Siheyuan: I am the seventh uncle of Banggen

"Are you from Shandong too? Where are you from?" The old man sat down when he heard that we were fellow villagers.

"I'm from Linyi, Yishui, how about you?" Zhang Dabao asked the old man while cutting vegetables.

"I am also from Linyi, but from Ju County. We are real fellow villagers," the old man said excitedly.

"Isn't it? In this damn place, when fellow villagers meet, their eyes are filled with tears. Let's add another dish to lunch today, scrambled eggs with green onions." Zhang Dabao was also very happy. It was not easy to meet fellow villagers in Beijing, let alone in Hong Kong.

"Uncle, a fellow villager is here, please bring out some eggs," Zhang Dabao shouted into the house.

Yan Jingkai heard Zhang Dabao's shout and came out, taking out four or five eggs and some green onions.

After a while, Zhang Dabao finished cooking the dishes. The old man didn't want to take advantage, so he took two bottles of foreign wine from the car. The three of them ate pancakes with scallions, drank foreign wine, and spoke their hometown dialect. When they talked about the emotional parts, the two old men burst into tears.

We had a meal together, and did not ask the name of the fellow from Ju County. As the saying goes, there is no need to know each other before we meet. In the afternoon, Zhang Dabiao took the wine that Yan Jing had prepared.

The curfew in Hong Kong was lifted tonight. Due to the HSBC case, the curfew had been in place for three consecutive days. There is still no clue in the HSBC case, but the curfew has caused dissatisfaction among all sectors of society, so Hong Kong's nightlife started again today.

Having got a new property, Zhang Dabao of course had to go and see it. It was almost ten o'clock when he left home. Yong and his mistress lived by the sea. When the car was almost reaching the seaside, Zhang Dabao saw a familiar car driving past quickly. It was the car of the old man who had eaten with him at noon today. His car was in front, and there were three cars chasing behind, and the people in the back cars were shooting with pistols.

There are too many bends at the seaside. The car in front accidentally drove onto the beach and could no longer move forward. The old man and the driver in the car got out and started running to the other side. The people chasing behind parked the car on the shore and got off the beach to chase.

At this time, Zhang Dabao also rushed over. Seeing that his fellow villagers were about to be caught up, he took out a Zhongzheng pistol from the car and started shooting at the people chasing his fellow villagers. Because he didn't know what was going on, Zhang Dabao didn't kill them, but hit their vital parts. After five shots, five people were shot in the legs and fell on the beach. Seeing this, the others lay on the ground.

"Old man, come here," Zhang Dabao called out to his fellow villager on the shore. The old man looked up and saw Zhang Dabao, knowing that he had shot him to help him. He and the driver ran to the shore where Zhang Dabao was. After getting ashore, one of the people on the beach wanted to stand up and chase him, but Zhang Dabao shot him in the thigh again. Everyone fell down again.

"Uncle, get in my car." Zhang Dabao asked the two men to get in the car, and first went to the place where the group of people parked their cars. He shot and damaged their tires, then turned the car around with the two men and drove towards the city.

"Little brother, thanks to you this time," said the old man.

"We are all fellow villagers. How can I help them if I don't help you? Who are the old man and the others?" Zhang Dabao asked.

"The people hired by my competitors want to force me to sign a contract and take over my company," the old man said angrily.

"Is there no one taking care of this?" Zhang Dabao was a little confused.

"The British and Mao Zedong don't care about our life or death. Everyone who sets up a company has to pay taxes, and it doesn't matter to them who pays. This Yong Heqi used to collude with the Japanese, and now he is colluding with the British and Mao Zedong. This kind of person will not have a good end," said the old man.

"Uncle, you just said a name, who was it?" Zhang Dabao heard a familiar name.

"Yong Heqi, have you heard of him?" the old man asked.

"Have you heard of the Heqi Group? They moved here from the Japanese and they have the big boss," Zhang Dabao confirmed the answer.

"This Yonghe first joined the revolution with the team, and then followed the Japanese. He was no longer popular with the Japanese, so he flattered the British. He is very scheming and a despicable man," the old man was still indignant.

Chapter 254: Zheng Jiechun's Transformation

"Where is the old man going?" Zhang Dabao asked.

"Banshan, Ah Xing was pointing the way to Xiao Ming. Remember Brother Yan called you Xiao Ming, right?" the old man asked.

"My name is Yan Ming, strict Yan and bright Ming," Zhang Dabao replied with a smile.

