Chapter 105 : Can you do me a favor?

On the day of the return visit, He Tingyue instructed He Feiyan to go to the cafeteria to get some food for them.

He and Jiang Yu were heading back to her family home, planning to have lunch in Nanghe Village and dinner at Yao Xiangling’s place.

Fortunately, their three younger siblings were old enough not to require constant supervision.

Initially, they planned to ride separate bicycles to make it easier.

But just as they were about to leave, Tong Fang came by with his son, wanting to borrow a bicycle to visit their grandparents.

His wife had gone early, and Tong Fang hadn’t remarried instead, he had hired a fellow villager to help look after the child and occasionally take the child to visit the in-laws.

Since it was rare for Tong Fang to ask, He Tingyue didn’t want to refuse, so he lent him his bicycle.

He was pleased to ride the same bike as Jiang Yu.

As they left, Zeng Chang came out with his hands behind his back.

“Hey, Xiao He.”

He Tingyue turned to look at him. “Uncle Zeng, what’s up?”

“You’re going to Funnan Commune, right?”

“Uncle Zeng, just say what you need to, my wife and I are in a hurry.”

Zeng Chang worked as a cook in the cafeteria of Factory Two, it wasn’t a prestigious position, but he liked to act important.

The young people in the courtyard respected him out of a sense of duty to the elderly, feeling it wasn’t necessary to hold grudges.

However, Zeng Chang was particularly oblivious to this and increasingly puffed up, self-styled as the ‘second uncle’ of the courtyard.

“I happen to be going to Funnan Commune too, so I’ll go with you.”

Jiang Yu asked, “Uncle Zeng, what are you going to Funnan Commune for? Visiting relatives?”

Zeng Chang puffed out his chest. “I want to chat with your village’s party secretary.”

“You know our party secretary?” Jiang Yu was surprised.

Zeng Chang chuckled. “Old Chen, he just puts on airs in front of you guys. I used to call him ‘Er Leng’! We were good friends back in the day, we played together when he was still in short pants…”

He wanted to continue talking to Jiang Yu, but before he could, He Tingyue hopped on his bicycle and slipped out of the courtyard and into the alley.

Zeng Chang’s face turned a shade of purple, and he spat. “So you think having a bicycle is something to brag about!”

While he huffed and puffed his way to the bus station, He Tingyue and Jiang Yu had already bought their tickets and gotten on the bus, securing good seats.

Even after the bus departed, Zeng Chang didn’t appear.

“Strange, didn’t Uncle Zeng say he was going to talk to our party secretary?” Jiang Yu wondered.

He Tingyue replied nonchalantly, “Don’t mind him.”

Not long after the bus had left, Jiang Yu seemed to hear Zeng Chang’s voice, panting as he ran to catch up.

She looked out the window just in time to see him angrily kicking a stone by the roadside. The stone didn’t budge, but he ended up hopping on one foot, holding his other foot.

Jiang Yu couldn’t help but chuckle, “He’s quite amusing.”

The bus wound its way through the mountain roads, a path Jiang Yu had traveled many times before.

This time, however, it felt different as they were heading back to her family home, stirring some emotions in her.

As Jiang Yu gazed out the window, the bus suddenly came to a stop.

The driver tried to start the engine several times but failed.

“Looks like the bus might be broken down. I’ll get out and take a look, you all wait here,”Master Zhang called.

Hearing that the bus was broken, the passengers grew anxious.

“What’s going on? I’m in a hurry to get home for lunch!”

“How long will this take? If it doesn’t get fixed, how will we get home?”

“Quick, contact someone to send a bus to pick us up, we don’t need repairs!”

Master Zhang, growing frustrated, shouted back, “In the middle of nowhere, where am I supposed to contact anyone? You all are worried, I’m not!”

He Tingyue patted Jiang Yu’s hand. “Wife, wait for me on the bus, I’ll go take a look.”

“Okay, be careful.”

As He Tingyue stepped off the bus, he immediately spotted a tractor rumbling by.

Zeng Chang was on it, waving and smiling at him.

“Hey, Xiao He! Is your bus broken down? Do you need me to give you a ride?”

He Tingyue shook his head. “No need, Uncle Zeng, you go ahead.”

“Alright then, I’ll be off!”

Zeng Chang looked quite pleased as his laughter faded into the distance.

Fortunately, with He Tingyue’s help, the bus soon roared back to life amid cheers from the passengers.

Master Zhang clapped He Tingyue on the shoulder, smiling. “Brother, great skill!”

He Tingyue smiled slightly. “I’ve driven before, without me, Master Zhang could fix it too.”

Calm and steady, he accepted the praise without losing his humility, heading straight back to Jiang Yu.

“You’re amazing,” Jiang Yu said, giving him a thumbs-up.

He Tingyue took her hand and smiled. “I’ve just had a bit more experience than others.”

Just like driving, how many people go through life without ever getting the chance?

Fortunately, everything went smoothly from there; the bus didn’t break down again.

The two of them arrived at Funnan Commune, carrying their things back to Nanghe Village.

At the village entrance, they ran into Zeng Chang.

“Xiao He, you finally made it!”

He Tingyue replied coolly, “Didn’t Uncle Zeng know where the party secretary’s house is? I thought with your friendship, you’d know.”

Zeng Chang looked a bit embarrassed, chuckling. “It’s just that Nanghe Village has changed so much, I’ve forgotten for a moment.”

Jiang Yu pointed him in the right direction. “It’s the same way as my house, Uncle Zeng can come with us.”

“Alright then!”

The three of them set off, but Jiang Yu was unaware that she had already attracted attention since entering the village.

“Have they arrived?”

“Li Jie, they’re here! Are you talking about the man following Sister Jiang Yu?”

Li Jie nodded excitedly. “That’s him! Er Shuan, call him over to the pond, and you’ll get fifty cents!”

Er Shuan clutched the fifty cents, that was enough to buy an ice pop!

“Li Jie, are you sure you’re not tricking me?”

“Why would I trick you? Just cooperate with me, and if it works out, I’ll give you an extra twenty cents!”

Er Shuan pocketed the fifty cents and dashed off.

He had been keeping an eye on that man.

“Dapao, where is he?”

“Er Shuan, he went to the party secretary’s house!”

Er Shuan frowned, “This is a bit tricky. I’ll go take a look first.”

As he ran over, he saw Zeng Chang being kicked out by the party secretary.

“We’ve cut ties long ago, why are you trying to get close now? Get lost! You think just because you brought two taels of brown sugar you can sponge off me? Do you think I’m still the fool I was back then?”

Zeng Chang was kicked out and cursed a bit at the door before spitting and grumbling as he left.

Er Shuan stood there for a while, realizing that from a distance, he hadn’t seen clearly. He only knew that Jiang Yu was indeed with him, so he had Dapao keep an eye on them.

But now, as he got closer, he realized this man was quite old.

He couldn’t help but wonder if Jiang Li really liked this man, he looked a bit old.

“Uncle… Grandpa!” The title was on the tip of his tongue, but Er Shuan felt it wasn’t quite right, so he changed it.

Zeng Chang paused. “What’s up?”

Er Shuan looked up at him, realizing he not only looked old but also rather unappealing.

“Can you do me a favor? It’s urgent.”

Zeng Chang thought about what kind of big favor a child could need, probably just wanting help picking up a kite or something.

“Alright, just tell me.”

“Over by the pond, come with me!”