Chapter 386 - 385: Then Lend a Hand

As Xue Yue was heading home, she saw Ruanruan and Shiyi returning just as she neared her doorstep. Someone else was following behind them.

"You must be Tie Dan, right?"

It had been some years since she’d last seen Tie Dan. He had grown into a young man, still deeply tanned, but very sturdy.

"Auntie, it’s me." Tie Dan scratched the back of his head, a little embarrassed.

"Come in and sit for a while. I haven’t seen you in so long. In the blink of an eye, you’ve gotten so big. How’s your mother?"

"She’s at home. She’s always talking about you."

Xue Yue said with a smile, "I’ll go visit her another day. It really has been a while."

"Tie Dan, are you still in school?"

"No, I’m not smart enough. I’m no good at studying, so now I just do farm work with my dad."

This was the case for most children in the countryside. Either their families couldn’t afford school, or the children themselves disliked studying. They would stay in the village to do farm work, get married and have children when they came of age, and never leave for their entire lives.

Shiyi wasn’t familiar with Tie Dan, but Ruanruan had a good memory. She used to follow Tie Dan around and play with him, so after spending a little time together, they became familiar again. She took Tie Dan to see her drawings.

The day after they returned, the family went to pay respects at Mrs. He’s grave.

On the mountain, the snow was thick this time of year. He Lang swept the snow off the grave and pulled out the weeds.

"Mom, we’re back."

Mr. He looked at the burial mound and said, "Old woman, our third son was busy this year, so we didn’t come back to see you. The New Year is almost here. We brought you some food, including your favorite sponge cake. We also bought you two new sets of clothes. We’ll burn them for you in a bit."

After speaking, he and He Lang placed the pastries and fruit in front of the grave.

"I’ll burn some gold ingots for you. You can spend these for now. I’ll send you more next time I come back."

Xue Yue led the children in burning paper offerings, then kowtowed before Mrs. He’s grave.

"Third Son, you all head back first. I want to talk to your mother a little more."

He Lang looked at the burial mound. "Okay."

After coming down the mountain, He Lang headed for Uncle He’s house, while Xue Yue walked home with the children.

"Xue Yue, you’re back." It was Li Gaihua.

"Sister Gaihua, I was just thinking I should find some time to come visit you."

Li Gaihua looked the same as ever, except for a few white hairs on her head.

"I only knew you were back because Tie Dan told me."

"Yes, we’re back for the New Year."

Li Gaihua looked in the direction they had come from and said, "You went up the mountain?"

"Yes, to pay respects to my mother-in-law."

"This must be Ruanruan and Shiyi. They’ve grown so big." Then she stared at Daya for a few moments, not recognizing her at first.

"That’s right. Sister Gaihua, why don’t you come to our house and sit for a while?"

Li Gaihua nodded.

The children went to their rooms, and Xue Yue led Li Gaihua inside.

"Sister Gaihua, have some snacks."

Li Gaihua looked at the things on the table and didn’t stand on ceremony. She knew Xue Yue’s personality; she wasn’t someone who made polite but empty offers.

She took a small bite and said with a smile, "It’s so sweet."

"If you like it, have some more."

Li Gaihua waved her hand. "I’ll just have one piece. This is expensive stuff. A taste is enough."

"Oh, right. I was too embarrassed to ask earlier, but is that your sister-in-law’s child?"

Li Gaihua was talking about Daya.

Xue Yue nodded. "Yes."

The villagers knew a little about their family’s affairs. Li Gaihua had only heard about it but had rarely seen Daya.

"So she’s already this big. She’s very pretty, looks like she’s from the city. It’s a good thing she’s with you. Look how well you’ve raised your two children."

Xue Yue smiled. "Tie Dan has grown up well, too. He’s so big now."

"Hah, he’s eighteen. All he does every day is follow Da Qiang around, doing a bit of work, toiling over that little bit of crop in the fields. He has no prospects."

Speaking of which, Li Gaihua was worried. "The boy is grown, he’ll be nineteen soon. Other than being strong, Da Qiang and I don’t have any special skills. In a few years, we’ll find him a wife, and that will be our duty fulfilled."

