Chapter 261: Repayment

After Lao Jia and Jia Youwei returned to the Siheyuan, they caused quite a stir. There was no other reason than that the two looked too much alike. None of them had known Lao Jia had such a younger brother; only his good buddy Yi Zhonghai knew.

"Big Brother, this, this is..."

"Hahaha, Lao Yan, this is my younger brother Jia Youwei. Youwei, this is our courtyard's man of culture, Teacher Yan Bugui."

"Hello, Teacher Yan." Because Jia Youwei practiced martial arts and read books year-round, his posture was upright, but from reading so much, his temperament was actually closer to that of a scholar.

"Hello, hello."

Along the way, Lao Jia kept smiling as he introduced Jia Youwei to the neighbors, until they reached the Middle Courtyard and Yi Zhonghai came out.

"Big Brother, is he the one from back then..."

"Yes. Youwei, this is Big Brother's neighbor and colleague, Yi Zhonghai."

"Hello, Elder Brother Yi."

"Good, good, hello."

Yi Zhonghai was genuinely happy for Lao Jia. When he drank with Lao Jia, Lao Jia had told him about it after getting drunk; the tearful, regretful look he had then was still fresh in Yi Zhonghai's memory.

Returning to his own courtyard, Lao Jia's smile remained undiminished. At this time, Zhang Xiaohua was preparing a sumptuous dinner. Lao Jia had tipped her off before returning, and upon hearing the commotion, she saw Lao Jia bringing over a spirited young man.

"Youwei?"

"Sister-in-law, it's me."

"Good, good, good, come in quickly. Dongxu, Huairu, your second uncle is back. Bang Geng, Xiao Dang, Ling Ling, your second grandfather is here."

"Second Uncle, are you completely better?"

"Mm, I'm better, thanks to your uncle Ping'an."

"Good, good."

Although Jia Dongxu had only met Jia Youwei once, he felt a natural closeness to this second uncle; perhaps this was the bond of blood.

"Second Uncle, this is my wife Qin Huairu, my son Bang Geng, my daughter... hurry and greet him."

"Second Uncle."

"Hello, Second Grandfather." (x3)

"Good, good, good. Here, these are red envelopes from your second uncle/grandfather, take them well. There are also some specialties from Modu here, Dongxu, you divide them among the children."

"Alright, Second Uncle."

"Dongxu, you go to the kitchen and watch the pot. I'm taking Youwei to see your maternal grandfather's house."

"Alright, Father, Mother."

In fact, along the way, Lao Jia had already told Jia Youwei everything about Zhang Ping'an, from moving into the Siheyuan until now; their family had also gotten better day by day after Zhang Ping'an arrived.

"Father, Mother, I've brought Youwei over to thank you."

"Ho, what a handsome young man."

Zhang Laohan had also learned about Jia Youwei from Zhang Xiaohua. At the same time, he was secretly shocked; this young man's looks could rival his own when he was young—though, of course, still a notch below the handsome readers here.

"Uncle Zhang, I am Jia Youwei. Thank you for your family's Ping'an curing me. This is a small token of my appreciation."

"Hahaha, good, come in and sit."

Lao Jia and Jia Youwei came over firstly to thank Zhang Ping'an for saving his life, and secondly to tell them about Zhang Ping'an's itinerary.

Since it was mealtime, the few of them simply caught up and then headed back. They would still go to see the relatives of Daniu Ye tomorrow.

"Father, Mother, dinner is ready at home, so we'll head back first."

"Good, good, good."

Returning home, Jia Dongxu and Qin Huairu had already finished stir-frying the dishes. Seeing everyone back, they prepared to serve the rice and eat.

"Dongxu, you ask for leave tomorrow, we'll go back to our hometown together."

"Alright, Father."

"I'll go too," said Zhang Xiaohua.

"Done."

The family finished their meal in a lively manner. Lao Jia was so happy he drank two extra cups, and while drunk, he clamored about finding a wife for Jia Youwei, wanting their Jia Family to branch out and have a house full of children and grandchildren.

"Second Uncle, can you tell me about your experiences over these years?"

Jia Dongxu felt that after his second uncle recovered to normal, his temperament was now very similar to his uncle's.

