CHAPTER 38

Why did they choose to return to such a backward country when the environment in the United States is so good? They also want to open an electronics factory. With such a standard of living, can they afford electronic products? Do they have to produce them here and then sell them back to the United States at a high tariff?

“Dad, business in the United States is not easy. We can explore overseas markets or transform into other businesses. But you are making a big mistake by investing in the mainland and discussing cooperation with Xixi Electronics. The living standards here are simply not enough to consume electronic products.”

The old man looked up at the son who had grown up beside him and sighed silently in his heart. “You are too arbitrary. I tell you, in ten years, you will regret and apologize for your rampant contempt today.”

“No, I never would.”

“Dad, you think too highly of your hometown.” Daughter-in-law Annie also echoed her husband, trying to persuade her father-in-law to change his mind. “This country is too backward. It will be difficult for them to have enough food and clothing in 20 years, let alone 10 years.”

His son and daughter-in-law had a deep prejudice against this place, and the old man knew that it would be difficult to convince them with empty words. So he shook his head and said no more, asking them to take a bath and prepare for dinner.

The family of three went to take a shower, and naturally they complained about the bathroom without a water heater. Li Xia went to the front yard to cook with Qin Mu. Since they were guests, they had to be entertained.

“There’s no cooked food left, not even many vegetables. Luckily, there’s a refrigerator at home where you froze pig pigtails and chicken. Otherwise, you would have been laughed at by that family of three again today.”

The hair of the pig’s tail had been cleaned before freezing, so it was cut into pieces, blanched, and fried with the chicken. With a sizzling sound, the rich aroma of meat and seasonings hit the nose.

She held a spatula in her hand while Qin Mu peeled beans and potatoes to prepare side dishes. She spoke while frying the meat.

“I guess I’ll be laughed at for this.”

“Ah, no way?” Qin Mu’s family burden has been heavy these years, and she has been living a very frugal life. Not to mention chicken and pig tails; putting two taels of meat in a meal is only during the Chinese New Year, so she doesn’t believe it.

“Rice, chicken with pig’s tail, cold spinach, hot and sour cabbage, smashed cucumber, cold shredded ear, cold shredded chicken, winter melon meatball soup, this is…” Qin Mu stretched out his hand to count: “This is six dishes and one soup. If they are still not satisfied, do they want to eat dragon liver and phoenix gall?”

(chicken with pig’s tail)

(cold spinach)

( hot and sour cabbage)

(smashed cucumber)

(cold shredded pig ear)

(cold shredded chicken)

( winter melon meatball soup)

Vision limits imagination. In Qin Mu’s eyes, such a sumptuous dinner is already at the level of the emperor’s imperial meal. Li Xia had decades of experience in her previous life. She had heard that those rich people lived luxuriously. The old man was not picky at all. Generally, he would order two dishes, a soup or noodles, and side dishes. As long as they suited his taste, it was fine. So Qin Mu had no idea how luxurious the lives of rich people would be. And you can’t wake up a person who pretends to be asleep. They can find fault with anything they want.

“Don’t worry about the three of them. Just cook according to the old man’s taste and increase the amount of food.”

Qin Mu looked back with some trepidation: “That’s the old man’s biological son and grandson, so there’s really no need to worry about it?”

“No need.” The old man’s attitude was obviously to teach Shen Yaozong a lesson. He had no intention of giving in. If he didn’t give in, why should they give in to him? If you don’t like to be with us, just leave. We didn’t invite you here.

“But…how long do you think they’ll be here?”

Qin Mu mainly takes care of the old man’s life and cooks for Li Xia’s family. It was good before, and they were easy to get along with. But now, with Shen Yaozong’s family of three, it’s not so pleasant.

“I estimate that there will be a result in less than a week. If they are determined to stay, they will find another house. It is impossible for them to live together. If the old man can’t be persuaded and he himself can’t adapt to life here, then it’s time to leave. Don’t be afraid; anyway, you won’t be with them for long.”

“Oh.” Qin Mu smiled: “Thanks to you.”

“You don’t have to give in to that family. We have freedom and equality, so we should confront them when we have to.”

“Ah? That’s not good.”

“There’s nothing wrong with that. Respect is mutual. If they don’t respect you, just confront them directly.”

“What should I do if he runs away?”

“It’s just right that they ran away. Let them live outside and stop being an eyesore here.”

When the food was served, the couple frowned. Annie said the food was too oily, and Shen Yaozong frowned and said he was tired from traveling, so he wanted to eat something easy. The old man didn’t wait for Qin Mu and Li Xia to retort because he was so disrespectful to the person who cooked and entertained them.

“If you don’t want to eat, leave. No one is begging you to sit down.”

The old man’s words choked Shen Yaozong and his wife. They couldn’t bear it, so they stood up and left angrily. No one on the seat paid any attention to them; even their son ignored his mother’s gaze and took a spoon to put a piece of red oil ear shreds into his mouth.

The crispness of the ears and the fragrance of the chili oil blend perfectly together, and the little guy was eating with a smile on his face. The old man has lived abroad for decades. When he had the conditions, he hired a Chinese aunt to cook, and Chinese food was often served on the table. The little guy lived with his grandfather when he was abroad, and he also liked Chinese food very much.

“What is this? The crust is delicious.”

“Pig tails are rich in collagen.”

“Mm, it smells good.”

Having been eating Western food with his mother these days, he already missed Chinese food. This meal was very satisfying, and after finishing it, the children went to wash their hands, and then the sound of the piano ding-dong-dong came.

