Chapter 138 Eager to Go, Yet Not Invited

Fan Yani spoke very directly; she didn't care whether Fatty's sister-in-law would be happy or not, it was just how it was. The gap between Fatty's sister-in-law and Song Fenglan was already huge. Song Fenglan had helped Fatty's sister-in-law's family time and time again, sending Zhang Xiaohu to the capital for a trip, lending money to buy a house, and even after Zhang Xiaohu went to the capital, Song Fenglan and her husband still invited him to their home…

One incident after another, it was basically that Fatty's family was taking advantage of others.

"What did Sister Fenglan give you, and what did you give Sister Fenglan in return?" Fan Yani asked.

"This..." The plump woman thought about it carefully. When Song Fenglan lived next door, her family had given her some vegetables and fruits. After Song Fenglan went to the capital, the plump woman sent her very little, because Song Fenglan didn't need those things at all.

"People should be content, for contentment brings happiness," Fan Yani said. "It's perfectly normal for Xiaohu and Zihang to drift apart. Xiaohu is lucky to be able to be friends with Zihang. Favors will eventually run out, and you can't always expect others to be good to you; that's unrealistic."

"Sigh," said the plump woman, "Chenghai said the same thing, and I understand the reasoning, but it still doesn't feel right. Before... sigh, things are different now."

“I think Sister Fenglan is still the same. They are so tolerant of you, and you and your husband haven’t changed. It’s Xiaohu who has changed,” Fan Yani said. “Xiaohu has his own family, and he thinks more about himself. Everyone has selfishness, which is normal. Especially after he graduated, he also saw the gap between himself and others.”

Zhang Xiaohu wasn't that amazing; he was just an ordinary person. He was lucky to have a stable job in the capital. Fatty and the others were hoping he'd do even better, but that was unlikely.

It's impossible for Song Fenglan to always help Zhang Xiaohu; their industries are completely different.

"Xiao Hu said he and his wife had already argued, so I don't feel comfortable calling them again," the chubby woman sighed.

Fan Yani looked at her chubby sister-in-law. What she said made sense. At the same time, her sister-in-law probably didn't want to say anything more about her daughter-in-law. After all, Zhang Xiaohu and his wife were far away in the capital. If her sister-in-law specifically called to talk about her daughter-in-law, it would hurt Zhang Xiaohu more if he and his wife had a fight.

"Then there's no need to say anything more," Fan Yani said, wondering whether her sister-in-law was saying this to her or to herself.

Fan Yani doesn't think it's Song Fenglan's family's fault that people who were once close have come to this point and no longer keep in touch. Long before Song Fenglan returned to the capital, she shouldn't have continued to maintain contact with Fatty Sister-in-law. She didn't need to cultivate a good reputation; her association with Fatty Sister-in-law wouldn't have drawn much praise from others.

Does it matter whether or not people look down on country folk?

They don't live together and have no family ties, so why should others have to be friends with country people just to prove they don't look down on them?

As times change, it's no longer feasible for Fatty to continue as she is; she has too many shortcomings. Fan Yani lets Fatty sell herbal jelly because they are neighbors and know each other well, so Fan Yani trusts Fatty to do the work. If Fatty were to move elsewhere, Fan Yani would likely stop letting her do these things and find someone else to do them.

Anyway, Fan Yani always pays people for things she does, so why bother hiring Fatty Sister-in-law?

"I...sigh." The plump woman sighed many times, "Our family really hasn't done a good job, Xiaohu is like this..."

“Xiao Hu has really changed his fate,” Fan Yani said. “He can stay in the capital, has a house, and has a Beijing residency permit. His children can study in the capital and at better schools in the future. Isn’t that great? He’s better off than many people. If you want to compare yourself to Qin Zihang, you can’t do it.”

Qin Zihang comes from a good family; his parents are both very accomplished, and Qin Yizhou also went to university. Zhang Chenghai and his wife, on the other hand, didn't even graduate from junior high school; their educational level is too low.

“Having a household registration in the capital is very important,” Fan Yani said. “I also want to settle down in the capital, but it’s not easy. It’s not like I can do a good job in the capital just by buying a house. It’s very difficult.”

Fan Yani's idea was that if her child's grades weren't good, she would send her to study abroad. Therefore, whether her child had residency in the capital wasn't the most important thing. Besides, there were plenty of people richer than Fan Yani, and none of them insisted on staying in the capital.

