Carrying a Jurassic on me
Chapter 966 - 521 Visiting Relatives_2

Chapter 966: Chapter 521 Visiting Relatives_2

"I don’t even want to eat anymore, I still have some in my pocket!" Yan Chao giggled, insisting that he eat.

Yan Fei was not polite and bit into the candy, saying as he ate, "Hold onto my neck so you don’t fall off, I’ll get you some beef jerky to eat! Quick, before mom sees us."

Yan Chao, who was experienced in being carried on someone’s back, wrapped his arms around tightly and even stretched his head from behind his shoulder, opening his mouth and whispering softly, "Hurry up..."

Would the brother of the owner of a beef jerky factory lack beef jerky? Certainly not.

However, Lin Xiumei wouldn’t let him eat too much since the little guy had a small appetite and beef was hard to digest; she feared he might get sick from overeating it as a snack. She usually guarded it strictly and only let down her guard a bit during the New Year.

On the other side, the old couple held hands, and Lin Xiumei was no longer cold and stern but occasionally reminded him softly and with concern, "Slow down, there’s a puddle there. Did you get water in your shoes? Step over, that spot is definitely a pit... "

Yan Wenhai listened silently to his wife’s hints and obediently hopped over puddles as she directed, without making a sound.

The little one on Yan Fei’s back got his beef jerky and immediately perked up, finding the scenery he had no interest in before to be beautiful, and kept pointing at the sparrows foraging in the snow, urging Yan Fei to look.

The family of four walked on and soon entered the village.

In fact, Yan Fei had some memory of this great-aunt, but the great-uncle felt quite unfamiliar to him. It was rumored that in those days, the great-uncle’s family all died. Especially his father, who in the dead of winter, jumped into the village’s garden well used for watering the crops, and before jumping, took off his cotton-padded jacket and long johns, folding them neatly and leaving them weighted down with a clump of earth at the well’s edge.

So after this incident, he didn’t return home for many years.

The house was only tidied occasionally by the great-aunt when she would visit, still the same old, worn small tile-roofed house with earthen walls, some of which had large cracks. It looked as though it had been recently patched, the repairs on top clearly not fully dried yet.

Although it had been a long time since they had seen each other, the warmth was still there. The great-aunt’s family originally had two children, which was the reason they had the heart to leave their hometown: for their children’s sake, parents wouldn’t be afraid of any hardship, not to mention leaving one’s hometown.

However, the two who Yan Fei should call cousins didn’t come back, only the old couple did. It seemed the old man who Yan Fei should call great-uncle had been unable to get past the tragedy for several years, but now that he was old, he probably wanted to return to his roots.

The house wasn’t just occupied by the old couple; many distant and close relatives were here to help—after the old couple moved away, they apparently did quite well for themselves, and now both children are said to have stable jobs. Because the great-aunt had been generous with money during previous visits, the relationship with these infrequently seen relatives was still quite good.

This place was a bit far from Sancha River Township. Seeing no familiar faces, Yan Fei sat quietly in the corner, playing the obedient child.

The old man, when not conversing with others, enjoyed asking Yan Fei and his brother casual questions, mostly about family matters. After chatting for a while, he began to give the brothers their New Year’s money. Fifty yuan each, this largesse was quite substantial for the present times.

Yan Fei declined several times, but the old man insisted on giving it, so he had to accept. It turned out that this was the largest New Year’s money he had earned this year; the others were all ten yuan.

Speaking of New Year’s money, being Boss Yan didn’t have much use here. In the countryside, New Year’s money is given according to seniority, and no matter how capable you are, as long as you’re not married, elders will give New Year’s money—this is also the sorrow of some older singles later on, regardless of being white collars or bosses outside, because they come home alone, even in their late twenties or even after turning thirty, they still get New Year’s money from the elderly.

Yan Fei exchanged a few words with the great-uncle but soon ran out of things to say—the great-uncle was clearly not good at conversations, and they somehow managed to kill the conversation about ’the weather’.

He simply took Yan Chao outside to play, and then pointed to the trees in the courtyard outside, explaining to Yan Chao what each tree was.

