118. 118 Couple Reunion
"Is there a problem with your work?" Su Yu couldn't help but ask the man who stayed in the house every day to cook for her.
"No, why do you ask? Do you think I would be bullied by anyone?"
“You’ve been staying with me for five days now. Although I enjoy coming home to hot meals every day, your job requires someone to be there for you, and I can’t help but wonder if you’ve quit your job.” Su Yu added, “I absolutely don’t mean to look down on you. I’m just worried about you. With all the money you’ve earned over the years, you could live comfortably even if you stopped working altogether, and I’ll still support you.”
She squatted down, her inner thigh muscles aching and tight, as if the tendons had been stretched taut – all from the exhaustion of working late into the night these past few days.
"Or is it that you haven't used up all your knowledge yet?" Her tone unconsciously carried a hint of pleading: "Good food should be saved for later. If you eat meat and fish every day, your stomach can't handle it, don't you think?"
She was probably used to eating only one or two large meat dishes a month, but now that she was being forced to eat so much rich food, she actually felt tired of it. This made her wonder if the bull had been eating something to nourish itself.
"Didn't you always say that there are only oxen that die from exhaustion, not fields that are over-plowed?" Ning Jin couldn't help but laugh, his hand trembling slightly as he handed over the chopsticks. "Eat quickly, then take a nap."
Su Yu glared at him, not giving him a chance to interrupt, and pressed, "Is there really a problem with your work?"
"No, I telegraphed the factory to ask for leave before I boarded the train. Old Wang had some trouble, and I didn't want to have a new partner, so I asked for leave too." He hadn't planned to ask for leave before going to find Ping An, but after hearing about Ping An's desire to join the army, he decided not to take the risk. He didn't know much, but he knew that before becoming a soldier, one had to investigate the background of several generations of their family. For those of them who worked on the train, besides being very familiar with their partners, they rarely saw their other colleagues more than a few times a year. Apart from Old Wang, he didn't trust anyone else. He was worried that if someone found out, it would affect his son's future, so he asked for leave.
As for what to do next, he hasn't figured it out yet.
“When you take your vacation at the end of the month, we’ll take a bus from here to the capital to see Xiaoyuan and look for a house there.”
"You took leave and kept it from me." Su Yu glanced at him. "I was worried that you were being bullied by your boss or had a conflict with your colleagues. You made me worry for nothing."
"Who told you not to ask me directly?" the man retorted confidently.
"Did I ask you anything on the way back from Sha Tin? You dodged the question, and I thought there was something going on. I held back for days to protect your pride." Her eyes immediately turned fierce, and she only snorted and continued eating after he remembered.
Ning Jin put meat into her bowl. For the past two days, he had been driving his jeep to buy vegetables and meat for the people here, and also brought back water. He also took Su Yu's bed sheets, blankets, and clothes that she had worn a few times but hadn't washed to the river in town to wash them.
With him running around inside and outside every day, the people living here can also eat fresh fruits, meat and vegetables.
"What's wrong with Lao Wang?" Su Yu asked.
“When the two neighbors were fighting, he went to break them up and got pushed and shoved, hitting his eye.” He pointed to the area above his temple and said, “It’s a cut, not shallow, and it’s bandaged. It will affect my driving.”
"Luckily, no eyeball was injured." She didn't know what to say. She didn't know what to do about this kind of fight between husband and wife. The two of them were fighting so fiercely. If she pretended not to hear it, she was afraid of killing or maiming someone. If she went to break up the fight, she would only get the benefit of being an outsider after they made up.
"He probably won't dare to get involved in such messy things again. He was lucky this time that he didn't hit his head or eyeball. If he had hit his head against the sun, he would have been finished."
Su Yu enjoyed another ten days of easy living with all the housework done by someone else. At the end of the month, she packed her things and went out with Ning Jin in Engineer Lü's car. She looked at the boundless and indistinguishable desert, with soft sand dunes in some places, and wondered how Ning Jin had memorized the route after only two trips.
"Let's go to the Forestry Bureau first. I need to submit a document. We'll go to the train station after that," Su Yu said to Ning Jin.
"Anything is fine." After Su Yu got out of the car, he saw that Engineer Lü was also looking worriedly at the open door, so he couldn't help but ask, "Why are you so worried? Have you encountered any difficulties? If it's confidential, you don't have to tell us."
