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He Tiantian fetched hot water, took out cups, and poured tea for everyone.

Seeing that his wife, Aunt Wang, was in a bad mood, Huo Zhekun smiled and said, "I've already talked to my father, my eldest brother, and Yingjun about these things, and told them to be careful. It's important for men to work hard outside, but it's even more important to handle conflicts at home."

"Hehe, if everyone were as sensible as you, that would be great," Aunt Wang said. "I won't say anymore. Some things are beyond our control. As long as you are all well, the old lady will have less to worry about."

He Tiantian was breastfeeding her two chubby babies. The babies were holding the bottles, their cheeks puffing out as they sucked, their big eyes looking at one and the other, as if they could understand what the adults were saying.

Seeing how adorable the two chubby babies were, Aunt Wang's previous gloom vanished, and she began to play with the children.

With Jiang Lifang taking care of the child during the day, He Tiantian spends most of her time sleeping. At night, she stays with the child so that her parents-in-law can rest.

When the train arrived at Nanshi Station, He Tiantian immediately felt that the stale air inside the train had become fresh.

In her heart, the old house in Yanjing was not home; Nanshi was their home.

Secretary Guo arranged for two cars to pick them up, took them and their luggage directly to their home, and then left.

Secretary Guo was very thoughtful and helped procure fresh vegetables, which he had gone to great lengths to obtain.

Jiang Lifang asked Secretary Guo to stay for dinner, but Secretary Guo declined. He felt embarrassed to let his leader and his family stay for dinner after such a tiring train journey, and left with another driver.

They felt like they had been away for many days, even though they had only been away for ten days.

Grandma Wang stayed inside taking care of the children, while Huo Zhekun, Huo Yingjie, Jiang Lifang, and He Tiantian did some simple cleaning. Around noon, He Tiantian started cooking.

After dinner, the family of seven finally felt at home.

He Tiantian wasn't the only one who felt this way; others did too.

It's still more comfortable at home.

Nanshi University will start school on the twelfth day of the first lunar month. Not long after, He Tiantian prepared some things she would need for school. On the tenth day of the first lunar month, she received some items sent from Yanjing.

He Tiantian had already planned to invite a few close classmates over for the Lantern Festival. These things would come in handy; they could be used to entertain her classmates.

He Tiantian had just finished unpacking the things that had been sent to her and was getting ready to go to sleep when she heard a loud knocking on the door.

"Who is it so late at night?" He Tiantian asked Huo Yingjie beside her in confusion.

"It shouldn't be Mom and Dad, I'll go check," Huo Yingjie said. Whoever it is, he's here at home, so there's nothing to be afraid of.

Huo Yingjie went to open the door and saw Huang Jingli looking disheveled outside.

"Huh?" Huo Yingjie exclaimed in surprise, "Huang Jingli, you've been robbed?"

Because Huang Jingli was good at handling people, Huo Yingjie had a good impression of her and considered her a friend he could talk to.

"I'm sorry to bother you so late, I really have nowhere else to go." Huang Jingli leaned against him, her voice a little hoarse, her expression sorrowful.

"Then come in," Huo Yingjie said. He wasn't suited to entertain Huang Jingli. "Tian Tian, ​​this is your classmate Huang Jingli."

He Tiantian heard the noise and quickly came out.

"Something must have happened. Ask around carefully. I'll go inside and check on the children," Huo Yingjie said. He didn't want to hear about women's affairs.

Furthermore, Huang Jingli's disheveled state suggests she has likely experienced something terrible, and it's inappropriate for a man like him to be there.

He Tiantian led Huang Jingli to the guest room, brought over the stove from the kitchen, and poured some hot water for Huang Jingli, saying, "Jingli, have some water first to warm yourself up."

Huang Jingli did not refuse and drank two cups in a row before she recovered.

He Tiantian found her mother's old cotton-padded clothes and shoes and said, "Sister Jingli, you can't wear my clothes, so I took my mother's old clothes. Please make do with them."

Huang Jingli's clothes were tattered, and her shoes had her toes sticking out.

Seeing He Tiantian busy with everything, Huang Jingli, who had been holding back her tears all the way, finally let them flow.

"Sweetie, thank you," Huang Jingli said gratefully, crying as she spoke.

With nowhere else in the world to go, she had no choice but to trouble He Tiantian.

"Jingli, were you robbed?" He Tiantian thought Huang Jingli had been robbed while walking home at night on her way to school.

There are many unemployed young people in Nanshi lately, and the public security situation has deteriorated somewhat. I must talk to my father-in-law tomorrow and ask him to strengthen public security management in Nanshi.

Huang Jingli shook her head, disregarding the fact that this was a family scandal, and said, "When I got home, my family put me under house arrest."

"Household confinement?" He Tiantian asked in surprise. "And it was done by your family?"

This is...this is so strange...

I can't even imagine!

“Yes, you heard me right.” Huang Jingli had calmed down. “There are four siblings in my family. I am the third oldest. My two older brothers are already married, and I have a younger sister. At that time, my brothers had already been assigned jobs. I was about to start working in a factory. My sister had just finished school and was supposed to be sent to the countryside as an educated youth, but she suddenly broke her leg. So the spot fell to me, and I took my sister's place. I didn’t complain about being sent to the countryside. Sometimes, I would secretly send them the tickets, money, and some mountain produce I collected on the mountain.”

“Yes, I heard from Sister Wu that you were living a very hard life back then,” He Tiantian said. The food rations for educated youth were limited, but Huang Jingli was able to save some and exchange it for money, which she would send home along with her own savings.

Huang Jingli's tears fell like pearls from a broken string, pattering down her face.

“I’m such a filial daughter, but only my mother occasionally replies to my letters. I haven’t received a single word from anyone else, and no one has invited me home for the New Year,” Huang Jingli said. “It’s as if I don’t exist as their daughter. I came to school without telling my family, and I felt resentful. But just before the holidays, I received a letter from my mother inviting me home for the New Year.”

"You didn't tell your family, so how did they get the address of Nanshi University?" He Tiantian frowned, there must be some twists and turns she didn't know about.

Huang Jingli smiled wryly and said, "It was Lin Xiaoru. My mother wrote me a letter, which ended up in Lin Xiaoru's hands. She wrote back to my parents, saying that I had been admitted to Nanshi University."

"Is Lin Xiaoru really that kind?" He Tiantian asked doubtfully. Sending a letter takes time and effort—writing it, buying stamps, and delivering it to the county town. Lin Xiaoru wouldn't do this without a benefit in return.

“I got into university, but she didn’t. Of course, she doesn’t want me to have a comfortable life.” Huang Jingli hit the nail on the head. “I haven’t been home for Chinese New Year for so many years, which shows that I’m not favored at home. If she tells my parents about my situation, it will definitely cause me trouble.”