Chapter 351: Ye Lingyun Faints!
Qingshan County, Nianzishan Village!
“Cock-a-doodle-doo!”
As the sound of roosters crowing drifted in from the distance, Li Yi slowly opened his eyes.
His head ached slightly; he didn’t want to get up!
But Li Yi still reached for the light switch and turned on the light!
After resting for a moment in the warm, cozy bed, Li Yi finally climbed out of the kang, got dressed, and got up.
Tang Xue, lying beside him, felt the glare of the light and rolled over with some difficulty.
Then, still half-asleep, she said, “It’s not even dawn yet. You should go back to sleep!”
“You go back to sleep. I’ll get up and make some breakfast for everyone!”
“Okay!”
Then, Tang Xue pulled the blanket tighter and fell back asleep.
Li Yi watched as her little head peeked out from under the covers; she looked so adorable that he couldn’t help but smile, though he also felt a pang of concern.
Perhaps Tang Xue had been a bit emotional yesterday, and that had affected the baby in her womb.
After she fell asleep, the two little ones in her belly were especially restless, keeping her up until past two in the morning before finally settling down.
So Tang Xue must be extremely tired right now.
Without disturbing Tang Xue, Li Yi got dressed and got out of bed. First, he stuffed a few corn cobs into the stove, then added a few fist-sized pieces of coal.
After doing that, he filled the empty cast-iron teapot with water, set it on the stove to boil, and set it aside to use for washing his face later.
Then, carrying a shoulder pole and a bucket, he set off to fetch water from the well.
By the time Li Yi returned from the well carrying the bucket, the light in the next room had come on. Jiang Shiying, Jiang Longcheng, and Li Gang were all up, clumsily folding their quilts.
It wasn’t that they were too clumsy to fold a blanket; rather, the rural method of folding blankets differed from the urban one, and those unaccustomed to it found it difficult to fold them neatly.
After pouring the water into the water jar, the water on the stove had also warmed up, so Li Yi quickly washed up himself.
He then called out to Jiang Shiying and the others to wash their faces quickly, while he busied himself by the stove!
By eight o’clock in the morning, it was already broad daylight!
Breakfast was ready, and Li Yi was packing his bags.
After all, they were heading to the capital, and since they didn’t know how long they’d be staying, they had to make sure their luggage was fully prepared!
Fortunately, with Jiang Longcheng’s jeep, there was no need to worry about any trouble!
While Li Yi was packing, Tang Xue had already gotten up; having just finished her morning routine, she was chatting with Jiang Shiying!
“Xue’er, is this young man always this hardworking at home? He isn’t just putting on a show because your third brother and I are here, is he?” Jiang Shiying asked quietly.
Tang Xue glanced at Li Yi, who was bustling about, and a tender look flashed in her eyes.
“No, he basically handles all the big and small tasks at home. I hardly ever have to lift a finger!”
“So, it sounds like this young man treats you pretty well!” Jiang Shiying remarked again.
“Dad, he really is good to me—actually, he’s exceptionally good to me!” Tang Xue said earnestly.
“That’s more like it!”
Jiang Shiying then asked again, “What about your in-laws? How do they treat you? And what about your sisters-in-law?”
“Father, I know you’re worried I might be mistreated, but rest assured—everyone in the family treats me exceptionally well!”
Perhaps to prove she wasn’t lying, Tang Xue pointed to the clothes she was wearing and said, “Father, look at these clothes I’m wearing—Li Yi bought them all for me from the city.”
“This one he bought on his last trip to Qingcheng, this one he bought in the capital, and that down jacket over there was sent by his friend from Guangdong Province!”
Jiang Shiying took a close look at the clothes his daughter was wearing. Every single item was of excellent style and quality—nothing a village girl could possibly afford.
Seeing how Li Yi had been running around all morning without a moment’s rest, while his own daughter hadn’t had to lift a finger, he couldn’t help but nod approvingly at Li Yi.
However, appearances alone weren’t enough; he’d have to send someone to investigate this young man.
While the father and daughter were chatting, Li Yi had already packed their luggage, filling two large suitcases.
Just then, Li Shankui and his wife, along with Li Lan, arrived from the old family home, bringing along some of Tang Xue’s identification documents.
Immediately afterward, Li Yi invited everyone to dinner!
After the meal, Li Gang drove the Jeep to take Li Yi, Tang Xue, and Jiang Shiying to Ning City, while Jiang Longcheng drove back to Beijing alone.
