Chapter 466: The Millennium

After a few simple pleasantries, everyone got into the car and drove toward Zhang Jia Zhai. Only then did Zhang Ping'an ask about their purpose for coming to Sijiucheng; one had to know that unless there was a matter of importance, his maternal grandparents would basically never leave Beijiang.

"We intend to live in Sijiucheng permanently..."

"That's wonderful, Grandma, Grandpa!"

Before his grandparents could finish speaking, Zhang Ping'an was already filled with excitement. This way, they could drink Space Water long-term by his side, which could also slow down the aging process, and he could take care of them at any time; it was much better than being far away in Beijiang.

"When the time comes, Grandma and Grandpa, you can live with my parents. Everyone will be in the same courtyard, and it will be convenient to look after each other."

"Good, good, good, we'll listen to our good grandson."

His grandparents had originally intended to live in their own old house (although it had been transferred to Zhang Ping'an), but now they could not bear to refuse their grandson's kind intentions.

Moreover, they were no longer young; they were both centenarians, and letting them live alone in an empty house was indeed worrying.

Zhang Ping'an had notified his family after calling his eldest son earlier, and his parents were likely preparing lunch and waiting right now.

"Eldest Uncle, our supermarket in Wushi is also nearing completion. My cousins are all from procurement backgrounds, so when the time comes, they can go and help guide the younger generation."

Oriental Supermarket had a complete procurement process, and most of the goods were produced in-house, so there was no need for guidance at all; only local specialties required someone to oversee them. This was also Zhang Ping'an's way of helping his few eldest cousins—killing two birds with one stone.

The Oriental Group in Wushi had not originally planned to develop there, but since Oriental Supermarkets now had a presence across the provincial and municipal map of the country, one more location didn't matter.

"Ping'an, I know about Oriental Supermarket. Don't forget that your Eldest Uncle used to work for the cooperative."

Zhang Ping'an touched his nose in embarrassment. He had truly forgotten his Eldest Uncle's previous profession; one had to know that their supply and marketing cooperatives were the predecessors of supermarkets, and one could understand the general operation of a supermarket at a single glance.

"I know you mean well, but let it be. They have all retired, and it's quite good for them to stay home and look after their grandchildren. If any of the younger generation has the ability to enter Oriental Supermarket, just look after them appropriately."

"Mm, okay."

Zhang Ping'an agreed. He couldn't say he was familiar with his cousins' children; he only knew their names roughly, and only had some impression of Dong Xiaoxiao, who was about the same age as his own children, though she should be nearly forty by now, right?

At Zhang Jia Zhaiyuan, just as Zhang Ping'an had thought, Dong Dani and Zhang Laohan had indeed prepared a table of food and wine. Everyone washed up briefly and sat down to eat.

"Mom, Dad, you must stay for a longer time this visit."

"Mm, good. If there's nothing else, we'll live in Sijiucheng from now on."

"That's wonderful, Mom, Dad!"

Like Zhang Ping'an, Dong Dani was happy the moment she learned her parents would be living in Sijiucheng permanently.

Judging by her father-in-law's age, although her parents' health was better, their diet and lifestyle were different; with these factors offsetting each other, their lifespan would likely be about the same as her father-in-law's. Calculating this, they had at most twelve or thirteen years left.

If they stayed in Beijiang, they would be beyond reach, but now, eating and living together in Sijiucheng, perhaps they could extend their lives by a few more years.

"You're already over eighty, yet you're not steady at all," Grandma patted her hand, signaling her not to get excited.

"..."

"Hehe."

In the evening, his younger brother's family also came over, and everyone gathered together lively. Considering the age of the elderly, the dinner party ended at eight o'clock.

His younger brother Xile's child, Zhang Weijia, was already married. He had attended a specialized secondary school, studied Finance, and was currently working in the Finance department of the Sijiucheng branch.

As for the other two children, nineteen-year-old Weihe and sixteen-year-old Weiyu, they were both still in school.

