Chapter 39: Returning Home to Farm
Li Guizhen and a group of relatives arrived at Sixth High School while students were in class. Naturally, the security guard wouldn’t let them in. Li Guizhen sat at the school gate, wailing loudly as she cried, all while recounting the unfair treatment Yang Jiabo had suffered.
“This is just too much! We’re just powerless farmers with no influence. The wife of Academic Director Zhang abused her daughter because of poor grades, driving her to suicide. My son kindly saved her. Yet, to protect their reputation, this wicked couple framed him and used all their power to force the school to expel my son. If the academic director and homeroom teacher of the graduating class have such terrible character, how can we even talk about teacher ethics? Would you trust these teachers with your children? What if your own child gets framed like this in the future? Wuwuwu... There’s no justice! Teachers bullying us uneducated farmers like this. My son’s entire future is ruined. He’s only 16 by traditional count, where can he go if he can’t attend school? Should he just farm for the rest of his life like his useless parents, looked down on and bullied? That couple is heartless and cruel! They’ve destroyed a good child, and they call themselves cultured? More like stinking hypocrites!”
Li Guizhen’s cries were heart-wrenching, and her words were surprisingly coherent, remarkably free of vulgar curses. Clearly, someone had coached her beforehand. Beside her, Eldest Uncle (her eldest sister’s husband) organized their relatives to block the approaching security guards while garnering sympathy from passing parents.
Eldest Uncle, once a production team leader, still had strong organizational skills. The group crowded the school entrance, loudly denouncing the Zhang couple’s malice. Rumors had already spread among students and teachers, and now with this commotion, many gathered to point and whisper.
The Li family relatives all had naturally loud voices, no megaphone needed to make sure everyone heard. Students who had taken Qiu Jie’s money seized the chance to stir trouble, and soon, Sixth High’s entrance was in chaos.
The school administration quickly learned of the disturbance. After assessing the situation, the principal called the police and headed to the gate with several teachers. It was peak arrival time, and soon, the whole school knew.
Naturally, Zhang Yi’s parents were among them. They had assumed the Yang family was just ordinary farmers who would swallow their grievances. The family was poor, offering 20,000 yuan should’ve been enough to compensate. They never expected the Yang family not only to refuse the money and kick them out but also to rally a crowd and cause trouble at the school. The couple rushed to the gate, a bad feeling gnawing at them.
With the crowd so dense, even the principal and teachers struggled to push through. The Li relatives deliberately obstructed them, making communication impossible.
When the police arrived, Eldest Uncle immediately urged everyone to cooperate. He stepped forward to explain, and the officers, seeing the tense situation, remained polite, careful not to escalate things prematurely.
Eldest Uncle laid out their grievances: they were only seeking justice, unwilling to watch their young relative’s future be ruined after saving a life. “Officer, we’re just uneducated farmers. Our family finally had a child who could study, who’d expect such a tragedy?”
Eldest Uncle sighed heavily, his face lined with worry. Eldest Aunt (his wife) and Li Guizhen wept bitterly, while the rest of the family seethed with anger.
The police couldn’t take just one side, so under their mediation, the Li family was invited to a meeting room. Yang Jianjun and Yang Jiabo were summoned, and once they arrived, Zhang Yi’s parents were brought in as well.
After hearing the full story, Yang Jiabo glanced at Eldest Uncle. He knew this progress was Eldest Uncle's doing. In his previous life, Third Uncle had been watering plants at the botanical garden when he found a wallet full of cash. Instead of keeping it, he returned it.
The wallet belonged to the garden manager, who’d been playing mahjong with friends and forgot it. The manager offered 300 yuan as a reward, but Third Uncle declined. The next day, the manager accused him of theft and fired him.
The Li family, though often squabbling among themselves, united against outsiders. Under Eldest Uncle's leadership, they exposed the manager’s gambling during work hours and sued him for defamation. Yang Jiabo didn’t know the details, he hadn’t been involved, but the Li family won.
Yang Jiabo had to admit: old ginger is spicier. Even with his rebirth, as a sickly person, he couldn’t match Eldest Uncle’s social finesse. Eldest Uncle’s efforts weren’t just about kinship, perhaps also atoning for his daughter’s misdeeds. The love of parents knew no bounds.
[姜还是老的辣 (jiāng hái shì lǎo de là): lit. old ginger is spicier; fig. the older generation is wiser/more experienced]
Yang Jiabo looked at Li Guizhen. Though flawed, she could still act as a protective mother. His feelings were complicated, he just hoped he wouldn’t regret this fleeting warmth.
