Chapter 25: The Deceived Innocent Educated Youth 7 He...
Since he said so, Qiao Yin didn't say anything else.
Time slipped away, and in the blink of an eye, it was a day off. Qiao Yin didn't have to go to class, so she thought about going to the city to buy some books. It just so happened that Shen Xiannian was going to the city with Shen Anan for medical treatment, so they simply went together.
Getting to the city from Green Water Bay was rather cumbersome, requiring two bus transfers. Shen Xian, a familiar driver, took Qiao Yin and Shen Anan to town on an oxcart, where they waited for a long time for a bus, finally arriving in the city on a shaky, unsteady bus.
Qiao Yin was a little carsick and looked listless. Shen Anan was fine, holding Qiao Yin's hand and looking at the houses in the city and the department stores on the roadside, feeling very curious.
Shen Xiannian asked Qiao Yin in a low voice: "Are you feeling uncomfortable? Do you want to drink some water?" There was obvious worry in his eyes.
Qiao Yin was shocked by his natural expression of concern and heartache. She ignored the awkwardness in her heart, shook her head and said it was okay.
Shen Xiannian said nothing more and took her and An An to the state-owned restaurant for dinner.
The six dishes for sale today were written on the small blackboard of the state-owned restaurant. Shen Xiannian ordered three meat dishes and two vegetable dishes. While waiting for the dishes, Shen Xiannian went to the kitchen specifically. She didn't know how he talked to the chef, but the chef agreed to make a bowl of sour soup noodles specifically for her. She even heard him ask the chef to add more vinegar.
Qiao Yin's heart was touched, and an indescribable emotion rose in her heart.
The sour soup noodles were very appetizing and suppressed her discomfort a little. Shen Anan didn't like eating noodles at home, but now she felt greedy again after seeing Qiao Yin eating them. Qiao Yin took a small bowl and shared some with her.
"No need to share with her, eat it yourself, I'll go buy another bowl."
"It's okay. An An and I both have small appetites, so one bowl is just right for the two of us."
Qiao Yin was right. There were several other dishes on the table. Although none of them were as delicious as those made by Shen Xiannian, Shen Anan had no dislike for any dish that contained meat. She ate it with noodles and rice until she was full.
Qiao Yin had a small appetite and was a little carsick, so she didn't even finish her meal. Shen Xiannian had a big appetite and gobbled up two large bowls of rice, even the bowl of noodles she had left over, leaving nothing wasted.
When Qiao Yin saw this, she pursed her lips, feeling a little embarrassed.
After dinner, Shen Xiannian asked Qiao Yin to do his own thing. He took Shen Anan to the hospital. Qiao Yin shook her head and refused. She was also very concerned about whether Anan's illness could be cured and wanted to go with them.
When Shen Xiannian went in to consult a doctor, Qiao Yin sat on a stool in the hospital corridor with Shen Anan, looking at her carefree smile, and sighed.
During the time she lived in the Shen family, she had already treated the little girl An An as her younger sister.
Although she has the mental capacity of a 6-year-old, she has been well taught by Mother Shen. Unlike those unkempt fools who occasionally go crazy and pounce on others, she is clean and tidy every day, with a simple mind. She is occasionally greedy and naughty, and looks no different from a normal 15-year-old girl.
To An An, Qiao Yin is her sister and her good friend, so she would secretly share the candy that she was reluctant to eat with her, sleep with her at night, and secretly tell her her brother's little secrets.
An An is adorable. However, An An's carefree life relies on the love and care built by Shen's mother and Shen Xiannian. But if one day, Shen's mother is gone, and Shen Xiannian... gets married and has his own family, will she still be so happy?
Shen Xiannian might not change, but what if the wife he married was unwilling to take care of this foolish sister-in-law and bullied her in private? Human nature is complicated. If one day, all the people who sheltered her from the wind and rain left, and there was no one to protect her, she didn't dare to think what would happen to An An.
So, she also hopes that An An can get better.
She deliberately ignored the discomfort that arose in her heart when she thought that Shen Xiannian was about to get married, and deceived herself into thinking that it was worry about An An.
Fortunately, Shen Xiannian brought good news.
"The doctor said that if I go to Beijing for surgery, there's an 80% chance of recovery."
Shen Xiannian suppressed the excitement in his heart, but joy and hope still leaked from his eyes.
"Very good!"
Qiao Yin stood up suddenly and became happy as well, while Shen Anan looked at her happy and excited brother and sister with a puzzled look on her face.
She is not sick, what do you mean by curing her?
Qiao Yin asked, "How much does it cost?"
Hearing this, Shen Xiannian's smile faded, as if a basin of cold water was poured from head to toe.
The surgery would cost at least 10,000 yuan. In this era of hunger and cold, 10,000 yuan was undoubtedly an astronomical figure. Shen Xiannian had made a lot of money in the black market in recent years, but it was still far from enough.
Shen Xiannian suddenly felt his throat dry, opened his mouth, and couldn't speak.
Qiao Yin knew from his expression that this was a considerable sum of money, and it would be difficult to raise it with their current ability.
Qiao Yin knew that policies would soon be liberalized, and individual and private economies would be legalized. Those who first seized this opportunity to start businesses would all become entrepreneurs.
This is undoubtedly an opportunity for Shen Xiannian. He has the ability and the experience and connections accumulated over the years in the black market. As long as he seizes this opportunity and becomes the first to try it, he will definitely succeed. Then An An's surgery fees will not be a problem.
