“Mom?”
Zhang Yuehong, who was sweeping the snow from the courtyard, heard a noise outside and immediately came out to investigate. Just as she reached the porch, she heard a familiar voice tinged with delight.
Upon closer look, she discovered that standing at the door was none other than her own son.
“Oh my goodness, it’s Little Yi!” Zhang Yuehong exclaimed, her excitement evident.
Li Yi hurried forward and gave his mother a big hug.
“Mom, why are you here? When did you arrive?”
“I’ve been here for over a week. Nana’s about to give birth, so I had to come over to help with her postpartum care!” Zhang Yuehong explained.
Li Yi immediately understood. It was a local custom for mothers to care for their daughters during the postpartum period; as long as a mother could spare the time, she would generally come to help.
Unless absolutely necessary, mothers-in-law were generally not expected to care for their daughters-in-law during this time.
The main reason is that women are emotionally very unstable after giving birth. If a biological mother takes care of the postpartum period, any shortcomings in care can be understood, and even if mother and daughter have a fight, they won’t hold a grudge.
But it’s different with a mother-in-law. If things really get heated, it’s hard to smooth things over (speaking from experience—I know this all too well).
So with Third Sister’s due date approaching, it makes perfect sense for her mother to come to Beijing to take care of her—it would be strange if she didn’t come…
“Mom!”
Hearing another voice from behind her, Zhang Yuehong immediately looked up and saw that her eldest son-in-law had returned as well, carrying a large suitcase.
“Oh my, Wenguang is back too! That’s wonderful—Meizi has been talking about you every day!”
“Mother, I’m back…”
Just as they were speaking, the door to the west wing was pushed open, and Li Yi saw his eldest sister emerge from the room.
His eldest sister was now more than five months pregnant; her belly was already showing, and with the thick cotton coat she was wearing, she looked noticeably fuller all over.
Li Mei’s gaze quickly swept over Li Yi… then settled on her husband.
Unable to contain the joy in her eyes any longer, she hurried toward Yang Wenguang.
Seeing this, Yang Wenguang hurriedly set down his suitcase and walked briskly toward her.
“Take it easy—there’s snow on the ground. Be careful not to slip!”
Absence makes the heart grow fonder; the two, who hadn’t seen each other in so long, clung to each other like two magnets, causing everyone else to instinctively turn away.
Although it was already the 1980s, social norms in BB囍TR were still relatively conservative; even married couples wouldn’t engage in overly intimate gestures in public.
Li Yi couldn’t stand watching his older sister and brother-in-law openly showering everyone with their love, so he immediately took his mother’s hand and headed inside, not wanting to be overwhelmed by all that public affection.
Back inside, Li Yi looked around but didn’t see his wife or their two kids.
Zhang Yuehong clearly sensed her son’s thoughts and immediately said with a smile, “Stop looking around—they’ve all gone to school and won’t be back for a while!”
“Zhang Feng and Yang Miao went to school too?”
“Hmm… By the way, Yi, have you guys eaten yet? If not, should I make you something?”
“We had lunch on the plane!”
Li Yi then glanced at his watch and saw it was almost five o’clock. He added, “But since both my brother-in-law and I are back today, you could prepare something special early so we can all get together!”
“Alright, then I’ll go buy some groceries!”
“No, the snow’s too deep outside. Let Awen go instead!”
With that, Li Yi called Zhou Wen into the house to give him a few instructions, then sent him off in the family car to the market to buy some groceries, while he got busy in the house.
“Xiao Yi, you just got back. Why don’t you rest for a bit? I’ll make dinner for you all!” Zhang Yuehong said with a touch of concern.
“Mom, I’m not tired!”
Then Li Yi changed the subject and asked, “By the way, Mom, how is my third sister doing? You’ve been in Beijing for over a week—why haven’t you been staying with her?”
Zhang Yuehong smiled and said, “I was actually planning to stay at Nana’s place, but Dajun’s home right now. Since he’s taking care of Nana, I didn’t go over. I’ll go stay with her after the baby’s born!”
Li Yi knew his mother had a rather traditional mindset and still favored sons over daughters. Just like his father, she always felt more at ease living with her sons.
So he didn’t press the issue further, but asked with a smile, “Has my third sister’s husband come back?”
