I was married off to a disabled hero in lieu of marriage; my in-laws doted on me and I aspired to gr

Two weeks later, Zhou Zhonghai and Luo Meiyun returned home.

Zhou Zhonghai looked haggard and listless. He went upstairs to sleep as soon as he got home.

Luo Meiyun had to rush to the hospital to deal with the issues left over from her vacation, so she hurried off to work.

Qiaoqiao and Zhou Wenhui were very worried about their father's condition, but they didn't know how to comfort him.

In Zhou Zhonghai's heart, Commander Pu was a father and a benefactor.

He was suddenly faced with a life-or-death separation and found it difficult to cope.

Finally, Qiaoqiao decided to let Zhou Xiaowei comfort her grandfather.

Amidst her parents' anticipation, Zhou Xiaowei opened the door to her grandfather's bedroom.

Zhou Zhonghai was asleep, snoring loudly, but he kept his brows furrowed.

Xiao Wei struggled to climb onto the bed, tugging at Zhou Zhonghai's beard and calling out, "Grandpa, Grandpa..."

Zhou Zhonghai suddenly woke up, looking around in confusion, tears still in the corners of his eyes.

"Grandpa, are you crying?" Xiao Wei asked in his childish voice.

"Xiaowei, how did you climb up here?"

Zhou Zhonghai snapped out of his daze and hugged Xiaowei tightly.

"Xiao Wei has grown up and can climb very high now," Xiao Wei said with a grin.

A child's smile can heal everything. Zhou Zhonghai held Xiao Wei in his arms, his eyes filled with love.

Where are Mom and Dad?

"Mom told me to comfort Grandpa," Xiaowei said truthfully.

"Oh, how will Xiaowei comfort Grandpa?" Zhou Zhonghai teased the child.

"Grandpa, why are you crying? Are you in a lot of pain?"

Xiao Wei asked curiously. In his mind, he would only cry if he fell and hurt himself, or if his mother hit him.

"Grandpa was in great pain. His best elder and best friend has passed away." Zhou Zhonghai didn't hide anything and told the truth.

"Passed away? Does that mean he/she is dead?"

"Um."

Why did they die?

"Because all living things are born and die."

"Since everyone has to live and die, why is Grandpa still sad?"

Yes, whether human or animal, everyone must live and die, so why be sad?

Because people have feelings, attachments, and worries.

Death does not mean the end.

Unable to explain to the child, Zhou Zhonghai asked instead, "Grandpa is dead, will Xiaowei be sad?"

Zhou Xiaowei shook his head: "No, Grandpa is dead. I'm raising a little yellow dog, and it's my grandpa."

You...you...you're right, Little Yellow carries the longing for loved ones.

"Grandpa, Little Yellow has babies. You can choose your favorite one and treat it like your deceased friend, then you won't be sad," Xiao Wei said earnestly.

"Is Xiao Huang pregnant?"

"Yes, Little Yellow agreed to give you one of its babies."

"Really? Then please thank Xiao Huang for me." Zhou Zhonghai laughed.

"Grandpa, will Little Huang die too?"

Of course.

"I won't cry when Little Yellow dies. I'll raise its babies. Little Yellow is one of its babies."

"Xiaowei is right. Grandpa shouldn't be immersed in sadness. He should cheer up, carry on his spirit, and finish what he didn't finish."

Zhou Zhonghai saw the light; if a child can understand this, why can't I?

"Xiaowei, you promised you'd give Grandpa a little yellow dog."

"Pinky promise, no take-backs."

Seeing his grandfather smile, Xiaowei stretched out his little hand and made a pinky promise with his grandfather.

Qiaoqiao and Zhou Wenhui kept glancing towards the stairwell from downstairs, wondering if Zhou Xiaowei could complete the task.

Not long after, Zhou Zhonghai came downstairs with a smile, carrying Xiao Wei in his arms: "Xiao Hu, get me a bowl of noodles. I need to go to the Municipal Party Committee after we eat."

Qiaoqiao and Zhou Wenhui jumped up from the sofa: "Dad, it's Sunday today, the municipal party committee is closed."

"Not at work? Then I'll go check on Fu Sanjun."

"Dad, your beard?" Qiaoqiao reminded him, noting that his beard was already three inches long and needed a trim.

"Hehe, I haven't shaved my beard in half a month. I'm going to take a shower. Xiao Hu, make me some noodles."

