On the first night after returning to Xia Jianguo's maternal grandparents' home, Li Zhonghua and Sun Erni made a special trip back from town to welcome Xia Jianguo's family.
Grandma Xia and Li Zhonghua prepared several of their signature dishes to entertain the guests.
"Sister-in-law, these are wallets for you and my brother, this lipstick is for Xiaoxiao, and this English-Chinese dictionary is for Xiaoqing. The wallets are made of very fine sheepskin." Li Chunmei handed the gifts she brought back from Shenzhen to Sun Erni.
Sun Erni accepted the gift. "Thank you, Second Sister. I really like it."
"Sister-in-law, why didn't Xiaoxiao come home for dinner today?"
Li Chunmei was referring to Li Xiaoxiao, the eldest daughter of Li Zhonghua and Sun Erni.
"She has to work overtime today."
"I haven't seen her for over a year. Mom said she recently went back to work at the cement factory?"
“The factory where she used to work often required overtime and never gave her a day off, so your brother used his connections to get her a job at a cement factory, at least it’s closer to home,” Sun Erni complained.
"It's definitely better to live closer to home, even if the salary is lower."
"By the way, Chunmei, how are things going in Shenzhen?"
"The first few months were really tough. It took three hours to travel back and forth every day. Fortunately, the stall time was only four or five hours. It got much better after the shop opened."
Sun Erni admired them for leaving their hometown to do business. "You guys are really amazing. You opened a shop in Shenzhen in just one year."
Li Chunmei said, "This is just good luck. We didn't even start from scratch. If it weren't for the money Xiaomin gave us, we wouldn't have been able to rent a shop and open a store in such a short time."
"Don't say that. If you really didn't have the ability, you wouldn't have been able to keep that money. Chunmei, how much did your house in Shenzhen cost?" Sun Erni was still envious of being able to have so much money all at once.
"8,500 yuan per square meter."
Sun Erni exclaimed, "So expensive! I can't earn that much money in a year!"
Li Chunmei explained, "The main reason is for Xiaomin's future schooling. There are primary, middle and high schools in that neighborhood, and they are very close to each other. The surrounding environment is also very good. Since we are unfamiliar with the area, we just bought a fully furnished house and moved in after a little cleaning."
Sun Erni asked, "Fully furnished?"
"Fully furnished apartments are those that are renovated by real estate companies and sold directly. They are more expensive, but you can move in right away. Ordinary apartments in Shenzhen are not that expensive, and recently the prices have even dropped a bit."
"Then aren't you losing out?"
"Our house prices haven't dropped; in fact, they've gone up a bit. It's all because of the proximity to the school. Although they're expensive, they're in high demand."
Upon hearing this, Sun Erni exclaimed that it was still easier to make money off children.
"By the way, sister-in-law, do you and brother want to open a restaurant in Shenzhen?" Li Chunmei hesitated for a moment, but decided to ask anyway.
"Us? Can we do it?" Sun Erni asked with some doubt.
"Yes, business is booming in Shenzhen, whether it's the night markets or restaurants. Some restaurants don't even have the same level of skill as my brother, but they still do very well. It's much better than staying at home."
Sun Erni seemed to be thinking about it, "Then I'll talk to your older brother about it tonight."
The conversation between the two women fell silent.
Grandma Xia came out of the kitchen carrying dishes. "Chunmei, go to the kitchen and call Xiaomin and Jianguo over for dinner."
Xia Minmin, who had just come out of the fire room, had a bright red face from the fire. She had never been exposed to wind and sun in her life and had never gotten tanned. Xia Minmin's skin tone was still the same as Li Chunmei's, which was pinkish-white.
Sunscreen is a lifelong necessity. Before she turned 18, Xia Minmin spent every summer vacation wandering the streets. From 18 to 24, every summer she went to the beach or places with strong ultraviolet radiation. Back then, she didn't really understand the concept of sunscreen. Year after year, she was exposed to the sun, and Xia Minmin never managed to regain her fair complexion.
"Jianguo, come sit down, let's have a drink with Dad!" Li Zhonghua took out a bottle of wine and three small wine glasses.
Grandma Xia put a piece of braised pork into Xia Minmin's bowl. "Minmin, try this braised pork. It's a new dish that Grandma learned to make. See if it's good?"
Xia Minmin took a bite of the meat in her bowl. "Grandma, it's delicious."
Xia Minmin picked up three pieces of braised pork in a row. It was indeed delicious. The meat didn't have any strange smell and tasted very good.
Just as Xia Minmin was about to pick up the fourth piece of braised pork, the plate of braised pork was moved to a place where Xia Minmin couldn't reach it.
Li Chunmei said seriously, "Xiaomin, eat more vegetables. You ate too much meat today, you can't eat anymore."
"Chunmei, let the child eat if she wants to! Eating more meat is good for her health." Grandma Xia moved the braised pork in front of Xia Minmin.
“Mom, I’m her mother, how could I possibly harm her?” Li Chunmei retorted.
"Fine! Fine!" Grandma Xia had no choice but to compromise and moved the braised pork away again.
After dinner, Li Chunmei and Sun Erni went to the kitchen to clean up the dishes, while the others warmed themselves by the fire in the fire room. The winter nights were especially cold, a damp cold brought by magical attacks.
Li Zhonghua asked, "When will the founding of the nation take place next year?"
"It should be over by the fifth day of the first lunar month. We plan to open for business on the eighth day."
"Jianguo, you've finally overcome your hardships and your life is getting better and better."
"Yes, things will be better for everyone in the future. Big brother, do you have time next year to take Mom and Dad and sister-in-law to Shenzhen for a few days? They can stay at home, it's very convenient."
"It's fine for Mom and Dad to go, but your sister-in-law and I probably won't have time."
Xia's grandfather said, "I'm not going either! I have so many chickens to feed at home, I don't have time!"
Li Zhonghua said, "Dad, we can ask Uncle to help raise the chickens for a few days."
Xia Jianguo said, "Brother, this is a great idea. We'll go to Shenzhen when the farming season is over. Chunmei and I are always free."
"Grandpa, why don't you go to Shenzhen for a few days next year? I miss you so much this year, and you haven't come to see me at all."
"Yes, yes, we'll visit Xiaomin next year when Grandpa has time."
After settling in, the family sat in the kitchen for a while before Li Zhonghua and Sun Erni rode their bicycles back to town.
Li Chunmei boiled a pot of water for Xia Minmin to take a bath in the kitchen. Taking a bath in the cold winter is a challenge for every child, as it is easy to catch a cold without a stove.
...
When Sun Erni returned home, she talked to Li Zhonghua about Li Chunmei's suggestion that they open a restaurant in Shenzhen.
To be honest, Li Zhonghua was quite tempted. He had been to many cities as a truck driver before, and it was much easier to make money in big cities than in small towns. Plus, having someone to guide him would save him a lot of trouble.
“Zhonghua, no matter what, it’s better for us to go there than stay at home. Maybe after earning some money in a few years, we can buy a house in Shenzhen like Chunmei.”
“I know it’s easy to make money in big cities, but Xiaoqing is already in junior high and will be going to high school soon, which is a crucial time.”
“I thought about this problem while we were eating. I’ll leave it to my parents to take care of her on weekends. Xiaoqing isn’t a child who needs to be watched every day. Plus, she has good self-control, so it shouldn’t be a big problem.”
"Let's not rush. I'll ask Jianguo for more details in a few days, and then we'll make a decision together. We also need to talk to Mom and Dad properly."
"Um."
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