T.N: With this chapter, we have reached the middle of this novel! With the extras, but without a little, very surprising surprise that Author-Sama posted. I’m not going to spoil it, but I’ll probably translate that as well since it’s sweet, but a little bit weird… Wink wink (•ᴗ<˶)✧₊ ⊹
Since they were now on holiday, Xu Shen was too lazy to get up in the morning to cook, so he slept until very late before riding his bicycle out to buy food.
“Newspapers are being sold! Newspapers are being sold! Nanshi Daily, there’s big news today!” The newspaper seller passed by on his bicycle.
Xu Shen didn’t usually read newspapers, but he remembered what Shu Ran said before: “Those of us who do business must pay special attention to the policies of the superiors. Only by following the policies of the superiors can we have enough to eat.”
So Xu Shen picked up the front of his bicycle, quickly went back to chase the newspaper seller, bought one, and stuffed it into his basket.
There was a steamed stuffed bun shop not far from home, and Shu Ran loved to eat their steamed buns and fried dough sticks. Xu Shen always bought those two items every time he came over, as well as freshly ground soy milk.
Hearing the bicycle bell ringing outside the courtyard door downstairs, Shu Ran got up and washed. A few minutes later, he yawned and came downstairs: “Brother Shen, what are we eating today?”
Surprised by not hearing a response, Shu Ran took a look and saw that Xu Shen was holding a newspaper, looking fascinated. His expression was serious, something that Shu Ran had rarely seen before, and his brows were tightly knitted… It made people curious about the newspaper in his hands.
“Are you awake?” Xu Shen came back to his senses and smiled at his wife who had already walked beside him: “Look at me… I was so absorbed in reading the newspaper that I forgot to call you up.”
“What happened?” Shu Ran asked.
“Look.” Xu Shen handed him the newspaper directly.
Shu Ran took the newspaper from Xu Shen’s hand, and what came into view was black-and-white picture that took up half of the page. In the picture, two law enforcement officers in police uniforms were holding a criminal on a public stage, with a knife around his neck. A sign was hung up with the man’s name written in bold font.
Behind the public demonstration platform, there was a dense group of criminals waiting to be paraded on the streets. They all had their hands tied behind their backs and name tags hung around their necks, with slumped spirits and lowered heads.
And that headline… “Nationwide crackdown on criminals!”
With the future development of society, the country would increasingly intensify its efforts to crack down on gangs and eliminate evil. If one read the contents of the newspapers carefully, it was obvious that the propaganda was in full swing, with various anti-evil policies being implemented with great fanfare in various places.
“That’s a good thing…” Shu Ran said. Only by cracking down on criminals could people live and work in peace and contentment.
“Well, it is a good thing.” Xu Shen nodded solemnly.
Shu Ran looked at Xu Shen: “Brother Shen, looking at your serious expression just now… One might think that you’re unhappy.” Of course, he was joking and he knew Xu Shen didn’t mean that.
“No way.” Xu Shen immediately denied it. He was not unhappy. “I just saw a familiar name.”
Not really familiar, but someone he knew.
Shu Ran was startled. Xu Shen used to hang out in society, so he probably knew a lot of people who came out to make a living. Some people failed to control themselves and committed unforgivable crimes…
Just wait for the future Skynet1Skynet refers to the Mass surveillance in the People’s Republic of China (PRC)- the network of monitoring systems used by the Chinese central government to monitor Chinese citizens. It is primarily conducted through the government, although corporate surveillance in connection with the Chinese government has been reported to occur. China monitors its citizens through Internet surveillance, camera surveillance, and other digital technologies. It has become increasingly widespread and grown in sophistication under the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Xi Jinping’s administration… Who could escape if the country really cracks down hard?!
“Those who are published in newspapers and exposed to the public will probably be sentenced to death…” Xu Shen said. He was just a little emotional, not sympathizing with those people.
After a moment of silence, he sighed: “Stop talking about this, eat quickly.”
“Hmm..” Shu Ran opened his mouth and took the fried dough sticks that Xu Shen brought to his mouth. He still held the newspaper and read it. Yes… the sentencing back in those days was very strong, and if the circumstances were serious, the death penalty would be imposed.
According to that era’s rules, Chen Kai’s father was sentenced to twenty years in prison. However, his crimes were not particularly serious. If he lived in the future, he would have definitely not received such a heavy sentence.
But rules were rules… Just reform honestly, and then come out and live a down-to-earth life.
