get along
"Xiaxia, did you see the person? How did you feel?" Shen Ke started asking Zhao Ping and Shen Anxia as soon as they entered the house.
“He’s great. He’s good-looking, ambitious and excellent, and his life is very fulfilling,” Shen Anxia paused. “His character is indeed as Brother Dajing said; he’s a very good person.”
"Huh? It's rare that you didn't find fault! The last few times you came back, you could find thirty problems by yourself," Shen Ke said in surprise.
Zhao Ping smiled broadly and exchanged a glance with Shen Ke.
There's hope.
"I don't think there's anything wrong with him! The only thing I don't understand is that he's quite talkative and never holds back. Someone like that should have a lot of girls chasing after him, right?" Shen Anxia directly voiced her doubts to hint at her parents, since she couldn't just say whatever she wanted about Yang Zheng.
But Shen Ke and Zhao Ping became visibly excited, slapping their thighs in delight: "That's fantastic! Let's continue spending time together and see!"
Seeing that they didn't understand her meaning at all, Shen Anxia solemnly said, "What I mean is, Yang Zheng probably doesn't like me."
Shen Ke and Zhao Ping: "..."
When Shen Anyi returned from her tutoring class, she slipped into Shen Anxia's room. The two siblings hid on the small balcony of the west room, brewing tea and chatting.
"Haven't you found one yet, sis?" Shen Anyi was going through puberty, and her voice sounded a bit like Donald Duck.
Shen Anxia poured a glass of the cooked fruit and milk and handed it to Shen Anyi, amused, "You really want to marry your sister off like that?"
"Of course not!" Shen Anyi suddenly raised his voice, startling Shen Anxia.
"Why are you so agitated? Keep your voice down!" Shen Anxia patted Shen Anyi and scolded him lightly.
Shen Anyi also realized that her voice was too loud, and said in a low voice, "I just hope you stay in Yi'an, so that we can be together often, just like when we were little. But if you stay in Xinfeng, you might find a brother-in-law there, and then we'll be in two different cities. Hmm—the fresh milk you cooked today is really delicious."
These words deeply moved Shen Anxia.
When they were children, Zhao Ping and Shen Ke were both very busy. Zhao Ping was a teacher, which required him to work overtime and pursue further education, as well as apply for professional titles. Teaching took up his winter and summer vacations. Shen Ke was an accountant, and later he studied on his own to pass the CPA exam and became an accountant. The couple could be said to have hardly spent any time with their children, so the siblings spent their childhood relying on each other. They were only truly separated during the few years that Shen Anxia went to university.
Shen Anxia peeled an orange for Shen Anyi and put it on the plate in front of him, comforting him: "Yang Zheng said, oh, it's the person the brother downstairs introduced. He said that the Yi'an government has been vigorously developing cultural and entertainment activities in recent years, and maybe it won't be long before they have their own song and dance troupe. As long as I don't give up my basic skills, I might be able to go back to Yi'an directly in the future."
"Does this future brother-in-law know anything about the government?" The government is something that's too far removed from ordinary people like them.
“I’ve always heard that the public security, procuratorate, court and judicial departments are not separated. Maybe the public sector employees or administrative employees in Yi’an can learn about local policies in advance and then complete their work according to the government’s instructions.”
"Then I hope the Yi'an government will put the song and dance troupe on the agenda as soon as possible." Shen Anyi ate an orange, her face full of longing.
“It definitely will. A sign of a city’s growing wealth is the flourishing development of its cultural and entertainment activities. However, Yi’an is still developing slowly. It may not be able to have its own dance troupe for two or three years.” Shen Anxia predicted. She dared not gamble her future on a plan that had no future.
“However,” Shen Anxia corrected him, “you don’t need to call him future brother-in-law, because he doesn’t like me.”
"What are you talking about? My sister is the best person in the world! She's beautiful and hardworking, how could he not like her? Where are his eyes!" Shen Anyi's voice rose eight octaves inadvertently.
"Shh—it's almost midnight now, and the neighbors downstairs are all asleep. Luckily, no one lives in this room downstairs, and my sister-in-law isn't here either. Otherwise, if she scared the baby in her belly, Brother Da Jing would definitely come up with a knife."
"Oh, then I'll keep my voice down." Shen Anyi stuffed another orange into his mouth and said indistinctly.
