Sometimes it rains, and you walk in this long alley with an umbrella, which really smells like a rainy alley in the south of the Yangtze River.
It's a pity that most people are attracted by luxury residential areas with high-end atmosphere and disdain this shabby alley.
Yes, it's shabby. This alley is located in the center of the town. Compared with the magnificent high-rise buildings around, it looks so old and out of place.
But even if it is broken again, the population living in the alley is still very dense.
Most people who live in this alley are old people. They have lived here for most of their lives, from childhood to adolescence, from adolescence to adulthood, and finally get old. Looking at the bustling alley, it is also a bit shabby and depressing. In spring, summer, autumn and winter, people come and go, and only they are with the alley.
Grandpa Qi is over 60 years old this year. When he was young, he and his wife worked in the same factory, and the dormitory in the factory was in this alley. Although the house is not big, it has two rooms and one living room, and the husband and wife are quite comfortable to live in.
Grandpa Qi is in good health and looks very young. At this age, I often work behind the miners' team. It is common for him to go down the mine or something.
Grandpa Qi has a very special skill. I especially admire him for never wearing a cotton-padded jacket in winter. In winter, we young people are still wearing down jackets, only to see Grandpa Qi still wearing his blue coat. Every time we joke that he is not afraid of the cold, he says, "Is it cold? I haven't worn a cotton-padded jacket for so many years. At that time, winter was much colder than now. It's freezing outside and it's snowing, so I can only wear a sweater. " Although Grandpa Qi wears little clothes, he never catches a cold. Look, people are really healthy.
When he has a job, Grandpa Qi goes out early and comes back late. When he doesn't have a job, he won't be the shopkeeper of cutting and will help Wang Yi do some housework at home. I often hear his voice in my room, "Xiao Wang (Grandpa Qi's nickname for Aunt Wang), you put the bowl there and I'll wash it later." "Xiao Wang, you put it there and I'll do it." ...
Sometimes I will see Wang Yi and Grandpa Qi coming back from the river together at night. Grandpa Qi must have a laundry basket in his hand. That's it. Wang Yi washes clothes and Grandpa Qi carries baskets. Then he went to the river. Wang Yi finished washing, helped her carry it and walked back with her. The harmonious appearance of harp and harp makes many people envy. Maybe this is the hand that holds your hand and grows old with your son in real life.
Wang Yi is a few years younger than Grandpa Qi, but he is over 60. The old couple have a son, who goes to a military school in college. Later, after graduation, I became an officer directly, stayed in Shanghai, married a Shanghai daughter-in-law, got married in Shanghai, and now my daughter graduated from kindergarten.
My little granddaughter's name is MengMeng, and she came back from several holidays. I've met her. She looks really cute, and she speaks Shanghainese. It's really nice to say it from her mouth.
MengMeng called Grandpa Qi and the old couple "Anhui Grandpa and Anhui Grandma". When I come back, I often shout "Grandma Anhui, I want to go out to play." I don't know how they feel when they listen, but I sound awkward anyway.
However, the young granddaughter of the old couple in Wang Yi is very happy when she comes back, and she usually starts to prepare a few days in advance. Every time his son and granddaughter stay at home for a few days, Grandpa Qi never goes out to do business again. He will always be with his granddaughter and Wang Yi. He can't wait to be a granddaughter for two days a day so that his granddaughter can stay at home for a few more days. Aunt Wang often thinks that it would be nice if her little granddaughter could stay with us. There is a child at home, and the old couple are more lively.
Many families in the alley are actually similar to the Wangs. At that time, family planning was at its peak. Both men and women are allowed to have only one child in each family. Their only son is old, but he flies out to get married and have children outside. Closer, he will come back to visit the old couple on holidays, which is far away. Throughout the year, the elderly may see their sons and grandchildren during the New Year.
There is a shop in Hutongkou, and there is a retired old couple living in the red iron gate next to the shop. Both husband and wife are big men, younger than Wang Yi and his wife. I don't know their names, but I have contacted them and know my aunt's surname is Hao. Aunt Hao and his wife have a daughter who works in a bank and a son-in-law who works in an office. The young couple have a child who is almost one year old. They help their daughter look after the children when they are free. Daughter and son-in-law have lunch and dinner in their home, and then take their children back to their home after dinner in the evening.
