Chapter 227: Preparing to Go Home Again

Chapter 227: Getting Ready to Go Home Again

They ended up bringing Lin Yue along.

Xia Li was curious. "Upperclassman, why aren’t you with your own dormmates?"

Lin Yue replied, "They’re all going home, and besides… I don’t feel like dumping my problems on them."

Xia Li felt that Lin Yue was basically another Wang Jiao—but even more of a show-off and drama queen.

Her dormmates probably just couldn’t deal with her.

When they arrived at their regular hole-in-the-wall spot, Lin Yue went straight for two bottles of baijiu.

With no one to drink with her, she kept pouring herself drinks.

"That Deng Xuefeng is such an asshole. He just disappeared after breaking up with me. I don’t even know where to find him. What a piece of work."

Wang Jiao could relate when it came to heartbreak.

But Lin Yue wasn’t paying attention, just drinking.

Then she turned to Ye Xiaoxiao and asked, "Do you know where Deng Xuefeng lives?"

Ye Xiaoxiao answered, "I don’t know, and even if I did, you wouldn’t get past the door."

Tang Xiuxiu whispered to Ye Xiaoxiao, "Ignore her. She pulls this after every breakup. She’ll just find another boyfriend after a while."

Those two were quite the match—players, both of them.

But Lin Yue actually seemed heartbroken this time, and Ye Xiaoxiao could tell she wasn’t as chill as usual.

Tang Xiuxiu added, "Though this is the first time I’ve seen Lin Yue like this. Usually, she’s the one who initiates the breakup."

Wang Jiao butted in while ordering food, "Stop worrying about whether she’s sad or not. Look at those two bottles she grabbed—she’s already drunk before we’ve even eaten. Who’s going to pay for the alcohol later?"

That was a practical concern.

The two bottles of baijiu Lin Yue had ordered cost more than the entire meal.

Tang Xiuxiu rubbed her temples. "I’ll pay for it later."

Wang Jiao scoffed, "How’s that fair?"

Tang Xiuxiu sighed. "Tough luck for me."

Stuck babysitting her.

She’d probably have to drag her home tonight too.

The food arrived, but Lin Yue was a rowdy drunk. She kept raising hell, not only wrecking their dinner but also disturbing other diners.

Tang Xiuxiu stood up. "I’ll go call home. Keep an eye on her for now."

The others tried to restrain Lin Yue while people around them occasionally glanced over.

Luckily, most of the customers were students from the school, with few outsiders. Even if someone noticed a drunk girl, no creep tried anything.

After about half an hour, a man came to pick up Lin Yue.

"Who was that?"

"Lin Yue's older brother. I didn’t dare let anyone else take her—what if something happened? I wouldn’t be able to explain it when I got back."

Wang Jiao: "Good, she’s finally gone. We barely got to eat in peace."

"Let’s wrap up and head out early. We’ll see each other when the semester starts." Tang Xiuxiu went to settle the bill, knowing they hadn’t had a good meal. "Next semester, dinner’s on me."

He Jing: "No worries, we’re pretty much done eating."

They had come out early, so even after finishing their meal, it wasn’t dark yet. The ones with family in Beijing headed straight home.

The others returned to the dorm first, planning to go to the station the next day.

Train tickets were toughest to get this time of year, so many people had to delay their departure by several days.

...

Once winter break began, Ye Xiaoxiao went back to stay with Miao Cuifang.

But she was hardly ever home, mostly busy with work outside.

Miao Cuifang and Ye Jianguo were tallying up their earnings—they’d made good money selling tea eggs in the capital recently.

Ye Jianguo: "Let’s give this money to Xiao Xiao. She paid all the hospital bills last time."

Miao Cuifang: "You think I haven’t? Every time we give her money, she just turns around and buys stuff for us."

Ye Jianguo thought for a moment: "Then let’s save it for now. When Xiao Xiao gets married, we’ll chip in what we can. The Lu family’s well-to-do, but we shouldn’t take advantage."

Miao Cuifang nodded in agreement. "You’re right. We should give Auntie Li a heads-up—we’re calling it quits on this business. We should thank her for all her help during this time."

Ye Jianguo: "How about inviting Auntie Li over for a meal?"

Miao Cuifang: "That’s a good idea. I’ll go talk to her."

Auntie Li was reluctant to hear that Miao Cuifang and her husband were returning to their hometown.

"Sis, if you ever come back to the capital, you must visit me. Even if you’re leaving for now, who knows when you might return? Your kids are all here—it’s way better doing business in the capital."

Miao Cuifang: "Don’t worry, Auntie Li. If we come back, we’ll definitely visit you. Thank you for all your help. Come by for dinner tonight."

Auntie Li: "Oh, are you sure it’s okay? Won’t your children mind?"

Miao Cuifang: "No, no. Just my youngest is home, and she’s out working during the day. She won’t be home till evening."

Auntie Li had gotten the idea that Miao Cuifang’s children weren’t getting along, which was why the elderly couple had taken up business to support the family.

After a pause, Auntie Li agreed.

"Alright, I’ll come over in the evening."

So when Ye Xiaoxiao returned home, she found an extra guest.

"Mom, who’s this…?"

"Xiao Xiao, you’re back! Have a seat—dinner’s almost ready." Miao Cuifang introduced from the kitchen doorway, "This is the one I mentioned, the one who hooked us up with eggs."

Ye Xiaoxiao: "Hi, Auntie Li."

Auntie Li stared at Ye Xiaoxiao: "So this is your daughter? She’s quite lovely."

Ye Xiaoxiao: "Thank you, Auntie. Please, sit down."

"Mom, do you need any help?"

Miao Cuifang: "No, no, we’re fine. Your dad’s helping me."

When they first arrived in the city, they weren’t used to the propane tank, but now they’ve gotten used to it.

"It’d be pretty convenient if we had a propane tank back home in the village."

Ye Xiaoxiao: "We could do that, but our place is too remote. Getting the tank refilled would be difficult. Maybe you should just stay in the capital."

Though the city’s nice, Miao Cuifang and Ye Jianguo still prefer the village environment.

"Your grandparents are still at home. We can’t just leave them. If you settle down here, Xiao Xiao, your dad and I can visit you often."

Ye Xiaoxiao: "Then let’s bring Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle, and Aunt here. The whole family can live in the capital."

Miao Cuifang laughed: "Alright, when we get the chance, we’ll all move to the capital."

Auntie Li watched the interaction between Ye Xiaoxiao and Ms. Miao, realizing her earlier assumptions might have been off.

She thought to herself, Ms. Miao’s daughter seems quite filial.

But she wondered how the son was.

After Auntie Li left, Ye Jianguo did the dishes.

Ye Xiaoxiao called her Third Bro: "Third Bro, when are you coming back? My winter break’s started."

"I’ll come see you once I get a ticket. I probably won’t stay home for long—there are too many orders here, and I need to oversee things at the factory."

Moreover, Ye Changning didn’t have many people he could trust around. If he had more capable assistants, he wouldn’t be run so ragged.

"Third Bro, if you’re too busy, I can take Mom and Dad back myself."

Ye Changning: "No, I still need to come back. Wait for me a day or two."

"Okay then."

...

The next day, Ye Xiaoxiao took Miao Cuifang and Ye Jianguo for another checkup.

Besides Miao Cuifang, Ye Jianguo also had a full-body examination.

The results were pretty good—both were in relatively good health compared to other laborers. They had some aches from working hard, but nothing serious.