Back to 1979: Sending the Educated Youth’s Wife Back to the City

Chapter 211 Nosy
While Lin Yan and Xie Ping were talking inside, Fang Mingche and Gao Xiang simply left the courtyard and headed towards the river. The house the Gao family rented was really too small; it was easy to bump into someone just by turning around.

"Old Gao, you've saved up some money by now, right? When are you going to buy a bigger house? Are you really going to have the baby sleep with his aunt? What will you do when the baby needs night feedings in the beginning?" Fang Mingche asked.

Fang Chang only started living with Xiao Min after she was weaned. Otherwise, it would have been very inconvenient.

Gao Xiang said, "She's still living with her sister-in-law. Xiao Ping is even trying to send her sister back home."

It's just that his sister-in-law almost tripped in front of him, and he instinctively reached out to help her up. Otherwise, would he have just watched her fall flat on her face in front of him? Even a complete stranger wouldn't have done that.

Fang Mingche didn't say anything more, took out a pack of cigarettes and gave one to Gao Xiang. In his opinion, the couple shouldn't have called his sister-in-law in the first place. Her identity was too sensitive! One wrong move and it would have led to this situation.

Of course, it's also possible that Xie Ting has ulterior motives. She doesn't remember the person who dug the well when she drinks the water!

In comparison, Xiaomin is much better. She does things wholeheartedly and doesn't have any ulterior motives. Especially after planning out her future prospects of either working in a travel agency or taking the college entrance exam after two years of high school education.

Gao Xiang and Xie Ping should have made things clear to Xie Ting a long time ago: they would introduce her to potential partners in the capital, try their best to arrange jobs for her, or send her to school.

Sigh, that won't work either! Changchang can go to the preschool at the age of three, but Aunt Gao has a chronic illness that needs to be carefully managed.

Xiaomin is not in a similar situation to Xie Ting, but Yingzi is taking care of her great-uncle in the United States.

That family hadn't made any plans for Yingzi's future either. They had, however, arranged for her to marry an employee of their small supermarket who was twice her age, to help her cultivate relationships with the subordinates. It's no wonder Yingzi rebelled against such an arrangement.

She could tolerate her biased parents for years, but the moment she went to a place beyond their reach, they immediately changed their tune and refused to send a single penny back. And yet, she could still be polite to her uncle and aunt?
She did send me $900 back during the summer vacation. I haven't heard anything about it in the past two months, not even from Lingzi.

Oh, right, back then, Old Zhou helped her exchange RMB for a knife with Boss Cui, himself, and her great-uncle, so she could take it to America. She took 1000 dollars with her at the time.

Fang Mingche stroked his chin. Could it be that he also factored in the increased value of the drug over the past year, and therefore gave his parents 900 dollars back? He had always thought that Lingzi could only afford 100 dollars, so Yingzi gave 900. The two sisters made a round number!

That girl, Na Yingzi, is really interesting!
Fang Mingche didn't say much about Gao Xiang's family affairs, but simply kept him company while he smoked a cigarette.

"You need to resolve this matter as soon as possible, after all, your wife is in the early stages of pregnancy."

Gao Xiang nodded. "My mom said Xiao Ting took very good care of her, even more attentive than Xiao Ping. And if she really goes back, the girl's life will be ruined. Their family will definitely use her to exchange for a dowry."

Fang Mingche remained silent, but felt that Gao Xiang was being rather indecisive. He has a wife; she's just your sister-in-law! Unless you want your sister-in-law to replace you.

If that were the case, his opinion of Gao Xiang would be much lower.

As for Aunt Gao, she's also muddle-headed. She only cares about her own comfort, without considering whether Xie Ting would still treat her like royalty if she really took over.
If she could really take care of you peacefully for the rest of her life, why would she cause all this trouble? Xie Ping is pregnant; that's the most important thing.

As for what will happen to Xie Ting when she goes back, that's her own fault!
When Fang Mingche returned home, he learned that Lin Yan had even analyzed the scene of her brother-in-law hugging her sister-in-law for Xie Ping, and he was speechless. He had told her not to meddle in other people's business.

He rolled his eyes at Lin Yan, "Even Yan Yan knows not to go where there's trouble."

