After seeing Li Qinglin off, Zhou Xiaozheng received his second urgent telegram.

Zhang's mother finally picked out an auspicious day for the trip.

After the farewell banquet for relatives and friends.

The night before leaving, the couple brought gifts and visited the old principal in person.

The old principal's home was poor. This old man, who had supported poor students for many years, was now eating a sore throat steamed bun and a plate of pickles.

"Why haven't you returned to the capital yet? Don't miss the registration deadline."

Zhang Guoqing saw him stand up and quickly stopped him, "You should eat first. We're leaving tomorrow, and I just wanted to say goodbye to you before we go."

The old principal's wife was an elegant old lady who always wore cheongsams, but she had only started changing her style in the past two years. At this moment, she asked her grandson to bring two cups of warm water.

"Let's eat first and talk later. Xiaowu and his wife are not strangers, there's no need for formalities."

"Master's wife is right. Eat slowly. We'd like to stay a while longer. Are you wolfing down your food so fast? Do you want to keep us here?"

The old principal laughed and said, "You are just a bullshitter. Everything you say is justified. This time when you two return to Beijing, you must study hard and strive to do more for the country, achieve great things, and benefit the people."

Zhang Guoqing waved his hand, "Don't do that, old man. I'm just an ordinary citizen, I just need to do my duty. Those goals are too high and difficult to climb. Please spare me."

The old principal laughed and scolded, "You're useless. I want to live a few more years to see what you'll accomplish in the future. Retreating before the battle is not your character."

"When you're out in the world, you're bound to get hurt. The weather is changeable, so a stable one is better. To be honest, I don't really want to do anything big. I'm happy to keep my family safe."

The old principal and the others were so amused that they burst into laughter.

"You should retire this year, right?"

The old principal finished his meal, returned to his chair, picked up his tea, and shook his head. "I still can't let go of the school. I'm considering it now."

Zhang Guoqing and Zhou Jiao exchanged a glance and said with a smile, "If you don't step down, how can you give other teachers a chance? Retire early, enjoy family happiness, and even go out with your wife."

The old principal looked at him suspiciously, then turned to Zhou Jiao, who had been smiling, and asked, "Do you agree with Xiaowu's opinion?"

Zhou Jiao nodded. "It's good to have a companion in old age. You're busy with work all day, so you should spend the rest of your life with your wife. It would be wonderful to escape from the mundane world, enjoy your old age, and quietly observe the vicissitudes of life."

The old principal's hand trembled as he picked up the cup. He smiled at his wife beside him and said, "It seems that the two younger people feel sorry for you. Tell me how you bribed them."

"Haha, warm water."

The old principal laughed, but it wasn’t warm water every time.

After Zhang Guoqing and his wife finished discussing this topic, they began to talk about interesting stories in unison.

After sitting for more than half an hour, Zhou Jiao secretly put down the gift, stood up, said goodbye to Zhang Guoqing and them and left.

After they left, the old principal sat in silence, tea in hand, and no one knew what he was thinking. The only difference was that when the new semester arrived, he was no longer seen at school.

The next morning, Zhao Chuangguang drove to the county town again.

Before getting in the car, Zhang Guoqing and his wife looked deeply at their parents, brothers and sisters, Zhao Dashan and Zuo Lin, who were both their teachers and friends, and Zhao Yuanyuan, who had tears on her face.

"Xiaowu, take care of Jiaojiao outside. If there is anything, the couple should discuss it carefully and take good care of the child." - This was what Zhang's father instructed.

"Remember to eat well and dress warmly when you are outside, and come home early for the New Year. Mother will be waiting for you at home." - This is Zhang's mother's smile.

They deeply remember the words of advice and laughter from many people. They really don't want to leave these friends and family who have shown them kindness and care. Fortunately, they still have time to be together.

Zhang Guoqing glanced at his parents, suppressed his sadness, and solemnly said to his two brothers, Zhang Guofu, "Brother, second brother, we're leaving our parents in your care. I'll take care of it over there, and you can take them to the car."

"Don't worry! My two brothers will take good care of our parents. You can go to school with peace of mind. I will write to you if there is anything."

