Exciting 1979!

Chapter 117: A Reply to Hong Kong (1 more chapter guaranteed, Happy New Year!)
This letter existed in the previous life, but Wei Ming didn't know it at first. It was because Old Wei fell ill and told him the letter while recalling the past in the last moments of his life.

At that time, Lao Wei could no longer remember what was written in the letter. He only remembered that it was from Hong Kong and asked about the situation at home.

Although in the early 1980s, having overseas connections was something that city dwellers could brag about and be proud of, and that others would envy.

But everything is slow in the countryside, and the response in this regard is also lagging, and people are still thinking with the thinking of that decade.

In addition, Lao Wei had broken off contact with Uncle Ping'an at that time, and he had no one who understood the situation to discuss with. He was also worried that the letter would bring trouble to his family, so he burned it directly. This action made him regret for the rest of his life.

While lying on the hospital bed, he held Wei Ming's hand and regretted: "I should have left my address. Maybe my family has overseas connections and can help you."

By that time, China had already been in the reform and opening up for more than ten years, and Lao Wei had long understood the benefits of overseas relations.

He firmly believed that he really had overseas connections because he had an uncle who was a high-ranking official in Taiwan, and perhaps some cousins.

Wei Ming took it and took a look at it, feeling a little surprised. There were traditional Chinese characters on the envelope, which was normal, as Wei Ming could understand it. However, the handwriting was very delicate, even a little childish, and it seemed that the writer might not be very old.

The mailing address was "Opposite to Chow Kee Department Store, 101 Sai Wan High Street, Central and Western District, Hong Kong Island." No specific sender was written.

The recipient's name was Wei Ming's grandmother, and the address was Gouzitun.

I opened the letter and found that the font on the outside was the same, not many words.

It was just a few simple questions, with no subject and no information about the writer.

"Is everything okay at home now?

How is Goudan?

Is Gousheng okay?

How many people are there?

Are you eating enough?

Did you go to school?
If you receive any letters, please be sure to reply. I miss you very much in Hong Kong."

Then it was gone.

Wei Ming couldn't help but ask: "Dad, who are Goudan and Gousheng?"

Old Wei, whose face had turned red from drinking, suddenly turned dark red.

Wei Ming understood: "One of them is you, right?"

He nodded.

"What about the other one?"

Old Wei said, "Your uncle Ping'an, it was a time of chaos and war, so we gave him a cheap name so that we could be raised. We all changed our names when we were older."

Wei Ming was quite surprised that Uncle Ping An was mentioned in the letter.

He smiled and said, "I don't think I've ever heard anyone talk about it in the village."

Wei Jiefang: "I don't really care. It's just that your uncle Ping An is thin-skinned. After he entered middle school, he didn't like people calling him by his nickname. He would fight with anyone who called him by his nickname. Even though he was a scholar, he was quite good at fighting. No wonder he joined the army later. I'm getting off topic. Anyway, he beat people into submission, so no one called me by my nickname anymore."

Wei Ming asked again: "Besides your generation, who else knows your and Uncle Ping An's nicknames? Does my great grandfather and his family know?"

Wei Jiefang recalled: "He should know. At that time, the Kuomintang and the Communist Party were still working together to fight against Japan. Your grandfather and your great grandfather often exchanged letters, and they might have mentioned us."

After thinking about it, Old Wei became more determined: "It must be your great grandfather. That's why I'm afraid of him. He's probably a high-ranking official over there. Given the current situation, how about we provoke him?"

Wei Ming wanted to dispel his concerns in this regard, so he said: "It shouldn't be Grandpa, didn't you read the last sentence? I miss you very much in Hong Kong. This letter is written to grandma."

Old Wei's face turned red again: "What are you talking about, you little bastard? Your grandma is not that kind of person!"

Wei Ming was stunned, knowing that Old Wei had misunderstood, and hurriedly explained: "That's not what I meant. I was wondering if it could be a relative from grandma's side."

"That's impossible. Your grandma only had two brothers. One died in the Anti-Japanese War, and the other is your uncle (Fan Chunhua's father). He is still alive and well at home."

Wei Ming hinted: "I know your and Uncle Ping An's nicknames, and you said you missed my grandma a lot, and you care so much about the situation at home. Who else could it be?"

"I came all the way to you just to ask about this, and you're asking about me!" Old Wei snorted.

Wei Ming smiled and said, "Since we can't guess, let's just write him a letter and see what he says next."

Old Wei thought about it and agreed to the suggestion. He didn't even mention burning it. Having such a promising son in this life, he became much braver.

After finishing the serious business, Wei Jiefang started to care about his son's feelings again.

"Your aunt said that your English girl is very pretty. Do you have a photo?"

Xu Shufen pushed him and said, "My son had finally come out. Why are you bringing that up again?"

Wei Ming touched his body and found a photo. It was taken when the two of them were ice skating in Shichahai.

Unexpectedly, Xu Shufen was faster than Lao Wei and took the photo immediately.

"What a beautiful girl, your hair is so red! Your eyes are so big! This is a foreigner!" It was her first time to see a foreigner, after all, there was no TV or electricity at home. Xu Shufen was amazed, and Wei Jiefang was also very satisfied after seeing it. She looked like a good match for my son, and she was tall. I knew how to blow it up after returning to the village.

However, when Wei Ming saw that Lao Wei wanted to take it away, he stopped him in time: "I only have one copy of this one."

Wei Jiefang: "Then what else did you shoot?"

