Chapter 406: Every Family Has Its Own Set of Problems!

February 11, the sixth day of the first lunar month!

After a six-day stay at the hospital, Jiang Xue and her child were finally discharged!

To pick her up, Jiang Longcheng, Ye Jianhua, and Jiang Shiying all drove their official vehicles over. Jiang Longcheng even called in two additional Jeeps from the factory, making quite a spectacle.

This grand display wasn’t meant to show off, but to transport supplies.

It was Li Yi’s first time being a father, and to ensure his wife and child had everything they needed, he had prepared a whole lot of stuff—enough to fill nearly half a truck, whether they’d use it or not.

And just as these items had been brought to the hospital, they now had to be hauled back home.

On top of that, over the past few days, members of the Jiang, Ye, and Lin families had all come to the hospital to visit Jiang Xue and the baby, and no matter who came, they inevitably brought gifts.

Furthermore, the news that Jiang Shiying and Ye Lingyun had found their biological daughter was no secret in their social circles. Upon hearing that their daughter had given birth, their friends, colleagues, and subordinates had all come to visit as well.

Although these visitors’ motives weren’t entirely pure, you can’t turn away a smiling face. Since they’ve come bearing gifts to pay their respects, you can’t very well chase them away.

As a result, over the past few days, Jiang Xue has not only had her hands full accepting red envelopes but has also accumulated a mountain of various gifts.

Now that Jiang Xue was being discharged, all these items needed to be transported back to the family estate.

Jiang Xue’s discharge and return home is a major event for the entire Jiang family.

The ancestral home had been prepared well in advance, and even the old patriarch was waiting in the main hall for her and the children to return.

When Jiang Xue returned to the ancestral home carrying her older son, Yunrui, and Ye Lingyun carried her younger daughter, Yunjin, they immediately went to the main hall to pay their respects to the old patriarch.

Upon seeing the two little ones in their swaddling clothes, Jiang Dingfang was deeply moved. To everyone’s surprise, he had prepared a generous gift for each child—500 yuan—calling it “New Year’s money.”

Although this wasn’t the first time the old man had seen his great-grandchildren, Jiang Xue and her two children held a special significance for him.

He had lived an upright and honorable life, with nothing to hide from others, yet he felt he owed a debt of gratitude to his third son and daughter-in-law.

Had it not been for his mistake all those years ago, the couple would never have been implicated, and they would not have been separated from their children for nearly twenty years.

Fortunately, heaven took pity on them. After twenty years of wandering, the child finally returned to the Jiang family and gave birth to these two little ones.

For the third son’s branch of the family, this was a tremendous blessing.

And the old man had noticed that, with the return of his eldest granddaughter, the Jiang family was experiencing one happy event after another.

First, his third son’s wife, who had been on her deathbed, began to recover; her vitality and spirit were returning.

Next, the third son took another leap forward, assuming control of a province’s disciplinary inspection authority at such a young age.

And then there was the eldest son’s wayward son, Longcheng, who had finally grown up—not only had he made progress in his career, but he’d also learned to look for a wife.

In the old patriarch’s view, all these changes in the family were due to his granddaughter’s return, so he doted on Jiang Xue especially.

To make her postpartum confinement more comfortable, the old man personally arranged for her and the baby to stay in the two rooms on the right side of the main hall, which made the rest of the Jiang family green with envy.

Actually, regarding Jiang Xue’s living arrangements, Jiang Shiying had initially planned to have her stay next door to them, which would have made it easier to look after her.

However, the old man felt that the west wing didn’t get enough natural light and wasn’t suitable for the postpartum confinement period, so he personally had the two vacant rooms next to the main hall refurbished.

Although no major renovations were done, all the furniture in the rooms was replaced with new pieces, showing great attention to detail.

Furthermore, knowing that his granddaughter was about to give birth, the old master had two small cribs placed in the bedroom, making every arrangement exceptionally thoughtful.

