On the afternoon of September 30, the military training for freshmen came to an end.

Tao Fei, Feng Xiaoyu, and Dai Fangfang went to a cafeteria for dinner as agreed in advance, and Yan Qing packed his luggage and went home.

When she got home, her grandmother had already picked up her younger brother Su Hao from school.

"Sister, sister." As soon as she arrived at the door, her brother rushed towards her.

"Haohao, do you miss your sister?" Yan Qing squatted down and asked.

"I think, every day I ask my mother where my sister has gone. Mom said my sister went to college. I also want to study hard and go to college like my sister in the future. Yan Qing looked at the words that came out of his younger brother's immature little mouth, and was especially pleased.

"Good brother, do you listen to your grandmother and mother at home?"

"Obedient."

"Really? Didn't lie to my sister? ”

"If you don't believe it, ask grandma."

"Oops, I've been so thin for half a month of military training." The grandmother, who was cooking in the kitchen, heard the voice and came out, stood at the door, looked at Yan Qing and said.

"Grandma." Yan Qing stood up and shouted loudly.

"Not only is it thin, but it's also dark."

"It's darker, and it's sunbathing every day. But I wasn't thin, the food in the school cafeteria was good, and I ate enough every day. Yan Qing led his younger brother into the house.

"How can the food at school be compared to your own home."

Yan Qing walked to his room and hung his schoolbag on the door. Her room and the one in front of her were originally a room of about 20 square meters. The family couldn't all be crammed into one room, so my mother divided a large room into two smaller rooms. The front room has a sun and a window, and the younger brother is still young, so Yanqing gave up to his mother and younger brother to live in the front. The back room is very small, except for a small wardrobe and a double bed, you can't put anything else, if you don't turn on the light, it's dark inside during the day, Yanqing and her grandmother live in this room. She was used to the darkness of the room, so she didn't turn on the light when she went in, but skillfully found the hook on the door and hung the bag on it.

Outside is a small living room, which can barely fit a very small and dilapidated sofa, usually after my mother comes back from the stall, she is often tired and paralyzed and lies on it. There is also a kitchen where at most one person can stand, and sometimes Yanqing often knocks down the kitchenware and chopsticks inside when cooking inside. The bathroom is also very small, and there is a washing machine, which is one of the few appliances in the house. Or because after my grandmother came, my mother couldn't bear to endure the cold water to wash clothes in the winter, so she bought a washing machine with a ruthless heart. However, my mother rarely uses it, and she always says that machine-washed clothes are not as clean as hand-washed.

This house has been rented since when my father was still alive, and after renting it for so many years, the landlord probably took pity on her family's situation and gave them a relatively cheap price, and the family was grateful.

After living in such a house for so many years, when Yan Qing saw the school dormitory for the first time, she couldn't help but be generous that the school's four-person dormitory was much larger than her house, and there was sunlight on the balcony. Every time Tao Fei and Feng Xiaoyu complained that the school dormitory was not good or that, Yan Qing couldn't understand them, in her opinion, everything in the school was already very good. She couldn't imagine what kind of life Tao Fei and Feng Xiaoyu usually lived.

In the kitchen, there are also dishes cut by my grandmother.

"Grandma, what are you going to eat tonight?" Yan Qing asked softly.

"I knew you were coming back, so I took some of your favorite dishes from your mother when I picked up Haohao from school just now." Grandma said as she walked into the kitchen.

"Grandma, I'll do it, you sit down and rest." Yanqing has been in her teens since she was a teenager, and she learned to cook when other children were still spoiled in their parents' arms.

"As soon as you come back, I'll play with Haohao for a while, I'll cook, and you can send it to your mother when it's ready."

The younger brother kept pestering him and didn't let go. "yes, okay." Yan Qing replied and accompanied his younger brother to the sports field downstairs to play.

Mom's dinner at night has always been sent to her after the family is ready, because dinner time is the time when the business is booming at the vegetable stall, and everyone is in a hurry to buy vegetables and cook after work, so my mother has no time to go home to eat, and sometimes she is too busy to even have time to eat a bite of the food sent by the family.

"Haohao, has your uncle been here?"

"Nope." The younger brother shook his head.

Yan Qing looked at his younger brother, and a strong sense of responsibility spontaneously arose in his heart, his younger brother was still so young, he couldn't let him be like her, he didn't know anything, was lonely and looked down upon. Since entering the university, Yan Qing deeply felt that the gap between him and his classmates was too big, and he only cared about studying hard in high school and didn't care about anything. But college is different, most of the time she is in contact with classmates and roommates, and sometimes she can't interject a word about what they are talking about, and can only listen to them stupidly on the side. She also wants to talk and blend in with everyone, but this sense of ignorance deepens her inferiority complex and loneliness, making her form a net on herself, and others can't get in, and she can't get out. But she expects a good thing in her heart and hates herself like this.

