Chapter 27: Are You Regretting It?

Xie Youzhen couldn’t help but pull out his pipe. He tapped it against the pavilion beside him, his hands trembling as he stuffed a wad of tobacco inside, then went to borrow a light. After taking a few deep drags, the cold wind blowing on him, he finally calmed down.

Phew.

“This money can’t be spent recklessly.”

Xie Youzhen said to Xie Zhao, “You have two kids, and your brother needs to marry a wife. Every single thing costs money, do you hear me?”

Xie Zhao nodded cheerfully.

“I hear you, Dad.”

Xie Zhao counted out two hundred yuan and turned to hand it to Xie Cheng.

Xie Cheng froze, instinctively wanting to refuse, but the next moment Xie Zhao said, “Big Brother, this money is for the hospital bill.”

“I’m going out to buy some pancakes now. In a bit, you and Dad can help Muyu with the discharge paperwork, and I’ll go check out the Aquatic Products Supply and Marketing Cooperative^[1].”

He thought for a moment and added, “After the discharge is done, you guys go home first. Muyu is still in confinement and shouldn’t catch a cold draft. I’ll just make a quick trip to the Aquatic Products Supply and Marketing Cooperative and come right back. I definitely won’t wander off.”

Only then did Xie Cheng take the money.

“Alright! Come back early! If you really can’t sell them, just forget it. We can eat them ourselves.”

Xie Zhao nodded, grabbed the bucket, turned, and jogged outside.

…

Outside the hospital.

Once the first day of the Lunar New Year passed, the streets grew busier.

In the alley outside the hospital, quite a few stalls were set up as far as the eye could see.

Wonton and dumpling shops, noodle stalls, pancakes, deep-fried dough, baked clay-oven rolls, and more.

Xie Zhao walked straight to a noodle stall.

This kind of small stall didn’t have a menu and relied entirely on regular customers. It was run by a married couple; the husband rolled and pulled the noodles, while the wife boiled them, served them, and collected the money.

The two had a clear division of labor and worked in perfect harmony, making their small business thrive.

Xie Zhao walked in, and the middle-aged woman smiled as she cleaned the table in front of her, asking, “Comrade, what would you like to eat?”

Xie Zhao asked, “Can you deliver to the hospital?”

The middle-aged woman nodded and said warmly, “Yes! Just tell me which ward it is, and I’ll bring it over to you in a bit!”

She added, “But we only deliver if you order at least two bowls!”

Xie Zhao smiled.

“My parents, big brother, and my wife, four bowls in total! Can you deliver that?”

Oh!

That’s quite a lot!

The middle-aged woman smiled, pointed to the large iron pot of boiling water in front of her, and introduced warmly, “Take a look. What kind of noodles do you want? Plain noodles, chicken soup noodles, or pork chop noodles?”

“Oh, and we also have minced meat noodles! They’re all incredibly fragrant! Absolutely delicious!”

Xie Zhao thought for a moment and asked, “How much for the pork chop noodles?”

Pork chop noodles were large meat noodles topped with a big pork bone with meat on it.

These days, although living conditions in the county seat were better than in the countryside, not everyone could afford to eat big portions of meat for every meal.

“One yuan and thirty cents a bowl! There’s plenty of meat! Young comrade, take a look! I guarantee you won’t be disappointed!”

The middle-aged woman pointed to the bowl of noodles she had just served.

Xie Zhao took a look.

There really was a lot.

A thick layer of meat covered the white noodles. They were authentic hand-rolled noodles, chewy and springy, and the broth was made from pork bones, milky white and fragrant, sprinkled with a handful of chopped green onions.

Man!

That aroma!

It was simply amazing!

“Pork chop noodles it is, then!”

Xie Zhao ordered four bowls, though he didn’t plan on eating any himself.

He had to rush to the Aquatic Products Supply and Marketing Cooperative. In this era, government employees held all the power; once they got off work, they wouldn’t wait for anyone!

