Chapter 123
The day after the Party Branch Secretary received the three members of The Yan Household, Yan Lei also met Qiao Wei at the train station.
In this day and age, it wasn’t common for men and women to embrace in public, so Yan Lei could only pick up Yan Xiang with one hand and firmly squeeze Qiao Wei’s hand with the other to convey his warmth.
Qiao Wei said, “Dad’s medical treatment went very smoothly, and everything at home is fine, so you don’t need to worry.”
Yan Lei replied, “Mm!”
He put the child down and carried her belongings for her.
On the way, Xiao Zhang said, “Sister-in-law, you’re finally back. The Regimental Commander asked eight hundred times a day if there were any calls for him.”
Regimental Commander Yan was annoyed, “Just drive your car! You really love to run your mouth.”
Xiao Zhang laughed raucously.
Yan Xiang said, “Dad, we missed you too.”
Regimental Commander Yan gave a serious “Mm.”
Xiao Zhang laughed even louder.
When they arrived home, Qiao Wei opened her travel bag and took out cigarettes and liquor for Xiao Zhang, “These are brands we don’t have around here, try them out.”
“Thank you, Sister-in-law!”
Qiao Wei and Xiangxiang waved goodbye as the jeep drove away.
Yan Lei carried the luggage, and the family of three was finally reunited.
Seeing their clean and tidy courtyard and the light yellow mud walls, Qiao Wei felt a sense of relaxation wash over her entire body.
In this world, in this era, she had truly taken root here; this courtyard and this house were her home.
Yan Lei had just put down the luggage when he turned around and was embraced by Qiao Wei.
With no outsiders around, Yan Lei also held Qiao Wei tightly in his arms.
Yan Xiang was used to it and went to find some candy to eat on his own.
After being separated for half a month, the two held each other tightly for who knows how long, smelling each other’s scent, feeling peaceful and satisfied inside.
Home is giving you a place to return to.
Marriage is giving you someone to accompany you.
At home, with this person.
Nothing more to ask for.
Until Yan Xiang spoke up, “Mom, can I go find Jun Jun to play?”
The two adults let go of each other, and Qiao Wei hit the nail on the head, “You want to tell Jun Jun about the big train, don’t you?”
Yan Xiang: “Hehe.”
He had been seen through.
He had ridden the big train twice, after all, and wanted to tell Jun Jun about it.
Qiao Wei said, “Wait a little while, and we’ll go together.”
She then said to Yan Lei, “I bought some local specialties from the provincial capital; let me organize them, and I’ll send them over to Sister-in-law Zhao.”
Yan Lei said, “No rush, have a drink of water first.”
Qiao Wei went to wash her face and hands.
When she looked at the mug Yan Lei handed her, she saw it was mung bean soup, specially cooked for her return.
It was summer, and the cool bed had been moved out of the room and placed under the eaves. Qiao Wei sat on the cool bed drinking the mung bean soup, watching Yan Lei lift Yan Xiang high up and hold him in his arms, asking who he had seen back in his hometown and if he had played with his older brothers, sisters, and younger siblings.
Yan Xiang shook his head, “We didn’t stay at Grandpa and Grandma’s house. We only ate one meal there before we went to the county town to take the long-distance bus to the provincial capital. In the provincial capital, we stayed in a guesthouse the whole time. The guesthouse had a Cafeteria and a bathhouse, so we could take hot showers at night. Mom and Grandma bathed together, and I bathed with Uncle. Uncle didn’t know how to use the faucet, so I taught him.”
Yan Lei touched Yan Xiang’s face and grabbed a handful of candy for him, “Go read your book for now.”
He sat down on the bamboo chair, watching Qiao Wei drinking the mung bean soup unhurriedly on the cool bed.
Both of them were people who remained calm in chaos and unflustered in the face of trouble.
Qiao Wei drank half the mug of sweet mung bean soup before she spoke.
“Let me report the results to you first,” she said. “Dad had kidney stones. He had dragged it out too long, and it was already infected and inflamed, with complications. The surgery was performed by the Chief of Surgery at the Provincial First People’s Hospital; it went very smoothly, and the follow-up treatment and recovery were also very good. The complications have been effectively controlled. Dad’s health can be said to be very good now; he has no problem getting around.”
Yan Lei said, “Thank you for your hard work.”
Qiao Wei continued, “Mom had some issues. Women who have given birth often easily develop gynecological problems, so I took her to see a gynecologist and she received three courses of treatment. She also had a physical check-up, and some old ailments were treated with medication as needed. Now, Mom is also very healthy.”