Shu Ran looked at Xu Shen, the man who hadn’t gone astray yet… He was secretly glad that the other man had corrected his evil ways and would never make the same mistake in the future… Right?!
In fact, he really wanted to know… What made Xu Shen finally lose his way?
After being in contact with him for so long, he always felt that Xu Shen was not that kind of person… But there will probably never be an answer to that question, so there was no point in exploring it.
Shu Ran read the headlines on the front page and then continued to read the newspaper. The headline on another page was… An avant-garde article that encouraged contemporary young people to fall in love, while criticizing arranged marriages!
Shu Ran was happy and looked at it with relish.
This author’s writing style was very concise and sharp, and his narrative ability was vivid on the page, making Shu Ran, as a young author that just finished writing a manuscript, tremble.
“Brother Shen, this is interesting!” Shu Ran said.
“Let me take a look.” Xu Shen came over to look and laughed after reading the title: “It is estimated that there will be fewer and fewer men and women on blind dates in the future, and everyone will tend to find a partner by themselves… In fact, I also think it is better to fall in love naturally, but I really didn’t know it at that time. Articles like this are too scarce, and they should be published in newspapers more so that young people can be inspired.”
Xu Shen didn’t have any sort of awareness back then. All he saw and heard was about arranged marriages. As long as the parents agreed, he could live a happy life… He didn’t think about love at all. To say it was feudal and conservative would not be an exaggeration!
It was the appearance of Shu Ran that inspired all of Xu Shen’s rebellion. Now he felt that everything else except Shu Ran was empty.
“No, there will be no shortage of blind dates!” Shu Ran laughed and almost choked on his soy milk: “This fine tradition…” Was still very popular forty years later!
Xu Shen glanced at Shu Ran strangely and wondered: “Wife, don’t you support avant-garde state policies?”
Taking a closer look at what Shu Ran had done, he was definitely a neoliberal2Neoliberalism is contemporarily used to refer to market-oriented reform policies such as “eliminating price controls, deregulating capital markets, lowering trade barriers” and reducing, especially through privatization and austerity, state influence in the economy…How could he think that blind dates were a good tradition?!
“I do…” Shu Ran said. “I am definitely and firmly opposed to arranged marriages, but blind date is a neutral term. If parents transfer the right to blind dates to their children, it is not so bad.”
People hated blind dates… Mostly because their parents interfere too much!
Seeing the newspaper gave Shu Ran a new idea. He said: “How about we set up a reading corner in the factory?”
Xu Shen: “Reading corner?”
“Well, let everyone read books and newspapers. For example, this article criticizing arranged marriage is worth publicizing and paving the way for the dissolution of your marriage with my sister…” Shu Ran continued. “Otherwise, procrastination is not the answer. Instead of letting others suspect you, it’s better to speak out yourself.”
Xu Shen felt it made sense.
“Okay.” If anyone wanted to clarify that relationship the most, it was Xu Shen himself… And he guessed that Zhang Yunsheng was his fellow sufferer… In fact, it was time to come clean to Zhou Hui’s parents. Speaking of that, Xu Shen suddenly remembered: “The situation has changed. I told your parents last time that when the weather gets cold, I will take them to the city for a walk. How about taking this opportunity to do it?”
It just so happened that the factory was on holiday.
Time flew so fast, and it was already November, late autumn in Nanshi, and the weather had turned cooler.
Shu Ran thought about it seriously, trying to minimize the awkwardness of having to perform once again in front of his parents. “Okay, let’s discuss it with my sister and brother-in-law first and see what we can say?”
“Don’t worry, my brother-in-law is infinitely better than me. Your parents will be happy to hear it.” Xu Shen said.
“How can you say that about yourself?!” Shu Ran was not happy. “You are not allowed to talk about yourself like that! In my heart, you are the best.”
Xu Shen touched his ears, feeling a little hot from the praise: “You are also the best in my heart…”
After exchanging a few sweet words that made everyone happy, the two hurriedly had breakfast and went out to visit their brother-in-law’s house.
“Remind me to go to the bank when we come back.”
Shu Ran pinched Xu Shen’s waist and abdomen but found out that it couldn’t be pinched… He was so annoyed that he pinched his own with his backhand.
“Okay.” Xu Shen said.
…………
Zhou Hui’s married life was very warm and fulfilling. Usually, when her man went to work, she would quietly make clothes at home. When he got back, they would cook and clean together, talking and laughing, making her blush.
Their marriage had no complicated interpersonal relationships and no pressure in life. She felt very lucky.