Xu Shufen coughed twice and said, "What do you need these photos for? My son will have to find a wife in the future. It would be terrible if someone saw them. Xiao Ming, listen to your mother. You can't keep these photos with you. Which girl can stand it?"

It's rare for the mother to say so much in one breath. She is really worried about her son's marriage.

Because he was unfilial in his previous life and still hadn't gotten married when he was over sixty, Wei Ming thought that in this life he might as well get her married to make her happy.

Wei Ming smiled and nodded, saying that he would find a place to bury it later.

Finally he said, "I've taken the letter too. I'll think about how to reply."

He went straight back to Shaoyuan and told Auntie Wang, who was covering for him: "I have already asked the Office of International Students for Transfer of Positions for me and recommended you to take over. Good luck, Auntie."

This job is much easier than cleaning. I can get paid just by sitting. As for my grandson, it’s just a matter of steps. I can just let him go home by himself.

Aunt Wang was naturally very grateful and kept to herself what happened between Wei Ming and Melinda in that room. She didn't write a diary and had no plans to write a memoir.

As soon as Aunt Wang left, Wei Ming leaned on his bed and greeted the female foreign students coming in and out with a dull expression, and sometimes he could get a few words of comfort.

After locking the door and drawing the curtains, Wei Ming spread out paper and pen.

"Hello, everything is fine at home, and life is going well..."

After writing this sentence, Wei Ming opened a new page. Since the other party wrote in traditional Chinese, he might as well reply in traditional Chinese.

He wrote from the beginning: "...Please let me introduce myself. My name is Wei Ming, and I am the eldest grandson of Ms. Fan Erxiu, but she has passed away.

My father is doing well. Although he works as a farmer at home, he is optimistic, healthy, and has no bad habits. At the age of 18, he married my mother Xu Shufen, who was from Sichuan and Chongqing, at my mother's order. Later, my sister Wei Hong and I were born. I was 19 and my sister was 14. I had mediocre academic performance after high school and entered Peking University to work and engage in writing. I have a little reputation in the mainland, but I can support my family. My sister has excellent academic performance, is very talented, and is determined to study at Peking University..."

After talking about his own family situation, Wei Ming briefly mentioned Uncle Ping'an's family.

"My uncle Ping An is also good. He was admitted to Peking University with the highest score in the county in the early 60s. He later joined the army. Now he has retired and works at Peking University. He is married and has raised a pair of twins, but my great-aunt Cheng has passed away. I also owe my work to Uncle Ping An."

After writing this, Wei Ming added, "We are thousands of miles apart, and I am very happy to communicate with you. I hope to hear more about you."

Wei Ming took out an envelope, filled in the address, and prepared to send the letter back tomorrow. He was afraid that the other party would be waiting anxiously.

That night.

As soon as Wei Ming lay down, he heard the creaking sound of the door being pushed, but it was not opened. Wei Ming locked the door.

"Leonardo, are you asleep?"

This is obviously not Melinda's reincarnation. Judging from the voice, it should be a Spanish female classmate who wears glasses and looks okay.

Although Wei Ming and Melinda had a relationship, some girls don't mind. Having a story with a great writer in a foreign country can be a topic of conversation when they return home.

But Wei Ming obviously didn't have that idea. He said he had already gone to bed and they could talk about it tomorrow.

The Spanish girl persisted for a while before leaving reluctantly.

Wei Ming didn't sleep well that night. Three girls came to knock on his door at different times to comfort him, and one of them was a black girl.

No, we have to move out tomorrow!

The next day, just after he sent the letter, the transfer order for Wei Ming came down. He had mentioned it to Uncle Ping'an at the dinner table last night, asking him to help him with the transfer, otherwise he would be reminded of him by the sight of the transfer.

He arrived just in time. If he had arrived any later, he would have been afraid that he would have been unclean. However, he took a day off before he even got to his new position.

Today he was going to accompany his parents to visit Yanjing City, mainly because it was his mother's first time here, and it would be inappropriate to just leave without seeing anything.

Wei Ming brought his camera and accompanied them throughout the entire day. Many of the things he and Melinda saw were the same roads they had walked, the same scenery they had seen, and the same delicious food they had eaten. Wei Ming was left alone to swallow the bitter fruit.

Although she had a very happy day, Xu Shufen was determined to leave the next day.

First, I was afraid that it would affect my son’s work and it would not be good to ask for leave all the time.

Second, my son spends too much money now. He bought so many unnecessary things and asked them to take them back, saying they were New Year's goods.

But they spent their entire family’s annual harvest in one day. Who would buy all the goods for the New Year?
She was afraid that her heart would not be able to bear it if she stayed any longer, and she was also worried about the pigs and chickens at home. Fan Chunhua would not be able to see the eggs, so she decided not to kill the chickens anymore.

However, after sending his parents back to the guesthouse, Wei Ming stuffed them with a handful of money and tickets, and asked them to prepare for the festive New Year and wait for him to return.

I have to slowly get used to the fact that my son is a rich man. There are many good days ahead!
After returning from a trip in the city, Wei Ming immediately took Biaozi and Xiaomei to Shaoyuan to pack up his bed and belongings.

The international students were reluctant to let Wei Ming go when they knew he was leaving. Li Aiguo and Li Kui even said they would recommend to the school that Wei Ming be the supervisor of the male dormitory.

Wei Ming laughed and returned to the security guards' dormitory under the South Gate. He first distributed the candies he bought from Wangfujing Department Store.

"Brothers, I'm back!"

(Please support me with monthly tickets. I will continue writing at dawn! Happy New Year!)
(End of this chapter)