medium rare

Dong Yu's small shop was closed on New Year's Eve. According to his original plan, he wanted to wait until the fifteenth day passed before returning to open for business.In the end, this plan became a luxury, and the atmosphere at home forced him to return early with his children.On the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, there were not many pedestrians on this street, but Dong Yu still met a few familiar faces, all of whom were big brothers who often came to take care of his business.

"Hey, isn't this Dong Yu? Why did you come back at this time?" Zhao Qiang is Dong Yu's old customer, and he worked in a nearby printing factory for two or three years, and finally got his wish. Got the title of Guan Rong, a workshop leader.

Dong Yu saw that Zhao Qiang was carrying half a fan of ribs, and asked with a smile, "Brother Zhao, what are you doing here? Visiting relatives?"

Zhao Qiang weighed the ribs in his hand and said with a smile, "I don't want to leave relatives, this is for my old mother-in-law." Zhao Qiang stepped up to Dong Yu's side, grinning at Xiaomi in Dong Yu's arms, "Xiaomi is not afraid of me now. Yes, I still remember two months ago, when I saw me, I was so scared."

"Xiaomi recognizes rawness, once you are familiar with it, you won't be afraid."

Zhao Qiang nodded, "Dami and Xiaomi still can't talk?"

As soon as this son Dong Yu was mentioned, his face was full of sadness, and he sighed: "I took them to see a doctor two months ago, and they were checked and said that their development was normal, but they just couldn't speak."

Zhao Qiang frowned slightly, "Didn't the doctor see it?"

Dong Yu sighed, "Hey, take your time, it's not something to be in a hurry."

Zhao Qiang saw that Dong Yu was hiding something, so he didn't inquire further. He smiled and said, "Are you opening tonight? If it opens, I'll bring a few brothers over to cheer you on. gone."

Dong Yu joked: "Is there anything delicious at home during the Chinese New Year? Do you still care about my medium-rare strings?"

Zhao Qiang said helplessly: "Don't mention it, I haven't had a drink for several days, and I'm panicking. My wife is afraid that I will quarrel with my family if I drink too much. We have known each other for so long, and you know the virtues of my relatives, you Say I’m just a workshop captain, and I’m not a big shot, but why don’t you come to me every day to take advantage of it!”

Dong Yu expressed deep understanding, "Every family has scriptures that are difficult to recite, let's not talk about this, if you want to eat at night, bring a few brothers over, and I will bake it for you."

"That's fine, I'll go first, or I'll be late and my wife will nag me again."

After Dong Yu waited for Zhao Qiang to leave, he carried the child to the door of the store. It was the same as when he bought it. The dilapidated grass-and-mud gatehouse and the slightly altered door frame once made Dong Yu wonder if the house would collapse.But the facts proved that the house was very strong, airtight and rainproof, and even occupied the best position on the whole street, very conspicuous.

When unlocking the lock, Dong Yu looked up at the shop's signboard. There were two or three strips of ice that had condensed after the snow melted, hanging sharply upside down above the doorway.Dong Yu reached out and broke the ice bar, threw it far away and smashed it to pieces. At the same time, Xiaomi was attracted by the crisp sound, and turned his head to stare at a place not far away with a curious expression.

Dong Yu lowered his head and smiled, "Are you scared?"

Xiaomi quickly looked away, and hid in Dong Yu's arms with a smile.

It's been a long time since I've been away, and there's an unfamiliar coldness in the store, without a trace of temperature.After entering the door, Dong Yu hurriedly put the rice and millet into the double-tub washing machine, with a washing bucket and a drying bucket on each side, and there were several layers of thick cotton clothes inside, enough for them to scratch the edge to see the scene outside.

This is the special "baby carriage" prepared by Dong Yu for Mi Xiaomi.Dong Yu settled the rice and millet, and stuffed two plush toys into their hands, "Don't be naughty, after Dad makes the room hot, I will take you to play."

Rice responded with ahhh, holding the plush toy in her open hand and waving it above her head.Xiaomi felt her brother's happy mood, and sat in the drying bucket and laughed childishly.Dong Yu looked at them with unspeakable joy in his heart, really wanted to hear them talk.

