Reborn: Back to the 1980s Chapter 55 Part 1

Chapter 55: Buying a House

Zhao Shenggu only nodded back at Ma Yu, lightly said "Uncle Ma," and said nothing more. His Xiao Yuan was not someone for others to look down upon.

Li Wenqing also noticed her husband's displeasure and quickly said to Zhao Shenggu, "Shenggu, come with me. The guest room is upstairs."

After entering the room, as soon as Zhao Shenggu placed Guan Yuan on the bed, Guan Yuan opened his eyes.

"Not sleeping anymore?" Zhao Shenggu touched his forehead and only relaxed when he felt no sweat.

"I woke up while you two were talking in the room," Guan Yuan said with a grin.

"Then you were pretending to sleep. You little rascal." Zhao Shenggu pinched his little nose.

"That Ma Yu doesn't like us. I saw him frown," Guan Yuan said with a furrowed brow.

"I thought you were really asleep. We don't need him to like us. Tomorrow we'll go find a place to live, and once we do, we'll move out."

"Mm."

Seeing that Guan Yuan still seemed sleepy and sluggish, Zhao Shenggu picked him up in one quick motion. "Ah!" Guan Yuan was still thinking about the Ma Yu situation and was caught off guard when Zhao Shenggu grabbed him, letting out a startled cry.

"Hahahaha..." Zhao Shenggu was amused into laughter. "Let's take a bath first. I've already heated the water."

Guan Yuan, having been teased by Zhao Shenggu, clenched his fist and lightly punched him, which only made Zhao Shenggu chuckle more.

Guan Yuan rolled his eyes and said with ill intent, "Brother, let's bathe together. It'll save time."

Zhao Shenggu's hands paused while holding Guan Yuan. He said helplessly, "You're always teasing me. Go wash by yourself."

Guan Yuan finally scored a point back, laughed, and jumped off the bed into the bathroom.

Zhao Shenggu tried hard to calm his emotions and let out a deep sigh.

The next day at dawn, Guan Yuan and Zhao Shenggu woke up. Perhaps because they were in someone else's home, neither of them had slept very deeply.

After washing up, Guan Yuan and Zhao Shenggu went downstairs. They thought they were early, but unexpectedly Li Wenqing and Ma Yu were even earlier, already sitting at the table.

Seeing them come down, Li Wenqing smiled and greeted them. "Why are you up so early? You two have nothing to do—sleeping in a bit wouldn't hurt."

Zhao Shenggu smiled. "We're used to it."

After greeting Li Wenqing, Guan Yuan and Zhao Shenggu both called out "Uncle Ma" together, but Ma Yu acted as if he hadn't heard and continued reading his newspaper.

Zhao Shenggu and Guan Yuan didn't take it to heart. They wouldn't be staying long anyway, so there was no need.

Li Wenqing, however, felt a bit awkward. "Your Uncle Ma just got up and isn't in the best mood. Sit down, come eat. Later you can stay at home, and when Uncle Ma and I get off work, we'll take you out to look around."

"Thank you, Auntie Li, but there's no need. Xiao Yuan and I can go out on our own and look at houses while we're at it," Zhao Shenggu said as he and Guan Yuan sat down.

"Look at houses? Why?" Li Wenqing was puzzled.

"It's not good to keep imposing on you. Once we find a place, we'll move out," Zhao Shenggu replied.

"Why? Is it uncomfortable staying here? It's your first time in the capital—how would you two find a place?" Li Wenqing thought Guan Yuan and Zhao Shenggu were being too naive.

Ma Yu let out a cold snort. "You think the capital is like your little hometown? Looking for a house? Can you even afford a place in the capital?" Because his father-in-law had said to take care of Guan Yuan and Zhao Shenggu, he had held back until now. In his heart, he had long since regarded Guan Yuan and Zhao Shenggu as country bumpkins coming to freeload.

"Lao Ma..." Li Wenqing called out disapprovingly. She had spent more time with Zhao Shenggu and knew these two kids were not ordinary. Now her husband's attitude made her feel very embarrassed.

"That's not for Uncle Ma to worry about. We'll move out as soon as possible anyway," Zhao Shenggu said, no longer being polite since Ma Yu had taken this attitude.

"Not for us to worry about?" Ma Yu sneered. "Aren't you still expecting us to arrange your school transfer? You think that's easy? This isn't your little hometown."

"Lao Ma!" Li Wenqing stood up directly this time. She was truly angry. "How can you talk like that! Have you forgotten what Dad said!"

At the mention of Old Master Li, Ma Yu's attitude immediately softened. He muttered, "I don't know what kind of spell those two kids cast on Dad, making us dance around them."

Zhao Shenggu's and Guan Yuan's eyes instantly turned cold. No matter what Ma Yu's attitude was, they didn't care. But Old Master Li was different—they genuinely regarded him as their own grandfather. Now hearing Ma Yu say this, how could Zhao Shenggu and Guan Yuan stay?

