A widower's entertainment

Lin Zhaomei stayed with the crew of "Strange Tales of the Human World" to study, while Lin Youcheng naturally took the children to Shanghai for a good time. Since it was summer vacation and there was plenty of time, Lin Zhaoqing had originally planned to return to Decheng.

Lin Youcheng took the children and Xie Shuhua back to Decheng.

"Is Zhao Mei really not coming with us?"

Xie Shuhua was still a little worried, thinking about Lin Zhaomei being alone on set.

Lin Youcheng smiled upon hearing Xie Shuhua's words and said, "Don't worry, Li An will keep an eye on Zhao Mei. Besides, Zhao Mei herself plans to observe how foreign film crews shoot while she's on set."

Although Li An is a director from Taiwan, he has filmed movies abroad, so his filming habits and crew working methods are naturally influenced by Hollywood. Lin Zhaomei's experience can be considered a form of learning.

Xie Shuhua understood what Lin Youcheng meant, but still asked, "So Zhao Mei only returned to Beijing when school started?"

"should be."

"Don't worry, she'll call us if anything happens."

This is still in China, and it's still on set. If this were abroad, Lin Youcheng would naturally not feel comfortable leaving Lin Zhaomei alone. Otherwise, he wouldn't have made a special trip to accompany Lin Zhaomei to the Berlin Film Festival to receive the award.

In particular, the crew of "Human Wonders" all knew that Lin Zhaomei was Lin Youcheng's daughter. In addition to Li An, Zhang Guorong was also taking care of her, so Lin Youcheng was not worried at all.

Lin Youcheng thought for a moment and said, "After we return to the capital, we can consider buying Zhaomei a pager."

These words made Lin Zhaoqing very envious.

Well, this naturally made him very envious. You know, he had wanted a motorcycle before, but he was refused. Now, he was actually going to buy a pager for Lin Zhaomei. This really made Lin Zhaoqing extremely envious.

"Dad, could you buy me a pager too?"

Upon hearing Lin Zhaoqing's words, Lin Youcheng shook his head and said, "Let's talk about it after you graduate."

Lin Youcheng didn't think Lin Zhaoqing needed a pager while he was in school. As for Lin Zhaomei, it was different on set. If he wasn't worried about being too high-profile, Lin Youcheng would have thought of giving Lin Zhaomei a mobile phone. Of course, Lin Youcheng also felt it was inappropriate. Although he wasn't short of money, Lin Zhaomei was still in school.

Leaving aside mobile phones, pagers were not cheap at all back then. In 1996, the price of pagers varied greatly depending on the type and brand. Digital pagers cost about 800-1000 yuan, while pagers with Chinese characters (Hanban display) cost about 1800-2100 yuan. These were definitely luxury items.

Lin Zhaoqing was neither surprised nor disappointed when he heard his father Lin Youcheng's words, because he had already guessed the answer when his father asked the question.

Lin Youcheng was thinking that after returning to Beijing, he could ask his daughter, Lin Zhaoxi, if she needed a pager. If she did, Lin Youcheng, as her father, would naturally sell it to her without hesitation.

Although Lin Zhaoxi is also in school, the courses are different, especially since Lin Zhaoxi is going to pursue a master's degree, which naturally makes his studies even more demanding.

Lin Youcheng thought that Lin Zhaoxi hadn't come to Shanghai with them and hadn't been able to go to Decheng yet, so he felt that he should still find time to take Lin Zhaoxi out for some fun later.

Xie Shuhua, who was standing nearby, naturally overheard Lin Youcheng and Lin Zhaoqing's conversation. She didn't say much, as she knew that although Lin Youcheng treated all his children equally, he still treated his daughters and sons differently, especially his youngest daughter, Lin Zhaoyuan, whom he doted on. Even Lin Zhaoqing and Lin Zhaoman were well aware of this. Fortunately, the children understood why their father favored girls over boys and didn't say anything. However, she felt she should still mention it to Lin Youcheng later, telling him not to spoil his daughter, Lin Zhaoyuan, too much in the future.

Of course, Xie Shuhua felt that even if she spoke up, Lin Youcheng would probably still love his daughter as always.

Fortunately, Lin Zhaohuan and Lin Zhaomei are all sensible children and have not changed because of Lin Youcheng's love. Naturally, she also hopes that her daughter Lin Zhaoyuan can be as sensible as her older brothers and sisters.