This street is full of old houses and lacks heating facilities. In order to prevent the rice and millet from freezing, Dong Yu asked Li Peidong to help him find some old radiators, repair them, connect them together and hang them in the store. on the wall.Not long after Dong Yu finished firing the stove, the water in the radiator began to boil, and gradually, warmth began to spread in the room.

The heat chased away the coldness without a trace of affection, and slowly melted the frost hanging on the door glass. The scene of speeding traffic on the street came into view. Rice and Xiaomi seemed to be clapping their hands excitedly. When Yu is busy, the only way to "relax boredom".

Knowing that the children were starting to "protest", Dong Yu hurriedly stopped what he was doing and sat down beside them, "It's getting dark, are you hungry?"

Rice seems to understand, shaking his head vigorously, throwing away the plush toy that was with him just now, pointing at his collar and babbling.

"It turned out to be hot." Dong Yu helped the two children take off their small padded jackets, and then stretched out his fingers into the children's collars to see if they were sweating. If they caught a cold, it was no joke.Fortunately, Rice and Xiaomi are relatively well-behaved, they didn't play intensely, and they didn't sweat a lot.

Dong Yu turned around and picked up the plush toy that Rice had discarded, put it back in his hand and said, "Father will prepare delicious food for you, and you must be obedient." He rubbed lightly on his head.

He has learned the principle of self-reliance since he was a child. He has never enjoyed the things of opening his mouth for food and clothes. The character he has cultivated for a long time has made his life orderly. This store is like a condensed "home". Feel the warmth and at the same time have "family affection".Although Dong Yu's small shop is dilapidated, it is very clean. He has wiped the edges and corners of the dining table without any trace of oil.Dong Yu turned on the light on the signboard, and the three characters were very conspicuous in the darkening street, but he seemed lonely because of the emptiness of the Chinese New Year.

Dong Yu intends to open the shop tonight, because there is still some beef left over from the beef he bought a few days ago, which is being frozen in popsicles, which should be enough to sell overnight.The dinner of rice and millet was not time-consuming. Dong Yu cooked a pot of millet porridge for them, fried an egg pancake, steamed a sea bass, and scrambled a plate of leek eggs for himself.

The aroma of the dinner wafted through the house, and when the food was served, Dong Yu took the child out of the washing machine, because Xiaomi was a vinegar jar, so Dong Yu had to put him on his lap, "Take turns, today It's millet, tomorrow is rice, don't complain, do you hear me?"

Xiaomi is happy now, and nods if he doesn't understand; Rice is looking up, his big black eyes blinking non-stop.

When Dong Yu was feeding the child, he secretly stuffed food into his mouth from time to time. After a busy afternoon, he was really hungry.Grandpa was eating happily, Zhao Qiang came to the door with his buddies, and when he opened the door, there was a gust of cold wind, and Xiaomi subconsciously made a smart move.

"You're really open." Zhao Qiang originally had a loud voice, but considering the two children in the room, he lowered his tone.

Dong Yu asked Zhao Qiang to sit down, and said with a smile: "I'll start the business as soon as you say it, and I can't spare time right now, why don't you just put peanuts and wine first?"

Zhao Qiang proudly said: "I knew it would be like this, and the brothers brought it from home." Zhao Qiang estimated that Dong Yu would have to take care of the child at the moment, so he specially brought a serving of pork ribs stewed beans from home.

Dong Yu smiled and said, "Then I won't say hello, you come by yourself, you are not outsiders."

"Row."

Zhao Qiang seemed to be so familiar with himself that he led his brothers around the store twice, and all the food that could be eaten was served, including peanuts, peppers, and even the two wilted cucumbers that Dong Yu left in the back kitchen.

Sitting at the next table, Zhao Qiang watched Dong Yu feed the child, and said with a smile, "You are becoming more and more like a father."

Dong Yu responded, "You will learn it slowly."

Zhao Qiang sighed, "Taking care of children is also an art. If it were me, I wouldn't be able to do it. Hey... When I mentioned this, I remembered it. You may not know it yet. Our place is about to be demolished."

"Demolition?" Dong Yu's hand holding the spoon froze.