“Mm-hmm, he’s been back for five or six days now!”
“Alright, then I’ll find time to go visit Third Sister!” Li Yi said.
“Good. Nana was talking about you just the other day, worried you wouldn’t make it back in time for the birth!” his mother said.
“No way—I’ve kept that in mind the whole time…”
Just then, his eldest sister and her husband pushed open the door and walked in together.
Seeing his eldest sister’s prominent baby bump, Li Yi immediately said, “Sis, please have a seat!”
Li Mei smiled and said, “I’ll just stand for a bit. Mom and Xiaoxue won’t let me do a thing every day—I’m either sitting or lying down. I feel like my body’s gotten all rusty!”
Li Yi smiled and asked, “Big Sis, have you been to the hospital for prenatal checkups lately?”
“Yes, I go once a month. Sometimes I go with Nana, and other times Xiaoxue takes me!”
“How did the checkups go?”
“Everything’s fine—no problems at all!”
“That’s good!”
Li Yi continued, “Your baby bump is showing now, so you need to be extra careful. Avoid doing any heavy work if you can, especially lifting heavy objects or holding little Ruirui. I’ll find a live-in nanny to take care of you all!”
Although Li Yi was concerned about what others might say and didn’t want to hire a nanny, he cared even more about his older sister’s health.
He could never forget that in his previous life, his older sister had lost her life due to massive bleeding from a miscarriage.
In this life, he would do everything in his power to prevent that tragedy from happening again…
“I’ll be careful, but let’s skip the nanny. You’re in the spotlight now—don’t give people a reason to pick on you!” his older sister said.
“It’s fine. I know what I’m doing…”
Before he could finish, his older sister suddenly said, “By the way, Xiao Yi, before Xiao Xue left for school today, she mentioned she was going to the Jiang family’s old mansion tonight. Why don’t you give Auntie a call and ask her to have Xiao Xue come back later?”
Li Yi thought for a moment and said, “No need to call. I’ll go to the school myself in a bit and bring them all back together!”
“That works too…”
Just as they were speaking, the sound of a car engine could be heard outside, and moments later, Zhou Wen walked in carrying two large grocery baskets.
Once Zhou Wen had entered the main room, Li Yi immediately took off his coat, grabbed the baskets, and headed toward the kitchen.
Seeing this, Zhang Yuehong immediately followed him in, ready to lend her son a hand…
Two hours later, the meal was nearly ready. It was almost five o’clock, and there was less than half an hour left before Jiang Xue got out of school.
Li Yi turned down the heat on the stove to a low simmer and asked his mother to keep an eye on the time, telling her to turn off the heat in half an hour.
After finishing these tasks, Li Yi took Zhang Ziqiang with him and drove the family’s million-yuan Mercedes-Benz straight to Beijing University.
When Li Yi and his group arrived at Capital University, classes hadn’t let out yet.
Parking the car outside the main gate, Li Yi and Zhang Ziqiang walked toward the campus.
After showing Zhang Ziqiang’s work ID, the two easily entered the campus.
However, Li Yi didn’t head to Jiang Xue’s classroom; instead, he went straight to the daycare center.
Since the daycare primarily served Capital University faculty, its schedule aligned with the university’s, with classes ending at 5:30 p.m.
As soon as Li Yi and Zhang Ziqiang reached the entrance of the daycare center, they heard the urgent ringing of a bell echoing across the campus.
At the same time, the nursery’s tightly closed doors swung open, and the parents waiting to pick up their children immediately surged inside to collect their little ones.
That’s right—at this time, parents weren’t being escorted out by teachers; instead, they had to go inside to pick up their children themselves.
This is mainly because daycare centers differ from kindergartens. The primary function of a daycare center is embodied in the character “托” (tuó), which means “to look after” or “to care for.”
In contrast, daycare centers have no age restrictions; the youngest children might be just two or three months old. Since these tiny babies can neither speak nor walk, parents have no choice but to pick them up themselves.
As soon as he entered the room, Li Yi spotted his two little ones.
Compared to the newborns, Yunrui, Yunjin, and little Ruirui were already considered older children, with a dedicated play area just for them.
Although it wasn’t very large, the children were having a great time playing.
However, just as Li Yi was hurrying toward his own little ones, he was stopped by a woman…
…………
Chapter 1,015: A Couple’s Late-Night Chat!
