My Left Eye Can See Through Everything - Chapter 66 - Going Home

Zhou Yang’s home was located on the outskirts of Anhui, in a county town.

From the county town to their village was another ten or so kilometers. Fortunately, it wasn’t a holiday season, so the roads weren’t too crowded.

The highway portion of the trip took less than two hours, but once they got off the highway and onto the local roads leading to Zhou Yang’s house, it took over an hour.

In total, the journey took about three hours. The highway was fast, but the last stretch to Zhou Yang’s home was much slower.

His house wasn’t in the town itself but about a kilometer away from it.

By this time, Zhou Yao was already waiting eagerly at the gate. Just a few minutes earlier, she had spoken to her brother, who had told her they’d be home in about ten minutes.

As Zhou Yao craned her neck, almost straining it from looking out, a car finally came into view.

It was an SUV, and the distinctive logo told Zhou Yao it was a high-end vehicle. The absence of license plates told her it was brand new.

When a man stepped out of the car, Zhou Yao immediately recognized him-it was her brother.

“Brother! I missed you so much! Come here and give me a hug!”

Zhou Yao was 19 this year, while Zhou Yang was 25. The six-year age gap meant that Zhou Yang had practically raised her when they were younger.

Back then, the family was poor. Their parents were either working in the fields or out earning money, leaving them little time or energy to care for the siblings.

As a result, Zhou Yang and Zhou Yao had a very close bond.

“Yaoyao, you’re all grown up now. Why are you still acting like a kid?”

“Come on, let me introduce you to someone-”

Before Zhou Yang could finish, Zhou Yao had already dashed over to Ji Lanyan.

“Hi, Sister-in-law! I’m Zhou Yao! You can just call me Yaoyao, like my brother does.”

That one “Sister-in-law” made Ji Lanyan’s face flush bright red.

After all, she and Zhou Yang weren’t in that kind of relationship. Officially, she was just his boss, and he was her driver.

Of course, no one with a discerning eye would believe that story. A boss hiring a beautiful woman as a driver, letting her live in his villa, and even giving her the master bedroom? That’s a tale even a ghost wouldn’t buy.

“Yaoyao, stop talking nonsense. You should call her Sister Lan Yan!”

Zhou Yao stuck out her tongue playfully, pretending not to hear.

“Yang Zi, you’re back!”

At that moment, their mother, Da Juping, came running out of the house, an apron still tied around her waist.

Seeing her son, she was visibly emotional. It had been half a year since she last saw him.

“Mom, I’m back. Let me introduce you to someone-”

What followed was, of course, a round of introductions and the presentation of gifts.

Naturally, all the gifts had been picked out by Ji Lanyan.

“Sister-in-law, come with me! I’ll show you my brother’s room. It’s full of his childhood stuff-and even some embarrassing photos!”

After spending some time getting acquainted, Zhou Yao pulled Ji Lanyan upstairs. She mainly wanted to spare Ji Lanyan from any awkwardness.

The reason? Da Juping had been staring at Ji Lanyan the entire time with that unmistakable look-the kind a mother-in-law gives her prospective daughter-in-law.

Ji Lanyan was clearly uncomfortable under that gaze. Zhou Yao, ever the clever one, stepped in to save the day, dragging Ji Lanyan upstairs under the pretense of showing her Zhou Yang’s embarrassing photos.

The so-called “embarrassing photos” included a picture of Zhou Yang from his first birthday.

At that age, it was common for kids to wear open-crotch pants or run around bare-bottomed. For some reason, this particular photo had been preserved.

After seeing it, Ji Lanyan decided to take the photo with her.

With this photo in hand, she thought, in the future…

Since Zhou Yang arrived home rather late, dinner preparations naturally followed suit.

The dishes might not be as lavish as those in the city, but they were the kind of rural delicacies city dwellers rarely got to taste.

Take the roasted chicken, for instance. This rooster was raised in the countryside, feeding on grains and occasionally insects from the grass. Chickens like this could cost over 200 yuan each nowadays, and even then, they weren’t always easy to come by.

There was also a pot of soup made from an old hen. Though the meal wasn’t extravagant, it was the best Da Juping could muster for the occasion.

“Mom, my brother’s rolling in money now!”

“I heard from Sister-in-law that the car outside is brand new-cost him 350,000 yuan! And he even bought a house in Jinling!”

“This time, he’s back to take us with him…”

As they ate, Zhou Yao eagerly shared the tidbits Ji Lanyan had told her earlier.

“Yang Zi, how did you make so much money all of a sudden? You didn’t do anything illegal, did you?”

Da Juping wasn’t as naive as Zhou Yao. Money wasn’t something that came easily in this world.

Just half a year ago, Zhou Yang was still working for someone else. Now, he was buying houses and cars in the blink of an eye.

In her mind, the only explanation was something shady.

“Auntie, Zhou Yang hasn’t done anything wrong. He’s just been running a small business and made some money. He even appeared on TV recently!”

“I’ve got the video saved here-I’ll show you!”

Ji Lanyan, worried about Da Juping’s misunderstanding, quickly jumped in to clarify.

As she spoke, she pulled out her phone and opened a saved video.

The video was from last night’s news-a comprehensive report, detailed and official. Ji Lanyan had downloaded it from the internet and kept it handy, just in case it might come in useful.

She hadn’t expected to need it so soon.

Da Juping took the phone and began watching, while Zhou Yao abandoned her meal to peer over her shoulder.

There wasn’t much to see-just footage of donation ceremonies and Zhou Yang answering reporters’ questions.

It might not mean much to others, but for Da Juping, it was monumental.

Her son had been on TV, mingling with important people, and had made a fortune. To her, this was the kind of achievement that brought honor to the family.

Of course, the definition of “important people” varied. For some, it might mean officials in Beijing. For ordinary folks, even a township mayor could qualify as a big deal.

“Yang Zi, now that you’ve got money, make sure to pay off all our debts.”

“They’ve had it tough too. We couldn’t afford it before, but now that we can, we shouldn’t shortchange them by even a penny.”

Zhou Yang nodded firmly.

“Don’t worry, Mom. That’s exactly why I came back this time. I’ll take care of it right after dinner.”

“By the way, I was thinking of bringing you and Yaoyao to live in the city. What do you think?”

Da Juping shook her head.

“Yang Zi, I’m used to living here. I wouldn’t adapt to city life.”

“Besides, living with you young folks wouldn’t feel right-I’d just end up disturbing you. And I don’t know how to use all those fancy appliances.”

“Plus, you can’t just abandon everything here overnight. Let’s wait a few more years.”

“When you’re married and have kids, I’ll come to the city to help you take care of them!”