"Is it cold or not? I gave you the military coat? ”

"It's okay, no need." Jian Lu also went out fully armed, and half of her face was covered in a scarf, just a little frozen hands and feet. "I knew I came out in my mother's chicken shoes."

It's bloated and ugly, but it's warm.

"It's not easy to walk, I'll take a look when I go back and get you something nice and warm to walk in."

Cheng Zheng took his daughter-in-law all the way forward, at this time, there were only sporadic figures on the mountain road, almost all of whom Cheng Zheng knew.

"It's almost there, the house in front of you is it."

Jian Lu looked in the direction of Cheng Zheng's finger, and saw that there was a mud-walled house in front of her, with a small courtyard, but the soil was mottled, and the house was not very stable.

"Hou Changde should have his parents, daughter-in-law, and son at home." In the first two years of Hou Changde's death, Cheng Zheng also asked his mother to visit his family.

This time, he had to go on his own.

Walking to the gate of the Hou family's courtyard, Cheng Zheng glanced at the courtyard and saw a child there, so he raised his voice and asked, "Tiger head?" ”

The children in the courtyard heard someone calling themselves, walked slowly to the door, and saw a man in a military coat, and were a little surprised and a little puzzled, "Uncle, how do you know me?" ”

"What a tiger's head?" Cheng Zheng just looked at the boy in the yard and estimated that he was six or seven years old, like Hou Changde's child's age, so he casually asked, "I am your father's comrade-in-arms, and I came to visit you." ”

"My dad?" As soon as the tiger heard that it was his father's comrade-in-arms, his eyes lit up, although he had never seen his father since he was born, but his mother told him that his father was a hero and a martyr, and he had always admired his father.

"Uncle, you're also a soldier?"

"That's right." Cheng Zheng looked at the children of his comrades-in-arms, who should be eight years old, but with yellow muscles and thin muscles, and his body did not look like an eight-year-old child. ”

"My mother is at Aunt Yang's house next door, I'll call her." The tiger head turned around and ran, and disappeared as soon as the smoke slipped away.

Someone in the house heard the movement and came out, and when they saw two strangers at the door, they only marveled that they looked so good, not like their own relatives.

With a little vigilance, the old lady spoke, "Two comrades, who are you looking for?" ”

"Auntie, I am Cheng Zheng, Hou Changde's comrade-in-arms, and I came to visit his family." Cheng Zheng politely replied.

Jian Lu raised the bag in her hand, "Auntie, my man and I came to visit, it's almost the New Year, I bought some candy and peach crisp, it's lively." ”

"Huh?" The eldest lady looked at Cheng Zheng, and still didn't believe it, "Are you my son's comrade-in-arms?" ”

Cheng Zheng nodded, "I am from Unit 625, and I am in the same regiment as Changde." ”

Hearing this name, the old lady was finally confirmed.

"Oh, I'm so embarrassed, we don't want anything, since it's Changde's comrades-in-arms, come up to the house. Let's just say that you are coming, what kind of gift do you bring? The old lady warmly welcomed them into the house, beckoned them to sit down, turned around and called to the West House, "Old man, Changde and his comrades-in-arms are here, come out and have a look." ”

Chapter 77

When Hou Changde's daughter-in-law, Li Ju, came back from next door, she was stunned for a moment when she saw strange men and women.

It was only when I heard my mother-in-law mention the deceased man's comrades-in-arms that she reacted.

"Are you Changde's comrade-in-arms?" Li Ju is only thirty years old now, and he was only in his early twenties when the man died, and now he is living with his son in his mother-in-law's house.

Eight years is enough time for the grief to dissipate and leave only a place in my heart to remember.

Unlike the heart-rending when she first received the news, Li Ju mentioned her man's name calmly and restrainedly.

"Yes, hello Comrade Li Ju, I am Cheng Zheng, Hou Changde's comrade-in-arms." Cheng Zheng saluted Li Ju and Hou Changde's parents.

"Comrade Cheng Zheng, you sit, you two sit down."

The Hou family's parents hurriedly beckoned the two to sit down.

Referring to the sacrifice of his son eight years ago, Hou's father sighed while holding the cigarette stick, and said leisurely, "It's hard for you to remember our family virtues, so you have a special trip, and you have a heart."

