The 1970s: Married First, Fell in Love Later-Chapter 180 - 179: The Educated Youth Return to the City
"Grandpa Zheng, Happy New Year."
"Grandpa Zheng, Happy New Year."
Ruanruan and Shiyi ran over as soon as they saw Zheng Guofeng, with Daya following behind them.
Zheng Guofeng took out the red envelopes he had prepared in advance and gave one to each of the three children.
"Thank you, Grandpa Zheng."
"Thank you, Grandpa Zheng."
"Thank you—" Daya’s face flushed, looking a little shy.
Hearing the voices, Zhang Qian came out of the bedroom.
"Auntie."
Zhang Qian smiled and said, "Oh, I thought I heard you two little ones. Where’s your mother?"
"My mom went to sleep. She didn’t sleep well on the train," Ruanruan relayed.
By now, Zhang Qian’s baby bump was showing.
Shiyi sidled up to Zhang Qian, looked at her belly, and asked, "Auntie, when is my little brother coming out to play with us?"
Zhang Qian corrected him, "It’s a little sister. Your sister is still small right now. She’ll come out in the summer."
Shiyi shook his head. "Not a sister, a brother."
Zhang Qian pinched Shiyi’s little cheek. "Be good. It’s a sister."
Shiyi pouted. "But it’s obviously a brother."
"Hey, you little rascal—"
Zhang Qian gritted her teeth, her hands on her hips as she stared at Shiyi, as if the two of them absolutely had to settle who was right and who was wrong today.
Xue Xingzhou smiled and soothed her, "Alright, it’s a sister. You just woke up, do you want some water?"
Pouting and sticking out her belly, Zhang Qian glared at Shiyi without a word.
Xue Xingzhou put an arm around Zhang Qian’s shoulders, sat her down on the sofa, and pressed a glass of water into her hand.
Zheng Guofeng, his face full of smiles, beckoned to Shiyi. "Shiyi, come over to Grandpa."
Shiyi walked over with a droopy face. Zheng Guofeng lifted him onto his lap, gave him a piece of candy, and then asked about his trip home. With the candy in his mouth, Shiyi listened to Zheng Guofeng for a bit before starting to respond. He gradually forgot about being upset and began telling Zheng Guofeng in detail about what this or that older brother was like.
Xue Yue slept at home until evening. When she woke up, she found it was already dark outside.
After going out, she saw the light was on in the children’s room. Xue Yue walked in and saw that Ruanruan was already asleep on the bed, while Daya was coaxing Shiyi to sleep.
When Daya saw Xue Yue come in, she was about to speak, but Xue Yue softly shushed her. Xue Yue went over to check on the two children.
She asked softly, "Have you all eaten?"
"Yes," Daya nodded. "We ate at Uncle Xue’s house. Uncle Xue brought us back and brought some food for you. I’m keeping it warm in the pot for you. Sister Ziqing ate too."
Xue Yue smiled and patted Daya’s head. "Now that Shiyi’s asleep, you should get some rest too. I’m heading out."
Daya nodded.
The next day, Xue Yue took the children to her brother’s place.
"Uncle Zheng, Sister-in-law, Happy New Year."
Zheng Guofeng smiled and nodded. "Happy New Year."
Zhang Qian hugged Xue Yue. "Celebrating the New Year in Beijing City is pretty boring. You guys weren’t here, and we don’t know anyone if we go out. I heard from your brother that He Lang and the others went to Yangcheng?"
Xue Yue glanced at Zhang Qian’s belly. "Yeah, they’ve probably reached Yangcheng by now. And your belly is really showing."
"Right? My old pants are all too small now. But I’m doing fine, though sometimes I forget I’m even pregnant. It’s your brother who’s constantly reminding me."
Xue Yue couldn’t help but laugh.
After the meal, Xue Xingzhou walked Xue Yue out. On the way, Xue Yue mentioned that she had bought New Year’s gifts for Zhang Qian’s parents.
