Mi Lan still couldn't accept it.
After all, she had been sleeping in the same bed as Yan Wei since she was five or six years old, always his little princess. Now she didn't care about Wang Gebi anymore, she just wanted to avoid divorce.
But bad news kept coming.
Although policies had changed, military law still required accountability. So even though times had changed, all the evidence Yan Zhaocheng submitted was accepted by military law. Wang Gebi was sentenced to 15 years in prison for espionage. Next came the seizure of assets - even the house Mi Lan lived in would be taken back.
Then the military court pronounced the divorce in session. Mi Lan was divorced from Yan Wei. After that, Yan Wei bought a large woven bag full of snacks for Yan Ha, as well as two stacks of children's books. He took Yan Ha to the capital's zoo and amusement park, carrying him on his shoulders the whole time, and promised he would return to the capital every year to play with Yan Ha.
Then, without looking back, he left for Xiping City to report for his job transfer.
Now Mi Lan had to face reality whether she wanted to or not.
The man who had loved her deeply, who also loved Yan Ha, who was willing to be a workhorse at home, had very rationally abandoned her.
Mi Lan still couldn't give up, but she had no tactics or schemes. She finally waited until Wang Gebi's sentencing came through, so she could visit him in prison. She went to ask her mother what she should do.
Her mother was so clever, Mi Lan thought she must have a way to help her win back Yan Wei.
"Let it go," Wang Gebi said, looking at his daughter with pity through the iron bars. He had to tell her the harsh truth: "Lan, find a way to make a living on your own. The men in the Yan family are all stubborn. Yan Wei won't change his mind."
Gripping the iron bars, Mi Lan burst into tears.
Wang Gebi's own heart was also in tatters.
Without the drive of love, a woman couldn't have accomplished such big things. At 16, she had married a 38-year-old man who only washed his feet once a month, never brushed his teeth at night, almost never bathed, and was addicted to smoking.
And around that man were a group of young soldiers, the most outstanding of whom was Yan Peiheng.
He kept himself clean, loved his wife, and always talked about his wife and children.
At night, 16-year-old Wang Gebi lay in bed in the row house, pressed under a man reeking of decay, smelling like rotten fish dried in a pond. In the morning, she would see the vigorous Yan Peiheng, hear the sound of him brushing his teeth, feel the wind as he walked by, and witness his personality that wasn't afraid of her husband, willing to challenge and scold his superior as he pleased. From this, Wang Gebi could experience sexual pleasure she couldn't get from her husband.
She was infatuated with that man. So when she heard that Yan Peiheng's mother and wife back home were fighting over housework, that his children had no one to care for them or feed them, she begged her husband to make an exception and give Yan Peiheng an extra room so he could bring his two older children to live with him.
She had schemed bit by bit for so many years.
She had used so many tactics, but never got him to look at her twice.
That family's men, when they're good to you they're very good, but when they say they won't turn back, they truly never will.
"Mom, what am I going to do?" Mi Lan wailed.
Wang Gebi had no idea what to do. Which of the military region's leaders hadn't received small favors from her? In difficult years, a piece of pork fat, a cut of pork belly, all kinds of pastries - she found ways to improve their lives, truly treating them like brothers. But now, to distance themselves from her, they all avoided her like the plague.
She suddenly remembered hearing that Gu Xiao was about to return. After so many years of corresponding, Gu Xiao and she had developed a spiritual connection. He especially approved of her, and he deeply despised the current environment and those in power in China.
Gu Xiao knew she wasn't a spy. Gu Xiao still considered her the only confidant of Su Wen in all of China.
She just didn't know if Gu Xiao would come to see her first when he returned.
That was Wang Gebi's only hope after being imprisoned.
...
Back to Yan Zhao. As the year end approached, migrant workers were returning home in droves. Train tickets were extremely hard to buy, especially sleeper berths. Even police certificates didn't work anymore. He tried several ticket offices but couldn't get train tickets.
