Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 808 Zhang Fu is here

The next morning, Xiaowei's yard became lively. Everyone who could get up early had nothing to do, so they wandered around the yard. The factory's early shift workers also got up. It was still early before breakfast, so they all came out to stroll around, some playing badminton to exercise, and some running to Xiaowei's yard to look at the scenery.

After the old lady helped the old man downstairs to look around, and they realized that this area belonged to Xiaowei and his family, their feelings changed.

"This is too tall. How many people can live here?" Aunt Ji sighed as she looked up at the headquarters building.

The old man said, "This isn't for living, it's for offices, used by Xiaowei's company. I overheard something yesterday, saying that the higher-ups are going to open a hotel, like the guesthouses in the county, but even more upscale."

The two walked out along the road. The factory was full of young children, seventeen or eighteen years old, at most in their early twenties. They were all lively and active, and the sounds of them talking and playing were everywhere.

There are no grocery stores around here; you have to go to 606 to buy things. Although it's only a short distance, it's still not very convenient. The old man overheard a few people saying this: "It would be great if a store opened right here at our doorstep, so we wouldn't have to go so far."

"It should be able to be opened, right? Just let the factory manager know."

"What the factory manager said isn't entirely true either; we need to talk to the boss."

The old man glanced at the young girls, then looked back at the storefront on the third floor. He felt that what Xiao Wei had said seemed quite good; he genuinely wanted him to do something productive instead of just enjoying his retirement. He immediately became interested and tugged at the old woman's sleeve: "Come on, let's go to the second brother's courtyard."

The old lady said, "I still want to go over there and take a look. Why can't I go to the second son's house? I need to find out where to buy things. Everything costs money in the city."

The old man thought for a moment, nodded, and said, "Okay, let's take a look around. I'll talk to my second brother about it tonight."

The old lady happily helped the old man walk along the road outside. That's how rural women are; they can be happy for half a day if their husbands agree with them. Turning the corner from the building, you enter the school grounds. It's a bit messy but not dirty. The school-run chalk factory has moved here, and a row of simple houses has been built. The old walls have been repaired, and the two old doors have been moved over and installed.

Actually, nobody knew where this place originally came from; it was just used anyway.

As soon as you step out, the view opens up. Right now, there's a cluster of four-story buildings across the street, near 606. Looking out over here, all you can see are vegetable fields and bungalows. However, several areas have been fenced off for construction, and I don't know what they're going to build.

Looking south, you can see the row of new police station buildings in the distance. Eighteen stories is definitely a tall building in this era. The row of newly painted buildings on a lush canopy of trees looks impressive.

The old lady continued, "Xiao Wang said those all belong to Xiao Wei, and they're prettier than these."

The old man said, "What's the use of being pretty? They're all the same. As long as there's a place to stay, that's enough. Others might want to come, but they can't."

Then the old lady said, "Dad, let Xiaowei keep an eye on Xiaofu. Can you really be so heartless as to not care? Xiaowang can have anything he wants now and is making big money right away, while Xiaofu is still messing around."

The old man sighed and said, "As long as I have food to eat, he won't go hungry. You should just give up on that idea. What can he do now? One day he'll cause you a huge mess, and then you'll know how good your son is. Didn't Xiaowei say he'd go back to the village and farm for two years? He'll give you whatever you want. Isn't that much better than him working outside? Is he even cut out for this?"

The old lady continued, "I know Xiao Fu isn't always good at things, but that's because he's young. How old is he?"

The old man glanced at his stepmother and said, "Little what? He's eighteen or nineteen and you still call him little? I know you think I just don't want to take care of him, but have you thought about it? He's still my son. How could I really not care? But look what you've spoiled him into! Can we even manage to discipline him now? How much money do we have to throw in? Do you really believe that if we give him money, he can earn it back? What will we do in the end? The whole family will starve to death, won't we?"

The old woman looked a little embarrassed, and the old man said, "If I really didn't care, would he be able to wear those clothes every day and swindle people like that? Would he be able to live a carefree life outside every day? Don't you know what kind of money he has? Do you really think your little tricks are useful?"

"Oh dear, spoiling them like this will only bring trouble later. Our family is just a bunch of farmers; we know nothing but farming and harvesting, we have nothing to offer. If something really happens in the future, we'll have to rely on the second son's family, understand? Did I come here to enjoy a life of luxury? I came here to help your son reap the rewards."

Auntie said, "How could that be? Xiao Fu is just a bit playful; he can't do bad things."

The old man said, "Can't do it? Didn't you hear what Xiaowei said last time? What they're doing now is illegal. The more money they have, the bigger the trouble they'll get."

Walking along the road to the police station, then to the grain station and the vegetable market, the elderly couple turned back. Just then, they saw an airplane landing. The old lady widened her eyes and tugged at the old man, saying, "Look, an airplane! Isn't it an airplane? My goodness, it's huge! Why doesn't it have a fuselage?"

An old lady standing nearby chuckled and said, "You just arrived here? That used to be an airport, with takeoffs and landings all day long. Now the airport has moved away, it's gone. You won't see it for ten days or half a month anymore. It's good, though, not noisy anymore. That thing was too loud."

The old man thanked the old woman, and then the old woman shook the old man's arm, saying, "Dad, look, isn't that Xiao Fu?"

The old man said, "Stop shaking it, it'll fall apart if you keep shaking it." He looked up and frowned.

The two of them were standing at the intersection of Wanliutang Road and Changqing Street. They saw three people walking unsteadily from the direction of the Temple of Agriculture. The one on the right was none other than Xiao Fu.

The old man frowned even more deeply, while the old woman became happy, waving her hands and calling out, "Little Fu, Fu'er!"

Xiao Fu, who was looking around and heading this way, was startled by the shout. He looked up and saw his parents. He was a little excited, after all, he was only eighteen or nineteen years old. He turned and said something to the two of them, and the three of them ran over: "Mom, Dad, I thought I was going to never find it. Fengtian is so big, our feet are sore from walking."

The old man frowned and asked, "What brings you here?"

Xiao Fu said, "I arrived last night and slept at the station. I asked around this morning and walked here. I never imagined it was so far."

The old lady said, "You walked all the way from the train station? How far is it? Come on, let's go home and rest. Are you hungry?"

Xiao Fu rubbed his stomach and nodded, saying, "I'm hungry. None of the three of us have much money. We only ate a bowl of noodles at the station last night and haven't had any since."

The old lady turned to look for something to eat, but the old man said, "Let's go back. The canteen should be open by now. Can we get a decent meal outside?"

Xiao Fu looked around and asked, "How much further? Why did you suddenly move here? I thought you were joking. You live in this house? It looks even older than our house."

(End of this chapter)