Starting a new chapter in life

Chapter 273 Cheng Xiaoran (Grandma) — 2

"Is this the task that the special envoy gave you? Is it dangerous?" I immediately thought of yesterday's visitor.

The father nodded: "Yes, he came with a purpose. If I handle it well, our family will be safe for at least ten years. But if I shirk my responsibility, I'm afraid our family will not fare well either. We are just ordinary people and have no choice."

"Could you tell me what it is?" I was really worried.

"It's related to arms dealing. You don't need to know the rest; knowing too much won't do you any good. I've taken all the available working capital from the cotton mill. If we can't hold on any longer, the factory should be closed down."

The shops on those streets are enough for you to live a wealthy life. You're a girl, so doing business is fine, but don't be a troublemaker. Money is just an external thing; you can't be without it, but too much is also a burden. Your father only wishes for you to live a peaceful and smooth life. Do you understand?

I nodded. "Don't worry, I've got it."

“If Wan Qing asks you for money, as long as it doesn’t cost you anything, just give it to him. Things are already chaotic, so having more options always means more possibilities. Don’t worry about the money,” my father added.

I asked softly, "Is he contacting the Communists...?"

My father nodded, which was a positive answer for me. The huge weight that had been hanging over my heart for so long finally lifted. Knowing who was on the other end of the line, my heart finally felt at ease.

That evening, my father left home with two attendants and a suitcase full of money. He never returned. A long time later, leaders of the Kuomintang in Haishi came to deliver a medal and an urn containing his ashes, saying that my father had bought weapons from foreigners and donated them to the Kuomintang, and that he was a meritorious person.

Heh... If someone wants credit for something, let them have it. I just want my family to be safe and live my own little life. I don't want such a huge credit. But who asked for our opinion? They're all gone now, and they're just sending us a cold, insincere medal. What good is that?

But I dared not speak my mind, and I had to suppress the dissatisfaction on my face, just to save the rest of my family. Finally, after sending the person away, the calm I was maintaining suddenly collapsed, and my heart ached.

Turning back into the main room, I saw my mother weeping bitterly, clutching the urn containing my ashes. I went to her and embraced her. She hugged my waist and sobbed loudly. I wanted to cry too, but in this situation, if I couldn't hold on, this family could easily be taken over by those with ulterior motives.

This is the business my father built. Even if I can't make it flourish, I can't let it decline. I patted my mother's shoulder, tilted my head back, and held back the tears that were about to fall.

Even though I was mentally prepared for my father's passing, my mother still couldn't recover. With the arrival of an autumn rain, her already frail body finally gave way, and my mother passed away along with my father. I carried my parents' ashes and had Wan Qing drive them back to Yangzhou to be buried in the ancestral grave.

My older brother had already contacted me beforehand, and he was waiting for me at the entrance of the old house. When we arrived, we placed the ashes in a side room, and then my brother and I went to inform our relatives of the death and discuss the burial arrangements.

To my utter surprise, the relatives did not consider the bond of kinship at all. They refused to bury my parents in the ancestral graveyard, claiming that it was already full. My older brother was about to go forward to argue with them, but I quickly grabbed him and pulled him out of the main room. The two of us stood under the osmanthus tree in the courtyard to discuss the matter.

“Brother, since the main branch doesn’t like us and is preventing our parents from being buried in the ancestral graveyard, why don’t we buy a piece of land and separate our branch? We can also move the family genealogy out. Our family still has you and me, so the lineage won’t be broken.” I said through gritted teeth.

The elder brother sighed, "I can, but you can't. After all, you're married out of the family, and you should be buried with your husband's family."

“Wan Qing has no home for a long time, and his family doesn’t have any family tree or anything like that. As long as you don’t mind, we can bury him here in the future. Even if we’re in the underworld, we brothers and sisters can still have a lively reunion. Wouldn’t that be nice?” I think this idea is quite feasible.

The elder brother shook his head helplessly: "Go back and discuss it with Wan Qing. If he's willing, I'll be happy, of course. But if he's not, don't force him. After all, you two are going to be together for life, and it's not good to have disagreements over what happens after you're gone."

I nodded in agreement. After we discussed it, we returned to the main room. My eldest brother suggested that we should separate our family genealogy so that our parents wouldn't have to be buried in the ancestral graveyard.

