Three or Two Things about Rebirth

"Keep your voice down!"

"Hehe, I'm a little too excited today." Zheng Wei lowered his voice and scratched the back of his head with a smile.

Qiu Luming stepped on the bicycle pedal and then put it down. "By the way, you know the reason why Fei Yuanhang and I broke up. Aren't you afraid?"

"I'm not afraid! Uncle Qiu has already said that it's not your fault, it's just that Fei Yuanhang and you are not compatible. If it were me, I would be fine!"

——Yes, there is an insider at home.

"Okay, if you're not afraid, let's give it a try first. Don't tell anyone."

"Okay! It's too late, you don't have to go to work, I'll take you home."

The two had just ridden their bicycles for a short distance when they ran into Ma Mingjun and Lin Haiying. When Ma Mingjun saw them alone together, he immediately stopped the bike and shouted, "Hey, Lao Zheng, you finally got what you wanted!"

Zheng Wei also got off his bike and waved his hands, "Don't talk nonsense, the organization is still investigating, and I haven't been promoted yet!"

"Why, the best man named Fu was promoted long ago, but you, Zheng, can't? God is really unfair! Old Qiu, that's enough. We've been observing each other for more than 20 years. We all know each other!"

Qiu Luming also laughed, "It's too familiar, there's no freshness."

Zheng Wei said, "Why do we need novelty?"

Ma Mingjun laughed out loud, "Come on, come on, it's better to meet by chance than to invite each other. My wife insisted on having hotpot today, and the four of us can just fit at one table!"

Qiu Luming didn't want to go, "You two have your own world, I won't disturb you!"

Ma Mingjun winked at Lin Haiying, who smiled and said, "Sister Qiu, go ahead. If you don't go, I'll find it boring for them to just drink and chat. Besides, you two have been our bridesmaids and best men, but we haven't formally thanked you yet. Today is a good day for us to express our gratitude!"

In the end, Qiu Luming couldn't resist the persuasion of the three people and followed them to a newly opened hot pot restaurant on the commercial street.

The hot pot restaurant is not big, with only four tables inside. It is not yet time for dinner, and all four tables are empty, so the four of them choose a small square table at the door and sit at each side.

The hot pot is not cooked with charcoal, but with a gas tank. The tank is placed under the dining table, the stove is placed on the table, and there is an orange tube in the middle.

Ma Mingjun quickly ordered a shuangyuan hotpot, which included a river carp, four plates of mutton rolls, shredded sauerkraut, luncheon meat, vermicelli, and black fungus.

"My wife wants to eat fish, please bear with her." Ma Mingjun explained with a smile.

Lin Haiying said angrily, "Why are you saying that? Let's just eat together!"

"I'm afraid that Lao Zheng will snatch it from you. He eats like a wolf!"

Zheng Wei said bluntly, "Then why don't you order one more!"

"Fuck, you're such a big eater, order one more!"

"You don't want to thank us, are you trying to please your wife, or are you treating us? How about you treat us again tomorrow?"

The two of them were arguing back and forth. The waiter had already brought a copper pot with a diameter of about 30 centimeters and carefully placed it on the stove. There was a partition in the middle of the copper pot, dividing it into two halves. Inside was a large basin of milky white soup, which was still swaying slightly. Qiu Luming was a little frightened. The waiter seemed to see her worry and shook the pot gently, "It's okay, steady!"

Then he lowered his head and struck a match, placed it under the pot, and turned the valve of the gas tank with his left hand. After a "hiss" sound, the stove lit up with a "bang", which scared Qiu Luming again.

She stood up and prepared to borrow a phone from the bar. Zheng Wei quickly asked, "Go ahead!"

Ma Mingjun laughed, "She can't run away, she must want to call home!" Then he took out his own cell phone, "Come on, Lao Qiu, don't borrow someone else's, use mine!"

Qiu Luming took the phone and sat down. "Okay, Lao Ma, you've got a new phone again. I haven't even got one yet, and you've got two!"

