Chapter 23.2: Ye Fan Returns to the Capital

Su Yuanhang said, “The better our business gets, the worse my dad’s mood seems.”

Liu Guihua, standing at the door watching Erbao play in the courtyard, overheard and chimed in, “The old Party Secretary came by a few days ago — the same day we distributed the money from selling the clothes. I heard someone say he was muttering that the food factory shouldn’t be selling clothes. The members waiting by the roadside for their share of the money just said he’s old and talking nonsense. We didn’t sell any clothes — we just helped the store deliver them. That money was just a small fee the store gave us for our trouble.”

Ye Fan smiled and nodded. “Exactly.”

But Su Yuanhang couldn’t laugh along. “Still—”

Ye Fan cut him off. “If your dad doesn’t want to deal with you, get your uncles and cousins to step in. Oh, and what about your dad’s elders — like your great-uncles and distant aunts — are they still around?”

Su Yuanhang’s eyes lit up as if he’d been struck by sudden inspiration. “I’ll go home right now.”

Ye Fan stopped him. “Wait. Make sure your great-uncle is wearing patched-up clothes and leaning on a walking stick. When he faces your dad, he should talk about how hard life is — and if possible, squeeze out a few tears.”

Su Yuanhang couldn’t help but feel a bit sorry for his dad — but only for a second — before grinning and driving off.

Liu Guihua asked, “Is that their brigade’s hand tractor?”

Ye Fan nodded. “It used to be rented out per trip, but recently the brigade members had a meeting and agreed that as long as Su Yuanhang is the one driving it, he just needs to pay for the fuel.” She paused, then added, “Sister-in-law, there’s not much going on these days. Why don’t you go take care of your own stuff? I’ll pick up Dabao from school later.”

Liu Guihua remembered what Su Yuanhang had said earlier — there’d be a shipment in two days, half a truck of tangerines and half a truck of seafood. “I’ll come back in a few days then. By the way, didn’t Dabao say he didn’t want you picking him up?”

That little rascal always said one thing but meant another. A few days ago, Ye Fan was too busy to pick him up and asked the eldest of the Liao family to walk him home. When she finally got back, Dabao had a pout big enough to hang an oil can, accusing her of breaking her promise — saying she wasn’t that busy, yet still didn’t come home until it was dark.

Ye Fan chuckled. “Kids change their minds every day — you can’t take everything they say too seriously, but you can’t ignore them either.”

Liu Guihua didn’t quite understand but felt Ye Fan might be spoiling the child too much. Still, considering Geng Dabao wasn’t even five years old yet and was already in first grade, a little extra pampering didn’t seem like a bad thing.

She reached out to Erbao with a smile. “Want Auntie to hold you?”

“Auntie doesn’t smell as nice as Mommy,” Erbao clung to her mom’s hand, trying to climb onto her.

Ye Fan sighed helplessly and picked her up. “Can’t you walk on your own?”

Erbao bent her knee, reached out, and hooked her foot with her hand. “It’s broken.”

Ye Fan chuckled softly and didn’t respond. Realizing she wasn’t getting any more attention, Erbao quietly settled into her mom’s arms.

Unlike bundles of kelp that had to be carefully packed, tangerines didn’t bruise easily no matter how they were tossed around. On the day of the shipment, Ye Fan told Su Yuanhang to oversee the loading.

Before the truck left, Su Yuanhang reminded the two workers, “It’s a bit of a hassle this time, but when you stop at the main station, make sure to open the doors for some air.”

That way, by the time they arrived in the capital, barely any tangerines were crushed, spoiled, or damaged.

The tangerines were only a cent more expensive than the locally grown apples and pears, and they could last for half a month. As a result, the elderly folks from Xicheng and Haidian acted like the fruit was free — hauling them home in five- or ten-jin bundles.

Su Yuncheng couldn’t help but sigh again. “People in the capital have money.”

Just then, an old lady passing by overheard him and laughed. “You call this having money?”

Su Yuncheng said, “Ten jin, though.”

The old lady replied, “Two a day per person — they’ll be gone in a few days.”

Su Yuncheng instinctively asked, “How many days?”

