Chapter 852: A Phone Call After Forty-Five Years

Arriving at the Hou house, Hou Dali invited Su Xinghui and Liu Xiancai to sit down in the main room, brewed tea for them, and asked, "Little Su, what do you want with me?"

Su Xinghui said, "Uncle Hou, do you have an uncle named Hou Guangbi?"

Upon hearing the name Hou Guangbi, Hou Dali's expression became tense. Hou Guangbi was indeed his uncle, but on the eve of Liberation, he had fled the country with the defeated GMD army, and before Liberation, he had also served as a GMD official.

Why are they asking about the name Hou Guangbi now? Are they going to dig up old scores again?

Although the domestic political situation has been stable for the past few years, Hou Dali had experienced the period of turmoil after all. The experience of those young radicals rushing into the Hou family courtyard, smashing and looting their home, and driving them out of the courtyard was a nightmare of Hou Dali's life. Many times he couldn't sleep at night, waking up in the middle of the night, terrified that that scene would play out again.

Hou Dali was speechless. Seeing this, Su Xinghui knew what he was thinking, so he hurriedly smiled: "Uncle Hou, don't be nervous. This time it's a good thing, not a bad thing. Is Mr. Hou Guangbi your uncle?"

Hou Dali was relatively at ease with Su Xinghui. Hearing Su Xinghui say this, he hesitated for a moment and then nodded: "Yes, I do have an uncle named Hou Guangbi, but he left the country before Liberation."

Su Xinghui said, "That's right. Uncle Hou, last night, old Mr. Hou Guangbi called me from France."

Hou Dali said in surprise, "He called? He is in France?"

Su Xinghui nodded: "Yes, he is in Paris, France. Do you remember the French businessman Joao who I told you bought my painting? It was he who sold my painting of Zhuangyuan Lane to old Mr. Hou Guangbi. Old Mr. Hou then asked him for my contact information, and that's how we got in touch."

Hou Dali asked, "Is my uncle doing well abroad?"

Su Xinghui said, "He is doing very well. In Paris, France, the Hou family is now a large family. They are famous Chinese wealthy merchants in Paris and have industries in many fields. He misses his hometown very much now and has the idea of returning to his roots."

Hou Dali's eyes also moistened, and he murmured, "That's great, that's great!"

Su Xinghui said, "However, old Mr. Hou might still have some concerns about returning to the country, so Minister Liu and I came to visit you today, hoping that you can work on old Mr. Hou so that he can dispel his concerns and return to the country smoothly to return to his roots."

Hou Dali asked, "Then how do you want me to work on him?"

Su Xinghui said, "Old Mr. Hou's concerns should mainly be about the current political situation in the country. You can tell old Mr. Hou the real situation in the country now to dispel his concerns in this regard."

Hou Dali also knew that Hou Guangbi should mainly be worried about his identity before Liberation and whether he would be liquidated after returning. However, Hou Dali could also see the domestic political situation in recent years. There were fewer ideological disputes in the newspapers and more praise for the achievements of economic construction. The whole country regarded economic development as the top priority.

In particular, many overseas Chinese who returned to the country to invest were treated as honored guests, and there was no lack of cases like the Hou family among them. The country accepted them with an open mind.

To be honest, Hou Dali had also thought about looking for the Hou family members who fled the country back then and letting them return to their hometown, but he was just an ordinary person, so where could he find them? Therefore, this was just a dream in his heart.

Now that he had suddenly received news of Hou Guangbi, how could Hou Dali not be stirred? He nodded: "Don't worry, as long as I get in touch with my uncle, I will work on them."

Su Xinghui said, "The county government will also correct some historical legacy issues, mainly the Hou family's old residence in Zhuangyuan Lane. The county government will gradually relocate those families currently living in the Hou family's old residence, and after renovating the Hou family's old residence, return it to the Hou family so that the overseas Hou family members will have a place to stay when they return."

Su Xinghui's words made Hou Dali even more excited. The Hou family's old residence was the ancestral foundation of the Hou family. Come to think of it, it was lost in his hands. He thought about recovering the Hou family's old residence every moment. He had thought that if he made a fortune one day, he would buy the old residence back, but the money he had now was still far from that step. He didn't expect that the county government would actually return the old residence to their family now.

Hou Dali said, "Then thank you to the government, thank you to the government!"

Su Xinghui said, "Old Mr. Hou Guangbi has already left his contact information with me. I will give you the contact information, and you can call them."

Su Xinghui then handed a note with Hou Guangbi's contact information to Hou Dali. Hou Dali was extremely excited holding this note.

Liu Xiancai smiled and said, "Mr. Hou, then please go to our United Front Work Department to make the call. Our United Front Work Department's phone has international long-distance enabled."

In this day and age, there are not many phones with international long-distance enabled. Of course, the United Front Work Department's phone must have international long-distance enabled because the United Front Work Department often needs to call abroad. Although the Shangjun County United Front Work Department does not have many opportunities to call abroad, international long-distance still needs to be enabled.

Hou Dali stood up and said, "Then let's go make the call now."

Su Xinghui raised his wrist to check his watch and said, "It's only past eleven o'clock. There is a six-hour time difference between France and here. It's only past five o'clock in the morning there, and they are probably still resting. How about we have lunch, Uncle Hou, you can also calm your mood, and then call old Mr. Hou."

Hou Dali felt that Su Xinghui's words made sense, so he reluctantly suppressed his excitement and said, "Then please have a meal at my house at noon today, and thank you for bringing me such good news."

Su Xinghui said, "Forget it, let's go out to eat, so as not to tire Aunt Hou."

Hou Dali said, "That's fine, I'll treat!"

Su Xinghui nodded noncommittally: "Call Aunt Hou along too."

The few of them walked leisurely toward the People's Restaurant, booked a private room, and ordered dishes. Hou Dali told his wife the news that Hou Guangbi had contacted them from France, and his wife was also extremely happy.

After the meal, it was already past one o'clock. Liu Xiancai took them to the United Front Work Department and helped Hou Dali dial Hou Guangbi's phone number. Hou Dali took the initiative to use the speakerphone and asked Liu Xiancai and Su Xinghui to stay.

After the phone rang three times, it was picked up. An old voice came from the other end, but it was in French. Hou Dali couldn't understand it. Hou Dali's voice was already a bit choked: "Is that Third Uncle? It's Dali!" ===== CHAPTER 854 =====