Chapter 8: Seeing the Family Again
Mu Lantu’s family lived in a small county town called Anfeng County. It belonged to Qingning City, a fifth-tier city without an airport. Mu Lantu took a two-hour flight to Yongyang City, then hired a car from the airport to Anfeng County. The whole trip took nearly five hours.
Only Mu Zhenguo was manning the family’s supermarket. Business was slow at the moment, and he was chatting idly with the owner of the pastry shop next door, Song Weiqiang. They both looked up when they saw a tall, lean young man walking toward them, dragging a suitcase at a leisurely pace and holding a half-eaten candied hawthorn in his other hand. The young man wore a blue denim set, beige Martin boots, an open jacket revealing a black base layer, and a beige waist bag slung across his chest—handsome and stylish. He looked like his youngest son, but Mu Zhenguo hesitated to believe it.
“Hey! That’s Lantu back, isn’t it!” Song Weiqiang was the first to recognize him.
“Dad,” Mu Lantu greeted, then turned to Song Weiqiang with a smile. “Uncle Song, you’re watching the shop today?”
Song Weiqiang responded warmly, feeling a twinge of envy at the sight of the tall, good-looking young man. His own kid was still in high school, and he and his wife had a long road ahead before they could relax. After a quick farewell to Mu Zhenguo, he returned to his shop, giving father and son a moment of reunion.
Mu Zhenguo was fifty-three, tall and broad with a square face. Once he was sure it really was his youngest son, his sun-darkened face lit up with joy. He reached out to take the suitcase from him.
“I thought you said you were buying a ticket for today? Why are you back so soon? I thought at the earliest you’d be here tomorrow.”
“I flew back,” Mu Lantu said casually, carrying the suitcase into the shop himself and placing it in a corner.
Mu Zhenguo followed him in. “Flew back, huh? How much was the ticket?”
“A little over a thousand,” Mu Lantu answered honestly.
Mu Zhenguo didn’t say much, only asked if he’d eaten. “If you haven’t eaten yet, go grab something. Got any money on you?” he said, already reaching into his pocket.
“I’ve eaten. Still got money.” Mu Lantu had treated himself at a restaurant in Yongyang’s airport. “Where’s Mom?”
“Where else? Playing mahjong.”
There was only one chair in the shop. Mu Zhenguo handed it to his son.
“I’m good, you sit. How’s your health—and Mom’s?” Mu Lantu wrapped his leftover candied hawthorn in a plastic bag and tossed it into the trash. “It was awful. Didn’t see a trash can on the road.”
“These things just look good, made to fool kids and young folks like you,” Mu Zhenguo said, his face glowing with his son’s concern. He handed him a bottle of cola. “Your mom and I are fine. You can tell she’s doing great—she’s more active about going to play mahjong than people are about going to work.”
Mu Lantu took a few sips and glanced around the shop. “Health is the most important thing. How’s business?”
The shop was less than 20 square meters, selling cigarettes, alcohol, and daily goods. The location was decent—right next to the highway, with a breakfast street outside—so there was a steady stream of foot traffic. But as far as Mu Lantu remembered, Anfeng had plenty of convenience stores, and this one didn’t stand out.
“It was okay before. We finished paying off all our debts two years ago. But business hasn’t been great these past couple of years. Still, it’s easier than farming. Speaking of which,” he paused and added, “about buying a house for you… we’ll need to wait a few more years. Your mom and I don’t even have enough for a down payment yet. If you do well and can cover it yourself, great—we’ll help with the mortgage. We won’t favor either you or your brother.”
“No need for you guys to help. I’ll buy my own place in the future.” Mu Lantu had the money now—buying a house in a small county town was easy for him. But he wasn’t planning to yet, mainly because of his orientation. If he bought a place here, his parents would definitely start pushing him to get married. He’d experienced that pressure before and wasn’t keen on going through it again.
Mu Zhenguo chuckled but didn’t take his words too seriously. It wasn’t that he doubted his son’s ability—just that the situation in small towns was tough. Wages were low, but housing and living costs weren’t. Most young people still found it hard to afford a home on their own.
“Alright, I’ll wait and see what you can do.”
“Dad, do you plan to always run this supermarket? Ever think about changing things up?”
Mu Zhenguo shook his head. “I’m not as dumb as you think. I’ve thought about it before. But the county’s small. Every type of business is already here. Switching to something else would just mean more competition, and I’d probably lose. Might as well stick with what I know.”
Mu Lantu didn’t know much about the current state of the county, so he didn’t comment further.
“I’m going to find Mom.”
“Go ahead. She’s either at Xiao Li’s teahouse or Old Zhao’s. Just follow the breakfast street, turn down the first alley on the left—it’s just a few steps in. Both teahouses are right next to each other.”
“Got it.”
Mu Lantu strolled off. On the way, he passed a small barbecue stall and couldn’t resist buying two grilled chicken skewers.
The alley was old and filled with “teahouses”—a polite way of referring to mahjong parlors.