Fan Yani can live a very comfortable life in the south of the city, so she naturally has no need to go to the capital to fight her way through the crowds.

“My youngest daughter-in-law is terrible,” said the plump woman. “She’s not as good as my eldest daughter-in-law.”

“She’s not with you, so you don’t need to worry about that,” Fan Yani said. “Just focus on things here, and let them do whatever they want.”

"That's the only way to think about it," said the plump woman.

And so, Fatty Sister and Song Fenglan didn't keep in touch much, and there wasn't a single phone call for several months. Neither of them bothered the other.

As the year drew to a close, no one had heard Fatty Sister mention Song Fenglan, which raised suspicions. Fatty Sister used to speak highly of Song Fenglan, praising her help and other virtues. Now, however, Fatty Sister hadn't spoken of Song Fenglan for a long time, leading people to wonder if she had lost contact with her.

Fat Sister-in-law has a telephone installed at home, so she doesn't need to go outside to make calls, and no one knows whether Fat Sister-in-law has spoken to Song Fenglan on the phone.

Someone even specifically asked Fatty, "Why don't you talk about Fenglan anymore? How is she doing in the capital?"

"She must be doing quite well," said the plump woman.

"What do you mean by 'doing well'? It's either good or bad," the person said.

“I haven’t been in contact with her for a long time,” said the plump woman.

“Your Xiaohu has grown up and has a job now. That’s true, you don’t need to contact Song Fenglan anymore,” the person said.

Those people already felt that Song Fenglan was too good to Fatty's family. They thought Song Fenglan and her husband had helped them so much, yet they hadn't seen Song Fenglan and her husband help others much. Naturally, they were jealous, feeling that Fatty's family had gotten all the benefits.

That person then turned around and told others that Fatty's family felt that Song Fenglan and her husband could no longer help them, so they stopped contacting them.

The news spread, and other people asked Fatty Sister-in-law about it. How could she answer them? She could only say that everyone was busy and didn't have time to chat.

"Why are you busy now? Weren't you busy before?"

"Is it that you don't contact them, or that they don't contact you?"

"They didn't send you any New Year's gifts this year, did they?"

...

Fat Sister didn't want to listen to them. She went back home, and looking at the empty house, she felt a pang of sadness. Zhang Xiaohu and his wife were spending the New Year in the capital and hadn't returned. Their eldest son and daughter-in-law wouldn't come until a day or two before the New Year; they hadn't come earlier.

The eldest son and daughter-in-law were hoping to arrive later to avoid friction and conflict. Too many conflicts can easily lead to arguments between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.

"Why don't they say that Fenglan and her husband aren't contacting us? Instead, they're saying that we aren't contacting Fenglan!" Fatty couldn't help but complain to Zhang Chenghai.

In the living room, the plump woman felt wronged no matter how much she thought about it. She used to be very proactive in contacting Song Fenglan. The plump woman knew that she couldn't blame Song Fenglan for things turning out this way; it was because she was too embarrassed to contact Song Fenglan. But she still felt very upset.

Among Fatty's many friends, Song Fenglan was the most knowledgeable and capable. Whenever Fatty had a question, Song Fenglan would analyze it for her. This was true for Zhang Wen going to teachers' college, and it was also true for Zhang Xiaohu going to study in the capital.

"Why do you care what they say?" Zhang Chenghai said. "Let's have less contact with Song Fenglan and the others, and not bother them all the time."

Previously, Zhang Chenghai thought that since Xiaohu was going to study in the capital, he would have to trouble Song Fenglan with all sorts of things. Zhang Chenghai didn't think it was a big deal for Sister-in-law Pang to contact Song Fenglan. But now that Zhang Xiaohu has graduated, his family doesn't need Song Fenglan and her husband's help anymore, so they shouldn't add to their troubles.

Indeed, what those outsiders said wasn't wrong. Zhang Chenghai's family took advantage of everything and now they've cut off all contact with everyone. Those in the know understand that Zhang Chenghai's family didn't do a good job, but those who don't might think that Song Fenglan and her husband looked down on Zhang Chenghai and his wife.

"It's heartbreaking," said the plump woman. "It's so painful, so painful."

The fat woman was feeling particularly unwell, as if she was uncomfortable all over.

"Are we going to the capital?" Zhang Chenghai asked.

“What would I do in the capital? The fare is so expensive!” said the fat woman. “I’m not going to the capital. If I go, I’ll just end up arguing with Xiao Hu’s wife again, and that won’t do.”

