Chapter Twelve Cried Heaven and Earth

  On the way back, because some people ran fast and some walked slowly, they gradually pulled away from each other.

  Zhou Yongsheng carried firewood and drove the cattle, flying away early. Song Xiaoshan, Zhou Qingdong, and Qiao Yunzhi also walked ahead. Qiao Lianou was injured and couldn't walk fast, so she fell behind alone. When they arrived at a resting place, they found that Song Xiaoshan had put down his basket and was waiting for them. Then the two of them continued walking home, without saying a word along the way.

  Will Father be at home? The meeting should have ended by now. As soon as her foot stepped into the courtyard, Qiao Lianyu's heart suddenly started racing violently, as if she had sensed something.

  Qiao Zhenxuan returned home after the meeting at five o'clock in the afternoon. Just now, Zhou Yongsheng, who came back earlier, said that Qiao Lianou had an accident on the mountain and got her belly button caught on a tree branch. He was very anxious and was about to rush out with Qin Ying to rescue Qiao Lianou, but it turned out that she had already returned home.

  Qin Ying hurriedly drove the cows into the cowshed, Qiao Zhenxuan walked over a few steps, took over Qiao Lianyu's basket and put it down, and said with concern: "Dad heard that you fainted today, are you okay? Come, Dad will take a look." His eyes were full of tenderness and love.

  Qiao Lian'ou's heart was "thumping" as she looked up at Qiao Zhenxuan, who was very young and had no signs of aging on his face. He was of medium build, slightly thin, with a smile on his face, looking particularly kind.

  Qiao Lian'ou exclaimed in her heart, "Dad, is it really you? Are you still in this world?" She thought to herself, not knowing how much she had missed him all these years. As she thought about it, tears welled up and she couldn't help but rush into Qiao Zhenxuan's arms, bursting into loud sobs, a mixture of unbearable sadness and indescribable excitement.

  Qiao Zhenxuan was mentally unprepared and didn't know why Qiao Lianou was crying so hard that her heart was broken, scaring him. He thought Qiao Lianou was seriously injured and couldn't bear the pain anymore. He hastily picked up Qiao Lianou and brought her back to the house to sit down and carefully examine her.

  Qianlian Flower and Lianpang, the two sisters, were also playing in the house. Seeing this scene, they curiously ran over to watch the commotion. Their sister was fine just that morning, how did she become like this now? Qin Ying tied up the cow and heard the crying sound, startling her, so she also ran over to see what's going on.

  Qiao Lian had countless words she wanted to say to her father Qiao Zhenxuan, but not a single word could be spoken. She didn't know how to express herself and felt that only a good cry could wash away the emotions bottled up inside her, washing them all away, leaving everything clean and tidy.

  "Come, let me take a look." Qin Ying stepped forward, lifted up Qiao Lianyu's clothes, and everyone rushed over to see.

  "Gosh, close call! Luckily it wasn't deep, otherwise..." Qiao Zhenxuan said with a lingering fear.

  "Dad——" Qiao Lian'ou pulled down her clothes and rushed into Qiao Zhenxuan's arms, crying without any intention of stopping the car.

  The chubby little hand touched Qiao Lianyu's face, and with tears in her eyes, she said: "Sister, don't cry, come, I'll blow on it for you, it won't hurt after blowing." As she spoke, she wanted to blow on Qiao Lianyu.

  Qiao Lian'ou pulled Qiao Lianpeng over again, and they both fell into Qiao Zhenxuan's arms and cried. The commotion in the house grew even louder.

  Qin Ying saw that things weren't that serious, but Qiao Lian'ou looked like she wasn't going to let up, crying so hard it made people's hearts panic, and the fire was starting to rise. She yelled at Qiao Lian'ou: "What are you crying about? Are you still crying? Is that little injury really worth making such a big deal out of? You look like someone died or something! Shut up right now, or else..."

  "Wah——" Jiao Lian's voice grew louder, tears and snot came down together, mixed with sweat, her face became a big flower cat.

  Qiao Zhenxuan gently wiped away the tears on Qiao Lian's face with his hand and said, "Come on, it's okay, Daddy will hold you. I'll help you clean up a bit of wine to disinfect, don't cry anymore, or your throat will be hoarse." But in his heart, he was puzzled: What's wrong with Lian today? She's usually so strong, but today she's crying like this after just getting hurt a little. It seems that she must have been really scared at the time and is still feeling afraid now. So he looked up at Qin Ying, who was somewhat angry, and said, "Sigh, maybe she's really in pain. She's just a child, why are you being so harsh on her? Go cook dinner quickly, the kids are all hungry."

