Chapter 8 Grandparents and grandchildren alone together
Yue Ning didn't want her grandfather to rashly agree to take Luo Guoqiang to Hong Kong City, so she turned to Yue Baohua and asked, "Grandpa, are we leaving the day after tomorrow? Are you in such a hurry?"
Whenever Zhang Lifen got the chance, she suggested that Luo Guoqiang go to Gangcheng with her, which made Yue Baohua very unhappy.
But the relationship between herself and Boss Qiao was just that of a chef and a diner, and Qiao Qiming was willing to help so much. Zhang Lifen meant that the Yue family owed the Luo family a great favor. If she didn't agree, it didn't matter what others thought, but what would Qiao Junxian and Boss Qiao think?
He was just having a hard time with this when his granddaughter spoke up to change the subject. Yue Baohua felt relieved and decided to change the subject.
"I was able to find you this time thanks to the help of an old friend." Yue Baohua looked at the comrades from Beijing and said, "I have caused a lot of trouble to the leaders in the mainland. Thank you Mr. Chen for accompanying me all the way."
"Mr. Yue, you're welcome. The superiors have said that this is what Mr. Qiao has entrusted me with. I'm just trying to help an old friend."
After hearing this, Yue Ning understood that his case was a special matter and he relied on the favors of his grandfather's friends.
Yue Baohua asked Yue Ning: "Ningning, is it inconvenient for you?"
"Not really, it's just too sudden." Yue Ning actually wanted to leave, but his grandfather came too suddenly this time, and Xiaoyanggou Village was unprepared. He was afraid that once they left, Secretary Fugen would be implicated.
"I came to Xiaoyangjiagou with my father when I was five years old. My father and I have always been taken care of by the people of Xiaoyangjiagou." She turned to look at Secretary Fugen, "Especially Uncle Fugen. After he came back to be the secretary, he helped my father study documents and revise his ideological reports. He gave my father a lot of help."
Secretary Fugen shook his head repeatedly: "This is my job, it's my duty."
Yue Ning added, "There is also Aunt Chunmei, the female comrade who just quarreled with this comrade. When I was a child, my father had to go out to work, so he sent me to Aunt Chunmei's house and asked Aunt Chunmei's mother-in-law to take care of me. My father didn't know how to make clothes, so my clothes and shoes were all made by Aunt Chunmei. After I went to elementary school, when I came home from school, my father was still earning work points, so I followed Aunt Chunmei's brother to cut grass for sheep."
She sighed slightly: "My father was ill and owed two years of work points. After he passed away, I, an orphan from a poor family, lived alone. If I were in other places, whether I wanted to or not, I might be forced to marry a fool. It was Uncle Fugen who repeatedly emphasized that marriage is free and women's wishes cannot be violated. It was also Aunt Chunmei who quarreled with Aunt Tian because of me. Those educated youth would buy two kilograms of sugar before leaving and treat their good neighbors to a meal. Am I just leaving like this? I..."
After getting off the plane, we took a train to the city, then walked along the mountain road to the county, and then crossed mountains and ridges to reach Xiaoyanggou. We saw Yue Ning's small house next to the sheep pen. The conditions were getting worse and worse, so bad that the comrades who accompanied him from Beijing felt they could not explain it.
The appearance of that fool further proves that the little girl's life here is difficult.
Now the little girl speaks for the local brigade secretary and the local villagers. The child does not want the people of Xiaoyanggou to be blamed.
The comrade from Beijing took over the conversation: "Yes, although Xiaoyanggou is poor, the people are simple and honest."
"Grandpa is too anxious. Tomorrow, I will go with you to thank you." Yue Baohua asked the comrade from Beijing again, "Mr. Chen, I want to buy some things for the fellow villager who took care of Ningning. I don't know how to buy them?"
"Foreign exchange certificates can only be used in foreign-related stores, which are only available in big cities like Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangdong. The tickets you have can be used here, but you can't buy much."
"No, no!" Secretary Fugen waved his hands quickly, "I didn't do anything. Xiao Yue is a very good person, working hard and eager to do the dirty and tiring work. Yue Ning is also a good child. After her father passed away, she has been working hard to pay back the work points she owed. I definitely don't want any of this. It's all my responsibility."