Yan Lei’s eyes reddened slightly; he sighed and held her hand, “It’s all thanks to you.”
The family didn’t understand anything, and as a son, it wasn’t easy for him to talk to his mother about gynecological diseases. Fortunately, there was Qiao Wei, who understood everything. She understood, she didn’t mind, and she helped with everything she could.
She was very thoughtful.
After reporting the results, Qiao Wei began to tell the story from the beginning.
Hearing that Qiao Wei had rushed back, only to be met with an empty house, Yan Lei’s expression turned grim.
Hearing how Qiao Wei had scared the hospital director to get the best medical resources for his father, he praised her, “As expected of you.”
When Qiao Wei told him that she had only bought three long-distance bus tickets to send the three members of The Yan Household back, and that she hadn’t stayed a single night at the house, and that the things she brought back had all been given away outside, he wasn’t angry at all; instead, he felt uplifted, “You did the right thing.”
Yan Lei certainly cared for his relatives, but a husband and wife are one unit.
Just as he had said when he saw Qiao Wei off, it’s only about right and wrong, not status.
“If it were me, I would do the same,” he said. “We only respect those who respect us.”
If others offend me, I will definitely offend them back.
Yan Lei’s mind was always clear, and his principles were always explicit. But when Qiao Wei thought about the distribution plan he had arranged for the money at home… she couldn’t help but purse her lips.
Yan Lei noticed, “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Qiao Wei said, getting up to tidy up. “I bought some local specialties; let’s divide them up and send them to each family.”
Yan Lei got up and followed her, “What did you want to say just now?”
Qiao Wei didn’t want to get involved in the internal affairs of The Yan Household. She had done what she needed to do; as for matters that the family members had already agreed upon, she preferred not to get involved if she didn’t have to.
“It’s nothing. Um, right,” she said, “I’ve already handled the family matters myself. Don’t go making hindsight phone calls about it. I told Mom and Dad that this matter is wiped clean from now on, let it be in the past, just like us. We’ll talk about the future when we meet again.”
Yan Lei understood this, “Don’t worry, I’m not the type to stir up trouble.”
For a leader, doing things and speaking is an art. Someone who isn’t perceptive in this regard won’t go far.
While sorting the items, Qiao Wei added, “I also managed to get sleeper tickets on the way back, and I even got extra bedding for Xiangxiang.”
She had taken Yan Lei’s identification and used it to buy the sleeper tickets.
As for the bedding, Yan Lei said, “I knew you would definitely have a way.”
Qiao Wei’s way with words was also very effective in getting things done.
But this couldn’t divert Yan Lei’s attention; he pressed, “What did you want to say just now?”
Qiao Wei pursed her lips, “Nothing, come help me sort things out. Xiangxiang is anxious to go see Jun Jun.”
Yan Lei held down the bag, “If you have something to say, just say it, what are you doing?”
Qiao Wei didn’t want to get involved, but she really wanted to complain.
Because Yan Lei rarely made mistakes in handling affairs, but this matter was too obviously wrong.
“It’s about those 25 yuan for the family; Mom said you were the one who arranged the distribution?”
“Yes,” Yan Lei said, “It was me.”
“Big Brother is the eldest son, Dad is getting old, and he and his wife bear more of the burden, so I let him have a bit more. For the others, I originally thought about dividing it equally by head. But the third daughter-in-law and fourth daughter-in-law made a fuss, thinking that the eldest sister and second sister are people of other families and shouldn’t take the family’s money.”
“It’s my money, why can’t I give it to my own biological sisters?”
“But Mom and Dad wrote to persuade me. I thought that since I wasn’t there, even if there was an argument, it would be Mom and Dad arguing with them. Harmony brings prosperity to the family, so I didn’t want Mom and Dad to get angry over this. I agreed to let them each take one yuan more, and the sisters each take one yuan less.”
It was clear that he had no idea where he had gone wrong.
Qiao Wei pursed her lips.
Yan Lei noticed. He pinched her waist, “If you have something to say, say it. Why are you holding it in? I think you’re about to turn into an old turtle.”
Qiao Wei was pinched on her ticklish spot and couldn’t take it, so she had to say, “You shouldn’t have bypassed Mom and Dad.”
Qiao Wei had once said a heartfelt piece of advice to Yan Lei’s Mother—until a person is on their deathbed, they shouldn’t let go of the money.
At that time, Yan Lei’s Mother looked as if it resonated deeply with her.
But she said, “Let it be, let it be.”
Why? Because Yan Lei clearly agreed with this philosophy as well. He also believed that one should control the distribution of money.
Therefore, he firmly kept this power of distribution in his own hands.
