As soon as they left Y Province, the closer they got to Jiangcheng, the colder the weather became. After a two-hour delay, Gao Guojing arrived at the Jiangcheng train station at almost three o'clock.
On a crowded train, with the carriages separating the passengers, the temperature difference isn't as significant.
Gao Guojing struggled to squeeze through the crowd, carrying his things, and found an open space to put them down. Only when he had some free time did he belatedly realize that a cold wind was blowing directly through his skin. He quickly took out a thick coat from his backpack and put it on.
Gao Guojing thought to himself that he had had so much fun at the Shangfen Brigade that he had almost forgotten about the temperature in Jiangcheng.
After Gao Guojing finished dressing, he stood up straight and looked around. After confirming the itinerary, his brother had called his parents, and his mother said she would come to pick him up. The train was two hours late, so his mother must have arrived by now.
On the other side, Gao Xiujuan did indeed arrive at the train station as he expected, and from the station staff's announcements, she learned that Gao Guojing's train had arrived. She kept looking at the people coming out of the train station.
Gao Xiujuan's gaze lingered on Gao Guojing several times, feeling that he looked somewhat familiar, but she also felt that he couldn't possibly be her son.
When Gao Guojing left, he was as thin as a bamboo pole during his growth spurt.
Moreover, conditions in the countryside are much harsher than here, and she was prepared to see her son again when he was skin and bones.
Therefore, she never imagined that in the more than a month that her son was not by her side, he not only did not lose weight, but actually gained a lot of weight.
This made her feel that the chubby boy was somewhat familiar, but she didn't think that he was Gao Guojing. Her eyes were still scanning the other people coming out of the train station.
It wasn't until Gao Guojing stood in front of her carrying things and called out "Mom" that Gao Xiujuan tentatively asked, with a hint of disbelief, "Guojing?"
Gao Guojing looked shocked: "Mom, what's wrong? I've only been gone for a little over a month, and you don't recognize me?"
Gao Guojing's fair and rosy complexion, brimming with collagen, shocked Gao Xiujuan even more: "Guojing, is it really you, Guojing? Why are you back looking like this? Did you go to your brother's place?"
Gao Guojing knew that he had changed quite a bit. His face was no longer covered in acne scars and he had gained some weight, but it wasn't so exaggerated that even his own mother wouldn't recognize him after a month or so.
Gao Guojing asked with dissatisfaction, "Mom, what's wrong with how I look?"
He looked at his face every day and didn't think there was much change, but for Gao Xiujuan, who hadn't seen him for more than a month, it was as if he had become a completely different person.
The skinny son became a chubby son, grew a centimeter or two taller, and his pockmarked face became smooth and delicate. It was as if he had put on a new skin and inflated it with air. Who would recognize him?
Gao Xiujuan grabbed his ear and said, "Tell me, where did your acne scars go? And how much good stuff did you ruin for your brother? How did you get so fat?"
The station was bustling with people. Gao Guojing, in the prime of his youth, felt too embarrassed to have his ear pulled in public by his own mother, and quickly begged for mercy.
Gao Guojing: "Mom, let's talk this out. Don't pull my ear, it hurts. Just ask me whatever you want to know, and I'll tell you everything I know."
Glancing at the crowd gathering in their direction, Gao Xiujuan released his ear and uttered a harsh remark: "I'll settle the score with you when we get home."
Gao Guojing only had three bags. Gao Xiujuan randomly picked one of the two large bags, and the weight in her hand quickly made her realize that she couldn't carry the bag home with her strength.
She glared at Gao Guojing with annoyance. It must be that brat who didn't know his own strength and brought back some good stuff from his eldest son. It was so heavy, and she wondered what it was.
Gao Guojing walked home with a chill running down his spine under Gao Xiujuan's piercing gaze, feeling that his once warm and cozy home would now temporarily serve as his denunciation site.
He felt that he was doing a good job in Shangfen Brigade, and he listened to his older brother and sister every day. He took care of the children and did all the housework. How come he became an unforgivable villain in his own mother's eyes?
As soon as the mother and son entered their home and put down their things, Gao Xiujuan could no longer hold back and began interrogating them.
Gao Xiujuan: "Tell me honestly, what have you been doing with your brother? How did you get so fat? Did you squander all the money your father and third brother asked you to bring to Rujia?"
She didn't want to doubt her son, but the existence of this flesh and blood left him no choice but to doubt.
Gao Guojing felt he couldn't bear the guilt she had brought upon him, and hurriedly cried out, "Mom, I didn't do any of those things you're saying. If you don't believe me, ask Sister Rujia."
“I arranged to call Sister Rujia at 5 p.m. to let her know I’m safe. You can confront her then. Besides, you know what kind of person Sister Rujia is.”
"If I dared to cause trouble in front of her, she would have skinned me alive and torn me to pieces long ago. You wouldn't be standing here alive and well in front of you now."
Yu Rujia's personality successfully restrained Gao Xiujuan's anger, and none of the younger generation in the family could make her suffer.
She had no doubt that Yu Rujia would actually search Gao Guojing. However, a search didn't mean Gao Guojing hadn't hidden money, and she felt she still needed to confront Yu Rujia.
Gao Xiujuan: "I'll believe your nonsense for now. Tell me what happened after you went to the countryside."
Gao Guojing: "Mom, we can't finish talking about this in a short time. Why don't you go cook first, and we can talk about it while we eat?"
Gao Xiujuan checked the time; it was almost 4:30. Xia Taishun would be back at 5:30, and Xia Jingrong would also be coming over tonight. She would be calling Yu Rujia again at 5:00, so she had to start preparing dinner now.
Anyway, Gao Guojing is back now. If he dares to lie to her, she can deal with him anytime.
The turmoil in the Xia family has mostly subsided. Gao Xiujuan and Xia Taishun have resumed their relationship, and the couple are preparing to remarry. Now, they no longer need to be as cautious as they were six months ago.
Yu Rujia from the Shangfen Brigade arrived at the brigade office after checking the time.
It wasn't time to leave work yet, and Secretary Li was smoking inside. When he saw her come in, he tapped his pipe to put out the fire.
Party Secretary Li greeted them with a smile, "What wind blew Yu, the educated youth, here?"
Since settling in Shangfen Brigade, she only visits a few familiar families outside of going up the mountain, and basically doesn't go anywhere else.
She'll be coming to the brigade office today. Secretary Li, who knows her style well, is sure she won't come unless she has a reason.
Yu Rujia: "There's no wind at all. It's just that Shujing's younger brother, Guojing, went back yesterday. I arranged to call him at five o'clock to let him know I was safe. I came over to wait since it was almost time."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