Secretary Fugen said to Yue Ning, "Your Aunt Chunmei is not in a hurry right now. You can go first."
"Yes, yes! These are all small things, there will be plenty of opportunities in the future." Comrade Chen echoed.
Everyone was saying this, and Zhang Lifen couldn't get a word in for a while. She stood up and walked to Yue Ning, lowered her head and whispered, "Ningning, I want to go to the bathroom."
"I'll go with you." Yue Ning stood up, asked Li Qiaomei for a kerosene lamp, and took Zhang Lifen to the toilet with the lamp.
As soon as she walked out of the room and reached a secluded place, Zhang Lifen stopped and said, "Ningning, I have something to tell you."
So you didn't really want to go to the bathroom? Yue Ning turned around and stood still, looking at Zhang Lifen.
Zhang Lifen walked up to her, took her hand, and asked, "Is your Grandpa Luo good to you and your father?"
Yue Ning pulled back her hand, not wanting to beat around the bush, and said, "Aunt, just say it straight."
Zhang Lifen looked at her and said, "Can you just tell your grandfather that my mother and I are here to see you? Don't mention marriage."
"Why?" Yue Ning was holding a kerosene lamp. In the yellow light where there was no moonlight, she had a smile on her lips but her eyes were cold.
Being stared at by Yue Ning like that, Zhang Lifen's heart was beating like a drum. How could she look like an eighteen-year-old girl?
Zhang Lifen calmed down and organized her words: "Ningning, we do have selfish motives for letting you marry Guoqiang. We want Guoqiang to go to Gangcheng, but it will not harm you. Your grandfather runs a restaurant in Gangcheng, and most people in Gangcheng look down on mainlanders. Guoqiang is the best chef of Fuyunlou's generation. When you go to Gangcheng, you will know that even with your grandfather, it is still difficult for you, a girl without any skills, to gain a foothold there. If you don't want to marry Guoqiang, let him go to Gangcheng with you. He will be a chef in the restaurant, and you will have someone to rely on."
"Just because you can cook, you can be relied upon by others? Then I can just rely on myself." Yue Ning walked back with a smile while holding the lamp.
As Yue Ning turned around, Zhang Lifen stomped her feet and chased after him: "Ningning, do you think cooking in a restaurant is the same as cooking at home?"
Zhang Lifen thought of the potato pancakes Yue Ning had made earlier, which were much more delicious than the fried potato pancakes she was eating now. She smiled and said, "Even if you can make flowers out of potatoes, what's the use? Can you make sea cucumbers, fish maws, and abalone? Can you braise goose? Can you make sashimi?"
"Grandpa!" Yue Ning shouted.
Zhang Lifen saw Yue Baohua walking out of the door.
Yue Baohua looked at Zhang Lifen with a sullen face: "Lifen, why does Ningning need to know how to make sea cucumbers and abalone? Why does she need to know how to stew goose?"
"Uncle Hua, I mean, she..."
"If she wants to eat, I will make it for her. You don't need to worry about it." Yue Baohua looked at Yue Ning, "Ningning, I will go back with you and live in your house. I want to accompany your father."
Secretary Fugen trotted out and said, "Yuening, we will arrange for everyone to live in the village primary school. Your grandfather said he wants to live in your house."
"Okay!" They came so suddenly that Yue Ning didn't have time to understand the situation clearly, and he also wanted to talk to his grandfather.
Yang Fugen helped Yue Baohua carry his luggage: "Old man, I'll take you back."
Zhang Lifen saw Yue Baohua was about to leave and chased after him: "Uncle Hua..."
Yue Baohua looked back at her and said bluntly, "Let's talk about it tomorrow if you have anything to say."
The three of them walked out of the brigade office and onto the loess road. The moon was like a hook, weary birds were returning to their nests, and night owls were making gurgling sounds. Yang Fugen's flashlight illuminated a short distance of the road, and a fox jumped in front of them. Its pair of green eyes like light bulbs stared at the three of them, then ran away quickly.
