Chapter 17 Chapter 17 Encounter
"Uncle Waer, these are vegetables that I grew myself. Please don't despise them."
Mother Zhang filled a big bag with vegetables, fruits and melons grown by herself and handed it to Zhang Deming.
"Why would I dislike it? These vegetables are not easy to buy in the city."
Even though his family had connections, Zhang Deming couldn't often eat such fresh vegetables of such a wide variety.
"Your gift really touched my heart."
Zhang Deming picked up the snakeskin bag and went home happily.
The bag of fruit he brought when he came wasn't as pleasing to him as this bag of vegetables.
There is no shortage of fruits at home, but we have to buy vegetables outside, and we may not buy good ones.
So when he rode his bike back home, Zhang Deming's wife and children were so happy to see the bag of vegetables.
"My sister-in-law is really honest. This bag of vegetables must have taken most of their small vegetable garden."
Aunt Zhang looked at the tender pumpkin, her eyes curved into crescents. Tomorrow I will stir-fry it with meat and eat it with rice. The whole family will love it.
"And peaches, did you see them?"
Zhang Deming wiped his sweat with a towel. He brought back the bag of vegetables openly without fear of being accused of taking bribes. He felt so safe.
People who lead a family compound know that they have relatives in the city and have a small vegetable garden at home, so they can eat fresh vegetables even in winter.
"Grandpa, are these peaches from Meng Zhi's father's house? His peaches are the most delicious."
The two kids who were fighting asked happily, holding a peach in each hand.
"Yeah. But you're not allowed to eat today."
Zhang Deming glared at his two grandsons and said mercilessly.
"Why?"
The two children looked at their grandfather as if struck by a bolt from the blue.
"Have you forgotten about the fight you had today? You still have the nerve to ask Grandpa why? Put the peach down obediently, or you will have to eat bamboo shoots and fried meat later."
Although Zhang Deming got advice from his nephew, his two grandsons still had to learn a lesson.
"ah……"
The two grandchildren screamed and wailed in their parents' arms. They knew they were wrong, so why were they punished?
"Dad, it looks like the problem has been solved."
Zhang Deming's son looked at his father. He had an obvious look of worry on his face before he left, but looked relieved when he came back. Even a fool would know that the problem was solved.
"Your brother is worthy of being the only college student in our Zhang family. He has a sharp mind. Yes, it's solved. I'll go find Lao Qian later and tell you in detail when I come back."
Zhang Deming wiped the sweat off his face, changed his clothes, and entered the home of his old rival.
Within two days, I heard that an official in the city was demoted.
"Salesperson, how much is this dress? How much is it?"
Zhang Mengzhi was buying salt at the supply and marketing cooperative when he heard a familiar voice not far away.
"Sixty for imported ones, no bargaining."
The salesperson said this while leaning over the counter without even raising his eyelids.
“So expensive?”
A piece of clothing costs sixty yuan, which is almost higher than Gu Yan’s mother’s salary.
"This is the most popular style in big cities. If you can't afford it, don't buy it."
When the salesperson heard what Wang Lingya said, he spoke to her with contempt.
"How do you talk?"
Wang Lingya had never been humiliated like this by anyone in public before, and she immediately said with some displeasure on her face.
Mainly because she didn’t want to lose face in front of Gu Yan, and she didn’t want to be looked down upon.
"What did I say? If you can't afford it, don't buy it. Is that wrong?"
The salesperson glanced at Wang Lingya. Although the clothes she wore looked good, they were not the most popular styles in big cities. She didn't even have a watch on her wrist, and she wasn't wearing leather shoes, so she wasn't afraid of offending Wang Lingya.
On the contrary, the man next to her wore a famous brand watch on his wrist. Although he was only wearing a simple white shirt and trousers, he had leather shoes on his feet.
It was obvious at first glance that she was a child from a wealthy family, so all the salesperson's contempt was directed at Wang Lingya.
Although Wang Lingya's clothes were better than those worn by most people in the city, without any patches, and knee-length skirts, even if they were outdated styles, they were not affordable for ordinary people.
However, this kind of dress was nothing to a salesperson who was used to seeing good things and had a good family background, so her disdain was obvious.
"You're going too far. How can you talk like that?"
Wang Lingya's eyes suddenly turned red after being humiliated repeatedly by the salesperson.
"Ah Yan, look at her..."
I looked at my partner, wanting him to seek justice for me.
"Okay, if you can't afford it, don't buy it. They're not wrong."
Gu Yan was not a fool. A skirt cost sixty yuan. Although he could afford it, he didn't want to take it.
Sixty yuan is not a small amount of money. It is his pocket money for half a year. He gritted his teeth and took it out for the sake of face, and then satisfied his own and Wang Lingya's vanity, but he would have to eat dirt for the next six months.
Even though he is the son of an official, his parents are very strict with him. They know that he spent 60 yuan to buy a skirt for Wang Lingya just to save face, and he will definitely be in trouble when he returns.
