Chapter 59 (Combined with Chapter 59)

When his brother-in-law asked for help, Song Yiping readily agreed, "Go ahead."

Yan Minghe: "The teacher asked us to call my parents, but my dad and the others are both unavailable. Brother-in-law, why don't you come to our school tomorrow?"

Song Yiping saw right through it, "Did you not do well on the test and are afraid of getting a beating?"

Yan Minghe cleverly avoided the topic, saying, "Not doing well on the exam is one thing, but there are other things too. Brother-in-law, you'll find out when you go to school tomorrow. The teacher said it doesn't have to be during working hours; you can go during your lunch break. Brother-in-law, could you please help me out?"

Yan Minghe kept calling him "brother-in-law," which made Song Yiping feel comfortable. He decided to temporarily act as his brother-in-law's parent and go to his brother-in-law's school tomorrow.

Consider it a chance to experience the role of a parent in advance.

Accumulate experience in advance so that you won't be caught off guard when you become a parent yourself.

Seeing that Song Yiping had agreed, Yan Minghe breathed a sigh of relief and repeatedly reminded Song Yiping, "Brother-in-law, don't tell my sister about you going to school, otherwise she'll beat me up, and she hits really hard."

Song Yiping didn't reply, so Yan Minghe took it as a yes and ran off happily.

The next day, during his lunch break, Song Yiping went to Yan Minghe's school.

Yan Minghe is a student at the Third Primary School in the city.

To avoid putting pressure on the teacher, Song Yiping changed into casual clothes and parked his car on another road before walking there.

The gatekeeper said he was Yan Minghe's parent and that the teacher had asked him to come today, so the gatekeeper let him in.

Following Yan Minghe's instructions, Song Yiping went to the second floor of the faculty and staff building, found Yan Minghe's office, and knocked on the door.

Although it was lunchtime, Feng Shuzhen and her colleagues didn't rest. After lunch, they came to the office to grade assignments.

Feng Shuzhen was sitting near the door. When she heard the knock, she turned around, saw Song Yiping, and stood up to ask, "Comrade, who are you looking for?"

Song Yiping: "Hello teacher, I am Yan Minghe's parent. Yesterday, Yan Minghe said that the teacher asked the parents to come to the school today."

Feng Shuzhen was surprised that Yan Minghe's parents were so young; she guessed they were his older brothers.

"Mr. Yan Minghe, please come in. I am Yan Minghe's homeroom teacher. My surname is Feng."

After Song Yiping came in, Feng Shuzhen pulled up a chair for him and said, "Mr. Yan Minghe, sit down and let's talk."

Song Yiping thanked Feng Shuzhen and sat down in the chair.

Feng Shuzhen, "Did Yan Minghe tell you why he was asked to bring his parents?"

Song Yiping: "He didn't say anything, he just told me that the teacher asked the parents to come to the school."

Feng Shuzhen was furious when she heard this. Even if Yan Minghe's father was handsome, she would still criticize him severely.

"Yan Minghe's parents, I have to criticize you. As parents, you have no idea about your child's situation at school. When the teacher asked parents to come to school, you didn't even ask why. This is a serious dereliction of duty in your child's education."

Song Yiping, "..."

This was his first time being a "parent," and he had never been called in by his teacher when he was a child, so he had no experience. Yan Minghe asked him to come, so he came.

He guessed that Yan Minghe probably didn't do well on the exam and was already mentally prepared to be criticized.

However, judging from the teacher's attitude, it's clear that it wasn't just a matter of not doing well on the test; there must be other, more serious problems.

When the teacher criticized him, he could only listen obediently. Taking advantage of the moment when Feng Shuzhen was drinking water, he asked her, "Teacher Feng, did Yan Minghe cause trouble at school?"

Feng Shuzhen put down her water glass and found Yan Minghe's test paper among a pile of test papers. "Take a look at his score first. This is the result of our midterm exam."

Song Yiping took a look and saw that the math score was 52 and the Chinese score was 38.

Song Yiping was so angry he laughed.

No wonder they don't dare let his dad, brother, or sister come to school. With scores like that, if any other family members come, they'll get a good beating when they get back.

