Chapter 1692: Three

Ye's father rushed back from home and had barely stepped into the factory when he heard that Ajiang and Ye Chenghe were going to buy a big truck.

Surprised, he hurried straight to his grandsons' dormitory, not even bothering to find Ye Yaodong.

"You two are going to buy a big truck?"

"Huh? It's already spread back home?"

"You fool, I just heard it upon entering the factory."

"So it spread pretty widely? How does the gatekeeper know everything?"

"He chats with anyone he sees, so of course he knows everything. Why suddenly buy a big truck? Can you even drive one? That's not a tractor; it's a big Da Jiefang. You're so small; I think you'd struggle just to climb up."

Ye Chenghe jumped up in anger. "Nonsense! I'm still growing and will get taller."

Ye Ye Chengjiang tightened his face, afraid that if he couldn't hold back his laughter, Ye Chenghe would fly into a rage and beat him up.

"Ahem, there's a footrest to climb up; it has nothing to do with height. As long as you can drive, it's fine. I heard there are now special places to take the big truck exam. If we go to Shanghai in our spare time to get a big truck license, there should be no problem."

"There are places to take the exam now? A few years ago, you still needed a master driver to accompany you, and you had to be with them for a year or two before they'd sign off for the license."

"No place to take the exam? Even small cars have places to take the exam."

"Well, small cars are for small cars."

"Who cares? As long as we can drive, it's fine. Besides, I've never seen anyone check for a license."

Lin Guang nodded. "Right, we've been driving for two years, and no one has ever checked for a license."

Ye's father said nothing more, thinking that if no one checked, it should be fine; as long as they could drive, it was enough.

"Why suddenly think of buying a big truck? Isn't the tractor working just fine?"

Ye Ye Chengjiang pointed at Ye Chenghe. "He said he wanted to buy one. He asked me, so I just decided to buy one together with him."

"I thought of it suddenly too. The money I have has just been sitting there, so I thought I might as well use it. Otherwise, Xiuni keeps asking me how much money I have. My mother told me to wait until after she gives birth and we are of one mind before saying anything."

Ye's father nodded. "Your mother is right. You just got married; who knows if she'll move everything back to her maiden family? You don't earn money easily. It's not too late to wait until after she gives birth."

"It's not like she'd move everything back to her maiden family, is it? Would she not live her own life?"

"That's hard to say. There are women like that in the village too. If you hand over all your money to her at once, she'll think earning money is easy. She hasn't suffered with you, and she was used to being poor before. Once she has too much money on hand, she can't handle it."

"Oh."

"Besides, she's young and hasn't experienced much, so she's easily manipulated. You two are the same; the difference is the money is earned by you, and the hardship is all yours. You wouldn't squander it anyway."

Ye Chenghe nodded in agreement; the hard work wasn't just on him.

Working until the early morning hours every day, if he really spent money recklessly, he'd find it hard to bear. Only buying a truck to earn more money made it worthwhile. Third Uncle said it was good, so he could afford to do it, and besides, Ajiang was there to accompany him back to the days before liberation.

"It's good for you two to switch to big trucks together; you can earn more money, and it'll be easier to explain to Chenghe's wife."

"Right, just say that the money earned in these two years went to buying the truck, and it's still not enough; we even owe some money that will take a year or two to repay. Anyway, as long as there's money for her to spend every month, it's fine."

"So when are you planning to go to Shanghai to look at trucks? Chenghu has to go to school in Shanghai in a couple of days, and I need to start practicing driving."

"We're waiting for Third Uncle. Whenever Third Uncle goes to Shanghai, we'll go with him. Otherwise, we won't understand anything. Even if you went, you wouldn't understand either."

"Then I'll take Chenghu to Shanghai tomorrow."

Ye Chenghu protested. "Why go tomorrow? I don't want to. I'm not in a hurry; going the day after tomorrow is fine. I want to stay here for a few more days."

"What do you want to do here?"

"Play, of course."

"Don't you have classmates in Shanghai too?"

"We're not close anyway. Anyway, I want to wait a couple of days before going. If you want to go, go by yourself."

Ye's father was at a loss and thought about finding Dongzi to ask.

He came up here to go to Shanghai early and start practicing driving early; otherwise, why would he have come up so early? He could have stayed home to look at the house more.

