Xiao Wenjin lived with his eldest son, Xiao Mingliang, who was also Xiao Baojun's father.
Hearing a noise at the door, Xiao Mingliang was the first to run out.
Upon seeing that it was Xiao Weiguo and his brother, he greeted them with a smile, his expression incredibly warm.
There was nothing they could do; their own son was still begging for food under someone else's control.
"Weiguo, what brings you back? Come in and have a seat."
"Uncle, I need to talk to Grandpa. Is he home?"
Xiao Weiguo followed Xiao Mingliang into the house and sat down on a large chair in the main room.
In those days, not many people in rural areas had sofas; most families still used wooden chairs or long benches.
Xiao Mingliang brought two glasses of water to the brothers, and Xiao Weiguo and Xiao Weiguo took them.
"Oh, the old man hasn't been feeling well these past few days and is lying in the inner room. When you get old, you can fall ill anytime soon."
The old Party Secretary was over seventy years old; it was normal for him to have a minor illness. Xiao Weiguo, however, found it rather unexpected.
"Then let's go in and see Grandpa."
As he spoke, Xiao Weiguo stood up and walked into the inner room with Xiao Jian.
In the inner room, on the earthen kang (heated brick bed), the old man leaned against the wall with his eyes half-closed, coughing softly from time to time.
However, judging from his complexion, it didn't seem too serious.
"Grandpa, what happened? I haven't seen you for a while, why are you lying in bed?"
Xiao Weiguo put the things he was holding on the kang (a heated brick bed) and leaned over to sit down on it.
Xiao Wenjin opened his somewhat cloudy eyes, glanced at Xiao Weiguo, and smiled.
"It's nothing, I just haven't been feeling well, I'll be fine in a couple of days. By the way, you're such a busy person, how did you find the time to come see me?"
The old man sat up straight, and judging from his tone of voice, there shouldn't be any major problems.
Xiao Weiguo pushed the good cigarettes he had brought towards him.
"Then you must get better soon, otherwise you won't be able to taste all the good things I brought."
At this moment, Xiao Mingliang walked in, heard Xiao Weiguo say this, smiled wryly and continued.
"You underestimate the old man. Even in his old age, he still smokes constantly and drinks a couple of glasses every night."
Xiao Wenjin glared at his son and scolded him.
"You don't know anything. The day I don't want to smoke or drink anymore, that's when you'll start to cry."
The old man's absurd reasoning made everyone in the room laugh.
Seeing that the old man was indeed not in serious condition, Xiao Weiguo then revealed the purpose of his visit.
"Grandpa, Xiao Jian is back, you know that, right?"
Xiao Jian, being sensible, stood closer to the kang (a heated brick bed) and also called out "Grandpa".
"Hey, good child, sit down quickly."
Xiao Wenjin struggled to get up and let Xiao Jian sit on the kang as well.
“I heard from your Uncle Mingliang a couple of days ago that Xiao Jian and a boy named Hu Zi came back to the village to stay. I said I wanted to go see the two kids, but my health hasn’t been very good, so I couldn’t go.”
Then he turned to ask Xiao Jian.
"How are you doing? Have you gotten used to it these past few days since you came back? You know, why didn't you stay in the city with your brother? Why did you have to come back to our poor village?"
Xiao Jian didn't explain much, only saying that he still preferred the simple life in the countryside.
"Yes, it's good to leave someone in the village. Sooner or later, they can help your parents. We people who have farmed for generations can never forget our roots."
Xiao Jian and Xiao Weiguo nodded in agreement.
"Grandpa, look, now that Xiao Jian is back, he doesn't want to stay in the city with me. He doesn't have anything to do at home anyway. Last year I promised to let your family farm those fields. Could Xiao Jian come and take care of them? I'll pay you back whatever the seeds and everything cost. Is that alright?"
Only then did Xiao Weiguo reveal his purpose.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Wenjin's eyes widened, and he said somewhat angrily.
“Weiguo, what are you saying? You gave me the land to farm without asking for a single penny from my family. I got a year's harvest for free. There’s no reason for me to ask you for money when you ask for the land back. What would that make me, Xiao Wenjin, be like? Would I even be able to face anyone?”
Having served as a village cadre for most of his life, Xiao Wenjin is also a man who cares about his reputation.
When Xiao Weiguo gave him the land to cultivate, he didn't mention any money. He got the harvest from seven or eight acres of land for free. Although it wasn't much, it was still a token of his goodwill.
Besides, his own grandson was still living off Xiao Weiguo, earning several hundred yuan a month, which was said to be much higher than the township head's salary.
The seeds and effort spent planting in the ground are nothing compared to this.
Seeing that he said that, Xiao Weiguo did not insist anymore. Although he himself did not care about this amount of money, the old secretary was also a person who cared about his reputation. If he really took the money, it would be like he was greedy for money, and it would not look good for anyone.
"Weiguo, what good cigarettes did you bring? Open one and let your grandpa have a taste. I haven't been out these past few days, just smoking my old pipe."
The old man's gaze fell on the two packs of cigarettes Xiao Weiguo had brought, and his eyes shone with hope.
Xiao Weiguo brought Zhonghua cigarettes, which was a bit high-end for someone from his village, but he had no choice; he didn't have any cheap cigarettes in his trunk. It was all small change, and Xiao Weiguo didn't really care.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Weiguo tore open a pack and threw the whole pack of cigarettes to Xiao Wenjin.
As the old man opened his cigarette, he took one out and handed one to Xiao Weiguo as well.
When he saw his son, Xiao Mingliang, looking at him with expectant eyes, the old man threw all the remaining cigarettes over to him.
"Here's most of this box for you. Don't you dare try to steal my good cigarettes again."
"Okay, sure."
Xiao Mingliang readily agreed, took out one of the cigarettes, lit it, and carefully put the rest into his pocket before leaving the inner room satisfied.
Xiao Wenjin, with a cigarette between his fingers, pointed at his son's back and said.
“Your Uncle Mingliang, who is in his thirties or forties, still steals my cigarettes. The pack you gave me last time, I didn’t even have time to smoke it, but he stole three today and five tomorrow.”
His words made Xiao Weiguo and his brother want to laugh, but they said something else.
"Grandpa, what's this about good cigarettes or bad cigarettes? They're all worthless stuff. If you want to smoke, just come over a few more times and I'll bring you some more."
Xiao Wenjin quickly waved his hand, sat cross-legged on the kang (a heated brick bed), and smoked a cigarette.
"Nothing else matters, but I can't afford to take up your time, you busy man."
The two of them chatted and laughed for a while inside the room, then Xiao Weiguo said.
“Grandpa, it’s settled then. From now on, Xiao Jian and Hu Zi will take care of my family’s land. That way, they’ll have something to do and won’t be idle and cause gossip.”
After chatting with Xiao Weiguo for a while, the old man felt much better and spoke with more energy.
"Don't worry, just let Xiao Jian and the other two do the planting. No matter how much they harvest in the fall, it's all theirs. Your great-grandfather can still make the decisions in this family."
With his words, Xiao Weiguo and Xiao Jian were completely relieved.
Just as I was about to get up and say goodbye, I suddenly remembered something else.
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