Chapter 414 Yulian Is Back

Chapter 414 Yulian Comes Home

"Jiang Yu? Jiang Yu, what's on your mind?"

Xu Lihua had no idea what Jiang Yu was thinking and waved a hand in front of her face.

Jiang Yu smiled. "Nothing much. I just haven’t met Sister Yulian before and was wondering if I should bring a little something."

Xu Lihua was surprised. "What little something? With how her mother is, you’d still bring her a gift?"

"I was just throwing it out there. If Aunt Xu thinks it’s unnecessary, then I won’t."

"Of course it’s unnecessary. Even if you brought it, she wouldn’t remember your kindness."

Xu Lihua and Sun Yulian’s mother never got along and hated seeing her get anything.

They kept chatting until He Tingyue returned home.

They talked about everything and anything, as if Xu Lihua wanted to share every piece of gossip she knew with Jiang Yu.

She only got up to leave once she saw He Tingyue come home.

"That’s a lot of beef!"

Jiang Yu showed him the marks on her hands from carrying it. "I carried it back myself."

He Tingyue held her hand, real concern in his eyes.

"Next time, call me to help."

Jiang Yu wasn’t actually in pain—she was just messing with him.

She pulled her hand back with a grin. "Twenty pounds of it is Sixie’s. He asked you to make him beef jerky."

He Tingyue frowned. "And he made you carry all that by yourself?"

"He offered to help, but he was busy, so I didn’t ask him to escort me."

More than that, she just wanted Lai Liuzi to get Zhu Juncai’s job sorted out faster.

As He Tingyue began working on the beef, Jiang Yu sat nearby watching, occasionally getting up to grab things for him.

Just as he finished cutting the beef into evenly sized strips, Jiang Yu suddenly heard Xu Lihua’s voice.

"Old Ruan! Yulian’s home!"

Then Sun Yulian’s mother rushed out of the house.

"My girl! I’ve been counting the days till you came home."

Jiang Yu quickly stood and walked to the door, where she saw someone rush over and drop to their knees before Sun Yulian’s mother.

This was her first time seeing Sun Yulian in person—she had delicate features and the same gentle air as her mother, but always furrowed, like she carried the weight of the world.

Mother and daughter sobbed together, until Xu Lihua reminded them, "Don’t keep her kneeling—get inside."

Only then did Sun Yulian’s mother help her up, looking her over.

"You've lost weight. You must’ve been through so much. It’s all on me."

Sun Yulian gave a bitter smile. "Mom, I understand you had your difficulties too."

Mrs. Sun hugged her and looked at Zhao Qing.

"This is your sister-in-law Zhao Qing. Your big niece Yanyan is sleeping inside, and now she’s got another on the way."

Sun Yulian nodded at Zhao Qing. "Liangzi and I wrote to each other. He mentioned you to me."

Zhao Qing smiled. "Liangzi also told me about you, elder sister. The trip must’ve been tough."

Sun Yulian smiled, her eyes wistful.

"The journey wasn’t hard at all. The thought of coming home had me over the moon. No matter how far, it was nothing compared to the countryside."

Her words cut Sun Zailiang deeper, who had already been silent.

If not for him, Sun Yulian wouldn’t have had to leave in the first place.

Zhao Qing’s smile remained unchanged as she gently reminded him, "Go grab elder sister’s luggage, Liangzi."

Sun Zailiang quickly complied, bringing over Sun Yulian’s belongings.

Sun Yulian smiled at him. "You giving me the cold shoulder?"

Sun Zailiang hurriedly replied, "No way, Elder Sister."

"If there’s no distance, then no use crying over spilled milk. I’m back now, after all."

Mrs. Sun hugged her again and wept. "Blame me instead. It’s all my fault."

Sun Yulian patted her shoulder reassuringly. "How could I blame any of you? It’s just that I don’t have a job now, so I’ll be mooching off the family. I might wear out my welcome."

Her words weighed heavily on Sun Zailiang’s conscience, making him wish he could swear an oath to the heavens.

"Elder sister, this is your home. How could you call it mooching? You can stay as long as you want. When the time comes, we’ll scrape together a job for you."

At the mention of "job," Zhao Qing’s expression flickered slightly, but she didn’t object.

