38. Brigade

  Look at the young lady with a pouting face and a small mouth, full of grievances. Bai Wenhui's heart, as a five-foot-tall man, is so soft that it's almost dripping with water.

  "Hey kiddo, taking the car will be very tiring for you, aren't you afraid of getting tired? Besides, it's so cold outside, why don't you and your mom just stay at home?"

  Bai Wenli really didn't want his daughter to suffer this fate by going out, and going out with a child was inconvenient in many ways.

  Ke Yu Xi didn't think so, she had never been out since coming here, she wanted to see what the team department looked like, last time she took a bus over was just a glance.

  Bai Wenli couldn't help but glance at his daughter, who was staring at him with those big, round eyes. His little heart was beating wildly, and he really couldn't resist the pitiful gaze of their family's little girl.

  Smiling and nodding her forehead, "Alright, Dad promised you, hurry up and go to sleep on the kang, we still need to get up early tomorrow."

  Geng Mei said with some resentment, "You're just spoiling her, taking a little kid out on such a cold day, don't you think it's troublesome?"

  Bai Wengui smiled and said, "Alas, who made this little girl my treasure? Come to sleep, little one."

  Yu Sai was snuggled up against Bai Wenli's warm chest, the man's warmth made her heart feel extra relaxed, this was Daddy's broad chest, hoping for a dreamless night.

  Early in the morning, Yu Tong and his friends had not set off yet. The little ones who came back from outside in Tuanzi led by Zhou Kai and Zhou Chen brothers ran to the White family to play with the siblings, but heard that Bai Haoran was not back, and they were all quite disappointed.

  It's rare for Bai Wengu to see someone as good with children as his son is.

  "Little ones, wait for two more days and Haoran will be back. You can still find him to play then. Uncle is taking his sister out today, so he can't accompany you guys to play for now. Wait until Yueting comes back, they'll come over again."

  After sending away the little ones, Geng Mei and Bai Xinyi were busy for a while. They were worried that their elder sister's food would not be good, so they boiled some eggs at home and brought some raw ones over. When they left, they stuffed a stack of money into their elder sister's pocket.

  "Sister, if you feel that the job is not suitable for you, just come back, don't stick it out there, we can spare one less mouth to feed at home."

  Geng Mei's words warmed Bai Xinyi's heart, her eyes reddened, but she held back tears from falling.

  "Brother and sister, there's a lot of work at home, just send me a message, I'll come back to help when the holiday is over."

  Bai Xinyi turned around and tightly hugged Geng Mei before following the two out of the courtyard without looking back.

  Bai Xinyi has been staying at her brother's house for almost two years now, and this time she also wants to go out and make a name for herself. She can't rely on her brother to support her for the rest of her life, although her brother and his family have been very good to her as a sister. However, she feels embarrassed about it, and besides, she is still young, so she needs to make some plans for the future, even if not for herself, then at least for the sake of her several younger brothers at home.

  After getting on the car, Bai Xinyi's emotions finally eased up. Yu Tong sat beside Bai Wenli and looked out at the endless Gobi Desert and wilderness, asking curiously, "Dad, why hasn't so much land been cultivated?"

  "Hey, kiddo, it's not that easy to open up wasteland and start farming. What we're harvesting now is the result of your grandfather's generation's hard work over many years. Look at those rocky areas down there, some places aren't even suitable for planting. And let's be real, our population is small too, I reckon by your generation, not many people will want to farm anymore."

  Bai Wengui's voice was filled with infinite melancholy as he spoke, and Yu Xiang thought to himself that if it weren't for this, there wouldn't be so many empty nests of elderly people and left-behind children in later generations. So many young people wanted to leave and take a look at the outside world, let alone those from remote areas like this one - how many people would be willing to stay? The younger ones probably all wanted to leave.

  Seeing her father's despondent expression, Yu Tong felt a pang of heartache for an instant. It was rare to see Bai Wenli look like this when talking to her.

  "Dad, from now on I'll stay with you and mom, and won't go anywhere."

  Bai Wenli was amused by the words of his daughter, "Silly girl, Dad doesn't want to leave because this place is my roots. But you are different, you're still young and should go out and see what the outside world is like. When you grow up, remember that this is your home."

  Bai Wengu did not want this to hinder the child's progress, he thought that his daughter should be a good student in the future, although they do not attach much importance to girls' education here, but he still hopes that his children will have a bright future.

  All the way, the scenery is coming over, except for the snowy snow-capped mountains and the vast expanse of wilderness. If I had to say what's best about this place, it's really quiet and spacious, making one feel unoppressed in their heart. Compared to the crowded cities of later generations, this might be a great place to open up one's mind and let ideas fly free.

  The places where people lived were far apart and could only see one or two of them, Yu Tong sighed in his heart, it was really a vast land with sparse population.

  Arriving at the Tunpu Station, the situation here is clearly different from below. There are many people, which is the most obvious feature, and it's more prosperous than where they live. It gives people a feeling similar to that of modern towns. The roadsides also have many shops, and the merchants have already opened for business.

  Bai Wengu led them and they soon found the place, a not very large processing plant.

  Bai Wengui brought two people to find the person in charge, and after greeting them beforehand, they quickly arranged for Bai Xinyi to stay in the dormitory of the unit.

  I've arranged everything for the big sisters, then took them out to eat a simple meal, after all they just arrived here and missed the factory's lunch time.

  In the afternoon, she still had to go back, so Bai Xinyi reluctantly bid farewell to her grandfather and grandmother at the factory gate.

  "Auntie, if you're tired, just go home."

  Yu Sai's parting words made Bai Xinyi almost cry, it was her first time working alone outside and she wasn't quite used to the change.

  Lala held Yu's hand and said, "Little girl, if you miss your aunt, let your dad bring you over to play. When your aunt makes some money, she'll buy you delicious food."

  Bai Wengui still had some worries and instructed, "Sister, if anything happens to you, just go find Lao Er, he works nearby and can take care of you."

  "Alright, don't worry. Your sister is older than you after all. Take Yueting out for a walk since it's rare to come here."

  After saying goodbye to Auntie, Grandpa and I strolled along the roadside, taking a look around. The next bus hadn't arrived yet.

  "Ah, Bai Wenli, how did you come?"