That day, her younger brother brought Xu Shen to visit, telling her something that had always been on her mind. Zhou Hui definitely supported it!
“I’m really sorry that it took so long…” She said to Xu Shen. “When my parents come, let’s just say it was my idea. I’m not afraid of their objections.”
Now that she was already married, what was there to be afraid of?!
The only thing she was afraid of was that if her parents made trouble, it would affect Zhang Yunsheng’s work… However, based on Zhou Hui’s understanding of her parents, they would never have the guts to oppose it.
“Sister, it’s not that serious.” Shu Ran comforted her and analyzed it: “With our parent’s temperament, when they hear that you married my brother-in-law, they would probably faint with joy.”
When Zhou Hui heard that, she hurried to see Xu Shen’s reaction and kicked her brother: “How can you say that?!” Don’t say that now… The implications reflected badly on Xu Shen!
“It doesn’t matter.” Xu Shen said nonchalantly. Anyway, his wife said that he was the best!
“Then what do I need to prepare?” Zhang Yunsheng asked nervously.
He had heard a lot about the situation of his in-laws from his wife earlier, and he felt particularly complicated.
“No,” Shu Ran continued. “Brother-in-law, it’s best to be stern and don’t please my parents too much. They’ll just have to make do with it.”
“That’s right…” Xu Shen added slowly. “It’s best to show up in your uniform.”
Shu Ran couldn’t help laughing and nodded: “That should be easy to arrange.”
“Understood!” Zhang Yunsheng and his wife agreed quickly, both of them full of joy.
The four people discussed it, and Xu Shen said: “Then we will set off to the countryside tomorrow morning to pick… Them up.” He was used to calling Shu Ran’s parents as his parents, so he almost let it slip.
“Do you need me to go too?” Zhou Hui asked.
“No need.” Xu Shen pointed at Shu Ran: “We’ll go.”
“Well…” Zhou Hui had some strange emotions flashing through her heart, but she didn’t catch them. She just felt a kind of melancholy, as if her brother was no longer hers… Not knowing where that feeling came from, she decided to not think about it carefully. “Okay, then Yunsheng and I will prepare lunch at home.”
Shu Ran was quite nervous about coming alone with Xu Shen as a guest. He was afraid that the vague atmosphere between them would be too strong and people would notice it… But fortunately, Zhou Hui and her husband already had preconceived ideas about their relationship that could not be changed easily.
When Shu Ran came out of his brother-in-law’s house, both of them were silent. Shu Ran was thinking that… After settling Zhou Hui’s matter with their parents, should he also come out to Zhou Hui and her husband?
Coincidentally, Xu Shen was thinking about the same matter. They had such a tacit understanding that after much deliberation, they both unanimously chose not to say anything.
They had to eat the food they had one bite at a time and do things step by step.
“By the way, let’s go to the bank.” Xu Shen said.
“Hiss! I would have forgotten if you didn’t tell me!” Shu Ran returned to reality from his thoughts and sweetly praised his boyfriend: “You have such a good memory, I will use you as a memo from now on!”
Xu Shen sighed: “If I was so forgetful at such a young age… My wife would be so pitiful.”
“?”
Was this person taking revenge on himself?! Shu Ran patted his back: “What’s wrong with forgetfulness?! I have a human memo, do you have one?”
Xu Shen laughed: “I really don’t…”
Human memo? He learned an interesting new vocabulary word…
Shu Ran raised the corners of his mouth in the back seat of the bicycle, smiling brightly. How could he let Xu Shen win in a verbal spat?! Unless it was another form of sparring that used their mouths…
The two went to the bank and transferred all the money that should be distributed to the other shareholders. The remaining shares were theirs, and Shu Ran put everything in Xu Shen’s account.
“Give it all to me?” Xu Shen asked hesitantly. “How about you open an account and save it for yourself?”
Shu Ran was not a person who cared about money, so he shook his head and refused: “No need, I’m too lazy to take care of money.”
In fact, he didn’t want to take care of the company’s money at all, but it seemed that no one else was suitable. Chen Sen was not interested in the accounts, Chen Kai was a complete fool, Jiang Fan was careless… Only Xu Shen was attentive, but he was also too busy to care about it.
So it fell on his person again!
Xu Shen glanced at him and said “Okay.” He didn’t mention it again.
The first time they divided the money, nobody cared about who did more work or who had more leisure time. They shared it equally.
The remaining money in the company account could only be saved and used for daily expenses.
