“Auntie, I heard it from someone at the ocean shipping company, it’s absolutely true.” Wu Huihui came after work at noon, and her forehead was covered in sweat from walking. “Now even people in our factory know that there was a storm at sea a couple of days ago, and it wasn’t just my cousin’s ship that suffered, but other ships as well. The news came back from other ships.”

Luo Yao listened from the side, and her eyes also reddened.

No, he won't get into trouble... He promised her he would go back to the Northwest to see her.

Wu Huihui looked at Luo Yao with a puzzled expression, her face full of disdain.

They have absolutely no connection, yet they come to ask for lodging. How shameless! What childhood sweethearts? Pshaw!

"You have to keep this from your cousin-in-law. Don't let her know." Yang Yuelan's mind was in turmoil, and tears were already welling up in her eyes. She wiped them away haphazardly and choked out, "She's pregnant and can't be upset. I... I'll go find Yaqiang and ask him right away."

"Auntie, don't worry, I won't tell her." Wu Huihui felt a great responsibility and took Yang Yuelan's arm to comfort her, "I'll go with you. Don't worry, maybe my cousin will be alright."

Luo Yao stood at the door, watching Yang Yuelan and Wu Huihui's backs, tears streaming down her face.

Everyone has the right to care about this, except her.

Xu Qingning was taking a nap in bed.

She vaguely heard someone talking, but didn't pay attention. She turned over and went back to sleep.

Wang Yaqiang lived in the next courtyard. He had just finished eating in the canteen and was about to come back for a nap when he saw Yang Yuelan and Wu Huihui arrive. Yang Yuelan, in particular, had red eyes, as if she had been crying.

He was startled: "Auntie, what's wrong?"

"My aunt heard that my cousin's boat had an accident, so she came to ask you about it," Wu Huihui said first, as she had a very bad impression of Wang Yaqiang.

But now is not the time to dwell on these things.

She also wanted to know what was going on with Zhao Jingyu.

“Auntie, there were rough seas a couple of days ago, but we haven’t received any news of any shipwrecks.” Wang Yaqiang realized and immediately said, “These things happen all the time, you don’t need to worry.”

He was also someone who had been to sea.

It's perfectly normal for waves to rise at sea.

“But I heard that my cousin’s ship had an accident, and it’s all over your company.” Wu Huihui suspected that Wang Yaqiang was deliberately hiding something. “My aunt trusts you, that’s why she came to ask you. Tell the truth.”

"To be honest, there's no news right now." Wang Yaqiang said, half-laughing and half-crying. "No news is good news, isn't it?"

"Yaqiang, if anything happens to your brother, just tell me, don't tell your sister-in-law," Yang Yuelan said, still worried. "You know she can't handle any stress."

“I know,” Wang Yaqiang nodded repeatedly.

Just as Yang Yuelan and Wu Huihui left, Liu Dawei returned, his face pale, and said, "Yaqiang, the boss's ship has run into trouble..."

"Really?" Wang Yaqiang's expression changed, and he immediately got up and walked out. "I'll go to the company and ask."

"I'm going too." Liu Dawei followed and ran out.

Wu Huihui had to go to work, so she didn't stay long and left in a hurry.

Yang Yuelan told Luo Yao, "I asked around, and there's nothing wrong. It's normal for there to be waves at sea."

Wang Yaqiang works at the company every day, so he's the most informed.

If he says it's okay, then it's definitely okay.

Luo Yao was relieved: "It's good that you're alright."

During the Ghost Festival, people release river lanterns.

The old ladies in the courtyard gathered together to fold paper lanterns. Their wish was for their children to surround them and for their families to be safe and healthy.

Folding paper lanterns every year, praying for blessings every year.

They had also heard about the accident at sea, and they whispered and discussed it among themselves. Since Zhao Jingyu was the only one from their courtyard who went out to sea, the focus was naturally on Yang Yuelan and Xu Qingning.

The old ladies reached a tacit agreement.

This matter should be kept from Yang Yuelan and Xu Qingning, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. They will find out sooner or later anyway, so it's better to find out later than sooner.

They are keen on gossiping about everyone, but not about such tragic events.

Human hearts are made of flesh and blood.

Older people can't stand hearing these things.

