nephew please eat

Chapter 8

Aunt Kong’s wife, Uncle Wu, is 66 this year. When he was young, he was a cook in the State Guesthouse. After he retired, he was hired back.At that time, the old couple was at home with their grandson, and Uncle Wu made delicious food in different ways.Liu Xiao did not know how many times he stood downstairs drooling with Uncle Wu and Aunt Kong throughout his teenage years, and the two of them saw him and shouted to go upstairs to sit down and eat together.Later, when Liu Xiao grew up, he and his father began to have a relationship, not to mention these uncles and aunts. He had almost forgotten that Uncle Wu had such a good skill.

The son and grandson are not here, and this year is deserted. The old couple planned to keep everything simple. Liu Xiao and Chu Chenzi came. Uncle Wu had a chance to show his talents. In the afternoon, he took the two of them to the supermarket to buy chicken, duck, fish, meat, vegetables, eggs and fruits. a lot.He is best at crystal jadeite dumplings. After the dumplings are boiled, the skin is as thin as crystal, and the pleats are even greener. It is comparable to the national treasure jadeite cabbage in the National Palace Museum in Taipei.Uncle Wu took Liu Xiao with him and told him to sit down and learn from himself.Chu Chenzi saw that he couldn't help, so he went to the kitchen to kill the big fish he had just bought.

Aunt Kong was supposed to help in the kitchen, but her son happened to call back, so she happily went to the bedroom to answer the phone.The voice was high and loud, asking the little grandson whether it was fun abroad and whether he missed grandma through thousands of kilometers and countless radio signals.Uncle Wu spoiled his wife all his life, and even spoiled her when he was old. He laughed and winked at Liu Xiao: "The older I get, the more I look like a child."

It happened that Aunt Kong was smiling happily, so Liu Xiao glanced at the other room and smiled too: "I understand."

The laughter next door gradually died down, as if the phone was returned to an adult, and Aunt Kong was asking them if they were okay.Uncle Wu couldn't hear it anymore, and suddenly sighed.

"Xiao, don't be angry with Auntie Kong about that incident last time. I also said that she was wrong about that incident. After all, you are a child, how can you discipline a child like this? But you understand her, she doesn't like it. Happy." Uncle Wu said, "Although your little brother and sister-in-law work well and earn a lot, they are too busy. They don't come back once a month and work overtime every day. Let's take this as an example. They would rather take their children out to play than come back. Can your aunt feel at ease? She has resentment, and seeing you arguing with your father, isn't she just angry? But your conflict with your father was already inappropriate when he was alive. It’s over, we’re still mixing it up, it really shouldn’t be.”

Liu Xiao still nodded in front, but when he heard the last sentence, Liu Xiao's hand suddenly stopped.

"Uncle, what are you saying about my dad? He's not angry with me anymore?" Liu Xiao asked.

"Is there any overnight feud between father and son? What's more, you two have been arguing for so many years, and it's time to stop."

"But my dad still scolded me the day before he died. He said that I let him down and told me to get lost. Just treat him as a white-eyed wolf for so many years..."

"Can't you?" Uncle Wu was surprised, "That's not what your father told us, he said..."

Liu Xiao still didn't know what Dad said——Aunt Kong hung up the phone and entered the room happily.

"Yunyun took a lot of photos, and his mother sent them to my WeChat. Look, our family Yunyun is really beautiful!" Aunt Kong sat down next to Uncle Wu with her mobile phone.

This matter is so gone.

Fortunately, Uncle Wu's cooking skills are really exquisite, every dish is full of color, fragrance, and taste, Liu Xiao quickly swallowed it with his tongue, and even his uncle who has always boasted about his culinary skills is full of praise.When the dumplings came out of the pot, Liu Xiao and Chu Chenzi were already full, but they still suppressed the feeling of fullness that had reached their throats and stuffed a few more dumplings into their stomachs.The fragrance of cabbage mixed with the pork soup overflows in the mouth, as if making Thai-style horse-killed chicken for every taste bud.Liu Xiao wanted to eat some more, but Aunt Kong refused to let him eat.

"Be careful that your stomach is full!" Aunt Kong thoughtfully took out two lunch boxes and filled them with dumplings, "Here, if you are hungry at the party tonight, warm it up and eat it. There is another box, take it to me." Your dad will give it to him, and he will also eat dumplings during the Chinese New Year."