…………
The next day, they were going to bring Shu Ran’s parents into the city. Xu Shen went to Jiang Fan’s house to borrow his car, driving to the countryside early in the morning.
In late autumn, the fields were no longer busy. Zhou Guodong and his wife went out in the morning but were back before noon.
“Dad, there is someone selling pork in the village today!” Lin Xuehua came up to him and said, “You can give me some tickets for it.”
Zhou Guodong: “Let the second daughter buy it.”
Zhou Lan was carrying her baby brother to wash clothes. Hearing that, she stood up and wiped her hands: “Okay.”
Everyone was happy to have meat to eat!
When Zhou Lan took the tickets to buy pork, she felt that her sister-in-law’s face must have turned green with anger… But she couldn’t blame anyone! Zhou Guodong gave her money to buy meat last time, and Lin Xuehua turned around and gave half of it to her family…
Now, the entire house was guarding against thieves!
Lin Xuehua was so angry that when her man came back, she dragged him into the house and vented her anger: “Your whole family is on guard against me! I haven’t had a good life since I married into your family!”
“What’s wrong, wife?” Zhou Qiang asked hurriedly.
“I asked Dad to give me a ticket to buy meat, and he asked the second girl to go…” Lin Xuehua sounded aggrieved.
“…”
Zhou Qiang felt embarrassed but did not dare to tell his wife: “Well, you already have a criminal record, so of course everyone is wary of you…”
Suddenly, there was movement outside. It turned out that Xu Shen was driving over to pick up their parents as guests in the city.
Lin Xuehua originally wanted to go as well, but she was about to visit Zhou Hui’s house. There was no reason for a sister-in-law to visit her sister-in-law…
But Shu Ran had no intention of inviting them over anyway, so he directly greeted his parents and Zhou Lan: “Xiao Lan, you’re coming too.”
As for the other two seven or eight-year-old sisters who were not very sensible yet, it was not convenient for them to be brought along to hear about Zhou Hui’s matters, so they were left behind.
Hu Jinhua loved her youngest baby son very much, holding him in her arms for a long time: “Lao Qi is lucky, seeing a car at such a young age…”3I don’t know if that’s the baby name or not, but she’s literally calling him “Old Seven”:)) As a side note, the meaning of the Zhou children’s name are as following: The eldest son, Qiang 强- strength/power; The eldest daughter, Hui 惠- benefit/favor/kindness; The second son, Ding 定- set/fix/order; The second daughter, Lan 兰- orchid; Two unnamed sisters, and then the baby son, Old Seven :))
Shu Ran’s expression twisted. What kind of conclusion was that?!
Now that the weather has turned cold overnight, everyone put on long sleeves and long pants. The Zhou family members, who rarely went into the city, dug out their most decent clothes, the ones they never dared to wear at home.
She was about to meet her eldest daughter, who had been married for several months… Hu Jinhua hesitated for a moment and finally couldn’t help asking her second son: “Second brother, is your sister still angry?”
Zhou Hui refused to come back twice. How could Hu Jinhua believe all those fabricated reasons? She was obviously throwing tantrums!
Shu Ran: “So you already know that sister should be angry.”
Hu Jinhua was choked: “…”
But it was hard for her to say anything in front of her son-in-law.
“It’s been so long, isn’t she living a good life now?” Zhou Guodong said in a low voice. What was the matter? Did she really plan on hating them for the rest of her life?!
Shu Ran didn’t speak. He understood very well that convincing others or making them admit their mistakes was a stupid thing. The most effective way was to directly fight for his own interests with actions and put aside any useless emotions.
Also, he now felt that asking for love from others was stupid, and no one was obligated to love anyone by nature.
He used to be such a big idiot!
Xu Shen didn’t say much along the way. He could intervene in the Zhou family’s affairs, but he only interfered when Shu Ran needed his intervention. The main reason was that Xu Shen truly felt that his wife was very good at fighting…
Especially good at fighting!
Shu Ran was not a character that could be led around. He could control the rhythm of the conversation and strive for the initiative.
Just like now. Zhou Guodong and his wife were so anxious they were playing the drums in their hearts.
After entering the county town, Xu Shen drove directly to Zhang Yunsheng’s unit. Upon entering the gate, he made it clear to the Zhou family that it was a very respectable unit. What everyone did, how important it was… Everything in full detail.
The Zhou family was confused for a moment… Why did Xu Shen tell them all of that?!