Zhao Shenggu said directly to Li Wenqing, "Auntie Li, thank you for your hospitality. You don't need to worry about the schooling. We'll figure it out ourselves."

Guan Yuan and Zhao Shenggu had only brought a few changes of clothes and some necessary documents to the capital. They grabbed their things and headed out.

"Hey, Shenggu, Xiao Yuan, don't hold it against Lao Ma. That's just how he is—his words don't match his heart. He actually welcomes you," Li Wenqing said, chasing after them.

Zhao Shenggu turned back and said, "Auntie Li, go back inside." After that, he ignored Li Wenqing's calls and walked out of the courtyard with Guan Yuan.

Li Wenqing stormed back into the house angrily. "What do you mean by this? Did you have to be so harsh to two children? Now they've left—how are you going to explain this to Dad?"

Ma Yu thought of Old Master Li and couldn't help but shiver. He tried to defend himself. "I didn't make them leave. They have their own feet—was I supposed to tie them down?"

"Didn't you tell them to leave? You spoke so harshly to them—of course they'd leave!" Li Wenqing raised her voice.

Seeing that Li Wenqing was truly angry, Ma Yu softened his tone. "Alright, are we really going to argue over two outsiders? Look at how rude those two kids were. The first time they visit someone's home, the younger one falls asleep, and the older one doesn't even crack a smile. They're asking for help—and when you ask for help, you should act like it!" Ma Yu didn't think he was wrong, and he couldn't help adding one more remark.

Hearing Ma Yu's words, Li Wenqing slumped into a chair. "Ma Yu, I remember you weren't like this before. Back then you were so hardworking and down-to-earth. Now after a few years as an official, you haven't learned anything—except how to look down on people. Do you know that this attitude of yours makes it easy to offend people?"

"Why bring up the past? I know your family looks down on me for coming from the countryside, for having no connections in the city. I have my own reasons for what I do—I don't need you telling me."

"Hmph, I don't need to tell you! Do you know how many times my brothers have cleaned up your messes?" Li Wenqing slammed her hand on the table.

"I'll tell you this—everything I've achieved today, I earned myself. It has nothing to do with your Li family. If you look down on me, just say so. I'm not clinging to your family." Ma Yu shot back without backing down, then stormed off in a huff.

In that moment, Li Wenqing felt utterly exhausted. She and Ma Yu had met when they were educated youths sent to the countryside. After the college entrance exams were reinstated, Ma Yu made it into a university in the capital through sheer determination, and the two became classmates. Back then, Ma Yu was warm-hearted, ambitious, and took good care of her. They grew close and eventually got together.

[Educated youths (知青, zhīqīng): a term for urban middle-school and high-school graduates sent to rural areas for "re-education" during China's Cultural Revolution (roughly 1968–1978), where they labored alongside peasants to learn from the working class.]

She remembered how, when she wanted to marry Ma Yu, her family was against it—especially her father, who opposed it strongly. She only remembered her father saying: "Ma Yu cares too much about gains and losses. He's not a good match." At the time, she thought her family was just looking down on Ma Yu's background, so she was determined to marry him.

Married life wasn't as sweet as she'd imagined. She had to tiptoe around Ma Yu's pride, weighing every word before speaking. At work, Ma Yu was fine with his superiors, but he always acted high and mighty with those below him. Some of those people had backgrounds that weren't as simple as they appeared. For these matters, she'd lost count of how many times she'd begged her brothers for help.

Li Wenqing stared at the ceiling, beginning to doubt whether she and Ma Yu could last.

After leaving Li Wenqing's home, Guan Yuan and Zhao Shenggu found a hotel to stay in.

They hadn't eaten breakfast and were in a foul mood. After settling into the hotel, they went out and randomly picked a restaurant, ordering steamed buns and soy milk.

Guan Yuan took one bite of a bun and didn't want any more. The buns were far inferior to what they could make themselves.

"Drink some soy milk. You can't keep going hungry. At noon we'll go to that place Auntie Li treated us to yesterday. Once we find a house, we'll cook for ourselves." Zhao Shenggu worried about him going hungry and handed him the soy milk.

Guan Yuan obediently gulped it down.

"That's a good boy." Zhao Shenggu patted Guan Yuan's head and smiled.

Guan Yuan rolled his eyes. "Stop treating me like a kid, okay? I'm older than you."

Zhao Shenggu shot back: "Not as big as mine, so you're a kid."

Guan Yuan froze, staring at Zhao Shenggu. That couldn't mean what he thought it meant! His brother could flirt too?! "W-what do you mean?" Guan Yuan asked, pointing a trembling finger.

Zhao Shenggu was amused by his expression. "What could I mean? Under eighteen means you're a kid."

Guan Yuan looked at him suspiciously. "That's all you meant?"

"What else?"

After breakfast, they went around asking about houses.