Chapter 116: Do You Still Care About Your Eldest Son?

Chapter 116: Do You Still Care About Your Eldest Son?

Su An had just finished freshening up and was about to fix herself something to eat when she saw Chen Shiyu hurrying over.

"Su, Su, Zhao Daxing and Auntie Xiao are both running a fever. Director Wang and I just rushed them to the hospital."

"Hurry up, get your things and come with me!"

Su An looked at Chen Shiyu like she was crazy. "What for?"

"What do you mean? You're family! Your mother-in-law and husband are sick, and you're just going to ignore them? Who's going to take care of the medical bills, pick up the meds, and pay the fees?"

Su An shook her head. "I'm not going. We just had a big fight last night and haven't made up yet! Besides, I'm broke. It's just a fever, why go to the hospital? Just stay home, cover up, sweat it out, and you'll be fine. Going to the hospital every day, like we're made of money? Director Chen, whoever took them there can handle it."

"Regular folks aren't that delicate. Why rush to the hospital for every little thing?"

Chen Shiyu was stunned. Sure enough, she was being set up.

"If you don't take care of your own, who will? Listen, I'm just here to mediate. If you don't care, neither do I. Do whatever."

With that, Chen Shiyu bolted like a bat out of hell. From now on, she wouldn't touch the Zhao family's business, no matter who asked. It was a thankless job, and she didn't even get a sip of tea.

Su An watched Chen Shiyu's fleeing figure, her eyes narrowing, she immediately headed out to the post office to make a call.

Who to call?

Of course, she was calling her dear sis-in-law. Now that Xiao Jiliang and Zhao Daxing were both sick, who was going to take care of the three children?

In her past life, Su An had helped Xiao Jiliang make many phone calls and knew the number for Huaizhen, where Wang Dabing's family lived nearby.

When the call connected, a woman answered. Su An directly asked for Wang Dabing's family and requested to speak to Zhao Xiaoyu.

The woman on the other end told Su An to call back in ten minutes.

Su An hung up and asked the clerk at the counter, "Comrade, how much does a phone call cost?"

"For local calls, the first minute is one yuan, and each additional minute is eight mao."

Su An's eyes widened. "So I just spent one yuan?"

"Yes, as soon as the call connects, it counts."

"Tsk, that's expensive. So long-distance must be even more expensive?"

"Rates vary by location. Here, long-distance calls within 800 kilometers cost two yuan per minute, 800 to 1,500 kilometers cost eight yuan per minute, and over 1,500 kilometers cost twelve yuan per minute. International calls aren't available here; you have to go to the specialized post office in Yangcheng, Guangdong."

Seeing Su An's shocked expression, the clerk smiled. "Actually, people who need to make phone calls usually have urgent matters. At such times, the cost isn't as important as getting the call through as quickly as possible."

"In our city, things are relatively convenient now. But many places in the country are still quite backward. Sometimes, it can take over ten hours to get a call through."

"Ten hours? Wouldn't that be too late?"

"In places with poor transportation, just finding someone to call can take hours, and sometimes you can't even find the person."

After chatting with the clerk for a while, Su An checked the time and dialed the number again.

......

She had already spent one yuan; if she didn't make the call, that money would be wasted. She was determined to get that money back from Zhao Xiaoyu.

Zhao Xiaoyu recognized the voice on the phone and exclaimed, "Su An?"

Her tone was surprised.

Su An knew what she was thinking and got straight to the point, "Zhao Xiaoyu, your mother and brothers are in the hospital again, and the three children are left unattended..."

"What? They're in the hospital again? Did you do something this time? I'm telling you, Su An, don't go too far, I..."

"Shut up! I don't have the money to waste on small talk with you."

"Do you still want your eldest son or not?"

"What do you mean?"

"The phone call is expensive. Buy a ticket to City A now and come get your two sons. I'm telling you, if you don't come now, you might miss your chance."

After saying that, Su An hung up the phone without waiting for Zhao Xiaoyu's reply.

Su An checked the call duration—59 seconds—and breathed a sigh of relief. If it had gone over a minute, she would have been charged double.

"Comrade, look, it's just one second under a minute..."

After paying, Su An leisurely headed home. Zhao Xiaoyu was sure to come. This woman was trouble, but she was selfish. In her heart, she came first, her family second, and her husband and daughter were pushed to the back.

Zhao Long and Zhao Hu weren't just family matters to her; they were tied to her future.

Back home, Su An searched the kitchen and found a five-pound bag of flour and half a basket of eggs.

She found a clean basin, washed it several times, poured in all the flour, and cracked in all twenty-something eggs.

After mixing in some salt, she poured the remaining half bottle of oil into the pan and started making egg pancakes.

Any leftovers would be taken back for her brother to eat.

A few days ago, Su An and Su Ping held a simple housewarming and made a few dishes.

While eating, Su Ping suddenly said, "An An, there's so much food—chicken and meat. It would be great if Mom were here too."

Su An saw her brother's melancholy expression and knew he was missing their mother.

He was simple and honest. Before, his only concerns were survival, working more to earn money, and sleeping when he was tired. Now that he finally had some free time, he couldn't help but reminisce about their past life in the countryside and their relatives.

The 80s and 90s were a time of economic boom. In big cities, opportunities were everywhere, and you could make money doing almost anything.

Though Wang Xiaocui was a rural woman, even setting up a small stall in the city beat tending to a few acres of land at home.

Most importantly, now that she and her brother were grown, they could bring their mother to live with them. They no longer had to tolerate Su Jianjun's attitude.

Su An skillfully made the egg pancakes. Since she didn't skimp on oil and eggs, the kitchen was filled with a delicious aroma.

The weather was cooling down, and her brother had a big appetite. Any leftovers could be taken on the road.

There were just over three months until the New Year. After that, her brother would start learning from a master, and she would also get busy.

Su An decided to use this free time to take her brother back to their hometown, spend some time in that beautiful mountain village, and then bring their mother to City A for the New Year.

After more than two hours, she finally finished making a whole basket of egg pancakes.

Zhao Long, Zhao Hu, and their sister had already returned. They were pacing back and forth at the kitchen door, probably hungry but too intimidated by Su An to say anything.

Su An picked up an egg pancake, rolled it with pickles and salted duck eggs, and ate it with great relish, even smacking her lips exaggeratedly, pretending not to notice the three children swallowing their saliva.

Xiao Jiliang's salted duck eggs were delicious. She would take them all out later and bring them along with the egg pancakes.

Zhao Xiaoyu arrived quickly. Just as Su An finished eating the egg pancakes and had gone through the house, Zhao Xiaoyu arrived, looking dusty and tired.

"Why is this door broken again? Su An, I knew it was you..."