The two brothers made a quick decision and finished their meal as soon as possible and waited on the side.
Looking at the less bright sky outside, I feel extremely excited.
But looking at their still ignorant sister, they didn't dare to say anything or push her, lest they find reasons to leave her temporarily.
The most important thing now is to wait patiently for departure.
They couldn't stay in the house for a while, and they didn't dare to rush them, so they could only run out and play at the door for a while, bragging with others, and arousing a lot of envy.
Ye Yaodong went over and slapped one of them, and they came to their senses.
"Dad, are you leaving?!"
"Have you set off yet?"
Ye Yaodong said nothing and walked in front first, and Lin Xiuqing followed him with a smile.
The two sons behind him trotted excitedly to catch up.
"Dad, wait for me..."
The two brothers turned around and waved to their friends as they ran.
"We are going to see the Lantern Festival lanterns..."
"I heard that there is a dragon dance, which is very lively. I will tell you about it when I come back..."
The friends were so envious that they gritted their teeth with envy. Some of them had already run home quickly and wanted to ask their parents to take them there.
The two brothers didn't walk well, they were running and jumping around the couple, chattering non-stop, extremely excited.
They were jumping up and down on the boat, and were reluctant to go into the cabin to rest. They just wanted to rush to the town, but they were threatened by Lin Xiuqing, so the two of them became honest and obedient.
The current temperature is the coldest of the year. When the sun goes down, the temperature will be even lower. What's more, the wind is strong at sea and it is colder than on land.
If they hadn't stayed in the cabin and blown in the cold wind for a while, these two would have runny noses and sneezed. Maybe they would have gotten what they wanted and wouldn't have to go to school on the first day of school tomorrow.
It was still bright when Ye Yaodong set out from home. By the time he arrived in town, it was already dark, and it was not long before dark.
Originally, if we rode a motorcycle, we would arrive in ten minutes, but by boat, it would take about half an hour.
When they disembarked, not to mention the streets, the docks were densely packed, and people were disembarking from the ship one after another. Many people, like Ye Yaodong, sailed over to watch the excitement.
This annual excitement, in today's era of lack of entertainment life, most people will not miss it. Even the shore is already full of people coming and going, and there are all kinds of hawking sounds.
Ye Chenghu and Ye Chengyang felt something when the boat slowed down and ran out. Then they looked excitedly at the shore. The two brothers pointed to the shore and talked there.
"It's so beautiful. There are red lanterns hanging on the street. It's so bright and beautiful..."
"It's so lively, there are so many people..."
"Our village only has colorful flags, and there are many red lanterns hanging in the town..."
"I knew we would have to come here if we didn't eat, but now it's getting dark..."
There are many people who think this way. It's not even dark now, and the streets are already crowded with people. Maybe many people have walked dozens of miles of mountain roads in advance to come here.
After Ye Yaodong parked the boat, he led the mother and son onto the bus that came to pick them up, and then went ashore.
Lin Xiuqing sighed, "It turns out it's so lively! It's not even dark yet, and the streets are already full of people."
"Fortunately, I'm not riding a motorcycle. It's probably not dark yet and the town is already full of people. I might not even be able to enter the town and have to be stuck on the road."
"Yes, there are too many people..."
"Dad, I want to eat candied haws on a stick..."
"There's a clay figure over there..."
"There are sugar figures over there..."
Ye Yaodong grabbed his two sons who were about to make a move and warned them.
"You two need to be calm and honest. You must not run around. You must lead us, and you must not wander around. Otherwise, if you get lost, you will have nowhere to find us."
"When the time comes when a beggar abducts me, my eyes will be gouged out, my hands and feet will be cut off, and I will go begging for food. There will be no place to cry."
The two repeatedly promised that they would never run around, they would hold them tightly, and they would tell them what they wanted to do first.
Ye Yaodong also told Lin Xiuqing to keep her in check and keep an eye on Ye Chenghu.
Ye Chengyang just sat on his neck as usual. It was easier this way and he could concentrate on looking at Ye Chenghu together.
Ye Chenghu looked at Ye Yaodong squatting down to carry Ye Chengyang on his back, feeling a little envious.
"Dad, can I sit on your neck with the ocean liner? I want to sit on it too..."
