In the room, Master’s wife stared intently at Yun Qing. The atmosphere was somewhat tense. He swallowed, looking at her as if waiting for his sentence.
“Yun Qing, what do you think of Zhenhua?” Master’s wife asked with a smile.
Zhenhua? Master’s youngest daughter, Lin Zhenhua?
“Master’s wife, Junior Sister Zhenhua is only eighteen, right? She’s seven years younger than me. This... wouldn’t be appropriate, would it?” Yun Qing had never expected that Master’s wife would be proposing her own daughter to him.
“What’s inappropriate about it? What’s wrong with a seven-year difference? There are couples with differences of more than ten years. It’s nothing unusual.
“That girl has had this in mind for a long time. If she weren’t still in school, she would have told you outright already. She’ll graduate in another six months, but finding work isn’t easy, and we also don’t want her sent to the countryside to get married.
“We used quite a few connections to find Old Third a job back then. Now that it’s her turn, we’ll have to wait a little longer. You know how strictly they’re watching people being sent to the countryside now. There are always malicious people who spend all day thinking about reporting others. With things so sensitive, we have to be careful about everything.
“If you don’t object, start seeing each other for now. Your master and I will also hurry to find her a job. If you two get along, then everything will work out perfectly. If you don’t, it simply means you weren’t meant for each other. We’ll go back to how things were, and it won’t affect anything.
“What do you think?”
Yun Qing did not object. If she did not mind that he was older, what was there for him to dislike? The only difference was that his master would become his father-in-law and his master’s wife would become his mother-in-law. Besides, it was better to keep the benefits within the family.
His junior sister, Lin Zhenhua, was attractive, bright, and poised, with an open and cheerful personality. She was an excellent young woman. Although she was the youngest, she was not spoiled; she could handle everything both inside and outside the home and was absolutely the sort of person suited to family life.
“Master’s wife, as long as Junior Sister doesn’t object, I have no opinion. It’s enough that she doesn’t think I’m too old.” Yun Qing did not act coy. What was there to be coy about when he was marrying a woman so much younger than himself?
“She doesn’t mind, she doesn’t mind. Then it’s settled!” Master’s wife said happily. This child had skills and ability. If policy had allowed it, he would have become an engineer long ago. Who would turn down such a son-in-law? If they did not seize the opportunity now and he left in the future, it would be too late for regrets.
When Master’s wife and Yun Qing went outside, Lin Zhenhua stared at her mother. Seeing her mother give an almost imperceptible nod, her large eyes curved into crescent moons. It was done!
Seeing the mother and daughter exchanging meaningful glances, Yun Qing felt helpless. I’m standing right here. Could you two be a little more restrained?
Engineer Lin naturally understood as well. His old face blossomed into a smile. His junior disciple becoming his son-in-law was something he was delighted about. Of his four children, not one had inherited his skills; they were all hopelessly dense.
Having a son-in-law who could inherit his skills was at least some consolation.
Engineer Lin had two sons and two daughters. His eldest son was Lin Zhenxing. His Second Brother, Lin Zhenrong, was already married and worked as an accountant at an agricultural machinery factory. His Old Third, Lin Zhenwang, also worked at First Automobile Works and was currently an apprentice bench fitter. The Fourth Brother was Lin Zhenhua, who was in her final year of high school and had not yet graduated.
Yun Qing and Lin Zhenhua got along very harmoniously. He himself was not demanding; his only flaw was that his work kept him busy and left him no time to accompany her. Having witnessed Engineer Lin’s own history, Lin Zhenhua understood this very well. She would even often bring late-night snacks to the master and disciple whenever he worked overtime.
This caused Engineer Lin to grumble sourly every day about how “daughters grow up and are no longer devoted to their parents.” Of course, if one ignored the smile on the little old man’s face, the words might have carried a little more weight.
After Lin Zhenhua graduated from high school, she and Yun Qing held their wedding. The factory reassigned Yun Qing a home: a typical Su Corporation residential building, a two-bedroom apartment with a living room measuring just over fifty square meters. It was not far from the Lin family’s home; both were in the same family compound.
Lin Zhenhua’s marriage merely meant moving from one building to another. Whenever she did not feel like cooking, she would go back to the Lin family’s home to eat. She not only ate there herself but brought Yun Qing along, making him feel quite embarrassed.
His father-in-law was truly pitiful. Before, he had only supported one daughter; now he had gained a son-in-law as well.
All the family’s money and coupons were in Lin Zhenhua’s hands, and she had the final say over every purchase. He did not even know whether she gave her mother living expenses.
