The saying goes that the nearer ho one approaches, the weaker the brave heart grows. Luo Zhenggang, who had been expressionless all the way, finally showed a slight change in expression after arriving in the town.
He hadn’t been back to his hotown for nearly half a year. Thinking about seeing his father and siblings soon, he felt both excited and sowhat apprehensive.
There were four siblings in the family. His eldest brother returned to help at ho after graduating from elentary school because their parents needed assistance. His second brother didn’t complete middle school due to poor academic performance. His third sister, who was only a year younger than him but enrolled the sa year, had to drop out during high school because the family could only afford to send one child to school, and his father chose him because he had better grades.
Because of his father’s partiality, he had gone all out to provide financial support to his siblings over the years—his entire salary was given to his father and his younger siblings. Fortunately, Wen Xin was understanding and supportive, reassuring him that the expenses for the family could be covered by the inco from Wenxin Garden so he needn’t worry.
His father disagreed with his approach and, after failing to persuade him, started saving his own share of money, saying it was for ergencies for Luo Feng and Luo Ye.
In recent years, his elder and second brothers’ financial situations had improved and they refused to let him send money anymore. Only his third sister held grudges against him—for not using his position to secure jobs for her children and relatives, converting them into what the villagers called "state-supplied sustenance." Consequently, she gladly accepted whatever money he sent and would even call to check if he had forgotten to send it if there was any delay in a month. How embarrassing!
Because of this, their father had scolded the third sister, but she harbored resentnt towards their father for making her quit school, which often led to argunts between them. Eventually, their father grew tired of dealing with her. However, he advised him that it was ti to let go of the burden and that he owed no one anything.
Perhaps his apprehension was mainly because of his third sister. No matter his position, she remained the sharp-tongued third sister who never gave him face. But what could he do as her brother?
Wen Xin was very understanding of her husband’s feelings and comforted him gently by patting him quietly.
Ye’er, noticing her mother’s subtle gesture, sighed inwardly. The village had many fathers like hers, university graduates owing their success to the full support of their families. This often ant that throughout their lives, they carried a burden with them, usually resulting in unhappy marriages and families. If not for her magnanimous mom, their ho would likely be filled with constant quarrels.
She did not oppose her father helping his uncles and aunts, but everything should be done in moderation. Thankfully they had Wenxin Garden, or what then? Essentially, her dad marrying her mom was truly a blessing, as the saying "poor couples have a hundred woes" held much truth. After all, love alone can’t quench the thirst; and there were children to think of.
With the driver Xiao Wang on board, Ye’er couldn’t say much, so she pretended to be oblivious and leaned on her brother, playfully teasing Dou Dou.
...
"Grandpa! Grandpa is at the village entrance!" Ye’er suddenly shouted excitedly, leaning back against her brother’s back just in ti to spot their grandpa’s familiar figure at the village entrance. It had been so many years, but she recognized him instantly!
"Xiao Wang, turn right at the road ahead!" Luo Zhenggang’s expression also beca excited; that sturdy figure standing at the village entrance was indeed their father. He had been pondering things earlier and hadn’t noticed that they had already reached the village entrance.
Before the car stopped completely, Ye’er pushed open the door and ran down, throwing herself into Grandpa Luo’s arms: "Grandpa, Ye’er missed you so much." As she spoke, tears stread down uncontrollably.
"Ye’er, don’t cry, don’t cry. Did your dad scold you again? That naughty boy, Grandpa will avenge Ye’er later!" Grandpa Luo gently patted his granddaughter. Seeing his son, daughter-in-law, and grandson coming down from the car, he excitedly hugged Ye’er, stepping forward to et them. Not seeing them for half a year, he definitely missed them.
Luo Zhenggang respectfully looked at Grandpa Luo: "Dad, we’re back!"
Wen Xin quickly followed: "Dad, we haven’t been back for such a long ti, it’s our fault!"
"Grandpa, I missed you!" Luo Feng moved next to Grandpa, hugging both his grandpa and sister, but he wondered, why was his sister crying so sadly?
"Wen Xin, you all are busy, dad understands. It’s good that you’re back! It’s good that you’re back!" Grandpa Luo patted his grandchildren, his excited face struggling to maintain seriousness: "Zhenggang, you should pamper and nurture girls, don’t you know?"
Luo Zhenggang felt so wronged; unable to say anything, he glanced helplessly at his sobbing daughter shrugging his shoulders. Wen Xin also looked puzzled. When getting out of the car, their precious daughter Dou Dou was completely neglected, and that was unusual. It had been over a year and eight months since they last saw Grandpa, and she hadn’t reacted this way then.
Ye’er raised her head and smiled sheepishly: "Grandpa, dad didn’t scold . It’s just been so long since I saw you, I wanted to cry when I saw you."
The crystalline tears still lingered in her eyes, but her little face was radiant with a beaming smile. Grandpa Luo was amused by his granddaughter and pinched her perky little nose: "Such a big girl and still behaving this way, one mont crying, the next laughing, really shaless."
"Hehe... Grandpa, how did you know we were coming back now?" Ye’er curiously asked. As far as she knew, her dad and mom only ntioned they would return ho in the next few days without specifying a precise ti.
"This morning a magpie landed in the yard, and Grandpa knew you were coming back. I just ca out to try my luck, and it turned out to be spot on! Let’s go, let’s go ho!" Grandpa Luo said, wrapping his arms around his grandchildren, heading ho. Ye’er knew right away that Grandpa was lying. He must have been waiting at the village entrance every day. Her nose tingled, and tears welled up again.