Feng Shuzhen: "Yan Minghe's grades have dropped drastically this semester. Last semester he was 15th from the bottom in the class, but this midterm exam he suddenly dropped to 5th from the bottom. But that's not the worst part. The worst part is that he led a group of students to demolish the back wall of the school, saying he was going to build defensive fortifications. He even appointed himself a regimental commander and told his classmates to call him Regimental Commander Yan. After class, he led his men to charge and fight."

Feng Shuzhen opened the drawer and took out a wooden pistol, a slingshot, a spinning top, a wooden knife...

"These were all found in his desk. He said his family made them for him. Yan Minghe's parents, did you make these for him? Why did you make these for him? Are you encouraging him to waste his time on playing games?"

Song Yiping didn't dare to say that these were all things he used to curry favor with his brother-in-law.

As for building defensive fortifications, that was something he told his brother-in-law.

If he tells the truth, Teacher Feng will probably be furious.

For the first time in his life, Commander Song obediently listened to the reprimand and dared not utter a single word in rebuttal.

While Teacher Feng was taking a break to drink water, he repeatedly assured the teacher that he would definitely discipline Yan Minghe strictly when he got back.

Feng Shuzhen criticized him, but seeing Song Yiping's good attitude, her anger subsided considerably. She spoke earnestly to Song Yiping, "Yan Minghe is a smart child, but his biggest shortcoming is that he doesn't focus on his studies. He's already in fourth grade, and he'll be taking the junior high school entrance exam in a year. With his current grades, he won't even pass the exam. He's so young; what can he do if he can't go to school? Stay at home unemployed, and then do temporary work when he reaches the age limit? I hope you parents can take this seriously and educate your child to focus more on his studies. Time waits for no one."

No matter what the teacher said, Song Yiping nodded in agreement.

Feng Shuzhen was very satisfied with this attitude and finally returned the confiscated toys to Song Yiping.

Yan Minghe was hiding behind the bushes downstairs when he saw Song Yiping come down. He ran out from behind the bushes and asked, "Brother-in-law, have you gotten my toy gun back yet?"

Song Yiping: "They're coming back."

Yan Minghe said, "I knew my brother-in-law could help me get it back. Thank you, brother-in-law."

As he spoke, he reached out and asked Song Yiping for it.

Song Yiping said, "I promised Teacher Feng that if I pass all the exams next time, I will return the toys to you."

Yan Minghe almost burst into tears.

He didn't dare let his family come over, for fear they would confiscate his toys.

I never expected my brother-in-law to be like them, wanting to confiscate his toys. What's the difference between that and taking his life?

Yan Minghe pestered Song Yiping, "Brother-in-law, give me back my toys first, and I promise I'll pass the next exam."

Song Yiping said seriously, "I have already made a promise to Teacher Feng, and a man's word is his bond."

Yan Minghe muttered, "Brother-in-law, I don't want to study. I want to be a People's Liberation Army soldier like you in the future. All I need to know is how to shoot a gun."

Song Yiping said, "Now, to join the army, you need to have graduated from junior high school at the very least. Teacher Feng said that with your current grades, you can't even pass the junior high school entrance exam. If you still want to join the army, you won't even pass the first hurdle."

Nowadays, the requirement for joining the army is primary school graduation. Song Yiping deliberately exaggerated the educational requirement, since Yan Minghe didn't know that anyway.

Yan Minghe was disheartened, not expecting that he needed to have graduated from junior high school to join the army.

Song Yiping, "Want to be a sharpshooter?"

Yan Minghe said dejectedly, "I want to, but I can't be a soldier. I can't even touch a gun, how can I be a sharpshooter?"

"Then study hard and at least get into junior high school. After you graduate from junior high, if you still want to join the army, I will arrange for you to go to the military base and have someone teach you how to shoot."

Song Yiping had already noticed that Yan Minghe had excellent aim and was particularly patient when aiming, lying prone for more than half an hour without moving until he hit the target.

He's a promising sniper.

However, things are different now than before. Even if you want to be a sniper, you need to learn theoretical knowledge, so you must have a solid cultural foundation.

Yan Minghe's eyes lit up immediately upon hearing this, "Brother-in-law, you have to keep your word."

"count."

Yan Minghe was still not reassured, so he held up his little finger and said, "Sign a pinky."

Song Yiping had never done anything so childish in his entire life.