It's one thing to meddle in your own family's affairs, but you're also getting involved in your best friend's! Once they're all back to normal, you'll be the one taking the blame. You're the one stirring up trouble!
Lin Yan raised her hand and slapped her mouth. "I was only thinking about comforting the pregnant woman at the time. I will definitely be more careful with my words in the future."

She went inside to check if Changchang was asleep. She found her youngest son, bundled up in thick thermal underwear and lying on his crib, had just farted. He even reached above his bottom, grabbed a handful, and held it to his nose.

The room is heated and kept at 18 degrees Celsius. I won't catch a cold dressed like this. Our expensive desktop air conditioner is practically useless now.

Fang Chang and Fang Min shared a room, but each slept in their own bed. Fang Min was looking at Chang Chang with a speechless expression. But considering his insistence on sharing the toilet with her and Aunt Jiu, this reaction was quite understandable.

Lin Yan said, "Do you need to distinguish what the taste is?"

Changchang chuckled. He'd eaten roasted sweet potatoes at his grandparents' house earlier; his older brother, older sister, second older sister, older sister, and he all ate some. Hmm, Min-jie ate some too. Everyone farted!
"Alright, go to sleep now." Lin Yan tucked her into bed. Then she asked Fang Min, "Was he excited for a while?"

Fang Min nodded. She was also planning to wait until Changchang calmed down before settling him down to sleep. Otherwise, he would get sleepy.

Fang Chang lay down, was patted by his mother, and quickly closed his eyes.

Lin Yan went to check on Yan Yan again. Yan Yan was still wearing her winter pajamas and reading comics under the bedside lamp. It was only a little past eight o'clock; she could go to sleep in half an hour.

"Move it a little further away, or you'll become nearsighted. Are you watching Doraemon again?"

This was brought back to Yan Yan by Wu Mingju's family when they went to visit relatives in Tokyo.

There were also videotapes. When they were put on, Changchang eagerly went over to watch. It turned out the video was in Japanese. But that didn't bother him; he watched anyway. He was just there for the fun of it.

Yan Yan nodded, "I wish I had a Doraemon."

She loved it so much! She even begged her mother to knit a blue sweater for her younger brother, with a big white pocket on the belly. She hugged her brother like a Doraemon toy, and they were very affectionate towards each other.

Lin Yan patted Yan Yan's head, "Your dad said you should avoid places where there's trouble."

Yan Yan said, "There's no benefit to it! Stand back and watch the show."

Lin Yan felt ashamed; in this respect, she was indeed not as good as a child.

The next day, Fang Mingche asked, "Do we have enough money on hand to reach 68000?"

"Pay in advance?"

"It's only been half a month. If you have any, just give them to them."

Lin Yan nodded, "Okay, I'll transfer the money to a bankbook this afternoon. Then I'll schedule a time with the other party."

If you don't pay it back this year, you'll have to pay interest next year. And if something goes wrong next year and you can't pay it back on time, you'll have to compensate them with 10% of the travel agency's shares.

The travel agency now generates over 5 yuan in net profit per month. The value of a 10% stake is incredibly high! Clearly, all possibilities must be eliminated.

Lin Yan got up, unlocked the bedside table, and took out several bank statements. They had nearly 70,000 yuan in personal savings. The travel agency only gave them 800 yuan a month, leaving them with a considerable surplus after daily expenses. They also earned over 60,000 yuan from the scrap yard and vegetable stall.

Today, Zhu Dahai and Hu Yong called them over, mainly to discuss negotiations with Qi Shun.

Qi Shun was negotiating with them while simultaneously employing a divide-and-conquer strategy. He also used personal connections and relationships to communicate with them privately. Even if they raised prices by a single cent, Qi Shun was still losing money, just less.

He still didn't want to withdraw from the competition, nor was he willing to become a secondary supplier. But in order to escape the current situation as soon as possible, he wanted to join in and share his sourcing locations and markets with them.

After all, they couldn't completely eliminate him due to certain risks. So why not join forces to make money, essentially buying Qi Shun's vegetable stall?