It was only after Chen Meilan reminded him that Yan Zhao learned the Civil Aviation Administration now had discounted air tickets. Normally 70-80 yuan tickets could be obtained for 40-50 yuan at internal prices. For a mere five bushels of rice, he swallowed his pride and contacted a war buddy who worked at the Civil Aviation Administration.
Sure enough, when he asked, flights to Xiping City were 42 yuan per person at the internal price, with children at half price, 28 yuan. However, hearing that Yan Zhao was in the capital, his friend insisted on treating him to a meal.
This war buddy was named Zhang Zhendong. His sister was a battlefield nurse, one of the heroines Yan Zhao especially admired.
She was a small, thin girl, but with extreme explosive power. She once carried a soldier whose intestines had been blown out through the front lines, walking ten full kilometers through a minefield. In the end, the soldier died from blood loss, his face turned pale, his body covered in red insects. The girl still had him tied to her back until the similarly wounded Yan Zhao reminded her, and only then did she untie the soldier's body.
Thinking of that little girl, Yan Zhao readily agreed. The next day he went to pick up the plane tickets and have the meal as promised.
Of course, times had changed. The girl was said to have started a business after leaving the military and was doing very well.
Zhang Zhendong was doing even better. He had gotten fat after leaving the military, his belly as round as a pregnant woman's. He joked with Yan Zhao, saying it was a "beer belly" because it came from drinking beer.
The two of them chatted over beer at a food stall. On the way home after eating, Yan Zhao saw small pinwheels being sold at a night market stall. He bought one whirling pinwheel for each of his three children. But Zhang Zhendong had gotten drunk on beer, and while Yan Zhao was helping him home, all the pinwheels were crushed.
It was already midnight when Yan Zhao got home. Of course, the whole family was asleep.
He tiptoed in, quietly turned on the light, and prepared to wash up in the outside bathroom. Suddenly, when he turned on the hallway light, he was startled - Yan Peiheng had moved a chair and was sitting outside Chen Meilan's bedroom door.
Yan Zhao, holding the three crushed pinwheels, looked at his father questioningly: Why aren't you sleeping?
Yan Peiheng said softly to his son, "Your second brother finalized his divorce today and got his new job arranged."
Yan Zhao nodded, threw the three small pinwheels into the trash can, took off his coat, and went into the bathroom.
Yan Peiheng fished the very poor quality plastic pinwheels out of the trash can and gently spun them.
When Yan Zhao and Yan Xingxiao were little, he would occasionally come home and liked to make these small pinwheels out of millet stalks and sorghum leaves. He would also string corn husk strips onto wire to make headbands for the children to wear.
Back then, he was the children's larger-than-life, omnipotent father.
The children looked at him with eyes full of admiration and love. He could carry one child on each shoulder, while Su Wen always called after them: "Take it easy, be careful not to strain your back."
The pinwheels would spin noisily on the children's heads, his wife following behind with a smile.
Although they never had enough to eat, they were so happy.
Now his eldest son refused to return to China, and his second son was also leaving. Although Yan Peiheng now had the status of a victim due to Wang Gebi's sentencing and wouldn't be affected by Wang Gebi's case, he had still ended up alone.
With a whirl, the broken pinwheel creaked and squeaked non-stop, traversing more than twenty years to the happiest days of Yan Peiheng's life.
Early the next morning, the whole family was set to return home.
Each child also received a small backpack printed with Doraemon, a gift from their grandfather. It was the first time the three children had formally spoken to their grandfather, but they were extremely perfunctory, saying an insipid "Thank you, Grandpa."
However, the children really liked these small backpacks.
That wasn't all. At the airport, when Yuan Yuan unzipped her backpack, she found inside a headband with two small pinwheels on top. The frame was made of wire, the blades of bamboo, fixed with elastic steel wire. She immediately put it on her head. The airport was windy, and the pinwheels spun noisily in the breeze.
Little Wang and Little Lang also opened their backpacks and, sure enough, they also had pinwheel headbands inside.