Fatty Sister-in-law dislikes Tan Wu, dislikes her intensely; Tan Wu is completely unworthy of Zhang Xiaohu.

With the Lunar New Year approaching, Song Fenglan was quite busy, while Qin Zihang was able to relax a bit. Qin Zihang specially bought a lot of things to send to the Xu family. He and Xu Yan had both met each other's parents, and gifts were essential for the holidays. The woman could choose not to give gifts to the man, but the man couldn't choose not to give gifts to the woman.

When Xu's father saw that Qin Zihang had brought so many gifts, he smiled broadly.

"No need to be so polite," Mr. Xu said with a smile.

"..." Xu's mother glanced at Xu's father. She used to be the one saying these things; now it was her husband. Xu's mother had long known that her husband was particularly pleased with Qin Zihang. And rightly so, with Qin Zihang being so capable, who wouldn't be?

Xu's mother also thought Qin Zihang was very good, and Song Fenglan and the others all valued Xu Yan highly.

"Go pour some tea," Mr. Xu said, looking at Mrs. Xu.

"I'll do it myself," Qin Zihang said.

"No need, please sit down," said Madam Xu. "If you're going to pour tea, we'll all go."

Xu's mother glanced at her husband; he valued Qin Zihang even more than she did.

While her son was at his future in-laws' house, Song Fenglan was working overtime at the research institute. When Song Fenglan returned home, Qin Zihang was not yet home, but Qin Yizhou was.

"Want some noodles? I'll cook them," Qin Yizhou said.

"I'm not eating anymore, I just ate and came back," Song Fenglan said. "Our institute is selecting young talents, and the results will be out soon."

"A selection? You want to participate?" Qin Yizhou asked.

“I’ll be a judge and vote,” Song Fenglan said. She was over forty and couldn’t possibly compete with those people. Song Fenglan had received other, higher honors; this title was for those under forty.

"You voted?" Qin Yizhou asked. "Your students didn't participate?"

“My student was selected last year,” Song Fenglan said. “He didn’t participate this year.”

Most of Song Fenglan's students went to other universities or research institutes instead of staying at Capital University of Aeronautics and Astronautics or the research institute where Song Fenglan works. It's already quite good if one or two of them stay. The number of places is limited every year, so it's impossible for all of them to stay.

Someone

They wanted to stay here and asked Song Fenglan to put in a good word for them, but Song Fenglan didn't. She said they had to rely on their own abilities, and whether they could stay or not wasn't up to Song Fenglan.

Song Fenglan didn't need to turn everyone around her into her students; that would be pointless. Once they graduated, they could go to other organizations and scatter. They were all contributing to the country, not going off to contribute to foreign countries.

When Song Fenglan was teaching them, she often said that science knows no borders, but scientists do. Song Fenglan wanted her students to know that no matter where they were, they must remember their motherland. Some of Song Fenglan's students went abroad for graduate studies. She didn't care how they fared overseas or whether they returned to China; during their time as her students, she would tell them to be patriotic. After they graduated, Song Fenglan couldn't keep track of everything, and she stopped contacting them.

Some students only realized after going abroad that Song Fenglan was incredibly strong in her field.

“Sometimes, just seeing those students gives me a headache,” Song Fenglan said. “I don’t like to get involved in so many things.”

"If you don't want to get involved, then don't," Qin Yizhou said. "Let those people go and vote."

“Others are coming to see me,” Song Fenglan said. “I don’t care who comes to see me; I can choose whoever I want.”

Those who try to curry favor with Song Fenglan are mistaken. She has never cared about who is on good terms with whom. Song Fenglan values ​​personal ability; those with strong abilities deserve more preferential treatment. As for those who get good treatment through connections, Song Fenglan doesn't care; let them be.

“I don’t want to listen to their nonsense,” Song Fenglan said. “I don’t have time to chat with them.”

"Then let's stop talking," Qin Yizhou said.

"Is Zihang's marriage about to be settled?" Song Fenglan asked. "The two of them have been dating for several months now."

"Let Zihang say," Qin Yizhou said. "They can talk to us after they've made up their minds. We can't help them get their marriage certificate; they have to do it themselves."

"After the New Year, we still need to clean up the house," Song Fenglan said. "Someone nearby is selling a house, and I asked my second brother to help me buy it."

