CHAPTER 285: CHAPTER 217: JUST IN CASE

Once Zhang Guoqing returned to the bedroom, he saw Zhou Jiao holding their son and reading a book on the living room kang, humming a little tune, leisurely and enviable.

"Brother, you’re back? Where’s Dad?" As soon as Zhou Jiao saw him come in, her eyes lit up and she stared at him, feeling truly surprised not to see her dad afterwards.

"Don’t rush, I’ll tell you in a bit, it’s not bad news. I’ve been busy all day, let me tidy up first, I’m filthy," Zhang Guoqing said, pouring hot water and casually taking a towel.

Seeing Zhou Jiao could still stay calm, he smiled and didn’t rush to speak. He first made a cup of hot tea and placed it on the coffee table, and after preparing everything, he returned to Zhou Jiao, took their son, and sat down.

He started to narrate, beginning from the time he went to Zhou Family in the afternoon to deliver gifts, and talked all the way until Old Mr. Cheng and Old Mrs. Cheng took Zhou Xiaozheng back to the guesthouse at night.

"That’s how things are, it happened so fast, I haven’t even reacted and tomorrow we’re going to the ancestral hall. But I’m really relieved inside.

Mrs. Zhou is not blameless either; she knew the truth. Yet your dad grew up without uttering a word. She even knew Liu Xizhi, who was obviously a child temporarily fostered at her house, intended to inherit the bloodline roots of two families. But instead, she deliberately concealed it, even though she’s not lacking a son. I think she’s just a little conscientious. Her way of handling things only appears unnoticeable in comparison with Old Man Zhou."

Zhou Jiao reflected on her childhood experiences, recalling her grandfather’s disdainful yet proud look, and her grandmother’s growing distance as she grew older. Then she thought of her five or six parts similarity to Grandma Lin and the resemblance between her and her father, suddenly stunned.

Zhang Guoqing, seeing her face change urgently, hastened to wake her up, "What’s wrong, Jiao Jiao?"

Looking at the familiar face in front of her, Zhou Jiao gently said, "So my grandmother Gu Mingzhu and Grandma Gu Ruyi are sisters from the same clan. They should know each other and are very similar. Therefore, my dad and my grandmother also resemble each other. You say when Old Zhou Family and Lin Family initially met, why didn’t they feel curious? The same Gu, the same Zhou, all from renowned families in the same place. My grandmother might have realized it later, but what about my grandma? Brother, human hearts are unpredictable."

Zhang Guoqing was instantly dumbfounded. He hadn’t thought of this matter in the evening; otherwise, he would have asked his father-in-law. He tried hard to recall what Old Mrs. Cheng said during the evening, but unfortunately, he had walked away in the middle.

"Old Mrs. Cheng mentioned the Gu Family had come demanding adoption. She also said she secretly investigated the Gu Family, whom she hated most. The Cheng Family, being outsiders, couldn’t help with the Gu Family affairs. Plus, with bandit chaos, they escaped. Most critically, your grandmother Gu Mingzhu’s mother was forced to death; the Gu Family clan certainly didn’t spare the legitimate wife at that time.

Wait, let me think, something’s amiss, it’s wrong! Aunt Grandma has an ordinary attitude towards your mom. Even you have asked several times, holding onto your dad’s hand, directly stuffing the small wooden box into your dad’s hand, while your mom was beside him. Logically, their two families were neighbors and should be very familiar, but her attitude towards your grandpa was also very normal. But this is in-laws. Old Mr. Cheng even said he would visit the in-laws tomorrow, our in-laws can’t compare to your mom’s in-laws. Yet during the drinking, nobody mentioned a word about the two families being in-laws. Even the grandpa didn’t utter a word."

Zhou Jiao nodded and said, "Dad will understand. It’s enough that he understands."

"Well, get some sleep early tonight, tomorrow we’ll go to the ancestral hall to wait for them. Ping’an will be handed over to Mom tomorrow. By the way, remember to bring the housing deed of the Huang Family courtyard tomorrow and ask Dad what he says, it’s best to return it to Zhou Family."

Zhou Jiao, with a frown, said, "Though the courtyard is said to be Huang Family’s, it was still my mom who paid the money to get it. It’s truly cheap for them. It’s better to give it back, no need for further entanglement."

Zhang Guoqing comforted her, saying, "Forget it, treat it as the six-year rent as compensation. According to Old Mr. Cheng, Dad’s identity still has to be clarified with the authorities. See if there’s anything else missing? I suppose they will leave in a couple of days."

With her head down in thought, Zhou Jiao shook her head after a moment and said, "Aunt Grandma has prepared donation documents, nothing lingering with Gu Family. Zhou Family’s matters involve two houses, and the old house has also been demolished. The staff who managed the five-entrance courtyard back then are dead, the name is hung under my mom, no aftermath. My grandpa and grandma are both gone, Beijing Zhou Family has become history, I can’t think of anything else."

"Alright, then you sleep first. Tomorrow there might be a lot of things, the two suitcases Aunt Grandma brought are full of documents. They are said to be relics of your grandpa and grandma, these must be handed over to you and your father. Even going through these takes up a lot of time. Your grandmother Gu Mingzhu’s matters should still be avoided mentioning to your mom, I’m not worried about your mom, she’s just too naive."

Zhou Jiao understood his meaning, nodded, stood up and said, "Alright, you go to see your parents and sleep early, and by the way tell Mom tomorrow that Ping’an will be looked after by her. I’ll take our son back inside, time to sleep."

Zhang Guoqing held their son and went in with her, frowning, "Today Aunt Zuo mentioned two vacancies, asking me to consider it upon receiving my reply, I want to refuse, big brother’s job doesn’t need to be rushed."

"Are you afraid of being too close? There’s no problem with Zuo Lin. For Aunt Zuo, it’s just a matter of raising a hand. If it’s suitable, just arrange it directly, finding another person is troublesome. From your second brother to his subordinates, there’s no need to think about distancing our two families’ relationship. Just remember not to let anyone have something to hold against you."

Hearing this, Zhang Guoqing relaxed his brow, instantly lightened with a smile, "A warehouse management-like position in a textile factory, and an internal recruitment in the supply and marketing cooperative. The textile factory is not much of a problem, she can handle it. The supply and marketing cooperative is probably an introduction for me."

Zhou Jiao patted her forehead, remembering she forgot to tell him something, "I remember hearing someone say some villagers were sent back home around 1960 after working since 1958 because there were too many city people and they needed to streamline the workforce.

At first, they said as conditions improved everyone would return to work, but later they never returned to the city, and a few old men stayed in the village. Second brother isn’t afraid with Zuo Lin standing by, also holding a public position. If you don’t plan on arranging a public position for big brother, quickly select a regular job to prevent any eventualities."

After that, Zhou Jiao shared her thoughts. If indeed there’s a demand for streamlining the workforce requiring return to the village without returning to the city, city jobs will be beyond reach. This explains why rural household registrations won’t enter the city in a few years. As tensions rise, she won’t let him intervene. According to her analysis, arrangements must be made before the year, otherwise there won’t be time. As for the three brothers working together, if they might stand out, there’s always ways around it. There’s too much room for maneuvering behind the scenes.

Staring at her in surprise, Zhang Guoqing asked, "Is there really such a thing? Then indeed we must hurry, no matter how low-key. If one enters and encounters layoffs, it’s more troublesome. If you must go, then you must go. Alright, you take a rest, I’ll go ask him what he thinks."

Zhou Jiao yawned, waved and hugged their son to lie down.