After dinner, Yan Qing packed the food left for his mother.

The younger brother said, "Sister, I will go with you too." ”

"Hao Hao, you stay at home with your grandmother, and your sister and mother will be back later."

"Haohao, my sister's school is on vacation, and I can accompany you for many days this time. My sister just sent food to my mother as usual with my grandmother, and I came back later. ”

After listening to his grandmother's words, Hao Hao raised his little face and asked, "Sister, is it really?" Can you really stay with me for many days this time? ”

Yan Qing touched his head. "Well, my brother is good."

She didn't say anything about her part-time job, and went to the market with her food.

In front of my mother's vegetable stall, there were many guests who were choosing dishes and waiting for the checkout.

"I'm back." Mom smiled at her.

"Mom, I'll bring you food." Yan Qing pointed to the dishes and chopsticks that were put down.

"Okay, I'll eat later."

After saying this, she threw herself into the work again. In the past, when my father was here, their family not only sold vegetables, but also sold meat and fish, but now my mother supports the vegetable stall alone, first, she can't be busy, and second, she can't afford to hire helpers, so the original stall has been reduced by half and only sells vegetables. Yan Qing is also very familiar with the things on the stall, and she has followed her parents in the market since she was a child, and she knows exactly what dishes should be sold in what season and at what price.

"Yanqing, the college student is back." The uncle who sold fish at the stall next door called her.

"I'm back." Yan Qing glanced at it and replied.

"Yanqing, you're a college student, why are you still shopping for groceries here." The aunt on the right who sells meat said with a smile.

"After studying for a doctorate, I have to help my mother buy groceries, she can't be busy alone, and I usually thank you for taking care of her." Yan Qing said obediently.

The uncles and aunts around, Yan Qing basically knows each other, and she usually sees the intimacy that she also calls. They also know the situation of her family, and sometimes they try to help when they can, and Yanqing's heart is full of gratitude and an indescribable emotion for them. Perhaps, because they are engaged in the same job as their mother, they will not look down on their family.

It was not until half past seven that my mother had time to eat, but the food was already cold, and my mother still ate it without saying a word.

At half past eight, Yan Qing helped his mother collect the stall together.

"Are you still used to living in school?" The two were walking home when their mother asked.

"Habit, everything is fine, there are many varieties of meals in the school and they are cheap, the dormitory is comfortable, and the roommates are good." Yan Qing said.

"That's good, you haven't lived in a room since you were a child, you have to have a good relationship with your roommates, don't be willful and tolerant of others."

"yes, I see."

"And." My mother said earnestly: "Our family is not as good as other people's families, and there may be all kinds of conditions among your classmates who are thousands of times better than our family, don't compare with others, and don't take yourself lightly." ”

"Uh-huh." Yan Qing nodded seriously.

Mom continued: "Your brother is still so young, and you know that I can't make a lot of money a day, so my family is pointing to you for studying." ”

Yan Qing looked into the distance and said, "Mom, I found a part-time job, and I want to do it part-time on National Day." ”

"Do something." Mom looked at her and asked.

"Hand out flyers."

"How much is a day."

"Fifty."

"The wages are so low." Mom frowned.

"It's not tiring to hand out flyers, and it's natural for the salary to be lower." Yanqing comforted her mother and said.

Mom sighed. "You can go if you want, but be careful not to get heat stroke."

"Thank you, Mom." Yan Qing bared his teeth and said: "No, it's no problem for us to stand in a military posture under the sun every day in military training, if it's too hot, I'll secretly hide under a tree to rest." ”

"There is a new children's amusement park in the front mall, and the students of Haohao Kindergarten have gone to play and told him many times. He also kept clamoring to play, I didn't have time, and I didn't feel at ease when my grandmother was old and took him there. You see, if you don't do a part-time job on National Day, you will take him to play. ”

"However, the person who introduced me said that I would do it for seven days in a row." It's hard to put it bluntly.

"Your part-time salary is so low, it's hard to take a few days off, and you can take Haohao at home if you don't do it, grandma is old after all......" Before the mother's words were finished, she noticed that Yan Qing was standing in place disappointed.

Seeing this, she came over and asked, "Yanqing, do you really want to go?" ”

"Uh-huh." Yan Qing nodded vigorously. "If I do it for seven days in a row, I can earn 350 yuan, and then I can earn a month's living expenses by doing it for a few more days on weekends."

With tears flashing in her eyes, her mother turned around and said, "Good boy, it's all to blame for my mother's inability to make money, and for not being able to give you and my brother better living conditions." ”

"Mom, don't say that, it's not easy for you to raise me so big for me to study, don't worry, I will study hard and make money to support you, my brother and my grandmother in the future." Said sensibly.

Mom wiped the tears from her eyes and saw her grandmother and Haohao who came to greet her.

The younger brother ran over, and the tired mother picked him up.

"Let's go, go home." Mother said.