“Comrade, wait a moment!”
Seeing the female teacher blocking his path, Li Yi was taken aback for a moment and stopped immediately.
“Are you calling me?”
“Yes, hello, sir. Are you that child’s parent? I don’t recall ever seeing you before.”
The female teacher’s tone was polite, but her expression betrayed a hint of wariness.
It wasn’t really her fault that she was so cautious. After all, most of the children at this daycare were the children of the school’s teachers, and their parents or relatives often included experts and professors in various fields.
Losing a child—or even picking up the wrong one—could cost them their jobs, so they couldn’t afford to be careless.
Li Yi knew the suspicion stemmed from his infrequent visits, so he didn’t take offense. He replied directly, “Hello, teacher. I’m the father of Li Yunrui and Li Yunjin, and also Yang Rui’s uncle. I’m here to take them home!”
“Are you really Yunrui and Yunjin’s father? I’ve never seen you before.”
Li Yi immediately explained, “I’ve been working out of town. My wife or my mother-in-law has always been the one picking up and dropping off the children, so it’s perfectly normal that you haven’t seen me before!”
“I see. I’ll call Professor Ye right now to verify your identity. Until your identity is confirmed, you cannot take the children with you for the time being!” the female teacher said.
“Alright, I’d appreciate it if you could…”
Before he could finish, a familiar and delighted voice suddenly rang out from behind him: “Li Yi?”
It was his wife…
Li Yi immediately turned around and, sure enough, saw Jiang Xue standing about seven or eight meters behind him, holding a cloth bag and looking at him with excitement.
Beside her were Zhang Feng, Yang Miao, and his mother-in-law, Ye Lingyun. Among them, Zhang Feng was also looking at Zhang Ziqiang with an excited expression.
Just like Li Yi and Jiang Xue, this couple hadn’t seen each other for several months either.
The moment Li Yi turned around, the cloth bag in Jiang Xue’s hands fell to the ground, spilling a few books, and she took a few quick steps before running toward him.
Seeing this, Li Yi immediately opened his arms, scooped up the rushing Jiang Xue, and spun her around a few times on the spot, leaving the parents picking up their children nearby staring in astonishment.
Social norms were still quite conservative back then, and such displays of affection in public were indeed rare.
Once the excitement had subsided, Jiang Xue realized what she’d done and whispered, “Put me down! Everyone’s watching!”
Li Yi smiled and set her down.
At that moment, Ye Lingyun stepped forward and addressed the parents around them: “My son-in-law just returned from a business trip. The young couple hadn’t seen each other for several months, so they couldn’t help themselves. We’re sorry for the spectacle!”
Hearing Ye Lingyun’s explanation, the parents around them immediately understood and broke into warm smiles.
Most of them were young people themselves and often faced situations where their partners were away on business, so they naturally understood the couple’s feelings.
Although Li Yi didn’t think it was a big deal, he still took Jiang Xue by the hand and bowed to the crowd to apologize. After all, to many people, their behavior a moment ago had indeed been a bit out of line.
After this little incident, the group immediately went to where the children were playing and picked up the little ones.
Of course, with Jiang Xue and Ye Lingyun there to vouch for them, the dedicated teacher didn’t stop them this time, and Li Yi finally got to hold his two little ones.
However, to Li Yi’s frustration, perhaps because he had been away for a while, Yun Rui and Yun Jin seemed a bit distant toward him.
Once picked up, they struggled relentlessly and looked at Jiang Xue beside him with a look of grievance.
With no other choice, Jiang Xue and Ye Lingyun each took one child, taking them from Li Yi’s arms.
After that, the group left Jingcheng University.
They arrived home right at six o’clock; his mother and eldest sister had already set the table.
They immediately washed their hands and took their seats, then served the dishes and began their meal…
……….
Late at night, all was quiet!
On the large heated bed in the main room, the two lay side by side, panting heavily after their passionate encounter.
After catching their breath for a moment, Jiang Xue finally spoke up, “Have you taken care of everything over there?”
“It’s all taken care of!”
Jiang Xue’s eyes lit up instantly, and she said right away, “So does that mean you’ll be able to stay home a little longer this time?”
“Yeah, at least I don’t plan on running around before the New Year!” Li Yi replied.
