Chapter 39 is practically riddled with holes.
Song Yiping, being tall and long-legged, strode across the road to Yan Ruyi, casually put his arm around her shoulder, and then subtly glanced at Yang Siyuan.
Yan Ruyi never expected to see Song Yiping here, and even more so, to bump into her with Yang Siyuan.
At this point, it wasn't convenient for her to explain to Song Yiping, so she introduced the two of them, "Comrade Yang, this is my boyfriend, Song Yiping. Yiping, this is Comrade Yang Siyuan, he's from Gangcheng."
The words "my partner" pleased Song Yiping, and he no longer found Yang Siyuan so displeasing.
He politely extended his hand to shake hands with Yang Siyuan, saying, "Hello, Comrade Yang."
This was the first time Yang Siyuan had shaken hands with a member of the People's Liberation Army, and this PLA comrade was an officer.
He was a little flattered and quickly shook hands with Song Yiping, saying, "Hello, Comrade Song."
When Yang Siyuan saw the bodyguard come out of the teahouse, he said to Yan Ruyi and Song Yiping, "Comrade Yan, Comrade Song, I won't bother you any longer. We'll meet again next time."
His car was parked on the side of the road. After saying goodbye to the two men, he got in and drove away.
Yan Ruyi, "What are you doing here?"
Song Yiping waved the paper package in his hand, "I bought some chestnut cakes."
Yan Ruyi loves chestnut cake the most, so it goes without saying that it was bought for her.
Yan Ruyi said, "I'm actually hungry."
Song Yiping didn't give her any. "Go eat first. You won't be able to eat rice if you eat pastries."
He wanted to ask Yan Ruyi what this Mr. Yang did and what he wanted to see her about.
But asking that question would make me seem petty.
I'm really conflicted.
Yan Ruyi looked up at him and asked, "Were you jealous just now?"
Song Yiping calmly replied, "No."
Yeah, right.
If it were Yan Ruyi, Jiang Dongming, or anyone else from the Cultural Relics Bureau, he wouldn't have been able to walk so fast.
He might even avoid them for fear of disturbing them.
But when he saw Yan Ruyi standing with Yang Siyuan, he actually felt a sense of crisis.
The main reason is that Yang Siyuan is too young and dressed very fashionably.
Yan Ruyi drawled, "So there wasn't one."
Song Yiping honestly admitted, "A little."
Yan Ruyi then explained to him, "He is from Hong Kong and got a tricolor horse. He wanted to give it to his grandfather as a birthday gift. He was afraid it was fake and wanted me to help him take a look. I thought that Xiangming Tea House was closer to Xiangzailai, so I arranged to meet him at the tea house. The tricolor horse he got is from the time of Emperor Gaozong of Tang. It is really beautiful. If it weren't for the fact that he wanted to give it to his grandfather as a birthday gift, I would have asked him to buy it."
He then took the opportunity to flatter Song Yiping, "Of course, it can't compare to your collection, which is beautiful and valuable."
Pick any one of them and Yang Siyuan's eyes would probably light up.
Song Yiping smiled and said, "Grandpa said he wants to see you soon and chat with you about antiques. In our family, my dad, my mom, and I are all laymen, and no one talks to him about them. He's feeling quite stifled. You and Grandpa will definitely be able to have a good chat."
Yan Ruyi really wanted to have a chat with the old man.
She thought about it seriously and came up with an idea, "Why don't you tell me where your grandfather lives? I'll pretend to be lost and ask him for directions, and take the opportunity to chat with him?"
It also allows you to build a relationship with the old man beforehand.
Song Yiping smiled and ruffled her hair. "The old man is very shrewd; you can't fool him. But if you don't mind being found out, you can do it that way too."
Yan Ruyi thought about the scene. Even if the old man didn't expose it to her face, it would still be a bit awkward when they officially met in the future.
"Let's talk about that later, after all, my evaluation period for you is not over yet."
Song Yiping: "Okay, Comrade Xiao Yan is welcome to visit anytime."
Yan Ruyi chuckled, took a box out of her bag, and handed it to Song Yiping. "However, the initial assessment has been passed. Your performance deserves praise. This is a reward."
She took the pastries from Song Yiping and urged him, "Quickly open them and see if you like them."
When Song Yiping opened it, he found it was a pen, and a Parker gold pen at that.
