MGASC -Chapter 69 The Iron Tree That Hadn’t Bloomed for a Thousand Years Finally Learned Romance

It took only half a day to deal with Zheng Wencai.

Lin Tianyue and Chen Gang watched him head to the police station to turn himself in before they finally left.

“Brother Yue, what if that guy suddenly changes his mind?” Chen Gang was still a bit uneasy.

Lin Tianyue gave a cold, arrogant snort. “If he follows what we taught him to say, at most he’ll be treated as an accomplice—one year, maybe a year and a half. But if he gets reported for embezzling public funds, with how hard things are being cracked down on right now, he could get shot. Tell me, which is lighter? Which is heavier? If it were you, what would you choose?”

Chen Gang scratched his head with a grin. “I’d definitely choose the first one.”

Exactly.

Lin Tianyue wasn’t worried at all about Zheng Wencai turning on them.

Instead, he was troubled by something else.

It was already past two in the afternoon. The market had long since dispersed. Where was he supposed to find sugar-coated hawthorns for Zhang Qiao?

“Brother Yue, what are you wandering around for? Window-shopping?” Chen Gang asked.

“Ah…” Lin Tianyue responded absentmindedly, his sharp eyes sweeping the stalls like radar. “There really isn’t anyone selling tanghulu.”

Chen Gang: Are you okay?

“Brother, tanghulu is only sold in winter. It’s summer—sugar melts in the heat. Who would sell that stuff in the middle of summer?!”

Then it suddenly hit him. “Damn, Brother Yue—you really took sister-in-law’s words to heart!”

Hahahahaha. Chen Gang really wanted to laugh out loud.

Had this iron tree that hadn’t bloomed for a thousand years finally learned how to be romantic?

He remembered how, back at the hospital, he’d exhausted himself trying to persuade him—and failed.

“Forget it, Brother Yue. I think sister-in-law was just saying it casually. Don’t take it too seriously. Everyone knows you can’t buy that stuff in summer. How about you just get something else tasty? She’ll definitely be happy.”

Right in front of Chen Gang was a sunflower seed vendor. He pinched a few to taste—pretty good—so he immediately had the vendor weigh out half a jin.

“Yingzi loves cracking sunflower seeds. Brother Yue, why don’t you get some too?”

Lin Tianyue glanced at the seeds and said nothing.

So Chen Gang casually bought another half jin as well.

They walked the entire street from end to end without finding any tanghulu. Lin Tianyue’s brows twisted tighter and tighter into a deep frown.

Chen Gang split half of the sunflower seeds and peanuts he’d bought and handed them to Lin Tianyue. “Take these, Brother Yue. Stop thinking about tanghulu!”

Lin Tianyue took them, glanced down, then said, “Didn’t you say pregnant women get sudden cravings, and if they can’t get a bite right away, they’ll feel miserable?”

Chen Gang snorted. “Eh, I was just repeating some gossip I heard my mom say while chatting with others. If no one’s selling it, are we supposed to magically conjure it up for her?”

Conjure it up?

Lin Tianyue suddenly had an idea.

He waved Chen Gang off. “You head back first!”

Then he strode off quickly toward another street.

Lin Tianyue remembered seeing a shop selling hawthorn earlier. He went and bought a jin of it, then turned down two more streets and found the sugar figurine vendor from before.

Thank heavens—the vendor was still there.

When he heard Lin Tianyue say he wanted to borrow his malt syrup to make tanghulu, the vendor looked utterly incredulous.

“Big brother, I make sugar figurines…”

“Can’t you be a little flexible? It’s not like I’m not paying you!”

Lin Tianyue was tall and broad—looked like he could fit two or three vendors inside him—and with his rough voice and imposing presence, he was clearly not someone to mess with.

The vendor pouted but had no choice, painfully helping him make three skewers.

Fortunately, rough as this man looked, he was generous. When he left, he actually gave the vendor a full yuan.

Enough to buy twenty sugar figurines!

…

Zhang Qiao had gotten up early and originally planned to rest for a bit after coming back.

But just as she lay down, the neighbor Ma Cuihua showed up with her son, carrying a bag of fruit and several cans of preserves.

Usually, because of Lin Tianyue’s bad reputation, the neighbors never associated with them.

With guests at the door, Zhang Qiao had no choice but to muster her energy and entertain them.