The old lady looked at him oddly. “If you don’t buy enough for a few days at once, are you planning to shop every day?”

Su Yuncheng just nodded without thinking.

The old lady couldn’t help but say, “Isn’t that a hassle?” Then something seemed to come to her mind. “We don’t grow tangerines here. Once they’re sold out, that’s it.” She paused again, shaking her head. “We used to have some before, but they were expensive — one jin could buy three jin of these.”

Not fully understanding the differences between the north and south, Su Yuncheng decided to keep quiet.

Just then, an elderly woman rode up on a bicycle and stopped in front of them. She asked if they were Su Yuncheng and Su Duofu. The two of them nodded, and the woman handed them a package and a letter addressed to Ye Fan.

Seeing that the woman looked a bit like Chen Xiaohui, Su Duofu called her “Auntie” and asked if she was Ye Fan’s mother.

Tao Chunlan smiled and said, “So Fanfan mentioned me to you?”

Ye Fan rarely talked about her family. To this day, Su Duofu still didn’t know what Ye Fan’s father did for a living or what Tao Chunlan did before she retired. He smiled politely and shifted the topic. “Auntie, is there anything else?”

Before, not knowing what the Jiangnan region was like, Tao Chunlan had been very worried. But recently, after meeting more people from the south, she felt more at ease. She shook her head. “No, nothing. You two go ahead with your work.”

After she left, Su Yuncheng asked, “Last time she sent something with Chen Xiaohui — why did she come all the way here herself this time?”

Su Duofu was just as puzzled. “Maybe they had a fight. Let’s just pretend we don’t know. Keep the letter safe and put the package in the director’s office. There are too many people around here — wouldn’t want anything to get lost.”

Su Yuncheng glanced around first to check if Chen Xiaohui was nearby. Seeing that she wasn’t, he quickly and sneakily slipped into the director’s office.

Ye Fan also found it strange. If something had happened — like her mother falling ill or an emergency at home — even if Chen Xiaohui didn’t say anything, Geng Zhiqin would have told Su Yuncheng. Why go out of their way to write a letter?

After handing out the money from selling the tangerines, Ye Fan finally had some free time in the afternoon to open the letter.

Erbao grabbed her hand and leaned in to peek at the letter. Ye Fan passed it to her. “Can you read it?”

“Mommy, you read it!” Erbao handed the letter back.

Ye Fan pulled Erbao onto her lap and held her close while reading the letter.

Curious, Erbao asked, “Mommy, does Grandma miss me?”

When Ye Fan saw the name “Chen Xiaohui” in the letter, she automatically replaced it with “Geng Erbao” in her mind and replied softly, “Yes. Grandma really misses Erbao. She wants us to go back to the capital for the New Year.”

The letter from Tao Chunlan was asking when Ye Fan planned to return to the capital. It wasn’t about Geng Zhiyé having to work shifts during the holiday — instead, it was because if Ye Fan stayed on the island, it would just be her and the two kids celebrating alone. Tao Chunlan couldn’t bear the thought of them spending the New Year like that.

Tao Chunlan hadn’t had time lately to feel sorry for Ye Fan — she was too busy being driven up the wall by Chen Xiaohui.

The Haidian Supply and Marketing Cooperative had been doing well, and with good business came generous bonuses. As soon as Chen Xiaohui got her bonus, she headed straight to the second-hand market.

The Ye family home was a standard siheyuan — a traditional courtyard house. Since there were only a few people living there, the southern rooms were usually empty. Now, however, Chen Xiaohui had crammed them full of all kinds of old furniture.

Every time Tao Chunlan saw the doors open or noticed the rooms on either side of the courtyard piled high with junk on her way out to buy groceries, she felt a headache coming on.

Chen Xiaohui didn’t pick up bad habits like smoking or drinking, didn’t waste money recklessly, and as far as Tao Chunlan knew, she wasn’t sending money back to Shencheng either. Tao Chunlan kept reminding herself that she should be grateful.

But the problem was, Ye Fan had been so obedient and sensible these past few years that Tao Chunlan couldn’t help but compare the two.

