Life started to get back on track, and Yan Xiaonan continued to be busy, leaving early and returning late, and she also lost weight.
When Ye Chenming gets busy, he's nowhere to be seen; it's common for him to be away from home for three or four days at a time.
Cuihua and Yan Xiaoqiang saw it all and felt sorry for them, but what could they do? With such a large family and business, they couldn't afford not to be busy.
All they could do was take good care of the two children and cook more delicious food to supplement Nan Nan and Ye Chenming's nutrition.
The renovation of the courtyard house had reached its climax as soon as they entered, and the extravagant spending almost gave the elderly Chen couple a heart attack.
In their minds, 500 yuan could build a brick house with red bricks and green tiles, but in a courtyard house, a cabinet would cost 500 yuan.
While cleaning, Chen's mother held a rag but dared not wipe the cabinet. What if she ruined such an expensive item?
Erlong was much calmer. Now he and his wife can earn about two hundred yuan a month. In just a few years, they have saved nearly five thousand yuan.
Erlong's family is no longer burdened; both of his sons are married, and both of his daughters are married off.
They plan to go home for the Chinese New Year this year to build a house, leaving the main room for their parents to live in. When their parents get too old to walk, they will go home to take care of them.
After hearing this, Old Man Chen picked up his pipe again and started smoking with his back to Erlong. Erlong's wife, who had sharp eyes, noticed that the old man was wiping away tears.
“Erlong, I suddenly realized that when a person has money, they can stand tall. I used to be so calculating because I didn’t have money.”
Erlong nodded in agreement. That made sense. Living with his elder brother, he would get upset even if he used an extra bundle of firewood.
Now that I have money in my pocket, I'm thinking of going back home to build a house, and leaving the old house to my older brother.
They built a new house here on the site of their father's dilapidated house, just like this courtyard house.
The phone rang in the courtyard house, and Chen's mother rushed over to answer it: "Hello, who is this? Who are you looking for?"
"Grandma Chen, you must be Grandma Chen. I'm Ma Minghua. Tell Nannan that I've bought train tickets for tomorrow. My husband and I are coming to Beijing." Ma Minghua's voice came through the receiver.
Chen's mother nodded repeatedly, but then realized that her gesture was unnecessary since the other person couldn't see her, so she quickly called back:
"Minghua, I understand. I'll call Nannan later and ask her to come pick you up."
Yan Xiaonan was also very happy to receive the call, knowing that there would definitely be a shortage of manpower once the high-end shop opened.
My maternal grandparents don't speak Mandarin, and my paternal grandmother's eyesight is failing. My mother is the real pillar of support.
But relying solely on my mother would exhaust her, so expanding the workforce is urgent. The job posting has been up for a while, but there are very few applicants.
No wonder, there are very few people in the capital who are skilled in embroidery, so Yan Xiaonan thought of Ma Minghua.
Ma Minghua has been very good at needlework since she was a child, and her husband used to work in propaganda at his former workplace, but the factory was not doing well and closed down.
Ma Minghua was originally a temporary worker at the supply and marketing cooperative, but now that staff have been reduced, all the temporary workers have been laid off.
The family could only make ends meet on the mother-in-law's pension. As their son Yangyang grew up, the money was no longer enough.
Yang Limin and Ma Minghua considered going out to find work, but there were far more applicants than available jobs, and they ultimately returned disappointed.
Mrs. Ma was also anxious. Her sons were all married, and she had some savings for her funeral, which she wanted to use to help her daughter start a small business.
But Yang Limin just wouldn't have it. He was already shameless enough to take advantage of his own mother, let alone his father-in-law and mother-in-law. He was just asking for trouble.
Yan Xiaonan's call was a lifesaver. Village Chief Ma didn't even go home; he went straight to his daughter after receiving the call and told her that Nannan wanted them to go to Beijing to work.
Ma Minghua was overjoyed and hugged her man, sobbing, "Limin, Nannan is looking for me, Nannan is looking for me!"
Yang Limin laughed, "Nan Nan told you a long time ago to go find her, but you just wouldn't go."
Ma Minghua wiped away her tears shyly: "I'm just embarrassed."
Yang's mother smiled and said, "You can go without worry. I'll take care of Yangyang. If anything happens, just ask your in-laws."
Ma Minghua nodded: "Mom, if we make something of ourselves, we'll come and pick you and Yang Yang up."
Train tickets to Beijing are getting more and more expensive, so Ma Minghua decided to go back to her parents' home to borrow money.
Just as she stepped out the door, Sister-in-law Ma came over carrying a large basket. Upon seeing Ma Minghua, she quickly said, "Quick, take this, it's exhausting for your mother."
Ma Minghua quickly took it, opened it, and saw dozens of cornbread pancakes, pickles, eggs, and two pieces of marinated pork belly.
"Mom, what are you doing?" Ma Minghua asked.
Aunt Ma then pulled out two train tickets to Beijing and a wad of cash from her pocket: "Here, take this, pay me back when you come back."
Ma Minghua burst into tears, hugging her sister-in-law tightly and refusing to let go: "Mom, how can you be so good to me?"
Mrs. Ma laughed and scolded, "What are you crying for? Your son is watching right there. You're my only daughter. If I don't treat you well, who will I treat well?"
Yang's mother had already gone to the kitchen to make a cup of sugar water: "My dear in-law, please sit down and have some water. You must be exhausted from the journey."
Mrs. Ma was really exhausted; just two pieces of meat weighed thirty or forty pounds, plus the flatbread and other things.
“My dear in-law, here’s a piece of meat for you, and another piece for them to take to the capital for Nan Nan and the others. Also, the things in the basket are for the train; I heard things on the train are incredibly expensive.”
Yang Limin was a little embarrassed: "Mother, once we've settled down, we'll come and take you and Father to the capital."
Sister-in-law Ma waved her hands repeatedly: "No need, no need. The village can't do without your father. Let's just take your mother and Yangyang."
Ma Minghua objected: "Mom, just go take a look, see Nan Nan and the others, and come back if you don't like them."
Sister-in-law Ma hesitated for a moment and then said, "I'll listen to your father. Go ahead and don't worry. If your in-laws are willing, they can come and live with me in the village."
Ma Minghua's eyes lit up: "Mom, my mother is right. Nan Nan opened a primary school in the village, and the teaching quality is very good. How about Yang Yang goes there to start primary school this year?"
Yang's mother nodded repeatedly. She had visited that primary school, and it really was much better than the primary school in town; at least the building was newly built.
Most importantly, it's really not easy for children from other villages to get into this primary school. Even if they get a spot, they still have to take an exam, and the tuition is twice as expensive as for local students.
Yang Yang, from my family, is the grandson of Village Chief Ma. Since he comes from the village to attend school, his tuition fees are the same as those of other villagers.
Seeing her mother-in-law nod, Ma Minghua felt relieved. Her mother-in-law was getting old, and Yang Yang was mischievous; she was genuinely worried that she wouldn't be able to handle him.
“My dear in-law, I’ll take Yangyang back to register today and have his uncle tutor him so it will be easier for him to get into school.”
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