After Xu Qingning woke up, she also took colored paper and folded river lanterns. Folding river lanterns was something little girls were keen on. As a pregnant woman, she didn't want to join in the fun, but now she wanted to pray for Zhao Jingyu's safety.

She hoped he would return safely.

Xu Qingning is a fashion designer who is also very good at drawing and painting. She asked Yang Yuelan to make paste and made a lotus lantern that was lifelike and vivid.

Yang Yuelan and Luo Yao both said it looked good and asked her to make two more.

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law shared the same idea; Yang Yuelan also wanted to pray for her son's safety and well-being.

Luo Yao hopes she can find a job smoothly and also prays that Zhao Jingyu can return safely.

The three of them, each with their own thoughts, went to the riverbank and released river lanterns.

They arrived early, and there weren't many people by the river.

Yang Yuelan was worried that Xu Qingning would be crowded if there were too many people, so she suggested that they come earlier. Xu Qingning's belly was already showing, and she was worried about her.

Three river lanterns drifted away along the calm river surface. Two of them were blocked by the grass, but one lantern continued to float forward resolutely and soon disappeared from sight.

Xu Qingning recognized that the river lantern that had flown away was hers; she had used red paper, which made it very conspicuous.

When the three of them returned home, Du Juan was already waiting at the door. Upon seeing her, Xu Qingning's eyes lit up: "Teacher Du is here. I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting."

"It's alright, I just arrived too." Du Juan looked at her with a smile, her smile masking her sympathy. "I've already inquired about what you mentioned last time. The school is short-staffed right now, and as long as there are no major mistakes, you can be formally hired after the probation period."

She had heard about what happened at sea.

Now no one can contact the people on the ship, and everyone's fate is unknown. She is very worried.

"That's great." Xu Qingning was delighted and immediately introduced Luo Yao to Du Juan, "This is Luo Yao, the niece I told you about."

"Hello, Teacher Du." Luo Yao greeted Du Juan very politely.

"Hello." Du Juan quickly glanced at Luo Yao. The girl had fair skin and was pretty; she looked quite nice.

"Let's talk inside." Xu Qingning warmly invited Du Juan into the house. "I was planning to visit you in a couple of days, but I didn't expect you to come first."

Yang Yuelan was busy pouring water and making tea.

Luo Yao sat down next to Xu Qingning.

"I just happened to be passing by, so I came over to tell you." Du Juan patted Xu Qingning's hand and said gently, "You can focus on taking care of yourself. You don't need to run errands."

The cheongsam that Xu Qingning designed for her has already been made at the clothing store. She tried it on and was very satisfied.

She originally wanted to wear it for Xu Qingning to see, but she was worried that Xu Qingning would be upset if she found out about Zhao Jingyu, so she didn't wear it.

"The school is on holiday now. Next Friday, August 25th, is my shift. Come to the school to find me then, and I'll arrange accommodation for you so you can familiarize yourself with the school environment beforehand," Du Juan said, getting down to business and not talking about anything else.

"Thank you, Teacher Du." Luo Yao's eyes lit up.

"Then I'll have to trouble you, Teacher Du." Xu Qingning knew things would work out, but she didn't expect it to go so smoothly.

"No need to be so polite." Du Juan smiled and stood up, saying, "When Zhao Jingyu comes back, he can treat us to a meal."

"I'll definitely invite you," Xu Qingning said with a smile.

After seeing Du Juan off, Xu Qingning took a small stool and sat in the yard to cool off. Because of work, Luo Yao was no longer so resistant to Xu Qingning. She came out of the house and took the initiative to talk to her: "When my uncle comes back from Yuecheng, I'll treat you to a meal."

“Okay, we’ll wait.” Xu Qingning didn’t refuse.

Yang Yuelan was a restless person. She took a rag and wiped the doors and windows in the yard, wiping them up and down and back and forth. When she saw Wang Cuifen coming back from outside, she greeted her with a smile: "Old sister, you're back."

"You're back..." Wang Cuifen looked away, glancing at the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law with great sympathy. Yang Yuelan noticed her strange expression and asked, "Sister, what's wrong?"

"No, nothing, I don't know anything." Wang Cuifen rushed into the house and slammed the door shut.

Yang Yuelan and Xu Qingning looked at each other in bewilderment.

Is something wrong this time?

baffling!

Second update.