Chapter 94 Favoritism
The couple initially thought their daughter's desire to learn martial arts was just a passing fancy, but the Gao family only began to take it seriously when Chen Yun noticed that Gao Nian'an's arms and legs were often covered in bruises.
Chen Yun was open-minded and showed support from the beginning.
In her past life, she often heard a joke about medical students: "If you advise someone to study medicine, you'll be struck by lightning."
Chen Yun, who has come a long way, admits that studying medicine is indeed tough.
Student days – endless books to read, countless experiments to conduct.
Even after starting work, there's still endless new knowledge to learn and countless night shifts to do. Occasionally, I also have to explain the facts and reason with patients' families.
But if you ask her if she regrets studying medicine, Chen Yun will answer without hesitation: "No."
The same applies to her daughter; as long as she wants to learn and is willing to learn, her mother will support her.
"I hope Nian'an doesn't become a big, burly guy... How will she find a partner then?"
"It seems I still need to earn more money so I can find a son-in-law to live with Nian'an in the future. With us watching over her, no one will dare to look down on her."
"Martial arts is very dangerous. What if you get injured?"
"Luckily you're a doctor. If things had gone wrong, we would have stopped her immediately."
"She wants to be a martial arts actress. What's the use of just burying yourself in martial arts training?"
"I think I know an assistant director who makes movies, and I need to build a good relationship with him... I definitely can't accept money next time I help him out!"
“Chen Yun…”
Gao Ming didn't want his daughter to embark on a path filled with visible hardships and difficulties, and it took him half a month to finally recover.
During this period of anxious yet enlightened self-adjustment, she agreed to let Gao Nian'an continue practicing martial arts.
"well--"
Recently, several elderly men have started raising pigeons in the alley, and a large flock of pigeons can be seen circling in the air every morning and evening.
As Chen Yun stepped into the courtyard after get off work, all she heard besides the old man's whistle calling the pigeons was Gao Ming's sigh.
"Why are you leaving get off work so early?"
Chen Yun was both amused and exasperated. Although he had come to terms with it, his father's dejection still needed time to heal.
"Uncle Li's 70th birthday, have you forgotten?"
"Look at my memory!" Chen Yun slapped her forehead and quickened her pace toward the room: "I'll just change my clothes and come out. I was resuscitating a pregnant woman in the hospital lobby today, and my clothes got stained with blood."
"We're not in a rush, we're just eating at a restaurant anyway."
Neither Uncle Li nor Shuai Shuai's grandmother knew that Gao Ming and Li Huguo had broken up. On the day of their wedding banquet, only the two elders of the family went to eat as representatives.
Li Ershu and Gao Tiejun had a different relationship, so Chen Yun naturally had to go and have this meal.
"Where are Shuai Shuai and Nian Ping?"
"They're doing their homework." Gao Ming gestured with his chin towards the east wing: "Both boys know not to mess with me, they've been behaving well these past few days!"
"Then bring a lunchbox later, we'll bring some food for Nian'an."
"well!"
"Stop sighing and complaining, what is this?"
The door was pulled open, and Chen Yun stepped out of the doorway holding a dark blue box. She opened the lid and a look of joy instantly appeared in her eyes.
Since they were talking in the courtyard, it was inevitable that others would hear them, especially Gao Lan from the next house.
“Look at how my sister-in-law is laughing… Oh my! This material must be wool.”
The camel coat gleamed with a lapis lazuli luster in the sunset, and you could feel the smooth texture of the wool just by running your fingers over it.
The silver clasp design on the neckline clearly indicates it's a foreign style.
"A wool coat?"
"I've heard people say that this kind of coat is warm. Why don't you try it on and see if it's warm?"
Gao Ming's eyes darted away, as if he dared not look Chen Yun in the eye, and his ears quickly flushed red, just like when the two first met more than ten years ago.
This couple, who have been married for almost eighteen years, are actually getting shy.
