Chapter 38 Even if the mountain valley sells me, I won’t sell yours.
Wen Nian really didn't expect that this remote place could be so remote.
After getting off the plane, the three of them took a bus.
Seeing that the surroundings were becoming more and more desolate, with only endless hills, Wen Nian silently hugged the bag in her hand and looked out the window with a vague look.
Xu Xiaoyu noticed her urgency and leaned over to ask, "Sister, are you afraid of being sold?"
"Huh?" Wen Nian turned his head slowly, looked at her and nodded twice dully.
This action caused Xu Zhijian, who was standing by, to laugh out loud. He assured her, "Don't worry, even if I sell myself, I won't sell you."
He leaned back in his chair, his voice lazily.
Wen Nian ignored her and listened to Xu Xiaoyu, who was sitting between them, say, "I'll tell you a secret. I thought the same thing when I first came here. Back then, I was still worried about my parents being with me. I was always afraid they didn't want me anymore."
"Really?" Wen Nian smiled and felt much more relaxed.
"Yes, yes." Xu Xiaoyu handed her a lollipop. "I was only three or four years old at the time. The most mountains I had seen were in scenic areas. Suddenly arriving in this deserted place, I was scared to death..."
Children often have the ability to describe a small thing in a shocking way, and Wen Nian was quickly impressed by her emotions.
The two of them chatted and laughed along the way, and the time seemed to pass more easily.
By the afternoon, they both fell asleep.
At a certain moment, Xu Zhijian woke Xu Xiaoyu up and motioned her to go to the side.
In a daze, Xu Xiaoyu yawned and just wanted to fall asleep again, so she got up in a depressed mood.
Soon, Xu Zhijian successfully sat between the two of them.
He carefully brought Wen Nian, who was sleeping against the window, to his shoulders. On the other side, Xu Xiaoyu also found a suitable position on his legs as a pillow and continued to sleep.
The air conditioner in the car was on full blast, so the temperature was a bit low.
As soon as she felt the warmth, Wen Nian instinctively hugged his arms in her sleep. The feeling of fullness made her unable to resist rubbing it twice in satisfaction.
Xu Zhijian chuckled, looking even more satisfied than her.
He really liked Wen Nian clinging to him like a kitten, or rather, he liked sticking to her.
Staggering all the way.
Wen Nian woke up immediately when the car suddenly stopped. When she opened her eyes, she found that she had arrived at her destination. Xu Zhijian had returned to his original position without her noticing.
It was getting dark.
The passengers got off the bus one after another.
Through the car window, you can see endless bungalows, and outside is a large forest, as if it is isolated here.
Is this... a mountain valley?
Wen Nian opened her confused eyes and stood up. When she got off the car, Xu Xiaoyu handed her a mask.
"Take it with you, sister. It will be useful later."
She didn't understand why, so she took it and said, "Okay."
It wasn't until I entered the small town that I realized the use of masks.
People gathering together can be seen everywhere on the streets, men and women, young and old. Perhaps they are bored, but they don’t mind the heat and chat under the trees with fans in hand. When they see someone or something they find strange, they stare at it for a long time, and even start discussing it behind the person before he or she leaves.
As they walked along, Wen Nian discovered that although this place was remote, it was similar to the rural areas she had seen before. There were no big supermarkets, but there were a few small shops. The water and electricity were all normal, but the environment was a bit poor and the terrain was relatively complex.
Xu Zhijian's grandfather's house is deep in a small alley.
It took almost twenty minutes to get there.
A white banner has been hung outside the door, and the sound of condolences can be faintly heard.
Before entering, Xu Zhijian squatted in front of Xu Xiaoyu and instructed: "When you go in later, take your sister directly to my room, okay? Call me if you need anything."
He suddenly regretted letting Wen Nian follow him.
Only now did I truly recall those bad past events.
After cursing all the way, Xu Xiaoyu's mouth was dry and she nodded dejectedly: "I know, I know. I wouldn't be wandering around outside without you telling me."
The voices of the two quickly attracted people.
The leader was a middle-aged woman with sallow skin and mottled white hair.
Following behind him was a man and a woman. The girl looked to be in her twenties, and the boy was about the same age as Xu Xiaoyu.
"Hey, Zhijian! You're finally back!" The woman saw him as if he had seen a savior. Without any further greetings, she pulled him into the yard.
Xu Zhijian looked back at Wen Nian again: "Contact me if you have anything."
"In order to let you see your grandfather for the last time, we haven't taken him to the crematorium yet..."
The voice gradually faded away, and only the little boy and Wen Nian were left outside the door.
