Chapter 242 A Family

"A leader is also a person."

Zhou Shufen gently patted her hand.

"He needs to eat, he gets angry, he loves his wife, and he cares about his family. He's not an indestructible god. Besides, I'm strict with him. He doesn't have the final say at home. I'm the boss! If you call out to him, does he dare not answer?"

The atmosphere instantly became much more relaxed.

Zhou Yufan smiled as well.

"Hua Chen, listen to them. Zhenyi isn't the kind of person who puts on airs or acts superior. He cares about his family and is very down-to-earth. Our family should be lively and bustling like this. How can we have an invisible wall between us?"

Li Huachen slowly raised her eyes, scanning the familiar faces before her one by one.

She took a deep breath and gently parted her lips.

“Zhenyi…”

Guo Zhenyi immediately responded.

"Hey! Sister-in-law, just tell me what you need, I'm all ears, I'll do whatever you say."

Hearing this, Li Huachen's eyes welled up slightly.

“Zhenyi, and little sister, thank you so much. I’ve always been worried about Dad these past few years. He spends the New Year alone in the countryside, and it feels like a stone is pressing on my heart, making it hard to breathe. If I could bring Dad back to celebrate the New Year with us, and have a reunion dinner around the table, I would finally feel at ease and at peace.”

"No need to thank me!"

Zhou Shufen laughed heartily.

"Bringing our father-in-law home for the New Year is a top priority and our duty as juniors. Let's stop arguing and sit down now to discuss how to persuade him to come back. Zhengyi, you and your second brother set off immediately and quickly, don't delay until tomorrow. Prepare plenty of gifts and show your sincerity, so that he doesn't feel like we're just going through the motions."

Guo Zhenyi nodded.

“Yes, we need to be practical, not just talk. The old man is the most practical, and his actions speak louder than words. I’ll go pack now and go with my second brother. We can discuss how to speak more appropriately on the way. Sister-in-law, are you coming with me? You’re his own daughter, and with you by his side, he’ll definitely feel more at ease. Besides, he loves you the most, and he’ll listen to what you say.”

Li Huachen nodded immediately.

“I’ll go! I’ll definitely go! I’ll change my clothes right now and go see Dad all clean. I’ll also bring Rong Kai with me. That kid has wanted to see his grandfather since he was little. If he can be a little coquettish and say a few sweet words, maybe the old man will soften his heart and nod in agreement.”

Zhou Shufen quickly waved her hand.

"Don't change into fancy clothes! Dressing too formally will only make you seem distant. What kind of person is your father-in-law? He's a farmer who's worked the land his whole life and hates anything pretentious. He cares about sincerity, not pomp and circumstance. If you dress too nicely, he'll feel uncomfortable and think that you're creating a distance between you and him."

As she spoke, she turned and went inside.

Not long after, he came out carrying a faded blue cloth bag.

She put her bag on the table, and everything spilled out.

Two pounds of brown sugar wrapped in red paper, two pig trotters, and a brand-new cotton-padded coat.

“These past few years, my father-in-law has been able to survive alone in the countryside, so he must have had some kind people helping him. This brown sugar is specially brought to those neighbors and villagers, firstly as a thank-you gift, and secondly to let everyone know that we haven’t forgotten our roots. When you take him away, you have to make sure everyone is convinced of our sincerity. If you don’t bring anything, people will gossip behind our backs and say that we are ungrateful.”

She then pulled out a wad of cash from the inner lining of the cloth bag.

“Five thousand yuan, not a penny less. Over the years, they have taken care of our father-in-law, serving him tea and water, bringing him charcoal in the cold and meals in the hot. Every single one of these things has been done with real hard work. What is this little bit of money? It is just a token of our appreciation as the younger generation. We shouldn't let them worry for nothing.”

“I picked out this outfit based on my memory of my father-in-law’s size. I bought it last year at the market when I saw a similar size. Although I didn’t measure him myself, it should be about right. Let him wear it first, and if it doesn’t fit, I’ll exchange it later. I can’t let him wear a tattered cotton-padded coat in the dead of winter and get cold.”

She picked up another apple.

"These were brought from the south by someone. They're very sweet and crisp, you can even eat the skin. Rong Kai loves them too, so bring him a few to eat on the road, don't let the child go hungry."

Looking at the table full of things, Li Huachen felt a lump in her throat.

She reached out and gently stroked the new cotton-padded coat with her fingertips.

This isn't an ordinary cotton-padded coat; it's a down jacket!

It's sturdy yet lightweight; you can tell it was bought with care.

"Little sister, this...this is too much of a waste. Where did you get the money? I feel so bad for making you go through all this trouble, buying clothes, preparing food, and even spending five thousand yuan..."

"You're going to follow my lead?"

Zhou Shufen directly raised her hand and patted the back of her hand.

“Our father-in-law is family! We’re all family! It’s the first time we’ve brought him home for the New Year, how can we mistreat him? He remembers whether he’s warm enough and well-fed. We not only want to bring him home, but we also want him to know that he’s not an unwanted old man. He has a daughter, a grandson, and our whole family waiting for him to come home!”

She urged him on.

"Go and call Rong Kai out! Stop dawdling! Let's go while it's still light out, don't keep him waiting. He'll be overjoyed to see his grandson, how could he bear to refuse?"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than footsteps came from the inner room.

Immediately afterwards, Rong Kai rushed out carrying the tattered cloth rabbit.

"mother!"

"Are they all for Grandpa?"

"Can I give Grandpa an apple? This apple is so big! It's so red, Grandpa has never seen such a big apple before!"

Zhou Shufen stood by the table.

She bent down, picked out the largest apple from the fruit basket, and gently handed it to Rong Kai.

"Yes, of course."

"But we can't give you the apple now. We have to wait until we see Grandpa, and then you can give it to him yourself, okay?"

Rong Kai nodded solemnly and took the apple with both hands.

"I know!"

"I want to give it to Grandpa myself! Nobody is allowed to get it for me!"

At this moment, Guo Zhenyi had already pushed the bicycle to the door.

"There's quite a lot of stuff, looks like we'll have to tie it up securely."

He paused, then looked up at the crowd.

"I'm strapped to the back seat of the car. I hope it doesn't fall apart during the bumpy ride."

Then, he turned to Zhou Yufan and said.

"Yu Fan, you ride the bike with Hua Chen and Rong Kai, and I'll push from behind. That way, we can look after them if anything happens along the way."

Zhou Yufan didn't say much.

He casually picked up the worn cotton hat from the corner of the wall and gently placed it on Li Huachen's head.

"Hua Chen, wrap your scarf around yourself a couple more times. It's very windy outside, don't let yourself get cold, and don't let Rong Kai catch a cold either."

Li Huachen responded softly with an "Mm".

Then, she squatted down and wrapped Rong Kai up tightly.

The group finally stepped out the door.

Zhou Shufen stood on the steps in front of the house and waved vigorously at them.

"Ride slowly!"

"If there are still any grudges between your in-laws, you should say a few more conciliatory words!"

"If it really doesn't work, leave the things here and come back tomorrow! Don't argue!"

Guo Zhenyi glanced back.

"Okay, don't worry!"

Zhou Yufan rode steadily in front, shielding the people behind him from most of the cold wind.