Chapter 133: Double Happiness

“Zhenhe, did your mother ask you for money?” Zhang Lan turned to her husband and asked.

Wang Zhenhe answered honestly, “Yes, she and Wang Zhi mentioned something they liked behind my back. I ignored them. After we send the elderly care fees before the New Year, and buy them four gifts, we’ll be done. I won’t pay attention to anything else.”

Wang Zhenhe’s expression remained neutral, so Zhang Lan didn’t press further. If her husband had made up his mind about something, she wouldn’t interfere. If it wasn’t her place to ask, she wouldn’t. Living a steady and honest life was the best way.

“By the way, wife, calculate how much we owe others. Let’s repay as much as we can, so everyone can feel more at ease. If we work a bit harder next year, we should be able to clear most of it,” Wang Zhenhe said.

Wang Zhenhe wasn’t entirely clear about the family’s income. After deducting the money for building the house from their bonus, he felt that the family still had quite a bit of debt.

As Zhang Lan was organizing the money and checking the accounts, a voice came from outside, “Is Third Brother at home?”

Wang Qian, on the kang, recognized the voice of her second Aunt, Han Cui. She rarely visited their home, so her sudden appearance was unexpected.

Upon hearing Han Cui’s voice, Zhang Lan hurriedly went to greet her, “Sister-in-law, what a rare visit. You don’t usually come over.”

Indeed, since Zhang Lan’s family moved to the new house, Han Cui hadn’t visited much. “Sister, are you busy counting money? Your family must have received a good bonus this year,” Han Cui said.

“Sister-in-law, you’ve come at the right time. I was just about to repay the money we owe. With the bonus we received, I need to settle our debts quickly,” Zhang Lan said. She opened the account book and checked. She found that they owed her second brother thirty yuan. She counted out the money from the bonus and handed it to Han Cui. “Sister-in-law, here’s the money. It’s thirty yuan. Is that correct?”

Han Cui looked at the three ten-yuan bills in her hand and nodded with a smile, “That’s right, it’s the right amount. By the way, sister, your family received quite a lot this year.”

Han Cui’s seemingly casual remark struck Wang Qian as a hint of jealousy.

“Sister-in-law, the higher bonus this year is due to the increased production value. You know that Zhenhe has been away for almost three months, and this includes his subsidy for that period. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have received this much,” Zhang Lan explained.

Han Cui’s doubts were resolved, and after exchanging a few more casual words with Hao Lianchun and the others, she took her leave. Wang Qian watched her leave and then quietly said to Hao Lianchun, “Grandma Zuo, my second Aunt is so petty. She’s afraid we won’t repay the money, but she doesn’t realize the kind of people we are.”

Hao Lianchun patted Wang Qian’s hand and said, “Everyone has their own personality. She’s just that kind of person. Don’t worry too much. Once we’ve repaid the money, we can put it out of our minds.”

Hao Lianchun didn’t say much more. She didn’t know much about Han Cui, but from her appearance, she seemed a bit tricky. However, in the countryside, each family lived their own lives, and it wouldn’t have much impact on Zhang Lan and the others. Moreover, Wang Zhenhe had already cut off contact with his mother’s side, so the interaction between the two sisters-in-law would be greatly reduced in the future.

“By the way, Qianqian, I’ll be starting a new sweater soon. You can learn from me later,” Hao Lianchun said as she neatly finished the small sweater in her hands and began another. Wang Qian sat beside her, learning attentively. Meanwhile, Zhang Lan finished organizing the accounts and hurried out to repay the debts.

“Grandma, Grandma, we’re back!” Zuo He, carrying a small backpack and holding a piece of paper, rushed into the courtyard with Mingyuan.

Zuo Zhanshan and Wang Zhenhe, seeing the two children panting, quickly prepared to go and see them. Zuo He and Wang Mingyuan had already entered the house and handed the piece of paper to them.

Wang Zhenhe looked at the report card and happily slapped his thigh. “Well done, young man! The Wang family has produced a talent.”

Zuo Zhanshan also joyfully lifted his grandson. “Zuo He, you did great. When you have time, write a letter to your parents and let them see your results. It will make them happy.”

Zuo Zhanshan was now extremely grateful that the child  was brought to the Wang family. He had heard about the situation in the city from Guo Xing, and the impact was greater there. The countryside was less affected, so Zuo He could study here with peace of mind. His grandson’s perfect score made him happier than anyone else. He believed it was the right decision to leave the child here, and he felt that his grandson was thriving here.

“Yes, I’ll write to my parents tonight, and to my brother too. I want to tell them that I scored a perfect hundred,” Zuo He said.

“Both Zuo He and Mingyuan did well. We’ll have your aunt prepare a special dinner for you both tonight to celebrate,” Wang Zhenhe said.

However, what made Wang Zhenhe even happier was that Mingcheng and Wang Xuan, the siblings, also scored perfect hundreds. This made Wang Zhenhe, as a father, so happy that he was practically at a loss for words. “Darling, make something special for dinner tonight. These kids are really outstanding. Let’s also thank our uncles. Without them, our children wouldn’t have scored perfect hundreds.”

