1984: Starting from a bankrupt Sichuan restaurant

Chapter 240 Wealth and Honor: No Return Home... (Bonus Chapter 364 for Monthly Tickets)

There's no work in the fields lately. After slaughtering the cows and selling the meat, the women and elderly people in the village who don't play cards have nothing to do in the afternoons, so they like to gather under the trees at the village entrance to bask in the sun and chat.

From afar, everyone saw Zhao Tieying carrying a pile of things and sitting on the back of Zhou Miao's seat as they approached, and they immediately became interested.

"Sister Tieying is back! What are you carrying?"

"I asked the neighbor's sister-in-law, Li Hongyan, while the others craned their necks to look at me curiously."

Zhao Tieying used to be a local bully. She was a skilled worker and an unmatched swearer.

Now that their house has collapsed and they've moved to town, their power to suppress them is much weaker than before. The anti-iron alliance, represented by Gao Cuihua, has been harassing their family behind their backs quite a bit lately.

However, Zhao Tieying was well-liked in Zhoucun, and even when she wasn't there, people would speak up for her.

Old Zhou applied the brakes, and the bicycle came to a steady stop under the tree. Zhao Tieying smiled and said, "It's nothing. It's just that Zhou Yan and Zhou Ming acted bravely and were commended by the leaders of the Municipal Party Committee Office. They came to our door with a banner, a certificate, and a bonus. It was quite a grand affair, and it even made the front page of the Jiaozhou Daily. I brought a few copies of the newspaper down to the old lady and my third brother so they could keep a memento."

The news has been circulating in the village for two days. Few people in the village subscribe to newspapers and don't know what a front-page headline is.

But he could understand when city leaders came to deliver banners and bonuses.

This is truly something to bring honor to one's ancestors!
The crowd looked at Zhao Tieying and Zhou Miao with a hint of envy.

During this period, Zhou Yan's reputation underwent a complete reversal, from being a spendthrift to becoming someone else's successful child, while Zhao Tieying and Zhou Miao, who were once considered mortal enemies, became the envy of everyone.

Gao Cuihua and several of her close older aunties were sitting together when they heard this, and their mouths all turned up in disgust.

Zhao Tieying pulled a newspaper from her bosom and handed it to Li Hongyan, who had asked her the question earlier. She smiled and said, "Hongyan, you're the village's broadcaster. Why don't you read it aloud to everyone? I'm afraid I might misread it because I'm worried about the few who slipped through the net in my literacy class."

"Alright!" Li Hongyan smiled and took the newspaper, giving Gao Cuihua a somewhat provocative look. She cleared her throat and announced loudly, "The Su brothers bravely capture a notorious bandit, and the people stand up to protect public order..."

Li Hongyan speaks Sichuan dialect clearly and fluently; she truly deserves to be the village's broadcaster.

This report provides an in-depth account of the brutality of this group of ruthless bandits, as well as how Zhou Ming and Zhou Yan, facing knife-wielding thugs, remained calm and cooperated effectively to disarm and capture them, successfully protecting the lives and property of the people.

This startled everyone present.

They only knew that the Zhou brothers, Ming and Yan, had done a good deed by catching a group of petty thieves, but they never expected that they were such a ruthless band of thieves.

Moreover, the month before last, Zhou Yan risked his life to jump into the river and bravely rescue a female college student who had fallen into the water. He was commended and received a double reward of 100 yuan.

"100 yuan!"

"Wow, so much prize money!"

"What's the big deal? Fifty yuan. They risked their lives to do a good deed, and they deserve it all."

The mention of the prize money got everyone excited.

One hundred yuan is not a small amount; you can't earn that much even if you slaughter a cow for a month.

"Zhou Ming and Zhou Yan, these two brothers, are not afraid of the strong and do not bully the weak. They are truly courageous! This is how the boys of our Zhou Village should be!" An old man with gray hair stood up shakily with his cane and gave Zhao Tieying a thumbs up, saying, "Tieying, Sanshui, you two, as their parents, have also raised them well."

"Sixth Uncle, what you're saying makes us blush," Zhao Tieying said with a hearty laugh.

Sixth Uncle's name was Zhou Kang. He was an elder in the clan and had served as the village chief for twenty years. He was highly respected in the village.

"I didn't see her blush, but her smugness was written all over her face. She even made someone recite it in public. She's really capable of doing that..." Gao Cuihua spat, her teeth itching with anger.

Zhou Kang continued, "Sister-in-law Zhang just told me yesterday that Zhou Yan bought a big house in Jiaozhou and asked me to pick a date for you to move. I'll go and look up the almanac tonight to choose a date for you, and then I'll have Hongwei deliver it to the shop for you."

"Okay, then I'll have to trouble you, Uncle Liu. When you go to the city for fun, come over for dinner." Zhao Tieying quickly replied, surprised that the old lady was so thoughtful.

"Zhou Yan bought a house in Jiaozhou?"

"When did this happen? We just moved to town, how come you've already bought a big house in the city?"

The villagers were all shocked upon hearing this.

This news is even more shocking than Zhou Yan appearing in the newspaper.

Didn't we agree that everyone would be hauling corn in the village? How come you went and bought a house in the city?!
"Sister Tieying, you bought a house in Jiaozhou? Are you moving to the city?" Li Hongyan asked in surprise.

"Oh dear, Zhou Yan bought it on his own initiative, and we couldn't stop him. It's on East Street, right across from the Jiaozhou Wharf, in the first building."