What they didn’t know was that a major mess was waiting for them back in Beijing!
…….
Beijing. A hot pot restaurant!
At 10:10 a.m., Li Na was helping out in the kitchen.
Business had been booming lately, and even though they’d hired a few more female staff members, they were still short-handed.
So, even though Li Na was Li Yi’s older sister, most of the time she worked just like any other server, pitching in with whatever needed to be done.
Just then, Long Zhanjun rushed into the kitchen and said to Li Na, “Na Na, someone’s looking for you!”
Hearing his voice, Li Na immediately asked, “Who is it?”
“It’s Comrade Jiang’s wife—she was here last time!” Long Zhanjun replied.
“Okay, please ask her to wait a moment. I’ll just wash my hands and be right there!”
“Got it!”
At a table by the window in the dining hall, Ye Lingyun was staring out the window in a daze, while two young people sat across from her.
One was her nephew from her husband’s side, Ye Jianhua, and the other was her future niece-in-law, Lin Ying.
Her being here was a coincidence!
This morning, after waking up, she suddenly felt like going out for a walk—she didn’t know why.
But having not been out in a long time, she didn’t know where to go.
Her husband wasn’t home, so she called her nephew from her parents’ side and asked him to accompany her out for a change of scenery.
Ye Jianhua had already made plans with his fiancée, Lin Ying, to go shopping for wedding supplies.
After receiving the call from his sister-in-law, he naturally didn’t want to keep her waiting, so he simply took both her and his fiancée out with him and walked around the mall for a while.
Around noon, Ye Lingyun, who was feeling a bit tired, suggested they go home for lunch.
But Ye Jianhua had a sudden idea: he wanted to treat his aunt to a nice meal, so he immediately took Ye Lingyun to Li Yi’s shop.
Once they arrived at the shop, Ye Lingyun remembered Li Yi’s third older sister.
Recalling how well she’d hit it off with the young woman that day, she asked Long Zhanjun to call her over so they could chat.
When Li Na came out of the kitchen into the dining area, she indeed saw the young woman she had met that day.
Beside her were two young people, a man and a woman.
“Big Sis, you’re here!”
Hearing Li Na’s voice, Ye Lingyun snapped back to reality and said with a smile, “Miss Li Na, I hope I’m not disturbing you?”
“Not at all. The shop isn’t busy yet!”
“Then have a seat and chat with me!” Ye Lingyun said.
“Sure!”
Li Na then sat down right next to Ye Lingyun.
They had only exchanged a few words when, as Ye Lingyun turned slightly, Li Na couldn’t help but say, “Sis, I don’t know why, but whenever I look at you, I’m reminded of my sister-in-law. I just feel like you two really look so much alike!”
“Do we really look that much alike?” Ye Lingyun asked with a smile.
“Yeah!”
At that moment, Ye Jianhua, who was standing nearby, realized that the tall young woman in front of him was actually Li Yi’s older sister. He immediately asked, “Comrade Li Na, when you say ‘my brother-in-law’s wife,’ you’re referring to Li Yi’s wife, aren’t you?”
“That’s right! My sister-in-law looks just like Sister Ye!”
“Hahaha, do you have a photo? I’d love to see what she looks like!” Ye Jianhua said with a laugh.
Hearing this, Li Na was taken aback for a moment, then said, “Actually, I do have some with me!”
Saying this, she walked straight over to the front desk and retrieved the military shoulder bag she usually used to carry her things.
Then, in front of everyone, she took out a small notebook.
She took out a palm-sized black-and-white photo and handed it to Ye Lingyun, who was standing nearby.
When Ye Lingyun saw the girl in the photo, her heart couldn’t help but race a little.
Then, her voice trembling slightly, she asked, “Where… is this young woman from?”
“My sister-in-law is from Qin Province…”
Before he could finish, Ye Lingyun asked, her face turning pale, “Qin… which county in Qin Province?”
“Yong County!”
Upon hearing those two words, Ye Lingyun suddenly jumped to her feet.
Just as everyone was wondering what had come over her, Ye Lingyun’s body suddenly went limp, and she collapsed to the ground!
In an instant, Ye Jianhua and the others were thrown into a panic!
The shop instantly descended into chaos…
…….
PS: Today’s update is late. There’s one more chapter; I’ll try to upload it before midnight!