Chapter 26. Exciting, isn't it? Surprising, isn't it? ...
Yun Jin and Hua Cheng ultimately stayed at Chen Xixi's house for lunch.
Liu Zhuang also came, bringing two pounds of beef and a bunch of greens. Chen Xixi's mother used these ingredients to make beef noodles.
When lunch was over, Chen Xixi's aunt suddenly came to visit, and Chen Xixi's parents quickly invited her to sit down.
The aunt, no longer flustered, warmly took Yun Jin's hand: "Little... Yun Li, do you still remember me?"
Upon hearing this, Hua Cheng and Liu Zhuang immediately exchanged a glance.
During this time in the same county, although they did not take any action on the surface, they had been secretly preventing Yun Jin from contacting people and things from the past. Now that Aunt Chen Xixi was suddenly speaking to Yun Jin in such a familiar tone, both of them subconsciously became a little nervous.
Compared to them, Yun Jin was much calmer: "They look somewhat familiar, but I can't quite place them."
"Yunjuan! I'm Yunjuan, the daughter of Yun Dazhi from the village entrance." The aunt slapped her hand hard.
Yun Jin tried to recall, but still couldn't remember, so she smiled apologetically.
Seeing this, the aunt felt a little embarrassed and quietly let go of her: "You moved away when you were ten or so, so it's normal that you don't remember... It's been so many years since we last met. Would you like to come to my house for a visit? My husband's family lives here, and my house is right behind Xixi's house."
Hearing her aunt's earnest tone, Chen Xixi, who was squatting by the door playing with Ah Huang, looked up, glanced at her, and then led the dog away.
Yun Jin thanked her and politely declined, saying, "I have to go back to school later, so I won't go."
"Then, then, let's exchange contact information? Oh dear, it's been so long! I almost forgot what you look like. You haven't been back for so many years, you must miss home. Let me tell you, our Yun Manor is now..."
As the aunt was talking, she took out her phone. Liu Zhuang immediately interrupted her and Yun Jin to chat, and Hua Cheng took the opportunity to pull Yun Jin back.
Yun Jin felt the air was a bit stuffy, so she left the socializing to Liu Zhuang and Hua Cheng and went out alone.
It was lunchtime, and everyone was eating. There wasn't a soul in sight on the village paths.
Chen Xixi sat on a stone stool in front of her house, placing small stones on the sleeping Ah Huang. Yun Jin watched for a while, then turned and left.
“Your aunt doesn’t like you,” Chen Xixi suddenly said.
Yun Jin stopped and turned to look at her: "Hmm?"
“She just thinks you’re rich, so she’s trying to curry favor with you,” Chen Xixi looked at her, her eyes less repulsive and more stubborn. “She doesn’t actually like you at all.”
Yun Jin nodded: "I know."
Chen Xixi asked in surprise, "How did you know?"
A child is a child; why ask why when such an obvious fact exists?
Yun Jin felt her breathing become easier, so she walked up to her and nudged the tip of her shoe with her dirty little white shoe.
Chen Xixi gave up the stone stool and, after she sat down, moved a brick to sit next to her.
"How did you figure that out?" She was still pondering this question.
Yun Jin: "Intuition."
"Intuition?" Chen Xixi asked, puzzled. "What is that?"
Yun Jin did not reply.
Chen Xixi touched her nose and looked down at Ah Huang, who was covered in small stones.
After a long pause, she said, "I don't like you either."
Yun Jin: "Oh."
Chen Xixi: "Aren't you going to ask why?"
Seeing that she still seemed eager to talk, Yun Jin asked cooperatively, "Why?"
Chen Xixi: "Because you are not filial."
Yun Jin: "Oh."
Her detached reactions make it difficult for most people to continue a conversation with her, but today we met Chen Xixi, who is only ten years old and only needs a little bit of response from her to keep the conversation going.
“After your father was arrested by the police, you, his own daughter, not only did not try to save him, but also testified in court that he committed intentional homicide, causing him to be sentenced to more than ten years in prison.”
Yun Jin glanced at her: "Did your aunt tell you that?"
Chen Xixi raised her chin: "Mmm!"
"What else did she say?" Yun Jin asked again.
"They even called you an ingrate. After your dad's accident, your uncle and aunt took care of you, but you ran away after getting into university, leaving them with a mountain of debt. They didn't give them a single penny of the money they earned. They really raised you for nothing."
Yun Jin smiled and asked, "Is there anything else?"