However, she still extended her little finger and made a pinky promise with Yan Minghe.

Yan Minghe: "Pinky promise, forever."

After making a pinky promise, Yan Minghe ran off happily, but after only a few steps, he came back. "Brother-in-law, you absolutely mustn't tell my sister about what happened today, or she'll beat me up!"

He had barely finished speaking when he saw his sister standing outside the school gate, watching them.

To be precise, as I looked at him, I felt like his sister was about to come in and twist his ear any second.

He thought he was hallucinating. He blinked, and his sister was still there. Terrified, he turned and ran away.

Song Yiping left the school.

Yan Ruyi asked in confusion, "Why did you come here? Sihe told you not to tell me anything?"

After thinking about it, Song Yiping felt it was necessary to let Yan Ruyi know about her brother's studies.

Then, without any qualms, he betrayed his brother-in-law.

Anyway, he hadn't agreed to Yan Minghe's request, so he wouldn't tell Yan Ruyi about what happened today.

Moreover, Yan Minghe's grades have declined, and he himself bears some responsibility for this.

After all, he was the one who made the toys for Yan Minghe, and he was the one who told Yan Minghe about the war.

Yan Ruyi was so angry she laughed. "He really knows how to pick people. He's sure you won't beat him up."

Song Yiping pleaded for his brother-in-law, "I've already criticized him, and I haven't returned his toys. He also promised me that he would study hard in the future. I think we should see how he behaves in the future."

"When did you two become so close?"

“Before we were even dating, Sihe was already calling me brother-in-law.”

Just for that "brother-in-law" title, he'll take responsibility for Sihe's affairs!

Yan Ruyi didn't really want to talk to him about this topic, otherwise Song Yiping would say something inappropriate again.

She glared at him and left.

Song Yiping caught up with her, "Then how did you get here?"

"Li Guangyan recently acquired a painting and calligraphy, but he's unsure of its authenticity and wants me to help him authenticate it. I happened to be at the tax bureau on business, so I arranged to meet him here. I was just about to take the bus when I saw you and Sihe."

Those who collect antiques generally have personal preferences.

Bi Hexian likes to collect porcelain, and Yang Siyuan's grandfather also liked antique porcelain.

Li Guangyan preferred collecting ancient calligraphy and paintings.

Li Guangyan had another preference when collecting ancient calligraphy and paintings: he didn't look at the people involved, only at the paintings.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have bought Fan Songshi's "Sparrows Frolicking Among Persimmons" from Yao Dehou at a high price.

Fan Songshi was completely unknown, but Li Guangyan was very fond of the painting "Sparrows Playing with Persimmons" and bought it at a high price, only to find that it was a fake.

Li Guangyan now trusts Yan Ruyi a lot. No matter what he gets, he has to show it to Yan Ruyi for inspection. Only when Yan Ruyi says it is genuine can he feel at ease.

He recently acquired a painting titled "Maple Mountain and Red Trees" by Wang Hui of the Qing Dynasty, and immediately contacted Yan Ruyi to ask her to take a look.

Wang Hui was a landscape painter during the Kangxi era. He left behind a great many paintings, which also led to the creation of numerous imitations of his works.

Li Guangyan's newly acquired painting, "Autumn Scenery of Maple Mountain," is about 42 cm long and 30 cm wide, and is an ink painting on paper.

To put it simply, ink painting on paper is ink painting done on rice paper.

The painting features towering mountain peaks as its main subject, with a mountain stream meandering along, its ripples spreading. The banks are lined with dense forests, and fallen leaves are swept into the stream by the autumn wind, flowing downstream.

Even Yan Ruyi, who knew nothing about painting, felt that the whole painting had a profound and secluded artistic conception and a strong autumn atmosphere.

Looking at the date on the paper, it was indeed from the Kangxi era, but Yan Ruyi felt that something was wrong.

She frowned and examined the drawing paper closely.

Li Guangyan asked nervously, "Comrade Yan, is there something wrong with this painting?"

Yan Ruyi said, "Judging from the paper, it is indeed from the Kangxi period."

Upon hearing this, Li Guangyan breathed a sigh of relief, but Yan Ruyi's next words made him anxious again.

Yan Ruyi said, "But this drawing paper is wrong."