  Qin Ying saw the situation, hated a glance at Qiao Lian Ou, turned around and went to the kitchen to cook. She also felt that Qiao Lian Ou was different from usual today, but couldn't say what was different. The whole family was waiting for her to cook and eat. Alas, she had to fill those mouths, not a moment of leisure all day.

  Qiao Zhenxuan held Qiao Lianou and asked Erge Qiao Lianhua to bring half a bottle of wine and some cotton wool, dipped it lightly and wiped it gently on Qiao Lianou's wound.

  Crying is really an exhausting task, Qiao Lianyou cried for a long time without any worries, and her energy was drained, finally stopping, but still sniffling nonstop, refusing to leave Qiao Zhenxuan's arms. After decades, being back in his father's arms again, feeling the warmth of his father's hug, it's truly an amazing feeling. In the past, as a child, I didn't have any understanding or appreciation for these things, thinking they were just normal or ordinary, but now I feel completely different, only after losing and regaining can one truly appreciate the value of things.

  Qiao Zhenxuan's embrace was warm and solid, making people feel relaxed, with a drowsy feeling. Qiao Lian'ou was extremely tired, her eyes were about to close.

  Next to her, Jolin was getting impatient and came over to pull Jolin's lotus root, who was almost asleep, saying: "Sister, come down, you're already over ten years old and still letting Dad carry you. Dad should be carrying me and Sanmei."

  Qiao Zhenxuan smiled and whispered to Qiao Lianou, "Come on, hurry up and get down. The two sisters are already jealous." He put Qiao Lianou down on the ground and stood up himself, went to fetch a basin of water, washed Qiao Lianou's face and hands, then took out a comb and tidied up Qiao Lianou's messy hair, saying, "Look, isn't this much better? You can't cry anymore, or your eyes will swell up like peaches, it'll be ugly."

  Qiao Lian'ou touched her eyes upon hearing this, feeling a bit embarrassed. Indeed, her eyes were swollen, and it wouldn't be good to meet those friends tomorrow. She had cried enough; now the most important thing was to cherish the time spent with her family.

  Thinking of this, thinking of the mother who just scolded herself, feeling that she was a bit too much earlier, her mother had been busy all day and now had to cook again. As the eldest, shouldn't she help out a bit? So, she ran into the kitchen and said to Qin Ying, who was cooking: "Mom, come on, let me help you with the fire."

  Qin Ying didn't recognize Qiao Lian'ou at first glance, looked again and said: "Hmm, okay, I'll go busy with the pot."

  Qiao Lian Ou sat on the stool in front of the stove, picked up some firewood and broke it into pieces before putting them into the stove. The flames inside the stove were burning fiercely, causing Qiao Lian Ou to sweat profusely, but she didn't feel any discomfort at all. On the contrary, a warm feeling welled up inside her heart. Yes, being able to be with one's family, living in peace and harmony, healthy and happy - what a wonderful thing that is! In the past, she hadn't understood this, always thinking about experiencing earth-shaking events, only to realize later on that it was precisely this simple, warm, and cozy family life that was the most precious and made one feel happiest.

  The meal was ready, and since it was too hot in the house, the whole family set up a table outside in the courtyard to eat. They were all happy and harmonious together. Qiao Lianyu ate quietly, looking at this person and that person every now and then, feeling like she couldn't get enough of the scene.

  After eating for a while, Qiao Zhenxuan said to Qin Ying: "This time the district meeting, I was rated as an advanced worker, those friends shouted at me to treat them. It's going to be hard on you again."

  "Please go ahead and rest, it's nothing, as long as you do your job well, I'll be a bit tired, it's nothing." Qin Ying said with a glance at Qiao Zhenxuan.

  "Ah, people say that having a good woman at home is a blessing, it seems I'm really blessed...". She was about to continue speaking, but suddenly felt that saying such things in front of the children was too straightforward, so she swallowed her words and served some dishes to the three kids.

  The meal was not finished yet, and someone outside called Jiaolian: "Jiaolian, hurry up, go to the river beach to play!"

  Qiao Lian'ou heard the voice, it was her good friend Zhou Xiuyun's, so she hastily stuffed a few mouthfuls of rice into her mouth, put down her bowl and gave her parents a greeting before rushing out...

  "Dad, I want to go too!" Qiao Lianhua said with a tingle in her heart.

  "No way, you're too small, at night it's dark and chaotic, what if you get hurt?" Qin Ying said seriously.

  Although Qian Hua was dissatisfied in her heart, she had no choice but to stay at home.