"Well……"
There should still be some, but Chen Xixi couldn't quite remember.
Yun Jin took a deep breath and asked, "Do you know why my dad was arrested by the police?"
“Because…because…” Chen Xixi suddenly stammered.
Yun Jin could tell from her expression that she knew, so she smiled and finished for her: "Because he killed someone, he killed my mother."
“They all say he didn’t do it on purpose,” Chen Xixi whispered, “that he was drunk and acted impulsively, and hit him a little too hard…”
Yun Jin didn't ask who "they" were, and she didn't feel angry when she heard such a rebuttal.
In fact, she had long since lost all emotional attachment to the long-standing problems plaguing this land.
"As for my uncle's debt... it's less that I left it to him and more that he owed it from the beginning." Yun Jin lowered her head, picking the pebbles off Ah Huang one by one, and said with a smile, "They never raised me; on the contrary, I've always been the one raising them."
Before she was admitted to university, the two most correct things she did were: first, when she was 11 years old, she stood in the witness stand and, even though her uncle had accepted 30,000 yuan from the Yun family to write a letter of understanding, she still managed to get Yun Wei sentenced to a few more years.
Secondly, the day before leaving the mountains after receiving the admission notice, he dug up his mother's body from the family's grave, which had already been sold by his uncle to someone else for a ghost marriage.
As for the family that discovered the grave had been dug up, but dared not report it to the police because buying and selling corpses is illegal, and could only force the uncle to return the money, that's their business. Yun Jin had never taken that money, so naturally she wouldn't pay for it for them.
With the last stone removed, Yun Jin raised an eyebrow at Chen Xixi: "I also have an account book that details the expenses during the years I lived at my uncle's house. It is the key evidence for changing the guardianship relationship into a foster relationship. Even if they grit their teeth to death, they will not be able to get alimony from me."
Yunwei goes without saying; he has a criminal record for intentional injury and has been absent from child support for many years. Yuncheng Technology's legal department has plenty of ways to ensure he doesn't get a single penny, and making a scene at the TV station won't help.
"I'm just that bad, you must be terrified!" Yun Jin asked with a smile.
Chen Xixi didn't understand what guardianship or foster care relationships were, but looking at her kind eyes and brows, she suddenly didn't want to think of her as a bad person anymore.
The shadows of the trees swayed in the wind, and two girls, one big and one small, gazed at each other quietly, creating a scene as beautiful as a painting.
Liu Zhuang stared at them for a long time, then said, "Those people deserve to die."
Hua Cheng: "Mm."
Liu Zhuang: "Isn't there any way to punish them?"
The thought that those who hurt Yun Jin are still living peacefully in the tolerance of their neighbors, while Yun Jin is constantly being swayed by public opinion, makes him feel restless.
“Yes,” Hua Cheng said. Liu Zhuang looked at him.
“Spend money,” Hua Cheng shrugged, “spend a lot of money to get more people out and back, to let new economic models and new ideas change old concepts, and to let the people who have lived here for generations clearly recognize the evil of Yunwei’s group and stop using their stubborn and outdated perspectives to excuse them.”
Are old ideas hard to change? Not at all. As long as the wind is strong enough, even the deepest ailments can be exposed.
The law can impose a limited sentence, but the condemnation from the public can last a lifetime.
He wanted those who had bullied Yun Jin to be isolated, looked down upon, and pointed at, just like Yun Jin had been.
He wanted to give Yun Jinche a thorough dressing-down.
Liu Zhuang opened his mouth, but after a long pause, he managed to say, "I thought you were doing all this to help more children like Yun Jin escape their predicaments."
“Oh, that’s one of the purposes,” Hua Cheng said, looking at Yun Jin, “but the main purpose is to help her get revenge.”
Liu Zhuang: "Well, you really are... wait a minute, it's not like you just met her yesterday. Why didn't you ever think about helping her get revenge before?"
Hua Cheng smiled and said, "Because we didn't need to before."
Yun Jin doesn't cry every rainy night, but he's by her side every rainy night.
He was a wall around her; as long as he was there, those past events couldn't reach her. So he couldn't be bothered to argue with those people and just wanted to take Yun Jin far away from them.
But he's about to leave us.
He had to build a new high wall so that she wouldn't be left alone and helpless on a rainy night.
“Fatty,” Hua Cheng sighed, “have I been pretty annoying lately?”
Liu Zhuang rolled his eyes at him: "You actually know that?"
He acted on his own initiative, thought himself right, and took all the blame he hadn't been able to get in the previous 32 years.
