Chapter 47 Chapter 47 A visitor from home

After returning home from the hospital, Meng Yufei took Xia Qinqin to sit at the dining table, took out the chess box, took out the chess pieces inside, and taught her to recognize the words on them.

Xia Qinqin pointed at the chess piece "帅" and said, "Mom, I know this word. It means handsome."

Meng Yufei smiled and asked her, "What other words do you know?"

Xia Qinqin picked up the chess pieces on the table, took out the car, pointed at the red words on it and said, "I recognize this one too, it's the car, the car of a car, right, Mom?"

Meng Yufei nodded and praised, "Yes, it's a rook. Qinqin is really smart." Then she took out a chess piece, pointed at the words on it and asked, "Do you know what this word is?"

Xia Qinqin shook her head, "I don't know."

Meng Yufei said softly, "This is the character for horse."

Xia Qinqin asked: "Is it a horse that can be ridden?"

Meng Yufei said: "Yes, when there is a chance in the future, Mommy will take you to go horse riding, okay?"

Xia Qinqin nodded and said, "Okay~"

Meng Yufei taught Xia Qinqin to recognize the words on all the chess pieces, and then drew the chessboard with a pen and paper. At that time, she only bought the chess pieces at the supply and marketing cooperative. Meng Yufei felt that the chessboard was too heavy and difficult to carry back, so she did not buy it.

When Xia Junshan came home from get off work, he saw the mother and daughter playing chess. Meng Yufei patiently explained the rules to her daughter, while Xia Qinqin listened attentively with her big watery eyes and asked questions out of curiosity from time to time.

"You are playing chess, please add me in." Xia Junshan said with a smile.

Xia Qinqin looked up at the door and said happily, "Dad, you're back! Mom is teaching me how to play chess. Dad, do you know how to play?"

Xia Junshan walked over and said with a smile: "Yes, how are you doing with your studies? How about playing a game with dad later?"

Xia Qinqin touched her head and said, "It's so difficult. I haven't learned it yet."

Xia Junshan smiled and lifted his daughter's braid, saying, "Don't worry, take your time to learn. When you have learned it, we can do it together."

Meng Yufei put down the chess piece and said, "It's already this late. I'm going to the cafeteria to get food. I'll study after dinner."

Xia Junshan said: "I will go with you."

Xia Qinqin quickly said: "I want to go too!"

Xia Junshan reached out and picked up his daughter, smiling and said, "Okay, let's go together. How could you leave our Qinqin behind?"

Meng Yufei took the lunch box and money, Xia Junshan held their daughter, and the family of three went out and walked towards the cafeteria.

Xia Junshan asked curiously, "Didn't you go to work this afternoon?" Otherwise, he would have brought the meal back after get off work.

Before Meng Yufei could say anything, Xia Qinqin said quickly, "We'll go to the hospital this afternoon."

Xia Junshan stopped and asked with concern: "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

Meng Yufei said: "It's nothing, just a minor problem."

Xia Junshan looked into Meng Yufei's eyes and asked seriously, "Fei Fei, are you hiding something from me?"

Meng Yufei lowered her head in silence for a few seconds, then raised her eyes to meet Xia Junshan's and said, "We'll talk about it when we get back."

Xia Junshan nodded and said, "Okay."

—————

Captain Xue left work early in the afternoon and went to the dock. The people from his hometown had already arrived. After being checked by the soldiers at the dock, they were waiting in the lounge for Captain Xue to pick them up.

Captain Xue pushed the door open and saw a middle-aged man sitting on a chair in the lounge, holding a little boy of seven or eight years old in his arms.

"Brother, you are here. Did you have a smooth journey?" Captain Xue asked.

When the eldest brother of the Xue family saw his younger brother who looked so energetic in military uniform, a trace of envy flashed in his eyes. He regretted again in his heart that if only he had joined the army, he would have been more impressive than his younger brother now.

The eldest brother of the Xue family stood up from his chair. He was more than a head shorter than Captain Xue. Although he was only three years older than Captain Xue, his dark skin and a few wrinkles on his forehead made him look ten years older than Captain Xue.

"Hurry, this is your second uncle. Didn't you see him during the New Year? Call him quickly." Brother Xue said to the boy in his arms.

The boy glanced at Captain Xue, who had a serious expression, and hid in Brother Xue's arms, refusing to speak.