“Well, son-in-law… Why are we coming to someone else’s workplace? Aren’t we going to your house?” Zhou Guodong asked.
He was a little worried. Could unrelated people even enter that place casually?! Were they in trouble?!
“Your son-in-law works in this unit.” Xu Shen said.
“What?!” Zhou Guodong and Hu Jinhua said in surprise.
Wait… What?! Wasn’t Xu Shen a businessman?!
As for them… They confidently believed that it was impossible for Xu Shen to work in a unit that had a five-pointed star on its door…4The five-pointed star refers to the Chinese flag
Shu Ran: “You don’t have to be too surprised. What Brother Shen said is true. As for what’s going on, we’ll tell you more when we get to my sister’s house later.”
“This…” Zhou Guodong’s mouth was open for a long time, unable to be closed. He was in an out-of-body state… Was all of that true?!
Especially when he got out of the car and saw rows of uniformed young people walking by with their heads held high… He became more and more disbelieving that Xu Shen could even work there!
Everyone in a ten-mile radius and eight villages knew that Xu Shen was a gangster! Even if he beat Zhou Guodong to death, he still wouldn’t believe that Xu Shen could enter such an honorable unit…
Shu Ran understood Zhou Guodong’s psychological activities at a glance, and shook his head without any emotion: “Let’s go, sister should be cooking.”
It was the first time Zhou Lan came to such a majestic and unfamiliar place, and she felt very insecure. After thinking about it, she quietly passed over her parents and followed her second brother. Relatively speaking, she felt that her second brother could give her more protection.
“Let’s go.” Shu Ran put his arm around his younger sister’s shoulders.
The thin cotton-padded jacket under his hand was washed hard and felt like it should have been thrown away more than half a year ago. He paused and thought about going back to the streets to buy some winter clothes for the little girl.
The group arrived at Zhang Yunsheng’s apartment, and Xu Shen knocked on the door. Someone soon opened it, looking like Zhou Hui, but… Dressed in a brand new autumn dress. She was already good-looking to begin with, but now she was living a happy married life, with a husband who was committed to raising her. It turned out that Zhou Hui became more and more beautiful, and her parents and sister did not dare to recognize her.
“Mom, Dad, Lan Lan, you’re here? Come in quickly.” Zhou Hui stepped aside with a smile, welcomed the stunned family members in, and then called to her brother and Xu Shen, whispering: “Thank you for your hard work.”
Shu Ran curled his lips towards her.
The Zhou family sat down in the two-bedroom apartment. The three of them looked around with dizziness, soon realizing exactly how well Zhou Hui was living.
There was everything, even a TV…!
Now Zhou Guodong finally believed that Xu Shen worked there since it was a unit’s apartment. If Xu Shen didn’t work there, how could he possibly live in it?
But at that time, a tall young man wearing a military uniform came out of the kitchen, walked up to Zhou Hui, and asked: “Xiao Hui, are these our parents?”
As soon as the Zhou family saw Zhang Yunsheng’s appearance, they immediately stood up straight from their seats. They looked so nervous that they couldn’t react to what the other party said.
“Yes.” Zhou Hui introduced Zhang Yunsheng: “This is our dad, this is our mom, and this is our younger sister, Zhou Lan.” Then she introduced Zhang Yunsheng to her relatives: “Mom, Dad, Lan Lan, this is Zhang Yunsheng, my husband. In fact, I never married Brother Shen at all, but ended up marrying Yunsheng5I don’t remember translating Zhang Yunsheng’s name before, so here it it 云 yún cloud/say/speak and 生 shēng raw/green/life; Google says that this name has the following meaning: “Strong-willed, frank, and with a pioneering spirit, but it also means being humble and courteous, energetic, outstanding in wisdom, endless wealth, and eager to live a fulfilling life.” All in all, is way more poetic than any name the Zhou family came up with :)).”
After Zhou Hui finished speaking, the whole room fell into an eerie silence.
Zhou Guodong was surprised for a long time and stuttered: “You… what did you say…?”
Shu Ran came out to explain: “Let me tell you, the thing is like this… That day, Brother Shen brought my sister to the city. Sister told Brother Shen that she did not want to get married blindly since it was an arranged marriage and she did not agree to it… Fortunately, Brother Shen did not force it, and even helped my sister and introduced her to her current husband.” After a pause, he continued: “Mom and Dad, if there is anything you don’t understand, you can ask your son-in-law.”
“Yes.” Zhang Yunsheng frowned: “Do you two have any objections to my marriage to Xiaohui?”