"If you want to go learn driving early, then go to Shanghai early. Chenghu is old enough and has nothing to do. He could even take the boat here by himself; in a couple of days, let him take the boat to Shanghai by himself. If I have time, I'll go with him; if not, he'll go alone."

"If you're not worried, I'll go by myself first and not wait for him."

"There's nothing to worry about. The bus stop is just a few steps from the dock where the boat unloads. He's taken it before and has already stayed in Shanghai for a month."

"Alright then, I'll go to Shanghai tomorrow."

"I was wondering why you didn't stay longer at home this trip; turns out you can't wait to go learn driving."

"Of course. The sooner I learn, the sooner I get the driver's license. When you buy the small car, it'll be convenient for the factory to pick up and drop off guests."

"Alright."

Ye's father hadn't felt tired after a few days on the boat; he felt full of energy and didn't need rest. After leaving Ye Yaodong's office, he walked around the factory with his hands behind his back.

Now he could still hear people calling him "General Manager Ye" for a while; later, he'd have to hear people calling him "Master Ye" every day.

The next day, Ye's father took the boat to Shanghai to report for duty.

Ye Yaodong thought that since Ye Chenghu was about to start school and Ye Ye Chengjiang and Ye Chenghe also planned to go to Shanghai to look at trucks, he might as well arrange the itinerary to handle his business and take them to see the trucks along the way.

Ye Chenghu was overjoyed to know that two brothers would accompany him on this trip back to Shanghai.

"You two stay for a few more days. When school lets out, I can take you to tour my school. My school is huge; it's several times bigger than our old school..."

"No way!"

"I finally got out of school; I'm not going back."

Ye Ye Chengjiang and Ye Chenghe each said a sentence, decisively refusing.

"Why not? That's high school. You two haven't even been to high school; you can go take a look..."

"What's there to look at? I don't care about it at all."

"Exactly, we're going to look at trucks." Ye Chenghe turned to Ye Yaodong. "Third Uncle, aren't you going to buy a small car for Grandpa to drive? Can we also take a look at small cars along the way?"

"That works too. After I finish my business, I'll take you to look at the trucks."

"Ah... can you wait for me? I want to see the trucks too." Ye Chenghu wailed.

"No way!"

Before Ye Yaodong could speak, Ye Ye Chengjiang and Ye Chenghe answered with smug satisfaction.

They had originally wanted to brag about their high school, but instead of bragging, they ended up being outmaneuvered.

What high school is as good-looking as a car?

Ye Ye Chengjiang and Ye Chenghe slung their arms over each other's shoulders, raising their eyebrows smugly. "You just focus on your classes at school; leave the car business to us."

Ye Chenghe chimed in, "Right, you little brat should just focus on your classes. Stay in school where you belong, and don't try to tag along for everything!"

"Dad..."

"Focus on your classes during class time. Taking leave is impossible. There will be plenty of chances to see the car later; once they buy it, you'll see it naturally."

"That's not the same. If we wait until they buy it, we can only see the one they bought. Going to the car dealership lets us see a whole bunch! How can that compare?"

"Then there's nothing to be done; you have to attend class."

Ye Ye Chengjiang chuckled, "You are a future university student; you must study hard. The future of our great family depends on you!"

"A future university student! Hahaha..." Ye Chenghe mocked him without holding back.

Ye Chenghu's face turned red with embarrassment, his scalp tingling. "Shut up! Who said anything about taking the university entrance exam? Don't call me that!"

"I'm going to call you that! Future university student! Hahaha~"

"I'll fight you to the death..."

Ye Chenghe quickly hid behind Ye Ye Chengjiang. "University student~"

"Shut up!"

"University student~ University student~"

"Ahhh..." Ye Chenghu jumped up...

Ye Yaodong grabbed him. "Stop fooling around. Pack your things; we depart for Magic City tomorrow morning."

"Dad, they are too much. Don't take them."

"Even a university student is so petty~" Ye Chenghe continued to provoke them.

"Ahhh..."

Ye Yaodong could barely hold him back, looking speechlessly at the three childish ones.

"How old are you all, still acting like this?"

Ye Chenghe laughed. "Chenghu just said a few days ago that we are all children in our teens."

"Bullshit! You said yourself that since you are married, you are an adult. Are you childish or not?"

"I am not childish! You are the one in our whole family who has read the most books. If you don't take the university entrance exam, who will? If you don't go to university, who will? Right?"