Zhu Dahai and Hu Yong felt this ending was acceptable. Of course, Qi Shun's shareholding percentage was definitely lower than theirs. Furthermore, Qi Shun had asked them to mediate, offering to give Lin Yan 2% of his shares as compensation.

Fang Mingche and Lin Yan finally agreed to the plan. After seven months of commotion, the influence of the private vegetable stalls had spread considerably.

Finally, the rough agreement was set at 20% for Lin Yan, 18% for Zhu Dahai, 13.5% each for Hu Yong and the other three, and 8% for Qi Shun. The plan was to merge everyone starting from New Year's Day and earn money together. They would also buy another tractor for transportation and a mobile stall.

This ending is a happy one for everyone, and the price of vegetables will increase by one cent starting from New Year's Day. That way, the price difference compared to the market price will only be about two cents.

But those seven shareholders can earn around ten thousand yuan a month. If they grow their business further, the profit can increase by another cent.

Lin Yan was muttering to herself last night that it was actually about the same as when she first started doing it, 2000 a month. The only difference was that she didn't have to worry about it anymore, and could just wait for the dividends.

But Hu Yong and his team did indeed earn significantly more. And with Fang Mingche around, they felt that all their relationships were now in order. He had certainly cultivated an image of resourcefulness and wisdom over the past two or three years. Partnering with him gave them a sense of security and support in times of trouble.

This matter is now finally settled.

The calendar pages rolled by, and New Year's Day arrived quickly. The two branches of the Fang family celebrated New Year's Day with a hot pot lunch in a small side courtyard of the traditional courtyard house.

Fang Mingfa and others celebrated the festival with the Han Ping and Fang Mingcheng families.

When Mr. Fang saw them coming, he asked about the remaining half of the payment for the courtyard house.

Lin Yan said, "Dad, I paid for it a few days ago. Now this yard is 100% ours."

Mr. Fang nodded, "That's good. Over the past year, the house itself has appreciated by nearly 20,000! This profit is almost the same as the income from running a bed and breakfast and a small general store. After all, the bed and breakfast was only open for seven and a half months."

Fang Mingche said, "Dad, this year's inflation rate is about ten percent, so it hasn't actually increased much."

Mr. Fang said, "We've lived here for free for a year, so it's already pretty good that we can get a raise."

Buying a house is definitely a good deal!
"So, all things considered, your personal debts are still..."

Lin Yan said, "Including principal and interest, there is still 120,000."

Mr. Fang frowned; there was still a lot to be done. But considering the profits from the courtyard house, there was no need to worry too much.

Moreover, the majority of the business comes from travel agencies, whose business is booming.

He didn't ask about the travel agency's New Year's Day profit sharing; he didn't care about that. As long as they could pay off their debts on time, that was fine.

He pulled out today's People's Daily and said, "Look at this!"

Fang Mingche and Lin Yan took it and read it. Today is January 1, 1982, and the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China has issued Document No. 1.

Fang Mingche knew what was going on as soon as he saw the title. Oh right, he'd completely forgotten about this important matter!
This document affirmed that the various forms of production responsibility systems emerging in rural my country, such as the household contract responsibility system and the household responsibility system, were all production responsibility systems of the socialist collective economy. Subsequently, this great creation of Chinese farmers, the household contract responsibility system (later known as the household production contract responsibility system), was widely implemented.

Lin Yan said, "That's great, the Party Secretary has a weight lifted off his shoulders. This truly legalizes the household responsibility system."

For the past three years or so, from Xiaogang Village in Fengyang, Anhui, to the scattered instances of early land redistribution and individual farming across various regions, it was all blatant defiance of regulations! The government simply kept quiet about it, observing the consequences. Today, however, it has been officially declared.

Mr. Fang nodded, “That’s right. Ever since we divided the land ahead of schedule, we’ve been feeling uneasy. If it weren’t for two consecutive years of bumper harvests, we would have been even more uneasy. Now, finally, it’s said that this is also a socialist collective economy production responsibility system. We can rest assured!”

He paused, then said, "Is this how it's done now? First, they let people do it, and then, once they see that it's good, they officially issue a document to affirm it."

Fang Mingche nodded. "That's why we say it's about reform and opening up, like crossing a river by feeling for stones."

