Everyone sat together happily for a meal, and Jiang Qingyuan also poured himself a bowl of wine.
"Brother, sister-in-law, let me toast you first."
The eldest sister-in-law hurriedly said, "Oh, what are you doing? We're all family."
"Thank you so much for coming all the way from the village to help. My brother works hard from dawn till dusk to deliver goods, and my sister-in-law takes care of everything at home and in the shop. She even cooked a big feast today. You've really worked so hard."
People are most pleased when their efforts are recognized by others.
The elder brother raised his wine glass and clinked it against Jiang Qingyuan's. "Look at that, as expected of a scholar, he knows how to talk."
My sister-in-law doesn't usually drink, but she poured herself some alcohol.
"Forget about whether it's hard or not, my husband and I should thank our younger brother and sister. No matter how hard it is in the city, it's much more comfortable than in the countryside."
Sister-in-law Pei has been living a very comfortable life in the city these days.
Although washing clothes and cooking are unavoidable at home, these are the kinds of chores.
Moreover, in the city, she was considered to be in charge.
It's better than living in the countryside with my mother-in-law, where I have to keep my head down and be humble every time I go out because I can't have children.
Outside, no one knows anyone, and no one will gossip about you.
Sister-in-law Pei can finally stand up straight and go out every day.
After Jiang Qingyuan finished paying respects to his elder brother and sister-in-law, he went to Pei Wang's place.
"Second brother, thank you..."
Pei Wang held his wine glass, staring longingly at Jiang Qingyuan.
"Thank you... for the gift?"
Pei Wang was very unhappy. "No, just thank you for the gift? Nothing else?"
Pei Wang is usually unreliable, and he's about the same age as them.
If you're talking about taking care of someone or anything, there really isn't anything like that.
Brother Pei sneered, "Don't you even look at yourself? You're usually so carefree and irresponsible. What's there to thank me for?"
Feeling a little guilty, Pei Wang lightly clinked his wine glass against Jiang Qingyuan's and drank it all in one gulp.
"Come on, junior brother, let's have a drink together."
Cheng Xuelin was suddenly called out, but there was no wine in front of him.
“I’ll drink tea instead of bar,” Cheng Xuelin said, raising his glass.
"Thank you for helping me a lot during my time at school. You've worked so hard without complaint."
Jiang Qingyuan's words were absolutely true.
Jiang Qingyuan was considered one of his teacher's favorite students, and he had a lot to do every day.
Sometimes when he's busy and doesn't have time to eat, Cheng Xuelin will remember to go to the cafeteria to get him food.
Aside from these, Cheng Xuelin would not let Jiang Qingyuan do anything that the teacher assigned to him.
At first, Jiang Qingyuan was somewhat wary of Cheng Xuelin, fearing that Cheng Xuelin had ulterior motives.
Later on, Jiang Qingyuan couldn't help but let his guard down.
Cheng Xuelin never asked Pei Zhi about it in front of him, nor did he try to find out in any way.
Today is Jiang Qingyuan's birthday, and it was only after Jiang Qingyuan asked several times that Cheng Xuelin agreed to come for dinner.
To put it another way, if Cheng Xuelin really had feelings for Pei Zhi, why would he be so nice to his love rival?
Unless Cheng Xuelin has something wrong with his brain.
Finally, Jiang Qingyuan respectfully addressed Pei Zhi.
Jiang Qingyuan's face was flushed from drinking. "Zhizhi, I am especially grateful that you married me."
Pei Zhi squeezed Jiang Qingyuan's hand. "Silly boy, what's there to thank me for?"
Pei Zhi wanted to say that she wasn't a good person either.
"I'm so happy that you're here for me."
Jiang Qingyuan was probably really happy that night and drank quite a bit of alcohol.
Jiang Qingyuan wasn't a good drinker to begin with, and ended up getting quite tipsy.
Jiang Qingyuan said, "Xue Lin, there are empty rooms here. Come back to school with me tomorrow morning."
