National Tide 1980

Sunday, April 29, 1984.

Ning Weimin, who was used to being busy, didn't want to waste time and stayed at home to rest.

On this day, he made an appointment with someone from the ancient construction team to view the house in No. 5 Dongsi Si Tiao Yard, and asked for their help in calculating the cost and duration of the yard project.

Unexpectedly, we caught up with the Zhai family moving.

Ning Weimin drove far away from Dalai when he saw a 130 truck parked at the door of No. 5 Courtyard. Several strangers were coming in and out, moving furniture onto the truck.

There are no professional moving companies these days, so needless to say, they should all be people hired by the Zhai family to help.

Wait until Ning Weimin and the people from the ancient construction team enter the hospital again.

Sure enough, I saw Old Man Zhai's sons and daughters-in-law, all busy picking up the remaining scattered things.

They were still loading the things they were going to take away into cardboard boxes, which were all packaging boxes obtained from commercial units.

There is "Tower" soap, "White Cat" washing powder, "White Rabbit" milk candies, and "Ship" glue...

The Zhai family had become very familiar with Ning Weimin by this time. The eldest son of the Zhai family and his wife who were outside the door greeted Ning Weimin cordially when they saw him entering the hospital.

In their eyes, Ning Weimin is no less than a god in the sky, a noble person who specializes in bringing them wealth and blessings.

However, the strange thing is that Uncle Zhai was not very happy when he saw his sponsor who had been paying him money every month since then.

He just nodded perfunctorily, turned around and entered the house without saying a polite word.

It was as if Ning Weimin had offended him.

Ning Weimin was confused and wondering, but the sound of conversation coming from the room made him understand what was going on.

"Dad, it's a shame that we had to move and we didn't know there was so much garbage in our house. Look at you, why do you keep everything? You can't even throw away an empty cookie box! After eating the soy bean curd, I cleaned the bottle and stuffed it on the bed Down there! What kind of black junk is this? Why don't we help you clean it up and sell all these junks for scrap..."

"Nonsense, a broken family is worth a thousand dollars. You are moving, not losing your family. You throw away such a good pot, and don't even want the pot? Is there anyone like you?"

"Oh, my dad, take a look for yourself, the bottom of this pot is almost leaking. Besides, this is a big pot for wood stoves in the countryside. I'm afraid you didn't save it in your previous life? Why did you keep it? I'm confused. Where did all these rags come from in our house? Come on, let me count them for you one by one. This bundle is full of rags. These are the rags we wore when we were children, as well as our shoes and bibs. , butt curtain. And this shabby sheepskin jacket, which my grandfather used to wear when shepherding sheep outside the mouth, right? It attracts insects..."

Judging from the voice, the person who had a dispute with Uncle Zhai over the issue of keeping old things was the second son of the Zhai family.

Their conflicts obviously arise from the different life attitudes and values ​​of the two generations.

There are some things that the younger generations think are useless and they want to throw them away, but Uncle Zhai is distressed and refuses to agree.

So needless to say, Uncle Zhai must have a bad look because Ning Weimin was the initiator of this move.

Soon, the second son of the Zhai family not only talked about it, but also started to throw it away.

He opened the door and saw tattered clothes, tattered shoes, tattered socks, old iron boxes, cotton covers, expired pills...

One by one they flew into the courtyard.

Ning Weimin couldn't help but feel ridiculous when he saw the patchy appearance of those broken things and smelled a musty smell at the same time.

Naturally, he was on the side of the second son of the Zhai family.

I really can't keep these things.

No wonder the second son of the Zhai family took such action to deal with this stubborn old man.

Otherwise, this place will become a scrap station sooner or later.

But Uncle Zhai's voice in the room became even more excited because of this.

"You bastard, you are rebelling! Get everything back for me!"

"Dad, if you don't get rid of the old, you won't get the new. I'm not saying that it's not good to be thrifty. But these things you left behind are of no use at all. They are nothing. I'm here to clean them up for you and make this house clean and spacious. Isn't it good? If you want something really short, I'll buy you a new one later..."

"The new ones are new, and the old ones can't be thrown away. These things have been with me all my life, why do you just throw them away at my request! You guys are too lenient. You move your own things when you move, don't touch me. What are you doing?"

"Dad, you are confused! You really take people's kind words seriously. This is not our home anymore. The building we live in from now on is your home. That Manager Ning asked you to stay, just to help others look at the house. In the future, we won’t even be able to save our self-built house, everything will have to be ripped off. You don’t think we can keep these rags, do you? Can you talk to others like this?”

Ning Weimin felt a little embarrassed when he heard that he was involved.

I was wondering whether I should open the door and go in to explain something and help smooth things over.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he reached the door of the house, another small shoe worn by a child flew out and hit him.