"It's not a secret, it's about exporting cash crops. I reckon it won't be easy. Aloe vera can't be eaten or drunk, who would want it?" Engineer Lü glanced at Ning Jin, feeling a bit embarrassed about the family scandal being exposed, but considering that Ning Jin wasn't an outsider, he laughed self-deprecatingly and said, "Moreover, there's not much attention paid to environmental protection these days. Our desertification control, which is slow to show results, is like being an unwanted stepchild. Section Chief Su is probably going to run into a wall."
"How do you know if you don't try? The fact that there are no results now means there are still good results to come." It seems they've been busy with aloe vera lately. No wonder he sometimes didn't see anyone when he turned in the direction Su Yu led him out in.
Once on the train, he asked Su Yu what aloe vera was used for.
"Moisturizing and sun protection are mostly used in skincare and cosmetic products. It's just that this industry hasn't developed in our country yet, and those established skincare brands have fixed procurement channels. Now it depends on whether the government will support them." Su Yu shook her head. She was also a bit troubled. If it were after 1992, it would be much easier.
Seeing that she wasn't very keen on talking, Ningjin switched the conversation to her about any local specialties in the desert and other things that interested her. Along the way, the two chatted about the scenery and customs of various places, and the nearly day-long train ride didn't feel too unbearable.
"Mom? Dad! Why didn't you tell me you were coming?" Xiao Yuan's voice cracked with excitement when he saw his parents at the dormitory entrance. "When did you arrive? Have you eaten?"
"I ate and booked a room at the guesthouse before coming to find you." Su Yu smiled at Xiao Yuan's roommate, and when she saw the young man staring at Ning Jin, she nudged him to signal him to say hello.
"Hello Uncle, hello Aunt, I've heard Su Yuan mention you before, it's great to finally meet you. You two chat, I'll head back to my dorm first." It's true what they say, seeing is believing. Looking at Su Yuan's father's appearance, you'd never guess that such an open-minded person resides beneath that facade—he actually gave his son condoms!
As the family of three walked out of the school, Su Yu said to her son, "Your dad and I are planning to buy a house in the capital. Are you free these next few days? Want to come with us and take a look around?"
"You're buying a house? Are you planning to settle in the capital?" Xiao Yuan asked excitedly, then pressed, "Mom, are you being transferred here?"
"It's to prepare for retirement and also an investment. If the property price goes up in the future, we can sell it." She didn't hide anything about the family assets from her two sons. "Besides, having a house will make it easier for you to get married. You and Ping An are of marriageable age. Let's buy a house first so that when your daughter-in-law comes to visit, we won't have nowhere to entertain her in-laws."
Xiao Yuan reflexively looked up at his father, but then quickly lowered his head, looking somewhat uncomfortable.
Ning Jin and Su Yu exchanged a glance. What did this child's reaction mean?
“Xiao Yuan, is there some misunderstanding? I have no objection to buying you a house. Although you are not my biological son, we have been together for so many years. I have watched you grow up, and you are no different from Ping An. Your mother and I came to buy a house this time mainly to consider you and Ping An. I will treat you both the same. What the eldest son has, the younger son should not be lacking.” Ning Jin hurriedly explained, afraid that his wife would suspect that he had a problem with his stepson in private.
"No, no, Dad, you've misunderstood. I have no problem with you. My dad only has you; there's no difference between a biological father and a stepfather." Xiao Yuan felt a little embarrassed after causing this misunderstanding, but still confessed, "I was a bit sensitive. Dad sent me those condoms before, you know, and my roommates found them in my drawer while looking for something. A couple of them had never seen them before and teased me about them. I was afraid it would damage my reputation if word got out, so I explained that my dad sent them to me." Xiao Yuan couldn't help but laugh, saying, "They all envy me for having an open-minded father, and they mention it every now and then. So whenever you guys bring up dating and marriage, I think of that thing."
The other two condoms he hadn't tried were taken by his boyfriend, who said they were just sitting idle in the drawer anyway, so he might as well keep them for him as spares.
Praised as an "enlightened father," Ning Jin covered his mouth and nose and chuckled. "Xiao Yuan, come with us when we buy a house. Let's discuss it together and choose a good location," he said.
Ning Jin originally wanted to buy an apartment near the school for Xiao Yuan to live in, and he would bring a washing machine over. However, Su Yu said that Xiao Yuan would graduate in another year, so he gave up on the idea.
"Let's go then, why are you still looking around here?" he asked, pulling Su Yu along.
"I've changed my mind and want to buy one here."
