Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 463 Sightseeing

Xiao Wei said, "You think it's spicy? But there really are chilies here. If you get the amount of seasoning right, it will taste good, but the original flavor may not necessarily come through. You can make this at home; it's not troublesome."

The meal lasted almost two hours, with the latter half mainly spent sightseeing. It cost 440 yuan, and I'm glad I didn't buy meal tickets.

After finishing our meal, we washed our hands in the restroom and then climbed the stairs to the top open-air viewing platform. The nearly 1,000-square-meter platform looked even more spacious at a height of 200 meters. At this point, there was no enclosed iron mesh yet, just a railing about chest-high, which made the view more comfortable.

There are four electronic telescopes in the east, west, south, and north. They are coin-operated, with one coin for one minute and one dollar for one minute. You can also insert a one-dollar steel coin directly.

None of the people had a one-yuan coin on them, so Xiaowei went downstairs to the souvenir shop and exchanged fifty yuan to share with everyone. The three families occupied three binoculars, which meant there were only a few people. If there were more people, they would definitely have started arguing. Most citizens would have come up here once in a while and then stand there waiting for you to see ten yuan worth of binoculars.

When you have something to do, ten minutes pass quickly, but when you stand there staring at others and waiting, ten minutes can feel like a very long time.

After watching for a while, Xiaowei's family separated again. Xiaohong pulled Xiaowei to the telescope where no one was around to look, while Aunt Wang played with one by herself.

People would come up from time to time, but no one came to play with the binoculars. One dollar a minute was still quite expensive at this time, and most citizens couldn't bear to spend the money.

"Xiao Wei, Xiao Wei, Xiao Wei, Lao Xia. Come on, come on. Come quickly." Chen Hui called out urgently. Chen Xiao smiled while holding the binoculars. Xiao Wei and Xia Maosheng ran over to Chen Hui's side. There was nearly a thousand square meters between the two binoculars, which were tens of meters apart.

Chen Hui patted the binoculars and said, "Come and see, don't move, just look directly." He was holding the binoculars steady to fix the lens.

Xia Maosheng leaned over to take a look, snorted, pulled out a coin and stuffed it in, then looked again and said, "You two are really something, finding this. Aren't you afraid of getting corns?"

Chen Hui laughed heartily, and Chen Xiao laughed along, her face slightly flushed. Xiao Wei asked, "What are you looking at?"

Xia Maosheng stepped aside and tugged at Xiao Wei, saying, "Come on, see for yourself."

Xiao Wei leaned over, shook his head, looked for a while, and then let out a soft sound. Xiao Hong called out from the other end, "What's wrong?"

Xiao Wei said, "It's nothing." He gave Chen Hui a thumbs-up and turned back to Xiao Hong. Xiao Hong glanced at Chen Hui and Xia Maosheng and asked, "What's wrong? Why did I call you?"

Xiao Wei said, "Chen Hui and his wife weren't looking at the scenery, they were staring at that building. Turns out there was a couple making a baby over there, and they didn't close the window."

Xiao Hong said doubtfully, "Making babies? Ugh, ugh, you guys are disgusting...Aren't they pretty?"

Xiao Wei scratched his head and said, "I didn't see it very clearly, I just glanced at it."

Xiao Hong glanced over there, raised an eyebrow, and whispered, "My classmate said there's a videotape. Want to watch it?"

Xiao Wei glared at Xiao Hong and said, "Are you capable now? You want to try everything."

Xiao Hong pouted and muttered, "What's so great about it? Only you guys are interested in watching it!"

Xiao Wei turned his head away, pretending not to hear. Discussing this topic in this day and age is still quite awkward, even for a married couple.

Before 95, DVDs weren't widespread; videotapes were the popular choice. Those devices were bulky, expensive, and had poor picture quality. But because they were expensive, they were quite mysterious and not everyone could see them. Back then, it was a big deal to say that someone had watched a videotape.

In 93, a Songxia VCR cost over four thousand yuan, and a videotape cost eighty or one hundred yuan. At that time, a deluxe cassette tape cost over twenty yuan.

