Return to the 1982 Staff Compound

Chapter 50

Before noon, we finally returned to the county and parked our car in front of the school gate on West Street. Several students were given a break today and did not have to come to school in the afternoon.

Qiu Huoming got off the car excitedly, carrying his luggage and preparing to go home.

He and Gu Xiaoran parted ways at a crossroads, and he was eager to return home as he had many things to take care of at home, especially his precious tapes.

They hurried to the door of the house. It was just noon time. The eldest sister had prepared the meal and was about to start eating with her father. The youngest sister heard some noise outside the door and ran to the door. Seeing that it was Qiu Huoming, she smiled so hard that her teeth were showing. She walked closer and grabbed Qiu Huoming's collar, "Brother, it's you who's back."

Qiu Huoming's heart softened. This was probably the happiness of having someone waiting for you to come home.

He reached out and touched her hair. "Brother brought bread for you and big sister. You must have never eaten it. It's delicious."

"Great."

The eldest sister also walked to the door and wanted to carry the bag for him. After a while, Qiu Huoming was left with nothing in his hands.

Qiu Jianshe sat at the dining table without moving. When he saw him come in, he said, "You're back. How did you do in the exam?"

"Well, I did OK on the test. How about mom?"

"She eats in the factory cafeteria."

Qiu Huoming turned to his elder and younger sisters who were dividing the spoils and said, "Leave two loaves of bread for our mother."

"I stayed." The younger sister answered loudly.

Qiu Jianshe's face looked a little ugly.

Qiu Huoming glanced at him, ignored him, went straight to the kitchen, washed his hands, and brought out the dishes.

Passing by the eldest sister, he took a loaf of bread from the bag, walked to the table and handed it to Qiu Jianshe, "Dad, you try it too."

Qiu Jianshe refused to take it, but Qiu Huoming stuffed it directly into his hand. It was obvious that a smile that could not be concealed broke out on Qiu Jianshe's deliberately tense old face.

Qiu Huoming sat down on the chair and asked casually while serving rice: "Dad, what are you busy with recently?"

"I helped people write materials and had to visit people everywhere. I took off a few people's 'hats' and they insisted on giving me gifts, but of course I refused."

As soon as Qiu Jianshe talked about work, he immediately became excited: "There is a new director in our unit, and he wants me to go to the countryside with him tomorrow. If there is enough time, I will go to see your grandfather, grandmother and second uncle."

"Come back tonight?"

"You will most likely have to stay overnight. It depends on how the director arranges it."

"When will Grandpa and his team demolish the house?"

"It's almost there. I heard from my classmates in the commune that the county coal factory has allocated a three-bedroom apartment with a yard. Let's go check it out on the weekend. The coal factory is close to our home and we can take care of it."

These are consistent with the original body's memory. Qiu Huoming noticed that his father's expression had become a little more open recently, and his previous depressed look was rarely seen anymore.

This person's appearance really changes with the circumstances.

Being transferred to this department might actually be a good thing for him.

The elder sister and the younger sister have already divided the bread.

The eldest sister said with a smile, "I left some for my father, mother, and brother. The youngest sister and I each have two."

There were 12 small loaves in total. Qiu Huoming smiled somewhat sadly, "Brother ate a lot. I don't want any more. You leave two for mom and one for dad. The rest can be divided equally between you two."

The little sister's eyes sparkled, "Can I take it outside to eat?" The child probably wanted to show off to her friends.

"You can eat wherever you want, but let's eat first." Qiu Huoming said, pointing at the food on the table.

"Yeah." The younger sister and the older sister both sat down at the dinner table obediently.

After dinner, Qiu Huoming returned to his room with his schoolbag and immediately started his copying plan.

It was not until Chen Suniang came back in the evening and knocked on his door that he came to his senses. He tidied up the finished products on the table, stretched, and walked out.

It was already dark, and the younger sister was at the door chasing the chickens back to the firewood room. When Chen Suniang saw that he had finally come out, she felt relieved and went back to the kitchen.

The eldest sister was lying on the table doing her homework, and Qiu Jianshe had not come back yet.

"Brother, this reed chicken can lay eggs."

The little sister successfully drove the egret chickens into the room, and her face was filled with a sense of accomplishment.

Qiu Huoming suddenly remembered something, "Hey, Mom, have you sent anything to Grandma Zhu's house?"

The old lady helped so much last time, so according to etiquette, she should give us a few eggs.

"Yes, she sent it to me the next morning. She cooked a big bowl of sugar and eggs and sent it to me. Then she sent me a bag of brown sugar." Chen Suniang said with a smile, "I heard that Xiumin's parents are coming back. It was your father who arranged it for them."

"Is it true? Grandma Zhu must be very happy."

Grandma Zhu had only one son. The couple had lived in the countryside for more than ten years. Their life was very hard, and Grandma Zhu often used her family savings to support them.

The county has only implemented a policy of returning to the city in the last two years.

However, it took some time for these policies to be implemented in the townships below.

Perhaps they also heard the news in the countryside, and when they heard that Qiu Jianshe was busy with these things recently, they found him. Qiu Jianshe knew their family situation well, and according to the policy they could indeed enjoy the benefits of returning to the city. He only spoke facts when doing things, and rarely gave others a way out. Instead, he looked up some information and personally helped them collect it. Probably they would be able to return to the city in a few days.

Chen Suniang complained that her husband took on all the responsibilities, but at the same time she felt that he was able to help the people in the compound this time, which gave her some face.

"Du Xiumin's brother is not young anymore. I remember he is only half a year younger than you. His nickname is Baozi. Their family is too quiet. When the three of them come back, life will become lively again."

Qiu Huoming was startled. His original body didn't pay much attention to the things around him, but after all, he was a playmate who grew up together. In his memory, Du Xiumin's parents didn't return to the city. Later, they asked her to go to the countryside. She refused, and they came from the countryside and made a fuss in the compound for a long time. After they were brought back to the countryside, it was finally Grandma Zhu who came forward to settle the matter and brought her back.

Not long after this incident, she left the small county town.

He didn't even know that Du Xiumin had a younger brother.

"Then will the street office arrange jobs for them when they come back?"

"I don't know about that. Hey, come in and serve the dishes. It's time for dinner!" Chen Suniang shouted at the top of her voice.

The eldest sister quickly cleaned the table, and the younger sister skipped into the kitchen to get the dishes.

Qiu Huoming touched his nose and smiled, "I'll serve the food. Mom, have you eaten the bread? Put it in your bag and eat it when you're hungry. It won't be hard and doesn't need to be heated."

"You spent money again?" Chen Suniang walked out of the kitchen, untied the bib around her waist, walked into the living room and hung the bib on the hook.

"Our teacher invited us here, saying it was a reward for our hard work during the competition."

"Then keep it for yourself. I noticed that you haven't eaten at home in the past two days, and your face has become thinner."

Qiu Huoming was silent. He pinched his cheeks. How could he tell that he had lost weight?

After the meal, I persuaded her to put two pieces of bread in her bag.

Qiu Huoming chatted with Chen Suniang about random things. He occasionally went back to his small room to change the side of the tape and then came out again.

"Mom, how's your job change going?"

"It will be announced tomorrow."

"Have you found your master yet?"

"I found him. I treated him to lunch today and bought him a bottle of wine. Don't tell your dad."

"Hey, I know, I'm very tight-lipped."