So Gu Yan deliberately avoided looking into Wang Lingya's eyes and let her be ridiculed by the salesperson.
"I'm sorry..."
In the end, Wang Lingya couldn't bear the contemptuous looks from the crowd, so she said sorry and ran out crying.
She didn't notice Zhang Mengzhi's existence from beginning to end, otherwise Wang Lingya would be even more embarrassed now.
After all, she has always looked down on Zhang Mengzhi in her heart. How can the child of an ordinary worker be compared with the second generation of officials!
But it was this second-generation official whom she was so proud of that made her embarrassed in public.
So once she found out that Zhang Mengzhi was at the scene, she would only feel even more ashamed.
"snort."
Gu Yan couldn't stand everyone's condemning looks. After all, Wang Lingya came here with him. Now her girlfriend has run away and he is indifferent. It is inevitable that everyone will look down on such a person.
"What kind of person are you! You can't afford it, yet you ask me and waste my time."
The salesperson rolled his eyes and said after seeing both of them leave.
Although her attitude was bad, Zhang Mengzhi did not sympathize with those two people at all.
"Please weigh me a pound of sugar. Here is the sugar ticket."
They are still using tickets here, probably only stopped after the 1980s, so you still need a ticket to buy candy.
"Okay, here is your pound of sugar, please take it."
The salesperson took the sugar ticket and money, and deftly weighed a pound of sugar and put it into the glass bottle that Zhang Mengzhi brought.
White sugar comes in two forms: bulk and packaged. Bulk is cheaper than packaged, so people naturally choose bulk.
Zhang Mengzhi does the same, but he uses his own glass bottles to save money.
"Please weigh me another pound of candy. Here are the money and tickets."
Zhang Mengzhi, who was about to leave, suddenly thought of his two nephews at home.
"Okay, please keep it."
Zhang Mengzhi walked out of the supply and marketing cooperative department store carrying milk candy and white sugar.
"Dream knowledge?"
Zhang Mengzhi had just walked down the stairs when he heard someone calling him.
"Second dad?"
He saw a cousin who shouldn't be in the city, carrying luggage in his hands.
"It's me. Long time no see! I haven't congratulated you on getting into college yet."
The uncle strode up to Zhang Mengzhi and said in a friendly tone, "As the most promising child in the family, even if others are not in their hometown, they have heard that Zhang Mengzhi was admitted to university."
"Thank you, second dad. It's been a while since I last saw you. The last time we met was two years ago, right?"
Zhang Mengzhi said with a smile.
"Yes, I came back once the year before last. I went with your uncle Ming that time, and we celebrated the festival together as a family."
My cousin spoke of the past with a look of nostalgia on his face.
"How long will Second Dad stay this time?"
Zhang Mengzhi looked at the middle-aged man in front of him. He was the general's second son. Since the two families were within the five degrees of mourning, they had a good relationship.
The general's closest blood relatives in the village are his family.
"I came back this time to take care of some old things. I didn't expect to run into you."
Uncle Zhang Deshuang said with emotion.
If Zhang Mengzhi wasn't good-looking and the two families were indeed very closely related, he might not be able to remember what Zhang Mengzhi looked like.
"Is it still the same thing? It hasn't been done yet?"
Zhang Mengzhi frowned. The last time his second father came back, he asked the Zhang family for help. He thought it had been done last time, but he didn't expect it to be done?
"Yes, it's the same thing again. It's very troublesome."
Zhang Deshuang sighed.
"Did the eldest wife really not leave any clues back then?"
Zhang Mengzhi asked.
"No, she hid my brother and me in the ravine, and then ran out to lure away the Japanese. Over the years, we thought that as long as she was not dead, she would definitely return to her hometown. However, my brother and I have always sent people to keep an eye on her hometown, but we still haven't seen her."
Zhang Deshuang shook his head. That was his biological mother. Decades had passed, and even though his father had remarried, he and his eldest brother had never given up looking for her.
"The last time I came back was because I received a message saying someone saw my mother, but when I went back to see, it wasn't your eldest wife."
When Zhang Deshuang said this, the joy he had when they first met was gone from his tone, leaving only a hint of regret.
"Did you receive any news this time when you came back?"
Zhang Mengzhi wondered if he had received news again this time?
"Yes, someone said that an old lady came to their village. She was about the same age as my mother, and her accent was also from our area. But her mind was a little confused and she couldn't remember anything. But her appearance was somewhat similar to what we described. I received the telegram, immediately packed my luggage, said hello to your uncle, and asked for leave from my unit and came here."
Zhang Deshuang said this again with anticipation.
He really hoped that this time it was true. He had been looking for his mother since the founding of the People's Republic of China, and had been looking for her for more than twenty years, almost thirty years. He had been looking for her since he was a teenager and his hair had turned gray. If he still couldn't find her, he and his elder brother would really have to meet their mother in the underworld.
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