The Birth of Shanghai's First Conglomerate

An ordinary October.

Aside from the uproar in the entertainment industry caused by the "national uncle,"

In my rural hometown, something outrageous and morally reprehensible also happened.

Grandma Yang from his hometown is over eighty years old this year. In Chen Pingsheng's memory, she is still a very kind old lady.

Because her husband passed away early, she raised four sons and one daughter on her own.

Because they worked so hard when they were young, they are now too old to do it anymore.

Surprisingly, none of her sons were willing to come forward to raise her; all four sons were passing the buck.

Later, with the village's coordination, the four sons agreed to take turns caring for the elderly woman for three months each.

This agreement was finalized under the collective witness of the Wangcai Village Committee, with Chen Pingsheng's father leading the way.

But less than a year after the agreement was signed, Grandma Yang, who had worked hard all her life to raise her sons, starved to death at her sons' doorstep.

It was only after an investigation by the village that it was discovered that she had walked from her eldest son's house to her second son's house that night.

Then they walked from the second son's house to the third son's house.

The eldest son was having a birthday party for his mother-in-law, but there was no room in the house.

He sent his mother directly to his second son's house.

The second son, having already completed his care period, was unwilling to take on any more of his elderly mother's needs.

She was then sent to her third son's house.

The third son believed that since his mother had given all her money to the second son, the second son should take on more responsibility for her upbringing.

And so, Grandma Yang died at the doorstep of her fourth son's house.

She spent the entire night calling out her sons' childhood nicknames, and in the end, she starved to death.

This incident alarmed the local police station, and the village was furious.

All four sons had their reasons and excuses, but the elderly mother who raised five children couldn't even find someone to collect the body.

Not to mention the people who handled her funeral arrangements.

Because he had received some care from Grandma Yang when he was a child, Chen Pingsheng also rushed back to his hometown of Wangcai Village on the 12th.

The four sons might think that none of them were wrong, but that their elderly mother was wrong and could no longer earn money for them.

It was only through the village's intervention that Grandma Yang was finally able to be buried.

Afterwards, countless elderly people in the village jointly sued the four sons in court.

This immoral and unfilial beast must be punished.

Everyone grows old eventually.

Even someone as wealthy as Chen Pingsheng is like this, let alone ordinary old people like them.

Regardless of the outcome, these four sons will likely have to bear the consequences under the collective petition of the village elders.

Wangcai Village has developed quite well in recent years.

But the changes in the village are not limited to the economy; there are also changes in bride prices and the increasing popularity of holding banquets.

Let's not even talk about weddings, childbirth, happy occasions, funerals, and other major life events.

Many people celebrate their mother's fiftieth birthday and then celebrate their father's fifty-second birthday the following year.

Another year has passed, and we'll celebrate Grandpa and Grandma's birthdays again.

If that were possible, they'd probably want to throw a banquet for their birthdays if all the chickens in their houses laid eggs.

You think these people are just looking for excitement.

That would be a huge mistake; they're clearly just trying to make money off the gift money.

As long as the food is just so-so, more people will come.

A single banquet can earn at least ten to twenty thousand yuan.

Those who attend the banquet will have to pay at least 300 yuan per family.

Because there's money to be made, countless people do this every now and then.

Even the village's notices are useless.

It's hard to call the countryside as simple and honest anymore. Chen Pingsheng brought his grandfather and relatives who were willing to go to Shanghai.

They've all been received in Shanghai.

If you only go to one or two places, you might not have any company. No matter how prosperous a place is, it's not as good as your hometown where you can return to your roots.

But now that we're all here, there won't be that kind of gap anymore.

The older generation certainly wouldn't be used to living in a large, single-level apartment. Coincidentally, he also owns a super villa in Shanghai worth over a billion yuan. He bought it early on, back when it was used to host a trainee competition and serve as a training camp for the trainees.

Now that it's vacant, it's perfect for my grandfather and his relatives from our hometown to live in.

This French-style manor villa, spanning over 3,000 square meters, can easily accommodate more than a dozen people.

Even if a hundred people lived there, there wouldn't be any crowding.

This courtyard is perfect for my grandparents to live out their retirement.

That's the advantage of having a lot of money; you can do whatever you want.

Chen Pingsheng was also giving a reminder to all the younger generations of the Chen family: anyone who is unfilial...

If you are unwilling to be filial to your parents when they reach the point where they can no longer work, don't expect your own children to support you in your old age.

After his grandfather and the others settled down in Shanghai, Chen Pingsheng brought Song Yanxi and a group of relatives to visit him.

Most of his relatives have moved to Shanghai, but his father is still there, diligently working as the village chief.

Peng Ying calls every day, and every time she calls, she asks Chen's father to come over and quickly quit his tiring job as village chief.

What's the point of doing anything? Isn't it better to come to Shanghai and enjoy life?

Several years have passed, and she has completely grown accustomed to the bustling life in the big city.

Most families probably wouldn't come.

After all, houses in the city are expensive, and many elderly people come here to help take care of the children in their families.

To enable children to go out and work.

Once the children are older, they will return to the countryside.

Most elderly people in rural areas still prefer the spacious and free atmosphere of the countryside to the small, hundred-square-meter space they share with their sons and daughters.

Peng Ying certainly doesn't have this problem, and she doesn't live with her daughter-in-law either.

Instead, he and Liu Fen bought a large house with three bedrooms, two living rooms, two bathrooms, and two balconies in the Bund community.

The two of them were there with Chen Lu, their mistress.

Wherever you want to go for a stroll, you'll have someone to accompany you, right?

All her relatives from Wangcai Village came this time, so it would be a lie to say she wasn't happy.

Grandpa Chen is getting old, and his days are numbered.

Whether a person is happy in their later years depends mainly on their children.

Chen Pingsheng also told Chen An'an to visit her maternal grandmother often and not to think about playing all the time.

Chen An'an is still very obedient and agrees very quickly.

Erpiya took her own golden shovel and ran over there to dig and plant vegetables.

No matter what haphazard things she did, Grandpa Chen would always feel gratified when he saw them.

This is what old age is like; having grandchildren by your side is true happiness.

Peng Ying also wanted to bring her parents to Shanghai to retire, so she went to ask her son for his opinion.

Chen Pingsheng said, "Do you need to ask me if you want to bring your grandparents over? Just call them!"

"I'm just worried that it will be troublesome for you if there are too many people!"

"What's so troublesome about it?"

Chen Pingsheng said, "Yanxi is planning to hire several professional nurses for Grandpa and the others, and also arrange for several nannies to take care of their daily needs."

Peng Ying felt this was unnecessary, except that her grandfather was over eighty years old and couldn't do much.

There are quite a few people of her generation, all in their early sixties, so taking care of themselves shouldn't be a problem.

"Don't even think about saving money. With so many people living together now, nobody wants to do extra work. It's better to hire some housekeepers."

"Okay, you can make your own arrangements. I'll call your grandparents. They don't have many years left to live. It would be good for them to come to Shanghai and enjoy a few years of retirement."

The biggest fear for old people is loneliness, and living together solves this problem perfectly.

As for sending a doctor there, that's unnecessary.

The doctor warned us every day not to smoke or drink alcohol. If my grandfather and the others had listened to him, they could have lived for another five years.

It's likely that it can only last for one or two years at most.

If you're old and can't do this or that, you might as well die early and ascend to heaven.

This wasn't said by Chen Pingsheng, but rather it was his grandfather's favorite saying.

(End of this chapter)