“That’s great!”
“How have things been at home lately? Has anything special happened?”
Jiang Xue smiled and said, “Anything special, you ask…? Oh, right—my third sister’s husband stopped by a few days ago and brought over more than 300,000 yuan. He said it was the dividend for the past two months, so I put the money in the passbook.”
“Okay, anything else?”
“Oh, and Sister-in-law Ying gave birth a while back—it’s a boy!” Jiang Xue said.
“Haha, that’s wonderful news. Did you send them a gift?” Li Yi asked with a smile.
“I did. I gave the baby a red envelope, and I picked out a few sets of clothes that Yunrui hadn’t had a chance to wear yet and sent them over.”
Jiang Xue then explained, “When Yunrui was born, we received over a dozen sets of baby clothes from various families. But newborns grow so fast—many of the outfits became too small before he even had a chance to wear them, so they were perfect to pass on to Brother Jianhua and his family.”
“Alright, that’s all that matters—it’s the thought that counts!”
Jiang Xue smiled and said, “I also set aside a few outfits for Sister Na—I just don’t know if she’ll give us a little nephew or a niece!”
“It’s their first child—it doesn’t matter what they have!” Li Yi said with a laugh.
Although family planning policies have started to tighten up, as long as you’re not a government official, it’s not a big deal.
Besides, Third Sister and her husband were fairly well-off these days; if they really wanted a second child, they could just pay a fine.
“From what Sister Na said, it’d be best if she had a daughter!”
“Why not a son?”
“Hehe, she said she’s afraid a son would turn out like his uncle—too mischievous!” Jiang Xue said with a laugh.
Li Yi: !@#￥%……
“By the way, there’s something I forgot to tell you. When Mom came over a few days ago, she brought us over twenty thousand yuan, saying it was the village’s dividend.”
Jiang Xue continued, “I kept the money, but I haven’t put it in the bank yet. Do you think we should have Mom take it back, or what should we do with it?”
“Oh, I didn’t know about that. Did you ask Mom how the village’s harvest turned out this year?” Li Yi asked with interest.
Nianzishan Village is the only village in the entire Qing Shan County that has retained the commune system, and Li Yi was eager to find out how the village’s earnings were this year!
Jiang Xue replied immediately, “I asked. Mom said this year’s grain harvest is about the same as in previous years—actually, it’s even a bit lower—but the dividends have increased several times over compared to past years.”
“According to Mom, the per-capita payment this year is 1,250 yuan. Able-bodied workers can get an extra 1,800 yuan, and families with more members can receive as much as 10,000 to 20,000 yuan!”
Hearing this, Li Yi nodded in satisfaction.
Although the government had been raising wages for urban workers since last year, the days of the “36-yuan-a-month” era were soon to be a thing of the past.
Even so, a factory worker’s monthly wage doesn’t exceed 50 yuan, amounting to only about 600 yuan a year.
It was clear, then, that the village’s income had far surpassed the average for ordinary urban workers—and even compared to high-ranking officials like his father-in-law, it was more than a match.
“Not bad. Looks like that money wasn’t spent in vain!”
“Mm-hmm. Mom said everyone’s talking about how kind you’ve been!”
Jiang Xue continued, “When my second brother-in-law went back to pick up Mom, Uncle Feng and Uncle Zhang slaughtered a big fat pig and over a dozen chickens and geese for us overnight. Now our fridge is absolutely packed with meat—and I’ve already given quite a bit to Sister Na, Xinyao, and Feng Qian, otherwise there wouldn’t have been enough room!”
“Uncle Feng and the others were so thoughtful!” Li Yi said.
“They certainly are, but it’s a bit too much!”
“That’s not being too polite—it’s their heartfelt gesture. If we didn’t accept it, they’d be disappointed!” Li Yi said.
“Hmm!”
Just then, Jiang Xue changed the subject and said, “I forgot to tell you—Sister-in-law An Hong came by the other day. She asked when you’d be back. From the look on her face, it seemed like something had happened!”
“What happened…? Did you ask her?”
“I did, but she didn’t say anything. She just told me to let her know as soon as you get back!” Jiang Xue said.
“Alright, I got it. I’ll give her a call tomorrow!” Li Yi said.
“Okay…”
……….