Brother Xue said awkwardly, "This kid is seasick and looks a little listless now. You saw him at home during the Chinese New Year. This is our second child, Tiedan. You praised him for his cleverness then."

Captain Xue asked, "Brother, didn't I say that only one person would be allowed to come?"

Brother Xue smiled and said, "I heard from the brigade secretary that this kid doesn't need a ticket to ride the bus. Dad asked me to take the kid out to see the world."

Captain Xue frowned and said, "Let's go home first."

When they got home, Mrs. Xue was dozing on the sofa. She had just returned from Mrs. Tang's house and wanted to talk to her, but who knew that Mrs. Tang was going to Captain Song's house to ask Captain Song's mother-in-law, Aunt Liu, for advice on needlework.

Mrs. Xue was reluctant to go to Aunt Liu's place. Although Aunt Liu spoke softly, Mrs. Xue always felt that she looked down on her.

When Brother Xue saw Aunt Xue, he shouted, "Mother, you are enjoying yourself now. You are living like the old lady of the landlord's family, sleeping at home in broad daylight."

Aunt Xue was startled by the loud noise. She turned to look at the door and saw her eldest son standing there. She immediately jumped up from the sofa happily, "Hey, big brother, why are you here?"

When Tiedan saw Mrs. Xue, he ran over and hugged her. The force of his hug made Mrs. Xue stagger backwards. She patted Tiedan's shoulder lightly and said angrily, "You bastard, you're going to kill me."

"Grandma, I'm here to see you, why don't you go home?" Tiedan asked.

Mrs. Xue's face was as bright as a chrysanthemum. She said to her grandson lovingly, "I've only been away for a few days. Now that you're here, enjoy yourself for a few days. Let your uncle buy you some candy. We'll take a boat to the department store in the city on the weekend."

Tiedan said happily: "I want to eat meat! And canned food! My mother said that we can eat whatever we want here."

Brother Xue came over and said with a smile: "Of course, your second uncle is now a battalion commander, a military officer!"

Captain Xue stood at the door, looking coldly at the three generations of their family enjoying themselves.

Brother Xue put his bag on the ground, took out a small bag of peanuts, and said to Captain Xue at the door: "Brother, these are peanuts grown at home. We don't have anything else to give you, so we brought some local specialties from home."

Mrs. Xue immediately took the bag of peanuts and said, "Oh, I like eating peanuts from my own garden the most. The peanuts here don't taste as good as those from my hometown. You are so filial that you carried them all the way here."

Then he said to Captain Xue, "Second brother, didn't you say that there would be meat for the guests tonight? Go to the canteen and get a few more dishes. It just so happens that your eldest brother and Tiedan are here, so let's have some fun together. I see that you still have some wine in your cabinet. It's just right. Your eldest brother can drink a lot. Take it out and let your eldest brother drink with the guests. Our production team secretary always asks your brother to accompany the guests when he has work to do..."

Captain Xue went to the kitchen with a cold face to get his lunch box, and came out to Mrs. Xue in the living room and said, "No one else is coming tonight. The guest I'm talking about is my eldest brother."

Mrs. Xue said, "How can your elder brother be considered a guest? He is a family member." Then she pulled elder brother Xue and Tiedan to sit on the sofa, "Hurry up and sit down. People here are very particular. They don't want to sit on benches, but must sit on the sofa."

Captain Xue said with a dull face: "Big brother's house is a newly built house in my hometown, and my house is the house assigned to me by the army. It is better to distinguish them. After all, my house belongs to the army, not to me. I don't know who the house in the countryside belongs to?"

Mrs. Xue said, "What are you talking about? The house in the countryside must belong to your eldest brother."

Captain Xue said coldly: "Is that so? Your calculation is quite clear, isn't it?" Then he turned around and walked out.

After he left, Brother Xue said, "What's wrong with this second brother? It seems like he doesn't welcome us coming."

Mrs. Xue complained, "It's all his wife's fault. She's not a good person. She's been doing bad things to your second brother. Don't you know that vicious woman has kept all the money and notes in the family in her hands and won't even give me meat to eat!"

Brother Xue glared at her and said, "How dare she treat you, the mother-in-law, like this? Why don't you teach her a lesson? How dare a woman who can't give birth to a son be so stubborn?"