Wang Zhenhe’s words were true. The three children had always been good students, but their scores had never been this high before. From now on, he had every reason to be proud. All three children had perfect scores, a situation that was unlikely to occur in any other family.

“Wang Zhenhe, why are you thanking us? It should be said that they are all very bright. I think after their winter break, we should intensify their studies. Skipping a grade won’t be a problem in the future. Just look at your older sister, she’s already in the same class as Mingcheng,” Old Chen said.

Old Chen and the others had a good understanding of the children’s abilities. Based on their current teaching, even skipping a grade now wouldn’t be a problem. However, they wanted to further strengthen the foundation, as that was the key.

Wang Zhenhe was incredulous about his own children’s abilities. He looked at Old Chen and the others, “Uncle, are you serious? Are they really that talented?”

“Silly boy, don’t you believe in your own children? Just wait for the good times ahead. Yes, we’ll rely on them in the future,” Old Chen said.

Mingcheng and Mingyuan puffed out their chests and assured, “Grandpa, we’ll definitely take care of you in your old age. If your children don’t take care of you, we will. When you’re old and can’t move, you can stay with us just like now, and we’ll buy you good food.”

Old Chen and the others laughed happily. “Alright, when we’re old and can’t move, we’ll rely on you.”

Old Zhou and the others didn’t know what the future would hold, but having these children around was a good thing. They had high hopes for the children in the Wang family. With such filial parents, these children were bound to have a bright future.

Since seeing the three siblings’ grades, Zhang Lan’s smile had not faded. She had raised her children with hard work, hoping they would have a bright future, and now she felt that she had seen hope.

“All right, I’ll go and get some meat. We’ll make dumplings for dinner,” she said.

Upon hearing about dumplings, Mingyuan urged, “Mom, hurry up, or the supply and marketing cooperative will close.”

Seeing her son’s eagerness, Zhang Lan took out the ration card and money. “Alright, I’m going now. You all wait at home. Xuan, help me chop the cabbage. When I come back, we’ll start making the dumplings.”

It was a rare treat to have dumplings with meat filling. Whether it was the siblings or the elderly men, they were all very happy. In the countryside, dumplings were only eaten during festivals. Although Zhang Lan rarely made dumplings, the meat was always plentiful. Whenever possible, she would catch some wild chicken or rabbit. Their life here could be described as very happy.

Wang Xuan went to the kitchen to chop the cabbage, and Hao Lianchun went to help. They prepared the dough and waited for Zhang Lan to return to prepare the meat filling.

Mingyuan hurriedly ran to the main street with Zuo He to wait. Finally, he saw his mother’s figure returning and quickly ran into the kitchen to prepare the ingredients.

Wang Qian felt sorry for Mingyuan, who was running back and forth. “Brother, you and Zuo He should warm up on the kang. The dumplings will be ready soon.”

Finally, the long-awaited dumplings were served for dinner. Each person had a large plate, and there was more in the kitchen to add at any time. The quantity of dumplings was unlimited, and everyone ate to their heart’s content.

Mingcheng sighed as he ate his dumplings, “Mom, if we had known earlier, we should have split the family long ago. During the New Year, Grandma used to give us only ten dumplings, which was never enough.”

Hearing this, Wang Zhenhe also sighed, “Mingcheng, I’m the one who got the short end of the stick. When we had dumplings before, I always let your uncle and aunt have them. I never thought they would turn out to be so ungrateful. I might as well have eaten them myself.”

Wang Qian, blowing on her dumplings, said, “Dad, you’re too naive. You were kind to them, but they didn’t appreciate it. You have to choose who you’re kind to. If you give them the moon, they’ll want the sun too. They’re just greedy.”

After saying this, she popped a cooled dumpling into her mouth. It tasted really good, especially with the filling her mother had prepared.

After eating just a few dumplings, they were full. Wang Qian shared her portion with Zuo He and Zuo Mingcheng, “You two eat more. When you grow up, you can help me fight the bad guys.”

The adults chuckled as they ate their dumplings. This little girl was speaking like an adult. “Qianqian, you should eat more, or you won’t have the strength to fight,” Zuo He urged her.

Wang Qian shook her head, “I’m full. I’ll leave the fighting to you in the future. I’ll just be the strategist on the sidelines.”

Wu Changyong got carried away, “Qianqian, get some vinegar and a few cloves of garlic for your grandpa. These dumplings are so delicious.”

Old Chen also agreed with Old Wu’s statement. The food made by this niece was truly delicious and appetizing.

“Grandpas, don’t forget to eat the sea cucumber, Dad, don’t forget either. I’ll bring it to you right away,” Wang Qian said.

She got off the kang, brought the sea cucumber for Old Wu and the other adults, and distributed one to each person, including herself and the other children.

She then brought out some wine from another room and poured a bowl for each person. They drank it as if it were water, and it was quite sweet. Zuo He took a sip of wine and then ate a dumpling, which was quite a comical sight.