Back to the small fishing village in 1982

Chapter 1834 Confirmed
Ye Chengjiang couldn't stay in bed any longer, so he went to find Ye Chenghe and pulled him out of bed.

Ye Chenghe had already woken up, but the bed was warm and he was too lazy to get up. He wrapped himself up tightly and planned to get up when he was called for dinner.

His two children naturally stayed in his hometown, where there were plenty of elders who wanted to hold and take care of them, so he didn't have to lift a finger and no one bothered him. He was very comfortable.

"If you have something to say, just say it. Why did you wake me up? There's no sun outside today, and it's so cold. The sea breeze is howling."

Ye Chengjiang didn't force him to get up, but sat down on the stool next to him and said, "It's like this, I need to discuss something with you. We'll go up a few days later, and I need to temporarily hand over the matters above to you..."

Ye Chenghe's eyes widened. "Why did you have to go up a few days later?"

"I need to go to the city to collect rent for my parents. The lease on their shop expires in the spring, and my dad is too busy to collect it before the new year. I'll go collect it for them, and I also have some other things to take care of."

"The rent is easy to collect. Just ask Auntie's people to help collect it."

“Outsiders don’t take it so easily. Tenants don’t dare to hand it over to outsiders either. What if they don’t acknowledge it? We’ll have to send someone from our own family to help. Anyway, I worked a few extra days before the New Year, so it’s your turn to help me this time.”

"Fine, why didn't you say so earlier? You're leaving tomorrow, and you're only bringing this up now? Don't tell me you only just remembered."

“My mother originally wanted to go herself, so she didn’t specifically mention it. But we got onto the conversation earlier, and I thought it would be better for me, a man, to go and collect the money.”

Ye Chengjiang thought he was really clever; he could come up with such a reason, and it was flawless!
Ye Chenghe teased him mockingly, "You think your mother would talk to you about this so politely?"

"I am their biological child."

After making arrangements with Ye Chenghe, he felt relieved and then went to his hometown to make a phone call before it was time for dinner.

Make the call quickly while there are fewer people around, otherwise it will be inconvenient to talk when there are more people at home during mealtimes.

He didn't need to worry about not having a public phone number for Lin Huixin's village. Ye's mother had written down a phone book and placed it next to the telephone so that he could easily find the number when making a call.

When Ye Chengjiang arrived, some children were playing games, the younger ones were playing wildly at the door, and the older ones were hiding in their rooms. It was the perfect time to make a phone call.

However, when he dialed the number to find someone, he swallowed the words "Lin Huixin" and said he was looking for "Lin Guangming" instead!
Calling Lin Huixin out of the blue is too abrupt. He should just contact Lin Guangming directly, since he's closest to the Lin brothers, Lin Guangming and Lin Guangwen.

There's plenty of time for the rest.

When Lin Guangming heard that he was going to the city with his family the next day, he didn't say anything. He asked for the reason and then hung up. He then relayed the message to his family when he got home.

Sister-in-law Ye came over to help with the cooking, and she was happy to see him on the phone.

As soon as she hung up the phone, she came over immediately, wiping her hands on her apron, a rare sight on her face with a big smile.

"Did you finish your call with Huixin? What did you say?"

"Don't keep talking about things that aren't even close to happening, or you'll make a fool of yourself later."

"Okay, okay, I won't say anything, I won't tell anyone."

"It's settled then. I'll go to the city to collect rent tomorrow, and use that as an excuse to go with the Lin family. I'll also stay at their house for a few days. Don't let it slip."

"Good, good, good, this is good." It was rare for Sister-in-law Ye to find him agreeable.

The whole family is leaving tomorrow, so we've prepared an extra lavish meal for dinner tonight. We already had extra groceries to buy for the guests this morning, and we've cooked them all tonight.

Mr. Ye held his wine glass with a touch of sadness, knowing that the festivities would only last a few days before ending.

"Wishing you all a bright future and peace and prosperity."

"Come on, everyone, may you all be safe and prosperous..."

The old lady secretly wiped away her tears with a handkerchief.

Ye Yaodong patted her shoulder and said, "I'll come back to see you in two or three months. You can stay home and help take care of the house. Take good care of yourself. In a few years, I'll throw you a 100th birthday party!"

The old lady is 93 years old this year. She died in 1987 in her previous life, and has lived eight years longer in this life. She is already known for her longevity in the village, but she has indeed aged a lot in recent years.

He plans to hold a grand 100th birthday celebration for the old lady in the year 2000.

He will be 98 years old by then, and the elderly usually celebrate their birthdays in advance.

The old lady wiped away her tears, smiled, and said, "You're just trying to comfort me again."

“This isn’t flattery; it’s the truth. You’re the oldest person in the whole village.”

"There's no need to celebrate those birthdays, they're all just formalities. Just come home and visit me more often."

“Okay, I will definitely come back often when I’m not busy. I was very busy in the first few years when my career was just starting out and I couldn’t get away. I will come back to visit more often when I have time.”