With the last sentence, he turned the question back to Ye Ye Chengjiang.

Ye Ye Chengjiang also chuckled in agreement. "Exactly, you are the hope of our family. In three years, you will be a Ye University Student!"

"You damn..."

Ye Yaodong simply let go. "Fine, go ahead and fight. Fight until you kill each other. Tomorrow, none of you are going."

Ye Chenghe and Ye Ye Chengjiang separated, scrambling up to the upper bunks on both sides as fast as monkeys, giving Ye Chenghu no chance to get close.

"Hehe, come on, come on..."

Ye Chenghe also held a pillow to tease him. "Come on, come on..."

Ye Yaodong watched speechlessly as Ye Chenghu jumped up and down, while the other two teased him like fishermen with a line, holding pillows.

"Childish."

Dropping that sentence, he turned and went out, too lazy to care about their fighting.

How old are you? One of you is about to become a father, yet you are still so childish.

The noise behind him continued without stopping...

The next morning, Ye Yaodong led three yawning people to the dock.

After boarding the ship, the three sat in a row on the floor, heads leaning on shoulders, eyes closed.

Ye Yaodong's eyebrows furrowed so tightly they could crush a fly. "How late did you stay up last night?"

Ye Chenghe opened one eye and closed the other, pointing at Ye Chenghu. "Ask this damn dog!"

His eyebrows furrowed even tighter. If Ye Chenghu is a damn dog, then what is he?

Ye Chenghu kicked Ye Ye Chengjiang. "You damn dog!"

"You treacherous Wang Ba..."

"Did you go stealing last night? Your eyes still won't open. I was thinking of letting you sleep a bit longer, so I chose an 8 o'clock departure."

You should know that his usual trip to Magic City is on the 6 o'clock boat.

"Ye Chenghu is the one who is the dog thief!" Ye Chenghe said angrily, still holding a grudge.

Ye Ye Chengjiang, with eyes closed, said, "We delivered goods until 2 AM before returning. This Wang Ba, Chenghu, wanted to get revenge on us, so he placed a basin of water on top of the door."

Ye Yaodong: "..."

"... Then we returned in the middle of the night. It was pitch black; we didn't see anything. Ye Chenghe walked in front, I walked behind. Seeing the door wasn't locked, I pushed it open and went straight in."

Just thinking about it made Ye Chenghe angry; he sat up straight and stopped closing his eyes.

"That basin of water poured directly from my head to my feet. Damn it, you damn Wang Ba..."

"I was right next to Chenghe, so I got soaked halfway too..."

The two glared angrily at Ye Chenghu and cursed.

Ye Chenghu shifted his butt to the side and sat right next to Ye Yaodong.

Feeling a bit of safety, he finally spoke. "Who told you to tease me during the day and keep mocking me? Then you ran off to work, slapped your butt, and left. Of course I had to get revenge."

Ye Chenghe: "Damn it, in the middle of the night, you made me wash my hair."

Ye Chenghu: "You guys ganged up on me afterwards!"

Ye Ye Chengjiang: "If I beat you to death, it's your own fault!"

Ye Chenghe: "Third Uncle, that son of a bitch even went up to the top bunk on purpose, so we couldn't beat him..."

Ye Ye Chengjiang: "Crawl up there if you have to and drag him down to beat him!"

The three of them traded words, instantly energized by the argument; if they weren't on a boat, they would have been fighting again.

Ye Yaodong finally understood why the three of them looked like they hadn't slept.

Indeed, they hadn't slept; they had been fighting all night long.

"You lot are just bored and full of yourselves. You're too idle. Ye Chenghu, you're not allowed to come back until you finish your studies in Shanghai; just stay there and go to school."

Ye Chenghe arrogantly tilted his chin at him. "Did you hear that? Stay in Shanghai and go to school properly. Get into university for me. If you don't get in, I'll break your legs."

Ye Yaodong kicked him, finishing his lines for him. What was there left for him to say?

"You just behave yourself. When we get to Shanghai, I'll call your wife and have her come up to manage you. Your wife isn't here now, so you're too free. Anyway, your wife wants to stay there directly."

"And you, Ye Ye Chengjiang..."

Ye Ye Chengjiang straightened his back; he felt he had no hold over him! No weakness!

Indeed, women and studying only affected him!

Ye Yaodong paused for a moment, not knowing what to say.