"Then I have to sit down and break my neck for you. Just let your mother hold your hand. You can buy whatever you want and eat whatever you want. He will have to come down when we get there later."
When Ye Chenghu heard this, he obeyed and remained silent, but he was still very envious of Yangyang for being able to sit on his father's neck...
They walked and looked around, but they didn't expect to see a trap. Ye Chenghu's eyes widened. He eagerly pulled Lin Xiuqing and kept calling her mother...
Ye Yaodong took one look and said: "There are too many people. I don't know how long we will have to wait in line. We are here to watch the lanterns and the dragon dance. It's already dark, and we don't know when it will start. You have to be here."
Queuing up, or do you want to watch the fun?"
"Then come back later."
"When you go to the market, there are a lot of these things."
"Then you won't take me to the market either..."
"You'd better eat the pile of things in your hands first." Lin Xiuqing said, holding his wrist tightly with one hand.
As night fell, there were more people on the street. Ye Yaodong led them to move forward with the flow of people. When they came across a stall that the children were interested in, they stopped and stayed for a while.
But there were too many people, and many stalls were surrounded by too many people. They just took a look around, gaining insights and seeing something new.
Their town is not big, with only one main street, three or four branches leading to the port, and the rest are small alleys. If it weren't for the port, it wouldn't be as lively and prosperous as it is now.
Hongsheng Hotel is on a branch road near the port. The surrounding area is very wide. When they moved in front of it, Ye Yaodong was sweating all over.
He found an edge to put Yangyang down, and also unbuttoned his coat to cool off.
"There are too many people here, right? All you see are heads..."
"Dad, all I see are butts..."
"You must have eaten a lot of farts, right?"
Ye Chenghu was licking the marshmallow on his hand and snorted, "No, what are we doing here? Aren't we going to watch the lanterns and dragon dance?"
Ye Yaodong raised his wrist and looked at his watch. It was only 6 o'clock. "It's not quite yet. It's still early. Let's go here first and take a rest."
"No, I'm not tired at all. It's so busy outside..."
"I just walked all the way here, haven't you been shopping before?"
“Not enough shopping.”
"There are too many people. After the excitement is over and the crowd slowly disperses, I will take you around again. Now you can only look at the heads and not see anything."
He thought about it and nodded.
Ye Yaodong led his wife and children to the hotel. As soon as he opened the door and walked in, a waiter came over. Before he could speak, Wang Maoquan came over.
"Ouch, what kind of wind blew Boss Ye over here."
He asked the waiter to go as he spoke.
"Why is it boss Ye? Can't we just call him comrade?"
"How about that? I heard that you are the boss now and you are very prosperous."
"Haha, no, it's just that life is getting better. Where is your boss, Comrade Hong? Today is the Lantern Festival, and the store is a lot deserted, isn't it?"
"Yes, everyone is outside watching the excitement and shopping. After the parade is over, our place will be full and has been booked for a long time."
"Oh, what I said..."
Wang Maoquan said as he led them upstairs, smiling the whole time.
It’s really thirty years in Hedong and thirty years in Hexi...
He also said these emotional words.
As soon as Ye Yaodong looked at him, he knew that he was very complicated, so he just laughed.
"In a few years, maybe I will call you Boss Wang too."
"Don't make fun of me. The man who sells candied haws on the street can make people call him "boss". When I say "boss", I mean it sincerely."
After saying that, he knocked on the door of Hong Wenle's lounge and said that Ye Yaodong was here.
The door to the lounge was open, and Hong Wenle was standing by the window, looking down from above.
"Here you come? I just saw you with your wife and children downstairs. I knew you were going to come up and opened the door for you in advance."
"There are too many people downstairs. It's crowded and I'm afraid it won't be safe, so I thought I'd come upstairs so I could see clearly."
"That's right, it's safer to watch upstairs. The procession will pass by the door later, so your wife and children can watch the fun here. Otherwise, it's easy to get separated downstairs. Last year, a child got separated.
,Fortunately, there are many coast guard to maintain order and help the children find their families."
As soon as Ye Chenghu and Ye Chengyang came in, they took the lead and ran to the window to lie down and look at it.
