Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 5 Wang Xiaohong

Station Chief Wang's home is in the north corner of the county town. The county government built a residential compound there, consisting of four-story buildings right next to the county grain bureau's warehouse.

After parking the car at the entrance of the building, Station Master Wang took his bag and led Xiao Wei upstairs. Their home was on the third floor, room 303.

Xiao Wei was the younger generation, and the longest time he had been in contact with Station Master Wang was when he was a child, when Station Master Wang always liked to hug him. So although he felt close to him, he was still quite reserved in his behavior. He silently followed behind Station Master Wang upstairs, and the sound of their footsteps and panting echoed in the stairwell.

Upon reaching the door, Station Chief Wang switched the bag to his other hand, pulled a large bunch of keys from his waist, and opened the door with a clatter. He said to Xiao Wei, "Come on in." The two entered the house without closing the door, and Station Chief Wang called out, "Honey, honey, is dinner ready?"

Station Chief Wang's wife poked her head out of the bathroom and said, "It's done, it's in the pot, go get it, I'll finish washing this. Oh, Xiaowei's here! When did you get here? Why didn't you tell me?" Seeing Xiaowei behind Station Chief Wang, his wife came out of the bathroom, wiping her hands and smiling as she spoke to him, "When did you arrive? Is everything alright at home? Why didn't your mother come?"

Xiao Wei replied with a smile, "Auntie, I came alone. My mom is at home harvesting the crops."

After wiping her hands, Aunt Wang came over, took Xiaowei's hand, and looked him up and down. She said, "You've gotten stronger and taller. I wouldn't recognize you on the street. Is your dad's back still like that? Has he been to the hospital? Come, come, sit down and have some food."

Aunt Wang pulled Xiaowei into the kitchen and sat him down at the table. She and Xiaowei's mother had grown up together and were as close as sisters, which was a major reason why the two families had such a good relationship.

Station Master Wang ladled some rice and vegetables from the pot and placed them on the table, asking, "Xiao Hong hasn't come back yet?"

Aunt Wang let go of Xiaowei's hand and stood up to help, saying, "Not yet, he should be here soon. He should be arriving around now. Let's eat first; Xiaowei must be hungry after traveling for so long. I'll heat it up for him when Xiaohong gets back."

Xiao Wei said, "No need, Auntie. Let's eat together when Xiao Hong comes back. I'm not too hungry."

Aunt Wang worked tirelessly, placing a large bowl of stewed potatoes and green beans on the table. She then took a bowl of fried egg sauce from a nearby cupboard and placed it on the table, saying, "No need, eat first. It should be here by now." She went to the sink and brought out a basket containing washed scallions, lettuce, and cucumbers. She then scooped a bowl of boiled radish slices soaking in cold water from a nearby basin. Wiping her hands, she sat down and said, "Eat up. I didn't know you were coming, so I didn't prepare much. Don't be picky, eat your fill, and I'll make you something delicious tomorrow."

Xiao Wei looked at the large bowl of rice and water in front of him, swallowed hard, and said, "Let's wait for Xiao Hong. It won't make a difference if we wait a little longer."

Station Master Wang sat down, picked up his chopsticks, and said, "Why are you being so polite? When you were a kid, when you were snatching corn from Little Red Corn, why didn't you say 'please be polite'? Eat up." He picked up a lettuce leaf, rolled up a few scallions, dipped it in egg sauce, and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing it with a crunching sound.

Aunt Wang said to Xiao Wei, "Listen to your uncle, eat it."

Xiao Wei agreed, picked up his chopsticks, and took a sip of rice water.

"You didn't even wait for me to eat? That's too much." A voice entered the house with the sound of footsteps. Several people turned around and saw a little girl with a backpack and a long braid pouting and huffing as she entered the house.

Aunt Wang said, "What are you doing? Wash your hands and eat. You've only just started eating. Can't you see your little Wei-ge? This girl is getting more and more unruly."

