However, if her older brother thought their mother would take his side, he was probably going to be disappointed.
Sure enough, as soon as Yun’s mother heard her son’s words, she clapped her hands with delight. “Haha, isn’t this wonderful! The day your father had the accident and was taken to the hospital, Doctor Ji helped us a lot. The moment I saw him, I thought, what a handsome young man! And he’s highly skilled in medicine with great morals. Any girl lucky enough to marry him would be truly fortunate. I never expected that luck would fall to our Su Su.”
At the mention of the accident, Yun Huaimin’s expression finally softened a bit.
After all, he knew Ji Xiangtian was indeed an excellent person. It’s just… he just felt really annoyed about it.
He had treated the guy like a brother, and the guy wanted to become his brother-in-law.
Yun’s mother and father could see their eldest son’s discomfort. Instead of addressing it further with him, they continued asking Ji Xiangtian about his family background.
——
“Yes, I’m an only child. My parents are both doctors at the island’s military hospital. My father is the head of the surgery department, and my mother is the head of the gynecology department. They’re usually very busy at work and rarely stay at home.”
“Our family’s ancestral home is in Beicheng (Northern City), but many years ago, due to work transfers, we first moved to Yangcheng. Later, when the military region was being established on this island, they were transferred here to work at the military hospital.”
“Besides the military housing on the island, we still have a qilou (a distinctive Cantonese arcade building) in Yangcheng and a small courtyard house in Beicheng.”
“On my father’s side, I also have an older uncle and a younger aunt…”
At this point, Yun Su noticed a momentary pause in Ji Xiangtian’s tone. But he quickly continued.
“I’m 21 years old. I previously worked at the military hospital in Yangcheng. After transferring back to the island, my rank will increase by one level…”
“My monthly salary and allowances add up to 68 yuan, plus various ration tickets…”
These self-introductions were exceptionally detailed, leaving Yun Su somewhat stunned. They had just started dating, and she truly hadn’t expected Ji Xiangtian to voluntarily disclose so much information—it was almost like what someone would say before getting married.
And such sincere behavior indeed won over Yun’s father and mother.
If before they had simply thought Ji Xiangtian was a good doctor, now the two elders were practically treating him like half a son.
Simply put, this man was honest and trustworthy—someone you could rely on.
Watching her parents’ expressions change, Yun Su couldn’t resist secretly giving Ji Xiangtian a thumbs-up.
This move was brilliant, absolutely brilliant.
Sincerity truly was the ultimate skill.
Even her older brother’s somewhat sour expression softened considerably after Ji Xiangtian’s introduction.
“Hmph, just don’t bully my sister in the future…”
“You brat. Your parents are still here! What are you saying?” Yun’s father glared at his eldest son, though inwardly he was pleased that his son was so protective of his sister.
With three children in the family, the parents hoped they would look out for one another—unlike the second branch, whose members were constantly at each other’s throats.
——
“Alright. We have no objection to you two young people dating. But just one thing—you must behave appropriately, understand?”
Yun’s father spoke, and Yun’s mother nodded in agreement. Ji Xiangtian repeatedly nodded, promising he would take good care of Yun Su.
With that, this sudden meeting with the parents finally came to a good conclusion.
Ji Xiangtian breathed a sigh of relief and broke into a relaxed smile.
“Alright, alright, everyone come help out. We’re having a seafood feast tonight…”
Her daughter had suddenly found such a good match. Yun’s mother was now overjoyed. She cheerfully called out for everyone in the family to help prepare the basket of seafood Yun Su had brought back.
She didn’t stand on ceremony with her prospective son-in-law Ji Xiangtian either, pressing a small knife into his hand and telling him to help her eldest son clean the fish.
Seeing that there was nothing for her to do at the moment, Yun Su simply fetched a small stool, sat down, and shelled some longan to eat while watching them work.
——
“Now that you’ve decided to be together, have you thought about work?”