All the cooking items at home were newly purchased, with the pots set on an old-fashioned stove. The noon meal was prepared with the help of neighbors, with a few guests joining as well.

After the meal, Yan Fei, knowing what was appropriate, continued to lead Yan Chao out, wandering around the village until it felt like time to leave, then leisurely returned.

As soon as he entered the courtyard, he heard the son-in-law, who had just had a meal and was considered familiar, shouting loudly, "That’s all nonsense, can practicing that fill someone’s stomach? All those magical abilities are fake, not making an honest living and striving for wealth. Instead, dabbling in these crooked tricks, am I not allowed to speak out?"

Then came the voice of the aunt: "Why are you making such a fuss? You’ve been stubborn and refusing to come back all these years. Now that you’re finally here, you start causing trouble. Can’t you just settle down and get through the New Year before saying anything?"

There were a few other people in the house, also chastising the old man; it was quite lively.

Yan Fei had no intention of going in at first, but as he listened to the escalating arguments inside, and saw Yan Chao’s unsettled face, he quietly pulled Yan Chao inside to stand by and listen for a while.

Since it was his first visit and he was not familiar with the people around, Yan Fei’s parents did not express their opinions. They were all trying to mediate instead. When the children entered, the voices in the room quieted down a bit, but soon they became noisy again.

The group that had been harmonious just moments ago was now arguing with red faces. By the time Yan Fei understood the situation, he felt that it was nothing but unnecessary trouble.

The argument, it turned out, was about some people in the village practicing a particularly miraculous "Qigong".

This "Qigong" was so miraculous that it was said the founder was almost like Pangu himself, able to create heaven and earth.

Indeed, it was absurd talk. Yet, the villagers believed in it so earnestly that some even went home to fetch the "teaching materials," carrying cassette tapes and recorders to prove the authenticity of their Qigong.

Yan Fei’s son-in-law was rather extreme, insisting that it was all a scam. The village wasn’t very affluent; people were reluctant to eat more meat on a regular basis, yet they were buying these strange teaching materials and cassettes, and some who didn’t even have recorders were buying them too.

The initial debate was whether the "Qigong" could cure all diseases, but later it changed to whether the founder of the "Qigong" was a fraudster or not.

It was only because the son-in-law insisted on calling the man a charlatan that these relatives, who had been getting along just fine earlier, started to argue with him. Unfortunately, the son-in-law was not very eloquent and could hardly defend himself, resulting in him simply labeling the founder a "swindler".

The situation was truly frustrating, with no place to turn for reason.

In the years when Qigong was popular, everyone practiced it. However, back then, it was mainly urban residents who practiced, as rural people didn’t have the money to spare and were just dabbling in it for fun.

Now the village had come into some money, but what was that really worth? They were still a long way from a comfortable life!

As a result, the teaching materials piled up and cassette tapes accumulated, an utter disregard for money. Yan Fei’s son-in-law felt that the villagers worked hard to earn money, and to squander it so frivolously, as if tossing it into the water, was a sheer waste.

But his way of speaking was ineffective, and his approach was wrong. These villagers were willing to spend money on these "Qigong" teaching materials and tapes, which were certainly not cheap. If they weren’t truly convinced, how could they possibly spend money so recklessly?

The old man took it seriously, actually flipping through the "teaching materials" in front of everyone, pointing out what was definitely fake, what was impossible, what was utter nonsense...

People who return to their roots after years away, are often not welcomed back. Now that he had returned, he certainly thought he was looking out for the wellbeing of the villagers. But did he consider that these people, who rarely even ate meat at home, were willing to buy these things instead? Could a word or two from him really change their minds?

Yan Fei casually flipped open one of the "teaching materials," but before he could even glance at it, Yanfei’s father snatched the book away with a slap of his hand, "What are you looking at this for? You..."

He didn’t know what to say, afraid of being overheard criticizing the materials as a scam. After some consideration, he managed to say, "You’re not sick, so why bother with this?"

Immediately, an aunt came over—Yan Fei remembered this one should also be some kind of aunt—and the teaching materials were thrust upon them, "Take a look at this, this is what Master Li has put his heart and soul into creating. It’s for the good of us common folk that he’s passed down this magical ability. In the past, such secrets would never be shared..."