"My parents are missing a hair. If you hit me, I won't fight back. Okay? Get in the car quickly and don't keep me waiting."

Zhang Guoqing smiled and said take care to everyone, picked up the child, pulled Zhou Jiao, and got into the car.

As the car drove away, he saw his mother crying with her hands covering her mouth. His father stared at the direction he left and gently patted his mother's shoulder.

Goodbye, my parents! We will meet again soon.

The car finally disappeared from sight. Zhao Dashan and his companions said a few words of comfort and then left.

Seeing his wife return to her room, Father Zhang waved his hand and said, "You all go back and leave your mother alone for a while. She's fine and will get over it soon. What's there to be reluctant about? Your mother misses Xiaowu, so we'll go to Beijing to see them."

Zhang Laoer glanced anxiously at the yard and said, "Dad, do you really not need us to accompany you and Mom? Or should we let Xizi and the others stay?"

Father Zhang turned and left, "You all go do your own things, come back in the evening when you're free."

"Then we'll go to work first and come over in the evening. Just give me a shout if you need anything."

Father Zhang waved his hand and said, "Don't dawdle. You'll miss the time if you're late." After that, he closed the gate.

Zhang Guofu smiled at everyone and said, "Let's go. It doesn't matter as long as Mom is with Dad. We'll come over to accompany them in the evening."

When Father Zhang came back into the room, he saw that his wife was still wiping her tears.

He rolled his eyes and said, "Mother, our son is being secretive and won't let us see. What do you think he's hiding? How about we go and take a look?"

"I'm not in the mood. I have to go see Xiaowu in two months."

Father Zhang leaned closer to her and said with a smile, "In less than two months, as soon as his telegram arrives, we will go to the capital. How about I take you for a walk? Come on, I think there must be some good stuff waiting for us to discover."

Mother Zhang followed her husband's strength and went to the kitchen and unlocked the door.

As soon as she entered the basement, Zhang's mother immediately cursed: "Oh my God, this prodigal son!"

Father Zhang laughed out loud. This was his wife. Who was the crying woman just now?

At this time, there were three sacks, two large vats, and various dry goods such as bacon, dried game, dried fish, etc. piled up in the basement.

When Zhang's mother untied the rope, she saw that the container was filled with vermicelli noodles. She knew it was vermicelli noodles without even looking at the surroundings. She looked into the jar in disbelief and untied several cloth bags inside. They were filled with white flour and cornmeal.

Father Zhang opened the big vat and saw a wooden box on top. He took it out and tucked it under his arm. He put his head inside and looked. Without even opening the bag, he guessed that it must be rice and noodles.

The old couple looked around and found that there was everything except whole grains. In a wooden box there were also towels, soap, and other daily necessities.

"Dad, hurry...quickly pack up and send it back to the capital. When did this prodigal son hide so much stuff? Oh, I'm so angry. How much will it cost? How can we finish it all between the two of us?"

Father Zhang smiled and shook his head. "We can't send it back, otherwise the child will always miss us. I was saying that, the eldest and second sons said they would take care of them in their old age, so why is the fifth son so obedient? It turns out he has been hiding something all along. Mother, don't tell them this except us."

"You can't even trust your own son? What are you thinking?"

Father Zhang looked around and shook his head. "It's not that I don't trust my son, it's that my daughter-in-law is an outsider. Besides our Jiaojiao, who else could be so considerate? Since Xiaowu didn't tell his two brothers, we mustn't tell them either, lest the three brothers feel resentful. Also, there are so many things here. If I tell my son, should we share them? My daughter-in-law's family doesn't have enough to eat, will they think too much?"

Mother Zhang nodded. "I understand what you mean."

"Haha... let's hide it too. Look what's inside? I guess it's money and bills." Father Zhang handed the box to his wife and said with a smile.

"Let's go back to the room and have a look. My heart is still pounding."

The old couple sneaked into their room and opened the box, which was full of stacks of money of different denominations and a bunch of bills.

Father Zhang roughly counted the money—at least five hundred. He smiled wryly and shook his head. He was touched but also uncomfortable by the young couple's actions. He missed his son, too.