In 1992, a small village owner became the richest man in the village by owning a car.

Chapter 171 A rare break: Overhauling the Ackerman excavator

At the dinner table, Yu Dawei talked about some of the culture and scenery of the South, and also brought out some New Year's goods he had brought back from the warehouse.

Some of the items inside were people's clothes, some were local snacks and candies from Qingcheng, and of course, there was the beef tallow hot pot broth that Aunt Huang had made for herself before she left.

Yu Dawei was showing off Huang Ma's cooking skills, but he accidentally aroused his own mother's jealousy, and she kept saying things that made Huang Ma jealous.

"Mom, could you cut two more salted duck eggs?"

"Oh dear, my eggs can't compare to the eggs your Aunt Huang makes. The ones she makes are so much tastier."

Yu Dawei: "..."

……

"Mom, I'll help you wash the dishes."

"Oh, no need. You've been eating and drinking well at your mother's house and never had to do any work. What would it be like if I made you do chores now that you're back?"

Yu Dawei: "..."

He had no idea that his mother could be so petty.

None of the others, including Xiao Fan and the old man, dared to help. They all kept their eyes downcast. In the end, under the pleading gaze of Yu Da, it was his own father who spoke up for justice and took the initiative to skip the topic of Huang Ma.

"You're lucky to have come back safe and sound." The old man picked up a transparent glass wine cup and took a sip of wine. "A few days ago, your wife was restless and insisted that I do a divination for you. Good heavens, the divination result was terrifying."

"What kind of divination is this? It's so strange." Yu Dawei didn't seem to care at all, and reached out to pick up a few peanuts.

Han Jingfan had recently studied divination books many times, and looked at Yu Dawei with some concern, saying, "The divination indicates that the journey will be fraught with difficulties, and the return will be a near-death experience."

"Is this... really that outrageous?" Yu Dawei took a sip of his drink, feeling a little guilty. Recalling the difficulty of repairing his car and the danger he faced on his return, he felt a chill run down his spine.

For Qingcheng, repairing cars was the most difficult time he had ever experienced in his two lifetimes of repair work. Whenever he went to get his car repaired, everyone who greeted him would respectfully call him "Master Yu".

In comparison, it is indeed a little heartbreaking, but thankfully the ending somewhat made up for it.

At this moment, Yu Laonian observed Yu Dawei's expression from the side and said calmly, "Fortunately, it's not a hopeless situation. There's always a way to break the deadlock. You can definitely give credit to two people who are born with the element of wood and the element of fire. The combination of these two from the north and south created a glimmer of hope for you."

"Dad, you're making it sound too far-fetched. My journey has been pretty smooth, nothing serious happened." Yu Dawei forced a smile, suppressing the unpleasant memories in his heart. He didn't intend to talk about the unpleasant things he encountered, as it would only add to his worries.

"Anyway, that's what the divination said. Maybe you encountered it, maybe you didn't, but in the end, you arrived home safely." Old Man Yu didn't delve into it. He didn't care much about the whole process of his eldest son's trip; he only cared about the result. If the result was good, that was good.

The father and son drank together, with Han Jingfan pouring wine for them. The worries in his heart these past few days had faded away after Dawei returned.

After dinner, the family of three slept on the kang (a heated brick bed) in the inner room. Mom had already heated the kang in advance, and Xiao Muyu fell asleep first while lying in the quilt.

Yu Dawei and Han Jingfan were in the same bed. Having not seen each other for a long time, they missed each other both physically and emotionally. They chatted quietly, exchanging a few words here and there.

In bed, Han Jingfan held tightly to that rough, large hand the whole time. Because his hand was so big and rough, she could only grasp one or two fingers, but deep down she felt extremely peaceful.

"Oh right, second brother, he came to our house with my eldest sister's husband. They said they were passing by my parents' place, and they brought several boxes of fruit, rice, and other things." Han Jingfan recalled what had happened a while ago.

Not only that, my brother-in-law also tried every means to find out about Dawei's car maintenance, and even heard from someone that Dawei had opened a repair shop, so he asked all sorts of questions.

Han Jingfan didn't have a good impression of her brother-in-law, and coupled with his aggressive attitude, she didn't even speak to him, let alone pay him much attention.

She knows she might have personality issues and be intolerant, especially since they are all relatives, but she doesn't want to change that. Because neither the books nor her father-in-law's words suggest she's wrong; liking or disliking someone is her right.

She really disliked her brother-in-law.

When my older sister returned to her parents' home after her marriage to him, his eyes would occasionally glance at me, making me feel uncomfortable and even disgusted.

"Let them be. They think they can control me, Yu Dawei, with a few small favors? They underestimate me too much." Yu Dawei's words were tinged with disdain.

The reason he divorced Han Jingfan in his previous life was also related to her older sister, brother-in-law, older brother, and second older brother.

In everyday life, everyone advises reconciliation rather than separation, but Old Zhang's family did the opposite, especially his brother-in-law, who secretly whispered in his sister's ear countless times.

