My wife and I are both time travelers.

Chapter 137 Departure
"Uncle, the person who asked you for help wouldn't be...." For a moment, Zhou Jiye didn't know how to address her. He subconsciously wanted to call her "Grandma," but while that was fine at home, it wasn't appropriate here. However, calling her by her name directly wasn't convenient either, since Fang Manxia was an elder, and it wasn't proper for a junior to call an elder by their name.

"Alright, you don't need to guess anymore. You guessed right, it was Miss Fang who asked me for help." The old man saw the answer in Zhou Jiye's expression and simply revealed the mystery.

"It really is an old lady!"

"You called her Grandma?" The old man was slightly surprised by the word "Grandma," but he quickly realized what it meant. His expression was somewhat melancholy, and his eyes held memories of the past.

"Yes, so many years have passed in the blink of an eye. Everyone has grown old. Miss Fang isn't much younger than me, and I've become an old man. Naturally, she's lost her youthful beauty. By the way, how is Miss Fang now? Is she alright? I heard you're staying at her place in Shanghai? You and she are...?"

Hearing this, Zhou Jiye could confirm that the old man was an old acquaintance of Fang Manxia, ​​and even a long-time friend; otherwise, Fang Manxia wouldn't have gone all the way from Shanghai to ask him to come here. Since Fang Manxia trusted him, and the old man had gone to the trouble of getting him out of Cheng Jiandong's clutches, he was someone who could be trusted.

Zhou Jiye immediately gave the old man a brief account of Fang Manxia's situation. When he learned that Fang Manxia had suffered a lot in the past few years and had only settled down in the last two years, the old man looked somewhat emotional and regretful.

"She's just too strong-willed. If only she could have... But there's nothing we can do about it. A person's nature can never be changed. If she weren't like this, she wouldn't be herself." The old man sighed and said, "But we've finally made it through. It seems you two took good care of her. She truly treats you like family. Otherwise, Miss Fang wouldn't have been so attentive and used her connections for you. She never asks for favors."

After his reflection, the old man glanced at Zhou Jiye and suddenly asked, "Has Miss Fang introduced you to the sect yet? What generation are you in now?"

"Entry level?" Zhou Jiye was taken aback, somewhat confused about what the other party meant.

Seeing his expression, the old man immediately understood that Zhou Jiye was different from what he had imagined, and laughed: "It seems I misunderstood, but it doesn't matter. Since you are Miss Fang's junior, it doesn't really matter whether you join the family or not."

"Now that Ah Dong's troubles are resolved, what are your plans now? Are you going to stay in Hong Kong, or do you have other ideas?"

"I want to go back as soon as possible!" Zhou Jiye said without hesitation.

"You want to go back?" The old man was somewhat surprised. "Isn't Hong Kong good enough? Although Shanghai is also a good place, it can't compare to Hong Kong now. You finally managed to come out, and as far as I know, you already have a Hong Kong ID card. There are countless people on the mainland who are desperate to get here. What? You want to go back instead?"

“Uncle, Hong Kong is nice, but it’s not my home!” Zhou Jiye said frankly. “I understand what you’re saying. In terms of prosperity, Hong Kong is definitely better than Shanghai right now, and there are plenty of opportunities here. Even if I don’t rely on anyone and just rely on myself, life here is much better than going back.”

“But Uncle, as the saying goes, there’s no place like home. Shanghai is my home. My family and respected elders are there. Besides, things are different now. The mainland is undergoing reform and opening up. Shanghai’s foundation is there. It can’t compare to Hong Kong now, but it might be better than Hong Kong in the future. And I’ve been away for so long and lost contact with my family. They must be very worried. So I want to go back as soon as possible.”

Something touched the old man's heart. His expression became somewhat moved, and he slightly raised his head, gazing into the distance, lost in thought.

After a moment, the old man came to his senses and looked at Zhou Jiye. At this moment, his expression was gentle and showed a hint of appreciation.