He was tall, had deliberately not shaved in the morning, and had a rather dignified frown.
“No, no objection…” Zhou Guodong and his wife had never seen so many people wearing military uniforms in their lives. Standing in front of Zhang Yunsheng, they felt that they couldn’t even breathe, caught up in a dream. But it was… a beautiful dream.
How did that happen?!
Regardless, between Xu Shen and Zhang Yunsheng, of course, they chose Zhang Yunsheng without hesitation!
Shu Ran patted Zhou Lan’s arm: “Little sister, call your brother-in-law.”
Zhou Lan saw her sister’s happy look and was genuinely happy for her. She shouted to Zhang Yunsheng: “Brother-in-law!”
Zhang Yunsheng smiled at her and nodded: “Sister Lan Lan, you are welcome as a guest at your brother-in-law’s house.”
After a pause, he walked up to Zhou Guodong and stretched out his hand: “Father-in-law?”
Zhou Guodong quickly stretched out his hand, and the crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes made him look like he was laughing: “Hey, you kid, why didn’t you tell us earlier? You’ve been hiding it from us!”
“It’s our fault.” Zhang Yunsheng said.
Zhou Hui walked up to Hu Jinhua and said: “Mom, you don’t have any objections to Yunsheng as your son-in-law, right?”
“No, no objection…” Hu Jinhua glanced at her eldest daughter with a complicated face and suddenly, she no longer dared to look her in the eyes: “As long as you live a good life, what else can your mother ask for?”
Zhou Hui knew why her mother was behaving like that. She once confessed to her mother that she dreamed of marrying a soldier but her own mother… Said that after reading some books, she became wild and full of unrealistic ideas.
“Everyone, sit down.” After talking, Zhang Yunsheng asked everyone to relax, otherwise the entire Zhou family would probably continue to keep standing as long as he was standing.
Shu Ran and Xu Shen were the only ones who dared to relax, sitting down and drinking water. After Zhou Guodong took a seat, he looked at Xu Shen, with the aura of a slave singing for his master: “Well, Xu Shen… This matter really wronged you..” Suddenly, he wanted to pretend to be angry and act like a responsible father.
Xu Shen was amused but didn’t argue with him: “It doesn’t matter. Although we didn’t end up marrying, I have a good relationship with your Zhou Ding. We can still treat each other as family members.”
Zhou Hui smiled: “Yes, Brother Shen takes such good care of Dingzi… Just like an older brother who worships his little brother!”
“Are you still single now?” Hu Jinhua felt sorry for Xu Shen and remembered the five hundred yuan, so she glanced at Zhou Guodong suggestively.
Zhou Guodong also thought of the betrothal money, which hurt his heart, but there was no reason not to pay it back. He gritted his teeth and said: “The five hundred yuan…”
“No need to give it back to me.” Xu Shen said.
They were all stunned. There was no need to pay it back?!
No matter what, Zhou Guodong was very happy when he immediately heard Zhang Yunsheng continue: “Yes, I have already returned it to Brother Xu Shen in Xiaohui’s name.”
“Oh, okay!” Zhou Guodong nodded. All was good as long as he didn’t have to take it out of his own pocket…
“Xu Shen, do you want me to introduce you to someone?” Hu Jinhua suddenly asked.
“Ah? No need.” Xu Shen refused.
Shu Ran just couldn’t stand his parents’ fearful and disgusting attitude towards Xu Shen, so he took the opportunity to brag about Xu Shen’s worth: “Brother Shen ah… Now that the tide has risen, how could he marry a girl from our hometown?”
“That’s right.” Zhang Yunsheng was quite good at singing the same tune. The last time Shu Ran came to deliver clothes, he had already told him about setting up a garment factory: “Brother Xu Shen runs a big company now, making a lot of money. There is no need to worry about not being able to get a wife.”
“Running a big company?!” Zhou Guodong opened his eyes curiously.
“Yes.” Shu Ran continued to boast: “Let me tell you, Brother Shen can now earn ten houses from the countryside, in just two months!”
The room went quiet.
Maybe it was because they were all frightened by the prospect of earning ten houses in two months… Especially Zhou Godong, a man who was very careful with calculations.
In other words, their family had a chance to get rich, but missed out on a rich son-in-law?!
Ten houses! Just give him one and he could already envision himself as a city dweller!!!
Thinking of that, Zhou Guodong felt like he could no longer breathe.
“Yes, Brother Shen is so rich…” Shu Ran continued to fan the flames. “I now work for Brother Shen and get a salary every month!”
