Chapter 377 - 379: Return to the City Together
"Why hasn’t Xiao Hua come?" Xia Xiao asked.
"He wanted to come, but we decided to keep him in school," Li Wenjuan said. Schools had gradually started to resume classes even though things were still somewhat chaotic, but it was somewhat better than when they had first started.
Weiguo and Li Wenjuan still hoped their younger son would pursue his education. Otherwise, not knowing many characters, what could he do? He could only do some physically demanding work.
By getting an education and learning about the principles of life, and then acquiring knowledge and technical skills, he would be all set.
"Your sister-in-law is also seven months pregnant, she could give birth by the end of the year or the beginning of next year."
It was now November, and the weather had gotten colder. Weiguo and Li Wenjuan thought of Xia Xiaohui since they couldn’t return when their grandson was exactly one month old, so they found time to come over instead. They also wanted to check out how Xia Xiao was doing here since both their daughters were here.
Moreover, Xia Lin was currently a train attendant on this very line, which made it convenient for her to bring Weiguo and Li Wenjuan over.
Before long, Zheng Xianghong had finished preparing the meal, and Xia Xiao was in the room feeding her child, not eating with everyone else.
Zheng Xianghong brought her a meal in the room. After eating, Gao Guoqiang, Xia Weiguo, Gao Jiazhi, and Yan Hao sat and chatted together. Xia Jing took Li Wenjuan to see the Youth Point dormitories, and Zheng Xianghong boiled two pots of water with ginger and mugwort for Xia Xiao, enough for her to wash her hair and bathe.
Xia Xiao had wanted to bathe early in the morning, but Zheng Xianghong suggested she bathe later. Little did they expect the parents to come over, and then they had a meal, so it wasn’t until after noon that she washed.
Luckily, she had given birth to twins in October when the weather was not so hot. Otherwise, enduring a month of confinement in hot weather without washing would have been even more unbearable.
In the bathroom, Xia Xiao washed herself thoroughly from head to toe, with Zheng Xianghong occasionally urging her from outside to wash quickly and not catch a cold.
By the time Li Wenjuan, Xia Jing, and Xia Lin returned from the Youth Point, Xia Xiao wasn’t finished yet, prompting Li Wenjuan to urge her too, "Hurry up, you can’t take this long."
Fresh and clean, Xia Xiao came out, grinning at Li Wenjuan and Zheng Xianghong, "All done."
It felt wonderful. If possible, she’d have a large bathtub filled with warm water to soak in at her leisure, or possibly in a hot spring.
Unfortunately, current conditions didn’t allow for that, but having endured for a month, she could finally enjoy a proper bath, which made Xia Xiao feel very refreshed.
"Hurry and dry your hair," Zheng Xianghong handed her a towel.
Xia Xiao took it, drying her hair with the dry towel. Zheng Xianghong had already gone into the bathroom to clean up for Xia Xiao.
Seeing this, Li Wenjuan had a smile on her face, feeling that her daughter was living too well, served well by her mother-in-law, which was rare to see.
But seeing her daughter married into such an easygoing family where the in-laws and siblings-in-law were agreeable gave Li Wenjuan much comfort.
At night, the Xia Family members all stayed overnight at the old house, which was tidy thanks to Xia Jing and Sun Yuhua’s efforts. Last time Gao Jiaxing brought people back and they had also stayed there; it was convenient now for the Xia Family to stay there as well.
No one had been arranged to stay in the old house, primarily due to Gao Guoqiang’s decision. Although Old Lady Gao wasn’t currently living there, she always had to return, and being superstitious, if someone were living there when she returned, it might trouble her.
Seeing that Xia Xiao was doing well, Li Wenjuan now worried about Xia Jing and Xia Hong, especially concerning Xia Jing and Yan Hao’s situation, as The Yans hadn’t shown a position and seemed in no hurry.
Although Li Wenjuan also hoped for a resolution between her daughter and Yan Hao, she was reluctant to visit The Yans, for it might make them look down on her daughter even more.
So this time, Li Wenjuan and Xia Weiguo came over, not only to see Xia Xiao and the grandchild, but also partly for Yan Hao and Xia Jing.
Xia Jing shared a room with Li Wenjuan and Xia Lin, and didn’t go back to Youth Point. At that moment, Li Wenjuan asked about Xia Jing and Yan Hao’s situation. Xia Jing said, "I went home with Yan Hao for the New Year."
"That’s good. Whether your situation works out or not, there should be a resolution; you can’t keep dragging it on." Li Wenjuan didn’t want her daughter’s youth to be wasted, knowing a woman’s age couldn’t endure delay, as they ultimately suffer the most.
Xia Jing nodded; indeed, she needed to face the Yans, but what mattered more to her than their family’s attitude was what Yan Hao thought in his heart.
If Yan Hao stood by her and wholeheartedly decided to be with her, she wouldn’t give up on him and wouldn’t marry anyone else.
But if Yan Hao showed the slightest hesitation, Xia Jing would certainly not be pleased.
The next morning, Xia Weiguo also spoke with Yan Hao. Although Xia Weiguo usually didn’t like to interfere in the young people’s affairs, it involved his daughter, so he couldn’t just overlook it.
After staying for two days, Xia Weiguo, Li Wenjuan, and Xia Lin left. They didn’t stay long at the Gao family’s house, as it’s customary for guests not to trouble their hosts too much.
Furthermore, in that era, food wasn’t easy to come by, so it wasn’t nice to eat and drink at the in-law’s house. Thus, after seeing their grandchild, Xia Weiguo and Li Wenjuan left.
Suddenly, the end of the year arrived, and Xia Jing and Yan Hao, with the production team’s letter of introduction, prepared to head back to the city for the New Year.
This year, Sun Yuhua also expressed her intention to return, but she planned to go back alone.
When the time arrived, not a few educated youths returned to the city for New Year, including Yao Wangchun, Xu Mei who also brought their child, and Yang Zhonghong was also among those who returned.
So everyone traveled back to the city together. On the train, Sun Yuhua felt uneasy, thinking about the disappointed look in Gao Jiazhi’s eyes, she felt hollow inside. Yet she feared that bringing Gao Jiazhi and the child back would displease her parents even more, so Sun Yuhua chose to return alone.
On the train, amidst the casual chats and laughter, Yang Zhonghong spoke a lot. After a while, Sun Yuhua realized something was off and asked Yang Zhonghong, "Is your father Yang He?"
"Yes, that’s no secret," replied Yang Zhonghong.
Sun Yuhua stared blankly at Yang Zhonghong; she hadn’t known that Yang He’s daughter was in the Guangming Production Team.
"What’s wrong? Do you know my father?" Yang Zhonghong looked at Sun Yuhua.
Sun Yuhua shook her head, "I’ve heard my dad and my brother mention him."
Yang Zhonghong paused, "You’re Sun Yuqi’s sister."
Sun Yuhua nodded complexly, and Yang Zhonghong just said "oh" without adding more, clearly indifferent to Sun Yuqi.
Xia Jing glanced at Sun Yuhua and then at Yang Zhonghong, not saying a word. She felt Sun Yuhua’s expression was a bit strange, but with her own issues unresolved, she could hardly care about others.
Xia Jing and Yan Hao returned home. Xia Jing’s family lived downstairs while Yan Hao’s family was also downstairs, so Yan Hao dropped Xia Jing off first.
"Do you want to come up with me?" Yan Hao asked.
After a consideration, Xia Jing nodded, "Okay, wait for me a moment."
Saying so, Xia Jing took two jars of pickles given to her by Xia Xiao. She had brought several jars back, and now she took them with her to Yan’s."