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

Diwozi

Xu Jianguo lay on the kang (a heated brick bed), tossing and turning, unable to sleep.

"Wife, what are your plans after we get back?" He wanted to know what the next step should be. Returning to the Xu family was not the end, but the beginning.

Duoduo stared at the roof with her eyes wide open: "When we get back and see Lao Si, my wife and I will apologize to him."

Xu Jianguo immediately objected: "Apologize to him? No, we schemed against him, but he retaliated. Wasn't this already settled with a give and take?"

Xu Duoduo pulled Xu Jianguo aside: "Logically speaking, our two families owe each other nothing. But emotionally speaking, it's really not right for us, as the elder brother and sister-in-law. After all, we were the ones who struck first."

"The family still needs to live together. Although we send money home every month, Mom also helps us take care of the children."

"You could say the Xu family doesn't owe us anything. So when we got back, we laid this issue out in the open with our fourth brother. We humbled ourselves, spoke kindly, and explained our grievances."

"Even if the fourth brother has a lot of grievances, he has to swallow them, and no one can bring this up again afterward."

"That's what you call turning the page. Ignoring everything else and just covering yourself up is for show."

Xu Jianguo chuckled: "That's right, when the time comes, Lao Si will have to act out the word 'magnanimity' regardless of whether it's true or not."

Duoduo turned to face her husband, her voice filled with anticipation. "When we get back, we'll try to apply for housing. Then we'll bring our sons to live with us."

Xu Jianguo noticed his wife felt guilty whenever the children were mentioned. "You don't need to feel inferior in front of your sons. Even though we're not by their side, every penny they spend comes from us as their parents."

"If the Xu family were to spend even a penny more, it would be a matter that can be counted on one hand."

"They might not be emotionally close to us right now. That's okay, there's plenty of time in the future, we can take it slow!"

"Go to sleep!" He patted his wife on the back.

When I woke up, it was already dawn.

Xu Jianguo and Xu Duoduo pushed two carts full of stuff back to the farm headquarters. Ten years had passed, and much of the stuff was just makeshift. It wasn't worth taking it back; they might as well give it away!

Those who receive the items are not allowed to take them for free; some give gifts, while others give money.

The last possessions they kept were their personal clothes and bedding. Important money and documents were kept close to their bodies. Don't expect to have any tickets left; they were all spent long ago.

Old Cui, who used to drive the oxcart, is now being driven by his eldest son, Little Cui. Xu Jianguo: "Brother Cui, how have you been lately? Is your stomach feeling any better?"

As Xiao Cui drove the cart, he said, "It's still the same old story; my stomach keeps aching every now and then."

Duo Duo grabbed a small cloth bag from the side and handed it over. "Xiao Cui, we don't have any other good stuff. Here's two jin of flour, make some noodle soup for Lao Cui to warm his stomach."

Xiao Cui quickly refused, "No need..."

Duoduo: "Let's not stand on ceremony, we're not strangers."

The couple can now occasionally exchange a few words in the local language.

Speaking of his father's illness, Xiao Cui, a man from Northwest China, teared up. He remembered that his own grandfather had died of stomach problems. Now it was his father's turn. He didn't know where to direct his strength.

"Giddy up—giddy up—"

Xiao Cui blinked, sniffed, and tied two jin of flour around his waist.

"It's more chaotic outside now than before, and more things are being stolen. You'd better hide your money and such."

Xiao Cui has been driving the bus for five years, and he's met a lot of people coming and going. He feels that the world has changed.

Xu Duoduo and Xu Jianguo immediately exchanged glances. Xu Duoduo reached out and touched the money sewn into her clothes, ultimately deciding to heed advice and eat her fill.

"Xiao Cui, could you please take us to the post office?"

Xiao Cui flicked his bullwhip: "Alright!"

The couple sent the money, said goodbye to Xiao Cui, and hurriedly got into the car to start their journey home.

After several transfers, I arrived at the train station.

It's not a holiday or peak travel season, so there aren't many people in the waiting room right now.

The two sat close together on their luggage, waiting for their ride. Xu Jianguo had only been sitting for two minutes when someone came over and patted him on the shoulder.

Xu Jianguo turned to look at the newcomer. He was a middle-aged man in his thirties, not very tall but dressed smartly.

The man asked in a low voice, "Comrade, did you drop the money on the ground?"

The couple followed the direction the man pointed and found it was exactly where they had just walked. Five yuan lay quietly on the ground.

Xu Jianguo shook his head: "You're mistaken, the money wasn't lost by us."

Are you kidding me! Even if you beat someone to a pulp at Old Xu's house, you might not get any advantage, but you can just walk out the door?

Even if God were his own father, he wouldn't dare to think that way! This society is even more treacherous than his mother's Xu family.

Xu Jianguo's face was long, and he grew angrier the more he thought about it. He and his wife were in such a miserable state, and yet people still dared to mess with them. A bunch of inhuman bastards!

The man was somewhat surprised: "It was just the two of you walking over from there. Who else could it be but you?"

Seeing that the other person was still persistent, Xu Duoduo felt helpless. She had no choice but to explain, "Brother, my wife and I only have two yuan on us besides our train tickets. Where are we going to find five yuan?"

He couldn't help but feel relieved; thankfully, he had listened to Xiao Cui and sent the money. It was obvious these people were watching them, otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to escape today.

The middle-aged man froze for a moment, realizing that the problem stemmed from the large denomination of the money. "Then I made a mistake." It seemed he needed to quickly return and change his strategy. As for whether these two truly had no money, that was something the next group would investigate.

Half an hour later, the money on the ground had turned into one yuan. Xu Jianguo glanced at it and continued to cower like a quail.

"Tickets are being checked! Tickets are being checked!"

With a shout, Xu Jianguo and Xu Duoduo started queuing up. People quickly crowded around them, but dispersed again in less than a minute.

Once on the train, Xu Jianguo loosened his clenched fist, revealing two yuan inside. "Wife, here!"

Just now, when he got on the bus, someone took the opportunity to grope his crotch. Damn it, even middle-aged men get taken advantage of these days!

Xu Jianguo still felt lingering fear when he thought about what had just happened. It was terrifying!

Xu Duoduo took it and carefully placed it in her waistband. This was their food allowance for the rest of the journey. Without it, they would go hungry. For people in this era, nothing was more important than filling their stomachs!

As soon as I lifted my clothes, I discovered that the toilet paper I had hidden in my waistband had disappeared.

Duoduo looked displeased: "This person who did this is definitely a novice. Can't they even tell the difference between money and toilet paper?"

If only she had stuffed the toilet paper into her socks. How is she going to use the toilet these next few days?

The two filled two teacups with water and, eating cornbread and pickled vegetables, made their way back to their hometown without incident.

Many of them had long hair, some over an inch long, covered with scarves, while Xu Jianguo was bald and wore a white towel. Both of them were dressed in patched-up clothes and carried their luggage as they appeared in the factory's residential compound.

……