Mrs. Xue curled her lips and said, "I've always said that your second brother is useless. He got married and forgot his mother. He only listens to his wife."

Xue said, "Mom, I didn't expect that you have a hard time here. You are such a fool, my second brother. You are a military officer, but you are not as good as a country boy, and a woman is climbing on your head."

Mrs. Xue finally found someone who shared the same front with her. She held her eldest son's hand and complained non-stop. If you didn't know her, you would really think that she was living in dire straits here.

Over there, Captain Xue came out of the cafeteria after getting his meal and happened to meet Yin Guixiang, who was off work with her children. He walked over and said, "You're off work." He then said to his two daughters, "Dad and Erya, were you good today?"

Daya nodded and said, "Mom is at work, we are playing in Aunt Wang's office, just be good and behave yourself."

Captain Xue patted Daya's head and said, "Dad got some meat in the canteen. We'll have it tonight."

When Erya heard about eating meat, she clapped her hands happily and said with a smile, "Second-rate meat, second-rate meat." She had candy in her mouth, and her speech was a little unclear.

Captain Xue noticed that Daya and Erya were holding a handful of candies in their hands and asked, "Where did the candies come from?" He remembered that the family had not bought candies for a long time.

Daya replied: "Teacher Zhou gave it to me. It's delicious."

Captain Xue said, "Really? Then next time Dad goes to the supply and marketing cooperative, he will buy you some candy."

Yin Guixiang said, "Then you have to buy it secretly. If your mother finds out, they won't be able to eat a single bite."

Captain Xue choked at these words, and thought of Mrs. Xue's previous superb operations. He sighed and said, "I know."

Yin Guixiang lowered her head and said to her two daughters, "Da Ya, Er Ya, put the candy in your pockets. We will go home soon."

When Daya heard this, she immediately and obediently stuffed the candy into the small pocket of her shirt. She also helped her sister and put the candy in Erya's hand into her pocket.

When they got home, Mrs. Xue and Brother Xue were sitting cross-legged on the sofa talking, while Tiedan was running around the house playing with a rattle.

Hearing the sound of the door opening, Mrs. Xue and Brother Xue stopped talking. Brother Xue smiled and said, "Sister-in-law is back. I heard that you went to work."

Mrs. Xue rolled her eyes at Yin Guixiang and said, "What do you mean by work? You are just going to take care of other people's children and be a mother."

Captain Xue said angrily, "Mom, what are you talking about? Guixiang is a formal employee of the kindergarten, a worker. Please be careful with your words."

Mrs. Xue was about to say something, but Brother Xue pulled her and said with a smile, "We have never heard of kindergartens in the countryside. Mom doesn't understand the situation either."

Yin Guixiang ignored Mrs. Xue and just nodded to Brother Xue and said, "Brother is here."

After saying that, she took the child back to the house. The little daughter in her arms was already asleep, so she went into the house and put her on the rocking bed.

Mrs. Xue in the living room said angrily, "Look at her attitude!"

Arya pointed at the rattle in Tiedan's hand and said, "That's my rattle."

Mrs. Xue glared at Erya fiercely, "What do you mean by yours? You little girl, the things in this house have nothing to do with you. They all belong to our Xue family."

When Erya was yelled at by her, she blinked her eyes and was about to burst into tears. Captain Xue hurriedly said to Erya, "That one is old, we don't need it. Dad will go to the market to buy you a new one in a few days."

Daya patted her sister on the shoulder and said, "There's nothing fun about playing with a wave drum. Teacher Zhou said that when we go to kindergarten tomorrow, there will be a lot of fun new toys, such as slides, wooden horses, cars, little frogs..."

After hearing what Daya said, Erya held back her tears and nodded, saying, "I want to play on the slide."

After hearing what they said, Tiedan also ran to Mrs. Xue and said, "Grandma, I want to play on the slide too!"

Mrs. Xue said, "Okay, let your uncle take you to that kindergarten tomorrow."

Captain Xue frowned and said, "The kindergarten only accepts children from the family compound, not from outside. Besides, Tiedan is already this old, and is past the age to go to kindergarten."

Mrs. Xue said, "Tiedan is your nephew, the male of our Xue family. These two girls can go, so why can't Tiedan go?"