After putting down his small suitcase, Zhou Zhonghai went to the kitchen to fetch hot water to prepare for a bath.

"Dad, I'll go find you some clothes." Qiaoqiao happily went upstairs.

"Wenhui, where's your mom?"

"I went to the hospital; something came up at work."

"Your mom too, doesn't she know how to rest for a few days?"

"Yes, Mom said she'll take a few days off to be with you after she finishes dealing with things at the hospital."

"What would I need her for? I'm very busy."

Zhou Zhonghai took the hot water to the toilet, and Hu Xiaomei quickly started a fire to cook noodles. Zhou Wenhui gave Zhou Xiaowei a thumbs up, and Zhou Xiaowei giggled.

Zhou Zhonghai ate a large bowl of noodles. Gu Quan drove to pick him up. Zhou Wenhui wanted to ask something, but in the end, he didn't.

Zhou Zhonghai went directly to the guesthouse where Fu Sanjun was staying; he needed to use his career to alleviate his grief.

Fu Sanjun has been serving as the municipal party secretary for almost a year and has been living in a guesthouse.

He has a house in the municipal party committee compound, but he doesn't want to move there yet. His wife and children are in Tonggang County, and he doesn't know if he can continue working for the municipal party committee. If he messes up, he still has a place to call home in Tonggang County.

"Governor Zhou, please accept my condolences!" These were Fu Sanjun's first words to Zhou Zhonghai.

"How's the work going?" Zhou Zhonghai asked, not about Commander Pu.

Fu Sanjun brewed some tea and said humbly, "The one thousand tricycles ordered by the Municipal Party Committee have arrived. I have issued a notice that unemployed youths in each street who meet the requirements can come to the Municipal Party Committee to complete the business procedures and pick up a tricycle."

Bidding for company canteen contracts has begun, and some companies have already secured contracts with individuals. Additionally, unemployed youths with business ventures can apply for individual business licenses at the municipal government office with a letter of introduction from their local street office.

The commercial market hasn't taken off, but they're allowed to set up shoe and bicycle repair stalls, sell vegetables, and handicrafts on the street—as long as they have a license, they can set up stalls in designated areas. Also, the Mao family's earthenware pots from Tonggang County have moved into the supply and marketing cooperative; they want to get their own storefront to expand their business, but they haven't found a suitable place yet.

"How many unemployed youths can this solve?"

"I estimate it's around ten thousand people. The government doesn't restrict self-employed individuals; as long as they pay taxes, they can apply."

"Good, Fu Sanjun, well done. Huailin is about to enter a new era. Just watch, in less than a year, there will be piles of bicycles everywhere, and some people will get rich very quickly."

Zhou Zhonghai, unusually, did not curse, and his handling of the three armies was highly praised.

"Now that the problem of unemployed youth has been solved, let's make some changes to the fertilizer plant." Zhou Zhonghai took a sip of tea with a sense of satisfaction.

"How do I move?"

"Zhang Dabiao from Liuxian County, have him take a letter of introduction from the county to the fertilizer factory to buy fertilizer."

"Yes, I'll have Secretary Xu handle it."

After finishing the business, Fu Sanjun dared to sit down on the single sofa next to Zhou Zhonghai.

"Governor Zhou, how are you?"

"Can it get better?" Zhou Zhonghai asked rhetorically, taking a sip of tea.

"When he was around, I was bold and reckless, always having someone to cover for me. Now that he's gone, I have no one to rely on, like a child who has lost his father. I really wish he would scold me a few more times for being such a brat."

Zhou Zhonghai felt a lump in his throat, and tears welled up in his eyes.

"Commander Pu is not only your support, but also the support of the people of Tonggang County. If it weren't for him letting us secretly distribute land to individual households, how could the people of Tonggang County afford to eat white flour buns?" Fu Sanjun was also very sad.

"Yes, he's the one who backed me up when I dared to mess around in Tonggang County. Now that the old commander is gone, I'm your old commander from now on. Fu Sanjun, don't be afraid, just do what you're supposed to do. If anything goes wrong, I'll cover for you."

Zhou Zhonghai must stand up, otherwise how can Huailin's reforms continue?

The old leader's wish was to see ordinary people become wealthy and able to eat and dress well.

For sweeping reforms to take place, someone must be at the forefront.

It used to be Commander Pu, now it's Zhou Zhonghai.