The children were all very happy to return to Dezhou this time.

After all, they hadn't been back to Decheng for a long time, especially Lin Zhaoqing, who had initially wanted to go back to Decheng, but later accompanied Lin Zhaomei to the Berlin Film Festival, so he didn't go back.

To be honest, this was the first time Lin Youcheng's seventh child, Lin Zhaoyuan, had come to his hometown of Decheng since the child was born.

Of course, Lin Youcheng had brought the children back before, but his elder brother Lin Youcai had also gone to the capital, so he hadn't come back since. Of course, this doesn't mean that there were no people left in Decheng, since Zhao Gensheng's family still lived there.

Clearly, Zhao Gensheng's family was pleasantly surprised that his uncle, Lin Youcheng, was coming to Decheng.

Especially noteworthy are Lin Youcheng's children and his later wife, Xie Shuhua, who also came along.

As Lin Youcheng's nephew, Zhao Gensheng was too embarrassed to call Xie Shuhua "aunt" and instead addressed her as "Aunt Xie."

Actually, now that Zhao Gensheng's aunt has passed away, he has essentially severed ties with Lin Youcheng. However, because of Lin Zhaoxi's children and the fact that Lin Youcheng had previously helped Zhao Gensheng, their relationship has remained good. Zhao Gensheng would call Lin Youcheng during holidays to keep in touch.

Xie Shuhua actually knew about Zhao Gensheng's family, but she was still a little confused by Zhao Wenjie calling her "Grandma".

Although she knew this was the hierarchy, she still felt somewhat dazed.

Lin Youcheng said with a smile, "Do you find it a little unbelievable that someone is calling you 'Grandma'?"

"When I first met Wenjie, I was stunned when he called me great-uncle. I didn't expect that I would be a grandfather."

Hearing Lin Youcheng's words, Xie Shuhua couldn't help but laugh and said, "I never thought I'd become a grandmother."

After all, her daughter, Lin Zhaoyuan, is only two years old.

However, Xie Shuhua thought about it again and realized that Lin Zhaoxi was already twenty-three years old. In the past, he would have been able to get married and have children, and might even have kids by now. If Lin Zhaoxi got married and had children, she would indeed be a grandmother.

After all, she knew this from the very beginning when she got together with Lin Youcheng.

“However, in a few years, when Zhaoxi and Zhaoqing get married, we might really become grandparents.” Lin Youcheng couldn’t help but smile when he heard Xie Shuhua’s words. Looking at the courtyard in Chunfeng Alley that he had seen more than ten years ago, he felt that time had flown by. After all, a long time ago, he was still washing his child’s diapers and coaxing the child to sleep in this courtyard.

It feels like just yesterday... It's been so long, so very long time...

Lin Youcheng heard from Zhao Gensheng that the area behind Chunfeng Alley might be demolished and rebuilt, which means that his memories of raising his child here may only remain in his memories.

This is similar to how Lin Zhaoqing's children, even if they wanted to find their childhood playmates in Decheng, could no longer play together with some of them because too much time had passed.

Lin Zhaoyuan ran around curiously in the small courtyard, then ran up to Lin Youcheng and asked, "Dad, is this where my older brother and sister used to live?"

Hearing Lin Zhaoyuan's words, Lin Youcheng couldn't help but smile, nodded, and said, "Yes, my older brother and sister used to live here before they went to the capital."

"This place is so small!"

Hearing Lin Zhaoyuan's words, Lin Youcheng couldn't help but laugh and said, "This place is very small. Before, your brother and the others had to squeeze onto one bed to sleep."

Lin Zhaoyuan blinked as she listened to Lin Youcheng's words, also curious about some of the things that had happened in the past.

Lin Youcheng would naturally tell Lin Zhaoyuan about some things that had happened in the yard in the past, such as when they were young, Lin Zhaohuan and Lin Zhaole would play house in the yard, and Lin Zhaoman, their older brother, would play with them. Moreover, Lin Zhaoman was a Young Pioneer at that time, wearing a red scarf with great pride...

There are other things too. The eldest daughter, Lin Zhaoxi, helps Lin Youcheng take care of his younger siblings, while Lin Youcheng goes out early in the morning to sweep the streets, then comes back to finish his manuscript, and also has to prepare meals for the children. He is really very tired.

Especially since it was the first time he had taken care of that little devil Lin Zhaole, he felt like he wanted to die. He was only able to get through that period thanks to Lin Zhaoxi's help.

