Chapter 162: Chapter 162: The simple migrant worker generation
Although the family gathered together, except for the father, the mother and sister could only see each other in the evening, and they had to be at least after 9 o'clock. Sometimes, they returned only after Feng Yiping went to bed. By the time he got up in the morning, including the father, they had already gone to the store early. In a word, they could not even have a meal together in a day.
Their work and rest schedule is similar to Feng Yiping's at school, and they work all year round. However, every time they meet, they are full of energy. Even Feng Yuxuan is full of energy and happily tells him about some interesting things that happened at the store that day.
This reminded him of an incident from one summer holiday during his secondary school years. At that time, his parents were no longer young, and unfortunately, Mei Qiuping had heatstroke and Feng Zhanchang contracted dysentery, requiring daily intravenous infusions.
One morning after breakfast, they saw a young couple in the village through the window, one carrying a load of farm manure on a shoulder pole, the other carrying a hoe and sickle, walking arm in arm and laughing as they walked up the hill. At that moment, Mei Qiuping sighed and said, 'If only we could still do as much as they can now!'
Feng Zhenchang, who was almost 60 years old with grey hair, could not hide his envy either. He said with a slight despondency, 'Yes, but when we were young, we could work even harder than they can!'
Thinking back, it seems that in their parents' eyes, there was no such feeling as 'tiredness', let alone retirement and old-age pension. Being able to work and live until old age was their highest pursuit.
......
In front of Feng Yiping, Feng Zhenchang still maintains his usual stern fatherly image, but every morning after finishing his work, he would still come back to have breakfast with Feng Yiping. During the meal, the two of them don't really say much, and what they do say is just the same few things over and over again: 'Eat slowly,' 'Have another egg,' and 'Eat more!'
The words are not many, and sometimes they are even a bit stern, but they still can't hide the warmth in them.
Most fathers in the countryside are like this. They are more reserved, and may not be good at expressing themselves or showing their love for their children. However, in terms of their love for their children, they are essentially no different from fathers in the city.
'Dad, I'll help out at the store too!' Feng Yiping said to Feng Zhanchang, who was getting ready to go out, while washing the dishes.
'No need, there are enough people at the store. You'd better stay home and study hard, and don't always watch TV!'
He was at the door, but then turned back. 'If you get bored of studying, go out for a walk to refresh your mind. Don't go far, I've left 50 yuan on the table for you, spend it wisely!'
'Oh,' the whole family is working hard, and he is the only one who is idle. This seems to be the rhythm of cultivating the second generation or a playboy.
However, after reviewing the material so far, he feels like he has already learned enough. He no longer wants to read or study the content in the textbook, so he thinks about going to the Xinhua bookstore to find some exercise books to do.
He left a note on the table, took two buses, and arrived at the largest Xinhua bookstore in the provincial capital. This was not his first time here, and he knew his way around. He went to the second floor, where there were many exercise books, and there were also many students around. After looking at them, he realised that these exercise books were either from Huanggang High School or Capital Normal University. He carefully flipped through them for more than half an hour, and picked out the three most difficult ones, all of which were mathematics.
He carried the three books in a plastic bag and sat on a bench on the pedestrian street in front of the bookstore for a while, also preparing to experience the 'local customs' of the provincial capital. However, in this cold winter, the girls who passed by were all wearing very thick clothes without exception. Occasionally, there were a few who wanted style over temperature, but he didn't like the look of them. He shook his head, thinking about going back, but then he remembered that he hadn't seen Wang Changning's parents in the provincial capital for a few days, so he thought about going over to see them.
Wang Changning's parents' place was in the western part of the provincial capital, on the extension of the most prosperous Renmin Road. Of course, this extension was a bit long. In short, it was close to the outskirts of the city.
But this place was actually quite good. Although the residential area was newly built, the occupancy rate was very high, and the shopping malls and schools were relatively concentrated. There was no need to ride around on a tricycle like Feng Zhenchang and the others when they first started,
The primary school and the attached kindergarten were already on holiday. Not seeing them in front of the primary school, Feng Yiping walked along the primary school. About a hundred metres ahead was a four-storey shopping mall, where they should be.
Sure enough, from a distance, he saw a tricycle parked by the flower bed in front of the shopping mall entrance, with a few people gathered around it.
He quickened his pace and prepared to cross the road to go over, when he heard someone shouting, 'Yiping?'
He looked in the direction of the sound and saw Wang Changning's mother, wearing a pair of elbow-length gloves, holding a plastic bag in one hand and a pair of long pliers in the other, standing next to a rubbish bin that he had just passed. She was looking at him with a happy expression on her face.
Feng Yiping was taken aback. To be honest, he had never done anything like this before, but he immediately ran over to her and offered to help her carry the bag. 'Auntie, why are you here? Isn't the stall in front of you one of yours?'
'Yes, his father is watching. I'm watching people coming out of the mall, and they always throw their pop bottles and cans in these nearby trash cans. When I'm not busy, I come over and pick them up. At the end of the day, I can sell them for a few dollars. When did you get here? You've grown taller! Why are you still so skinny?'
'Changning is about the same height as me, but he is also as skinny as me,' Feng Yiping laughed, knowing that she missed her son.
'I don't know where all the food goes, but you never gain any weight. You go over to your husband's side, I'll be there in a minute.'
'No, I'll help you.' Feng Yiping saw the few cans she had picked out and placed on the ground, so he squashed them with his feet, picked them up and threw them into a plastic bag. He then tried to help her carry the bag, but Changning's mother refused, saying, 'What if it gets on your clothes?'
She could not convince Feng Yiping, and did not want him to follow her picking up rubbish, so she had to carry the bag and walk in front, leading Feng Yiping to the tricycle.
His father was also very happy to see Feng Yiping, 'When did you come? Business is good over there!'
After asking a few questions, he said happily, "Just now, someone bought three catties at once, saying that they were taking them back to share with their colleagues.'
'Haha, if this happens a few times a day, that would be great!" His mother said with a smile.
'Are you hungry? There are still some buns left from this morning,'
They now do the same thing, not only buying fried chestnuts with sugar, but also selling buns and soy milk.
Wang Changning's mother still couldn't bear to let go of the soft drinks and cans in the other rubbish bins, so she asked Feng Yiping, who had come to help, to help load the chestnuts into the bags next to the tricycle, while she went to the rubbish bins alone with the plastic bags.
Near noon, Feng Yiping took a break and found a small restaurant, where he ordered three portions of fried rice and an egg soup to go. They kept saying that Feng Yiping should pay for it, and that 'you're just a child visiting us, how can you buy? Besides, there are buns, just buy two.'
His mother also said that she wanted to return one portion, but Feng Yiping said, 'Auntie, just consider it a gift from Changning!'