When the Li family united against outsiders, their actions could move you. But once the crisis passed, their infighting would leave you miserable.
The police had hoped to mediate after hearing both sides. But Zhang Yi didn’t come, her parents claimed she was emotionally unstable and still recovering. The officers didn’t press further. Yang Jiabo stayed silent, deferring to Eldest Uncle. Social confrontations weren’t his strength.
“Zhang Yi is a key witness. Without her, I fear the truth will be twisted, some people are experts at distorting facts,” Eldest Uncle said, eyeing Zhang Yi’s mother meaningfully.
“Must you torment an emotionally fragile girl?” Zhang Yi’s father snapped.
“Director Zhang, your desire to protect your daughter is no different from ours for Yang Jiabo. Let’s stick to facts, not assumptions. If we can resolve this fairly, we won’t insist on her presence,” Eldest Uncle replied calmly.
“Given Zhang Yi’s condition, it’s best she doesn’t come,” the principal interjected.
Eldest Uncle relented. Yang Jiabo then recounted the incident, but Zhang Yi’s mother insisted he had written love letters that drove her daughter to suicide.
With both sides at odds, the police asked for proof of these letters. Zhang Yi’s mother claimed they’d been burned, a flimsy excuse meant to stall.
The school gatekeeper could confirm Yang Jiabo’s rescue attempt. Though he hadn’t gone to the Zhang family, he’d witnessed Yang Jiabo reporting the incident to Director Zhang.
The principal summoned the gatekeeper. Yang Jiabo watched nervously, fearing he might downplay events to keep his job. Fortunately, the man was straightforward and impartial.
After questioning, the truth emerged. But while it cleared Yang Jiabo’s name, some damage was irreversible. First High had expelled him due to Sixth High’s teachers. The decision stood, First High wouldn’t retract it to save face.
Even without the Zhang Yi incident, they’d cling to the fight as justification. Returning to school was impossible, no institution would accept an expelled student.
Unpleased, Eldest Uncle pushed for Sixth High to take Yang Jiabo in, at least so he could take the college entrance exam. But Yang Jiabo was disillusioned, he didn’t want to share a campus with Zhang Yi’s parents. As for compensation, he refused. He didn’t need their money.
The Li family had expected Zhang Yi’s parents to face consequences. But with their connections, the couple merely transferred elsewhere, unscathed.
Furious, Li Guizhen scolded Yang Jiabo for rejecting compensation, they deserved that money. Now he couldn’t even study, leaving them back at square one.
Yang Jiabo coldly met her glare. “You think I was expelled just because of Zhang Yi?”
Li Guizhen fell silent, guilt flashing across her face. Yang Jiabo’s calm facade hid his turmoil. Though rebirth had dulled his academic drive, who didn’t dream of college or a carefree youth? Yet deep down, he feared the outside world.
“Eldest brother-in-law and sister-in-law are good people, but Lingling went too far. Keep our distance, don’t give her another chance to hurt Jiabo,” Yang Jianjun said. Grateful as he was for Eldest Uncle's help, it didn’t erase Zhou Lingling’s actions. Like his son, he wanted space.
“Family grudges don’t last,” Li Guizhen muttered.
“Then why do you still resent Yang Jianguo and dislike Yang Qing?” Yang Jianjun shot back. She had no reply.
With school no longer an option, Yang Jiabo focused on his plans. He confessed to Yang Jianjun about the orchid sales. After two transactions, minus Wei Jing’s share and the 50,000 given to his father, he still had over 800,000 yuan. The second batch, grown for a shorter time, was less valuable.
Wei Jing had finished high school early and gone abroad. Would they even meet again? Would Wei Jing remember their childhood friendship? The growing gap between them weighed on Yang Jiabo’s heart.
To Yang Jianjun, the sum was astronomical. He’d known Yang Jiabo was saving money but never imagined this much.
“Jiabo, be honest, how did you get so much?”
“I dug up orchids from the mountains, cultivated them, and had Wei Jing sell the best ones,” Yang Jiabo said casually, omitting the special little fleeceflower root.
It took Yang Jianjun days to accept his son’s earning power. With funds secured, father and son quickly leased their chosen mountain - 230 acres, including the pig farm and lotus pond, for 30 years (the maximum term).
On Yang Jiabo’s advice, they prepaid a decade’s rent: 96,000 yuan. Barren land was cheap, about 30 yuan per acre, but the developed areas cost more.
It was early 1999. Land prices would only rise, and they’d gotten ahead of the curve.
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