According to the customs of Haizhou, it was a very formal and solemn thing to recognize a foster relative.
Only between very good friends, or when they met a younger generation they liked very much, would they recognize a foster relative, and after the foster relative was recognized, it would basically last for a lifetime.
When the people of the 1980s and 1990s grew up, they were relatively casual about this kind of foster relative relationship. Sometimes, before the child was born, they had already found a bunch of foster parents for the child. However, in Haizhou in the last century, it was rare for a child to have several foster parents, or for an adult to have several foster sons or foster daughters. Generally speaking, a child had only one foster father and one foster mother, and an elder had at most one foster son or foster daughter. The older generation attached great importance to this relationship, which was much more important than the Western godfathers to some extent.
People in Haizhou attached great importance to promises. Not only were the foster relatives very formal and attached great importance to it, but also the sworn brothers between friends could not be sworn brothers casually. Not only must they have a good relationship, but they must also keep promises and abide by the rules. If the parents or grandparents of the sworn brothers passed away, according to the rules, the sworn brothers had to be in mourning. It was not like ten years later, when a 13-year-old child had dozens or hundreds of sworn brothers, but they could be sworn brothers and get along with them casually. Ten years later, it was already good to have one or two sworn brothers.
When Li Mu and Li Ziwei went home together, they called their mother. They didn't expect Li Mu to come home early, so they hurried to prepare dinner. After answering Li Mu's call, Li Ma suddenly felt a little nervous and asked Papa Lee, "What if Ziwei doesn't like it?"
Papa Lee said, "I don't think so."
Li Ma said, "I don't know. I'm just a little uncertain. We've never recognized a foster daughter before, and I don't know what the rules are in Ziwei's hometown."
Papa Lee said with a smile, "As long as the girl agrees, we can follow the rules of her family. Besides, the girl may not dare to agree directly. She probably needs to discuss it with her parents."
Li Ma nodded and said, "Ziwei's parents are very good people. At first glance, you can tell that they are standard intellectuals. They are both teachers, right?"
"Ziwei's mother is a retired teacher, and her father is an official in the local education bureau. But in the early years, he was a teacher. Later, he was transferred to the education commission. The last time we met, Ziwei's father mentioned that he was going to retire too."
During the Spring Festival, as Li Mu's personal assistant, Li Ziwei had been following Li Mu all the time. In order for her to reunite with her family, Li Mu had specially invited her parents to Haizhou for the Spring Festival. Papa Lee and Li Ma had been in contact with Li Ziwei's parents for a few days. She had a good impression of them, and her impression of Li Ziwei was even better.
Li Ziwei was born into an intellectual family. Her parents were the last batch of college students who had been admitted to universities before the Cultural Revolution. After graduation, both of them were passionate about education and had been busy in the field of education for half of their lives. Both of them were very good in terms of character, temperament, knowledge, and conversation.
Li Ma said with a smile, "If Ziwei's parents also agree, our family of six will find time to have a meal together. In the future, we will also be people with daughters."
"Coincidentally, their surnames are Li. They are like biological daughters …"
Li Ma nodded and said, "Yes, they are all members of your Li family."
Papa Lee nodded and said with a smile, "Before you had a son, you dreamed of having a daughter. If you were really a daughter, I'm afraid it would be difficult for you to have the achievements of our son today!"
Li Ma shook her head and said, "If Xiaomu is really a daughter, I can't bear for her to work so hard. After graduating from college, she will go home and take the civil service exam. She will have a stable job and not marry far away. That way, she can accompany us more."
After that, Li Ma said again, "Look at now, your son hasn't graduated from college yet. He is traveling all over the world all day long. In a few years, I'm afraid I won't be able to see him a few times a year. No matter how great his achievements are, it will still be difficult for our family of three to reunite. Achievements are all for outsiders to see. Living together is the happiest thing for a family. "
"You're right." Papa Lee nodded and said with a sigh, "In the future, no matter what, I have to persuade my son to have more children!"
…
Li Mu didn't tell Li Ziwei about his mother's wish to recognize her as a goddaughter, but he had been thinking about it all the way.
In his previous life, Li Mu often heard his mother exclaim that she envied others who had daughters, especially those who had daughters by their side. Even if they got married, they could see each other every day. After having children, their parents could still help take care of the children every day. The old couple's life was also fulfilling.
Unlike her, her son was always away from home. He could only go back two or three times a year, and each time was only for a few days. He came in a hurry and left in a hurry. Before his mother had enough of him, her son would leave again.
In his previous life, life didn't have such a sequence. It could be said that Li Ma had worked hard for most of her life. When she was old, her son couldn't stay by her side. It was inevitable for her to feel sad.
Li Mu always felt that he owed his parents a lot. However, because of life and reality, he couldn't fulfill the obligations of a good son. At that time, whenever Li Mu heard that his mother had a fever or a cold, he felt very sorry. Usually, he couldn't accompany her. When she had a headache or a fever, he couldn't go home to take care of her. At that time, Li Mu often imagined that if he had an elder sister or a younger sister who could stay at home to take care of his parents, it would be great.
