Back to the golden age

After nine o'clock in the morning, the adults in the alley had gone to work, the older children were in school, and the people at home were old people who had no jobs or children who had not yet reached school age.

Song Yuanchao carried his luggage, crossed the road and walked towards the alley, when a vigilant voice sounded at the entrance of the alley.

"Who is Lennon? What do you do? Who are you looking for here?"

Hearing the reputation, I saw a very familiar old lady with small feet in a gray cotton padded jacket looking at me with vigilance, and beside her was a little girl of three or four years old. The old lady was protecting the child behind her, her gaze was tight. Staring at Song Yuanchao.

"Auntie of the Zhang family?" Song Yuanchao recognized who this old lady was at a glance. Isn't this the Auntie of the Zhang family who lives next door to him?Aunt Zhang was from Mingzhou, and she came to Shanghai long before liberation. Song Yuanchao didn't know what Zhang's aunt's surname was, because her husband's family name was Zhang, so Song Yuanchao had always called her that when she was a child.

"Hey, who are you? Canon recognize me?" Auntie Zhang was taken aback for a moment, looking up and down Song Yuanchao, but after looking at Song Yuanchao for a long time, she only felt that this person smelled of sweat, was sloppy in clothes, and had long hair. , with dark skin, a big bag on his shoulders, and a bag in his hand, Xiang Bazi looked familiar, but he couldn't remember who Song Yuanchao was.

"Aniang, I am Yuanchao of the Song family on the 23rd! Song Yuanchao! Do you still remember me? When I was a child, I often went to the Nong's house for Baixiang..."

"Yanchao? Ah! Nong is Yuanchao?" Zhang's mother's eyes widened immediately. She sized Song Yuanchao carefully, and soon the suspicious look on her expression faded, replaced by surprise.

"Oh, Nong is really helping the DPRK! Nong, the little giant (little devil) is finally back! Come back, come back, Mom remembers that Nong was only 16 years old when he left? It has been eight years since he left, eight years ! It’s over for playing small rbs, but it’s finally turning around…”

As she said that, Zhang's mother couldn't help but shed tears, took out a handkerchief and wiped the corners of her eyes and asked, "Yi Chao, how can Nong become skinny and dark, and suffered a lot in the northwest? This time I'm coming back and I'm going to travel again." ?”

"Don't leave, the country implements the policy, and I won't leave when I come back."

"It's fine if you don't go, it's fine if you don't go." Aunt Zhang nodded again and again: "It's good to be back! Have you had breakfast? Just got off the train? Let's go, I still have rice in my room, let's go to the house first eat something."

Saying that, she took Song Yuanchao's hand and was about to leave. At this time, the little girl beside her was staring at the person who had never met before her with wide eyes. She tugged at the corner of Zhang's mother's clothes and asked crisply: "Grandma, who is this?"

"I almost forgot, Pingping, I want to call you Uncle Yi, quickly call me Pingping." Aunt Zhang said, stroking the little girl's head.

"Ah... Uncle, good..." The little girl was a little scared when she saw the stranger, so she half-hid behind A Niang and called out.

"It's not easy to call him Uncle, but Elder Brother." Song Yuanchao corrected with a smile, Zhang Jianguo's son Zhang Jianguo was more than ten years older than Song Yuanchao, and Song Yuanchao called him Uncle Zhang Jianguo since he was a child.

Zhang Jianguo has two children. The eldest son, Zhang Qiang, should be nine years old this year. Zhang Qiang was still a baby when he left, and now he should be in the second grade of elementary school.

This little girl is Zhang Qiang's youngest daughter, Zhang Pingping. When Song Yuanchao's previous life was demolished in the early 90s, Zhang Pingping was already a big girl who was about to enter university. Although the old neighbors separated after the demolition, they still kept in touch with each other. In 1999, Zhang Pingping got married. , Song Yuanchao also went to her wedding.

Song Yuanchao knew that his current appearance was not very good, so he tried his best to say in a soft tone that Ping Ping was so good for fear of scaring the children. After thinking for a while, he took out a package from his luggage, knelt down and opened the oil paper, and there were a few dried persimmons inside. .

Persimmons are a specialty of the countryside. Song Yuanchao brought some with him before he came back. He handed the persimmons to Pingping and motioned for her to pick them up. Pingping, who was a bit timid, did not dare to take them, and looked back timidly with big eyes. My grandma, with her two little hands, tightly grasped the corner of Zhang's mother's clothes.

"Brother Yuanchao is not an outsider. Take it. These are dried persimmons. They are delicious." Aunt Zhang said to her granddaughter with a smile. Xiao Pingping then carefully reached out to take the dried persimmons and put them in her mouth. Bian Xiao took a bite.

After one bite, the sweetness of the dried persimmons made the little girl's eyes light up.

"Grandma, sweet."