Houses near universities are sure to appreciate in value in the future, Su Yu thought, and others weren't naive enough to think the same way, especially now that the college entrance exam has been reinstated. Even if students don't rent to them, small vendors will. After wandering around for a day, she bought a dilapidated house with half the walls leaning down, planning to leave it as is for now and tear it down and rebuild it when needed.
Xiao Yuan watched helplessly as his mother spent two thousand yuan to buy this dilapidated house and broken tiles, and couldn't help but ask, "Mom, do you have too much money to spend? Why don't I save it for you?" He was practically implying that she had too much money and it was a burden to her.
"You don't understand. Even if the price increases tenfold by two thousand in twenty years, you still won't be able to buy this dilapidated house." Su Yu carefully put away the property certificate registered in her name, turned out of the alley, and planned to buy a small courtyard house.
"Dad, you need to control Mom. She's wasting money like crazy," he muttered to his father.
Ning Jin had always believed in Su Yu's choice because she was a college student and a civil servant, and she had a rough estimate of her family's savings. She didn't feel bad about buying a half-collapsed house for two thousand. But seeing how nervous Xiao Yuan was, he couldn't help but ask the graduate student, "Have you never studied economics? Or do you think your mother's judgment is wrong?"
“I didn’t study economics, but even those who did at my school didn’t throw money around in this house that’s even more dilapidated than the countryside.”
Ning Jin pondered. He would definitely side with his wife in front of his son. "Your mother is a public servant, she might have inside information." But his tone was not as firm as before.
"What information could there be? She works for the Ministry of Forestry, not the State Planning Commission." His father's blind faith in his mother left him utterly exasperated.
"Hey, what are you whispering about? Hurry up, the car is coming."
"Coming, coming." Ning Jin shook off his youngest son's hand and quickly caught up with him.
It seems Su Yu made the right choice. She was determined to go to the Northwest to get rid of her two sons and make them independent. Look, she succeeded. Even Xiao Yuan, who blindly supported his mother, has started to have his own ideas. You still have to trust your wife.
He forgot Xiao Yuan's words and followed Su Yu to see her buy a small courtyard house and two relatively old houses in a convenient location, the kind that could be moved into after simple renovations.
The two apartments were registered under his name, while the small courtyard house and the dilapidated house near the school were registered under her name. Xiao Yuan followed her around for two days but didn't get a share.
"Mom, Dad, how much money do we have?" Xiao Yuan was stunned by the amounts of two thousand, twelve thousand, two thousand five, and two thousand eight. He couldn't help but ask about his family's wealth. How did his family become rich?
"Don't ask so many questions, kid." Ning Jin pushed his face away. Over the years, he had secretly made tens of thousands by reselling goods, and his family already had some savings. Although he had a lot of money, it was only because houses weren't worth much that Su Yu was able to buy four houses at once. The truck he drove, even a used one, cost more than 30,000 yuan. The truck was worth much more than the houses, and he had thought about it for a long time but didn't dare to take a taxi.
After finishing the roast duck and sending Xiao Yuan back to school, he and Su Yu took a walk back to the guesthouse. Seeing that she was about to return to the Northwest, Ning Jin couldn't help but say, "I want to quit my job. How about I go to the Northwest with you?"
"Huh? Why are you suddenly quitting? Are you really not being bullied at the factory?" Her anxious expression, as if she wanted to stand up for him, amused him.
“It’s because of Ping An. He wants to be a soldier. I’m afraid that when the organization investigates, they will find out that I’m doing private work, and I’m worried that it will affect my son.” Ning Jin whistled into the night and said, “I can make more money from speculation than I could earn as a level eight worker in my whole life. I should be content. You three are all working for the government. I’ll come back and do logistics. That’ll be a good life. I’m tired of driving cars for more than ten years.”
If it weren't for Ping An's situation and his subsequent words, Su Yu would have advised him not to worry so much, because the country would eventually open up, encourage the development of the individual economy, and speculation would become a thing of the past.
"Sure, take a break if you're tired. Anyway, you've already mastered the driving skills. If you want to work in the future, you can go back to your old ways. Or you can see if you're interested in other things and do other jobs. It doesn't matter if you make money or not, our family isn't short of money."
"Let's not think about that now, let's wait until things are settled before we talk about it."
Su Yu headed northwest, and Ning Jin went back to handle his resignation procedures first. After that, he would go to the northwest to find her. He planned to temporarily live with Su Yu in the desert to take care of her, and then see what other ideas he had.
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