"Oh, you just behave yourself too, or I won't buy a car. I'll dump you in Shanghai to supervise for me, swap Wang Jiale back, and it's been half a year since he and Chen Baoguo rotated."

"Hehe, I didn't even get a salary for working..."

"That's simple. I won't use your car for cargo anymore. If you don't want to starve, you'll have to work for me and get a salary."

Ye Ye Chengjiang instantly became obedient.

"Third Uncle, I'm being good. I'll listen to whatever you say. Whatever you tell me to do, I'll do!"

"I'll tell you to eat shit!" Ye Chenghu shouted eagerly.

Ye Yaodong raised his hand to slap, and Ye Chenghu shrank his neck.

"Everyone just behave yourselves."

"Understood."

"You lot are just annoying. I should dump you to work; out of sight, out of mind..."

The three of them immediately fell silent, too afraid to make a sound.

But only a few minutes later, they were bored, walking around the boat, and before long they were laughing and playing together again.

After getting off the boat, the three of them were brotherly again, arms slung over each other's shoulders.

"Dad, it's only afternoon. How about we go look at the car now? Otherwise, I have school tomorrow..."

"Where should we go to look?"

"Asking you! Didn't you take us there?"

"Did I know where to look by birth? Don't I need to spend time asking people?" Ye Yaodong glanced at him, left them behind, and walked ahead.

"Then couldn't you just make a phone call?"

"Stop annoying me. I have my own plans. Did you finish your homework during these vacation days?"

Ye Chenghu clamped his mouth shut. Staying with them every day, it was either playing cards or arguing and making noise; they were so excited, how could he have time to do homework?

At most, when they went out to work, he did a little bit himself, but only for a while; his mind would fly off to the nine heavens.

He still had homework unfinished now, planning to cram at night, or copy it when he went to school tomorrow.

Ye Yaodong saw his demeanor and knew his homework wasn't finished.

He poked him a few times with his index finger. "Go back and do your homework. Don't go anywhere."

Ye Ye Chengjiang immediately let go of the hand on Ye Chenghu's shoulder and waved it at him twice.

Now he wasn't on their side either; they were people going to look at big and small cars.

"Unfair!"

The two of them didn't retort; they slung their arms over each other's shoulders and walked together, leaving him behind.

Ye Chenghu, puffed up with anger, could only hurry to catch up.

Then, unwillingly, he chased after them and asked: "Dad, when are you planning to go look at the car?"

"I don't know."

"Then I'll live with you. When I get out of school, can I come find you?"

"Do you know where we are?"

"Leave a note when you go out."

"Just go to your school properly. Why so many questions?"

"I want to see the big and small cars too..."

"You're so annoying. Fine, we'll go again. I'll go handle some business first. You two can wander around Shanghai on your own, or go ask around yourselves, or go look yourselves first."

Ye Chenghu was happy; now he believed he was their biological son.

The other two exchanged a glance and had no objections.

Ye Ye Chengjiang: "That works. How about we just look around first? Third Uncle, what business do you have? Otherwise, we can follow you?"

Ye Chenghe: "Yeah, we can follow you. Whatever business you have, we can follow and help."

"No need to help. If you want to follow, you can, just consider it gaining some experience."

Ye Ye Chengjiang: "Great. Following you is better than us running around blindly on our own."

Ye Chenghu instantly didn't want to study anymore, feeling he was missing out on so much by studying...

Ye Yaodong turned to look at him. "Do you want to live in Pudong, or live with us in the western-style house?"

"I want to live with you."

"Then let's all get in the car."

"Oh, I don't even know where my grandpa lives?"

"He probably lives in a Western-style house; he wouldn't suffer needlessly."

Ye Ye Chengjiang asked excitedly, "I wonder how my grandpa's driving lessons are going; has he learned to drive yet?"

"Otherwise, if we go to see the car in a couple of days, we can bring my grandpa along; when we look, can we sit inside and try it?" Ye Chenghe said with equal enthusiasm.

"Probably not."

Ye Yaodong was also unsure if test drives existed now; he thought they probably didn't, and at most, one could sit inside to get a feel for it.

"Then just looking is good enough."

"Sitting inside to get a feel for it should be allowed."

Ye Ye Chengjiang: "My grandpa will be so excited; the first person to drive a small car! By then, he'll be the only one in the entire factory who can drive!"

"The only one in the whole village who can drive! That's awesome!"