After Liu Xiao and Chu Chenzi thanked Aunt Kong repeatedly, they left with two heavy lunch boxes. Before leaving, Uncle Wu chased them out, asking them to come back tomorrow morning and have dumplings to eat.This New Year's Eve was so beautiful, every household heard reunion laughter, fireworks exploded in the distant sky, Chu Chenzi raised his head, and the cluster of fireworks happened to illuminate his side face, Liu Xiao suddenly felt that his heart A certain place collapsed warmly and softly.

"Actually, did you do it on purpose?" he asked.

Chu Chenzi lowered his head, raised his brow slightly to one side, and cast a questioning look.

"You found out that I'm not very popular in the community, and the elders and aunts look down on me, so I deliberately wake up so early every day to teach everyone Tai Chi, rain or shine. You hope that for your sake, everyone can love the house and black, and change their opinion of me Later, you even set up the registration point in my store, and you hope that everyone can chat with me when they come to register. If you communicate more, the relationship will gradually improve." Liu Xiao smiled, "Why? Why did you Want to help me like this?"

Chuchenzi didn't answer, just laughed, and laughed a little silly.He didn't seem to have expected to hide his little thoughts from Liu Xiao for a long time, but when Liu Xiao asked him why, he didn't know how to answer for a while.Liu Xiao didn't ask further, he felt that it didn't matter because it didn't matter, as long as Chu Chenzi was willing to spend this kind of thought on himself.He even felt a little emotional: "It seems that since you came, my life has suddenly improved."

Along the concrete road in the community, they walked back side by side slowly, like walking.Carrying the lunch box, Liu Xiao looked back like a dream: "When my dad passed away, my first thought was that I would have to spend the New Year alone this year. I was quite panicked, after all these years, I have been with me No matter how loudly my father quarrels, I also know that he will always be waiting for me at home. From now on, there will be no one else in the house except me, and I will not be afraid of your jokes if I say it, but I am really terrified."

Liu Xiao babbled, talking to Chu Chenzi about the past that was deeply buried in his heart: "When I was in the college entrance examination, my mother passed away in a car accident. We were the only two left in the family. In those years, we hugged each other to keep warm, and our relationship was very good. In my junior year, I fell in love with..." Liu Xiao wanted to say "roommate", but considering Chu Chenzi's acceptance, he changed the title, "...Student, you are very kind to me, we The love is vigorous. We have talked for more than a year, and when he graduates, he will go back to his hometown, and I hope I can go back with him."

"At that time, I really fell in love with him. I just wanted to be with him. I was willing to go with him. Employment opportunities, I want to work for a few years. Of course my dad disagrees. He doesn’t even allow me to go to other places to go to college, let alone go to other places to find a job. I discussed it with him several times, and I have said good things. I’ve said it before, the last time, the conversation broke down, and I let him know the truth by letting him know the truth.”

What father would accept that his son is gay?Liu Yong felt that his son was rebellious, abnormal and sick.He went to school to find Liu Xiao's boyfriend who was preparing for his thesis defense. He was at the entrance of the teaching building, and in front of the students coming and going, he scolded him a lot.With this scolding, rumors about Liu Xiao having sex with his roommate spread all over the campus. Liu Xiao is a kid from Beijing who is not stingy, and his boyfriend came to Beijing with great difficulty. He hoped that he would graduate with an excellent thesis, but it became a delusion.Liu Xiao was furious, and the father and son quarreled again at home. This time they dropped a plate and a bowl, and a fragment of a large vase bounced on the ground, cutting Liu Xiao's hand and bleeding.

The father and son who used to depend on each other started a cold war. Until graduation, Liu Xiao lived in the school and never called home.On the day of graduation, the school dormitory could not be accommodated, and Liu Xiao was a little worried.Her boyfriend wanted to go home immediately after graduation, and he asked Liu Xiao to go with him, but Liu Xiao couldn't worry about his father after all, he couldn't bear to just leave like that.

Coincidentally, Liu Yong called and told Liu Xiao to go home.

Liu Xiao felt that this was an olive branch from his father. He went to the supermarket and bought a lot of things, including health care products and his father's favorite wine. He planned to go back and talk to his father calmly.When he got home, not only Liu Yong was waiting for him, but also others.

"This is Dr. Dong from the hospital, an authoritative psychiatrist," Liu Yong said, "Xiao, sit down and tell the doctor about your symptoms."

It turned out that Liu Yong thought that only when he was mentally ill would good-looking women not like men. He did not know which liar hospital invited a three-legged cat doctor to treat Liu Xiao.

