Reborn in '77, I have a job panel!

"I heard Chengzi was beaten up a while ago, so I came to check on him," the uncle said, sitting down on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), his eyes glancing at Qian Cheng. "How's he recovering?"

Qian Cheng leaned against the kang (a heated brick bed), neither moving nor saying a word, just watching him.

My aunt sat down as well, her hands tucked into her sleeves, her eyes darting around the room, glancing at the New Year pictures on the wall, the teapot on the table, and the items on the cabinet, as if she were a leader coming down to inspect.

Hou Yufen poured water and placed it in front of the two of them: "You've come all this way, have some water."

The eldest uncle picked up his bowl, took a sip, and smacked his lips: "Sister-in-law, the house is quite tidy."

"Let's get ready for the New Year," Hou Yufen said, sitting down beside her.

The room was quiet for a while, and the atmosphere was a bit strange.

Aunt nudged Uncle with her elbow and gave him a wink. Uncle cleared his throat and said, "Chengzi, Uncle heard about the beating you got. Is your injury getting better?"

Qian Cheng then spoke, his tone indifferent: "That's about enough."

"That's good, that's good." The uncle nodded. "You're young, you'll recover quickly."

Auntie chimed in from the side, "That's right. Old Wang's son from the east end of our village got beaten up last year. He broke three ribs and lay in bed for three months before he could get out of bed. Chengzi, on the other hand, can sit up in just a few days. Chengzi has a better constitution."

Hou Yufen felt uneasy listening to this, but she didn't respond.

The uncle took another sip of water, put down the bowl, looked at Qian Cheng, and changed his tone.

"Chengzi, your uncle has come today to say a few words to you."

Qian Cheng looked at him, waiting for him to continue.

The uncle coughed, straightened his face, and put on the air of an elder: "I've heard about the beating you received. Wang Shoujun's family was wrong, but they also beat you badly. I heard that Wang Shoujun's nose bridge collapsed and he lost two front teeth. He's still in the police station, and his brothers are also locked up there."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "We're all from the same village, we see each other all the time."

You beat someone up like that, and they're locked up now. That's enough. You should be forgiving.

As Qian Cheng listened, a nameless anger surged within him.

Is that good enough?

Should we be lenient when we can?

When he was being beaten by five people, who said "enough is enough"?

He had three broken ribs and a fractured leg. While he was lying in the hospital, who said that one should be forgiving when possible?

Qian Cheng knew that his uncle's family coming here was never a good thing.

Qian Cheng didn't say anything, just stared coldly at his uncle.

The uncle felt a little uneasy under Qian Cheng's gaze, but still forced himself to continue, "Besides, if you lock them up, how will their families celebrate the New Year? Wang Shoujun has a wife and children, and the Sun family has five brothers, each with a large family. If you do this, they won't be able to have a good New Year."

"Your uncle is doing this for your own good. If this matter gets blown up, it won't do you any good. What if the person holds a grudge against you after they get out? Will things stay peaceful in the future? It's better for both of you to compromise, sign a letter of understanding, and get the person released. That way, it'll be easier to talk to them when you meet again."

After finishing his sentence, the uncle picked up the bowl, took another sip of water, and waited for Qian Cheng's reply.

Qian Cheng remained silent.

Auntie chimed in from the side, "Chengzi, your uncle is right. We are all law-abiding people, and we can't go too far."

Besides, you've already beaten him up and vented your anger; that's enough.

Qian Cheng finally spoke.

Uncle, let me ask you something.

"What?"

Who paid for my father's funeral when he passed away?

The uncle was taken aback, and his expression changed.

Qian Cheng continued, "The year my father passed away, we didn't have a single penny. My mother scraped together over thirty yuan to pay for the funeral. Who collected the money from the gifts that day?"

My uncle fell silent.

Aunt's face changed too. She was angry and wanted to say something, but her uncle pulled her back and she couldn't say anything.

Qian Cheng didn't stop: "You're my dad's older brother, how much did you contribute to the funeral? Not a single penny."

"You didn't skimp on the gift money, over thirty yuan, you took it all."

"That matter," the uncle tried to explain.

"Let's not talk about that now," Qian Cheng interrupted him. "Let's talk about the New Year. Every year during the New Year, my mother gives your three children red envelopes, one yuan each. What about you? Have you ever given me and my older brother a single penny?"

My uncle's face turned bright red, and he opened his mouth but couldn't say a word.

My aunt couldn't hold back any longer and said in a shrill voice, "That's what you were willing to give, not what we wanted!"

"Yes, we're willing to give it." Qian Cheng looked at her. "Then why are you interfering if we don't want to sign this letter of understanding today?"

Auntie choked.

Hou Yufen listened from the side and felt much better.

She had originally hoped to save face and not want to fall out with her uncle's family.

But her son's words made her feel completely at ease.

Yeah, why should we?

How much have they benefited over the years? Now they're pretending to be good people, asking us to let Wang Shoujun's family go?

The uncle's face was grim, but he still forced a smile: "Chengzi, what are you saying... Your father and I are brothers, blood is thicker than water. Those things happened so many years ago, do you still remember them?"

"Remember, I have a good memory. I remember who's good to me and who's bad to me."

The eldest uncle stood up, his face ashen: "Fine, you have a good memory. Then remember this: I'm your eldest uncle, your father's own brother! If your father were alive, would he tolerate you speaking to me like that today?"

Qian Cheng also got angry, sitting up straight with his hands on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed): "If my dad were alive, would he have watched you bully my mom? Would he have watched you take advantage of me so much?"

"You!" The uncle pointed at Qian Cheng, his fingers trembling.

Auntie quickly stood up and pulled Uncle towards the door, saying, "Alright, alright, don't bother with him, let's go, let's go!"

The two walked out, and when they reached the door, the aunt turned back, looked at the basket of eggs on the table, and wanted to take it but was too embarrassed to.

Hou Yufen saw this and sneered, "Take those eggs back. We don't need them."

Auntie was embarrassed and muttered something before following Uncle out the door.

Footsteps came from inside the courtyard, and the gate was slammed shut.

The room fell silent.

Hou Yufen sat there without saying a word for a long time. Then she stood up, walked to the table, picked up the basket of eggs, opened the door, and threw them outside.

The basket fell in the yard, eggs rolled all over the ground, yellow and white spilled everywhere.

Hou Yufen clapped her hands, went inside, and sat down.

Qian Cheng looked at her and laughed, "Mom, what are you doing?"

"That feels good." Hou Yufen spat. "I've wanted to do this for a long time."

Qian Cheng burst out laughing.

Hou Yufen looked at him and smiled.

As she laughed, Hou Yufen's eyes reddened.

"Chengzi, what you just said really bothered me..."

She couldn't continue, so she wiped her eyes with her sleeve.

Qian Cheng reached out and took her hand: "Mom, I'll take care of you from now on."

Hou Yufen nodded and said nothing more.