Aunt Hao's family is relatively happy, with her daughter, son-in-law and grandson around and enjoying family happiness. Often when I come back from work in the afternoon, I can see my uncles and aunts pushing my grandchildren out for a walk. Sometimes my daughter accompanies me, and sometimes my daughter goes out with her son-in-law. Seriously, sometimes, I look back at their backs and feel really warm. The picture is so loving.
Aunt Hao is a warm-hearted, not a neighborhood aunt, but more worry-free than a neighborhood aunt. Once the sewer at the intersection of the alley was blocked, and she asked someone to clear it. I have seen her repair the sewer herself before, which shocked me. There is an open space in front of her house, which is very important. It is not only a holy place for children to play, but also a place for adults to chat. There are always a group of people chatting there at work. When the weather is fine in winter, there will be more people, and rows of people will line up to bask in the sun. Anyway, whenever you go out, there are always people gathered here.
This is also a good place for Wang Yi and her friends to play poker. As long as it doesn't rain and nothing special happens, Wang Yi and her friends can always get together to play poker. When cooking at noon every day, I hear these aunts shouting about their friends. A small table, four small chairs and a deck of playing cards can kill them all afternoon, but they usually finish at around 3 pm, go home to cook dinner, eat early and go out for a walk to exercise.
One weekend, I took a glance at nothing. As a result, I didn't understand what cards they were playing. Aunt Wang explained a lot to me, but I still don't understand.
Many elderly people also play cards for entertainment, but play mahjong for gambling. As soon as they sit at the table, they spend half a day. During this half a day, their brains have been in a state of high tension and their bodies are not active. Some grandparents play in the morning and then in the afternoon, which is more punctual than going to work.
Looking at the lives of these grandparents, I think of my grandfather. Grandpa was the only old man in my childhood.
My grandmother died when my father was a child, and my grandfather died when my six-year-old sister was born. I have no memory of my grandfather.
In fact, my grandmother appeared when I was a child, but I just didn't remember it at that time. According to my mother and aunt, I lived with my grandmother before I was three years old. Nobody takes me at home. My mother sent me to my grandmother's house before going to work and took me back to sleep at night.
When I was three years old, my grandmother passed away this morning. I was at grandma's bedside. I remember my grandfather brought her late rice soup. I also told my grandfather that I would bring it to my grandmother when she woke up, but she never woke up.
I'm afraid this is the only memory I have of my grandmother.
Grandma was not sick before her death, but haggard and quarreled by us children. At that time, grandma had to take care of four children by herself, three-year-old me, a little cousin one year older than me, a seven-year-old cousin and a nine-year-old cousin. Aunt said that at that time, our four children were very noisy. Grandpa is a carpenter in the town and is not at home during the day. Grandma took us alone, and sometimes she couldn't even eat, especially my little cousin and I cried the most. My little cousin was born in the year when my grandmother died. Later, I wondered if my grandmother was really scared by us and didn't want another kid to disturb her, so I went early and wanted to be quiet early.
Sometimes it is wishful thinking. If we were sensible and good when we were young, maybe grandma would live longer and longer, so I don't have to envy her when my friends talk about her. It is said that children cannot lack the love of their parents. In fact, children also need grandma's love. Isn't there a song called Grandma's Penghu Bay?
Why do I think of grandpa when I see the old man in the alley?
Because my grandfather loved playing cards, and his death was related to playing cards. The day my grandfather died was the 24th of the twelfth lunar month, when I seemed to be a teenager.
Grandpa is a very strict man. My sister was very young when he was here. She said grandpa likes playing cards best, because winning money will give her money to buy snacks.
Grandpa is famous for playing cards in our country. He runs to our mahjong room on time every day, rain or shine. It's not exactly called mahjong room, but it's just a small shop, but everyone is used to playing there, because that person has a lot of traffic and it's easy to get together a table.
In fact, the old people have nothing to do, and it is not bad to play cards to entertain themselves.