This was great fun. With the headbands on, arms spread wide, as soon as you started running, the little pinwheels would spin wildly.
This strange yet fun toy not only attracted the attention of many children along the way, but also amazed many adults, who exclaimed at how well-made it was.
Upon returning home, another year was coming to an end, and it was time to celebrate the New Year.
However, as soon as she entered the house, Chen Meilan heard bad news, while Yan Zhao heard good news.
And this was actually the same piece of information.
The news was that Yan Xishan had been boasting wildly in the village, claiming that the position of People's Representative that he thought belonged to him had ultimately gone to someone else. The nouveau riche who was actually elected could win the hearts of everyone in Xiping City, because he was Yan Zhao's comrade-in-arms, the soldier brother who had once been ruthlessly rejected by Chen Meilan, Xiong Dapao.
A demobilized soldier, who went into business, and was also a divorced single good father.
His personal brand was absolutely dazzling.
This even made it into the Xiping Evening News, which featured a photo of Xiong Dapao wearing a suit and tie, sitting behind a large mahogany desk, smiling radiantly.
That was a true outstanding young entrepreneur, and Yan Xishan admitted defeat wholeheartedly.
Chen Meilan was quite worried, fearing that Yan Xishan might lose face because of this and start drinking excessively again out of despair.
So she made a phone call, asking Qi Songlu to get off work early, as she wanted to inquire about the situation.
But Qi Songlu's response surprised Chen Meilan greatly.
"Not only is Yan Xishan attending night school, but he has also signed up for an intensive computer training course. He's planning to buy a Great Wall microcomputer these days, saying he wants to learn how to use computers," Qi Songlu said.
Although he lost the election, the landlord's son had been on TV and met city leaders, tasting the sweetness of being respected for the first time. He was not only studying accounting, but had also signed up for marketing, company management, and computer operation courses, a total of eight subjects.
He was gearing up to compete for the position of People's Representative again next year.
Chen Meilan was startled and immediately said, "Songlu, I'm enrolling you in a computer training course too, at the company's expense. Hurry and go learn about computers."
Yan Xishan's progress was a crisis for Chen Meilan. If he mastered these skills while Qi Songlu didn't, sooner or later Qi Songlu would be left behind by Yan Xishan.
Chen Meilan had learned her lesson in her past life, so this time she had to make sure they mastered the fundamentals.
But she needed to focus on managing the 271 Factory now and couldn't spare the time, so she had to have Qi Songlu learn instead.
Qi Songlu was eager to compete with Yan Xishan, so he agreed readily: "Alright!"
The day after returning, Chen Meilan went to see the kindergarten principal to report the situation of Yan Minglang being bullied, and to request information about Wang Yuhan's parents.
She had to meet Wang Yuhan's parents and find the little girl's cousin.
Not just for the beating, but the scheming nature of Wang Yuhan and her cousin was not something ordinary children possessed.
When the principal first heard that such an incident had occurred in her kindergarten, she was also frightened pale, and immediately went back to look up the registration information of Wang Yuhan's parents.
Yan Minglang's father was a police officer, and even the deputy director of the Jindong District Police Station. Having his child in their kindergarten was like a living advertisement. How could he be beaten by an outside elementary school student? This was unacceptable.
She also had to call in Teacher Wang, who was responsible for the class, to ask about the specific situation.
Bullying and fighting of course happened when the teacher wasn't aware, but Teacher Wang had an impression of that little boy because he often came to pick up Wang Yuhan. She said, "That child isn't very tall, quite skinny, probably only about eight years old. He's quite cute looking and very polite. He even likes to salute me and say 'Hello, teacher.' I never noticed him seeming like someone who likes to hit others."
"The fact is that my son was beaten by him. You can choose not to handle it, but I must find Wang Yuhan today," Chen Meilan said.
Teacher Wang looked embarrassed, seeing that Chen Meilan was very angry, so she quickly apologized.