"Try it on!" Gao Ming took out the clothes and shook them out. "If they're warm, I'll buy some more for my parents."
"Sister-in-law, try it on quickly, the material looks expensive." Gao Lan smiled and pushed Chen Yun into the house.
My second sister-in-law doesn't usually care much about her clothes. In winter, she wears whatever she can get her hands on, like a military overcoat or a cotton-padded jacket, sometimes looking even more bulky than the older generation.
Chen Yun is afraid of the cold...
Whether in my past life or this one, I'm inherently afraid of the cold, and in winter I only care about staying warm and dare not pursue being slim.
"Did you see those two bags on the table?"
Gao Ming asked through the door.
"I see, there are two pairs of pants."
"I heard they're called wool thermal pants or long johns, anyway, they sound warm, you should try them."
"good."
After Chen Yun answered, there was no further sound from inside the room. Gao Ming felt a little embarrassed by Gao Lan's stare and quickly turned around and sat back down on the stool.
"Brother, you and my sister-in-law have a really good relationship."
“You and Zhou Jianguo are not bad either. That kid was quite good at scheming when he was young, but now he's completely under your control.”
The saying "one thing subdues another" couldn't be more fitting for Gao Lan and Zhou Jianguo.
Since adopting Zhou Xiaojuan, the couple has undergone a complete transformation, and their lives are visibly getting better and better.
Zhou Jianguo's life revolved around his restaurant, his wife, and his daughter, which made him appear much kinder.
“If he dares to have any disloyal thoughts, Xiao Juan and I will kick him out and let him live on his own.” Gao Lan spread out her palms, and Gao Ming shook his head before grabbing a melon seed and popping it into his mouth: “Second brother, what do you think? Should we wait until Xiao Juan graduates from university before buying a house, or should we take advantage of the current low prices and buy one now?”
"Do you have enough money on hand?"
"That's enough!" Gao Lan glanced at the other houses in the courtyard and unconsciously lowered her voice: "Brother, the 400,000 you gave back is more than enough to buy a house!"
Gao Lan lent out 350,000 yuan, and Gao Ming repaid 400,000 yuan in three months, plus 50,000 yuan in interest.
"If you want to buy a regular commercial apartment, 400,000 yuan is more than enough, but if you want to buy an apartment for foreign buyers, you can only buy one along the Third Ring Road."
The housing prices in the northern part of the city are currently in such a surreal state.
Houses in the city center can sell for three to four thousand yuan per square meter, while apartments for foreign buyers can fetch as much as seven to eight thousand yuan.
The down payment for a commercial apartment is equivalent to twenty or thirty years' salary for an average worker; those who can afford commercial apartments are mostly business people.
This year's housing prices have more than doubled compared to two years ago.
Not to mention Gao Lan considering buying a house, Chen Yun also had the idea of buying a house as soon as possible after seeing the amazing increase in housing prices in Beicheng.
The price of housing will only increase over time.
“My older brother and sister-in-law bought an apartment near the movie theater,” Gao Lan suddenly said.
"when?"
“Before the New Year, you and your second sister-in-law were both busy, so Mom and Dad probably didn’t have a chance to tell you,” Gao Lan whispered.
Gao Ming raised an eyebrow, immediately understanding the meaning behind Gao Lan's words: "Did they borrow money from Mom and Dad?"
"Yes." Gao Lan nodded emphatically.
It's called a loan, but Gao Lan figured she'd never get the money back. Qiu Zhifang's words were laced with an air of self-righteousness.
“Dad always felt that my older brother’s life wasn’t as good as ours, so he must have been thinking about helping him out as much as he could.” Gao Ming guessed his parents’ thoughts.
He only gradually understood his parents' feelings after becoming a father himself; they would always worry about any of their children who were doing slightly worse off.
"The apartment was prepared by my older brother and sister-in-law for Liangliang's wedding."