It should be the same one that Yan Ruyi was holding in Xinli Street last time. He even praised it as a nice pen back then.
I never expected it to be a gift for him.
Yan Ruyi told Song Yiping about the origin of the fountain pen.
“I don’t know if this pen is good or not, but when Grandma Wang first took it out, I thought it would be perfect for you. Grandma Wang was also thinking of selling the pen, so I bought it. You saw it at the time, but I hadn’t decided how to give it to you yet. When you suddenly praised the pen, my first reaction was to hide it. I didn’t find a chance to give it to you later. I reacted so strongly at the time, were you angry?”
Song Yiping knew his stuff. This gold pen was so expensive that it was almost never sold in China. It was probably something that Comrade Zheng had someone buy from abroad and then gave to Wang Lianmo.
Yan Ruyi bought this "□□" of the fountain pen world by accident.
Song Yiping said, "I'm not angry. I really like this gift. It's only polite to reciprocate, so I'll give you a gift too."
He took a plum blossom-patterned women's watch out of his pocket.
This Titoni watch, model 737DB-SC, is not sold in mainland China; he asked a former comrade-in-arms to buy it for him in Hong Kong.
When he asked his comrade to buy it, Yan Ruyi had not yet accepted his advances. He bought it and kept it for later, thinking that he might need it in the future.
His comrade-in-arms was also from Beijing and had already retired from the military. Taking advantage of the reform and opening up, he went to Shenzhen to do business and sometimes went to Hong Kong on business trips. He asked his comrade-in-arms to buy this watch.
This type of watch is usually worn by young women.
His comrade-in-arms, Chen Feiyong, had a good relationship with him and knew his family situation well. He felt that it was impossible for him to buy the watch as a gift for his mother.
At that time, Chen Feiyong also contacted several other comrades-in-arms, and the group pressed him to tell him if he was dating someone, otherwise why would they ask him to bring back a women's watch?
Now that he has actually started talking to Yan Ruyi, he feels it is necessary to organize a meeting to formally introduce Yan Ruyi to them, so that they won't try to trick him into revealing anything through roundabout means.
Yan Ruyi was wearing a rose-patterned watch, a gift from her aunt when she was admitted to university, and she had been wearing it for four years.
She then showed Song Yiping the watch on her wrist.
Song Yiping said, "Then we'll wear the two in rotation. We'll wear the new one today."
As he spoke, he took off the watch on her wrist and put on a new one.
Yan Ruyi raised her wrist and looked at it. The watch had a gold dial and bracelet, and the dial was inlaid with something that looked like stars.
Yan Ruyi had a gut feeling that this watch must be very expensive.
Expensive things are always good and beautiful!
Yan Ruyi bragged about herself again.
The two went to Xiangzailai for a meal first.
After dinner, we went to the cinema to watch a movie.
Today we're showing an old movie: "The Corner Forgotten by Love".
Yan Ruyi has a low threshold for laughter and an even lower threshold for tears. The movie was 90 minutes long, and she cried for at least 70 minutes of it. She was sobbing and crying the whole time, and she even soaked two handkerchiefs with tears.
Song Yiping regretted taking her to see this movie.
He rarely watches movies and knows very little about them. When buying the movie ticket, he didn't look at the title carefully. Seeing the word "love" in the title, he thought it was a romance movie.
Romantic movies are perfect for people in relationships, so I bought two without hesitation.
Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a romance film, albeit a tragic one.
Although the ending was happy, the process was truly heart-wrenching, especially for someone like Yan Ruyi who is easily moved to tears; she cried almost from beginning to end.
After the movie ended, Yan Ruyi came out of the theater with swollen eyes from crying, still sobbing. "Cunni was so pitiful, and Huangmei was pitiful too, but she was braver than Cunni. In the end, she bravely pursued love, but Cunni can never come back, and Xiaobaozi was wrong too..."
Little Leopard was wrong for being too impulsive. Since he loved Cunni, he should have respected her and shouldn't have done that kind of thing to her before they were even married, which led to Cunni's suicide.
If we really have to talk about right and wrong, Yan Ruyi thinks the little leopard bears at least half the responsibility.
Song Yiping comforted her, "That's all in the past, and that won't happen again."
In the 1960s and 70s, people's thinking was still very conservative, especially between men and women. They could not overstep the bounds, otherwise they would be labeled as having lifestyle problems.
