Back to 1984: Earning Money, Raising Kids, and Keeping the Household Busy

Xu Xian looked at Xu Dachuan in disbelief, "Dad! How did you come to this conclusion? Before, asking you to work hard was like asking you to die!"

Xu Dachuan rolled his eyes speechlessly. "You're telling me to work hard so I can work in the fields. I'll put in the effort, but how much will the crops I grow actually sell for? Even if I do sell them, your grandma will take all the money. How much will I have left? Why should I do something so thankless?"

Xu Xian's second younger sister, Xu Jing, blinked hard and said, "Dad, so you've finally decided to take us to live a good life? What about my little sister? She still has to go to school!"

Xu Xian has dropped out of school, but the youngest, Xu Ya, is still in elementary school.

Xu Dachuan stroked his chin, pondered for a while, and then waved his hand, saying, "Let's not worry about that for now. Let's go to Guangdong Province first, and then see what to do when we get there. We can't just leave your sister behind."

Xu Ya nervously clung to Xu Xian's arm, "I want to stay with Dad, Mom, and Sister. I don't want to stay here by myself."

Xu Dachuan was satisfied.

The next day, Xu Dachuan checked out of the hotel as soon as it was light. He took his wife and daughter to the market and bought some steamed buns and soy milk for breakfast, while waiting for the bus.

Xu Dahai and Xu Kang also came out for breakfast. When they saw Lao San's family standing by the roadside with a bunch of luggage, the father and son were stunned.

I stood there for a while before I was sure I wasn't seeing things.

At this moment, Xu Dachuan also noticed Xu Dahai and his son, and immediately went up to them to chat, "Brother and Akang, why are you up so early?"

Xu Dahai pointed to the noodle shop next door, "I brought Akang out to eat something. He hasn't been back for a long time, so he should come out and see people. It's early in the morning, let's eat together."

Xu Dachuan thought for a moment, nodded in agreement, and called his wife and daughter to follow him into the store.

Xu Dahai asked them what they wanted to eat and what toppings they wanted, but all three nieces shook their heads and only wanted noodles without any toppings.

Xu Dahai simply took the initiative and added meat, eggs, and sausages to their meals.

Zhang Guizhi was a little embarrassed, "Second brother has gone to so much trouble, they can't possibly finish all of this."

"If you can't finish, take your time eating." Xu Dahai didn't waste any words. After ordering and sitting down, he asked, "What are you all doing so early in the morning?"

While eating noodles, Xu Dachuan mumbled, "I got kicked out, so I'm planning to go out and try my luck."

Xu Dahai and Xu Kang were both stunned.

"What do you mean by being kicked out?" Xu Dahai continued to press.

Xu Dachuan simply recounted everything that had happened the previous night. "Second brother! Just because I don't say anything doesn't mean I don't know what I'm doing. I know how Mom and Dad see me, but I just don't want to argue with them. Instead, they've become more and more unreasonable. What, was I born to be their dog? They praise me when they're happy, and kick me out when they're not!"
"Fine, I'm leaving! Whoever wants to serve me can serve me from now on, I'm not doing this anymore! Don't try to persuade me, I'm determined to leave this time!"

Xu Dahai silently slurped up a mouthful of noodles. "I didn't mean to persuade you, I just wanted to tell you that everyone has to be responsible for their own decisions. You're not a young man anymore, you have a family to support. If you're going to leave, you have to think about what you'll do in the future, what about the future of your three children! I won't say anything if the two older ones don't go to school, but Xiaoya is still in school. You have to find a way to solve her schooling problem."

Xu Dachuan nodded repeatedly, "Don't worry, Second Brother, I will." After finishing their noodles, the group left the noodle shop.

When they parted, Xu Dahai took out five hundred yuan from his pocket and gave it to Xu Dachuan, saying, "Take it."

"Second Brother." Xu Dachuan was truly moved. It is said that it is easy to add flowers to brocade, but difficult to provide charcoal in the snow.

Yesterday, the eldest brother was there and watched them leave without giving a single penny or saying a word. On the contrary, the second brother, who didn't get along with him, gave them five hundred yuan in one go. At that moment, the whole family could see clearly who was sincere and who was hypocritical.

The bus arrived, and the family of five boarded, bidding farewell to Xu Dahai and his son, and embarking on an unknown journey.

Xu Kang looked away and then at Xu Dahai with concern. "Dad, Uncle San is gone, and Grandpa and Grandma are all alone. Will they continue to bother our family?"

Xu Dahai smirked and scoffed, "Why are you kids worrying about this? You made such a big fuss back then, the whole village knew your grandparents looked down on our family and cut ties with us. If I hadn't said anything, how could they have come looking for us? Wouldn't that be a slap in their own face? Your grandmother has been proud her whole life, she'll never back down. The most likely thing they'll do is pester your uncle's family."

"It just so happens that your grandparents have always favored your eldest uncle; it's time for him to repay them."

Based on his understanding of Xu Dashan, he knew that Xu Dashan and his wife definitely wouldn't want to live with the old couple. Time would tell who was good and who was bad.

On the fourth day after Xu Dachuan's family left, Wang Ximei finally couldn't take it anymore and started complaining to Old Man Xu, "I'm exhausted! There are so many things to do at home, and no one comes to help! They're all debt collectors!"

Old Xu puffed on his pipe for a while before pondering, "Let the eldest go and call the third brother back. He's been slacking off for long enough. I'll let it go this time, but if there's a next time, I'll break his legs!"

Wang Ximei didn't want to hold on any longer. She would go find Xu Dashan when he returned. "Tomorrow, go to Guizhi's parents' house and find your brother's family. While you're at it, give them a good talking-to. I only said a few words, and they're already so angry. At their age, they're running away from home. Aren't they ashamed?"

Seeing his parents back down, Xu Dashan secretly breathed a sigh of relief and immediately agreed.

The next morning, Xu Dashan took the 7 o'clock bus to the Zhang family. After a long search, he finally found Zhang Guizhi's family home, only to be told that Xu Dachuan's family had never been there, and that the neighbors could testify that the Zhang family couldn't be lying.

At that moment, Xu Dashan suddenly felt a surge of panic, regretting that he hadn't chased after the person and stopped them that night. What should he do now? Where could he look for them? Where could Xu Dachuan, with his family in tow, go?
After thinking for a long time without coming up with anything, Xu Dashan could only tremble as he took the bus back to Pingxi Town.

As soon as he arrived in town, he rushed to Xu Dahai's shop, shouting, "Second brother, something terrible has happened! Third brother is missing!"

Xu Dahai feigned suspicion, "Brother, what nonsense are you talking about? How could a grown man like Lao San just disappear like that!"

"Oh dear! I'm telling the truth," Xu Dashan said with a worried expression as he recounted what happened that night. However, in his version, it became that Xu Dachuan was willful and impulsive, running away from home with his whole family without a care in the world.

Xu Dahai's lips twitched violently. "Brother, I do know about what happened that day. The next morning, when A-Kang and I went to eat noodles, we saw them getting into the car. We were far away at the time and didn't have time to catch up and ask them what happened. I never expected it to be like this."

Xu Dashan's mind went blank. "What did you say? They left by car?" (End of Chapter)