The Game of Life

Chapter 81 - 80: Meeting Each Other

The next day, by the time Jiang Feng got up, Jiang Weiming had already made breakfast and was watching the news.

Seeing that Jiang Feng had finished washing up and came out, Jiang Weiming said, “There are noodles in the pot, I rolled them out fresh this morning.”

In Jiang Feng’s home, they only had rice, flour, and seasoning, so Jiang Weiming, despite his cooking skills, could only make a simple clear soup with noodles.

The noodles were hand-rolled, each strand uniformly thick, and even without the addition of egg whites, they were still smooth and full of bite.

A few drops of sesame oil and they were heavenly.

Jiang Feng ate heartily, polishing off two large bowls and clearing the noodles in the pot before he was satisfied. After eating, he conscientiously washed the pot and dishes and cleaned the kitchen. He checked his phone; it was just past eight. The bus to the countryside didn’t leave until ten, so he joined Jiang Weiming to watch TV for a while.

Jiang Weiming liked to watch the legal channel, and Jiang Feng kept him company for over an hour before heading out.

Jiang Feng, who had never watched the legal channel before, was amazed that there were such people in the world, and at the same time, he was shocked that CCTV’s programs could have actors with such poor acting skills.

Yes, what Jiang Weiming was watching was a legal-themed short drama.

Jiang Feng noticed that Jiang Weiming had changed into a new set of clothes.

He looked very spirited.

It wasn’t just the clothes; he had also applied mousse to his now entirely white and sparse hair. The mousse in the bathroom was left over from last year when Jiang Jiankang didn’t shave his head bald, and Jiang Feng didn’t even know if it had expired. However, looking at Jiang Weiming’s hair, it seemed it hadn’t.

Sitting next to him, Jiang Feng could feel his nervousness.

On the way to the bus station, Jiang Feng briefed Jiang Weiming on the village where Sir lived: who the neighbors were, the geographical situation, and what the villagers typically did. Jiang Weiming listened attentively, afraid of missing anything.

The old bus station in Zet City had a lax schedule; as soon as the bus filled up, it would leave, completely disregarding the timetable. At this time, the spring travel rush had just started, and more people were returning to the countryside, so the bus left shortly after Jiang Feng and Jiang Weiming boarded.

The ticket seller was a middle-aged woman. Seeing that Jiang Weiming was older and might get car sick, she kindly gave them two seats at the front.

Upon recalculating, Jiang Feng realized it had been a year since he had last returned to the countryside.

Nothing much had changed along the way; the road was still as bumpy as ever, making the minibus feel like a tractor. The road that was built more than ten years ago now had countless pits worn into it. There were rumors that the county was going to get a high-speed railway, so they hadn’t bothered to repair the old road. However, this news had been circulating for two years, and no one knew when it would come true.

Sir’s village was just on the outskirts of the county town. After getting off the minibus and walking for about fifteen minutes, they reached it. Sir’s house was at the entrance of the village, and Jiang Feng could see Jiang Jiankang from afar, happily eating noodles while seated outside the door.

Upon closer inspection, it was braised meat noodles.

There was half a bowl of noodles left in the bowl and three large pieces of braised meat, the sauce richly colored, cut into substantial chunks with the perfect balance of fat and lean, glistening with oil on top of the noodles.

“Son, have you had lunch? Go help yourself; your mom hasn’t had her third bowl yet, there should still be meat left,” said Jiang Jiankang cheerfully. Seeing Jiang Weiming following Jiang Feng, he asked, “Sir, who are you looking for?”

“I…” Jiang Weiming was just about to speak when Jiang Feng interrupted him.

Jiang Feng gave Jiang Weiming a look and asked, “Dad, is Grandpa at home?” “Yeah!” Jiang Jiankang stuffed a large piece of braised meat into his mouth.

“Your grandpa is feeding the pigs in the backyard. I wanted to do it, but he wouldn’t let me. He said the pigs don’t eat when I feed them and accused me of making his pigs lose weight these past two days, when it was clearly your grandma who made them lose weight a while back and he’s blaming me.”

“I’ll go find Grandpa.” Jiang Feng slipped into the backyard in an instant and called out loudly to the pigpen, “Grandpa, look who’s here.”

At the doorway, Jiang Weiming smoothed his clothes nervously, holding his breath so no one would notice his anxiousness.

Sir emerged from the pigpen holding a metal bucket filled with pig feed, wearing his other Valentino coat. Jiang Feng quickly took the bucket from his hands and followed behind him.

Jiang Weiming stood at the entrance, holding his breath, afraid his heavy breathing would give away his nervousness.

Jiang Weiguo came out.

He looked at Jiang Weiming and felt a sense of familiarity, yet he couldn’t remember who he was or where he had seen him before.

Observing the man’s white hair, aged face, slightly sunken eyes, and a face etched with wrinkles and furrows, Jiang Weiguo felt a strange sensation in his heart.

It was a feeling of blood tie and kinship, a connection with a close relative.

“San… Brother?” As if possessed, Jiang Weiguo suddenly felt that the elderly man with white hair in front of him resembled, to some extent, his third brother, who had been blurry in his memory for a long time.

No sooner had the words left his mouth than Jiang Weiguo felt it was ridiculous.

“Little brother… you, you, you still, still can…” Jiang Weiming was so moved that he could hardly speak.

His little brother could recognize him, his little brother could recognize him!

Jiang Weiguo was stunned.

He instinctively looked towards Jiang Feng.

Jiang Feng was about to explain when the slow-to-react Jiang Jiankang cried out in surprise, “Third Brother?!”

The cry was still tainted with the smell of braised meat.

“No no no, Uncle San!” Jiang Jiankang was dumbfounded.

What was happening here, his father’s brother, who was rumored to have died over half a century ago, had shown up at their door!

“Go inside and eat your meal!” Jiang Weiguo roared in anger.

The deeply touching moment of brotherly reunion, filled with warmth, was shattered by Jiang Jiankang’s shout, disappearing without a trace.

Jiang Feng and Jiang Jiankang were chased inside by Sir, and Jiang Feng had thought that a brothers’ reunion would surely entail endless conversation, and at the very least, it would take days to thoroughly share and express the joys, sorrows, separations, and reuniting experiences of the past decades.

Yet, after less than ten minutes of casual conversation at the doorstep, Sir dragged the third brother he had just met towards the pigsty in the backyard to feed the pigs together.

From the room with a clear view of the backyard, Jiang Feng was baffled: ???

This move…

Was truly beyond comprehension!

Mrs. Jiang, who heard the commotion in the room and temporarily left her favorite Huangmei opera, came out to see what had happened. She spoke kindly with her grandson Jiang Feng for a moment before seeking out Jiang Jiankang and his wife, who were both eating braised meat noodles and in a state of shock, in the kitchen.

“San, San’s wife, did someone just come by?” Mrs. Jiang asked.

“Mom, just now… Dad’s third brother came.” Jiang Jiankang was still somewhat dazed.

“What third brother?” Mrs. Jiang didn’t catch on right away.

“Uncle San, the one Dad said had died long ago.” Wang Xiulian was also somewhat bewildered.

“Uncle San?” Mrs. Jiang was stunned. After a while, it dawned on her, and she looked incredulous: “That’s wonderful news! Where are they now? I’ve just checked every room and only saw Feng.”

“They are in the backyard feeding the pigs,” replied Jiang Jiankang.

Mrs. Jiang:….