The Little Life of a Big Landlord

Chapter 183 Old Huang

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"What nonsense are you talking about???" Wei Qingqing blushed slightly.

"Nonsense, I've been completely won over by Yang Ming..." Aunt Liu said, her face flushed.

"Thanks for reminding me..." Yang Ming's voice came through. "I've also noticed that their relationship is a bit abnormal."

"Hehe, so even that stinky farmer had his suspicions. You two are doomed. If he finds out you two are two lilies, he might just divorce you..." Zhang Fenghuang chuckled mischievously.

The two women both rolled their eyes at Zhang Fenghuang.

Just as Yang Ming returned home, Aunt Pang, who had just come back from the market, also walked in. Aunt Pang exuded a light and cheerful aura, clearly indicating that she had encountered something good.

"Auntie, what's wrong? Why do you look so beautiful?" Yang Ming asked with a smile.

"Hey...it's nothing. I have to go back to the city soon. Our factory representative got humiliated by the boss at the Yingning Hotel, and I have to clean up his mess..." Auntie Pang said with a smile.

"Look at you gloating like that, if your factory leaders saw you, they'd definitely fire you..." Yang Ming laughed.

"Fire me?" The plump auntie's face revealed a hint of arrogance. "In the entire Shougang Group, no one can fire me. I'm a veteran in the factory..."

"Hehe, I'll call Old Yang over in a bit and have him take you back to the city..." Yang Ming laughed.

"Alright, Auntie Pang is really in a hurry to get back, so I won't stand on ceremony with you..." Auntie Pang said with a smile, and went into the east room with Yang Ming, sitting on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed). "Also, Auntie Pang has something interesting to tell you. When we went to the market today, we met a chicken seller. Guess how big that chicken was? Goodness, it was like a pig..."

"Really???" Yang Ming's face showed a hint of curiosity, but his heart skipped a beat. The chicken that Aunt Pang was talking about was all too familiar to her. Wasn't it the alien creature he had secretly released? Listening to Aunt Pang's explanation, he didn't hesitate and immediately took out his phone to send a text message to Old Yang.

"Of course..." Auntie Pang exclaimed excitedly, spitting as she spoke, "Guess how much that chicken sold for???"

"How could I possibly guess that?" Yang Ming said with a wry smile.

"Thirty thousand yuan, thirty thousand yuan for one chicken..." Aunt Pang held up three fingers. "That's such a cheap price. If those two chickens were sold to a zoo, they'd be worth hundreds of thousands. If they were sold to a national research institution, a million or two wouldn't be too much. If they were sold abroad..."

"Ah..." Yang Ming nodded repeatedly, "It was sold cheaply..."

"Guess who bought it?" Auntie Pang said.

"Is there even a need to guess? It must be Zhang Xiaofei..." Yang Ming laughed.

"Smart enough..." Auntie Pang smiled and gave Yang Ming a thumbs up.

"Are you being sarcastic? Out of all the people here, I only know the three of you. Of those with the financial means, only Zhang Xiaofei is one of them..." Yang Ming chuckled.

"That Zhang Xiaofei is really rich. That guy, he just paid 60,000 yuan without hesitation..." Aunt Pang sighed as she recalled Zhang Xiaofei taking out his money.

"Oh! You bought two?" Yang Ming asked knowingly.

"Of course, it's a male and a female. Zhang Xiaofei said that once they hatch chicks, he'll give me a pair..." Aunt Pang became even more excited as she said this.

"Hehe, congratulations, Auntie Pang! You made 60,000 yuan just from going to the market..." Yang Ming smiled and cupped his hands in greeting to Auntie Pang.

"You're too kind..." Aunt Pang returned the greeting with a smile, the two of them really taking it very seriously.

The two looked at each other and burst into laughter.

"Auntie Pang, will you come back this time?" Yang Ming asked.

"What's wrong? You think Auntie Fatty is in your way???" Auntie Fatty crossed her legs and said with a smile.

"No, it's just that I feel it would be a bit of a shame if Auntie Pang only stayed for one day and then left..." Yang Ming said.

"Then Auntie Pang will stay at your house for a couple more days..." Auntie Pang wasn't one to be sentimental; she could tell whether Yang Ming was being sincere.

"Hehe, that's good then..." Yang Ming chuckled.

"Mom and Dad, I'm home..." At this moment, Xiao Bao'er's voice came in. The little guy's voice was clear and beautiful, like a lark.