Several people, mainly Chen Xiaohong and Geng Hui, took turns looking at the forty-four yuan bill in one go before they stopped. Aunt Wang looked at the six yuan bill, but she probably didn't pay attention while looking at it. After she finished looking at it, she was a little embarrassed, since it was six yuan in just a few glances.

Xiao Wei and the other two basically stayed with him, the three of them getting together to smoke a cigarette and chat.

"Xiao Xiao, why don't you go downstairs and sit for a while? It's windy up here, and you've been up and about for so long. Go downstairs, have a cup of hot water, and rest for a bit." Aunt Wang waved to Chen Xiao from the stairwell door. Chen Xiao and the other two went downstairs with Aunt Wang, arm in arm. Xiao Wei and the others finished their cigarettes and followed them down. They found a seat in the restaurant to enjoy the view and asked the waiter to pour them a few cups of hot water.

It was the same waiter who came over carrying a thermos, paused for a moment, and asked, "You're eating here again tonight?"

Xia Maosheng said, "Yeah, we're planning to stay here. Is there a place to stay?"

The waiter took it seriously, shook his head, and said, "No, no one can stay up here. There are hotels down below the tower; they're clean and inexpensive."

Chen Hui took out his phone and said, "I almost forgot, I didn't call Uncle Wang. He'll be so worried when he gets home tonight and there's no food or anything to eat!"

Xiao Hong said, "My dad isn't worried at all. He'll go find something to eat at the restaurant himself. I bet Lao Wang is secretly hoping for it."

Xiao Wei turned and glanced at Xiao Hong. Xiao Hong pouted and stuck out her tongue. Aunt Wang said, "These girls these days, they talk about everything! Is that how you talk about your own father?"

Chen Hui dialed Uncle Wang's office number: "Uncle Wang? This is Xiao Hui. The six of us and Aunt Wang are all up on the TV tower. Just come over after you get off work. We'll be waiting for you in the restaurant up there."

Uncle Wang said, "You can talk nonsense in a day," and hung up the phone.

Xia Maosheng asked, "Do you guys play poker?"

Chen Xiao said, "Let's play, what's the point of winning? Do you have any playing cards?"

Xia Maosheng said, "They sell them upstairs, commemorative playing cards for the TV Tower. I just saw them."

Xiao Hong said, "Then let's buy a pair to play with. My dad still has two hours to go."

Xia Maosheng got up and went upstairs to buy playing cards. A deck of cards with a picture of a TV tower printed on it was selling for ten yuan. What a rip-off!

The group walked to the back of the restaurant, which was half open tables and half private rooms. The seven of them found a private room, closed the door, and started talking and playing cards inside. The private rooms were not free, but they were more private and wouldn't disturb the other people in the restaurant.

Four women were playing a game, each winning or losing a dollar. They said they could only lose, not gain, and then use the money to buy things at the night market. Xiao Wei and two others sat on the sidelines chatting and watching. After a while, Aunt Wang suddenly said, "It would be nice to live on a higher floor, so you could see so far out."

Xiao Wei said, "Auntie, if you want to live on a higher floor, you should become neighbors with Xia Maosheng. They're going to buy an apartment in Riverside Garden with an elevator. They said they'd buy the top floor, where the Hun River and the stadium are right outside the window. If they find the right direction, they can just put a telescope upstairs and see into our yard."

Aunt Wang asked, "Which area?"

Xiao Wei said, "It's right at the head of the Hunhe Bridge, opposite the Wulihe Stadium, about seven or eight li away from our courtyard."

Aunt Wang said, "Isn't it a bit far? It's seven or eight li, which would take most of the day to walk. Don't move, did you steal the cards? Take them, I want them. Two 2s. It's too far away to be convenient."

Xiao Wei said, "Four kilometers isn't far. You think you can walk that far? It's not like we don't have a car. If you really like high-rises, just buy one and live in both places. Buying a house isn't a bad deal."

Aunt Wang said, "I just think that living higher up means a better view. Look at the outside, the view is so bright and spacious. It's not that I'm really going to buy it. It's up to your uncle to decide. Can I make the decision for him?"

The six children all glanced at Aunt Wang: "We almost believed what she said."

(End of this chapter)