Going home for the Chinese New Year with a year-end bonus of 100 million

The aroma of food wafted into the house as soon as the firecrackers were moved out.

"Fanfan, Xiaoya, hurry up and wash your hands and eat!" Wang Xiuying called from the kitchen.

"I had a simple breakfast, I must be hungry now!"

The family washed their hands and sat around the table.

Lunch was plentiful: stir-fried green peppers with cured pork, pickled fish, stir-fried shredded potatoes, cabbage and tofu soup, and a large plate of freshly steamed sausages.

It tastes just like home cooking—simple yet comforting.

"Mom, your cooking skills are getting better and better," Yang Fan said with satisfaction as he picked up a piece of cured meat.

"You're so sweet-talking," Wang Xiuying said with a smile, placing a piece of fish on her son's and daughter's plates. "Eat more, you can't get this kind of food outside."

While they were eating, there was a knock on the courtyard gate.

"Who is it?" Yang Jianguo put down his bowl.

"Second Brother, it's me." A somewhat reserved voice came from outside.

Yang Jianguo got up to open the door.

The door opened, and three people came in.

The man walking in front was a man in his forties with dark skin and deep wrinkles on his face. He was wearing a faded work jacket.

Behind him followed a middle-aged woman, equally dark-skinned and thin, carrying a cloth bag.

Finally, there was a young man in his early twenties, not very tall, with his head down, and somewhat shy.

"Third Uncle? Third Aunt?" Yang Fan quickly stood up.

The people who came were his third uncle Yang Jianmin, his third aunt Liu Yuzhen, and his cousin Yang Hao.

"Oh, Jianmin's here! Come in and sit down!" Wang Xiuying stood up as well. "Have you eaten yet? If not, we'll eat together!"

"Second sister-in-law, no need, no need, we've already eaten," Yang Jianmin quickly waved his hand.

"Eat some more dishes after you've already eaten!" Wang Xiuying said without waiting for a reply, turning around to get bowls and chopsticks from the kitchen.

Yang Jianmin wanted to decline, but Wang Xiuying had already set out the bowls and chopsticks: "Come on, sit down, don't stand and talk."

The three of them then sat down somewhat awkwardly.

Yang Fan looked at his third uncle's family. His third uncle was two years younger than his father, but looked older, and his back was somewhat hunched.

My aunt was also thin, with large finger joints, clearly the result of years of heavy labor.

My cousin Yang Hao is the same age as Xiao Ya, only a few months younger, but he looks more mature than Xiao Ya and keeps his head down without saying a word.

"Jianmin, is something the matter?" Yang Jianguo asked, his voice steady.

"Tell me if you have any difficulties. We're brothers, and I'll help you if I can."

Yang Jianmin sighed, rubbed his hands together, and then said, "Second Brother, I... I have indeed encountered some difficulties."

He paused, then lowered his voice:

"As you know, your brother and sister-in-law and I are on construction sites all year round."

"It's been difficult to get paid on construction sites these past two years; the bosses always drag their feet."

"After working all year, I only received two months' wages."

"We agreed to settle the accounts before the New Year, but it's already the 26th of the twelfth lunar month, and there's still no word..."

Liu Yuzhen chimed in from the side, her voice choked with emotion:

"Second brother, second sister-in-law, we really have no other choice."

"Haozi... his wedding is set for the sixth day of the first lunar month, which is just around the corner."

"We're still short tens of thousands of yuan for the bride price, we...we can't afford it."

She glanced at Yang Hao, then looked at Yang Fan:

"We know Xiao Fan is making money outside, but we're not asking for money just because Xiao Fan is making money."

"There's really... there's just no other way."

Yang Hao lowered his head even further, his face flushed red.

Yang Fan felt very uncomfortable listening to this.

My third uncle and aunt are completely different from my eldest uncle's family.

He remembered clearly that when he was admitted to university, his family couldn't afford the tuition. His third uncle secretly gave him two thousand yuan and said, "Xiao Fan, study hard. Your third uncle is uneducated and is counting on your generation to make something of themselves."

