"Okay, wait for me to put on some clothes."
The old man picked up a tattered cotton-padded coat from the kang (a heated brick bed), wrapped it around himself, opened the door, and led Hu Haidong outside.
"Hey, you old fool, why don't you invite the guests to have dinner at your place before you go?"
The old lady was preparing a meal when Hu Haidong suddenly left.
"Thank you, ma'am. It's not too late to eat when you get back."
Hu Haidong followed behind the old man and turned to Zhang Damao's mother to speak.
It was windy outside. The old man, his body hunched over, led Hu Haidong through a cluster of low thatched houses.
Hu Haidong then realized that Zhang Laohan's house was not the only one in this mountain village that was dilapidated.
There are hardly any decent houses to be seen in the entire village.
It seems this place is indeed exceptionally poor. It's no easy feat for a genius like Zhang Damao to emerge from here.
After walking along the uneven stone path for about ten minutes, we arrived at a relatively flat area on the south side of the village.
There is a large mansion here, with the entire wall built of bluestone, which looks much more imposing than the small courtyard with its fence.
"Right here."
As he spoke, Old Zhang pulled his hand out of his sleeve and went up to knock on the door.
"In-laws, we have guests."
The door, which was only slightly ajar, opened immediately upon hearing the sound.
The old man led Hu Haidong inside, and they seemed to know each other very well.
The courtyard was very large, with houses on all four sides; in modern terms, it was a stone version of a traditional courtyard house.
This family has owners on all sides. They must be quite large and prosperous.
Hu Haidong was thinking to himself. Then he saw people peeking out from several houses to look around.
Upon seeing that it was Old Man Zhang, some people shrank back, while others greeted him.
A middle-aged man, weighing around 50 pounds, tall but quite thin, came out to greet them.
It was Zhang Laohan's in-law, the village chief Wei Changqing.
"My dear in-law, why are you out in this freezing weather? Do you have enough firewood at home? If not, just let me know, and I'll have a few of my boys bring you some."
"Oh, who is this guest?"
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