Those who dared to be the first to act before the official document was issued were brave! They were all testing the waters! He, for example, was one of them.

Mr. Fang nodded. It seemed his youngest son really wouldn't become a capitalist. The travel agency was making far too much money! Just those twelve minivans alone were worth 420,000 yuan. But actually, the travel agency hadn't planned on distributing any dividends for New Year's Day. Although they had 200,000 to 300,000 yuan in their accounts, their two branch offices owed the bank over 200,000 yuan, having mortgaged six minivans. With interest, that's over 200,000 yuan.

Recently, Fang Mingche and Wang Dexian have been focused on whether they can buy a property in an old Western-style house in Shanghai. The Wang family is handling this. If they can't buy the one they're currently renting, something nearby would be fine too. Given the current price increase, buying it would definitely be more cost-effective.

Otherwise, on the one hand, they have to bear the rising housing prices caused by inflation (especially for scarce origins like courtyard houses and old Western-style buildings), and on the other hand, they have to bear high rents.

Fang Mingche had no other recourse but to entrust this matter to the Wang family. The Wang family earned over 200,000 yuan a year from the travel agency, and they also provided employment for numerous military dependents and families of martyrs. They reaped both fame and fortune!
So, he naturally felt at ease handing over such a matter to the Wang family.

The courtyard was very quiet today. The first office was closed for the holiday, and very few guests were staying out during the break. Basically, only this small, secluded courtyard was making noise or producing smoke.

Cooking hot pot is not difficult. Just prepare the broth and wash and cut all kinds of meat and vegetables.

Fang's mother, Lin Yan, Fang Min, and Fang Fang were all perfectly capable of handling the workload. Fang Jian went to help out at the noodle shop; he had given Ming a day off for the holiday. The three of them would come over together later, once the shop was closed for the day.

Fang Jian also asked his father, "I work for my uncle, and he gives me one yuan a day. Dad, will you give him that too?"

Fang Minghua gave him a good scolding, "You want money from me? Don't you know your food, clothes, lodging, and tuition are all free?"

"It's a holiday today!"

"From now on, the majority of everything in this family, everything your parents have, will be yours. You're the eldest son!"

Fang Jian thought about it and thought it was a good deal! So he happily went.

"Dad, won't Changchang be very rich in the future?"

Fang Minghua said, "Why wait until later? Yan Yan and Chang Chang already have plenty of pocket money."

The old man didn't have much of a fortune; everything the second son has now is what he earned after he went to the capital. They had already divided the family property before that! And the second son's fortune will all belong to that kid Changchang in the future.

They're under the one-child policy, so they definitely won't have any more children! After all, both of them are Party members, and they were prepared to accept assigned jobs after graduating from university.

Judging from this trend, the second child will become increasingly wealthy! Changchang is truly destined for a life of riches!

Fang Mingche was standing by the well drawing water. The well water was 15 degrees Celsius, which was warm enough to wash vegetables without having to run it from the tap and heat it up.

Yan Yan and Kang Kang each held onto one side of Fang Chang to prevent him from getting too close and falling into the well. He was so short that he was practically lying on the well platform to get a better view.

Fang Mingche pulled on the well rope and shook it a few times. When the bucket was three-quarters full, he turned the windlass to pull it up. Then he poured the water into the empty bucket next to him.

After doing this three times, he had a bucket of water. He picked it up and said, "You three, come with me. Don't stay by the well."

Everyone went to work; he had to look after the three kids. Although Yan Yan and Kang Kang felt they weren't little children anymore.

"Oh." The three of them were all dressed very warmly and followed Fang Mingche to the kitchen.

Fang Minghua and the others returned at 11 o'clock, and Yuan Shufen quickly went to the kitchen to help.

Lin Yan then said, "Fang Fang, go and rest for a while."

The little girl was wearing an apron and helping to wash the vegetables. She's only two and a half years older than Yan Yan.

Fang's mother also said, "Yes, you should go and rest for a while."

A few days ago, when she made a homemade down jacket for Fang Fang, Fang Fang was truly flattered. Growing up, what good things had ever come her way?
She knew that the lint was a real hassle to wash and dry.

Mother Fang said, "Take it, so you won't remember how badly I treated you later. There's not enough for the adults, just enough for you."