“But not in the future,” Hua Cheng said with a smile.
The equity transfer ensured Yun Jin's absolute control over the company's assets in the future. The poverty alleviation policy will gradually dispel her resentment and unwillingness towards the past. After completing these two major tasks, he will finally no longer have to act unilaterally.
It's all over.
At this moment, Hua Cheng was relaxed and at ease, radiating a joyful aura.
Yun Jin turned around as if sensing something, and stood up after seeing him and Liu Zhuang.
She didn't ask when they arrived, but simply said, "They should be going to school by now."
Hua Cheng smiled and took her hand: "Okay, let's go."
Yun Jin dodged away, saying, "My hands are dirty."
“It’s not dirty,” Hua Cheng said firmly, his eyes clear and gentle. “My wife is the cleanest.”
Yun Jin raised her eyebrows and was pulled away by him as they walked out, with Liu Zhuang following slowly behind.
After walking a few steps, Yun Jin remembered something and turned back to ask the little girl sitting on the brick, "Are you coming to class this afternoon?"
The little girl was quiet for a few seconds, then asked, "Can I bring Ah Huang?"
The three adults laughed at the same time.
The three-day course ended quickly, and it was finally time to leave.
Media visits and public relations activities were arranged in Pingcheng, while things remained calm in the county.
After saying goodbye to the village chief and local officials, Yun Jin and her group were about to leave when they suddenly heard a little girl's anxious voice behind them: "Teacher Yun! Teacher Yun!"
Yun Jin stopped, and the others followed suit.
Chen Xixi rushed up to her with her dog on a leash, panting as she tried to speak.
"Take it easy for a bit." Yun Jin handed her a bottle of water.
Chen Xixi shook her head in refusal, staring intently at her: "Teacher Yun, can you take Ah Huang with you?"
Yun Jin paused for a moment: "Why?"
“I…I don’t want it to stay here…” Chen Xixi’s eyes gradually welled up with tears, but her tone remained firm. “I’m afraid that one day, my parents will want to use it to entertain guests again.”
Chen Xixi's father, who was squeezed at the back, looked embarrassed and said, "What nonsense are you talking about, child!"
Chen Xixi didn't look at him, and continued to plead with Yun Jin: "Teacher Yun, can you take it with you?"
Yun Jin looked at her silently, seemingly considering how to refuse.
Hua Cheng smiled and tried to smooth things over: "Xi Xi, Teacher Yun can't..."
“I can take it with me, but are you willing to part with it?” Yun Jin suddenly asked.
Hua Cheng glanced at her in surprise, but didn't say anything.
Chen Xixi's eyes became even redder.
Yun Jin smiled and said, "You can continue to raise it. Just consider it as raising it for me. No one will dare to hurt it."
She is no longer the little girl who cried until she was dizzy and helpless. In the near future, her construction team will move into the mountains, turn the muddy dirt roads into clean highways, pave the dilapidated playground with plastic, and establish formal sales channels for those mountain products that are difficult to sell.
She will bring new life to this endless mountain range. She has become a very important adult, and a casual promise from her can guarantee Ah Huang's life.
“Keep it,” Yun Jin said to Chen Xixi, bending down to pat Ah Huang’s head. “Call me again if you really can’t keep it anymore.”
Chen Xixi could no longer hold back and burst into tears, hugging Ah Huang.
Hua Cheng glanced at Li Yu, who immediately handed a business card to Chen Xixi's parents.
On the plane back to Pingcheng, Yun Jin looked quietly out the small window at the land where she had lived.
A warm, firm chest suddenly pressed against her back, and she leaned against him, relaxing and putting all her weight on him.
"Do you remember what Chen Xixi's aunt called me?" she asked.
Hua Cheng rested his chin on her head and gently hummed in agreement: "Yun Li, I've seen your former name on your household registration."
"This is the name Yunwei gave me. In the month I was born, six children were born in Yunzhuang. I was the only girl. He searched through the dictionary for a long time and gave me this name."
“The character ‘藜’ is rarely seen in the mountains; it’s quite unique. For a while, I thought that although he wasn’t a very good person, he had been kind to me. But one time, when he was drunk, he proudly mentioned my name to the people at the table. That’s when I learned that ‘藜’ means weeds. He went to great lengths to find this character just to express his resentment towards me and my mother for not having given birth to a son.”
Having known her for so many years, this was the first time Hua Cheng had heard her mention these things, and his hands clasped in front of her tightened a little.
