Searching for the old lover Zhang Baotong 2019.3.2 Toronto trip

4. The town of Markham

It was so quiet that I went to sleep until I was awakened by the chirping of birds in the woods outside the window, and when I saw that it was already a little bright, I got up quickly, washed up, and went out of the hotel.

It was cool outside the hotel, and there was an air of excitement in the air. I stood in front of the inn for a while, and it began to get light, but the streets were so quiet and quiet that there was no passing car or even a single figure in sight. The grass on the side of the road was covered with damp dew. It's not like it's in China at all, at four or five o'clock in the morning there is the sound of sprinkler music and the clanging of garbage being taken out. Then, as soon as you go out, the exhaust fumes of the car come to your nose, and you are so busy that you have to hold your breath.

I walked down the road that wasn't very wide towards the street. The streets are lined with rows of green trees, and between the trees are small two-story buildings. It seems that every small building here is unique and distinctive, with European architectural style. So, walking in a small town feels like walking in a country in Europe.

As you walk, you can see an old man dressed in red, green, and green leading the dog out to the grass and forest at the back of the street to walk the dog. You can also occasionally see one or two elderly people jogging down the streets. After walking for about ten minutes, I came to an open-air restaurant. It is surrounded by a wooden fence, and there are many flowers blooming on the edge of the fence, which is very bright. It's an intimate European restaurant that serves delicious brunch, lunch, and dinner. There is a large terrace, bar and restaurant to enjoy a delicious meal, dessert or drink.

The restaurant is not very big, but it is very elegantly decorated and makes it feel cozy. As soon as I entered through the fence door, a beautifully dressed girl said to me with a smile, "Welcome," led me to an empty table, and handed me the menu.

I looked at the menu. The menu is printed in English, French and Chinese, and is very beautifully illustrated. The menu includes Cuban sandwiches, Russian potato bread, and American eggs and lettuce. I would have liked to choose a sandwich with salad and fries. The sandwich was white bread with plenty of fries and salad. And I also like mayonnaise with fries, and strong coffee. However, when I looked at the price, I was shocked that it was 104 yuan. But in China, it only costs 8 yuan to drink a bowl of beef paste and spicy soup every morning.

I flipped through the entire menu, and it was all more than 100 yuan. Only the cheapest kind called crepes is 64 yuan. The crepes are made from buckwheat and cut into triangles, which are actually the same as the Qianxian pot helmet in the Xi'an Hotel. Another plate was served with some fried potato wedges and some beef fillets. I didn't really like this kind of breakfast, it was because it was cheap, so I chose it. However, it tastes pretty good.

After a while, it was getting dark, and the queue began to form in front of the restaurant. My table was full of people. But the waiter was very efficient, and the delivery was orderly, so that every guest came happily and returned satisfied. As I ate my breakfast, I carefully observed how the local people lived. They are actually similar to the people at home, except that they appear to be richer, more optimistic, and more polite than our compatriots. I think this is mainly due to the environment, and if we let our compatriots stay in this vast and sparsely populated country, we Chinese may be more polite than them.

After breakfast, it was already 8:40. Thinking that Xu Lisha was going to visit me at 9 o'clock, I hurriedly walked towards the hotel. Somehow, however, I lost my way, and felt that the inn was only about ten minutes away, but I went all the way to the bend in the street, and realized that I had taken the wrong way, because I had not come out with a turn. So, I asked a local elderly man who was walking his dog where the warm inn was. He pointed me in the opposite direction and said that I would have to walk for fifteen minutes. So, I hurried back at a brisk pace.

When I got back to the Warm Hotel, I saw the proprietress say to me, "Someone is looking for you." As he spoke, he pointed to an old woman sitting on the sofa opposite the small living room.

I turned and looked at the old woman. I knew that this old woman was Xu Lisha, but I still hesitated. Because in my impression, Xu Lisha is a young and beautiful, gentle and graceful girl of twenty-two or three. However, the person in front of him was an old woman of almost sixty years of age, with gray hair and a slightly chubby face. She wears a fuchsia blouse and dark blue slacks. It's almost the same as those square dancing aunts in China. But if you look closely, people's dress is still very elaborate and meticulous, her hair is combed very bright, her clothes are straight, and there is no trace of wrinkles, especially the kind of temperament and demeanor she has, which makes people feel awe-inspiring at first sight.

Soon, I saw the shadow of Teacher Ding from her appearance and breath. At this time, she had already stood up from the sofa, also looking at me, and then said, "You are Mr. Zhang Shaodong?"