Yun’s father came out of the main room, squatted down next to his daughter, and asked quietly.
Yun Su nodded. “I’ve been going to the packaging and measuring team whenever I can to earn some work points. Every day when I have time, I go clamming to collect some seafood. I’ll wait for a good opportunity down the road.”
The recent trip to Yangcheng to find her a job hadn’t made any progress. Yun Su wasn’t worried.
It was now the end of June 1974. The resumption of the college entrance examinations (gaokao) wouldn’t happen until the end of 1977. That gave her three years. She was 18 this year and had just graduated from high school. At 21 three years later, she’d still be very young.
Her plan had always been to wait for the gaokao to resume, go to university, then graduate and find a comfortable job. In the meantime, she’d save up some money and later buy some land in Yangcheng or Pengcheng, living off rental income in the future. That would be plenty good enough.
She already had a plan for saving money.
This plan wouldn’t change much with Ji Xiangtian’s arrival.
Over the next three years, she would get to know Ji Xiangtian. If they were compatible, they would marry and have children. By the time the children were a bit older, she would be free to attend university.
And the future plans Ji Xiangtian had shared with her earlier could proceed right alongside hers. There was no conflict between them.
Seeing that his daughter had a clear plan, Yun’s father didn’t say anything more. But he resolved to save up more money. With Ji Xiangtian’s conditions being so good, their family couldn’t fall too short.
…
Yun Feng sat in her own yard, staring at the lively scene across the way. That man called Ji Xiangtian was actually holding a knife and cleaning fish, getting along with her uncle’s family as if they were one big happy family.
This was something she hadn’t expected.
Yun Feng began to worry that Yun Su might actually be developing something with Ji Xiangtian. If that were the case, then this Ji character wasn’t much good either—falling for a lazy, good-for-nothing like Yun Su.
Unfortunately, her mother had gone over there and come back empty-handed, only complaining about how stingy her aunt-in-law was, even nickeling and diming over some longan.
Yun Feng felt nothing but contempt for a mother like that. No wonder her aunt had kicked her out.
“Elder sister, when are you and my brother-in-law getting married?”
Her second sister Yun Yan’s voice suddenly sounded in her ear. Yun Feng was surprised to hear it. Of all her younger sisters, this second one was the most competitive with her. She was usually sarcastic and cutting. Yet now her tone was rather pleasant.
Yun Feng narrowed her eyes slightly and asked with amusement, “Why? Do you need something?”
Yun Yan was also staring at the Yun Su’s house across the way. Without turning around, she said directly, “After you get married, introduce me to someone in the military too. Then we sisters can look out for each other in the army.”
“You think you’re that deserving? Don’t forget how you’ve treated me all these years.”
Yun Yan shrugged indifferently. “If I marry into the military, the benefits to you will be even greater, right?”
Yun Yan was born the same year as Yun Su. Although her mother hadn’t said anything when she came back, Yun Yan had noticed that Yun Su and that male comrade seemed to be a couple. If someone like Yun Su could find a good match, then she, Yun Yan, was no worse.
There weren’t many connections in the family. The aunt in Yangcheng looked down on them. The uncle in the commune headquarters rarely came back. That being the case, it would still be beneficial for Yun Feng to marry into the military. At the very least, she’d have a wider circle of acquaintances, and it wouldn’t be bad if she could introduce her to a soldier. Otherwise, marrying into a nearby fishing village would mean being a rural woman for life!
“And why would I do that?” Yun Feng scoffed, thinking Yun Yan must still be dreaming. She simply wouldn’t introduce anyone to Yun Yan. Let her marry a fisherman and suffer hardship her whole life.
Yun Yan chuckled twice. “Because your future mother-in-law looks down on you. Don’t think you can hide it from the family just because you keep it to yourself. I went to the military compound and asked around. Your future mother-in-law doesn’t approve of a fishing village girl like you. And here you are, bragging all over the village about dating and getting married. Ha. If you can’t win over that mother-in-law, you won’t have any happy days at all.”