Lin Xiuqing smiled at Hong Wenle, and then scolded them, "You can't be so rude, you have to call me uncle."
The two of them immediately stood upright and said hello in unison, "Hello, uncle."
"It's okay, just let them do as they please. I still have sugar and melon seeds on the table..."
"They just came all the way and bought a lot. Their pockets are full and they have eaten enough."
Ye Chengyang said politely: "Thank you, uncle, we just finished our meal and ate a lot of snacks."
Ye Chenghu also nodded.
Hong Wenle smiled, let them do what they wanted, and asked Ye Yaodong to sit down.
"The loan has not been approved yet. I still want to wait until the loan is approved before looking for you."
"I'm also thinking that the loan hasn't been approved yet, otherwise you would definitely tell me. Today happens to be the Lantern Festival, so I took my wife and children out to watch the excitement. I thought there were too many people on the street, so I might as well come and sit here with you.
It’s also clearer from upstairs.”
"Welcome, you can come anytime. In the past few days, I have also inquired about the purchase channels for some machines..."
The two of them chatted about business slowly.
Lin Xiuqing sat and listened for a while, feeling a little bored, and wanted to take a look downstairs. Although the excitement hadn't started yet, it was interesting just to see the crowds of people downstairs.
She stood up quietly so as not to interfere with their men's conversation. She also went to the window to look at the children. They were both lying on it, with their heads poking out. She was worried that they would get too excited and fall down.
"Mom... there are too many people. It turns out there are so many people. Looking down from a high place, they are all people..." Ye Chenghu salivated in excitement.
He was short and couldn't see the front or the back. He only knew that there were many people, but he didn't know how many there were. He thought it was just like going to a normal market.
Finally, when he looked down from the top, he saw that they were all densely packed with people. He was so shocked that he couldn't make a sound just now.
I have never seen so many people in my life...
I haven’t seen as many people in the past 10 years as I do today.
Ye Chengyang is better than him, because he can see wider while sitting on his neck, but it is also limited.
The street was relatively narrow, and he only knew that there were people in front and behind him. He was now at the intersection of the two streets, and there were even more people than before.
"It's so lively, mother, when will the lanterns start? Will it be more lively..."
"Can you come again next year?"
Lin Xiuqing touched her head with one hand, looked at the large red lanterns underneath, and the dark crowd under the lanterns, and said with a smile.
"You haven't seen it this year, so you are thinking about next year? Wait until next year. Your father will have to be free. I can't bring you here by myself."
"Then when does it start?"
"I heard it's 7 o'clock. It's almost here. Please wait a little longer."
"That hasn't started yet, can we go down..."
"No, I just walked downstairs. That's good. If I go down there, I'll just watch people."
"All right."
The two brothers were lying on the window, holding their chins with their hands, looking at the crowd below with relish.
Some of the surrounding residents, as long as they were in buildings, had their heads sticking out of the upstairs windows to watch the excitement.
From where they were now, they couldn't see what the surrounding stalls were selling, but they found it interesting to see so many people walking around. It was so interesting.
Ye Yaodong feels that even if there is no excitement to watch at night, there are so many people who can watch it, and they probably think it is worth it.
Their men chatted about men's things, and their children chatted about children's things, without interfering with each other.
It wasn't until there was a commotion from the crowd below, and Ye Chenghu and Ye Chengyang cheered excitedly, that they all stood by the window.
"Uncle policeman is here..."
"A lot of police officers came to maintain order..."
"Is it about to start?"
"Wow, everyone has moved out of the way, it's definitely about to start..."
"What time is it?"
Ye Yaodong looked at the time and saw that there were still 20 minutes left. "It's almost time. The Lantern Festival will begin as soon as a road is cleared."
Everyone watched the commotion below with interest.
"Dad, is the traffic policeman the same as the policeman?"
"Yes, he's also a policeman."
"Then I want to be a traffic policeman when I grow up. I can ride a motorcycle and be handsome."
"If you want to be a traffic policeman, you need to get into college. You have to have good grades. It's up to you. If you don't get into college, then..." Delivering food.
You can still ride a motorcycle, you can ride it for longer, there are no academic requirements, and you can earn more.
"Ah... then... let me think about it..."
