"Alright, then you go, I'm home!"
Lin Ziyi sighed, her face grim as she got out of the car.
Wang Yi continued listening to the song:
"Customer, you can't, you're getting closer and closer, where are your eyes looking..."
The car headed east all the way to the town's terminal stop.
Wang Yi strolled around the town, first buying his maternal grandmother's favorite walnut shortbread, then his paternal grandmother's favorite horseshoe pastries.
On the way, he checked out the styles and prices of shoes in town.
It was roughly as he remembered; decent quality sneakers cost at least sixty or seventy yuan, and leather shoes started at seventy or eighty yuan!
Wang Yi had a plan in mind.
He checked his wallet; there were ninety yuan left.
He decided to buy two boxes of milk.
"Young man, what kind of milk do you want? Sour milk, 35 a box, tastes good!"
Wang Yi shook his head.
Indeed, sour milk sold very well these days, even better than pure milk!
It wasn't until later, with popular science explanations, that people started looking at the ingredient list and realized this stuff was just a drink, not even considered milk...
Wang Yi looked at the prices; he didn't have enough money for boxed pure milk.
He bought two boxes of plastic-packaged pure milk, with raw milk as the only ingredient, which cost him 70 yuan.
There was no bus for the last stretch of the journey, so Wang Yi hailed a small motorcycle taxi:
"How much to Qinglai Village?"
"Qinglai Village is 15, young man, get in quickly!"
The old man said skillfully.
"It was always ten yuan before!"
"Ten yuan won't do it, it's 15 now!"
"Then I'll look around."
Wang Yi took a step back.
"Hey! We're all acquaintances, ten yuan it is then!"
The old man said without batting an eyelid.
His main thing was ripping off customers!
If he succeeded, he'd earn 13 yuan; if not, he'd earn 8 yuan.
In his previous life, Wang Yi had been conned by this old swindler!
His paternal grandfather and maternal grandmother were both from the same village.
It was only in his parents' generation that they struggled, bought a house in the county town, and found their footing.
Looking at the scenery along the way, Wang Yi felt a sense of timidity typical of returning home.
In his previous life, when the elders were gone, his hometown felt gone too.
Wang Yi rarely went back.
But every time he returned, he felt that there were fewer and fewer people in his old home.
Now, children were still studying at his elementary school!
In another two years, even the elementary schools in the townships would be gone!
For their children's education, young people had no choice but to buy houses in the county town.
Upon reaching the west end of the village, Wang Yi first made a detour to his paternal grandfather's house.
Seeing her grandson return, his paternal grandmother, who was chatting by the door, beamed with joy.
His paternal grandfather, who was watching TV at home, also went inside and brought out a large watermelon.
"You haven't had lunch yet, have you? Grandma will make your favorite braised pork ribs for you! Your grandpa just bought ribs at the market!"
"No hurry, Grandma, you should rest first."
Wang Yi put down a box of milk and took out the horseshoe pastries.
"Xiao Yi is so filial, he knows Grandma likes to eat this, hahaha."
Grandma laughed happily:
"Much better than your grandpa, he never buys me anything when he goes to the market!"
"I just forgot this time!" Grandpa gave an awkward smile and handed a piece of watermelon to Wang Yi.
"Thank you, Grandpa, I brought you a pack of cigarettes!"
"Soft Zhonghua!"
Grandpa's eyes widened:
"This pack of cigarettes can buy several jin of meat, why did you buy this?"
"Bought it in town, didn't you? Go return it later, don't waste money!"
"It's not bought, it's already open," Wang Yi said.
Grandpa looked at it, saw that it indeed couldn't be returned, and then accepted it, immediately becoming serious:
"One is missing, have you started smoking?"
"No, my teacher smokes it!"
"Oh, your teacher smokes it? Then you should have given him all of them, why only one? It doesn't matter if Grandpa smokes or not!"
"Cough cough, these cigarettes are his!"
Wang Yi gave an awkward smile.
"???"
The old man was utterly bewildered, only coming back to his senses after a long time:
"You took your teacher's Soft Zhonghua?"
"Yeah, if he keeps smoking, he'll get lung cancer. I'm doing this for his own good."
The old man fell silent:
"..."
He felt there was some truth to these words, yet something felt off!
"Grandpa, you should also smoke less."
"Cough cough cough!"
The old man lightly coughed:
"It's fine if I smoke, the more I smoke, the more energetic I feel! I'm 80, and I can still go to the market by myself, wouldn't you say that's impressive?"