Zhang Ping'an stayed at home for a few days, then returned to his hometown to see his Second Uncle and Third Uncle; both of them had recovered.

Zhang Ping'an left behind some Space Ingredients, added quite a bit of Space Water to the water vat, and after eating lunch at his Second Uncle's house, he went to the Back Mountain.

Zhang Ping'an went to the Back Mountain at least three or five times every year, all to pick tea leaves and to check on Dahu and the others along the way.

The three tigers had now lived for forty or fifty years, and seeing their physical condition, Zhang Ping'an feared it would only be a matter of these few years.

Thanks to Zhang Ping'an frequently sowing grass seeds and using Space Water to irrigate the plants on the Back Mountain, there were no longer any clear paths; it took Zhang Ping'an more than two hours to reach the Tea Plantation.

Besides Zhang Ping'an, no one else dared to venture deep into this place, not only because the ancient trees reached the sky, but also because the animals here were significantly larger than those in the outside world; even old hunters had never ventured deep inside.

Dahu and the others were the first to notice Zhang Ping'an, but they only lifted their heads to look for a moment before lying back down lazily.

Although their bodies were still massive, their vitality was fading, and their fur no longer had the luster it had in their youth; they were entirely like decrepit, old, and listless tigers.

Zhang Ping'an fed the three tigers some Space Water, gave them a few rubs, and then went to pick tea. With the movement of his hands, the tea leaves fell off, and then they were stir-fried and sealed in the space.

"You guys come with me to the space; stay there from now on."

It was impossible for Zhang Ping'an to let the three tigers die in the wilderness like this. Although he wouldn't erect a tombstone, burying them deep in the mountains of the space was possible.

"Roar."

Zhang Ping'an settled the three fellows next to the Space Tea Tree. He didn't need to worry about them; although they were old, the space was like a buffet for them, and hunting was still not difficult.

"Uncle Laiyou, how did the negotiations with the neighboring villages go?"

Just in case, Zhang Ping'an had planned to contract the village's Back Mountain a few years ago, but that Back Mountain didn't just belong to Zhang Family Village; it also belonged to three or four surrounding villages, and they had never reached a consensus.

The current village head was Zhang Weimin, and he had no objections to Zhang Ping'an contracting it, but there were people in the other villages who disagreed.

People in their fifties or sixties like Zhang Weimin couldn't suppress those old fellows; only Zhang Laiyou stepping forward would work.

"Ping'an, why don't you just contract the part of the Back Mountain belonging to our own village? Those old fellows are too stubborn."

During the three special years, because of Zhang Ping'an, Li Family Village, Fang Family Village, and several other villages had not suffered much, and the things in the mountains had rarely been ruined. The older generation all said it was the protection of the Mountain God, so no one would let anyone touch the Back Mountain.

If Fang Guomin were still around, persuading Fang Family Village wouldn't have been much of a problem, but he had passed away more than ten years ago.

"Fine, then we'll contract the part belonging to our own village."

Zhang Ping'an contracting the whole thing was also for better protection, and it would be convenient for him to plant various medicinal herbs later. Since they were unwilling, Zhang Ping'an stopped dwelling on it and would take down his own village's Back Mountain first.

Zhang Ping'an contracted it for fifty years directly within the scope permitted by law, and the fees were paid off in a lump sum.

Fifteen yuan per mu, and the area of the Zhang Family Village Back Mountain was about five thousand mu; calculating by six thousand mu, it was less than four and a half million.

"This..."

"Ping'an, why don't you pay in installments?"

Even though every household in Zhang Family Village now had brick-and-tile houses, the annual income from everyone's greenhouse cultivation was at most twenty or thirty thousand;

earning a bit more elsewhere, the annual income would not exceed forty thousand. This was already a wealthy village in the surrounding area, but to come up with six million would still require the total annual income of nearly half the village.

"No need, we'll go pay the fees directly tomorrow." There were too many variables with installment payments later on; it was better to settle it all at once.

"Alright then, Weimin, you take Ping'an for a trip tomorrow."

"Alright."