Because he had always known this regret in his mother's heart, Li Mu didn't object to her wanting to recognize Li Ziwei as her goddaughter at all. On the contrary, deep in his heart, he was particularly supportive of this matter. His only hope was that his parents could treat Li Ziwei sincerely, which could be exchanged for Li Ziwei's sincere feedback. In that case, it could be regarded as making up for the regret in his mother's heart.
When they returned to Ziyun Villa, Papa Lee and Li Ma were still busy in the kitchen. As soon as Li Ziwei arrived home, she hurried to the kitchen to help. She took the initiative to take over Papa Lee's work and didn't let him work anymore. In her words, she said, "I can do the kitchen work with Auntie. Uncle, you can go and chat with Li Zong."
Li Ma smiled and said, "I guess your uncle has been wanting to go out to smoke for a long time. He is addicted to cigarettes."
Li Ziwei said, "Although it's difficult to quit smoking, you should try to smoke less. I'll go back and ask a friend to bring you some nicotine chewing gum. When you want to smoke, you can chew two pieces. It can reduce the intake of tobacco tar."
Papa Lee asked curiously, "Is there such a thing?" “
Li Ziwei nodded and said, "It has been sold in the American market for a long time. It has been certified by the FDA and is very safe. Its principle is actually the same as people's dependence on tobacco. You are addicted to smoking, but you are addicted to nicotine, not to tobacco tar. When you are addicted to smoking, your body needs to ingest nicotine. Nicotine chewing gum has naturally extracted nicotine, but there is no tobacco tar, so it is much healthier. After all, the most harmful elements in tobacco are various elements and heavy metals in tobacco tar."
As she spoke, Li Ziwei added, "And that thing can reduce your dependence on cigarettes. While using it, you can reduce the amount of cigarettes you smoke. After a period of time, you may be able to quit smoking completely."
When Li Ma heard this, she hurriedly said, "It sounds very reliable! Old Li, ask Ziwei to buy some for you later. You can try it. "
Papa Lee did not refuse. He smiled and said, "If I can quit painlessly, I definitely have no objection. In fact, I also want to quit, but I have been smoking for so many years, and I can't quit all at once."
Li Ma nodded and said with a smile, "Well, I know what kind of person you are. If you want to smoke, go to the yard and smoke."
Papa Lee smiled and said, "Okay, then you are busy. I will be lazy."
When Papa Lee came out of the kitchen, Li Mu was checking emails on his laptop in the living room. Papa Lee took out a cigarette from his pocket and said to Li Mu, "Son, let's go out for a smoke."
Because he knew that Li Mu smoked occasionally, Papa Lee would sometimes throw a cigarette to Li Mu, and the two of them smoked together. However, Li Mu was not addicted to smoking, so he smoked much less than him.
Li Mu put down his laptop and went to the yard with his father. The weather in Yanjing in April had begun to warm up. The father and son sat on a wooden bench in the yard of the villa. Papa Lee took out two cigarettes and handed one to Li Mu. Li Mu took the lighter from his father and helped him light the cigarette first before lighting the one in his mouth.
After two puffs, Papa Lee pointed to a small vegetable field in the yard and said proudly, "Look, your father hasn't farmed for 30 years, but it looks pretty good at first glance."
Li Mu helplessly looked at the few rows in the yard and said with a smile, "At your age, do you feel a sense of achievement growing vegetables?"
Papa Lee smiled and said, "Not only a sense of achievement, but also nostalgia and freedom."
As he said that, Papa Lee sighed again, "When I was a child, I didn't have such a mood when I was farming. I was lazy when I was a child, so your grandmother forced me to work in the field with a stick. At that time, apart from going to school, I did farm work, so I never felt that farming was a kind of enjoyment. Every day, I thought about how to get rid of the yellow soil, so I quickly took over your grandfather's class and went to the mines after graduating from high school. However, it was hard on your uncle. I took over your grandfather's work, but he couldn't read, so he could only farm in his hometown. Sometimes when I think about it, I always feel sorry for him."
Li Mu nodded and said, "But for so many years, you have been trying to help my uncle. Now his life is very good, and it will be even better in the future."
Papa Lee smiled slightly and said, "Yes, it's much better now."
Speaking of this, Papa Lee said again, "Your uncle just got rid of the yellow soil, and I left the yellow soil for 30 years. If you ask your uncle to farm now, I'm afraid he won't be happy. But for me, I really want to get an acre of land to plant. When the chili peppers, eggplants, and tomatoes grow, I'll be happy to see them green and green. In another eight to ten years, your mom and I will find a place where it's like spring all year round. We'll get a house and rent some farmland. Apart from growing some vegetables, we can also grow some fruits. In the future, your son and daughter will grow whatever they like to eat. Your mom and I will grow it … "
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