Ma Cuihua already had a loud voice. As soon as she came in, she enthusiastically praised Zhang Qiao, calling her pretty and capable. Seeing the three kids studying seriously, she praised her for raising them so well—clean, handsome, and more likable the longer you looked at them.

As she talked, she opened a can of preserves and insisted the kids eat some.

Lin Jin stared at the can, secretly swallowing his saliva, his eyes darting toward Zhang Qiao.

Lin Ran was tempted too, but he tugged on Lin Jin’s sleeve.

“Auntie Ma, Aunt Qiao said ‘no reward without merit.’ Um… do you have something you need?” he asked.

That was exactly what Zhang Qiao wanted to ask.

“Yes, Sister, if there’s something, just say it. We’re neighbors—no need to be polite.”

Ma Cuihua’s face reddened slightly. She suddenly pulled her son in front of Zhang Qiao. “Well… Tianyue’s wife, I heard Tianyue’s making money now, that a feed factory is about to open. This is my son, Ma Zhu. He’s sixteen—strong, lots of strength. I came to ask if Tianyue’s factory needs workers. Could my Ma Zhu go help Tianyue out? Zhuzi, hurry up and greet her!”

The sixteen- or seventeen-year-old boy, already shy from looking at the pretty Zhang Qiao, blushed even harder. After holding it in for a long time, he finally murmured, “Auntie…”

By seniority, he wasn’t wrong—but Zhang Qiao was so startled she nearly jumped.

So they were here to look for work—but sixteen?

“Sister, don’t be polite. Zhuzi does look sturdy. He’s sixte—?”

“He stopped studying a long time ago—not cut out for it! But don’t worry, Xiao Qiao, my Zhuzi may not be good at studying, but he’s great at physical work.”

Ma Zhu muttered softly, “Who says I’m not good… I even got into high school…”

Zhang Qiao had sharp ears. She exclaimed in surprise, “You got into high school? Then why didn’t you keep studying?”

Ma Cuihua waved it off. “Ah, what’s the use of studying? Look at your Tianyue—didn’t study either, and he’s still doing great. For men, making money is what matters most! Besides, if he finishes high school, how old will he be? Almost twenty. When will he start earning money and marry so I can hold my grandchild?”

Zhang Qiao frowned. “Sister, you can’t say that. Wanting to study is one thing; having the conditions to study is another. Your Zhuzi clearly still wants to study. Since he has that ambition, you should let him. If he gets into college someday, you won’t have to worry about him finding a wife. With a good job, he might even bring home a city wife. Wouldn’t that make you proud?”

Ma Cuihua shook her head. “Is college that easy to get into? In ten villages, you might get one golden phoenix. And even then, some get accepted and still get replaced by others. That happens a lot. My Zhuzi doesn’t have that kind of fate…”

The replacement she mentioned was her younger brother. Years ago, he’d gotten into college but was replaced by a city kid. The blow drove him nearly mad.

Because of that, Ma Cuihua refused to let Zhuzi continue studying. Getting into college was great—but if it ended up like his uncle’s case, that so-called blessing might turn into a disaster.

Zhang Qiao ignored her reasoning and looked directly at Ma Zhu. “What about you? What do you want? Do you want to be a factory worker?”

Ma Zhu hesitated for a long time, his face red as a beet. “I… I still want to study. People say college students will have a future.”

“Exactly. Why rush into working? Even if you don’t get into college, having a high school diploma means you won’t have to do back-breaking labor your whole life.”

Zhang Qiao wasn’t exaggerating. In this era, even high school graduates were rare.

Not to mention city jobs—just in a small place like theirs, becoming a teacher would already be enough.

As society developed, teachers would be officially appointed, get job security, and earn no less than people in the city.

She patiently reasoned with Ma Cuihua for a long time, finally persuading her to give up the idea of pulling Ma Zhu out of school. Even if he stopped studying, Zhang Qiao couldn’t make decisions for Lin Tianyue and arrange a factory job for him.

This was a matter of principle.

“Sister, let Zhuzi study properly. Tianyue dropped out back then because he had no choice. He regrets it deeply. Even now, with some success, it came from risking his life and enduring hardship. If there were a choice, who would abandon the straight, open road and deliberately take a winding path? If your family were so poor you couldn’t even eat, I wouldn’t persuade you. But clearly, you still have a choice. As parents, we must plan for our children’s long-term future, not be blinded by short-term benefits.”

Her words nearly moved Ma Cuihua to tears.

And Lin Tianyue, who had just reached the doorway, also came to an abrupt halt.