"The bridal chamber?" Gao Ming frowned, then noticed the door was open out of the corner of his eye and immediately stood up: "I'll talk about it later."
The color of the coat resembled autumn leaves falling from trees on a late autumn afternoon, making Chen Yun's skin look exceptionally fair.
Even after being folded and stored for a long time, the coat still has no creases and drapes beautifully.
As Chen Yun stepped over the threshold, the hem of her dress drew a neat and elegant arc.
"Second sister-in-law is so beautiful!" Gao Lan exclaimed.
Her long, wavy hair was casually draped behind her head, looking more natural and suitable than deliberately permed waves.
Chen Yun smiled, raised her eyebrows, and opened her arms to show the two of them: "How about it! Doesn't it make me look taller?"
"You can tell at a glance that he's a cultured person," Gao Lan sincerely praised.
“I have a pair of fur shoes in my room, which would go perfectly with this coat.”
Good clothes are good clothes. Chen Yunguang was already warm enough wearing a turtleneck sweater under her coat, and the bulky and heavy cotton-padded coat was instantly forgotten by her.
"Sister-in-law, look at my second brother!" Gao Lan said with a grin, spitting out sunflower seed shells in Gao Ming's direction. "Your eyes are practically glued to him!"
"He wasn't looking at me, he was looking at those two boys in the house slacking off!"
Could an old married couple really see something beyond their wildest dreams...? Even if they could, they'd admit it.
"Where did they get the money to buy Coke?" Gao Ming asked.
The brown bottles that flashed past the window were none other than Coca-Cola, and there seemed to be more than one.
"It's probably bought by Uncle Li again." Chen Yun also looked out the window and saw the two children happily clinking bottles. She quickly said, "You're only allowed to drink one bottle. Any extras will be confiscated."
She directed the operation with brilliant skill.
"What was that about Liangliang's wedding room that you were talking about with your second brother just now?"
"Did you hear that, sister-in-law?"
“You can hear each other even if you’re talking inside, let alone outside.”
Gao Ming strode down the steps, and the room erupted in chaos as two children leaped up.
After finishing the last sunflower seed, Gao Lan clapped her hands before continuing what she hadn't finished saying earlier: "My older brother and sister-in-law took out a loan to buy a commercial apartment of over 100 square meters. I heard it's for Liangliang's wedding."
"How much did you borrow?"
"I think it was twenty or twenty-three."
The fact that her elder brother bought a house was only known to Gao Tiejun and his wife; no one else in the Gao family had heard about it. Gao Lan also found out about it from Gao Liang.
Have you met Liangliang's fiancé?
"Where can we meet here!"
"Why would they buy such a big house?" Chen Yun frowned.
After being laid off, Gao Fei and Qiu Zhifang focused on running a small shop in front of the movie theater, and their business was quite good compared to many people who earned a fixed salary.
But with a monthly income of at most 2,000, they dared to take out a loan of 200,000 to buy a house.
Unless it's absolutely necessary to buy this house, given Qiu Zhifang's stingy nature, she definitely wouldn't want the bank to earn so much interest.
"It's all for Liangliang's wedding."
"Liangliang has a girlfriend?"
"I heard from Xiaojuan that Liangliang's boyfriend was personally introduced by his sister-in-law." Gao Lan mysteriously stretched out her fingers and rubbed them together: "His family is rich."
Chen Yun sighed.
Gao Liang repeated his senior year of high school but failed to get into a good university. In the end, he barely got into a junior college and is about to graduate this year.
We don't know how well he did, but I never expected that the next piece of news I heard from Gao Liang was that he was getting married.
"Introduced by my sister-in-law..."
Even if it's her own mother, Qiu Zhifang would prioritize family background when choosing a partner for her son, and she would never seriously inquire about the girl's character.
Not only Chen Yun thought so, but Gao Lan also couldn't help but purse her lips when she mentioned it.
"What era are we living in? My sister-in-law is still talking about arranged marriages!"