Although things got much better after that, Lin Youcheng still found it very difficult.

At that time, even if he didn't want Lin Zhaoxi's help, he had no choice. After all, it was really difficult for him to take care of six children by himself, especially the newborn Lin Zhaole and the two-year-old Lin Zhaohuan.

These children are not easy to take care of, but fortunately, the older ones are all very sensible.

Lin Youcheng naturally only told some stories to his daughter Lin Zhaoyuan selectively, since Lin Zhaoyuan is still too young and wouldn't remember some of the things he told her.

Rather than saying that Lin Youcheng was telling his daughter Lin Zhaoyuan about things that happened in the courtyard in the past, it would be more accurate to say that Lin Youcheng was reminiscing about the stories that happened in Chunfeng Alley in Decheng.

Neighbors Zhang Weimin and Xie Chunxia were also surprised that Lin Youcheng would return to Decheng, so they warmly welcomed Lin Youcheng and his family.

Lin Youcheng naturally prepared some gifts as a way of showing his respects. He also specially invited Zhang Weimin's family to a restaurant for dinner, since there were so many people. It was a simple meal, since Lin Youcheng was not short of money and did not need to worry about saving money.

When he received his first royalty payment, he immediately took his children out to eat, so naturally he won't skimp on that now.

Of course, Lin Youcheng couldn't stay in Decheng for long. After taking a look around, he prepared to return to the capital.

However, before leaving, Lin Youcheng also talked to Zhao Gensheng about going to work in Beijing.

“My older brother and his family are doing very well in Beijing now. They have all bought houses, and their restaurant business is getting better and better.”

This is the truth that Lin Youcheng said. The Lin Youcai family is doing very well in Beijing now. Lin Zhaoping and Lin Zhaoan have both been admitted to university, and Lin Youcai and his sister-in-law Fang Mei's restaurant business is booming. They are getting better and better.

Lin Youcai is now quite grateful to his younger brother Lin Youcheng for bringing them to the capital. He will only be more grateful in the future. Lin Zhaoping and Lin Zhaoan should also thank their third uncle.

Zhao Gensheng found Lin Youcheng's words to be very reasonable. He also knew that Lin Youcai's family was doing well in Beijing, especially since both of their children had been admitted to universities in Beijing.

Even if Zhao Gensheng doesn't think about others, he must also be thinking about his son Zhao Wenjie.

Zhao Gensheng naturally hoped that his son, Zhao Wenjie, could also attend a university in Beijing in the future, especially since Zhao Wenjie's academic performance was already very good and he had always worked very hard. However, having been to Beijing, he knew that the educational resources there were far superior to those in Decheng, and even more so to those in his hometown in the countryside of Yunnan Province.

Education in subjects like English and computer skills is undoubtedly better in Beijing.

Zhao Gensheng said, "Uncle, I've actually been thinking about this too."

Lin Youcheng, upon hearing Zhao Gensheng's words, naturally didn't say much. He simply told Zhao Gensheng that working in Beijing was a good option. For example, Zhao Gensheng could find a teaching position at another school. As for Jiang Xiulian, whether she worked at her elder brother Lin Youcai's restaurant or at her own company, there were always suitable jobs available. Alternatively, she could find other work in Beijing and start a small business, which would also be a good option.

There's no need to worry about housing in Beijing; Lin Youcheng has plenty of houses to lend to Zhao Gensheng's family without charging rent.

After all, their elder brother Lin Youcai had built his house and restaurant from scratch in Beijing. Of course, this was all thanks to Lin Youcai's support; otherwise, things wouldn't have gone so smoothly. Lin Youcai and Fang Mei were well aware of this.

In particular, many state-owned enterprises had closed down, and the workers who lost their jobs faced great hardship.

"I'm just mentioning it to you. You can consider it yourselves. If you decide to go to Beijing, just call me."

"I understand, thank you, Uncle."

Lin Youcheng didn't say much and took his family directly back to the capital.

In Lin Youcheng's view, the past is just the past, and it's best to leave it in memories. There's no need to live in the bitter days of the past forever. He always remembers those days, but people should naturally get better and better, and life should get better and better as well.

Whether the old site of Chunfeng Alley in Decheng is demolished and rebuilt or preserved, the stories that happened there in the past will not change.

Those memories of his life with the children in that small courtyard throughout the past will never change. (End of Chapter)