Chapter 505: Gossip Survival System (4)

Xie Yang was terrified that Grandma Xie would lose the will to live, so after finalizing the discharge procedures, she carried the gift bags given by the Union representatives in her left hand and supported the old lady with her right, walking toward home.

"Grandma, the dead cannot return to life; we must live even better instead, so that Grandpa, Mom, Dad, and Uncle and Aunt can rest in peace in the afterlife. Once I bring my little brother back, I have to work during the day and will have to trouble you to look after him, so you must take good care of your health."

Once Grandma Xie heard this, she felt it made sense, wiped away her tears in a few swipes, and patted her granddaughter's hand: "You're right, Grandma must pull herself together! All that talk about cursing husbands and children, that's just feudal superstition! Grandma doesn't accept this charge! Grandma must watch over you two siblings, and only when I see you both grow up to be successful, marry, and have children, will Grandma be at ease..."

When the grandmother and granddaughter arrived home, it was just in time for the noon break; those who lived close to their workplaces usually went home to cook for themselves at noon to save on expenses.

The Dazayuan was quite lively at this moment.

Some were squatting in front of the water tap washing vegetables, some were stir-frying in the makeshift shack kitchens, and others were already eating—holding their rice bowls and chatting with neighbors while they ate.

Seeing the Xie Family grandmother and granddaughter enter from the southeast side gate, they couldn't help but exclaim:

"Yang Yang is out of the hospital? Are you all right now?"

"Ask the factory to approve a few more days of leave for you, go home and rest well for a couple of days."

"So many good things? These are consolation gifts from the factory leaders, right?"

Many pairs of eyes followed this remark and looked in unison at the mesh bags in Xie Yang's hands.

Xie Yang smiled and nodded: "I'm much better, thank you all for your concern."

"Right, right, right, the doctor approved Yang Yang's discharge, so that means she's much better. We won't delay you from cooking, we're going inside now."

Grandma Xie hurried home to pack her granddaughter's luggage.

Dongjiang County was over two thousand kilometers away from Beijing, the train ride would take four or five days, and arriving at the station didn't mean reaching the Nongchang immediately; she heard one had to transfer three more times, and after picking up the little grandson, it might take another day or two to depart, so the round trip would take at least ten days or so.

Therefore, she needed to bring two sets of clothes to change into, enough dry rations and water for the road... and bring some powdered milk for the little grandson.

And what if he cried and made a fuss on the road? Grandma Xie dug out the rattle her granddaughter used to play with when she was little.

Thinking of this, she wanted to scold her youngest son again.

With such a big event as his wife being pregnant, couldn't he have sent a telegram or written a letter to share the good news?

Perhaps he wanted to come back and share the news in person, only unfortunately he was gone, leaving the family unaware that the young daughter-in-law was pregnant.

What a mess...

After packing a relatively large bundle, Grandma Xie thought it over and still felt uneasy:

"Yang Yang, why don't I find someone you know to accompany you. Your Aunt Cui Fen is a good person, and the match factory hasn't been busy lately; I've noticed she hasn't had any work pasting matchboxes for several days, but I don't know if she can get away from her family... If that doesn't work, I'll go ask if Little Guo is free..."

Little Guo was Guo Lihua, the daughter of Widow Guo.

When she was young, she had learned Military Physical Training Fist for a few years from her father, who had been a soldier, and she was quite formidable when she fought; with her accompanying her, Grandma Xie would feel much more at ease.

But Little Guo worked at the Newspaper Office and often worked overtime until late at night, so it was uncertain if she was free.

"Grandma, I don't need anyone to accompany me, I can do it alone."

"But it's several days on the road, you alone..."

"I'll buy sleeper tickets for both ways; the sleeper carriages are strictly managed and the safety is relatively good, so Grandma doesn't need to worry."

Grandma Xie had never taken a sleeper train, so hearing her granddaughter say this, she believed it to be true.

"Then come with Grandma."

She took Xie Yang's hand and walked into the bedroom, taking out a biscuit tin from the kang cabinet, inside which lay several sets of keys.

She took one of the small keys, which only had two teeth, opened the small drawer inside the cabinet door, and took out a small cloth bag from the drawer.

"Your parents' pension, Grandma has saved it all for you. These are the money from selling their job positions; keep the bankbook and the money well. If your little aunt's family... you can see about giving them a bit more. After all, our family implicated them."

Xie Yang took the bankbook and glanced at it: six thousand yuan exactly.

There was also one thousand two hundred in cash.

She thought for a moment and set aside two hundred to return to the old lady: "Grandma, our family also needs to live, I'll take one thousand. If it's not enough, I'll withdraw it from the bankbook."

"There's no need to return it to Grandma; you've started working, so from now on you'll be the head of this household, and this money should be kept by you. Grandma has a pension, and although it's not high, it's enough for buying groceries."

Xie Yang thought about it and did not decline.

Grandma Xie took another small iron box from the lower drawer, which contained the loose change and vouchers used for daily expenses: "Take some more for spending on the road; when you get there, don't go empty-handed, buy some fruit or pastries or something, people don't blame you for being too polite."

Xie Yang agreed to everything.

The original owner had been working for less than two months, so she really didn't have much money on hand, and even fewer vouchers.

Anyway, only the two of them were left in the family... oh, and there would be a baby little cousin in the future; as long as they lived well, it didn't matter whose money was spent.

Grandma Xie handed over the financial power and went to the kitchen to prepare dry rations for her granddaughter to eat on the train.

Xie Yang boiled two pots of water, filled the family's thermos with one, and carried the other to the bathroom in several trips, pouring it into the bathtub.

Thanks to the original owner's parents, they had built a bathroom for this home while they were alive.

It was an extra-large wooden bathtub with a rotating wooden plug at the bottom; after turning it a few times and pulling it out, the water could be drained, and the drainpipe was connected to the sewer outside.

This way, there was no need to scoop out the dirty bathwater bucket by bucket and carry it out to dump, which saved a lot of effort.

With the bathtub and the independent bathroom, bathing was much more convenient, though of course, if one wanted to scrub cleaner, one could spend money to go to the state-run bathhouse.

But Xie Yang was still used to soaking in the independent bathtub.

Before soaking, she used a loofah to clean the tub walls thoroughly and changed the water twice before starting to bathe.

Before bathing, she asked the Main System to exchange a Physical Fitness Potion for her.

【Host, are you sure you want to exchange?】

The Main System's youthful simulated voice sounded somewhat guilty.

Xie Yang narrowed her eyes: "Don't tell me the points aren't enough. I remember the tasks from the last plane were completed quite well."

The Main System stammered.

Xie Yang logged directly into the system backend to check her points.

At this look, it almost sent her away.

"?" The task reward from the last plane was only this much?"

【It's not that, Host, the reward was very high, but...】

Xie Yang crossed her arms, waiting for it to quibble.

【System is not quibbling, it's just that... the Jump Administration discovered that Host used the Cargo Flying Vehicle's Aircraft Cargo Hold to transport contraband, and deducted a portion of points as a penalty.】

"..."

Xie Yang cursed in her heart.

The reward points from the previous plane were at least eighty thousand, and might even have exceeded one hundred thousand.

After all, she lived to be ninety-nine years old, during which time she saved countless people, donated countless money, and quelled countless wars and riots that would have otherwise occurred.

In the end, it was equivalent to paying out tens of thousands of her own points in exchange for six cargo holds of goods?

Was this deal profitable or a loss?

【Ho-Host, are we still exchanging for the Physical Fitness Potion?】

"..."