To please others? It's better to please yourself.

Xu Family

"Da, da, da, da"

Xu Xiangqian pressed down on the vegetables with his left hand and held a knife in his right, skillfully chopping and cooking. He turned and called out, "Third brother—, is the coal ready yet?"

"Here it comes—here it comes—" Xu Xianghua walked over, carrying two bright red honeycomb briquettes between his legs.

I was in a rush this morning and didn't notice that the fire door was completely shut off. When I got home at noon, I found the fire was out. Everyone's cooking at this time, so I had to build up some firewood and cook it myself.

While cooking, Xu Xiangqian asked, "We've run out of newspapers, what are you going to use to start a fire?"

While washing his hands, Xu Xianghua replied, "What else could it be? A letter from my third aunt!"

Ever since they could remember, every time they received a letter from their third aunt, Xu Jing'an, their grandmother would become uncontrollably irritable for several days.

So every time I read the letter, every sentence was accompanied by my grandmother's deep understanding, and each letter had a final summary.

The three brothers learned to read from their aunt's letters. They memorized every single letter perfectly. For one thing, they were never afraid of writing compositions in school.

In Grandma's words, "Your third aunt's filial piety is renowned throughout the compound. But in my presence, she's only good for tending the fire. However, if you three learn her skills, you won't have to worry for the rest of your lives!"

That's right! No matter how good your writing is or how cunning you are, you'll never go hungry.

"Brother, are you done yet? I'm starving." Xu Xiangjin came in carrying a basin full of wet clothes.

"Alright, second son, set the table with bowls and chopsticks and call Grandma to eat," Xu Xiangqian replied without even looking up.

At the dinner table, Xu's mother instructed her grandsons, "Your parents wrote that they'll be back soon. When you have some free time, tidy up the house."

"Okay." The three brothers ate without even looking up.

When Xu Jianguo and his wife left, Xu Xiangqian, Xu Xiangjin, and Xu Xianghua were already 5 years old. At first, the three of them cried and looked for their parents, but they couldn't care less about them for more than 5 days.

Because the Xu family did all the chores, such as sweeping, picking vegetables, washing vegetables, and washing dishes.

She started cooking and washing clothes at the age of seven. By the age of ten, she had taken over all the household chores in the Xu family. Everything they ate, wore, and used was supplied by themselves, and every penny spent was clearly recorded in the accounts.

I remember one time, the Northwest Farm headquarters was a few days late in sending them money. With no money in their account, the three brothers had to live on thin soup for several days in a row.

The Xu family has clearly and thoroughly implemented the principles of "not supporting idlers" and "keeping clear accounts even among close brothers."

Xu Xiangqian, Xu Xiangjin, and Xu Xianghua, although separated from their parents, are not without affection for them. Because they have known since childhood that every penny they spend now comes from their own parents.

Except for the Chinese New Year, when each of the three children receives a 1-yuan red envelope from their parents, they have never received any extra money at other times.

Xu Jianshe saw this and naturally never had any objections.

night

Three 15-year-old boys were crammed into Xu Jianguo's old room.

Xu Xiangqian whispered, "Grandma said that Mom and Dad are coming back soon."

They knew a little about what happened back then. With their parents back, the dynamics of the house were bound to change.

Xu Xiangjin smiled and said, "How bad could it be?" With his parents' personalities, there was no way they would come back empty-handed.

Xu Xianghua eagerly awaited her parents' return. "That would be wonderful! But where would they stay?"

They weren't good at studying, so they couldn't rely on taking the college entrance exam. That left them with finding jobs, but that was the biggest challenge.

And even if there is a connection, can they arrange everything for all three brothers at once?

"call--"

Brothers who used to be of one mind have now become the biggest competitors. Looks like we need to be careful!

Thinking of this, Xu Xianghua closed his eyes.

Xu Xiangqian, being the eldest brother, spoke up, saying, "Go to sleep! This is none of our business."

For a moment, the three of them were each lost in thought.

Xu Jianshe coaxed his daughter to sleep and gently placed her on the bed. "The eldest son and his wife are in the newspaper. They should be back in a few days, barring any unforeseen circumstances."

Zhao Xiaofang laughed and replied, "What? Are you afraid of them now, or are you resentful and want to fight?"

Xu Jianshe snorted: "Afraid? How could I be!" He was no longer the Xu Laosi he used to be.

Zhao Xiaofang curled her lips into a smile: "That's because you feel uncomfortable and suffocated!"

How could there not be traffic jams? Were those two years in the countryside the kind of life most people could live? It's only because of him; anyone else might have fallen into the trap long ago.

Zhao Xiaofang shook her head, discouraging her husband. "The hardships that the eldest couple endured weren't for nothing! If nothing unexpected happens, we'll be a harmonious family."

Xu Jianshe looked at his wife and said, "What do you mean? Those two are the kind of people who never get enough of taking advantage of others."

Zhao Xiaofang rolled her eyes at him: "To put it bluntly, they no longer care about the three poor people in the family."

Xu Jianshe thought about it and realized his wife was right. But after only a couple of moves, he felt a void in his heart. Had all his preparation over such a long time been wasted?

Zhao Xiaofang tugged at her husband's arm: "Even if you wanted to take action, now wouldn't be the time. A person's nature can't be changed. Are you worried the eldest son will run away?"

"They've been separated for so long, the eldest brother and his wife aren't just sitting around doing nothing. Have their methods changed? What tricks do they have up their sleeves? Do you know anything about these things?"

Xu Jianshe shook his head. "Looks like I was too hasty!" Zhao Xiaofang patted his hand. "As the old saying goes, 'Haste makes waste.' Let's wait!"

The next day, members of the Xu family went to work or school.

Xu's mother's words, "Whoever gave birth to them should take care of them," also applied to Xu Jianshe and Zhao Xiaofang.

Even though Xu Jianshe was the youngest son, and he didn't get married until he was almost thirty, and already had children, his mother still didn't offer any help.

The younger daughter-in-law, Zhao Xiaofang, was in poor health and could only have this one child. But as long as Xu's mother didn't have to pay for or take care of the child, she never said a word, no matter how much she favored boys over girls.

As usual, Xu's mother went out for a walk, chatted, and played cards.

……

As Xu Jianguo drew closer to home, his heart pounded with anxiety. "Wife, do you think our fourth son will let this go so easily?"

Duoduo shook her head: "No way! Fourth Brother never suffers a loss, he won't just swallow this insult. Besides, there's no one like that in our family."

Xu Jianguo asked anxiously, "Then what do we do?"

Duo Duo narrowed her eyes: "What should we do? Wait!"

He moved the sliding luggage back up. "Honey, tell me more details!"

Xu Duoduo: "My husband and I have been away from home for many years. It's impossible for our fourth son to still be the same. We don't know what kind of person he is now, or what kind of connections he has; we also have no idea whether his wife is helping him out."

"The most crucial thing is to find out your parents' attitude."

Therefore, we should remain calm and focused on settling our work and housing matters first. Once we have a firm foothold, we can think about other things!

"As long as we hold our ground, any intervention from others will be futile!"

"Our top priority right now is to put on a 'Prodigal Son Returns' performance for our parents, and sing 'The Hero Returns Home' for everyone in the compound!"

Duoduo patted the dirt off his clothes and shouted, "Let's go!"

"Eh!"

Xu Jianguo hurriedly carried the luggage and followed behind his wife.