Capítulo 938: Chapter 634: From Conflict to Reconciliation

“Sure, sure, sure, as long as you meet her and tell her for me, I’ll be very happy.” Aunt Zhong smiled flatteringly at Luo Xiaoqiong, “Auntie knows, you are like her, sharp tongue but soft-hearted.”

“Who’s like you? Stop belittling people, okay?” Luo Xiaoqiong glared at her, “If you keep talking nonsense, I won’t help pass on the message.”

“Okay, okay, Auntie won’t say nonsense, Auntie won’t say nonsense. By the way, you and Chuxia both love soft sweet potatoes, don’t you? I still have some good ones at home, I’ll go back and cook them for you.”

Before Luo Xiaoqiong could say anything, Aunt Zhong had already run out like the wind.

“Really shameless…” Luo Xiaoqiong smacked her forehead, “Did I fall for her trick? Maybe that was her original intention all along?”

“Just realized?” Chuxia spread her hands helplessly, “She’s not stupid; she knows the relationship between us.”

“I am really dumb.” Luo Xiaoqiong sat down gloomily, “How could I fall for such a woman’s trick? And let her not owe me any favor at all.”

“Alright, you’ve agreed, just don’t regret it. Even if she hadn’t asked, if we really met Zhong Hongying, we wouldn’t pretend not to see her. Also, I believe you are worried about what happened to her now, right?”

“Yes.” Luo Xiaoqiong nodded honestly, “I can’t figure it out. She has no relatives in City A, and the guesthouses outside are much more expensive than those at the base, so the possibility of her staying in a guesthouse doesn’t exist.

If she’s back, where could she go? If her grandmother had news of her, she would have told her mother long ago. Besides, she seems to have no other relatives, and not even close friends in the village. I really can’t figure out where she could go.”

Chuxia just glared at her: “You’re worrying about things unnecessarily. She’s a grown person, not silly or crazy. If we meet her, helping is kindness, if not, there’s no need to trouble ourselves, right?”

“Meiying, learn from Chuxia…” Fat Auntie said while poking her daughter’s forehead, “Looks energetic, but actually, silly and straightforward.”

“Cha Xiang, don’t say that. Chuxia is very sensible when she talks, but when she really encounters something, she still worries unnecessarily.”

Fat Auntie laughed, “That’s true, these two kids are like that. But having a kind heart is much better than being unkind, right?”

“Lin Chuqiu, what are you peeking out there for?” Luo Xiaoqiong said while running outside, and soon returned, “Little rascal, runs faster than a rabbit.”

Chuxia pouted, “He’s here fishing for information again, but we’ve already distanced ourselves from them, so why is he still bothering?”

“If you guys weren’t doing well, they’d be eager to dissociate. Now that you are doing well, even if separated, they’ll find ways to reconnect.” Fat Auntie sighed, “People are like that.

You guys are still young, and find these people and things hard to understand. When you grow older and experience more, it won’t surprise you anymore.”

“Oh!” Luo Xiaoqiong sighed heavily, feeling dejected, “Mom, I still miss when we were little, didn’t have to think about these troublesome things?”

Fat Auntie gave her a glance, “Be content, you two are some of the luckier kids. Just look at most of the girls in the village, what kind of lives are they living?”

Most girls in the village start meeting potential partners at eighteen or nineteen. They compare economic conditions, and if suitable, they basically force the girl to settle. They don’t care about the character of the partner.

After marriage, they immediately have kids, and like strong men, they work, and after work, they go home to do housework and take care of the old and young.

Compared to them, Luo Xiaoqiong indeed feels lucky and stops complaining, turning to gossip instead: “Mom, wasn’t it said that Lin Chuqiu and Chunni were together? What’s happening now?”

“What else? Chunni initially said that if Chuqiu becomes a worker, she would marry him. If he doesn’t, she won’t stay with him.”

“So, has Lin Chuqiu already broken up with Chunni?”

“Not yet, but nothing is confirmed. Chunni’s family has set a date for Chuqiu, if he still isn’t a worker by next year, their engagement will be canceled.

Actually, everyone knows Chunni went to be a worker and met many suitors, but none have chosen her. She’s afraid of being left behind, hence dragging Chuqiu along.”

“You end up with what you seek. First, Lin Chuqiu deserved Chunni’s treatment; he wants to be with Chunni just because she is a worker.” Luo Xiaoqiong said with a cold snort, “I feel he deserves whatever comes to him.”

“Anyway, I’m grateful to those who are good to me. In the future, we’ll only help Chuqiu and Big Brother Chudong, no one else. No one should expect us to extend help.

Of course, if Chuqiu and Big Brother rely on us for favors and plead for others, we won’t help them in the future either.”

