The Northern Stories of Chef Lao Tan

Chapter 470 News from Sister Zhao
Sister Tang said that she seemed to have heard of Aqiao, but she couldn't remember it for a while.Lao Tan then said that Ah Qiao was a small dumpling restaurant, and he couldn't think of it as normal.

Sister Tang thought about it again, remembered, and said: "My cousin used to live in the provincial capital. The two of us went back to the provincial capital to sweep the tombs of my second aunt and second uncle in the Qingming Festival the year before last. , I ate it at a dumpling restaurant, the name is Aqiao, it should be yours."

"Really?" Old Tan asked unintentionally, "Where did your cousin live before? My family has stores in several districts of the provincial capital."

Sister Tang thought for a while and said, "That's Tiexi District, I forgot what street it is."

"Yanfen Street." Old Tan said, "My family is in Tiexi District and there is a store in Yanfen Street. If you say Tiexi District, that's it."

"Your dumplings are delicious, and I remember the wine is also very good, there are several kinds of health wine."

"That's it, it's my home."

Old Tan was very happy, he didn't expect to meet guests who came to his house for dinner here, the world is really big or small, it's fate.It happened that he was also a little tired, so he never did physical work. The two buckets of water seemed unsinkable, but the road was not lightly loaded, and the mountain road was not easy to walk, so he sprinkled a lot, so he found a flat place to stop. Come down and rest.

"You're tired." Sister Tang said.

"Well, since I don't always work, it seems that I need to strengthen my training—" Old Tan said.

Sister Tang recalled the scene of Lao Tan talking about wine at dinner in the morning, and asked with a smile, "Are you good at drinking?"

"Well, it's okay. I don't dare to drink now, my stomach is bad."

"What's wrong?"

"Stomach cancer, early stage."

Sister Tang was not surprised when she heard this, she seemed to be not in good health when she came here, and she was no longer surprised by it.

She asked: "In the early days, why didn't you have surgery?"

Old Tan said: "My blood pressure is high, I can't lower it, I can't have surgery, and now I'm taking traditional Chinese medicine."

"Oh——I had breast cancer, which was discovered early and removed." Sister Tang said calmly.

Sister Tang is Tang Lifang, 57 years old this year.I got breast cancer three years ago. Due to the early detection and successful operation, plus the good family conditions and proper follow-up maintenance, everything is fine.

It's just that once a woman loses her breasts, she loses her sense of beauty, and no matter how good-looking she is, it's hard to attract men, including her husband.Her husband had a woman outside, and when she found out, she was depressed and almost committed suicide.

It is also fate, last year the old lama went to Penglai to give a lecture on Buddhism, and was invited by Buddhist believers in Qingdao to give a lecture.Sister Tang didn't believe in Buddhism, so a good sister asked her to listen to it. After hearing it, she thought about many things and became attached to Buddha.

Donated [-] yuan on the spot, and came here with my good sister for more than a month to practice. I was in a good mood, and my depression was no longer there. After returning, I divorced my husband and started to practice Buddhism.

"I've been here since the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. It's been half a month, and I'll be back in another half month," Sister Tang said.

"Oh, very good." Old Tan said.

"This place is quiet and isolated from the world. It feels like a different person when you come here. You don't think about anything, your mind is pure, and it is suitable for self-cultivation.

When I came here last year, I met a man with a lumbar spine problem. He was lifted up, but he couldn't walk at all.After recuperating here for three months, he walked on by himself, no different from a good person.

It looks miraculous, but it's not miraculous.This place is mainly pure. When people stay in a pure place, their hearts will be pure, and once their hearts are purified, their illnesses will recover quickly.In addition, this place has another advantage. No one treats you as a patient, and you can fix everything by yourself, so you can train people. "

Old Tan nodded in agreement.

After resting for 10 minutes, Lao Tan picked up water and poked them, and the two chatted back to Xiangke courtyard while walking.

After returning to the room, Lao Tan was a little out of breath and sweaty.There are no conditions at home here, so I take a shower at home, but here I can only wash my face with water.

After washing his face, Old Tan lay on the bed to rest, remembering what Sister Tang said about having dinner at the Dumpling Restaurant on Yanfen Street. He couldn't help thinking of Sister Zhao, and wondered if Sister Tang's cousin was Sister Zhao?
When I thought this way, I couldn't help being a little excited, and wanted to check with Sister Tang immediately.But then I thought about it, how could there be such a coincidence in the world, that the person who met at Aqiao's dinner was Sister Zhao?It would be too coincidental to do that, it's a bit ridiculous.