Ye Fan had also once told her mother that it wasn’t Chen Xiaohui’s fault that her mind didn’t work quite right — the blame lay with Chen Kuanren and Zhao Ruping.

But patience has its limits. Tao Chunlan didn’t dare scold Chen Xiaohui directly, and with her daughter-in-law not at home, all she could do was write to Ye Fan.

After reading her mother’s letter, Ye Fan felt an overwhelming urge to drag Chen Xiaohui over and shake the water out of her head.

If you like old things — old pocket watches, old jade pendants — there’s nothing you can’t buy. Once you get them, just put them in your pocket. If someone sees and makes a fuss, you can simply toss them down a drain or into a mouse hole. But how are you going to hide all that old furniture if you bring it home?

Ye Fan sighed.

Erbao hugged his mom’s face tightly. “Mom, don’t be sad. Erbao loves Mom.”

Ye Fan couldn’t help but laugh through her tears. “Mom’s not sad. Let’s see if your brother is done with school.”

She carried Erbao to the street corner. When the school bell rang, Ye Fan waited a few minutes until Dabao came over with Liao Dadi and Liao Xiaomei. Vice Commander Niu’s two children were also with them.

Liao Xiaomei casually said, “Dabao, your mom’s here to pick you up.”

Dabao quickly ran over.

Ye Fan reached out her hand. “Tired? Mom will carry it for you.”

Dabao handed his backpack over, then stretched his hand toward his sister. “Come down and walk by yourself.”

Erbao got down and grabbed her brother’s hand. “Brother, let’s go to Grandma’s house.”

Dabao turned back and asked, “Is Grandma here?”

Ye Fan replied, “Grandma sent a letter. We’re going to Grandma’s house on the 20th of the twelfth lunar month and coming back on the 10th of the first month. But Dad doesn’t know yet — we still have to talk to him.”

Geng Zhiyé didn’t agree and told her to come back after the Southern Little New Year.

Ye Fan explained that a shipment would be sent off before the Northern Little New Year. If she went along, Su Yuncheng and Su Duofu wouldn’t have to go.

Geng Zhiyé asked, “If you’re not there, how will they handle the accounts and split the money?”

Ye Fan replied, “Su Yuanhang graduated from high school — he can figure out the accounts. Besides, if we send the goods early, we might even be able to send another shipment before the end of the year.”

Geng Zhiyé nodded. “Come back on the sixth.” Without waiting for Ye Fan to refuse, he added, “It’s cold in the North. Going out to play is just suffering. Even if you don’t think about yourself, you should think about Dabao and Erbao.”

Ye Fan nodded. “Alright, the 20th it is. I’ll ask Su Yuanhang to help me check the train tickets.”

Dabao couldn’t help but say, “Mom, there are still so many days left.”

Ye Fan smiled. “I need to set the date so I can write back to Grandma.”

She didn’t mention Chen Xiaohui to Geng Zhiyé — otherwise, he would’ve complained, “Chen Xiaohui isn’t even your daughter. If your mother-in-law has a problem, let her deal with it herself. Who told her to give you the name ‘Ye Fan’? Serves her right!”

While making dinner, Ye Fan burned the letter when Geng Zhiyé wasn’t looking.

The next day, after writing her reply, Ye Fan handed it to Su Yuncheng, asking him to pass it to Chen Xiaohui when he delivered oranges to the capital.

In the letter, Ye Fan didn’t mention Chen Xiaohui — she only said she’d arrive in the capital before the Northern Little New Year. The unspoken understanding between mother and daughter was clear: as soon as Tao Chunlan read that sentence, she knew Ye Fan meant that everything would be discussed once she got there.

Dabao thought there were still many days left, but in reality, time passed in the blink of an eye.

The oranges on the mountain were sold out, along with half a truck of fresh lotus roots. Once the accounts were settled and the money distributed, it was already Laba Festival.

Ye Fan told Su Yuanhang to call a meeting with the leaders of the ten production teams and prepare three truckloads of goods before the New Year.

Su Yuanhang couldn’t help but say, “There’s not that much.”

Ye Fan shook her head. “Don’t worry — there definitely is.”

Su Yuanhang thought to himself, I just did an inventory a few days ago. But Ye Fan was so confident that he swallowed his words.