Wang Yi couldn't argue.
In his previous life, his paternal grandfather smoked and drank, living to 87!
If he were forced to quit, he might feel resentful, which could be counterproductive.
With cigarettes and alcohol, some people can't handle it and might get cancer in their fifties or sixties.
Others can endure it, and the more they indulge, the freer they feel.
There's no telling!
After lunch, Wang Yi and his paternal grandfather each sat in a lounge chair, enjoying the fan, eating watermelon, and discussing everything from ancient times to the present.
His paternal grandmother, wearing reading glasses, held a fly swatter and chased after little flies!
The peaceful afternoon was the most delightful time he had experienced in many years.
Especially reuniting with people he had yearned for day and night in his previous life; that joy was indescribable.
They chatted until two o'clock.
Wang Yi bid farewell to his paternal grandparents and headed straight for his maternal grandmother's house.
His maternal grandfather passed away early, and his maternal grandmother had been alone all these years.
Wang Yi was practically raised by his maternal grandmother, and that bond was precious.
Pushing open the gate, his maternal grandmother immediately came out, her face beaming with smiles.
"Grandma, you didn't take a nap at noon?"
Wang Yi was a little surprised.
"I heard people say you were back, Grandma couldn't sleep!"
His maternal grandmother's face was full of kindness, and her steps were light, not at all like someone in her seventies.
Wang Yi put down the pure milk and took out the walnut shortbread:
"Grandma, it's still from your favorite shop!"
"Oh my! You should use your pocket money for yourself, why buy these things? Grandma lacks nothing here! Your mom, your aunt, they all come often!"
"They come to fulfill their filial duty as daughters, and I come to fulfill my filial duty as a grandson. It's different!"
In his previous life, he always felt that there would be plenty of time in the future and didn't spend much time with his elders, until he later regretted it immensely.
In this life, he naturally had to be dutiful and make sure his elders lived happily in their later years.
"Grandma, it's not easy for you to be alone. Come back to the county town with me; it'll be easier to take care of you."
"No, no need. In the village, neighbors are all familiar faces. It's so comfortable to plant some vegetables and chat when there's nothing to do. If I go to the city, I won't know anyone. How can that be as comfortable as being at home!"
"Well... alright."
His maternal grandmother had always been strong-willed; his parents wanted to hire a nanny for her, but she refused.
Perhaps it was also because of a little daily labor that many elderly people in the village lived to over eighty and rarely got sick.
"Grandma cut chives, and I'll make you chive pancakes tonight! They're clean because I grew them myself, no pesticides at all!"
Wang Yi loved his maternal grandmother's chive pancakes the most, and he always got to eat them whenever he returned:
"I'll help you pick the chives."
"No, no need, you just play on the side."
His maternal grandmother put on her reading glasses.
"Then I'll see what vegetables we have at home. I'll cook tonight and make dinner for Grandma!"
"You can cook now?"
His maternal grandmother was a little surprised, her eyebrows raised in delight:
"That's wonderful, Xiao Yi has grown up!"
Listening to his maternal grandmother's hearty laughter, the old lady next door stared at her silent landline, sighing repeatedly...
The time spent with his maternal grandmother was wonderful.
It was as if he had returned to the carefree days of his childhood.
As a result, Wang Yi overate again that night and had to go out for a walk to aid digestion.
"Wang Yi, you're back!"
A young man who was enjoying the cool air spoke with a smile.
He looked to be in his twenties, with mud on his black pants and disheveled hair, sitting among several old men without seeming out of place.
"You are..."
Wang Yi didn't recognize him.
"It's me, Song Yang! Have you forgotten? We went to school together when we were kids!"
"Oh, it's you! I remember now!"
Wang Yi was about to ask where the other person was attending university but stopped himself.
He remembered that Song Yang had dropped out of junior high.
After that, he worked as a server and greeter in a restaurant for a few years.
Later, he found the restaurant wages too low, so a childhood friend introduced him to a factory.
Again, he complained that the factory work was tiring and he couldn't endure the hardship, so he didn't even stay for three days.
Now, he simply idled at home, raising a few sheep and occasionally taking on odd jobs.
His income was low, but consumption in the village was also low.
Without buying a house or car, there were no major expenses.
He'd occasionally have a barbecue at home, living a comfortable life.
A quintessential first-generation "lying flat" post-90s individual!
(End of Chapter)
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