Originally, the head of the family only agreed to bury our branch separately, but did not agree to remove us from the family genealogy. After all, our family is quite wealthy. But there's no such thing as a free lunch, so my siblings and I were naturally unwilling.

I disregarded the rule that one shouldn't interrupt in front of this elder of the clan and retorted, "Our family only has assets left in Yangzhou now, and my elder brother's business is just so-so."

My father withdrew all the working capital from the factory in Haishi to buy weapons and give them to the Kuomintang. Our family is no longer as prosperous as it once was. If we cannot be separated from the family genealogy, then our parents should rightfully be buried in the ancestral graveyard.”

One of the clan elders frowned: "Are you telling the truth? Your father donated all his money?"

I shrugged: "Otherwise, how could we, as outsiders in Haishi, have settled down smoothly? It all comes down to money. Before, my father ran the business, and it was quite profitable. Now, my parents are gone, my second brother is gone, and I'm just a woman left. I don't have any business acumen. I only have a few shops to collect rent to cover our daily expenses."

If any of you elders don't believe me, you can always ask the government. Even though my father spent money and died, the Party and the State still awarded him a medal. Although that thing isn't really useful, at least my older brother and I won't be bullied."

They probably already knew about this. After a few whispered discussions, they finally agreed to let us separate from the clan, but they wanted one of the steel mills owned by the eldest brother. I frowned, not wanting to give it up, but the eldest brother patted my shoulder and agreed.

Sure enough, the factory was given away, and the branch family affairs were handled smoothly. We left with the new family tree. I turned around and looked at this so-called ancestral home, feeling very resentful: "A bunch of bloodsuckers."

After my older brother pulled me away for quite a distance, he spoke gently: "The world is too chaotic these days, and the steel mill is too conspicuous. If they want to give it to us, they can. They'll take the money, and the corresponding risks will be transferred to them. If you look at it this way, we won't lose out."

But I still feel a bit resentful: "Donating to the government would at least give us a good reputation, but if we give it to them, they won't even say 'good,' and they might even think our family is easy to bully."

My older brother patted my shoulder lightly: "It's okay. On the surface, our family hasn't bought any particularly valuable assets in Yangzhou. I haven't been making a splash in the business world these past few years. Letting people think that we've mismanaged our business and our family has fallen on hard times isn't necessarily a bad thing."

I converted all the assets here that could be liquidated into small gold bars and silver dollars. Now it's just the two of us siblings left at home. I set aside half for you and used it to buy you two new houses in Yangzhou.

"The items are hidden under the walls of these two houses. Once the situation stabilizes, you can dig them up if you need them. It's safer than keeping them in a bank safe deposit box. Keep the property deeds safe." He handed me a purse, trying to put it in my hand.

I frowned and shook my head: "Brother, the Yangshi area was left to you by Father, I can't accept it. I actually run the cotton mill in Haishi quite well. Although Father did take all the working capital from the books, the finished products and raw materials in the warehouse have not been touched. I can be responsible for my own profits and losses. In addition, I also have a small villa, a house, and more than a dozen shops in Haishi, which is enough for me to live comfortably."

My older brother smiled and patted my head, as if he were still a child: "That's what Father gave you, the property in the open. This is the hidden money I'm leaving you. In case of any unforeseen circumstances in the future, you'll still have a way out. And if something happens to me one day, you can be my fallback."

Considering the current situation, having more options always makes me feel more at ease. I took the purse from my older brother and promised, "Consider it safe for you for now. Come and get it if you need it later."

After the family genealogy was separated, my older brother and I started looking for a suitable location. My brother took our father's medal to the local land bureau, and sure enough, with that, the government was very cooperative and the relevant departments were very helpful. They quickly identified a small hill in the suburbs.

The mountain wasn't very high, and the vegetation wasn't lush. A feng shui master looked it over and said it could provide shelter for future generations, so we bought the mountain, hired craftsmen to fence it off, did some repairs, and chose an auspicious day to bury the ashes of our parents and second brother.

With the important matter settled, my older brother took me to see the two houses. They are currently occupied by elderly people living alone. They don't charge rent; all I need to do is look after the houses and clean them. The two elderly people are very grateful for my brother's kindness and repeatedly promised to cherish them even more than their own homes.