Cheng Xuelin wanted to refuse, but Brother Pei and Sister-in-law Pei also tried to persuade him to stay.
Unable to refuse such hospitality, Cheng Xuelin had no choice but to stay.
Pei Zhi helped the drunk Jiang Qingyuan back to his room. When she came out, she saw Cheng Xuelin cleaning up the dishes.
"Don't do it, I'll do it."
Cheng Xuelin said hurriedly, "No need, you go and rest, I can do it."
Sister-in-law Pei came out of the kitchen. "Oh dear, you two don't need to lift a finger. Just go and rest. I'll do it. You have school tomorrow."
"Sister-in-law, let me help you. I can't sleep this early either."
Sister-in-law Pei waved her hand, "I don't need you. I can clean up by myself faster. Your help will only get in my way."
"Oh, by the way, little sister, could you get a set of bed sheets for Xiaolin? His room doesn't have a bed yet."
Pei Zhi nodded slightly: "Okay."
Sister-in-law Pei gave Cheng Xuelin a push, "Go and get some rest."
Pei Zhi took out a set of bed sheets and a thin blanket. "You can take care of it yourself. I'm going to rest now."
Cheng Xuelin lowered his head, avoiding Pei Zhi's gaze: "Thank you."
Seeing Cheng Xuelin's pitiful state, Pei Zhi pursed her lips but ultimately said nothing.
"Pei Zhi, don't overthink it. I didn't mean to do anything." Cheng Xuelin called out to Pei Zhi, not wanting his presence to put pressure on her.
For Pei Zhi, it's already good enough that Cheng Xuelin can study hard and help Jiang Qingyuan.
She didn't need to comfort Cheng Xuelin; things would get better eventually.
After a quick wash, Pei Zhi prepared to go to sleep.
"Knock knock knock..."
Pei Zhi frowned, wondering where the noise was coming from.
"Knock knock knock..."
Pei Zhi looked next door, thinking that Pei Wang had drunk too much and made a commotion.
"Knock knock knock..."
The sound continued to come, and Pei Zhi suddenly looked up at the sky.
The sound seemed to be coming from above.
It's so late at night, why are the people upstairs not sleeping, knocking...?
The knocking sound from upstairs is three times each time, followed by a pause before continuing.
So, Du Lei deliberately made noise upstairs to get her to come up?
Pei Zhi finally understood what Du Lei meant by buying the apartment upstairs.
To see her, there's no need to give prior notice; just knock on the ground.
That's impressive.
Pei Zhi looked at Jiang Qingyuan, who was fast asleep beside her, when the knocking from upstairs started again, so Pei Zhi had no choice but to get up.
When she went out, Pei Zhi tiptoed around like a thief.
Once upstairs, Pei Zhi knocked on the door with her foot, and Du Lei opened it with a hammer in his hand.
"What are you banging on so late at night? Do you know you're disturbing the neighbors?"
Du Lei said smugly, "I deliberately knocked on the roof of your house."
Du Lei had been to Pei Zhi's bedroom; the layout was the same both upstairs and downstairs.
Du Lei could knock from the roof of Pei Zhi's house without disturbing the others downstairs.
"Aren't you worried that the person who came might be Jiang Qingyuan?"
Pei Zhi was quite curious: how could Du Lei be so confident that Jiang Qingyuan was asleep?
Isn't he afraid of attracting Jiang Qingyuan's attention by knocking like that?
Du Lei raised an eyebrow and said, "Whether he comes or not is up to you, isn't it?"
If Jiang Qingyuan wasn't asleep and heard the knocking, wanting to go upstairs to check, Pei Zhi had plenty of ways to stop him.
Why are you back today?
"The army is on holiday tomorrow, so I rushed back after roll call today."
Pei Zhi was initially a little resentful, wondering why Du Lei had bothered her to come upstairs so late at night.
After hearing Du Lei's words and seeing his disheveled appearance, they gave up.
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