Seeing his granddaughter's steady steps, Yue Baohua calmed himself down and followed the two people.
"Yue Ning, thank you so much today!" Yang Fugen sighed.
"Uncle Fugen, I'm telling the truth. You're a person who does practical things for Xiaoyanggou Brigade, and you're also a very humane secretary. My father and I are very grateful to you!" She thought for a moment, and then said, "Also, don't blame your aunt when you go back. In Xiaoyangjiagou, filling your stomach is the top priority. You don't know how expensive firewood and rice are until you run a household. It's not easy to take care of more than a dozen mouths in a family. After my aunt and brother came today, I used up all the oil for this month. I entertained them, but I was also worried just now. How are we going to get through the rest of the month without oil? It's only natural that my aunt doesn't want to take anything out."
Yang Fugen smiled: "You kid."
Yue Ning has become a different person since her father passed away. She has grown up overnight. She is not easy to bully. If she hadn't worked hard, even if everyone wanted to help her, they would be powerless when every household was short of food and clothing.
Yue Baohua, who was listening to the conversation, said: "Yes, Mr. Yang, I will tell Mr. Chen that you have done your best to take care of them."
Arriving at Yue Ning's door, Yang Fugen put down his suitcase and looked at Yue Ning: "Ah!"
"good."
Yang Fugen left with a flashlight.
Yue Ning pushed open the door, found a match in the moonlight, and lit the kerosene lamp.
The grandfather and grandson entered the house, and Yue Ning quickly cleaned up the dishes on the small table: "Grandpa, please sit for a while, I'll boil some water."
Yue Baohua watched his granddaughter light firewood to boil water. It only took a short time for a meal, and he was filled with satisfaction. The child was smart and kind. Looking at the family again and seeing the photo of his son, his eyes became moist again. He walked over, picked up the photo of his son, sat on the kang, and looked at it carefully by the oil lamp.
Yue Ning added a piece of firewood, washed the dishes, and went out to the sheepfold next door to bring in two bundles of hay. Yue Baohua looked up and asked, "Ningning, what are you doing?"
Yue Ning put the hay behind the door and said, "Grandpa, I'll sleep on the floor and you can sleep on the kang."
"I can sleep on the floor and you can sleep on the kang," said Yue Baohua.
"The muddy ground is uneven. You are old and your back will ache if you sleep on it. I often take naps on the hillside when I am herding sheep. I am used to it."
Yue Ning saw the water was boiling, so she opened the lid of the pot, filled the enamel teacup first, took out a few wolfberries from the earthenware jar and put them in two bowls, scooped a spoonful of boiling water into them, and made two bowls of wolfberry tea. She brought a bowl of tea and put it on the small table: "Grandpa, have some tea."
Then she went back to the stove, added half a bucket of water to the pot, and added a piece of firewood to the stove.
Yue Ning turned around, untied the hay, spread it on the ground, took out a bed sheet and a thick quilt from the box, and spread the bed sheet on the hay.
Yue Baohua put down the photo of his son and said, "Ningning, what did Zhang Lifen say to you just now?"
Yue Ning smoothed the bed sheet, knelt on the ground, looked up and said, "This time, Aunt Luo and Brother Guoqiang came and said that in order to help me return to the city, their family decided to let Brother Guoqiang marry me."
"What?" Yue Baohua opened his mouth in surprise.
Yue Ning lowered his head and unfolded the quilt, saying: "After so many years of educated youth going to the countryside, tens of millions of them have been trying to find ways to return to the city..."
Yue Ning told Yue Baohua the background of the incident and how difficult it was to bring someone back to the city from the countryside.
"In order to return to the city, many people would do anything. So when they said they would take me back to the city, I was quite touched at first." Yue Ning sighed, "When I was cooking, they talked about Hong Kong and restaurants in Cantonese, so I kept my eyes peeled. During the meal, Aunt Luo kept saying that in order to get me back to the city and live a good life, she asked Guoqiang, the best cook in their family, to marry me so that I could work as a waiter in Fuyun Building as a family member. I knew there was something fishy going on. After you came, she knew her wish had failed, so she called me out under the pretext of going to the bathroom and asked me not to tell you about it."