The next day, they borrowed the supply and marketing cooperative’s office to hold the meeting with the team leaders. After some discussion, it turned out there really were enough goods to fill three trucks by the end of the year.

Su Yuanhang was stunned. “Don’t you people sleep? Are you all fishing at night?”

The team leader from Shanxi lowered his head. “A few days ago, my mother-in-law brought over a bundle of seaweed and asked us to help sell it.” He coughed awkwardly. “Ye Accountant saw it but didn’t say anything. I figured it was fine, so… so I asked my brother-in-law to bring over another basket.”

Seeing Su Yuanhang’s face darken, he quickly explained, “It’s not just me — some other members did the same thing before. When I asked them why, they said their relatives couldn’t finish the food. What could I say?”

Su Yuanhang sighed. “Three trucks — no more than three. If you bring too much stuff and others…”

The team leader from Shanxi said, “I already told them — each family gets ten jin first. If we can’t fill the trucks, then we’ll add what the relatives brought.”

Su Yuanhang nodded. “That sounds better. I figure this good stretch will only last about half a year.”

The team leader from Lianhua added, “I heard a few teams by the coast are planning to set up food processing factories too.”

Su Yuanhang said, “Since everyone’s aware, let’s wrap this up. I’ll notify you all if we get a telegram from them.”

The money in the Haidian supply and marketing cooperative’s account was enough to buy a truckload of goods. The director, thinking that winter’s cold would keep the fresh fish good until the end of the year, told Su Yuanhang to deliver the goods early — just in case heavy snow later made the roads impassable.

On the fifteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, Su Yuncheng and Su Duofu made a trip to the capital. On the twentieth, Ye Fan, Dabao, and Erbao rode along with the delivery truck. Su Yuanhang, Su Yuncheng, and Su Duofu saw the three of them off as they boarded the truck.

After getting off the truck, Tao Chunlan and Yu Wentao took the two children, while Ye Fan followed the goods to the supply and marketing cooperative.

A long line had already formed outside the cooperative, with people waiting to buy affordable seafood.

The director, smiling, complained, “At least take a look at the abalone too!”

But the elderly men and women just waved him off, pulling Ye Fan aside to ask about her. Some commented on how tanned she was, wondering aloud if the Jiangnan region didn’t suit her. Others asked if she was unwell since she looked thinner.

The enthusiasm was overwhelming — after half a year of quiet life on the island, Ye Fan wasn’t used to the bustling concern. She quickly said she needed to see Chen Xiaohui about something.

The old folks, well aware of the complicated relationship between Chen Xiaohui and Ye Fan thanks to their nosy curiosity, knew better than to get involved. They let Ye Fan pass without further questions.

Once inside, Ye Fan first asked Chen Xiaohui if she was settling in alright.

Chen Xiaohui nodded.

Ye Fan then asked, “The New Year’s coming soon. Do you have enough rice, flour, and oil? Want to buy a few jin of abalone to make braised pork with abalone?”

Chen Xiaohui replied that she had already bought some and tried it once. She added that there were still a few jin of meat coupons left — she planned to save them for when Dabao and Erbao came back so they could make the dish together.

Ye Fan paused for a moment and asked if Chen Xiaohui had bought any new clothes.

Even someone as slow to catch on as Chen Xiaohui could sense that Ye Fan had something on her mind, so she told her to talk in the backyard.

In the courtyard, there was no need to worry about eavesdroppers, but since Chen Xiaohui wasn’t her daughter, Ye Fan couldn’t just scold her for being foolish. Instead, she asked, “About the situation in Shen City — what are you planning to do?”

“Did Mom ask you to bring this up?” Chen Xiaohui suddenly realized what was going on. “I… I was thinking of sending them twenty yuan.”

Ye Fan couldn’t hold back an eye roll.

Chen Xiaohui instinctively wanted to snap back, but she stopped herself. By now, she understood that Ye Fan wasn’t looking down on her — she was simply direct and focused on the issue, not the person. “I know… I shouldn’t give them money. But you don’t understand them. I just feel like giving them money is the easiest way to keep the peace.”