When Xiaoya went to college, her third aunt gave her some money and even made her a new quilt, saying, "Girls should stay warm when they're out in the world."

Whenever there's something going on at home, my third uncle and aunt are always the first to come and help.

Harvesting rice, repairing houses, taking care of the sick grandfather... they never refused.

Yang Fan knew that his third uncle would not borrow money from his eldest uncle.

My eldest uncle's family looked down on my third uncle's family, thinking they were poor and had no future.

My cousin Yang Hao stopped going to school after graduating from junior high school and started working on construction sites with my third uncle.

At 21 years old, getting married is indeed considered early.

How much money can you save by working away from home?

It's good enough if I can avoid asking my family for money.

Yang Fan didn't rush to speak.

He knew the rules—he had to wait for his father to speak first.

Yang Jianguo was silent for a while before speaking:

"Jianmin, Haozi is getting married. As his second uncle, it's only right and proper for me to help out."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "But you don't know, we've almost spent all the money on house renovations."

"I have 11,000 yuan in my bank account. I'll withdraw it all for you tomorrow."

"The rest... I'll help you figure something out. What do you think?"

Yang Jianmin waved his hands repeatedly: "Second Brother, you don't need to give it all to me, keep some for yourself..."

"Why are you saying all this?" Yang Jianguo interrupted him. "Take this as a temporary measure. But how much more money do you actually need?"

Yang Jianmin glanced at his wife, then at his son, and lowered his voice even further:

"The bride price, the banquet, the three gold items... all the miscellaneous expenses add up to fifty or sixty thousand yuan."

"Fifty or sixty thousand..." Yang Jianguo frowned.

For a farmer like him, fifty or sixty thousand is not a small amount.

The house renovation had already used up most of our savings, and this 11,000 yuan was almost all of our savings.

The room fell silent.

The only sound was the crackling of the fire.

Yang Fan looked at his father's furrowed brows, at his third uncle and aunt's embarrassed expressions, and at his cousin Yang Hao's expression that wished he could disappear into the ground...

He spoke.

"Third Uncle, Third Aunt."

All eyes were on him.

Yang Fan said calmly, "Haozi is getting married, and as his older brother, I should do my part."

He paused for a moment, then said, "How about this, I'll lend you two hundred thousand."

"Let's get the wedding done first, then we can buy whatever we need and prepare whatever we need."

"Having money in hand makes me feel less anxious. You can pay me back slowly later."

"Two hundred thousand?!" Yang Jianmin jumped to his feet, his eyes wide. "Xiao Fan, this... how can this be?!"

Liu Yuzhen panicked: "No, no! Xiaofan, how can we take so much money from you? We... we'll only borrow 60,000, 60,000 is enough!"

Yang Hao raised his head, looked at Yang Fan, his lips moved, but he didn't say anything.

Yang Fan smiled and said, "Third Uncle, Third Aunt, don't be in a hurry. Let me finish."

He stood up, walked to his third uncle's side, and pressed his shoulder to make him sit down:

"I know how you treat me and Xiaoya."

"When I was in college, you secretly slipped me two thousand yuan. When Xiaoya went to college, my third aunt made her a quilt and also slipped her money. I remember all of that."

Wang Xiuying's eyes reddened: "Yes, Jianmin, Yuzhen, we remember how good you were to Xiaofan and Xiaoya."

Yang Jianguo didn't rush to express his opinion, but looked at his son and said:

"Xiao Fan, 200,000 is no small amount. I'm not afraid of your third uncle being here, nor am I afraid of him being angry. You need to keep some reserve funds for yourself."

"I'll try to find a way to help Hao Hao borrow the money."

In Yang Jianguo's view, each generation has its own affairs.

He wanted to help his younger brother, but he couldn't burden his son. Even if he borrowed the money, he would repay it himself and would never add to his son's burden.