Traveling Through Those Years Of Farming (Quick Transmigration) - Chapter 11

“Niu Gang is back.”

Liu Sanmei stood in her yard, stepping on the stones, and poked her head out from behind the stone wall.

Although there had been no “affectionate gestures” from her grandson in recent years, the relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law had never become cold or indifferent. Neither of them was willing to lose face or take the initiative to show goodwill.

This time, however, Liu Sanmei had taken the initiative to speak to her daughter-in-law, which was, in fact, unprecedented.

“Niu Gang?” Xu Panhao paused from washing clothes and frowned in confusion, struggling to recall the name.

“It’s Niu Ben’s father.”

Liu Sanmei added, and this time Xu Panhao finally recognized the name.

In truth, the name Niu Gang hadn’t been mentioned in quite a while. Occasionally, when the older folks in the village spoke of him, they would refer to him as Niu Laomu.

Niu Laomu was one of the few people who had left the mountain valley and gone to the big city. 

Before the establishment of New China, Niu Laomu had many siblings, and his parents couldn’t afford to support all of them, so they sold him to a carpenter’s shop as a long-term worker. The old carpenter had only one precious daughter and was reluctant to marry her off, so he needed to find a son-in-law for her.

The son-in-law he sought had to come from humble beginnings. Despite this, the carpenter didn’t look down on the long-term worker who had sold himself into servitude. But the carpenter’s daughter liked Niu Gang and insisted on marrying him. Her parents, unable to persuade her otherwise, reluctantly agreed.

From that point, Niu Gang shed his identity as a long-term worker and became the son-in-law of the old carpenter. He started learning the trade from him, and some of the special techniques the old carpenter kept for himself were passed on to Niu Gang.

Eventually, the situation became turbulent. The old carpenter’s shop was seized by a relative of a warlord, and the carpenter was beaten to death in his anger. Niu Laomu fled back to his hometown with his wife and mother-in-law, using the jewelry sold by his wife and mother-in-law to build a house in the countryside. With his impressive craftsmanship, Niu Laomu became the go-to person for woodworking in the surrounding villages.

He was a man of conscience, remembering the kindness his father-in-law and wife’s family had shown him. Despite his wife’s family falling on hard times, he never considered divorcing her or marrying another woman. 

Over the years, they had two sons and one daughter. Except for one son who took Niu Laomu’s surname, the others took his wife’s surname, fulfilling Niu Laomu’s promise to his father-in-law.

His poor mother-in-law was also cared for by Niu Laomu. When she passed away, he buried her next to his father-in-law, fulfilling the wishes of both of them.

The villagers talked about this at the time, praising Niu Laomu as an honorable person with a conscience, someone who could be considered a true friend.

However, over the past few decades, Niu Laomu was rarely mentioned. This wasn’t because he had fallen out of favor, but because, after the establishment of New China, Niu Laomu’s family had moved out of Xiagou Village. They had established a furniture factory in the city, recruiting craftsmen and offering jobs along with household registration. 

Niu Laomu’s excellent craftsmanship led to him being made team leader. In a time of instability, having a stable job ensured a better future, so Niu Laomu accepted the position.

At first, he came back to visit frequently, but as his work at the factory increased, his visits became less frequent. 

In recent years, with the destruction of the “Four Olds” and the banning of ancestor worship, Niu Laomu had stopped coming back even for ancestral rites. 

It’s no wonder Xu Panhao had trouble remembering the name “Niu Gang” when she heard it.

As for Niu Ben, he was the only one of Niu Laomu’s children to inherit the carpentry skills, and he carried on the family legacy. The other two children—one became a teacher, the other a doctor—had no interest in carpentry.

Xu Panhao recalled Niu Ben because he was now the deputy director of their county’s furniture factory. He had even helped his uncle, who still lived in Xiagou Village, secure a position as an apprentice at the factory. In these times, jobs were scarce, and even apprentices were in demand.

It was said that this led to a family dispute, and because of it, Niu Ben no longer helped his relatives. Xu Panhao remembered hearing all the gossip about the Mu family during that time.

“Why is he back?” Xu Panhao asked, her frown deepening. She knew her mother-in-law hadn’t mentioned Niu Laomu casually.

“He retired and wanted to return to his roots, so he came back. I just saw his son helping him move some things. The old man is still quite strong,” Liu Sanmei said meaningfully.

Xu Panhao’s heart skipped a beat. Why did her mother-in-law care so much about the health of a retired old man? Was she thinking of starting a late romance? Did she come to tell her this, hoping for approval?

This was a tricky situation. She didn’t mind if her mother-in-law found another man, but if she showed any approval, would she risk getting a beating from her father-in-law in the underworld?

“You’re thinking about farts!”

As the saying goes, the one who knows you best is always your enemy. Before Xu Panhao even raised her butt, Liu Sanmei already knew what she was about to complain about.

The old lady felt a bit embarrassed and irritated. She had been a widow for so many years; if she had wanted to find someone, she would have done so much earlier. Why wait until this age?

Wasn’t this a case of twilight love?

Xu Panhao sighed in disappointment. Honestly, if her mother-in-law really wanted to be with that retired old man, it wouldn’t be the worst thing. She had heard that retired workers in the city still received pensions, so maybe her mother-in-law could get some benefits from him.

Seeing the disappointment on her daughter-in-law’s face, Liu Sanmei rolled her eyes in frustration, turned around, and jumped off the stone. She no longer bothered with a daughter-in-law who had forgotten her loyalty in favor of profit.

After her mother-in-law left in a huff, Xu Panhao finally stopped her wild thinking and began to reconsider her mother-in-law’s intentions.

Niu Laomu had retired and returned to his hometown… and he was still in good spirits…

What was the connection between the two?