"I didn't hear you say that." Qin Yizhou thought Song Fenglan was asking Qin Zihang to move to another house, the one they had already bought.

“It’s not that I didn’t know if things would be settled, so I didn’t tell you,” Song Fenglan said. “There are so few houses for sale around here that I had my second brother look for a long time before we finally bought one. People are more willing to tell my second brother these kinds of things, which makes it easier for him to get information.”

"Am I just for show?" Qin Yizhou's voice was muffled; he felt he wasn't being taken seriously.

"Not really," Song Fenglan said. "Are you good at bargaining? Are the prices you offer as good as your second brother's?"

“No, that’s for sure. My second brother is in business; that’s his forte,” Qin Yizhou said.

“You know this is my second brother’s forte,” Song Fenglan said. “My second brother knows the house’s value, but we don’t. We only know a rough estimate; if we were to actually buy it…”

The price difference can still be quite significant.

Song Fenglan felt that having her second brother help buy a house was the most appropriate choice.

“The house is a little smaller than ours, but it’s enough,” Song Fenglan said. “As for the decoration, we’ll have to let them decide for themselves. We don’t know what style they like. We’re all getting on in years, and we might not be able to keep up with their tastes. Letting them make their own choices, whether it’s a good thing or not, is their own problem.”

On the first day of the new year, Xu Yan came to visit Song Fenglan and her husband. Song Fenglan immediately took out the property certificate, and the name on the certificate was Xu Yan's.

"Why isn't my name on it?" Qin Zihang glanced at it, then looked again.

“Your name isn’t on it,” Song Fenglan said. “If you ever dare to wrong Xu Yan, you can get out of here. This is your wedding room; you can decide how to decorate it yourselves.”

Then, Song Fenglan took out several more property ownership certificates, all bearing Qin Zihang's name.

"Look, this is your name." Song Fenglan looked at Qin Zihang. "The house is for collecting rent. From now on, the rent will be paid to you, and you can manage it yourselves."

Qin Zihang handed the property certificate to Xu Yan, who was a little embarrassed. "Let's get the certificate tomorrow, no, this afternoon."

"Huh?" Qin Zihang was taken aback.

"You don't want to?" Xu Yan asked.

"Yes, yes, of course I'm willing," Qin Zihang said. "Wouldn't that be too much of a hardship for you?"

"I'm not wronged." Xu Yan didn't feel wronged at all. Her future mother-in-law was so good to her, and Qin Zihang even gave her the property certificate directly. Xu Yan thought that she could collect a lot of rent in the future, and her in-laws wouldn't need to hire a nanny to take care of her and her husband. They could hire a nanny themselves.

"Getting a marriage certificate is a big deal, we still need to talk to your parents." Song Fenglan was sitting next to her. Of course, she wanted her son and Xu Yan to get their marriage certificate as soon as possible, but it wouldn't work without the girl's parents' consent.

"I'll go back and tell my parents, and they'll definitely agree," Xu Yan said with a smile. "My parents love Zihang so much. Auntie, Mom, you're like my own mother."

Xu Yan didn't say she wouldn't take the property certificates; she was going to register her marriage with Qin Zihang, so of course she would. These people valued her, and she should consider them more in the future, avoid making mistakes, and be more filial to her in-laws.

When Xu Yan and Qin Zihang went to the Xu family home to use their identification documents, Xu Yan deliberately dropped one of the property ownership certificates on the ground.

"Oops, I didn't hold on, it fell," Xu Yan said.

"What's missing?" Xu's mother asked.

"Mom, look." Xu Yan showed the property certificate to her mother. "This one is mine, and the others are Zihang's. Mom, give me the household registration book, and Zihang and I will go get our marriage certificate."

"Get a marriage certificate?" Xu's mother was surprised. "Zihang's mother agreed?"

“Yes, my mom agrees. She told us we absolutely had to tell you and see what you think,” Qin Zihang said.

"How could I disagree?" Xu's mother looked at her daughter's happy face. Although the other property certificates were in Qin Zihang's name, her daughter was married to Qin Zihang, so her daughter could use them too.

Xu's mother had long known that Song Fenglan was generous, but she never expected her to be this generous. Even before Xu Yan and Qin Zihang registered their marriage, Song Fenglan had already given them many things.

"You look so eager," said Xu's mother.