Li Xia was clearing the dishes when she saw Kevin, Shen Yaozong’s son, playing the piano in the side room. Although the little guy was young, he was very familiar with the piano and looked very happy. His white and tender fingers flew, and the smooth piano music flowed out from his fingertips.

His behavior was a silent challenge, and he would look back at the three people from time to time while playing the piano. He was the same age as Yiyi, and his eyes were especially directed at Yiyi.

The three kids at home have only been learning for a short time. If they can’t stand the provocation and fight, they will be using their own weakness to attack the enemy’s strength. Just when she was worried, the three kids at home rolled their eyes and walked away hand in hand.

Kevin was feeling very proud, but when he looked back, his peers were nowhere to be seen. The child immediately lost interest in showing off his skills, stopped moving his hands, walked out of the house, and spoke to Li Xia.

“Where are they?”

Li Xia kept walking with the basin in her hand. Seeing that she ignored him, the little boy reached out and grabbed her clothes. “Hey, I’m asking you, where are they? Where did they go?”

Li Xia was pulled to a stop and looked back at him. “Are you talking to me?”

“Yeah, who else am I talking to?”

“You are so rude. When you talk to me, you have to address me first. If you don’t address me, I have no obligation to answer you.”

After being taught a lesson, the little boy tilted his head as if thinking. “What should I call you?”

“According to the seniority system in China, you should call me aunt.”

“Okay, Auntie. Where did the three of them go?”

“I have no idea.”

Li Xia got up and left, leaving the little boy alone in the wind. “I’m already polite; I’ve even called you aunt; why don’t you answer my question?”

Because the old man had transferred most of his business back to the mainland, Shen Yaozong and his family of three stayed reluctantly. The old man was in poor health and wanted Shen Yaozong to negotiate a series of matters such as land, construction, and equipment, but this guy refused to go.

On the sofa, the father and son seemed to be confronting each other. Returning to the mainland to invest and start all over again. This is not an easy thing, and the old man’s current physical condition makes it difficult to support it.

“Dad, you’re not fair.”

“How do I say this?”

“When you were there, life was so difficult, and it was me and my mom who accompanied you. Now you are actually moving all your life’s struggles back to the mainland. We were the ones who suffered, but now it is Shen Haiyang, who has done nothing for you, who is enjoying the day.”

“Did you suffer when you were a child?” The old man sneered, “What kind of suffering did you suffer? Even in the most difficult times, your family guaranteed you bread, milk, and meat every now and then. You dare to say that you suffered with such a life?”

Shen Yaozong’s face turned red because the old man’s words reminded him of life on the mainland in the past few decades. Each person was given a certain amount of grain, oil, meat, cloth, and all other daily necessities. There was only so much food a month, and 60 to 70 percent of the food for those who didn’t have a job was coarse grains such as corn. There was even less oil and meat, and there was basically no oil in the food.

He has heard that foreign countries do not report on the good things about the mainland, so the impression he has of the mainland is that it is poor and backward.

“Well, you can’t use all of your wealth to compensate him. I am also your son. It’s unfair to me that you are so biased.”

Shen Yaozong’s mother divorced his father a long time ago, and the property was divided at that time. In the past ten years, his father has seized the opportunity to develop rapidly, and the money his mother got was already wasted. So he came to find his father, and he has lived very close to his father in recent years.

He thought he was the only son, and everything that belonged to his father was his, but he never thought that his father would return to China. He really didn’t understand what was so good about such a backward place where even bathing and toileting were inconvenient.

“Whether it is the laws of the United States or the mainland, I have absolute control over my property.”

“But I am also your son.”

“I didn’t say no.”

If the old man had not transferred his property back to the mainland, he would not have said these words. After all, the United States is his territory. But now that the old man has transferred all his property back to China, Shen Haiyang will be the first to get the moon. If he persuades the old man to sign an unequal will, he will be at a disadvantage if he is not around.

“You have decided not to return to the United States, right?”

“right.”

“What about me?”

In the end, it was all about property. The old man sighed and said, “I’m not dead yet.”

The United States is a country that values freedom. Many elderly people give their property to others after they die because their children are not around. Now that the elderly are still alive, forcing them to divide their property now is not justifiable in any way. Neither the law nor human feelings support it.

Shen Yaozong gave up and wanted to see what his father would do. The old man smiled, did not force him, and instead found Li Xia. Li Xia had hired a new employee these days who was about the same age as Xiao Liu. She used a base salary plus commission to increase the enthusiasm of the employees and handed over the clothing business to them. She was going to go south again to plan the business after the store opened.

“Dad, do you have something to talk to me about?”

“Kid, can you do me a favor?”

“You say.”

“Temporarily help with a series of trivial matters, such as factory construction.”

“Why?”

Shen Yaozong is back. She heard that he was the one who helped the old man run the business in the United States. She thought he was trying to pressure him to stay and continue building the factory. Oh, Li Xia understood all of a sudden.

“Do you want my second brother to stay?”

“This child is too impetuous and lacks understanding of the mainland. Give him some time. Once he is familiar with it, he will no longer be so repulsive.”

In fact, Li Xia wanted to ask why force others to do something. If he wants to leave, just let him go. You can give him as much inheritance as he deserves in the future. Why do you have to let him stay and do this?

Electronics factory, black and white TV—this is the project that the old man started first. From his usual voice, Li Xia knew that he also cooperated with a foreign electronics company, and it seemed that he basically relied on the other party’s imports. That is, he took various parts produced by the other party and then assembled them back. But he could put his own brand on it, which was in exchange for buying the other party’s retired production line.