"Dad, is our uncle really the richest man in the world?" Huang Laoban had not yet arrived, but the whole family had already gathered inside the house to wait. A child, about ten years old, couldn't contain his curiosity and asked his father,
"He should be, shouldn't he? Don't you see the leaders have all arrived?" Huang Liang's voice trembled uncontrollably. He had dropped out of elementary school and started working at a young age. He managed to save money to get married and have a child, but his wife ran off with a contractor. Huang Liang had no choice but to leave his child in his hometown and continue working as a bricklayer in Guangzhou to support his son.
No one expected that a phone call would come a few days ago. Since Huang Liang didn't have a mobile phone, it was directed to his aunt and uncle's home in Guangzhou.
Huang Liang's relationship with his aunt and uncle was not good. Huang Liang had initially worked under his aunt and uncle, expecting some help from relatives, but to his surprise, his aunt and uncle had deliberately withheld his wages, citing the reason that since they were relatives, there was no need to be so calculative.
After that, Huang Liang fell out with his aunt and uncle and went to another construction site to work. He thought he would never have any contact with them again. However, to his surprise, his aunt and uncle came to find him. Upon meeting, they excitedly told him, "Liangzi, you've made it! I never expected that we would have such wealthy relatives. Our whole family is going to prosper!"
Huang Liang was naturally bewildered at first. Later, he learned from his aunt and uncle that his fourth uncle, who had been missing for decades, had finally surfaced, and that fourth uncle's only son was none other than the world's richest man, Huang He.
Huang Liang was naturally very familiar with Huang He, as things related to Jiangnan Group could be seen everywhere on the streets of Guangzhou. Moreover, almost all of Huang Liang's daily necessities were purchased from Jiangnan Group's blind box stores.
Don't misunderstand. Huang Liang wasn't so extravagant as to go to blind box stores every day to draw blind boxes. Instead, as time passed, "blind box stalls" gradually appeared in the market.
These stalls didn't sell blind boxes themselves, but were set up around Jiangnan Blind Box stores, specializing in buying blind boxes from people who had bought them from the stores and found the contents useless.
They bought them at a low price and then resold them at a slightly higher price.
Of course, since Jiangnan Group itself had a mechanism for recycling blind boxes, these stalls generally acquired grain and oil blind boxes. The price for selling these directly to Jiangnan Group for repurchase was too low, but selling them to outside buyers could fetch a slightly higher price. These buyers would then resell them to others who only wanted to purchase grain and oil.
Even after being resold, the price of grain and oil remained advantageous, costing at least less than buying from a supermarket, although there were often expired items.
However, Huang Liang didn't care about these things. After all, grain and oil, even if expired, were generally fine, and they were much cheaper. Therefore, Huang Liang consumed almost exclusively products from Jiangnan Blind Boxes and was naturally familiar with Huang He.
Of course, Huang Liang had never thought he would have any connection with him. Even when chatting with his fellow workers, they would often joke, "Since you're surnamed Huang, perhaps you're related to Huang He," to which Huang Liang would just smile, never imagining that it might actually be true.
Frankly speaking, if it weren't for his own mother repeatedly repeating this fact in their hometown dialect over the phone.
And saying that the town leaders had come to visit and inspect their home, and had even allocated tens of thousands of yuan to renovate the house, and then directly showed a video from CCTV, in which the house in his hometown clearly appeared. Only then did Huang Liang rush to take leave from his company and return to his hometown to meet this relative he had never met.
Almost all the Huang family members working outside also rushed back. Upon hearing the news, they all rushed back regardless of anything, fearing they would miss meeting their suddenly appeared rich relative.
It was only the children who didn't quite understand the significance of "Huang Laoban," but they knew that their great-uncle, who existed only in legends, actually had descendants who had found their way back.
Suddenly, a burst of firecrackers sounded from the entrance, and an impatient staff member rushed in to report. The Huang family then surrounded the elder and walked out of the house together.
Then, they saw a middle-aged man, surrounded by a group of people in Han-style clothing, slowly but steadily climbing the slope and appearing before everyone.
"It's him, it's really Huang He from the TV!" Huang Liang's uncles and brothers exclaimed with excitement. Huang Liang himself was so excited that he couldn't speak. This legendary figure, who only existed on television, was actually appearing.