“Going back is no problem, but have you thought about what identity you will use to go back?” the old man asked. “If you go back as a Hong Kong resident, it might be difficult. I know that things have loosened up a lot in the mainland in recent years, but there are still restrictions on Hong Kong residents going back to the mainland, and they can’t stay there for long after they go back.”

“Then I’ll go back the way I came.” Zhou Jiye replied without hesitation. “If it’s convenient for you, Uncle, could you please help me arrange a boat to take me to Lingnan? Once I get there, I’ll figure out how to get back to Shanghai.”

"That works too." The old man thought for a moment and nodded slightly. "Finding a boat isn't difficult; that's easy to arrange. But let me ask you one more question: are you really going back? You're not planning to stay?"

Zhou Jiye nodded vigorously, and the old man's expression showed appreciation in his attitude.

"Since that's the case, it's good to go back. When you get back, please tell Miss Fang that Zhang Chengsheng still remembers her. If I can go back to visit her someday, I will definitely pay her a visit and tell her to take good care of herself."

"Don't worry, I will definitely bring it," Zhou Jiye said earnestly.

Old Zhang smiled with satisfaction and pointed to the young man standing next to him, saying, "This is Xiang Yuan. His grandfather is my old friend. Aheng has been with me since he was a child. You are about the same age. You will stay with me for the next few days. Aheng will help you make arrangements for going back."

"Thank you, Brother Heng, for your trouble." Zhou Jiye stood up and thanked Xiang Yuan. Xiang Yuan smiled and nodded, waving his hand to indicate that it was nothing.

"By the way, arranging a boat won't be quick. Even if everything goes smoothly, it will take two or three days. Is there anything else you need to take care of in Hong Kong?"

“This…” Zhou Jiye thought for a moment and nodded, “I had forgotten about it if you hadn’t mentioned it. I really need to trouble you with something, Uncle.”

"You said."

Zhou Jiye took out a bankbook from his pocket and handed it over, saying apologetically, "There's some money here that I can't take back with me. Could you help me buy a house in Hong Kong? That way, when I have the chance to come to Hong Kong again, I'll have a place to stay."

"Hehe, this money was given to you by Adong, right?" Old Zhang asked with a smile, but did not reach for the passbook.

"Yes, there's a little over 400,000 in total. 400,000 of that was the money we split up after that big meal we had last time. Cheng Jiandong gave me 10,000 after his first robbery of the gold shop. I spent some of it recently, and the rest is all here." "That's quite a sum!" Old Zhang laughed. A little over 400,000 was a huge amount in Hong Kong these days. Although the money's origin was somewhat questionable, it was nothing to someone like Old Zhang. As for Zhou Jiye wanting to use this money to buy a house in Hong Kong, that was a piece of cake for him. Old Zhang gestured to Xiang Heng beside him, who stepped forward, picked up the passbook, looked at it, and nodded slightly to Old Zhang.

"Aheng, you can handle this for him."

"No problem!" Xiang Heng readily agreed and put the passbook away.

After finishing his business, Elder Zhang instructed Xiang Heng to take Zhou Jiye away. Zhou Jiye thanked Elder Zhang once again and then left with Xiang Heng.

Xiang Heng arranged for Zhou Jiye to stay in a guest room in the mansion. Although it was just a guest room, the decoration and facilities inside were extremely complete, comparable to the best hotels in Hong Kong.

After giving Zhou Jiye a brief introduction to the place, Xiang Heng settled him in and then left.

After Xiang Heng left, Zhou Jiye relaxed completely. Looking around the room, he buried himself in the sofa and sprawled out in a relaxed pose. Without his previous worries and with Cheng Jiandong and his gang no longer watching him, Zhou Jiye felt incredibly relaxed. The thought of going home soon made him even happier, and he unknowingly fell asleep...

Xiang Heng acted quickly, arranging the boat in just one day, and the money Zhou Jiye gave him was exchanged for a house.