"Why not let Tie Dan go learn a trade? At least it’s better than farming."

"We want to. But first, we don’t have the money, and second, we don’t know anyone who can give us an introduction."

It was true. Without money or connections, it was very difficult to find another path.

Then, Li Gaihua brought up Little Chen. "That boy is so much more capable than his father. Who would have thought Gao Cuiyun would see a day like this? Living in a big house, with a daughter-in-law and a grandson now. Who in the village isn’t envious of her life? Everyone knows it’s thanks to you and your husband."

Xue Yue said with a smile, "That’s because Little Chen worked hard himself."

Li Gaihua looked at Xue Yue. "But he only has this life because you two took him out of here."

A little while later, He Lang returned. Li Gaihua stood up, saying she had to leave.

"Come over and visit when you have time. You like pickled cucumbers, and I pickled some more this year. I’ll have Tie Dan bring some over for you later."

"Okay, thank you, Sister Gaihua."

Li Gaihua waved her hand and left.

Xue Yue returned and said to He Lang, "What do you think of Tie Dan?"

He Lang nodded. "He seems like a good kid. Why?"

Xue Yue told He Lang what Li Gaihua had just said.

He Lang looked at her. "You want to help him?"

Xue Yue said, "It’s Sister Gaihua who wants us to help. She didn’t say it directly, but I could tell."

He Lang asked her, "What do you have in mind?"

Xue Yue thought for a moment and said, "We’ve practically watched Tie Dan grow up. Even though we haven’t seen much of him these past few years, you can tell he’s an honest kid."

"Then let’s help him. I know Brother Daqiang is a good man, so Tie Dan can’t be much different," He Lang said directly.

Xue Yue asked him, "How should we help? Take him to Beijing City? Are you still short on people over there?"

"We are. When the hotel opens next year, we’ll need to hire more people anyway. One more won’t make a difference."

It didn’t matter who they hired. Since the request had been made, however subtly, it wouldn’t be right to refuse.

Xue Yue nodded. "Alright. I’ll ask him when he comes over later."

When Tie Dan came over to deliver the pickled cucumbers, Xue Yue took them and asked casually, "Tie Dan, have you ever thought about leaving the village to work?"

Tie Dan was a little confused. "Auntie, go where?"

Seeing his reaction, Xue Yue understood that this was Li Gaihua’s idea; the boy didn’t know about it yet.

"To Beijing City."

Tie Dan was stunned for a moment. "Auntie, I can’t. I don’t have a degree, and I don’t have any skills. Besides farming, I don’t know how to do anything else."

He Lang came out of the house.

"As long as you’re strong, that’s enough. Besides, you’re still young. If you don’t know how to do something, you can learn. Do you want to come with us to Beijing City? I can arrange a job for you there. It’s better than farming, no matter what."

Tie Dan was stunned. The news was a bit sudden. He didn’t accept immediately, saying instead, "I’ll go back and discuss it with my parents."

He Lang nodded. "Of course."

Tie Dan ran off. You could tell he was probably very happy.

When he got back and told them, Li Gaihua nodded happily. "Of course you’re going! It’s such a great opportunity."

He Daqiang looked at Li Gaihua doubtfully and asked, "Don’t tell me you went and asked He Lang’s wife, did you?"

Tie Dan also looked at his mother.

He Daqiang felt the whole thing was a bit abrupt.

Last night, when his wife found out He Lang and his wife were back, she had said to him, "Hey, what do you think? If I go and ask, do you think He Lang and his wife would take Tie Dan to Beijing City with them? Look at Little Chen! He followed them to Beijing City and he’s completely changed. He even built a big house for his family. Look how comfortable Gao Cuiyun’s life is now."

He Daqiang had shaken his head and said no at the time.

"Don’t. Life probably isn’t easy for He Lang and the others either. Let’s not cause them any trouble."

"Is life easy for us? Tie Dan will be nineteen after the New Year, we don’t have any money at home, and I’m worried sick!"

He Daqiang had only sighed at the time. He never expected that He Lang and his wife would make the offer today. He couldn’t help but suspect that his wife had gone and begged them.