But the weather is unpredictable, and people are doomed. One day, my grandfather fell on his way back from playing cards and never stood up again.
Grandpa had a stroke and had to stay in bed, so he couldn't play cards any more. At that time, the big uncle and his family opened a restaurant in Zhu Qiao, and they seldom came back. My mother and my little aunt take turns to take care of my grandfather's food, clothing, housing and transportation, but most of the personal scrubbing work is done by my mother's daughter.
In fact, my grandfather's stroke is really not fatal. Many people get better after the wind, but my grandfather doesn't. My grandfather's condition is getting worse. At that time, the conditions were not as good as now. In those two years, my uncle's business was not very good. My brother, sister and my family are in a terrible situation. At that time, I couldn't afford to spend a lot of money to send my grandfather to a big hospital. My mother is still feeling guilty, thinking that if I had money, my grandfather would not have died.
Really, my grandfather is in pain. At that time, my mother went to take care of my grandfather, and I followed. I can see my grandfather's pain. Once my mother turned over for my grandfather, and I saw that his ass was rotten, and a large piece of flesh and bones could be seen. When my grandfather left, he was really skinny. Now that I think about it, I really think grandpa's death has something to do with our irresponsible descendants. I wonder if grandpa hates us unfilial descendants in his heart.
However, the dead are gone. What's the use of saying this now? We can only tolerate the living.
That's a little far.
As mentioned earlier, there is a small shop in the alley, and the owner has a very light name-Swallow. I guess her parents didn't expect her to be so fat when they named her. Anyway, I've never seen a girl as fat as her in my life. Not less than 180 kg by visual inspection.
Swallows may be very angry. Every time he quarrels with her husband, Fiona Fang can hear him miles away. Swallow's husband is adopted by his wife and looks ok. To tell the truth, most people can't tell they are husband and wife just by looking at their faces.
But there is a saying that a man's success depends on his woman.
When I first moved here, I thought there must be something on the swallow that we didn't find that attracted her husband. But then I realized that I was wrong, because I stayed for two years and I didn't find out.
Swallow has a bad temper, and often quarrels with her husband, cursing like something, which is terrible, but her husband rarely talks back. There is hardly a day when the couple don't quarrel. My sister-in-law said that this man has a good temper. I think a man who can be intimidated by such a woman is probably incompetent.
Their store just took over and was subletted to her by an old man. This grandfather had to transfer the store he had run for decades because he was going to pick up his little grandson from his son's school.
In fact, this small shop only sells those daily necessities that people use every day, and it is estimated that the profit will not be too great. The swallow's husband used to be an interior decorator. When he didn't take over the shop, he often went out to pick up jobs. Now both husband and wife kill time in the shop, watch TV, quarrel with neighbors and send their children to school. I think the reason why swallows usually quarrel with their husbands has something to do with this. But I have to say, their eight-year-old son is quite cute.
I don't know how other young couples live. Sometimes when I look at the life of the Swallow couple, I feel that they are all around and can grow up with their children every day. Isn't this a kind of happiness? However, sometimes I feel that their young couple's life is too comfortable and modest.
However, everyone has their own way of life. As for whether this method is good or not, only the parties themselves know.
Swallows usually walk closer to Wu Yi. Wu Yi, the most fashionable aunt in the hutong, usually feels that she is still a foreigner and looks younger when she looks at her dress.
However, people around her don't seem to like her. She lives at the end of the alley, and many people come to her house for dinner every noon. Daughter, son, grandson, granddaughter, but it seems that they are not related to her. They are the children of her current husband, Wu Shu. Strictly speaking, Wu Shu is not her husband either, because they didn't get a marriage certificate and didn't hold a banquet. They can only live together, but they have lived together for a long time.
Wang Yi said that Wu Yi had been with many men. As far as she knows, Wu Shu is the fourth. Every man has no money, and she will leave. I didn't believe it at that time. Is there such a woman in the world? I thought it was just a small friction between their neighbors. After a long time, I'm not sure.
The hole was not blown by the wind. Sometimes I go to bed late at night. At eleven o'clock or twelve o'clock, I still hear Wu Yi's voice. At this time, she didn't go home.