Listening to his wife’s nonsense, Xu Shen had a hard time holding back his laughter. It was obviously not that exaggerated… And it was also the money that he and Shu Ran earned together.
Shu Ran felt it was time to shut up, otherwise, his cheap father might not be able to sleep at night.
“Then Xu Shen is indeed promising…” Zhou Guodong said calmly. He was now convinced that Xu Shen was not a random fish in the pond.
The matter ended just like that, and everyone was happy… No, Zhou Guodong was very entangled, wishing his daughter could be split in half, with one half going to the rich Xu Shen and the other to the respectable Zhang Yunsheng…
Ten houses!
Seeing Zhou Guodong walking in a trance, Shu Ran snickered secretly. He felt happy whenever Zhou Guodong was unhappy!
“Dad, please don’t talk about this matter in the village for the time being.” Shu Ran came over and told him a few words: “We’ll talk about it in a year or two, and just say they got a peaceful divorce and remarried. Anyway, my sister won’t go back. It’s up to others to think whatever they want.”
Seeing that Zhou Guodong was still in a daze, he smiled secretly and continued: “You have such a good son-in-law, and you get real benefits… You have to keep it close to your chest and be careful of others being jealous and causing trouble for you. Especially that sister-in-law’s family, the one you have to be wary of every day…”
Zhou Guodong disliked the Lin family with every fiber of his existence: “That’s right! Don’t worry, I won’t tell!”
Shu Ran: “Well, let’s go walk on the street. I have my salary, let’s buy some winter clothes.”
Shu Ran led the Zhou family to shop and took out some money to buy food and clothing for them. He didn’t feel bad about that small amount of money. In any case, in the name of the original Zhou Ding, he was willing to take care of his family with whatever he could.
Of course, Zhou Qiang was not included. Shu Ran would only take care of those who were kind to Zhou Ding.
Zhou Guodong: “How much is your salary? This is such a big expense.”
Shu Ran: “About forty or fifty yuan.”
“So much?! Does Xu Shen’s company still need more people?” Zhou Guodong asked irritably: “Look at your eldest brother…”
Shu Ran immediately interrupted him: “Dad, think about it, there is so much farm work at home, how can my elder brother just walk away?”
Shu Ran politely rejected hiring Zhou Qiang. When it came to arranging for family members to join the factory, the first one he thought of was Zhou Lan. At her age, it was time to learn something and not waste away in the village. So he gave Zhou Guodong another piece of good news: “You can let the second sister come, the company is only short of female workers.”
Zhou Guodong didn’t like Lin Xuehua, his daughter-in-law, and Xu Shen’s company was short of female workers… Of course, he wanted to arrange for his own daughter to go in: “Okay, let your sister come!”
“Her salary will be relatively low…” Shu Ran said, trying to avoid the Zhou family confiscating Zhou Lan’s entire salary.
“Yeah.” Zhou Guodong naturally thought it was reasonable. Girls didn’t earn as much as men anyway.
Speaking of that, he thought of Xu Shen’s ten houses again!
Alas!!!
In the evening, everyone in the Zhou family stayed overnight at Xu Shen’s house and went home the next morning. After all, they couldn’t let go of the farm work at home, and they were afraid that the eldest daughter-in-law would throw a tantrum.
After arriving home, Zhou Guodong moved all the things he bought in the city into his house, making his daughter-in-law roll her eyes in anger.
Not even Zhou Qiang was willing to help her. After all, it was Xu Shen who bought it for them…
Could he still go and steal from his own father?!
But upon hearing that Zhou Lan was going to work in the city, Lin Xuehua was still the first to disagree: “The family is so busy, who will take care of the children when Zhou Lan is gone? Mom, how about you take care of them yourself?”
Hu Jinhua calmly answered her: “The wages in the city are high, so if she has the chance, of course she should go.” They were talking about serious money. “As for the children, I’ll give it a try.”
But Lin Xuehua thought wrongly. She failed to understand that if her mother-in-law stayed home to take care of the children, there would be one less person to do farm work in the field.
“How high is the salary?! Was it introduced by my brother-in-law?” Zhou Qiang asked hurriedly: “Dad, didn’t you say he would also introduce me to someone?”
Xu Shen was still waiting in the car outside, so Zhou Qiang encouraged: “Dad, go and talk with him!”
It was so glorious to be a worker back in those days… Rich and prestigious, Zhou Qiang really wanted to go!
