Reborn in a small mountain village in 1991

Chapter 63: Agreed to help

Tang Yongnian was momentarily speechless at his wife's threat. He was about to retort when he met Zhang Xiulan's glance, and swallowed the words he was about to say.

"I'll go."

After receiving her husband's permission, Zhang Xiulan then pressed on with her questions:

"Your dad agreed, can you talk to Mom about it now?"

Zhang Xiulan couldn't suppress the urge to smile; her mind was full of calculations.

My son will be twenty-five this year, and he hasn't even held a girl's hand yet. How can a mother not be anxious?

Now that there's finally a glimmer of hope, how can one not be curious?

Tang Changping told his mother about Xu Chunhua's basic situation, and also mentioned her younger brother Xu Chunsheng at the end:

"You've all heard of her brother, the one whose family made a lot of money from growing a lot of Ophiopogon japonicus a while ago."

Tang Yongnian, who was still awkwardly standing to the side, also became interested when he heard this:

"Is that the young man who was named a 'Model of Diligence and Wealth Creation' by the county?"

Seeing his son nod, he sat down next to his wife and continued:

"He's quite an innovative young man. I bet he's brewing wine to make use of the grain and earn money from both sources."

Tang Changping nodded: "You're right, that's exactly what they're planning. They want to generate two kinds of revenue from the same amount of grain they collect."

"Okay, I'll go with you to take a look whenever you want."

Tang Yongnian was genuinely afraid of being forced to sleep on the sofa by his wife. He was also curious about what kind of person this young man, who had been the subject of much discussion recently, really was. In addition, he wanted to see what kind of person his son liked and give him his opinion.

Upon hearing his father's words, Tang Changping's eyes finally lit up with a smile again:

"Thank you, Mom!"

Zhang Xiulan patted her son's arm with a playful smile:

"Why are you thanking me? Thank your dad!"

Just as Tang Changping was about to speak, he heard his father turn his head, look at the cactus he was growing on the windowsill, and say with a touch of pride:

"Hmph! Don't thank me, I can't accept that."

"Tell them to clean the dried corn thoroughly and soak it for most of the day. I'll go with you to check on it then."

Zhang Xiulan raised an eyebrow at her son helplessly, signaling him to ignore his father, that insincere and contradictory person.

The next day, Tang Changping got up very early and walked to Xu Chunsheng's house to ask if they had prepared the brewing tools and other equipment.

Actually, Tang's father had a bicycle, but because Xu Chunsheng's house was halfway up the mountain, although there was a road, it was full of potholes and steep slopes, so it was less strenuous to walk there than to ride a bicycle.

It took Tang Changping almost two hours to reach Xu Chunsheng's house.

He could see the newly built bamboo shed next to the kitchen from a distance. The bamboo was still emerald green, but the thatch on the roof was starting to turn yellow.

In the courtyard, Xu Chunsheng and his elder sister were using laundry detergent to clean the brewing equipment. They wiped and rinsed each piece clean before neatly turning them upside down on the wall to dry.

Xu Chunhua had just put down what she was holding when she caught sight of Tang Changping walking over out of the corner of her eye. Her face flushed slightly, but she tried to remain calm as she greeted him.

"Why are you here so early? Aren't you supposed to be off today?"

The Xu family had just finished breakfast, around eight o'clock, and Tang Changping probably left home around six o'clock.

Tang Changping walked into the courtyard, smiling gently: "If you can't sleep, come and see me early."

"Is the bamboo shed next to your kitchen used for brewing wine?"

The older sister answered:

"Yes, there aren't any extra rooms in the house. Let's try it out first, and then we'll consider more things once we've become more skilled."

Xu Chunsheng, who was standing to the side, did not respond. He continued to clean the tools in his hands while listening to his sister and Tang Changping talking.

"That's good. Take it one step at a time, and you can definitely do even better."

Tang Changping nodded, then casually mentioned the matters his family had discussed the previous day:

"My parents have agreed to come and visit. I'll bring them when I have some free time in a few days. Please prepare the food and other necessities as well."

The older sister gestured for Tang Changping to get a stool to sit on, while she continued wiping the lid of the steamer with a clean towel.

"Yes, there's still some corn left at home."

Tang Changping didn't reach for the chair; instead, he took the towel from Xu Chunhua and got to work.

"I see you've almost finished preparing everything. You can pick out fifty catties of dried corn, remove the rotten ones, rinse it two or three times, and then soak it. I'll bring my dad over tomorrow afternoon."

Hearing this, Xu Chunsheng interjected:

"Teacher Tang, it's quite a long walk from town. How about I pick you and your uncle up tomorrow?"

Tang Changping nodded in agreement.

After chatting for a while, Tang Changping said he had to go home.

Xu Chunsheng quickened his pace and said:

"Teacher Tang, wait a moment, I'll take you back and buy some things in town while I'm at it."

Before leaving, Xu Chunsheng gave some final instructions:

"Sis, I'll take Teacher Tang home first. After Mom finishes feeding the pigs and comes back, you guys pick out the corn and soak it."

Seeing Xu Chunsheng light the fire and prepare to leave, the eldest sister quickly said:

"Buy some more fruit and meat."

"Okay, I got it."

The two dogs are still too young. If nothing happens, Xu Chunsheng and his father usually take turns guarding the pig farm.

Once the puppy grows up, it won't need someone to watch over it all day, but someone still needs to be there at night.

On the way, Xu Chunsheng inquired with Tang Changping:

"Teacher Tang, what kind of alcohol does your uncle like to drink? What kind of cigarettes does he like to smoke?"

Tang Changping sat next to Xu Chunsheng, his right hand gripping the armrest tightly, his speech slurred from the jolting.

"No need to buy these, it's kind of you. If you really want to buy something, we can buy a fish later and make a sauerkraut fish dish, he likes that."

"Okay, sure."

Upon arriving in town, Xu Chunsheng did not rush to take Tang Changping home:

"Teacher Tang, come with me to buy some things. I'll visit your parents later."

Tang Changping was about to say that there was no need to buy anything and that they could just go directly, but Xu Chunsheng jokingly stopped him:

"If I'm going to see you, I definitely won't bring anything. I might even have to eat your food."

"But it's different with your uncle and aunt. It's our first meeting, so we should make a good impression, right? What do you think, Teacher Tang?"

The rhetorical question that followed was purely Xu Chunsheng's joke. Tang Changping was brought home by Xu Chunsheng in a daze, which is how he got to know Xu Chunhua.

Tang Changping recalled his first visit to the Xu family and began to feel somewhat embarrassed again.

The two went directly to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy some fruit and milk before going to the Tang family's house. Although Tang Changping had said that they didn't need to buy cigarettes or alcohol, Xu Chunsheng still brought a bottle with him.

Tang Changping opened the door and called out into the room:

"Dad, Mom, I've brought people back."