Hou's mother pulled Cheng Zheng to ask about her son's time in the army, and when the county sent someone to inform Hou Changde of the news of his death, she immediately fainted.

But the days passed day by day, and eight years passed in the blink of an eye.

Today, the Hou family is having a hard time, Hou's father and mother have only one child, Hou Changde, the only pillar of the family has died, and the family is very sad, but they still rely on the belief that they want to raise Hou Changde's only bloodline.

"Our family Changde did well in the army at the beginning, right? A year ago, he had sent a letter to his family, saying that he had done very well, and that his leaders had praised him. When Hou's mother mentioned her son again, she only thought of him when he was in high spirits, and she was faintly proud.

Cheng Zheng bowed his head, "That's right, Comrade Hou Changde is a very good fighter, who has trained hard and achieved very good results in all aspects. ”

"He wants to be a soldier and thinks he is very powerful."

Li Ju listened silently, but didn't say much, sometimes clasped his hands together, and sometimes stroked his son's head.

"Tiger Head is eight years old this year, right?" Cheng Zheng was most distressed when he saw this kid, he had never seen his father since he was born, and it was really difficult.

"Yes!" The tiger's head lit up his voice, "I'm eight years old this year." ”

"Now in third grade?"

When it came to reading, the Hou family looked embarrassed, Li Ju pursed her dry lips and said softly, "I didn't read it." ”

"Why haven't you read it?" Cheng Zheng stiffened his body and immediately reacted, "Is it a problem with the family's economic situation?" If so, you don't have to worry. ”

After that, he took out five large unity sheets from his pocket and handed them to Hou's father, "Uncle Hou, what is this money..."

"No, no!" Hou's father refused again and again, waving his hand and refusing to ask for it, "When Changde sacrificed his life, the top gave the martyrs subsidies, and the commune has also given our family a lot of preferential treatment over the years, saying that it is a martyr's family and we should take more care of it." Comrade Cheng Zheng, don't post money, we can't ask for it! ”

Mother Hou echoed, "It's not easy these days, you take the money back." ”

"Moreover, the tiger head does not want to study, he wants to become a soldier in the future, and he says that it is useless to study." Li Ju touched the child's head and explained.

Seeing that the Hou family refused to accept it, Jian Lu changed her rhetoric, "Actually, you have misunderstood, this money is not from us personally, but from the martyrs' subsidies given by the superiors and issued by the state." ”

"Huh? Didn't you give it back then? Hou's father and Hou's mother looked at each other, and they were puzzled. When his son died, he received a martyr's family allowance, and he also had some help over the years, but this was only barely enough to support the family for a family lacking labor.

Jian Lu took the money in Cheng Zheng's hand and put it on the table, "Isn't this thinking of the sacrificed soldiers, saying that we should care more about the families of the martyrs, and not let the soldiers shed blood, sweat, and tears." So, Uncle Hou, you can rest assured that we will just run errands to help send the money over. ”

Cheng Zheng looked relaxed when he saw that the Hou family was relieved, and he also followed his daughter-in-law's words and said, Anyway, it would be good if the money could help them, and it didn't matter in whose name it was sent out.

"Uncle Hou, it's this reason, you can accept this money."

"That's fine." The Hou family apparently accepted this argument and accepted the 50 yuan.

The money was given, and Cheng Zheng saw Hou Changde's son Hutou beside him, "Hutou, tell your uncle, why don't you want to go to school?" At present, the tuition fee for a semester of primary school is two yuan, and the family has just received a subsidy for you to study. ”

Tiger Head swallowed a few times and said, "But I don't like to go to school, I also want to join the army, like my father, to be a hero!" ”

Hutou was born without a father, and could only hear about his father from his family and the people of the village, who was a hero and everyone remembered him!

He also wanted to be like his father to join the army, and he remembered that his mother had said that his father had planned to take their mother and son to join the army when he became deputy battalion commander, but unfortunately he could not wait for that day.

"I want to be the deputy battalion commander!"

"You kid, you're quite ambitious." Cheng Zheng seems to have seen Hou Changde's shadow from this little child, and the same love has set many goals.

"However, if you don't study, you can't do it, and you have to look at your academic qualifications to become a soldier, especially if you want to become a deputy battalion commander, you can't do it if you are illiterate."

"Huh?" The tiger head was stunned, if you don't study, you can't be a soldier ?

