Yan Jin’er arrived at the Scrap Collection Station. At the entrance of the purchase station, an Old Grandpa sat there. He looked to be in his fifties and was watching his grandson play nearby.
He looked up at Yan Jin’er and asked, “Girl, what are you here for?”
Yan Jin’er smiled with pursed lips and said, “Hello Grandpa. Your grandson is really energetic. My mom asked me to come to the Scrap Collection Station to buy some old newspapers and scrap wood to take home for firewood.”
Hearing someone praise his grandson, Old Grandpa nodded with a smile and said, “Mm, go in.” In this era, many people were like this.
Yan Jin’er heard the reply and excitedly walked into the legendary Scrap Collection Station.
Treasure, I’m here!
The Old Grandpa behind her shook his head and thought to himself that young people were really still too naive.
Yan Jin’er looked in shock at what was in front of her. At a glance, everything was neatly arranged and also sorted into categories.
There was also a middle-aged man inside, sorting through a pile of miscellaneous items, skillfully placing each category of items into their corresponding locations.
“Newspapers are over here, scrap wood is in the corner by the wall,” the man shouted without even lifting his head, then continued his work.
After coming back to her senses, Yan Jin’er walked to the area with waste newspapers and rummaged through it. She did not find anything valuable, which was also expected.
She casually picked up a stack of old newspapers and then walked toward the corner where scrap wood was placed. The scrap wood took up a large area.
She casually picked up a few thin pieces of scrap wood, and Yan Jin’er no longer had the excitement she felt when she first entered to hunt for treasure.
As expected, she had been thinking too beautifully!
She casually dug in the corner of the wall and pulled out a piece of black wood about the size of an adult’s arm. Its color could no longer be recognized.
“Why is this so heavy? Could it be something good!” Yan Jin’er weighed the wood in her hand and thought.
After that, Yan Jin’er searched around again and found no similar pieces of wood, so she finally stopped.
Holding the wood and newspapers, she walked dejectedly to Old Grandpa to settle the payment.
Old Grandpa, holding his grandson, looked at Yan Jin’er’s items and teased with a smile in his eyes, “Girl, is that enough? Not going to look a bit more?”
Yan Jin’er felt her face heat up and pretended to be calm as she replied, “Enough, enough. It can be used for a long time.” Anyway, no one knew her, so they could laugh if they wanted.
These newspapers and wood together cost Yan Jin’er one mao and two fen. After paying, she carried the things out of the Scrap Collection Station. She no longer had the mood to wander elsewhere and directly headed home.
Passing by the entrance of a traditional courtyard house, she found a crowd gathered at the door, each of them staring inside with bright, shining eyes.
Inside, the main characters being watched were also performing.
“Big sister, I understand that you don’t want to go down to the countryside, but you can’t just give up on yourself like this. How could you…” a soft, delicate voice sounded, filled with disbelief and shock, and the unfinished words made people imagine things.
Hearing this, Yan Jin’er’s gossip radar immediately stood up. However, the front was completely blocked, and even after jumping a few times, she still could not see the main characters. She could only shout while squeezing forward, “I’m in a hurry to cook, don’t block the way.” Others, thinking she was from this compound, made a small gap, and she forcefully squeezed herself in.
She quietly stood behind a middle-aged woman and tapped her shoulder. “Auntie, what’s going on?” At the same time, she pulled out a few candies from her pocket and stuffed them into the woman’s hand.
The auntie had been watching intently, but seeing the candies immediately began explaining.
“Oh my, this is the eldest daughter of Old Cheng’s family. She actually married a partner just to avoid going down to the countryside.”
“Isn’t that a good thing? Having a partner means she doesn’t have to go down to the countryside,” Yan Jin’er asked.
“The problem is that this partner is a loafer. He’s already in his twenties and still relies on his parents to support him. The Cheng family’s eldest daughter is only around eighteen or nineteen this year.”
“I knew that Old Cheng’s second wife wasn’t a good person. She actually wanted to give her late wife’s job to that burdened child.”
“Old Cheng is also foolish. For that burdened child, he forced his own daughter into this state. Things will be hard for him in the future.”
“Doesn’t Old Cheng still have his biological son? He’ll depend on his son for retirement anyway.”
“But he didn’t need to go this far…”
The auntie and the people around her chattered on for a long time, then continued watching the scene.
“You’re afraid that if I don’t go down to the countryside, you won’t be able to take my job, right? I’m telling you, I will never give you my job.” The eldest daughter of the Cheng family, Cheng Yu, curled her lips into a cold smile. She did not expect Cheng Qian to still not give up even at this point.
“Big sister, how can you think of me like that? I’m only thinking of you. I never even thought about taking the job left by your mother.” Cheng Yu’s younger sister, Cheng Qian, slightly changed her expression. She looked pitiful, yet stubborn. However, her eyes swept across Cheng Yu’s face, and a flash of resentment passed through them.
“Fine then. If you’re not after the job, then go down to the countryside. Or what, do you want your younger brother to go instead?” Cheng Yu acted surprised. The Cheng family would always need someone to go down to the countryside, so she would just let them bite each other.
“Dad, Mom, I don’t want to go down to the countryside!” Cheng Xuan, who had been watching the drama, immediately refused anxiously, afraid that he would end up being sent.
“Enough, stop arguing. The matter of going down to the countryside will be decided for Xiao Qian. And Cheng Yu, you actually married a loafer just to avoid going down to the countryside. Do you still have any shame!” The tall, thin middle-aged man with a beard, Father Cheng, said darkly as he made the decision. In his eyes, Cheng Xuan was a girl and could not go down to the countryside, while Cheng Yu was already married and also could not go.
“Dad, I—” Cheng Qian, seeing that things had developed into her being sent down to the countryside, was filled with hatred in her eyes and wanted to say something more, but she was immediately held back by her mother. It was clear that she shared Father Cheng’s thoughts and was unwilling to let her son go down to the countryside.
“Alright, Xiao Yu, don’t anger your father. Apologize to him later. How could you impulsively marry a loafer?” Stepmother Liu Yuer gently persuaded Cheng Yu on the surface, but at this point she was still trying to sow discord in front of Father Cheng.
She also smiled at the crowd watching and said, “Oh my, it’s already noon. Everyone should go home and cook. Otherwise the children will go hungry.”
Seeing that there was no more excitement, the crowd dispersed and returned home.
Cheng Yu gave Father Cheng and the others a deep look. A shadow of gloom flashed through her eyes and disappeared in an instant. Standing there, she seemed to think about something for a moment, then turned and walked into the house.
Yan Jin’er saw that everyone had dispersed and felt truly amazed. She felt like this could even be written into a novel—something like “The Female Lead and Her Toxic Family.”
Thinking this, Yan Jin’er continued walking home while holding her pile of “junk.”