Ye Song was startled when he heard someone talking. He hurriedly hid the roast chicken in his hand behind him and looked at Zhao Shitou with an uneasy look on his face.
Zhao Shichu was quite calm. She asked, "Uncle Shitou, why did you come up the mountain?"
Zhao Shitou then remembered the purpose of his trip up the mountain. He swallowed the saliva that was involuntarily oozing out of his mouth, and with difficulty moved his eyes away from the roasted chicken in Zhao Shichu's hand. He said to Ye Song: "Old man Ye, I came here specially to find you. Your son is here to take you back to the city! He came here in a small car, which is very impressive..."
Ye Song was shocked, and his eyes widened instantly. He said in disbelief: "What did you say? My son is here?"
"Yes, it's your son. He calls himself Ye Something Ye..." Zhao Shitou frowned and tried hard to recall the name of Ye Song's son.
"Ye Huaiye! My son's name is Ye Huaiye!" Ye Song blurted out, his eyes suddenly reddened, and he even forgot to eat the roasted chicken in his hand. He stood up and walked quickly to Zhao Shitou, as if he was afraid that he was dreaming. He asked carefully and hopefully, "Is my son really here?"
"It's true! The village party secretary asked me to tell you to hurry down the mountain. Your son is waiting for you at your place. Come down the mountain with me now..." Zhao Shitou answered affirmatively.
Ye Song immediately stopped caring about anything else. He was anxious to see his son and had no appetite. He stuffed the remaining roast chicken in his hand into Zhao Shitou's hand. He only had time to say to Zhao Shichu, "I'll go down the mountain and take a look..." and then he couldn't wait to go down.
Zhao Shichu quickly finished the roasted chicken in his hand, threw away the bones, and followed Ye Song down the mountain.
Zhao Shitou followed with surprise, gnawing on the roasted chicken that Ye Song stuffed into his mouth.
Perhaps people are in high spirits when they are happy. Ye Song was anxious to see his son, so he was full of energy when he went down the mountain. He walked very fast and shortened the time he took to go down the mountain to return home by more than half compared to the usual time. Zhao Shichu could still keep up, but Zhao Shitou was already out of breath.
Soon, the three of them went down the mountain and walked towards the broken cowshed. After walking for a while, they saw that the entrance of the broken cowshed was crowded with people, and standing in the front was a tall young man with a cold and extraordinary temperament.
As soon as Ye Song saw the young man, he choked up and said, "Ye Huaiye!"
When Zhao Shichu heard the shout, he saw the man shudder all over, suddenly raised his head and looked forward, then strode towards Ye Song. Before he reached the man, he had already reached out his hand to hold Ye Song's arm, and shouted softly, "Father!"
"It's really you, kid..." Ye Song's eyes were red, and he looked his son over excitedly, "You've grown taller... Father almost forgot what you looked like..."
But just after he finished saying this, he suddenly remembered that his current condition was not good and might affect his son, so he immediately stopped being excited and asked Ye Huaiye anxiously and worriedly: "Why did you come to me suddenly? And with such a big fanfare? What if my matter affects you? No, you'd better leave quickly..."
Ye Huaiye quickly comforted him and said, "Father, don't worry, you won't affect me. You have now restored your status and reputation, and have obtained the consent of the higher-ups. You can return home openly. I am here to take you back. You have worked hard over the years..."
When Ye Song heard Ye Huaiye's words, it was like a thunderclap hitting his chest, making him almost unable to think. His brain had stopped working. He knew every word in Ye Huaiye's words, but it took him several minutes to understand the meaning.
When he realized the meaning of the words, he was so shocked that his arm trembled slightly. He asked in disbelief: "Son, are you serious? Can I really restore my identity and reputation and go home?"
"Really? Otherwise, how could I dare to come to you so openly, father? Everything is over..." Ye Huaiye replied with a firm tone.
Ye Song suddenly burst into tears.
Because some things were not easy to say in front of everyone, Ye Song asked the onlookers to leave, leaving only the father and son. Ye Huaiye told his old father about the situation in the city and his experiences over the years, and Ye Song also told Ye Huaiye everything he had suffered in the past few years. He did not hide the suffering he had endured, nor did he forget Zhao Shichu's life-saving grace and his usual help and assistance.
"Without the girl from the Zhao family, you would not see me alive when you came back to the village, but my bones. I don't have much attachment to this village, but I feel guilty for not repaying the girl." Ye Song sighed, "It's easy to add flowers to a beautiful woman, but it's hard to send charcoal in the snow. That girl really did me a great favor."
Ye Huaiye nodded: "Since she helped you, let's repay her. What does she want? Money? I have the salary from the past few years. I can give it to her, except for some living expenses for father and son."
"What? You want to end her kindness to me with a little money? Is my life so worthless?" Ye Song was dissatisfied with his son's constant talk of repaying kindness with money, and said unhappily.
Ye Huaiye said helplessly: "If not money, then what? Find her a job in the city? It's not impossible, but the jobs in the city are all one-to-one, and it's even more difficult to find a not-too-bad job. I need more time."
Ye Song rolled his eyes and said, "You don't need to ask for a job. The girl is very smart. The college entrance examination has been resumed this time, and she and her elder brother are taking it together. The results should be good, and she will probably be able to get into university. After graduating from university, she will naturally have a good job waiting for her. Why do you need to find one for her?"
"Then tell me, how should we repay you?" Ye Huaye spread his hands and asked.
Ye Song choked and scratched his gray hair. He couldn't think of anything. Finally, he said awkwardly: "How about giving her some money as a reward first? If she is admitted to university, she will also need living expenses... I don't know if her elder brother can pass the exam. If he is, we will provide living expenses for the two siblings. If her elder brother is not admitted, then we will provide him with a job opportunity..."
"Okay." Ye Huaye agreed immediately.
So the father and son discussed it and went to Zhao's house to find Zhao Shichu.
Zhao Shichu looked at the stack of banknotes and various bills handed to him by the handsome young man in front of him, and was speechless. He said, "Give me all this money and bills. Can you and your son support yourselves after you go home?"
Ye Song immediately said, "Yes, I can! Yes, I can! Huaiye said that I will pay you back wages after I go back, which will be enough for both of us to live on. You can take this money as a reward for saving my life and for your kindness in providing me with food. This amount of money is far from enough. When you go to college in Beijing, I can help you a little..."