Hong Wenle smiled and said: "You can send them abroad directly, and you will be an overseas Chinese when you come back."
"Don't tell me, my second uncle's family spent a lot of money to secretly send their two grandsons to work in Japan. After more than half a year, they only got one message saying that it was safe and they had already arranged a job. They couldn't contact anyone else.
.”
It was still the Chinese New Year, and he found out after listening to his second uncle talk about it. It was also the Chinese New Year, and his second uncle got a message from Ye Yaohai.
In the past few months, I had called Ye Yaohai frequently to inquire, but I only received a message that he had arrived safely, and there was no other information.
It would take a few months to sneak across by boat, and then we would settle down and make arrangements for work. It might take less than half a year.
It is impossible to send money back these days. As for the black households, they can only wait a few years to save enough money and find an opportunity to come back. Now it is not much different from losing contact.
But this did not prevent his second uncle's family from being happy and bragging about it.
During the New Year's Day, their relatives didn't hear much about it.
All they say is that the two children are already working to earn money, several thousand a month, and they can easily earn money that we will never earn in our lives...
It's a good idea to send two children abroad. When they come back, they will be overseas Chinese and have seen the world...
Nothing happened yet, but I already felt superior.
When most of their relatives heard what they said, they were very envious, and they all inquired about the channels.
However, after being warned by the village committee, they did not dare to blatantly talk about smuggling.
Lin Xiuqing echoed, "Those two children are only seventeen or eighteen years old now. It's not that convenient to make phone calls at home, let alone abroad. It's better to keep our children close by."
"That's right. If you don't have reliable relatives who can be sent back every year, it's better to have them by your side. There's no hometown in a foreign country. Except for studying abroad. You can apply for a visa and come back openly if you study abroad. If conditions permit, you can still go out and see each other.
It is worldly, and it is also gilded. Comrade Ye Yaodong knows that this has policy tendencies."
Ye Yaodong nodded, "I know, thank you for your kindness. I don't know if these two can study. If they don't know how to study, they might be led astray. It's better to just watch them. They are still young anyway.
Let’s talk about it later.”
"Don't mention it. The Japanese are really prosperous now. It's not a bad idea to go back and make money from them and then come back and spend it."
"Ah...it's started, it's started..."
The crowd below cheered, and the two children by the window cheered as well.
It's not like I just heard the commotion but didn't see anything.
Ye Chenghu asked anxiously: "Why haven't you come yet..."
"Maybe the parade has already started. It's on the main road, so some people are cheering. It will slowly come down later. The whole town will be walked through tonight, and the road back and forth will be walked twice."
"That's great, uncle, do you have anything?"
"You'll know after you read it later. If I tell you now in advance, you won't have anything new in it later."
Ye Chengyang said excitedly: "I heard the music..."
"I heard it too..."
The sound of drumming was getting closer and closer, and everyone craned their necks in anticipation.
The people below were all looking in the same direction. The crowd was surging, and everyone wanted to stand in the front row and watch.
The police officers below spread their hands to stop the people on both sides of the road.
As the sound of gongs and drums came closer and closer, everyone also saw a young man emerging from the end of the road, holding a super big gong in one hand, running and beating to clear the way, and then stopped in a nearby open space.
At the end of the road, two lines of boys and girls, about twelve or thirteen years old, came round the corner, each carrying a lantern of different shapes.
"Ah...the lanterns are here...they are all children..."
"Look good, Dad, can we also go to the parade next year?"
"It shouldn't work, right? This kind of thing should be organized by the government."
Hong Wenle said: "Okay, if you can be rated as an advanced youth this year, I will send the children to carry lanterns during the Lantern Festival next year. It's just a matter of saying hello."
Ye Yaodong looked at the two pairs of expectant eyes and said with a smile: "Then you all pray that your father will be rated as an advanced youth this year and successfully join the party. Only next year will you have the opportunity to carry lanterns in the team."
"That's great. Dad, you are so good, you can definitely do it."
"Dad, I admire you the most. You can definitely do it. You are the most powerful dad."
"Isn't this what your sister said? You learned it all?"
"Look, there are people walking on stilts? Where did you hire them? It's really amazing." Lin Xiuqing was also full of amazement.
