Yun Qiao counted the red envelopes, thinking about He Ying, and his brows subconsciously frowned.
"Don't think about it." He Tingjun saw what she was thinking and put his arms around her waist from behind. "It's New Year's Day, be happy. We don't need that little money."
"I know." Yun Qiao sighed. "It's just a matter of money. No one is taking advantage of anyone. I just feel suffocated. She's upset because of something, so she takes it out on us."
"Okay, don't be angry." He Tingjun kissed Yun Qiao's forehead, "Just ignore her from now on. We'll be gone after the New Year anyway."
Yun Qiao leaned back in He Tingjun's arms and nodded.
Yun Qiao had just finished taking a shower. He Tingjun could smell the fragrance of her hair as soon as he lowered his head. His fingers felt a little itchy, but he resisted the urge and took a step back, keeping some distance from her.
"It's getting late. We have to get up tomorrow to celebrate the New Year. Go to bed early."
"Okay." Yun Qiao nodded slightly and put the red envelope away.
***
After the Chinese New Year, He Tingjun booked a flight to Shanghai in advance.
When he was about to leave, he decided to pass through Shanghai and leave enough time to stay in Shanghai for a few days so that his grandparents who lived in Shanghai could also meet his wife and children.
His grandparents are old and have poor mobility, so they were unable to go to the Northeast to attend the wedding in person.
They have been married for more than two years and their child is over one year old, but they don’t even know what their granddaughter-in-law looks like.
Air tickets after the New Year were in high demand, and even with the help of his connections, He Tingjun could only get a ticket for the ninth day of the Lunar New Year.
After booking the plane ticket, He Tingjun immediately told his family the date of the trip.
Shi Shan nodded to show that she understood, and then asked Aunt Lan, who came to work after the New Year, to help them prepare local specialties.
As a father, He Ruilin didn't know how to express it, but he waved his hand and reimbursed the couple's airfare of several hundred dollars.
He Ying was jealous and went to Shi Shan privately to act coquettishly, saying that she also wanted to fly to Shanghai.
It only takes an hour to fly from Spring City to Shanghai, but it takes five days and four nights by train. It is too much suffering, and she wants to relax a little.
Shi Shan refused directly: "Mom can't help you with this. Your brother can fly because he is a battalion-level cadre and has the qualifications to fly. Who of you, you or Zou Qian, is qualified?"
"What about Qin Yunqiao? She's just a small doctor in the clinic. Why should she be able to sit here?" He Ying was indignant.
"Just because she's your brother's relative." Shi Shan glanced at her and said with a look of dismay, "Instead of wasting time arguing with me, you should think carefully about your future path. If you were more sober and motivated, you wouldn't be unable to even board a plane in your lifetime."
When He Ying left Shi Shan's room, her face looked particularly ugly.
She gritted her teeth and muttered, "Isn't it just being able to take a plane? What's so great about her?"
"Battalion-level cadres... What's the big deal about battalion-level cadres? Among the candidates introduced to me, some were even at the regimental level. I just don't care about them."
What she pursued was love, unlike Qin Yunqiao, who was only after his brother's status.
His brother is also blind. He gave up such a good girl like Sister Huihui and married an educated youth who went to the countryside.
I don't know how Sister Huihui is doing now.
She hasn't contacted Sister Huihui for nearly three years since she was forced to break off contact in the spring of that year.
He Ying boarded the train to Shanghai with a worried look on her face.
She and Zou Qian and Zou Chen's family of three arrived earlier than Yun Qiao's family of three, but when Yun Qiao's family of three arrived in Shanghai by plane, the train they were on had not yet left Southwest Province.
When the plane landed in Shanghai, the person who came to pick him up was He Tingjun's cousin from his uncle's family.
He Tingjun's cousin, He Jianhua, is five years older than him. He's in his early thirties and already married with grown children. He was also a soldier, but retired due to injury and now works in the People's Armed Forces.
He was a very talkative person. Yun Qiao felt friendly when listening to him speak. They exchanged pleasantries along the way, talked about their basic situation, their wives and children at home, and chatted with each other, and they became familiar with each other.
He Jianhua drove He Tingjun and the others to their common grandparents' home, which was located in the staff quarters of Shanghai University.
Although He Ruilin and Shi Shan have a home in Shanghai, it has not been used for many years and the dust inside is several meters thick. When He Tingjun comes to Shanghai to visit relatives, he and his wife stay at their grandparents' house.
Yun Qiao is not unfamiliar with Shanghai University.
Ye's uncle used to teach at Hucheng University. When Yun Qiao was a child, he would occasionally follow his aunt to the university to visit his uncle.
"Brother Ye?"
When Yun Qiao married He Tingjun, her biographical information was already on the desk of He's grandparents. Basically, everyone in the He family who should know knew about her true life experience and her disputes with the Ye and Su families.
He Jianhua was not interested in his cousin's wife's private affairs, but he had heard some of them from his mother and his wife's casual conversation.
"Tingjun and Big Brother Ye were very close. I used to go to Big Brother Ye's office to read when I had nothing to do. How come I've never seen you there?" He glanced at He Tingjun through the rearview mirror and asked him for confirmation: "I just remember that my sister-in-law often came to school with a baby in her arms, right?"
Yun Qiao explained awkwardly, "I haven't been there much."
He Tingjun didn't say 'yes' or 'no', but simply said, "It was so long ago, how can I remember it?" He then reminded, "Don't call me Big Brother Ye anymore. I follow my wife and call him Uncle now, so you should call him Uncle too. There's no generation difference anymore."
He Jianhua uttered an "uh," feeling extremely embarrassed. "Ye Da...he's only nine years older than me. Should I call him uncle?"
"Why not?" He Tingjun asked back, "We're cousins. I call you uncle and you call me brother. Is that appropriate?"
He Jianhua: “…”
Nothing to say.
He Jianhua, speechless, fell silent. In the back seat of the car, Yun Qiao edged closer to He Tingjun, snuggling close to him and whispering to him. Curiously, he asked, "Tingjun, I also want to ask you, when I was a kid and came here to visit my uncle, did you ever see me?"
He Tingjun didn't answer directly, but instead asked, "What about you? Have you seen me?"
Yun Qiao muttered, "Didn't you leave Shanghai when you were in junior high school? I was so young then, how could I remember it?"
"...Okay." He Tingjun smiled and said, "That makes sense."
“Don’t avoid problems.”
"I'll ask you again."
Yun Qiao looked into his eyes and said sternly, "Honestly, have you ever seen me at that time?"
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