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Chapter 611: Chapter 601 Going to Z Province
On the sixteenth day of the first lunar month, early in the morning, Shen Yunfang made one last check around the house to ensure that everything was in order, then she locked the door, and while holding one child’s hand, she said to the couple who were carrying her luggage at the doorway, "Let’s go."
At the train station, Ma Liguo went to buy train tickets for Shen Yunfang while Mu Huazhen helped her watch the children, waiting at the ticket checkpoint.
"Yunfang, once you’re settled over there, give us a call here. When you’re free, bring the kids over to stay for a few days. Our little rascal was crying so hard yesterday when he heard that Pangpang and Manman were leaving, insisting on going with you. It’s like I’ve raised my son for nothing," Mu Huazhen said, finding it both frustrating and funny to think of her own child’s antics.
"Sure, let your Transcendent come with me, and I’ll look after him," Shen Yunfang said with a laugh. These kids had played together for so long and had formed such a deep friendship that it was indeed hard to part with each other.
"If it weren’t for school, I’d just let you take him – it could give me a break," she said, a typical case of saying the opposite of what she meant. That’s how mothers often are.
"Haha, no worries. Wait until the summer break, just send your child over to my place. By then, my cousin’s kids might also come, and we can let all the kids play together." Shen Yunfang had grown accustomed to having lots of kids around during the holidays; and despite the occasional ruckus, the joy they brought was undeniable. Furthermore, she knew it was beneficial for the kids to play together and was planning to do so whenever possible in the future.
"Really? That would be wonderful," Mu Huazhen’s eyes lit up at the idea. She and Old Ma were busy with work and usually sent their child to his grandmother’s house during the holidays. But no child likes to be constantly criticized, and it upset her to always hear her son being denigrated. These past few years, whenever her son had time off, he’d stay with the Shen family and play with Pangpang and Manman. Yunfang had never once complained about her son’s mischief, always praising how smart and well-behaved he was – which parent wouldn’t be pleased? Plus, she indeed felt that her son had progressed a lot playing with Yunfang’s children. Yunfang, a college graduate, truly knew how to teach kids. So, handing her child over to Yunfang was something she was very comfortable with. "During the summer holidays, you can bring the children over too. We have space here, and there are lots of places to play."
Her proposal was also out of concern not to overburden Yunfang with both expenses and efforts. When so many kids get together, the costs are inevitable, whether at home or in the Capital. If they came to the Capital, she could help out – at least, spending more money herself would make her feel better about the situation.
"Haha, we’ll talk about it when the time comes," Shen Yunfang thought that such matters were uncertain and that they’d just go wherever they felt was best when it was time. After all, she was going to be a university lecturer and would have breaks during the summer and winter, so she could take the kids anywhere they wanted to go.
At that moment, Ma Liguo returned with the tickets.
"Alright, you don’t need to see me off; it’s just a bit of stuff, I can carry it myself," Shen Yunfang said as she took the luggage and slung it over her shoulder. The bag contained some necessities and food for the train journey, all prepared in advance. As for the rest of her luggage, Li Hongjun had already transferred it on the fifth day.
"Then be careful by yourself, and keep an eye on the kids. Give us a call once you’ve arrived," Ma Liguo didn’t insist on accompanying her further, as he knew his sister-in-law was strong. Besides, he had been carrying the luggage all the way to the station, and he knew the bag wasn’t that heavy.
"Okay, we’re going to go in then," Shen Yunfang said, shouldering the bag and holding a child’s hand, bidding farewell to Ma Liguo and his wife before proceeding through the ticket check and into the station.
After finding her bunk, she let the two kids sit and play while she arranged the luggage.
"Oh, these two are your kids? They’re so handsome," a woman sitting opposite them started a friendly conversation after seeing the family of three.
"Haha, what’s handsome about them, they’re still kids. You can’t really tell at this age," Shen Yunfang modestly replied.
"How can you not tell? This young mom here is doing a great job, and these two kids will definitely turn out fine," the female comrade sized up the mother and children, "You know, for someone as young as you are, it’s hard to believe you already have kids this big."
Being praised for looking young, Shen Yunfang was of course pleased, and she indeed was young; she was only twenty-three, "I got married early, so I had children early too."
As the train started moving, the carriage was already filled with quite a few people, all eager to chat. Once someone began, everyone seemed to engage in conversation unconsciously.
And Shen Yunfang, the woman traveling with two children, became the focus of everyone’s attention.
Shen Yunfang didn’t put on airs, chatting with everyone about the topics she could and smoothly avoiding those she couldn’t. The others were considerate and shifted the conversation whenever they noticed she didn’t respond.
This time, Li Hongjun’s troop was located near the capital of Z Province, which was her destination. Z Province wasn’t far from the Capital; with the current train speed, it would only take about six or seven hours to get there.
The train Shen Yunfang took departed from the Capital at around eight in the morning and would arrive at around three-thirty in the afternoon. Most people preferred hard seats for such a short journey, but Shen Yunfang thought differently.
If she bought hard-seat tickets, she certainly would have saved some money, but then her two children would be without a place to sit. All along the way, she would have to hold them, making the whole journey uncomfortable for the three of them, or she would have to buy another seat for the kids to squeeze into. Instead, it made more sense to buy sleeper tickets; she would pay for herself while the children wouldn’t need tickets. With the spaciousness of the sleeping berth, they could lie down if they got tired. And for just a bit more money, why not travel without suffering?
Of course, this was because Shen Yunfang came from the future and had a different approach to consumption than people of the current era.
Additionally, the extra money wasn’t for nothing, because chatting on the train led her to meet several useful individuals. The woman who started the conversation with Shen Yunfang happened to be a director at the Bank of China in Z Province, in charge of loans. She was heading to the Capital this time to accept and learn about her new task.
Since the beginning of economic reforms, to boost the development of the rural economy, the state had allocated a certain amount of funds for farmers to take out interest-free loans. However, back then, people’s mindset was more conservative, and many feared debts might be passed on to their children, making them reluctant to borrow money despite the attractive government policy. Initially, only a few people availed themselves of these loans.
This situation led to bank employees begging door-to-door, traveling to the countryside to persuade farmers to take out loans—the opposite of what would happen in future generations.
After hearing a few complaints from the comrade, Shen Yunfang had an idea and subtly garnered more information about the relationship and the details of the loans.
"Sister Liu, I actually studied agriculture, so if I ever need a loan in the future, I hope I can count on you," Shen Yunfang said jokingly.
Sister Liu didn’t take it seriously, as she was worried, "No trouble at all. If you really do come to me for a loan, I should be thanking you." At that time, loaning out money was a target-driven task, and if they didn’t disburse the funds, the bank staff’s wages could be docked.
Yet, she never imagined that this woman who casually chatted with her on the train would actually help her fulfill her entire annual loan quota.