Later, I was very grateful for my elder brother's foresight. During the days of continuous war, we were not greatly affected. On the contrary, after peace was restored, we became like frightened birds. The two houses in Yangzhou provided Jiao Xu with a place to settle down and make a living. It was an unexpected benefit.

When the War of Resistance against Japan began, medicines were scarce. My youngest daughter caught a cold and developed a lung infection. Anti-inflammatory drugs were listed as military supplies. By the time I managed to get the medicine, it was too late. Perhaps because I had witnessed too many separations and deaths in recent years, I felt strangely calm at that moment.

Am I sad? Of course I'm sad, but no tears can flow. I'm mechanically handling my daughter's funeral arrangements like a walking corpse. Although there's a custom that says underage children can't be buried in the ancestral graveyard, my family doesn't believe in that.

Furthermore, since she had become independent and could make her own decisions, her eldest brother had no objections, so the youngest daughter was buried next to her second brother, so that they could keep each other company.

Back in Haishi, I still couldn't get over it. After some time, one day Wan Qing brought back a boy who looked to be thirteen or fourteen. He told me that the boy's parents had been killed by the Japanese and that he was now an orphan. He asked if our family could take him in.

The boy looked terrified, and when I saw his eyes, he flinched away like a frightened cat. For a moment, my heart softened. I turned to Wan Qing and looked him straight in the eye. "Were his parents murdered or...?"

Wan Qing whispered, "It's a sacrifice."

I understood and nodded in agreement. It would be good to keep Jiao Xu company. The boy has been depressed because of his sister's departure. Although I'm not much better myself, I still hope he can get over it as soon as possible.

Less than a year later, a traitor appeared in the railway bureau, and Wan Qing left. I knew he had been assigned to the army and was no longer an underground worker, but on the surface, he was shot and killed by a stray bullet during the turmoil in the railway bureau, and I lived alone with my two sons.

The War of Resistance Against Japan was brutal. Even in Haishi, my two daughters and I had several close calls with death. Fortunately, we survived them all without serious injury. In 1940, Wan Qing secretly returned home. That time, the base area needed medicine and came to me for help.

Before he returned, I had just given some money to the Nationalist army to buy weapons and equipment. Because I am a woman, the person who came only asked for the money. Seeing that I gave it to him readily, he did not make things difficult for us, a widow and her child. He even told me that I could ask for help if I encountered any problems.

Wan Qing needed strategic medicines this time, so I took out all the cash I had in my private possessions and traveled to several places before finally managing to gather the urgently needed medicines. The leader who came back with him was quite satisfied with my support.

Actually, I don't want much. No matter which faction succeeds in the end, I won't offend them. It's not easy to survive in the chaos of the world, especially since these are supplies prepared for the war against Japan. As long as we can get by, I don't mind taking out any extra supplies. Otherwise, it would be even more unsafe to keep them all in my pocket.

Before leaving, Wan Qing wanted to take He Jiaosheng with her. He had been with the family for three years and had even changed his name. The boy, who had just graduated from middle school, was going to be taken to the army, where he would face bloodshed in the future. To be honest, I really couldn't bear to part with him. The family had already lost one man, and all I wanted for the remaining two children was for them to live peacefully.

However, Jiao Sheng himself was quite willing. I pride myself on being a reasonable mother, and since my child was willing, I could only reluctantly agree after several attempts to persuade him. I prepared clothes and travel expenses for the father and son, and sent them off under the cover of night. Watching the three of them disappear into the darkness, I turned around and went home, locking the door behind me.

The neighbors were wondering why they hadn't seen my eldest son for so long. I smiled, looking disappointed, and replied, "This kid isn't good at studying, and he's no good at business either."

His classmate was going back to the countryside, and out of curiosity, the boy wanted to go with him for a while. I let him go; if he can really endure the hardships of farming, at least he'll be able to make a living in the future.”

My neighbors agreed with my thinking. Farmable land is indeed scarce in the city, while there's plenty of arable land in the countryside. If I could become a farmer, at least I could feed myself; it would be a way out.

However, most city kids can't endure hardship, so my approach was quite novel. As for how many other families later had the idea of ​​sending their children to the countryside to learn farming, I didn't know and wasn't interested. I just wanted to give an explanation for Jiao Sheng's whereabouts to avoid attracting the attention of those with ulterior motives and bringing trouble to the family.