Reborn in 2012, building a new energy empire

Chapter 133 Homecoming Like an Arrow

Jiang Haoran quickly fell asleep after returning to his apartment.

The next morning, he was awakened by his cell phone ringing.

"dad."

"Haoran, you're back today, right?" Jiang Jianguo's voice came through the receiver, with the sounds of roosters crowing and faint voices in the background. "We're at Grandma's in town. Just come over."

"Okay, I'll pack up and leave."

After hanging up the phone, he finished washing up.

Lock the door and get into the elevator.

As the car descended, his blurry silhouette was reflected in the metal wall.

He recalled that when he had just been reborn six months ago, he was still struggling to earn his first pot of gold, and his family's factory was also in dire straits.

Today, the figures in his personal accounts are astronomical, his industrial layout is taking shape, and he is beginning to open up connections in both political and business circles.

But I always kept that tension in my heart.

Perhaps only by returning to that small town by the Yangtze River and seeing his parents and relatives who watched him grow up can he temporarily unload some of the burden.

The elevator takes you to the underground parking garage.

He walked to the silver Panamera, unlocked it, and got into the driver's seat. The deep roar of the engine was particularly clear in the quiet garage.

The trunk was already packed with New Year's goods and gifts: tonics and good tea for my grandparents, clothes, bird's nest and ginseng for my parents, imported snacks for my nephew, and two packs of good cigarettes for the old masters at the factory.

Around 9 a.m., the car entered the Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway.

The winter sun was shining brightly, streaming in through the windshield, making it feel warm and cozy.

Soft music was playing in the car, the volume turned down low. He maintained a steady speed of 120 kilometers per hour, weaving smoothly through the traffic.

Less than an hour later, the sign for the Zhenjiang exit appeared ahead.

After exiting the highway, turn onto the provincial road, and then onto the county road.

The scenery along the road gradually changed from modern industrial parks to vast farmlands and scattered villages.

The street began to narrow, and familiar shop signs appeared on both sides—Old Zhang's Hardware Store, Zhenjiang Pot Lid Noodles, Chunhua Hair Salon—

As the Lunar New Year approaches, the streets are busier than usual, with people carrying large and small bags of New Year's goods, their faces showing busyness and anticipation.

As the silver Panamera drove into town, it inevitably attracted a lot of attention.

This car is too conspicuous in the small town.

An elderly man chatting by the roadside squinted at the vehicle, a person riding an electric bike slowed down and turned around, and several middle school students on their way home even stopped and pointed at the vehicle, whispering among themselves.

Jiang Haoran remained calm and continued driving forward. He had already anticipated this scene.

Last summer, when he drove this car back, it caused quite a stir in town. This time it's winter vacation, and with the year-end approaching, the attention will only be higher, but he doesn't intend to deliberately keep a low profile. This isn't showing off; it's just the natural attention that comes with rising wealth and status.

We drove to the west end of town and parked the car at the entrance of the alley where my grandmother lived.

The courtyard, with its gray bricks and tiles, was covered in withered vines. He opened the trunk and took out gifts: a cashmere scarf and tonics for his grandmother, fine wine and tea for his grandfather, and a whole box of imported fruit and various pastries.

Pushing open the slightly ajar courtyard gate, I found my parents there.

Father Jiang Jianguo and his maternal grandfather sat on a stone bench drinking tea, while Mother Chen Fang helped her maternal grandmother hang out the freshly washed bed sheets to dry. The winter sun shone brightly on the courtyard.

"Haoran is back!" Grandma was the first to see him, and her face immediately lit up with a smile.

"Grandma, Dad, Mom," Jiang Haoran said, placing the things on the stone table. "I just got back and brought you some things."

"You're wasting money again." Grandma came over, took his hand, and looked him up and down. "You've lost weight. Didn't you eat properly in Shanghai?"

"You haven't lost weight, you've actually gained two pounds." Jiang Haoran said with a smile as he helped her sit down.

At this moment, Grandpa came out of the house leaning on his cane. He saw Jiang Haoran and nodded, "It's good that you're back." His gaze fell on the pile of gifts, and he frowned slightly, "Why did you buy so many?"

"It's just a small token of my appreciation." Jiang Haoran moved a chair for his grandfather.

When the two elderly people asked about his recent situation, Jiang Haoran answered tactfully: "I've been doing some investments with my uncle, and the projects are going quite smoothly. My studies are almost finished, and everything is pretty much arranged."

"It's good that you're safe, it's good that you're safe." Grandma patted his hand and repeated. Grandpa listened silently, occasionally saying things like "It's good that you two work together" or "Be careful when you do things." After receiving affirmative answers, he would not ask any more questions.

After sitting for more than an hour, Jiang Haoran and his family got up to say goodbye. Before leaving, he gave his grandmother a thick red envelope.

"This child—" the grandmother declined, "It's enough that he came back to visit, why spend this money?"

"Take it, Grandma. I earned it myself, it's for you." Jiang Haoran's tone was gentle but firm. "You and Grandpa should eat well, don't be reluctant to spend the money."

Grandma looked at Grandpa, who nodded: "Keep the child's gift."

After seeing Jiang Haoran's family off, Grandma slowly walked back into the house with the red envelope in her hand. She sat down on the old rattan chair by the window and carefully opened the red envelope in the afternoon light.

A thick stack of brand-new 100-yuan bills, still sealed.

She squinted, her fingers trembling slightly as she counted the bills one by one. She paused at the tenth bill, then continued. Twenty, thirty—a full one hundred bills.

Ten thousand yuan.

She looked up at the empty courtyard outside the window.

A few days ago, when my son Chen Jingge came back, he drove a brand new black sedan, saying it was provided by his company and that he and his nephew Haoran had made money from a business deal.

The townspeople were buzzing with rumors that Old Chen's grandson, who was studying in Nanjing, had driven back in a gleaming silver sports car, probably having struck it rich.

She listened with a mixture of belief and skepticism.

It's a good thing that your child is successful, but when this "getting rich" comes too quickly, it always makes people uneasy.

It wasn't until she saw her grandson carrying bags of gifts out of that beautiful car, speaking and acting with such composure that he seemed like a completely different person, that she truly realized that Haoran was indeed different.

But this ten thousand yuan—she clutched the thick wad of banknotes, her knuckles turning slightly white.

How long would it take to save that? When the old man was a workshop foreman in the factory, his monthly salary was only seven or eight hundred yuan. This stack of money is equivalent to the old man's annual pension.

"What's wrong?" Grandpa walked over, leaning on his cane.

Grandma didn't say anything, she just handed over the money in her hand.

Grandpa took it, weighed it in his hand, and looked at its thickness. He remained silent for a long time. Finally, he said, "If the child gave it to you, just keep it. Haoran has made something of himself—he knows it."

Grandma then slowly folded the banknotes again, carefully wrapped them in red envelope paper, and got up to go into the inner room.

She opened the old camphor wood chest, took out a tin biscuit box from the bottom, opened the tin box, and inside were neatly stacked some bankbooks, food coupons, and old photos. She placed the red envelope on top, closed the tin box, and locked it.

After doing all that, she sat on the edge of the bed and sighed softly.

The sigh contained relief, pride, and a hint of inexplicable worry.

Several firecrackers went off outside the courtyard wall; the New Year is almost here.

She stood up, dusted off her clothes, and walked towards the kitchen. She needed to cook a couple more dishes for dinner; Jin Ge would be coming back with the child soon, and she needed to make some of her grandson's favorites.