"My name is Zhong Daohe, this is Wang Xing." Lao Du introduced himself and his driver.

"Uncle Zhong, those who live halfway up the mountain are all rich people. Doesn't that Yong Heqi live here?" Zhang Dabao asked.

"He doesn't live here. He heard that someone over there wants to kill him. This place is easy to hide, so he doesn't dare to come back to live. Now he lives in his home by the sea every day," said Zhong Daohe.

"It seems that he has done a lot of bad things." Zhang Dabao said nothing else. He went to Zhong Daohe's villa, chatted with him for a few words, had a midnight snack, and then said goodbye and left.

"Axing, what do you think of my fellow villager?" Zhong Daohe asked Wang Xing.

"You can tell at first glance that he is a specially trained soldier. He has accurate shooting skills and uses a regular rifle. He can shoot one person per person within a hundred meters, all in the legs. This level of skill is not something that ordinary soldiers have. He uses a standard rifle, has a car, and wears unusual clothes. He doesn't live with his uncle, which means he has his own place to live, which means he comes from a well-off family. From these, we can judge that he came from Taiwan. People from the mainland don't have this condition," said Wang Xing.

"What is he thinking about coming to Hong Kong?" Zhong Daohe asked Wang Xing again.

"It's hard to judge. They should be a wealthy family who want to build a business," said Wang Xing.

"You said he is so skilled in martial arts, can he help us..." Zhong Daohe made a cutting gesture.

"It should be possible. He has a good impression of you because you are real fellow countrymen. You will feel close to him from the bottom of your heart when you see him in a foreign country. He wants to do something, and since he is new here, we can help him, such as starting a company, doing trade, or speculating in land. As long as things can be done, we are not afraid of him setting conditions," said Wang Xing.

"You're right. Let's find out where he lives tomorrow and go visit him. Yong Heqi thinks so highly of me, it would be inappropriate if I don't reciprocate," said Zhong Daohe.

At the steel rolling mill's family compound, Zheng Jiechun's mother had been discharged from the hospital. However, after she came to the compound, she found that the neighbors were very cold to her and almost ignored her. When her two grandsons and one granddaughter saw her come back, they quickly hid away, which made Mrs. Zheng very puzzled.

The steel rolling mill sent Mrs. Zheng back from the hospital, and her son Zheng Jiechun was not aware of this. When Zheng Jiechun saw his mother at home in the evening, the smile on his face disappeared immediately.

"Mom, please come home tomorrow." These were Zheng Jiechun's first words when he returned home.

"What did you say? Let me go back?" Old Mrs. Zheng couldn't believe her ears. Her son had never said harsh words to her before. Even if he didn't want to, he would never say it. This was the first time.

"If you want, you can leave now. This is my house in the steel rolling mill. I can't keep you here since you don't have a letter of introduction. Of course you can make a fuss or bang your head against the wall," Zheng Jiechun said with a cold face.

"Jiechun, what are you talking about? I am your mother." Old Mrs. Zheng felt that something was wrong with her son.

"You are my mother. I didn't say I wasn't. No matter what, you raised me. But you can't take the lives of our entire family just for the sake of your own son. I owe you, but my wife and children don't owe you anything," said Zheng Jiechun.

"Jiechun, what does biological child mean? Aren't you my biological child?" Old Mrs. Zheng didn't know what to say.

"Don't hide it from me anymore. I know everything. You adopted me, and later you gave birth to a younger brother and a younger sister. But to be fair, I have done nothing wrong to you. Our family is in such a difficult situation now, and the second child doesn't care about you at all. Did I say anything? But what about you? You want to starve my three children to death for the sake of your grandson. Is that something a human being would do? I can support you, and I should, but why should I also support your grandson?" Zheng Jiechun said excitedly.

"Jiechun, who told you this? This is a rumor," said Old Mrs. Zheng, furious.

"Your grandson is a child? Are my children not children? I tell you today, no one can come to my hometown. We can't live like this anymore. We might as well all die. If those three beasts come, I will kill them all on the same day. No one will survive." Zheng Jiechun said to his mother with red eyes. "Jiechun, you are my biological child. These people are spreading rumors." Old Mrs. Zheng didn't know how to speak now.

"I don't care whether it's a rumor or not. I know what's going on. I've said this and let's do it this way. There is no other way. You leave early tomorrow morning, and I won't lose a penny of your retirement food and money. I will go back with you and ask the village chief to write a maintenance agreement. I'm the eldest brother, so I'll get more, and the second oldest will get less. If he wants to not give a penny and try to take advantage of you, it's impossible." Zheng Jiechun slammed the table.