Zhao Yulan nodded, “Mm, I agree with your approach, living should be straightforward, shouldn’t randomly help just for appearance’s sake.”

“Xiaoqiong, our family should do the same in the future. For those who treat us well, we’ll help if we can. But for those who don’t, we should never help just for the sake of face, otherwise, once we start, it’ll never end.

We’ve just returned today, and many people don’t know yet. You’ll see, starting from tomorrow, all sorts of distant relatives will start coming over.

Tonight, I must remind your father not to be soft-hearted. We absolutely cannot help the children of your Uncle’s family.”

“Mom, I completely agree.”

A few women discussed and settled their future course of action while cooking, and Fat Auntie reiterated it in front of everyone during dinner.

Lin Baohe immediately expressed his agreement, and after a slight hesitation, Luo Gangshun also agreed.

Seeing her husband’s hesitation, Fat Auntie admonished him, “Don’t think that just because you’re the party secretary, you have to save face in front of others. If it’s something you personally can handle, I don’t care if you fight for it. But don’t take on things regarding the kids.”

“I know. You’re overthinking it again, aren’t you? I was just mulling over the thought that if in the future, young people in the village with good prospects and character had opportunities, we should help them.”

“How to help?” Fat Auntie glared at him. “Help one, there are two more. Who do you agree to help and who don’t you? What defines good prospects and character, and what doesn’t? If you randomly grab people on the street and ask, who would think they have bad prospects and character? I really think you’re just too idle, trying to give yourself trouble.”

After Fat Auntie’s lecture, Luo Gangshun chuckled awkwardly. He was merely hoping, from the perspective of the village party secretary, to give more opportunities to the young people in the village.

But his wife’s words indeed made sense—no one thinks they’re bad. If he really did that, he’d likely end up offending more people than pleasing them.

Forget it; it’s better to do fewer things where efforts don’t yield benefits. Besides, with the current capabilities of his daughter and Chuxia, they couldn’t really help anyone much. If they did want to help, it would still require the assistance of the Zhou family or Lin Family of the Capital, so why bother?

Zhou Mikang was never one to meddle in affairs, so even though he noticed Luo Gangshun’s discomfort, he simply pretended not to see and kept quiet.

Lin Wenbin, on the other hand, thought, from what he knew, aside from the Luo family, there was really no one else worth helping, so he naturally chose to remain silent too.

For a moment, only the sound of chewing filled the room.

“Ahem!” Luo Gangshun lightly coughed and smiled awkwardly. “It’s my lack of consideration. Sometimes, no matter how evenly you distribute water, it still might seem off. Rest assured, I won’t take on things blindly; moreover, every year, there are recruitment spots for the army and college entrance spots. Genuine talents can’t be stopped.”

In those days, if rural kids wanted to make a name for themselves, they could only take these two paths. Relatively speaking, joining the army was much easier than going to college.

Once Luo Gangshun said this, Fat Auntie stopped giving him a hard time, and smiled at him, “That’s more like it.” She promptly placed a chopstick of food into his bowl as encouragement.

The atmosphere lightened up once more.

While the two families were eating, Uncle Zhong arrived, bringing cooked sweet potatoes. Aunt Zhong was clever; knowing she’d be refused if she came, she sent her honest, well-liked husband.

By this time, the sweet potatoes had been stored until just right; when cooked, they were soft and sticky with a layer of oil on the skin, looking very tempting.

Chuxia and Luo Xiaoqiong loved this treat. Zhao Yulan hesitated briefly and accepted them, but she immediately gave Uncle Zhong the reciprocal gift she had prepared earlier—two packets of pastries.

At this time, sweet potatoes were not a rare commodity, but pastries certainly were.

Uncle Zhong waved his hands in refusal and turned to leave, but Lin Baohe and Luo Gangshun stopped him from both sides, insisting he take the pastries, declaring that if he didn’t, they wouldn’t accept the sweet potatoes.

This left Chuxia and Luo Xiaoqiong, who had already started peeling sweet potatoes, feeling embarrassed; taking them back wouldn’t be easy since the skins were already peeled.

With no choice, Uncle Zhong sighed, “Gangshun, Baohe, I know you’re wary of owing us favors, and I’m aware my wife Hongying came and fussed around for a while.

Rest assured, as long as I’m here, the Zhong family won’t let her create a scene everywhere. You don’t need to take her words to heart; I genuinely wish to deliver these sweet potatoes as a treat for the kids.

If you keep refusing, it’s as if you’re belittling me, Old Zhong. No matter how poor my family is, we’re not using some lousy sweet potatoes to exchange for your pastries. If word gets out, how could I face others?”

In the end, Uncle Zhong went home with a packet of pastries, while Chuxia and Luo Xiaoqiong happily filled their stomachs.

—–

Second update. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, you’re welcome to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.qidian.com to read.)