Chapter 48: Little Darlings

The dinner that evening was lavish. With his older sister rarely coming home, their mother was determined to prepare something delicious. There was a plate of stir-fried shrimp, a dish of river snail meat, several crabs, a plate of fried small fish, turtle soup, and a few vegetable dishes.

All the vegetables came from their own garden, and tasted excellent. As for the seafood, it was freshly caught by themselves, all wild, with a flavor that surpassed anything store-bought.

The few of them ate in near silence, passing dishes around, each taking a bite here and there. The atmosphere at the table was awkward, and Zhong Di didn’t know what to say.

Regarding his sister’s marriage, their father had been adamantly opposed at first. Their mother, on the other hand, had said little. She believed that as long as her daughter was happy, that was enough—there was no need to get hung up on such matters.

Life is full of twists and turns; things rarely go as one wishes just because one tries hard enough. To obsess over things is only to invite disappointment in the end. As long as you work hard, face life with a positive outlook, and give it your all, the rest should be left to fate.

“Hey, Sis, try this crab. It’s not big, but the flavor is amazing,” Zhong Di took the initiative to break the silence.

“Uncle, Xixi wants shrimp.”

She had sworn she’d ignore her uncle for a long, long time, so why was she talking to him now? Well… the bright red shrimp was just too tempting. She was only giving in for the sake of that delicious shrimp.

“All right, Uncle will peel some shrimp for you.”

Zhong Di picked out the largest shrimp and began peeling it for Xixi. Having such a sweet little niece, he felt she deserved to be pampered. Of course, she was no more adorable than his favorite readers who kept voting for his stories.

The shrimp from the reservoir weren’t large—this one, the biggest in his hand, was probably smaller than the smallest you’d find at the supermarket.

Wild river prawns never grow big unless they come from the sea or a massive lake. When alive, they’re bluish-green, but turn red when cooked. Why is that? The clever readers surely know the answer.

With the chatter between Zhong Di and Xixi, the tension at the table eased somewhat.

“Zhong Hui, you mentioned on the phone that your business ran into trouble. Your father lost sleep over it the whole night. Has it been resolved?” Di Chunhua looked at Zhong Tian, who was silently eating, not giving in at all. Both father and daughter were equally stubborn.

“Nonsense, I didn’t lose any sleep. She made her own choices; she has to live with them.” Zhong Tian bristled at the suggestion—he would never bow his head in front of his daughter.

“When will you change that bad temper of yours? Zhong Hui rarely comes home, can’t you just talk nicely?”

“What did I do, hmm?”

“All right, Mom, Dad, stop arguing. Xixi’s here too.” Seeing Xixi’s eyes brimming with tears, Zhong Di’s heart ached. Such a sweet little girl—how could they let her cry?

“Dad, I admit I made some mistakes back then, but I was just pursuing my own happiness. If I can’t make decisions about my own marriage, I don’t see how I could ever be happy. Things are what they are now. Xixi’s already several years old. For years, we’ve acted like enemies. Can’t we just try to understand each other?”

Zhong Hui kept her head down, eating quietly. After this argument and returning to her parents’ home, she realized some things are best left in the past.

“Fine.” Zhong Tian shot a glance at Xixi. His granddaughter was already so big; this couldn’t go on. Still, he couldn’t quite swallow his pride.

Dinner dragged on slowly. Seeing the atmosphere soften, Zhong Di continued peeling shrimp for Xixi.

“Second Brother, are you there?” A middle-aged man’s voice suddenly called from outside the main gate.

“It’s Zhong Tao. Should we open the door?” Di Chunhua glanced at Zhong Tian, hesitating.

“Open it. All the lights are on anyway,” Zhong Tian replied with resignation, putting down his chopsticks and lighting a cigarette.

Zhong Di’s expression showed his displeasure. He picked up Xixi and carried her to his room. Zhong Hui followed.

Zhong Tao was Zhong Di’s third uncle, his father’s younger brother. Years ago, he had been his father’s favorite sibling.

But a few years back, something changed. Second Uncle suddenly became reckless, full of get-rich-quick schemes. Despite lacking ability, he kept chasing pipe dreams.

At first, their father trusted him. When Third Uncle borrowed money to develop new land, their father handed over all their savings—seventy thousand yuan. Third Uncle promised to give him a hundred mu of land once it was cleared, and their father, trusting his own brother, agreed.

But after the land was cleared, not a word was said about dividing it. When their father asked, he was told there wasn’t enough—over three hundred mu, and supposedly not enough to spare even a hundred. Eventually, he begrudged them five mu, which infuriated their father, who then started asking for his money back.