She shoved it directly into Fang Fang's arms.

Based on Fang's mother's past practices, even if there wasn't enough to make an adult's garment, she would definitely make a vest for her eldest son. It wouldn't be a chance for Fang Fang, this little brat.

But now that material things are plentiful, she is more generous to her granddaughter.

Fangfang was wearing a down jacket that her grandmother had made, and the well water was indeed not cold. Her uncle would bring in two buckets every now and then so she could change whenever she wanted. Otherwise, if it was left open like that, the well water would quickly cool to room temperature.

The broth was waiting for Yuan Shufen to come back and cook it; her culinary skills were indeed the best in the family. Now, this culinary skill had become the key to their family's income, and she could finally hold her head high in her marriage. She seemed radiating confidence.

Their noodle shop now serves about 120 to 150 bowls of noodles a day. Thanks to various promotions, their monthly net profit is 300 yuan. This is after deducting the 24 yuan monthly wage for Mingfa's two hours of help, and the 40 yuan each for the couple. The couple is naturally very satisfied.

Just then, Fang Mingche brought in two more buckets of water, followed by three short boys. Yan Yan and Kang Kang still sandwiched Changchang in the middle.

Listening to the woodcutter and the old man talk about living in the capital, it wasn't as difficult as he had initially thought. He smiled and remained silent.

Mr. Fang said, "Eldest son, don't get cocky after making money for just over a month. If your business becomes successful, will the rent go up next year? If it goes up reasonably, that's fine, but if it goes up too much, we definitely won't accept it. Besides, what if they just kick you out and open their own noodle shop?"

Fang Minghua asked with difficulty, "Then...then we need to buy a storefront?"

He genuinely didn't think it was that difficult. He could afford the high tuition of 600 yuan for the children's schooling. He was even planning to pay back last year's fees to his brother. He would let his uncle and aunt buy things for his nephews and nieces as usual, but he would still pay the high tuition fees himself. That way, decades later, he wouldn't have to say that his uncle was the one who paid for their tuition.

In addition, he wanted to ask Lin Yan to buy a down jacket for him and Yuan Shufen each. Wearing one seemed even warmer than a thick cotton-padded coat.

"Yes, keep an eye out. Ideally, it should be the original storefront, or at least a place where it's clearly visible from where it stands. It should be around twenty square meters. Storefronts cost twice as much as apartments, so prepare around four thousand. Now, do you still think it's easy to live in the capital?"

Fang Mingche put down the bucket and said, "It's pretty good if you can buy a storefront of about 20 square meters after a year of hard work. That's at the crossroads of the alley. And the key is that you need to have a storefront on the market. People who aren't in a hurry to spend money will definitely keep it to collect rent. The rent and the cost of buying a storefront will increase year by year."

Yuan Shufen had just told Lin Yan about buying a down jacket, but now she was a little hesitant.

Lin Yan said, "Sister-in-law, it's the perfect time to wear it. Don't skimp on this money! If a shop becomes available this year, we'll lend you the money to buy it first. Otherwise, the price will go up again. Look at us, we still owe 120,000 yuan for this courtyard house."

She was perfectly happy to see the eldest son's family doing well and not needing any support. This way, everyone could get along comfortably. As long as the eldest son's family could be independent, it didn't matter if they weren't as wealthy as the second son's family; they could still hold their heads high. One's character is inherently noble, even without being pressured!

Mr. Fang said, “Hmm, what Ayan said makes sense. You’ve all been lucky to live in such a good time. When we were young, how could we have dared to dream of doing business and getting rich? That was the tail end of capitalism, and it had to be cut off! Alright, let’s prepare the dishes.”

Eating hot pot in the dead of winter is the most comforting thing. Especially today, there aren't many customers, and most of the staff are on holiday, so Mr. Fang didn't use the underfloor heating. That would really waste a lot of charcoal and manpower!

In the afternoon, Fang Mingche's family drove to Lin Yan's house to celebrate the holiday. They ate mutton hot pot there. Lin's mother and Han Mei had done all the preparations, so Fang Mingche and Lin Yan didn't have to lift a finger.