The family warmly entered the house together. At the doorway, Sun Yulian suddenly stopped.

She turned and looked back, her eyes zeroing in on Jiang Yu.

"I’ve long heard that Brother Yue married a beautiful wife. You must be the famous sister-in-law?"

Jiang Yu met her gaze head-on and nodded.

"I’m Jiang Yu."

She had originally intended to call her "Elder Sister Yulian," but since Sun Yulian addressed her as "sister-in-law" first, she had to stick to the proper address.

Sun Yulian looked her up and down, her smile fading slightly.

"Quite the looker."

Zhao Qing chimed in with a smile, "Elder sister, looks are the least of her strengths. She’s even sharper at work—she’s a big shot at the mill now."

Sun Yulian’s smile vanished. "Huh. Fancy that."

She exchanged letters with Sun Zailiang but rarely mentioned He Tingyue, so she naturally had no idea about Jiang Yu's promotion.

Now that Zhao Qing mentioned it, she couldn’t help but think Jiang Yu had risen quickly only because of He Tingyue.

"Where’s Yue-ge?"

Jiang Yu replied, "At home. Do you want to talk to him?"

Sun Yulian's expression stiffened. "Don’t get the wrong idea—I just figured since it’s been a while, I ought to say hi."

"No misunderstanding here," Jiang Yu said with a blink. "I thought the same, but he’s making beef jerky right now and might not be able to come out. Wanna come over?"

Sun Yulian's face grew even more rigid. "Yue-ge cooks? I didn’t know that."

Xu Lihua chimed in, "Yep, and he’s actually great at it. When you marry the right person, you’re willing to cook for them."

Sun Yulian felt a pang of sadness. She’d had a thing for He Tingyue even before being sent to the countryside.

Later, scared of being assigned to rural labor, she chose another man who had pursued her for a long time.

When her mom wrecked that marriage, she turned to He Tingyue again, hoping he would help her—but he chose to stand by indifferently.

Back then, she always thought He Tingyue was cold and unfeeling, that tenderness wasn’t in his nature.

Turns out he was capable—just not with her.

"Yulian, let’s go inside and talk. No point standing around," Mother Sun said, taking her hand.

Sun Yulian collected herself, pulling away from her memories.

She and He Tingyue were ancient history—no use dwelling.

"I’ll go on ahead then. I’ll catch up with everyone later."

Jiang Yu had just wanted to get a look at Sun Yulian. Now that she knew, her curiosity was satisfied.

Returning home, she found He Tingyue had already marinated the beef, with zero interest in stepping out.

She often wondered if this man had no curiosity at all.

"Your old flame’s back—not gonna say hi?" Jiang Yu teased, resting her chin on her hand.

He Tingyue looked up. "We were never friends."

"Oh, after all those years she was into you, she doesn’t even count as a friend?"

He Tingyue flicked her forehead lightly. "Stop talking nonsense."

Jiang Yu grinned and stuck her tongue out, then dropped the subject about Sun Yulian, bringing up the flawed fabric she got from Zhu Lilan instead.

"I grabbed a bunch. We’ll each get a jacket out of it later."

He Tingyue grunted in agreement. "Old Ge on South Street does solid work. Let’s have him make them."

"Alright."

Soon enough, Mother Sun showed up.

"Jiang Yu, these are some local specialties Yulian brought back from the countryside. Try some."

Jiang Yu was flattered. "Mrs. Sun, you're too kind."

"Go on, take them—they're just small things. By the way, do you still have any beef at home? I’d like to buy some. And those seconds—could you help me get some too? Yulian just got back, and the clothes she’s wearing are from years ago..."

Jiang Yu knew these things weren’t free. She smiled and handed them back.

"No beef left—it’s all curing for jerky. As for the seconds, no promises, but I’ll ask around for you, Mrs. Sun."

Mrs. Sun frowned. She’d barely asked before getting a no.

"Mrs. Sun, would you like the marinated beef? If so, I can sell it to you."

Mrs. Sun glanced at it—it was spiced with chili, which she didn’t know how to handle.

"No thanks. But do let me know about the fabric."

With that, she took the things and left.

Since the beef wasn’t sold, Jiang Yu had no plans to part with those things for free.