Back when he ran a mechanical equipment repair company in Hohhot, he brought Han Jingfan's older brother and sister over with him so that they could also take Han Jingfan's family members with them.

Her older brother is just a farmer, what kind of car repair could he possibly fix? She had to guide him step by step herself.

And her older sister, who used to work in a restaurant, was thought to be a good cook, but her cooking was either too salty or too bland. Did she ever say anything about firing her?

No. But when her own company was on the verge of collapse, not only did he demand her wages first and then run away with the money, but he also advised Han Jingfan to be careful, saying that he had an ambiguous relationship with so-and-so at a KTV.

Seriously?! You think it's wrong to have a normal team dinner and expect things to be unclear? Which eye of yours, the one cooking in the kitchen, saw anything?
The older brother is an even bigger jerk. He clearly went along with me the whole time, but you don't know what Yu Dawei did? Yet he didn't say a single fair word, not even a fart.

What was that old man's saying again?

People hate you, laugh at you, despise you for being poor, and fear you for being rich—that's how it is!
Among all the members of the Han family, only Han Lao Er, Han Jingfan's second brother, is sensible. I heard that he occasionally cares about his sister after the divorce.

Yu Dawei has a lot of grievances against the Han family, and this is just the tip of the iceberg.

He forced down his displeasure and hugged his wife tightly: "Before the New Year, I'll take you to a big shopping mall in the city."

"What's gotten better?" Han Jingfan looked at him with some curiosity.

"You'll see when I take you there," Yu Dawei said with a smile. "I'm not going anywhere for the next few days. I'll just stay in the village and give myself a few days off. Then I'll go to the oil city to inspect two excavators."

"Okay, just don't overwork yourself."

"Don't worry, your husband is only in his early twenties, in the prime of his life. Don't believe me? Just feel it."

"Huh? You're so annoying! Mom, Dad, and my little sister are all in the next room. You...you're shameless!"

"Hmph, we have the certificate, what are we afraid of!"

The next day, Yu Dawei slept until the sun was high in the sky before getting up. Meanwhile, Xiao Muyu and his mother had already gone to the next room. The son was crawling around on the kang (a heated brick bed), and the wife was helping her mother-in-law with needlework.

The old man wasn't home, and my mother said his back pain had flared up again, so he went to Uncle Si's to get some medicine.

Yu Dawei sighed helplessly. When you're young, you work yourself to death, and when you're old, you're riddled with illnesses that can't be cured and can only be managed through recuperation. That's what happened to him in his previous life when he was old.

"The weather's nice today." Yu Dawei suddenly remembered a place and looked at Han Jingfan. "Come on, I'll take you to a good place."

"Where are we going?" Han Jingfan asked curiously, somewhat intrigued.

"You'll see when we get there." Without waiting for Han Jingfan's agreement, Yu Dawei pulled her to get dressed and headed outside.

As for the children, I'll leave them to Mom and Er Yan.

Er Yan went out this morning and hasn't returned yet, which is good, as it saves her from disturbing their time together.

Yu Dawei first went to the old man's storeroom, took two baskets, a machete, and a pig-slaughtering knife.

Then he glanced at the hunting rifle in the storeroom, which had just been placed there yesterday, hesitated for a moment, and decided to take it.

Although this time he wasn't going hunting, having a gun for self-defense was still a good idea. After all, he had been through it once before, and he was now more concerned about his safety.

Besides that, if you happen to come across any rabbits or pheasants, you can take care of them as well.

The nationwide ban on guns truly began in 1996. Although propaganda and voluntary surrender of guns had already begun by then, there were still nomadic peoples in Northeast China, and some villages were located in remote areas. So, the ban was only suggested and had not yet reached the stage of mandatory enforcement.

The same goes for hunting. Although the country has banned it, the people in the mountains rely on hunting for their livelihood, so they can't easily give it up.

Luhe Town is considered one of the more proactive towns in promoting gun and hunting bans, but there are still some who don't listen to advice, so the authorities can only turn a blind eye to it.

After all, some villages are really poor. If they weren't allowed to hunt some wild game in the winter, they would starve to death.

Human life is of paramount importance. Some local officials value people more than rules and regulations; they are truly good officials.

After packing up his tools, Yu Dawei drove eastward towards the village. As he left the village, some people strolling on the street saw the red car and their eyes nearly popped out of their sockets with envy.

Amidst the envy of the villagers, Yu Dawei drove north at the first fork in the road.

To the north of the village is a barren forest. For some reason, it was left uncultivated and not turned into farmland. This barren forest is very wide, extending north to Jiangxiagou and Chuhua Village, west to the town, and south to Yujia Village.

It didn't have a name; people just called it the Wild Forest. When he was a child, Yu Dawei often led a group of kids there to pick mushrooms, catch rabbits, pheasants, and the like.

Occasionally, large animals can be found in the wilderness, such as roe deer and wild boar piglets. Legend has it that when the north was still a wasteland, there were wolves in the wilderness.

[P.S.: Thank you to "Loves Sparkling Water" for the 100 Qidian Coins! May you be happy every day, and may all good things come in pairs! —Han Jingfan]

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(End of this chapter)