Yan Ruyi also took a while to figure it out. She pointed to the Xuan paper and said to Li Guangyan, "Look at the Xuan paper of this painting, isn't it a bit rougher than normal Xuan paper?"

Even if Yan Ruyi didn't say anything, Li Guangyan really didn't realize it.

After Yan Ruyi pointed it out, he took a closer look and found that it was indeed different from normal Xuan paper, with a layer of fine fuzz on the surface.

Yan Ruyi said, "If I'm not mistaken, this should be an old painting with two layers peeled off. Yours is the bottom layer of Xuan paper. Because this layer is glued to the top layer, that's why there are loose fibers on top."

Removing a second layer from an old painting is also one of the methods used to forge ancient paintings.

The technique involves peeling off two layers of calligraphy or painting from Xuan paper. The upper layer is clear, while the lower layer has lighter ink. The artist then imitates the ink by adding the upper layer to fill in the gaps, creating a convincing fake.

This type of forgery is mostly used for forging ink paintings or calligraphy.

Because these are basically all black and white, they are easy to counterfeit.

This kind of imitation requires a high level of skill, and because it is done on the original Xuan paper, it is difficult to identify with paper quality, so the imitation paintings are sold at a higher price.

I spent 5,000 yuan to acquire this painting by Li Guangyan.

Because the paper is genuine, even experts can easily make a mistake and fail to identify it as a fake.

At first glance, Yan Ruyi didn't realize that the painting was an old one that had been peeled off. However, she was observant and had a strong intuition that something was wrong. In addition, she had listened to Xu Licheng talk about a lot of knowledge about forgery at the antique shop and paid close attention to the Xuan paper before she could see where the problem lay in the painting.

Following Yan Ruyi's suggestion, Li Guangyan looked at the entire painting.

At first, he didn't see anything and thought he had acquired a rare treasure.

Upon closer inspection, it turns out to be another counterfeit painting.

Calling it a forgery isn't entirely accurate, since the paper is real but the painting is fake.

The methods of counterfeiting were so sophisticated that they were almost fatal to him.

Yan Ruyi felt sorry for him. Li Guangyan was also unlucky; this was the second time he had bought a fake painting.

However, that's how collecting works; you can easily get scammed if you're not careful. Even experts can be fooled.

Furthermore, there is a principle in the antique industry that does not guarantee authenticity: sellers do not actively guarantee the authenticity of items, and buyers must judge for themselves whether they are genuine or not.

Moreover, once you've placed your order, you're solely responsible for any counterfeit items you receive.

Otherwise, why would so many people fall for it?

Yan Ruyi took the opportunity to advertise for Jialide.

"Mr. Li, there are far too many counterfeiters in the antique world, and their methods are constantly evolving, making it impossible to guard against them. Mr. Li, you should acquire your collection through legitimate channels."

Li Guangyan said indignantly, "There's no such thing as a legitimate one. Even auction houses can't avoid having fakes."

He acquired this painting through an auction house.

However, the auction house has a statement that it does not guarantee authenticity. Even if it is determined to be a fake painting, he cannot hold the auction house accountable and can only suffer in silence.

Yan Ruyi said, "Mr. Li, we at Jialide can guarantee that we will never have any fake antiques."

Li Guangyan then remembered that Yan Ruyi was running the first auction house in China.

Li Guangyan hurriedly asked Yan Ruyi, "Comrade Yan, do you review all the items auctioned at your auction house?"

"Of course I will take a look; I also work as an appraiser at Callebaut."

When will you hold your first auction?

"In mid-July, we are still collecting antiques and cultural artifacts nationwide. We have already collected quite a few ancient paintings and calligraphy. If Mr. Li is interested, he can follow the Beijing Daily and the Beijing Evening News. We will publish the auction information in the newspapers at that time."

Li Guangyan now trusts Yan Ruyi completely; once Yan Ruyi has seen it, it is absolutely certain that it is genuine.

He repeatedly said, "I will definitely attend."

Li Guangyan wanted to invite Yan Ruyi to dinner, but Yan Ruyi was in a hurry to return to her unit and declined. Li Guangyan paid the appraisal fee and left with the painting.

I wonder if he's gone to settle scores with someone again.

