Seeing Zhang Hongmei's predicament, the old man selling wine said to the old woman selling vegetables next to him, "Young lady, why don't you give this girl the plastic wrap you bought yesterday?"
"I brought it with me. I forgot to leave it at home yesterday. I bought it for one dollar, so you can just give me one dollar back."
Zhang Hongmei immediately took out a dollar and received the film. The old man selling the wine then helped to wrap the mouth of the jar.
Zhang Hongmei gave her two yuan and tried to pick it up; it was indeed heavy.
"I'll stay here and watch over things. Go and call Wang Ying to drive over." Wang Xinyi was genuinely worried about tiring Zhang Hongmei out.
"It's okay, we'll be there soon. If I can't go on, I'll rest for a bit."
Zhang Hongmei rested three times along the way, and when she arrived at the breakfast stall, she saw Wang Ying pacing anxiously.
Upon seeing Zhang Hongmei, he immediately ran over and said, "Hongmei, you put it on the ground, I can carry it. You just need to call me for this."
"No need, you go open the passenger door." Zhang Hongmei had really overestimated herself. Even when she got to the passenger door, she didn't have the strength to lift it into the car. She put it on the ground and shook her aching arms. In the end, Wang Ying carried it in.
The three men stared at Zhang Hongmei in surprise. Li Guoliang felt guilty and couldn't even go to help. Qian Xiuchen was astonished; this future mistress had no airs at all. Zhou Yuanqing, however, inwardly despised her. "What a bunch of country bumpkins! They have to do everything themselves. What's the point of keeping them?"
Ignoring all that, Zhang Hongmei stretched her arms by the car and said, "Wang Ying, go and rest. I'll drive. Young Master Zhou, you lead the way."
"Don't you know the way?" Zhou Yuanqing asked with disdain.
After Zhang Hongmei finished speaking, she got into the car and completely ignored him.
It was already noon, and although it was a semi-mountainous area, the roads were still passable. Just as the car was going uphill, Zhang Hongmei asked Wang Xinyi, "Aunt Wang, did you spill the wine? I can smell it."
"It's okay, a little spillage is normal. Just focus on driving."
As they drove into a flat area, the car in front stopped, and Li Guoliang ran over and said, "Let's rest here for a while."
"Um."
Zhang Hongmei only ate half a sesame seed cake and then stopped eating. She just sat there and couldn't eat anymore.
We've already entered the province, but the roads here are the most restricted. We didn't eat, refuel, or change drivers until 8 PM. I need to fill up the gas tank tomorrow; not having a gas station is a real hassle.
Without stopping, they finally arrived in the city at 10 p.m. on the third day.
Zhang Hongmei got out of the car and said, "Young Master Zhou, there's a hotel not far ahead. Let's rest for a bit and then head back to my hometown tomorrow."
"Cousin, where are you going?"
“I have a place to stay in the city. I’ll come over to find you at eight o’clock tomorrow morning.”
Zhou Yuanqing wanted to say more, but Zhang Hongmei turned and left.
Zhang Hongmei drove home. It's Friday today, so Er Ya shouldn't be there.
“Hongmei. This is your home, it’s quite nice.” Wang Xinyi looked around the yard in the moonlight.
"Yes, this is where Brother Zhang and the others used to stay. Aunt Wang, I'll go boil some water so we can take a good bath. I feel like my legs are uncoordinated when I walk."
"Hongmei, I'll go."
"No need. You don't even know where they're all placed. I'd have to give directions. You might as well do it yourself. Go inside and tidy things up."
The three divided the work, and none of them were lazy. They all worked quickly, and an hour later, Wang Xinyi and Wang Ying were both sitting in the bathtub.
Zhang Hongmei then placed a thermos bottle next to each of them in the bathtub, saying, "A hot bath will relieve your fatigue. If the water gets cold, you can heat it up yourself."
When Zhang Hongmei was washing, she secretly added spiritual spring water, and only after she came out did she feel completely refreshed.
Wang Xinyi and Wang Ying cooked noodles together, using scallions from the yard to make a broth. Perhaps because they were eating a hot meal, they both ate with particular relish.
Zhang Hongmei returned to her bedroom, while Wang Xinyi and Wang Ying stayed in another room.
The next morning, Zhang Hongmei got up early and had already prepared breakfast: rice porridge and pickled vegetables. After eating, it was already 7:30. Zhang Hongmei drove to the hotel to find Zhou Yuanqing, and the two cars headed towards Liujiatun, one after the other.
Two hours later, they finally arrived. Looking at Liujiatun, which she had left more than half a year ago, Zhang Hongmei's eyes welled up with tears. The warm sense of belonging she felt was something that no other place could provide.
They parked directly in front of their own house. Seeing that the door was open, they could see Li Cuihua planting vegetables in the yard, which should be potatoes or something similar at this time of year.
"Third Aunt, I'm back." Zhang Hongmei's voice was trembling with tears.
Li Cuihua thought she was hallucinating, but when she saw Zhang Hongmei standing at the door, she threw down her pickaxe and cried out, "Hongmei, Hongmei, why are you back?" Tears streamed down her face.
He quickly walked to Zhang Hongmei's side and hugged her tightly. "Why are you back?"
"I'm coming back to see you. Do you miss me?" Only when you're really home and see your family do you realize how much you miss home.
Li Cuihua released Zhang Hongmei, wiped away her tears, and said, "I'm so happy. I've missed you. Everyone's been talking about you. The wheat is especially good today, and everyone says they want to grind it into the whitest flour and send it to you. Please come inside and have a seat, you two guests."
"Auntie, this is Aunt Wang, and this is Wang Ying."
"Hello, Auntie!" Wang Ying greeted Li Cuihua shyly.
"Big sister, thank you for your trouble." Wang Xinyi greeted her with a smile.
"Don't be shy, we're home now. Come inside quickly, I'll go boil some water."
"Auntie, there are other people outside, and we have things to do. You should go home first, and I'll come see you later when I have time."
Zhou Yuanqing, standing outside the door, dared not approach. He felt a chilling atmosphere, as if Cui Lin and Zhang Aiguo were staring at him from the gate, which made his legs go weak with fear.
Li Guoliang looked at Zhou Yuanqing, who was leaning against the car with a terrified expression, and smiled. The medicine was working. Touching the foreign-imported voice recorder his leader had given him, he clenched his fist with determination. Soon he would see his parents and the family would be reunited.
"Young Master Zhou, shall we go in?"
He didn't even hear Zhou Yuanqing's reply. Turning his head, he was secretly overjoyed. The guy's face was completely pale, and he looked extremely terrified.
"Young Master Zhou, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
"Get out of here, hurry up and go."
At this moment, Zhang Hongmei also saw Li Cuihua out the door and saw Qian Xiuchen waving goodbye to her.
"Third Aunt, you and Aunt Wang go to your house to rest. I want to eat your stir-fried clam beans. Please make them for me when you get back."
Wang Xinyi knew this was something she shouldn't know, so she immediately grabbed Li Cuihua's hand and said, "Big sister, let's go to your house to cook for Hongmei. I've never had shredded clams before."
"Okay, let's go. Hongmei, you can go over there in a bit, she'll be ripe soon."
"Don't worry, Auntie, we can eat at noon. Let Aunt Wang rest at your house for a while."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com