Mei Jianzhong, 79, has greyed hair, but he has always been in good health and is never idle. He still works in the noodle factory every day.
His son-in-law and two sons are still drinking, but he has already eaten a big bowl of brown rice. 'Bring Grandpa a bowl of soup,' he says to Rui Rui, who is in the third grade.
'No, you and your aunt and uncle are going to the capital, and you're not taking me,' Ruirui said, holding her bowl and twisting her face to one side.
'Really not?' Meijianzhong asked with a smile. 'Yiping seemed to say that he was going to take his cousins to the capital for the summer holidays, but he also said that if they didn't behave, he would make them stay at home,'
'Really?' Rui Rui quickly put her bowl on the table and cheerfully brought her grandfather a bowl of soup. "Grandpa, you must tell your cousin that I am the most obedient!'
'Who did he learn this from? He doesn't look anything like Guosheng," said Mei Qiuping.
'Not from me,' said the third uncle, smiling and raising his hand.
'You definitely taught him,' said the eldest uncle. 'Just like when you were a child, if I ask him to buy a pack of cigarettes now, he wants to charge a fee for running errands,'
'Rui Rui, you say, if you do something and put in the effort, you should of course be paid, right?' Third Uncle said.
'Yes, Third Uncle, it's the same as the money you owe me for shovelling the snow for you at Chinese New Year,' Rui Rui said seriously.
'What do you call this, Yun Yun?' Big Uncle asked Third Uncle's second son with a smile.
Yun Yun, who is already in junior high school, smiled at her father and said, 'Using your own argument against you.'
Haha, now, it's San Shu's turn to blush, "Didn't I give you money during the New Year?'
'That was New Year's money, not wages," Ruirui emphasised.
'You just teach them whatever you like,' said San Shu's mother, 'and then your children and grandchildren will all rebel against you,'
'How about the three of them? Will they pass this year?' Feng Zhenchang asked. Rongrong from his eldest uncle's family, Chengcheng from his second uncle's family, and Yangyang from his third uncle's family are all taking the high school entrance exam this year.
'None of them are doing well, they can't even compare to Yiping,' his eldest uncle said. 'Yiliang said he'll think of something. If they all fail, we'll take them to the provincial capital and let them transfer to a school for one year, then take the high school entrance exam again,'
'Big sister, I'm afraid that among your five sisters, the blessing of studying has been taken up by your son Yiping. He has always been number one, from primary school to high school,' said my aunt. Among the sisters-in-law, she is still the honest and dumb one.
But now, Mei Qiuping is no longer angry at such things.
'You're talking nonsense. Why don't you look at how Yiping and the others studied in the beginning,' said my eldest uncle. 'And look at how the three of them are studying now.'
'Rongrong is still doing well,' said the third uncle, "but Chengcheng and Yangyang, not to mention the fact that they don't even sleep until five in the morning like Yiping did, even during the school holidays, when they have the whole month off, you never see them reading a book. They don't even have enough time to play,'
the eldest uncle shook his head too. "Back when Yiping and the others were living in the leaky, drafty tile-roofed house, they got frostbite on their hands and feet in winter. Now they're in the new school building, with the stove in the classroom still burning long after the first month of the lunar year. Conditions are getting better and better, but they just can't get into studying,'
'It's better if they can't get into studying, but they also have all these strange ideas. For every piece of advice we give them, they have ten counter-arguments. Sometimes we really can't argue with them,' said Auntie San.
Uncle San, who was always the most eloquent, didn't say anything at this point, but instead drank his wine with his head bowed. It should be said that the others were more or less influenced by his chatter.
'If they can't get into a good university, they can always go to an average one,' Mei Jianzhong finished his soup and said, 'This is the university they must get into.'
'Times have changed. No family will lack the money for their children to study. If they fail the entrance exam once, they'll try again, and again, and again. They'll try until they get in. People need to save face, and I want to see how they'll save face if they can't get into an average university after trying three times.'
