Rebirth in the 50s: The Couple with the Hidden Space

Chapter 976 - 849: The Two Little Brothers

A military truck was spotted not far from the commune family courtyard. Thus, the most interesting scene unfolded—the in-laws met before the bride and groom returned.Zhang Zhitao opened the car door, "I’m swamped, come help me, brothers."

Innocent Mr. Zhang, who was dragged into it, smiled helplessly and had to follow Zhao Dashan inside. Zhou Jiao quickly winked at the twins, "Dad and Mom, you go in first. I’ll turn back to see where they are, and keep you updated."

"Liu Yi, May 1st, go inside with Grandma."

"No, I want to find Dad."

"Goodbye, Grandma." May 1st was already waving his small arms.

Zhou Jiao signaled to Mother Zhang amidst the crowd, smiled, "Mom, I’ll take them for a spin, if it gets cold, we’ll go inside. You go in first and have a cup of tea to warm up."

Mother Zhang glared at her, knowing she disliked crowds, could only smile, shaking her head without persuading further, went inside accompanied by the twins’ goodbye to Grandma.

Once the crowd left, Zhou Jiao had the brothers sit tight and hold onto the handrail, then she slowly reversed away. She wasn’t really going to wait for them on the road—was she crazy? Her sons would freeze.

She drove to the small restaurant in front of the commune, took a look there, thick curtains blocked the view inside, "Liu Yi, May 1st, would you like to go inside with Mommy to have some steamed eggs?"

Liu Yi blinked his large eyes, tilted his head, "Aren’t we looking for Dad?"

"It’s too cold outside, let’s go in and warm up first. Your dad is not coming that fast."

"What about Brother?"

Zhou Jiao looked at the well-behaved May 1st, then at the endlessly curious Liu Yi, "Your dad is with Brother. They’ll arrive with the sound of firecrackers, and we’ll get to see them."

"Alright then."

Zhou Jiao got out of the car, took the two boys out from the back, and led them into the restaurant. Inside, there was no customer, but the heater was warm, instantly warming the whole body significantly.

"Zhou Jiao?"

Zhou Jiao immediately turned her head to look.

"Is it really you? I haven’t seen you in years. It’s a rare guest, come in and have a seat, are these your sons? Are they twins?"

Cheng Feng’s wife, Sister Wang, ran over cheerfully, crouched looking at the twins.

Zhou Jiao smiled, pulled her up, "I went to the county guesthouse, heard from the chef you hadn’t transferred yet, and just thought I’d see if you were here."

"It’s a long story." Sister Wang thought and smiled, "Let’s not talk about me, little darlings, Aunty will treat you to noodles, okay?"

Liu Yi and May 1st looked at Zhou Jiao after hearing that.

Zhou Jiao led them slowly to the service counter, "You should call her Auntie."

Liu Yi glanced at Sister Wang, "Hello Auntie."

May 1st followed, eyeing her, "Hello Auntie."

"Wow, Jiao Jiao, your twins are really polite. Xiao Wu, I remember you have an older son Ping’an, right? Didn’t they come back?"

"No, no, today is Yuntao’s wedding, you’re here for the celebration feast, right? My husband went over there early in the morning."

Once Sister Wang finished speaking, May 1st asked, "Mommy, do we still eat custard?"

Zhou Jiao laughed, looked at Sister Wang, took out money, "Please order a bowl of custard from the chef first, the kids must be hungry by now."

"No need, it’s my treat."

"That’s not possible! If you insist, I’m leaving." Zhou Jiao wouldn’t accept since it wasn’t like visiting someone’s home.

Sister Wang somewhat understood her temperament, accepted the money, laughed, "You’re still so courteous. Alright, I’ll go urge the chef."

Here, Zhou Jiao waited for her to go inside, holding her two sons to find a nearby seat, "Eat a little to fill up, when we’re home, Mommy will prepare delicious food for you."

The twins nodded. Liu Yi then looked at the curtain, "Mommy, do you think Dad will have trouble finding us?"

May 1st cooperated with the explanation: "Grandpa told us to stick with Dad and not get lost."

While Zhou Jiao helped remove the kids’ gloves, she replied humorously, "With the car outside, your dad is smart enough to understand once he sees it. You must have confidence in him."

"Yes, Dad is like me."

May 1st immediately said: "I’m like Grandpa."

"Dummy!"

"You’re an idiot!"

"..."

Regarding the kids’ antics, Zhou Jiao knowingly smiled without speaking. This pair used to physically fight before they turned one, but now they had changed, though verbal disputes were unavoidable. Fortunately, when facing outsiders, the three brothers were very united.

Soon enough, the little brothers stopped bickering and discussed how some cousins were doing. Once Sister Wang emerged from the kitchen, they immediately fell silent.

This scene always made Zhou Jiao snicker. The saying "small but cunning" perfectly described her three sons. After guiding them several times, now when encountering anyone, the twins naturally began observing the person’s speech and behavior.

"Oh wow, your sons are so well-behaved, unlike mine, they really stress me out."

Zhou Jiao glanced at the quiet and well-behaved sons beside her, smiled, "They’ll be better when grown."

"Better what! My eldest is a year younger than your Ping’an, yet he’s so mischievous. In this freezing winter, as soon as his grandparents aren’t watching, he sneaks out to play, always knows how to get a runny nose every day."

"Except for my quiet little girl, the second one is even naughtier. He hasn’t learned to walk yet, but already crawls out of the yard when not watched. Now they’ve grown, and he and his brother run out every day..."

Zhou Jiao truly didn’t know how many kids she had. Because Zhang Guoqing had many friends coming and going, and gifts in the countryside weren’t much, if it wasn’t a pound or two of brown sugar, it’d be several pounds of eggs.

So, in previous years, these favors were handled by her mother-in-law first. For instance, when their pair of twins were born, quite a few came to give gifts—they couldn’t possibly let the in-laws mail things to Beijing, and Mother Zhang was too lazy to report everything to them.

However, she once mentioned that except for a few close families, others gradually stopped favors because the couple was away.

Cheng Feng and his wife always included gifts; otherwise, Zhou Jiao wouldn’t have thought to come see them just now.

"I now wish to tie them up with a rope..."

Zhou Jiao smiled lightly and listened to Sister Wang’s chatter. Honestly, she wasn’t used to hearing mothers disparage and blame their children in front of others. This reminded her of unpleasant past events.

Fortunately, a large bowl of custard saved the three of them.

Once the two brothers finished the custard, the sound of firecrackers started to crackle outside. The brothers immediately looked up at Zhou Jiao.

She smiled and nodded, "You just ate, you must rest for a while first. If your dad doesn’t come after ten minutes, Mommy will take you to find him and your brother."

Originally restless, the brothers grinned upon hearing they could go out, pointed to the ground.

Zhou Jiao carried them down, watching them curiously exploring the long benches and the small blackboards hanging on the walls. All of this was indeed rare for those living in the Big Courtyard.

Next spring, when flowers bloom, she should take them to the Welfare Institute and visit the countryside.