The atmosphere in the Zheng family was particularly depressing today, and Old Mrs. Zheng was so angry that she didn't eat. In the past, Zheng Jiechun would have brought the meal to her room long ago, but this time, Zheng Jiechun seemed not to have seen it. Not only did he bring it to her, he didn't even leave any in the pot.

Early the next morning, Zheng Jiechun asked his wife to ask for leave for him and took his mother to Zhengjia Village.

"Jiechun, ask your third uncle if you are my biological son." When they arrived at Zhengjia Village, Old Mrs. Zheng was eager to prove the fact and thought of Zheng Jiechun's third uncle.

"Sister-in-law, when you and your elder brother brought Jiechun back to the village, he was already three years old. I was not outside with you, so how could I prove this to you?" Zheng's third uncle said he could not prove it.

Old Lady Zheng went to the village to ask the elders for proof. They all said the same thing. The two of you worked as farmhands outside. When you returned home, the child was three years old and his father was dead. You were the only one who knew about it. How could others prove it for you? Besides, who doesn't know that you favor your youngest son? How could people believe you?

Not getting the answer she wanted, Old Mrs. Zheng fell into panic. If this misunderstanding could not be resolved, Zheng Jiechun would definitely not be on the same page with her. She just thought that his life would be better in the city, and her younger son at home was having a hard time, so she wanted the eldest son to help the second son, but why did he end up like this.

"Sister-in-law, please don't run away. The commune has sent people to talk to you. If you don't have a letter of introduction to go to the capital, you will be arrested as a vagrant," the village chief said to Old Lady Zheng.

"No, I..." Old Mrs. Zheng was speechless.

Witnessed by the village chief, Zheng's third uncle and two clan elders, Zheng Jiechun and his younger brother Zheng Jieqiu signed a support agreement. Mrs. Zheng lived in her hometown, and Zheng Jiechun gave her 15 kilograms of food and two yuan a month; Zheng Jieqiu gave her 15 kilograms of food but no money; if there were any medical expenses, any expenses exceeding two yuan would be divided equally between the two brothers.

Zheng Jiechun gave his mother food and money the next day, and the Zheng family returned to peace.

Chapter 255 Zhang Cuihua was promoted

Old Mrs. Zheng passed away just like that, the Zheng family’s problems were solved, and the family compound returned to peace. Section Chief Zhao Lan, who was already working at the trade union, could not figure out why Zheng Jiechun had such a drastic change of attitude before and after. Someone must have told him something, right?

In fact, it was not that someone told Zheng Jiechun something, but that he heard something. Because when Zheng Jiechun was at work or on his way home, after entering the family compound, there were always a few co-workers or neighbors pointing at him and showing sympathetic expressions.

"Yumin, have you heard anything about me?" Zheng Jiechun asked his good friend.

"Brother Zheng, I do have something to say, but it's hard to say," Zhang Yumin said with difficulty.

"Is there anything that we can't talk about? Just tell me directly about me," Zheng Jiechun said anxiously.

"Brother Zheng, have you noticed that your mother is partial?" Zhang Yumin asked.

"I can feel it. She treats the second child better than me. It has been like this since the second child was born. She also treats her younger sister better than me," said Zheng Jiechun.

"Your family is living in difficult circumstances. Doesn't your mother know that?" Zhang Yumin asked again.

"Yumin, how could she not know? If you have anything to say, just say it directly, don't beat around the bush," Zheng Jiechun said.

"Brother Zheng, it is now rumored that you are not your biological son, and your mother wants to starve your three children to death and raise her own grandson," Zhang Yumin said.

"I'm not my biological child. Who said that?" Zheng Jiechun was stunned. He didn't expect there would be such rumors. No wonder others were pointing fingers at him.

"I don't know who said it, but everyone said it, and it sounded very convincing. They said that your parents didn't have any children back then, and they were afraid of leaving the family extinct, so they brought you back from other places. But later they gave birth to your younger brother and sister, so you were not that important anymore. And then you went to the city to earn money in the Loujia factory, and after liberation you became a worker. All she asked of you was money, and she refused to let you take care of your children, let alone provide you with material support," said Zhang Yumin.

Zheng Jiechun is an introvert. After talking with Zhang Yumin, he began to wonder, "I am the eldest son, why is my mother so mean to me? Others always have the eldest son as the heir apparent, why is it different for me?"