A burst of red appeared, and the little one, wearing a red sweater, ran straight into the room, climbed onto the kang (a heated brick bed), snuggled into Yang Ming's arms, looked up at him, and asked, "Where's Mommy???"

"Mom is taking a shower..." Yang Ming said with a smile.

"Little Bao'er is back? Why didn't you call Grandma Fatty?" Although Aunt Fatty was quite plump, she had a lively personality and liked to joke around with people.

"Hello, Grandma Fat..." Little Bao said with a grin.

"Hmph, that's a good girl..." Auntie Fatty put her hands behind her back, and then, as if by magic, pulled out a small sugar figurine. "Look what Grandma Fatty bought for you???"

This sugar figurine is wrapped in a plastic bag, and judging from its outline, it looks like Sun Wukong holding a golden cudgel.

"Oh... a sugar figurine..." Little Bao'er's big, clear eyes lit up immediately.

"Hehe, I specially picked out a Sun Wukong one for you..." Auntie Fatty peeled off the wrapping paper from the sugar figurine, and the little sugar figurine became clear.

"Thank you, Grandma Fatty..." Little Bao quickly thanked Aunt Fatty, but his little hands swiftly took the sugar figurine.

"Thank you for spending so much, Auntie Pang..." Yang Ming said with a smile.

"What's the big deal? It's only two yuan..." Auntie Pang rolled her eyes, "It's not even worth a carton of your milk..."

"Auntie Pang is joking. The cost of our fresh milk is only one yuan..." Yang Ming said.

"Look at what you're saying, you think you can calculate it based on cost? The cost of this sugar figurine is probably less than five cents..." Aunt Fatty said.

"Hehe..." Yang Ming laughed and said no more.

"Little Bao'er is back from school, I'm going to cook..." Aunt Pang said, getting off the kang (heated brick bed) to cook for Little Bao'er.

"Auntie Pang, let me do it..." Auntie Pang was practically a guest, how could Yang Ming let her do anything?

"Go and rest on the kang (heated brick bed). Aunt Pang will make you some authentic Northeastern dishes. I've heard about what happened to you. You must be freezing. Don't go on the ice again, it's dangerous..." Aunt Pang said.

"Well... thank you, Auntie Fatty..." Yang Ming didn't stand on ceremony anymore.

"Dad, I heard from many classmates that Uncle Han fell into an ice hole and you rescued him. Is that true...?" Xiao Bao'er looked up and asked.

"Of course it's true..." Yang Ming smiled and pinched the little guy's nose.

"Daddy is a great hero..." Little Bao immediately kissed Yang Ming's cheek with admiration. "All my classmates say Daddy is a great hero, and they all envy me..."

Since her father died, Xiao Bao'er has always felt inferior because she doesn't have a father. Now, her classmates envy her for having a great hero as her father, which makes her extremely proud. Her former inferiority complex has long since spread its wings and flown away.

"Hehehe, what did Bao'er tell her classmates?" Yang Ming asked with a smile.

"I told them that if they elect me as class monitor next semester, I'll ask my dad to be their godfather..." Xiao Bao said proudly.

"Daddy???" Yang Ming's eyes widened in disbelief. Where did this term come from?

"It's Qianqian's dad... Except for Wang Pingping, all the classmates signed up, hehe, I'll be the class monitor from now on..." Xiaobao'er was even more proud.

"You're still so beautiful? You actually sold your father like that???" Yang Ming glared at him and pinched the little guy's cheek.

"Mmm..." Little Bao'er rubbed against Yang Ming's arms, acting spoiled and pleading, her big eyes looking at Yang Ming pitifully.

"Still pretending to be pitiful with me..." Yang Ming released the little one's cheek and tapped her little nose with his finger.

"Hehehe..." The little guy chuckled, snuggling happily in Yang Ming's arms and licking the little sugar figurine.

"You're still a fan of minor officialdom..." Yang Ming laughed.

"Oh my, Qingqing is only two months pregnant? How come you've gotten so fat???" A voice suddenly came from outside. Yang Ming recognized it as Grandpa Huang's voice.

"Oh! It's Grandpa Huang..." Little Bao'er recognized the voice and quickly got up from Yang Ming's arms, excitedly going out to greet him.