The old man's strategy is quite ruthless. Anyway, the families are all doing well, and there's no rush for them to help make money. If they were classmates, they would already be in their third year of university, and they are still repeating their third year of high school. There really is no place for their pride.
'If they really can't get into university, then just forget it. After they find a job, they will find a way to study on their own. Yu Xuan used to be the same way. She had a headache whenever she saw a book. Now that no one is forcing her, she still finds books to read on her own initiative and goes to cram schools,' said Mei Qiuping.
'Rui Rui, tell your auntie what you want to be when you grow up,' she asked Rui Rui, who now seemed to have average grades.
'When I grow up,' Rui Rui thought for a moment, 'I want to set up a school and be in charge of the teachers myself. If they are late or leave early, I'll make them stand in the corner,'
the adults laughed with tears in their eyes. It seems that this little guy has been badly managed by his teachers and has such a big grudge.
The town's industrial park was under construction in full swing. Although everything was arranged in an orderly manner, and there was nothing specific for him to do, Feng Zhenchang still spent the afternoon on the construction site, just watching the lively construction site. He was also very happy and full of energy.
Early the next morning, he, full of energy, took his wife and father-in-law to the provincial capital, and from there, took a plane to the capital.
'Sister, this time, tell Yiping to have more photos developed,' before they left, Auntie Mei couldn't help but remind them once again.
'I know,' Mei Qiuping loved to hear that.
'I'm afraid they won't be able to catch up with Yiping,' said Auntie Mei, looking at the car as it drove away.
Apart from Hui Hui, who was still in kindergarten, the four brothers and the other seven children who were already in school were all far behind Feng Yiping, at least in terms of their studies.
'Not to mention them, how many others in the whole country can be like Yiping?' said the third uncle.
'Anyway, they can all benefit from Yiping's success, which is not bad. Even if they only go to a technical secondary school or technical school and work as labourers, they don't have to go to the south, they can do it in the town,' said the eldest uncle.
'Don't just talk about the children, if you say it like that, which of you brothers hasn't benefited from Yiping's success?'
The honest words of the honest third aunt are sometimes really not pleasing.
'Hey, hey, we are his uncles,'
...
'Still, Jingping is the hardworking one,' Mei Qiuping looked around the house, "When we went to the provincial capital, there were still unwashed dishes from the day before in the kitchen. When I asked her why she hadn't washed them, she said she was saving water by washing them together,'
'Sister was just too busy, unlike me, who has plenty of time," Huang Jingping heard this familiar line, and Feng Yiping often said the same thing about saving water by taking a bath together.
'Auntie, Yuxuan is really busy,' Li Jia chimed in, "I guess she hasn't even entered the kitchen much this month, and I'm afraid she's left the dishes in the sink and forgotten to wash them.'
Feng Zhenchang and the others were in the capital this time, accompanying Gao Zhiyi and Li Jia. Gao Zhiyi, who had been the housekeeper for many years, would be in charge of all the group's affairs in the north.
Feng Yiping gave him the keys to a house in the Shuiqingmuhua Garden, "You two should go and have a look at the house sometime, and hurry up and buy one,'
'After listening to you, we spent all our money on buying a house, so where do we have the money now?' Li Jia ran over and grabbed the key, then cried about being poor.
'You spent it before, but you still have last year's money, right?' Feng Yiping laughed, 'Besides, the houses you bought haven't gone up in value? And you're not even thanking me?'
'You're right, this is the capital, it's good to settle down here and have a child with a Beijing household registration, isn't it, Gao Zhiyi?' Li Jia asked, holding Gao Zhiyi's hand.
'You're the boss,' Gao Zhiyi said with a smile.
'Don't even think about settling down here,' Feng Yiping said to discourage her. 'It's very likely that your jobs will change again in the second half of next year,' and the year after next is 2003. He had already decided that he would just stick it out in the capital on his own.