Siheyuan Great Craftsmen

"Yes, oranges. I managed to snatch these from my old comrade-in-arms with great difficulty! I couldn't even bear to give them to your sister Ruyan!"

Uncle Liu smiled happily, his face full of pride.

"Forget it, that's what the old leader left for you because he remembered your kindness. You're still trying to snatch it away? Can you beat Zhu Ermaizi and his gang?"

At this time, Aunt Liu came over with two cups of steaming hot tea, placed them in front of Zhou Tian and her husband respectively, and rolled her eyes in annoyance, obviously she couldn't stand her husband's boastful look.

"What do you know, old woman? I clearly snatched this back!"

Hearing his wife sabotaging him like this, Uncle Liu immediately became unhappy. His eyes widened like bells and he argued loudly.

"Okay, okay, I'm too lazy to argue with you about what I just snatched back. Xiaotian, you and your Uncle Liu should sit down first. Aunt Liu will go cook for you!"

Aunt Liu glared at Uncle Liu fiercely, not wanting to waste any more words with him. She turned and said something to Zhou Tian, ​​then walked out of the main room and went straight to the kitchen.

"Xiaotian, don't take your Aunt Liu's words to heart. She loves to go against me. If she doesn't argue with me for a day, she will feel uncomfortable all over!"

When Uncle Liu saw Aunt Liu leave, he snorted lightly, but when his eyes met Zhou Tian's gaze, his old face instantly turned red and he hurriedly explained.

"I know, Uncle Liu. But, Uncle Liu, I've been here for so long, why hasn't Sister Ruyan come back yet? Is she at work?"

Zhou Tian watched the interaction between Uncle Liu and Aunt Liu, but he didn't care too much. After all, the two had been like this since the beginning. In comparison, he knew that this was already a very restrained performance by Aunt Liu. After all, Uncle Liu was a real henpecked husband.

"Hey, this girl has been working in a government agency since she graduated from college, and now she's a section-level cadre!"

When mentioning Liu Ruyan, Uncle Liu couldn't help but have a glimmer of pride in his eyes. Obviously, he was filled with relief and satisfaction for his daughter's achievements.

"Well, let's not talk about her anymore. She'll probably be home around six. Have some tea, have some tea!"

Then, the two chatted for a while. Uncle Liu was also curious about Zhou Tian's experience, so he asked about it. In response, Zhou Tian told Uncle Liu everything that happened after he left without reservation, which made Uncle Liu sigh in frustration. Especially after knowing what Zhou Tian and the others had experienced, he felt even more pity for them.

"Xiaotian, it is Uncle Liu who is sorry for you and the Weiguo brothers!"

"Uncle Liu, what are you talking about? You didn't know anything about it at the time, so why should you feel sorry for it? Besides, it's all over now, why are you still bringing it up?"

"If I had been able to take Brother Weiguo with me, I'm afraid Brother Weiguo wouldn't have died!"

A hint of sadness flashed across Liu Quan's face. As he spoke, he took out a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, took a deep puff, and his eyes were full of reminiscence.

"Uncle Liu, maybe this is fate! Besides, even if you wanted to take my dad with you, I'm afraid he wouldn't go."

Looking at Uncle Liu's melancholy expression, Zhou Tian felt very uncomfortable and tried to comfort him.

"Yes, Weiguo is a man who is always filial. He believes in 'not traveling far away while parents are still alive'. He will not go with me."

Perhaps he recalled the past, as Uncle Liu spoke, tears from the corners of his eyes slid down his cheeks uncontrollably. He wiped the tears from his face with his hands, and forced a smile and said, "Look at me, look at me, I keep talking about these nonsense. Forget it, let's not talk about it anymore, let's talk about your research institute!"

Zhou Tian nodded silently and told Uncle Liu in detail how he entered the steel rolling mill and how he went from an apprentice to his current position.

Perhaps it was because many things had been suppressed in his heart for too long. After he finished telling his experiences, he suddenly felt much more relaxed and refreshed all over.

Of course, he didn't mention any secrets that shouldn't be told. After all, he had too many secrets, some of which he hadn't even told his wife, let alone Uncle Liu.

Uncle Liu had been listening quietly until Zhou Tian finished speaking, and then he lamented the difficulties of life.

Just then, there was the sound of a door opening, followed by Aunt Liu's laughter and scolding.

"It seems that your sister Ruyan is back. It's just right. You haven't seen each other for many years. You can have a good chat!"