"Haha! It's Xiao Bao'er??? In this freezing weather, aren't you cold wearing just a sweater???" Grandpa Huang greeted Xiao Bao'er with a hearty laugh.

"It's not cold, Grandpa Huang, did you bring Bao'er a gift?" Little Bao'er held Grandpa Huang's hand, looked up at him, and walked into the house together.

Grandpa Huang and Yang Zhengfang have become sworn brothers, so they're no longer outsiders. Little Bao'er is also sensible and knows who to ask for gifts from...

"Of course! How could Grandpa forget our little treasure?" Grandpa Huang laughed heartily. "Qingqing, really, ignoring your uncle? Haha... This pregnancy must be twins, otherwise she wouldn't be so chubby..."

"I'm ignoring you, and you're getting all worked up. Can't you open your eyes? Look carefully before you speak..." Auntie Pang's disgruntled voice rang out.

"Oh dear, look, I misunderstood. I thought you were Qingqing..." Grandpa Huang was stunned for a moment, then smiled awkwardly and quickly apologized.

"Grandpa Huang, this is Grandma Pang. She bought a sugar figurine for Bao'er. What gift did you bring for Bao'er?" Seeing that Grandpa Huang was only talking to Grandma Pang, Bao'er quickly changed the subject back to the gift.

Grandpa Huang and Xiao Bao'er entered the east room, and Yang Ming quickly said, "Uncle's here, please sit down. Bao'er, go get Grandpa a carton of milk..."

"Oh..." Xiao Bao'er quickly replied and ran to the west room to get the milk.

"What's wrong with you??? Are you in confinement after childbirth???" Seeing Yang Ming leaning against the headboard, Grandpa Huang was quite surprised. Yang Ming was as strong as a calf, and he shouldn't be leaning against the headboard in broad daylight.

"No, I just fell into an ice hole and my whole body was numb from the cold..." Yang Ming laughed.

"Fell into an ice hole???" Old Huang was terrified, breaking out in a cold sweat. "What happened? Tell me quickly..."

As he spoke, Old Huang sat down on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed).

"Hey, it's nothing. I made a hole in the ice and was catching fish when Fangfang suddenly spoke behind me. I turned around, slipped, and fell into the ice hole..." Yang Ming said.

"So that's what happened? You're not a kid anymore, how come you're still doing such childish things?" Old Huang glared at Yang Ming and gave him a stern lecture.

"Yes, yes, yes, there will definitely not be a next time..." Yang Ming said repeatedly.

"Alright, you're not getting any younger, you already have a wife and the baby is due soon, so I won't nag you anymore. Just remember, a wise man doesn't stand under a crumbling wall..." said Grandpa Huang.

"Yes, yes, yes..." Yang Ming nodded hurriedly.

"Why does it sound like you're just giving me the runaround?" Grandpa Huang said.

"No, no, how could I dare?" Yang Ming quickly denied.

"Grandpa, have some milk..." Xiao Bao'er walked in carrying two cartons of milk, handed one of them to Grandpa Huang, and then happily climbed onto the kang (a heated brick bed), snuggled into Yang Ming's arms, and started drinking the milk.

"Hehe, I heard that Xiao Bao'er is good at studying, so Grandpa brought you a fountain pen. See if you like it..." Grandpa Huang said while drinking his milk, taking out a beautifully packaged little box from the inside pocket of his clothes.

"Hero brand? An old brand, huh??? It must have cost a lot of money???" Yang Ming immediately noticed the gleaming gold "Hero" logo on the box.

"What do you mean, a lot of money? This is what our factory paid us back then. Hmph, back in the day, I was one of the most educated people in our factory. Our factory manager made me an accountant for a while and even gave me a fountain pen." Grandpa Huang said proudly.

"You're really vigorous for your age! At such an advanced age, you've still been rehired by your factory manager..." Yang Ming took the pen and placed the bottom directly in front of Grandpa Huang. It read "January 1, 2011," clearly indicating that it had just been manufactured a couple of days ago.

"Ah... well..." Grandpa Huang stammered awkwardly. He hadn't really noticed these things, and he never imagined that a pen would have a manufacturing date on it. He glared at Yang Ming, "I'm buying a pen for my granddaughter, and you're interfering with that???"

"I don't care about that, but isn't this pen too expensive??? I asked about this model of pen, and it costs 1,500 yuan apiece..." Yang Ming opened the pen case and took out the pen.