"Don't keep your voice down. You have less than half a year until the college entrance exam. Just hang in there and you'll see the light at the end of the tunnel. You need to rest and recharge. Now, right now, go to sleep." Shen Anxia grabbed Shen Anyi, pushed him to the bedroom door, closed the door, memorized some vocabulary words, and then went to sleep.
Nothing was said that night.
The next day, just after the Shen family had finished dinner, the doorbell rang again. Shen Ke opened the door and saw Xu Qingjing again.
"Da Jing! Come in and have a seat." Shen Ke and Zhao Ping greeted him warmly.
Shen Ke knocked on the door of the west room and called out, "Xiaxia, come out quickly, Brother Dajing from downstairs is here."
Shen Anxia, who was reading English aloud, heard the sound and came into the living room to greet Xu Qingjing.
Once everyone was seated, Xu Qingjing went straight to the point and asked, "What do Aunt Zhao and Sister Anxia think of my third brother? Would you like to get to know him and give it a try?"
Zhao Ping said, "We all think they're quite good together, a handsome man and a beautiful woman, but..."
Seeing that Zhao Ping didn't continue, Xu Qingjing asked with some worry and anxiety, "Is there anything you're worried about? Actually, Third Brother is a really good person. He might not be very good at expressing himself because he's slow to warm up to people. We were classmates for nine years in elementary and middle school before we became godparents..."
No, that's not it.
Zhao Ping was also a little embarrassed. After all, his daughter was definitely the best, and he would be angry if she wasn't chosen by someone else. But Zhao Ping still made it clear that Xiaxia felt that her third brother... didn't like her.
Xu Qingjing asked in surprise, "Why did you say that, Anxia? Did your third brother give you a sour look?"
Shen Anxia quickly waved her hand to clarify: "He's a good person. I just think that someone as outstanding as him being single must be too picky."
"It's a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding. My third brother thinks An Xia is really great and is very willing to continue to try getting to know her, but he hasn't received a WeChat message from An Xia to accept his request, and he hasn't dared to call her rashly, so he asked me to ask her." Xu Biaoyan smiled, appearing to be in a very good mood.
"Oh, sorry, I haven't had my phone with me all day. I'll go get it." She turned and went into the bedroom.
When Shen Anxia got her phone, there were indeed several friend requests. After accepting Yang Zheng's friend request, Xu Qingjing asked Shen Anxia, "If you think your third brother is alright, why don't you get to know him?"
"Alright, alright, let's get to know each other then." Shen Ke quickly interjected, afraid that Shen Anxia might say something to refuse.
Zhao Ping also realized that the situation was not as Shen Anxia had thought, and he became cheerful again.
Shen Anxia: "..."
Seeing that Shen Ke and Zhao Ping were very supportive, Xu Qingjing quickly pressed his advantage: "We're having a gathering tomorrow night, can we bring An Xia along?"
Shen Ke readily agreed: "That's wonderful! Your Aunt Zhao and I have been so busy. Xia Xia has been cooped up at home all winter break, and A Yi has to go to tutoring. It's a rare opportunity like this."
“Uncle Shen, how about we pick up Anxia at six o’clock tomorrow morning to go out for dinner, and then bring her back at ten-thirty in the evening?” Xu Qingjing probed Shen Ke about the timing.
“Okay!” Shen Ke readily agreed.
Shen Anxia, who hadn't been able to get a word in edgewise, was speechless.
Not long after Xu Qingjing left, Shen Anxia received a message from Yang Zheng: "Anxia, this is Yang Zheng."
Shen Anxia saw him greet her, so she greeted him in return: "Hello, Yang Zheng."
It took a long time after the message was sent; Shen Anxia watched the words "typing..." appear repeatedly before finally receiving a reply: "See you tomorrow."
It was amusing; three words, and it took her so long to think about them? She quickly replied, "See you tomorrow."
At 5:50 PM the following afternoon, Shen Anxia received a message from Yang Zheng—
I'll be waiting for you at the entrance of the building, don't worry.
Shen Anxia replied with "Okay".
She didn't linger too long and arrived at the building entrance before six o'clock. As soon as she opened the door, she saw Yang Zheng standing at the entrance, dressed in a black casual outfit with an open, thin down jacket over it.
Yang Zheng smiled and said, "They wouldn't let me stay in the car, they kicked me out, and made me wait for you at the building entrance."