His mind was in a mess, so he went to the village alone and found his third uncle.

"Uncle San, do you still remember when I was born?" Zheng Jiechun asked his uncle.

"You were not born in the village. You were born when your elder brother and his wife were working as farmhands in other places. You were already three years old when you returned to the village." The words of the third uncle struck Zheng Jiechun deep in his heart. Was I really picked up?

"Uncle San, don't the second brother and I look alike?" Zheng Jiechun asked again.

"Jiechun, no matter what others say, you are the eldest son and grandson of our branch, and we only recognize you. But you should also think about it carefully and live a good life." The third uncle knew that the eldest sister-in-law was partial, so he advised his eldest nephew.

"Uncle San, tell me the truth, was I picked up?" Zheng Jiechun went straight to the point.

"Don't listen to their nonsense, Jiechun, you are the eldest grandson of our branch, and no one can change that. Don't listen to these gossips, I don't believe them at all," said the Third Uncle seriously.

Zheng Jiechun understood that such words were also heard in the village, and his uncle also heard it.

Zheng Jiechun said goodbye to his third uncle and came to his father's grave and cried. He understood his mother's behavior. She wanted to sacrifice her own family to save her own son's family. You raised me, and I should take care of you in your old age, but you can't do this to me. Thinking of his two sons and seven-year-old daughter, Zheng Jiechun's tears flowed and dried, flowed again, and dried again on the way back to the city. When he arrived home, his tears had dried and he had made up his mind.

So as soon as his mother was discharged from the hospital, he stopped protecting her, returned to the village, and signed the agreement.

The Zheng family’s problem was solved. Zhang Cuihua went to comfort Zheng Jiechun’s wife and then reported to the factory.

The steel mill appointed Xu Sinian as the chairman of the trade union. After the report was submitted, the Metallurgical Bureau had no attitude, neither saying yes nor no. However, the workpieces that Xu Sinian would be in charge of were determined by the middle-level cadres of the steel mill. He was also officially in charge of the Women's Federation, the Youth League Committee, and the trade union.

Since Section Chief Zhao Lan was transferred to the trade union, Zhang Cuihua's direct superior now became Xu Sinian. "Director Xu, Zheng Jiechun's mother has returned, and Zheng Jiechun and his brother have signed a support agreement. The villagers and elders in their village have witnessed it, and the commune staff have also notified the village. She will not come to the family compound to make trouble again," said Zhang Cuihua.

"Old Mrs. Zheng has gone back? Isn't she a difficult person?" Xu Sinian asked curiously.

"She's a difficult one, but it was her son who asked her to go back. Zheng Jiechun is her support in the city. Now that she has lost her support, what is she doing here if she doesn't go back?" Zhang Cuihua said with a smile.

Xu Sinian praised Zhang Cuihua and let her go. After a while, he came to the office of Deputy Director Li Huaide. Now it was time for him to return the favor. "Director Li, Zhang Cuihua did a good job in handling the Zheng family's affairs. This is her promotion report. Please sign it," Xu Sinian said.

"Si Nian, you are the person in charge now. You sign and then ask the factory director to sign. This is the correct procedure. Where should I sign?" Li Huaide put down his pen, stood up, and said to Xu Si Nian with a smile.

"Really? You forgot. Then I'll sign it and find the factory director, and then give it to Section Chief Hu." Xu Sinian smiled awkwardly and left Li Huaide's office.

At four o'clock in the afternoon, the radio of the steel mill sounded again, "Zhang Cuihua, a female employee of the Women's Federation of our unit, is 1960 years old and joined the factory in March 3. Since Zhang Cuihua entered the factory, she has worked conscientiously and meticulously, has progressive ideas, unites colleagues, respects leaders, and has strong hands-on ability. She is now appointed as the office clerk of the Women's Federation..."

After three consecutive broadcasts, the news that Zhang Cuihua had become an official spread throughout the steel mill.

Xu Damao was in the Propaganda Department. When he heard the news, he was stunned. Whose ideology was progressive? Wasn't it Zhang Dicuihua? Didn't she often greet other people's ancestors on the street? She always called Jia Youfu and asked him to take everyone away? Is this also called ideological progress? Who set the standard? Come out, I promise not to beat you to death, at most beat you half to death.

She is really good at hands-on work. She is the best in the factory at taking off people's clothes and looking at melons. No one can deny this. But is this the standard for promotion? Should she go back and practice how to take off clothes quickly? Xu Damao's heart was broken.