Zhou Guodong sighed: “He wanted to introduce you too, but their company has no shortage of male workers for the time being. They’re only short of female workers…” Worried that his daughter-in-law might be interested, he specifically added: “There is only one position!”
“Tsk.” Lin Xuehua understood her father-in-law’s hint. She was not willing to let Zhou Hui’s man introduce her to the job anyway, treating them both as strangers.
She didn’t even believe that Xu Shen, that bastard, could afford to open a big company… Maybe Zhou Guodong and his wife were just too blind to happily support him.
“There’s no shortage of male workers?” Zhou Qiang was confused.
“Huh.” Lin Xuehua continued. “I think Zhou Hui is just angry with you and doesn’t want you to have a good life!”
Zhou Guodong knew the real situation, but he couldn’t say it. He could only enjoy it secretly, trying to prevent the Lin family from disturbing his good son-in-law.
But thinking of Xu Shen and his ten houses, he felt heartbroken again…
Why couldn’t everyone be his son-in-law?!
Zhou Lan quickly packed her pitiful amount of things and got into the car excitedly. It wasn’t until she saw her house becoming smaller and smaller through the rear glass window of the car that she truly felt she was free. She has finally left that place and can now start a new life. Her own new life.
Taking care of the children, cooking, and washing clothes every day was not what Zhou Lan wanted. She also wanted to be the master of her own life, just like her elder sister.
“Second brother!”
Shu Ran turned back: “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing…” Zhou Lan smiled sheepishly. She just wanted to shout out to him, thinking he had been out for too long, and she was now feeling a bit unfamiliar.
“Get some sleep.” Shu Ran smiled: “I’ll call you when we get there.”
“Okay.” Zhou Lan nodded.
The factory had not resumed work yet, so they took Zhou Lan back home for the night, still in the same room that Zhou Hui had stayed in before. Shu Ran felt very sorry for Xu Shen because there was always someone from his family disturbing him. While in their bedroom, he apologized to Xu Shen, saying: “I’m sorry… It’s so rare to have a holiday when you’re so busy. You didn’t even get to have a good rest.”
Xu Shen hugged him over, sat on the bed, and kissed him: “Why are you talking about this? How can I let you deal with them alone?”
Shu Ran: “I feel sorry for you.”
Xu Shen laughed. Now that both of them had taken a bath, he reached out and turned off the light.
“Wife.” The man murmured full of emotions.
“Well…” The moment the room fell into darkness, they immediately searched for each other’s lips in tacit understanding. Although they couldn’t hold hands openly during the day, behind closed doors in their own home, they were inseparably entangled, just like two clay figures melted together by the high temperature, connected into the same shape.
Since they had guests over, Shu Ran tried to suppress his voice, making it as low and cautious as he could, as if time went back to when they had to sneak behind Zhou Hui’s back.
But in the end, it didn’t work so Xu Shen had to turn on the radio again to confuse the audience, and then get the satisfaction he wanted.
After it was over, Shu Ran lay in Xu Shen’s arms and smiled. Xu Shen lowered his head and kissed his sweaty forehead. The weather was cold, but he still got wet every time. It was because he exercised too much.
“What are you laughing at?” According to his wife’s personality, he must have thought of something humorous so Xu Shen asked lazily.
Shu Ran: “Thinking about students falling in love early… The more their parents and teachers try to break them up, the more they want to stay together. Later, when the parents finally agree, they break up quickly.”
Worried that Xu Shen might not understand the meaning he wanted to express, he explained: “What I mean is, the more feelings are opposed, the more they attract people like poison.”
Xu Shen touched his eyebrow: “Are you talking about us?”
But Xu Shen disagreed, so he said in a soft voice: “I like you. It has nothing to do with whether others agree or not. What does it have to do with me if they disagree? And what does it have to do with me if they agree?”
Shu Ran smiled and placed his fingertips on the other person’s heart, lingering affectionately.
“I hide our relationship, not because I’m afraid of others disapproving, but because I’m afraid that someone will hurt you.” Xu Shen said.
The author has something to say: In the last chapter, some readers said that writing and publishing articles was too powerful. In fact, is not that mysterious and high-end. Even I, a little bastard, used to be like Shu Ran, earning pocket money for school by submitting articles… The same goes for export sales. I used to be a hard-working employee with hands down experience. If I write about other fields in the future, I will also consult my friends in the industry~
T.N: Poor Zhou Guodong, he’s been traumatised （⌒▽⌒）