"Found it, found it. Let's go, we'll go to their home and ask," the principal had already found Wang Yuhan's registration information. She flipped through a couple of pages and said, "Look, both parents are farmers, probably doing business. They live not far from us, in Nanwan Village."
Chen Meilan grabbed the registration information and went out to drive to Nanwan Village.
She had bought this car not long ago. Yan Zhao and Yan Bin drove it more often, while Chen Meilan was timid and tried to avoid driving when possible.
However, today, according to the principal and Teacher Wang, Chen Meilan drove exceptionally well, and quite fast too. This was probably what they call "a woman may be weak, but a mother becomes strong." Chen Meilan was going to confront them, so of course she drove quickly.
However, when she arrived at Nanwan Village, she hit another wall.
Because the door of the house at the address was tightly locked.
"You're looking for Wang Gang's family? They bought a new house before the New Year and just moved to the city," a neighbor said.
Chen Meilan asked, "What about their address in the city? Can you give it to us?"
The neighbor smiled and said, "How would we know? Nowadays when rural people move to the city, they're afraid their poor relatives from the village will come to stay with them, so they keep their new address a secret. Wang Gang is an only child, and when he moved, he said he would never come back to this village again."
This was indeed true.
Now many rural people who suddenly become rich and move to the city, originally have poor relatives in the village who like to freeload. But who likes to be freeloaded off by poor relatives?
Some people with smaller capacities indeed won't tell their relatives their exact address in the city.
"Wang Yuhan will still come to school when the semester starts. Why don't we wait until then to deal with this?" the principal suggested.
Teacher Wang also said, "Ms. Chen, please don't worry. From next semester on, I will pay special attention to Yan Minglang and make sure no other children bully him."
Seeing that Chen Meilan's face was still clouded with anger, the principal added, "I'll waive Yan Minglang's tuition for the entire next school year. You'll only need to pay for his meals. When Wang Yuhan comes back, I'll definitely criticize them severely and make them apologize to Yan Minglang. Is that alright?"
For parents, having their child beaten is the most frustrating thing.
The child was covered in injuries for nearly three months. The examination fees, medical fees, the pain the child endured, the tears he cried - could all of this be resolved with just an apology?
Chen Meilan didn't expect to get justice from the kindergarten, because at most they would just try to smooth things over and ask for an apology.
She naturally had her own way of resolving this matter, but since she couldn't find Wang Yuhan's parents, she could only put it aside for now.
She could only wait until school started again.
This New Year was particularly busy for Chen Meilan.
First, the 271 Factory needed to be contracted out. She had to sign a "Partnership Contract" with Cui Min and get 100,000 yuan from her. Then, Minister Wang from the Military Region Logistics Department personally came to Xiping City to sign another "Contracting Agreement" with her.
The other party then handed over all the keys of the 271 Factory to her, and Chen Meilan became the general manager of this factory.
With the partnership contract relationship, Cui Min and Chen Meilan were now in the same boat.
So she paid the final installment for the staff apartment building very smoothly, and then introduced a small job from a construction team to Chen Meilan, allowing Chen Degong to work on it temporarily.
This year, after deducting all expenses, Chen Meilan earned 60,000 yuan from the construction projects. After paying back the money on Yuan Yuan's account, the 5,000 yuan monthly rent from the wholesale market became pure income.
Where there's a demand for housing, there are people selling houses. As soon as the Dongfang Group's staff apartments were distributed to the employees, several households who already had houses nearby wanted to sell their apartments. Now a set of 65 square meter apartments cost only 5,800 yuan. Chen Meilan and Chen Degong discussed it and found that there were 6 sets in total. They negotiated with those 6 households and each took three sets, with Chen Degong's of course being kept for his children.
Chen Meilan planned to gradually exchange them, trying to get all three apartments on one floor, then connect them, and slowly renovate when she had time. She would move in when Yanguan Village was demolished for redevelopment.
This was her first time investing in real estate, and it should also be the last.
After all, she had been the wife of a real estate tycoon in her past life and deeply understood a truth: houses are not actually valuable, it's all artificially hyped up.