This is a very exquisite all-metal fountain pen. The lines are exceptionally smooth, and the craftsmanship is exquisite and simple. It doesn't look like a cheap product.

"Dad, I want this pen..." Xiao Bao'er snatched the pen. Just as Yang Ming was about to frown at Xiao Bao'er's unreasonable behavior, he said, "Give Grandpa 1500..."

"What???" Grandpa Huang was about to be happy that Xiao Bao'er liked the gift he brought, but when he heard Xiao Bao'er mention paying for it, his eyes widened: "Grandpa doesn't sell pens..."

"Then Bao'er doesn't need it..." Without saying a word, Bao'er put the pen into the pen case, closed the lid, and handed it back to Grandpa Huang.

"..." Old Huang's mouth moved, but he couldn't say anything. He glared at Yang Ming and said, "What are you standing there for? Hurry up and pay me!"

"I've already figured it out, the most cunning one is still our little Bao'er..." Yang Ming pulled out a wad of money from under the quilt, counted out fifteen old man bills, and handed them to Grandpa Huang.

"Fourteen will do, it's less than 1,500 yuan short by twenty yuan. Consider the eighty yuan as a gift for Bao'er..." Grandpa Huang said dejectedly.

"I certainly won't refuse..." Yang Ming said with a smile, taking another card from the fifteen.

"Look... Grandpa got back 1,400. Now, you should accept that pen, right?" Grandpa Huang waved a wad of money in front of Xiao Bao'er and said.

"Hehe, thank you, Grandpa..." Xiao Bao'er then happily put the pen into his pocket.

"You clever little thing..." Grandpa Huang laughed.

"Alright, put the table down and eat..." Auntie Pang called out as she finished cooking outside.

"Oh, I'll go put the table down..." Xiao Bao'er quickly jumped off the kang (a heated brick bed) and went to the outer room to move the kang table.

"Hehe, our Bao'er is so sensible..." Grandpa Huang praised with a smile.

Little Bao excitedly put down the table, then went to the back garden to call his mothers to eat together.

"The little girl is getting smarter and smarter..." Grandpa Huang said with a smile.

"That's right, he drinks goat's milk all day long and just can't stop..." Yang Ming was quite pleased.

"That's hard to say. A sharp mind doesn't necessarily mean shrewdness..." Grandpa Huang said with a chuckle.

Goat milk only supplements brainpower; it does not make you smarter.

"Hey Yang Ming, this young man looks pretty young, why are you calling him 'Uncle'?" Aunt Pang said, carrying a bowl of cooked rice into the center of the kang table.

"Young lady, I'm almost seventy, are you still young?" Grandpa Huang said with a smile.

"What?! Seventy years old???" Auntie Pang's eyes widened immediately. "That means seventy???"

"That's right..." Grandpa Huang nodded with a smile.

"It doesn't look like him at all..." Auntie Pang scrutinized Grandpa Huang and shook her head repeatedly.

"But that's the truth. I am indeed almost seventy years old, no doubt about it. If you're checking my household registration, I can show you my ID card..." Grandpa Huang said with a smile.

"Really seventy???" Auntie Fatty asked again.

"I really am seventy, why would I lie to you? If you don't believe me, ask Yang Ming..." To prove that he was indeed seventy, Grandpa Huang even thought of witnesses.

"Yes, yes, I can testify..." Yang Ming quickly became Grandpa Huang's witness.

"My God, how do you maintain your youthful appearance?!" Aunt Pang groaned, feeling dizzy and disoriented. The whole world seemed to have been turned upside down. This small mountain village exuded an eerie atmosphere from the inside out.

"No, I just took some health supplements..." Grandpa Huang couldn't stop smiling.

"Health supplements???" Auntie Pang's heart skipped a beat, and she became excited. Supplements that could keep you young? That was practically a magic pill! She hurriedly asked, "What kind of health supplements???"

"It's the grape-flavored scrambled eggs we eat in the morning..." Yang Ming said.

"That's the elixir of immortality..." Auntie Pang was stunned for a moment, then began to beat her chest and stamp her feet in despair: "Oh dear, it's all that old swindler's fault! If he hadn't been protecting the plate, I wouldn't have been unable to get a single bite..."

"It's alright, Auntie Pang, I'll make it especially for you when you get back tonight, so you can try to turn back the clock..." Yang Ming said.

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(End of this chapter)