Sure enough, as Uncle Liu finished his words, a young girl in green military uniform pushed open the door and walked in.

The military uniform was well-tailored, outlining the girl's slender yet upright figure perfectly. Her inky black hair was carefully combed into two ponytails, swaying lightly with her steps. Her oval face was as white as jade, with a faint blush, her eyes were like clear lake water, and her nose was straight, like an exquisite hill, adding a sense of three-dimensionality to her face.

When she saw Zhou Tian in the room, a hint of surprise flashed across her beautiful eyes.

"Is it Brother Zhou Tian?"

Her voice was clear and pleasant, like the melodious song of a nightingale, instantly breaking the silence in the room.

Zhou Tian was stunned by the girl's call. For some reason, a picture suddenly flashed through his mind: when he was about ten years old, he was running and playing in front of him, followed by a ragged, skinny little girl. The little girl chased after him and shouted, "Brother Zhou Tian, ​​wait for me, wait for me!"

He really found it difficult to connect the thin little girl in his memory with the girl in front of him who looked like a fairy.

"Brother Zhou Tian, ​​what's wrong with you? Don't you recognize me?"

Liu Ruyan looked at Zhou Tian who was in a daze in front of her and couldn't help but take a step forward and hugged his arms tightly with both hands and shook him.

"No, no, you are Sister Ruyan?"

Zhou Tian was immediately embarrassed by Liu Ruyan's sudden action, because he could vaguely feel that his arm was sinking into something soft.

"Ahem, Xiaoyan, you are already so old, but you are still so unruly. Why don't you let go of your brother Zhou Tian!"

At this time, Uncle Liu, who had been watching the two silently, also noticed something was wrong and immediately scolded them. But for some reason, Zhou Tian heard a hint of jealousy in Uncle Liu's tone.

"Humph, I won't. Brother Zhou Tian, ​​I heard from my parents that you are now the dean of the research institute. Is that true? I know that Brother Zhou Tian is a capable person!"

Unexpectedly, Liu Ruyan listened to her father's words and instead of letting go of Zhou Tian's arm, she hugged him even tighter, which made Zhou Tian feel even more intense, and his face instantly turned red. In desperation, he could only cough a few times and forcefully pulled his arm out of Liu Ruyan's arms.

Perhaps she touched something inadvertently, or perhaps Liu Ruyan also noticed something strange, she immediately screamed "Ah!" and in an instant, her pretty face turned red with shame, and she stomped her feet in anger and annoyance.

"Brother Zhou Tian, ​​you bullied me!" After saying that, he turned around and ran out the door, leaving Zhou Tian feeling frozen under the strange gaze of Uncle Liu.

"Uncle Liu, you saw it all. I really didn't bully Sister Ruyan!"

Just as Zhou Tian was blushing and hurriedly explaining, Uncle Liu replied unhappily: "Your Uncle Liu is not blind!"

For a moment, the atmosphere in the room became extremely awkward, with only the two of them staring at each other, and no one said anything. Seeing the atmosphere so dull, Zhou Tian was about to say goodbye, but Aunt Liu came in with a few plates of dishes.

"Hey, Xiaotian, you must be starving. Come, try your Aunt Liu's cooking and see if it suits your taste."

As Aunt Liu spoke, she placed the dishes steadily on the table. But when she saw her husband sitting there smoking without saying a word, her eyebrows immediately raised and her eyes widened: "You old man, you are still smoking here. Can't you see that the meal is ready? It would be fine if you didn't help, but you didn't even know to get the dishes and chopsticks!"

"Okay, okay, I'll get it. Is it okay if I go get it?"

Uncle Liu was already feeling a little uncomfortable because of what had just happened, and his wife's scolding gave him a way out. He got up and walked out of the room towards the kitchen.

"Xiaotian, don't be disgusted. We don't have much prepared at home. Just make do with what you have!"

"Aunt Liu, you are so polite!" Zhou Tian looked at the three main dishes and one vegetarian dish on the table that exuded the tempting aroma of meat, and listened to Aunt Liu's words, but he felt inexplicably uncomfortable in his heart.

What do you mean by not preparing much? He knew that although the country had been liberated for five years, a meal with three main dishes like this was not something that ordinary people could easily afford.

If an ordinary family can entertain friends with one main dish, it is considered extremely sumptuous. If these three main dishes and one vegetable dish are considered not enough, then I really don’t know how to describe it.