After they were some distance away from the state-owned restaurant, Hu Lin said anxiously, "Let's run to the city gate. The master is still waiting for us. It's already past eleven o'clock."
Old man Yang usually returns to the village at 11 o'clock. He arrives in the village after 12 o'clock and is almost ready for lunch when he gets home.
Old man Yang would only wait for people when he needed to pull something.
When Li Aihua heard the time, her heart tightened and she followed her daughter's footsteps and ran towards the city gate.
By the time the two men arrived at the city gate, panting, Old Yang had become a little impatient.
Seeing the mother and daughter looking so tired, he couldn't blame them. "What have you been doing? Why are you here so late?"
"Sorry, sorry, something went wrong and delayed me." Hu Lin regained some of his breath.
She didn't expect that the manager would refuse to discuss business with her at first, but later, when he saw there was a back door, he suddenly decided to do it, which delayed some time.
All this time was calculated, and it was much longer than what she had originally planned.
Old Yang handed the bicycle to Li Aihua, who was still panting, and said breathlessly, "Take it. I'm going back. The others are waiting for you two with me."
"Oh, I'm sorry to have delayed you." Li Aihua quickly took the bicycle.
"Be more careful next time." After saying this, Old Yang hurriedly drove the ox cart back to the village.
Watching Old Man Yang leave, Hu Lin's breath had calmed down, while Li Aihua was still panting. "Let's go find some sand where we are building a road or a house."
Unprocessed mud and sand are soft and clumpy, making them unsuitable for making sandbags.
"Ah? What are you looking for sand for?" Li Aihua was confused when she heard her daughter wanted these things whose uses she had no idea.
After running for a long distance, the stone that had been weighing on her heart for a while loosened a little. She felt more relaxed and started to talk more.
However, there was no hint of rebuttal in her words, she just asked out of curiosity.
"You'll know when you get back." Hu Lin returned to the city.
Li Aihua pushed her bicycle and caught up.
After turning off the main road and walking towards a somewhat remote area for a while, the two saw a house being built.
The two men approached and saw several migrant workers eating their meals.
I can’t say the meals at work are that good, they’re just okay and it’s good enough if I can eat my fill.
The staple food is steamed corn bread and coarse grain pancakes, and the dishes are not oily, just stewed cabbage, bean paste, and braised potatoes.
Most of the migrant workers working on construction sites have no flesh on their cheeks, and some are even sunken.
There are dark bags under his eyes and he looks listless, but his eyes are full of determination.
The scene before us was just as the village chief had said during the meeting, working day and night.
"What are you two doing here? Are you here to see your men too?" an administrator came over and asked.
"No, we just want to see if we can find some sand." Hu Lin quickly said.
"What do you want these for? These are for building the house. You can't just ask for them casually."
The administrator looked at the two men sternly, as if he were looking at thieves.
"Uncle, we just want a few pounds of sand to make a stone pier for the base of the clothesline.
We borrowed some cement from my uncle who built a house a few years ago, but we couldn't find any sand.
My family is not building a house, and the supply and marketing cooperative won’t sell it for such a small amount.
We knew that there were roads being repaired and houses being built in the city, so we bravely came here.
Uncle, we don't need much, but you can pay to buy some, is that okay with you?"
Hu Lin is making up stories again.
But the administrator didn't buy it.
"Go away, go away, you little brat. Why are you butting in?"
The administrator shouted, then looked at Li Aihua,
"This is public property. Forget about it. Leave now, or I'll get someone to chase you away."
Seeing that the administrator didn't buy it, Hu Lin frowned and was speechless.
After all, her age limits her.
Hu Lin tugged at Li Aihua's clothes and thought about retreating.
This administrator doesn't look like someone who is easy to get along with.
You'd better look elsewhere for the sand issue.
However, Li Aihua misunderstood.
"Brother, we really just want a few pounds of sand. Can I pay fifty cents for it?
Every year when the wind blows, the clothes drying rack at home is blown down, and the clothes are often washed in vain. Please be kind and sell us some."
Li Aihua said pleadingly.
However, her words did not impress the administrator, but the money she mentioned made the administrator interested.
"How much did you say?"
Fifty cents is not a small amount. Is this woman really willing to spend it to buy sand?
"Five, five cents." Li Aihua was a little scared by the sudden surge of fierceness from the administrator.
But when she thought that this was what her daughter wanted, she gritted her teeth, persisted, and looked at him.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