"Ye’er, why have you beco such a crybaby? My Ye’er finally showing her face..." Grandpa Luo chuckled while patting Ye’er and Luo Feng’s heads: "Both Ye’er and Feng’er have changed quite a bit, Grandpa is really happy!"
Ye’er pouted, "Grandpa, you’ve been waiting for several days at the village entrance, haven’t you? It’s so hot these days, and the midday sun is so harsh. Were you standing under the sun waiting for us to appear?"
Grandpa Luo chuckled, "Silly Ye’er, Grandpa hasn’t been waiting every day. Today was just a coincidence. I had just reached the village entrance, and here you were. Let tell you, the sun-dried sweet potatoes are just perfect, and the strawberries are ripe. Let’s go ho and pick so strawberries for you!"
Ye’er happily hugged Grandpa’s arm: "I’ll go pick them with Grandpa!" Grandpa didn’t admit it, and she didn’t want to dwell on it anymore. She’d just take good care of Grandpa from now on.
"Zhenggang, who had been quietly trailing behind, saw his father’s back soaked with sweat and quickly suggested, ’Dad, why don’t you get in the car?’"
"The driver Xiao Wang quickly parked the car beside Grandpa Luo, ’Grandpa, I’ve set the air conditioning in the car rather low, so it’s not very cool!’"
"Seeing Wen Xin wiping sweat nonstop, Grandpa Luo nodded his head, ’Alright, let’s get in the car!’"
"Zhenggang breathed a sigh of relief. In the past, the old man wouldn’t allow them to ride a vehicle into the village, fearing that it might invite gossip from the villagers and adversely impact his career. Perhaps this ti he felt it didn’t matter since it was the middle of the day and there weren’t many people around?"
"Welco! Bring the red packets!"
"As soon as several people entered the courtyard, Grandpa Luo’s macaw Honghong pronounced with its unique tone, which alard Dou Dou to puff up its wings, ’Chirp chirp...’"
"’Silly bird!’"
"’Chirp chirp...’"
"’Co back again!’"
"’Chirp chirp...’"
"’∞##%&%#...’"
"Grandpa Luo commanded, ’Honghong, shut up!’"
"’Grandpa, what is Honghong mumbling unclearly about?’ Luo Ye, who had been amused all along, quickly asked his grandpa."
"’Shh...’ Grandpa Luo whispered, ’The Xiao Xiao next door from Fourth Aunt Lu’s house went out to work, encountered so grievances, and developed ntal issues. She often murmurs nonsensically at ho, Honghong is imitating her.’"
"’Oh! Oh! Oh!’ Luo Ye nodded repeatedly, rembering, ’Xiao Xiao dropped out after junior high to work in a textile factory. Due to her introverted and overly sensitive personality, people avoided interacting with her. When soone lost money in the dorm and casually asked her if she saw it, her self-esteem took a hit, and eventually, it led to her current state.’"
"’Fourth Grandpa, do you have visitors?’ While the grandfather and grandson were talking, Xiao Xiao ca over, probably because she heard the car earlier."
"Grandpa Luo smiled, ’Yes, Xiao Xiao, didn’t you take a nap?’"
"’I was about to sleep, but I was woken up by the noise from your house. I ca to see, is this a gift delivery?’ Xiao Xiao squinted her small eyes, staring at Luo family father and son and Xiao Wang bringing gifts into the house."
"’No, these are Fourth Grandpa’s son and grandson along with his son’s driver.’ Grandpa Luo patiently answered Xiao Xiao’s question. This matter couldn’t be taken lightly, as although she might be ntally unstable, when it cos to gossiping, she is as active as ever, completely different from her previous silent self."
Luo Ye sized up the plump Xiao Xiao, who looked like a stead bun, and sighed internally, ’Such a fragile child, how did such a small issue get to her nerves? Look at her now, pumped up on hormones, barely able to walk.’
"’Who are you?’ Seeing Luo Ye observing her, Xiao Xiao asked curiously."
"Grandpa Luo laughed and took a lollipop from a bag Luo Feng was carrying and gave it to her, ’This is Fourth Grandpa’s granddaughter Luo Ye. Last ti she visited, you even took her out to play, rember?’"
"Xiao Xiao pouted, ’Fourth Grandpa is lying, Ye’er is uglier than her. She is just as pretty as Xiao Xiao!’"
"Corner of Luo Ye’s mouth twitched, and she quickly moved to help Wen Xin cook in the kitchen, leaving the situation for Grandpa to handle as she was not good at such matters."
"’Mom, what can I do?’ Luo Ye slipped into the kitchen, grabbed a freshly cut tomato, and threw it into her mouth, feeling the refreshing sweetness soothe her soul, ’Mom, the tomatoes Grandpa grows are just so delicious.’"
"Wen Xin slapped Luo Ye’s hand hard, ’Did you wash your hands?’"
"’I did, of course, I washed them before I ca here!’ Luo Ye said with a face full of grievance."
"’Alright, mom wronged you. Go play, mom doesn’t need your help!’ Wen Xin handed a ripe tomato to her daughter, ’This one is ripe, it should be delicious.’"
"Luo Ye looked speechless, feeling like her mom was treating her like a three-year-old child. Isn’t that a bit discriminatory?"
"Alas, Nu’an broke her promise again, rushed until 9 o’clock, not sure if there are guys waiting for the screen, Nu’an apologizes. Special thanks to those who subscribe and support pink, Nu’an will continue to work hard, love you guys. (To be continued, if you want to know what happens next, please visit qidian, for more Chapters, support the author, support genuine reading!)"
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