"What is there to say? Your second uncle has been on the train for a day and a night. Wait until tomorrow when there's time. Youwei, you go back and rest first, the room has been tidied up for you."

"Good, thank you, Sister-in-law. Dongxu, Second Uncle will stay in Sijiucheng for a few more days, we two will chat slowly later."

"Alright, Second Uncle."

The next morning, Lao Jia borrowed a tricycle, and the family of four brought gifts and returned to their hometown, Jia Village.

As soon as the family arrived at the entrance of the village, they caused a stir.

"Big Brother, this, this is Youwei?"

"Yes, Youwei, this is your elder brother Youzhong."

"Hello, Elder Brother Youzhong."

"Good, good."

"Youzhong, we still have some things to do, so we're going back to the old house first."

"Alright."

Returning to the old house, with Jia Youzhong's care, although it was a bit dilapidated from not being lived in for a long time, it was still clean. The four of them tidied up a bit and went to the Back Mountain to visit their father's grave.

"Father, I've found Youwei and brought him back." Lao Jia's voice trembled, his eyes were red, and he held back his tears as he rambled on and said quite a lot to his father.

"Father, your son is unfilial for returning late." Jia Youwei also kowtowed a few times with a thud.

Half an hour later, the four of them composed their emotions and went to the Taoist temple on the Back Mountain. Back then, it was thanks to the old Taoist priest's intervention that Jia Youwei could even be born, but unfortunately, they arrived to find it empty; there was no one at the temple at this time.

"Then let's go directly to Daniu Ye's house."

"Alright."

Returning to his hometown to pick up the gifts, he went straight to Jia Daniu's house.

"Knock, knock, knock."

"Who is it? Coming. Brother Youcai, what is this?"

Jia Youfu looked at the family carrying large and small bags in surprise; he did not recall much interaction between the two families, especially after Uncle Dadan (Jia Dadan, Jia Youcai's biological father) passed away.

"Youfu, let's go inside to talk."

"Oh, right, look at me, I forgot. Come in and sit."

"Youfu, this is my younger brother, Jia Youwei. This matter has to start with him. Youwei, you tell him."

Jia Youfu was somewhat suspicious and uncertain; he remembered that Jia Youwei had been abducted when he was four years old, and while his appearance did indeed resemble Uncle Dadan, he did not look like a man in his thirties.

"Alright."

Jia Youwei then recounted everything from start to finish, from the time he met Jia Daniu to after Jia Daniu passed away.

"Dad..." Although Jia Youfu knew his father was likely gone, he still could not help but cry upon hearing it for real.

"Brother Youfu, Daniu Ye asked me to come back and check on things for him after I recovered. He also had many years of savings here, and now it is all handed over to you."

This was actually the salary Jia Youwei had saved up over the past ten-plus years; he had nothing else, only a bit of money to repay Jia Daniu's son.

"If you want to go see Daniu Ye, I can take you to Modu."

"I will go, I must go. Thank you, Youwei. My father had your company in his old age."

Jia Youwei shook his head and smiled bitterly; although he had his memories back then, his body was completely beyond his control. If it weren't for him being a burden, Jia Daniu could have lived at least a few more years.

Jia Youwei left the things behind, made an appointment with Jia Youfu to return to Modu in a week, and the family returned to Sijiucheng.

Jia Youwei settled down in the Siheyuan just like that; every day, aside from wandering around to familiarize himself with Sijiucheng, he spent almost all his other time in his room organizing the knowledge in his mind.

This knowledge from over twenty years could not be digested in a day or two; even with the assistance of Zhang Ping'an's tea leaves, it would take at least a year to fully comprehend it all.

Three days later, Zhang Ping'an returned. Before he even arrived at the Rolling Mill, a letter of commendation had already been mailed there. After Li Huaide read it, he was even happier than if he had received the commendation himself.

"Hahaha, Ping'an, well done. Everywhere you go, they send letters of commendation for you."

"It is all thanks to your good teaching, Factory Director."

"Hahaha, go back. I'll give you three days off to rest well at home."

"Alrighty."

Zhang Ping'an was so moved he wanted to cry; Comrade Li is truly the ideal boss for us workers.