What was even more unexpected was that immediately after, Uncle Zhai tremblingly chased him out.

The old man hurriedly picked up the shoes from the ground like he was grabbing them. The moment he raised his head and met Ning Weimin's eyes, the old man sighed.

Ning Weimin saw that the old man's eyes were red, showing unspeakable grievance and desolation.

He couldn't bear it, and just when he was thinking of saying something to the old man, Uncle Zhai cursed into the room full of anger.

"Asshole! You beast! You dare to throw away these shoes! Your late mother made them for you. She sewed until two o'clock in the morning every day, lit a lamp and boiled oil for three days before making them. You two brothers Who didn’t wear one when they were children! If you dare to touch my things again, I will sever the father-son relationship with you today!"

Seeing the old man stroking the shoes lovingly in his hands, he walked into the house reluctantly and heartbroken.

Ning Weimin froze instantly. He no longer thought there was anything funny about this scene.

I just felt my nose was a little sore, and I felt a heavy pressure on my heart.

He could no longer say any nice words to reassure others, or to look away.

As a result, at this moment, someone suddenly greeted him at the second door.

Ning Weimin turned around and saw that it was the old lady's family who sold him the house.

Today, it's not just the old lady's eldest daughter who is accompanying her.

The old lady's second daughter's family, as well as her grandson, son, daughter, and a dozen or so people all came.

Ning Weimin was a little confused about such a big move. He didn't understand until he came over to greet him and chatted for a few words.

After the old lady completed the real estate transaction, she felt terribly uncomfortable these days and was reluctant to part with the house.

Later I heard that everyone in the courtyard had almost moved out, so today I brought my whole family here to say goodbye formally to the courtyard.

I want my two girls who grew up in this house to have a look at the environment they lived in when they were young.

It’s also like letting the grandchildren see where their mom grew up.

No, the old lady, surrounded by her children, had just made her final inspection of the courtyard.

Probably because he was touched by the scene, there were still tears on the old man's face.

Her two daughters also looked lonely and sad.

However, children's emotions are obviously different from adults.

Not knowing the cause and effect, they just regarded this visit as a normal visit.

They were even a little impatient with the old, stale and empty courtyard, and they all clamored to go home.

"Grandma, let's go home. This is not fun."

"Yes, there is no park for fun. Let's go home. I still want to watch TV..."

"Grandma, I'm hungry. It's time for us to go back and eat..."

The old lady couldn't take care of these little things for the time being, so she solemnly entrusted Ning Weimin with her care.

"Mr. Ning, you are more capable than us. It is also a blessing for this yard to fall into your hands. We will not let us ruin it. I can rest assured that this yard will be entrusted to you from now on. I heard that you are planning to Repair this small courtyard? Then I have a merciless request. After the repairs are completed, I... can I come and see it again? "

The old man's words revealed the helplessness of life and emotional attachment, which made Ning Weimin unconsciously feel the sourness of pity.

He quickly and cheerfully promised.

"No problem, aunt, you can come anytime you want to see this yard. From now on, Uncle Zhai will help me and stay to take care of this yard. We are not strangers. It can happen at any time. It will be very convenient for you to come." …”

"That's good, that's good," the old lady forced a smile, then looked back at the hanging flower door and the crabapple tree in the yard.

The end of April is when the two Xifu crabapples are in full bloom.

Butterflies are flying and sparrows are chirping in the empty courtyard. It is already a scene of bright spring and colorful flowers.

The old man murmured to himself, "What a wonderful courtyard, what a wonderful courtyard. Children, you should all take a good look. This was once a home, our home..."

As he said this, another two lines of tears fell.

"Auntie, you..." Ning Weimin asked with concern.

"It's okay, I'm okay...Mr. Ning, let's meet again."

The old lady rubbed her face and was supported by her two daughters.

This time, he really turned around and ran towards the entrance of the courtyard.

Looking at the old man's trembling back, Ning Weimin felt really confused and uncomfortable.

Looking at the chaotic scene in front of Zhai's house again, he suddenly realized that the happiness he was pursuing did not actually exist, and his self-feeling was a bit too good.

It is difficult to achieve a complete relocation at all, at least the old people will not be as happy as the young people.

Unable to bear it, he suddenly had an idea and chased after him again.

"Auntie, please stay. We are bringing a camera to take pictures of the house today. You can also take some photos to keep as a souvenir..."

This sound was like a magical spell, causing the old man to stop and turn around immediately.

"Mr. Ning, you...you...thank you, thank you..."

So soon, the old lady and her family returned to stand in front of the Chuihua Gate.

The camera, controlled by Ning Weimin himself, freezes a family portrait in the lens.

The old man's sad expression finally eased, and he smiled with a hint of relief or gratitude.