"I just want to become a landlady as soon as possible," Xu Yan said. "Mom, you have no idea how difficult those students at school are to manage. I've lost a lot of my hair. If I had that much money, I wouldn't care about future salary increases. I would just tell them that I don't want to teach so many classes or so many students."

Xu Yan genuinely didn't want to teach too many classes; she wanted more time for her family. Xu Yan understood what Song Fenglan and the others meant; they weren't asking her to resign or reduce the number of classes she taught. It was Xu Yan's own decision.

What's the point of working so hard to earn money? Earning money is for enjoyment. If you can't enjoy it, why keep working so hard?

Xu Yan thought that with so much money, she could easily make some adjustments.

Looking at her daughter's smug expression, Xu's mother glanced at Qin Zihang and urged him to hurry up and get Qin Zihang and Xu Yan registered their marriage. She feared that if they delayed, Qin Zihang would see through Xu Yan's true colors and wouldn't agree to the marriage. Xu's mother saw that her daughter didn't put on any pretense with Qin Zihang and wasn't worried about being seen as greedy.

Then, Xu Yan and Qin Zihang went to get their marriage certificate with their ID cards, and they got it quickly. The two of them also went to see the house together, thinking about the renovation later. Xu Yan felt that the basic decoration was fine and didn't need to be renovated. It was just that the furniture and other things could be bought again. This small villa was a little smaller than the one Song Fenglan lived in, but it was still nice, and it even had a small courtyard.

The Xu family's house wasn't this nice, and Xu Yan was thinking that she could plant some flowers and plants in the yard in the future.

In the evening, Qin Zihang took Xu Yan out for dinner. After dinner, he took Xu Yan back to her family home. After the New Year, the two families will discuss the wedding banquet, buy new furniture, and then they will move into the new house.

Xu Yan hummed a song, feeling incredibly happy.

"Have you gotten your marriage certificate yet?" Xu's mother asked.

Qin Zihang didn't go upstairs; he went back first. Qin Zihang originally wanted to go upstairs, but Xu Yan told him to go see his parents by himself. She didn't want to embarrass herself in front of Qin Zihang, otherwise, her parents would worry that Qin Zihang wouldn't want her anymore.

"We got our marriage certificate, look." Xu Yan placed the property certificate on the table.

"Is this a marriage certificate?" Xu's mother asked.

"Oh, I took the wrong one. You can take a look first." Xu Yan took out the marriage certificate from her bag and showed it to the elderly couple.

"Okay, just don't let yourself get returned." Mr. Xu looked at his daughter.

“Dad, how can you talk to your daughter like that?” Xu Yan said. “My mother-in-law is very satisfied with me and has given me so many things. Although only one house is mine, I can collect rent.”

Xu Yan felt great just thinking about it. She wouldn't have to worry about being unemployed anymore, nor would she have to worry about her parents telling her to work hard. Xu Yan didn't feel that just because Qin Zihang owned those things, she was obligated to own them. She was married to Qin Zihang, so his things were hers too.

“They’ve been so good to you, so don’t make a mistake,” Xu’s father said. “If you remarry, you won’t find another family like them.”

"Dad, your daughter just got married, you can't talk about this. Am I that stupid? With such a good husband and such good in-laws, would I be so foolish as to make a mistake?" Xu Yan said. "I'm not stupid. Why would I give up a good life to go find another woman? Do you think I'm your cousin?"

Xu Yan's cousin had a perfectly good life, but despite having a good husband, she went looking for other men and was caught. They didn't divorce, but only for the sake of their child; if it weren't for their child, the marriage would have ended long ago. Why make things so complicated when life is good enough? Xu Yan said she wasn't that stupid.

"It's good that you know," Xu's mother said. "Your father is just worried that you'll end up like your cousin."

“I’m not my cousin, and Zihang knows about my cousin situation,” Xu Yan said. “He doesn’t treat me like his cousin.”

Qin Zihang and Xu Yan have registered their marriage, and both families have decided to discuss the wedding banquet after the New Year. Xu's parents know that Song Fenglan is very busy, and Song Fenglan and her husband respect the Xu family's opinions. The Xu family is also thinking about where to hold the wedding banquet, what kind of hotel, and what relatives the bride's family has.

Speaking of Qin Zihang's wedding banquet, Song Fenglan thought of Fatty Sister-in-law and Zhang Xiaohu.

We still need to ask Qin Zihang's opinion on this matter. The day before the Lunar New Year, Song Fenglan asked Qin Zihang.