She knew that Shen Xiannian also had this idea, but she didn’t dare to make up her mind yet.
"Go into business. I'll invest. I've saved a lot of money over the years, so I think I can help you a little."
Qiao Yin smiled at her, her eyes so bright.
"Do you believe me?"
"Soon the policy will be liberalized, and the term 'black market' will no longer exist. As long as you dare to do it, you will definitely make money."
His tone was full of trust and undoubted certainty.
Chen Xian looked up in surprise, somewhat puzzled as to why she could be so sure about the future.
In the end, he opened his mouth, said nothing, and chose to believe her unconditionally.
Shen Xiannian looked at her deeply for a long time before nodding heavily: "Okay."
After leaving the hospital, Shen Xiannian learned that Qiao Yin wanted to buy high school textbooks, so he took her and Shen Anan through a winding alley and came to the home of an old man who collected scrap.
Uncle Chen was surprised to see Shen Xiannian, "Nian boy, why are you here at this time? Do you have business to do today?"
Uncle Chen was obviously very familiar with Shen Xiannian. He was very enthusiastic when he saw him and even gave fruit to Qiao Yin and Shen Anan.
He knew that Shen Xiannian had a silly sister, about fifteen or sixteen years old, and he recognized Shen Anan when he saw her, but when his eyes swept over Qiao Yin, he was puzzled for a moment.
He was a little curious about Qiao Yin's identity. Such a pretty girl didn't look like a country girl at all. Instead, she looked like a delicate young lady raised in a wealthy family. How could she come with Shen Xiannian?
"Nianwazi, is this your new wife? She's so pretty!"
The old man looked at Qiao Yin with a smile, and the more he looked, the more satisfied he became. This girl is so beautiful and suits her age!
His son and daughter were both gone, and he only had one grandson. In order to ensure that his grandson had enough food and clothing, he secretly did some business and acted as a matchmaker for people in the black market. This is how he got to know Shen Xiannian, who had helped him a lot, and he sincerely hoped that he would live a good life.
After hearing this, Qiao Yin's face flushed instantly, and she looked at Shen Xiannian, waiting for his explanation.
Shen Xiannian coughed, as if he didn't receive her signal, and didn't answer the question. He asked the old man directly:
"Uncle Chen, don't you have a lot of books here? I want to buy some high school textbooks from you."
Uncle Chen waved his hand nonchalantly when he heard this. "It's okay, it's okay. Those books are worthless. Just take whatever you want."
Now that the college entrance examination has been abolished, most families have thrown away their high school textbooks long ago. Qiao Yin originally thought that she would have to go to several places to find them all, but she didn't expect that Uncle Chen had them all.
Qiao Yin carefully placed the college entrance examination textbooks in a cloth bag, her face full of surprise. Seeing her so happy, Shen Xiannian, although he didn't understand, smiled along, thinking that if the college entrance examination had not been abolished, she would definitely have been able to get into university.
He went to the school to pick her up. At that time, she had not finished her get out of class yet, so he stood outside and listened to her class. He also thought that she taught very well.
Thinking of this, a bitter feeling welled up in my heart. She was beautiful, educated, kind, and likable. She was from a different world from him.
"Thank you, Comrade Shen Xiannian, you have helped me a lot!"
Qiao Yin didn't notice his fluctuating emotions. She was excitedly holding his strong arm, her eyes shining and her fair face full of smiles.
His arms were hard and full of muscles, but now they were held by her soft little hands, and he seemed to have lost his strength. He could not resist at all and could only let the endless heat pass through, burning his neck red.
Shen Xiannian thought awkwardly that in this age where people paid more attention to relationships between men and women, it was wrong for her to hold the arm of a man who was not her relative or acquaintance, and they were not in a dating relationship.
However, Shen Xiannian stiffened for a moment and felt his ears a little hot, but in the end he was reluctant to remind her, so he let her hold it like this.
Unfortunately, she quickly withdrew her hand, hugged Shen Anan instead, gently pinched her little face, and said with a smile:
"An An, sister is happy today, I will take you to buy some candy."
Finally, Shen Xiannian and Qiao Yin took Shen Anan to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy some necessary things, and also bought some candy for Shen Anan, and then returned to Green Water Bay together.
While riding in the car, Chen Xiannian was afraid that Qiao Yin would feel uncomfortable, so he specially bought some dried sour plums pickled with green plums and asked her to put one in her mouth. She really felt much better.
The three seats on the bus were connected together, Qiao Yin sat in the middle, An An sat in the innermost seat by the window, and Shen Xiannian sat in the outermost seat.
After walking for a day, Shen Anan was exhausted and fell asleep leaning on Qiao Yin's shoulder.
Soon, Qiao Yin also felt sleepy and closed her eyes in a daze. The rural dirt road was bumpy and the bus was shaking, making her sleep restless.
Until Shen Xiannian put her head on his shoulder and whispered to her, "Go to sleep, I'll call you when it's time."
Qiao Yin was so sleepy that she didn't realize there was anything wrong with doing this. Moreover, his shoulder felt so safe that she fell asleep as soon as she leaned on it.
The warm orange sunset shone through the car window, casting a warm yellow halo on Shen Xiannian's face. He looked down at the person on his shoulder, feeling satisfied and peaceful in his heart.
If only time could stop at this moment forever.
Shen Anan drowsily opened her eyes halfway through her sleep, and turned around to see Sister Qiao Yin sleeping on her brother's shoulder, while her brother was staring at the person on his shoulder without blinking, his eyes so gentle, so loving...
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