"Hey, Xiaoyu." The little boy stared at the bag on Xu Xiaoyu's back, his eyes shining. He rubbed his hands and walked forward: "What delicious food did you bring me this time?"
Xu Xiaoyu took two steps back: "Take your sister with you! You're crazy!"
Seeing his thief-like appearance, Wen Nian immediately protected Xu Xiaoyu and asked, "What are you doing?"
"Hey?" The boy finally noticed the stranger and stopped to ask, "Who are you?"
"What does this have to do with you?" Xu Xiaoyu glared at him with her fists, pulling Wen Nian into the house. "If you block your aunt's way again, I'll knock your teeth out!"
"Ignore him, sister, he's just a little bandit."
Wen Nian: "...Okay."
The yard is very large, with five large cement houses and some small huts like toilets and sheep pens.
There were quite a few people standing in the courtyard now, probably neighbors, sighing over the cries coming from the main room.
As soon as Wen Nian and Xu Xiaoyu entered the room, they attracted a lot of attention.
They knew Xu Xiaoyu. They saw her once a year. They could tell at a glance that child had an air of wealth and nobility. As for the older girl next to her...
Several people looked at each other. They were all smart people and thought they had guessed the general idea when their eyes met.
Xu Laoer's family only has two children. If this girl, who is about the same age as Xu Zhijian, goes back to his hometown with him, she can only be his daughter-in-law.
...I've never heard of this.
So the gaze that fell on Wen Nian became an undisguised scrutiny.
"What are you looking at? If you keep looking, I'll dig your eyeballs out!" Xu Xiaoyu shouted rudely, and walked past a few people and pulled Wen Nian into Xu Zhijian's room.
There was a burst of scolding behind me.
"Hey, this kid is getting more rude as he gets older."
"This is what it's like when you come from a big city. It's really eye-opening."
"Your father has to be polite and call me aunt when he sees me, why are you being so arrogant?"
"Bang!" Xu Xiaoyu slammed the door hard, and the chattering sound was isolated outside the house.
"What a bunch of old crows, so noisy." She turned on the lights and the air conditioner and started rummaging through her backpack again: "Sister, wait a minute, I'll clean up first."
"This house hasn't been lived in for a year. Luckily I brought new sheets."
"There used to be a lot of these gossipy people living near my house." Wen Nian helped move the old quilt from the bed to the sofa, not paying much attention. "I guess they're just too idle."
Xu Xiaoyu: "That's right. I feel inexplicably irritated since I came here."
Thinking of her stern face since she got off the car, Wen Nian smiled: "Do you hate this place?"
"Of course." Xu Xiaoyu said disdainfully, "It's inconvenient to do anything, and there are so many psychopaths."
While cleaning the house, she began to talk: "My grandparents had three sons in total. My father was the second and the least popular one."
"I suffered a lot as a child. I didn't get many good things, but I did work hard. I had to bear the pain of being sick on my own, and was bullied and exploited by the eldest and third brothers. I still have several scars on my body."
"Later, my dad became successful and made a lot of money. The whole family immediately changed their attitude. They always wanted to take advantage of our family and said sweet words to us, but in fact, they must have said a lot of bad things about us behind our backs."
At this point, she sighed: "My parents went abroad this time and didn't come back in time. Who knows how they will be ruined."
Wen Nian listened quietly, thought about it, and said nothing.
Such hypocritical people who change with the wind are not uncommon wherever you go, and they are especially common in the workplace and large families.
But no one expected that Xu Zhijian's family would become rich early in life.
His father grew up in such an environment, and he must have put in a lot of effort to lead Shanhai Company to such a great success later on. It also shows that his talent is extraordinary.
The cabin is not very big. It has a bed, a sofa, a cabinet, a desk and almost no other furniture, so it is very easy to clean up.
Xu Xiaoyu went outside to fetch some water.
When he came back, he thought of something and sighed again, gnashing his teeth and muttering, "The one who just greeted my brother at the door was my third aunt, and the boy and girl following her are her two children. The girl is in college now, and our family pays for her tuition. The boy is about my age, and our family also pays for his tuition."
Wen Nian recalled the boy's arrogant look just now: "Did he often bully you in the past?"
"Him? Bullying me? What are you talking about—" Xu Xiaoyu blurted out, then stopped mid-sentence, her tone of disdain immediately changing to: "Yes, sister, that's why I asked you to accompany me. This guy not only bullies me, but also always harms my precious snacks. It's very hateful!"
"You must protect me."
Wen Nian blinked as he looked down at the innocent eyes looking at him.
Well... I have to say, in terms of the speed of emotional change, she and Xu Zhijian are really similar.
There is no preparation at all.
She pursed her lips helplessly and nodded solemnly.