But once this idea arises, I can't get rid of it, and I always feel that it is something.So I wanted to wait for a chance to pretend to be okay and ask Sister Tang, like a casual chat, without being too formal—in case her cousin is really Sister Zhao.

Thinking of Sister Zhao, Sister Zhao's face appeared in front of my eyes, I haven't seen it for ten years, the face was ten years ago, I don't know what it looks like now?Maybe old, maybe not—
At this time, it is easy for people to think of people and things in the past.

Memories are often sweet, but there will also be pain, self-blame, and even repentance.

In our long life drama, Lao Tan has come into contact with many women, until now he can often think of it, and only Miss Zhao is the one who misses it.He used to miss Yingzi too, but now he doesn't. Yingzi works at Aqiao and everything is fine, which makes him feel relieved.

Sister Zhao is the woman who walked into his life. In the first ten years of his working, Sister Zhao gave him meticulous care, concern, and consideration, just like a family sister.

Sister Zhao is someone he respects, and he has never had any unreasonable thoughts about Sister Zhao.In his memory, Sister Zhao is beautiful, kind, virtuous, and gentle, and she is a rare good woman.

The last days with Sister Zhao were in Binhai. At that time, Sister Zhao's husband Lao Wu died. Sister Zhao went to Binhai to relax in a bad mood and lived with him for more than a month.

At that time, Sister Zhao was a woman who was suffering from the loss of her husband. She was so sad that she found her younger brother.Just like him now, he wants to find a quiet place where no one knows to rest and recuperate himself in purity.

He clearly remembered the situation of Sister Zhao when she first arrived in Binhai, her figure was haggard and frail, and it was distressing to look at.At night, I have to turn on the lights when I go to sleep, and I often wake up in a dream, shouting Lao Wu, crying helplessly like a child.

He held Sister Zhao in his arms like a child and comforted her to sleep.Even so, Sister Zhao would cry in her dreams, and her body would shudder from time to time, as if she was frightened in a dream.

Later, Sister Zhao gradually improved, her face became brighter, she became more cheerful, and she dared to turn off the lights when she was sleeping.

When Sister Zhao fully recovered and it was almost New Years, he put Sister Zhao on the train back to the provincial capital, and he never saw her again——
A good sister was lost by herself——
Lao Tan has been here for a week, and he feels good, and his life has initially formed a pattern.

Woke up at dawn in the morning, went up the mountain with Mr. Jia to collect firewood, breathed fresh air, and practiced breathing.

After breakfast, go back to the house to take medicine, and then stroll for an hour in the open space in front of the monastery.

The monastery is built on the mountain, and it is more accurate to say that it is the place to pick the head of the car coming up the mountain. The wide part can park three cars side by side, and the narrow part can only allow one car to pass.

Usually, few cars come up, and the so-called ordinary cars can't get on, and even if they can, ordinary drivers dare not drive.Because the road leading up to the temple on the mountainside is very steep, almost a [-]-degree slope, and extremely narrow, at most three meters.

The road was repaired by workers first with explosives and then with a hook machine. On one side is a hard rocky mountain wall, and on the other side is a mountain stream nearly [-] meters deep, which is extremely dangerous.When Yang Zhijun sent Lao Tan here, he didn't dare to drive up the car, but parked halfway up the mountain and climbed up. The things were brought up by a professional driver on the mountain in a four-wheel drive Jeepla.

Lao Tan walks every day from the open space up and down the mountainside, and then climbs up again.It takes two to 10 minutes to go down, and four to 10 minutes to climb up, usually sweating profusely.

After walking back to the house, wash your face with cold water, rest for half an hour, and then study the Diamond Sutra.

Take a nap at one o'clock in the afternoon, wake up at [-]:[-], drink a pot of tea, and then start preparing dinner, which will be served on time at [-]:[-].

After dinner at five o'clock, it was dark.He usually does not go to the homework room to meditate and chant scriptures at night, but walks along the mountain road, and then returns to the room to take medicine and wash, sit in front of the computer and drink tea while writing something, go to bed at eight o'clock and meditate for an hour, let the mind wander too empty, nine Go to bed on time.

He went to Donggou to fetch water at noon every two days, but he never met Sister Tang again, and he didn't ask Sister Zhao anything he wanted to ask.

(End of this chapter)