Yan Ruyi went to take the bus and happened to pass by the Third Primary School. When she got to the school gate, she saw Song Yiping and Yan Minghe and came over. She overheard their conversation.

Her younger brother has really gotten bold, actually bypassing her and letting Song Yiping temporarily act as the head of the household.

I'll get home and see how I beat him up!

Song Yiping was temporarily acting as the head of his brother-in-law's household, and he hadn't informed Yan Ruyi beforehand. Feeling a little guilty, he said ingratiatingly, "I drove here, let me take you back to your workplace."

The two got into the car, and Song Yiping took out all of Yan Minghe's confiscated toys.

Yan Ruyi was stunned; she had no idea that Song Yiping had made so many toys for Yan Minghe.

No wonder Yan Minghe was so close to Song Yiping, calling him "brother-in-law" all the time; it turns out he had already been bribed by Song Yiping.

Song Yiping's focus was different from hers.

He acted as a temporary parent today and was deeply moved. "When I have children in the future, I can't just play with them. I also need to focus on their education and learning. At the very least, I can't let the teachers call me every few days."

He's never received as much criticism in his entire life as he has this morning.

It's really embarrassing when the teacher criticizes you.

To avoid being called in by the teacher in the future, he has decided that when he has children, he will establish his authority early on, discipline them strictly, and resolutely prevent them from becoming problem children.

They've barely gotten their marriage certificate, and he's already getting into the topic of their child's education.

Yan Ruyi didn't want to talk to him anymore.

Yan Mingtao quickly hauled all the timber to the new house.

He has to work during the week, so he can only come to make furniture after get off work or on Sundays.

Yan Ruyi gave him all the keys to the new house.

After receiving the payment, Yan Mingtao felt guilty towards his sister, so he put extra care into the work, drawing several furniture designs for Yan Ruyi to choose from.

The furniture designs drawn by Yan Mingtao are more attractive than those sold in the market.

When it was actually made, it was no different from his drawing.

He had no formal training in this field; he was entirely self-taught.

Yan Ruyi felt sorry for her second brother.

Ning Yucheng's business is growing bigger and bigger, with about ten people under him now. I heard he's about to start his own company.

Her second brother is much more skilled than Ning Yucheng. If her second brother were to leave the furniture factory and start his own business, he would definitely do a better job than Ning Yucheng.

However, her second brother lacked Ning Yucheng's drive.

Ye Hongzhen saw things clearly: "Your second brother has no ambition, and your second sister-in-law doesn't want him to cause trouble. It's good as it is. He gets a salary every month, and it doesn't stop him from taking on side jobs to earn money. Although he doesn't earn much, it's enough for the two of them to live on."

She took out a few quilt covers from the wardrobe and showed them to Yan Ruyi. "Your Aunt Li's niece works in a textile factory. I asked her to buy eight satin quilt covers. She said they were first-class. What do you think?"

Ye Hongzhen unfolded the quilt for Yan Ruyi to see; there were four large red pieces, two pink pieces, and two blue pieces.

When she married Yan Guoqiang, both families were poor, so they only made two quilts, which were made of coarse cloth.

Her neighbor's daughter got married a day earlier than her. Her neighbor's family was better off than hers, and they gave their daughter a satin quilt as part of her dowry. She was extremely envious.

Now that her daughter is getting married, she bought a few more satin quilt covers, making up for the little regret she had in her heart by giving them to her daughter.

Yan Ruyi didn't know whether it was good or bad, but she felt that it was smooth to the touch.

She still wanted to persuade her mother to make fewer quilts, "Yiping said his mother also prepared 10 quilts for him."

Ye Hongzhen said, "His family's plans are his family's, and our family's plans are our family's. It's a lifelong matter. It's not like we don't have the means. If I wasn't worried about where you would put them, I would have made 20 for you."

The mother and son were talking inside when Yan Minghe called out to Ye Hongzhen from outside, "Mom, my second sister-in-law said her stomach hurts, so my second brother took her to the hospital."

After Yan Minghe finished speaking, he ran off to play again.

Ye Hongzhen: "There's still a week until the due date, could it be early?"

Yan Ruyi said, "I'll go take a look."

Ye Hongzhen said, "I'll go pack my things and come with you."

