Rebirth in the 50s: The Couple with the Hidden Space-Chapter 614 - 492: Concealment

"How are things at the team, dear? Is Uncle Zhou and Brother Zhou alright?"

Mother Zhang quickly poured a bowl of cool water as her husband came in.

Speaking of cool water, Mother Zhang thought of her youngest son. If Xiao Wu knew, he’d definitely praise her since she firmly followed his repeated instructions.

Now that life has improved, Mother Zhang wasn’t as eager to return to the old home as her husband. The village is swarming with mosquitoes in summer and life isn’t as comfortable as in the city. She’s grown more accustomed to staying in the county town.

So she hasn’t followed her husband home recently. Seeing everyone busy with farm work back there, she felt awkward doing nothing, worrying about drawing attention. What’s the point?

"The whole village is so busy their heels are kicking the back of their heads. It’s fortunate you didn’t go back; now that the new policy came out, once the farm work is done, the village canteen needs to be closed, and everyone’s asking me where to buy pots."

Mr. Zhang shook his head after speaking. The situation changes constantly, and now where should they buy pots?

"What did you tell them? Don’t agree to anything. The supply and marketing cooperative said they need to bring an old pot to buy a new one. Tell me, who has an old pot that isn’t patched up? Who would care to spend that money? It’s only when there are no pots at all that they need to buy, and now they’re not letting people buy?" 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

Mother Zhang said, not bothering to wipe the water dripping from the towel in her hand, staring intently at her husband.

Mr. Zhang laughed: "Do you think I’m foolish? This is not something I can agree to. Let them make do with a clay pot for now."

"Didn’t the sisters and sisters-in-law ask you to bring me any messages?"

"I’m just an old man; why would they gather around me for no reason? If they want to buy pots, they’ll find Zhang the Second, which is better than finding us old couple?"

"It’s pointless even if they find him. Our Zhang the Second isn’t as helpful as Xiao Wu. If it really doesn’t work, we’ll lend out one from our house so they won’t have to write to Xiao Wu, putting our youngest son in a tough spot."

Mr. Zhang took the towel from his wife’s hand, wrung it dry, and hung it on the washbasin stand. After a while, he shook his head and said, "We can’t lend it out from home; we only have one pot, giving it to anyone isn’t appropriate. Big brother won’t write to Xiao Wu. Think about it; even if Xiao Wu buys a pot, the shipping costs from Beijing are considerable."

The old couple chatted idly in the room. Soon, they heard Zhang the Second shouting outside, followed by Xi Zi opening the courtyard gate.

"Why is the child coming over instead of going to work?"

"How would I know? Maybe there’s something urgent."

When Zhang the Second came in, he didn’t forget to ask Xi Zi to pour him a cup of water. Taking the bowl, he rolled his eyes, "Your brother’s all about fancy stuff; don’t learn from him."

Xi Zi laughed at him, provocatively said, "Second Uncle, don’t use shampoo or soap when you have things to do. I can smell it."

"You rotten boy, got guts now."

Mother Zhang swatted at him, "I see you’re quite bold too, don’t save your wages and throw them away."

"Mom, you’ve misunderstood. This is what Xiao Wu gave me a couple of years ago. I usually don’t dare to use it, only in summer for washing. Really, there’s still soapberry at home."

Mr. Zhang watched his second son get smacked by his wife and beg for mercy, and his eldest grandson cover his mouth to snicker. He patted Xi Zi on the head, "What are you laughing about? Go get your second uncle another bowl of water."

"Alright, the kid’s grown up; he won’t do things unreliably. Let’s see what Zhang the Second came over for first."

Zhang the Second chuckled, "Dad, Mom can’t bear to hit me, those swats are like scratching an itch. I’m feeling great. I’m here to see if you came back or not; I thought you’d insist on staying until the farm work was done."

Mr. Zhang glanced at his wife, "Your mother instructed that I must return today; would I dare not to?"

Mother Zhang burst out laughing.

"Crazy old man talking nonsense."

