Who wants to take the civil service exam after being reborn?

Chapter 676 Ordinary Families by Wanlv Lake (Showcasing Writing Skills)
Empress Dowager Mao was so furious that she even spoke Cantonese.

Chen immediately dared not say anything more and quietly hung up the phone, but he reacted too quickly and had already come up with a plan in his mind that even his own mother could not refuse.

A few days later, with the end of the final exams, the university was on holiday.

The meetings regarding the "new delegates" and "new committee members" have gradually come to an end, as the Chinese New Year is just around the corner.

However, while attending these meetings, Chen made some new friends who came from various regions and industries within the province, thus expanding his social circle.

A week before Lunar New Year's Eve, Chen drove his BMW X5 with Mao Xintong in the passenger seat, while Ma Haijun drove his S600, heading straight for Heyuan along the highway.

Chen plans to bring his maternal grandparents up here for the Chinese New Year.

Empress Dowager Mao said she wanted to expel people.

Chen thought that as soon as she asked them to leave, she would snuggle into her grandparents' arms and say with tears in her eyes, "Grandpa and Grandma, Mommy won't let me spend the New Year at home. I'm so sad."

The main point is to disgust oneself, and incidentally, to disgust Empress Dowager Mao as well.

The maternal grandparents would definitely not agree. Even though they love their grandson the most, they can't let their grandson be kicked out of the house during the Chinese New Year. They might even scold and berate the Empress Dowager.

Let's just say this move is absolutely brilliant.

I'm afraid of my mother, but wasn't Empress Dowager Mao afraid of her mother?
However, my maternal grandparents usually celebrate holidays with my uncles, so if we were to bring them over, we would have to give one of my eldest or second uncles a ride as well, which is why we had to use two cars.

It's often said that Shandong is the "feudal territory of Qi and Lu," but many places in Guangdong are similar, otherwise there wouldn't be such a long tradition of having children who "bring glory to their ancestors."

Chen and his family set off at 9 a.m. and arrived in Dongyuan County, Heyuan City, at around 12:30 p.m. Their maternal grandparents' home was there, next to Wanlv Lake, a national first-class water quality lake.

My grandparents' generation was used to living off the land and water. Even though they are now well-off and getting old, they still don't want to leave the old house where they have lived their whole lives.

Actually, Chen Zhe quite likes the environment here. Stepping out of the courtyard, there is a vast expanse of green waves, with the boundless waves gently lapping against the embankment, making a "splashing" sound.

When summer vacation came to an end, we encountered the flood season and high tide. We had to roll up our trousers and move our belongings to higher ground with our grandparents and uncles. This became an unforgettable part of my childhood.

However, since it was an old building, the road was difficult to navigate. Chen simply parked the S600 in the parking lot in the center of the county and let Ma Haijun drive the King of the Road X5, which bumped along the road.

Mao Xintong, who had slept the whole way, woke up at this moment. She looked at both sides through the car window, shook her head and said, "Why does it feel like there's no change at all? Can't they pave this gravel road?"

Mao Xintong has only been away for a year and a half. I thought her hometown would have improved a bit, but it is still pretty much the same as I remember.

"Indeed, there hasn't been much change, but the government considers economic benefits when building roads; they won't build a useless road for no reason."

Chen explained with a smile.

He then realized that the small shop he used to frequent at the village entrance when he was a child was still there.

I vaguely remember that there was always a little girl of about the same age in the store who would greet him in a cheerful voice and hand him the change from buying orange soda.

When I passed by just now, there was a young woman helping a toddler learn to walk outside the door. I don't know if it was her.

The X5 roared past, and she only glanced up at it.

His eyes were devoid of light, indifferent as if he were looking at a tree or a cloud, and then he lowered his head to brush the dust off the child's clothes.

Chen suddenly remembered those evenings when he finished drinking soda and could get two cents back for returning the empty bottles to the shop.

Now, the bottle is long gone, and I haven't seen that orange-flavored soda for many years.

The dust kicked up by the tires gradually buried the memories.

That's how it is in small towns; if you can't get into a good school, getting married early is the only option.

……

Not long after, we arrived at my maternal grandparents' house, a two-story earthen building with badly peeling paint, revealing the grayish-yellow clay underneath.

The courtyard had no gate; it was just left open.

Fishing nets and a few pieces of fishing gear were scattered in the corner. Looking around, the neighbors all had similar situations.

Grandpa squatted in the yard, puffing on his pipe.

When Chen Zhe and Mao Xintong got out of an unfamiliar car, the wrinkles on Grandpa's dark, orange-peel-like face slowly smoothed out, revealing a surprised but not overly excited smile.

