Wang Yaqiang and Liu Dawei never come empty-handed when they come to eat, and today was no exception. Wang Yaqiang bought wine, while Liu Dawei, a local, brought his own dried fish as a snack with the wine.
Accompanying them were three other young men. They were not employees of the ocean shipping company, but they were good friends with Zhao Jingyu. Hearing that Zhao Jingyu was back, they came along as well.
They all came when Zhao Jingyu and Xu Qingning got married. Except for Wang Yaqiang, they were all locals. There were also two or three young people who were close to Zhao Jingyu, but they didn't know about the wedding and didn't come.
Otherwise, there would be even more people.
Zhao Jingyu had an injury on his forehead and couldn't drink alcohol, so the five of them poured drinks for each other and urged each other to drink. They all drank too much.
Their leader had survived the ordeal, and the brothers were overjoyed, saying that Zhao Jingyu's survival meant he was destined for good fortune.
The men were drinking, but Xu Qingning didn't want to join in. She ate some dumplings and went back to her room. Putting everything else aside, the smell of alcohol was really pungent.
Yang Yuelan busied herself entertaining them, fearing that she might not be attentive enough.
One of the young men was Wang Qing, Xiao Tingshen's cousin. As they chatted, Wang Qing mentioned Xiao Tingshen: "My cousin will be back soon too. Their university has an early break."
“When he gets back, let him treat us.” Another young man chimed in, “He’s going to college this year and becoming a father, if he doesn’t treat us, who will?”
Previously, Zhao Jingyu and Xiao Tingshen were quite close, and Zhao Jingyu's brothers all knew Xiao Tingshen.
This group of people often ate and drank together.
“What’s this? Our eldest brother is going to be a father this year.” Wang Yaqiang was genuinely happy, his eyes were glazed with drink. “When my sister-in-law gives birth, we’ll throw a big celebration, and it’ll be bigger than theirs.”
“Yes, yes, yes, let’s celebrate properly after my sister-in-law gives birth.” The others chimed in.
"Guess what happened to my cousin at university?" Wang Qing, who was also drunk, blurted out Xiao Tingshen's story without thinking. "A female classmate in his class has a crush on him. She's the daughter of a high-ranking official, and she's pursuing him!"
"Really? Who told you that?" Wang Yaqiang's eyes lit up, and he chuckled, "This is going to be interesting."
“Hey, how far is the provincial capital from here? It’s only four or five hours away. A relative of mine works in the provincial capital. He told me this when he came back the other day.” Wang Qing said with a thick tongue, “My cousin is good-looking and comes from a good family. It’s normal for people to like him. If I were a girl, I would like him too.”
Zhao Jingyu frowned slightly upon hearing this, but said nothing.
The group drank until after 10 p.m. before they dispersed.
If it weren't for the women in their household, they could have drunk until midnight, just like before.
When Wang Cuifen heard the commotion next door, she realized that Zhao Jingyu had really returned. She even saw him escort the young people to the front door, then come out with a washbasin and wash up at the public pool for a long time before going back inside.
Moreover, he has a shadow.
Wang Cuifen breathed a sigh of relief. It's good that you're back. Those rumors were really annoying, making her worry for so long.
Tomorrow she'll tell her old friends that Zhao Jingyu is alive and well and nothing happened to him.
Zhao Jingyu then carried his luggage back into the house, unzipped it, and took out the gifts he had brought back to show Xu Qingning: "These are the scarves I bought for you and Mom. Do you like them?"
"I like them." Xu Qingning sat on the bed and took the scarves he handed her. One was blue and the other was pink. They were quite pretty.
"And these too, I bought them all for you." Zhao Jingyu continued to take things out of his luggage bag. There was food, clothes for her and the child, and various daily necessities. The desk was almost full.
"Where did you get the money? How did you buy so many things?" Xu Qingning noticed that he had even bought a hair dryer. She picked it up and looked at it again and again. It was a handheld hair dryer, but it was a bit bulky and quite heavy to hold. However, it was also quite practical.
"This is the medical expense the company gave us." Zhao Jingyu pointed to the injury on his forehead and said nonchalantly, "It's just a small injury, it didn't cost much. I put on some medicine, and it'll be fine after some rest."
Xu Qingning didn't know what to say for a moment.
She felt embarrassed to use the things he bought with his medical expenses.
"Why aren't you saying anything?" Zhao Jingyu asked as he walked over when she remained silent. "Don't you like it?"
"I like it." Xu Qingning smiled. "It's just that I feel really bad because you risked your life to get all of this..."
"Don't think like that. Buying something is still buying something, and it's better than buying medicine." Zhao Jingyu packed up his bag and put it in the corner. He walked to the washbasin and washed his hands. "If you feel bad about it, just give me a reward."
"..." Xu Qingning fell silent when he mentioned the reward again. After he finished washing his hands, she handed him the blue gauze scarf. "Take this to Mom. She'll definitely like it."
“Okay, whatever you say.” Zhao Jingyu took the scarf and handed it to Yang Yuelan. “Mom, I bought you a scarf.”
"Oh my, you actually bought it for me?" Yang Yuelan was both surprised and delighted. "I'm too old for that. Don't buy me anything. Just buy more for your wife. It must have cost a lot of money."
“It doesn’t cost much, and I think this color suits you.” Zhao Jingyu placed it in her hand. “Wear it when you go out; it’ll also keep out the wind.”
"Okay, I understand." Yang Yuelan picked up the scarf, her eyes reddening. She never dreamed that her son would buy her a scarf; she had never worn one before.
"Mom, you must be tired after a long day. Go to bed early!" Zhao Jingyu said and went back to his room. His mother helped him with the housework and took care of his wife. She was busy with everything inside and outside the house, and it wasn't easy for her.
Xu Qingning took the two little outfits he bought for the child and looked at them repeatedly. She had to admit, the two fleece rompers he bought were quite practical.
He probably didn't know if it was a boy or a girl, so he bought a yellow one that was fluffy and had a hat on it; it was very cute.
The only problem is that he bought a rather large one.
It needs to be altered before I can wear it.
However, the father's thoughtfulness is still commendable.
The wind picked up outside.
The wind made the windows rattle loudly.
Xu Qingning then took his pajamas out of the closet: "I made two sets for you, try them on, they should fit."
She had just changed the sheets and didn't want him to lie down in his outer clothes.
She didn't dare ask him if he needed to change his clothes, mainly because she hadn't prepared any for him.
“It’s definitely suitable.” Zhao Jingyu took it, sat on the edge of the bed, and started to take off his clothes. Xu Qingning simply turned over and faced away from him. She really wasn’t used to having a man sleeping next to her.
After a moment, he turned off the light, hugged her from behind, and whispered in her ear, "I took a shower in the company bathhouse when I came back today."
He knew she was a clean person.
She would wash and groom herself for a while before going to bed, and he didn't want her to dislike him.
"Okay, go to sleep!" Feeling the heat behind her, Xu Qingning felt uncomfortable. She dared not provoke him. She was already in her late pregnancy, what was he thinking!
"Don't be nervous." Zhao Jingyu reached out from behind and gently stroked her stomach, saying softly, "I've asked the doctor, I know what I'm doing."
"If you know what's good for you, just go to sleep." Xu Qingning turned over to look at him after hearing him say that. "I'll say it again, there's plenty of time, don't rush."
“I know, but I have another way.” Zhao Jingyu propped himself up on his arm, his eyes shining as he looked at her. “You’ll help me…”
...
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