Liu Xiao was completely terrified of his father.

He ran away, Liu Yong and the doctor got up and chased him.Afterwards, Liu Xiao recalled that at that time, he felt that running the Olympics at his own speed was basically nothing to Bolt.He didn't bring anything, just wearing the clothes on his body and a bank card in his pocket, bought a train ticket, and boarded the high-speed train back to his hometown with his boyfriend.

"His family is a small county with few opportunities. At the beginning, he couldn't find any jobs. I worked in a pet shop. His family introduced him to a foreign trade company as a salesman. His family has no money, and there are two My younger brother, one in high school and one in junior high school. I had no place to live. He arranged for me to live in his aunt’s house, and he only said that I was his classmate. I lived in his aunt’s house for two months. His aunt always showed me his face. I moved out in a fit of anger. You know, I have never been poor since I was a child, and I was used to being extravagant. At first, I even rented a two-bedroom apartment. Later, the salary was too low to make ends meet, and in the end I had to live in the basement.” Liu Xiao concealed all the key things. The information made Chu Chenzi think that he fell in love with a girl.

"I don't remember when the conflict happened." Liu Xiao shook his head, as if he still didn't want to recall that time, "Poor, wronged, too busy, so we get together less and leave more. He started not answering my calls or text messages. , One day I was eating out and found him on a blind date."

Speaking of this, Liu Xiao paused, Chu Chenzi saw that he seemed to use all the strength of his body to take a breath, and then continued: "I was quite timid, I didn't dare to turn my face on the spot, and ran away before he found me. I went back to the basement, didn't eat or drink, just slept, I didn't know how long I slept, maybe a few days, and sent him a text message.

I told him I saw it, and said everything in my heart.I told him that I still love him, as long as he gives me an explanation, I can pretend nothing happened.I waited with my mobile phone in my arms. I remember very clearly that it was 33:[-] p.m. when I sent the text message. I waited until after [-]:[-] p.m. before he replied to the text message, just five words—let’s break up. "

Even though he had already guessed that this would be the result, Chu Chenzi's heart was still pulled hard.Subconsciously, he wanted to hug Liu Xiao's shoulder, but just as he raised his hand, he felt that it was inappropriate, so he put it down again.

The night was dark, and Liu Xiao didn't notice Chen Zi's small movements at all. He was completely immersed in the past, and he still couldn't help but feel sad when he said it: "What happened later was at eight o'clock. I was young at that time, and I didn't know how to do things for myself. To save face, I even went to his company to look for him, but was kicked out by the security guards. Anyway, after a long time, I finally accepted the fact that I broke up. I really didn’t have any money on me, so I called and sent a small loan to buy I bought a ticket back to Beijing, sat in the car back, I looked at the rice fields and big trees on the side of the road and kept retreating, the stubbornness in my heart suddenly rose, and all my sadness was suppressed."

"Guess what?" Liu Xiao suddenly laughed, "I remembered that when I returned to Beijing, I would face my dad. If I stood in front of him so pitifully, it might not be as simple as going to the psychiatry department."

Chu Chenzi also laughed, he was no longer a simple listener, as if the story had developed to this point and finally there was a plot he didn't know, he asked: "So?"

"So I borrowed money from some of my friends and opened a pet clinic. Don't look at me like this, my group of friends really have rich second generations. My grandma's house was demolished, and the whole family was demolished." I became a local tyrant. They knew that I was wronged, and they wanted to go all the way to help me beat up my ex-boyfriend..." Liu Xiao quickly swallowed that word, and replaced it with a more concise and clear word, "...that bastard. That was my first clinic. It was in the Asian Games Village on the North Fourth Ring Road. At the beginning, the business was very difficult, and it seemed to be closed every day. Later, I became famous. After about a year, I started to hire assistants. . Around this time, I got a call from my dad."

Liu Xiao took a deep breath: "He told me to go home, his tone was still bad, but he promised not to interfere in my personal life again. I ignored it the first time, but he called several times, and one day he even came to my store I haven't seen him for more than a year, I haven't changed, but he has aged a lot. I didn't remember that he had so many gray hairs, but when we met this time, half of his hairs were gray."

