Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 386 News of the Eldest Brother

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Xiaowei's mother said, "Why go see her when it's not a holiday? Besides, what kind of in-laws would travel so far to see their daughter-in-law? Let's wait until your brother has time to bring her back before we go see her. She's a volunteer soldier this year, so she should be able to come back for the New Year."

Xiao Wei asked, "So my brother plans to stay there and not come back? He'll settle down there?"

Xiaowei's mother said, "That's exactly what I mean. Volunteer soldiers are basically working in the military, and they already have partners. They only have one daughter, and you're bringing her here? Like Xiaohong's family, how can the old couple survive?"

Xiao Wei nodded, turned to see that Xiao Bing had almost finished gnawing on the pig's trotters, stood up, grabbed a basin, added some hot water, and said to Xiao Bing, "Come here and wash your hands. Can you really eat a bellyful of pig's trotters this late at night? Won't your stomach hurt?"

The soldier went to get soap to wash his hands and face, saying, "It can't hurt. I can eat two more, and even three can't hurt."

Xiao Wei said, "If you eat another one, I'll stew you like a pig's trotter. Go wash up and go to bed. Don't give him these things before bed in the future." Xiao Wei turned to his mother and said.

Xiaowei's mom said, "Your dad, it's cooking right now. It's been sitting on Gudao Island all night. I just brought one over."

Xiao Wei asked, "Why is my dad making braised pig's trotters so late at night?"

Xiaowei's mother laughed and said, "That's an interesting question. What else is there to cook when you're making pig's trotters? You're just craving them, aren't you? Your dad has only ever loved gnawing on pig's trotters. You're all grown up now, and this is the only dish he's ever cooked. He's never even touched a pot before."

Xiao Wei said, "My dad likes to eat pig's trotters? I've never heard you guys mention that. I don't think we ever made pig's trotters much at home."

Xiao Wei's mother bit off the thread, glanced at Xiao Wei, and said, "Back then, who had the money to eat pig's feet every day? Besides, where could we buy them? Every family only slaughtered one pig for the New Year."

Xiaowei took a towel and wiped Xiaobing's face, saying, "I didn't hear you mention this before. If you had told me earlier, I would have bought it and prepared it. I only bought a few for the New Year, and I don't eat that much, so I didn't remember to buy any. You two have been so polite with me all day!"

Xiaowei's mother put away her needlework and said with a smile, "Don't be so polite. Living here, eating big meals every day, how can it be the same as before? I don't know why he suddenly thought of this today. He can do it if he wants, or not if he doesn't. Whatever he does, it's none of my business. We have everything we need now."

The soldier said, "My dad makes really delicious pig's trotters, let's make more, what are we doing all this time?"

Xiaowei laughed and slapped Xiaobing on the bottom. Xiaobing yelled and jumped onto the bed and burrowed under the covers. Xiaowei put Xiaobing's homework, books, and pencil case into his schoolbag, stood up, and said, "Then you guys go to sleep. I'm going back to my room."

Xiaowei's mother said, "Call your brother tomorrow and see what he's thinking. Tell him about our family's current situation so he can understand. We can't help much over the years because we're so far away. He's had to rely on himself to get to where he is now. It hasn't been easy for your brother either. How much does he earn a month there? He's always thinking about sending money home. He sent another 500 yuan back today."

Xiao Wei laughed and said, "Okay, I'll call him tomorrow. It was hard to keep in touch before when he was in the combat unit. I'll wire some money to my brother tomorrow. He's got a stable job now and he's dating someone. Consider this my support for him."

Xiaowei's mother smiled and looked at Xiaowei, saying, "Really? How much are you planning to transfer?"

Xiao Wei asked, "If we get married over there, will the military provide housing?"

Xiao Wei's mother shook her head and said, "How would anyone know? Even if they tried to intervene, it would probably just be a half-hearted effort, and it all depends on personal connections."

Xiao Wei thought for a moment and said, "I'll wire 100,000 yuan to my brother tomorrow so he can buy a house."

Xiao Wei's mother was stunned for a moment and said, "One hundred thousand? You're really willing to spend that much? Won't it affect your affairs?"

Xiao Wei laughed and said, "What's there to be reluctant about? That's my brother, isn't it? Okay, go to sleep now, I'm going back to my room." He got up and walked out, changing his shoes. Xiao Wei's mother pulled at the blanket, then stopped after a couple of tugs and said, "Wei, if you really want to send money, you have to tell Xiao Hong first. Don't let her find out and cause trouble later. If Xiao Hong isn't happy, don't force her."

Xiao Wei changed his shoes and said, "You think too highly of Xiao Hong. She's actually much more magnanimous than me. Okay, go to sleep, you don't need to worry about her." He opened the door and left. Xiao Wei's mother looked at the head of the bed for a while, then sighed. Xiao Bing tossed and turned in the blankets and said, "Mom, Mom, pat me, pat me." Xiao Wei's mother then came to her senses, looked at her youngest son, and reached out to gently pat him through the blankets.

Xiao Wei's dad opened the door, humming a little tune, and came in carrying two thermos flasks. He glanced into the room and said, "Xiao Wei's back in his room?" He turned and closed the door, then took a basin, mixed some water, sat down on the floor, took off his shoes, and washed his feet. He said, "Shall we go check on Da Jun? What do you think?"

Xiaowei's mother patted her youngest son and said, "Just send some photos back by mail. Why go all this way? What kind of old man rushes to see his wife? He should be able to come back now that he's a returning volunteer soldier. Let's wait until the second half of the year to see."

Xiao Wei's dad washed and dried his feet, opened the door, splashed the water out, mixed another basin of water, put on slippers, and brought the water into the room, saying, "Come wash your feet. If you're not going, then you're not going. It really is time for you to come back, it's been over a year, hasn't it? Now that you've become a volunteer soldier, there's nothing to worry about, that's good. It's just that your wife is a bit far away, do you think she's not planning to come back?" He squatted down to help Xiao Wei's mom take off her socks.

Xiaowei's mother gently patted her youngest son with one hand, stretched her legs off the bed for her husband to serve her, and said, "He finally got into the volunteer army and even found a girlfriend, why is he coming back? All these years he's been struggling so far away by himself, and we couldn't help him at all. It's not easy for the child either, let him do whatever he wants."

Xiaowei's father soaked Xiaowei's mother's feet in the basin and washed them slowly, saying, "I didn't say anything about it. It's just that conditions are better now. I was thinking that it would be nice if the whole family could be together if he came back."

Xiaowei's mother turned to look at her youngest son and said, "Both of them are fine. Now it's just a matter of seeing who's better. I never dared to imagine things would be like this before. This past year has felt like a dream. Now that your back has healed, I don't ask for anything else. I just want things to be peaceful and stable. Don't even think about bringing the eldest son back. He finally made it through all that hard work over there. What would he come back for? What about his job? What about his future? This is all thanks to the second son's own hard work. Don't try to make any arrangements for him."

Xiaowei's dad said, "I didn't have those kinds of thoughts. I was just thinking that the second son could find someone to help the eldest son find a job. Xiaohong's dad was able to do that, so it shouldn't be too difficult for the eldest son, right?" He then brought a towel to wipe Xiaowei's mom's feet.

The "Xingcheng Military Management Office" reference was used in the 70s. However, after much thought, I'll use it again, as the transfer of military assets was a large-scale and influential event in the early 90s. Let me explain the details.

(End of this chapter)