Siheyuan: Five mouths waiting for food at the beginning

"Shanhe, I just heard that you are going to Shandong, what's going on?"

"Hasn't the third brother gone there? This brat hasn't written to me yet. I'm going to go take a look and see my third uncle. It's a good opportunity to go back to my roots. My father hasn't been back since he moved here. I believe he wants to go back and take a look, too."

"It's good to return to one's roots. People always return to their roots after death. Your grandma has been talking about going back in recent years. She said that she wants to be buried with your grandpa even after she dies. I can't get away, otherwise I would take your grandma back to see her."

"I originally planned to take grandma to Shandong, but today I saw that the old lady was not in good spirits. It would be bad if something happened on the way. Otherwise, I will go up alone this time, and grandma can take her up next time if there is a chance."

Before the second uncle could speak, the grandmother who was still some distance away suddenly spoke up, "Who said that I was mentally ill? I am in good health. It's all your fault that you sent my two grandsons to the army. It's boring to gossip with a bunch of old ladies all day long.

Even if you send me to my eldest grandson's place, I will be in high spirits if I see my great-grandson every day. But your second uncle is always busy, and I don't want to cause him any trouble. If I can't find anything to do, I will be in low spirits. I don't care about my eldest grandson, but you must take me with you when you go there."

After the old lady finished speaking, she turned around a few times to show that she was in good health, which made everyone laugh. What a precious old lady.

"Okay, okay, I'll take you with me. Tomorrow, ask Second Aunt to pack your luggage. I'll go to the factory to make arrangements. We'll leave the day after tomorrow. I've already sent a telegram there."

"Shanhe, I'll go with you too. It's not convenient for a grown man like you to take care of grandma. Besides, after the old lady passes away, I'll be alone again. What do you think, Shanhe?" Second Aunt said

"Uncle, what do you think?"

"Ask him what he does. He is in the army all day and never comes home. He even sent my son to the army."

"Shanhe, let your second aunt go with you. You are a grown man and have never taken care of anyone. Your second aunt has been there for a few years and is familiar with the place. She can guide you and take care of the old lady at the same time."

Zhao Shanhe thought about it and it made sense. He had been living a life of luxury all these years, and he didn't know what to do if he was asked to take care of an old lady. It would be fine if Second Aunt followed him, so he nodded and agreed.

On Monday morning, Zhao Shanhe went to the factory to handle the formalities and also explained some things to the technical department. Old Ma, who was in charge of the specific affairs, fell with the big boss a few years ago, and the burden returned to him.

He went to the train station to buy a ticket in the afternoon. With his status, he was eligible to buy a sleeper berth. Plus, he knew Lao Liu, so he quickly bought a sleeper berth ticket. There were two lower berths and one upper berth, all in the same carriage. The ticket was for tomorrow afternoon, and there was only one train tomorrow.

The next day, aunt and grandmother came over early. Zhao Shanhe went to buy some local specialties, and Aunt Chen made some pancakes for them to eat on the way.

Zhao Shanhe asked Zhao Shanhu to take good care of the family and telegraph him if there was anything. After lunch, he went to the train station. He didn't have much luggage, but the old lady had taken a lot of things, so he had no choice but to take them with him.

This was the first time Zhao Shanhe took a train after traveling through time. He didn't expect it to be completely different from later times. You had to squeeze to get on the train, and there were even live poultry. It was really an eye-opener. Fortunately, he bought a sleeper berth so he didn't have to squeeze. Sleeper berths were not available just because you wanted to. Sure enough, things felt much better once you got on the train. There were very few people in the sleeper car.

The journey was smooth. There were only three of them on the bed. He and his grandmother lived on the lower bunk, and his second aunt lived on the upper bunk. There were only a few people in the entire carriage. Zhao Shanhe walked around and saw some people playing chess, so he went over to play a few games.

He soon became familiar with the person playing chess and learned that he was also going to Qingdao, Shandong. Apart from eating and sleeping, Zhao Shanhe played chess here. He really had nothing to do. He remembered to bring a few books, but he forgot and could only play chess to pass the time.

When they arrived in Qingdao, Zhao Shanhe got off the bus. Unexpectedly, his uncle was waiting for him at the station. When he saw his uncle again, he seemed older than in previous years. He looked like he was in his sixties instead of his early forties.

Upon asking, I found out that he had come here overnight. His youngest son was watching the cart over there. He took his grandmother and third uncle to have a meal before driving the ox cart to the countryside.

Uncle San was very thoughtful. He directly spread a quilt on the ox cart. Uncle San drove the cart, and the few of them went back while chatting.

The third uncle and his youngest son kept calling each other "I", which Zhao Shanhe found a bit awkward. However, the old lady seemed like a different person after getting off the train. She was full of energy, her waist and legs no longer ached, and she didn't cry when she met anyone. She just smiled from ear to ear along the way.

Along the way, she introduced the surrounding scenery to Zhao Shanhe. It was exactly the same as when she left. Zhao Shanhe had never seen the old lady so happy, so he listened to her patiently.

They walked from the afternoon until dark when they finally arrived at their third uncle's house. Zhao Shanhe and his companions were arranged to stay at Zhao Shandong's house. The three sons were all there because it was a new house built a few years ago. The third uncle and his wife still lived in the old house.

The house was quite big, and it was not a blue brick and tile house, but a kind of earthen house. The eldest son was assigned to the upper house, which is the main house, the second son lived in the east wing, the third son lived in the west wing, and Zhao Shanhe was arranged to live in the ear room.

The third brother, Zhao Shanhai, was also waiting for them here with Huang Duoduo. The third brother had been living in the place where his second uncle used to live, which was near his third uncle's old house. It was not far away, about fifty or sixty meters away.

The two brothers greeted each other without exchanging pleasantries. There were so many people in the room. Zhao Shanhe didn't expect that his third uncle was the main force behind the expansion of his family. His third uncle had three sons and one daughter. His eldest son, Zhao Shandong, had been to the city of Sijiu and was married at the time. He now has four sons.

The second son, Zhao Shannan, also has three sons. The third son, Zhao Xiangbei, also has a son and a daughter. It can be said that the family is prosperous. The youngest daughter is also married in the next village and has a child. She said she will come over tomorrow.

All kinds of fish and seafood were served, as well as chicken. There were basically no vegetarian dishes. The women and children said hello, showed up, and left. Only Uncle San, his three sons, and their two brothers were left in the room.

Zhao Shanhe knew that it was dark today and it was not the time to reminisce about the past, so he would definitely drink. Sure enough, he served barreled wine.

"Shanhe, I'm sorry for your hospitality. I know the wine here isn't as good as yours. These are all homemade wines made by the villagers. Please make do with what you have."

Zhao Shanhe passed out cigarettes to everyone, and then said, "Uncle, you don't even have a vegetarian dish, and you're not treating us well. If you can't treat me well, I won't dare to come to your house next time. And wine is delicious no matter what kind of wine it is, but it will be bland no matter what kind of wine it is with the wrong person."

"Brother, I'm telling you, you'd better drink slowly. Third Uncle's wine is very strong. The first day I came here, I had to lie down for several days before I recovered."