backpack was filled with clean clothes, some simple daily necessities, and a half-cut raincoat.
It feels light and comfortable when carried on the back, and it looks pretty good.
Qiu Huoming glanced at the guitar hanging on the wall. His two younger sisters had no interest in music and this thing would just gather dust at home. He had few things of his own, so he might as well take them all to the new school.
He excitedly handed the guitar to Chen Suniang. She understood Qiu Huoming's request, took the guitar and simply measured its size. In more than two hours, she had cut and sewed the outer cover of the guitar for him.
Linen is still used.
Carry a backpack on your body and a guitar on one shoulder, perfect.
Today is Sunday. At around five o'clock in the afternoon, my younger sister met an unfamiliar postman outside the courtyard gate. She took the letter and handed it to Qiu Huoming.
Qiu Huoming leaned over to glance at the postman's back. Chunsheng should be on vacation today.
This was a letter from the editorial department of "Wulin". Qiu Huoming opened the letter and found that the general meaning of the letter was that the manuscript had been received, but some revisions were needed, and he was asked for his opinion.
His editor's surname was Ke, and he left him a phone number and return address at the end of the letter.
Qiu Huoming immediately wrote back to Editor Ke, telling him about his plan to go to Yangcheng, and finally suggested that he go to the editorial office in Yangcheng to discuss the matter in person.
In order to make it easier for his family to write to him in the future, he bought another sheet of stamps and took a stack of envelopes to keep at home when he withdrew money from the post office last time.
I just happen to be able to use it.
After applying the seal and affixing the stamp, it was getting close to evening and the weather was not so hot, so Qiu Huoming simply took the letter and walked to the post office.
Halfway along the way, we saw "Second Fool" being led by a woman. They turned from the street and walked into the alley on the side. "Second Fool" was still riding on his specially modified bicycle, moving his feet back and forth, and making simulated bicycle rolling sounds with his mouth. When he was happy in the simulation, he laughed excitedly.
The woman did not lose her temper. She walked beside him in her starched, well-worn clothes with a loving look on her face, occasionally turning her head to say something to him.
Qiu Huoming withdrew his gaze. This was the first time he had seen this woman. From the looks of her, she seemed to be a kind-hearted person.
The post office was closed, and Qiu Huoming put the reply letter into the mailbox at the corner of the street, and took a look at the mailbox opening schedule on it.
Only then did he turn around and walk back leisurely.
When passing the Dongmen Bridge, he deliberately stopped for a while. This is still a stone bridge, and the bridge deck is still a bluestone road. The water of the inland river flows under his feet. Last year, there was a flood in the Yangtze River Basin. This year, all localities have attached great importance to the flood. They cleared the silt and consolidated the dam early. The water of the inland river is connected with the Yangtze River, and the water quality is very good.
Not far away, in the narrow river channel behind the wall of my own courtyard, many adults and children were splashing around like dumplings.
On the bluestone slab by the river, a woman was squatting washing clothes. The sound of the pestle mixed with the noise of children playing made Qiu Huoming a little dazed for a moment.
There was the sound of a bicycle braking behind me.
"Go for a swim?"
Qiu Huoming knew it was Zhang Yougen's voice without even turning around.
"Forget it, there are too many people." Qiu Huoming turned around.
Zhang Yougen was standing with one foot on the curb that was more than ten centimeters higher than the bridge deck, with a cigarette in his mouth. His short-sleeved shirt with floral patterns was half open, and he was wearing a pair of large shorts of the same color. On his feet were a pair of slippers with a broken piece of plastic.
"Yeah, it's so noisy. I heard you're going to study in another place?"
"Well, let's go to Yangcheng."
"That's great. I can go out and see the world. I, your brother, will just die in this small town forever." Zhang Yougen took a deep puff of his cigarette and flicked the half-smoked cigarette butt in his hand onto the water two meters away.
"Brother Yougen, you can come and travel in the future. You are welcome to visit me in the south..." Qiu Huoming said with a grin, leaning on the railing of the bridge.
"There's something you can think about for me. You have a quick mind, so analyze it for me." Zhang Yougen simply jumped out of the car, stretched out his hand and moved the entire car onto the curb.
The car stopped aside and he leaned against Qiu Huoming's side.
"I rescued a man last time. He's a businessman. I want to be his partner..."
Qiu Huoming was surprised and asked: "Fang Jun?"
"Yes, he knows you too. You have quite a wide network of contacts."
"So what about your job?"
"If I continue to do this job, my father's old waist will be bent to his feet. I want to quit this job and become a self-employed person."
Zhang Yougen tilted his head and looked at Qiu Huoming, "I've wanted to quit this crappy job for a long time. I didn't have the opportunity before, but now..."
"As for partnership, Jun is a reliable person, but you have to listen to him. If he thinks it's not okay, then don't do it." Qiu Huoming's mind flashed with the big-character poster posted on the bulletin board...