"There's nothing I can do about it. This is the only privilege I get at work. Go ahead and hit me as hard as you can!"

Qiu Luming didn't hesitate to call his home number, told his mother the situation, and told them not to wait for him to eat.

As usual, He Manshu reminded her not to drink and to go home early.

After hanging up the phone, the soup in the pot was already boiling.

"So fast?"

"It's already hot soup." Ma Mingjun carefully put the fish cut into four pieces into the pot first, and added some pickled cabbage on the other side. "Don't be impatient to boil the tofu or the fish. It will taste better if it simmers for a while. Hey, wife, do you want to eat tofu? Let's put some tofu in it?"

Lin Haiying's eyes lit up, "Okay, okay!"

This young couple, who had just been married for over a month, could not suppress their sweetness at all. They sat side by side at the corner of the table, looking at each other and smiling from time to time, picking up food for each other, or touching each other seemingly unintentionally. Qiu Luming could not bear to watch and inadvertently exchanged glances with Zheng Wei, and they immediately reached a consensus for the first time: Are we too honest? We should not have come today at all!

But the Northeastern people have spoken, and since we are here, we have to finish this meal even if we have to bite the bullet!

When the hot pot started to boil again, Ma Mingjun pushed a whole plate of mutton slices into the sauerkraut pot, stirred it a few times, put a plate of tofu next to the fish, and then covered the pot to simmer. --To be honest, people in Jiayang don't really know how to eat hot pot, and shabu-shabu mutton is more like stewed mutton.

After a while, the hot pot was turned on again. The heat made the lid make a popping sound. The waiter came over and lifted the lid and lowered the flame. Lin Haiying picked up a spoon and prepared to skim the foam on the mutton. Zheng Wei quickly grabbed the spoon and said, "Let me do it. It's easy to burn your hands. You two women can just eat in peace. We two men will do the waiting work!"

Qiu Luming nodded as a matter of course, "Oh, okay." - There was nothing he could do, he was used to being taken care of by his brother and sister-in-law at home.

Ma Mingjun laughed, "Old Zheng is definitely a good man at the end of the century. He is good at both home and outside. Old Qiu, you got a great bargain!"

"It sounds like they are clearing out the inventory at the bottom of the warehouse!" Qiu Luming snorted.

"Hahaha!" Zheng Wei laughed.

Ma Mingjun also laughed, "The base of the library, that's also brand new!" Ma Mingjun seemed to be hinting at something. This guy opened the door to a new vocabulary after getting married, and his words were full of deep meaning.

Qiu Luming didn't want to talk about this, so he changed the subject and asked, "How is Lu Jiaming doing recently?"

Ma Mingjun wanted to promote Zheng Wei, "Old Zheng..."

Qiu Luming interrupted him rudely, "Ma Mingjun! You just keep trying to please him. Could it be that you two are the only buddies, and I, Qiu Luming, am not?"

"I was wrong, I was wrong!" Ma Mingjun immediately picked up the glass and drank it, "I will drink a glass as a punishment!"

Lin Haiying said on the side, "It's your fault!"

Ma Mingjun glared at her, swallowed the wine, then stretched out his hand and pointed at Lin Haiying with narrowed eyes. Lin Haiying immediately smiled with a blushing face.

Qiu Luming and Zheng Wei looked at each other in silence again, and they reached a consensus again: Are these two crazy?

Ma Mingjun flirted with his wife enough, and then he said to Qiu Luming, "Lu Jiaming is not that kind of person, he is dead every day. But Han Meifen, have you contacted her recently?"

"What's wrong with Meifen?" As soon as Qiu Luming turned around, Zheng Wei scooped out a full spoonful of mutton and put it on the small plate in front of her.

"Fuck, you scooped it all up, what will my wife eat?" Ma Mingjun glared, grabbed the colander, and scooped meat for Lin Haiying, saying, "Han Meifen was admitted to the hospital that day. My mother-in-law's niece, Haiying's cousin, is a nurse in our county hospital. She said that Han Meifen was unconscious when she was sent to the hospital in the middle of the night the day before yesterday."