Chapter 29: The Starving Ghost

The third son’s stomach no longer allowed him to be reserved.

“Grandma, is this egg cake good?”

The old lady lifted her eyelids, “It’s good. My granddaughter-in-law specially bought it for me because my teeth aren’t good.”

“Can I have a taste? I rushed over at noon and haven’t eaten lunch yet!” The third son tried to curry favor by massaging the old lady’s legs.

“That won’t do! After all these years, you’ve never given me a piece of candy. You want to eat my egg cake? Absolutely not!” The old lady shook her head vigorously.

The third son… Grandma was still as difficult as ever.

He reached for a banana on the table, which was a rare treat. He had bought some for He Meina a few times but had never allowed himself to eat one.

The old man picked up his pipe and smacked it down on the third son’s hand.

“Ouch!” the third son cried out in pain. “Grandpa, what are you doing?”

“What are you doing?” the old man raised his eyelids.

“I just wanted to see what this was,” the third son artfully justified his actions.

“Just look, don’t touch!” The old man was sharp and could tell what the third son was after. These fruits were precious, and he wouldn’t even eat them himself, let alone give them to this grandson who was just here to mooch!

“Grandpa, won’t you let me have a taste?” The third son put on a wounded expression.

“Taste what? There are plenty for sale at the supply store. If you want to eat, buy it yourself. I’m practically buried up to my neck; if you don’t care about me, that’s fine, but you still want to eat my food? Are you even human?”

The old man was completely unmoved by the third son’s expression. Having lived so long, he had seen all kinds of people. He had played this game before, back when the third son’s father didn’t even know where he was!

The third son didn’t hide it anymore. “Grandpa, I haven’t eaten breakfast or lunch! I’m starving!” He then looked longingly at the table full of food.

“If you’re hungry, hurry back home and find your mother!” The old lady shifted her legs and immediately opened the door.

The third son… “Grandma, how can you be so heartless? Not even giving your grandson a bite to eat!”

The old lady rolled her eyes. “I’m about to die here, and you expect me to give you something to eat? You’re a grown man, and you still want to mooch off someone who’s about to kick the bucket? How can you have such a big face!”

The third son was left speechless. Things had been going poorly for him lately; had he offended someone? He wasn’t welcome at home, nor at work, and now the old couple wouldn’t even give him a bite to eat! He needed to go to the temple tomorrow to pray!

Holding his stomach, the third son thickened his skin and went into the kitchen to find something to eat.

As long as he didn’t disturb the old couple, they wouldn’t bother him. After all, he wasn’t eating their food; he was eating his brother and sister-in-law’s food, which was only right!

In the kitchen, there were noodles and eggs. The third son cooked himself a big bowl of noodles with six poached eggs.

The old couple watched, their eyelids twitching. This guy was really eating them out of house and home!

The third son was truly hungry. He hadn’t eaten well these days; meals at home were often sparse, and the communal meals at work had hardly any oil or flavor.

In just two minutes, he slurped down a big bowl of noodles and six eggs!

“Starving ghost! Can’t do anything right, can’t even eat enough. You’re going to wear out your older brother!” The old lady grimaced, feeling sorry for her eldest son.

The old man shook his head. The eldest couple had it tough, and here was this debt collector!

After the third son had eaten his fill, he had no intention of leaving. The key was that he had nowhere else to go; everywhere he went, he was met with pointed fingers. It was better to stay here in peace!

Full and sleepy, he had been looking for someone until midnight last night, and when he returned, he was scolded by his parents. He hadn’t slept well at all. The third son sat on the stool and dozed off.

The old lady shot the third son a sharp glance.

The old lady poked him, “You eat and sleep, and you don’t even think about cleaning up that kitchen. You’re so clueless! With this attitude, you’re just wasting your time at work.”

The old man nodded, deeply agreeing.

Their family had fled here before the liberation, and after the liberation, they settled down directly.

On the way fleeing, they encountered all kinds of people. If you weren’t careful and cautious, you could end up as nothing but scraps!

This fool, he clearly didn’t inherit any of the cleverness; his head was filled with nonsense! He couldn’t be any more foolish.

Although the eldest grandson had read quite a bit, he was still lacking in how to conduct himself in society.

All his little schemes were written all over his face!

The old man shook his head; it was the eldest couple who spoiled their child! Looking at their foolishness, he simply closed his eyes, out of sight, out of mind.

Today, the eldest, Li Xingguo, got off work with Wang Yue.

On the way, Wang Yue kept asking him when his parents would come to visit the old couple and when they could gather enough money for going abroad.

There were still two months left; those going abroad this time would leave soon. After gathering the money, they still had to process the passports and follow the procedures. Time was already very tight.

Li Xingguo was anxious too!

This opportunity to go abroad was because his university professor was going to study abroad and could take a few assistants, but it required self-funding. At this time, not many could come up with that kind of money.

Even those who could wouldn’t necessarily want to follow the professor abroad; they had their own connections and wouldn’t want to be laborers for him.

It was only those like Li Xingguo, who had no connections but particularly wanted to go abroad, that wanted to seize this opportunity!

Li Xingguo also had his own thoughts. After going abroad, he would be directly kicked out by the professor, and then he would find a job by himself, staying there for a while, waiting a few months to get a green card before bringing his wife over. After that, he wouldn’t have to come back! He would earn a lot abroad! He would become someone important.

Once they had children, they would automatically have citizenship! This was also the reason they hadn’t had children until now.

The young couple walked while fantasizing about a beautiful life abroad.

“If your parents don’t come over, then just send Grandma and Grandpa over!” Wang Yue thought that after treating them well for so many days, the old couple would definitely be on their side. Plus, with their eldest grandson going abroad, they would have face; who wouldn’t envy them in the village?

Li Xingguo felt that the grandparents’ attitude had also been very good these days. They had been instilling a lot of foreign advantages to the old couple, who listened with smiles and praised him for being successful.

Everything was ready except for the favorable wind, which was his parents’ support!

The two of them made up their minds and entered the house, only to find the third son, who was half-asleep.

“What are you doing here?” Wang Yue blurted out. She was most annoyed by this little brother-in-law, who was overly scheming and always watching them, afraid they would gain some advantage from the in-laws while he suffered a big loss.

“Why can’t I come? I came to see Grandma and Grandpa!” The third son said defiantly.

Wang Yue couldn’t help but roll her eyes. The old man and old lady had been here for over ten days, and she hadn’t seen him come to visit even once.

“What did you bring for Grandma and Grandpa to eat?” Wang Yue didn’t indulge the third son, noticing that the house still looked the same as when she left, with nothing extra. The third son must have come empty-handed.

The third son felt awkward for a moment but didn’t back down verbally. “I haven’t started my business yet. Once I do, I will definitely buy food for Grandma and Grandpa!”

Wang Yue rolled her eyes to the ceiling. “You say you didn’t buy anything, so you didn’t buy anything at all. You earn money but don’t contribute to the family; who would believe you have no money?”

“I’m just in the startup phase! I only have a few hundred bucks, which isn’t even enough for my own expenses. How can I contribute to the family? I’m not like you guys; you’ve all studied a lot, and your startup capital is high!” The third son quickly attributed his lack of earnings to not having an education, seeing the old couple’s expressions weren’t good.

“If you focused more on your work instead of these schemes, you wouldn’t still be in the startup phase.