86: Chapter 86 First Meeting in Tangjia Village, Wantang Amuses the Old Lady

Su Wantang had been feeling stifled the entire way. As the car turned into the neighboring town, the scenery around them grew visibly sparse.

She found it absurd herself. During the National Day holiday, everyone else was either crowding into popular tourist spots or checking in at bustling metropolises.

But not her. She had traveled thousands of miles from the Magic City, chasing after Tang Luochuan, only to dive headfirst into the countryside.

Still, the environment in the countryside wasn't half bad.

The tires rolled over the village's concrete road. The continuous cornfields on both sides had already been harvested, leaving only bare stalks standing in the fields.

The wind, carrying the chill of late autumn, blew through the car windows, mixed with the fresh, sweet scent of soil and vegetables—a world apart from the car exhaust and perfume that filled the streets of the Magic City.

Su Wantang leaned against the car window, her eyes wide, pointing at the free-range chickens chasing each other by the roadside one moment, and watching the goats grazing on the ridge the next.

Suddenly, the car braked, coming to a steady stop by the side of the road.

"What's wrong?" Su Wantang snapped back to reality, turning her head to look at Tang Luochuan in the driver's seat.

Tang Luochuan's gaze, however, was locked onto two elderly people by the roadside.

An old man and an old woman.

The two were busy sorting through a pile of corn and some salvaged recyclables.

But Tang Luochuan's gaze didn't linger on her at all; it remained fixed on the two elders at the edge of the field, his brows furrowing instantly.

He then sighed, his tone filled with a mix of frustration and heartache: "I really don't get it. It's not like they don't have money to spend, why do they have to live so frugally!"

Squatting at the edge of the field were none other than his grandparents, Grandpa Tang Shuye and Grandma Liu Meiyu.

The Tang Family was a harmonious bunch. The old couple had three children: the eldest daughter, the second son (who was Tang Luochuan's father, Tang Hai), and a younger daughter.

This meant Tang Luochuan had two aunts. The family was close-knit, and there was absolutely no possibility of them failing to support their elders.

It was just that the two elders couldn't sit still. They had a pension every month, and their children helped support them too.

Even though they didn't need to collect recyclables, they just couldn't sit idle; they had been frugal their entire lives.

Whenever they saw a soda can, cardboard box, or empty bottle on the road, they couldn't help but pick it up to bring home, and no one could stop them.

Tang Luochuan pushed the car door open and hopped out. Before he even reached them, he called out in an annoyed tone: "What are you two doing!"

He had said this at least eighty or a hundred times. He had tried countless times to persuade the old couple to stop picking up trash and just enjoy their retirement, but it had no effect.

Seeing them work so hard made his heart ache, and he understood even less why they wouldn't just relax and enjoy their later years instead of making themselves so tired.

Hearing this, Grandpa Tang Shuye looked up, put down the cardboard box he had just tied up, and his wrinkled face instantly broke into a wide smile. He hurriedly patted the old woman beside him: "Hey, old woman!! Grandson, our eldest grandson is back."

The young man walked over quickly, muttering his complaints: "Didn't my dad and aunts give you money to spend? Is it worth suffering like this?"

"They did! Your eldest aunt gave me 500 this month, and your younger aunt gave me 500 too! Your dad gave me 2000, saying you're making money! We also get over 2000 in pension..."

The old man looked his grandson over happily: "You've grown taller again."

Grandma Liu Meiyu glanced at the car: "Xiaochuan, whose is that?"

"It's mine!"

"You've already bought a car? Your dad was right, you really are making money just after starting college." The old woman's smile was ear-to-ear.

"Right! Let's go home. We don't need these things anymore."

As he spoke, Tang Luochuan put his arms around the two elders, preparing to get them into the car.

Grandma Liu Meiyu, however, swatted him away in disdain: "What are you saying? I've been working on this with your grandfather for two days, and we've collected a lot of good stuff. Now that you're here, help me take it back."

"That's a Mercedes-Benz..." Tang Luochuan felt his scalp tingle. His brand-new Mercedes-Benz, being used to haul trash?

Grandma Liu Meiyu took another look at the car and nodded: "Oh, I see. Then... your grandfather and I will use the tricycle..."

"Fine, fine, fine, let's haul it..." Tang Luochuan agreed immediately. He still felt bad for his grandparents. Since he couldn't persuade them otherwise, he might as well help.

By this time, Su Wantang had also stepped out of the car, looking at the two of them in bewilderment: "Luochuan, who are these two..."

"My grandfather and grandmother."

"Oh~ Hello, Grandpa and Grandma."

"Ayyy~~~~!!!!!" A loud, enthusiastic response came from Grandma Liu Meiyu.

How could she not understand? This must be her grandson bringing his wife home. The older generation always hoped for their children to find a spouse, preferably to have four generations under one roof.

This sudden shout startled both Grandpa Tang Shuye and Tang Luochuan.

"Is that necessary... this... she is..." Tang Luochuan wanted to explain, but the words were hard to get out.

Grandma Liu Meiyu didn't care about that; she walked straight over and took Su Wantang's hand: "Child, why didn't you give us a heads-up before coming? Your grandfather and I could have been waiting at home. And this... this... we haven't even prepared a meal. I'll call your father and tell him to come back early. Old man, call... Tang Hai."

"Grandpa!" Tang Luochuan looked a bit flustered. He didn't know his family could be this enthusiastic.

If he had brought Shen Muyan and Jiang Jinyue back too, wouldn't it have been chaos?

Meanwhile, Grandpa Tang Shuye ignored the boy, his eyes entirely on his 'granddaughter-in-law', and he immediately took out his senior phone and dialed Tang Hai: "Xiao Hai, Luochuan is back! You knew? You knew nothing! He brought his wife back, you and Xiumei better hurry up and finish what you're doing and come back... Yeah! Yeah! Hurry up..."

After hanging up, the old man patted Tang Luochuan: "Boy, help me load the stuff up."

Tang Luochuan was currently making faces at Su Wantang.

The girl, meanwhile, looked back at him with a smug expression.

"Aren't you going to explain?" Tang Luochuan mouthed.

Su Wantang mouthed back: "I didn't admit to anything!"

"Karma!!" The word immediately popped into Tang Luochuan's mind. He had just used it to retort to her on the way here. Now, it had immediately come back to bite him.

"What are you blanking out for? Hurry!" Grandpa Tang Shuye urged.

Tang Luochuan hurriedly lowered his head, bent over, and lifted a pile of cardboard boxes.

Before long, a large bag of corn and many other recyclables were loaded into the trunk. His grandparents had picked up quite a lot, so much that the trunk wouldn't close at all. It was left gaping open...

Tang Luochuan frowned: "This is a Mercedes-Benz."

Grandpa Tang Shuye also frowned: "Your car can't hold much, can it."

On the other side, Su Wantang and Grandma Liu Meiyu were chatting happily.

It had to be said, the young girl was very likable. At the very least, she was very good at charming the elderly.

She was born with a soft, approachable air, and with just a few words, she had the old lady beaming, holding her hand and refusing to let go.

Grandma Liu Meiyu's palms had thin calluses from farm work—rough, yet warm. She held her hand, turning it over to look at it, muttering continuously: "Look at this child's hands, so delicate and smooth. You can tell she's never known hardship. Coming all the way to this remote countryside with our Luochuan must be so hard on you."

Su Wantang immediately smiled, her eyes curving: "Grandma, it's not hard at all. This place is wonderful—the air is fresh, the sky is blue—it's much more comfortable than staying in the Magic City. Besides, as long as I'm with Luochuan, it's never hard wherever we go."