Women, in particular, bear more burdens. If they make even the slightest mistake, they will be subjected to strong criticism. Even if it is the fault of the men, the women may end up taking the blame.
Fortunately, times are changing, and society is much more open-minded now.
For example, if he used a handkerchief to wipe Yan Ruyi's tears, and passersby saw it, no one would say anything about them.
This would have been unthinkable in the past.
"Okay, stop crying."
Feeling a little embarrassed that she cried so much while watching a movie, Yan Ruyi tried to justify herself, saying, "I didn't cry, I just felt sorry for Cunni."
It's still the same idea.
Although Song Yiping had never been in a relationship before, based on his limited knowledge, he felt that it was best not to argue with the other person about whether shedding tears counted as crying.
At times like this, you should go along with the other person. If Comrade Yan Ruyi says that shedding tears doesn't count as crying, then it's not crying! It's just raining from the eyes.
He learned this from his father.
In his father's eyes, his wife was absolutely right.
In his view, the object of his affections is absolutely correct.
He then said to Yan Ruyi, "Comrade Yan, shall we eat something to commemorate that sad era?"
Yan Ruyi was amused by him and punched him lightly. Song Yiping took the opportunity to grab her hand.
Yan Ruyi blushed slightly and whispered, "Let go of me, we're on the street right now."
Song Yiping comforted her, "It's dark, they can't see."
They were standing under a large tree, its dense canopy completely obscuring the streetlights. Unless you looked closely, you wouldn't be able to see the two people standing there.
Of course, to be considerate of Comrade Yan Ruyi's sensitive nature, Song Yiping always chose to walk in places where the streetlights were not very bright.
Otherwise, Yan Ruyi would have broken free from his grasp in no time.
In the past, their regimental instructor said that he and his wife could walk hand in hand on the street for half the night.
He also felt that the instructor was exaggerating. The streets were full of people, cars, and shops. What was there to see? He couldn't even stand for a minute, let alone walk around all night.
Now, he feels that walking for half a night is not enough. If Yan Ruyi is not tired, he can walk all night without feeling annoyed.
Yan Ruyi glanced at her watch; it was already 9 p.m.
"I'm going home."
Tonight she went out on a date with Song Yiping, using Luo Huihui as a cover. She called her mother and told her that she and Luo Huihui were going shopping after work.
If she gets home too late, her mother will start questioning her.
Song Yiping sighed, "Comrade Xiao Yan, when will I finally be able to walk the straight path?"
Once things are out in the open, he will be Yan Ruyi's legitimate boyfriend, and they can date openly without anyone covering for them.
I wanted to be clear about our relationship as soon as we started dating.
Yan Ruyi felt she couldn't indulge him. "I'm not ready to tell my family the truth yet."
Song Yiping felt there was no need to be honest. They had started out as a blind date, introduced by their families, so it was perfectly normal for them to be dating now.
However, Yan Ruyi said she wasn't mentally prepared yet, so let's wait and see.
Song Yiping escorted Yan Ruyi to the opposite side of the machine tool factory's residential compound.
The reason she sent it to the other side was that Yan Ruyi was afraid that the people in the family compound would see it and then tell her mother.
Yan Ruyi said, "I'm leaving. You should go back too."
Song Yiping moved closer to her, "Excuse me, Comrade Xiao Yan, is it possible to have a date tomorrow?"
Song Yiping was too close, and as he spoke, his warm breath brushed against Yan Ruyi's face.
She felt like he was about to kiss her any second.
Her ears were burning hot, and she turned her face slightly away, avoiding the view. "I'm afraid that's not possible. If I keep having Huihui cover for me, my mom will start to get suspicious."
She paused deliberately, "But I can tell my mom I have a political education class tonight."
There are indeed political education classes in the evenings. It was just announced by the bureau that we have to attend them every night for a week.
However, it only lasted for half an hour.
But her mother didn't know that she could use this information gap to date Song Yiping.
In just one minute, Commander Song's emotions went through a rollercoaster ride, from disappointment to anticipation and then to surprise.
He stepped forward and naturally placed a kiss on Yan Ruyi's forehead, then ruffled her hair. "Go back, I'll watch over you from here."
When Song Yiping leaned in, Yan Ruyi thought he was going to kiss her.
As a result, Song Yiping simply kissed her forehead.