Xiao Hong pouted, rushed out of the kitchen, threw her schoolbag on the bed, ran back, washed her hands on the tap without drying them, sat down at the table, looked at the dishes on the table, and said, "Even when the traitors come, you don't prepare anything good? At least put some meat in the stew, right? Mom, you're getting more and more stingy. Dad, you have to scold Mom. This is such a disgrace to your position as station chief."

Station Master Wang glanced up at her but didn't say anything. Aunt Wang held up her chopsticks and pointed them at Xiao Hong's head, saying, "You have no manners at all! Your father has spoiled you rotten. You don't even call me 'brother'? Who taught you that?"

Xiao Hong glanced at Xiao Wei, then suddenly smiled and said, "Brother Guizi, what brings you here? Are you tired? Shall I give you a massage?"

Xiao Wei glanced at her, shifted his body to the side, and said, "Forget it, I'm afraid you'll beat me to death. Hurry up and eat."

Xiao Hong picked up her chopsticks and said to Aunt Wang, "Mom, why didn't you cook any eggplants? You eat cucumbers all day long, I'm almost turning into a cucumber! Dad, aren't you going to do something about it? My mom is getting lazier and lazier."

Station Chief Wang gave Xiao Hong a harmless glare and said, "Eat. You talk too much all day. If you think your mom's lazy, you'll have to cook for yourself and do your own laundry from now on."

Station Master Wang from Xiaohongchong made a face, picked up a piece of potato and put it in Xiaowei's bowl, saying, "Come on, Brother Guizi, eat more. Look how skinny you are, like a dragon. Can't you gain some weight? I'll stew some meat for you to nourish yourself tomorrow."

Xiao Wei said to her, "If you want to eat meat, just say so, okay? Don't try to pin it on me, I don't want to eat meat."

Uncle Wang and Aunt Wang both laughed. Xiao Hong put a few more bites of food into Xiao Wei's bowl and said, "You ignorant brat, you'll stuff yourself to death."

After the four of them finished eating, Xiao Hong helped Aunt Wang clear the table and wash the dishes. Station Chief Wang then led Xiao Wei into the house and sat down in a chair.

In Northeast China, the buildings don't have living rooms yet; the sofas are all placed in the rooms. However, the rooms here are quite large, ranging from 26 to 30 square meters, so they don't feel cramped.

At that time, there wasn't much difference between the homes of officials and ordinary people. They had tall and short wardrobes, homemade sofas or armchairs, sewing machines, and radios. Televisions weren't common yet, and most homes didn't have one. This was the biggest difference between officials and ordinary people; even officials had televisions, albeit only 14-inch black and white ones.

Xiao Wei had only been sitting for a few minutes when he couldn't help but ask, "Uncle, is this a TV? How do you watch this thing?"

Station Master Wang laughed, shook his head, and said, "Just plug it in and you can watch it. There's a switch on it, just like turning on a light. There's no program right now; it won't start until 6:30. I'll turn it on for you in a bit. Tomorrow, behave well, be diligent, do whatever you're told, and do it well. If you don't know something, learn or ask questions. See how others watch it, got it?"

Xiao Wei, his eyes still glued to the TV, said, "I've got it. Don't worry, Uncle, I can do a good job."

Station Chief Wang lit a cigarette and said, "Yeah, they're building skyscrapers. They're just worried you'll panic if you don't see it firsthand. When you get there, you'll have to listen to what they say. You can't do things they're not allowed to do. It's not like farming. Sometimes something bad can happen and people could die, understand?"

Xiao Wei nodded and said, "I understand."

Xiao Hong rubbed her hands as she walked in and sat down, saying, "My dad's started chanting again, isn't he? He's so good at it. Xiao Wei, just ignore him. I bet he was sent back by someone else before he joined the army because they couldn't stand him."

Station Master Wang chuckled, not angry at all, and said, "Have you finished your homework? It'll be 6:30 soon."

Xiao Hong glanced at the clock on the wall and said, "You sit down first, Brother Guizi, I'm going to do my homework. Ugh, I'm not going to study tomorrow either, it's homework every day." She went to the other room while muttering to herself.