Chapter 21: You Should Kiss Mommy

Back then, movie theaters didn’t have strict “no talking” rules; many people whispered to each other.

Wealthier families brought their children, and some couples went on dates.

“Black Cat Sheriff” was a popular cartoon at that time.

It was an eye-opening experience for Lele, who was seeing a movie for the first time.

“Mommy, there’s a cat on the wall, and it can talk.”

“Mommy, the cat is so cool.”

“Mommy, I like the cat so much. Can we take it home?”

“That mouse is so bad! It’s a big villain!”

“Mommy, are those real guns?”

“Can I have a gun?”

The little guy’s questions came one after another.  At first, he thought the cat was real, but when the movie ended and the image disappeared, he understood it was just a picture.

Excited, Lele danced as he left with Su Ai, chattering:

“Mommy, can we watch a movie tomorrow? I liked it so much.”

“Mommy, do you know what kind of villains Black Cat Sheriff encountered next? Can you tell me?”

“Mommy, can we bring the movie theater home?”

“Mommy, can we watch movies every day?”

Seeing her son’s excitement about this new experience, and his constant calls of “Mommy,” even Su Ai, with her two lifetimes of maternal love, was overwhelmed.

She took two deep breaths and gently stroked his head.

“When Daddy gets better, Mommy will buy a TV, okay? A color TV, so you can watch TV every day.”

“What’s a TV? What’s a color TV?”

“Is it like the movie theater? Can we watch movies every day then?”

“Yes, it’s a small, square box. You can watch movies every day!”

“Okay, let’s buy a TV, a big TV!”

“Okay, but now we need to buy groceries and cook for Daddy.”

“Okay!”

Lele spent the entire afternoon immersed in the joy of Black Cat Sheriff.

Su Ai went to the market to buy groceries. Ji Yang needed nutritious soup every day; she’d made pig’s feet soup, enough for half at lunch and half at dinner.

In the evening, Su Ai stir-fried some cabbage and steamed a minced meat and egg custard for Lele.

Since it was dinner, they didn’t have rice; she made porridge and warmed some steamed buns.

Around five or six o’clock, Su Ai returned to the ward with the food, holding Lele’s hand.

Ji Yang was bored lying in the ward alone.

He had been sleeping and waking up repeatedly, unable to sleep properly.

He lay in bed, staring at the clock, feeling time drag on.

When Su Ai and Lele entered, his eyes lit up.

He felt revitalized.

“Lele.”

“Daddy!”

Lele, holding something, quickly ran to Ji Yang, presenting it to him.

“Daddy, Mommy and I brought you dinner! And Mommy bought you a book because she was worried you’d be bored.”

“So she bought you a book to pass the time.”

“This is a game console Mommy bought for me, but you can play it too, Daddy. You won’t be bored lying down anymore!”

Su Ai helped Ji Yang sit up.  Seeing the book and game console in his hands, his smile widened.

He glanced at Su Ai.  Even though she’d taken their son out, she hadn’t forgotten him.

His smile grew wider; happiness spread from his brain to his heart, his pulse quickening.

“Thank you, sweetie.”

“Dad likes it, thank you.”

Ji Yang thanked his son and kissed his soft cheek.

“Mommy bought them. You should thank Mommy.”

“You should kiss Mommy.”

Ji Yang turned and saw Su Ai’s amused expression.

He understood her look.

But it wasn’t completely dark yet, and there were many people in the ward.  He couldn’t kiss his wife now.

His cheeks flushed; he pretended not to see Su Ai’s hopeful look and looked away.

He gave the game console to his son, changing the subject.

“Lele, teach Dad how to play this. Dad doesn’t know.”

“Okay!”

“Dad, this is Tetris. You have to fit the blocks together to make a row.”

“Then they’ll disappear. If you can’t make a row, they’ll stack up, and if they fill the screen, the game is over.”

“And this is Snake. You eat these, and the snake gets bigger.”

This was a popular game console in the 1980s and 90s—a simple plastic shell with a small screen.

The controls were simple buttons; Su Ai found it unremarkable.

In the future, such a console would cost only a few yuan, but now, it was rare.

Even Ji Yang hadn’t seen one.

There weren’t many games then; Tetris alone was enough to captivate people.

“How much did this game console cost?”

Ji Yang thought it must be expensive.

“150.”

Su Ai set the food table and took out the food, casually answering Ji Yang’s question.

Ji Yang’s hand froze; he looked at Su Ai in disbelief.

He thought he’d misheard and asked again:

“How much?”

“One hundred and fifty.”

“Some parts are imported and require foreign exchange coupons, which we don’t have.  The original price was 120, but we paid 150.”

Ji Yang found the price shocking.

In a time when monthly wages were only thirty to forty yuan, spending 150 yuan on a child’s toy was extravagant.

But technology was expensive in China then, so Ji Yang understood the price.

“Dad, Dad, why are you spacing out again? You’ll become like Second Uncle, drooling.”

“Look, Tetris is over!”

Lele was unhappy seeing the screen filled with blocks.

The game was over.

He had to start again.

“It’s okay. Let’s play after dinner. Let’s eat first.”

Ji Yang put down the game console, his smile gentle as he wiped Lele’s hands.