Even so, she was burning up.
She didn't say goodbye to Song Yiping, and pushed her bicycle, dizzily crossing the road.
Even after entering the family compound, he touched his forehead; his face was still burning. He muttered to himself, "They didn't even say anything beforehand. How could they just kiss like that?"
What are you muttering to yourself here all by yourself?
The sudden sound startled Yan Ruyi. After recognizing her mother, she complained, "Mom, why do you walk so quietly?"
"I called you twice, but you didn't hear me. You were just muttering to yourself. I thought you were possessed."
Fortunately, her mother didn't hear what she was muttering, otherwise, she wouldn't know how to explain it to her.
Yan Ruyi decided to change the subject and asked her mother, "Mom, why did you come out?"
"Your second sister-in-law and second brother were arguing at home. I was annoyed by the noise, so I came out to meet you. Where did you and Huihui go? Why are you back so late?"
Yan Ruyi said guiltily, "I went to see a movie, and came back as soon as the movie ended."
It's best to avoid this topic, so I changed the subject again, "What did my second sister-in-law and second brother argue about again?"
Her second sister-in-law often quarrels with her second brother.
However, the two never held grudges overnight; they would argue one day and make up the next, something Yan Ruyi had long been used to.
Yan Ruyi only felt strange when the two of them stopped arguing.
“Your second brother’s factory is building housing for the collective, and your second sister-in-law wants to buy one, but your second brother is not happy about it, and the two of them have a fight about it.”
The two of them were shouting at each other, each trying to outdo the other, as if afraid she wouldn't hear them.
She did hear everything; the two of them argued back and forth, and it always came down to the word "money."
Ye Hongzhen knew very well that this argument was meant for her and Yan Guoqiang to hear.
They simply want them to contribute money to buy them subsidized housing.
The eldest son's family lives in a house allocated by the factory, with a monthly rent of 5 yuan, which the eldest son and his wife pay themselves.
Apart from the time when the family paid for his wedding and the birth of his child, they haven't given the eldest son any money elsewhere.
The second child's family should be the same.
Otherwise, if we give it to the second son's family, should we give it to the eldest son's family or not?
Furthermore, the daughter is not married yet, Sihe is still young, and there are still many expenses at home. If all the money is given to the second son's family, the eldest son and his wife will have objections, and when the family needs money, who will she ask for it from?
Moreover, she estimated that the young couple had some money, maybe not much, but they should be able to come up with 2,000 yuan.
They're probably all in the bank, probably in a fixed-term deposit.
If you deposit a fixed term account, the interest rate is 6% for one year, while the current account rate is 1.5%.
If a fixed-term deposit is withdrawn early, the interest is calculated at the current account rate, which makes a big difference. Li Yan didn't want to withdraw it, so she approached the old couple with her idea.
Thinking that if they couldn't stand it anymore, they would take the initiative to pay for the housing provided by the cooperative.
Ye Hongzhen wasn't fooled. The two argued inside the house, but she pretended not to hear them. Later, when she got annoyed, she and Yan Guoqiang came out.
Yan Guoqiang went to drink with his coworkers, so she came out to greet her daughter.
Yan Ruyi didn't dare tell her mother that her second sister-in-law had also asked her for money, but she refused.
Once you start, you can't stop.
She didn't say anything, but her mother reminded her, "If your second sister-in-law asks you for a loan, don't lend it to her. Don't spend all the money you earn in the future. Save it all for yourself. I don't need your money. When you get married, bring it all to your husband's family. That will give you confidence, and your husband's family will look at you with more respect."
When Ye Hongzhen and Yan Ruyi arrived home, Li Yan and Yan Mingtao had already stopped arguing.
They were probably still sulking; Ye Hongzhen and Yan Ruyi were talking, but neither of them came out.
Just now, it was dark outside, and Ye Hongzhen didn't notice.
Once inside, I saw that Yan Ruyi's eyes were swollen, red and swollen, as if she had been crying.
Ye Hongzhen asked in surprise, "What happened to your eyes? Why are they so swollen? Did you just cry?"
Hearing this from inside the house, Yan Mingtao jumped out in a flash. When he saw Yan Ruyi's eyes, his face darkened, and he shouted, "Did someone bully you?"
He didn't say who it was, but he thought his sister should know who he was talking about.