But no promissory note had been written; it was family, after all. Now, Third Uncle flatly denied the whole thing. The two families fell out and rarely spoke; whenever they did, it was always Third Uncle asking to borrow money again. Having been burned once, their father would never lend to him again.

After a few years of failed farming—storms, hail, and just as the land was coming into its own, government crackdowns on illegal land clearing led to the land being confiscated due to incomplete paperwork. Later, there were loans, more debts, and purchases of all kinds of farm equipment, none of which panned out. Recently, it was rumored he owed over a million.

“Second Brother, how have you and Sister-in-law been lately? I’ve been thinking of you both every day, meant to come visit ages ago.” Before long, Third Uncle’s voice echoed inside.

“Just say what you came to say,” their father replied coldly, without a trace of warmth. In the past, he had always been enthusiastic, but no longer.

“What, I can’t come visit?”

“Then don’t mention anything else.”

Their father was all too familiar with Third Uncle’s tricks, just as readers get used to an author’s style—the next move was always predictable. The author’s skill rarely improves, but readers’ standards keep rising. Third Uncle was just the same—stuck in old routines, while their father had seen it all.

“All right, I’ll just say it. I want to borrow a hundred thousand. Don’t be so quick to refuse, Second Brother. I’ve taken on a project, hired eighty workers, and they’re making money for me every day. Just let me borrow the money and get through this phase—when I cash out, I’ll hand you two hundred thousand.”

Zhong Tao’s voice was loud and passionate, as if he would be making two million tomorrow.

“No money,” Zhong Tian replied quietly, unmoved no matter what Zhong Tao said.

“Second Brother, I heard your son, Zhong Di, makes several hundred thousand a month. Surely a mere hundred thousand isn’t a problem?”

“No money.”

“Second Brother, remember what Mom said before she died? Now your own brother needs you and you won’t help. Are you even my brother?”

“Don’t bring up Mom again. Just go.”

Zhong Tian turned his head aside, coldly dismissing him.

Bang! Unexpectedly, Zhong Tao dropped to his knees before Zhong Tian.

“Second Brother, dozens of people are waiting to be paid. The project’s nearly done. If I don’t get this money, all the earlier investment will go down the drain—I’ll be finished.” Zhong Tao broke down in loud sobs.

“You’re always like this. With a thousand, you try to do ten thousand’s worth of work. With a hundred thousand, you want to do a million. Enough… just go.”

“Thirty thousand. Just thirty thousand. Give me that, and I’ll leave and never set foot in your house again. For my nephew, that’s nothing.” Zhong Tao held up three fingers, a ruthless glint in his eye—he was determined to get the money.

“Uncle, you’re here,” Zhong Di walked out of his room and looked at his uncle.

It had been a long time since he’d seen Third Uncle. Now, his uncle’s hair was streaked with white, and he looked even older than his own father.

“Zhong Di, you’re here! You heard what I said, right?”

“I heard.” Zhong Di nodded.

“Then lend your uncle a hundred thousand. Once I’m back on my feet, I’ll give you two hundred thousand. How about it?”

“Thirty thousand is possible. Just thirty thousand.”

Zhong Tian wanted to say something, but paused. His son was grown now—he held his tongue.

“All right, thirty thousand,” Zhong Tao calculated; at least it would keep him afloat for a while.

“But I have one condition—all your tractors, seeders, rotary tillers and so on must be pledged as collateral, by the book—”

“No way!” Zhong Tao interrupted before Zhong Di could finish.

“All that equipment is worth over four hundred thousand—three thousand is out of the question.”

Some of those machines were bought for farming, some for taking on odd jobs, but now they sat idle.

“Uncle, you know as well as I do—farm machinery loses half its value the moment you buy it, and after all this use, with depreciation, it’s worth little. If you sell it, you won’t get much. Here’s my offer: I’ll give you eighty thousand, secured against the machinery. Pay me back and it’s still yours.”

When Zhong Di heard Third Uncle’s earlier words, he had already guessed this would happen.

He would never forget that his grandmother’s death was connected to Third Uncle, and how, when he couldn't pay his tuition, his father went to ask for money and was beaten out the door. His father was so distraught he drank pesticide, and if not for being found in time and having his stomach pumped, would have died.

Now, Zhong Di needed the machinery—this was an opportunity. To buy hundreds of thousands’ worth of equipment for eighty thousand was a good deal, and he’d be acting more than fairly. As for getting the money back? Don’t kid yourself. Third Uncle was trapped in a cycle of debt, his earnings not even covering the loan interest. How could he possibly pay it back?

It wasn’t that Zhong Di was hard-hearted, but Third Uncle had already hurt their family deeply. It was time for him to learn a lesson. Besides, this was a straightforward deal. Considering the nearly one hundred thousand owed from before, he was more than justified.