"Tsk, Fang Jun also said that about you, saying that you look young and are reliable..."
"Hey, Jun and I are heroes who appreciate heroes. Yougen, if you are really determined, then do it. The premise is what I just said, don't touch anything that Jun doesn't agree with!"
"Okay, okay, I'll listen to him." Zhang Yougen said with a frustrated look on his face.
"Brother Yougen, it's not that you don't have the ability. It's mainly because Brother Jun started his business early. He is an expert in this field. You won't lose anything if you listen to him..."
"I know. I have an idea."
Zhang Yougen took out a pack of cigarettes from his jacket pocket, patted it for a while, and took out a piece of paper from another pocket. He handed the paper to Qiu Huoming, "Here, this is a gift for you."
Qiu Huoming took it, unfolded it and saw, 'Ticket for purchasing a 12-inch black-and-white TV'.
With this, you can spend another 440 yuan to buy one from the Supply and Marketing Building. The price of this thing has been hyped up to 85 yuan per piece at the entrance of the Supply and Marketing Building. Even if you don’t use it at home, you can exchange it for money by reselling it.
There is a limited number of these tickets in the county, and even the Ding family can’t get them, so they have to wait in line.
"This..." Qiu Huoming felt a little dilemma holding the ticket. Given Zhang Yougen's personality, if he didn't want it, he would tear it up on the spot.
"Take it. It didn't cost me any money. It's from my unit. Hey, it's just this one. I'm leaving soon anyway, so I can't let them get away with it..." Zhang Yougen reached out and patted his shoulder.
"Remember to write to me when you get to the south. Maybe I'll go there to visit you someday!"
"Thank you, Brother Yougen. I won't be polite then. I'll write to you when I get there." Qiu Huoming thought for a moment, refolded the bill and put it in his trouser pocket.
"Okay, I'm going back first. There will be a commotion at my house soon." Zhang Yougen waved his hand, pushed the bicycle away, and slid the rear stand open. He reached out and lifted the bicycle to the street. The bicycle slid forward. He lifted his foot and got on the bicycle in a cool manner and soon disappeared.
In the summer evening, the colors are strong, the river is filled with twilight, and someone on the shore is calling his family to come back.
Qiu Huoming then took a quick step and walked quickly towards home. When he reached the gate of the compound, he saw a young man selling popsicles pushing a bicycle out of the compound.
He stopped the young man and bought five red bean popsicles from the popsicle refrigerator behind his car.
After paying, he took the popsicle stick and ran home quickly. He wanted to race against the melting speed.
As soon as I rushed into the alley, I saw my little sister squatting outside the door of her house digging for insects. When she heard the noise, she turned her head and looked over. She only heard Qiu Huoming shout, "Come here, it's time for popsicles."
She immediately put the bug in her pocket and ran over quickly.
Qiu Huoming opened the outer wrapping paper and stuffed the popsicle into her mouth, "Wash your hands before taking it."
The little sister stretched out her dark hand and pinched the outermost end of the stick, and said confidently: "I don't eat sticks."
Chen Suniang was cooking dinner in the kitchen. Just as she was about to pick up the rice pot, she saw Qiu Huoming gasping for breath and saying, "Mom, take it."
A popsicle was stuffed into her hand.
Qiu Huoming then opened the screen door of the living room and gave one to his eldest sister and Qiu Jianshe. He sat down on a stool and peeled his own. Fortunately, it was still a few seconds away from melting.
He quickly bit off the part that was about to drip, and he didn't know why, but popsicles in this era would melt very quickly, unlike in later times, when there were many varieties of ice cream assassins, and even if you took them home from the community gate, they would not necessarily melt much.
The cool taste of red bean popsicles can help dissipate a lot of the summer heat.
"It's delicious." The eldest sister looked at Qiu Huoming with curved eyes and praised.
"Ice teeth." Qiu Jianshe made a comment.
Qiu Huoming didn't bother to pay attention to him and just finished the popsicle in his hand.
After a while, the younger sister came running in, collected the remaining sticks, and ran to the sink to wash them.
"You have collected dozens of them, right?" Qiu Huoming asked through the screen door.
"There are 34 of them, brother, do you want to play the stick picking game?"
"Let's play after dinner. I can beat all your sticks."
"No way. My hands are so steady."
"That's not as stable as me!"
The two people started arguing through the screen door, and it was not until Chen Suniang shouted, "Come in, get a bowl, and serve the rice..." that the two of them quieted down.
The eldest sister held back her laughter and went out to bring in the whole rice pot.
While eating, Qiu Huoming took out the piece of paper from his trouser pocket and handed it to Chen Suniang, "Mom, this is what Brother Yougen gave me. He said it was to celebrate my admission to university."
Chen Suniang unfolded it with one hand and said, "This child is very close to you. Have you thanked him?"
"Thanks, Mom. How about we buy a TV so that my elder and younger sisters don't have to run upstairs all the time..."