Yan Ruyi quickly said, "No one bullied me. I cried while watching a movie, the one called 'The Corner Forgotten by Love.' Second Brother, you've seen it, right? The female lead was so pitiful."
Ye Hongzhen hadn't seen the movie, but Yan Mingtao had. Although he didn't cry as much as Yan Ruyi when he watched it, his eyes were a little sore, so he believed Yan Ruyi's words and was speechless. "You cry like this just watching a movie, so pathetic."
After thinking for a moment, he added meaningfully, "If anyone bullies you in the future, just tell your second brother, and he'll beat them to a pulp!"
As he finished speaking, his eyes were momentarily blinded by a flash of light. Upon closer inspection, he noticed that Yan Ruyi was wearing a new watch on her wrist. He couldn't tell what was on the watch face, but it was sparkling under the light.
Ye Hongzhen noticed the watch on Yan Ruyi's wrist and asked, "Isn't this the one you used to wear?"
The original one was a bit old, but this one is clearly new.
"no."
She raised her wrist, beaming with delight as she showed her mother her new watch.
Yan Mingtao also came over and touched it, "Is this watchband gold?"
Li Yan heard this from inside and came out as well. She immediately saw Yan Ruyi's new watch and her jealousy surged. "Ruyi, where did you get this new watch? Did you buy it yourself?"
If Yan Ruyi admits that she bought it herself, then she'll have to ask her: how can she have money to buy a new watch but not enough to lend money to buy a house?
She's willing to give me an IOU; it's not like I won't pay it back.
"I didn't buy it myself; it was a gift from a friend."
Li Yan: "This watch must be expensive. Which of your friends is so rich that they just give away such an expensive watch like that?"
Yan Mingtao: "Ruyi has a few friends she needs to report to you about."
Li Yan had never seen a man like this before; he always sided with outsiders.
She turned around and went back into the house in anger.
Ye Hongzhen had already guessed who sent it.
Among the friends around my daughter, the one who is rich and most likely to give her a watch that looks very expensive is none other than Commander Song.
We ate and drank together, watched a movie, and even had a show together, and he drove me home. And today he gave me a watch...
The daughter thought she was keeping it a secret, but little did she know that it was almost completely exposed. She was still trying to hide it.
Ye Hongzhen said, "Mom will boil an egg for you. Use the egg as a poultice in a while, get a good night's sleep, and it will be gone by tomorrow."
Yan Ruyi said, "No need, I'll be fine after a good night's sleep."
"Okay, go to bed early."
Yan Ruyi went back into the house and closed the door.
The money Yang Siyuan gave her was still in her handbag; she didn't count how much he gave her all night.
I took it out and counted it; it was a full 1000 yuan!
If Yang Siyuan comes a few more times, she will be able to save enough money to buy a house before next year.
She took a notebook out of the drawer.
She remembered her grandmother telling her when she was little that if she was thinking about someone, she should say their name a few times, and that person would appear soon.
Would it be more effective if you wrote down this person's name and recited it every day?
She opened her notebook and carefully wrote three words on the first page: Yang Siyuan.
After writing it down and reading it a few more times, I felt like I was one step closer to my new house, and I went to sleep feeling very satisfied.
This led to her being so shocked when she saw Yang Siyuan at the Cultural Relics Bureau three days later that she almost went back to offer incense to her grandmother.
This is incredibly effective!
When Yang Siyuan saw Yan Ruyi, he shook hands with her with admiration, "Comrade Yan, hello, we meet again."
Director Liu, who was standing next to her, was surprised to find that Yan Ruyi had such a wide circle of acquaintances, and that she even knew Mr. Yang from Gangcheng.
Out of curiosity, I asked, "Do you two know each other?"
Yang Siyuan is a businessman who knows best how to weigh the pros and cons, so he naturally wouldn't reveal Yan Ruyi's side business. "I was fortunate enough to have a chat with Comrade Yan once, and I benefited a lot from it."
He then said to Yan Ruyi, "Comrade Yan, I will definitely seek your advice again when I have the chance."
Yan Ruyi was secretly pleased that her money tree had arrived, but she didn't show it on her face and politely said, "No problem, no problem."
Yang Siyuan went to Director Liu's office. Yan Ruyi was completely confused. What was Yang Siyuan doing at the Cultural Relics Bureau, and why was he personally received by Director Liu?
Could it be related to her?
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