As soon as I left the west wing, the village whistle blew, signaling the start of the afternoon workday. The village was large, so any announcements were made over the loudspeaker. Besides broadcasting township documents, they also frequently played revolutionary songs. The whistle would also blow in the mornings and afternoons before work.

After everyone in the family came out, Zhang Guoqing hurried to the main room. He had to ask for leave, so he had to hurry. Otherwise, he would be criticized. Building a house was a suitable excuse.

"Dad, I want you to take a leave this afternoon. If there's something we can't agree on, it depends on what you and mom think. It's quite important, and we might have guests coming tonight." Zhang Guoqing spoke first.

Father Zhang looked at him, went out and called the eldest brother, asking him to help him ask for leave. He was going to the village in the afternoon to order materials for building a house and also to find a craftsman.

The eldest nodded, and he and the second didn't ask what was wrong. They knew it wasn't a big deal, his father wouldn't ask for leave, and if there was anything, his father would tell them. So there was no need to ask.

After everyone had left, Zhang Guoqing personally locked the front door. Otherwise, when no one was home, they would gather together to discuss the matter. It would be bad if others found out, and he was most afraid that the Zhou family would come. He would never admit to having fun. He just wanted to make them worry, so that the fun would be even better when the Lin family arrived.

Seeing that he had even closed the door, Zhang's father and mother knew that this was something that couldn't be known to anyone, as they were afraid of people eavesdropping. They couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

Zhang Guoqing walked up to his parents and said, "Mom and Dad, let's go to my small living room. I've already put her and the baby there. This story is very long, so please listen together."

Zhang's father and mother returned with him to the small living room. Zhang Guoqing could see his father was uneasy. Fathers-in-law in rural Northeast China wouldn't come into their son's room. Jiaojiao had been raised in his presence since she was a child. Furthermore, seeing his son's secretive nature, he knew things weren't to be shared with others. Jiaojiao was in confinement and couldn't leave the house, otherwise she wouldn't have come in. Zhou Jiao hurried to greet Zhang's father and the others.

He noticed that his father was staring at his son eagerly, so he quickly picked him up and handed him to his father.

"Dad, look at your grandson, isn't he adorable? You haven't seen him yet, have you? My mom said he looks like me. Can you take a look and see if we are alike? And mom and dad, I'm planning to give the baby the nickname Ping An. What do you think? Jiaojiao and I think it's good for the child to be safe and everything goes smoothly. Whether he will have a successful future or not, we'll rely on him."

Zhang Dad held the child carefully, and saw that his facial features really looked like Xiaowu. His Xiaowu was also so well-behaved when he was born. Looking at his grandson blowing bubbles in his sleep, his heart softened.

"Okay, let's call her Ping'an. The meaning is also satisfactory. You even delayed me from going to work. Tell us what's going on. Your mother and I are here. We will hold up the sky even if it falls. As for you, don't worry. We always need to think about things slowly and discuss them. I heard that it's the Zhou family's business. Jiaojiao is our Zhang family. They can do whatever they want. You don't have to interfere. We, as parents, will talk to them if there is anything."

Zhang Guoqing made two cups of brown sugar water and handed them to his mother, then sat down next to Zhou Jiao. "You two should drink some water first. This is a long story. There's no rush. This morning, I went to see my eldest and second sisters and then went directly to the Zhou family to announce the good news. There were only two elderly people at the Zhou family, and they were very happy to tell them the good news. They asked me to go back and bring back the two old hens that Grandma Zhou had specially raised. I found an opportunity to tell Grandpa the good news, but he looked upset. He then said that Jiaojiao couldn't get food rations because her household registration was not there, and she still hadn't obtained the marriage certificate, so she wanted to ask Grandpa and Mother-in-law for their opinion. Grandpa Zhou wanted to refuse at that time, but it was too late. During this period, Grandpa Zhou's face was ashen. Grandma Zhou was very fast. She was afraid that I would be late, so she stuffed the empty envelope into my pocket. Yes, it was a few empty envelopes with no letter paper inside. This is it. I forgot to give it to Jiaojiao when I brought it.

When Grandpa Zhou saw me with the address on the envelope, he blurted out something, saying his uncle knew everyone at the post office and asked me to send things and letters to him. Even the child knew what he meant, but he was probably too embarrassed to say it out loud. He said he wanted to send something to them and us, and asked his uncle to deliver it to the post office together. Seeing that Grandma Zhou didn't show any emotion, I casually agreed.

I think there is something wrong with Mr. Zhou. He deliberately told my mother-in-law not to send money and not to send things to my grandmother's house. Jiaojiao is already married. What kind of man am I if I can't even support my wife? Before I could finish my words.

I don't know how much Zhou Jiao's aunt heard, but she rushed into the main hall, yelling that she disagreed, saying that my mother-in-law didn't send money back, and she also loudly said that my mother-in-law should pay the pension. Her words were very unpleasant. Grandma Zhou was so angry that she cursed. Grandpa Zhou hurriedly interrupted Grandma Zhou.

I bought those pig's trotters and black-bone chicken. They were all in a cloth bag on the table in front of me. The shrew yelled at me not to tell my mother-in-law to send the money, while she quickly took things out of the bag and distributed them to her family one by one. She also said that these were all mailed by my mother-in-law, and that I should be filial to my grandparents. I was so young, so I didn't have to worry about not having good fortune.

I was so angry that I laughed. I had never seen such a shameless person. I pushed her away and told her that this was my eldest sister's debt and was going to give it to Jiaojiao. When she heard this, she was so scared that my eldest sister's face turned pale.

I kept a close eye on the two elderly people, afraid they'd be furious, but Grandpa Zhou remained unmoved, acting as if I was supposed to give them the things. Only when I explained that my eldest sister had prepared them did his face darken. Grandma Zhou, on the other hand, was trembling with rage, speechless. That shrew, probably unwilling to leave the things unclaimed, kept on talking. Grandpa Zhou didn't interrupt her, taking the opportunity to let me hear her. How could I not hear it? All I could hear was that she was reluctant to part with the Lin family's things.

I hadn't intended to expose what they were doing. As soon as I walked in to announce the good news, Grandma Zhou apologized, saying it was unfair that the child's grandmother hadn't made cotton clothes for him. I knew then that the Zhou family was doing a lot of things that she didn't know about. Then I asked that shrew, "Isn't what the Lin family gave enough? Aren't they afraid that the Lin family will come and see Jiaojiao and ask about it? I don't know how much they sent in the past."

I told her that the watches on her eldest son and youngest son's hands were from the grandfather and uncle, the military coats on her eldest daughter-in-law and youngest daughter-in-law were given by her aunt, the three-turn and one-ring watch on her eldest daughter was given to Jiaojiao by my mother-in-law, the sewing machine and bicycle in her mother's home were mailed from her grandparents in Beijing, and the cashmere coat and watch her eldest daughter is wearing now are also from my mother-in-law, and the new cotton coats and trousers on her eldest daughter and son are all handmade by my mother-in-law.

This year, within a year of Jiaojiao's pregnancy, 28 packages have arrived. All of them are registered at the post office under the name of Uncle Zhou. I then asked her if she knew what military mail was and told her to ask around and see if her family, the Huangs, had enough money to enter the compound. I'm afraid they'll all be taken away at once.