He headed to Xiao Li’s teahouse first. Scanning the room, he quickly spotted He Cuifang, slightly plump, wearing a dark red top and black pants, with a low ponytail about ten centimeters long. She sat sideways to the door, chatting with others as she played. On a stool beside her were two cups of tea and a disposable plate of peanuts, sunflower seeds, and a few small tangerines.
Mu Lantu smiled. The place was surprisingly accommodating—drinks and snacks were provided. No wonder every table was full.
The players at the table noticed someone entering and looked over curiously. Their eyes widened: Who’s this handsome young man? He looks like a movie star.
“Mom.” Mu Lantu walked over.
Hearing the familiar voice, He Cuifang turned around in surprise. Her face lit up and she jumped to her feet, accidentally knocking over one of her tiles.
“Son! When did you get here? Why didn’t you call? Sorry, ladies—I’m done for today.”
“Wanted to surprise you and Dad. You can keep playing, I was just bored and came to see you.” Mu Lantu gently pressed her back into her seat and handed her a skewer.
Her three mahjong partners were initially annoyed she wanted to leave, but softened when they saw the touching scene. Their own kids never brought them snacks just because they passed a food stall. It wasn’t about the food—it was about the thought.
He Cuifang was overjoyed, grinning ear to ear. “So I can keep playing?”
“Go ahead.”
The teahouse owner, a woman He Cuifang’s age wearing heels and a dress, brought over a stool and tea with a warm, pleasant smile.
“Old He, this your youngest? He’s really handsome!”
Mu Lantu quickly got up to help and thanked her.
“Yes, he just got back today. Lantu, this is your Auntie Li—always so kind. This teahouse is hers.”
Mu Lantu politely greeted her, “Hello, Auntie Li,” and sat close beside his mom to avoid disturbing the player next to her.
Li Dahong only had time for a quick chat before heading back to her business.
The other three players were still focused on the game, but they kept stealing glances at Mu Lantu. Li Dahong wasn’t wrong—this was probably the best-looking young man they’d ever seen, tall too, probably over 1.8 meters.
“Just graduated this year?” one of them asked.
Mu Lantu smiled. “Yes.”
“Got a girlfriend yet?”
Knew that was coming.
Still smiling, he replied, “No.”
“Well, now that you’re done with school, it’s time to start looking. Want me to introduce someone?”
“Thanks, Auntie, but not yet. Maybe after I have a job, a car, and a house.”
They couldn’t argue with that. No job, no house—girls wouldn’t go for him. And he probably wouldn’t want a girl who’d settle for that, either. The three aunties dropped the subject and changed the topic.
He Cuifang’s smile faded a little. She wasn’t pleased. In her eyes, her son was amazing. The fact that no one wanted to introduce a girl to him felt like an insult. No job or house was just temporary—he’d have all that in time.
Mu Lantu could easily read people. Seeing her reaction, he unzipped his waist bag and pulled out a thick stack of cash, placing it in front of her. He’d withdrawn it earlier at an airport ATM.
“Mom, here—some spending money for your mahjong games. I’m heading out for a walk.”
“Oh, you child! Carrying so much cash around, aren’t you afraid of losing it?” He Cuifang gave him a light smack on the arm. It looked like at least three or four thousand yuan.
“I’ll be fine. I’m going now.”
The three aunties were green with envy. This He Cuifang, how lucky is she? Her son brings her snacks and money?
He Cuifang carefully tucked the cash into her purse. “Alright, don’t stay out too late. Around 4, I’ll pick up your niece and nephew from school and head home to make dinner. Watch the time.”
“Got it.”
At 5 p.m., Mu Zhenguo closed the shop early for once and returned to Mu Hongtu’s house with Mu Lantu.
Mu Zhenguo and He Cuifang had three children. The eldest, Mu Hongtu, was 32. His wife was Yang Xiu Rong, and they had two kids: daughter Mu Chenxuan, 9, and son Mu Chenyu, 6. Both attended the same elementary school—Chenxuan was in 3rd grade, and Chenyu would start 1st grade in the fall. The second child, Mu Zhenzhen, 29, was married to Luo Wangjun from town. They had one son, Luo Xingchen, who was 4. Mu Lantu was the youngest.
Since there were two children, Mu Hongtu had bought a four-bedroom, two-living-room, one-kitchen, two-bathroom apartment. It was spacious but still felt crowded with so many people.
He Cuifang made a big dinner. Not long after it was ready, Mu Hongtu and Yang Xiu Rong came home together.
Mu Hongtu worked as an excavator operator at a construction site on the town’s outskirts. Yang Xiu Rong was a waitress at a restaurant, still in uniform.
“Bro, Sis-in-law.”
Yang Xiu Rong was surprised to see Mu Lantu and turned to scold her husband. “Lantu came back today and you didn’t even tell me? My mom just called this afternoon—she’s coming over tomorrow to stay for a few days!”
The room suddenly fell silent, leaving only the sound of cartoons playing on the TV.