It was a holiday, so Lin Yan gave each of her parents twenty yuan as a holiday allowance. Han Mei also gave twenty yuan to each of them, as did her own parents. With higher incomes, spending money was truly a joy!
Lin Yi felt a little uneasy. He hadn't paid a single penny of those eighty yuan.

Yan Yan had a good relationship with him, and seeing that he seemed a bit down, she asked, "Uncle, what's wrong?"

"Yan Yan, your uncle is so poor!"

Yan Yan thought so too. However, the truth can be hurtful, so she chose to remain silent.

Changchang, still oblivious, loudly repeated, "So poor!"

Everyone looked over, and Lin's mother laughed, "You little rascal, are you still poor? Don't you think your allowance is enough? Here, Grandma will give you some—"

The family's daughter and son-in-law's wealth is probably already quite staggering. It'll all eventually belong to this kid.

When Changchang heard that his grandma was giving out New Year's money, he immediately came over. He was wearing many layers, so he walked rather slowly. However, he walked steadily and firmly.

He walked up to his grandmother, first stood still and bowed, then raised both hands flat, saying, "Grandma, may you be rich!"

Lin Yan glanced at Yan Yan. There were still over twenty days until the New Year. You've already taught him how to ask for lucky money when you offer New Year's greetings?
Yan Yan smiled sheepishly. She had only had a sudden urge yesterday. Besides, it wasn't like her younger brother was begging from everyone he met. It was Grandma who said she would give him pocket money.

Now that things had come to this point, Lin's mother smiled and took out two five-yuan notes from her pocket, one for each of her grandson and granddaughter. Old people, when they have some spare change, are happy to give it away.

"Grandma, what kind of wealth are you making? It's all good that you're getting rich."

Yan Yan quickly took it with both hands, "Thank you, Grandma. May you be healthy and have everything go smoothly."

Lin's mother looked at Lin Yi and Han Mei, "Grandma, are you having a good time? You wanted to give out an extra allowance, but you can't find anyone to collect it."

Han Mei said, "Mom, didn't we already agree to talk about it again in two years?"

After a while, Lin Yi, Han Mei, and Fang Min accompanied Yan Yan and Chang Chang to play outside, while Fang Mingche talked with his father-in-law.

Lin's mother then said to Lin Yan, "I can't rest easy until she has a child. Is she planning to save up a lot of money in a few years and then dump Lin Yi?"

Lin Yan was scolded by Fang Mingche a few days ago, who said she was meddling in other people's business and was not even as good as Yan Yan.

She then said firmly, "Mingche and I have said and done everything we should about this matter. Dad is right, Lin Yi is an adult, and he has to learn to bear some consequences himself. Internal factors play a decisive role! Mom, if you don't push Lin Yi to improve, focusing only on external factors won't have a fundamental effect."

Mingche said that day that if he had known Lin Yi was so stubborn, he wouldn't have said certain things to him. As the brother-in-law, he had taken some risks by saying certain things. In the end, his brother-in-law didn't take it seriously at all. It's better that he didn't take it seriously; at least he told him not to spread it around.

Lin's mother said, "You're the older sister, how can you not care?"

"You don't need to say anything about this; I definitely won't get involved."

She could still use her position as the boss's wife to pressure her sister-in-law to have a baby quickly to appease her mother-in-law, right?
Lin's mother said, "Look at you! You got Han Mei into a travel agency and made her earn such a high salary, making her look down on Lin Yi. Now she's half-witted and half-brainless, and you've just abandoned her."

Lin Yan's face darkened. "Do you think I can take care of him for the rest of my life, including his son and grandson?"

“You’re the older sister, and you’re in a better position.”

Lin Yan walked straight out. "Dad, Mom said I have to take care of Lin Yi for the rest of my life. Is that true? If so, our family should leave immediately and never come back again."

Mr. Lin looked at Mrs. Lin and asked, "What are you up to now, on such a holiday?"

Lin Yan said, "Whether Lin Yi and Han Mei have children or not is none of your elders' business. Is it appropriate for me to interfere? As a married woman, it's really not convenient for me to meddle too much in my family's affairs."

Mr. Lin said to Mrs. Lin, "Go check how the soup base is cooking in the kitchen."

(End of this chapter)