Shen Anxia glanced at the seven-seater van behind him, whose laughter was so loud it couldn't be blocked even through the glass, and laughed too.
"Let's go!" Yang Zheng turned around, opened the car door, and let Shen Anxia get in first.
Shen Anxia glanced at the front passenger seat and saw a woman who looked to be around thirty years old, with androgynous attire, short black hair, healthy skin, and wearing an oatmeal-colored sweater and black cargo pants. She looked incredibly cool.
The driver's seat and the three seats in the back were all occupied by men, and at that moment, everyone in the car was staring at him.
"This is my second brother and sister-in-law," Yang Zheng introduced the two people in the driver's seat and the passenger seat.
Shen Anxia readily agreed: "Second brother, sister-in-law."
"This one in the back is the eldest brother. As for the other two, they're not important, so don't bother getting to know them," Yang Zheng said.
"Hey, how can you talk like that, Third Brother? How come we're not important?" It was Xu Qingjing who spoke.
“Yeah, Third Brother, are you planning to lie down and go home tonight?” another person said.
As they talked, the two men reached forward and grabbed Yang Zheng by the neck and head from behind, forcing him into his seat and giving him a good beating.
Shen Anxia first called out "Big Brother", then turned to the other two and said, "Big Brother Jing, Fifth Brother".
She had heard them call him "Fifth Brother" before, but this guy clearly looked about the same age as Yang Zheng and the others, so it was only right for her to call him "Brother".
"Hey? Look, you still have to say it's the younger sister. Third brother, you should learn from this!" Xu Qingjing released Yang Zheng's neck.
"It's Third Brother! You're really not being fair by not introducing me!" Fifth Brother also let go of Yang Zheng's head and smiled obsequiously at Shen Anxia, "That's right, I'm Fifth Brother."
Xu Qingjing teased the fifth brother: "You've finally become the older brother for once. Aren't you secretly thrilled?"
"Never mind, it's definitely not in full bloom, but it's possible that one has been planted," the second brother in the front row chimed in.
When Shen Anxia first heard her second brother speak, his voice was very calm and steady, giving the impression that he had a strong and stable core.
"You're the cow dung! Second brother, drive properly! You're with two beauties today, so watch your cool image!" Fifth brother retorted.
Taking advantage of the moment when they were attacking from both sides, Yang Zheng lowered his head and whispered in Shen Anxia's ear, "Do you like tomato hot pot?"
Shen Anxia was stunned for a moment, and a strange feeling arose spontaneously. She liked tomato hot pot, or more precisely, tomato-flavored stews were her favorite foods. She wondered if Yang Zheng's question was a coincidence.
Afraid of spoiling the cheerful atmosphere in the car, she replied softly, "I'm fine with anything."
"How about we go eat hot pot first, and then go to Hai Tian Zhi Lian?" Yang Zheng asked.
"Either is fine, but I need to be home by 10:30."
"No problem, the fourth brother said your family is strict."
Shen Anxia suddenly noticed the quiet atmosphere. Before she could react, she heard cheers and jeers from in front of and behind the car. Then she realized that she and Yang Zheng were a little close. Her cheeks flushed, and she moved to the side imperceptibly. Then she heard her heart pounding like a drum.
"Third Brother, what are you saying? I want to hear it too." The fifth brother leaned close to Yang Zheng's face and coaxed in a low voice.
"Go away, go home and be affectionate with your wife." Yang Zheng pressed his face and pushed him away.
The short-haired woman in front turned to Shen Anxia and smiled, "Anxia, right? Don't mind them. These guys are always unruly when they get together."
This woman's voice is also very cool.
"Yes, sister-in-law." Shen Anxia smiled as well.
At this moment, the eldest brother, who had been silent all along, spoke up quietly: "Wife, I'm different from them."
"Don't interrupt," said the cool older sister-in-law.
"Good wife." The eldest son was very obedient.
"Good girl," her sister-in-law praised.
This way of getting along really made Shen Anxia want to laugh. She secretly observed everyone and found that they were all holding back their laughter, but no one dared to actually laugh out loud.
As they were talking, the car had already arrived at the hot pot restaurant in the Shengshi business district.
Shen Anxia took a look and saw that it was a hot pot restaurant that had just opened and was being advertised very well.
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