Zhang the Second couldn’t stand hearing the inauspicious word "dead." He hurriedly asked his mom to spit on the ground and wished for longevity.

Mr. Zhang looked curiously at his son. He thought maybe something happened? He knew his second son well, not one to believe in superstitions.

Zhang the Second sat for a while, chatting casually with his parents. After a while, he said, "I heard Mrs. Zhou has been down for a while. Do you think I should mention it to Xiao Wu?"

Mr. Zhang furrowed his brows, "Did the Zhou Family specifically send someone to tell you, or did you find out by hearing?"

"Someone mentioned it by accident, and then I went to inquire."

Mother Zhang really didn’t want to inform her son and daughter-in-law. If this dragged them in, their in-laws would be pestered to death. People could only speculate who hadn’t been to Beijing, but she and her husband had seen it with their own eyes. If Old Zhou Family saw them, they wouldn’t leave without a fuss, guaranteed to cause trouble.

She looked at her husband, hoping he’d express his opinion.

Mr. Zhang also thought of this. What is one’s face worth? If Old Zhou Family did cause trouble in the Big Courtyard, Brother Zhou would be in an awkward position, even if justified, behind the scenes someone would leverage it to stir trouble, belittle and vilify.

"Has Mrs. Zhou seen a doctor?"

"Went to the city hospital once; who knows what illness she has. A few days later, they brought her back home. Now, she can’t get out of bed and lies on the kang all day."

Zhang the Second spoke and looked at his parents’ wrinkled faces, expressing his views.

"Dad, Old Zhou Family won’t abandon Mrs. Zhou; you remember she still has a pension and gets a considerable annual benefit. If she passed away, these benefits would stop.

So neither you nor Mom worry about the saying ’no filial child during long illness’. Mrs. Zhou won’t lack care, it’s merely considering whether to inform Uncle Zhou and his daughter Jiao Jiao..."

Mr. Zhang hadn’t let his son finish before shaking his head, "Old Zhou Family didn’t inform us, so pretend you don’t know, don’t make inquiries and let others know."

After saying this, he turned to his wife, "Dear, I think Xiao Wu shouldn’t come home this summer. The journey isn’t safe, plus this matter, let the couple be at ease outside."

"Alright, save them from hearing about this when they return, causing trouble for Jiao Jiao. Just say we’ll go visit them at the end of the year, and they shouldn’t come back. Keep them like this; we’ll deal with things later."

Zhang the Second saw Xi Zi listening intently, nodding along, and quickly instructed him, "Don’t write about this to your brother in the letter, alright?"

Xi Zi nodded, but he thought differently inside. Why hide it from his uncle? What if good intentions lead to bad outcomes? His uncle is such a clever person, why hide it from him? He secretly considered how to write appropriately. Hmm, Grandpa and Grandma’s opinions should be included too.

Zhang the Second smiled satisfactorily. This kid is quite obedient and hasn’t doubted a thing.

"That’s settled. If they send us a message, we’ll deal with it. You go send a telegram to Xiao Wu, asking him not to come home."

Mr. Zhang made the decision, and the matter was settled that way.

Zhang the Second saw the matter had been discussed, then got up to look at his younger son by the kang. The little guy was sound asleep, not disturbed by the noise.

Mother Zhang teased, "Thinking about your son?"

"Hehe... Mom, are you tired?"

"This kid is just like Ping’an, eating and sleeping, sleeping and eating, very easy to take care of. Just let him go to the nursery; it’s not that I find the caretakers at the nursery distasteful, they really aren’t good, I even found a louse there."

Mr. Zhang didn’t insert a word, smiling contentedly watching the mother and son. Since his wife visited the Big Courtyard nursery a few times, her standards have certainly risen. Which child hasn’t had lice, only big cities are so particular.

He remembered his own children having so many lice when they were young, the final resolve was to shave their heads. It’s only when his wife had leisure time did she start to make them neat and tidy; otherwise, back in the days constantly tending the fields, who had time for such life’s finer details.