In the dead of night, Lin Lishan and Ping’an were already asleep, while Zhou Xiaozheng quietly listened to his son-in-law recount the trip to Hai City in the study.
"Dad, that’s how the situation is. I ntioned to the old man about adopting a child from the sa lineage, but before I could finish, his face changed. Did I touch on sothing that saddened him?"
Zhou Xiaozheng nodded, "Sothing must have happened back then. When I t the old couple, they were already at the end of their rope and didn’t want to return to the village. I helped them out because they seed genuine and kind. If he doesn’t want to, then let it be. He must have a reason he can’t speak of."
Zhang Guoqing nodded understandingly, "Then the old lady slipped a small courtyard on the north side this afternoon, saying it was already transferred. How did I not know about this? Can it be done without being there in person?"
"That old lady really is..."
After sighing, Zhou Xiaozheng looked at his son-in-law, "Back then, the Gu Family secretly acquired quite a few private assets. Besides the assets cleared in the old ho, after Jiefang, many property deeds from other places were taken into the old lady’s hands. Even Old Mr. Cheng didn’t know about this, apart from the two courtyards in Beijing.
After recognizing , she privately gave several deeds, but I didn’t accept them. I used the excuse that it wasn’t suitable to add more properties under Jiao Jiao’s na to refuse her. Logically, she would have sent soone to retrieve them, so they should be hers.
However, last year she told she had sold all the properties outside and converted them to gold, and now only the two courtyards in Beijing are left, which she can’t bear to sell. These two, the larger courtyard was originally intended by the Gu Family’s elders for their daughters to move to Beijing after marriage, and the smaller one was her dowry, with a different significance.
Last ti she ntioned wanting to hand them to you, saying she was getting old. Apart from the large courtyard, which is currently not suitable to change, everything she strove to keep for the Gu Family is stored in the small courtyard."
Zhang Guoqing frowned deeply, "Dad, if it was her dowry, then it’s sothing from the Cheng Family. If we take it, the Cheng Family might have thoughts on this."
"Your elder cousin’s family is different from the Lin Family. They feel that nothing was left from the Gu Family, making Jiao Jiao suffer grievances. They’ve long told the old lady to leave her private assets to Jiao Jiao, saying that they rightfully belong to their grandmother and should be inherited by Jiao Jiao."
Zhou Xiaozheng finished speaking and smiled, shaking his head.
People really can’t be compared to each other. He doesn’t mind material possessions; money nowadays is just a number to the Zhou Family, but such affection is indeed rare.
Zhou Xiaozheng glanced at his son-in-law, who was worried, and chuckled, "Alright, just accept it. We can forgo the larger one in the future."
What else could Zhang Guoqing say? The old lady was too good at leading people on, not thick-skinned at all. She tricked him into thinking everyone got sothing, only to realize it was just misdirection.
"And the old lady definitely wouldn’t register it under your real na. It’s probably so alias again. If anyone asks, just say it’s a relative’s house to brush them off."
Zhang Guoqing nodded understandingly. With a large family attracting attention, they already had several courtyards for just five people, and adding more would an having to settle their own accounts first.
Zhou Xiaozheng took a sheet of paper from the drawer and handed it to him, "Tomorrow, return to work and report. This is howork. Go through so newspapers these days, and bring the answers next ti you return."
Zhang Guoqing took a look, then used a match to burn the paper, laughing, "No problem, then I’ll take my leave?"
"Go on, get so sleep. I need to review these docunts and rest early too."
As Zhang Guoqing walked out laughing, he asked, "Dad, have you co up with a na for Mom?" As soon as he finished, he quickly ran outside and closed the door, hearing his father-in-law inside laughing and scolding him, calling him a brat, to which he laughed happily.
Every ti he asked when his wife would return, his father-in-law would always mock him with a disdainful look. Finally, he seized the opportunity this ti.
Zhang Guoqing returned to the room, turned on the lamp, and looked at his son sleeping soundly under the mosquito net. Standing by the bed for a mont, seeing no mosquitoes inside, he turned off the light and went to the small study next door.
He took out the letters from the family this ti and opened them to read again.
Mr. Zhang’s letters now contained more and more content, describing trivial matters of the old ho and ending by reminding them to live well and not to treat themselves poorly.
Zhang the Second’s letters detailed each family mber’s life and so matters they encountered, particularly highlighting so things about Zuo Lin.
Regarding Zuo Lin’s plan to return to Beijing, Zhang Guoqing already knew. But nowadays, even having connections doesn’t necessarily grant entry. Even if there is a unit willing to accept him, a re county chief arriving in Beijing doesn’t have any qualifications to speak of and would be reduced to an ordinary clerk. Would Zuo Lin be content with that?
Beyond these trivial matters, he continued to read the letters from his eldest sister’s husband, Zhang Chunming. Compared to other family letters, his eldest sister’s family’s letters were always the thickest.
Thinking of his eldest sister’s nature, Zhang Guoqing couldn’t help but smile. He truly didn’t know how his brother-in-law tolerated his sister’s constant chatter and still wrote it all down.
His eldest sister every ti would start with, "Do you have enough money? Is anyone bullying you at school? Are you losing weight? You’re not arguing with Jiao Jiao, are you? Has Ping’an grown taller?"
Touching these family letters, Zhang Guoqing beca lost in thought, wondering if they were reporting only the good news and not the bad, or if they were truly doing well.
Thinking of his parents far away in the north, Zhang Guoqing picked up a pen and first wrote a long letter to Mr. Zhang and the family. Recently, so much had happened: the Lin Family matters, those concerning his mother-in-law, coming one after another, and without Zhou Jiao by his side, he had many things he couldn’t tell others, often missing his family dearly.
The three long sheets of paper briefly ntioned his mother-in-law’s background, Mrs. Lin’s suicide, and the imprisonnt of Zhou Xiaocun, who was once a big uncle.
Lastly, he emphasized inviting them to co over during the sumr holidays, particularly ntioning Old Mrs. Cheng’s small courtyard. They really wouldn’t feel out of place this ti when they ca over.
Bereft of sleepiness, Zhang Guoqing continued writing responses to each letter.
By the ti he finished writing, it was already late at night. He tidied up briefly, leaned back in the chair to rest his eyes, silently calculating Jiao Jiao’s return date.
Sitting there until Ping’an got up to use the toilet, Zhang Guoqing finally ca back to his senses and quickly entered the bedroom.
Ping’an, half-squinting, urinated in the enal spittoon, and upon hearing the sound, opened his eyes to glance at him, mumbling, "Dad, sleep."
Zhang Guoqing joyfully picked him up and walked towards the kang bed, "Alright. Go back to sleep, Dad will keep you company."
"Okay."
After resetting the mosquito net, Zhang Guoqing glanced at the photo on the bedside and softly wished goodnight to Zhou Jiao in the photo.
When he turned off the light, he was still thinking whether his wife, who was in a foreign country, was in dayti or nightti, who was with her, and whether she was already flying back.
Zhang Guoqing was missing Zhou Jiao, but Zhou Jiao was also constantly thinking about him, her father, her children, and all her loved ones.
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