Xue Xingzhou acknowledged it. "You’re always so thoughtful."
Xue Yue gave a proud smile.
On their way back, they happened to run into Li Lanying and her husband returning with their two children, carrying luggage.
Seeing Xue Yue, Li Lanying said enthusiastically, "This is my husband, Niu Hongjun. We went back to his family’s home for the New Year."
Xue Yue nodded and glanced at Li Lanying’s husband. He wasn’t tall and had a broad, square face. The man also turned his head to look at Xue Yue.
Xue Yue said, "Well, you must be busy, so we’ll head back first."
Li Lanying nodded. "Alright."
Even after Xue Yue had taken the children inside, the man was still standing there, staring blankly in their direction.
Li Lanying shot him a sidelong glance. "She’s pretty, isn’t she?"
Niu Hongjun gave Li Lanying an impatient look. "What’s with that sarcastic tone? What’s wrong with looking?"
Li Lanying snorted. "’A look?’ Your eyeballs were about to fall out. But don’t even think about it. Her husband is a hundred times better-looking than you. You’ll see him eventually."
"Unreasonable," Niu Hongjun muttered, walking past Li Lanying and going inside.
Because Niu Hongjun had a "prior record," Li Lanying was especially sensitive about this sort of thing.
She gritted her teeth, picked up the luggage from the ground, and slowly entered the door, holding her younger child’s hand.
The day after, He Ziqing went back to school by herself.
Xue Yue spent two days showing the children around Beijing City. She suddenly realized that many scenic spots in the city that used to be closed to the public were now suddenly open.
On the third day after Xue Yue’s school started, He Lang and his group returned.
This time, however, they looked unusually worn out.
Xue Yue thought something must have happened to them on the road.
He Lang said, "No, it’s just that the train was too crowded. I asked around, and it seems to be because of the ’Educated Youth Returning to the Cities.’ More than half the people on the train were Educated Youth coming back from all over the country."
Xue Yue was surprised. "Are they all coming to Beijing City?"
He Lang nodded. "Looks like it. The train station is still an absolute sea of people."
’A massive wave of Educated Youth returning to the city? What’s going on?’
"Then what about your goods?" Xue Yue asked.
"Still at the train station. We’ll wait until late tonight when the crowds thin out to go get them."
The next day, Xue Xingzhou came over.
He had also heard about the situation and had come specifically to find He Lang.
"What? Hundreds of thousands?" He Lang was shocked.
Xue Xingzhou had also suddenly heard about the mass return of Educated Youth at school. In his past life, he seemed to recall a teacher mentioning this when he was a student. The teacher had said that hundreds of thousands of Educated Youth had poured into Beijing City, and to solve the resulting employment crisis, the state established collective enterprises and formally permitted private businesses to alleviate the pressure.
He couldn’t remember the exact year, but judging by the current situation, it had to be this year.
"Yes. With so many people returning, prices for goods and housing are bound to skyrocket. The state is also permitting private businesses now. So, if you’re planning to be in this for the long haul, you should seize this opportunity and buy a storefront—the kind with its own independent property deed. If you operate from a fixed location, you won’t be at the mercy of changing policies. Besides, once you have a permanent place of business and a home in Beijing City, you’ll be able to transfer your household registration here."
It had been too long, and there were some things Xue Xingzhou hadn’t paid much attention to back then. Now, he was just recalling them as they came to him.
A jolt went through He Lang. "I understand. I’ll start looking tomorrow."
"It’s best to look in the city center, or somewhere not far from it. Leaving aside the issue of whether the storefront’s value will increase, the foot traffic will definitely be high."
"By the way, do you have enough money? I have several thousand yuan I can lend you."
He Lang waved his hand. "No need. The money I have now should be enough for a storefront. I’ll go look first. If it’s not enough, I’ll let you know."
Xue Xingzhou nodded. "Alright. Just let me know if you need anything."
"Okay."