The last time Yue Baohua went to Yuecheng to meet his nephew's family, he thought his nephew was a good person, but his wife was all talk and no action. He didn't expect that this family would come up with such a wishful thinking. This was not just Zhang Lifen's idea, it must have been discussed by the whole family.
While he was not here, under the pretext of bringing Ningning back to the city, she let her granddaughter marry Luo Guoqiang. When the matter was settled, what else could she do? She would definitely have to do her best to train her grandson-in-law, and in the end, the Luo family would swallow up their family business.
Yue Baohua's face was as black as the bottom of a pot. He knew that things are unpredictable and the Luo family could not be blamed for his son's death.
But...his trip to Hong Kong City had a lot to do with the Luo family.
After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, the owner of Fuyunlou planned to reopen a branch in Hong Kong. It should be my senior brother who went there, after all, he had been a chef in Fuyunlou in Hong Kong since 1936 and was familiar with the place.
But the senior brother had experienced the days when Hong Kong was occupied by the Japanese, and he returned to Yuecheng after much hardship. He refused to go to Hong Kong again no matter what. The boss thought of him. He didn't want to go at that time either. Zhirong was only six years old, and he didn't want the child to go with him. The senior brother and his wife found him. They had a heavy burden on their family, and they persuaded him to leave Zhirong in Yuecheng, saying that they would take good care of Zhirong and take Zhirong over after he settled down there.
After much consideration, and after his boss talked to him several times, he finally decided to go to Hong Kong City.
The owner of Fuyunlou probably had a conflict with Hong Kong City. After the war, many playboys from all over the place flocked to Hong Kong City. The second young master who was sent to manage the branch made some bad friends, became addicted to gambling and opium, and lost all his money in two years. He also sold the restaurant which was doing a booming business.
Although the new boss wanted to keep him, he declined, wanting to return to Yuecheng to be with his children. When he returned to Yuecheng Fuyunlou, his senior brother was very nervous, fearing that he would take the position of the master chef of Fuyunlou. However, it must be said that his senior brother and his wife were really good to Zhirong, which made him feel relieved.
At that time, he saw the business opportunities in Hong Kong and wanted to try his luck. He told his senior brother about his idea, and he naturally agreed with both hands and promised to teach Zhirong all his skills.
From setting up a street stall to finally saving enough money to buy a shop with six tables, he wanted to bring his son to Hong Kong. When he returned, he found that his 12-year-old son had entered Fuyunlou and was learning the craft from his senior apprentice. The senior apprentice taught him very attentively, and Zhirong learned the fastest among the apprentices.
His shop is in Mong Kok. All the rich people in Hong Kong are in Hong Kong Island, and Mong Kok is where ordinary people gather. His shop only sells home-cooked dishes such as roast meat, fried thin shells, and stir-fried beef noodles. He basically has no chance to prepare big dishes such as bird's nest, abalone and shark's fin, so what he can learn is limited.
His senior brother also advised him: "Let Zhirong study for a few more years in Fuyunlou and learn all the skills. When your business is bigger, wouldn't it be a good time for you to come over?"
What the senior brother said made sense. He had thought that in three years, his shop would be in good shape and his son would be able to become an apprentice. He thanked the senior brother and returned to Hong Kong. Who could have thought that once the border was closed, he would never be able to go back, and Zhirong would never be able to leave.
Hearing bits and pieces of what was said in the mainland, he often hated himself, wondering why he had left his son alone in the country. In the middle of the night, when his thoughts were in a mess, he could not help but blame others, thinking that if his senior brother had not wanted to go to Hong Kong City, if he had stayed in Guangdong City, they would both be cooks, and they would definitely be fine now.
The last time he returned to Yuecheng, he learned that his senior brother died of illness due to Zhirong's involvement, and he felt guilty for his pettiness. This was all caused by the current situation. Even if he had to blame someone, it was his own decision, not to mention that his senior brother was also dedicated to Zhirong.
Zhang Lifen was so determined to get her eldest son to Hong Kong City that she actually had such an evil idea. Yue Baohua gnashed his teeth and said, "What a wicked person!"
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