"Well, sweet, Pingping is good, it's delicious." Aunt Zhang said to the child, and then called Song Yuanchao to go home together. Song Yuanchao picked up his luggage and walked into the alley with Aunt Zhang and Xiaopingping Go, get closer and closer to home.

"Aniang, are there any relatives from Nong's country again?"

"Which relative in Nong's country is this?"

Walking into the depths of the alley, from time to time, neighbors greet each other and ask who is the villager who is following Mrs. Zhang’s family. At this time, Mrs. Zhang will explain to them that this is not her relative, but lives at No. 23 The Song family, that is, Song Yuanchao, the son of Mr. Song, has returned.

The neighbors in the alley are all old neighbors who have lived for a long time. This era is different from the later generations. It is not like the neighbors in the community in the future who are old and dead. Even if the neighbors live in the opposite door for more than ten years, they do not know each other.

In this era, people are more affectionate with each other. As the saying goes, distant relatives are not as good as close neighbors.

We live in the same alley, and many of them have known each other since their grandparents, and many of the adults have grown up together since they were children, and the relationship between them is very harmonious.

On weekdays, Zhang’s family, Li’s family, and Wang’s family live in the same building, and they don’t even close the door during the day. When they go out, they say hello to their neighbors, and the neighbors are willing to help take care of them.

Just like when Song Yuanchao was a child, he often ran from the east house to the west house to play, and when it was time to eat, he also liked to run around with a bowl in his hand. He would go over to see what delicious food was made by that house, and the adults were not annoyed. , usually scolding the little red guy and the gluttonous baby, and then smilingly holding a chopstick for him to taste.

Most of these neighbors knew Song Yuanchao originally, but Song Yuanchao had been away for so many years, and their respective memories had long been blurred.

In addition, Song Yuanchao is much taller than when he left. He has been dark and thin in the Northwest these years, his face is covered with dust and dirt, he is wearing an old army overcoat that has been patched, and there are two blue cotton trousers behind his butt. Telescope (big patch), Jiefang shoes with a hole on his feet, messy, greasy and curly hair, carrying luggage, and an obvious rural accent, no one can recognize who he is at a glance ?

When they knew that this person was Song Yuanchao, everyone was inexplicably surprised. No one thought that the only son of the Song family (Du Miao), who had been away for eight years, would come back.

"Is this Aid Korea?" The grandmother of the Li family on the 11th looked at it in surprise.

The aunt of the Chen family on the 30th recognized it first, patted her thigh and exclaimed: "Hey, this is really Mr. Song's son! He was a white and tender young man when he left, how could he come back with such a ghostly appearance?" Already?"

Uncle Liu, who was smoking next to him, flicked his cigarette ash and scolded with a smile: "Nong is just stupid. Song Yuanchao is going to jump in the queue and settle down. Nong thinks that the leading cadres are going to the nursing home? Jumping in the queue and settling down is for farming, mother of the Wang family." My son went to Huangshan for three years and came back as black as coal balls, not to mention that Song Yuanchao has been there for eight years."

A chubby woman with a somewhat familiar face but couldn't remember which family she was in asked: "Yanchao, remember that Nong went to the Northwest to jump in the queue and settle down, right? What is the Northwest like? Are there any good-looking people?"

The grandmother of the Li family looked disgusted when she heard this: "Shoutou is angry, what can a poor place like the Northwest look like? Is that possible? I want to go and see? I also signed up to jump in the queue and settle down. You will know when you go. .”

The fat woman couldn't hold back her face, and immediately retorted: "It's [-] o'clock, tell me what's wrong with you, Grandma is too full for breakfast today, and is deliberately trying to get me?"

The old man of the Qian family shook his head and sighed: "Hey...Yanchao has finally come back, it's a pity Mr. Song and his wife...Thinking about this family is really ancient (poor)..."

All the old men, old ladies and aunts who were doing nothing at home in the alley suddenly heard that Song Yuanchao had come back on the 23rd. In the blink of an eye, they all burst out, surrounded by Song Yuanchao on the inner and outer three floors, and at the same time Talking in a hurry.

"Okay, okay, are you watching the hozen play tricks? Go away, go away!" Seeing more and more people, Zhang's mother raised her voice in displeasure.

Some of these people are okay, some of them are getting more and more outrageous the more they say it, and besides, who in the alley doesn't know about the Song family?Just mentioned this when Song Yuanchao came back, didn't he deliberately poke Song Yuanchao's heart?

"Everyone go back to their own houses. Yuanchao just came back and hasn't had breakfast yet. Yuanchao, go back to eat with Auntie. We broke up..."

As she spoke, Zhang's aunt pulled Song Yuanchao's hand and walked quickly towards her home.

Auntie of the Zhang family still has a bit of prestige in the alley, not to mention that what Aniang said just now makes sense, they are all old neighbors in the neighborhood, and Song Yuanchao just came back to watch like this. After entering the Zhang family's aunt's house, after people entered the building, several women who usually like to inquire together suddenly gathered together and couldn't help muttering again.