“Alright! As soon as they’re ready, I’ll deliver them!”

The middle-aged woman replied happily, “That’ll be five yuan and twenty cents in total!”

Xie Zhao paid the money, gave the ward address, and then turned to run to the pancake stall.

He completely failed to notice the two pairs of eyes staring intently at him from behind.

“Four bowls of noodles. Hmph, he’s certainly generous!”

Zhao Lanzhi snorted coldly, lowering her head to take a bite of her pork chop noodles.

But the noodles, which had tasted incredibly savory just a moment ago, suddenly lost all their flavor.

Chen Donghai couldn’t help but stare at Xie Zhao’s retreating figure for a moment, his brow furrowing slightly.

Something seemed different.

“That’s money he earned himself. He can eat whatever he wants. Why do you care? Weren’t you the one who refused to let him call you ‘Mom’ back then? Are you regretting it now?”

Chen Donghai said.

He took another bite of noodles.

But he also felt a strange tightness in his chest.

“Yes, yes, yes, it was me! But didn’t you also refuse to let him call you ‘Dad’?”

Zhao Lanzhi’s voice suddenly grew louder.

Her face turned slightly pale as she said, “Besides, what do I have to regret?”

“How much money can he make? Can he ever be as rich as our family? He couldn’t even finish school!”

“Do you know what rank Qiming got? He ranked fourth in his grade! Teacher Yao said that if he works a bit harder and pushes himself, he’ll definitely get into college!”

She rambled on, not knowing if she was trying to comfort herself or Chen Donghai.

“So what if he knows how to care for people? In the future, going to college and bringing honor to the family is the greatest skill of all! We aren’t short on that little bit of money anyway!”

“Besides, did you forget how much Qiming suffered in the Xie Family? Whose fault was that? What do I have to regret?! My only regret is not bringing Qiming back sooner!”

Zhao Lanzhi was too angry to eat any more. She pushed the noodle bowl away, her expression extremely sour.

Meanwhile, Chen Donghai remained silent.

For some reason, he thought of Chen Qiming, who had come to the hospital yesterday.

His biological son.

He had a face that was the spitting image of his own, yet every time he opened his mouth, it was to ask for money.

Whether it was food, drinks, things to use, or things to play with, he wanted the best and most expensive of everything.

Chen Donghai couldn’t help but wonder.

Did he really suffer that much in the Xie Family?

Would a child raised in a poor family know about so many expensive things?

But…

He then remembered what Chen Qiming had looked like when they first brought him back.

Covered in bruises, soaked to the bone by the rain, his eyes red from crying, kneeling before him, looking incredibly pitiful.

He had rolled up his sleeves to show him the wounds, crying out to him.

“Dad, I’m your real son! You didn’t want me eighteen years ago. Are you still not going to want me now?!”

He had kowtowed heavily to him.

Ever since then, Chen Donghai could no longer look at this matter rationally.

Phew.

He exhaled heavily, pulling his gaze back from Xie Zhao’s retreating figure.

Just eat the noodles.

He thought.

No matter what, he wouldn’t regret it.

He wasn’t short on money, and Chen Qiming’s grades were decent. After all, a biological son was always best.

…

The Aquatic Products Supply and Marketing Cooperative.

Xie Zhao finished wolfing down the pancake in his hand and finally arrived at the entrance carrying a bucket of fish.

It was 11:15, almost time to close.

The Aquatic Products Supply and Marketing Cooperative had just opened for the day, and there weren’t many people inside. The clerk selling aquatic products looked listless, yawning, clearly not yet recovered from the holiday mood.

A middle-aged man wearing a black leather jacket with a black briefcase tucked under his arm was gesturing at the clerk. His brow was furrowed, his expression anxious, and his voice was a bit loud.

“Comrade! Can’t you just help me ask? How can you say there isn’t any before you’ve even asked?”