"Thank you, sister~" Xu Xiaoyu chuckled twice, then happily let go of the hand that was holding her arm and changed the subject: "Speaking of which, my grandfather always missed his hometown, and they had no choice but to stay here with him. Now that he's gone, I guess my dad will have to arrange a move for them later."
"I hope they won't move near my house. I don't want to see them so often. They look like ghosts."
As soon as he finished speaking, the door was knocked twice.
This door doesn't seem to be very strong. It was obviously locked, but it was cracked open by just two hits.
"Hello! Xu Xiaoyu!" It was the voice of the boy just now.
When Xu Xiaoyu heard this, she was stunned for two seconds, then came to her senses, quickly hid behind Wen Nian, and called her sister pitifully.
Wen Nian patted her head and soothed her gently, "It's okay."
Xu Xiaoyu: "Yeah."
Then Wen Nian opened the door, looked at the boy holding his waist in front of the door and asked, "What's wrong?"
The little boy stared at her for a while, feeling somewhat bewildered. When he saw Xu Xiaoyu hiding behind her, his expression became arrogant again: "My mother asked you to go to the main hall to see Grandpa."
Xu Xiaoyu: "I'm not going."
"How dare you!" Perhaps he didn't expect her to refuse, he suddenly became angry, pointing at her and accusing her: "Your own grandfather didn't even go to see it, you really are an ungrateful person!"
"What? Will he come back to life if I see him?"
"Aren't your family the closest to the old man? Why don't you go and see him? It's best if you stay by his side day and night. He really likes having you as his big fat grandson." Xu Xiaoyu made a face at him, clearly not looking afraid at all.
"you!"
Seeing that the boy was about to rush in, Wen Nian immediately stopped him, "What are you doing? Why are you breaking into someone else's house?"
After all, he was an adult, and with Wen Nian's protection, the boy was a little scared and didn't dare to go forward. He gritted his teeth and said, "Just wait, Xu Xiaoyu! Grandpa will definitely come to you in your dreams to scare you to death at night!"
"Lululu, who's afraid?" Xu Xiaoyu said indifferently to his back, "I've almost forgotten what he looks like. I wouldn't recognize him even in my dreams."
She was so proud that when the other person walked away and met Wen Nian's suspicious eyes, she immediately curled her lips and shook her arm: "Woo, see, this is how he bullies me. I am just a little tough in words, but I feel so uncomfortable in my heart. Fortunately, my sister is there to protect me."
“…” Wen Nian smiled but said nothing.
It was getting dark.
For the rest of the time, no one cared about them anymore.
There was a hustle and bustle outside the house, with mourners coming and going one after another.
Xu Xiaoyu was lying on the sofa watching the tablet, while Wen Nian was sitting on the bed replying to messages from different people one by one.
Shen Wan had already gone to the United States. Afraid that she would be bored on the plane, she chatted with her for a while. It could be seen between the lines that Shen Wan was in a much better mood.
Her circle of friends has gradually become active, sharing various beautiful scenery and delicious food.
I haven't seen A Yue for a while. She seems to be busy with her manuscript recently. We chatted for a few minutes and then there was no news from her again.
The director of the program team transferred the remuneration, and the moment Wen Nian saw it, she immediately clicked to receive the payment. She was secretly happy for a while, then she scrolled down and saw Chu Yuxuan's message.
With a sense of urgency exclusive to him, I clicked into the chat box.
Chu Yuxuan: [You went back? ]
Thinking of the scene in the hospital the day before yesterday, Wen Nian was still a little uncomfortable.
It was very strange, why did he suddenly care so much about me? I remembered that before, we would not even talk to each other.
Could it be that because I behaved so terribly in front of him a year ago, this icy man actually felt pity for me?
Wen Nian shook his head, still feeling weird.
Forget it, too lazy to think about it, she replied: [Yeah. I didn't have anything to do there, so I came back first. Sorry, I forgot to say goodbye to you.]
Chu Yuxuan: [It's okay. I'll be back in two days. I promised to treat you to a meal. When are you free?]
Why do you still want to eat?
Haven’t you eaten it once?
Doesn’t it count?
Yes, we agreed to do it in Beijing.
Two days later...
They happened to have booked tickets to return two days later.
Wen Nian thought about it and felt that it would be okay to go that day. She happened to be on leave, so she didn't have to set aside time on the weekend. After all, at that time, she just wanted to lie at home and enjoy the happy days of watching TV series, petting cats, and eating snacks.
Wen Nian: [Sure, let’s do it on Tuesday.]
Chu Yuxuan: [Okay, we'll decide whether to have it at noon or in the evening depending on the situation.]
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