"It doesn't hurt, Ningning, it doesn't hurt, Grandpa, don't cry."
Xiao Shuangning's words completely touched Zhang Binglin's tears, and he cried even harder.
Zhang Binglin squatted on the ground, watching Xiao Shuangning finish the leftovers with tears in his eyes.
"Grandpa, please go back quickly. If grandma sees you later, you will be scolded again."
Zhang Binglin nodded sadly and held Xiao Shuangning's scarred little hands tightly in his own.
"Ningning, do you miss your mother?"
"Um!"
Xiao Shuangning couldn't wait to nod in response, and a happy smile could be seen on her dirt-stained face.
"Okay, wait until your mother sends money back next month, and then grandpa will take you to find her."
"Really? Really? Grandpa, can you really take me to see my mother?"
"Ningning is so well-behaved and sensible, how could grandpa lie to Ningning?"
"Wow! That's great, that's great. I can finally see my mom."
Xiao Shuangning excitedly got up from the ground, cheering and jumping for joy, forgetting that she was being punished by kneeling and that Zhang Binglin had come to see her secretly.
"Shhhh! Ningning, keep your voice down and sit down quickly." Zhang Binglin glanced at his room behind him. After making sure there was no movement, he continued to say to Xiao Shuangning, "Ningning, this is a secret between you and grandpa. You can't tell anyone, okay? Otherwise, grandpa won't be able to take you to find your mother."
"Yes! Ningning promise not to tell anyone. Come on, Grandpa, let's make a pinky promise."
Following her grandfather's instructions, Xiao Shuangning lowered her voice and stretched out her little finger to pinky promise with Zhang Binglin.
Zhang Binglin also stretched out his little finger to satisfy Xiao Shuangning's small request.
"Make a promise and stick to it for a hundred years. If you don't keep your promise, you'll turn into a puppy. Grandpa, now you should finally believe Ningning, right?"
Looking at the innocent face in front of him, Zhang Binglin's idea of taking Xiao Shuangning to find Shumei became more deeply rooted.
From the day he received Shumei's letter, Boyi began to pick himself up again. He used his house as collateral for a loan and returned to his old business. He rented two storefronts in the town again and started the grain collection business.
He didn't do it for others, but he wanted Shumei to come back without having to suffer with him.
To accommodate his son, Yuchen, he found a shop near a school. The kindergarten is on the left, and the elementary school is behind the kindergarten. He can walk just a few steps to pick up Yuchen and drop him off, without even having to close the shop door. It's truly a win-win situation.
Although it had only been six months, two larger grain stores had already opened in the town. Their town wasn't very big to begin with, and the grain from the surrounding villages was barely enough to supply the two grain stores.
The opening of Boyi was like dividing the meal originally meant for two people into three. Business at the three stores became quiet, and it was no longer as easy to make money as before.
Boyi's shop was particularly bad. Although he had some regular customers, they all went elsewhere after the shop moved. Plus, since his shop was new and hadn't established a good reputation yet, his business was terrible.
In order to grab business, the two stores kept raising the price of food.
On Boyi's side, many villagers who came to ask about the price turned around and walked away, muttering as they walked away: "They all say that Tang Boyi is honest and reliable, but I think it's all bullshit, his heart is blacker than the bottom of a pot, no wonder he lives in a building and eats delicious food, bah! He is a black-hearted man, be careful of the punishment from heaven."
Boyi was like a dumb person swallowing bitter herbs, unable to express his pain. To keep his business going, he had to follow the example of the other two stores and raise the price of food.
In this case, let alone making money, if you want to sell products like corn that are hard to sell during the peak season immediately, you will only lose money.
Boyi doesn’t have enough money to stock up on goods, so at the end of the month, let alone making any profit, it would be a blessing if it could just cover its expenses.
One day after dinner, Shumei cleaned up the dishes and walked behind Wencai who was watching TV in the living room.
"Wencai, let me discuss something with you!"
Wencai responded nonchalantly without even turning his head.
"Speak!"
"Are you going to the company tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow is Sunday, all employees have a day off, so I'm going to the company alone to watch out for mice!"
Wencai said this half-jokingly, picked up the toothpick on the table and fiddled with it in his mouth.
"Then, let's go see Uncle Li and Little Stone together!"
After Wencai heard Shumei's words, the toothpick that was shaking back and forth suddenly stopped moving.
Every time the Li family was mentioned, Wencai felt uncomfortable. For over four years, he had grown accustomed to living alone, sometimes even forgetting he had any relatives.
Wencai lowered his head and thought for a moment. Shumei did not disturb him, but stood there quietly, waiting for his answer.
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