"Alright, alright, make sure you eat well and stay warm while you're out there. Don't be stingy, and don't keep giving your dad money. They all have money, and I have money too... Oh, wait, you've made a lot of money, you're a big boss now, so don't be too busy..."

The old lady's speech was somewhat incoherent, and her memory was confused.

Hearing this, Ye Yaodong felt a pang of sadness in his heart. Holding her thin, bony hand, he could barely speak and could only nod in agreement.

The dinner table was as lively as ever, especially the children's table, where there was chaos and shouting.

The next morning, those who were supposed to leave set off early on the boat.

Ye Chengjiang also packed his bags and took a car to find Lin Guangming and the others. He was now using their name to take advantage of their proximity.

The Lin family had been waiting for him all morning, and they set off for the city together once he arrived.

As for Lin Guangming and the others who were going to take the boat, they went to the meeting point at the town's dock before dawn to wait.

Lin Guanggu looked at him and said, "If I had known you hadn't collected the rent, I would have asked my dad to collect it for you. It would have saved us the trouble of bringing it back."

“The tenant felt it was inconvenient and said they wanted to give it to us in person, so I thought I'd just make the trip, since it wouldn’t be a big deal.”

While he was speaking, he kept glancing at Lin Huixin.

Lin Huixin secretly glared at him.

He grinned at her.

He was very familiar with all the people of the Lin family's generation, and the group chatted and laughed as they rode in the car.

Once he arrived in the city, he naturally moved into Lin Huixin's house. As for when he would leave, he would decide based on the situation; he needed a resolution before he could leave.

Either win the heart of the beauty, or give up and leave.

He felt that it definitely couldn't be resolved in just a few days; he would be lucky if it could be done in a month, so he felt he had to apologize to Ye Chenghe!
For his happy life, his brother should make a sacrifice!
After moving into the Lin family, he planned to work hard like a slave to show his sincerity and satisfy the elders, and then shamelessly lower himself to pursue Lin Huixin!
The elders couldn't figure out his thoughts in the first two days, but by the third day, they basically understood.

They all know each other well, and as long as things don't go too far, the elders won't interfere. If both parties are interested, they'll naturally be happy to see it happen.

The biggest obstacle might come from his brothers, but since they've both gone to Zhou City, Ye Chengjiang only needs to focus all his efforts on his target.

Compared to Lin Guangwen, who won the heart of his beloved, his obstacles were relatively small.

After Ye Yaodong and his group arrived in Zhoushan, they were extremely busy. After all, there were too many things piled up during the Spring Festival, and everyone was spinning like a top.

His three children were naturally taken back to Shanghai by Lin Xiuqing, but they were all grown up and could handle their own school registration, so there was no need to worry about them.

Ye Chenghe was busy running around by himself. After about a week, Ye Chengjiang still hadn't returned, so he couldn't help but call home.

After asking around, it turned out that Ye's mother wasn't quite sure either, so she gave Lin's father his phone number and asked him to call and find out.

When Ye Chenghe finally found Ye Chengjiang, Ye Chengjiang was still diligently wiping tables and working as a waiter.

"...I'll have to go back a few days later."

"A few days late is a few days late? Is it really necessary to go through all this trouble to collect rent? It's been a week already, you could have crawled back."

"Didn't I already say? Besides collecting rent, there are other things to do."

"What's the matter? Is it more important than making a lot of money?"

He was on the phone in the store at the time, so he lowered his voice and said, "Looking for my wife."

Lin Xianghui also installed a telephone in the store; it's a paid service, so he can earn some money from phone calls and it's also convenient for him to make calls.

"You're looking for a wife? If you go to the city to find one, who's going to introduce you to anyone in the city?"

"I'll tell you the details when I get back. I'm busy now, but once I'm successful, I'll treat you to a month of meals at the cafeteria."

"Why the hell do I want to eat in the cafeteria? I'm not an old bachelor."

"I'll give you a month's supply of cigarettes. That's all for now, I'm hanging up. Sorry, brother, you'll have to work hard for a few more days. When I get married, I'll thank you for eight lifetimes."

Ye Chengjiang hung up after he finished speaking.

Ye Chenghe chuckled and hung up the phone. "Two years ago, he kept saying he didn't want to get married early and only wanted to date. Now he's in a hurry and wants to find a wife. He's not being stubborn anymore."

"Not planning to come back?" Ye Yaodong asked without looking up as he was signing documents.

"He says he's chasing after a wife, but I wonder who he's found this time? He's always running around, looking for one woman here but not there, and now he's gone to the city. I wonder where this woman has come from that's worth him traveling all that way for, even if he's not making any money."

"You didn't know? He didn't say?"

"What are you saying? What do you want to know?" Ye Chenghe's mind didn't quite catch what he meant.

Ye Yaodong put down his pen, tidied up the documents, and said, "He went to the city to chase after Lin Huixin."

"Ah!" Ye Chenghe's eyes widened. "You went after Lin Huixin? When did you take a liking to her? I knew it! During the homecoming banquet, I sat right next to Lin Huixin and kept making her laugh."

"Holy crap, what a brilliant plan! He took advantage of everyone leaving after the New Year to raid someone's hometown?"