Hearing this, Yun Feng was furious.
But she wasn’t one to take things lying down. She had no intention of introducing Yun Yan to any good prospects. She said coldly, “Then you’d better keep your mouth shut. Because if my business falls apart, you won’t have a good time either.”
——
Yun Su had no idea that across the way, Yun Feng and Yun Yan were having a major blow-up.
All she knew was that her own family had a very lively afternoon. After everyone worked together to clean the basket of seafood, Yun’s mother took it to the kitchen and started cooking.
Yun Su didn’t know how to cook, so she just helped out on the sidelines.
By five o’clock, the whole family was eating a seafood feast in the yard.
“It’s a shame there’s no supply point in the village. Some beer or soda to go with this would make it even better.”
Yun Huaimin sighed as he ate.
Yun Huaifu (Fu Zai) got all excited at the mention of soda. Unfortunately, their place really was remote, with no supply point. The nearest supply and marketing cooperative was in town.
Speaking of which, the saleswoman at that cooperative, Chen Xiangye, had caused a scene at Yun Feng’s house a while back. Lately, she’d heard that Chen Xiangye hadn’t been seen at the cooperative. Maybe she’d been transferred.
Ji Xiangtian heard his future brother-in-law’s longing for soda and said with a smile, “Tomorrow, your sister and I are going to the supply and marketing cooperative on the island. I’ll bring you back a bottle.”
Fu Zai’s face lit up with joy. “Brother-in-law, really? Really?”
Yun Huaimin rolled his eyes. “You little brat, call him Brother Ji. You’re not married yet, so don’t call him brother-in-law.”
Their banter was very cheerful, and Yun Su found herself laughing along.
After dinner, Ji Xiangtian had to start his journey back.
The place he lived was some distance from the village. He needed to go to town to catch the bus.
“Huaimin, go borrow the village oxcart and take Xiao Ji to town to catch his bus.”
Yun’s mother instructed her eldest son to borrow the oxcart, then turned and went inside, returning with a bag of homemade dried scallops (conpoy).
“Take these home with you. You can make congee with them, or soup. If you don’t have time to cook, you can even eat them raw.”
When Yun Su saw Ji Xiangtian about to decline, she reached out, took the bag, and stuffed it into his hands. “Don’t stand on ceremony. I didn’t stand on ceremony with your pocket watch. These dried scallops are homemade, so you shouldn’t stand on ceremony with me either.”
Ji Xiangtian nodded and obediently accepted the gift. Once the oxcart arrived, he said goodbye to the Yun family and prepared to leave.
Truth be told, he was very reluctant to part from his newly confirmed partner. After spending half a day with her, he still wasn’t satisfied. He wished he could secretly take her home and hide her away.
——
“Brother Min, Brother Min, wait for me.”
Yun Feng saw Ji Xiangtian get onto the oxcart and immediately ran out of her house.
“Comrade Ji, you’re heading back to the military family compound, right? Would you mind taking these things to Comrade Gu Zhengrong for me?”
Ji Xiangtian looked down at the package in Yun Feng’s hands—a bag of dried squid.
He shook his head. “I don’t have much of an acquaintance with Comrade Gu. It wouldn’t be appropriate for me to deliver things for you.”
With that, Ji Xiangtian looked at Yun Huaimin. “Big Brother, let’s go.”
Yun Huaimin didn’t much care for Yun Feng’s move either. He nodded, flicked the whip, and the oxcart clattered away.
Many of the neighbors had been keeping an eye on the situation. From Yun Su bringing a man home in the afternoon to that same man being sent off by Yun Huaimin, they had thought about coming over to join the fun. But after seeing Liu Zhaodi get chased out by Ma Ailan, they’d dropped the idea.
Now that Yun Feng had made this scene, the elderly woman from next door, Aunt Lin, walked over. “Ailan, that young man—he’s your son Min’s friend, isn’t he?”