"Gao Liang agreed without saying anything?"
“That child… was like a lump of dough held in the palm of his sister-in-law’s hand, to be rolled into a ball or flattened as she pleased.”
"If he's willing, then so be it."
Put aside your desire to help others and respect their fate...
This is a profound lesson that Gao Liang learned after he completely misunderstood Chen Yun's kindness and even blamed his second uncle and aunt for having bad intentions.
Moreover, as they get older, they become less and less able to distinguish right from wrong, just like Qiu Zhifang.
"Logically speaking, Gao Yi should have gotten married before Gao Liang. What do you think my sister-in-law is thinking... What will happen to Gao Yi and his wife?" Gao Lan asked curiously.
Moreover, Gao Lan already cared more about Gao Yi, so she disapproved even more of her sister-in-law's favoritism.
The reason for asking so many questions was simply because they were worried that Gao Yi would suffer a loss.
Chen Yun raised her chin.
You mean the old house?
“They would rather take out a loan than even consider buying the old house. What else could they be after if not for this?” Chen Yun said.
Actually, it's not that I hadn't considered it, but I was scolded by Gao Tiejun as soon as I brought it up.
It's their business if the eldest son and his wife are biased, but they can't let Gao Yi be homeless after he gets married.
Anyway, for whatever reason, the old house was preserved.
"Old Zhou and I discussed pooling together 100,000 yuan to buy a house for Gao Yi." Gao Lan suddenly became serious, and her words were very clear: "I will now be in charge of all the money in the house. The money will definitely be divided in half, one half for each child, but..."
Zhou Jianguo originally didn't want to support Gao Yi, and he only agreed to it by holding his nose by offering 100,000 yuan.
“One hundred thousand is already quite a lot.” Chen Yun smiled and patted Gao Lan on the shoulder.
The crisp clinking sound of soda bottles colliding came from the east wing. A moment later, Gao Ming came out carrying a case of soda.
"We really need to have a serious talk with Uncle Li tomorrow. We can't spoil the child like this."
A case of twenty-four bottles—the child bought the whole case without hesitation, truly treating their retirement pension like it's nothing.
Chen Yun smiled and continued chatting with Gao Lan: "Gao Yi will be bringing his girlfriend back in a couple of days. You'll be meeting a lot of people, so you'll have to give her some advice."
Where are you from?
"I don't know. I only heard Gao Ming say that he was a family member of a company employee."
"Then we have to help vet her. We mustn't be like the sister-in-law, who's so materialistic. We need to see what kind of person the girl is first."
The soda bottles clattered as they were placed at Chen Yun's feet. Gao Ming took out two bottles from them: "Let's drink."
"dad."
Two heads popped out of the window, and Gao Nianping called out pitifully.
"Dad? What Dad? Even if you shout until the sky falls, it's still not your turn to drink." Gao Ming raised an eyebrow smugly, prying open a bottle of soda under the children's gaze and handing it to Chen Yun: "Soda will ruin your teeth. Have you forgotten what Mom told you?"
"I'll take you to the dentist in a few days." Chen Yun took the drink, smiled, and took a sip. "If you have cavities, we'll get them filled."
"I wonder who cried from the pain of getting a filling last year?" Gao Ming said.
“Gao Nianping!” Li Shuaishuai immediately betrayed his good friend without any sense of loyalty: “He was crying loudly in pain and had a runny nose.”
"You're talking nonsense."
"I'm not making this up."
"Okay!" Chen Yun quickly waved her hand, "Your dad's just joking! We'll save the soda for you, but you can only drink one bottle a week."
"today……"
"I didn't drink today!"
"..."
"Hurry up and finish your homework, then we'll go to the banquet."
As the group chatted, the sky gradually darkened. Suddenly, firecrackers exploded outside the courtyard, reminding the neighbors to prepare for the feast.
Chen Yun's family went to the restaurant after Gao Tiejun returned.
By then... the hall was already packed.
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