After seeing the old man off, Gu Yanbai and Su Nianxue did not rush back to the city.
They still live in that farmhouse, just like they did many years ago.
However, the difference this time was that it was just the two of them.
Gu Yanbai joked, "Wife, we've been married for over twenty years. I never thought that we'd be enjoying our own little world as we get older."
Su Nianxue asked, "So... how do you feel?"
"Hmm, quite... good! I feel so relaxed after shedding my responsibilities and burdens."
Su Nianxue smiled brightly, "Okay, let's live like this from now on, and not care about anything else."
The children are all grown up now, so let them handle those chores. Let's enjoy a more relaxed life!
"Yes, that's what I think too!" The couple reached an agreement.
Gu Yansong and his wife had been helping to take care of things, so the small courtyard was no different from before.
The facilities inside are still complete, just as they were before they left.
The pomegranate tree by the door is in bloom again, its bright red pomegranate blossoms nestled among the emerald green leaves, a truly beautiful sight.
Wang Erya also returned from the county a few days ago.
Their son, Gou Dan, has made something of himself. He and his wife opened a supermarket in the county, and I heard the business is doing quite well.
After she gave birth, they took Wang Erya to the county to help take care of the child.
Now that her child is older, she sent him to kindergarten. Seeing that there was nothing left for her to do, Wang Erya returned to the village.
These days, she comes over to visit from time to time.
"Er Ya, you've brought us vegetables again. We haven't finished eating the ones you brought yesterday."
"Yesterday's are all wilted, don't eat them, let's eat fresh ones. They're all homegrown, it didn't cost much!" Wang Erya placed a bunch of tender greens on the table.
"Er Ya, don't you need to go to the county anymore?" Su Nianxue asked.
Wang Erya waved her hand with a smile, "I'm not going, I'm not going. The children are older now, they're all in kindergarten, so I'll leave them to their own devices!"
I've gotten used to living in the village. To be honest, I've felt quite uncomfortable staying in the county for the past few years.
If you ask me, it's still more comfortable to live in the village.
The sky is wide and the land is vast; you can see the sky as soon as you look up, and you see familiar faces as soon as you step outside. If you're thirsty, you can drink some spring water, and if you run out of vegetables, you can pick some from the field.
In my opinion, it's better than the city from anywhere!
Su Nianxue laughed and teased her, "Look at you, so full of resentment! You've lived in the city for a few years, and now you're feeling so stifled."
You can only say this to me. If you say it in the village, people will just think you're showing off!
"Of course! If the villagers heard me say that, they'd definitely call me a wild boar who can't eat fine chaff!" Wang Erya laughed, her hearty laughter carrying far and wide.
Su Nianxue said, "Now that you've successfully retired, you can do whatever you like!"
Wang Erya waved her hands repeatedly, "What merit or not?"
I'm just an old woman from the countryside, uneducated and with little experience.
I can't really help these young people much, except maybe take care of the kids, cook, and clean up.
Now that the kids are grown up, let them live their own lives; we won't interfere.
"Er Ya, you're right to think that way."
We older people have our own habits, and young people have their own ideas. When these generations live together, conflicts are inevitable.
As the old saying goes, "familiarity breeds contempt," so let's keep our distance to avoid wasting our time and effort.
Wang Erya slapped her thigh hard, "Nianxue, you're absolutely right, that's what I thought too."
As older people, we should lend a helping hand to young people when they are in trouble.
But once you've helped, it's time to withdraw.
Young people have their own lifestyle habits, so it's best not to interfere too much to avoid bothering them.
"Let's each go our own way, out of sight, out of mind. If things really escalate, won't our own child be caught in the middle, torn between two conflicting interests?"
Grandma Yang passed away a few years ago, and now only Wang Erya and Gangzi live in the house.
Wang Erya and her husband are both hardworking and keep their home in perfect order.
She would often bring her son and daughter-in-law some fresh vegetables they grew themselves, wild fruits from the mountains, and free-range chickens and eggs from their own farm.
The daughter-in-law is also a reasonable person, and she is grateful for her mother-in-law's efforts and understanding of them as young people.
Therefore, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law got along very well, and Gou Dan was never troubled.
"Yes, we were young once too, why make things difficult for others?"
As they talked, the topic turned to the Su family.
Wang Erya said, "Nianxue, you don't know yet, do you? Your stepmother is now being shunned by her daughter-in-law!"
"What happened to her?" Su Nianxue's expression remained indifferent when the Su family was mentioned.
Wang Erya, "Didn't your father pass away a few years ago?"
Now no one is keeping her in check; she's the oldest in the entire Su family.
Sure enough, after her two daughters-in-law entered the house one after another, she actually started acting like a mother-in-law.
Not only does she interfere in her two sons' family affairs, but she also wants to be in charge again, just like before.
She demanded that her two sons hand over their money for safekeeping, claiming that since the Su family hadn't divided its assets, she was the rightful head of the family and the money should belong to her.
Su Nianxue's lips curled into a faint, mocking smile. "And then?"
"And then? Then he got beaten up by his two daughters-in-law!"
They even kicked her out of the house and declared that if her two sons dared to take her back, they would divorce, and both daughters-in-law would divorce as well.
Let the two Su brothers both remain bachelors, and see if they choose their mother or their wives.
"Where is she now?" The answer to this multiple-choice question is obvious.
"I heard she went to stay with her daughter." Su Jiaojiao runs a small business in the city, and Wang Erya has seen her a few times!
"That's probably the only way!"
"Alas! If you ask me, there's no place like home. There's no place like a golden nest or a silver nest."
At this age, what are you doing? You're already being kind enough that your son and daughter-in-law can give you a bowl of rice to eat, what are you still making a fuss about?
A married daughter is like water spilled from a bowl; that family doesn't just belong to her alone.
Even if the daughter has no objection to having such a meddlesome, idle mother, wouldn't her in-laws have objections too?
"I think this person is just clueless and has something wrong with their brain!" Wang Erya said with a look of disdain when she talked about Wang Lanhua.
She had always had a good relationship with Su Nianxue and was grateful for the help the Su family had given them.
Wang Lanhua used to cause trouble for Su Nianxue, and Su Nianxue even spoke up for her!
Unexpectedly, this man, who had been so competitive his whole life, ended up like this in his old age.
This can be considered a cycle of cause and effect, and karma is inevitable!
"Alright, let's not talk about these troublesome things anymore. Nianxue, now that the old man has left, you're going back to the city, right?"
Su Nianxue smiled and shook her head, "I'm not going back to the city! Yanbai said he'd take me sightseeing!"
Gu Yanbai's original words were that they had worked hard for most of their lives, and now that they had retired, they should take advantage of their good health to travel around and see the world.
"You guys have such a life, so much money and so much free time, it's truly enviable!" Wang Erya smacked her lips twice.
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