"We won't invite Fatty and the others from the south city," Song Fenglan said. "Little Tiger, do you want to invite them?"

"Let's not invite them," Qin Zihang replied.

If they invited Zhang Xiaohu, wouldn't Zhang Xiaohu bring his wife, and other relatives and friends would also be coming? Qin Zihang was worried that Zhang Xiaohu's wife might come up with another idea, and he didn't want his friend to be entangled with Zhang Xiaohu's wife's friends.

"Then we won't invite them." Song Fenglan had no objection; it didn't matter whether Zhang Xiaohu was invited or not, as they didn't need Fatty Sister-in-law and Zhang Xiaohu to return the favor.

Song Fenglan gave out some money as a wedding gift, but she didn't think about taking it back. Whether she took it back or not was irrelevant. What mattered was getting things done properly and avoiding trouble.

Zhang Xiaohu and Qin Zihang lived in different circles, and they had virtually no mutual friends in the capital, so no one told Zhang Xiaohu that Qin Zihang was going to hold a wedding banquet.

Song Fenglan did not specifically call Fatty Sister-in-law to tell her, nor did she contact anyone in Nancheng to discuss Qin Zihang's marriage.

In Song Fenglan's view, it didn't matter whether she told those people about her son's wedding or not. What mattered was her relatives on her side of the family; she didn't even care about the Qin family.

"We'll invite them separately later," Qin Zihang added, "It's Little Tiger's wedding banquet."

Isn't that how things are? Just ask for a separate person.

When Qin's father learned that Qin Zihang was going to hold a wedding banquet, he was a little confused. He hadn't known about Qin Zihang's blind dates, and only found out when he attended Qin Zihang's engagement party. Now that Qin Zihang was holding a wedding banquet, his father couldn't get involved.

"When are they going to hold the banquet?" You Yun asked Brother Qin in the room.

"The time hasn't been set yet," Brother Qin said.

"Is it still not confirmed?" You Yun frowned.

"What's wrong?" Brother Qin asked.

"It's because Xiao Qing is holding her wedding banquet, and the date is set for the sixteenth day of the first lunar month. You know that, too." You Yun was worried that Qin Zihang's wedding banquet date would clash with Xiang Qing's.

Although You Yun didn't plan to invite many relatives from the Qin family, her older brother Qin still had to attend. If the two families clashed, You Yun knew with a grain of salt that her older brother Qin would attend Qin Zihang's wedding banquet.

“It usually takes about a month to notify them of a wedding banquet in advance, so it’s unlikely they’ll hold the banquet on the sixteenth day of the first lunar month,” Brother Qin said. “We didn’t send invitations to my brother and his family for Xiao Qing’s wedding, but they know about it.”

"It's good that you know, it's good that you know." You Yun thought to herself, "I hope I don't run into it."

Of course, Song Fenglan and her husband couldn't let Qin Zihang's wedding banquet clash with the wedding banquet of You Yun's daughter. When they spoke to the Xu family, they also said they didn't want the sixteenth day of the first lunar month. Some relatives were in other places, and they needed to give them time to come; they couldn't notify them a few days in advance, they had to do it several days ahead.

After the Lunar New Year, Song Fenglan and her husband sat with Xu's parents, and Qin Zihang and Xu Yan were also seated nearby. They finalized the hotel and date, setting it for the sixth day of the second lunar month, with a banquet of sixty tables.

The Song family had been sent to a farm in their early years, and while they had some relatives and friends, there weren't many. As for the Qin family, Qin Yizhou didn't plan to invite too many people. The bride's side had quite a few relatives, which is why there were sixty tables.

Zhang Xiaohu was working away from home, and a friend of his worked at a hotel. Coincidentally, Qin Zihang and Xu Yan were holding their wedding banquet at that hotel. Zhang Xiaohu found out, but instead of going to Qin Zihang's wedding, he wondered when Qin Zihang would send him an invitation.

Two days before Qin Zihang's wedding, he still hadn't sent Zhang Xiaohu an invitation. Zhang Xiaohu even asked Tan Wu if she had one, and whether she had lost it.

"Your friend probably didn't send us an invitation," Tan Wu said bluntly. She sat on the sofa and poured herself a glass of water. "He doesn't consider you a friend anymore."

“…” Zhang Xiaohu remained silent.

“He doesn’t consider you a friend, so you don’t need to consider him a friend either,” Tan Wu said.

"It's all because of you!" Zhang Xiaohu said.