Captain Xue said, "You also said that Tiedan is my nephew, not my son!"

Mrs. Xue said, "Just tell everyone that Tiedan is your adopted son. Since you don't have a son, let Tiedan live here from now on."

Captain Xue glanced at the big brother next to him and saw him looking at him with a smile on his face. He felt amused. It turned out that this was the purpose of bringing Tiedan here.

At this time, Yin Guixiang came out of the room. Of course, she heard what Mrs. Xue said just now, and she felt a little funny when she saw her husband with a cold face.

This Big Brother Xue is here to eat up all the family members...

Yin Guixiang smiled and said, "Brother and Tiedan must have had a hard time coming here. Don't just stand in the living room. Let's eat first."

As he said this, he walked up to Captain Xue, took the lunch box from his hand, put it on the dining table and opened them one by one.

When Mrs. Xue smelled the aroma of meat, she hurriedly pulled her eldest son and grandson to sit at the dining table, urging them, "Eat first. I can only eat meat today because of the help of my eldest son and Tiedan."

At the dinner table, Mrs. Xue quickly cut the meat into the bowls of herself, her eldest son, and her grandson.

Captain Xue picked up the chopsticks angrily and put some meat into the bowls of Yin Guixiang, Daya and Erya.

Mrs. Xue said dissatisfiedly, "What's the point of feeding them? They will belong to other families in the future. Tiedan belongs to our Xue family. Did you hear what I just said? Take Tiedan to the kindergarten to play tomorrow."

Captain Xue said to Mrs. Xue in a cold voice: "It seems that my brother hasn't told you why he came this time. He is here to take you back to your hometown."

Mrs. Xue glared and said, "I won't go. Your brother can just stay here for a few days and then go back. Tiedan and I will stay here."

He rolled his eyes at Yin Guixiang and said in a sinister tone, "Is there anyone who wants to drive an old woman like me away? Let me tell you, you will have to rely on your nephew when you are old."

Yin Guixiang suddenly laughed and said, "Yes, what will you do when you get old without a son? It seems that you can only rely on your nephew. Hey, big brother, you are so lucky to have two sons, Goudan and Tiedan. His second uncle and I will rely on them in the future."

After hearing this, Brother Xue was secretly happy. So what if his second brother was a military officer? He still had no children and was still not as good as him.

Brother Xue said with a smile: "It's as it should be. Goudan and Tiedan are both good kids. They will be nice to whoever is nice to them."

Mrs. Xue said, "That's right. You should be more realistic now and treat your two nephews well. From now on, you can keep Tiedan here and send the two girls back to the countryside."

Yin Guixiang held the chopsticks tightly, suppressed the anger in her heart, and said with a smile: "You can't just be nice to Tiedan, don't we still have Goudan? I remember Goudan is almost sixteen, we have to arrange a future for him."

She turned to Captain Xue and said, "I remember that you have a fellow comrade from the same hometown who became a small leader in the city food factory in your hometown after retiring from the army. Why don't you go and use your connections to arrange a job for our eldest nephew?"

When she said this, Mrs. Xue and Brother Xue's eyes lit up. Brother Xue said in disbelief, "Really?"

Yin Guixiang nodded and said, "For the sake of my nephew, I have to do my best, even if I have to beg for help. Once I have a job, I will get married. We have some savings at home, and we will pay for the betrothal gift in the future. Anyway, we don't have a son, so we won't need this money."

Mrs. Xue nodded and said, "What you said makes sense."

Brother Xue smiled and rubbed his hands and said, "This... Sister-in-law, you are such a good person... No wonder you are an official's wife, you are so generous."

Captain Xue looked at Yin Guixiang in confusion, not knowing what she was up to.

Yin Guixiang continued, "As for Tiedan, there can be no ambiguity. He will be inherited by us. Everything in our house will belong to him. After your uncle retires in a few years, the organization will definitely arrange a job for you. When you grow up, your uncle will take over the job and help you find a good wife. When we die, all our property will be given to you. All we ask is that you break a pot at our funeral."

Mrs. Xue said, "You are telling the truth. If a man without a son dies, no one will break the pot for him."

Big Brother Xue patted his chest and assured: "Second brother, sister-in-law, don't worry, Tiedan will definitely break the pot for you in the future."

Captain Xue: “…”

With a click!