"Look, I just got the keys today. One key for each room, this whole bunch hanging on my belt is quite heavy. We're not moving them up yet, we still need to open the restaurant." Zhao Tieying lifted the corner of her shirt, revealing a large bunch of keys hanging from her belt.

She sighed softly, unable to suppress the upward curve of her lips.

Everyone stared intently, their eyes widening in surprise.

"More than a dozen keys! More than a dozen rooms? This house is huge!" Li Hongyan exclaimed.

Everyone gasped in astonishment; more than a dozen rooms—that must be the home of a wealthy family.

Zhou Yan bought a really big house in the city. Gao Cuihua's face twisted in a grimace of envy, jealousy, and resentment!
"Then you guys keep setting it up, we'll be going now." Zhao Tieying put down her clothes, glanced at Gao Cuihua and the others who were gritting their teeth, and her smile became even brighter.

Li Hongyan said, "Sister Tieying, I'll keep this newspaper. It's so well written. I'll talk to the village chief tonight and have it read over the loudspeaker so that the villagers can learn from Zhou Yan and Zhou Ming's courageous act."

“Keep it, Hongyan. Come to the shop later. It’s been a long time since we’ve sat down and chatted,” Zhao Tieying said.

“That’s right, you and Zhao Hong are both too busy these days, I hardly ever see you. I’ll come visit you guys later.” Li Hongyan nodded with a smile.

Zhou Miao rode his bicycle into the village, and behind him, the villagers' lively discussions rose.

Zhao Tieying put her arm around Zhou Miao's waist, laughing heartily, "Look at the expressions on Gao Cuihua's group's faces! I've been arguing with her for twenty years, and this is the first time I've managed to make her so angry without uttering a single curse word. It felt so good!"

"I saw it, he was practically grinding his teeth to powder." Zhou Miao nodded with a smile, then asked softly, "But isn't this a bit too high-profile?"

Zhao Tieying laughed and said, "I deliberately made a high profile. Have you forgotten how those people talked about Zhou Yan behind his back? We can't stand it, but Zhou Yan must feel even worse."

Today I want everyone in the village to know that Zhou Yan is of high moral character, kind and brave, good at making money, and has even bought a house in the city. From now on, we should show him more respect.

Zhou Yan earned her money penny by penny through hard work, relying on her own two hands to become wealthy. She didn't steal or rob; the more she earned, the more capable she became, and as her mother, I felt very proud.

"Yes, you've thought of everything." Zhou Miao nodded in agreement.

……

"Zhou Yan is really capable; he's going to become a big boss!"

"A house in the city must cost several thousand dollars, right? I've taken a boat trip at Jiaozhou Wharf before, and it was always packed!"

"Such a good location, such a big house, even a few thousand dollars might not be enough."

The conversation under the tree at the village entrance all turned to Zhou Yan.

The idea of ​​buying a big house in the city is truly astounding.

"Hmph, what kind of big boss is a small individual business owner?" Gao Cuihua said sarcastically.

“Gao Cuihua, don’t be so sour. Zhou Yan’s restaurant is only slightly smaller than the state-run restaurant in Suji Town. I heard that the business is booming, and there are long queues of customers every day.” Li Hongyan pouted and said, “Your Zhou Liangliang’s small stall is what you call a small business owner. Do you think he’ll ever be able to afford a house in the city and take you to enjoy life?”

“Exactly, that’s a big mouth of a toad!” someone chimed in.

“Li Hongyan, you…you all…” Gao Cuihua was hit where it hurt, and she trembled with anger. She gritted her teeth and turned away.

……

"Can you carry it?" Zhou Yan unloaded the sketchbook and paints from the bicycle and handed them to Xia Yao as the bicycle stopped downstairs in the dormitory.

“No problem, we always carry a lot of stuff when we go out to sketch, we’re used to it.” Xia Yao carried the art supplies in one hand and carefully held the book “Dongpo’s Postscripts” in the other. “I’m going up now, you guys go back too, you’ll be busy again at this time.”

"Goodbye, Sister Yao Yao~~" Zhou Momo waved.

"Goodbye, Momo." Xia Yao smiled and nodded, then turned and walked back into the dormitory.

Zhou Yan took Zhou Momo back to the hotel. Today's trip was quite fruitful, as it solved a major problem for him.

Xia Yao is truly his lucky star; otherwise, he definitely wouldn't have run into Huang He, the house seller, at noon today.

If this house goes through another middleman, he might not be able to buy it even for 800.

Zhou Yan parked the car against the wall, and Aunt Zhao, humming a little tune, had just returned to the hotel.

"Did you find some money? You seem to be in a good mood." Zhou Yan asked with a smile.

"Mom, did you find a lot of money?" Zhou Momo asked curiously.

"Walking around the village with the new house key hanging on my belt, I felt even happier than if I'd found money," Zhao Tieying said with a smile as she unbuckled the key from her belt.

Zhou Yan laughed upon hearing this. Zhao Niangniang was certainly well-versed in life, deeply understanding the principle that returning home in glory is like wearing fine clothes at night.

Aunt Zhao looked at him and asked with concern, "Did you take Xia Yao to see the new house this afternoon? What did she think?"

Zhou Yan nodded: "She thinks it's great, she really likes the study."

"That's great! You're so thoughtful. Buying a house in the city first makes a big difference," Aunt Zhao said happily.

"Huh?" Zhou Yan was a little puzzled, but didn't pay attention and said, "I met Huang He this afternoon and bought the dilapidated tile-roofed house next to our house from him."

"Buying another one?"

"Where did the money come from?!"

Aunt Zhao and Comrade Lao Zhou were both taken aback upon hearing this.

　There will be two more chapters tonight!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)