6

Chapter 6

After eating a bowl of fragrant chicken noodle soup, the two little boys quickly grew fond of the Li family. They surrounded Grandma Li, who had a sharp tongue but a soft heart, and called her "Grandma" non-stop. Grandma Li, holding the two boys for a while, then asked Ming Nan to take them out to play. Both Ming Nan and Ming Bei were naturally friendly, and in no time, they became as close as brothers, growing up together.

With great excitement, Ming Bei began telling all the stories about his adventures in the mountains and rivers. Ming Shu listened intently, while four-year-old Ming Xin, not yet understanding much, blurted out, "My mom said Grandma's house is poor, and there's nothing fun here."

"Nonsense!" Ming Bei rolled his eyes. "Let me tell you, our family has everything. It might be cold now, but sometimes we can still catch wild chickens and rabbits on the mountain. Didn't you just eat two pieces of chicken?"

While wild chicken meat wasn't the easiest to chew, the soup made from it was very fragrant. Ming Xin, who hadn't had chicken for a long time, licked his lips and smiled innocently, "Chicken is tasty!"

Ming Bei ruffled Ming Xin's head, unable to hold back a laugh. "What kind of fun things do you guys do in Ice City?"

Ming Xin tilted his head, thinking hard but couldn't come up with anything, so he just shook his head honestly. Ming Shu, being a bit older, had some ideas. "It's fun to watch ice fishing on the Songhua River, but it's too far from our house. My mom doesn't want us to go."

"That's nothing. There's a river called Yong Cui River right in front of our house. My brother and I caught lots of fish there this month. I'll take you guys tomorrow," Ming Bei said confidently, patting his chest.

Ming Shu and Ming Xin nodded eagerly. Ming Bei continued, "I have something even more fun." Seeing the curious looks from the others, Ming Bei proudly puffed out his chest. "My mom just had a baby sister!"

"Wow..." Ming Shu and Ming Xin gazed at Ming Bei in admiration. "Aunt is amazing! We don't have a little sister at our house."

"We don't have one at my third uncle's house either," Ming Bei said smugly. He peeked inside and saw the adults talking in the west room. He motioned to the two new brothers, "I'll show you my sister."

The four boys tiptoed to the door of the east room. Ming Bei carefully opened the door and peeked inside. Just then, Zhen Zhen had just finished eating and was happily moving her little hands and feet.

Actually, when Li Mulin and the others came home, Wang Sufen had already heard the noise. But at that time, Zhen Zhen was sleeping while nursing, and Wang Sufen didn't want to wake her up, so she didn't move.

But the noise outside was so loud that Zhen Zhen eventually woke up. Seeing that she wasn't crying and was happily playing by herself, Wang Sufen decided to change her clothes and take her outside to meet people. Just as she finished changing and was about to open the door, the boys came in.

"Mom, these are Ming Shu and Ming Xin from Fourth Uncle's family. They want to see our little sister," Ming Nan and Ming Bei said, leading the two boys inside and greeting Wang Sufen with a smile.

"They're really handsome," Wang Sufen said, hearing the sound of Li Lao Tai scolding in the west room. She quickly took the children inside. "Come, sit on the bed. Just in time, your sister is awake." As she spoke, she placed Zhen Zhen on the bedding.

Ming Shu hurriedly took off his shoes and climbed onto the bed to look at Zhen Zhen. Ming Xin, still a bit shy, stayed at the edge of the bed, unwilling to climb up. But soon, the three brothers crowded around Zhen Zhen, and he couldn't see anything from below. In a panic, he forgot his shyness, took off his shoes, and squeezed between Ming Nan and Ming Bei.

Since babies grow quickly, and Zhen Zhen couldn't crawl or sit yet, Grandma Li hadn't made her any new clothes. She just found two old clothes that Ming Nan used to wear as a child, made a few adjustments, and put them on Zhen Zhen.

The heated bed was continuously warming, and the room was very warm, so Zhen Zhen was only wearing a thin shirt and felt a bit hot. Ming Xin curiously looked at the soft, white baby and couldn't resist touching her little hand. He smiled at Wang Sufen, "Your sister is really cute."

"Of course!" Ming Bei smiled proudly and said seriously, "My sister's name is Zhen Zhen. That character is really hard to write. My dad says when my sister goes to school and has to write her name, she'll definitely cry."

Ming Shu, who was already in second grade, was shocked when he heard this. "Why did they choose such a hard-to-write name? Does Second Uncle not like his sister?"

"It's because it sounds nice, and she's easy to raise," Ming Nan said, lying on the bed, swinging his legs in the air. He glanced at Ming Shu and said, "My dad and my grandma really like my sister. Grandma says Zhen Zhen is the only girl in our family for five generations."

Ming Shu and Ming Xin didn't fully understand what Ming Nan meant, but it didn't stop them from expressing their admiration. "That's amazing! My mom can't have a sister."

Ming Bei puffed up his chest proudly, thinking they were praising him. Though Zhen Zhen could understand what everyone was saying, she was still too young to speak and could only make cooing noises to express her excitement.