Captain Xue slammed his chopsticks on the table in anger and said gloomily, "I've already bought tickets for you for tomorrow. Mom, pack your luggage tonight and I'll take you to the ship tomorrow morning."

Mrs. Xue was dumbfounded, she jumped up and shouted: "I won't go!"

Captain Xue said coldly, "If you don't go back, then I will continue to send telegrams back and ask Dad to pick you up. If Dad can't pick you up, then let the captain come. Your relationship is in your hometown, not here. You came here with a letter of introduction from the team. Now more than half a year has passed, and it's time to visit your relatives. You'd better go back early, otherwise you will bear the consequences if they are investigated."

After saying this, Captain Xue stood up and left the table, without eating, and went back to his room.

Mrs. Xue was so angry that her hands were shaking. She said to her eldest son, "He...what does he mean by this? Is he going to find someone to arrest me?"

Brother Xue glanced at Yin Guixiang and said with an embarrassed look: "Sister-in-law, please persuade my second brother. We are all family. What he just said was too cruel."

Ying Guixiang was holding a bowl to feed Erya. After hearing this, she said in a neutral tone, "Brother, as a woman, how can I have the courage to contradict my husband? Mother is right. I can't give birth to a son. I have to listen to my husband. How can I climb over a man, right?"

Mrs. Xue: “…”

Brother Xue sighed and said, "Alas, my second brother has become an official and his temper has become worse."

After dinner, Yin Guixiang took her daughter back to the room. Seeing her husband sitting on the bed with a stern face, she asked, "Did you really buy them tickets for tomorrow?"

Captain Xue said, "Yes."

Yin Guixiang said, "Do you think your mother and your elder brother will leave so easily? I'm afraid your ticket will be wasted. You should hurry up and see if you can get a refund tomorrow."

Captain Xue said, "I will take a leave tomorrow morning and will definitely send them off."

He looked up at Yin Guixiang and asked her, "What did you just say at the dinner table?"

Yin Guixiang sneered, "I just spoke out what your mother and your elder brother were thinking. Why, you can't accept it?"

Captain Xue said, "I am not a sucker. Why should I raise two nephews? They are my eldest brother's sons, not my sons."

Yin Guixiang smiled and said, "Is that so? I'm glad you know."

…

Seeing Meng Yufei coaxing Xia Qinqin to sleep, Xia Junshan whispered, "Didn't you say you had something to tell me when you came back?"

Meng Yufei glanced at her daughter's sleeping face. Her fair face looked particularly lovely under the moonlight. Her long eyelashes curled up slightly and trembled gently with her breathing.

"Let's go to the living room." Meng Yufei said softly.

Xia Junshan nodded, stood up, followed Meng Yufei to the living room, and sat on the sofa.

Meng Yufei told Xia Junshan in detail what Xia Qinqin said about her ability to hear other people's thoughts. He is Qinqin's father and has the right to know about his daughter's situation.

Xia Junshan's expression became more serious as he listened. After Meng Yufei finished talking about seeing a doctor in the afternoon, he said, "Wang Zhiyi, Qi Huiying, and Tong Caifeng were all unfriendly to us. Maybe Qinqin was sensitive enough to sense this unfriendly attitude and automatically came up with these thoughts in her mind."

Meng Yufei asked, "But did Wang Zhiyi really push the child into the sea?"

Xia Junshan continued to speculate: "Maybe Qinqin was frightened and her memory became confused."

Meng Yufei said, "I thought so before, but Qinqin said that this was not the first time she heard what other people were saying. Isn't this frequency too high? You said that those three people were because of their attitudes, but what about Jianhong? Qinqin said that she heard Jianhong's voice on the first day she arrived on the island..."

Xia Junshan pondered for a moment, and seeing Meng Yufei was worried, he comforted her, "Don't worry, didn't the doctor say Qinqin is healthy? Let's pay more attention to Qinqin during this period to see if she will have the disease again. If it doesn't work, let's take Qinqin to the city hospital for another checkup."

Meng Yufei turned her head and stared into Xia Junshan's eyes, and said seriously: "No matter what, I will take care of Qinqin for the rest of my life, and I will never... never give up on her!"

Xia Junshan held Meng Yufei's hand and said, "She is our daughter. We brought her into this world, so naturally we have to protect her for the rest of her life."