Others might speculate in real estate, but as long as Chen Meilan had other ways to make money, she would never engage in property speculation.
Director Zhou Yu also came during the New Year period, having obtained a filming permit from the Xiping Film Studio. He needed to choose locations for shooting.
Because Yuan Yuan was going to meet with the director's team tomorrow, and the children were starting school the day after, clothes needed to be washed and winter vacation homework needed to be done. Although the children could do these things themselves, Chen Meilan still needed to do the final check, so she was extremely busy these two days.
After the New Year, because Sun Nutao had reached the final stage of his illness, Yan Zhao was also so busy that his feet barely touched the ground, and he hadn't been home for nearly a week.
And today, Yan Xishan, having finished several months of intensive study and achieved good grades in night school, finally came to show off to his daughter and planned to have a good time bonding with her.
Carrying a large travel bag, he was not only dressed in a suit and leather shoes, but also sported a pair of gold-rimmed glasses. As he entered, he looked just like a dashing businessman from a Hong Kong or Taiwanese drama.
Amid the children's exclamations of surprise and Chen Meilan's eye roll, he grinned and said, "They're just plain lenses. The main thing is that these glasses make me look cultured and sophisticated. Meilan, leave the kids with me today. I'll check their homework and do the laundry. I want to spend some quality time with my daughter. You go take care of whatever you need to do."
Chen Meilan had to pay the housing installment today. She couldn't prevent Yan Xishan from seeing Yuanyuan, nor did she want him to take Yuanyuan away for an overnight stay. So she reluctantly agreed.
In her mind, even if Yan Xishan couldn't do anything else well, he would at least check the homework and make sure Xiao Wang did the laundry.
But this is precisely why the parent with custody often doesn't want the other parent to have too much contact with the children after a divorce.
After paying the housing installment, when Chen Meilan returned home and opened the door, she was immediately sprayed in the face with water.
Entering the courtyard, she saw wet clothes draped over the washing machine, not yet spun dry.
The doors to all the rooms in the courtyard were wide open. In the storeroom, steel pipe clamps, ropes, and various nuts and bolts were strewn all over the floor. In the garden, the vegetables that Yan Zhao had newly planted this year, just beginning to grow, had been trampled and were lying in disarray.
The plain lenses that Yan Xishan had worn to look refined were nowhere to be seen.
He was holding a large water gun, sucking water from the washing machine. Yuanyuan was in his arms, cheering him on as he aimed the water gun at the windows and sprayed continuously.
From inside the window, Xiao Wang and Xiao Lang could be heard shouting, "We are the Red Fourth Army! We're holding our position and we're not afraid of you!"
On the ground were scattered bags of spicy snacks and popcorn, half-empty bottles of Wahaha drink spilled on the floor, and trampled sausages split in two.
Looking at the walls and windows, there were dirty water stains everywhere from the spraying.
As a result, chili oil had formed rivers on the ground, dairy products were smeared everywhere, and as Chen Meilan stepped in, her leather shoes made a sticky sound on the cement floor.
What made Chen Meilan's scalp tingle even more was this:
To help Yuanyuan succeed in her audition tomorrow, she had specially commissioned a tailor to make a small corduroy jacket for Yuanyuan, with hand-embroidered flowers. Not only had Xiao Wang failed to wash this garment, but it was now lying on the ground in a puddle of dirty water.
Chen Meilan picked up the jacket and threw it at Yan Xishan's head.
Yan Xishan, who had been so uninhibited while playing, now realized he was in trouble. He covered his head and protected Yuanyuan, enduring Chen Meilan's blows while constantly trying to explain, "It's just play, the kids were having fun."
Chen Meilan nearly tripped over Yan Xishan's glasses that he had worn to look refined, kicking them to the front gate. "Get out!" she yelled.
"Why are you getting angry?" Yan Xishan hurriedly put on his glasses and smiled sheepishly.