When they got to the front of the building, Liu Xiao and Chu Chenzi were not in a hurry to go up, they sat on the bench next to them and continued talking.The neon lights in the city are too bright, making the stars appear dim. Fortunately, someone set off fireworks in the distance, disguising the stars and illuminating the night.Liu Xiao was holding the lunch box, and the warmth of the dumplings leaked out. He warmed his hands and continued to tell Chu Chenzi about his father and himself: "I went home, closed the original shop, and looked for new ones at the gate of the community. I opened a place and opened the current store. I still don’t know why my dad called me back. You said that according to the [-] o’clock plot, should we get back together like before? Actually, no. On the first day I came home, he asked me if I was well. I was taken aback for a moment before I realized what he was referring to. We had a big fight, and he called me ashamed, saying I was playing tricks with a dog He ran back as if he was poking my scar. I overturned the table and went back to my room for a day and a night. After that, I didn’t talk to him. About four or five years ago, we had very little communication and talked a lot. Just quarreled. He called me perverted, white-eyed wolf, and said I was sorry for my mother. You should know that I made him angry now, and he should have strangled me. I said you can strangle me now. You are an old man. Killing your son is not illegal. , reincarnated underground, I will never be your son again. We quarreled regardless of location or occasion, and the whole community knew about it, so they all said that I made my father mad."

"No." Chu Chenzi was as sure as when he first met, "Brother's death has nothing to do with you."

Liu Xiao laughed suspiciously.

"The cause of cancer is very complicated. It's related to genes, living environment, and of course... mood. But it's neither objective nor fair to put all the blame on you. Liu Xiao, when did you go home? Four years ago?" Chu Chenzi looked at Liu Xiao, and Liu Xiao was not sure, so he nodded vaguely, "Brother started to believe in Taoism, and it was about that time when I contacted Xuanmiao Temple. Liu Xiao, brother People around me—such as Uncle Wu and Aunt Kong, or other uncles and aunts in the community—have no one who believes in Taoism. Why did the brother suddenly become a believer? Have you ever thought about it, maybe the brother is also worried about not knowing How to improve the relationship with you, that's why I seek a little escape and comfort in religion, and I hope religion can tell him the solution."

"Improve...relationship?" Liu Xiao murmured these words, and once again remembered that Uncle Wu said in the afternoon that his father had stopped being angry with him a long time ago, "But the day before he passed away, he still called me a white-eyed wolf. ..."

This is really difficult to explain, Chu Chenzi pondered for a moment, and asked, "Why did he scold you like that?"

"Because I accidentally knocked his toothbrush on the floor when I was washing my face." Liu Xiao smiled wryly, "We basically quarreled over such trivial things. Especially later, a few months before his death."

"I guess it's because a person with cancer is in a bad mood, and he's dying soon, but he didn't tell anyone. He's taking care of this big thing by himself, and he's under a lot of pressure." Chuchenzi thought Say, "You used to live together. He was your father. He must have been worried all the time about what would happen to you after he passed away. So he stopped getting mad at you because of your relationship problems, because compared to your life, who do you like? It's too small to like someone."

Liu Xiao was completely stunned.

"Liu Xiao," Chuchenzi said softly, "Believe it or not, I feel that since the day your senior brother called you home, you and your son have no unsolved knots. It's just that you don't want to bow your head to him." , and he is unwilling to explain to you that you have always had each other in your heart, but you didn't say it until the end."

"But senior brother will definitely understand." Chu Chenzi finally added.

The night wind blew up, the fireworks in the distance stopped, and the host of the Spring Festival Gala sent overly festive New Year's greetings from the TV.Liu Xiao sat on the bench in a daze, holding the two boxes of dumplings in his hands, and after a long, long time, he looked up and smiled.

"It's as if it's true..." Liu Xiao laughed, "Are you a roundworm in my father's belly? I, a son, can't figure out what he thinks, but you can."

"Liu Xiao, I really..."

Chuchenzi was anxious to argue, but Liu Xiao patted his head lightly and stood up.

"Okay, it's cold, don't sit here." He said, "Go home, don't give my dad dumplings, my dad will scold me in a dream tonight."

They went home together and put a lunch box of still warm dumplings in front of Liu Yongling.Liu Xiao burned three sticks of incense to his father, thought for a while, knelt down and kowtowed three more times.In the evening they watched the Spring Festival Gala together. After zero o'clock, Liu Xiao reached out to Uncle Guan to ask for a red envelope. Uncle Guan was so shy in his pocket that he managed to find out a hundred dollars.Both were sleepy, said "Happy Chinese New Year" to each other and went back to their rooms to sleep.Liu Xiao lay on the bed where his father had slept before, and for the first time he did not feel depressed before falling asleep.

He closed his eyes and fell into the most sound and sweet sleep since his father's death.