"It's not just because of me, is it? Your ex-girlfriend is still hung up on him, that's why I'm in this mess," Tan Wu said. "You can't blame everything on me. If your ex-girlfriend hadn't done such disgusting things, I..."

"Alright!" Zhang Xiaohu stopped Tan Wu from continuing; he simply couldn't listen anymore.

“Even if you don’t want to hear it, I’m still going to say it,” Tan Wu said. “Zhang Xiaohu, wake up. He doesn’t consider you a friend. Who do you think you are? You’re just an ordinary employee with little money. You can’t compare to him.”

Zhang Xiaohu glanced at Tan Wu sideways and said, "I have no money, why would you still marry me?"

“To me, you’re rich enough, but to your friends, you’re a pauper,” Tan Wu said. “Right, right? You only have one house here, but how many houses does he own? You think you’re something special because you earn a thousand a month, but he doesn’t need a salary; he’s buying houses. I heard he even got compensation for his house demolition. He’s rich.”

Zhang Xiaohu could never compare to Qin Zihang in his entire life, and Tan Wu knew this very well. Tan Wu admitted that she had made a mistake before, but she couldn't entirely blame herself. Tan Wu looked at Zhang Xiaohu again and could only say that Zhang Xiaohu's judgment was poor.

"It's good that I didn't invite you. It's just as well. Now I understand myself better, and so do you," Tan Wu said.

"No one has returned the money they gave him as a gift," Zhang Xiaohu muttered.

"So, are you going to go and return the money?" Tan Wu asked. "If you go and people see you, what will they do? It's better not to go. Forget about the money. If you meet again someday and he says he got married, then you can give him the money. Don't go there yourself to give him the money; it's too embarrassing."

"Hmm." Zhang Xiaohu knew he shouldn't just run over there; he needed to be careful.

Zhang Xiaohu felt a pang of sadness. He thought about calling his mother, but he didn't dare. "Never mind," he thought, "I'd better not call."

Qin Zihang's wedding banquet was held as scheduled. You Yun and her husband attended, as did Qin Li'an and his wife. Qin Zihang didn't invite any relatives close to his mother to avoid any gossip from her side of the family.

Aunt Qin immediately realized that Song Fenglan and her husband had only invited a limited number of Qin family relatives. Not inviting anyone to the wedding banquet was practically severing ties; they weren't very close to begin with, and by Qin Zihang's generation, they had essentially stopped recognizing each other.

"Never mind," Aunt Qin thought to herself, "at least I was invited. Whether others were invited to the wedding banquet or not is none of my business."

Song Fenglan had something come up and wasn't there to greet the guests. She arrived about halfway through the wedding banquet. Other members of the Song family helped with the guests, and Xu's parents had no complaints. Xu's father even felt that Xu Yan had made the right choice marrying Qin Zihang; with a mother-in-law like Song Fenglan, Xu Yan's children would surely be successful in the future.

"It's really lively," Zhu Meng remarked.

Zhu Meng and Qin Li'an's wedding banquet was held after Zhu Meng gave birth to their daughter. Their banquet didn't have this many tables or guests. Zhu Meng didn't even think about comparing herself to Xu Yan; the two of them were simply incomparable.

Xu Yan had several outfits and changed them several times. Zhu Meng saw this and even counted them; there were far too many. Those clothes looked quite valuable; Song Fenglan and her husband were truly generous to their daughter-in-law.

Song Fenglan and Qin Yizhou's marriage registration was very simple. The wedding banquet consisted of only two tables of relatives eating; there weren't that many people. It was a special era, so things were naturally much simpler.

Song Fenglan didn't envy Qin Zihang and his wife. Looking at his son's wedding banquet, Qin Yizhou thought of his own wedding banquet with his wife. After Qin Yizhou and Song Fenglan registered their marriage, he quickly went on a mission. By the time he returned, Song Fenglan was pregnant and had given birth. Relatives only managed to gather at two tables for a meal; it hardly counted as a wedding banquet, more like a family gathering.

After the wedding banquet, Qin Zihang and his wife went to their new house and did not live under the same roof as Song Fenglan and her husband.

Back home, Qin Yizhou was lost in thought. Song Fenglan called his name, but Qin Yizhou didn't respond.

"What are you thinking about?" Song Fenglan patted Qin Yizhou's shoulder. "Thinking about your son growing up?"