As time passed, Yun Qing’s sense of shame wore thin. His guiding principle became obeying his wife: whatever she said, he did; wherever she told him to eat, that was where they went.
In the second year of their marriage, Lin Zhenhua gave birth to their eldest son, Zhou Heng. Three years later, she gave birth to their younger daughter, Zhou Yi. Yun Qing fed each child a Wisdom-Opening Pill. He did not like foolish children, while also hoping that through diligent study, they could find paths suited to themselves.
That year coincided with the resumption of the college entrance examination. With Yun Qing’s support and encouragement, Lin Zhenhua took the Gaokao. He took it as well, wanting to learn more, especially about the nation’s most important technologies.
He was still young and could not be satisfied with graduating from a secondary technical school. He had had no choice back then, but now that he had an opportunity, he naturally chose to pursue further education.
Lin Zhenhua was admitted to Northeast China Normal University and would eventually become a proud people’s teacher.
Yun Qing applied to the aerospace program at Harbin Institute of Technology, a five-year course.
He understood that this was the kind of major from which one disappeared immediately after graduation, but he did not want to give it up. He did not know which worlds he would travel to in the future, and learning more would always prove useful.
He simply felt sorry for Lin Zhenhua and the children. Without ten or twenty years, he would not be able to return.
During the time he could spend with them, he would accompany them as much as possible. He only hoped that, afterward, the three of them would not resent him.
By the time Yun Qing graduated, no one from the Chu family had come looking for him. That made sense. He had left the capital city, and Chu Ying had died young. After several decades, finding someone would be like searching for a needle in a haystack.
That jade thumb ring remained gathering dust in the Space. When he left this world, he would leave it to the children. It could still be sold for money at a critical moment, so it could count as an inheritance.
After graduating, Yun Qing hurried home for a visit. By then, Lin Zhenhua had already graduated and become a high school teacher. Zhou Heng was already in elementary school, and Zhou Yi had also started attending a Yuhong class. His mother-in-law picked up and dropped off the children every day.
Lin Zhenhua was not foolish. With an engineer for a father, she understood many things.
“I won’t ask where you’re going, and I won’t ask what you’re going to do. But remember that you still have a family, a wife, and children. No matter how long it takes, I’ll wait for you to come back.”
Choking back sobs, Lin Zhenhua packed Yun Qing’s luggage. She was strong and proud, but she was also delicate and vulnerable. She, too, needed someone to hold up the sky for her.
“Don’t worry. I’ll definitely come back. It may take a very long time, but you must take good care of yourself. I hope that one day, you’ll be proud of me.” Yun Qing felt a pang in his heart, but he did not regret his decision.
Twenty years later, Dragon Nation’s first live broadcast of a crewed spaceflight drew the attention of the entire world.
Lin Zhenhua saw that figure on the television at first glance. Like countless other engineers, he was busy working on this landmark moment.
Tears blurred her vision. If one listened carefully, one could still hear her muttering curses: “You damn old man, you haven’t come home for twenty years, and you haven’t even sent a single letter. I thought you were dead! Just wait until you come back. I’ll break your legs.”
“Mom, who are you cursing?” Zhou Yi, who was still studying for her graduate degree, asked in confusion.
“No one. You heard wrong.” Lin Zhenhua wiped away a tear and stubbornly denied it.
“Sigh! I wonder where my brother went. He even managed to get lost while attending university. Honestly.” Zhou Yi stared at the television and complained.
Lin Zhenhua did not respond, but she understood perfectly. Where else could he have gone? He must simply be with that damn old man. The two of them had taken the same university entrance examination, attended the same university, and studied the same major. Hmph! At least he was filial.
She turned to look at her younger daughter again. Daughters really were better. Her daughter had attended the same university as her, and after graduation, she could keep her company every day. What use was having a son?
Only later did she learn that having a daughter was no use either. Her daughter likewise could not stay by her side every day.
Yun Qing retired at the age of sixty-five and returned to a sanatorium in the Capital. In his later years, only the married couple remained, bickering noisily every day. Lin Zhenhua, now in her sixties, was pampered by Yun Qing like a child. He made up for all the years he had been absent from her life.
Yun Qing divided the gold left behind by Chu Ying into two portions and gave them to his son and daughter. He gave the jade thumb ring to his son, then found a set of jadeite jewelry in the Space and gave it to his daughter.
It was only then that Lin Zhenhua learned that her husband was not only highly educated but also a dazzling golden treasure.