Outside, he was a cadre, a leader, accustomed to giving orders and making decisions, accustomed to shouldering responsibilities and calling the shots. At home, he was the most successful one.
So he naturally assumed that the power of distribution should be in his hands.
He directly set the plan, bypassing his own parents. It seemed fine, as his wings covered everyone he wanted to cover, but in doing so, he deprived or at least weakened the authority, status, or say of his parents in this family.
“You should give all the money to Mom and Dad and let them distribute it. How much they give depends on their wishes; what can they do if they make a fuss? Whoever makes Mom and Dad unhappy gets nothing, and whoever Mom and Dad like gets more. Just watch, your brothers’ wives will all be smiling and trying to please Mom and Dad.”
“If you distribute it directly, Mom and Dad can’t change it. As soon as they try to do anything, your brothers and sisters-in-law will shout that this was something you decided.”
“Mom and Dad are hindered by you; they feel restrained when managing their sons and daughters-in-law.”
“Since the sisters are married off, the money for them should be given separately. You should understand rural areas better than I do; you know how people in rural areas treat sons and daughters differently. Rural daughters-in-law think that the husband’s family’s things are theirs, and that the sisters-in-law are outsiders. If you give the money to the family to then be divided among the sisters, of course they won’t be happy about it.”
“The money for the sisters should be listed separately from the very beginning; it shouldn’t be mixed with the family money. That way, it’s you, the younger brother, supplementing your sisters, not married daughters scraping money away from their maiden home.”
Regimental Commander Yan was stunned.
Qiao Wei shook her head.
“Yan Lei, you have to understand one thing: you—can’t go back,” she said. “You came out of Yan Village, and you can never go back.”
“In the future, you can only strive for higher positions and bigger places.”
“In this lifetime, it is impossible for you to return to Yan Village to farm with your brothers. Your parents and brothers are not your soldiers; don’t think you can remotely control and command them. That home is your parents’ home; you are not your parents’ leader, you are their son.”
“What should be left to Mom and Dad, let them handle. It’s not like only you can manage your family.”
Regimental Commander Yan was completely stunned.
He was naturally a perceptive person, but because he was in the middle of the situation and everyone involved was his own blood relative, he had been lost in the situation.
Now that Qiao Wei had pointed it out, he completely came to his senses.
Regimental Commander Yan sat on a small stool under the eaves, smoking for a long time.
Qiao Wei came out several times while tidying up and saw his back.
She leaned against the doorframe with her arms crossed, “If you want to change it, change it. Don’t worry about me. I’m not afraid of anything.”
She went back to her hometown, and when she returned, Yan Lei wanted to reform the distribution plan that had been in place for years; even a fool could see that she had whispered in his ear.
The sisters-in-law would inevitably resent her.
“I don’t care,” Qiao Wei said with a smile, arms crossed. “I was able to leave without staying the night, so they already resented me.”
“In this lifetime, I won’t have many opportunities to return to Yan Village with you, so no one can do anything to me.”
“Do whatever you want to do.”
However, the most difficult thing to manage in the world is family affairs.
Even someone like Yan Lei, who dared to conspire with others to stir up trouble, was distressed when encountering family affairs.
How come he’s a bit cute?
At this moment, the halo had extinguished; he wasn’t some male lead, but a man with parents, with all kinds of worries, with troubles, a man of flesh and blood.
Qiao Wei couldn’t help but laugh at the sight of Regimental Commander Yan sitting on the small stool, smoking and reflecting.
Yan Lei ultimately decided not to change anything for now.
He admitted that he had been stupid.
But since things were already like this at home, let them stay that way for now. There was no need to immediately break the old pattern and make Qiao Wei take the blame and be resented by others.
“Let’s talk about it later.” He stubbed out his cigarette with a world-weary look, followed her into the room, hugged Qiao Wei from behind, and rested his arms on her shoulders, making it seem like she was carrying him on her back, “In the future, I will discuss everything with you.”
Qiao Wei sighed happily, “Exactly, discussing things together.”
How many people go their whole lives without finding someone to discuss things with? How many people die alone?
At this moment, the two of them crossed several spaces and times and resonated with each other again.
Qiao Wei was feeling emotional.
Yan Lei hugged her tighter and whispered in her ear, “Qiao Wei, Guan Tuwei is dead…”
Qiao Wei froze and turned around abruptly.
Yan Lei’s eyes were so calm.
If others don’t offend me, I won’t offend them.
The hatred of killing a father, the resentment of humiliating a wife.
It’s not just that it can’t be done.
Even if it wasn’t done, just thinking about doing it is also not allowed!