The ship is tomorrow night, and the boarding point will still be in Saigon. Xiang Heng will personally escort Zhou Jiye there.

As for the house, Xiang Heng helped Zhou Jiye directly purchase a "thousand-square-foot" mansion in the city center. Although the house prices in Hong Kong are much higher than before, they are not as outrageous as they would be in twenty or thirty years. Moreover, the so-called "thousand-square-foot mansion" is actually just over ninety square meters. This house is worth 380,000 yuan, and Zhou Jiye has not yet used up the money he gave him.

Xiang Heng asked Zhou Jiye what to do with the remaining money. After thinking for a moment, Zhou Jiye asked Xiang Heng if he could exchange it for some electrical appliances to take with him on the ship to Lingnan. Xiang Heng smiled and agreed, helping Zhou Jiye buy some appliances he needed. He also specially exchanged the remaining thousand or so into inland currency for Zhou Jiye to carry with him for his travel expenses.

On the night before he left, Zhou Jiye met with Elder Zhang again and had a meal with him.

At the dinner table, Old Zhang didn't say anything else to Zhou Jiye, just some ordinary family matters. After dinner, Old Zhang left first. Zhou Jiye got up to see Old Zhang off, then went back to his room to tidy up a bit and waited patiently. After eight o'clock in the evening, Xiang Heng came to inform Zhou Jiye that he could leave. Zhou Jiye went out and got into a car with him, and they left together.

The journey was smooth, and they arrived in Saigon at around 10:30 p.m. After Xiang Heng parked the car, he called Zhou Jiye to get out.

"Follow me." Xiang Heng led Zhou Jiye forward, and the two of them arrived at a simple dock. A large aircraft was already quietly parked there, and two young men were waiting.

Hearing footsteps, the two quickly looked over, flashlights waving in their hands. When they heard Xiang Heng say "It's me," the other person immediately relaxed and came to greet them.

"Brother Heng!"

"This is A-Jian, and this is A-Cai." Xiang Heng briefly introduced the two to Zhou Jiye, then asked them seriously, "Are you all ready? No problem?"

"Don't worry, Brother Heng, we travel this waterway all the time. We could do it with our eyes closed," A-Jian and A-Cai said confidently.

"Alright, Mr. Zhou's safety is in your hands now. You must get him to his destination safely and securely. You know what the consequences will be if anything goes wrong," Xiang Heng said seriously.

The two nodded repeatedly like chickens pecking at rice. Ignoring them, Xiang Heng turned to Zhou Jiye and smiled, "That's settled then. You go with them. Have a safe journey!"

"Thank you, Brother Heng. Please thank Uncle for me when you get back."

"Okay!" Xiang Heng nodded with a smile, then took out a slip of paper from his pocket and handed it to Zhou Jiye.

"This is……?"

“Your uncle knows you’re involved in the smuggling business in mainland China. The road you used to take from Ma Village is unsafe, so don’t go there anymore. Keep this phone number. Once you’re settled back home, if you want to do this business again, you can call this number to contact them. Just mention my name and tell them what kind of goods you want, and they’ll arrange it.”

"This..." Zhou Jiye never expected that Elder Zhang and Xiang Heng would make such an arrangement; it truly surprised him. Looking at the flimsy note in his hand, he realized the favor he owed was far too great—how could he possibly accept it?

"Alright, it's getting late, let's get on the boat!" Xiang Heng patted Zhou Jiye on the shoulder and gave him a bright smile.

Zhou Jiye reached out and shook his hand firmly, gave him a grateful look, and then turned and walked towards Dafei.

Once he boarded the ship, Dafei slowly sailed out of the dock. As it moved further and further away from the coastline, Dafei's engines began to roar, and the speed increased. It headed northeast into the night. At this moment, Zhou Jiye on the ship could still faintly see Xiang Heng's figure standing on the shore, and his heart was filled with mixed emotions.

(End of this chapter)