Returning to the small mountain village of '86, intelligence updated daily.

Chapter 103 Heading Home (Seeking First Subscription!)

Zhou Rui couldn't see which of the bad people were among the crowd, and that wasn't his focus today.

After everything was settled, the village secretary and his men returned home. On the way back, he muttered to himself, "That bastard Zhang Chengyun, he ran away so fast, he really got me into trouble! Sigh!"

Now only Zhou Rui's family and the people from the town remain; the other villagers have mostly dispersed.

Many people would come up first to congratulate Zhou Shiwei and Zhou Rui, get acquainted with them, and then leave.

Now, no one in the village dares to underestimate Zhou Rui, so while they come to congratulate him, they also treat him with great respect.

After all, there are quite a few stories about Zhou Rui.

Zhou Rui responded politely to each question, and the family then took a walk around the tea garden.

Because the tea pickers were appeased yesterday, some people are already picking tea today.

It's now the season for picking autumn tea, which will last for less than a month. After this season's harvest, the tea trees need to be nurtured so that the yield and quality of next year's spring tea will be even better.

After the family had finished their walk, everyone prepared to head home, but Zhang Zhengxin stayed behind and told the other staff to go home first.

His exact words were: I'm going to the old man's house for a meal, it won't break any rules, you guys go back first.

Zhou Yong'an did not go to visit the tea garden; instead, he waited for the younger generation of the Zhou family to return.

"Let's go home and celebrate."

Zhou Shiwei laughed and said, at which point Zhou Ming put his hand on Zhou Rui's shoulder and replied, "Dad, shouldn't we celebrate at night? What's the point of celebrating in the middle of the day?"

Zhou Rui removed Zhou Ming's hand and then "gently" comforted him: "You talk too much."

As the family walked back, Zhou Yong'an asked Zhang Zhengxin, "Little Zhang, what do you think of my grandson?"

Zhang Zhengxin was very polite, following behind Zhou Yong'an. It wasn't that he didn't want to help the elderly man, but rather that the man had repeatedly pushed him away...

"Brother, the children are all doing well, especially this eldest grandson. In my opinion, he will achieve great things in the future."

Zhang Zhengxin changed how he addressed the old man, and at the same time, he observed the Zhou family for quite some time, looking at each of the grandchildren one by one.

There are only a few people on the road now. Zhou Jian is not going to the supply and marketing cooperative anymore. He is going home with the others to eat. Zeng Jiamei and Yang Laidi just went back to steam rice.

There are many people eating lunch, so it would be impolite to reheat the pots and pans on the spot if we didn't go back in advance to prepare.

Zhou Yong'an smiled, his wrinkled face full of pride.

"If you don't go back and instead come to my house for dinner, be careful you don't break the rules."

Zhou Yong'an still offered a reminder, but Zhang Zhengxin didn't care: "I want to see who dares to say anything more, and see what happens to the senior. Besides, I'm paying for this, I'm not going to eat for free."

When the group returned home, all the faces they encountered along the way were kind, and not one of them failed to smile.

Because the villagers have learned another piece of news.

Behind the Zhou family is another important figure, and it's obvious to everyone that this important figure is here specifically to support the Zhou family.

They didn't know at first, but then a rumor spread that the man with the briefcase and glasses was from the town.

So the word spread from one person to ten, from ten to a hundred, and it reached everyone in the crowd.

So on the way back, the group encountered many people, all of whom were very polite.

Unlike last month when Zhou Shiping would be pointed at and gossiped about on the street, now no one says anything more to him.

Most people are driven by self-interest and avoid harm, and right now many people want to curry favor with the Zhou family.

But Zhou Rui wasn't very interested this time; he only cared about what to eat for lunch.

At home, Zeng Jiamei and Yang Laidi were already working hard, while Zhou Rui and Zhou Ming rushed to the stove to help.

Zhou Shiwei then greeted the Zhao family group who had come along, as well as Zhou Jian and Zhang Zhengxin.

The Zhou family now has tea, which they just brought back from the tea garden. Zhou Rui originally wanted to buy some, but this time Zhang Chengyun was unusually generous and gave away a lot of tea for free.

So Zhou Shiwei didn't treat us with the usual bland hospitality; instead, he served us a full range of treats, including melon seeds, candy, and tea.

Of course, the candy was for Zhao Qingya and her younger relatives. Zhou Jian and Zhang Zhengxin were the top three people present, so they naturally couldn't be served "White Rabbit" candy.

In addition, Zhou Shiwei took another pack of Hongtashan cigarettes and opened it, because the previous pack had already been distributed.

However, to Zhou Shiwei's surprise, Zhang Zhengxin, the deputy head of the town, a big shot, and a big leader, actually picked up a piece of milk candy, peeled it open, and ate it.

He ate and talked at the same time.

"Back then, there was no such thing as milky candy. A candy wrapper and a bite of fried noodles were luxuries."

The "fried noodles" Zhang Zhengxin was referring to weren't made by frying noodles, but rather a powdery substance that could be mixed with water, kneaded into a dough, and used to fill one's stomach.

This is a generation's memory, a shared memory of their generation and their ancestors.

Zhou Shiwei remained silent for a moment.

Only now is Zhang Zhengxin recounting the stories of his generation.

It turns out that Zhang Zhengxin originally belonged to the Sichuan Army, unlike Zhou Yong'an and Zhou Jian who belonged to the Yunnan Army. The group met on the battlefield and eventually went their separate ways.

After the final restructuring, by a twist of fate, Zhang Zhengxin returned to his registered residence to pursue a political career, while Zhou Yong'an remained in the military as an instructor until he reached retirement age and returned home, where he has stayed ever since.

Upon learning this, Zhang Zhengxin wanted to secure higher retirement benefits for Zhou Yong'an, but Zhou Yong'an refused and donated the money to education.

Now, they are reunited.

Zhang Zhengxin agreed to come today not only because Zhou Shiping invited him, but also because Prosecutor Zhou went to see him.

After listening to Zhang Zhengxin's explanation, Zhou Rui, who had been called in, finally understood the whole story.

He was helping out outside when Zhou Jian called him in.

At this moment, Zhou Jian added, "Yes, it's really fate that we're all together again now."

Zhou Jian didn't mention a word about the efforts he had made; he had secretly made up his mind two days earlier.

Li Dehua has powerful backers, right? I, the old squad leader, just didn't want to bother with you. Now I'm here, just you wait.

Therefore, he pays special attention to anything related to the Zhou family now.

Zhou Rui sat chatting with several elders, the children played by themselves, and the women were busy at the stove because Aunt Li had also come.

"Dinner's ready!"

Soon, Zeng Jiamei's voice came from behind, followed by her carrying dishes into the house.

Seeing this, Zhou Rui quickly got up to help.

Lunch was quite good. There weren't any fancy delicacies, but there were still three meat dishes, two vegetable dishes, and a meat soup, which was extremely luxurious for ordinary people.

One of the meat dishes was borrowed from Zhao Jianjun's family when Zeng Jiamei rushed back.

Because the venison at home was almost gone after three days of consumption, but fortunately there was still enough for this meal.

The rest of the dishes were bought by Zeng Jiamei in town yesterday. She knew that her family was running out of meat, so she also bought some eggs in addition to meat.

However, because important guests had come to visit, Zeng Jiamei still tried to find a way to add another child.

(PS: I'm adding two extra chapters because that's all I can do. Today's total is seven chapters. If you have any votes at the beginning of the month, please support this book. Thank you all. To repay everyone, I will be releasing five chapters for the next nine days.)