Xiao Lang and Xiao Wang were still children after all. Today, Yuanyuan's father had brought snacks and water guns, tempting them. They hadn't been able to stand firm, but they had truly had so much fun that even now, knowing they were in big trouble, they couldn't help but smile at each other.
Yuanyuan, of course, didn't want her father to leave, but she was more afraid of him getting beaten. So she kept waving, signaling him to leave quickly.
As soon as Yan Xishan stepped out the door, a water gun hit him on the forehead with a splash. As he dodged, another one flew at him. Just as he was about to dodge again, a travel bag flew out and hit him on the head.
Xiao Wang, knowing he had done wrong, was busy refilling the washing machine to rewash the clothes when suddenly he stepped on something. Looking down, he felt like the sky was falling - it was his winter vacation homework, soaking in water.
With a howl, he finally understood the idiom: You reap what you sow!
Chen Meilan wanted to deal with these troublemakers, but when she entered the kitchen, she became even more furious.
Yan Zhao hadn't been home for a week, and she couldn't clean the kitchen thoroughly. Now with Yan Xishan's havoc, it looked like a garbage dump. Chen Meilan had always wanted to hire a housekeeper, but Yan Zhao had always insisted he could handle the housework, so she hadn't hired one.
This was what Yan Zhao called handling it!
Guilt by association - from Yan Xishan to Yan Zhao, and then to the children, they were all Chen Meilan's offenders now.
She wasn't going to clean up today. She wanted Yan Zhao to see the state of the house when he returned.
However, before Chen Meilan could get angrier, someone knocked on the gate outside. A handsome young man dressed in an army green outfit, with fair skin, entered with a smile, calling out, "Sister-in-law, I've finally found you."
"Uncle!" Xiao Wang, upon seeing this uncle, forgot about his homework and jumped up. "You're not selling those anymore?"
Xue Mingfang, who used to sell adult films, was now wearing a green military uniform and carrying a backpack. He had come to find Chen Meilan today. Walking up to her, he stood at attention and gave her a salute. "Reporting to the commander, former artillery regiment platoon leader Xue Mingfang reporting for duty."
This was the worker sent by the Military Region to help her manage the 271.
Chen Meilan had never been a commander and didn't quite know how to act like one, so she asked, "Just you alone?" Seeing that he was still saluting, she added, "At ease... no, no, just dismiss."
Xue Mingfang bent down and started working, still smiling. "It's just me for now, but as soon as you give the order, we can assemble 500 people. Commander Liu and Commander Yan said that the new era's war is an economic war without gunpowder. Our enemy is still capitalism, but now we don't use artillery, we use products. You are our commander, leading us to win this economic battle. We only follow your orders!"
Chen Meilan's scalp tingled, her vision blurred, and her legs felt weak.
Five hundred people would need salaries, they all needed to eat. She felt she might not be up to this commander role.
But the children were happy. With a guest at home, mom surely wouldn't punish them now.
They all helped, assisting this handsome uncle in cleaning up the garbage and tidying the place.
Seeing him reach for the clothes, Chen Meilan quickly said, "Xiao Xue, leave it, I'll do it."
Xue Mingfang had already wrung out the clothes. The spin cycle was just spinning but not draining. With his experience, he gave the washing machine a slap, and it immediately obeyed his command, starting up with a whir.
Taking a large broom, Xue Mingfang swept the ground clean, then sprinkled laundry detergent. With a hose in one hand and a scrub brush in the other, he started scrubbing the floor. With a few children helping, half the courtyard was cleaned in the blink of an eye.
He was like a cleaning machine with emotions.
Because from time to time, he would look at the children and smile, occasionally even doing a little dance move, making the children laugh with delight.
...
Meanwhile, Yan Zhao was about to be promoted to full bureau chief.
But with all the leaders having major issues with him, this time it was Sun Nutao's influence that made it happen.
On his deathbed, when the city bureau leaders came to visit him, Sun Nutao should have made some requests for them, such as solving employment issues for his children, or since the Ximei Factory wasn't doing well, asking the leaders to arrange a new, better job for Zou Jie.