Wu Yi is not a local. She doesn't go to work. She cooks for the adults and children at home every day, but I often see her go out. It seems that she is not at home all day except when cooking and eating. I always see her coming in and out.
Some people say that Wu Yi is a special introducer and how much money a person gives her. At first, when she came to tell me, I thought she was warm-hearted and just politely refused her. Later, when I learned that this was her career, I was extremely glad that I turned her down.
In addition to the elderly, there are also many parents accompanying them in the alley. Aunt Tan's son lives opposite my house and is in high school. They are not from the city, because their son has been admitted to the best high school in the city, so his parents, grandparents and sons are all crowded into this small rental house of tens of square meters. Aunt Tan and her husband both work in the factory and are not at home during the day. Only their old mother cooks for their children at home.
In the past, Aunt Tan didn't go to work, but served her son three meals a day at home, and nothing happened at other times.
Aunt Tan has long black hair. Every morning, she stands at the corner of the alley and combs her black hair. Passers-by always look twice. I really envy her thick black hair, because my own hair falls off badly, rarely and very short.
One day, I suddenly saw Tan Yi's long hair turn into a small ponytail. It's a pity for me. Why should such good hair be cut off? Only after asking did I know that one day when Tan Yi went to work, his hair was pulled into the machine, which almost caused an accident. As a last resort, Aunt Tan reluctantly cut off the hair she had raised for many years. I am relieved to hear this reason. What is more important than life safety?
Aunt Tan has a hobby of playing mahjong. She didn't go to work during that time. She went to the mahjong room as soon as she finished eating at noon. In her own words, she has no other hobbies, but likes to play small cards to win a little money. But perhaps because of her hard-working temper, Aunt Tan couldn't rest for a month, so she took grandma from the countryside to cook for her children at noon.
Grandma Wang is over seventy years old and is not used to staying in the city. Wherever she is, she is thinking about the small dishes at home. On one occasion, at the weekend, she was in a hurry to go back to her hometown. As a result, she went home to water vegetables and fell down. Before going to the fields, she lay in bed for several months. She was so thin.
To tell the truth, this 70-year-old man is really lucky to be able to recover after a fall, thanks to Grandma Wang's strong body.
Aunt Tan's house is next door to Aunt Ruan's. Aunt Ruan is a very lively person. She likes singing and dancing. She often hears her sing at home. She is also a student at the local university for the aged. She goes to class every day and participates in some activities organized by the elderly. I have seen her photos on the website several times.
However, Aunt Ruan's wife is very mysterious. I stayed there for two years. Not long ago, I found out that Aunt Ruan has a wife. Actually, I don't blame her, because Aunt Ruan's wife never goes out, and I haven't seen him for two years. Later, for a while, I always heard the voice of a man coughing in her house, only to know that Aunt Ruan's wife was still alive, but she was ill and didn't go out often. Aunt Ruan's wife looks very weak, the kind that falls when the wind blows, and she relies on Aunt Ruan to take care of her three meals a day.
Although the alleys are old, they extend in all directions. You can get out of the alley and go where you want to go.
On the only road in the alley, there is a family who loves to grow flowers. It must be fragrant all year round, such as roses, Chinese rose, gold and silver, gardenia, Jingui, lily ... think about it, if you go this season, you will definitely smell the intoxicating osmanthus fragrance.
The fragrance of flowers permeates the whole alley, and the petals are scattered with the wind, perhaps floating to the hands you pass by.
Well, that's the end of the story
The reason why I have this novel is actually to bid farewell to my two years of loneliness. I believe that everyone has the lowest tide or the most difficult time, but it is this most difficult time that we will remember the most unforgettable time in the future.
I have lived in this alley for more than two years. Although the time is not long, it is the beginning of my life alone. In the past two years, I have experienced a lot, and I have participated in my joys and sorrows.
Now, the alley is getting farther and farther away from me. Once, I couldn't wait to leave this place, but I really missed it when I left. I think, one day in the future, recalling this time in the alley should be the most unforgettable time, just like Shi Tiesheng said.