Xu Panhao repeated the motion of washing clothes slowly and suddenly a thought struck her. She finally understood her mother-in-law’s intention!

Niu Laomu’s children were all filial, and he himself had saved a considerable amount. When he decided to retire back to his hometown, he made some minor renovations to his old house.

Technically, it wasn’t entirely in accordance with the rules for him to retire in the countryside. Household registration was strictly managed these days. Rural people couldn’t easily move to the city, and even if they visited relatives, they could be sent back as “blind migrants” if they stayed too long. Similarly, city dwellers couldn’t stay in the countryside for an extended period. But over the years, Niu Laomu had built many connections in the city. To move back to his hometown, he had managed to transfer his household registration.

This move meant he lost access to the benefits that city residents enjoyed. Moreover, to secure approval from the production team for his household registration move, he had to forgo the collective per capita food rations. This meant Niu Laomu no longer enjoyed the welfare benefits of either the city or the countryside.

These days, many of the older folks in the production team gossiped behind his back, thinking that Niu Laomu was a burden on his children. With no food rations, he had to rely entirely on his children to support him. After all, even if he had money, food was hard to come by.

But Niu Laomu himself remained calm, not seeming to worry about his future.

“Grandpa, are all these your things?” Baobao tugged at Baoli and looked curiously at the door to Niu Laomu’s house.

Niu Laomu’s house wasn’t big. He had fled years ago, and his mother-in-law and wife didn’t have much jewelry. Given the chaos at the time, they had only pawned a small amount and used the proceeds to build two modest homes, barely providing shelter from the elements.

Now that Niu Laomu had returned, his wife had passed away years ago, and his children lived in the city. He didn’t plan to expand the house but instead made the two buildings more stone-like.

Though the house itself wasn’t large, the yard was very spacious. In the countryside, every household grew vegetables and grains in their private plots, wishing they had more room. Since Niu Laomu had just returned, the yard in front of his house had yet to be cleaned up. He had only built a temporary shed to store various kinds of wood.

When Baobao arrived, Niu Laomu was slowly moving some of the wood to a newly vacated side room.

“Whose children are you?”

Niu Laomu hadn’t been back to his hometown for many years, and couldn’t immediately recognize the children.

“I’m from the Zhen family, my name is Baobao, and this is my brother, Baoli.”

Seeing that Niu Laomu didn’t chase them away impatiently, Baobao boldly grabbed Baoli’s hand and pushed open the fence gate, walking into the yard.

“Zhen family?” Niu Laomu thought for a moment. 

He remembered that the captain of the third brigade was surnamed Zhen. After years of working in the state-owned factory, Niu Laomu had become a bit more diplomatic. He understood that the county magistrate’s authority couldn’t compare to that of the current managers. Since Niu Laomu had chosen to retire in the countryside, it made sense for him to have a good relationship with the captain. The surname “Zhen” wasn’t uncommon, and even if Baobao wasn’t from the captain’s family, she was probably still related.

“Grandpa, do you want help moving the wood into the room? My brother and I can help you.”

Mother had said that the old man was an exceptional craftsman. Though he was preparing to retire in the countryside, with his spirit, he clearly wasn’t at the stage where he was just lying down and doing nothing. Brother Baoli would definitely never be able to learn, so Mother wanted him to learn craftsmanship from Niu Laomu so that he would have a way to make a living in the future.

Baobao agreed with her mother’s idea. No one knew better than her how “challenging” her brother’s learning ability was. She didn’t want to see him struggling from a young age, so she needed to find a way for him to make a living beyond just studying.

Becoming a carpenter is a good choice. There are too many restrictions these days. Even if there are “money-making prospects,” Baobao dares not let her foolish brother learn many skills.

Carpentry, on the other hand, is different. This skill rarely crosses any boundaries, and with Niu Laomu’s clean background, there’s no need to worry about any unsavory connections after apprenticing with him.

“Hahaha, no need, kid. These woods are heavy. You’re still young and can’t move them.”

It must be said that Baobao and Baoli were both quite attractive.

Baobao, with her delicate appearance and slender frame, had a pitiful look that tugged at the old man’s heart. But compared to her, the old man might have favored Baoli’s appearance more.

Perhaps due to his strong foundation, even though Baoli didn’t get enough nutrition over the years, he had still grown strong.

At eleven, Baoli was as tall as Niu Laomu’s chest. He had large earlobes, big eyes, and a round nose—the features most older folks adored. He looked more festive than the Fuwa dolls on the calendar. Maybe because of his simple nature, despite being nearly an adult in appearance, Baoli’s thoughts were still innocent. His eyes were clear and transparent, with no hidden calculations. When he looked at someone with full attention, it felt like he really liked them. How could anyone not like him?

“Grandpa, my sister can move them. She’s really strong and can lift a cow.”

Baoli felt his sister was being underestimated. He wasn’t that strong himself, so he had to make sure to give her credit.

Niu Laomu’s smile faltered. 

At his age, how could he not see through some small schemes? He suspected that the children’s parents had surely instructed them to come to him, hoping to impress him and get him to accept them as apprentices.

Niu Laomu didn’t mind this at all. On the contrary, he was secretly pleased. Even in retirement, he was still a rare find as an elder.

Looking at the two children in his yard, he figured that the little boy must be the one looking to apprentice with him. After all, the girl seemed too delicate for carpentry, while the boy was tall, strong, and at the right age.

Generally speaking, few girls choose carpentry. In furniture factories, aside from clerical work, most of the employees operating equipment are men.

Niu Laomu had already begun thinking of ways to test the boy. Yet, the boy kept talking about his sister’s strength.

What about him? Shouldn’t he show more?

Faced with Baoli’s sincere eyes, Niu Laomu was left speechless.