"If you want to be a soldier in the future, study hard, you know? When you are eighteen years old, come to me, and I will arrange for you to sign up for conscription. But if your physical fitness is too poor and your education level is too poor, your uncle will be the first to brush you down. ”

The tiger looked at the tall and majestic Uncle Cheng, who was his father's comrade-in-arms, and said that he would let him go to him at the age of 18 to be a soldier!

"Good!" The tiger head stood up straight, followed the example of Uncle Cheng just now, raised his right hand to his eyebrows, and saluted him. "I'm going to come to you when I'm eighteen!"

Cheng Zheng looked at the tiger's head, and his lips curled, as if he had seen Hou Changde's appearance on the day he brought the recruits.

"I'll teach you how to salute." Cheng Zheng held the hand of the tiger head and fiddled back and forth, teaching him the most standard military salute.

After sending the money and pastries, Cheng Zheng and Jian Lu talked for a while at Hou's house, politely declined the invitation of the Hou family to stay for dinner, and hurried back.

Before leaving, Jian Lu looked at Li Ju and specially instructed a few more words, "Sister-in-law Li Ju, this baby is very smart, you must manage him to study hard, and only then can he be successful in his studies." You don't have to worry about money. We went back and asked to see that the children of the martyrs were given free tuition, and there was also an additional subsidy. ”

"Thank you then."

Li Ju watched Hou Changde's comrade-in-arms and his daughter-in-law in military coats slowly leave, walking farther and farther, and gradually disappearing on the path.

Turning around again, the tiger head was standing in the courtyard, raising his hands to practice saluting, and after practicing several times, he finally looked decent and ran to his mother in high spirits.

"Mom, I'll salute you!"

=

Cheng Zheng and Jian Lu returned the same way, and on the way back, the sky gradually darkened, and the temperature gradually decreased.

"We're going to send people fifty dollars a year, right?" Jian Lu looked at Cheng Zheng's side face, and her heart was a little blocked, "Let's just say that it is for the martyrs who applied for the subsidy." ”

Cheng Zheng took Jian Lu's hand and tightened it, "Okay." ”

Jian Lu took a deep breath and talked about the tiger head, "That kid looks quite clever, and he is quite ambitious at such a young age. ”

"Yes, he is a good seedling, but he will follow him if he is a soldier in the future, and there will be ten years left, and if he can read well in the future, graduate from high school, and want to find a job in the county seat, I can also help him see it." Cheng Zheng didn't know if the kid's idea of becoming a soldier was a whim or how strong it was, but in short, it certainly didn't hurt to study first.

"Yes, it's good to read, and being able to read it can change your fate."

It was getting dark, and Cheng Zheng and Jian Lu braved the cold wind and returned home at seven o'clock in the evening.

Her stomach was so hungry that she almost growled, and Jian Lu was already missing a bowl of fragrant noodles.

"I brought somen back, and I'll cook two bowls of noodles in a while."

The two of them walked into their yard and saw that in the yard they were both looking at her glass jar with snow, and next to her was Jian Hualin.

Shuangshuang went to the house of the matchmaker He Hongmei with her grandmother this afternoon and gave her two eggs as a thank you gift.

After returning to the house, I took a nap and had dinner, but my parents had not come back, they were both playing in the snow in the yard, and my grandmother was cleaning up.

This time, Shuangshuang noticed that the old coconut was different, and smiled one by one on his face, as if he was talking to himself gently.

"Shuangshuang, I'm Grandpa, remember if I don't?" Jian Hualin squatted on the ground, licking his face and talking to his granddaughter.

He was relieved and prepared to come again to find out the truth of his little daughter and son-in-law, but he was disappointed, and neither of them was at home.

After a few words with my mother-in-law, I began to tease Shuangshuang, who was playing.

"Yes." Shuangshuang knew yesterday that this was Mom's Dad, so he replied obediently.

"Shuangshuang, you know what money is not?" Jian Hualin wanted to inquire about the family background of the head of the regiment's son-in-law, and since it was not famous to ask the adults, he would ask the little ones, because the children would not lie.

Shuangshuang held the glass jar with two small hands, knocked lightly, and nodded when he heard the words, "I know!" ”

After two seconds of reaction, there was a storm in the little head, and finally came to a conclusion, "Old coconut, do you want to give Sangsang money to sleep?" ”

Jian Hualin: ?