"I'm thinking about our wedding banquet," Qin Yizhou answered instinctively.

"Our wedding banquet?" Song Fenglan asked in confusion. "Our wedding banquet?"

“It’s our wedding banquet.” Qin Yizhou looked at Song Fenglan. “We didn’t have a wedding banquet like this when we got married. We can have one.”

"That's inappropriate," Song Fenglan said. "If you invite people over for a banquet, aren't they expected to give a gift? Do you think they'd be willing to give a gift?"

"I don't want others to give me a gift," Qin Yizhou said.

"That's not appropriate either. Don't other people need time to come over for a wedding?" Song Fenglan said. "Do you think they're short of a good meal? How many years have we been married?"

"Not even twenty-six years," Qin Yizhou replied.

“That’s settled then. The timing is just inconvenient. If it were our 30th, 40th, or 50th wedding anniversary, we could invite people over. But why invite people to a banquet at this time?” Song Fenglan said.

"Don't you feel wronged?" Qin Yizhou said. "If you don't feel wronged, I feel wronged."

"..." How was Song Fenglan supposed to answer that?

"When we got married, we didn't have that many people wishing us well," Qin Yizhou said. "Do we have to wait until a decade's anniversary?"

“That would be a better time,” Song Fenglan said.

"By then, when I'm old and my clothes don't look good anymore, will you mind?" Qin Yizhou didn't dare say that Song Fenglan was old, so he could only say that he himself was old.

"Why would I dislike you?" Song Fenglan said. "If I wanted to dislike you, I would have done so long ago. Why wait until now?"

The two had been married for a long time, and Song Fenglan thought Qin Yizhou was quite good.

"We'll invite people over for a celebration, no need for monetary gifts, how about that?" Qin Yizhou said. "I'll take care of it, every tenth of the month is fine, I'm waiting."

"Okay." Song Fenglan nodded, knowing that Qin Yizhou might not think the same way later. It was alright, she nodded first; if Qin Yizhou remembered later, it wasn't impossible.

On the day Qin Zihang got married, Zhang Xiaohu had the day off and didn't go to work.

Zhang Xiaohu dared not go near the hotel, for fear of running into Song Fenglan and her group.

That evening, Zhang Xiaohu called Fatty's wife to tell her that Qin Zihang had gotten married.

"Zihang got married?" the plump woman asked in surprise. "Fenglan didn't say anything."

“They didn’t tell us, they didn’t invite us,” Zhang Xiaohu said. “That makes sense, after what happened before, it wouldn’t be appropriate for Zihang to invite us.”

Zhang Xiaohu thought Qin Zihang was worried that he and his wife would cause trouble again. Qin Zihang's relatives and friends were all very rich and capable, unlike Zhang Xiaohu and his wife who were so weak.

"..." The fat woman fell silent; she hadn't expected things to turn out this way.

"I was thinking of giving them a gift, but I decided against it," Zhang Xiaohu said. "They didn't invite us, so it wouldn't be appropriate for us to give them a gift. That would only make everyone feel awkward."

"Don't bother sending it," the plump woman sighed. She knew that Song Fenglan had no intention of taking back the money she had given them as a gift.

"I didn't send anything," Zhang Xiaohu said. "I just wanted to let you know that Zihang is married. I heard that his wife is the daughter of a university professor, and her family background is quite good."

"Of course it's good. Zihang has a Beijing residency permit and is pursuing a master's and doctoral degree," said the plump woman. "Your Aunt Fenglan is so wealthy, so of course the daughter-in-law they found is excellent. Unlike you, you found such a scoundrel as your daughter-in-law. Didn't you open your eyes and find someone better? If it were you... sigh, never mind, it's already very good that you and Zihang have been friends for so many years."

After hanging up the phone, Fatty went out into the yard. She looked at the moon in the sky and felt that the moonlight was somewhat cold. Fatty's mind drifted back to Song Fenglan's past warmth; back then, Song Fenglan had been so kind to them.

"Sister-in-law, we made some pastries. Please bring your child over to eat."

"Sister-in-law, come and watch TV."

"Fat Sister-in-law..."

...

The plump woman's mind was filled with Song Fenglan's former smiles; even the moon in the sky seemed to reflect Song Fenglan's smiling face. Suddenly, Song Fenglan's smile vanished; oh, it turned out the clouds had obscured the moon.

"Why are you standing here?" Zhang Chenghai returned from outside, carrying a bag of pastries.