The two children pointed their fingers into the distance and screamed excitedly.
"Dad, can we go downstairs and take a closer look? It's too far here."
"You don't have to think about it. Unless the people below squeeze to the front, the people behind can't see it. You can see it clearly from upstairs. You should be snickering."
Not only walking on stilts, but also a suona band behind the scenes.
There are also floats, and there are children sitting on the floats, wearing heavy makeup for singing, waving their hands excitedly, and looking at the crowds on both sides.
These floats are all made of carts, which are put up with bamboo frames and surrounded by a piece of cloth with various patterns on them. There are people pushing the carts forward from behind.
The long queue stretched from the street to the end of the street, and everyone could hardly see enough. At the end of the queue was the dragon dance.
The two children screamed excitedly, and suddenly they changed from wanting to carry lanterns to riding on a float.
They are all urging his father to work hard.
Lin Xiuqing also had a smile on her face. She looked at it without blinking and kept mumbling, "It's so lively and beautiful."
"This is more beautiful than singing... It's the first time I've seen such a lively scene. It's really different now."
"Mom, look, look, dance the dragon..."
"This year is still the Year of the Rabbit. When the Year of the Dragon comes next year, it will definitely be more lively."
Ye Chengyang looked at it with bright eyes, "We will come again next year."
Today's scene will always exist in their minds, and they will remember today's excitement for the rest of their lives.
Lin Xiuqing also felt a sense of happiness welling up in her heart.
"Then it depends on your academic performance this year. If your academic performance is better, I will take you to visit next year. If your academic performance is not good, then you will stay at home and take care of your sister next year."
Hong Wenle said: "Yes, you also have a fat little daughter, why didn't you bring her out?"
"There are many people on the street, and we are worried that two people can't keep an eye on our three children. Anyway, she is still young, and there will be many opportunities for her to come here in the future."
"It's better to watch upstairs here."
"We'll see next year."
It also depends on whether this year's cooperation can be negotiated. If it can be negotiated, it's easy to talk about. If it can't be negotiated, he will be embarrassed to come here.
I came here today thinking about the discussion between the two of us.
As the team below drew closer, everyone could see each item more clearly.
Being upstairs did not prevent the two brothers from applauding the dragon dance.
Until the team turned a corner and went to the next street entrance, they were still stretching their necks, still unfinished.
"Mom and dad, can we go down and follow the team?"
"Everyone is following the team..."
"No, just have seen it. There are too many people down there. They will come back later."
Upon hearing this, the two brothers patiently waited upstairs.
They were happy again until the team returned.
This lively event lasted from about 7 o'clock to 9:30.
However, they did not follow the crowd and finished watching the show at 8:30.
Taking advantage of the flow of people and following the team, the downstairs was already a lot empty. Ye Yaodong thanked Hong Wenle and took them downstairs for one last walk.
At this time, there were not many people around, and it was much easier for them to stroll around.
Ye Yaodong calculated the time and took them back in advance.
Ye Chenghu turned back three times with each step, "Can't you stay a little longer? You can still hear the sound..."
Not only the two brothers, Lin Xiuqing was actually a little reluctant to leave.
"My sister is still at home, and it's past 9 o'clock. You still have to go to school tomorrow."
"We can get up, we must be able to get up, we got up before dawn in the morning."
"Later, there are too many people, it's hard to leave. At this moment, people are chasing the team. We just have to look around and go back early."
Although Ye Yaodong thought it was lively and interesting, he hadn't seen it for many years and felt it was rare, but he wasn't too shocked, unlike the three of them.
"Go back early."
The two brothers had no choice but to follow obediently.
"Dad, you must bring us back next year..."
Ye Yaodong turned to Lin Xiuqing and asked, "Does it look good?"
Lin Xiuqing smiled all over her face, "It's beautiful. I have never seen such a lively Lantern Festival in my life."
"If you don't have children, I can take you from beginning to end."
Ye Chenghu protested, "No, you must take us..."
Today's excitement touches their hearts and will be remembered for a lifetime.
I've been so angry recently that I can't get in or out. I squat in the pit repeatedly at night. I squatted for half an hour after 12 o'clock, and I didn't squat until my legs were numb.
Chapter completed!