Stepmother Reborn: Dad, my mom hasn't hit me for three days

Since December, Zhang Xiuhua has been watching TV. Sports programs are usually scheduled in the afternoon, and the prime time in the evening is for news broadcasts and TV series.

Now she has nothing to do, so she knits while watching TV.

In the past, when the children were at home, they chattered and called "Mom" hundreds of times a day, which made her ears deaf and annoyed. But when the children were not at home, the house was quiet, and she was not used to it.

She also started to mess around with meals. In the past, someone else cooked her breakfast and dinner, so she only had to cook lunch. Now she was alone at home. She couldn't rely on others to cook for her, so she had to cook for herself. She would just make something casual in the morning, cook a dish for lunch, a larger portion, and eat the same thing for dinner.

It's just how we make do, and I feel like life is a bit unpleasant.

Aunt Wang was bored at home, so she came here to watch TV with Zhang Xiuhua and chat with her.

Seeing Zhang Xiuhua complaining, Aunt Wang couldn't help but laugh at her, "You are just so cheap. At our age, we just want to have fun. It's so happy to have children around. It's a pity that my two children are away from home, so I can't get close to them even if I want to."

"If you want steel, you can go to the provincial capital. There is no work in the fields now anyway, so you can just stay at home and spend the winter doing nothing," Zhang Xiuhua suggested.

Aunt Wang waved her hands, "Forget it. When Xinghua got married, I went to Jiang Province to prepare her dowry. I stayed there for a few days, but life was really hard. She didn't even know her name when she lived next door. It was so lonely. It's not as good as our countryside. We are in the same village, and we can chat for a while if we meet in the village. Why are people in the city so cold?"

Zhang Xiuhua was amused by her. "It's not that city people are cold, they are busy with work, and they want a sense of boundaries."

"What is a sense of boundaries?" It was the first time that Aunt Wang heard this new word.

Zhang Xiuhua gave her an example, "In the countryside, when someone eats meat, the neighbors will smell it and send a bowl of meat. But it's different in the city. You eat yours, I eat mine, and no one is jealous."

Aunt Wang thought that sharing food with each other was very humane. "If your family is in trouble, I will help. It's so nice to help each other."

"But sometimes it's not so good. For example, gossip changes when it's passed around. People in the city are busy with work and have no time to spread gossip. Of course, it's not that they don't spread it, but time doesn't allow it." Zhang Xiuhua also used relatives as an example, "Many relatives have become estranged because of conflicts of interest."

Aunt Wang was a little angry when she heard her say so many bad things. "According to what you said, you want to be a city dweller?"

"Living in the city also has its disadvantages. Like you said, it's too lonely. And the relationships between people are very indifferent, as indifferent as water. Everyone has their own preferences. Some people like lively and bustling, while others like quiet. It's hard to say who is right or wrong." Zhang Xiuhua smiled, "But maybe because I grew up in the countryside, I prefer to farm and raise some small animals at home."

When Aunt Wang heard that she liked rural life, she finally stopped being angry and said, "That's right. Life in the city is not as good as in the countryside. You have to pay for even a sip of water there. You have to spend money everywhere."

Zhang Xiuhua saw that she was like a child and didn't take it seriously.

After a while, Aunt Wang suddenly pointed at the TV and yelled, "Xiuhua, did I just see Baolin?!"

Zhang Xiuhua immediately looked up at the TV without blinking, "Where is it? Where is it? Why can't I see it?"

"Audience, there was a scene just now that was particularly clear." Aunt Wang was so anxious that she slapped her thigh, "How come it's gone? I clearly captured it just now."

Before he finished speaking, a scene captured Baolin, who was discussing something with someone in front of the stand.

Aunt Wang was overjoyed, "Look, isn't that Baolin?"

Zhang Xiuhua also saw it. She stared at the child without blinking. After not seeing him for a long time, Baolin had gained weight and grown taller.

Aunt Wang stopped peeling corn and stared at the TV, looking a little anxious, "When will Baolin participate in the competition?"

Zhang Xiuhua smiled and said, "This is a short track speed skating competition. I think it won't be long before it's her turn to compete."

Baolin said before that she was participating in the short track speed skating event. A total of 88 athletes from all over the country participated in this competition.

This project is divided into adult group and youth group. Those aged 18 and above are in the adult group, and those aged 14-18 are in the youth group.

This was Baolin's first time participating in such a large-scale competition. She sat in the stands like a spectator, but Zhang Xiuhua was very nervous. Baolin gave up the college entrance examination to take this path.

"When Baolin came back from the Chinese New Year last time, he asked how she was skating." Aunt Wang didn't know how to skate, so she was a little curious.

"She said she skated well and could be in the top three." Zhang Xiuhua answered her using Baolin's words.

Aunt Wang praised, "She skates really well. Maybe she can really bring you a championship."

Zhang Xiuhua smiled.

The two of them were staring at the TV. At a gunshot, the contestants rushed out instantly. The eight athletes were originally standing in order, but after the gunshot, the people in the outer circle began to merge into the inner circle, and everyone rushed to compete for the first place.

After running a few meters, an athlete was thrown out. In slow motion, the athlete accidentally fell down, and the athlete behind him was tripped and flew out with him.

This really wasn't intentional, because the athlete in front didn't collide with anyone, and the one behind was purely a matter of inertia.

Aunt Wang thought it was too dangerous. "The sole of the shoe is a blade. What if I slip and hurt my hand?"

"During competitions, anything can happen," Zhang Xiuhua sighed. "Our country's competitions are relatively clean. If we compete with foreigners, some countries like to play tricks. That's really cheating."

All athletes rematch together.

Aunt Wang was puzzled, "Why is there a rematch?"

"If you fall at the first bend, you can retry. Just imagine how unlucky the athlete behind you would be if he was dragged down!" Because Baolin was an athlete, Zhang Xiuhua also began to pay attention to this competition event, and she knew a little more about it than ordinary villagers.

Aunt Wang suddenly realized, "Then we should indeed rematch. But it's a bit unfair to the people in front. If they rematch, their efforts will be in vain."

"Rules are rules!" Zhang Xiuhua said lightly.

The race started again. After the gun went off, no one fell on the first track this time, but the race was more exciting, especially with so many people rushing together. At the beginning, No. 1 was in the lead, then No. passed, and then No. overtook him. It was really exciting to watch.

"Oh, how many laps do we have to run? Why haven't we finished yet?" Aunt Wang watched them running round and round, her mind was already dizzy.

"1500 meters is 13 and a half laps, and the coach will blow the whistle to remind us during the last lap," Zhang Xiuhua explained.

"With so many people competing closely together, and with similar levels of strength, it's hard to tell who will be the champion." There are very few people who fall behind. The fastest and the slowest are only three or four meters apart. They could rush over at any time. The only difficulty is how to bypass others and rush over.

The whistle sounded, the last lap, the sprint began, everyone was trying their best, and the second place slid to the finish line first with a slight advantage!

The audience applauded, and Zhang Xiuhua and Aunt Wang answered in unison, "It's wonderful!"

After the people in the audience finished applauding, Baolin also stood up.

"Is it her turn soon?"

Zhang Xiuhua nodded, "The last one was the men's 1500m short track speed skating event, and the next one should be the women's event. It will be Baolin's turn soon."

She also became nervous.