No matter if you're a boss or an employee outside, no matter if you're successful or down on your luck, the moment you return to your parents and elders, you are simply a son or a grandson.
This was true for Tan Jincheng as well.
Tan Jinyue slept soundly during the day but was wide awake and energetic at night.
If it weren't for her paternal grandmother helping to care for her, Zhang Suzhi would really be exhausted trying to manage alone.
The old woman had been living in the city for the past few months.
For a village elder, this was certainly quite unusual, but she was happy nonetheless.
She had both a son and a daughter, and her grandchildren were grown.
She never expected to have a little granddaughter to care for in her later years.
Of course, it was tiring; the old woman hadn't slept well for months.
Now that her eldest grandson was back, there was another person to help, and everyone felt much more relaxed.
The old woman was in excellent spirits.
The most important thing was that they would soon be returning to their old home in the countryside.
After settling the matter of buying a house on the minor new year day, Tan Jincheng had nothing urgent to do.
It was too cold to venture out, so he stayed home to help care for the baby.
Zhang Xupeng would occasionally drop by, so things weren't too boring.
The 26th of the twelfth lunar month was a Friday.
Tan Lihua had taken a day off early.
In previous years, one of the couple always had to work a few days during the New Year holiday, but due to the special circumstances this year, they could fully enjoy a complete Spring Festival break.
Tan Jinyue's "Three-Day Wine" celebration was set for this Sunday, the 28th of the twelfth lunar month.
They needed to hurry back today to prepare.
Only a few tables of guests could be hosted in the village.
Firstly, it was a celebration.
Secondly, it was a way for the grandparents to partially recoup the gifts they had given out previously—a common practice among families in the countryside.
Actually, there weren't many gifts to recoup.
Depending on the closeness of the relationship, the sui li (gift money/offering) could be as little as 10 yuan plus two rolls of pastries, and wouldn't exceed 100 yuan for closer relations.
There was no culture of conspicuous consumption, and the pressure to give large gifts was small. Take the excellent relationship between Tan Jincheng and Zhang Xupeng.
For example: if either of them were to host a wedding now, according to local custom, the gift money should not exceed 400 yuan at most.
Giving too much sui li would actually earn you a scolding.
Tan Lihua and his son woke up early and gradually moved the luggage packed last night into the car's trunk.
Most of the items were clothing for the grandmother and Tan Jinyue, along with some gifts to be distributed back home.
Most of the cigarettes and alcohol Tan Jincheng had bought were left behind by Tan Lihua.
The supplies needed for the banquet, such as cigarettes and alcohol, had already been arranged for by his brothers at home before Tan Jincheng's return.
In truth, the family couldn't do much to help now.
Everything that could be prepared in advance had been done, put on a tab at the village store, and Tan Lihua only needed to go back and settle the bill.
With all preparations made and the grandmother and mother comfortably seated, Tan Jincheng smiled at Tan Lihua and said,
"Dad, why don't you drive?"
Tan Lihua rubbed his hands, tempted, but held back:
"Forget it, you drive. You're steadier."
The road back to the old village was in poor condition.
Since his son could drive back from Ningbo City, his driving skills were surely much better than his own.
With the whole family in the car, this was no time for joking.
Except for Zhang Suzhi, this was the grandmother's and Tan Lihua's first time in Tan Jincheng's car.
The grandmother had been a little nervous before getting in.
The elderly often suffer from motion sickness, and every trip back and forth was agonizing for her.
She even brought a plastic convenience bag, a habit of many village elders when traveling by car.
"Don't worry, Grandma, I'll drive slowly. You'll be fine,"
Tan Jincheng said with a smile, helping his grandmother in the passenger seat fasten her seatbelt.
In fact, Tan Jincheng was only joking earlier.
With the whole family in the car, how could he let Old Tan practice?
The Anjiu Road often had accidents; they couldn't risk the whole family being reborn together!
Tan Jincheng drove very slowly indeed, taking nearly two hours of gentle driving to arrive at the old home.
Along the way, the old woman showed no signs of nausea, making her praise her eldest grandson's car and driving skills profusely.
At this moment, a crowd of men and women had gathered in the yard and main hall of the Tan family house.
The men were slaughtering chickens and chopping meat for stuffing, while some women were rolling meat balls, and others were washing vegetables at the well.
Meanwhile, some children were running and playing in the yard and hall, occasionally eliciting curses from the adults.
A brand-new black sedan suddenly pulling into the yard was quite eye-catching.
When they clearly saw who stepped out, the crowd was even more surprised.
First out was the grandmother from the passenger seat, followed by Tan Lihua and his wife, who were holding the baby.
After turning off the car, Tan Jincheng got out, took a cigarette from his pocket, and prepared to hand them out to the men in the yard.
"Big Brother, where did this car come from? And it's brand new,"
Tan Licheng rushed forward and asked Tan Lihua.
"Second Uncle, long time no see,"
Tan Jincheng said with a smile, while offering him a cigarette.
The Tan family siblings were four in total: Tan Lihua was the eldest, the man in front of him, Tan Licheng, was the second, there was another uncle, Tan Liye, and the youngest was his aunt, who married Tan Liye's good friend, also from the same village.
Tan Licheng was not tall, about 1.7 meters, and lean, completely unlike Tan Lihua's pot-belly.
Often, the second child in a family of three brothers or sisters is the most honest and the one who struggles the most.
However, this was not the case with Tan Licheng.
He was clever and had been mischievous since childhood, behaving like a local street rogue in the village.
He did struggle quite a bit.
As a child, he often got into trouble for petty theft and was frequently hung up and beaten by his father—literally hung from the roof beam.
His son inherited his temperament, becoming so troublesome that even the dogs in the village hated him from the age of four or five.
Tan Jincheng always laughed when he remembered his five- or six-year-old cousin in the summer, covered in dirt, his shorts half-down exposing part of his butt, yelling at Tan Lihua with bare feet,
"Big Uncle's an idiot, stealing people's steamed buns!"
This has since become an indelible childhood trauma for his cousin, invariably brought up at every family gathering.
"It's been two years since I've seen you, kid. I heard you went into business. You didn't buy this car, did you?"
Tan Licheng asked, taking the cigarette.
"Yes, you could say I bought it. Help me move the things from the trunk inside, I'm going to hand out some cigarettes."
"You come back and you're already telling me what to do, you have no manners! And what do you mean, 'you could say'?"
"The car was bought under the company's name, so it's not wrong to say I bought it,"
Tan Jincheng replied without turning his head.
Although Tan Licheng might seem unreliable, it was precisely this personality that made him popular with the younger generation.
Tan Jincheng used to love following this uncle when he was little, as he could always find something new and exciting to do.
Therefore, the two had a great relationship and were very casual with each other in private.
(End of Chapter)
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