Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 1007 Life

Hao Xiaodong asked, "When did this happen?"

Hao Xiaobo said, "Just last week, a couple of days after Xiaowei and the others left. You were squatting on Zhongjie Street, right? Mr. Li contacted me."

Hao Xiaodong asked, "So, where will you be working from now on? Where?"

Hao Xiaobo said, "Zhangshitun, Tiexi area. It's about the same. You'll manage the hotel here, and I'll go over there to take charge. They're also building something over Hunhe, the boiler isn't small either, so they'll need to set up a team there too. Their business is really impressive, they have three or four thousand acres of land combined. I heard from General Manager Li that they're also talking to Huanggu District about building a shopping mall and hotel there."

Mr. Hao asked, "How much will that cost?"

Hao Xiaobo said, "How would we know? Anyway, it's several hundred million. This is Fengtian; how expensive must the land be?"

Hao's mother said, "Then, let your brother go to the big factory, and you go to that place on Zhongjie Street to find a younger one."

Hao Xiaobo said, "You're making random arrangements again. Can't you stop worrying about these things? Do you even know what's going on, or are you even in charge of making these decisions?"

Hao Xiaodong said, "Mom, I have to stay at the hotel. Xiaowei trusts me, and I have to keep this business running smoothly. It's not just one boiler; there are dozens of them all over the province."

Hao's father said, "So, in the future, will you also have to go on those kinds of business trips?"

Hao Xiaodong nodded and said, "We definitely have to go. We're lucky; we're acquaintances of Xiaowei. If there's anything he needs, he's willing to trust us and call on us. We have to pick it up and do it well, don't you think? Xiaohe is dedicated to her work; people trust her to entrust a factory to her. We can't sabotage her, can we?"

Mr. Hao nodded: "That's right, that's right. Alright, let's leave it at that, let's all do our jobs well."

Hao Ma remained silent with a sullen face. After eating a couple of bites of rice, she pointed with her chopsticks at Guan He's bowl and said, "Bring some vegetables in."

Xiao Hai put down his chopsticks and reached out: "I'll go, I'll go, I'll make it for my mom."

Xiao Tao excitedly chimed in, "I'm going too! I'm going too!"

Hao Xiaobo raised his hand and smacked him on the head: "Behave yourself and eat."

……

The night was hazy, and the bright moon was half-hidden behind a veil, watching the earth. The streetlights stood alone, and the night shift workers in the factory chatted and laughed as they worked. From time to time, the barking of dogs could be heard in the distance, which made Big Yellow, who lived in the garage villa, whimper in dissatisfaction.

Half the city rejoices, half the city grieves; every household turns to the stove. There are so many things in this world that seem to go as planned, but who knows when they will all end?

Stroking her swollen belly, Shan Hongmei leaned against the window, gazing blankly into the darkness. Her younger sister was fast asleep in bed, snoring softly. The light was on in the next room; Shan's parents were still awake. Shan Hongmei knew that although her parents didn't say anything, they were also burdened with worries.

How could she have believed him in the first place? Was it youthful naiveté? Innocence? Physical urges? Shan Hongmei knew none of those were true; she simply wanted a family. She hoped everything would go smoothly. Thinking of her mother-in-law, and unsure if they could get along normally, a sense of unease crept into her heart.

Upstairs, Zhao Di leaned against Ga Zi, eating an apple and watching TV.

"How are you spending the New Year? Are you going home?" Ga Zi took the apple core from Zhao Di's hand, bent down and threw it into the trash can.

Zhao Di shifted, making herself more comfortable: "I don't want to go back. These past six months have felt like a dream, and I'm afraid that if I go back, the dream will end."

Gazi laughed and said, "Alright, now you can write poetry, and your speech is all so pretentious."

Zhao Di pinched Gazi: "I really don't want to go back. What's the point of going back? It's so cold and impersonal."

Gazi said, "They're still your parents, after all. Besides, your brother hasn't offended you, and he's always thinking of you as his older sister. How can you be so heartless?"

Zhao Di remained silent.

Gazi said, "How about we buy some things to take back, deliver them there, leave some money, and then come to my house for the New Year? Okay?"

Zhao Di said, "Bullshit! We've already got the marriage certificate. If I don't go to your house, am I supposed to guard the street? I just don't want to go back to that house."

Gazi said, "When are we going to do this? Should we do it here or go back? You have to make a decision, we can't just not do it, can we?"

Zhao Di said, "Let's live our own lives, why do we need to show off to others? We can just invite Xiao Wei and Si Hai to dinner. But that won't work either, your parents probably won't be happy. Let's just have a feast then, a traditional banquet when we go back before the New Year. It's just one meal anyway, and whatever gifts we receive, we can keep for your parents, we won't take them, and it'll save us the trouble of doing it again next year. Missing a day's sales doesn't mean a small loss."

Gazi said, "They're going to hold a New Year's goods festival before the New Year, aren't we going to participate?"

Zhao Di twitched her little face, looking conflicted. After a long while, she said, "Let's skip it this year. We're going home to take care of some things, and we have to make the elders happy."

Gazi laughed and said, "Then Sihai and Liuliu have to go back too, right? They can't attend either. How can they stay here for my wedding?"

Zhao Di laughed and said, "If we're not opening any more, then nobody should open any more, perfect, haha. What's Xiao Wei busy with right now?"

Gazi said, "I don't know, it's been a while since we've seen each other. Xiaowei has really made something of himself now, he's not on our level anymore, he'll be a big shot in the future, I don't even know what we'll talk about when we meet again, really."

Zhao Di said, "You're overthinking it. I invited him over for dinner sometime, but it looks like he won't come."

……

Yang Xuemei wasn't asleep either; she lay in bed with her eyes open. The mattress was a bit soft, and she wasn't used to it.

This nightmare over the past few years has shattered everything she had, torn her flesh and drained her blood. She doesn't even know how she survived.

It seems like everything is over now, but she knows it's not; it's etched in her heart.

How am I supposed to live? How am I supposed to survive? This world is so big, yet there's not a single place that truly belongs to me; I have nothing. Have I just entered another dream from another dream? Who gave birth to me? Why was I born? And why was I abandoned after being born? Just to torment myself? What sins did I commit in my past life? How great were my transgressions?

Tears streamed down her face and dripped onto the pillow. Yang Xuemei wiped her face and the pillow haphazardly with her hands.

A faint sound drifted in from outside the room, and Yang Xuemei tensed up instantly. Then she realized she was no longer in prison; she was free. Free!

But in prison, all you have to do every day is work, and you don't have to think about anything else. What should I do now? What should I do?

Why is my belly so uncooperative? Why can't I get pregnant? If I had his child, at least I would have a reason to live. What am I, in this inhuman state?

I might as well die. I'll go find him after I'm dead and see if he's doing well over there.

What's it like over there? Is it like this place, with so many people, some good and some bad? What if I can't find him? Where do I look? How do I look? What if I can't find myself?

Yang Xuemei suddenly felt a bit cold and instinctively wrapped the blanket tighter around herself.

(End of this chapter)