After settling Jiang Xue in, everyone stayed at the old family home for lunch.

It’s rare for the whole family to be together like this today, and Grandpa is delighted.

Plus, since the New Year’s Eve dinner had been ruined by Jiang Xue’s delivery, Grandpa had the kitchen add a few extra dishes to make up for the missed family reunion meal.

To celebrate Jiang Xue’s discharge from the hospital and to thank the relatives who had come to visit his wife, Li Yi immediately brought back some fine wine.

Soon, the atmosphere throughout the old Jiang family mansion grew lively…

…….

After lunch, the others left one by one, leaving only the old man, Jiang Shiying, Li Yi, and Jiang Longcheng in the room.

Having had a few drinks earlier, the old man’s mood seemed slightly affected.

He took a sip of tea, then suddenly asked, “Longcheng, did Xiao Man go back for the New Year this year?”

Jiang Longcheng shook his head and said, “No!”

“My mom went to the steel mill yesterday, but she didn’t see my sister-in-law. I don’t know if she didn’t want to see her or if she went back to her parents’ house!”

“Ah, this is my fault. I’ve put Xiao Man and the two kids through so much!” the old man sighed.

“Grandpa, how can you blame yourself for this?”

Jiang Longcheng added, “Besides, you know how big brother is. Even if you’d tried to transfer him back then, he wouldn’t have listened to you!”

Jiang Shiying chimed in, “Longcheng is right. If we’d actually transferred Longhua back, it would have made him look like a deserter—he would never have agreed to that!”

The old man nodded and said, “Longcheng, I understand that Xiao Man is resentful and doesn’t want to come back.”

“But our Jiang family can’t just turn a blind eye to that mother and child. If you have time, go see them for me and see if there’s anything you can do to help!”

“Alright, Grandpa!”

Jiang Longcheng then added, “I don’t have much on my plate this afternoon anyway, so I’ll swing by the steel mill!”

“Sounds good!”

Just then, Jiang Shiying, who was standing nearby, suddenly turned to Li Yi and said, “Xiao Yi, you go with Longcheng!”

Although Li Yi was completely baffled, since his father-in-law had given the order, he couldn’t very well refuse, so he nodded immediately.

After chatting for a while longer, Jiang Longcheng led Li Yi out the door.

Once in the car, Li Yi asked, “Is the ‘Xiao Man’ the old man mentioned Brother Longhua’s wife?”

“Yep!”

“From what you were saying earlier, it sounds like your sister-in-law’s relationship with the family is a bit strained?”

Jiang Longcheng sighed and said, “It’s more than just tense—they’re practically at loggerheads. She hasn’t been home for months!”

“Why is that?”

“Before the war started, my sister-in-law begged my father and grandfather to have my older brother transferred back to civilian life to avoid any accidents!”

Jiang Longcheng continued, “But Grandfather flatly refused. On top of that, my older brother didn’t want to be discharged either—he even volunteered for the front lines. I never expected… that because of this, my sister-in-law has held a grudge against both my father and Grandfather!”

“After my eldest brother’s accident, she moved out of the house with the two children. My father and mother went to see her several times, but she refused to meet them.”

Li Yi finally understood the whole story and frowned. “It seems my sister-in-law has a grudge. She probably won’t listen to anyone’s advice easily. Even if we go there, she might not agree to see us.”

Jiang Longcheng shook his head. “If she won’t see us, so be it. We’ll go anyway, just to let my sister-in-law know the family hasn’t forgotten them!”

Li Yi sighed as well. He had always assumed that although the Jiang family was a prominent clan, the brothers were close-knit and friendly, free from such messy family feuds.

But now it seemed that wasn’t the case. He hadn’t expected the Jiang family to have such a messy situation of their own. Truly, every family has its own set of problems.

“With matters like this, we can only do our best and leave the rest to fate. Let’s just go with the flow!”

“Mm-hmm!”

Then, Jiang Longcheng started the car and drove toward the northern suburbs.