"Why are you back?"

"Grandpa said in a hoarse voice."

My maternal grandfather used to be a primary school teacher. He often talked during class and loved to smoke, which gradually made his voice hoarse.

Men in that era were like that; they had jobs during the day, and after returning home, they would fish and farm.

Before the chalk dust had even been washed away from his fingernails, his fingertips were already tainted with the fishy smell of the lake water. That's how he raised the four children, one by one, from the lake and the fields.

However, apart from Mao Xiaoqin, her two uncles and aunt are doing only so-so, even though they bought houses in the county and moved away from the old house.

But like many ordinary people, he seemed to spend his entire life circling around Wanlv Lake, like ripples on water pushed by the wind, never truly leaving this small county town. Empress Dowager Mao, on the other hand, finally uprooted herself and was planted in a different kind of soil, all thanks to the scores on her exam papers.

Along with her child, her life also seemed to change, leading to a different destiny.

Although Mao Xiaoqin would complain that her parents were too biased towards their own grandson and always treated their other grandsons differently.

She actually understood the logic: her grandson's surname was "Mao," while Chen's surname was "Chen." How could they be the same?

I was just a little upset to see that half of Chen's red envelopes were missing.

Most mothers are like this: they can endure some grievances themselves, but they cannot allow their children to be looked down upon.

However, Empress Dowager Mao was still very filial. She had the best conditions, so she usually did the most work.

When her maternal grandparents had health problems and came to Guangzhou for medical treatment, she took care of everything from start to finish, and the remittances she sent during holidays were always the most generous.

Of course, every time she made a remittance, she would complain to her husband that the money was eventually used by her maternal grandparents to subsidize their son.

Chen Peisong would simply smile and turn the page of the newspaper, offering neither words nor comments.

Old Chen was a smart man. At this moment, it wouldn't be appropriate to say anything, so he simply let his wife nag on.

However, my maternal grandparents were in good health. Perhaps it was because of years of hard work that their bodies were as tough as a rope, impossible to break no matter how much they were worn down.

"Where are Grandpa and Grandma?"

Chen walked over and asked.

My grandmother was a very efficient and decisive person, and she usually made the decisions about everything in the family.

Men like my grandfather are more like silent rocks, their minds are clear, but their words remain unspoken.

So if you want to persuade them to spend the Chinese New Year in Guangzhou, you first have to convince your grandmother.

"She went to have an argument with your uncle."

Grandpa tapped his pipe on the sole of his shoe, scattering ashes all over the ground.

"Go and argue?"

Chen was stunned for a moment.

"And the servant family next door?"

Before Chen could react, Mao Xintong immediately asked.

"We're used to arguing."

Grandpa smiled and said, "I'll go and call her back to cook."

"Who is that servant?"

Looking at the old man's hunched back, Chen asked Mao Erjie.

"It's the household whose fishpond is connected to ours; they often argue about the boundary line."

Mao Xintong explained first, and seeing that Chen Zhe still didn't seem to remember, she added, "One year, our two families almost got into a fight, but you were just burying your head in your homework in the house. At the time, we all thought you were a real city kid who didn't know anything about rural life."

Mao Erjie has gotten too cocky. If this were in Guangzhou, she definitely wouldn't dare to joke like that.

However, once she returned to her hometown, she probably finally remembered that she was Chen Zhe's cousin.

Of course, Chen Zhe didn't mind. He thought to himself, "I used to be a studious kid. I valued the homework assigned by the teacher more than anything else."

Chen grew up in the provincial capital and had excellent grades. For some reason, there was always a distance between him and his older brothers and sisters.

He talked about the competitions at school, and they talked about the fish caught in the pond; neither of them could understand the other's life.

After that, Chen said very little, and when he came over, he would just smile reservedly.

That smile was superficial; it didn't reach the depths of his heart.

As for her closeness to Mao Erjie, it was because Mao Xiaoqin liked this kind-hearted niece. In her previous life, she would often whisper in her ear, "Your second sister, your second sister..."

"Hey~"

Chen sighed inwardly, the past drifting by like light and shadow.

It wasn't until I saw my grandfather's figure about to disappear that the feeling of being pulled by the years suddenly became real.

"Let's go and take a look too."

"Committee Member Chen said."

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(Another chapter will be posted tonight, titled "An Accident About My Intention to Write About Committee Member Chen's Pretentiousness, But My Writing Skills Were Too Good and It Unintentionally Turned into an Essay.")
(End of this chapter)