"It should be more than 400, right?" Chen Suniang put down the paper and sighed.
The family had just built a house and made new furniture a few days ago, so they had no extra money left. This was because the third aunt and her family had moved to the city, and the family no longer had any worries, so they gritted their teeth and spent all their savings.
If they were still in the countryside, the medical expenses for my second uncle alone would have been a huge hole.
In the early years when the village recorded work points, my grandparents and second uncle were all frail and sickly, and the only laborer was my third aunt. The family often had no food to eat, and they had to rely on their own family to support them. Chen Suniang wished she could split every penny into two halves.
My son worked hard and earned some royalties from his writings, otherwise, this house would not have been built.
"It's okay not to watch TV. You're in college now, and you have to spend money on everything. So don't buy it." Chen Suniang said firmly.
The eldest sister nodded while eating dinner, "I can choose not to watch TV."
The younger sister hesitated for a moment, then nodded obediently, "I can go to Xiaoyun's house to see it. It's not a problem at all."
Qiu Jianshe coughed lightly and said, "My salary will be increased next month. I will save for a few more months and then we will buy it by the end of the year!"
He had seen Chen Suniang once outside seeing someone else's family watching TV in their courtyard. She couldn't move her feet and watched for a long time through the courtyard gate.
Qiu Huoming smiled and said, "Mom, I'll pay for this. When Dad saves enough money at the end of the year, he can pay me back..."
Qiu Jianshe raised his eyebrows and said, "This is not a small amount of money. I'm afraid the money you earn from writing is not enough. You still have to go to school, which is a long way to go. You need money everywhere you go."
"It's okay. I wrote a long novel last time, and someone sent me half a year's worth of royalties in one go. I have plenty of money on hand. So, Dad, you're not going to pay me back, are you?"
Qiu Huoming glanced at Qiu Jianshe.
Chen Suniang said angrily, "It's not that precious. Why do you have to watch TV?"
Qiu Huoming put the paper in the glass cabinet of the chest of drawers and said, "I'll buy it tomorrow! Dad, remember to save the money. When I come back after the New Year, I will get back the principal and interest."
Qiu Jianshe replied gently, "Okay, I'll give it to you."
He looked at Chen Suniang and said with a smile: "Suniang, you can watch TV series at home from now on!"
Chen Suniang opened her mouth, but her voice stopped in her throat and she didn't know what to say for a moment.
The younger sister looked at everyone at the table and suddenly asked in confusion, "Mom, why are you crying?"
Over there, Qiu Jianshe was helping Chen Suniang wipe her tears, looking a little helpless.
Qiu Huoming lowered his head and quickly finished the rice in the bowl.
The eldest sister reached out and pulled the younger sister. The younger sister looked away thoughtfully, and imitated her eldest brother, pretending not to see it, and began to eat her food desperately.
The little incident at the dinner table just passed like that.
After dinner, the little sister waited until the table was cleared before she took out her set of popsicle sticks from the inner room.
Playing this 'picking sticks' game is very simple. Just hold the sticks in your hand and place them vertically on the table, then release your hands and let the numerous sticks in your hand scatter naturally.
Next, take turns picking up the sticks on the table. You must not move or touch any other sticks except your target stick. After picking up the target stick, it is your prey. Next, you can use the prey (stick) in your hand to help pick up your other target sticks.
The more sticks you get your hands on, the more powerful you are.
Soon, the eldest sister also joined in, and the three of them lay at the dining table concentrating fully and having a lot of fun.
When Chen Suniang finished cleaning the kitchen and walked in, she saw this scene and immediately laughed.
"Who won?" she asked.
The younger sister said reluctantly, "For now, it's the eldest brother!"
The eldest sister winked at Qiu Huoming, and the younger sister acted as if assisted by God in the following operations. The eldest brother and the elder sister made mistakes one after another, and finally she took all the remaining sticks.
The little sister's face was covered in sweat and looked particularly happy. She took her trophy and ran to Chen Suniang to take credit.
"Mom, I won!"
Qiu Jianshe raised his head and looked at his younger sister, then endured it, lowered his head and looked through the documents in his hand without saying a word.
"My little sister is really awesome." Qiu Huoming put the stick in his hand back on the table with a smile.
The younger sister came over proudly, "Want to play another round?"
"Let's go out and enjoy the cool air. It's too hot in the house."
"Great!" The younger sister immediately packed up her beloved sticks and put them back in the inner room, then ran out to help Qiu Huoming carry the cot.
"No, just open the screen door."
Qiu Huoming clasped his hands and lifted up the bed.
It was very lively outdoors on a summer night, so my little sister simply took the bird in the cardboard box out.
Soon, the bed where she was was surrounded by children, all of whom looked at the "ugly girl" in the little sister's paper box with envy...
Qiu Huoming was squeezed out of space, so he stood up awkwardly, looked around, then put his hands in his pockets and walked back.
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