But he didn't mention any of these. He only made one request: despite Yan Zhao's insufficient age and experience, he must be made the chief of the Jindong District Police Station.
Moreover, he held each city bureau leader's hand and pleaded with them to be more lenient towards Yan Zhao, not to secretly report to higher-ups about him, saying things like he was pursuing absolute power or that he was dictatorial.
Using such methods to squeeze him out and prevent him from rising to the city bureau.
In fact, everyone knew clearly that the reason some people reported such things was only for their own interests.
But if they brought Yan Zhao down and everyone pursued their own interests, would that really be good?
He wanted the leaders to search their consciences and ask themselves this question.
With a person on their deathbed speaking, of course everyone kept nodding in agreement.
"Director Sun really makes one feel ashamed!" Outside, Ma Bo and Xiong Xiangdang sighed, "He didn't make a single request about his own children, only protecting our Director Yan."
Deputy Director Zheng of the city bureau, well-versed in the ways of officialdom, smiled and said, "Old Sun protects Yan Zhao, and Yan Zhao will have to look after his daughter out of gratitude in the future. It's just a mutual benefit. Sun Nutao, that old fox, still calculating even on his sickbed!"
Ma Bo and Xiong Xiangdang were instantly angered, almost losing their temper at the leader. They felt that Director Sun was selfless, dedicated to his work, and beyond reproach.
Looking at Deputy Director Zheng's back, Ma Bo said resentfully, "People with dirty minds see everything as dirty!"
As soon as the doctor pronounced Sun Nutao dead, Yan Zhao came out of the hospital room.
He hadn't been home for a week, and the children were starting school the day after tomorrow. Chen Meilan was also on her period these days, so her mood was surely not good. He estimated she was probably fuming at home.
On the bus, he was already feeling uneasy.
After getting off the bus, just as he reached the village entrance, he saw Yan Xishan with a travel bag in one hand and several colorful water guns in the other, looking like a wasteful dog. Yan Zhao paused but didn't greet him.
As the saying goes, even enemies can be friends. At this moment, Yan Xishan was aware of Chen Meilan's anger and knew her temper well. Remembering their past arguments and how Chen Meilan had once tied him up and beaten him without a word, he felt a kinship with Yan Zhao. Out of sympathy, he called out to Yan Zhao: "Third brother, hurry home and get to work. Meilan's a bit angry today." He was worried Yan Zhao might get beaten too.
Yan Zhao stopped, but looking at Yan Xishan with spicy skin on his glasses, milk stains on his head, and completely soaked clothes, he suddenly didn't feel so rushed anymore.
People need comparisons, and compared to Yan Xishan, Yan Zhao felt he wasn't doing too badly.
In any case, it was time to hurry home and get to work.
As soon as he entered, he found the courtyard spotlessly clean. Chen Meilan was in the bedroom, hanging round clothes under the air conditioner, using hot air to dry Little Wang's wet winter holiday homework. However, the bedroom was in disarray, and when he touched the mattress, it was damp.
"Shall I take apart the bedding and change it?" Yan Zhao instantly entered work mode.
After all, Yuanyuan was a girl and couldn't have caused too much trouble. This mess was clearly the work of Little Wang and Little Wolf.
But surprisingly, Chen Meilan remained calm and didn't lose her temper: "No need, you go busy yourself with work. We have someone taking care of the housework, a handsome young man, dashing and charming."
Who could it be? Surely not Yan Xishan?
Does wearing a suit make one dashing, and putting on glasses make one charming?
Had he finished the housework before leaving?
Yan Zhao took a step back, not only feeling jealous but also extremely angry. In that instant, he turned into a hedgehog.
However, he couldn't stay angry for long.
Because from outside, the three children came in, crowding around a young man in military uniform with fair skin and a beaming smile. The young man was about 25 or 26 years old, indeed youthful and charming. He put down the trash can, rolled up his sleeves, and entered the kitchen.
The three children, like squirrels, bounced and jumped as they followed him in.