Ming Shu, looking at Zhen Zhen's big, dark eyes, found her incredibly cute. He tried to remember what Ming Xin was like as a child but could only vaguely recall: "Ming Xin wasn't as well-behaved as my sister when he was little. Back then, he would only cry and pee. He wasn't fun at all."

"My sister doesn't cry," Ming Bei immediately responded. "Every time she sees me, she smiles. Grandma says when she grows teeth, I'll catch fish for her, and she'll love me the most."

Zhen Zhen couldn't help but feel a little exasperated: "Silly boy, Grandma is just getting you to work."

Ming Bei saw Zhen Zhen smile and was overjoyed. He turned to Wang Sufen and asked, "Mom, do you see? She smiled at me! She must like me the most!"

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Wang Sufen eagerly agreed, not forgetting to encourage her silly son. "When you catch fish, shoot rabbits, and gather nuts for your sister, she'll like you even more."

Ming Bei grew anxious. "Mom, why are you saying this in front of my third brother? What if he tries to compete with me?"

Ming Nan rolled his eyes deeply, holding back the urge to comment sarcastically. He forced a smile and said, "As an older brother, how could I not let my younger brother? I won't compete with you. By the way, when we go gather firewood next fall, you'd better work harder. Otherwise, what will we do if our sister gets cold?"

Seeing Ming Bei's grateful expression, Wang Sufen couldn't help but burst out laughing.

In the east room, Wang Sufen was surrounded by children, filled with warmth, while in the west room, the atmosphere was quite awkward. Zhang Chunhua, thinking of herself as a city person, looked down on places like Beicha. When she married Li Mulin, it was because she liked that his family was far away and that he had several brothers, so there would be little responsibility for taking care of the elderly.

Zhang Chunhua's mother had suffered a lot giving birth to her and, due to the war, had been hiding and moving around, never taking proper care of herself. After that, she never had another child. Zhang Chunhua was the only daughter, so her parents had planned to find a son-in-law to take care of them when they grew old.

At that time, many families were struggling to make ends meet, but Zhang's family wasn't poor. They lived in the city, and her father worked at the electric power bureau, so they could easily support three people. Although Zhang Chunhua didn't work, she had very picky tastes. The rural men didn't appeal to her, and the city men didn't meet her standards either.

At that time, Li Mulin had just arrived in Ice City and happened to be recruited by the electric power bureau. He had studied a few years and was young and capable, so he was hired as an apprentice and placed under Zhang's father.

Li Mulin was quick-witted, and although he didn't master professional skills during work, during breaks, he would help Zhang's family with chores while also asking his mentor to teach him more. Over time, Zhang Chunhua grew fond of him. When her father found out, he tested Li Mulin's thoughts on marrying into the family, but Li Mulin firmly rejected the idea.

Zhang's father originally thought to let it go, but Zhang Chunhua was so determined to marry Li Mulin that her father agreed, thinking that since Li Mulin lived far away and was alone in Ice City, it was practically the same as marrying a son-in-law.

Although marriage was an important matter, Li Mulin had to return home to discuss it with his parents and formally propose. However, Zhang's family didn't want Li Mulin to go back at that time and secretly made up an excuse. They persuaded him that taking time off now would affect his future promotion, and it would be better to get married first and visit his parents later.

The salary for apprentices was more than three times lower than that of regular employees, so after much hesitation, Li Mulin couldn't bear to lose the higher salary and wrote a letter to his family, marrying in a somewhat muddled way.

Before marriage, Li Mulin lived in a single dormitory, but after marriage, he couldn't apply for a new house right away. Zhang's family quickly took advantage of this and had the couple move back in, hoping to solidify the son-in-law status little by little.

During the year of their marriage, Li Mulin successfully became a regular employee. He was planning to take his wife back home to meet his parents for the New Year. However, at that time, Zhang Chunhua was pregnant and vomiting a lot, so Li Mulin couldn't take her home. By the time the baby was born, Zhang Chunhua again used the excuse that the baby was too young to travel, saying they would go when the baby was older. When Ming Shu turned four and was strong enough, Li Mulin thought he could finally take the trip, but Zhang Chunhua was pregnant again...

If it weren't for Li Mulin worrying about being mocked by neighbors and relatives for going home alone, he would have already gone by himself. Finally, when Ming Xin was old enough and Zhang Chunhua wasn't pregnant, they finally planned to go back for the New Year.

Although Zhang Chunhua returned with him, she was still very unwilling, sulking on the train and secretly badmouthing Li Mulin's family to the children, hoping that they wouldn't become close to his family. She thought that since the children wouldn't get close to the Li family, Li Mulin would never want to return to his hometown.

However, Zhang Chunhua's words were easily forgotten by the children after a bowl of chicken noodle soup and the sight of a newborn daughter. The children soon became immersed in their new-found joy.

Seeing Li Mulin getting scolded by Grandma Li, Zhang Chunhua suddenly felt uneasy and instinctively tried to lean on her sons for support. She realized that after dinner, she hadn't seen them around.

"Ha ha ha..." The sound of Ming Shu and Ming Xin's happy laughter echoed from the next room, making Zhang Chunhua furious: "Ungrateful children! Didn't I teach you better?"