I said, "Yes, you're still the same Lisa Xu?" I almost didn't recognize you. ”

"It's been more than thirty years," she laughs. It was 1984, and I had just graduated from college. But now it's 2018, and it's been 34 years. ”

"Yes, it's been 34 years, it's like an arrow!" we shook hands tightly. Then, I invited her to sit in my room.

As soon as she entered my room, she said with emotion, "When I first met you, you were playing basketball, and at that time, you were vibrant, heroic, full of youth and vitality. But now he has become a little old man. ”

While making tea for her, I said self-deprecatingly, "The years are ruthless, and the heavens urge people to grow old!"

She immediately said, "When you came to my house, was I a little too cold to you?"

I was stunned and hurriedly said, "No, but I know you definitely didn't have a crush on me." Because my diploma is too low. Before, I specifically mentioned to your mother that my diploma is too low to be worthy of your daughter. However, your mother said that although my diploma was a little worse, I was honest and motivated. ”

She said apologetically, "When I saw you that day, I told my mother that there was a young man from your school, who was quite tall, very handsome, and played very well. When my mom heard that, she knew I was in love with you, and she told me that it was the new English teacher. She also told me that you are a college diploma, and if you were a bachelor's degree, she would have introduced you to me a long time ago. Actually, I really liked you at the time. However, as soon as I heard that you were a college graduate, my heart suddenly cooled. At that time, I was talking to a classmate who was in graduate school, but my parents didn't like him very much because they thought he was from the countryside and his appearance was mediocre. So, I was a little hesitant, but then he got the opportunity to go to Singapore for an exchange. I also really wanted to go abroad at that time, so I didn't hesitate anymore and went abroad with him. ”

I said, "I went to your house before I came here, and your mother was with the babysitter, but she felt lonely and missed you very much." ”

She let out a long sigh and said, "My parents regard me as their whole hope for life, just as a daughter like me. However, the biggest regret in my life is that I can't do my filial piety for them. More than 10 years ago, I asked them to come and live here. However, they only stayed here for a month, and they could not stay any longer, and they had to go back. They don't think there are any acquaintances here, and they can't find anyone to talk to. It's not like at home, where there are acquaintances everywhere. ”

I said, "There's no way around it." I told your mom that if you don't want your children to be too far away from you, you can't let them fly too high. However, they want you to fly very high, and they want you to stay too far away from them. Now, she regrets it very much, saying that they raised a daughter for a foreign country. ”

Xu Lisha said, "When my dad was away, I went home for more than ten days, and I wanted to spend more time with my mother, but it was so hot there that I couldn't sleep at night." It just so happened that there was something at home, so I hurried back. She took a sip of tea and said with deep feeling, "Where is this tea, so delicious?"

I said, "This is the Dongting Lake Biluo Spring Tea I brought from my hometown Hunan." If you like, I've got some more here for you to drink. With that, I placed the box of tea on the table in front of her.

She said, "I don't really drink tea, but when I drink tea from my hometown, I feel that it tastes different." Then, he said, "Then I'll thank you." ”

I said, "It's been more than 30 years, and it's not bad to live here, right?"

She let out a long sigh and said, "Maybe you who live in China think that going abroad is like going to heaven, but in fact, going abroad is not necessarily better than living at home." A classmate who graduated with me was assigned to a university to work in finance at that time, and her husband was not as good as Sun Baoliang and worked as a teaching assistant in the school. However, when I returned to China and met them ten years ago, they were no worse than us. Last year, I also called them, and they were retired, and they were idle all day, and they had too much money to spend, so they always traveled. But how dare we do this? We can travel at most two or three times a year, and we don't dare to go too far. ”

I said, "Each has its own benefits, how good your environment is here, how good your welfare is here, how many Chinese people are looking forward to coming here." ”

She shook her head and said, "Not really. Back then, when we first came here, we hadn't yet obtained Canadian citizenship, so it was very difficult to find a job. I work in a supermarket, and Sun Baoliang tutors Chinese in the Chinese community. Renting a small house in an apartment, cooking at night is often done by three or four families in turns, and there is a queue to go to the bathroom in the morning. That kind of life is really unbearable. ”

We talked until 11 o'clock, when she was going home to make lunch. I asked her, "Who are you going to cook for when you go back?"

She said, "Cook for yourself." My husband and children both work in the city and don't come back until the evening. ”

I said, "Don't go back, I'll invite you to dinner at noon." ”

She hesitated for a moment and said, "That's good." ”

So, we talked a little more and then went out to eat.