Rebirth in the 50s: The Couple with the Hidden Space-Chapter 568 - 449: The Wanderer’s Return Home

In the hustle and bustle, they celebrated Ping’an’s birthday, and time passed quickly. In the blink of an eye, it was the end of the year, and the semester had basically ended.

In the wind and snow, the Year of the Tiger arrived. People hoped for a vigorous year and wished that the new year could turn the tide.

The common people’s wishes are nothing more than favorable weather and a peaceful and enjoyable life. However, judging by the difficulty classmates had in purchasing train tickets, the situation doesn’t seem optimistic. It was almost impossible to get a ticket for northbound trains at the train station ticket offices.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Guoqing specially chose a time to contact Liu Ming at the platform. After going twice in a row, he finally caught Liu Ming’s train.

The two didn’t have time for pleasantries before Liu Ming suggested that his whole family shouldn’t return to their hometown before the New Year. First, because the child was young and the weather was abnormally cold this year, and second, there were many refugees traveling with elders and children, posing significant health and safety risks. It would be better to wait until spring to travel.

Before Zhang Guoqing could make a decision, Mr. Zhang sent two consecutive letters, advising them not to return. He promised they would come to Beijing immediately after the spring began.

The two letters, ghostwritten by Zhang the Second, made Zhang Guoqing anxious. If he hadn’t received such frequent letters, he could have comforted himself, but the unusual situation made him restless.

Why were they advising the entire family not to return? It’s been half a year, don’t his parents miss their old son? It was unreasonable. Did something happen at home, or was someone causing trouble again? What was really going on?

Zhang the Second’s letter was unclear, which made him almost curse. The lack of communication made Zhang Guoqing increasingly frustrated.

Finally, when the school vacation started, he immediately grabbed his grain tickets and planned the trip. With his wife and child safe in Beijing, what was there to stop a grown man from going far?

His parents, far away in the Northeast, always withheld bad news and had unwavering trust in his father and a mother’s bias that favored him greatly. How could he leave them without worry?

Zhang Guoqing entrusted his wife and child to his father-in-law, and without resting, he grabbed the train ticket, slung the luggage on his back, and rushed to the station. He didn’t notice there was someone smiling all the while, not stopping him or saying a word.

Watching his son-in-law leave quickly, Zhou Xiaozheng looked helplessly at his daughter. He wanted to scold but couldn’t bear it, wanted to stop him but was worried about the child sneaking away, which would be even more unsafe. Facing his stubborn daughter, he was at wit’s end. If it were a son, he would have kicked him, but for his delicate treasure, he chose to let it go.

Zhou Xiaozheng instructed his guard to sneak his daughter onto the train and personally escorted her to the station. On the way, he worriedly reminded her to be cautious and to keep an eye on the young and reckless son-in-law to prevent that fool from letting his enthusiasm spill over.

Honestly, he wasn’t worried about his daughter; it was the soft-hearted Zhang Guoqing who concerned him. Those with a strong sense of justice are often the first to get into trouble.

In the sleeper car, Zhang Guoqing was stunned to see the father and daughter pair. Hadn’t they agreed? He’d be back in three to five days. Why was his wife going when their child was in Beijing?

Zhou Xiaozheng looked disdainfully at the fool. Foolish people have their own fortune. How did Old Zhang’s family accumulate virtues to let this foolish son-in-law marry his precious Jiao Jiao? He glanced at the outsiders in the car, shuffled his itchy right leg. Forget it, better to leave the fool with some face.

"Dad, I will definitely protect Jiao Jiao. We’ll be back in a few days."

Zhou Xiaozheng nodded coldly. Privately, he thought: Who protects whom is yet to be seen. If his Jiao Jiao didn’t have the sedative as her trump card, would he agree to let her go to the Northeast? Really foolish!

As the train was about to start, Zhou Xiaozheng left them with a parting sentence, "Listen to Jiao Jiao more. Should trouble arise, don’t be afraid, Dad’s got your back."

Zhang Guoqing could only smile wryly as he watched him leave with a flourish. Wasn’t he not bringing his wife because he feared worrying the father-in-law? It was really tough to just let go and leave.

Zhou Xiaozheng watched the train leave with disappointment. It’s really hard when kids grow up, always wanting to run out and have fun, unlike Little Ping’an. However, his family’s Jiao Jiao really takes after him, weary of Beijing.

Driving the car, Zhou Xiaozheng kept pondering whether there was a chance to let the child travel abroad. To let her gain more experience, he was certainly capable of that.

Zhou Jiao looked at her father outside with reluctance. As the train began to move, she let out a sigh. Why don’t planes start civil aviation? She didn’t like this long journey at all.

Along the way, in the icy and snowy weather, many companions in the car got off at every stop. When the train resumed, they brought back pancakes and dry food, which surprised the couple.

Soon, Zhou Jiao realized that at each station, passengers with valid tickets could purchase limited quantities of staple dry food without needing grain tickets. These shrewd people had calculated everything: one person, one stop, two steamed buns or two bread rolls. Little by little, during a trip, they could end up saving grain tickets and increasing their food supply by the time they reached the terminal.

At the second stop, when the couple disembarked, they followed suit, and lined up to buy some. More than enjoying the dry food purchase, they relished the thrill of this activity during the boring journey.

What enhances emotional connection the most? Collusion! This way, the atmosphere in the upper, middle, and lower sleeper compartments reached a high C, everyone excitedly discussing their experiences.

Zhou Jiao noticed a lady across from her who traveled alone, leaving a pile of luggage each time she ran faster than everyone else. She couldn’t help but sigh at how trustworthy people were back then, not worried about losing anything.

Soon enough, she had to eat her words. One early morning, at a small station, she witnessed someone accidentally fall, spilling out biscuits that were snatched up by the surrounding crowd within seconds.

Actually, it wasn’t about people being genuine; it was a matter of different contexts.

In the hard-seat carriages behind them, many people brought their families, making the already full train aisles even more packed. Because of this, a new battle line for boarding and alighting opened—to go through the windows.

In the freezing season, it was a mystery how they opened the perpetually closed glass windows. Just thinking about the long nights, the early dawn, and the biting north wind entering the car made one shiver.

After that day, Zhang Guoqing forbid Zhou Jiao from leaving the compartment again, so she could no longer observe the happenings inside and outside the train windows.

As the train stopped and started at small stations along the way, she noticed that the hawkers who used to sell goods throughout the journey had almost disappeared.

Luckily, there were meals provided on the train; otherwise, with the limited useable space, the couple would really have to gnaw on dry food all the way home.

No matter how long the journey, it eventually ends. After a nerve-wracking trip, they finally arrived safely at the provincial city.

Zhang Guoqing and his wife bid farewell to the new-found young and old friends, and with anxious hearts, once they reached the provincial city, they couldn’t spare a moment to visit Zhao Chuan Guang and his family. They rushed straight back to the county town.

The hometown was still that soul-stirring home. The familiar dialect, familiar long pipe, familiar loud voices. It was less boisterous than before and more solemn.

Months later, stepping onto the familiar land once more, they were like wanderers returning home.

Standing in front of the gate, Zhang Guoqing took a deep breath and shouted loudly, "Dad, Mom, I’m back."

Yes, I’m back, my dad and mom, my parents.