"Because of his words, I was called a little weed for many years until I went to the police station to change my name, and those voices gradually disappeared."
“I should go see him now that I’m in the same county,” Hua Cheng said, his face darkening.
Yun Jin turned to him, and Hua Cheng loosened his grip slightly. After she turned around, he intertwined his fingers with hers.
“I am Yun Jin now, not Yun Li.” She raised an eyebrow, revealing a rare hint of childishness.
Yunjin is the most famous of the four famous brocades. Every inch of brocade is worth its weight in gold. Its materials, craftsmanship, and colors are all top-notch.
Cheap and lowly—that was the fate Yunwei had carefully chosen for her.
Expensive and precious were choices she made after going through many hardships.
Hua Cheng looked into her clear eyes and smiled, "Yes, you are Yun Jin."
The plane flew for more than two hours, and by the time it landed safely, it was already 2 p.m.
The media conference is scheduled to begin in an hour, and Hua Cheng has to rush to the venue as soon as he gets off the plane.
He originally wanted Yun Jin to come along, but Yun Jin said she had to go back to the company, so he had to go alone.
At 3:10 p.m., the meeting started on time. Yun Jin, who said she was going back to the company, also went into the large apartment she had secretly bought.
It was already late September, and the weather was getting colder. The locust tree leaves by the roadside were gradually turning yellow, and they fell to the ground with a rustling sound when the wind blew.
In the convenience store, after helping the customer pay, Hua Yu glanced at the doorway, which was covered with leaves that she had just swept two hours earlier, and a hint of helplessness flashed in her eyes.
A minute later, he still took the broom and went outside, head down, cleaning diligently.
A broom made of red plastic filament swept across the ground, driving the fallen leaves to a corner, quickly creating a small mountain of leaves.
Another leaf fell, and he took a step forward with his eyes downcast. Suddenly, his slender high heels came into view, and he stepped steadily on the fallen leaf.
Hua Yu paused slightly, her gaze slowly moving from bottom to top, finally meeting a pair of familiar eyes.
Yun Jin held a bill between two fingers and waved it in front of him: "I'm here to pay back the money."
Hua Yu glanced at the money in her hand and said calmly, "Excuse me, could you move aside?"
Yun Jin took a step back, swept the leaf into the fallen leaves hill, and turned to walk into the convenience store.
Yun Jin followed him: "Didn't you hear me? I'm here to pay back the money."
"I don't have change, you don't need to return it." Hua Yu went around behind the cashier and refused to talk to them any further.
"Then don't bother looking," Yun Jin put the money on the table and pushed it towards him, "Consider the extra as interest."
A brand-new banknote, placed on the white countertop, clearly distinguishes you from me, just like the Chu River and Han border.
Hua Yu looked up: "I said, you don't need to pay it back."
Yun Jin met his gaze for a few seconds, then suddenly realized, and pulled her finger back from the money: "Actually, my husband and I split the bill. The medicine that day was for him, so this money is what my husband asked me to pay. Since you don't want it, then I'll thank you on my husband's behalf..."
Before she could finish speaking, Hua Yu pressed down on the money.
"Hmm?" Yun Jin pretended not to understand.
Hua Yu coldly pulled the money over: "Buy whatever you want, give me the change back."
Yun Jin didn't ask him why he changed his mind. She turned around and went to the shelf to get two bottles of coconut water and a bag of potato chips.
Hua Yu braced himself against the cashier's counter, and after she came over, he skillfully scanned the code. Yun Jin crossed her arms and watched him quietly.
It had been a long time since I'd seen him, and he seemed to be in much better shape. He was wearing a simple white pullover hoodie with a convenience store work vest over it, looking both clean and neat.
Her eyes and brows weren't as gloomy as before, and she exuded a relaxed feeling. It's clear that her job at the convenience store was going well, and she's been getting plenty of rest lately.
Her gaze remained as direct as ever, but Hua Yu lowered her eyes, pretending not to notice.
"That's fourteen yuan and seventy cents in total. Here's your change: eighty-five yuan and threety cents." Hua Yu quickly gave her the change and then packed the items into a bag.
Yun Jin took a bottle of coconut water out of the bag: "This is for you."
Hua Yu narrowed her eyes: "You used your husband's money to buy me drinks?"
"Yeah, isn't it exciting?" Yun Jin asked back.
Hua Yu: "..."
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Author's Note: Little Flower: Should I drink it or not? So frustrating!
Draw 50 red envelopes~
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