Yun Su’s mother planted her hands on her hips and said proudly, “That’s my Su Su’s boyfriend. A head doctor at the military hospital!”
“Oh my, that’s quite a catch!”
A number of neighbors who had been eavesdropping gathered around Ma Ailan and began showering her with compliments.
Yun Feng heard this answer and gritted her teeth in anger.
Hmph, so that man was blind enough to fancy Yun Su. But a family like his would never agree to their son marrying some fishing village girl.
Even Gu Zhengrong’s family, which came from a rural background, looked down on a capable girl like her. There was even less reason to expect a doctor’s family like Ji Xiangtian’s to accept it.
Unfortunately for Yun Feng, she was destined to be disappointed.
——
Because the moment Ji Xiangtian got home, his mother immediately pulled him aside and bombarded him with questions. Even his father, who usually worked overtime, wasn’t working today. Instead, he was sitting on the living room sofa, pretending to read the newspaper.
“How did it go? Did the girl agree to be with you or not?”
Ji Xiangtian handed over the bag of dried scallops he was carrying. “She agreed. The girl said yes. Her parents agreed too.”
“Oh my, look at you go!”
Ji’s mother was so overjoyed she clapped her hands, forgetting even to take the package from her son. She dashed over to her husband and snatched the newspaper right out of his hands.
“Did you hear that? Did you hear that? And you said our son was doomed to be a bachelor. Look at him, just look at him! In a single day, he confessed to a girl and even met her parents!”
After saying this, Ji’s mother immediately realized something wasn’t right. Hang on—her son had left the house that morning carrying only a wooden box and nothing else.
He… he had gone to the girl’s house empty-handed?
At this thought, Ji’s mother gave her son several exasperated smacks on the back.
“You fool! Are you stupid or what? You show up empty-handed for your first visit. It’s a good thing the girl’s family is decent, or they would have chased you out with a broom.”
Ji Xiangtian felt it was quite rude too. He had been so focused on confessing that day that he’d completely forgotten about gifts. So that afternoon, he’d already arranged with Yun Su that they would visit a few supply and marketing cooperatives the next day to buy some gifts to bring over.
After hearing her son’s explanation, Ji’s mother gave a couple of dry laughs. “And you’re waiting to buy them tomorrow? I’ll pack some things for you tonight. You can just take them over tomorrow.”
This son of hers was still too thick-headed. It was really worrisome.
Just then, footsteps sounded outside, and a middle-aged woman walked in. “Oh dear, am I interrupting?”
Ji’s mother was delighted to see her. “What a rare guest! Come in, come in, sit here. Xiangtian, go pour your auntie a cup of tea.”
“No need to stand on ceremony. I’m just resting my feet for a moment here.”
The visitor was none other than the wife of a deputy chief of staff in the military region.
She had recently become somewhat well-known in the military compound, though not through her own doing. The main thing was that she had been preparing to introduce a match to young Commander Gu. But the day before the blind date, Commander Gu’s mother had had an accident. Fortunately, a girl from a fishing village had saved her.
But that same fishing village girl had then started dating Commander Gu.
So the intended match had been left hanging.
Wasn’t that putting the woman in a difficult position?
“Well, I don’t mind if you laugh at me. I usually don’t like playing matchmaker. The one time I do, this happens. I figured it just wasn’t meant to be and let it go. But then Commander Gu’s mother came to me again, saying all sorts of nice things—that her son wasn’t really involved with the fishing village girl, and that she would resolve the matter tomorrow.”
Ji’s mother was taken aback. That young Commander Gu’s mother was no pushover.
“I came by to confirm things with Xiao Gu one more time, but it turns out he’d been sent out on an urgent mission. I don’t want to deal with this anymore. I don’t want to end up alienating everyone…”
After listening to the woman pour out her frustrations, Ji’s mother didn’t feel annoyed at all.
The truth was, the story was so convoluted that she was quite curious to see how it would all turn out in the end.
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