Chapter 382 The Orphanage's Lies: The Handsome Flower Boy 382

Zhou Weimin is in his late thirties, almost forty. He's tall and strong, but now he's frail and spends all his time lying in bed, his buttocks are practically infested with maggots.

Mr. Zhou asked a carpenter in the neighborhood to make a wooden wheelchair, using leftover, half-new materials from his home.

The wheels are not very flexible to push and make a creaking noise, but it's still better than lying in bed all day.

Finding the child was an urgent matter, and Zhou Weimin, sitting at home, had already started planning everything.

"Dad, Mom, listen carefully."

To get to Shenjia Village, you have to take a long-distance bus, and then transfer to a donkey cart in the county town. Here's a route map, which I drew myself.

He gripped the armrests of the wheelchair, his fingers turning white from the force, and pulled a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket, on which lines were drawn crookedly in pencil.

Zhou's mother took the paper, her eyes reddening again.

"With your leg like that, you really can't come with us?"

These words triggered him again, and Zhou Weimin pounded his numb leg hard, his voice filled with hatred.

How am I supposed to get there like this?

How many people in Shenjia Village know me?

"When I returned to the city back then, I made such a scene. They would have broken my other leg if they had seen me!"

He took a breath, lowered his voice, and suppressed the anger and resentment in his heart.

"Remember, don't mention my name when you get to the village."

Just say that you are the child's grandparents, that your family suffered a disaster years ago and you were separated from the child, and that you have come to find him now.

Make up any excuse, like saying the child's father is gone and you're old and want to find your grandson.

As for that reason, you two should just improvise. You're both intellectuals; surely you can handle something this simple?"

Mr. Zhou nodded. If he continued, his son would get angry again. Since returning home, his son's personality had become exceptionally irritable and sensitive.

"Understood."

Zhou Weimin's eyes were gloomy. He had no time to think of excuses or reasons. He just wanted to find his son as soon as possible and verify the terrifying suspicion in his heart.

"Shen Ci's home is not hard to find. Her brother is called Shen Guodong, and he should be well-known in the village."

Once you find someone, don't rush to acknowledge them; assess the situation first.

If that woman remarries, or if the children aren't doing well, we'll talk about bringing them back. If they're doing well...

He didn't finish his sentence, but his meaning was clear: even if he was doing well, he still needed to acknowledge his ancestors and return to his roots, but he didn't want women, only children.

Zhou's mother wiped away her tears. This was how they had been all these years. They hadn't really stopped her when she sent her grandson away. Whenever she mentioned her grandson, her eyes would fill with tears, showing how loving she was.

"My poor grandson, I wonder if he even remembers us!"

Zhou Weimin grew impatient watching, feeling that they were putting on a hypocritical show, and waved his hand.

"Alright, go ahead."

Go early and come back early; this is your last chance.

What's the point of putting on an act for him? He doesn't care about genuine or fake feelings.

The elderly couple, carrying a few cold cornbread buns and ten yuan—the last bit of cash they had—stumbled out the door.

They transferred from a train to a long-distance bus, then from the long-distance bus to a donkey cart. After a series of bumps, the two of them were completely disoriented, feeling as if their internal organs were about to be shaken out.

It was the afternoon of the second day when they arrived at Shenjia Village. Zhou's parents stood on the dirt road at the entrance of the village, looking at the scene in front of them, and suddenly felt that their backs were straighter again.

All the fatigue from the journey vanished.

The village is not small, but all the houses are made of adobe, with a few brick and tile houses standing out from the crowd.

Chickens and ducks ran around on the dirt road, and several children in patched clothes squatted by the roadside playing in the mud.

In the distance, in the fields, the commune members were busy with winter plowing, and the sound of their work chants drifted over on the wind.

"This place is really dilapidated."

Zhou's mother dusted off non-existent dust from her cotton-padded jacket, and her tone inexplicably carried a sense of superiority.

It was as if they weren't the ones who had suffered from the bumpy ride.

Mr. Zhou also breathed a sigh of relief. For some reason, seeing how poor the village was, they suddenly felt at ease.

The eldest grandson would definitely prefer to live in the city; who wants to stay in this dilapidated little village forever?

"That's right, Weimin crawled out of this poor place back then."

The fatigue from the long journey suddenly vanished at that moment.

They are retired workers from Beijing, receiving government-subsidized grain rations, unlike these farmers who toil in the fields.

Under the old locust tree at the village entrance, the two decided to rest. Zhou's father took out his pipe and lit it, while Zhou's mother took out a kettle from her bundle.

After taking a puff of his cigarette, Mr. Zhou felt much more relaxed and slowly exhaled a smoke ring.

"Weimin asked us to make up reasons, but I don't think it's necessary."

We're the child's own grandparents, what's there to be ashamed of?"

Zhou's mother nodded in agreement.

"That's right. Even an ugly daughter-in-law has to meet her in-laws. We're here to formally recognize our relatives, not to steal."

Mr. Zhou straightened his back and suddenly felt more confident.

"Besides, with our status as retired workers and Beijing residents, it's quite prestigious to talk about."

These villagers are eager to get married into this family.

After discussing it for a while, the two of them completely forgot their son's instructions to them.

When Zhou Weimin returned to the city, he only brought back a child, and he was very vague about other things. Of course, he couldn't portray himself as a bad person who abandoned his wife and child.

There's so much exaggeration involved that even his parents don't know just how bad he really is.

They felt that the fact that the person had come to this poor, remote place to claim kinship was already an immense favor.

There's no villager who doesn't want to move to the city; they're all desperate for urban residency.

After resting enough, Mr. and Mrs. Zhou straightened their clothes and walked into the village with their heads held high.

After walking a few steps, they saw a middle-aged man carrying a hoe coming from the edge of the field. Zhou's father stepped forward to stop him.

"Comrade, I'm inquiring about someone."

The man stopped and looked them over. The two men looked quite old, but they were unfamiliar faces; he had never seen them before.

Who are you?

Mr. Zhou cleared his throat in a mock manner.

"We're looking for Shen Ci's family. Shen Ci, do you know Shen Guodong?"

The man's eyes changed; who in the village didn't notice?

"Who are you to the Shen family?"

When asked this question, Zhou's mother eagerly answered, her tone carrying a hint of pride and self-satisfaction.

“We are her husband’s family, from Beijing, and we have something important to discuss with her.”

The man's expression became subtle as he looked the elderly couple up and down.

"From Beijing? Shen Ci's in-laws? Wasn't her husband long gone?"

These words made the elderly couple frown; they were clearly unhappy with what they heard.

"What are you saying? We're just here to pick up our grandson and take him home."

The child's name is Zhou Jinnian; he is our grandson.

The man remained silent for a while, feeling that this was someone else's business and he shouldn't say too much, so he pointed to the east end of the village.

"Go east, it's the third row, the house with blue bricks and tiles, there's a jujube tree in the yard."

"Thank you, comrade."

Mr. Zhou nodded and, along with Mrs. Zhou, eagerly headed east.

The man didn't leave; instead, he turned around and quickly walked in another direction.

Following the directions, Zhou's parents found a courtyard with blue brick and tile houses.

This house is considered one of the best in the village; the courtyard wall is neatly built, and the two wooden doors are painted dark red.

There is indeed an old jujube tree in the yard. Now all the leaves have fallen, but the branches are strong and look quite old.