"It's Old Fourth, this child looks exactly like Old Fourth when he was young!" Suddenly, Huang Liang's elderly mother cried out in excitement. She pushed away the youngsters supporting her and rushed into Huang Laoban's embrace. Huang He caught her firmly and held her in his arms.
"Great-uncle Fourth looked like this when he was a child?" Huang Liang murmured to himself, his voice filled with surprise. He had never met his legendary great-uncle Fourth. By the time he was born, his great-uncle had already been gone for almost ten years.
"He does seem a bit alike!" Three of Huang Liang's five uncles also commented in hushed tones. However, their tones were not very firm. Huang Tianshan was the eldest among that generation, and Huang Liang's father was the second eldest. The rest were successively younger.
Therefore, among the five uncles who were still alive and of the same generation as Huang Tianshan, only three had seen Huang Tianshan. But when Huang Tianshan disappeared, the eldest among them was only six or seven years old. It was unrealistic to expect them to recall Huang Tianshan's appearance now.
However, since Huang Liang's grandmother had rushed forward immediately, it was likely true, and Huang He was indeed a member of the Huang family.
Of course, even if they thought he didn't look alike, no one would say a word. At this time, only an idiot would do such a thing.
Next, amidst the crowd and the filming of countless media reporters, Huang He entered the house and had a cordial yet polite conversation with all his relatives.
However, because Huang He did not speak the local dialect, and these relatives' Mandarin always had a strong local accent, the communication between the two parties was not smooth. Sometimes, local leaders present had to assist with communication.
So, the younger children soon became bored and ran out to play.
The young people of Huang Liang's generation dared not leave, but they kept their heads down, not knowing what to say.
Only a few of Huang He's elders occasionally spoke, but the main task of speaking fell to Huang Liang's mother. She constantly reminded Huang He of various events from Huang Tianshan's childhood, making their Huang Laoban tear up.
Afterward, Huang Laoban had a hometown meal at home, and then went to his father's old house.
The house had been cleaned up, and the杂物 (sundries) had been moved out. However, the things inside were still the original items from that time. No one dared to move anything without permission, as these were all souvenirs for Huang Laoban.
Indeed, Huang He was deeply moved and announced on the spot that he would be staying in this ancestral house tonight. Even though the bed was still creaking precariously, Huang He's attitude was firm, and his emotions were very touching, capturing countless photos from reporters.
The next day, the news of Huang Laoban's ancestral visit was immediately released nationwide. The public finally became interested, as the world's richest man, a dilapidated old house, and a group of poor relatives in tattered clothes were very appealing themes, allowing countless people to fantasize about suddenly having such a rich relative... or even just a rich relative with several million yuan in assets.
That evening, the Huang family members, each carrying dishes, arrived at the Huang family's ancestral house, finally bringing the aroma of food to a house that had not seen cooking smoke for decades.
And at the dinner table, the Huang family members finally couldn't help but recount their various hardships and frustrating experiences in life, reminiscing about the painful lives they had lived over the years.
Upon hearing this, Huang Laoban was deeply moved and declared, "Although my father left due to some injustices back then, we are still relatives connected by blood. Your troubles are my troubles, and I will no longer let you live such a difficult life.
"How about this: those who are willing to stay in the village, I will fund new houses for you. Those who wish to live in the city, I will help you buy a house in the city.
"Furthermore, children's education is also very important. The educational environment in this place is too poor. All children who love to study, I plan to bring them to Wenzhou to study at the school founded by our Jiangnan Group. Boarding and living will be managed by teachers. We must nurture these children into talents!
"As for living expenses, I don't know how else to help you, so I plan to set up an account for each of you, and I will deposit 10,000 yuan into this account every month. You can spend this money however you wish. But there is one condition: you must not gamble, nor engage in illegal activities. Otherwise, if I find out, I will immediately stop the funds, and you will no longer be my relatives. The thing I hate most in my life is gamblers!" Huang He's words naturally made all the Huang family members tremble with excitement.
Their monthly wages were at most around two to three thousand yuan. But with a single word from Huang Laoban, they would have money, houses, and an additional 10,000 yuan deposited automatically each month, and their children could attend the best schools. This was an unimaginable life.
Amidst the heartfelt thanks from their numerous relatives, Huang Laoban finally closed his eyes on the creaking bed and slept peacefully.