"This time he actually had good taste and found someone reliable. The first two times he just picked someone randomly, neither of them were reliable and it was a waste of time. Lin Guangming's wife introduced him to someone before the new year, but that person was also quite unreliable."

Ye Chenghe, drawing on his own experience, directly criticized and berated him, while also thinking that he was smart to have already reserved a wife for himself!

By the time Ye Chengjiang gets married, he'll probably be able to have three children!

Ye Yaodong also felt that he was reliable this time, knowing to keep an eye on Lin Huixin.

“It would be a good thing if it works out. He’s not young anymore, and he needs to find someone soon. It would be great if he could persuade Huixin to come with him and work at the factory.”

"Tsk tsk tsk, chasing after a wife by going to her door and getting her to go with him, that takes skill."

"Don't underestimate him. He's quick-witted, not stupid, decent-looking, taller than all of you, from a good family, and he can earn his own money. He's a popular choice in the surrounding area. He just hasn't found the right person yet, otherwise he would have been married long ago."

"I hope this time it will work out right away, otherwise, if he keeps running off to chase after his wife every few days, I can't handle running the business by myself. I don't know when he'll come back. I asked him but he didn't say. Damn it, I hope he doesn't stay away for several months."

"Why aren't you getting busy? Stop talking nonsense."

Ye Chenghe was indeed busy. As soon as Ye Yaodong urged him to leave, he immediately put on his hat and went out.

After the person left, Ye Yaodong continued to work. There was too much work to do, and he was also in charge of deciding on some of the factory's welfare and salary adjustments after the New Year.

There were quite a few meetings, but he only issued orders in these.

The pension issue we mentioned earlier has been put on the agenda after the New Year. The factory has been asked to draft the first batch of recipients and to explain to everyone what a pension is.

With incentives in store, everyone is motivated to perform well, which fosters healthy competition and encourages everyone to hope the factory will continue to improve.

He also asked the factory to check the approval documents for the high seas fishing rights and to inquire if there were any new regulations or policies this year that required their cooperation.

All of these things need to be prepared for in advance.

By the time he finished his busy work, more than half a month had passed, and it was already the second day of the second lunar month, the day of the Dragon Raising its Head. Only then did he have time to call Lin Xiuqing, thinking of making a trip to Shanghai to see the children.

Lin Xiuqing was also busy. After returning to Shanghai after the New Year, there were many things to do, and the couple could only talk on the phone for a few minutes. They hadn't even met since the New Year.

"Then let me know when you're coming, and I'll pick you up at the dock."

"Okay, while you're at it, take a look at the house's renovation. Have you checked it out yet?"

"Yes, I've been busy with this for a while now. After the New Year, we started construction, and I have to go to the construction site every day to check on things and reconcile accounts with the building material suppliers."

"There are too many houses, and it's not easy to afford renovations. The developers don't even know to offer fully furnished apartments; leaving them as bare shells is a huge hassle."

Lin Xiuqing changed the subject, "Huixin called me and asked if she would have an easy time finding a job if she came up here?"

"Did Ajiang get it sorted out?"

"They were being coy and I didn't quite understand what they were saying. I'm also busy and don't have time to call my brother and sister-in-law to ask. The two kids must be dating, otherwise they wouldn't have called me to ask this question. They're thinking of coming up here with him."

“That’s great. If she comes, I have plenty of work to do. It’s easy for the factory to assign her to any female worker.”

"That's what I said too. They called me yesterday. I'll call back later to ask."

"It's quite efficient, it was done in less than a month. Chenghe was complaining to me a few days ago that he was indifferent to women."

Lin Xiuqing said with a smile, "A good woman is afraid of a persistent man. He stayed at her house every day, helping with chores all day long, and trying to please her. People are made of flesh and blood. In addition, Ajiang is not bad either. He is good-looking and his family is well-off. He will always be tempted to give it a try. My brother and sister-in-law do not object."

"Then give them a call and see. They should be here in the next couple of days."

"Yes, my second sister-in-law must be overjoyed to hear this. She kept talking about it during the New Year and even asked me to help introduce Huixin. But before I could even ask, she went to Huixin herself to promote Ajiang."

“Ah Jiang is decisive. Once he made up his mind, he went straight after her. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have had this chance.”

"It's also brought about a good thing. I told you, if Ah Jiang's destiny is truly there, it will come quickly, so there's no need to worry."

"He's finally come to his senses; he's focusing on his surroundings and no longer has unrealistic ambitions."

After the two finished their phone call, Lin Xiuqing called home to confirm.

The two started dating and didn't plan on a long-distance relationship. Lin Huixin and Ye Chengjiang came to work here together, and they were aiming for marriage.

Anyway, she was already helping out at home, so coming here to work won't affect her family. At most, they can just hire someone else if they can't manage.

Lin Huixin's siblings are all here, so her parents are very relieved that she came here. Moreover, she got a job immediately after arriving.

Ye Chengjiang finally got his revenge and bought a boat ticket after getting her family's consent.

(End of this chapter)