In the blink of an eye, it was the early spring of 1977.
One day, a small car suddenly arrived in Da Liushu Village. Two n got out, saying they were looking for the village chief. Upon hearing the news, the chief ca running over, only to learn that they had co from Beijing City to pick up Zheng Guofeng.
"Who’s Zheng Guofeng?"
Everyone looked at each other, none of them knowing who Zheng Guofeng was.
"From Beijing City... You don’t an the Zheng Guofeng who lives in the cowshed, do you?" The village chief thought for a good while before it ca to him. The middle-aged man in the cowshed did seem to have the surna Zheng, but he had forgotten the man’s full na.
The two n nodded.
It was only then that the crowd realized the man living in their village’s cowshed was an official from Beijing City. Everyone had avoided that area because an old couple had died in the cowshed years ago. For the past few years, they had only ever seen the middle-aged man while working in the fields and knew nothing else about him.
The village chief quickly led the two n to the cowshed. He couldn’t help but blush at the sight of the dilapidated structure and the unpleasant sll wafting from it.
When Zheng Guofeng ca out, he was taken aback for a mont upon seeing the two n.
"Xiao Zhu, Xiao Chen, what are you doing here?"
The two n hurried forward to greet him. "Deputy Minister, the higher-ups have cleared your na. We’ve been ordered to escort you back to resu your post."
Although Zheng Guofeng was sowhat surprised, his face showed no trace of happiness.
’Zheng Guofeng’s mind was in turmoil. He had grown accustod to life here. He had no family in Beijing City, but here, he had found the son Wanyi had borne him—his only living relative. If he returned, seeing Xingzhou again would likely be difficult. But if he didn’t go back, what could he possibly do here? He would just be a burden on his son.’
After thinking it over, Zheng Guofeng said to them, "Xiao Zhu, Xiao Chen, I’ve found my son here. I can’t leave with you just yet. I have to at least tell him I’m going. The thing is, he works at the Public Security Bureau in town and won’t be back until after his shift ends."
The two n weren’t upset upon hearing this. "Deputy Minister, we ca in a hurry and didn’t give you any ti to prepare. We can stay in town for a night and leave early tomorrow morning. We just can’t stay too long, as there’s a deadline from the higher-ups."
Zheng Guofeng bowed to them. "Alright. Thank you."
The two n quickly waved their hands in dismissal. "Deputy Minister, there’s no need for such formalities."
After the two n left, the village chief turned to Zheng Guofeng. "Is He Lang’s brother-in-law your son?"
Zheng Guofeng had just ntioned his son worked at the Public Security Bureau in town. In all the surrounding villages, the chief had never heard of anyone’s son working there, except for Xue Xingzhou.
At this point, there was no reason for Zheng Guofeng to deny it. "Yes."
"Then what about He Lang’s wife?"
Zheng Guofeng shook his head. "She’s not my daughter, but she calls uncle."
The village chief understood imdiately.
"You’ve suffered a lot here all these years. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to help much. I hope you don’t hold it against ."
Of course, Zheng Guofeng wouldn’t. He smiled at the village chief. "It’s been fine."
Indeed, his life here had been decent. The villagers hadn’t given him trouble, and especially in recent years, Xue Xingzhou and the couple, He Lang and his wife, had taken excellent care of him.
News about Zheng Guofeng quickly spread throughout the entire village. Zheng Guofeng also left the cowshed and went to Xue Yue’s place.
Only then did everyone discover that He Lang and his wife had been in contact with the man from the cowshed all along.
The villagers were incredibly envious. Soone slapped their thigh in regret, lanting, "If only I’d known a high-ranking official was living in the cowshed, I would’ve tried to curry favor with him! I might have been able to get my son an official post. Tsk, tsk, what a regret! He Lang and his wife are the truly shrewd ones. They’ve snatched up all the benefits again."
Listening to Zheng Guofeng, Xue Yue learned for the first ti that after her mother passed away, he had gone abroad. He returned a few years later and had been working for the Ministry of Comrce, only to be denounced a few years ago, which forced him to co here.
Zheng Guofeng sighed. "It must be fate. I ca here and t you and your brother, and only then did I find out that Wanyi had given a son. It’s just that once I go back, I expect I’ll be very busy."
Xue Yue said happily, "Uncle Zheng, this is wonderful news! My brother will definitely be happy for you when he finds out. If you don’t have ti to visit, he can go see you! That’s not an issue. What matters is that you’re a free man again and you’ve been reinstated. This is the best news ever! We have to celebrate tonight."
Zheng Guofeng was infected by Xue Yue’s smile and said with a laugh of his own, "Alright. We’ll treat it as a farewell dinner."
He Lang and Xue Xingzhou returned together in the evening.
When He Lang saw Zheng Guofeng at the house, he imdiately felt sothing was off. After Xue Yue explained the situation, both he and Xue Xingzhou finally understood. He Lang had heard rumors recently that the political winds were shifting, but he never expected things to move so quickly.
Xue Xingzhou, however, had long anticipated this.
"When are you leaving?"
"Tomorrow morning. They’re staying in town for the night. It can’t be delayed any further."
Xue Xingzhou nodded. "It’s for the best that you go back soon."
Zheng Guofeng looked at him with a complicated expression. "Then I’ll wait for you in Beijing City. Co and see when you have ti. I’ll leave you an address. You can write or call. I’ll contact you as well."
"Mm."
’Once the policies relax in the future, many things will change. Xue Xingzhou had no intention of staying in this place for the rest of his life; he had to get out eventually. Perhaps Beijing City would be a good choice. However, he couldn’t make any promises right now, because he also had to consider Xue Yue and her husband. He didn’t want to be too far away from them.’
That evening, the family enjoyed a proper reunion dinner and even had a little wine. It was the first ti Zheng Guofeng had had a drink in years, and he got a bit tipsy, so He Lang had him stay the night.
Early the next morning, the two n ca again.
Zheng Guofeng left with them.
The three of them stood there for a long ti, watching the car disappear into the distance. Worried that her brother was upset, Xue Yue tried to comfort him, "Big Brother, don’t be sad. When we have ti, we can all go to Beijing City to see Uncle Zheng. I’ve never been to Beijing City, anyway."
Xue Xingzhou glanced at her. "Who said I was sad?"
Xue Yue blinked. "You’re not? Then why aren’t you saying anything?"
"Don’t feel like it." Xue Xingzhou ignored her and started walking back on his own.
Xue Yue: "..."
Mr. and Mrs. He had wanted to co over as soon as they heard the news yesterday, but they held back, knowing Zheng Guofeng was there. They waited until after Zheng Guofeng left today before rushing over to ask He Lang what was going on. How did their family get involved with the man from the cowshed?
He Lang gave his parents a brief explanation, but it took them a long while to process what they’d heard.
"Since Xingzhou’s father is an official in Beijing City, he’s not going to move to Beijing City too, is he?"
"That, I don’t know." He Lang genuinely didn’t know.
"You two... why don’t you tell us anything? If we’d known that Xingzhou’s biological father was living in the cowshed, we would have at least helped look after him."
He Lang pursed his lips. "Mom, if you had known earlier that we were associating with the man from the cowshed, wouldn’t you have been afraid?"
Mrs. He faltered, realizing he had a point. Then she added, "Still, you should have told us sooner."
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