She had prepared everything for the delivery in advance, and it was all in her bag. So, she took the bag and Yan Ruyi rode her bicycle to the hospital.

Yan Ruyi didn't know if her second brother had brought any money, so she just picked up her handbag.

She had just paid the remaining balance for the house in Jianglin New Village today. She hadn't had time to save the rest of the money, so she just took it all with her in her handbag.

Recently, since Li Yan usually gets her checkups at the Workers' Hospital, the two of them went there.

Upon arrival and inquiry, it was confirmed that a man had indeed brought a pregnant woman with him.

The obstetrics and gynecology department was on the second floor. Yan Ruyi and Ye Hongzhen went up to the second floor, while Yan Mingtao was about to run downstairs.

Ye Hongzhen: "Where's Xiaoyan?"

Yan Mingtao: "The doctor said I'm about to give birth and has moved me to the delivery room. I'm going to pay now."

Yan Ruyi said to him, "You and Mom stay here and watch over things. I'm going to pay the money."

Yan Ruyi paid the money and went up to the second floor, only to find that the operating room door was still closed.

Yan Ruyi went over and whispered to Ye Hongzhen, "Why haven't they come out yet?"

"First births are always slower."

Ye Hongzhen was afraid of frightening her daughter, so she didn't dare to say much to Yan Ruyi.

For a first-time mother, it takes at least an hour to give birth.

This is considered a quick delivery; some women have slow deliveries, sometimes going through three or four hours of labor before finally giving birth.

In the event of a difficult childbirth, both the mother and child are on the brink of death, and it's uncertain whether they will survive.

At this moment, her heart was pounding, and she stared intently at the operating room door.

After another half hour, the operating room door opened, and the doctor, holding a child, shouted, "Li Yan's family member! Who is Li Yan's family member!"

Yan Mingtao's voice trembled, "Here...here?"

"She gave birth to a big, healthy baby girl, and both mother and daughter are safe and sound."

Ye Hongzhen and Yan Mingtao were finally relieved, and Ye Hongzhen happily took the child.

Yan Ruyi leaned closer and immediately thought, "Wow, it's really ugly."

When her sister-in-law gave birth to Miaomiao, she was still in school. When she saw Miaomiao, Miaomiao was already half a month old. She was fair-skinned and tender, and very lovable.

It was the first time she had ever seen a newborn baby.

I wonder if other newborns are like this too, with wrinkled, red faces, looking like little old ladies.

The doctor helped Li Yan out of the operating room, and Yan Mingtao quickly went over to support her.

New mothers need to replenish their nutrition, and they usually start by drinking a bowl of brown sugar water to boost their energy.

When they arrived, Ye Hongzhen had already brought all the brown sugar with her; it was all in her bag.

Yan Mingtao helped Li Yan to the ward, and Ye Hongzhen handed the child to Yan Ruyi, saying, "You hold the baby first, I'll go make a bowl of brown sugar water for your second sister-in-law."

Yan Ruyi had never held such a small and soft baby before. Holding the child felt like holding a landmine. She was afraid the child would roll over and fall to the ground. If the child moved even slightly, her heart would jump out of her chest, and she would freeze and dare not walk.

This led to a dream she had that very night. At first, she was holding a child in her arms, but the next second, the child turned into a landmine with smoke rising from the fuse, which startled her awake.

Li Yan was about to be discharged from the hospital, and Ye Hongzhen came back early to make her bed. When she heard Yan Ruyi's shout, she quickly came over, "Were you dreaming?"

Yan Ruyi looked dejected. "I dreamt that I was holding a baby. I was holding him just the right moment when the baby suddenly turned into a landmine. I was too scared to throw him away. It terrified me."

Ye Hongzhen thought of how her daughter held the baby yesterday, her arms and legs moving in unison, and she was both annoyed and amused. "It's good to learn now, anyway, you'll have to learn to hold a baby sooner or later."

Yan Ruyi muttered to herself, "I won't learn it, let Yiping learn it."

Anyway, Song Yiping seems to really like kids. Even when Yan Minghe's parents were called in, Song Yiping didn't beat him up and even tried to keep it a secret from his family.

This important task can now be entrusted to Song Yiping.

Anyway, she's determined never to hold a soft, cuddly baby again!

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A note from the author: